Gosh but I have been an extremely poor blogger. I wonder if I can make any of that change??? I need some kind of motivation. One day if anybody ever finds and reads my blog that would be quite something and would definitely motivate me to do this. But how do I get my blog found by anybody? What's the magic secret. Is it just that I don't write a riveting story. Or do I need more or better photos? What is the starting point that I have so far missed?
Anyway, perhaps this is a good place to start keeping some kind of record of the Western Cape drought, from my own personal perspective. Yes there are the big pictures out there of empty dams, or acres of cracked mud. That is nowhere near where I am, but I am just as much affected by the lack of water in my own little way. And I am making every effort to reduce usage and wastage of water....
And here on the coast, far away from the dams that provide our water, our river has become salt water instead of fresh as no fresh water is flowing out any longer, so the nature of our environment is changing. I am not seeing as many pelicans or flamingoes lately as I used to, so I presume their food source is changing or disappearing? And the hundreds of thousands of cormorants that used to fly up river at sunset, and down river to the ocean at sunrise, wave upon wave of them, are reduced to a few scattered flocks.
My lawns have died with lack of watering, and the resulting sand/dust is constantly blowing into my house making everything feel dusty and gritty on a daily basis. But my little yard is small fry in the big scheme of things. The farmland around us seems to have become one big dust bowl with the sand piling up along the sides of the road and blowing dust storms across the land. The sheep need to be fed with supplemental feed as I don't think there is any grazing left for them in the fields.
Nothing like a camping trip with a group of friends to recharge the batteries. We are always on the lookout for places to go where we can take our dogs. Four Yorkies - or rather two Yorkshire Terriers and two Yorkshire Terrorists. The "Terrorists" are young, boisterous rescues who after about 3 years with us are still learning to be proper dogs after their bad start in life, so it is not everywhere we can take Max & Charlie. But they sure love going camping. They love the openness and freedom.
And for the accompanying humans, it is a chance to rest and relax. To go swimming in the river, and walking on the quiet farm roads feeling safe from traffic and maniacs on the roads. It is a chance to sleep in late or get up early without any pressure. And a chance to sit around the campfire late into the night, telling stories and watching the stars. And simply breathe in the tranquility
