Sport South Africa Style!

We have a sport here in South Africa that is perhaps unique to our country.

Relatively new, it is becoming more and more popular among the younger members of the community.

The teams can number up to six or seven people (usually boys or men), but never only one person. Although it isn't classed as a 'spectator sport', many hundreds or even thousands of people are affected by the result.
You will need a bakkie or truck, a pick, shovels, rope or a chain, and definitely gloves, and it is only played after dark.

The rules are simple
1. Do not get caught.
2. Do not get burned.
And the name of the sport?

Cable Theft!

Once you know how to do it, you can do it anywhere! Find the correct place, usually where a cable has just been laid so the ground is still soft. Dig down to the cable and put a chain or a rope round it. Fasten to the back of the bakkie and drive off very fast! The cable is ripped out of the ground and dragged away to a safe place for stripping.

And it is catching on fast, spreading from town to town. Here in Vredenburg some business people have taken to burying the cables in cement and doing night watch with a shotgun across their knees

Last night we were sitting quietly watching television, thinking about heading  to bed, when the lights flickered and then steadied at half strength. This is known as a 'brown out' and will kill any appliance that relies on a motor, like a fridge, a computer and a fishpond pump!

Even though we still had some dim lighting, the entire village was minus the street lights, so there were little blobs of dull glimmering instead of the usual bright, reassuring, lighting.
But, the stars were magical! And we stood and stared at them for a while until I felt small and vulnerable. And I was worried about standing on a scorpion too!


But....... I digress.

Rob turned off anything and everything that was motor orientated, and we went to bed.
During the night we lost power completely, and when we woke up it was still off.
Rob went down to make coffee and feed the fish.

And he called me.

Because the pump had been off all night, and yesterday was a particularly hot day, the fish were taking strain. They were all literally gasping for breath with their little mouths gulping at the air.
And our beautiful koi that had been with us for the whole time that we had lived in this house, was dead. He was one of two that moved from the small round half-barrel pond to the big new one that you see here.

Outspan.

We were devastated. Rob grabbed a bucket and started to scoop and pour the water in the pond to try to aerate it as best he could. We scooped out buckets of water and re-placed with fresh from the tanks, pouring it from as high as we could to try to get as much oxygen into the water as possible.

Scooping and pouring. It helped.

And the reason for the death of our beautiful fish?

Cable Theft!

The power came back on about an hour later......... but it was too late for Outspan (so called by Rob because of his orange colour.)

Goodbye old friend.

Basil came to say goodbye, and then we buried him in the back garden near the cats who had watched him swim while they were living with us.

I just hope that one day, whoever stole the cables makes a big mistake when he tries it again.

I like to think that Outspan is now with Saint Neot, the Patron Saint of fish.