ngiKhathele

After a weekend prepping my mother’s large house for sale and ngikhathele - (Zulu) I am tired!

And it ain’t over yet.
Did I bite off more than I can chew?
Possibly.

News blues…

The big news in South Africa? Level 1 is on! Be careful out there: Covid-19 infections and fatalities continue.  Wear your mask, wash your hands, socially distance, but go to work, travel….
Talking about travel, yesterday I heard an unfamiliar sound overhead: an aeroplane/airplane. Haven’t heard an aeroplane since Lockdown began. What’s more, it looked like SAA – even though that airline is teetering on the edge of closure due to corruption-inspired bankruptcy.
If SAA can fly high, so can I. So can you!

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A tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, RIP: How she spent her last weeks. 

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Other news out of the US is too depressing, too much same old/same old Trumpie, just too much alarm to share.

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In South Africa, the barely functional post office does not have to pay retirement funds to post office retirees.

The post office retirement fund has failed in its court bid to force the SA Post Office (Sapo) to continue making contributions to the fund despite the tough financial situation the postal agency finds itself in due to Covid-19. Last week the high court in Pretoria dismissed the fund's case with costs. In her judgment, Judge Elizabeth Kubushi said the economic downturn resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic was of a magnitude that no-one could have predicted.
The fund took Sapo to court after not receiving members' contributions for May, June and July. In its arguments, the fund said its concern was that the member contributions are deducted from their salaries but not paid into the fund.
The fund argued that the benefit of pension contributions is a legal obligation which must be complied with, adding that according to the fund rules, this must be done monthly.
In response, Sapo agreed that it should have paid the contributions as it was supposed to, but said under the current conditions it would not have been possible.

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Jerusalema – the ultimate: African animals join in… (4:31 mins)

Healthy futures, anyone?

Along with fear and uncertainty, it was clear Covid-19 and its accompanying PPE would create a giant pile of plastic discards. This is the quintessential paradox of modern life: that which makes life safer and more convenient also destroys the ecosystem, even the planet.
As Rumi said, “heedlessness is a pillar that sustains our world….”

“Cleaning volunteers asked to record plastic PPE found on UK beaches: Beach clean organiser wants to assess amount of masks and gloves discarded during coronavirus crisis.”
 Volunteers in this year’s Great British Beach Clean are being asked to record the personal protective equipment (PPE) they find, to get a clearer picture of the volume of plastic masks and gloves discarded during the coronavirus pandemic and their impact on the environment.
The Marine Conservation Society (MCS), which organises the annual September event, is urging people to organise their own surveys with smaller groups of friends, family and “bubbles”, in line with government guidance.
“It’s likely we’ve all seen masks and gloves littering our local area, whether that’s on the coast or on our street” said Lizzie Prior, MCS beachwatch officer. “Much like other single-use litter, face masks and plastic gloves put our seas and marine life in danger. PPE can be mistaken for food and ingested by marine life or trap animals in the elastic straps of face masks as we’ve seen recently. It’s so upsetting to see another form of single-use litter polluting the UK’s beautiful beaches, and we’re determined to ensure this doesn’t become a new normal.

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The Lincoln Project:
The Notorious RBG  (1:12 mins)
Goodness  (0:55 mins)
If Trump is re-elected, he’ll rip the Constitution to shreds. He’s told us so.  (1:20 mins)

Trump has turned the US into a “shithole country”… That’s about the only thing he’s succeeded in doing in this entire life. What a legacy.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

That plan for my Sunday that I expressed in yesterday’s post - stay home, work in the garden, don my waders and remove fast growing pond weed, and attend to my compost pile? None of that happened. Instead, I prepped my mom’s large house and began to box her now semi-abandoned property – bed linens, clothes, and pots, pans, other kitchen impedimenta.
My mother’s remaining longtime domestic worker is here working, too. Due to privacy, I’ve hesitated to share names, but it’s appropriate to recognize Martha’s efforts. She’s a trooper and I’m glad she’s working alongside me.
Martha, as usual, will prepare breakfast for the remaining two dogs – and for Jessica, the dog that accompanied my mother. I’ll drive Jessica’s breakfast to the Care Center. Yes, for now Jessica has hot food delivered. I thought that life would become easier with fewer dogs around, but no – it gets more complex and more resource intensive.