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| Fish eagles often land on dead trees, which enable them to scour the area for food. They are also known to eat carrion and fish and are classified as kleptoparasites (they steal prey from other birds). Goliath Herons are known to lose a percentage of their catch to fish eagles. Their main diet is fish, sometimes dead, but mostly caught live. Catfish and lungfish are seen most frequently. |
“Sighting of the Day in the Bush”
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| Vervet monkeys are cute and fun to watch but are highly destructive, especially if they get inside the house. |
For the first time since the bypass surgery on February 12th, I can wear a regular pair of Capri-length jeans. The incision on the inside of my right thigh was so painful these past few months, the seam from any regular jeans or pants caused considerable pain and irritation.
This morning I decided to give it a try since I’ve been tired of wearing the same few pairs of pajama bottoms and one pair of leggings over and over again. I couldn’t believe it when I was able to put on the jeans and feel perfectly comfortable.
This is a huge relief to me when I’ve been wondering what I’d wear on upcoming travel day. I didn’t want to wear pajama bottoms in public. When I see people wearing them, I cringe.
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| A giraffe in the bush checking out her surroundings. |
Also, I didn’t want to wear the only pair of leggings I have knowing that after eight hours or so, the knees would start to look baggy, and I’d hate that. I’d considered wearing tight and stretchy workout leggings, but they’d cause too much pressure on the bad left leg.
So I put on the jeans, which are a little stretchy and now a little baggy since I lost weight, and I was thrilled. I’ll have to continue wearing the compression stockings for months, which will show, but they are an identical match to my skin color, and I doubt anyone will notice and point the finger at the “woman wearing pantyhose with her jeans.”
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| A fish eagle, one of the most prolific eagles in Kruger National Park. |
If they do point and stare, including at the scar at my neckline, I don’t care. I’m alive and that’s what matters. And besides, I’m on my way to a three month holiday in Ireland with my loving husband. What more could a girl ask for?
When I pulled the jeans out of the drawer I hadn’t opened in months, I was reminded that packing in on the immediate horizon. It’s a task I’m anticipating with a certain amount of dread this time when I’ll have to deal with my painful leg while doing so.
Sure, Tom would pack for me, but I need to be moving about to build more strength, and packing may be one of many means in doing so. Yesterday, although painful, I walked for 20 minutes in two 10-minute increments. Today, I’ll do three 10-minute increments and keep building from there. Its a work in progress.
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| A young male kudu at a nearby construction site. |
This morning at 10:15, we return to Dr. Theo’s office to see Doc Phillip, who will continue with the debridement of my leg. We already said goodbye to Doc Theo on Wednesday when we saw him for the last time since he was going on holiday for 10 days.
I’m still hanging onto the hope that my leg will heal enough in the next eight days to avoid the necessity of going to a wound clinic in Galway, Ireland, an over an hour drive each way. HMakingthat drive every few days would be frustrating and impose upon our plans for the time we’ll spend in the country.
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| Bushbabies… |
Although we’ve had a few WiFi outages in the past few weeks, we’ve been fortunate not to experience any power or water outages. (I suppose by my saying this, both will go out this afternoon! It’s got to be a coincidence!) what a weird thing that is…one says they haven’t had a cold in years, and the next day they awaken with a cold. Go figure.
It’s made life so much easier the past weeks, especially at night when we need aircon on more than ever. The compression stockings make my legs and feet so hot, I need the cool air to allow me to sleep. Luckily, last night, we both slept well.
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| This toxic caterpillar is to be avoided at all costs. The hairs can cause a toxic reaction and considerable distress. |
Last night I received an email from Eric at our mailing service in Nevada, MailLinkPlus. The cost to ship the box to Ireland, the quickest service offered by DHL, is ZAR 4882, US $340. It is scheduled to arrive on May 8th but based on going through customs, it could take an additional week or more.
I alerted the holiday homeowner about the pending package arrival, asking her to pay any customs fees included, which we’ll reimburse her upon arrival. Hopefully, all goes well with the delivery.
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| There’s nothing as pretty as a full moon. |
That’s all for today, dear readers. Just think, in 10 days we’ll be posting photos of our new surroundings in the quaint and historic town of Connemara, Ireland. As hard as it will be to say goodbye to all of our Marloth Park friends, both human and animal, we’re very excited to step into this new chapter of our lives.
Be well. Be happy. We’ll be thinking of YOU!
Photo from one year ago today, May 3, 2018:
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| Zebra nursing in our garden. For more photos, please click here. |