Stormy Skies And Gales.
With winter approaching, we’re having a typical late autumn day. It is unpleasant outside. The sky is clear but there is a cold gale-force South Easter howling round the corners of the house.
When the Portuguese first arrived here, the wind blew them off the map and they aptly named it Cape of Storms. Later, when Sir Francis Drake arrived here on a glorious summer day and he saw Table Mountain in all its glory, he renamed us to Cape of Good Hope but I think the Portuguese got it right first time.
I’m living upstairs while working on the house. It is warm and snug here. I have a fire going and I’m sitting at the window looking down at the street while the wind bends the trees and chases the reds, browns, and gold of autumn down the road. There is an ominous bank of clouds sitting on the northern horizon but it won’t rain yet. It is the wrong wind for that. Our rain comes with the North Western wind.
They call this wind the Cape Doctor because it brings rain to the interior of the country but doctor or no doctor; it is no good omen to us here in Cape Town. This is the wind that takes roofs off and blows shacks over, starting fires in the process. A lot of poor families may be homeless by tomorrow. And if the wind turns, the rain will soon follow to add to their misery.
Let’s be grateful for having a roof – no matter how humble - over our heads. Not everybody have that privilege.
You have a great day out there!
Comments (38)
I myself loves the winter season.
PS. I do hope that! Everyone will be alright there. And their homes will be safe....
I'm still saving for my flight ticket
Almost midnight here. I'm off to bed soon
So much to do and so few resources.
At the rate you're saving for that plain ticket, you shuld get here two days after my 90th birthday.
But I keep on hoping. Especially after some other gals have apparently written me off as a bad job.
Sleep tight!
You can always ask somebody. Someone can always lead you to something that you need.
Few people realize the extend of the poverty in Africa. Many time a family of six or seven people live in a wood and cardboard shack about 3M X 3M. And when the neighbors are just as badly off, there is nobody to ask.
Indeed, you normally learn too late who your friends really are. Enemies, on the other hand, reveal themselves early.
Where do they use the rest room & bath?
I do know what you mean by that!
Those are things we take for granted. A bucket of cold water takes care of washing but the rest you can only imagine.
That is very sad!
And the real sadness is the the help, when it arrives, disappear into the pockets od corrupt officials and greedy politicians.
Spring time here...not so cold, not too hot...but some days can be very dusty and can make me grumpy
Yes, it gets cold out your way too but you are lucky in the respect that your rain comes in summer. It is cold but it is dry. Winter in Cape Town is like a baby. When it is not wet, it is full of winds and mostly both at the same time.
How lucky you are to look forward to summer. I don't like winter and I think we're going to have a long and cold winter.
No, it is cold here in winter. Luckily we only get snow on the mountains. Never down here below. But when we get the wind from the mountains it cuts through the bone. Icy!!
Summer can be very hot here too but evenings are perfect for walking around and the nights are perfect to go out dating...
Our nights are pleasant during Jan, Feb, and March but with our crime figures it is not always safe to go walking at night.
How great to see you again!
It is not the weather that bothers me. It is the impact of it that saddens me.
One of the good thing here is the safety, I can walk anytime alone, in the middle of the night and not fearing for my safety. I can sleep at home peacefully not worrying if somebody will break in, steal or hurt my family.
That is a rare privilege in this country. Here we have to convert our homes to jails and they will still find their way in; even if they know that you are inside.
@ 123,,bring your picture back on profile,,
I'm in South Africa and the problems here affect us all. I cannot ignore the hardships of other less fortunate. Poverty makes thieves of honest people and an empty stomach corrupts even the noblest.
Yes, safe and warm. But not everybody is that privileged.
I agree about the Flutterby pic. She can bring it back to decorate our blogs again.
You live in heaven.
Anyway, my food is ready. I'l be back in a short while.
Your turn now.
You are right Cat, We take lot of things for granted but never grateful. I hope that wind won't make many people miserable by taking away their homes too, if coldness is not bad enough.
The wind has receded to a light breeze during the night. The skies are clear and we should have a pleasant day if the wind plays along.
Hmm..
You're right. I am grateful to still have a roof, although it's a leaking one.
Well, I spent the day on my roof cleaning off the moss. And I found a few holes in the asbestos sheets. I fixed that and I have two people from tomorrow to paint it so I can get back to fitting the new pelmets. I'm sick of curtains hanging on PVC pipes.
Undoubtedly but it is very hot and humid in summer. Btw, I was born out that way. Empangeni. No, I don't know why. I probably wanted to be close to my mother at the time.