I have made changes to the name of my website as well as the look of it. Those of you who had a peek at my website http://www.booksmatic.com, please note that the new name is http://www.bestforreading.com. This name change was on the advice of all those brainy people who works with these square boxes that we are so much addicted to nowadays. Not only did I make a change to the name of my website, I also decided to change the look of http://www.bestforreading.com. Pay a visit and buy your Christmas gift!
I hope you enjoyed my story of Christmas on the farm and the delicious "soetkoekies". When I grew up on the farm, shoes were only worn for going to school and church. Bare feet was the norm and even today, I cannot wait to get rid of my shoes. My friends from the neighbouring (South African spelling) farms roamed the farm and many times went barefoot up in the mountains. Before I am going to continue with this story, take a moment to read the following link.
The problem with a puff-adder is that because they appear slow, people underestimate the speed with which they can strike. Anyway, to get back to my story. I was about Grade 10 or there about and a group of friends decided to climb the mountain to see if we can see the nearest town. Needless to say, we were all bare foot. We have nearly reached the summit when I heard a little voice ordering me not to put my foot down on the ground. I looked down and there, beneath my foot was a puff-adder curled up. The picture I have in my mind of the snake after so many years is that it was in a striking position. An adder curls up before it strikes. I gave one jump back and screamed snake. We all were fairly calm, even my friends. Maybe it is because they did not see the snake. I had the audacity to go back to the spot to see if I can see it. In hindsight today, I realise how foolish I was. That was the end of our excursion up in the mountain for that day and we made our way back home down the mountain. And I am sure my guardian angel protected me. Think of. Grade 8's high up in a mountain. No cell phones, no two way radios, nothing. Then I heard this voice warning me.
In all the years after that I have never encountered a snake or a puff-adder for that matter until 2011. The house I have shown you in of my previous blogs where the roof blew off is being rented out. The previous tenant kept on telling me there are snakes, but I thought it was because the house is situated on the slopes of Signal Hill.
Signal Hill and the Noon Gun - Cape Town Tourism
After the tenant moved out I was cleaning the property. Higher up on the property is an old garden shed of some sorts with old tiles, pots and other garden stuff in it. I scratched around in the shed and did not notice anything out of the ordinary. The next day a colleague and I went back to the property. We went up to the shed area and he was standing near the shed's entrance. I suddenly just shouted that he must jump; which he did without hesitation. And there, next to him was this big fat puff-adder basking in the sun on the hot tiles. We immediately left. I am not a snake killer and decided to phone Nature Conservation. He came the next day. As we approached the shed, I saw not one, but two puff-adders. A male and female and both where intertwined in the sun. I have taken these photos while the snake handler was catching them.
Signal Hill and the Noon Gun - Cape Town Tourism
After the tenant moved out I was cleaning the property. Higher up on the property is an old garden shed of some sorts with old tiles, pots and other garden stuff in it. I scratched around in the shed and did not notice anything out of the ordinary. The next day a colleague and I went back to the property. We went up to the shed area and he was standing near the shed's entrance. I suddenly just shouted that he must jump; which he did without hesitation. And there, next to him was this big fat puff-adder basking in the sun on the hot tiles. We immediately left. I am not a snake killer and decided to phone Nature Conservation. He came the next day. As we approached the shed, I saw not one, but two puff-adders. A male and female and both where intertwined in the sun. I have taken these photos while the snake handler was catching them.
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| One snake in box on right. Other trying to escape! |
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| Puff-adder caught |
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| The female is in the box. The male is hiding beneath the newspaper. |
One of the interesting facts about the release of these snakes is that they can only be released on the Cape Peninsula Mountain Range. The snakes on the peninsula carry viruses and bacteria that is different to the bacteria on the other mountain ranges and the other way round as well.
In my wonderful bookstore, http://www.bestforreading.com you will find books on exotic animals and pets. If it is not on display in my widgets, go the search bar. you are bound to find a book at http://bestforreading.com that tickles your fancy. Enjoy browsing!
Have a look at this book:
The Pet [Paperback] by Kris Fox
Book Description
Description
There is a commonly held belief that every myth has, at its center, some manner of truth. The truth upon which the myth was built is often warped, misunderstood, and twisted by fear, until mental illness becomes demonic possession and dinosaurs are seen as great daemons that ruled the earth before God sent them back to hell. Yet, still, beneath it all, there is an element of truth, deeply concealed within the fear of the deadly and what we don't understand.
Sunshine has led a dismally unremarkable life, one that seems all the more bleak for the reality of her ageing. But on the day that she thinks the worst fact she must confront is her own greying hair, she stumbles into a hidden world that changes her life into anything but unremarkable. After a wrong turn takes her deep into gang territory, she is saved from a brutal attack by a mythical beast, a vampire, a vampire who must then keep her with him in order to protect his secret.
But unlike the myth, this vampire, Caleb, is not of the Undead. He is an evolved primate, a predatory species, one of many that have been living among men, preying on them, for eons. Caleb's existence poses the question, what if human evolution had progressed differently? With all that we do not know that exists in the universe, what if we are not at the top of the food chain?
Follow Caleb and Sunshine as they travel together, hunting one of Caleb's own who kills for sport over need. See through the eyes of both hunter and prey as they follow the trail, not only of this bloodthirsty daemon that preys on humans, but also those daemons of memory, loss, and regret that live within their own souls.
There is a commonly held belief that every myth has, at its center, some manner of truth. The truth upon which the myth was built is often warped, misunderstood, and twisted by fear, until mental illness becomes demonic possession and dinosaurs are seen as great daemons that ruled the earth before God sent them back to hell. Yet, still, beneath it all, there is an element of truth, deeply concealed within the fear of the deadly and what we don't understand.
Sunshine has led a dismally unremarkable life, one that seems all the more bleak for the reality of her ageing. But on the day that she thinks the worst fact she must confront is her own greying hair, she stumbles into a hidden world that changes her life into anything but unremarkable. After a wrong turn takes her deep into gang territory, she is saved from a brutal attack by a mythical beast, a vampire, a vampire who must then keep her with him in order to protect his secret.
But unlike the myth, this vampire, Caleb, is not of the Undead. He is an evolved primate, a predatory species, one of many that have been living among men, preying on them, for eons. Caleb's existence poses the question, what if human evolution had progressed differently? With all that we do not know that exists in the universe, what if we are not at the top of the food chain?
Follow Caleb and Sunshine as they travel together, hunting one of Caleb's own who kills for sport over need. See through the eyes of both hunter and prey as they follow the trail, not only of this bloodthirsty daemon that preys on humans, but also those daemons of memory, loss, and regret that live within their own souls.
And my recipe today is a very traditional South African meal for those cold days (although it is summer here)
Milk-food or spoon-meat
2 litres milk
250 ml (1 cup) flour
2.5 ml (1/4 t) salt
15 ml (1 table spoon) soft butter
Boil the milk- don't let it cook over!
Sieve flour and salt and add butter. Rub between fingers to form frummels.
this can be done in your food processor as well.
Add slowly to milk while stirring continuously. Lumps may form, but be patient and keep on stirring.
Turn stove to low and cook for an additional 8 minutes. Serve with cinnamon sugar. 80 ml (1/3 cup) ground cinnamon and 160 ml (1/2 cup) sugar
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