Sadza and anti-vaccers

 It's been a busy week, even though half of it was half term. On Tuesday I drove out to Hatfield to see my best friend and her little girl and we had a wonderful time going round her garden, with her showing me all the cool bugs, fungi and plants they have. There were puff ball mushrooms and all sorts, including tortoise beetle nymphs that looked pretty alien. Was a special time. Managed to dodge police there and back, even in Mbare. On Tuesday evening the housekeeper where I am house sitting invited me to a lovely birthday meal for her daughter. We were going to have sadza and chicken but in the end it was home made pizza and chocolate cake. They surprised me with sadza this evening, with dried muriwo they had made mixed with peanut butter (yum!!!) It may be my turn to cook. Angelina has said she will make me mutsine with dried black jack leaves. It is apparently rich in Vitamin C. Makes me think of the film Gather, that I watched last year about Native Americans cooking with traditional harvested plants and their cultural heritage. We had an interesting discussion around the kitchen table.

I went in to school today to begin the hand over process for next term. It felt a bit weird describing my life and routine to someone else. Turns out the other teachers are all quite staunch anti-vaccers. I did try explain the biology behind the vaccines and how they work but they weren't having any of it. It's amazing people will trust what's inside sausages and take medication but don't want to be vaccinated. A local private doctor here went today with all his surgery staff on a mini bus taxi to Parenyatwa Government Hospital and had the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine. We wait and see how they all do on it. There is speculation that for schools to reopen we all have to first be vaccinated. Technically you can't force people.

Had some good news that it looks like I may take art next term in my new job and then just form one and two maths and geo. Quite excited for that as the art department is well known and it will give me a selection of subjects to be teaching.

Some times I really don't like Avondale, but found a decent policeman

 Did a whole bunch of errands today and dodged police road blocks to get across town. Found a teacher's book for ZIMSEC English with the listening comprehension texts. Then went to a friend's parents' house to pick up Body Shop products (so excited!!) and I was allowed to photograph the set of a scene from the movie, The Power of One, which is in their back yard. Sold some shoe sole implants I had bought for plantar fasciitis that I never used in the end as it went away. Did the deal outside Bon Marche. Then headed to school to collect marking.

All was going wonderfully well until I ventured to Avondale shopping centre, with the one and only thing on my to do list being to drop off stuff for recycling. It literally took a minute. When I got to the bins this random guy wondered up and wanted to know why I was dumping my "rubbish" there. I had cans and plastic bottles. Sensing he wanted to make trouble I studiously ignored him and tried to empty my sack of bottles as quickly as possible. Returning to my car though I discovered my wheel had been clamped. Fuming I asked the person sitting in the car next to mine if they had seen who did it. They said I should ask the security guard. The security guard sauntered over and said ah, but I had parked on a yellow line. The marking in the car park was not really visible to show it was supposed to be yellow. He then said I would have to speak to the manager. This unfortunately turned out to be the man who had pestered me at the recycling bins. He nonchalantly said well I would have to go to the Milton Park police station wouldn't I and pay a $1000 fine. 

I was prepared to pay this to be able to get home but said I couldn't get to the jolly police station if my car was clamped. The manager shrugged and said well then he'd have to call the local policeman in the shed by Nandos. Well here I totally lucked out, the policeman who came over turned out to be a thoroughly decent gentleman of a member of ZRP (we need more of him in our lives in Zimbabwe). He politely asked me why I had parked where I had parked and I explained I just wanted to drop off recycling and I hadn't seen the nearly obliterated road marking and realised it was a yellow line. He said he would have to escort me in my car to Milton Park police station. I said I wasn't comfortable having a stranger in my car with COVID and said could he not write up a docket and I promised I would go and pay. He didn't harass me, intimidate me or belabour the point of my offence. He simply said that criminals tend to park in yellow bays so they can easily slip out and follow cars they want to hijack and the police therefore have to ensure these bays are kept free. He said it in the most straightforward, down to earth manner and said if I could please tell my friends who shop in Avondale this (I promised him I would and have now done so). He then let me go!

There are honourable officers in ZRP!

Pancakes and death by a fever tree

 Had a lovely catch up with a friend in England yesterday. She had severed a tendon in her finger on Saturday slicing a piece of cheese with her Christmas present extra sharp knife. Although it was a pretty gory tale, she humoured me with funny anecdotes and spared me some of the grisly details. I was laughing throughout her narrative. Hope her operation on the said finger goes well today. Her description of being on gas and oxygen was hilarious.

My Nigella Lawson pomegranate jewel cake turned out really well, if I say so myself. Possibly could have done with a thicker layer of pomegranates on the top and more juice to pour over but the pomegranates from our garden were not all edible as some had gone mushy inside, pity. You seem to have to catch them just before they turn. Could try the cake with lemon or orange perhaps too. The almond flour works well and it came out quite light and airy - I managed with folding in the egg white. Was my first ever Nigella recipe. Will have to try some of her others. Her fried haloumi with chilli and lemon looks good.

So just after chatting to my friend I went for a walk in the garden with the dogs and just after I went inside with rain coming down and a bit of a wind, I looked out my bedroom window and was like, oh my gosh, the fever tree has come down. It came down right where I had been standing ten minutes earlier! Luckily other trees broke its fall slightly but it has damaged the fence a bit and it will all have to be removed. The tree cutters rocked up punctually at 7.10 this morning. I've requested we keep about six tree stumps to put up in the shade area with plants on to remember the fever tree and add to aesthetics.

Told my class on Zoom this morning it is Shrove Tuesday, or rather I tried to get it out of them - one got helped by his mum. My new Russian student had already been busy making pancakes at home before the lesson but he said Orthodox Easter is later than ours. Off to collect some Body Shop products I ordered and to try source a ZIMSEC O Level text book with the listening comprehension texts for my online student. My mum will be online for a funeral of a girl who was only two years older than me and was in my mum's first grade 7 class. She sadly died of cancer two weeks ago.

I nearly had a Valentine's date

 So have been getting WhatsApp's from a guy who is overly keen. Trouble is he's not interested in a long term relationship. Bright and early this morning he messaged me asking if I was free this afternoon. With still being in lockdown we're technically not supposed to meet up. He left the ball in my court with regards to what plan we should make. I suggested tea in my garden. He seems interested in only one thing though and I called it off. He had lost his phone and forgotten who I was on his new one, when he initially made contact again. All a bit pressured and rushed.

Instead I spent the day baking, and doing an oil abstract painting in the kitchen with my two ever faithful hounds. Been a good break from work. I haven't really taken a day off from preparing for Chisi since New Year's Day. Still have quite a bit to do but I really don't want to over prepare notes for Form 3, if I am in fact taking Form 1 and 2. I need to find out a bit on what the school uses for making videos for online. At this rate we may still be in lockdown next term. Who knows. We're supposed to have a government announcement tomorrow. They better not tell me we're going back to classroom teaching on Tuesday! I may just throw an apoplectic fit.

This week is half term, which means I have half a term left before the April holidays to prepare for Chisi! Eeek. I don't really want to be preparing lessons from scratch whilst trying to do all the marking I'm going to have.

And we wait ...

 Still don't know what happens after Monday with lockdown. I am presuming we're not going back to classroom school, but who knows! It's already half term next week for our school online. Bit of confusion about work pack hand ins with it and keeping books. Hopefully everyone will understand what I've said on WhatsApp. Means I will get a fairly hefty marking load the week after next, groan - but hey, it's all preparation for next term when I will have way, way more books to contend with.

I met with the HOD for geography on Monday and they gave me a whole lot of stuff on my flashstick and two text books. We did the transfer on the traffic island in the Food Lovers car park in Sam Levy's. This is all if I'm taking form 3, we don't know yet until it is all time tabled. Makes me not want to forge ahead with preparing powerpoints if I might not be taking that level. Am still working through the maths text books. Don't know yet where I will pick up from next term for that either. I think I am used to junior school where you have it all planned and forecasted in detail. It doesn't seem to work that way in high school.

Next week I will be house sitting again nearby for three weeks. Sadly the old lady I used to also look after at the house passed away from what started as COVID and ended with flared up emphysema. Very sad. She was 86 though, but still sad. It's the first person I know personally who has died from COVID.

In other news, there was a crocodile captured in Ballantyne Park today. It was happily waddling down the flower bed on someone's verge. Never know, along with the Madagascan cuckoo, we might get one in Monavale. The stream in Monavale is pretty full.