Unanticipated consequences

Day 781 – Thursday, May 5, 2022 – Unanticipated consequences

Arrived in Zurich – 12C and drizzling - 3 hours later than originally scheduled. This, due to a side trip from Johannesburg to Durban before flying to Zurich. That, due to road and rail damage related to flooding after Durban’s torrential rainfall of few weeks ago resulted in no jet fuel transported to Johannesburg. Our filled-to-the-gills Airbus rerouted to Durban, refueled – took an hour to fill so LOTS of jet fuel – and we took off.
This airport’s security required stripping down to seeds and stems – jacket off, shoes off, pockets emptied, “cosmetics” gone through. On discovering a forgotten half-filled bottle of water in my backpack, the security agent admonished me with a stern look and, “No water! Don’t you do that again!”
Hmmm, remember Richard Reid, the guy who carried explosive material in his shoe heels, aka The shoe bomber? Thanks, Richard, for over-vigilant security agents each traveler faces while you spend three consecutive life sentences and 110 years with no possibility of parole in Florence, Colorado’s supermax penitentiary, the prison holding the most dangerous prisoners in the federal system.

***   

I have 3.5 hours to consult my cell phone – airport wi-fi is iffy – stretch my stiff body by walking and exploring Terminal E’s long hallways.
Catching up on the news via spotty wi-fi access, Ukraine has moved off the front pages, replaced by the dismaying news that the US Supreme Court really is considering overturning Roe v Wade. This means abortion becomes a state-by-state elective surgery – and that many states will refuse the procedure to women wanting/needing it. 

Will Americans really stand by for what will be an ongoing disaster?
Potentially, a very thorny socio-political direction ahead. Don’t expect assistance from Democrats who lost their spines and their courage decades ago and who seldom fight back against Republican over-reach.
Might We, the People fight for women’s rights and vote against Republican and evangelical over-reach in the upcoming election?

Days 780 - Wednesday May 4 - Foiled again!

As a goodbye “gift”, Escom/Eskom saw fit – due to “heavily constrained system” – to load shed between 10am and 12:30 pm today. This feels like the kick-a-woman-when-she’s-down syndrome… an expect-the sort-of-unexpected except it is Escom – regularly offering the loadshedding gift that keeps on giving.
No electricity, no wi fi, no printer. Grrrrr!
That was the first half of the day.

***

After I agreed to SwissAir’s conditions related to “a change in flight” I discovered the change: the flight departs Johannesburg and heads to Durban before heading to Zurich. I could have paid for a taxi service to Durban and saved myself a pile of rands if I’d simply noticed the extra tiny print on the itinerary. I’d also have saved myself several hours of wandering around Oliver Tambo Airport, too. But then I likely would been missed an incredibly intrusive security check. I thought Heathrow had intrusive security checks – they do – and today’s agent was almost on a par. Today’s agent removed a full bottle of facial freshener, a 4/5 empty bottle of mouthwash, a metal nail file, and a tiny foldup penknife set that I never use and that has traveled tens of thousands of miles, forgotten in a small pocket of my small backpack.
Passing through security, however, was the good part of today’s story. The stressful part was arriving at SwissAir’s document check kiosk and discovering my Covid test – negative – was unacceptable. It was a day old. This, after asking the test lab about the longevity of the test results and being assured that, because of the double holiday – International Worker’s on Sunday and Monday – I’d best take the test of Friday.
My downfall?
Trusting professionals.

I pushed and pulled my luggage to a series of kiosks each offering one of several varieties of Covid testing. Luckily for me, the kiosk offering the R500 test required me using a QR code that required decent internet connection… that was unavailable on my cell phone. Instead, I ended up at the kiosk offering 15-minute, R150 antigen test. This time, the paperwork was accepted at the document check point.

Daze of no wi fi

Day 779 – Tuesday, May 3, 2022 – Daze of no wi-fi!

One day to take off. Many tasks completed over the last 3 months, some remaining. Today’s focus is on getting to a café that offers wi-fi and confirming flights, purchasing seats (always aisle seats for me) downloading Covid and other required health documents, packing…

Day 778 - Monday, May 2, 2022 – Bundu bashing

I met local neighbor Willem who agreed to act as guide along his section of stream/river.
He approved of my foresight in carrying gumboots (see post below) and, after I donned them, we set off… into a jungle of blackjacks, khaki weed, bug weed, brambles, privet, hip-high thick grasses, 5-foot-tall blossoming grasses, and ankle high tangles and tendrils… all happily benefitting from this year’s ultra-wet summer and unusual amounts of rainfall.
Talk about bundu bashing!
Reaching the stream revealed a body of water flowing softly within well-carved banks surprisingly devoid of plastic bags, bottles, and assorted debris. Alien vegetation sucks enormous amounts of water – which may speak to the low flow volume.
Forests of alien trees block out sunlight and I wondered about otters’ attitudes to living amid aliens. If, like the ANC government, otters require the uprooting and destruction of all aliens in order to flourish, then local otters are doomed.
If otters are neutral toward aliens, the stream as is, flowing through a forest of aliens, provides ideal living conditions. On the plus side, overgrown weeds and aliens require extreme bundu bashing – a tour only the physically strong adventurer with a stout heart would indulge.

Day 777 - Sunday, May 1, 2022 – Kvetching, reprise

Kvetching alert: For several years, I’ve been overcharged by my wi-fi provider. I knew it. I made peace with it. Back then, it was tough to find a provider in my location – a verdant, tall tree-covered shallow valley. Potential providers offering affordable packages depended upon “line of sight” to a cell tower and the many trees precluded that.
Last year, Metrofibre installed underground fibre cable in this semi-rural suburb. But 1) no flexible month-to-month service – why pay high monthly rates when I’m not here year-round? 2) service rates somewhat comparable to current rip-off rate, 3) owned a paid for router for which I’d been overcharged, so why purchase more hardware?
On balance? Yes, it would be “nice” to cease “business” with the pint-size, arrogant, over-charging, “no service after 5pm weekdays and no service on weekends” wannabe cowboy provider. (Wannabe cowboy? After he learned I lived in California, he'd come to the house dressed in cowboy hat, cowboy shirt, jeans, and western-style cowboy boots. His horse? A large, black sedan with highly polished chrome grillwork and throaty mufflers.)
Until today, finding another provider, coupled with imminent departure, made it not worth the hassle of seeking a different provider.
Last month, I used less than half of his minimum 50-gig package. This month, I used two-thirds of the same package. He terminated my service at 5pm on Saturday, 30 May (a weekend).
Co-incidentally, I learned neighbors’ choices of wi-fi services include providers that offer month-to-month, unlimited service at far cheaper rates than The Cowboy.
Unfortunately, now - pre-departure, pre-flight - is when I need wi-fi: 3 set of tickets, misc flight details to track, library books to download, rides to and from airports to organize … so many vital last-minute tasks to complete. And no wi-fi.
Alas, International Workers’ holiday means cafés providing wi-fi with a cup of tea and a scone are likely closed. International Workers’ holiday observed tomorrow means cafés providing wi-fi likely still closed.
I soothe myself with all the patience I can muster: Don’t stress, don’t fuss, don’t fret, try not to kvetch (a tall order)… all will be okay. You have done your Covid test and have your results (negative); you purchased a ticket to Oliver Tambo in Johannesburg. What you don’t have is a confirmation from the taxi service for a ride to the airport, requested two days ago.
No wi-fi and spotty cell service increases stress levels.
You can figure it out.
Don’t fret!
What would put the frosting/icing on this cake of kvetch?
Loadshedding.

***

Good news: Unlike the day before when I walked past his house and called his name, Willem, retired neighbor LINK to post, was home yesterday.
Chatting over the fence, he detailed his dog’s latest ailment – an infected paw, exorbitant vet fees, challenging follow up: soaking the ailing paw 4 times per day, multiple doses of pills multiple times per day, anti-biotics once per day. (South Africans adore their dogs – and talking about them.)
Taking advantage of a lull in his explanation, I invited him into my plan: involve him and other neighbors in cleaning up their section of stream enough to entice otters - and Free Me, the animal rehab and release organization. (Americans adore their wildlife-saving projects – and talking about them.)
The result?
Meet Willem tomorrow at 8:00am for a tour of the stream in his part of the neighborhood, his house the last before the wetlands proper.
My current dilemma?
Touring wetlands calls for wearing gumboots. Should I walk to Willem’s house, gumboots in hand? Or should I drive, gumboots in boot/trunk?
Hmmm. A decision requiring much mulling.
Good natured Willem agreed that, while I’m in California, he’ll invite neighbors to get involved.
Word leaks out, otter families will line up for a spot in a re-hab’d stream (let’s pray they don’t demand wi-fi service…).

Tested - again

News blues

News free day! 

Take a break. 

Stare at your bellybutton... and chuckle at The Lincoln Project: The GOP isn't interested  (1:00 mins)

Healthy planet, anyone?

If you’re in a fragile state of mind today, skip this article. 

If you have the fortitude…

Global heating is causing such a drastic change to the world’s oceans that it risks a mass extinction event of marine species that rivals anything that’s happened in the Earth’s history over tens of millions of years, new research has warned. Accelerating climate change is causing a “profound” impact upon ocean ecosystems that is “driving extinction risk higher and marine biological richness lower than has been seen in Earth’s history for the past tens of millions of years”.

Read “Global heating risks most cataclysmic extinction of marine life in 250m years” >> 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

Had yet another Covid test today, my second test at the same pop-up facility located outside a local hospital. I displayed my vaccination card with my long list of vaccination details. I’m eligible for the second booster on return to California, too. 

The list is a statement on inequality: I’ve had 3, soon 4, Covid vaccinations. Too many people around the world (who seek vaccinations) await their first jab.

***

Immediately after being robbed upon 4 February arrival at Oliver Tambo Airport, I alerted my CA credit union about the loss and requested they replace my credit/debit cards. Done. (Local Standard Bank was less hospitable and I had to drive half an hour to another branch for one measly debit card and an interaction not tinged with suspicion.) I was unable to replace my stolen California phone SIM card with my years old California phone number, my CA driver’s license (acts like SA ID card), or my public transportation debit card, along with library cards and sorted other cards. All must be and will be replaced upon return. 

Upon arrival in CA, my immediate needs include US dollars to pay for public transportation (my dollars were stolen). I NEVER ask anyone to pick me up at SFO, a thirty-minute drive from home under best traffic conditions, but at least 2 hours under “normal” conditions of 6pm Bay Area traffic. I need a alert the person to pick me up at the train station nearest my home (no public phones anywhere anymore). All this with a brain foggy after a 32-hour, southern to northern hemisphere economy class trip.
No phone. No cash. One large bag, one small bag, and one smaller backpack (that, since being robbed, I’ve learned to wear as a front pack).
Oh, joy!

***

International Workers’ Day tomorrow, 1 May… also observed 2 May. 

Irony? A unneeded holiday for South Africa's official unemployed - up to 36 percent of the working-age population.

***

Results of having a long Q-tip poked down my throat and up my nose, seeking coronavirus?
Negative.
Yay!

Up ticks

News blues

In the United States

… the national seven-day average of new COVID cases hit nearly 49,000 up from about 27,000 three weeks earlier. The uptick is likely being driven by BA.2, the new, more transmissible offshoot of Omicron that’s now dominant in the United States. BA.2 does seem to be troubling: In Western Europe and the U.K. in particular, where previous waves have tended to hit a few weeks earlier than they have in the U.S., the variant fueled a major surge in March that outpaced the Delta spike from the summer.
… so far, the official numbers in the U.S. don’t seem to show that a similar wave has made it stateside. But those numbers aren’t exactly reliable these days.

Read more >> 

***

Africa, too

… is seeing an uptick in Covid-19 cases – largely driven by a doubling in cases reported in South Africa, according to the World Health Organization. New Covid cases and deaths on the continent have increased for the first time after declining for more than a month.

Read more >> 

***

The Lincoln Project: Laughing (0:55 mins)

***

On war…

Ukraine – photo essay - April 29, 2022 >> 

Healthy planet, anyone?

© Adam Zyglis | Copyright 2022 Cagle Cartoons

Will the fossil fuel and petrochemical industry respond to California’s attorney general’s sweeping investigation into their alleged role in the spread of rampant plastic pollution?

AG Rob Bonta said that the investigation will focus on what he called a “half-century campaign of deception” and that it will target companies “that have caused and exacerbated the global plastics pollution crisis.” Plastic pollution has long been a tentpole environmental issue, with conservationists decrying the spread of plastics to the remotest corners of the Arctic, into the planet’s geology and in the bodies of everything from the stomachs of sea birds to human lungs.

Read more >> 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

This time next week I should be back in Californy…
Tick tock...

Tick tock...

 
Autumn in KZN, South Africa:
Sunrise: 6:26am
Sunset: 5:26pm

Spring in San Francisco Bay Area
Sunrise: 6:15am
Sunset: 7:57pm

Guttered

Worldwide (Map) 
April 28, 2022 - 511,746,700 confirmed infections; 6,228,600 deaths
April 29, 2021 – 149,206,600 confirmed infections; 3,146,300 deaths

US (Map) 
April 28, 2022 - 81,189,400 confirmed infections; 992,800 deaths
April 29, 2021 – 32,229,350 confirmed infections; 574,350 deaths

SA (Coronavirus portal) 
April 28, 2022 - 3,776,300 confirmed infections; 100,351 deaths
April 29, 2021 – 1,578,500 confirmed infections; 54,290 deaths

April 28, 2020 post: “Chomping at the ‘net” >> 
April 29, 2021 post: “Consequences” >> 

News blues

A Florida judge’s ruling on mask mandates – to get rid of them – can impact humans today and into the future.

The decision by Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, a judge appointed to the Federal District Court in Florida by former President Donald Trump, is part of a larger effort by conservative judges nationwide to rein in federal administrative agencies. Experts in those operations, working under the direction of Congress, write many of the rules that govern our lives.
If Judge Mizelle’s ruling is upheld, Gostin and Hosie warn, “the C.D.C. will be seriously hobbled and a ruinous precedent will be set for the entire federal regulatory apparatus.”
Which is why they write that even if you’re completely fed up with masking up, you should be distressed about Judge Mizelle’s decision.

Read more >> 

***

The Covid outbreak in China quickly moves toward city-wide testing >> 

***

Dr Fauci: The U.S. is no longer in the “full-blown” pandemic phase. He reports the U.S. is no longer seeing “tens and tens and tens of thousands of hospitalizations and thousands of deaths” from COVID-19. But…
Read more >> 

***

The Lincoln Project: Last week in the Republican Party - April 27, 2022  (2:15 mins)

Healthy planet, anyone?

Trash it or recycle it? How plastics keep us guessing >> 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

Freedom Day yesterday, International Worker’s Day on Sunday and recognized as a public holiday on Monday. In April, the 18th was Family Day, the 15th Good Friday, and in March the 21st was Human Rights Day. Plenty of holidays – no official businesses open – in this part of the world.
Mollified: while unscrewing screwy screws does not a carpenter make, I’m mollified that the window frame I replaced after re-puttying the pane, did not fit because of long-term issues with fitting, not my lack of carpentry skills. In other words, an actual carpenter found that the frame was warped and, on querying the domestic worker, learned the window didn’t close properly “before.” I’m still not a carpenter, but I am mollified.

***

An exchange/barter arrangement to clear this house’s roof gutters of debris, moss, and sprouting flora went awry. Perhaps my expectations were “too American”, that is, if one has already received the bartered item, one performs the work in a timely manner or presents a reason why the task is delayed and reschedules. Perhaps if I were “more South African” I’d recognize that, well, things get done – eventually – when the planets and stars align perfectly, one “feels” like doing it, etc., etc. Clearing gutters is particularly important when rainfall exceeds expectations, and a house has a tendency towards dampness. Debris overloaded gutters means heavy rainfall simply overflows and floods verandahs and walkway and further damages already damp walls.
Yes, I tend towards over-independence – if you want something done, do it yourself. And, yes, after weeks of watching gutters overflow, over-independence won out over self-protection: do not climb rickety ladders to clean gutters yourself. Happily, I found a happy medium and climbed rickety ladders to clean the roof gutters I could “easily” reach.
I cleaned 5 of 8 gutters of a thriving compost of moss, mud, and organic materials that went, fittingly, into the compost pile.
Now I must find someone with the tools and the courage to tackle the five remaining, more precarious and more densely-packed gutters.
The joys of maintaining an elderly house. Not!

***

My afternoon walk around the neighborhood presented Willem mowing communal lawns and verges. I’d never seen him before but wished him “a happy Freedom Day”. He responded and I took the opportunity to introduce myself. Since he was friendly, I took the opportunity to ask if his property had flooded recently. (This info could help with my plea to roads dept to unblock culverts.) 
Willem was a font of local knowledge: no trees grew in the area when he moved into the area in 1974; the stream was more of a river back then and otters cavorted along the river/stream banks. I also learned how and after whom the road was named, how mowing communal verges encourages homeowners to mow their own lawns, and the history and habits of various homeowners.
Today, I awoke with the realization that Willem could make an ideal accomplice in my plan to reintroduce an otter family to the stream. Moreover, he could encourage his neighbors to alter their section of the stream to encourage otters, too.
Perhaps the neighborhood’s joint efforts for otters and other water creatures would encourage the local animal rehab group to release otters into the stream.
One can dream.

***

Some sun though cold…
KZN, South Africa:
Sunrise: 6:26am
Sunset: 5:27pm

San Francisco Bay Area
Sunrise: 6:16am
Sunset: 7:56pm

MORE Covid?

News blues

Expert sounds alarm on fifth wave after Covid-19 curve turns upwards in SA More subvariants! As the World Health Organization tracks two new coronavirus subvariants, BA.4 and BA.5 more cases of these found in countries other than South Africa.
Professor Adrian Puren, the head of the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), said recently, “The public should exercise caution in interpreting these data as there may be changes in test patterns. An early warning indicator, wastewater detection surveillance, shows an increase in Gauteng. He added that there was no clear evidence that Omicron was being displaced as the significant circulating variant. NICD reported that 10.6% of Covid-19 tests were positive in the past seven days, which was 2.6% higher than the previous week. 

Read more >> 

***

The Lincoln Project: This woman votes  (0:23 mins)
Meidas Touch: Texas Paul REACTS to Marjorie Taylor Greene Lying Under Oath! (3:12 mins)

***

On war…

Published: 23 APR 2022 © Zapiro

The Fight Against the GOP's Culture War  (7:25 mins)

Healthy planet, anyone?

Three reasons ANC is stuck on nuclear power for South Africa’s power future:

Mantashe was enthusiastic, indicating the government was still intending to go ahead with the nuclear build process. Just to be clear, we are talking about a build programme that is likely to cost somewhere in the region of R1-trillion.

Read more >> 

I'm in the process of introducing South African anti-nuke power activists to Dr. Ramana, Professor and Simons Chair in Disarmament, Global and Human Security at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs (SPPGA) at Canada’s University of British Columbia. Dr. Ramana is also Director of the Liu Institute for Global Issues and the Acting Director (2020-2021) of the Centre for India and South Asia Research (CISAR) in the Institute of Asian Research.
My goal? Dr Ramana has agreed to write an article, maybe more, about the impact on South Africa of building nuclear power plants. His prognosis? Not good! And, for many of the reasons presented in the article above. India-born Dr. Ramana is very familiar with the impacts and costs of nuke power on developing countries.
Exciting!
Stay tuned!

***

Take a break from bad news on the planet and focus on wildlife: a photo essay >> 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

Yet more on Escom/Eskom… as economists at the Bureau for Economic Research (BER) noted recently that South Africa hit a new record of 22,000MW of generation capacity unavailable last week, with a ‘staggering’ 17,000MW of this being unplanned.
“Worryingly, in its assessment for the winter period, Eskom anticipates between 37 to 101 days of load-shedding, the latter in an extreme scenario. If it can limit unplanned breakdowns to below 12,500MW, it could avoid load-shedding,” the BER said.
Fear not, though. President Ramaphosa finds it ‘difficult and unacceptable’ that South Africa continues to face ongoing load shedding, that rolling blackouts are costly for the economy, causing significant frustration and hardship for all citizens and businesses, and that his government now working to ensure it comes to a permanent end. 

***

Puttied my first window on Friday. To clarify, noticing badly cracked or missing putty in a window frame, I removed the window frame, the pane of glass, and the old putty. After that, I puttied the groove into which I replaced the pane of glass and also applied fresh putty.
It turned out not too bad. It helps that putty has a similar consistency to clay with which I’m intimately familiar; putty, however, is stickier, less obliging, and harder to remove from hands.
Yesterday, I applied wood preservative to the frame and, soon as it was dry, I happily replaced the window into the frame, the screws placed in exactly the same screw holes.
Alas, something is off. The window doesn’t fit snugly into the frame. Grrrr!
Story of my life: in theory it “should work”, in reality it hardly ever does. As a wannabe carpenter… or plumber… or “pool gal”… or lily pond maintainer … or roof gutter cleaner… I’ve great respect for expertise… and know enough to recognize I display far more willingness to try than ability to do.
Expertise?
None here!
Sad.

Sad.

Day of semi rest

The Lincoln Project does its thing.
A reminder: The Lincoln Project was formed in 2019 by former and incumbent Republicans who had, previously, worked hard to prevent the election of Democrats to public office. During the 2020 presidential election, however, founders of the Lincoln Project aimed to prevent the re-election of Republican Donald Trump and to defeat all Trump-supporting apologist Republicans in close races running for re-election in the United States Senate. Since that time, the Project’s ads have focused on Republicans and the Republican Party’s trend to the extreme right. 

Latest ads:
Kevin McCarthy is a Liar  (1:18 mins)
Former President Obama on challenges to democracy (2:03 mins)
Meidas Touch:
Profanity alert as Texas Paul reacts to leaked Kevin McCarthy tapes! (2:39 mins)
And more profanity as Texas Paul reacts to “Turd” Cruz and his “furry porn fetish”  (2:40 mins)

***

On war…

Rape as a weapon of war >> 
Ukraine – photo essay >> 

Healthy planet, anyone?

Take a break from bad news on the planet and focus on wildlife: a photo essay >> 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

Puttied my first window on Friday. To clarify, noticing badly cracked or missing putting in a window frame, I removed the window frame, the pane of glass, and the old putty. After that, I puttied the groove into which I replaced the pane of glass and applied fresh putty.
It turned out not too bad. It helps that putty has a similar consistency to clay with which I’m intimately familiar; putty, however, is stickier, less obliging, and harder to remove from hands.
Yesterday, I applied wood preservative to the frame and, soon as it is dry, I will replace the refreshed window.
You go, girl!

***

Some sun, some rain…
KZN, South Africa:
Sunrise: 6:23am
Sunset: 5:31pm

San Francisco Bay Area
Sunrise: 6:21am
Sunset: 7:53pm