A chameleon gave me a hug

Driving to the factory this afternoon, I had a memorable, poignant life experience.

I noticed something on the road and as I got nearer I realised that it was a chameleon. I pulled over. I picked him up and let him walk up my hand and wrist.

And then it happened. The chameleon gave me a 'hug'.

Within a minute of having him on my wrist, his movement changed. He gripped tighter with his little chameleon feet, lowered his belly onto my skin and turned his head to the side, pressing his eye and cheek into me.

It was a time-stood-still magical few minutes. I tried to get a photo because it was just so incredible. It is blurry but you can see his turned head and eyes.

I wanted to take him with me to release near my house where the terrain will be so much better for him but I didn't have anywhere safe and suitable to keep him. I put him in a nearby tree. 

When I left the factory 90-minutes later, I stopped at the tree and searched it and the surroundings but saw no sign of him. I'm not going to be able to drive past there without a good look as I pass for any sign of him. Not easy to spot a chameleon when they're the same colour as their surroundings! 

This experience really was something that I'll long remember.

Church buildings are a waste; they should be reutilised

George, like Parys, has a ton of churches representing every denomination - and some of them in duplicate or triplicate.

It puzzles me.

The waste of resources is incredible. Lawns, gardens, halls, the church building itself, other rooms, kitchens and everything else that goes along with these structures. 

For the most part, christian churches are used on Sunday mornings, maybe Sunday evenings. Maybe Saturdays for weddings and funerals. Maybe small groups of people on weekday evenings for youth groups, bible study or prayer meetings. Churches are used by the church themselves for a few hours a week.

The rest of the time these buildings are empty - bar administrative people and cleaners. 

To me, this is abominable!

DISCLAIMER: I'm sure there are churches that have stuff going on, but from my personal observations - and I drive around a lot in the day - I see no cars and no people and no activity from the 7-10 odd churches that I most frequently pass. In Parys, there were a few churches that rented out their halls in the afternoons for activities like karate, dance and gymnastics - it may be happening here too.

Even though many of these buildings are ugly as sin (from the outside), they are a weather-proof resource that is sorely under-utilised and that, I feel, could really service the residents that surround them.

Halls are easy to purpose because they're a blank canvas. The church interior with its rows of pews would need a clever design rethink (get rid of the fixed pews) to be able to easily transform the space into a useable (and more friendly) one.

Partnered with a garden, halls make good day-time child-care facilities for working mothers. They can transform into craft, skill, language-learning, and extra-lesson centres in the day. Space is always needed to special needs or those with learning difficulties to receive attention and education. Night classes can be hosted there at night as well as providing space for games, hobby, social, interest, cultural and other small gatherings. Think dance, yoga, music and theatre too. Various church rooms could serve as socially-distanced working spaces with wifi. Working from home necessitates an extra room or adapting communal space for a home office - churches have rooms that are unused during the day. 

And, I don't see why different faiths can't share buildings. If the muslims take Fridays, those of Jewish faith can book Saturdays, and the various Christian faiths can take slots on Sundays at 8am, 11am, 2pm and 5pm. Just remove the Jesus-on-the-cross to keep the space deity-neutral.

Groups that use these spaces can contribute to the care of the building and use of resources (water, electricity). Rates need not be capitalist. Some groups (AA, special needs) could be hosted free-of-charge. And with more people using the building, the church has a greater community that may participate in fundraising events and church-run initiatives that benefit their group and wider community, regardless of their religion, because they are active in this space.

As well as creating an activity hub in the community that surrounds the church, maximising the use of a building is green. One building used efficiently and maximally is more green than the resources squandered on five under-utilised church buildings. 

What goes for churches also applies to significantly under-utilised school properties. Shift schooling would maximise the use of the classrooms throughout the day. As for those fields that stand open a majority of the time - arrrrrggghhh! Such a shame! Nearby schools should share facilities - maximising use while sharing upkeep expenses. That gates are closed for months of the year (not just weeks) for the school holidays - a sadness indeed.

I don't see things changing any time soon but as churches feel the financial pinch more, then perhaps they'll look beyond their own bubble.

Bye-bye long evenings

When I moved to George in November last year, I was delighted by the long days here. In Gauteng, it is a treat for a month or two when it is quite light until 8pm for a short period. Here in George, the sun sets about 30-minutes later and, in November through to late January, it felt like it look longer to get properly dark.

These long evenings really suited me. I'd get back from work after 6pm and hit the trails by 19h00. I'd still have at least 90 minutes of bright daylight. If I got out earlier and back earlier, you would have found me gardening or doing stuff outside until 20h30, which I really enjoyed.

My new home area will experience shorter days (compared to my old homes in Jo'burg and Parys) from both ends with later sunrise and earlier sunset in the winter months.

The sun now sets around 18h15 in George. I need to get out earlier to be off the trails by sunset. My 'night-time' gardening activities are curtailed as I run out of daylight.

I don't pay too much attention to sunrise times - because I'm still sleeping then! The difference between George and Parys is smaller than sunset and there is about a one-week shift. The sun currently rises in George at 06h49, which is about 25-minutes later than in Parys.

At 18h30 this evening I was pulling out weeds from between the paving bricks of my driveway - almost in the dark. Two months ago I may have only just been lacing up my shoes to go out.

I've just taken a peek at a sunrise/sunset chart to see how things look for winter. The earliest sunset time is reached on 6 June with sunset at 17h27. This sticks around for a few days and then on 18 June (my birthday!) the sun goes down one-minute later and the change - towards lengthening evenings - begins.

As far as sunrise goes, the latest sunrise time of 07h36 is reached on 26 June and, after a few days of this, on 5 July the sun gets up a minute earlier. That's a really late sunrise! It will be weird even for me (a person that rarely sees light creeping into the day). The latest sunrise in Parys will be at 07h00 on 23 June.

Of interest, earliest sunrise in George in summer was 05h11 in the first week of December and latest sunset was 19h45 in the first week of January. 

In Parys, earliest sunrise time this past summer was 05h09 on 30 November and latest sunset time this  was 19h10 on 11 January.

Feel-good viewing

For the past few months, I've been working my way through a number of series on Netflix. I may watch one episode a night, sometimes two and sometimes none, so it can take a while to complete a season.

The types of shows that I am really enjoying are skill-based reality shows. Aside from deriving pleasure from watching and learning about different talents and skills - and seeing these develop as the season progresses - I most enjoy the feel-good element of these shows.

The shows usually involve competition and an ultimate winner; someone is eliminated at the end of each episode. But, the interactions are not dog-eat-dog. Instead, the participants are supportive of each other and the judges too are personable, positive and encouraging.

When you mouse-over shows, they have, a la TED Talks, three words that encapsulate the show, like Sentimental * Heartfelt * Emotional or Suspenseful * Mystery * Drama or Controversial * Provocative * Investigative.

I'm into shows where one of the words is Feel-Good. 

I'm not sure which one got me started but the shows that I have really enjoyed include:

Blown Away - glass blowing (two seasons)

The Big Flower Fight - pairs and large scale flower arranging (one season)

Glow-up - make up artistry (two seasons)

Next In Fashion - fashion design pairs battle it out with themed challenges each week (one season)

Interior Design Masters - interior design pairs have to do make-overs (one season)

Restaurants On The Edge - a restauranteur, chef and interior designer travel to different locations and help a struggling restaurant to get back on its feet with the tools to survive and thrive (two seasons - just finished this. More, more, more!)

In terms of creative crafts, I'd like to see a ceramics version of 'Blown Away'. Or even something with wood working or welding. 

How about a musical variation? I'm thinking music composition,  mixing, songwriting... Participants (composers / songwriters) can come from different styles i.e. classical, rap, pop, blues, jazz and even a DJ and each episode they have to create a piece of music that meets an objective according to a theme.

While some participants may be quirky, they are nice (with very few exceptions), as well as appreciative, positive, hard-working, and thankful. There is a lot of kindness involved too.

Feel-good viewing is working for me.