sportsmadwilly

How to KNOB a team.

2012-02-06T00:26:00.000-08:00

If you refer to my previous Blog you will notice that I had Manchester United as a team struggling with injuries and really battling. This was pretty evident when they came up a Chelsea team at Stamford Bridge that had 6 regulars missing. The only difference was that Manchester United had Shrek(Rooney) , Ferdinand (John Terry’s replacement as captain for the England squad because of a race debacle that hasn’t proven him guilty yet) and one or two more. Chelsea without Ashleigh Cole had Jose Bosingwa at left back, what a fuck up, I mean our youth system is in place for this exact reason. Bosingwa and Malouda have to go , dropped or sold off.

The first half was the game I expected, chances a few and the odd shot at goal. A Manchester United free kick just outside the box for a foul on Wellbeck (diver) was not given. A bad call by Howard Webb who seemed to have things under control until this point. Ashleigh Young had up until this point fouled 5 Chelsea players and was given 5 talking’s to, as in warned. The first two yellow cards however were given to Chelsea players for very soft tackles, they were however fouls. With chances on both sides it was Chelsea who struck first with a Goal created by the very gifted but greedy Daniel Sturridge. He wiggled his way past four Manchester defenders before crossing the ball which led to a Manchester United own goal. 1-0 Chelsea at the break.

The second half has my blood boiling , yes, still 12 hours after this game has ended. Chelsea kicked off and had control of the ball , a pass was made to Fernando Torres on the wing, he whipped a ball across with exact timing and Speed and BOOM, Mata (signing of the decade for Chelsea) volleyed the ball past a very Suspect De Gea ( the spelling does not concern me as he is the crappest keeper in the league). A shot hit with pure venom and timing that not even Superman without a wheelchair would have had a sight of.
Chelsea were in total control and making Manchester United to look very cheap and ordinary. This was evident as from a resulting corner, David Luiz got up and headed home Chelsea’s 3rd, yes 3-0 to Chelsea. Even though a replay suggests it came of yet another Manchester player after Luiz had headed it.I must add at this point my Twitter timeline was dead quite with Manchester supporters having accepted the inevitable.

Then Howard Webb stepped up and literally destroyed every chance of a Chelsea home win, which was deserved. First Evra went down in the box and Shrek slotted the nut, then Diver Wellback went down and again Shrek slotted the nut. Both were not penalties and very soft and poor decisions, evident by the fact that the players alleged to have committed the fouls were not even booked. The goal that Manchester scored after this was from poor defending is the only real goal that they deserved, Hernandez a brick and a tickie high got up to header past Cech.

Remember this in Manchester’s last 9 games, Howard Webb has granted them 8 penalties.
Danny Wellback Physically handled Howard Webb in the game, he was not even spoken to?

Howard Webb, there is no way I will call you Mr., you are an arsehole of the biggest proportion. You have thrown the name of a Referee into disrepute , if anything YOU, you absolute fucktard, have robbed Chelsea and all anti Manchester United supporters of one of the best days in sporting and football history. The end result is that you WILL go to hell or Jail someday and may BUBBA with his 9” knob slot one in your hole. At least I know that for your efforts one or two Manchester ladies have already given you crabs. If you have a conscience you would apologize, like Bryce Lawrence you have FUCKED up!!!!!!

Spurs for the title.

2012-02-01T01:11:00.000-08:00

Now the premiership race is hotting up. At the end of December it looked as if the title race was a foregone conclusion. Now….. Manchester Shitty are in somewhat of a bother. This being the only title they can win. They have been knocked out of every other competitions. So as it stands, they are equal on points with Manchester United. However Tottenham Hotspurs are lurking just behind .

Man City for me peaked too early. Surprising though, they have 2-3 players for each position that would walk into any other team. If Mancini does not win a Title this year, then im afraid it's curtains for him. Prediction 2nd.

This is my breakdown.
The Red Devil’s would be certain favorites to leapfrog their fellow Citizens , I mean under Sir Alex and their old guard they would be my favorites in any race. However, the team is riddled with injuries. No less than 8 of their normal starters are injured. The 2 biggest for me being Vidic and Shrek (Rooney). This, and read carefully is going to be the downfall if any. Prediction 3rd

My beloved Chelsea are totally farked. The draw at Swansea last night proved a hell of a lot. 1) ill discipline , Ashleigh Cole as great as he is moaned and groaned from kick off to being sent off. 2) playing the same old football that has everyone reading AVB’s mind. 3) OLD players that need to be replaced. Prediction 5th

Ill discipline has once again raised its ugly head, this is the 3rd red card to a player of top magnitude, we can ill afford to lose a player of such quality, Drogba and Torres have suffered the same fate.
AVB lacks imagination and needs a kick up the arse. Continuously playing the same type of game with the same formation. A 442 with two attacking wingers is what we need. With two strikers up front doing what they are supposed to do. Score goals.

There needs to be a huge transformation at Chelsea. From Batman (Cech) to Drogba. Replacements are needed for Cech, Terry, Bosingwa, Lampard Malouda, Cole and Luiz, who is struggling to adapt. We had the chance to sign Aguerro 2 years ago???? STUPID. Players that we sold are scoring against us??? Nah a huge change is needed. If Arsenal win tonight they will be 1 point behind with us playing UTD on Sunday. We need a change.

That’s not my reason for writing though, the team biting and nibbling in 3rd place is my main focus. I TIP , yes @Dan_vh for my twitter followers Spurs for the title. They have all in their favour, they have a cracker squad with their front 5 all capable of scoring, no injuries and a fantastic manager. The top three are a foregone conclusion, but with the depth of the squad, the unity and morale amongst others I put my money behind the Team that started the Riots last year. The rest will be scrapping for 4th and 5th.

Cheers

Probably the Best advert i have ever seen.

2011-10-13T00:23:00.001-07:00

Was Bryce at fault?

2011-10-11T01:27:00.000-07:00

So all my Springbok friends. We are OUT of the Rugby World Cup 2011. As a result I am blogging/bitching about what an absolute Asshole no wait, I can’t do that. Referee’s play an integral part of any Rugby or Sports game. We hurl abuse at them and no matter what, there will never be a satisfied or happy Fan. They are professionals and yes as professional as the players on the field. You see, as humans we make mistakes, it just so happens that in this instance Bryce Lawrence’s mistake has incurred the wrath of the South African public.

Lets not look at his mistakes but rather admit that we should have won the game hands down. Missed Penalty’s , a gift of a try missed my Fourie Du Preez and then our selection problems. Did Bryce miss the kicks? Did he knock the ball on? Did he concede the penalty’s ? NO….. he did miss plenty?YES, but so did we.

From the lead up to the World Cup, to the Quarters. This whole Bok campaign has been a shambles. Fourie starting ahead of Hougaard? Smit ahead of Bismark? I will say this until the day I die, the “Quota” system is a fuck up of epic proportions. That being said I will give credit where it is due and say that , Gio and Juan De Jongh for me deserved more game time. Anyone want to Hazard a guess on how many players got picked with injuries and those players didn’t play?

Bakkies sorry pal, you are a legend, but for fuck sakes man, admit that you were eina and get over it. Johan Muller? What the fuck was that selection decision based on? If anything I retract my comment on an earlier blog about Francios Louw, you stood up and got counted. Well done to those who stood up. Yet the hierarchy seem to be adamant on punishing the South African public by not picking who they and we know should start.

That to me is the deciding factor, we as a Die Hard Rugby nation decide to petition against Bryce Lawrence? Wake the fuck up. We need to petition against our Rugby hierarchy and we need to have a say in OUR team. We pay the guys ffs. No more harping on could have, would have and should have. Lets get all of our sports teams at the level that they need to be at. If it means empty stadiums , so be it. The government and people who pull the strings need to realize how sport can unite a country.

Stand up and be counted.

Till next time

Bryce, we are coming for you

2011-10-11T01:21:00.003-07:00

Fantastic Voice

2011-10-03T07:13:00.001-07:00

wow........

2011-09-22T05:26:00.001-07:00

The Great Escape

2011-09-12T06:15:00.000-07:00

So as promised here is my analysis of yesterdays Rugby World Cup opener against Wales in Wellington. Firstly though I’d like to make a quick point and then carry on with the analysis. I use a Social Networking tool called Twitter. Twitter is an open forum and you can basically say what you want to say without getting judged or frowned upon etc. However , your points are not always agreed with and you will get the odd disagreement, which is also cool as constructive criticism and general banter is really good, but, when you get a pedantic fuckwit like a follower that disagreed with me and then apologized for being a fuckwit who unfollows you later because he has no balls because his wife who was also following you is holding them with a vice also unfollows you because poor hubby is distraught because he got mooted on twitter . That pisses me off. Oh you thought I wouldn’t name them….. @GrantSmith13 and his other half @JeanMariSmith. Pathetic I tell you. Get a backbone and fucking stand up for self and finish the argument before running off like a bitch with your tail between your legs.
Then you get another follower @Dion_Govender that actually asked and when explained my problem understood and carried on regardless. People take it waaay to far, go back to facebook or unfollow me if you don’t like what I say.

Now back to the main business, The Springboks and their win yesterday and I say win because no matter what or how we did yesterday we are 1/1 for Rugby World Cup 2011. As stated in a previous blog South Africans have become way to complacent and happy go lucky about us just winning. Or at least we tried. For fuck sakes people , since when have we become so lackluster? No wonder the crime is where it is and children are doing drugs, not because they are a victim of circumstance but because their parents allow it. They no longer give a shit. When last has your child come to ask you if they can go kick a ball in the park with their friends or can I go play cricket? Loooong time ago. The new question is when can I go play playstation or can we go to the flea market and buy this or do that. We grew up in such a wonderful family orientated way, why rob our own children of the same thing?
Yesterdays rugby was played half heartedly and without passion. They few players who did play their hearts and soul out had to come on and rescue the shit performance. There are( and I will say it again) at least 8 players in south Africa who deserve their place in the Green and Gold and unfortunately did not get picked. I will even put my cock on a block and say that this team was picked 2 years ago.
I live South Africa, and I love my country, god knows I would die for my country, but when your National Team Coach attributes his teams narrow escape from a embarrassing loss to not having played on a SUNDAY in more than four years then I have no words for him. When he states categorically that his captain is the best Hooker in the world then I don’t know? Unless he meant John Smit was getting fucked at every scrum, lineout or all broken play. My starting 15 .
1) Dean Greyling
2) Bismark Du Plessis
3) C.J van der Linde
4) Victor Matfield
5) Bakkies Botha
6) Heinrich Brussouw
7) Willem Alberts
8) Ashley Johnston
9) Francois Hougard
10) Peter Grant
11) Lwazi Mvovo
12) Juan De Jongh
13) Jacques fourie
14) J.P Peterson
15) Francois Steyn
16) Jano Vermaak
17) Pat Lambie
18) Alwyn Hollenbach
19) Schalk Burger
20) Brok Harris
21) Keegan Daniel
22) Gio Aplon

Why on earth do we (The Springboks) not pick on merit? The New Zealanders won convincingly yet were crapped on by their coach for not playing ninety minute. John Smit is not the best hooker in the country, actually not even in the top 3. Francois hougaard deserves a start. Brian Habana is finished. Schalk Burger started his first game back( he should have come on from the bench). Brussouw gets subbed instead of Burger…….. The Beast and the other Du Plessis should not have come close to this squad. J.P didn’t go look for enough work.
There is a certain privilege about wearing a Springbok jersey. If we could play with half of the passion that Argentina played with then we would be a strong contender for the Semi’s. However , carry on like we did yesterday and we are in a heap of shit. Why do we make lives so hard for ourselves? I will always support the green and gold and will never back down in supporting them . I can and will show my disappointment and disgust at the selections and the way we approached the game. Yours in sport and forever a Springbok ………

According to Mark Faber

2011-09-05T05:06:00.003-07:00

I expect, like me, you are aware that there has never been a prosperous black-led country, but perhaps it’s just because of “bad luck”, or whatever, for that incontrovertible fact.
Take Haiti as an example. Before the black slaves revolted and killed all the whites and half castes Haiti had a GNP greater than most of what is now the USA . It supplied 60% of all the sugar used in Europe. Today it is a wasteland. Apparently if you Google Earth the place you see is a sere, brown coloured landscape compared to the neighbouring Dominican Republic which is green and verdant. Twice the USA has occupied Haiti , building roads, ports, hospitals and schools while putting in a functional society. The moment the Americans left they reverted to dictatorship, voodoo, witchcraft, corruption and barbarism. They did not stagnate, they regressed to the primitive savagery of their forefathers

Since the 1960s, when the Congo expelled the Belgians this has been a mirror of African regression, moving steadily southwards until the example of Zimbabwe . Once a prosperous, well educated exporter of food the population now eat rats to survive.

Will SA go the same way?

There are those optimists who say “No, we have such a strong economy, such sophisticated infrastructure, such a talent pool, that we can never sink”.

My belief is that they have not considered the root cause of Africa’s failure. A cause that is not spoken about as it is fearfully politically incorrect, and probably illegal to speak about. That cause is the deficiencies of the black ”mentality”, for want of a better word.

Are there differences between races, or is race just a meaningless social construct? Until recently, I believed all races were the same under the skin variations, and that perceived differences were only the result of cultural differences. I believed in a common and equal humanity.

But things did not always ring true, observable anomalies were inexplicable if all men are the same.

Why, under apartheid, did the Indians prosper, become doctors, scientists, educators, merchants and professionals while the vast majority of the equally oppressed black Africans remained hewers of wood?

Why can black Africans run, jump and throw better than honkies, but why, out of a billion of them, have they never invented a single thing of any worth? Why have they, collectively, contributed absolutely nothing to the advancement of humanity.
Well the physical thing, the running, throwing bit is easily and uncontroversial answered. Simple, people of African descent (especially the Jamaicans) are genetically better equipped in this regard. Their muscle fibres are different and the typically have 15% more free testosterone than other peoples. Acknowledging this is regarded as racism. Unfortunately, racist or not, that is proven and a fact. Google it and you will find that for over 70 years, in test after test, done by dozens of university professors and Nobel laureates plus USA government studies, most people of African descent trail other races by a wide margin.

Of course I.Q. tests have been attacked, especially by those who perform badly at them, as one might expect them to do. Detractors claim cultural bias, dysfunctional families, past oppression, poor schooling and a host of other reasons for poor black performance, but the professors defend their contention that I.Q. is largely an inherited trait; that differences are inherent, built into a person’s inherited DNA.

For every argument attacking the validity of these tests they have a host of results confirming their accuracy and typicality. Fascinating stuff if you are interested in reading up on it.

The effect of high/low I.Q. has also been studied in depth, with fairly predictable results. Low I.Q. individuals performed badly in social class, family stability, income, educational levels, illegitimate pregnancy, single parent families, rate of prison incarceration, rape, violent crime etc. etc. etc.

I.Q. measurement measures different facets of intelligence and mental competence. Sadly it is in the absolutely vital sphere of cognitive ability that blacks score worst. This means they score abysmally in things like forward planning and anticipating the consequences of their actions.

It is this I.Q. (and testosterone) disparity that is blamed for the fact that African Americans are 5 times more likely to be imprisoned than white (including Hispanic) Americans, 9 times more likely than Americans of Asiatic descent. All in line with I.Q. distributions.

Once imprisonment for violent crimes are computed the numbers become stratospheric. These are American government collated statistics, so pretty accurate. Our government in SA do not, for obvious reasons, publish similar stats, but a pound to a pinch of salt they are even more astounding.

So why the lecture on I.Q.?

Well for a start you must understand that our ruling party are voted into power by a largely moronic plebiscite. I choose the word moronic intentionally. If the cut off point for moronic is an I.Q. of 70, half the voting population would be classified as such.

Only one in 40 black South Africans achieves the average I.Q. of his white fellow citizens. One in a hundred have the I.Q. to achieve university entrance requirements. That is why only one in ten blacks pass our dumbed down Matric (with a pass percentage of 30% in many cases). One in 6000 black grade one learners will pass Matric with both Maths and Science.

Simply put, they are bloody stupid, and they rule us. Furthermore Zoooooma says they will rule us until the second coming. I believe him.

This explains why the ANC have such idiots in their positions of power and influence, the likes of Zuma, Malema, Khomphela and Cele. They are, unfortunately, the best they have! Well, they are the best blacks they have. All the critical positions in government are held by Indians, coloureds or whites, something I am grateful for but which pisses Malema off big time .

Will this last? I doubt it. The black/white polarisation is growing and the rhetoric is becoming more extreme. Listen to the pub or workplace chatter, read the blogs and comments sections of the newspapers and it becomes obvious. Whites are gatvol at the waste, corruption and stupidity of the black elite. Blacks are demanding, as their right, the wealth of the whites by means of redistribution of assets. No matter that they have not worked for those assets, they claim them as the spoils of war.

Just in the past week the Mayor of Pretoria, Malema, a minister and Winnie have gone on record as blaming whites for sabotaging redistribution and exploiting blacks. Malema calls out “Kill the boers for they are rapists” to thunderous applause by university students Four influential ANC opinion makers who are echoing the groundswell of mutterings in the ghettoes. The natives are getting restless.

KAK KOM! Mark my words.

Things are not going to improve. They cannot, there is no reason to believe our slow slide into a failed state can be reversed with our current regime, and there is no prospect whatsoever of there being a change to governance based on meritocracy. Anyone who believes otherwise, or that the ANC can mend their ways, is living in LaLa land. They do not have the intellect.

Like the proverbial frog in the slowly heating pot we have become inured to the slow collapse of our hospitals, schools, courts, water supplies, roads, civil service and service levels. They will become totally dysfunctional shortly. Inevitably so. Those in charge do not have the mental capacity to organise things.

Our economy and Rand is reliant on short term “hot” funds from overseas that can flee at the touch of a computer button, and probably will if our Rand weakens. Conversely we need a weaker Rand to encourage exports.

6 million taxpayers support 12 million recipients of social grants, and that figure is set to rise this year. The National Health Insurance scheme will happen, no matter how unaffordable. That will push our social grant costs up to four hundred billion Rand. Four hundred billion Rand which produces absolutely no product. Inflation is set to stay and worsen. The consequence of being the biggest socialist state on earth. I do not believe the ANC has the intellect to conceptualise how big a billion is, let alone 400 billion, or what effect this will have on the economy.

You do not believe Malema’s call to nationalise the mines? This guy articulates what the hoi polloi are thinking, but the ANC leadership will not say yet. The tactic is to set the bar high, then lower it and the victims will sigh with relief and say it could have been worse. So perhaps it will not be total nationalisation but rather 51%, a’ la Zim. Just look north for revelation, Zuma does.

Who would have believed that this country would ever be headed by an unschooled, rape accused, adulterous, corrupt, sex obsessed bigot like Zuma. Anything is possible with the ANC.
Summary.

You have few years left to enjoy what is left of the glorious SA lifestyle, especially in the Cape , but understand it is not permanent. The end could be sudden as the tipping point is reached, just as it was sudden for those Zim, Zambian, Mozambican or Angolans whites. It could, conceivably, be as bloody as the Hutu/Tutsi uprising when primitive tribal bloodlust overcomes a thin veneer of inculcated civilisation.

Enjoy it while you can, and enjoy it in the Cape where the population mix is more favourable, but be aware that change is inevitable. Your children must get a world class education, because they will not be adults in SA. Get assets stashed offshore, you and your children will need them there

Super Pii Pii Brothers on weeeeeeeee

2011-09-05T00:10:00.001-07:00

Sportsmadwill Daily

2011-08-29T00:06:00.001-07:00

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Whats Wrong With You?

2011-08-24T03:07:00.000-07:00

NO............................................

2011-08-23T23:35:00.000-07:00

Good day folks, as promised yesterday on Twitter, and for those of you who don’t follow me on twitter this is my handle (sportsmadwilly) I promised to rant about the South African Rugby World Cup team representing us at this year’s R.W.C. The team all in all is a solid one (only because Jake White molded and picked almost the same team that the Clown P> Divvie has picked. The only difference being that Jake White was and will remain a great coach.

The South African Rugby Union has just proven that it is monopolized the same way that the South African Team is, with a Captain in both genres well past their sell by date. Today’s headlines read all about poor Art Matthews botching of the National anthem. Well I would have as well, seeing some of those players walk out.i mean the man is only human, and he is a true South African Rock Legend.

Rather than point out only negatives I will point out suitable replacements for the players that should not have been picked. I mean some of the players picked have not played since the Super 15 and have not even proved their fitness yet.

Let’s begin,

Tendai Beast Matawarira: Blows hot and cold, however has come to form of late. Choice 6/10.

Guthro Sttenkamp: one of the worst picks in the squad. He lacks his pace and scrimmaging powers he possessed at the last world cup. Choice 4/10, replacements instead , in each union there is a player fitter and better than him, even the Bulls have better players to fill that position, and that’s his home union.

John Smit: What more can I say? The second worst pick of the Squad, not the player he was before, the fact that he selfishly thinks that he can make this team on his playing abilities bares testament to the (in it for me) factor. He is sloppy around the fringes and is there because he can lead? No man, these guys are professionals; the decisions get made upstairs by your technical staff in any case. Why would you need a Prefect on the field to marshal you? Choice 3/10, replacements, Strauss from the Cheetahs and the forgotten one Schalk Britz.

Chilliboy Ralepelle: at first I thought wow, this dude has skills. He probably has but he lost a lot by being injured. Now only there based on colour rather than merit. Choice 5/10. Replacements the same as John Smit.

Johan Muller: Joint last place, battled eventually to make a strengthening Sharks team and moved to Ulster, terrible choice. He is sloppy around the fringes, he is also injury prone and is slow. Choice 2/10. Replacements, well there are numerous, Ashley Johnson, Flip V.d Merwe, Josh Strauss, even Wikus van Heerden. Bear in mind all of these players are actively playing currie cup and are playing damn good rugby.

Francois Louw: second recipient of last place. What has he done that has eclipsed other players from other unions? Average at best. I have no words for this choice and also the comments made when given his cap. Choices 2/10, replacements, wow a hell of a lot, but let’s name a few. Deysel, Daniel, Minnie, Josh Strauss, Johnson (all of who are playing outstanding rugby.

The rest of the forwards are class and deserve to be there.

Now for the backline.

Odwa Ndungane: at best I can only describe this as a pick that pissed me off terribly. Before I get slated and get accused let me do this. Choice 3/10, Replacements, Basson, Mvovo, Mvovo,Mvovo,Mvovo oh and Mvovo.

Ruan Pienaar: Once a prodigious talent, now all he is, is a one dimensional player that has no imagination. Choice 5/10. Replacements, if for scrum half, Jano Vermaak, if for fly half Katsikides.

I see a lot of people reading my stories however very little comment. I would like for the comments to come through. I wish for one thing. All those young men who got left out and are rightfully aggrieved, I wish you could join the Namibian Rugby squad and win the world cup. You have a right to be angry and even though it’s supposed to be an honor to represent your country, your country does not represent you. Go overseas play where you are appreciated as Ross Skeate has and make Money.

Over and out.

I don't know, but i will find out.

2011-08-22T01:23:00.001-07:00

Here goes nothing. Through all of a human beings faults and mistakes I am totally sure that I have made more than others (starts whistling to the tune of my way by old blue eyes). However, I am the first to admit fault and wrong doing. However I break promises and I hurt people. Where this stems from I don’t know. I will however get to the root of all my faults and problems.

They say that admitting ones faults is a general step in the right direction, well have to many to admit openly. I will say this though, when I LOVE, I LOVE with everything and will spare nothing to make you happy. The sad thing is that at the same time I fuck up. There is no equilibrium at all. One of my biggest faults is trying to impress and do well and the constant need for acknowledgement, where does this stem from? I don’t know, however I will find out.

Promises get broken and it almost gets taken for granted that things will sort themselves out because that’s how they have in the past. No, this is wrong. We need to sit down and talk about it. We need to be open, love, live and be like we used to. Non communication is a huge problem. Where does this stem from? Don’t know, however I will find out.

LOVE is a precious gift. We have had it, let’s have it again. We must work together, stick together and be together, unifying what was unified once before. Where has the path separated? Where has all that love and passion gone? Where does it stem from? I don’t know, however I will find out.

Where are we going?

2011-08-16T03:19:00.000-07:00

I love the fact that the South African public has been basically brainwashed into believing that it is okay for our National Sports to lose, and then get the message that it’s okay because we tried. Oh and its fine considering the fact that players were missing. Ummmmm, no it’s not fine. These players get payed huge amounts of Money to perform on behalf of a country. They are there for a reason, because they are apparently the best in their chosen position to represent our country. Heaven help us if a Policing force or Defense force were picked along the same lines…….Oh wait it is. Schools are represented the same way as well. There is no more pride in South Africa. A couple of thoughts to ponder.

I was fortunate enough to attend an all boy’s school. Bashers were worn; we did cadets etc and all 1^st sport games were made compulsory to watch. A badger was lifted and a courteous good morning sir/mam or good afternoon sir/mam was offered to anybody senior to you. At a bus stop, preference was given to those more senior, and seats were offered to those more senior. Heaven helped you if you did not offer this gesture. Each standard (grade) in high school had their own lawns or areas to frequent during lunch breaks. Cadets were done for remembrance to those who fought for our countries independence and to protect us.

Sports were played because it was a way of life and a way to keep children mentally and physically fit. You were never forced to play a sport; you were offered the opportunity to do so. Once in a team you were graced with a certain type of belonging and being wanted. You played to the best of your ability, not be held in God like status but rather to be respected by your peers for doing your part on the field. The only reward on offer was the chance to play at a higher level. Your schools 1^st team, or perhaps even provincially. Each team was represented by a different colour and the ultimate was to wear a white scarf (1^st team) moncoloured blazer (full colours) and a red band around your basher (1^st team).

Today’s youth have taken a step into the total opposite direction. Backwards, Money and status have become no1 in their lives. Look at the ill discipline, drug use and so on. Military service is no longer compulsory (huge mistake as this was a huge platform for young adults). Walk along the street and see what response you get, nothing. Not even a hello. School standards have dropped, parenting has become wayward (there is the exclusion) and the youth simply put have no manners. What this has done is put society into a downhill spiral and we will ultimately lose all sense of right and wrong.

All of this to point out one simple fact, South Africa has lost its way. Rugby players are being astronomical amounts to play average Rugby. Cricketers God bless their souls have become overweight and battle to run between wicket never mind play to half their potential. Footballers, well let’s not get into that one. There is no more national pride, people can get mugged, hijacked, smash and grabbed or even in some cases raped in front of you without no public recourse, action or even remorse.

Our national sportsman/women and celebrities are a direct reflection of the state of our country. Everybody moans and does nothing about anything. Take a page out of the ANCYL’s book and stand together, unification will bring back the pride. Any other country in the world has national teams filled with talented proud individuals, it is the reason they are there, no money. We have so much diversity and politics involved in everyday life that we are a country dying. We do things half heartedly and we try. Try harder, do things to the best of your ability, don’t give up. Be the person you looked up to as a kid.BE PROUD.

Pick teams on merit, we are a talented nation, bring harsher sentences to people who break the law. How you ask? This is no overnight solution, but unfortunately the solution starts at home. Bring back the basics, morals, fidelity into your child’s upbringing and this is already the first step. Put your foot down and give 100%, this is how we will learn. No excuses for bad results stick your hand up and take accountability. I was wrong, I’ve done wrong or I’ve been wronged. Let’s start and let’s start together. When your child look down upon others less fortunate give that kid half of his/her belongings, your neighbor drives a fancier car? So what…… good luck to them. Turn the other cheek, show humility and kindness, this will pay it forward for the next generation. Quite simply live as the Bible wants us to live. BE PROUD…..

The Day After The Tsunami

2011-03-13T12:59:00.000-07:00

Sportsmadwilly’s Top Stories of the day

According to News 24 the damage of the earthquake in Japan has risen to $34bn, why everything has to be associated with American Dollars is beyond me. Why not the British Pound? Or even the controlling currency in Europe which as a matter of fact is stronger than the Dollar the Euro? Washington - The massive earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan will exact a massive economic toll estimated at between $14.5bn and $34.6bn, a leading risk analysis firm said on Sunday.AIR Worldwide (AIR) said its catastrophe modelling showed that property losses from Friday's disaster is preliminary, but estimates insured property losses likely will be "between $14.5bn and $34.6bn". link http://n24.cm/gF5Yfs Anyhoo, my feeling on this is sure, it’s sad, people died, and the world as a whole will suffer from this atrocity. However I must state categorically that I firmly believe in Karma and she is a Bitch sometimes. Do unto those as you would want done unto you. Case in point, the money Japanese whalers make from killing innocent mammals on a daily basis and here’s the kicker, from the SEA.

Real Madrid Football coach Jose Mourinho is highly upset with the Spanish Football Association and blames the association for basically rigging fixtures and favouring the clubs arch enemies Barcelona .He also blamed the league for less rest between games and also that Real Madrid who he coaches play more 22:00 time slotted games than Barcelona. Grow up Jose, just because your teams been clubbed silly by Barcelona and you are wasting the President and boards money doesn’t necessitate a bludgeoning of the SFA. Madrid – Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has backed Jose Mourinho in his complaints over the Spanish league fixtures schedule, which the Portuguese coach argues works in Barcelona's favour. Mourinho has repeatedly complained in recent weeks that Real have less time for rest between matches than arch-rivals and league leaders Barcelona. For the full story visit this link http://bit.ly/g1slbL

In other football related news, Sir Alex Ferguson looks ready to offload his world class and England’s no1 striker Wayne “Shrek” Rooney. In a story not somewhat dissimilar to the hoax created by the two just before the January transfer window where Rooney wanted out and then decided to stay at the last minute, it seems now his greatest admirer Sir Alex is sick and tired of his shit and wants him out. I (see previous Blogs) am a staunch Chelsea supporter and would not mind seeing him travel to the Bridge. A change of scenery and a different mindset might do him all the good in the world. Luckily his wife isn’t nearly as attractive and he shouldn’t worry about that. For the full story here’s the link.
http://bit.ly/egwup3

In all seriousness, one must feel for the victims of any natural disaster and as such I felt compelled to add this to my blog for today. Not as many as Haiti or as nearly as enough as the Boxing day Tsunami, The Japanese Quake which has now been upgraded to a 9.0 on the Richter scale claimed more than 10000 lives in Japans tiny Miagi district. Here’s the link. http://bit.lyho8tzs

Lastly I will leave you with a few thoughts to ponder about things changing in this truly majestic world we live in. The times they are a changing, there is no doubt about that. Volcanoes, Earthquakes, Tsunami’s, flooding, the Proteas beating India in the Cricket World Cup, or better yet the Lions beating the Cheetahs in the Super 15, the formers first victory in 19 games.

I will also leave you with a link to before and after pictures of Japan in the aftermath of the 9.0 earthquake. www.boingboing.net/2011/03/12/japan-quake-and-tsun.html

To re or not to read?

2011-03-12T03:48:00.001-08:00

So everybody scoffed and laughed off the ancient Mayans prediction of the world ending in 2012. If you asked the question “do you think the world would cease to exist by the end of the year 2012?” the answer from 99% of people would have been an emphatic NO.

I dare any reader to ask people who live in New York, Haiti, the great Tsunami area of Boxing day, Christchurch, Australia, The United Kingdom and Europe, and last and by no means least Japan, the same question today. If I hazard a guess the percentages would have changed drastically.

Is this a real warning? Or is it merely natures way of” culling”? Fuckit all, I say run, hide, buy on credit and live life to the fullest, get pissed, fornicate. The END is nigh.

Hahaha, seriously let’s put things into perspective. New York, the Big Apple, fucked up by two Boeings on Sept 11th by pilots trained by the U.S government to fly planes, way to go guys, next train the terrorists how to manufacture silent killers that they can drop from planes and let the wind do the rest. Bio war that’s it, thought the words had escaped me but my mate Mohammed reminded me what it was called.

Jan 11th Haiti gets hit by the mother of quakes and woosh, its almost gone. America once again gets involved and sends in troops and foreign aid and last but once again not least Wyclif Jean to try and sort the shit out by running for president. He doesn’t win, the world forgets about Haiti and the poor guys have still not recovered. Seriously, they are in shit.

March 11th Japan gets clubbed by an 8.9 earthquake that shifts the earth off its own axis. Sends tsunamis all over the world and sets off explosions in one of their 51 nuclear reactors. The world is abuzz with activity, pessimists are preparing and conspiracy theorists are licking their lips, ancient Mayan Spirits are doing the moon walk with Michael Jackson and the U.S president elect (they know who it’s going to be by then is already drawing up contingency plans for his evacuation ala Armageddon.

The Americans are to blame I tell you, Charlie Sheen, Justin Bieber and Billy Ray Cyrus, the latter for making Miley. Imagine if you will, the entire population of Japan Laughing to 2 and a half men , singing and dancing to Justins” baby baby baby oh or doing the same to Mileys it’s the climb and what do you have? Yup you guessed it, a fucking catastrophe.

So I leave you with a reading from the bible, seriously now no bull, profanities or references to mere mortals.

Luke 21:10-11

Then Jesus said to his disciples:” Nation will rise against Nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great Earthquakes’, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from Heaven. Jesus says, for behold I come quickly.

So ask yourself, if you are reading this, ARE YOU READY? Or is this just a bridge mother nature is throwing at is to cross over, like I said earlier without prejudice , jokes or profanities , get ready, one way or another, all roads, be it from Tokyo, Soweto, New York, Queensland, Athens, to Amsterdam lead to God.

Fortunate

2010-12-09T10:25:00.001-08:00

First a bit about African Bee's. http://www.desertusa.com/mag98/sep/stories/kbees.html

Africanized Honey Bees (AHB) -- also called Africanized bees or killer bees -- are descendants of southern African bees imported in 1956 by Brazilian scientists attempting to breed a honey bee better adapted to the South American tropics.

Where to start? I am gathering a bit of info about the many great people that i have had the privilege of meeting and getting very close to. Case in point 1 Johannes Relleke. A mountain of a man, a man of great presence, a man of fortitude and a man that I hold in the highest regard.

Whilst living in the sleepy town of Margate I came across a fraternity of men, not going to mention names or describe it, but was never the less intrigued by it. My then partner knew of some people that knew of other people that got me acquainted with some of the members of this ancient fraternity.

I was invited to meet up and was met by senior members and got affiliated and then later joined. What followed was a life altering choice and a decision that made me who I am today. Brian Relleke was soon to become an integral part of my life and goings forth. He alone is a great guy who even though moved to Australia is still part of my thoughts and we communicate quite frequently via email. His wife Gaylene and daughter Kirsty are fantastic and form a great family with a lot of history and part of a legacy.

However my post tonight is about Brian’s dad and Kirsty’s dadudz . Johannes Relleke. Johannes Relleke a mountain of a man (literally) is a man with such a long History that it would take days to read and write about him. Heres an excerpt from one of the articles about him.

Johannes Relleke survived 2,443 bee stings on Jan. 28, 1962, at the Gwai River in Rhodesia. Taken from this link . http://www.trivia-library.com/b/kevin-goldstein-jackson-collection-of-fun-and-bizarre-trivia.htm

The story as told by John is that some of his workers at the tin mine he worked and managed on in Rhodesia had gone missing. Along with another worker and his trusty Rhodesian Ridgeback he went searching for them. He basically walked into an ambush of African bee’s. Each man to his own he and his dog ran for the river whilst being chased down by the swarm. Running on a ledge he decided to make a jump for it into the Gwai river. He grabbed his dog and made the leap. The bee’s followed suite and continued their barrage on him and all he could think about was his dog. He proceeded to put the dog under and leave only its nose exposed as to get some air into the dog. This selfless act resulted in John being stung in the face, throat and lips every time he went up for air.

What seemed like an eternity and many miles down the river literally with his life in the balance and bee’s still swarming around him he got a little respite in shallower water. It was at this point that John noticed that his trusty dog had become quite restless. What eventually happened was that a croc had come into the proximity and taken the dog out of his hands. Sad really considering that he had protected it the whole way. Irony maybe that the dog sensing the danger had risked its life in return.

This act of defiance resulted in John being entered and to this day as a Guinness world record holder for the person with the most bee stings sustained and surviving. Quite funny was that he went deaf in I think the left ear, and years after the ordeal he was thrown to the mat in a judo practice session. Low and behold a bee popped out of his ear and he could hear again. This story is a small part of the achievements he has gained after. John’s daughter passed away and I was asked and privileged enough to deliver a eulogy on Brian’s behalf. John for the first time ever was as sad as I had ever seen him. However being the man that I know he once again stood against adversity and forged ahead.

Call this what you may and chose to, but John much respect and love. You are a man that I wish I was half of. Brian you are a mate of mates and I look forward to seeing you one day again. John thanks for driving Brian and I around every Friday when we were pissed or pissing it up. Kirsty , by the pictures your dad has sent me I can see that you have blossomed into a beautiful young lady. Gay, you are a fantastic person and always will be.

Love you guy’s stacks……

Miss you!

See you on the square.

Twitter

2010-12-06T12:01:00.000-08:00

Where to start? Who to mention? What is happening in this crazy roller coaster of a world we live in?

Ill start with Chelsea my team in blue! Injuries, bad selection and general unhappiness has resulted in them playing the worst football imaginable. So much so that I am of the opinion that I will be Dan Van Hemert’s biatch for the rest of the season. Dan and I have a football pact that we have entered into for the duration of the English Premier league.

Besides the pact Dan and I have become quite good friends and play the occasional golf game, and have met up with Angelo Coppello (hope its spelt correctly. This brings me to my next point! Dan and I have a general love of sports and are quite competitive. So Sunday the 12th of December will be the first of a Spurs V.S Chelsea Football golf day. Golf in the afternoon and watching the football with mates later. The latter being the real character tester.

Luckily we have our spouses with to make sure that Dan does not step out of line. Especially him being the Springbok Ice Hockey MMA Xfit junky that he is, he even wears a neck chain to control his IONS. Digressing once again, my main aim in this very short blog today is to mention how powerful social networking is. Twitter has made me good friends with people of all walks of life, I even met a buddy (Dan) on it. It also breaks friendships, however, try it! Ask a question and it gets answered! Ask a favour and most people would try their level best to help.

Twitter is a powerful tool! Use it! I encourage you.

Different Strokes

2010-10-18T00:31:00.000-07:00

How great it is to be a South African. A diverse country with so many different cultures , religions and traditions. From south to east, north to west every little place is unique. This becomes very apparent when you travel through ifferent areas at different times of the day.

On Sunday the !7th of October 2010 i did a photo shoot for a couple who are to get married.The idea was to use them for invitaions in puzzle form. This has now changed to using the photo's for their thank you gifts. A wonderfull idea.A beautifully framed pictured engrave and i will most surely treasure it!

However i am galavanting off my main topic. On the way to the shoot at the Walter Sisulu Botanical gardens(amazingly beautiful Garden) i decide not to take a single highway. This previous friday was spent chatting to Dan van Hemert and Angelo Coppola about the effects of the new tolling system, and how the suburbs roads are going to change.

So from Selcourt (Springs) we drove past the normal Ooms en Tannies on their way to the N.G Kerk and your local tribesman on their trip to the local Shebeen for their sunday phuza, through Brakpan where the town was still to rise and into Benoni where Suburbia s genuinely quite serene. Past the fruit snd veg into Kempton Park where we were picking up the couple to photographed.

They live in an estae called Glen Eagles, WOW , is all i can say. A stunning estate. Lets not get off the route again. From Kempton through Benoni and into Boksburg. Sho these people like their Shopping. The roads were packed trying to get into Flea markets, Shopping centre's and even mobile pet stores. Through Boksburg into Bruma and then the suprise. Yeoville, sigh, what was once a beautiful area full of activity is now just full of activity. Yes there is diversity! Its a given when you have 30 different types of countries being represented there.

Ahhh through Houghton , Greenside and all those nice quite and cultured places, good. Now we are at the gardens and let the fun and games begin. for those of you who have not visited the Walter Sisulu Botannical gardens. You are missing out BIG time.

Enjoy the week ladies and gents.

Audi The Greatest At Lemans?

2010-08-09T23:57:00.000-07:00

For the ninth time Audi has won the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans and thus equalized Ferrari’s position in the roll of honor in the French endurance classic. Only Porsche’s track record reflects more victories.

At the 78th edition of the race, efficiency and reliability were the decisive factors yet again - both are special fortes of the Audi brand which has a reputation of developing highly efficient automobiles. The three Audi R15 TDI cars of Audi Sport Team Joest ran without the slightest technical problems over the entire distance and occupied the top three places after the fastest Le Mans race of all time. After 2000, 2002 and 2004, Audi thus managed to achieve a one-two-three triumph at Le Mans for the fourth time.

"Everyone at Audi can be proud of this historic exploit. Reliability, efficiency and sustainability are particularly important topics for car manufacturers today. And these are exactly the areas in which we have demonstrated our expertise this weekend," commented Audi Chairman Rupert Stadler, who witnessed the captivating race live on location.

"It was one of the most thrilling races in Le Mans history, a do-or-die battle. This one-two-three victory is the fourth 1-2-3 for Audi at Le Mans and no doubt the most valuable victory claimed after the fiercest battle in our company’s history. I express my thanks and great respect to the entire squad. They have performed an incredible and flawless feat of energy. Peugeot was a formidable rival who required us to give everything. We express our respect to the French squad for this."

"After taking third place last year, it was our declared aim to bring the Le Mans trophy back to Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm, and we managed to do this in an impressive way," said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. "I’m incredibly proud of this squad and sincerely thank the entire team and everyone who has contributed to this achievement."

The ninth triumph - in total - of the brand at Le Mans was also made possible by a technology which Audi Sport developed for racing during the past three years in strict secrecy: the V10 TDI engine of the Audi R15 TDI with an approximate power output of 440 kW has a turbo-charger with Variable Turbine Geometry.

VTG turbo-chargers are standard with Audi TDI engines in production vehicles. Their use at Le Mans helps the Audi engineers to continue to develop the technology for smaller, highly efficient turbo engines to be used in the future.

"At Le Mans we’re dealing with temperatures above 1,000 degrees centigrade which have not been encountered with production engines so far," explains Ulrich Baretzky, Head of Engine Development at Audi Sport. "As a result of downsizing, production development will enter into similar temperature ranges. This makes VTG another good example of how the technology transfer between Motorsport and the production side of the house works at Audi."

In 2010 the demands made on diesel engines were particularly high due to the restrictions imposed by the regulations. "Squeezing higher output out of the engines without sacrificing reliability posed a great challenge which our team mastered in an outstanding manner," said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich after the race.

"We did not use the full potential of the V10 TDI engine this year in order to be absolutely on the safe side. That’s why it was clear to us even before the race that we wouldn’t have the fastest car - but a very reliable and efficient one. The development objective of the R15 plus was 20 percent higher efficiency. We managed to achieve this. We’ve been working very hard for this exploit over the past few months. This makes this success, which was enabled by a perfect team performance as well, even more rewarding."

The victorious Audi R15 TDI with Timo Bernhard (Germany), Romain Dumas (France) and Mike Rockenfeller (Germany) completed a total of 397 laps in the 24 hours. With the covered distance of 5,410 kilometres, the trio broke the 1971 record set by Dr. Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep in the Porsche 917 that was considered unbeatable because the Hunaudières straight at that time had no chicanes - another demonstration of the performance capabilities of Audi TDI technology.

Timo Bernhard, Romain Dumas and Mike Rockenfeller drove an absolutely flawless race on their way to their first Le Mans victory and the new historic record. Except for a slow puncture shortly before the end of the race and a right-hand mirror that had come off, the race went without the slightest problems for the winners. Second place was taken by Marcel Fässler, André Lotterer and Benoît Treluyer on whose R15 TDI the front bodywork had to be changed twice after contact with the track barriers.

The 2008 winners, Dindo Capello, Tom Kristensen and Allan McNish, who were the best-placed Audi team in the early phase, were struck by major misfortune. Le Mans record winner Tom Kristensen had to evade a slow GT2 vehicle on Saturday night and slid backwards against the track barrier of the Porsche corners in the process. With fast lap times, Capello, Kristensen and McNish pushed back into the group of the front runners and in the end were rewarded with a podium result.

2010-08-09T07:08:00.000-07:00

Following in quick succession is my Blog about the Audi Centre Bruma A8 Launch.

Once again because I live so far away I was up at 04h15 to get ready and get to the dealership by 05h30. We then left in convoy to De Hoek in Magaliesburg. Or the cradle of human kind .

What a very special place.The enteranceto the Hotel was over a bridge!

A truly fantastic facility.

The day was planned and coordinated by the D.P of the dealership

Shaun Michael

The guests were treated to a static display , a drive to Morapeng and also Helicopter flips to and from the venue and Morapeng. Unfortunately I don’t have pics of morapeng but I do of the helicopters
First let me introduce the two gentlemen that were tasked with flying the two helicopters.

The First helicopter

The pilot of this one was the one that gave half of our staff near heart attacks.

The guests were also treated to Archery.

The dining area was set up for Royalty, as one would expect when treating people to an A8 experience. Much effort and teamwork went into the day and it was very successful.
The ambience was completed by a lady playing an electric violin.

The dining area

Just before we got to lunch the staff were treated to a helicopter flip! Below is a pic of one my colleagues Ishmael in the helicopter just short of a change of underpants.

Still pissing myself .

A completely and utterly satisfying day was completed with a fine meal, great company and awesome music.

The car

A pic of the scenery.

Be back soon!!!!!!!

My W.C Exprience

2010-08-09T06:22:00.000-07:00

Its been a very long time since my last blog! So let’s get started with a trip to the Germany England game. Yes! That’s how long I have been putting this off! I have been very pre-occupied and have been very busy at work. Basically a 16 hour day has delayed my penchant for writing.

Afore we go though. The day started very early. 05h00 to be very precise, a drive to pick up my brother.

TYRONE

As he’s an avid German fan I decided to go against him and dress up in the best England kit and regalia possible.

The problem was that even though I tried I couldn’t get that English group to join and chant with. Ze Germans were a whole lot friendlier and more accommodating. So with no change of clothes available i put on a brave face and joined a German table and watched them try sip on that piss poor excuse for a beer called Budweiser. According to Fritz or at least that’s what I think he was called there was “nussing wize about it”.

We arrived in time to miss an emergency plane landing on the major road leading into Bloemfontein and parked at that great sporting school Grey College. I literally got goose flesh when I passed this house named after possibly our best ever National cricket captain.

The walk was very close and the stadium was very accessible. What a sight walking down to the stadium.

However ! nothing could prepare me for the sight I was about to see at the waterfront in Bloem. Which co-incidentally is right next to the stadium

To say that I was speechless was an understatement. Wow what an electrifying atmosphere.

I shit you not. There was even a real life Bobby to escourt the B.B.C

There were England flags, banners , people all over the waterfront. We had to queue for a position at the spur at 09h00 in the morning.
The time had come to make our way to the Stadium. Walking down all the signing could be heard from the waterfront.So to sit in the stadium while it was filling for me was the best experience of the day. From empty to full faster than an Ethiopian can run a 10000m race.

And finally full.

The players warming up.

Before we knew it , it was game on. To watch either of these teams in action would have been great, to watch them play each other was a once in a lifetime opportunity. They delivered a great game with 5 goals in it.

Two soccer super powers with one loser.

At the end of the day a great game , awesome atmosphere and even better people!

Here’s to South Africa hosting the best world cup ever.

PPAAAAAAARRRRPPPPPPPPPP!!

Nice

2010-06-04T02:25:00.001-07:00

The Holy Grail for any engineering endeavour is to have your cake and eat it - to unify seemingly incompatible goals. For the Fiat Group's engine designers, Fiat Powertain Technologies (FPT), the quest has been clear cut: deliver high performance and driveability while, at the same time, significantly reducing emissions and fuel consumption.

FPT’s solution is the adoption of revolutionary MultiAir technology in conjunction with a raft of technical innovations; all of which have been shoe-horned into the world's sportiest compact car, the Alfa Romeo MiTo. This evolution underlines the company's on-going commitment to reconcile lower emissions and fuel consumption with higher performance and driver satisfaction for an increasingly environmentally-savvy audience.

The new Euro 5-ready 1.4-litre MultiAir engine, developed and patented by FPT, made its European debut in the MiTo late last year, and is initially offered in two turbocharged forms for the South African market. The 100 kW version of the unit powers the 1.4 TBi Progression, while the breathtaking 125 kW 1.4 TBi Quadrofoglio Verde flagship marks an auspicious return for the iconic Cloverleaf badge which is, of course, unashamedly close to every Alfista's heart.

In addition to MultiAir, the new MiTo range showcases a broad spectrum of innovative technologies, including optional Active suspension on the Quadrofoglio Verde (a first for this class of car), the emission-reducing Start&Stop system (standard on both versions), and Alfa Romeo’s highly acclaimed DNA system – another standard item across the MiTo range. Derived from racing, this three-mode electronic system communicates with the engine, brakes, steering, suspension (applies to Quadrofoglio Verde with optional Active suspension) and transmission, allowing the driver to adjust the responses of the car to suit driving style and road conditions.

Alfa's Electronic Q2 limited slip differential (another Alfa Romeo exclusive and standard on every MiTo) heads a number of dynamic driver aids, including a long list of safety systems such as traction control, stability control, ABS/EBD and Hill Holder. Together with the MacPherson strut/torsion beam suspension layout, these all help deliver the handling dynamics and sure-footed road holding capabilities you'd expect from an Alfa, whatever the road. Designed to satisfy the highest Euro NCAP crash safety rating (currently five stars), the MiTo also offers optimum passive safety.

The model's high level of engineering integrity can also be appreciated through the series of improvements that have further increased the quality of the Alfa MiTo. Improvements embrace the interior finish, trim combinations, and gearchange quality (the lever on the MiTo Quadrofoglio Verde has been shortened by 2.5 centimetres) as well as modifications to the steering, suspension and braking systems.

Oscar Rivoli, Alfa Romeo SA’s Managing Director, says: “The Alfa Romeo MiTo is already a global success story. Sold in 34 countries and on five different continents, it has won wide acclaim for its unprecedented fusion of head-turning high-end style, engineering flair, dynamic performance and driving pleasure. South Africa has been no exception – in addition to racking up an average of about 30 sales per month since launch, the MiTo was also a hot favourite in this year’s Car of the Year competition. I am confident that these latest innovations will make it even more desirable.”

So what’s the big deal about MultiAir?

This technology does exactly what it says on the box: it takes precise control of the quantity and characteristics of the air drawn into the cylinders in the combustion cycle. Bear in mind that there are numerous electro-mechanical variable valve timing systems in production today that seek to achieve this, but because they have no more than two operating regimes, they are severely limited by the degree of flexibility they can exercise in the valve opening schedules.

By contrast, MultiAir completely eliminates these compromises by metering the direct air charge at the cylinder inlet ports with an advanced electro-hydraulic actuation and control system that has no fewer than five basic parameters, and the ability to optimally adjust valve timing and lift between them to exactly suit different engine speeds and loads, ensuring strong low- and mid-range torque and vigorous top-end power, combined with good economy and low emissions.

This is a transformational technology comparable to the introduction of FPT’s common rail fueling for diesels (another first for the Fiat Group a few years back), but the principles behind it are as simple as they are ingenious. MultiAir engines have just one camshaft with three lobes allocated to each cylinder. The first two control the two exhaust valves in the conventional way, while the third defines the maximum possible lift and opening duration of the two inlet valves. It also acts on a small piston that sends engine oil, via pressurised hydraulic channels, to additional pistons located just above the inlet valves.

Four solenoid valves - one for each cylinder under individual control from the Magneti Marelli ECU engine management system - can be opened at any point during the inlet valve's movement to bleed off the oil. Varying the oil flow instantly and precisely controls the opening and closing of the valves between the parameter extremes mechanically described by the camshaft lobe for optimum results.

MultiAir can even open the inlet valve twice in one intake stroke, when running at low speeds and loads around town, to create more swirl of the intake mixture, enabling it to burn more completely, thereby lowering fuel consumption.

MultiAir strategies

• When the solenoid valve is closed, the oil in the hydraulic chamber behaves like a solid body and acts on the intake valves in accordance

with the profile of the cam lobe.

• When the solenoid valve is open, the hydraulic chamber and the intake valves are de-coupled; the valves no longer follow the cam profile.

• By controlling the solenoid closing period, various optimal intake valve opening schedules can be realised.

MultiAir in action

Different strategies can be employed to optimise combustion efficiency, according to varying driving situations…

FULL LIFT - for maximum power, the Solenoid Valve is always closed and full valve opening is achieved by completely following the mechanical cam, which was specifically designed to maximise power at high engine speed; i.e: motorway driving.

EIVC (Early Intake Valve Closing) - for low-rpm torque, the Solenoid Valve is opened near the end of the cam profile, leading to early intake valve closing. This eliminates unwanted backflow into the manifold and maximises the air mass trapped in the cylinders; i.e: during acceleration.

LIVO (Late Intake Valve Opening) - in engine part-load, the Solenoid Valve is opened earlier causing partial valve openings to control the trapped air mass as a function of the required torque.

PARTIAL LOAD - the intake valves can be partially opened by closing the Solenoid Valve once the mechanical cam action has already started. In this case the air stream into the cylinder is faster and results in higher in-cylinder turbulence; i.e: at engine start up or idling.

MULTI-LIFT -

Multiple opening strategies are used to enhance turbulence and combustion rate at very low loads. The advantage is a significant reduction in fuel consumption and emissions in the urban cycle; i.e: city driving.

MultiAir makes the difference:

1.4 TBi MultiAir 100 kW compared to the 1.4 TBi 88 kW (not available in South Africa):

• CO2 reduced by over 10%

• Max power increased by 12.5%

• Acceleration (0-100 km/h) reduced by up 0.4 seconds

• Better throttle response, less turbo lag

• Fuel consumption reduced by up to 10%

So, there’s two new engines now right?

Yup, the MiTo's new range of MultiAir engines are based on the Fiat Group’s established 1.4-litre ‘FIRE’ block. Initially available only in one version – the MiTo 1.4 TBi Distinctive – the two new engine and accompanying trim variants top and tail this version to make a MiTo trinity comprising the MultiAir 100 kW trimmed to Progression spec, the current 114 kW Distinctive and the range-topping MultiAir 125 kW specced in the stunning Quadrofoglio Verde outfit.

Striking an unbeatable balance between spirited, sporty performance and fine economy, the MultiAir 100 kW version is outstandingly flexible and responsive and pulls vigorously from low engine speeds, posting a class-leading 0-100 km/h time of 8.4 seconds and a top speed of 207 km/h (just 0.4 seconds off that of the 114 kW version). This excellent performance dovetails perfectly with respect for the environment, reflected in CO2 emissions of just 129 g/km and a combined fuel consumption of 5.6 l/100 km. This model features a five-speed manual box.

The 125 kW MultiAir powerplant fitted exclusively to the range-topping Quadrofoglio Verde model bearing unique Cloverleaf insignia is even more exceptional, with a specific power output of 124bhp/litre which is not only a first for this class of car but also the highest value ever recorded for a production Alfa. Combined with a new fast-shifting, short-travel six-speed gearbox, the QV's powertrain exemplifies the philosophy of downsizing: producing hi-tech turbocharged engines to increase performance while slashing fuel consumption and emissions. The results achieved by this strategy are impressive by any standard. A CO2 figure of 139 g/km and 4.8 l/100 km over the extra-urban cycle are closer to what you might expect from a small city car than a sporty hatchback capable of sprinting from 0-100 km/h in 7.5 seconds and powering on to 207 km/h.

This MiTo Cloverleaf MultiAir's 125 kW engine gives it a class-leading power/weight ratio of 6.7 kg/hp which is almost 10% better than the already excellent performance of the current 114 kW 1.4 TBi. Peak power of 125 kW is developed at 5,500rpm, and is supported by up to 250 Nm of torque at 2,500rpm, delivering 6 l/100km on the combined cycle.

These statistics are particularly significant because they prove the effectiveness of downsizing to produce high-tech engines with better performance allied to sharp reductions in fuel consumption and emissions, giving the MiTo Quadrofoglio Verde an unbeatable performance/consumption ratio.

Driving Dynamics

Key to the sporting handling and ride characteristics of the MiTo is its suspension layout: MacPherson struts at the front and a semi-independent layout with torsion beam at the rear. To emphasise the promptness of response, stability and control, even under extreme conditions, MiTo’s track widths are among the widest in the segment – 1483mm front and 1475mm rear. The wheel rims are also wide in relation to the size of the tyres in order to optimise the latter’s handling performance. The MiTo also has a sporting yet pliant ride, and the torsion beam features high torsional stiffness to enable it to also act as an anti-roll bar, thereby ensuring optimum roll performance and helping maximise the promptness of response.

The most distinctive feature of the MiTo's suspension is that the front and rear dampers feature coilover springs fitted inside the damper that act in parallel with the main spring during extension travel, with the main purpose of reducing roll and increasing chassis response. Special dual-acting telescopic hydraulic dampers are fitted as standard on all versions.

DNA (Standard across the range)

The MiTo's innovative DNA system offers three distinct 'vehicle personalities' tailored to driving style and the prevailing road characteristics and conditions: Dynamic (sporting), Normal (suburban/town driving) and All weather (maximum safety, especially in low-grip conditions). A three-position switch, situated beside the gearlever, alters the throttle response and steering set-up for the different driving environments. In Dynamic mode, the throttle response is quicker, the steering is sharper and the handling is more direct. For icy and loose surface environments the All Weather mode provides a more gentle response.

Dynamic

VDC & ASR Less intrusive VDC and ASR - Electronic Q2 activation

Electric power steering Sportier tuning

DST Standard braking control coordinated with ABS

Greater control of lateral acceleration.

Oversteer correction: slight pressure through the steering wheel encourages driver to steer in the correct direction

Engine Faster response

Suspension Synaptic Damping Control – sport suspension set-up (MiTo Cloverleaf only)

Normal

VDC & ASR Standard setting

Electric power steering Normal tuning

DST Standard braking control coordinated with ABS

Standard control of lateral acceleration

Oversteer correction: slight pressure through the steering wheel encourages driver to steer in the correct direction

Engine Standard response

Suspension Synaptic Damping Control – normal suspension set-up (MiTo Cloverleaf only)

All weather

VDC & ASR More intrusive VDC, less intrusive ASR

Electric power steering Normal tuning

DST Greater braking control coordinated with VDC

Standard control of lateral acceleration

Oversteer correction: slight pressure through the steering wheel encourages driver to steer in the correct direction

Engine Normal throttle response

Suspension Synaptic Damping Control – normal suspension set-up (MiTo Cloverleaf only)

VDC (Vehicle Dynamic Control) is Alfa Romeo’s version of ESP (Electronic Stability Program), a system that activates under extreme conditions when vehicle stability is at risk, helping the driver to control the car. Permanently engaged, VDC allows the driver the full satisfaction of controlling the car as long as conditions are normal, but cuts in just before a situation becomes critical.

ASR (Anti Slip Regulation) is an integral part of the VDC and optimises traction at any speed with the aid of the brakes and throttle. The system computes the degree of slip on the basis of wheel revolutions calculated by the ABS sensors, and activates two different control systems to restore grip.

CBC (Cornering Brake Control) comes into play when the car takes a corner while under heavy braking. In this case, brake pressure is discharged on each wheel individually to maintain vehicle stability, minimising any understeer or oversteer behaviour.

DST (Dynamic Steering Torque) improves both driving safety and handling performance through continuous interaction between the electric power steering

(which generates torque at the steering wheel) and electronic control of dynamics (VDC). In detail, DST automatically makes corrections, helps to maintain vehicle control and ensures that the VDC activates unobtrusively.

Electronic Q2 improves the transfer of drive torque to the wheels and, in particular, guarantees excellent cornering behaviour, thus making the car safer and more entertaining during a sporty drive or when grip is poor. When accelerating in a bend, the front braking system acts on the inner wheel to increase traction

on the outer wheel (bearing the highest load), and therefore distributes torque between the front driven wheels in a continuous, dynamic manner according to driving and road surface conditions.

Start&Stop (Standard on the 100 kW MultiAir and the 125 kW MultiAir QV)

The MiTo's Start&Stop technology makes its debut combined with MultiAir engines for the first time on an Alfa Romeo. The system turns off the engine whenever the vehicle is stationary and idling in neutral, then restarts it automatically when the clutch is depressed. Start&Stop can be deactivated at will by the driver but, when active, achieves notable reductions in fuel consumption, emissions and noise pollution.

Gear Shift Indicator – GSI (Standard on the MultiAir versions)

The Gear Shift Indicator (GSI) linked to Start&Stop discreetly suggests to the driver when to change gear – leading to more efficient use of the engine in terms of fuel consumption. The indicator is located on the control panel and is active in Normal and All Weather DNA settings. This device promotes improved gear selection resulting in improved driving performance and engine efficiency.

Quadrofoglio Verde - The Cloverleaf returns

The 'Quadrifoglio Verde' (Cloverleaf) is an iconic symbol dear to Alfa aficionados that evokes the history of a brand with a rich racing and motorsport heritage. Appropriately, it finds its new home with the fastest and most powerful MiTo, the 125 kW MultiAir Quadrofoglio Verde.

This is the MiTo MultiAir that most dramatically illustrates the power of innovative solutions to reconcile high performance and driving pleasure with economy and a low impact on the environment – 139g/km of CO2. It’s all the more remarkable when you consider that the MiTo MultiAir QV is powered by an engine with one of the highest specific outputs in the segment and a chassis equipped with features hitherto unthinkable for a car in this class.

A new optional active suspension system controls the dampers to redefine the vehicle's dynamic capabilities under all driving conditions and raises standards of safety, comfort and handling to new levels. The system, developed as a joint venture between Alfa Romeo and Magneti Marelli, draws on the extraordinary experience both companies have accrued in motorsport throughout the world.

New Six-Speed Gearbox (Standard on the 125 kW QV)

The technological qualities of the Alfa MiTo QV's engine are fully exploited by the next-generation C635 six-speed gearbox. Developed by FPT and manufactured at the Verrone factory in Italy, this groundbreaking mechanical unit is the first result of a design philosophy aimed at improving drivability, consumption levels and production flexibility.

The new gearbox ensures clean and swift shifts with a very short action, even weightings, and superb noise and vibration suppression. In addition, modern design

and construction techniques help to significantly reduce consumption levels thanks to less friction and optimum gear ratios. Its debut in the Alfa MiTo 125 kW 1.4 MultiAir marks the debut of a modern family of gearboxes adapted for a broad range of models.

Active Suspension (Optional in the 125 kW QV)

Motor sport has always been a testing ground for new technologies, which have found their way from the world's most famous racetracks to standard road cars. One example of this transfer between two seemingly very different worlds is dynamic adaptive suspension. This system, which actively and continuously controls the electronic dampers, was developed by combining Alfa Romeo development testing at the historic Balocco test track and the Nürburgring, with the latest engineering techniques from Magneti Marelli.

The 125 kW MiTo QV is the first vehicle in this sector to feature active suspension (optional). Using five independent accelerometer sensors located on the front two shock absorbers, rear centre and rear bulkheads, the adaptive damping system continuously monitors and controls the car's dampers, helping to contain both lateral body roll and longitudinal movement.

Each shock absorber works independently of the others, stiffening when required by an electronic signal that moves oil into a chamber of the absorber or removes oil from the chamber for softened suspension (on/off system). The four electronically controlled dampers, five accelerometric sensors and an electronic control unit interface with the MiTo's other on-board electronic systems to continuously monitor the road conditions and adjust the suspensions settings to give optimum performance and ride.

The suspension interacts with the three different control strategies of the Alfa DNA. system, enhancing ride comfort in 'Normal' mode, increasing safety and security in the 'All weather' setting by continuously interacting with the VDC system, steering and suspension, and sharpening responsiveness and agility with it switched to 'Dynamic'.

To sum up, the Dynamic Suspension system effectively optimises comfort and handling by adapting suspension behaviour in accordance with the road surface and driver input. The system achieves this by altering the load distribution of the four dampers to enhance handling and grip. Moreover, the system manages longitudinal dynamic control by adjusting the movement of the chassis during acceleration, braking and gear changes, and by integrating with the VDC, steering and braking systems.

MiTo Range

As mentioned, the original 114 kW 1.4 TBi Distinctive model continues in the MiTo line-up flanked on either side by new MultiAir-engined versions in the guise of the ‘entry-level’ Progression and the ‘Full Monty’ Quadrofoglio Verde.

MultiAir Progression

Although the Progression is the first rung on the MiTo ladder this model certainly isn’t stripped down in terms of kit. Chunky 16-inch alloys, colour-coded mirrors, a rear bumper sans diffuser treatment, a little de-chroming around the side windows and a front bumper sans foglights are the only exterior differentiators from the Distinctive.

Stepping over the kick plates, the interior of the Progression virtually mimics that of the Distinctive that we’re now all quite familiar with. In fact, save for the Sprint fabric upholstery, the Distinctive and the Progression are identical indoors which means an extensive larder of standard kit. Please consult the accompanying documents for a full list of spec but it’s worth mentioning that all MiTos come with seven airbags (including a kneebag), a full passive safety system including Traction Control, Stability Control, ABS with EBD and Hill Holder, Q2 electronic diff and Dynamic Steering Torque system. It goes without saying that electric windows/mirrors, remote central locking, stereo controls on the leather steering wheel and manual climate control are standard on the Progression as they are on the Distinctive.

MultiAir Quadrofoglio Verde

The ‘big daddy’ of the MiTo range, the Cloverleaf-adorned Quadrofoglio Verde is kitted with 17” exclusive titanium-finish alloy wheels – similar to those that appear on the stunning Alfa 8C Competizione – along with brushed titanium-effect headlight surrounds and wing mirror covers. The performance focus is further resolved with a rear spoiler and diffuser-style rear bumper. The QV also sports red painted brake callipers. Inside the cabin, the QV features the same dashboard options as the Progression and Distinctive versions, but with an upgraded Sports cloth, front armrest with storage compartment and sports dials with white illumination. It also comes with the Blue&Me™ hands-free system with voice recognition, and media player with USB port.

Options & Personalisation

A comprehensive list of options, including roof and side graphics, is available; (see technical and specification table). And with 10 body colours and a variety of surrounds for the headlights & wing-mirror covers, every MiTo can be tailored to the driver’s individual tastes. The MiTo's customisable headlight frames, for example, are available in Titanium Grey, Lucid Chrome, Satin Effect, Opaque Black or body colour.

Pricing, warranty and servicing

Alfa Romeo 1.4 MultiAir 100 kW Progression – R227 900 (incl. VAT)

Alfa Romeo 1.4 114 kW Distinctive – R245 200 (incl VAT)

Alfa Romeo 1.4 MultiAir 125 kW Quadrofoglio Verde – R264 000 (incl VAT)

Enhancing the ownership prospect, the MiTo, as with other premium products in the Alfa Romeo stable, has 30 000 km service intervals and enjoys full after-sales support in South Africa thanks to a comprehensive parts inventory (housed and distributed in an all-new, state-of-the-art facility) and the back-up of trained technicians at Fiat/Alfa Romeo dealerships countrywide.

Fiat Auto South Africa offers a three-year 100 000 km Warranty (three years on paintwork and five years on rust anti-perforation) as well as a five-year / 90 000 km service plan.

Thank You

2010-05-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

So here I gooo again! Its been a long time since I have blogged. Truth be told, I don’t always have something to say and my continuity sucks! I however find myself in the fortunate position to blog about something again!

With times changing as they are , and the economy not stable I had found myself in a position of not making money and also bored with my current job! This coincided with my G.M being a total asshole! I was happy working with a friend that I had made whilst working there! A fellow tweeter! @tristemmet! A great colleague and an even better friend! My problem though was…. No! see last blog for that.

that I have had the opportunity to work with him and will continue to do so in the future. For those of you who know me I work for Audi. I love the brand. I will continue to do so.

I now work for Audi Centre Bruma! A remarkable organization that falls within the Barloworld group. Corporate is definitely the way to go. See the attached link for more details. Cheers for now…

So I was contemplating moving from there in any case. Then I got a phone call, the phone call was a job offer! It could not have come at a more suitable time! The only problem that I really faced was getting rid of my “comfort zone “that I had become used to. So it really wasn’t a problem, just getting rid of a hell of a lot of laziness that had crept in.

I am truly glad that I took the job even though I am traveling a hell of a long way to work (hence the comfort zone problem). The company I now work for is so professional that it is quite a daunting task that lies ahead! I will however prosper.

@tristemmet has truly been a pillar of strength and I am eternally grateful

…..

http://www.audicentrebruma.co.za/

Get Out while you can!

2010-04-22T00:50:00.001-07:00

So. Here we go! Have not done this in a while. Got called in to a meeting this morning. Let me stress that this meeting only happens once in a blue moon. Actually it only happens every time my boss goes on leave. His superior and my superior which falls under my boss sort of coerce each other to bring about change and shit out the people that they dislike! This mornings meeting was unlike the rest because of the swearing used by the G.M of the company in his Hitler like demeanor!

Like I previously stated, this only happens when the person who really knows what they are doing goes on leave. Never the less, it happens. How you deal with it is another issue. I have learnt over the years that sometimes you have to take it with a pinch of salt! However, and I pose this as a question. What are the implications of being sworn at by a superior? And advice would be appreciated. My take on a team be it sales, marketing, panel beating, hell even plumbing! That one bad worker can be sniffed out and replaced! However when the whole team is doing badly? Surely the team is only as good as its manager?

When a manager or managers start blaming performance on staff! Then my friends that is a sign of weakness! Especially if the so called manager can do nothing but complain and be negative! Some advice if you will, never get yourself immersed into an autocratic place of work and then try get out of it almost four years later! Cut your losses in the beginning and RUN like Forrest Gump!

I enjoy what I do, I have a very close bond with the people I work with and I am totally in love with the brand! Never will I get sold again. I do the selling , not you!

Eiiinnnna.....

2010-04-12T03:20:00.000-07:00

Lately i have not been feeling so kosher! For some or other reason i keep on feeling ill and my immune system is up to bollocks! I don't know if it's the fact that my belloved Chelsea have not lost to Man United the whole season(SHOCK), or that maybe i am really , like as in REALLY ill.

Well i went to the Doc last week, my normal G.P as he has been rather busy the last couple of weeks. Being ill i needed allternative treatment and chose to go see another Doctor. This time however i waited for him and finally got to see him.

As it turns out after a rather quick and yet rather thorough examination (not one of those look no hands exams) he planely and simply told me that my tonsils are farked and seeing that this is the 5th time in a month that i am ill he suggests i get rid of the farkers!

No prob , then leats get rid of them! BUT it is not that easy! Here's why!
At my age! The complications are quite high! Bleeding, infection, Eina and more Eina! But according to the ENT i see tomorrow again, all my other aillments should also become a thing of the past with these two babies gone. Out of every 10 people i have spoken to 9 have said don't get it done.

For onces i am going to follow my heart and go ahead if necessary.
Enclosed please find a pic of Eina tonsils.
NOT MINE

Swollen tonsils can be the symptom of any of the several infections and diseases that affect the tonsils, which are present in the throat. Tonsil and throat infections can be caused by either virus or by bacteria, and it is usually spread through water droplets via air.

Usually swelling occurs when the tonsils begin to fight the bacteria or virus entering your system through the mouth. The tonsils are filters and begin to fight the organisms resulting in swelling and pain.

Tonsillitis is a major cause for swollen tonsils. Usually caused by bacteria, tonsillitis causes chronic pain in the tonsils as well as swelling. If this is left untreated, it could lead to further complications such as rheumatic fever as well as heart and kidney problem. The swelling in the throat may even become so bad, that it blocks the air passage and can cause suffocation. This infection from the swollen tonsils may spread to the chest and lungs and may turn fatal.

Antibiotics are usually given for curing tonsillitis and swelling. If the swelling becomes immense and it interferes with the swallowing, hospitalization and need for intravenous fluid may become necessary. Chronic problem of the tonsils, however, can only be cured by tonsillectomy or the surgical removal of the tonsils

SPORTS VID OF THE WEEK

2010-03-22T00:39:00.000-07:00

S.A WEATHER 1 ME 0

2010-03-18T00:56:00.000-07:00

Well another sunny day in South Africa! Question to self” why are you wearing a jacket?” Umm that’s because its going to rain later! Or so the South African Weather Services say so!

When do you actually believe them though? If it came to statistics , these guys would be running at about a 20 % accuracy rate! I seem to have mistaken the buggers.

Last night Wifey and I went to the spur for a bit of sustenance. Wifey had her regular Spur schnitzel and I changed mine a bit and had the cheddamelt burger. Big kudos to Spur in East Rand Mall. To my American followers that’s in the East of Johannesburg!

The food was great, except could not help overhearing a couple (who were 18 years old at the most) having the most stupid argument that ended up in her bawling. Shame. Okay so we finish our dinner , lick each others fingers and head off to the cinema to watch Alice In Wonderland in 3D. Wooot Wooot!

What a crock of shit! Makes me wonder if there is going to be a better 3d movie than Avatar. Will have to wait till Shrek comes out.

So into the automobile we climb and start the arduous journey home! Nice drive, no traffic and general chat results in us getting to our humble abode in no time. As stated in my previous blog, Zorba our beloved dog left for doggy Heaven.(The Devil aint getting in there with him around). So we got Zeus his replacement. Zeus is a puppy and being a puppy I am trying to house train him! Zita the other Basset is already there, but pining for Zorba has resulted in her sleeping inside with Zeus and us.

So the slightest of movement will alert her which in turn alerts me! Zeus the little Basset woke me up to take him out to do his business. I did not mention the weather was purrrrfect on the way home. So I take him out. The food has not digested properly and he wants to play. Shit already I tell him! Either he’s super obedient or he saw it coming!!!

That crap propelled out his body like a jet engine and he bolted back inside. Then there was one big almighty bang and the rain fell. I’m standing outside and he is inside looking at me with these droopy eyes that seem to light up at the sight of me getting wet!

So Weather service that’s 1 to you and 0 to me!!!!

For the Greek's

2010-03-18T00:54:00.000-07:00

ΠΡΟΓΡΑΜΜΑ ΠΟΙΜΑΝΤΙΚΗΣ ΕΠΙΣΚΕΨΕΩΣ ΤΗΣ Α.Θ.Μ. ΤΟΥ ΠΑΠΑ ΚΑΙ ΠΑΤΡΙΑΡΧΟΥ ΑΛΕΧΑΝΔΡΕΙΑΣ ΚΑΙ ΠΑΣΗΣ ΑΦΡΙΚΗΣ κ.κ. ΘΕΟΔΩΡΟΥ Β’ ΣΤΗΝ ΙΕΡΑ ΜΗΤΡΟΠΟΛΗ ΙΩΑΝΝΟΥΠΟΛΕΩΣ ΚΑΙ ΠΡΕΤΟΡΙΑΣ

(20 Μαρτίου – 5 Απριλίου 2010)
Σάββατο, 20 Μαρτίου
8.10 π.μ. Άφιξη της Α.Θ.Μ. στο Διεθνές Αεροδρόμιο Oliver Τάμπο με πτήση των Αιγυπτιακών Αερογραμμών.
9.15 π.μ. Επίσημη Υποδοχή της Α.Θ.Μ. με Δοξολογία στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως της Αγίας Τριάδος και του Αγίου Μάρκου, (14, sixth street, Houghton)
11.00 π.μ. – 15.μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
15.30 μ.μ. Ιδιαίτερο γεύμα εργασίας προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. με το Μητροπολίτη και τους συνεράτες του
16.15 μ.μ. Επίσκεψη της Α.Θ.Μ. στην εορτή των Ελληνικών Σχολείων της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Τζοχάνεσπουργκ
18.30 μ.μ. Ιδιαίτερο Δείπνο προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην οικία του Προέδρου της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Τζοχάνεσπουργ κ. Ιωάννη Μπαλαδάκη
Κυριακή, 21 Μαρτίου
8.30 π.μ. Αναχώρηση από τη Μητρόπολη για τον Καθεδρικό Ιερό Ναό Αγίου Κωνσταντίνου και Αγίας Ελένης διά την Πατριαρχική Θεία Λειτουργία και την Δοξολογία για την Εθνική Επέτειο (στο κοινωνικό ο οικείος Μητροπολίτης θα καλοσωρίσει τον Μακαριώτατον και θα ομιλήσει η Α.Θ.Μ., στο τέλος της Δοξολογίας θα ομιλήσει ο Πρέσβυς της Ελλάδος)
12.30 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδήλωσεων της Κοινότητας
13.00 μ.μ. Αναχώρηση της Α.Θ.Μ. για Σχολή ΣΑΧΕΤΙ
13.30 μ.μ. Έναρξη εορτασμών για την Εθνική Επέτειο με χαιρετισμό της Α.Θ.Μ. και το άναμμα της φλόγας.
14.30 μ.μ. Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στους χώρους του ΣΑΧΕΤΙ
16.00 -19.00 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
19.00 μ.μ. Κατανυκτικός Εσπερινός στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
20.00 μ.μ. Ιδιαίτερο Δείπνο προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ.
Δευτέρα, 22 Μαρτίου
8.00 π.μ. Όρθρος, Ώρες και Εσπερινός στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
9.00 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας στη Μητρόπολη προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. με το Μητροπολίτη και συνεργάτες του
9.30 π.μ. Ιερατική Σύναξη στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
10.35 π.μ. Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Συμβούλιο Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Τζοχάννεσπουργκ
11.55 π.μ. Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Συμβούλιο Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Springs.
12.15 π.μ. Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Συμβούλιο Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Ιστ Ραντ – Μπράκπαν
13.00 μ.μ. Ιδιαίτερο Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην οικία του κ. Ρένου και κ. Σιμώνης Στεφάνου
15.00 – 18.00 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
18.30 μ.μ. Απόδειπνον στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
19.00 – 20.00 μ.μ. Συμμετοχή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην ζωντανή Ραδιοφωνική εκπομπή της Μητροπόλεως «Εκκλησιαστικός Φάρος» στην Νέα Πανελλήνια Φωνή, όπου ο Μακαριώτατος θα απευθύνει χαιρετισμό στην Παροικία, θα ομιλήσει διά το Πατριαρχείο, για τους εορτασμούς της Εθνικής Επετείου, για την Σαρακοστή και την είσοδον μας στην Μεγάλη Εβδομάδα.
20.00 μ.μ. Συνάντηση της Α.Θ.Μ. με το Συμβούλιο της Νέας Πανελλήνιας Φωνής
20.30μ.μ. Ιδιαίτερο Δείπνο προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ από τον Πρόεδρο και τα Μέλη του Συμβουλίου της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Μπενόνι
Τρίτη, 23 Μαρτίου
8.00 π.μ. Όρθρος, Ώρες και Εσπερινός στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
9.00 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας μετά της Συντονίστριας Εκπαιδεύσεως κ. Πλακίδου και του συζύγου της κ. Βασιλείου για θέματα Ελληνικής Παιδείας στην Αφρική
9.30 π.μ. Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με τα Συμβούλια των Ορθόδοξων Κοινοτήτων των Ρώσων, των Σέρβων, των Ρουμάνων και των Βουλγάρων
10.15 π.μ. Αναχώρηση από Μητρόπολη για επίσκεψη στο Ορθόδοξο Ιεραποστολικό Δημοτικό Σχολείο Αγίου Αθανασίου στην Τεμπίζα, παράδοση γραφικής ύλης και διανομή τροφίμων σε 270 άπορα και ορφανά παιδιά στην Τεμπίζα.
12.30 μ.μ. Ιδιαίτερο Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. από την οικογένιεα Θεολόγου Νεοκλέους
14.30 μ.μ. Ποιμαντική επίσκεψη Α.Θ.Μ. σε νέα Εκκλησία και παρανομή εκεί μέχρι την επομένη το απόγευμα.
Τετάρτη, 24 Μαρτίου
9.00 π.μ. Όρθρος, Ώρες, Εσπερινός και Λειτουργία Προηγιασμένων
18.00 μ.μ. Μέγας Αρχιερατικός Εσπερινός εις τον Ιερό Ναό Ευαγγελισμού στην Πρετόρια
19.30 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα εκδηλώσεων της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Πρετορίας
20.30 μ.μ. Δείπνο προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. από τον εξοχώτατον Πρέσβυ της Ελλάδος κ. Θεοχαρόπουλο με την παρουσία των Πρέσβεων Ορθοδόξων Χωρών
Πέμπτη, 25 Μαρτίο
8.30μ.μ. Όρθρος και Θεία Λειτουργία στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
10.00 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας μετά του Συντονιστή ΣΑΕ Αφρικής- Μέσης Ανατολής κ. Γκουβέλη και του προηγούμενου Συντονιστή κ. Μαγδαληνού
11.00 π.μ. Επίσκεψη της Α.Θ.Μ. στο ΣΑΧΕΤΙ για τους εορτασμούς των μαθητών για την Εθνική Επέτειο
12.30 μ.μ. Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. από τον εξοχώτατον Πρέσβυ της Κύπρου κ. Αντωνίου και την Ελληνική Κυπριακή Αδελφότητα Νοτίου Αφρικής
14.30 – 17.30μ.μ. Ανάπασυση
18.00μ.μ. Ακολουθεία Αποδείπνου στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
20.00 μ.μ. Δείπνο προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. από την εξοχωτάτη Γενική Πρόξενο της Ελλάδος κ. Γούναρη και το σύζυγο της κ. Τσαούση
Παρασκευή, 26 Μαρτίου
8.00 π.μ. Όρθρος, Ώρες, Εσπερινός και Λειτουργία Προηγιασμένων στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
9.30 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας μετά του ζεύγους Τσίχλα
10.15 π.μ. Επίσκεψη της Α.Θ.Μ. στο Ελληνικό Αρχείο στο Πανεπιστήμιο του Τζοχάνεσπουργκ και συνάντηση με το Συμβούλιο του Λυκείου Ελληνίδων
12.00 Επίσκεψη της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Σερβική ενορία
12.30 μ.μ. Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Σερβική ενορία
14.30 – 17.30 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
18.00 μ.μ. Απόδειπνον στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
19.00 μ.μ. Επίσκεψη της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Ελληνική Κοινότητα Τζέρμιστον για την παρακολούθηση της Καλιτεχνικής εκδήλωσης «Από το Πάθος στην Ανάσταση»
20.30 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδηλώσεων της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Τζέρμιστον
Σάββατο του Λαζάρου, 27 Μαρτίου
8.30 π.μ. Όρθρος και Θεία Λειτουργία
10.00 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας
11.00 π.μ Επίσκεψη της Α.Θ.Μ. σε νέα Εκκλησία στο Φοργούεϊς
13.00 μ.μ. Γεύμα προς τιμή Α.Θ.Μ. από Πρόεδρο Παναθηναϊκής κ. Συνοδινού
15.00 – 18.00 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
18.15 μ.μ. Πατριαρχικός Εσπερινός στην ενορία Αγίου Νικολάου Μπρίξτον
20.00 μ.μ.Δείπνο προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. από το Πρόεδρο της ενορίας κ. Αζάρ
Κυριακή των Βαϊων, 28 Μαρτίου
8.30 π.μ. Αναχώρηση από Μητρόπολη για Πατριαρχική Θεία Λειτουργία στην ετήσια Πανήγυρη της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Πρετορίας
9.00 – 12.00 Πατριαρχική Θεία Λειτουργία και Δοξολογία για την Εθνική Επέτειο της 25ης Μαρτίου στον Ιερό Ναό του Ευαγγελισμού στην Ελληνική Κοινότητα Πρετορίας.
12.30 – 15.30μ.μ. Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στους Χώρους της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Πρετορίας και παρακολούθηση εορταστικού προγράμματος διά την εθνική επέτειο της 25ης Μαρτίου
17.00 -18.30μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
19.00 μ.μ. Ακολουθεία του Νυμφίου στον Πατριαρχικό Ιερό Ναό των Αγίων Αναργύρων
20.30 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδηλώσεων από την Εκκλησιαστική Επιτροπή των Αγίων Αναργύρων και σύντομη επίσκεψη στην διπλανή Στέγη Αγάπης της Μητροπόλεως μας στο Αθανάσειον Ίδρυμα
Μεγάλη Δευτέρα, 29 Μαρτίου
8.00 π.μ. Ιερές Ακολουθείες στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Ιεράς Μητροπόλεως
9.30 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας
10.00 π.μ. Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Συμβούλιο Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Βερίνιχεν
10.20 π.μ. Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Συμβούλιο Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Κλάξτορπ
10.40 π.μ Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Συμβούλιο Ενορίας Αγίου Νικολάου Μπρίχτον
11.15 π.μ. Επίσκεψη Α.Θ.Μ. στην Ρωσική Ενορία της Μητροπόλεως μας
13.15 μ.μ. Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. από τον εξοχώτατον Πρέσβυ της Αιγύπτου
15.00 -18.00 μ.μ.Ανάπαυση
19.00 μ.μ. Ακολουθεία Νυμφίου στον Ιεό Ναό Αγίου Βασιλείου στο Springs
20.30 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα εκδηλώσεων της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Springs
Μεγάλη Τρίτη, 30 Μαρτίου
8.00 π.μ. Ιερές Ακολουθείες στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
9.30 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας
10.00 π.μ. Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Συμβούλιο Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Ράστερμπεργκ
10.20 π.μ. Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Συμβούλιο Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Γουέστ Ραντ – Κρούκεστορπ
12.00 Συνάντηση Α.Θ.Μ. με Ομοσπονδία
13.00 μ.μ. Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. από Ομοσπονδία
15.00 -18.00 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
19.00 μ.μ. Ακολουθεία Νυμφίου στον Ιερό Ναό Αγίου Γεωργίου στην Ελληνική Κοινότητα Μπράκπαν
20.40 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδήλωσεω της Κοινότητας
Μεγάλη Τετάρτη, 31 Μαρτίου,
7.30 π.μ. Ιερές Ακολουθείες στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
9.00 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας
10.00 π.μ. Ακολουθεία Αγίου Ευχελαίου στον Ιερό Ναό Αγίου Νεκταρίου στο Γηροκομείο
12.15 μ.μ. Γεύμα προς τιμή Α.Θ.Μ. στο Γηροκομείον του Αγίου Νεκταρίου
14.00 -18.00μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
19.00 μ.μ. Ακολουθεία Αγίου Ευχελαίου στον Ιερό Ναό Αποστόλου Ανδρέου στην Ελληνική Κοινότητα Γουέστ Ράντ στο Κρούκεστορπ(σύντομος χαιρετισμός Α.Θ.Μ.
21.00 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα εκδηλώσεων Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Γουέστ Ραντ – Κρούκεστορπ
Μεγάλη Πέμπτη, 1η Απριλίου,
8.30 π.μ. Ιερές Ακολουθείες στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
10.30 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας
11.00 π.μ. Ποιμαντική επίσκεψη της Α.Θ.Μ. στις Ιερές Μονές Αγίου Νικολάου και Αγίου Νεκταρίου, Αγίας Τριάδος και στο Ορφανοτροφείο της Μητροπόλεως μας στην ενορία του Αρχαγγέλου Μιχαήλ
13.30 μ.μ. Ιδιαίτερο Γεύμα εργασίας
15.30 – 18.00 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
18.45 μ.μ. Ακολουθεία Μυστικού Δείπνου στον Ιερό Ναό Αγίου Αθανασίου του Μεγάλου στην Ελληνική Κοινότητα Μπενόνι
22.00 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδηλώσεων της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Μπενόνι
Μεγάλη Παρασκευή, 2 Απριλίου,
9.30 π.μ. Ακολουθία Μεγάλων Ωρών και Αποκαθήλωσης στον Καθεδρικό Ιερό Ναό Αγίου Κωνσταντίνου και Αγίας Ελένης
12.15 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδηλώσεων της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Τζοχάννεσπουργκ
13.30 μ.μ. Ποιμαντική επίσκεψη Α.Θ.Μ. στο Κέντρο για τα παιδιά του Δρόμου της Μητροπόλεως μας(διανομή τροφίμων σε άπορες οικογένειες)
14.15 μ.μ. Επίσκεψη της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Εκκλησιαστική μας Σχολή «Πατριάρχης Πέτρος Ζ»
15.30 – 18.00 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
18.30 μ.μ. Ακολουθεία Επιταφίου στον Ιερό Ναό Κοιμήσεως της Παναγίας στην Ελληνική Κοινότητα Άλμπερτον
21.30 μ.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδηλώσεων της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Άλμπερτον
Μέγα Σάββατο, 3 Απριλίου,
9.00 π.μ. Πατριαρχική Θεία Λειτουργία στον Ιερό Ναό Υπαπαντής στο ΣΑΧΕΤΙ
12.00 Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ.
14.00 – 22.00 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
11.00 μ.μ. Ακολουθεία Αναστάσεως στον Ιερό Ναό Εισοδείων της Παναγίας στην Παντάνασσα
2.00 π.μ. Δεξίωση προς τιμή Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδηλώσεων της Παντάνασσας
Κυριακή του Πάσχα, 4 Απριλίου
3.30 π.μ. – 12.15 μ.μ Ανάπαυση
13.00 μ.μ. Πατριαρχικός Εσπερινός της Αγάπης στον Ιερό Ναό του Αγίου Ιωάννου του Προδρόμου στην Ελληνική Κοινότητα Τζέρμιστον
14.30 μ.μ. Πασχαλινό Γεύμα προς τιμή της Α.Θ.Μ. στην Αίθουσα Εκδηλώσεων της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Τζέρμιστον
16.30 – 19.30 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
20.00 μ.μ. Ιδιαίτερο Γεύμα προς τιμή Α.Θ.Μ.
Δευτέρα του Πάσχα, 5 Απριλίου
9.00 π.μ. Όρθρος και Θεία Λειτουργία στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
10.30 π.μ. Πρόγευμα εργασίας
13.00 μ.μ. Αποχαιρετιστήριο Γεύμα προς τιμή Α.Θ.Μ. από τον Πρόεδρο της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Άλμπερτον κ. Βασίλειο Μαγδαληνό
15.00 – 19.00 μ.μ. Ανάπαυση
19.00 μ.μ. Εσπερινός στο Παρεκκλήσιο της Μητροπόλεως
19.30 μ.μ. Αναχώρηση Α.Θ.Μ. από Μητρόπολη για Διεθνές Αεροδρόμιο Τζοχάννεσπουργκ Τάμπο Μπέκι
21.45 μ.μ. Αναχώρηση Αεροπορικής πτήσης Α.Θ.Μ. με Αιγυπτιακές Αερογραμμές για Αίγυπτον

Enjoy Guys!

ZORBA

2010-03-16T00:47:00.000-07:00

My big boy.

From the day we received you to last night we loved you with all our heart. You were more than a Guard dog. You were a friend, a swimming buddie and the smartest dog i have known!

Yes you were naughty! You opened taps and chewed plastic. You were our first baby and will be sorely missed. Tears fill my eyes as i am writing this, because those children that teased you are partly to blame for your shortcomings.

Your mother defended you all the way, till the last! you would sit on the couch with her every night and thats the Zorba that we loved. The Zorba last night was something out of a horror story. I am sorry that i could not be there with you to hold you and console you and to say goodbye to you. Mommy needed me more.

Your sister allready misses you

She cried and cried for you last night.So did we!

Always in our hearts and always in our minds.

Here's a kiss from Mommy and I to you.

Love you big boy!

Sunday 14 March 2010

2010-03-15T04:02:00.000-07:00

Ok so here we go. Sunday the 14th of March 2010 will go down in history as the day that i one Sportsmadwilly got the impossible right! I consumed way too much red WINE. That in itself is a problem, because as a rule i do not consume alcohol(never mind 4 bottles). I ate 3 cheese wors rolls before and three after.

Picture this if you will! An absolutely fabulous sunday in Gauteng, great company , awesome music and good food and WINE! The pool is sparkling, kids are swimming Jose my assistant(lol) is braaing and me? Well i'm drinking red WINE. Red WINE as i am told is actually good for you! HA. So now i am actually drinking to save my life. Red WINE is good for you.

The part where my G.P told me in moderration totally becomes a thing of the past. So wine in hand , Jose braaing and oots oots playing in the background. Only one more thing needed! A smoke! Jack up a Peter Stuyvesent and here we go baby.

Bahrain G.P starts and thats it! i mean thats it! 6 hrs later im leaning over the toilet performing the impossible! Hurling up full cheese wors thingies! still can't for the life of me remember where the carrots came from? So i take a look at myself in the mirror, shit i look bad! I think that i am bleeding from eyes because snot and tears mixed with red WINE equalls an apache looking mofo!

I am writing this so that it becomes publically known that i will never ever EVER touch alcohol again. Now that i have said what i wanted to say i am going to curl up in the faetal position and suck on my thumb! Also, can anyone please tell me who won the G.P!

Cheers

Sad sporting weekend!

2010-03-01T01:23:00.000-08:00

Let me start by saying that every team gets beat and every sports supporter has their ups and downs! BUT hawu! This weekend i got clubbed from all sides by the Sports Gods. Give a guy a break. My chin is up and i will carry on. So! with that, lets get started on a selected few games / matches that i chose to high-lite from this weekend. this is how the sharks seem to be practicing.

1)Super 14. This weekends games proved that the competition is going to be a tough one!
1.1 Sharks. Their own worst enemies along with bad reffing and poor management epitomizes what the team is about this year! Not making changes when they should, and Mr Plummer i mean tree you need to to pull your finger out and get your teams discipline in tact. I will put my chop on a block and state that the Sharks will not finish above 8th on the log!

1.2 Stormers. Wow! Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Simply put. Once again they proved to be their own worst enemies. Mr Habana got a few harsh decisions against him and stand out player Pieter Louw deserved the try not given in the first half. South Africa's so called No2 ref did not have the finest game and perhaps should have a look at his interpretations of the new laws.
1.3 Lions. All i have to say about this game is that i expected a bigger loss and that i commend Dick for starting Tod Clever and Derrik Minnie. They were their and their about and both scored a try a piece.
1.4 Bulls. Say what you want but on consistency they carry the South African flag for the rest of the country. Shell shocked fro a rapid fire spirited Waratahs quick 17 points they bounced back and did not panic to grind out a comprehensive win! Proving once again that the Half-Back pairing is possibly the best in the World. With Pierre Spies and Bakkies Botha returning from injury it bodes well for them.

2) English Premier league!
2.1 My hapless Chelsea Team. Concerned more about new haircuts and matching boots the team was totally humiliated by a fired up and hungry Manchester City team taking revenge for their left back who pulled out of the English squad because of a "teammate" doing the unthinkable and sleeping with his wife. A first half dominated by Chelsea ended up 1-1. The second half saw Benchwarmer Craig Bellamy rip the Chelsea defense apart! A somewhat dubious penalty resulted in Carlos Tevez picking up his second after a first half roly poly beat a somewhat bewildered Hillario for this an unlucky Belleti was also sent off. Michael Ballack then urned himself a second yellow(which should have happened much earlier and that was it game over.Bellamy scored his second and Lampard his second as well when Chelsea were awarded a penalty.So Chelsea finished the game with 9 men. A poor result and bad game for the the title leaders that i dare say might even end up third now.
2.2 Everton. Ala Stormers! they both play in blue and the both could be there or there abouts. No they go and screw up against a Spurs team that came prepared and dully won the game.
2.3 Arsenal. For me the the main contenders to Manchester United. Cruising for 90 minutes and in total control. the only incident of the game came in the second half when a truly sympathetic Ryan Shawcross broke Aaron Ramsey's leg in two places. However it was to me unintentional. Shawcross has been included in the english team to play Egypt!
2.4 Once again Liverpool pulled the rabbit out of the sack with a nothing short of boring win against a below par Blackburn. I cannot help but think that Jose Mourinho will be joining them shortly!

2.5. Manchester United!
Cruising! Thats all i have to say. They Are well and truly champions . Deserving of every accolade they get.

Boxing.
3.1 Flo Simba Beats Stephen Castle! The big mouthed castle with no style , no ring savvy and definately no punch was outclassed by a younger , quicker , more stylish and talented fighter. At 20 years old this kid has a lot to learn but wow he's quick and he can punch!
3.2 Jason Bedeman beats Bilal Muhammad! HAHAHA! Round 1 . Left jab puts Bedeman on his arse! Another jab puts him on his arse again! Round 2 Bedeman lands a clean punch and puts Muhammed on his arse. The former doesn't land a clean punch but chops his opponent down on the back of the head to the ref stopping the fight Grant
Fourie after losing to him and Warren Joubert must be licking their chops at a chance of fighting Jason the "glass jaw" bedeman!
3.3 Tommy the gun Oosthuizen. After giving Jarred lovett a lesson in the ring he proceeds to climb into the ring with John Chibita from Zambia. In short the most boring fight ever! Tommy to his credit was his workman like self. Chibita should be stripped of his purse and be banned for a year. He literally did not throw more than 50 punches the whole 12 rounds.
3.4 The Big One.
Juanito Rubillar V S Hekkie Budler. I'll give Hekkie the first three rounds by a point each.While an unmarked composed Rubilar of the Philippines outclassed Budler for the next 9 rounds. A panel of judges curiously made up of THREE South Africans saw fit to award the decision to their battered , outfought and outpunched countryman! Makes you think! Or maybe it's that Colin Nathan is Rodney Berman's nephew?

So that's pretty much all and ill try do this everyweek! To all of those Superbru players licking their wounds! join the club.

Cheers

Rugby?

2010-02-22T01:39:00.000-08:00

South African rugby has faced its fair share of trials and tribulations over the last 30 years.

We as a "democratic" country have tried to use sports as a unifying agent for our countries ridiculous state at the moment. Yes in many cases it has! South Africans can be proud and should show pride in the fact that we have won world cups in rugby and golf! In soccer we have won the African Cup of Nations, there are way too many Boxing accolades to be mentioned. We are indeed a very talented sporting nation.

However when it comes to rugby i dare say that ,that is where our strength is. When the Springboks run on yo the field to face any of their enemies i and i am sure that the whole rugby watching nation get goosies !!! When we win we win together! When we lose we lose together! We laugh , cry and fight together! YES we are a proud Rugby nation. Or so it seems!

Along comes domestic and super tournaments and Fucks everything up!

Sure there's your normal "banter" and sarcastic remarks. It's all part of our rugby culture! The banter and remarks are good and provides for very good laughs when reading them or even being part of them on twitter or facebook.

Where do you draw the line though?

Over the last weekend just browsing at the banter i noticed remarks like "yah Schalk is injured" or "damn those are ugly shirts" or even Habana should also get injured. W.T.F people! This is SOUTH AFRICA!!!!!

We should be supporting local teams when they play against teams abroad. Mocking a persons injuries or ill discipline is just wrong. Grow th fuck up!!!!! Wow those shirts are ugly, pfff they are the defending champions and could wear scuba diving suites for all i care. These are athletes that represent our country. We will never become a unified country as long as you get the jealous assholes that make negative comments and those who just don't know that they don 't know.

For the record i am and always will be a Gauteng Lions supporter. So these comments are purely in the interest of South African Rugby and South African Sport........

Whats Up With The Weather?

2010-01-28T23:28:00.000-08:00

Johannesburg - The Vaal Dam is its fullest in 13 years, with 16 open flood gates letting out 2 040m³ of water per second, water affairs officials said on Thursday.

"The most flood gates that we've had open to date were 17 - and that was in the late 80s

The Bloemhof dam's capacity is expected to peak at 117% on February 2

"Communities residing in the vicinity of the Vaal Orange River System are again being warned to stay clear of the river. The department wishes to re-iterate the warning that recreational activities such as canoeing, boating... should not be undertaken until further notice."

Meanwhile, the Mpumalanga water affairs department warned Standerton residents against possible flooding.

"The department... would like to issue a word of special warning to people living in Standerton, around the Grootdraai dam catchment in the Lekwa Municipality to be on full alert, as the sluice gates have been opened to release water.

"The opening of the sluice gates has been necessitated by the heavy downpours with reports of over 100mm in areas close to Morgenzon and 75mm in Predekop as reported on Tuesday night. These heavy downpours have led to the dam rising to 110.1%

Recently the Benoni area was also affected by the dam in the central part also bursting its banks.

These are a couple of the pics that i got sent

The weather patterns around the world are calling for a huge global wake up call. Spare a thought for all those people affected and brace yourself for more to come.

Haiti has just given the world a taste of whats to come.

However! When it's so close to home, you really start asking questions.

I am and always will be an optimist. I look at everything with the glass half full theory. The times they are a changing. As South Africans we need to change with them.

Cheers

Terrible Holliday

2010-01-13T03:18:00.000-08:00

Every year the same time i take a little trip to a hotel group(quite large) literally on the pillansberg mountain range. Every year i try to get some golf in and generally chill next to one of about 8 swimming pools. Let me tell you that i am a V.I.P guest, i shall chose to use this term very loosely. I believe that all hotel guests at any hotel should be treated as one.

Never the less, i am one because i spent almost R500k to become one, thus giving me platinum status. Arriving at the hotel i found that my reserved parking was not there, as in GONE! The aircon in the whole hotel was not working. The bar fridge was not working and finally our bed was not turned once. Let me tell you that i totally lost it. All my ranting and raving got me was a miniature wine and three apples.Nice!!!

To top it all off, we were raided by the biggest mofo of a Baboon i have ever laid eyes on. That i quite literally crapped in my pants. You see, without our aircon we would have died of the heat without open windows. Godzilla se moer. This was BIG ,HAIRY and had a penis the size of johnny wad. This is the reason i shocked him with 4 000 000 volts of pure stun baton power. He proceeded to fall and shake his head and look at me thinking" wait DOOS i'm a coming for you. He did and this time my wife was alone in the room.

So yesterday the 12th of January 2010 i phoned the General manager of the whole group to complain and he returned my call today informing me to look out for the post. Well i will wait , and i will keep you posted.

p.s Thanks Ayanda and Joe for going the extra mile.\

p.s.s The wave pool wasn't even working

p.s.s.s Sun City now officially sucks balls.

Cheers

Around the corner

2009-12-17T01:14:00.000-08:00

Silly Season

Yes she is here.Every year the same things happen in the best country in the world. However nobody takes time to reflect on all of these problems that make the most beautiful country in the world the worst. I just swore(sorry). The stark reality is that everyone marvels about South Africa and Saffers.

I am proudly South African and could not imagine living anywhere else.However it is becoming increasingly worse. Do the rest of the world worry? Nah. Do South Africans worry? Sure. Do we do anything about the crime, rape , corruption , NO!!!!
75000 people lost jobs in the 3rd quarter of this year. Eskom is going to knop us like never before. The fatcats in parliament are either on a tax payers holiday or are planning one.

People always complain about these things , but are not big enough to challenge the system. Holiday season is about giving and chilling. However is this possible when on holiday you worry about finances , your home getting pillaged or even if a drunk driver or worse still a drunk taxi driver wipes out a family Actually on holiday , holiday makers are getting the same treatment. Heaven help us when the biggest event in African history comes visiting in june next year. Fok! prices are going to rocket, food shortages , traffic congestion , robberies and more. Are we indeed prepared for this spectacle?

I say no! Whilst living in this autocratic country! HELL NO!

Guys and Gals enjoy your Christmas and new year. Take time to reflect on the year that has passed. Look after yourself and your loved ones. Plan properly for the new year, i think it's going to be harder than this year.

Cheers

Our Little Princess

2009-11-30T00:55:00.000-08:00

TIME FLIES!!!!!!!

Five years ago Toni Samaras graced this world with her presence.

Today is her bithday. A whole 5 years going on 21.

The first 40 days of her life were spent at home with her incredible Mom

and her two very loving Yaya's(grannies).

You Know when you see a relationship with a mom and her daughter? This one started when Toni was still in her Mom's womb.

Coupled with this and an incredible man who is probably the hardest working husband and father i know she has been showered wilth love and care

You have a Papu that adores you guys

Over the years you have grown and blossomed from an incredible child

into a real life princes.

You my godchild, niece, source of laughter and beauty are a blessing from God.

Sagapo poly poly.

Aris and Maria Na Zisi. You guys are great parents to Toni and Mika. May god shower you with blessings , you guys deserve it. The admiration and love shown to you buy your children when they look into your eyes every morning is something that can never be explained in pictures.

Toni mou. Your Nona and Nono are extremely proud of you. you have blossomed in to a truly stunning child. You are beautiful, smart and we LOVE you with everything we have.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

MWAH

Enjoy

Love Nona and Nono

What would be the deciding factor ........

2009-11-23T06:50:00.000-08:00

After much boredom today i asked myself a stupid but quite pertinent question. What would be the deciding factor when buying a vehicle in South Africa? Looks,performance,consumption,safety,technology, affordability,status? Maybe all. i am inclined though to think that the performance , looks and status would be the general consensus. Sure i would think that most recognizable and status brands should incorporate all of these. Yes and no. The thing is, surely a vehicle is only as good as it's driver. So take any nut and put them behind a high performance vehicle and let them take the vehicle to it's limit, then add a high speed accident. The answer is simple DEATH. No matter what safety and technological features the vehicle has.

That's not the reason for my post though. Safety is! Not the e.s.p, not the abs, not the ebd(i can go on for hours using all types of acronyms).

What happens when you get Hi-Jacked. Yes people this is a stark reality in South Africa. Smash and grab is a scape goat. If the perp wants your car he will take it.

But what happens when they want you as well? This is the most frightening thought for all South Africans. My post is about this exact thing. What happens if they throw the victim into the boot of a car? I have theories and answers and am welcome to discussion. The reality is that when you purchased your car did the salesman ever tell you how to get out this way? I can guarantee that not one person will answer yes. So open your vehicles boot tonight and even if your partner closes the bootlid climb in. Try get out!

your are going to battle your arse off. but the truth of the matter is that only about 80% of the vehicles have safety latches for such scenario's.

Interesting

For me safety is number 1 and will always be. The next time you purchase a vehicle encourage the sales person to demonstrate this feature to you and tell me the answer.

Till later.....

Chelsea on the march.

2009-11-22T23:41:00.000-08:00

Please forgive me for the late blog. just did not know what to write about. then came my saviours the greatest and most consistent team in the history of the U.K Premiership.CHELSEA

Founded in 1905, Chelsea quickly gained a reputation for signing big name players and for attracting large crowds, but failed to win a major trophy in their first fifty years. They spent thirty of their first forty seasons in the First Division, although often found themselves finishing in mid-table or battling relegation. The closest Chelsea came to success was in the FA Cup; they were runners-up in 1915 and losing semi-finalists in 1911, 1920, 1932, 1950 and 1952. The duck was finally broken by manager Ted Drake, who introduced a series of changes at the club and led Chelsea to the league championship in 1955The period 1963-72 saw Chelsea regularly challenge for honours for the first time, although they often narrowly missed outChelsea returned to the First Division with a new, youthful team which included the uncompromising Ron "Chopper" Harris, goalkeeper Peter Bonetti, prolific goalscoring winger Bobby Tambling (whose 202 goals remain a club record), midfielder John Hollins, full-back Ken Shellito, striker Barry Bridges, winger Bert Murray and captain and playmaker Terry Venables, all products of the youth system. To these, Docherty added striker George Graham, left-back Eddie McCreadie and elegant defender Marvin Hinton for minimal fees to complete theDiamonds line-up - Docherty had referred to the team as his "little diamonds" during a TV documentary and the name stuck The League Cup was won in 1965, the FA Cup in 1970 and theUEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1971; they were also FA Cup runners-up in 1967 and League Cup runners-up in 1972. Several problems over the next decade, principally the debt burden caused by an ambitious attempt to redevelop Stamford Bridge, brought the club to the brink of extinction, before a revival under John Neal in the mid-1980s saw the club win the Second Division title and ultimately re-establish itself in the top flight.

A further revival under managers Ruud Gullit and Gianluca Vialli from 1996-2000 saw Chelsea win the FA Cup in 1997 and 2000, the League Cup and UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1998, and qualify for the Champions League for the first time; the club have not finished outside of the top six in the Premier League since the 1995-96 season. In 2003, Chelsea were bought byRussian billionaire Roman Abramovich, ushering in the club's current phase of success; José Mourinho led them to two league titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups in three seasons. The club added a further FA Cup in 2009 and reached their first UEFA Champions League final in 2008, where they lost to Manchester United.Up steps Carlo Ancelotti.

In Ancelotti's first competitive match Chelsea met Manchester United in the Community Shield. The game ended in a 2-2 draw, with Chelsea winning 4-1 on penalties to take the trophy, the club's first victory in a shoot-out since beating Ipswich Town in the League Cup in January 1998.The fact of the matter is this. As big a fan as you are to your club and as loyal you are to your club so am i. money now unfortunately controls all sporting bodies. So the question remains who do you support and why. I could go on and on about chelsea but would rather concentrate on their upcoming signings in jan 2010.Later