Garden World

Marco, Robynne, and Rebekah arrived back from an exhausting trip down to Durban and the young parents needed to recover, so we took our granddaughter off their hands for the afternoon. You know what grandparents do, sugar load their grandchildren and then hand them back to the parents.

So for the Sunday afternoon, Lynda and I took Rebekah up to Garden World in Muldersdrift as we remembered that they had an animal farm there but once there we found sad remains of an animal farm with a few goats, pigs, and birds. Maybe I was hoping for more, I am not sure what I am expecting from an animal farm any more.

So we went to investigate the tea garden, and following the direction boards we found a rather quiet tea garden without all that hustle of normal Northern Suburbs. At first it didn't seem to have much in terms of children play area, but we discovered tucked behind the back a lovely secure play area with lots of play things to entertain children, although not for Rebekah’s age group. I am not sure why we are so fussy now days, maybe it is that we are spoilt for choice in the Northern Suburbs.

Anyway we make the most of our time there and as you can see Rebekah loves to dance. She gave a stunning performance to Simba the Lion King, Nala, Pumbaa, Timon, Rafika,Livinia die Liewe Heksie, Woody, Shrek, Fiona, Donkey, Puss in Boots, Mickey Mouse, Papa Smurf and matter of fact to all the smurfs as well. The food from the tea garden was good but soon got cold as we had to constantly watch Rebekah play on the big children’s jungle gyms.

It was getting late and afterwards we explored the lovely gardens at Garden World and discovered more little gems such as this not so small pool house above.

Quiet before the Storm

It seems that South Africa is becoming even crazier with the polarisation of the Rainbow Nation. We seem to be in an economic tail spin as we head closer to elections later this year.

To me it is back to work with a shaking head, as I cry for the beloved country. At work it is all quiet, peaceful with all the peacock cries of last year that have subsided and we are left with just mother hens nesting and fathers protecting. Soon the young ones will start to arrive and that is something better to watch out for than the wretched humans throwing sticks and stones. Quiet before the storm.

"I am young, I am twenty years old; yet I know nothing of life but despair, death, fear, and fatuous superficiality cast over an abyss of sorrow. I see how peoples are set against one another, and in silence, unknowingly, foolishly, obediently, innocently slay one another." - All Quiet on the Western Front.

No Pass

"Thy shall not pass" squawked the peahen as I tried to leave work today. This might get a little serious as he had the audacity to show me his tail feathers as I tried to push past.

Run Hens Run

Who is following who? I am not 100% sure but I think this is a Melanistic Mutant pheasant hen being followed by a peahen, running away from the males.

With all the peacocks starting strutting their stuff and making these irritating calls, I too would be ducking and diving like these two hens are. Run hens run!

Don’t get me wrong hearing a peacock call is majestic in the wild but having the call to love done over and over and over again just outside your office can become a bit much.

Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat

It is that time of year again, when the shrill of a peacock can be heard over the dying winter’s day. Yes it is that time for a fowl with a cry so foul to put on his amazing coat of beautiful colours and wow the ladies all over again. To see this beautiful bird come to out with his vibrant techncoloured dream coat made this Monday all worth it.

I swear as he cocked his ear towards me, I heard him whisper, "I wore my coat, with golden lining. Bright colours shining, wonderful and new, and in the west, the dusk was setting, and the day was ending; any dream will do".

Peahen Seriously

Normally the peacocks get all the glory with their colourful displays but today while walking back from the diner, this beautiful peahen caught my eye, (wolf whistle here). No seriously the colours of most females of the peafowl tend to be bland and boring but you could see that this peahen had beautiful colours and held herself majestically. Yip hierdie pouhen het houding!

Pea Chicks

Well keeping on the topic of babies everywhere, one of the peahen’s eggs hatched on Friday. So this morning mother peahen paraded her five small chicks passed my office window. Now I remembering the awful noise the peacocks made wooing the peahens, am very worried as all I can think of is how much more noise there will be come this mating season. But then all the ladies still in the office went ahhhhhh cute, as one does when seeing babies. Sigh!

Chicken Nugget

This is Chicken Nugget, a juvenile delinquent of a peacock. He only displays aggression and has no proud peacock feathers to display nor write home about.

Chicken Nugget as we now call him has aggressively displaced Gerald from the Love Nest outside our office and then proceeded to viciously attack his reflection in the sliding doors, not just once but all day. The more we send him packing the more vocal he becomes and the attacks have become more frequent. Stupid bird, all he is good for is chicken nuggets. My nerves are on edge today, waiting for the next crash into the sliding doors. BAMMMM!!! Oh my word that must have hurt.

Póg mo thóin

Well póg mo thóin to you too my boy or as it is commonly written outside of Ireland pogue mahone. It is Gaeilge or Irish for kiss my arse. Today’s photo reminded me of póg mo thóin as this peacock tried to defend off two other male suitors and at the same time impress the peahen. Seldom do you get the chance to see the rear end of a peacock not that I wanted too but Gerald this peacock was doing his best to become the daidí.


Póg mo thóin, now that reminds me of the Pouges, a Celtic Punk band that I enjoy, now let me go digging up some CDs, they must be somewhere collecting dust, and a rovin' a rovin' a rovin' I'll go.

Love is in the Air

Spring is in the air, and all the peacocks are strutting their feathers and competing with each other for the peahens. Love is in the air.

This magnificent peacock was doing his best little sexy dance in front of a penhen and she seemed so interested that was until a scrawny looking young peacock interjected and now it is game on as to who looks the sexiest.

Although I am not into voyeurism, I feel like my office desk is becoming the best seat in town to watch all the action as sexual tension rises. So let me tell you about the birds and the bees, and the sycamore trees. I'll see you all this coming fall in the Big Rock Candy Mountains.

Peacocks on the Mashi

It seems that the cold front has finally reached Gauteng but I don't know why the Capetonians were worried about snow. Due to the temperatures dropping to the low teens, I stayed well put in my air-conditioned office looking out across the beautiful gardens of Mogale Business Park. Despite the weather the peacocks enjoyed ambling across the mashi golf course while on the lookout for the peahens which I am sure were trying to keep out of the cold.

Woza Weekend

Although I enjoy it here at Bosasa, it has been a long week and at the end of it the cry goes out "Woza Friday! Woza Weekend!"

After this peacock was strutting his stuff for the females, he turned around and walked away. I am not sure what he didn't like. Maybe it was me, or maybe it was my reflection in the window. I was in the process of setting up a great image with my camera balanced on the low wall but this peacock didn't have any patience.

Woza, it is time to call it a day and walk away from this desk, this office park, and this week. That is till next week.

Peacock without a Mate

Now there are plenty of exotic birds at Mogale Business Park, where my offices are situated, the exotic feathered kind of birds. At first I thought that this peacock was displaying all his feathers at his reflection on the tinted sliding doors which I was standing behind. It was only later that I spotted the grey dull but all business looking peahen.

Wow, what a guy has to do to impress the girls. But then again, who cares other than it is Friday so soon.

Peafowls

I have been staying at Treesbank which is on the banks of the Jukskei River between Dainfern and Glenferness for over a year now and I have been hearing the cry of peafowls but never seeing them. I have heard and seen the jackals at the bottom of my garden never peafowls, that was until today.

After arriving at work nice and early on my Vespa, I received a phone call about a family emergency unfolding so I rushed back home to fetch my vehicle which I needed for the emergency and went to fix. But just as I arrived Anthony, my brother, was already there taking care of things so all I could do was to go back to work. Communication peoples. Now getting back to my photo of the day, it was when arriving back home to swop back to the Vespa, I spotted a peacock or is it a peahen in my driveway. So it was true, there were peafowls in my neighbourhood, nice.