Zama Zama

Living next to a green belt is rather spectacular except for the opportunistic crimes staged from the bush. Down in the gorge below us there is an old gold mine shaft from the early prospecting era of Johannesburg and some caves. These hovels have become the home to about 15 to 20 destitute people who have been blamed for the opportunistic crimes in the areas surrounding the gorges or could these vagrants be zama-zamas, slang for illegal miners, since there is a mine shaft down there.

In the early hours last night 02:15 to be precise, the whole valley’s power tripped and a few hours later at about 03:30, the vagrants attempted to gain entrance to our property by using the darkness as an advantage but our home is well secured and the parameter alarm triggered the armed security who were soon at my home.

The electricity connection was finally repaired at about 08:30 but the reason I am writing about this is that a few moments ago, at 21:25 they, the vagrants attempted again, twice in one day, and again our security held them at bay, this time it must have been my security companies entire compliment of night duty officers who descended onto our property as a show of force to these would be vagrants who slip quietly back into the veld, back down to their mine shaft and caves.

One of the officers, hearing a noise from the dog house went to investigate and found my dogs nice and snug in bed. He was amazed by our double story dog house. It is a normal 3m x 3m wendy house but with a second floor about a metre high, a stable door which the bottom stays open to allow the dogs in and out to the bottom floor and steps up to the top. The top stable door gives us access to the top floor where all their bedding is. There is a window in the top half for light and a panel heater on the one inside wall for the cold winter nights.

Podge, the Jack Russel, was the only one who got out of bed to welcome the security officers, the Italian Greyhounds well who are we to get them out from under the blankets. Here is Jade and Maxy, warming themselves in the weak zuma-zama autumn sun early today just outside their dog house.