Fire at Ashmel Spar in Berea

A devastating fire swept through a portion of Ashmel Spar in East London suburb Berea last night.

Speaking to Staff members, we found out that the fire may have started in the Bakery area, after 9 pm in the evening of 30 December 2010.

The exact cause of the fire is not yet known, and the extent of the damage is still being assessed. It does seem though that the fire at Ashmel Spar has caused extensive flame and smoke damage.

When we arrived at the Spar Supermarket in Berea, all seemed to normal, until we noticed that what we thought were just loiterers, were in fact Staff members from Ashmel Spar. Again, first impressions indicated that they were on a break, but, there were too many of them...

Then we noticed that goods were being removed from the Supermarket, via a back entrance, and being loaded into a container. This was unusual, and we looked around some more, and noticed the black smoke stains on the parapets.

We decided to go into Ashmel Spar supermarket, as it appeared there were people using the supermarket. Once inside the Shopping Centre we found that it was only the Spar that had been affected by the fire.

Unfortunately we were unable to speak to any of the management staff, although we would probably have gotten less information from them.

Fire damage at Ashmel Spar will affect not only the stock that was in the store, but also the overall profitability of the store. It must be assumed that Ashmel Spar does have insurance, but it is common knowledge that insurance never covers everything.

The Ashmel Spar fire will also impact on the staff. It would be interesting to find out if the owners and management of the supermaket will be paying the staff for down-time. Will they also honor their commitments to the casual staff employed for the Festive Season?

We are sure they will, but until then:

Christmas Salad Days Potato Salad

Christmas celebrations, especially in families with several generations, can extend for two or three days, while all the family get to visit everyone. 

In the household here, the big Christmas thing is on Christmas eve, and rather than the habitual braai of the previous 3 years, it was decided that the Christmas 2010 repast be a simple collection of chips, dips, and drinks.

Together with a chicken offering from the Colonel. 

As is usual even the best laid plans etc etc etc...

We found ourselves to be the proud owners of half a turkey. And of course, because I am arrogant, and full of nonsense, and because I was asked to, I made a few salads, while the turkey was going about its business.

The first salad was good old fashioned Potato Salad.

Please understand, I cook cos its fun, and because it doesn't involve a lot of maths.

Phase 1

For the potato salad, cook up a whole collection of potatoes. 1 for each person expected, and then another 1 for half the people expected, and then add another 2. 

Peel the potatoes, and cut them into little pieces. I like to cut them so that about 2 pieces will fit into tablespoon. Kind of.

Chuck them into water, to which you've added some salt. I always add salt to potatoes, about 1 level teaspoon of salt for 8 medium potatoes.

The stove should be on, and the plate under the potato pot on high. Let it cook. 

When the little bits are cooked, drain off all the excess water right away. Run some cold water over the potatoes, and drain again.

Now, half a cup of mayonnaise, and then some milk, just to make the cup 3/4 full. Mix the hell out of it, so that it mixes all up. Pour this all over the potatoes.

Now add lashings of mayonnaise, and turn it in a bit.

Chop an onion or two finely, and chuck it onto the potatoes.

Mix it all up, so that the mayonnaise is covering all the potatoes. 

Phase Two begins.

Boil a few eggs. I used 6, cos it sounded like a nice number at the time. You want the little guys hard boiled.

When boiled, separate eggs from their shells.

At this point you could do one of two things. Slice the eggs in half length-ways, and then mash the egg yolk. Add some tomato sauce, and a touch of worcester sauce. just a sprinkle of cayenne pepper is also good.

Scoop some of the filling into the half egg white shell thingies. Make it mound a bit. If there is any egg white things left, mash it and toss it in with the potatoes. 

Arrange the stuffed half eggs on the potato salad. A grating of cheese, a grind of black pepper, a toss of parsley, and your potato salad is good to go.

The other option, which I often use, because I have problems with boiling eggs long enough, is to take the semi soft yolks, and flatten them a bit, and then nuke them in the microwave for a minute. COVER the yolks, cos they probably will explode a bit. 

The yolks will come out quite hard. Mash them till they quite fluffy and powdery. Mash the semi solid egg whites, and mix them into the potato salad. 

A sprinkle of cayenne pepper, a touch of garlic every here and there, cover the pepper and garlic with crumbled egg yolk. To finish it off, a grind of black pepper, a toss of parsley, and your potato salad is good to go.

Let's talk turkey

So there we were, Terry and me and Sandy. 

Sharing a bit of social time, and a drink or two.

Sandy gets the words out of her face:" You can cook can't you?"

I look at Terry, Terry looks at me, I look at Sandy, whose eyes are also pointed in my general direction. I say: "HUH?'.

Sandy says she wants a turkey. Not just any old turkey, but a turkey roast!
For Christmas. I say an un-christian thing. I don't dig turkey. It tastes funny, it's dry, and I don't like it. Based on my dislike I've never taken the trouble to take a raw turkey and make it edible, because turkey, by the nature of the beast, and because past experience bears it out, turkey is inedible!

However, being the nice person I am, and 'cos Sandy was in a state of distress, a lady, and she desperately needed a turkey, I did agree to toss a turkey through the oven for her. Expressly no guarantees as to resultant offerring.

So, 2 days before Christmas we track down and acquire a turkey. The day before Christmas, we go out looking for all the bits and pieces that get added onto, hammered and nailed to, glued to and used to make raw turkey into not-raw roast turkey. 

This, in East London, on Christmas Eve, is not possible. We eventually settled for a bucketfull of non-listed accessories, 'cos they were kinda closely related (in the dark) to what we needed.

Back home, it was:

1. Turkey out of its bag. 
2. Guts and giblets out of turkey. 
3. Wash turkey. No soap.
4. Dry turkey.
5. Plaxo Sage and Onion stuffing gets boiling water, and stands till I'm ready for it.
6. Start oven pre-heating to 180C
7. Line oven tray with foil.
8. Put rack onto oven tray.
9. Cook stuffing in microwave.
10. Take turkey, and liberally powder the beast with chicken spice, and cayenne pepper. Most of it comes off, but sfw?
11. Now pour oil (preferably olive) into hands, and wipe all over turkey. 
12. Remember stuffing.
13. Check the stuffing out, looks a bit little, so add two slices of dampened bread, and work it into the mixture.
14. Stuffing still seems to be a bit few. Add fresh apricots. Looks okayish now.
15. Stuff turkey stuffing into the convenient stuffing thing all turkeys have. 
16. Not enough stuffing!
17. Take onion, peel, test for size.
18. Need to remove 2 layers of onion to get the onion to fit into the space provided.
19. Score onion across top and bottom, and rub in oil juice that came off the turkey.
20. Push back into turkey.
21. Put the newly accessorised turkey onto the rack.
22. Drop a large dollop of margarine into a jug, and then add herbs. I used rosemary, mixed herbs, a touch of mint, and some parsley. Oh yes, and just a smidgin of garlic.
23. Pour boiling water into the jug, get everything either melted, or in suspension, and pour it into the oven tray. About half full is okay.
24. Now you need a bunch of small potatoes, score them with a fork, and rub some of the turkey oil juice stuff (thats the oil juice that has chicken spice and cayenne pepper in it) all over them, then pack the potatoes around the outsides of the turkey.
25. Now take foil, and cover the turkey. Shiny side inside. Don't enclose the thing completely, just kinda fold the ends down a bit.
26. Toss (carefully) the turkey into the oven. Close oven door. Reset the oven's thermometer to 160C, and if you have a timer, set it for 3 hrs.

While that is happening, make a potato salad, a carrot salad, and a green salad. 

This is Potato Salad

This is Carrot Salad

This is a Green Salad, with sliced Gammon centre-piece

When the salads are done, have a smoke and coffee break.

Open oven.

Remove oven tray with turkey on.

Remove foil tenty domey thing.

Put turkey back into oven

Go shower.

Switch oven off, but leave door closed.

When all is said and done, and the roast turkey was tossed onto the table along with its poorer cousins from the Colonel, and flanked as it was with a nice selection of salads and bread rolls, the roast turkey actually looked good enough to eat! 

Okay, so I did carve some of the turkey, and I did try a piece...

All I have to say on this matter is that for anybody to make inedible turkey, they gotta be dense. My procedure is exactly as I laid it out, and the turkey was excellent!

The flesh was not tough or stringy, and anything but dry. The flavour?  Absolutely delicious. 

2011 Surfers Marathon, East London

The Event

Every year in February the highlight of the East London athletics season takes place.

The highlight is called a marathon, but it isn't really, because it is too short. However, many marathon athletes who have participated say that they would rather stick to marathons, as they are easier. South Africa's Ultra-marathon legend Bruce Fordyce, after the 2008 Surfers Marathon, voiced his opinion that this little jaunt along the beach is pretty tough.

It's not just a beach outing. It's a race between canoeists and runners, from the mouth of the Kwelera river north of East London South Africa, and then due south-ish, along the East London coast-line to the Lifesavers Shack at Nahoon Beach.


The Surfers Marathon
It is the Surfers Marathon. 16 km of East London Coast, with all it has to throw at competitors. Surfers Marathon entrants who decide to run or race-walk can expect a pot-holed gravel road at the start, followed by soft sand and rocky outcrops. Near the end of the first stretch of the coastline that Surfers Marathon competitors need to get through there are enormous boulders that need to be crossed, and directly after that is a section of cannon ball sized rocks, running from the vertical bush covered dunes on the right, into the crashing surf on the left. This stretch is not too long, but it is steeply banked, and treacherously loose, waiting to twist ankles, bruise shins, and bloody knees.

Past the cannonbal run is the first river that needs to be crossed. The Gonubie river crossing, about 200m from the river mouth is made by hanging onto a rope, and dragging an already aching body across the river. After a hard long first stretch, this crossing is chilling, refreshing, and therapeutic.

The river can be in any mood. From rough and fast flowing, to slow and languid. Possibly the worst mood is flat and fast flowing, on a receding tide.

Surfers Marathon competitors who abide by the organizers arrangements, and heed the instructions of the many life savers on duty at the river crossing will get across, quickly, and safely.

Once out of the river, and depending on the state of the tide, competitors will be sent either along the coastline, below the Gonubie Boardwalk, or, if the tide is high, along a detour through the Gonubie suburbs. Whichever route is taken, the Gonubie Hotel is passed, and then the long flat section of tar to German Bay begins. Plenty of watering points, and loads of public support along this stretch will help even the most exhausted athlete onward.

A quick dart from the tarred road, along a narrow dirt path, takes the runners back down to the beach. For a while there is more loose sand and rock, but, with 3 or 4 km's to the end, the sand hardens, and the coastline takes a long flat left sweep to the distantly visible Lifesavers Shack on Nahoon Beach.

200m from the finish the runners need to cross the Nahoon River. Not as rough or wide as the Gonubie, but equally well managed, with ropes and life savers, it is generally quicker to cross, as the field will have spread out by now, this river crossing is the second last hurdle to the finish line.

Once across, and back on the churned pathway leading to the finish, and with spectators lining the final part of the course, the final challenge is to catch and pass the runner just ahead.


Surfers Marathon Weather
The weather conditions for the Surfers Marathon have a definite influence on times. The Surfers Marathon is run at the height of summer, and runners start at 14h30. At this time of day it is still hot, but starts cooling off from then. It is likely that it will be overcast, as the clouds come in off the ocean in the afternoon, especially if the day time temperature has been warm. A light breeze from the East, preceding the oncoming cloud cover, is equally possible. The breeze, as long as it stays in the Eastern quadrant, won't hamper the runners, but will be a gently refreshing aid to hot, tiring, sweaty bodies.

on the day runners can expect a light wind of about 11 knots, from East North East, meaning it will be pushing runners from behind. The day time high temperature will have peaked at about 25 degrees celsius, before starting the afternoon cool-off. Rain during the Surfers Marathon is not impossible, as this is the rainy season, it is however unlikely.

Weather prediction for the 2011 Surfers Marathon
The 2011 Surfers Marathon will start 2 hours before low tide. This means low river levels, with an outward flow. Most runners will complete the race before the start of the high tide flow. Temperatures will be high in the morning, bringing overcast and cool conditions for the late afternoon. A late afternoon ocean haze will cool slower runners, and help them along from German Bay, if they have made it beyond the Cut-off time in Gonubie.


Recommendations for the 12th February 2011 Surfers Marathon
As always, wear shoes. It may be tempting to do the Surfers Marathon barefoot, but the Gonubie tar, especially if it is hot, will cause feet to blister, with a high likelihood of the blisters breaking before reaching sand again. Wear light clothing, and lashings of sunblock. Hydrate yourself. Starting two or three days before the race, increase your water intake, reduce your coffe, reduce your fizzy drink intake. The evening before, treat yourself to a good solid pasta meal. On the day, have a light breakfast, and snack on energy bars and bananas. Drink loads of water. There are usually no water points before Gonubie, so, after your last visit to the toilet just before the start, have another water, or energy drink.

Have a great race, and even if you don't win, enjoy the scenery along the route.