Cape Boat and Ski-boat Club Old Members Reunion

2016-01-25 | puppy1952

Earl was looking through old Club magazines and the articles and photographs brought back fond memories of the founder members from way back when. “Wouldn’t it be great, he said, to gather all these old friends together again – bring them all for a function at the club.”

Easier said than done! How do you get hold of all these legends? Some, sadly, have passed on, others are overseas and almost all have changed their addresses. Undaunted he got hold of old membership lists and started the search. He emailed, telephoned and coerced people who might know this one or that to find the missing people!

This all started sometime in September with the view of getting 100 oldies together. The response was phenomenal and on Saturday 23 January The Club entertained 140 friends from the past. Photo albums, magazines and memorabilia were brought and great memories were resurrected and spoken about. There was an amazing vibe as friends gathered in groups both inside and out at the beautiful venue at Rumbly Bay.

Thanks to the current members who donated and braaied yellowtail which was served in addition to the spit roast lamb, veggies, salads and chips. Our club manageress, Colleen, excelled herself in organising the staff and helpers in the setting up , preparing and serving of the food. Thanks too, to all those helpers.

Thanks too for all those who attended – you are all legends and the Club appreciates all that you did in those early years to build up the Club. May the current members never forget your legacy.

The wine was generously donated by Springfield Wine Estate, Cowland Wines and Rosberg Wines.

How amazing it was to have Guy Rowe and his band who in their seventies are still doing gigs. And of course we all enjoyed the music of our youth!

The photos will show the joy of the event.

Thanks to the younger members for donating and braaing the yellowtail!

Fun catching up with each other over a one or six beers

Hymie Steyn, a legend of note with Leander Wiit current chairman of Western Province Angling Association

Lyn Shield and Carolyn Fourie catching up

Diana and Ray who came all the way from England having fun with Alan and Evelyn

Stuart and Andrew

Enjoying the Miss Lucy Wine donated by Springfield Estate

For more photographs please look on the Cape Boat and Ski-boat Facebook site.

So what do you do now that you’re retired?

2015-02-08 | puppy1952

I thought that once school began and the house was empty of guests, the daughter back at work and the teens at school I would miss my old routine and go rushing back to help as a ‘room parent’ or classroom assistant. But – no – that hasn’t happened! I am afraid it has been the last thought in my head! I am not bored and I don’t know where the time goes! My colleagues I miss, and I do think of those little lambs I once taught but they have all moved on and so must I!

The thing is that life happens. Now there is time to enjoy it and cruise through the day at a leisurely pace. All my adult life I have had no trouble waking up at the rudest of hours. But now 7 o’clock seems terribly early! The only dutiful thing that I do is make my grandson’s lunch. So that gets me up briefly and then I get back into bed, check my emails/Facebook while my perfect husband makes breakfast. Life couldn’t be better!

This week has flown. On Sunday last week we dropped in at False Bay Ecology Park to see how the feathered friends were doing – this is alway a pleasure.

Yellow-billed ducks

Spotted Eagle Own – he moved his spot!

Every pond was full of flamingos

False Bay in the Background

Even the hadeda is beautiful in the sunlight

More flamingos fraternising with Cape Shovellers and Cape Teal

In my last post I related the drama of organising finance for our vehicle. That all went through finally on Wednesday! We now have the caravan safely in our driveway but the Land Rover will only be ready on Tuesday.

The Imagine Comfort Van in towing mode

We have had so much fun shopping for accessories and now have a kettle that goes on the gas burner, petrol and diesel jerry cans, gas bottles, batteries and various electrical attachments, a blow-up mattress for when we take the kids with us and various other odds and ends. I won’t bore you with the details! But how amazing it has been to be able to shop at a whim and not have to wait for the weekend! Sometimes breakfast or lunch out is included!

Having late nights is not such an issue anymore either. I had a bird club committee meeting that went on forever on Monday night, book club on Tuesday night and went to a friend’s birthday celebration on Thursday night – without a worry in the world about coping the next day at school! My bird club colleagues seemed somewhat surprised when I told them that I would not be living in Cape Town anymore. I had told them this but they thought I’d come home at least once a month. No so I’m afraid. I will continue with my three portfolios but I won’t be at committee meetings, chaps! I reluctantly resigned from Book Club too – but they kindly invited me to come as a guest when I was in town! Yes – life is changing in a big way!

My friend Priscilla and her twin sister Hilary had their birthday celebration at Cape Point Vineyards on Thursday evening. What an idyllic place! We sat out on the lawns looking over the valley and The Atlantic Ocean and ate food we got from their weekly food market and watched the sun setting gloriously into the sea.

The Greek Stall Menu from which Heather and I chose our meal.

Priscilla in the foreground

The guests – It’s not Priscilla at the back but her twin!

Like a flaming ball

People watching the sunset from the deck over the dam

Such a beautiful setting

On Friday Earl had a fishing charter and spent a beautiful day at sea. He came home with some Hottentot which we served deep fried to our guests that evening. My friend, Niru from Durban , was also visiting her parents to celebrate her 40th birthday and they popped in to see me on their way to a sushi dinner.

Niru and Me

Earl cooking before the Load Shedding

A headlamp helps when the lights go out

Our guests enjoying their fried Hottentot

Josh dishing dessert

On Saturday night the Cape Boat and Ski-boat club had their annual prizegiving. Earl mentors the youth at this club and we were so proud to see them getting prizes. He also participates himself and skippers his boat in competitions although he is not as active as in the past.

Appropriate table decor

Third in the Club Championships

Best Skipper

And those are the highlights of our week! We will continue to get the caravan organised with everything it needs next week and we are in the processing of planning a big trip in March! Watch this space!

Human Rights Weekend Struisbaai Day 3

2014-03-24 | puppy1952

Because of the wind, the South League Inshore competition was postponed from Saturday to Sunday. Fortunately the weather played fair and it was a reasonably good day for the fishermen and woman to go out. And the fishing was good.
Karla has just turned 9 and although she has been fishing with her dad, Gus, on Seekat since she was very small, it was her first time fishing for yellowtail in a competition. She caught a mega 7.47kg fish on 6kg line. This is a pending Ladies South African record.

Bobbi who is 10 fished with Earl on Kiora and did really well catching a couple of good sized fish.

Sonja also fished on Kiora and managed not to get sea-sick. It was also her very first competition.

Sam is an old hand now and always does well. He was a good mentor to his sister Bobbi. We are proud of you Sam!

Another junior to do well was Robert Dahl from Overberg. He caught a pending South African junior record – a yellowtail weighing in at 8.26kg

While all this excitement was happening at sea, Jacqui and I had a late lie in and then started stripping and remaking beds for our guests who would arrive later that afternoon. Shock Horror – the new linen I’d bought the day before did not fit both beds. The duvet cover for room one was fine – but the fitted sheets were too small. The sheets for room two were fine but the duvet cover too big for the inner! Now it was Sunday in the sticks and we were stranded with no car – the men had their keys at sea. Fortunately though there was a Nissen Bakkie with keys parked outside and the driver was on Earl’s boat. We made a quick call and he told us where to find the keys and kindly allowed two women to take his prized vehicle to Bredasdorp 30km away. Sheet Street where I’d bought the linen was not open – so we had to settle for Ackerman’s who had just the stuff we needed. Phew! After all this stress, Jacqui and I thought we needed to relax with a Wimpy breakfast before making our way back to Struisbaai. Thanks Roger for saving the day!

Lines up was at 3 p.m. Jacqui and I got the bedrooms sorted and gave the rest of the house as good a clean as we could. Of course when the fisherfolk returned there was more mess to sort out. Our guests who would be staying in the house for the next two nights arrived at 5 after taking the scenic route from Cape Town, stopping at Hermanus for lunch and then continuing via Gansbaai. Wendy and Erich are from Australia and were travelling with friends who are based in Johanneburg. They are doing The Garden Route together and we will meet up with them again at Sani Valley Lodge at the foot of The Drakensberg.
Earl prepared a yellowtail for them to braai that evening and we finally left them in peace at 7 p.m. We arrived home at 10. What a great weekend it was!