When I went to turn on my computer this morning nothing happened and I mean nothing would not even turn on...as I checked out I asked if there was a computer store in town and was directed to a small hole in the wall store and I thought to myself good luck.....was I ever wrong!!!!
The owner looked to be 17 years of age....long hair like I had in the 70's and the store had very little in it oh well here goes and I explained my problem.....the kid brought out battery testers, charges and other stuff I had no idea what it was and he went to work and declared the problem was that the converter and plug were toast...he explained what I needed to do and I could tell by the look on his face that the look on my face said I need help!!!!
He explained the best thing for me to was to buy a SA plug and use the Australian cable cut it off and attach it to the SA cable thus eliminating the use of a converter, makes sense right!!!
He said there is an electrical shop round the corner I will go with you and you can buy the plug and I will convert it for you..so that is what we did the plug cost me 28 Rand about 2 Canadian dollars...then he cut, spliced wires, (I do know that much) and then I was set with a new cable that plugs directly into the SA socket.....so we set it all up plug it in and it does not work.....he said wow that is so strange and then his phone rang....whilst he was talking I tried to turn it on and nothing and then on impulse I opened the lid of the computer and tried again and BINGO it worked!!!!
When he came back I told him I was going to charge him a 100 Rand to teach him something and I told him what I did.....he said that is amazing I would never have guessed that.......so now my computer works great and goes straight in the mains here...oh yes how much did he charge me.....50 Rand.......incredible I said all I have is a 100 Rand bill please keep the change, he shook my hand and another one of those meetings that just cost nothing, well maybe 128 Rand, but mean so much!!!
The road was an easy drive this morning
These next three photos are for my friend Caron in Santa Barbara...hope they bring back happy memories for you!!!
Sorry it was not bright and sunny!!!
I then came over a mountain pass and the winds were so strong that at one point I actually felt the car moving over!!!!
The the shot of the clouds was for me amazing!!!
I could actually see that huge bank of cloud moving down the mountain into the valley.
I did some grocery shopping and then went to my airbnb place where I am staying for 4 nights....it is in a very exclusive gated community with nearly 300 homes and I met Penny who happily showed me around she lives 4 doors down if I need anything...so what do you think??
My room...
The very cold pool on the complex that will not be using!!!
So this will be my home for the next four nights and all of this for 164 Canadian dollars..what a bargain!!!
I cooked a nice simple meal and then into the bath tub and even thought there is a TV no stations but there is a movie channel so I shall watch a movie soon!!!
This is a horrid event in Northern Albert close to where I used to live years ago...looks like a war zone!!
Canada wildfire: Images show Fort McMurray devastation
Pictures obtained by the BBC show large parts of the Canadian city of Fort McMurray in ruins following a devastating wildfire.
The exact scale of the damage is difficult to assess, as access to the city is restricted.
Officials have given few details other than to report that 1,600 homes and other buildings have been destroyed.
However, people who have seen the damage say whole neighbourhoods have been wiped out.
One picture shows the ruins of many houses, with a car untouched by fire. In another, a destroyed church is surrounded by rubble.
RCMP Alberta
Some parts of the city, in the province of Alberta, have been defended resolutely and are still standing.
The city's airport suffered only minor damage despite being licked by flame and engulfed by smoke.
Only the "Herculean" efforts of fire fighters saved the facility, says Scott Long of the Alberta Emergency Management Agency.
Crews also managed to protect other key infrastructure including the water treatment plant and the hospital.
Many homeowners were not so lucky.
The images of whole neighbourhoods in ruins are shocking but they will not surprise the people of Fort McMurray who fled knowing that their city was in danger of being consumed by fire.
The fire in the province of Alberta covers 850 sq km (328.2 sq miles), and the entire city of almost 90,000 people was evacuated three days ago.
Most fled south but some of those who headed north have been airlifted to safety, with officials hoping that the only motorway south will be declared safe, allowing the remainder of those stuck to escape by road.
For nearby communities though the danger has not receded.
The skies above the empty and smouldering city are full of strange shapes.
There are clouds that billow like bright white cauliflowers, boiling rapidly as they change by the second.
There are clouds illuminated by vertical streaks of a dull red from the fires on the ground.
And there are giant clouds stretching as far as the eye can take in with a single glance, great walls of smoke blown sideways by the strong winds.
The helicopters - almost 150 of them, we are told - look puny in the face of such a dramatic display of nature's power, but occasionally they do seem to be making progress in slowing the fire's march across the plains.
Ultimately though, says Bill Stewart, co-director of the University of California's Center for Fire Research and Outreach, only nature can stop it entirely.
"You could add five times the number of firefighters," he said, "but you can't get all the embers. There's no way to put out every ember flying over firefighters' heads."
That makes for a terrifying and dangerous time for those on the front line of the fight.
On Thursday night we watched as firefighters rushed into the community of Anzac, trying to save it from flames which were tearing through a forest on the shores of nearby Gregoire Lake.
From across the lake the sight was stunning and horrifying. Fierce winds fanned the flames, and towering conifer trees went up in a flash as if they were matches struck on a box.
The whole blaze sent a pall of smoke high above, while the fires gave the sky an orange glow which could be seen for miles around.
It felt like a distress signal, signifying a disaster which is still unfolding.
Yashi Kochi!!!
Yashi Kochi!!!
2 comments:
A nice cozy home for a few days. The fire is Fort McMurray is still growing. Many people in nearby towns are offering up their land to host people with RVs, livestock etc. It's amazing there are no casualties reported. The city is a disaster zone... Still hopes are high for rebuilding.
Cheers, Peter and Shelagh.
thanks yes it is nice to be in one place for a few days...I cannot believe how bad it is in Fort Mac and as you say no loss of life is amazing..what a sad state cheers les
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