Sad sighting in the bush…Oh, good grief!…Tooth extraction socket is infected…

Posted by worldwide-admin on September 17, 2021 with 1 Comment

This morning, when we spotted this injured kudu in the garden, we immediately contacted the rangers. Hopefully, soon, they will find her and have the vet help her out. It’s heartbreaking to see such an injury.

This morning, after a painful and fitful night due to pain in my extracted tooth socket (more on that below), I did what I always do upon awakening, say good morning to Tom, who is always up before me, and then check the action in the garden. There were the usual bushbucks, including Stringy, Thick Neck/Bad Leg, Spikey, and Holey Moley, and the frequently visiting four adult female kudus, including my favorite Bossy.

Immediately, they approached the veranda when they saw me as I thought about the big bags of carrots on the kitchen counter. I asked Tom to toss some pellets while I got the carrots. Before I turned on my heels, I noticed something unusual about one of the kudus. Her right eye was bleeding.

Her eyelid is hanging there. It is heartbreaking to see. We’re hoping the ranges will get here soon. We’ve done everything we could to keep her here with the other female, but sooner or later, they wander off.

To keep them around long enough so I could take a photo and send it to Jaco, the head ranger in the park, I grabbed the bag of carrots, and we both started tossing chunks to them. I grabbed the camera while Tom continued sending carrots their way but struggled to get a good shot of the injured eye.

After waiting patiently, I managed to get the photos we’re sharing here today. I sent them to Jaco via Facebook Messenger, and within a few minutes, he acknowledged my message in which I’d included two photos and our address. Hopefully, sometime today, they will find her since they hang out in specific areas, and the vet can treat her. I imagine he’d clean it, try to sew it back in place and treat her with antibiotics. They dart the animals to provide such medical care.

This is what we saw upon first spotting her. Upon closer inspection, we took the above photos.

We may never hear back regarding the outcome, but we can only hope she’ll be found and treated somehow. It was heartbreaking to see. They are such sweet and gentle animals, and it’s hard to see them suffering for any reason. It’s hard enough right now that they constantly search for tidbits of food when the bush is so dry.

Surprisingly, most of the wildlife looks healthy, with few ribs protruding from lack of food. Thank goodness, so many of us feed regularly. The only nature we see looking too lean are those with some illness, injury, or impediment of some sort that prevents them from foraging. If this poor injured kudu isn’t treated, this may happen to her if she gets an infection.

Yesterday, four wildebeest, none of them Broken Horn, who’s a loner, came to call, coming right up onto the veranda to the door, looking for us.

Speaking of infections, the socket where my tooth was pulled on Monday has become infected. The second day after the procedure, I was feeling pretty good. But, on Wednesday, the pain escalated, and I began to be concerned. I contacted Dr. Singh, and he ordered antibiotics, Z-Pack, the 3-day 500 mg dose. I started them yesterday afternoon, at 3:00 pm. I’m also taking prescribed probiotics several hours after the one pill dose.

But last night was unbearable. I hurt so much my ear was hot and red, and my face was swollen. It came on suddenly, in a matter of 24 hours. Dr. Singh had suggested I take antibiotics on the day of the procedure but after taking them for five days a few weeks ago, in a feeble attempt to heal the pain in the tooth after the root canal had been done in that same tooth. But, I said, “Let’s try it without antibiotics.”

We didn’t dare go outside. Wildebeest horns can be deadly.

It continued to hurt when I chewed on that side and brushed my teeth. In the past year, I’ve taken antibiotics four times due to issues with two teeth. When the antibiotics didn’t work this last time, resulting in the tooth being extracted along with all the pins in place from the recent root canal, done in June before we left for the US, I hesitated to take antibiotics. Of course, I hesitated over another round.

This time my decision was wrong. I should have taken the antibiotics on Monday. I was in deep trouble in excruciating pain by Wednesday night that kept me awake for the past two nights. On Thursday, I contacted Dr. Singh’s office, and he prescribed the Z-Pack, which I took promptly at 3:00 pm (1500 hrs). After a horrible sleepless night taking several Paracetamol and Advil spread over several hours, a cold pack on my face, frequent salt water rinses, I finally drifted off.

We’ve never seen them be aggressive to us, but we are cautious. On many occasions, we’ve seen them go after other animals when competing for pellets or carrots. Otherwise, they leave others and humans alone unless threatened.

This morning, I awoke to a 50% improvement in the pain and can’t wait to take the next dose this afternoon, followed by several probiotic hours later.

Tonight, with Rita and Gerhard back from a two-week trip to Germany to see family, we’re scheduled for dinner at Jabula with them and Kathy and Don.. I will spend the majority of today resting and taking it easy. Besides, with the current Covid-19 curfew, we usually leave Jabula by 8:30 pm (2030 hrs) and will be back home hoping for a restful night.

So, folks, there’s our past 24 hours which were challenging to say the least. Hopefully, my situation will continue to improve over the weekend, and Ms. Kudu will get the treatment she needs.

Have a pleasant weekend.

Photo from one year ago today, September 17, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #178. In Fiji in 2015, our neighbor Sewak drove us up this outrageously steep hill in his truck for this view. For more photos, please click here.

Off to the dentist for a tooth extraction…

Posted by worldwide-admin on September 6, 2021 with 0 Comment

Sorry, but no new photos today. We’ve been preoccupied with online research and will get back to taking photos soon.

I wouldn’t say I like going to the dentist, especially when the appointment is about anything more than a standard cleaning, which isn’t too bad. Today, my last molar on the bottom right will be extracted after an unsuccessful root canal that wouldn’t heal. Each time I brushed my teeth, it hurt, indicating the tooth had to go after two months had passed since the root canal was done, along with a recent round of more antibiotics.

Soon, at 10:15 am, we’ll make the 35 to 40-minute drive, depending on Monday morning traffic which can be a real issue on the N4 due to an endless stream of trucks and never-ending road construction.

Thank goodness I didn’t allow myself to fuss over this upcoming appointment during the night, and I had plenty of sleep for a change. It was only about a month ago when Tom had two teeth pulled that were beyond repair. His fast recovery is encouraging, but then again, everyone is different.

The last time I had a tooth pulled was in 1967, after the birth of my first son. They said women would lose a tooth for each child they carried in those days, which proved to be a “wives tale.” They assumed the growing fetus depleted the calcium in the mother’s body during pregnancy resulting in the loss of a tooth.

In the realm of things, having one tooth pulled is no big deal. Can we even imagine how horrible having a tooth extracted was a hundred years ago or more? I shouldn’t give it another thought. But, as a borderline dental phobic, I don’t go into this procedure with ease and confidence.

Yesterday, I prepped tonight’s dinner for Tom and planned to have scrambled eggs or something similar for myself. We’ll see how it goes. As for the remainder of the day, I hope to feel well enough to proceed, as usual, working on more corrections as soon as today’s post is uploaded.

At this point, I have 50 more days required to complete the corrections, which will be finalized just about the time we arrive in Arizona. After doing these for over a year, I can’t tell you how thrilled I will be to have this behind me. Almost every afternoon during the past year, I’ve been working on them. After all, there have been over 3300 posts since we began posting in March 2012.

Right now, I have about 1000 left. Recently I increased the pace and can manage to do 20 post corrections per day, an increase from my previous 10. Sure, I’ve missed some days here and there and don’t fuss about it, but it’s often on my mind after uploading the new daily post.

Since I don’t have to concentrate quite as much while doing the corrections, as opposed to preparing a new post, I usually have a podcast or movie in the background on a split-screen. It helps me to stay entertained during the tedious process. I can’t imagine how wonderful it will feel in the future to have my afternoons free to do whatever I’d like.

In Arizona, the roads are evenly paved, and I will begin walking outside each day. I may do it comparably to the process I did in India while in lockdown by getting up and walking every hour, rather than one long walk. I will listen to podcasts as I’d done in those long corridors. Plus, it helps to get up out of a chair and move every hour instead of going out once a day.

I am looking forward to walking again, which I haven’t done much while in Marloth Park with the uneven pothole-ridden dirt roads. The cool crisp air in Arizona in the wintertime is pleasant for walking outdoors.

So, that’s it for today, dear readers. We hope you have a pleasant day. We’ll be back with updates tomorrow.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, September 6, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while we were in lockdown in Mumbai, India, on day #167. There we were, at last, in Kenya, Africa, on this date in 2013. We were hot and sweaty as we embarked on our first walk outside the gated complex, onto the main road, definitely a daytime-only event. For more photos, please click here.

Tom’s tooth abscess is resolved at last!…

Posted by worldwide-admin on February 4, 2016 with 0 Comment

Tom, standing outside Taylor Dental Practice in New Plymouth, New Zealand.

Finally, Tom’s tooth abscess is resolved. After three months since the onset of the problem, two rounds of antibiotics, both of which gave him temporary relief, two trips to a dentist, one in Fiji in November, the other yesterday, it’s all over now.

“Dr. Dennis, the Dentist” at the Taylor Dental Practice in New Plymouth pulled his tooth after examining his x-rays and giving him three options for the tooth that had already had a crown:

The waiting room was comfortable and organized.

1. Root canal with a new crown at an expense of NZ $1500, US $1011
2. An implant that would take eight to nine months (out of the question, time-wise)
3. Pull the tooth

It didn’t take long for us to decide. As the last tooth next to a wisdom tooth, losing the tooth wouldn’t result in a noticeable difference when he smiled or laughed. Who among us in the senior years hasn’t had at least one tooth pulled in their lifetime? This was a first for Tom.

There was plenty of reading material, but we didn’t wait long.

Tom has always had “laughing gas” (nitrous oxide) for all dental work, a practice that started when he was a young adult. This is seldom used in many countries and wasn’t available at Dr. Dennis’s location.

The tooth would be pulled with only a lengthy injection of Novocaine (Procaine) and out the tooth would come! He hesitated when hearing there would be no nitrous oxide used. With reassurances from Dennis, the hygienist, and me, he decided to go ahead.

As shown in Tom’s x-ray, the gray area under the far-right crown is where the infection has been festering off and on.

I asked Dr. Dennis an important question before he began the procedure, “How long would it take to pull out the tooth?” He explained it would be over in less than one minute. Knowing this gave Tom a bit of comfort.

We had visions of a dentist tugging and pulling, broken bits remaining behind, with the dentist using leverage to yank out a pesky tooth. Not the case. It was over in 10 seconds, not one minute. We were both surprised by how quickly the tooth, mushy in the gums, easily came out.

He still smiles, considering what was ahead. The goggles are worn to protect the eyes in the event of any “flying” tooth matter during the extraction.

The look of relief on Tom’s face was evident when the dentist showed him the extracted tooth. It was over. What a relief for him and for me who’d suffered along with him over two worrisome rounds of antibiotics and trips to the dentist. After a few instructions for care, we were out the door of the treatment room and off to pay the bill.

Considering the exam, the x-rays, the Novocaine injection, and the extraction, we expected a bill in the several hundred dollar range. Were we ever shocked when we were handed the bill for NZ $170, US $115? We couldn’t pay it quickly enough.

Dr. Dennis, the Dentist did a fine job, quick and painless.

No doubt this would have been much more costly in the US although not quite as good a deal as it may have been in Fiji at NZ $4.09, US $2.76 per dental appointment.

In examining the sterilization at the two locations, we felt more at ease in New Zealand and we’re glad we waited, even though it cost Tom an extra round of antibiotics. That’s not to say the dental care in Fiji is inadequate but at their low prices, it may not have been possible to provide the degree of caution exercised in New Zealand where we felt totally at ease.

Based on this single experience, we’d highly recommend Taylor Dental Practice and Dr. Dennis, the dentist with whom we chatted for a bit about his homeland of Malaysia which we’ll be visiting this upcoming April on our next cruise. Overall, it was a relatively painless and pleasant (as such an appointment can be) experience in a professional, competent, and caring clinic.

Allison, the dental assistant was equally friendly and supportive.

After the extraction, we continued on with our grocery shop. I told Tom we could easily wait to shop until today when we’re soon heading back to town to visit with June and Simon at their historic home. He insisted he was fine and we could continue with our multiple-stop shopping.

Heading to Pak’nSave, on a different day of the week than last time, again we ran into June who was also shopping. We all giggled over the coincidence assuring her we’d be at her home as planned at 11:00 am today, Friday. Small world.

Then we were off to the Kiwi Meat market with a final stop at New World Market for the balance of the items we couldn’t find at PAK n SAVE. By the time we returned “home” the cleaners, Ra, and Isabel hadn’t finished cleaning after arriving late.

The old metal crown Tom had made many years ago, moments after it was pulled.

Hurriedly, we put our perishables away leaving the remainder on the dining room table to deal with later, and headed back out the door to “kill” another hour. Tom had suggested a new road to explore he’d spotted on the map. He explained he was feeling fine and has continued without pain or discomfort since the extraction.

As always in New Zealand, every road offers myriad treasures and we continued exploring for a few more hours taking photos on another overcast day. We’ll share those photos in the days to come.

We’ll be back tomorrow with photos from today’s visit to the historic home. Please stop back to see!

Photo from one year ago today, February 5, 2015:

It was one year ago today that we attended our first Full Moon Party, organized by friend Richard, as we continued with a busy social life in Kauai. Thanks, Richard, we’ll always love you for befriending us! For more details, please click here.

Photos from lockdown three years ago on this date…

Posted by worldwide-admin on March 26, 2023 with 0 Comment

When I initially took this photo of Tom’s dinner a few weeks earlier while touring India, he said, “Don’t post that. It looks disgusting.” While in lockdown, this dish started looking appetizing to both of us. See the post here.

Three years ago, we went into lockdown in Mumbai, India. It seems like it was only yesterday. No, we haven’t forgotten about our ten-month lockdown in the hotel. We continue to be grateful it wasn’t any longer than it was. We made the best of it as a couple, working our way through it without any disharmony or negativism.

The hardest part of those ten long months was the food and the laundry. Washing all of our clothes by hand was tedious, especially since we both like to wear jeans. But, we chose to alternate with two pairs of jeans each since it would take three days for them to dry on the window sill after washing them in the shower.

We washed our underwear every day, but those, too, took days to dry. I wore the same three shirts repeatedly, washing one every other day. We didn’t sweat while in air conditioning day and night. After it was over, we kept the jeans, but I tossed the shirts. I didn’t want to see them ever again, even though they held up well.

The two statues of a revered couple who were highly instrumental in doing good works for the Indian people.

We placed a bath towel at the bottom of the closet and hung some of our wet clothes in there. We never unpacked our suitcases. What was the point? We had everything out of them that we wore, and toiletries, which were difficult to replace from the hotel room when we ran out. Luckily, there’s an Amazon in India from which we could buy some of the items we needed, such as shampoo, deodorant, and toothpaste.

They’d deliver the boxed items from Amazon to security at the hotel entrance, where they’d spray the boxes with disinfectant and then bring them up to our room to set them on the little table outside our door. We were told not to open them for three days since there may still be germs on the outside of the cardboard boxes.

As for the food, which we wrote about in many posts, it wasn’t good. Tom doesn’t like Indian spices or sauce, so he ate Chicken Penne Pasta every night for the first eight months. He gained 10 kg, 22 pounds, and finally gave up eating dinner altogether for the last two months.

This woman was on the side of the road, shaking seeds out of a basket to be used in making vegetable oil.

Instead, he’d ordered a massive breakfast with four bananas, four hard-boiled eggs, four pieces of toast with jelly, and piles of bacon, the only pork item on the menu. He’d save some breakfast in the evening, such as two boiled eggs and a few bananas. That worked for him.

I ate a normal-sized breakfast of eggs and bacon. At dinner, I ordered grilled chicken breast with sauteed vegetables one night and salmon with sauteed vegetables the next night. I like Indian food, but I cannot have all the dishes laden with starch and sugar.

It wasn’t easy. At times, we longed for some type of snack, more due to boredom than hunger, but they didn’t have anything we’d eat. Plus, with my limited way of eating, snacks aren’t easy to figure out without a kitchen to do the necessary prep for low-carb items.

Tom’s meal from a few weeks prior looked appetizing from when we were touring India.

Fortunately, we were allowed to walk the corridors to get some exercise, or else we’d have been sitting all the time. I walked 8 km, 5 miles daily, while Tom did the stairs. I got a tooth abscess while we were there and was treated by an online dentist who never charged me for the help. I got antibiotics without a prescription, ordered through a pharmacy that delivered them to the front desk, on two occasions when they returned a few months later. Once we got to South Africa, I had the tooth pulled. It was a wisdom tooth, so there was no significant loss.

Obviously, like all of you, we learned a lot about ourselves during that stressful time. Our true colors came out under those harsh conditions. In our cases, we felt we became more tolerant and adaptive from that trying situations, and we have no regrets. Besides, it’s a great story to share when we’re with others, and they, too, share their lockdown experience. Who would have thought we’d all go through such an unbelievable experience?

An artfully designed temple built over 1000 years ago in Chennai.

In essence, it shaped us in more ways than we can describe. Sadly, many lost loved ones or experienced the ravages of the virus, some of whom still suffer today. I know this from personal experience as I am currently on more medication to treat the lingering effects.

Today, we’re off to a house party, bringing our dinner and drinks. Last night, we had a fantastic time at Jabula with Louise and Danie, with whom we always love sharing social time. With their busy schedules, it’s always a treat to be socializing with this fantastic couple whom we both adore.

Have a great Sunday, and be well.

Photo from one year ago today, March 2, 2022:

Our friend Rich and Tom were enjoying sundowners on their beach. The sun was setting over the water as we enjoyed our drinks and companionship. For more photos, please click here.

The party’s over…Regular life continues…Muddy garden…Lots of black worms everywhere…

Posted by worldwide-admin on March 1, 2023 with 0 Comment

The worms are everywhere, hopefully, to be gone within a few weeks.

Now that the party is over, it’s back to regular life. It seems to be hotter and more humid now, or perhaps in the flurry of activity for the party; I didn’t notice it as much. Today’s biggest challenge is getting yesterday’s laundry dried, which is still soaking wet in the humidity, but worms keep crawling all over the clothes.

May be an image of outdoors — We borrowed this photo from Facebook. This is the veranda of a Marloth Park resident. These worms don’t appear every year but are awful this year. Our invasion isn’t as bad as this, thank goodness.

Tom moved the laundry rack to the sun on the wooden deck, but now the black worms are crawling all over our clothes. If we try to kill them when they are on clothing or towels, they leave a permanent stain. The tee shirt Tom wore today and yesterday will have to be thrown away with all the worm stains on it.

I’ve preferred to stay indoors seated at the dining room table with fewer worms, although some climb the little step from the veranda to access the inside of the house. Yuck! Many residents and visitors to Marloth Park are posting photos of their worm invasions. Thank goodness our isn’t as bad as the above photo we posted from Facebook. Yuck.

Then again, what do I always say? TIA. This is Africa, and instead of talking about the worms all day, we’re still enjoying the visiting wildlife. We plan to go into Kruger when it hasn’t rained overnight for a few days to make the roads more accessible.

Both Vusi and Zef are now cleaning. Zef is on the veranda sweeping up worms while Vusi is working on cleaning the store room from when the work was done for the new inverter system, leaving everything covered in dust. Extra dishes, serving pieces, small appliances, linen tableware, and our iced tea supply are kept in that room. It will be nice to have the extra dust out of the house.

Four bushbucks were in the garden, and four more outside the little fence.

I bolted out of bed early this morning to work on tonight’s chicken stir fry dinner. I cooked the defrosted chicken and veggies in garlic and ginger seasoned sesame oil, later adding all the wonderful seasonings and spices. Tom will have his dinner on a bed of white rice, and I’ll have mine on cooked cabbage with a side salad for each of us.

I prefer to get as much done as I can for dinners in the early morning when it’s cooler rather than be stuck in the kitchen just before we eat, standing over the hot stove. Plus, the kitchen has fewer flies when it’s cooler in the morning. When it’s time to eat, I’ll reheat the pot, cook Tom’s rice and toss the salad with homemade dressing, taking only a few minutesi n the kitchen. We can be on the veranda the remainder of the time, enjoying our wildlife visitors.

Even with the worms out there, we still spend our evenings on the veranda, and then, if the insects are really bad, we’ll enter the dining room with a clear view of the garden while we enjoy our dinner without too many insects intruding. When there are few insects in the cooler winter months, we spend more time outdoors in the evenings.

On another note, I’m still thrilled that I didn’t have the tooth pulled. After taking an x-ray, Dr. Singh determined there was nothing wrong with the tooth, but it was irritated from over-flossing. To avoid issues with my gums, I tend to floss too much and too often, using too thick a flossing string. I am still smiling over the fact that my tooth didn’t have to be pulled, leaving me to enjoy this week without the pain and discomfort and then dealing with getting an implant.

Zebras were taking off after we stopped tossing pellets.

My teeth are very close together, and I often feel like I need to floss. Dr. Signh convinced me that flossing once a day was enough, and I will now wait to floss after dinner. He did a full mouth x-ray with this modern equipment and said every tooth in my mouth and my gums are healthy, especially for my age. In the long run, our obsession with flossing and also having our teeth cleaned professionally every three months has paid off. It’s been easy to have the cleanings here with Luzaan, but once we leave in June, it may not be possible to do so when we’re in even more remote locations.

We’re looking forward to heading to Jabula on Friday evening. As it turned out, Dawn and Leon knew everyone at the party, making it fun. It will be great to catch up with them over the weekend.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, March 1, 2022:

View of kitchen from the dining room. One year ago, we posted photos of this holiday home before we moved to this house. Please click here for more.

Part 2…Wow!…What a fantastic party!…

Posted by worldwide-admin on February 27, 2023 with 2 Comments

These delightful amuse-bouche spoons were a party favorite. There were about 100 of these spoon starters (appetizers). There were several unique contents. They were fun to eat and delicious!

We’re rushing this morning, hoping to get as much of this post done before we leave for Malalane to Dr. Singh’s office for my dental appointment, All went well, and I didn’t have to have the tooth pulled after all. I am thrilled, to say the least.

We caught this kudu eating a display platter when Louise was putting out the food. We removed the food afterward but couldn’t stop laughing. Danie was keeping an eye out to ensure this didn’t happen again.

I cannot begin to tell you the positive responses we’ve had from many guests who attended my party. My Whatsapp notification has frequently been dinging in the past 24 hours, and we couldn’t be more delighted. Of course, we can take no credit for the party. It was all due to Louise and Danie’s efforts.

Pretty decorations adorned the veranda at the party.

Some comments include:

From: Alan and Fiona: “Good morning, Jessica! Thank you for having us at your incredible 75th birthday celebration. The venue was lovely, the food was outstanding, and the company was great! You will always remember this one! Fiona and I wish you and Tom much happiness in your future travels, Much love from us!”

From: Alan and Fiona to Louise and Danie: “Hi Louise and Danie! Wow! What a magnificent spread last night! I don’t think Marloth Park EVER had a party catered to that standard before! Congratulations! I’m sure the birthday girl was impressed because the guests didn’t know what hit them!”

Fiona and Alan, coincidentally, were back from the coast for a few weeks and were able to come to the party.

From Dawn: Dearest Jessica and Tom, what a magnificent evening on Saturday…the best home birthday party I have ever been to. Thank you for all the trouble you went to. We love you lots.”

From Leon: Good morning! Saturday night was out of this World…too many things to mention. One of the best-prepared birthday parties we’ve been to in many, many years…Thank you. Please thank everyone involved from us!”

From Janine and Vasco: Good morning Jess…just want to thank you for an absolutely fabulous birthday get-together. Have a superb day, and please don’t forget to send photos, as I have none.”

In all, we had 28 guests arrive at the party. Many of the guests knew one another.

Last night, we had a pleasant evening again, eating more leftovers from the freezer since after the party, when we didn’t feel like cooking, although the only thing I made for the party was the two cakes, one of which we wiped out at the party and the second, which we took home. It’s a keto chocolate cake that is not as moist as a regular cake made with flour and regular sugar, but to me (and to Dawn), it tasted great.

More cheeses and toppings for Danie’s homemade bread.

Last night after dinner, I cut myself a big chunk of the keto cake while Tom ate two cupcakes Louise had made for the party as shown in the photos below. They certainly looked delicious, and Tom said they were definitely tasty!

Louise set up this beautiful display of cupcakes she had made for the party. Tom was thrilled there was a dessert with regular flour and sugar, and he loved them!

Now back from the dentist with the good news, we can both sit back and enjoy another rainy day in the bush with many wildlife visitors. We have lots of red wine left, including some given to me as gifts and many bottles of white wine. We went through 11 bottles of Prosecco at the party with one bottle remaining.

Tom, me, Theo’s wife Myrdah, Doc Mel and his wife, and Doc Philip’s wife.

Together we brought 40 bottles of wine (including Prosecco) to the party and went through only about 20 bottles plus, we brought five cases of 500 ml (16.9 oz.) Lion beer and went through 1½ cases (24 packs). I guess the Prosecco and the beer were the biggest hits. Now we have plenty of beer and wine left for our personal needs (and guests) until we leave here in June. This is the place to come for sundowners!!!

Vusi and Mpumi are in this photo, but Zef and Martha were all there to assist. They did a fantastic job of helping and cleaning the house and all the dishes the next day.

We’ve put everything away, including all the white wines in the refrigerator and all the red wines in boxes in the closet. I got some lovely gifts even after telling everyone no gifts! Thank you to all of our guests and all of our family, friends, and readers for a wonderful birthday I will always remember!

Tomorrow, there will be more photos from the party and an exciting African dance video of our helpers you will love!

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, February 27, 2022:

At Kwa Madwala, guests can opt for safaris on horseback. For more photos, please click here.

It will be a wonderful 75th birthday!…Gratefulness is at the forefront….Attack of the black worms…

Posted by worldwide-admin on February 20, 2023 with 2 Comments

There are thousands of these black worms on the veranda and in our garden.

There are no words I can say to express my gratitude for this milestone birthday. Well, it’s a milestone by my standards, three-quarters of a century…good grief. I never imagined this would be my life when I was 75. I’d imagined we’d be living in the US in a senior community of one sort or another, going out to dinner for the early bird special, having breakfast at Perkins or Denny’s on occasion, lots of family gatherings, playing cards, and making a monthly visit to our primary care physician, as most seniors in the US do.

Instead, our physician, Doc Theo, his two associates,(his brother) Doc Mel, and Doc Philip, and their wives, along with many other friends, are joining us for my catered birthday party on Saturday in the bush. My biggest concern is that we have plenty of South African wines and beer to serve at the party, and many animals stop by for a visit. It’s all so fun and exciting.

These worms are caterpillars. But there are way too many of them! Yuck!

This morning our garden was filled with animals. Even Norman stopped by to wish me a Happy Birthday, to which I tossed him “Norman’s lunch.” But, speaking of lunch, in a short time, we’re heading out to meet Dawn and Leon (great friends and owners of Jabula) for lunch at Tamborina in Komatipoort, known for their fantastic seafood.

Since we prefer not to drive in the dark, a lunchtime event was more suitable today, the actual day of my birthday. The birthday party is being held on Saturday, February 25, at the gorgeous Khaya Umdani house, with lots of room for our 28 guests, rain or shine. Our home isn’t big enough to accommodate that size of a group, so Louise and Danie offered this house to us for my birthday. Wow! This will work out well!

Mushroom is growing at the base of a tree in the garden due to the high humidity.

We wish we could have invited more of the many lovely friends we’ve made in Marloth Park, but space is limited, and the magic number was 28, with seating for everyone. We’re bringing our Bluetooth speaker for music, and we’ll be mainly playing oldies from the 70s and 80s. For all we know, there will be dancing on the veranda.

Although the party will be casual, the food will undoubtedly be over the top. Louise and Danie are catering the food and accouterments. They have hosted weddings and other special events and are excellent at this. Of course, we’ll post many photos from the party and hopefully from today’s lunch.

This Big Daddy kudu appears to be sprouting one of those third mini horns between his eyes, the weirdest phenomenon.

Since yesterday, we’ve noticed an invasion by some ugly black worms. They are common this time of the year, but we’ve never seen them until this year. Most likely, they are due to all the rain we’ve had in the past several weeks. Supposedly they are harmless but annoying when they land on us.

Now that my long-haul Covid symptoms are improving, on Monday, I am having a tooth pulled by Dr. Singh in Malalne. Hopefully, he will be able to place a temporary tooth to avoid me walking around with a gaping hole that will show when I open my mouth or smile. I will report how that works out next Tuesday. If it didn’t still hurt, I wouldn’t be doing this! I despise going to the dentist and, even worse, having a tooth pulled.

These dazzle zebras have been regular visitors lately.

Thanks to all of our wonderful family readers/friends for the birthday wishes. Every one of you is so thoughtful to think of me on this special day. You have no idea how much this means to me.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, February 20, 2022:

Louise and Danie hosted the interaction event for my birthday. We couldn’t believe we could be so close and interact with the two elephants who freely roam in the wild. e photos, please click here.

Long haul Covid-19 symptoms or something else?…Finally, possible relief…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 13, 2022 with 0 Comment

Here’s today’s bill for the doctor’s visit, which includes the cost of four prescriptions. ZAR 460, US $28.47! Can you believe the low cost for all of this?

In April when Tom and I contracted Covid-19 while on a cruise. Symptoms occurred that morning, and right away, we tested? positive. Our regular readers know the rest of the story. Tom got a bad case of pneumonia, and I was left with a headache above my left eye on my forehead with tenderness on both of my cheeks, especially on the right side, where it was assumed I had a tooth abscess.

Now, I believe I don’t have a tooth abscess and will cancel my upcoming appointments with Dr. Singh to have a tooth pulled the day after we return from our upcoming trip, leaving a week from today, ending in a temporary bridge and an implant several months later. I asked Dr. Singh to take an x-ray to confirm I had an abscess, but he didn’t feel it was necessary. The pain in my face on the right side was supposedly an abscess, and on the left, who knows?

This poor warthog has a hole in her side. Amazingly, warthogs have robust immune systems, which should heal without her developing an infection.

Over the past several months since we tested positive for Covid-19 (Omicron) on April 20th, I’ve had a pain in my forehead slightly above my left eyebrow that has persisted for almost four months. Yes, there were days it didn’t hurt as much, and I may have forgotten about it for a few hours. Alas, the following day, I’d awaken, and the headache was back.

The headache wasn’t comparable to a migraine, which I never get, and no amount of Tylenol (Paracetamol) would make it go away. I even tried a combination of Tylenol and Ibuprofen, which didn’t work either. I brushed it off as a long-haul Covid-19 symptom that would eventually disappear.

Here’s a Big Daddy missing a large section of his left horn. He’s well aware of this since we see him tapping his good right horn when warthogs annoy him during pellet feeding.

A few days ago, when I was washing my face, I experienced pain in my left cheek, to the touch. I attributed the pain on my right cheek to the abscess, but now the left cheek, the side on which I’ve had the persistent headache. Last night when I was getting ready to go to Jabula with Rita, Gerhard, and Lee, I noticed I could barely touch either of my cheeks. This concerned me. What was going on?

While dining at Jabula, I wasn’t myself but didn’t say anything. I could feel pain moving up my face to my forehead. Was I having a stroke (which would be an obvious concern for a person with cardiovascular disease). I tried not to panic and didn’t. I stayed calm, and then, like a bolt of lightning, it hit me…I have had a sinus infection since I first got Covid-19 (Omicron) and never had it treated.

Kudu youngsters are resting in the garden.

On our way home, I told Tom my concern; he was his usual supportive self. The clinic in Marloth Park is open on Saturday, and we planned to go there first thing in the morning. I called an appointment and was told we could come in right away. Within minutes of my arrival, the diagnosis was confirmed. I have a raging sinus infection, most likely leftover from when we were sick with Covid-19.

Not only did I get a thorough exam, but a half hour later, I walked out the door with medication in hand; prescriptions for two different antibiotics and an antihistamine. The insides of my ears and nose were inflamed, along with the pain in my head and face. The hefty five-day dose of antibiotics and antihistamine should put me on the right track in the coming week.

Sure, I may have a tooth abscess, but the pain was most likely related to the sinus infection. For now, I will cancel the appointments with Dr. Singh, and when we return from our trip, I will go to the Marloth Park clinic to have an x-ray to see if I have an abscess. If I do, I’ll decide from there what to do. But, I feel I won’t save myself an unnecessary tooth extraction and subsequent temporary bridge and eventual implant, let alone the cost of all that.

It’s cute to see how the youngsters hang out together. We see this behavior in most social wildlife, such as kudus, warthogs, and impalas.

I found this interesting article here, from an ear, nose, and throat specialist in Atlanta, Georgia, that reads, in part, as follows:

“Persisting “sinus headache” affecting the frontal and ethmoid sinus areas (regions between the eyes and up onto the forehead) is the most common symptom following bacterial-negative COVID sinusitis. This may also be present with a runny nose, usually on both sides. But oddly, about half of the patients have no runny nose at this point. Some patients (about 10%) will have scalp tenderness, pain, and even sometimes PAINFUL HAIR! Pain at the top of the head is often found with occult sphenoid sinusitis, which can cause a serious infection of the eyes and even meningitis.”

Oh, good grief, this sounds like me! When I had Covid-19 (Omicron), I got what is called Covid-19 eye. I am certainly relieved that we addressed this now instead of waiting another day. I should be feeling much better by the time we leave a week from today.

Three wildebeest stopped by for a visit, including Bad Ear, Crooked Face, and Torn Ear.

As soon as we returned to the house, I started taking the medications and looked forward to relief in about three or four days. This is not prevented from going through with tomorrow afternoon’s sundowner party. For our readers/friends. This morning I started a little prep for tomorrow and will finish everything else. Tom washed all the glasses and serving pieces which got very dusty on the open shelves.

Thanks for “listening” to my woes. But, none of this puts a damper on continuing to enjoy the bush, our animal and human friends. We are very blessed indeed.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, August 13, 2021:

This might be a serrated hinged terrapin, but it was difficult to determine from this photo. For more photos, please click here.

Thank you for all the kind comments and inquiries!…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 10, 2022 with 0 Comment

This kudu has huge, wide horns. Such a majestic and wonderful animal!

Gosh, we’ve had many comments and inquiries about our non-starchy roasted vegetables, as shown on Monday’s post here. Most of the questions were regarding which vegetables were included and the spices used. Here are the vegetables I used, but you can use any you prefer.

Zucchini
Onions
Mushrooms
Red, green, and red bell peppers
Carrots (a small amount, if low carb)
Eggplant
Garlic

Seasonings

Himalayan coarse salt
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Bottled Cajun spices or any other spicy mix
Fresh ground pepper

I spray the pan with olive oil or coconut oil spray and then place a piece of parchment (baking paper) to cover the bottom of the pan to get the paper to stay in place. Then I lightly spray the vegetables before adding the spices, so they stick nicely. Bake for 90 minutes at 375F, 190C, tossing with a spatula every 30 minutes. These will keep refrigerated for four days. Reheat or eat cold; delicious either way.

Also, a few readers have written that they are not receiving automatic emails again. Please email me if you aren’t receiving the emails; we will report it to our web people again. In the interim, if you do not see a post, check for a new one each day at the same time, and the latest one will appear. Type: www.worldwidewaftage.com in your browser’s address bar. Thank you for being so patient. It’s some fluke the web people can’t figure out but keep trying.

Last night, for the first time in days, we could relax and enjoy our sundowners on the veranda. The issues have bogged us down. We had to resolve and for me to get the taxes ready for the accountant. We must wait for the duplicate tax documents to arrive at our mailing service and forward them overnight to the accountant.

This morning, these two male kudus rested in the garden for a few hours.

The cruise credit has been processed for the next upcoming cruise, our paperwork is in order, and I feel like I can relax for the first time in a while.

In 10 days, we’ll be leaving for our next visa stamp trip, returning to Zambia and Botswana for more safari adventures. We’ll only be gone for a week and plan to post each day as always, providing the WiFi is working OK at the resort and hotel. Hopefully, we’ll have some stunning photos and stories to share.

Today is another perfect weather day, and the wildlife has begun to return since the holiday weekend is over as of last night. The majority of the holidaymakers have left. The roads are quiet once again. Construction sounds waft through the air from time to time since sound travels in the bush, but we aren’t bothered by it.

My tooth to be pulled when we return isn’t hurting right now. The dentist gave me extra antibiotics (which I hate taking) if it flares up while we’re away. If it becomes a problem, I’m bringing along plenty of Tylenol (Paracetamol). I don’t particularly appreciate packing for these short trips and most likely won’t start packing until the day before we leave.

Then again, I wouldn’t say I like packing anytime we leave for anywhere when we aren’t taking everything with us. In those cases, I have to decide what to bring and what to leave behind; when we go for an extended time, taking everything with us is much more straightforward.

Yesterday, I made Tom some “regular” (not low carb) blueberry muffins which he loves. Here’s a photo:

Two dozen blueberry muffins I made for Tom yesterday afternoon. He takes one out of the freezer each day. To have with his coffee.

Instead, I’d make these for him rather than have him eat those awful chemical-laden muffins sold at the Spar Market. He invariably buys the junk at the market if we don’t have homemade muffins or banana bread in the freezer. At least when I make them, I know the ingredients I am using are good quality.

Tom reminded me today that he was getting low on coconut banana bread. When checking his frozen inventory, he only had a few pieces left in the freezer. He takes one piece out of the freezer daily to savor after dinner. A new double batch is in the oven, taking 60 minutes to cook. I put the ingredients together, while he mashes the bananas. When it’s done, we let it cool, cut it into individual portions and place them in a freezer bag.

With him enjoying one of these days, the entire two batches last 24 days. There will be a little left when we return from our trip. But, the day after we return, I have my tooth pulled and may not feel like baking for a few days. I may make these all again next week. Fortunately, Tom has a propensity to enjoy the same thing repeatedly. That’s why he likes me!!!

After the baking, we’ll head to the butcher store here in Marloth Park to purchase some prawns for our sundowner event with readers/friends on Sunday. I’m making a list of starter-type items to serve, all of which will be as filling as a meal but served as appetizers. None of our guests will need to return to their houses to make dinner. Serving this way is easier, leaving me time to spend with our guests.

That’s it for today, folks. Enjoy the day!

Photo from one year ago today, August 10, 2021:

Spikey and his mom came to visit. For more photos, please click here.

Tough night…More wonders in the bush…Dental update…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 3, 2022 with 2 Comments

It was time for the family to take a drink.

Last night I awoke every hour itching like crazy. They weren’t mosquito bites but chiggers, sand fleas, or midges, whatever one may call them. The bites last for weeks. One bite can keep me awake all night when the crazy itching won’t stop, no matter what cream or method I use to control it.

They took turns moving in and out from the edge of the pool.

A few years ago, Rita gave me a battery-operated zapper that produced heat that seemed to help if I used it within an hour of getting the new bite. Recently, from overuse, it stopped working. Within a week, a package from Takealot will arrive with a new zapper in the shipment. I am looking forward to using it.

It’s not even summer yet when the mozzies arrive. I will continue to use repellent regularly, but it doesn’t seem to work for the bites as mentioned above and irritating allergic responses. I wear long sleeves, long pants daily, and full coverage pajamas at night always doubled up with Tabard roll-on repellent. TIA…This is Africa….it goes with the territory for those of us who are sensitive to insect bites and response to dust mites.

I am not the only person that experiences these bite-related annoyances. I have talked to many locals who share the same situation with no new means of combating the issue.

Lollie is on the right, and her boyfriend (she has two) is Busybody. Her other boyfriend is Rueben.

As for our dental updates…Tom’s two new tooth implants are not causing him any problems. It felt tender the first day they were seated, but he was fine a few hours later. I am hoping when I get the implant for my painful tooth in months to come, my result will be similar to his.

As mentioned earlier, the tooth caused me discomfort in the fourth to the upper right. Once the tooth is pulled, the hole will be shown when I talk or smile. I told Dr. Singh I want a temporary tooth (or bridge) while we wait for the bone to heal over the foundation for the implant, which will be put in place the day the tooth is pulled. It may be three to six months until I can get the permanent implant.

Yesterday, once again, the nyala family came to call, including Norman, Nina, and their son Noah.

In the interim, Dr. Singh will have a bridge made to fill the hole so the hole won’t be visible when I talk or smile. I’d considered having this three-day process done before we leave for our visa-stamp trip to Zambia/Botswana on August 20 for a week. But, the last time I had a tooth pulled, I had a horrible time with an unbelievably painful dry socket, resulting in me being on pain meds for three weeks. I don’t want to go through that again.

But, certain people are prone to dry sockets. If I had the tooth pulled now, I run the risk of the recovery time running into our travel time and being miserable while we’re gone. There was no way I wanted to take the risk. Instead, Dr. Singh prescribed antibiotics, a three-day Z-Pack dose that didn’t work. He sent me another prescription for a different antibiotic which I’ll get filled and use only if I need to.

The appointment for the extraction is the day after we return from the trip. It was the best decision we could make considering the circumstances. Right now, the discomfort is minimal, and I’ll wait and see what transpires with the abscess in the interim.

Today, we are working on getting our certified vaccine certificate from this site for only those vaccinated in the US. The fee is US $2.00 each, paid by credit card. We may not need this but are doing so just in case we need it for traveling to any country. Today, we checked to discover we won’t need any Covid-19 tests before traveling or returning to South Africa. This is good news.

Have a pleasant day and evening!

Photo from one year ago today, August 3, 2021: