Friday, November 8, 2013

CENTURION PROTEA HOTEL

It was my first time at the Centurion Protea Hotel. I spent most of today there.

Thursday, November 7, 2013

PERSONAL FINANCE


I love Eastwood (Arcadia) in Pretotia. Thats where we had coffee with a financial "adviser" today. I enjoyed the company.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

THEY FIGHT

Just as I'm thrilled by the recovery of my red collar barbets, they use all their energy to fight all the time. I don't know if its play or fight. It doesn't look right nonetheless.

Monday, November 4, 2013

LEBANESE RESTAURANT IN HATFIELD

Lebanese restaurant in Hatfield, Pretoria
Uncle Faouzi, a Lebanese restaurant in Hatfield, Pretoria is where I had lunch with a hot date today. I know that plate looks very sorry but t sure tasted great. Rice mixed with lentils, grilled chicken breast, salad and some sauces on a bed of wrap. I couldnt eat the wrap because I avoid wheat, but the date said it was delicious. I also managed to buy 5 books including 3 for my son and "The Warren Buffett Stock Portfolio" plus "Your money or your life". Oh well, I'm a sucker for a good personal finance book. I couldnt find any other books I liked. I may be starting to read tomorrow or tonight, YAYYYYY!!!

Sunday, November 3, 2013

RESCUING THE BABY BIRDS

rescuing baby birds



The tree felling exercise we had yesterday left 3 or 4 baby birds orphaned. My heart was too sore. After a lot of sadness I went to get a bucket and when I got back there were only 3 birds out of 4. After the hubby and son convinced me that they were only three, we worked on rescuing the baby birds Today. We are now nursing them until they are able to fly.


Black-Browed Barbet
Blak-collared Barbet
A bird watching guy I know told me that they are Black-collared Barbets. The cutest things I ever laid my eyes on. From there it was google. Its only after calling a bird sanctuary that I learn I was right about the fourth one and how to take care of them. Hot water bottle is a must before they even eat. Its like having a baby. they eat every 15 minutes because they are in intensive care. Their home was not a nest but a hole they bore on a tree trunk, poor things.

"Both sexes excavate the nest, which is a hole in the underside of a dead branch, preferably softwood trees like Ficus (wild fig). It often uses the same hole repeatedly, sometimes using the same nest site for ten years! Abandoned nest cavitis are often taken over by other birds, such as tits and sparrows." says biodiversityexplorer.org
Blak-collared Barbet
 
Thats how we missed on seeing them. The mother was crying around them for a while, before we took them. This is what wikipedia had to say:

"The Blak-collared Barbet (Lybius torquatus) is a species of bird in the Lybiidae family. It is found in sub-Saharan Africa through Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Readily recognised by its loud duet, commonly rendered as "too-puddly too-puddly too-puddly".... accompanied by wing-flicking. This bird produces a variety of calls including its snarling warning call and loud buzzing. It is a gregarious species, often acting in concert when driving off intruders and roosting together (up to 15 recorded) in nest holes. Their flight is direct with a loud whirring of wings."

The search for number 4 continues. I'm too sad to lose that one.

last three images from pinterest.com

Saturday, November 2, 2013

TREE FELLING

tree felling
Thank God for the two strong tree felling guys who came to help us remove a dead tree today. Its so worth it hiring experts. Well the guys did what I thought was a great job. We now dont need to worry about a tree falling over someone's head. This took a lot of climbing and risk and some beers by the guys. At the end the huge thing was in pieces. And because we cant let that much fuel go to waste. We paid the guys to cut it into braai sized pieces. So we can use the wood if we need to. One stock is left in the groud for a possible creativity.

As you can see, my home has a lot of high trees. I adore them.

Friday, November 1, 2013

ELARDUS PARK MALL

Elardus Park shopping centre
Today I grabbed a bite at the Chinese restaurant in Elardus Park Mall. It was a very hot afternoon. I still had to go back to office after.
I used to be in malls all the time but since I got this old matured, malls depress me. I cant stand busy malls like Menlyn. They are great but exhaust me beyond belief. Last night we found ourselves in Irene Village Mall. A place I have to visit again. Amazing sculptures everywhere. Its too gorgeous, I think. But we walked around too late at night.