Cancer thought by Alfling

I hope that this ends well, I always thought that death and family was instant, then I met cancer, know I wish IT was and THEM not.

Past Reality

I was looking at searching what ever happened to the computer games we used to play? Well ‘We’ being my brother and I and the majority of us white folk (in SA in the 1980’s) who’s parents had the money to get this for their kids, we were fortunate as we were one of those families. As I started searching I started with what I remembered as my favourite game or the interaction and connection with my best friend Robin, and then I realised that there were many different phases as the hardware/software changed.

The first thing that jumped into my mind was “Leisure suite Larry” but realised that this I played on a 286 or 486 and came later in life when I was in my sexual prime as a teen and obviously the thing to come to mind, so I tried a bit harder.
A lot of emotion ran back and hit me like a ten pound hammer!
I started to remember “Ghost Busters” and worked my way backwards…
I said to my self what the hell was the first…

Other than the Café games and “Pac Man” on the Atari because Atari was definitely the first ‘platform’ I played on…it was…”Manic Miner” on the ZX Spectrum 48k!
Yes that was the game that first kept me captivated for months on end! But not as much as it’s follow up “Jet Set Willy”!
These were the first ‘colour’ games that changed my world as a child and the first platform that we owned – ZX Spectrum 48k.

So I found a great sight (as I looked no further) called http://www.worldofspectrum.org/ and it gave me what I wanted, not only a glimpse of what used to be but I could actually play some of them real time on their sight using a 48k Java Spectrum Emulator - how cool.
With time I remembered other greats like “Jet Pack”, “Atic Atac”, “Movie” and “The Great Escape”.

Well, all and all it was a great remembrance for me as a kiddie and as a teen. Most of all the fact that my Dad (only bread winner financially) kept a secret for a long time after we had moved back to Jozi. We had some long months before that living in George… got back to Jozi and a lot of speculation by my self and my boet got us frustrated before our surprise that would change our lives!!!
Yes, that day when my Dad got home with a thorough-bread ZX in his boot…don’t remember the car but I sure remember the colour of the ZX…black with the rainbow trim!!

I remember my Dad paying up to R300, which was like R3000 in my terms today – a lot of money! But the beautiful part was the fact that a Father would give this to his kids yet limit the exposure?
Good for you Dad, as I now find my self…
A Software Developer…

One thing I know for sure is that the Lord had more influence in me being a Software Developer than me being an Engineer!

Amazing Coincidence

Amazing Race has and always will be one of my favourite shows.
I would give anything to experience that adventure as you do not only see half the world but it is competitive and some serious decisions have to be made!

Needless to say I follow each episode like a hawk and while watching the episode on the 31st of January I saw something that really made me sit upright.
One of the “next weeks” highlights that get shown after the episode showed how one of the competitors abseils down into a cave…it looked very familiar to say the least!

I had a few months ago in September 2005 gone caving with some friends in a cave called “Bats Cave”. The company that took us in was ‘Wild Cave Adventures’ and it started pretty hectic with a 16 metre abseil into nothingness!
The shot I saw on TV looked very similar to the one you see above but I thought what are the chances first of all that this amazing (excuse the pun) show would come to a third world country and secondly do a road block near my home town.

The following Tuesday I get a mail from Wild Cave Adventures which is pretty normal as I am on their distribution list for upcoming events and specials. But as I start reading the first line; it went something like “…we have waited so long to tell you this…” I knew that what I saw on TV was after all Bats Cave!
Immediately I jumped up and told those at work who went with me to the cave, I then jumped on the phone and told all my other friends and family that tonight they do not dare miss this episode of Amazing Race!

Needless to say it was a great episode and the thing that impressed me the most was how helpful and friendly the South African public were to these very lost Americans.
The weird part was when I found out that this episode was already shot in November 2004 so I went down into Bats Cave long after they did, I am just glad I was not the guy that had to keep it a secret all that time!
I just cant wait to go down again as they now have the ‘Amazing Race’ excursion where the guides are those that helped the Americans around and you follow there exact route to get to their next clue, I am sure they will show me where the old lady fell and cracked her nut as well.

Slip Sliding Away

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me." Matthew 18:1-5

Well I did this this weekend but not in the biblical sense.
I ended up at the Ice Rink with a deep knowledge that today I will not be sitting on the side line laughing at old folks trying their hand at skating again but would rather be joining them!!
I knew I was in trouble when I put these “new age” skates on made of hard plastic, last time I did this (20 odd years ago) the skates were made of leather and I couldn’t get the boot tied due to the laces being replaced with plastic straps.

There was further concern for me as I stood up and started walking to the nearest entrance/exit to the ice, I was seriously battling to keep my balance and after a few trips I almost greeted the wet rubber floor.
Needles to say that before I put a blade on the ice I had my nails sunk into the side barrier, it was a sad first round as I had five year old girls asking me if I could let them go past! My greatest problem was the skates wanting to fly out from under me until I realised that I am way to upright for this exercise, on the second round I lent a bit forward and things improved considerably.
I started venturing away from the barrier and realised it is easier to keep your balance with one hand not scraping the paint of the side of the rink. By the third round it all came back to me and I even started pushing with my skates to pick up speed, there after I never looked back and was skating like a ‘pro’.
As long as nobody turned in front of me all of a sudden (as my evasive skill was not that good) I was doing alright and with my dry bum had earned the right to stick my tongue out at five year old girls as I was now whizzing by them!

Over all it was an event to remember and I actually challenge anybody that is thirty something (or older) and was not a teenage figure skater to go and try Ice Skating just one last time before that hip replacement does not allow the opportunity!

New Years 2005

Well what can I say other than 2005 has come to an abrupt end, just like any other I guess!

We saw 2006 in on a Trout Farm near Dullstoom (this is in Mpumalanga) that I have aptly named ‘a little piece of Eden’ just because it is! I have not seen such a beautiful landscape in years and it is as tranquil as a Buddhist Temple. The wooden houses just put the cherry on top as they are all more or less the same and fit the terrain perfectly.

The little trout dams dotted all over this majestic topography are so inviting that one has to try ones hand at fishing (even if you do not know how they look like myself).
We did however not catch any trout but I understand that this is not the soul intention of Fly Fishing, there are relaxing qualities in casting…well that is once I got it right!

There is something about having a New Years party in a place that is so perfect, it gives one the spiritual surety that the following year can only be good and great in all its multifaceted complexities!

Watch out 2006 as we are not going to idly let you tick by but rather ride you for every second!

Suikerbosrand

When I was around about the age of ten I was taken on a hike that would change my life forever!It was with Robin my great friend in life and our chaperone Mitchell his elder brother. Robin was doing his 30 odd kilometre badge for Cub Scouts and Mitchell was obviously the long term Scout where we found our selves under his watchful eyes.We were terraining an area that I would find myself going back to time and again, and with the Lords Blessing hopefully for a long time still to come! Suikerbosrand, what a story it can tell not just from our selves but surely from the colossal amount of people that go there.

We went to Suikerbosrand once again but this time I was pleasantly surprised!
It was the most beautiful I have seen it in the 20+ years I have been going there.
The whole west side of the reserve burnt down in winter this year and all the green grass was coming through against a soot background.
With these virgin blades arriving so was all the wildlife! Usually you would not see much game on a short hike as you do not venture deep enough into the reserve, but on this hike we saw Eland, Wildebeest, Waterbuck, Gemsbok, Zebra and Hartebeest to name a few.
It was the hike of ‘firsts’ as it was the first time we used our poncho’s…quite an interesting exercise if you have never put one on before! The time it took us to get them on gave enough leeway for the rain to cease!
All and all it was a great hike with great friends, and ‘Suiker’ will definitely see us again.

Alfling's

http://myweb.absamail.co.za/stuart