The South African Weather Services Amendment Bill will see citizens issuing any “severe weather or pollution-related warning” without written permission from the South African Weather Service, facing a multi-million rand fine and a possible 10 years imprisonment.
(Click on the pic to see Jerm’s page)
There’s a story about a fisherman running low on bait and! He spots a snake! With a frog in its mouth!
So he grabs the snake, shakes it over the bait box ’till it drops the frog, now he’s stuck with an angry snake in his hand.
After thinking about this he grabs his bottle of whisky, pulls the cork with his teeth, and pours a dram or two down the snake’s throat, releases the snake.
Ten minutes later something taps on his foot… yes, the snake, with another frog.
And I’m telling you this because why Misty came in with a gecko, we took the gecko, gave him a fishy.
Second time it happened, we joked about the fisherman.
Third time it happened, we stopped joking about it.
Hang on, gotta go, cat just came in with something in his mouth…
… never seem to find the time.
From The New Yorker, via Give Me Something to Read, via MetaFilter, this fascinating article on how we process the world around us, and why, perhaps, years seem to fly by more quickly as we get older.
“This explains why we think that time speeds up when we grow older,” Eagleman said—why childhood summers seem to go on forever, while old age slips by while we’re dozing. The more familiar the world becomes, the less information your brain writes down, and the more quickly time seems to pass.
For me, 2011 was quite eventful. We survived a trip to the USA with two teenagers, I got a whole bunch of gun licences, and I even managed to get some work done on the house.
Not great, but not bad.
Knysna Heads. We’re off to purchase a substantial quantity of the fine produce of the Mitchell’s Brewing Company. Oh, and maybe some food.
* Apologies to Tamara.
It’s a beautifully made film, with a bunch of good actors, lots of leverguns, good CGI, everything… except a decent plot.
A great idea which could have been implemented a LOT better.
Ah well.
Legalize hemp. I’m nae so fussed about the smoking of it but we’re eventually gonna need a lot of rope. — Roberta X, about the taxes to support government-run advertising campaigns.
[…]
Not surprisingly, Occupy Wall Street has become a magnet for thieves and con-men. As one organizer complains, “Stealing is our biggest problem at the moment.”
Then there are the bums. Originally, from what I can tell, street people were actively recruited by the Occupiers as a way of adding to their somewhat anemic numbers. But the naïve young hippies who make up the bulk of the movement are quickly discovering what the rest of us, with the benefit of actual life experience, already know about “the homeless.”
Over at Occupy Boston, a protester complains, “It’s turning into us against them. They come in here and they’re looking at it as a way of getting a free meal and a place to crash, which is totally fine, but they don’t bring anything to the table at all.” Another report concludes with a similar sentiment.
“We have compassion toward everyone. However, we have certain rules and guidelines,” said Lauren Digioia, 26, a member of the sanitation committee. “If you’re going to come here and get our food, bedding and clothing, have books and medical supplies for no charge, they need to give back,” Digioia said. “There’s a lot of takers here and they feel entitled.”
These kids had better watch out. If they start thinking that like this, pretty soon they might find themselves at a Tea Party rally.
[…]
Yet you have to sympathize with the cooks who have been besieged by moochers. Behind the hypocrisy, there are real lessons to be learned: lessons about the relationship between productive people and freeloaders. About the need for police to protect decent people from criminals. About how con-men and power-lusters always take over utopian schemes for their own benefit. About the taxing power and unaccountability of central authorities.
I found this forgotten picture on my cellphone. Took it in Los Angeles in June.
This is 1.75 liters of Jim, normal selling price $23, special price unfortunately not in the frame (you do need to be some type of cardholder member for the special price).
$23 is R180 to R200, depending on what the exchange rate is doing. For that, I can get 750ml of Jim locally.
*sigh*
I mean, look at Marko’s! But hey, everybody’s doing it, so…
Just your generic Swiss Army knife. This is my third — I bought #1 in Switzerland in 1984 and wore it out about two years ago — the corkscrew tore out of the frame. I promptly replaced it — they’re cheap, less than a case of beer — and shortly afterwards donated the replacement to a baggage handler in San Francisco after forgetting to stick the damn thing in the checked luggage.
It has everything I need in an everyday carry knife. A bottle opener, another bottle opener, and occasionally I even use the blade.
Thanks Og.
Driving to work this morning.
See that little white car parked on the side of the road?
Yes, that’s the only piece of yellow line for about two kilometers.