This week hurtled by again. How can it be March?? I’m still not in the routine of writing ‘2016’. I’m about 10.5 kgs down 2 months into our sugar free, low carb lifestyle change. It takes effort. There was no organization this week. We took it day by day.

Last Sunday our friends Retha and Pierre popped by in the afternoon. It was a hot day so we sat on our back patio and chatted. 

That evening Caitlin and I made eggplant parmigiana. It was a Banting version and really divine.

  
I was happy there was enough left for lunch on Monday.

Monday after work I fried chicken breast pieces and chorizo til browned, then added chopped mushrooms and once cooked added a container of fromage frais and a sprinkle of coconut.

I served it in a steamed gem squash with baby broccoli.

  
The next night I only got home from work after 7pm so we just got takeaways from Spiro’s, we can get simply prepared healthy food there.

Wednesday I was also home late so I quickly made up a zucchini noodle dish with a red pepper and marscapone sauce with prawns and chorizo.

  
Thursday I just baked pork chops, steamed broccoli and mushrooms.

Friday we took a night off and had Banting pizza take aways. But Saturday night I made a yummy fillet steak for Norm and I as the girls were out.

  
I made a sauce with fried onion and mushrooms, double cream and mustard. I baked zucchini slices tossed in grated fresh Parmesan and olive oil. I made a salad of raw spinach and multi coloured tomatoes with grated fresh Parmesan to flavour it.

Oh my. It was so good.

Now that I’m getting up earlier to try and beat the traffic, I’ve cut my morning routine down to a minimum. That means no foundation or concealer. I use dry shampoo and my hair looks better than when clean and limp. It has more body.  I would never have missed a day washing my hair when in the U.S., it was a European trait I developed and now that menopause is sucking all the moisture from my body that is a good habit to maintain. I put my clothes out the night before as I try not to wake the household and stumble round in the half light following my routine like a dozy robot. The lack of a need to think saves time. 

This routined approach appeals to my Virgo nature. Which is so not like my hubby.

My husband and I are opposites in every way. I just walked past our 2 latest books.

  
He reads deep intellectual, political or biographical books. I watch Entertainment TV and can name most of the Kardashians.

Except those that are half Jenner.

He’s calm and thinks strategically. I’m neurotic and volatile and like to examine problems microscopically, hence my love of data analysis.

However we seem to balance each other out.

I took a very cool Personality Test. It pretty much confirmed what I already know. 

  
I’m a very organized, reliable, predictable, process orientated, rigid and somewhat narcissistic control freak. 

 

I think we keep being in each cycle of our recurring lives to help each other with those weaker traits. We find each other no matter where we are born, it seems destined. 

Inevitable.

Today is the Cape Town Cycle Tour which rides through our village as part of its 109km course. It is the largest, timed cycling event in the world. Our roads are closed and local venues hold parties cheering on the riders.  We didn’t make it last year, but the year before it was good fun cheering the riders.

  Photo credit Facebook

This year several places were holding roadside vigil. Dario’s and Spiro’s both had celebrations.

  
We hung out at home. We both needed a lazy day. I gave the kitchen a good clean and made a brunch of eggs served on cheesy zucchini rostis, crispy bacon, mushrooms fried in butter, tomato and avocado. It was delicious. 

We have had a week of the most foul stench permeating the bay. It is the effect of the processing of fish meal by The Oceana Group based in Hout Bay Harbour.

  
Facebook Hout Bay groups are full of people complaining of sickness, asthma, eye infections and all manner of things. There are even dedicated groups set up on Facebook. We all complain via the apporpriate channels but we all get insulted by receiving exactly the same copy and paste response from The City of Cape Town:

“Hi, we have received the following feedback: The City’s Air Quality Management Unit has assessed ambient air quality monitoring data from the Western Cape Government Monitoring Station located in Hangberg Heights. The results show that the hydrogen sulphide levels – one of the main odorous compounds emitted by the factory was in the nuisance range and does not pose a health hazard at these levels.

The City has been engaging with the factory management about the procurement and commissioning of the new chemical scrubber. This process will, however, take some months to finalise and it will not eliminate fishmeal production odours altogether.

In the interim, the City’s Air Quality Management Unit will continue to monitor operations.”

Which means, “yeah we know but we don’t care.”

As with all things in Africa, someone, somewhere is being paid off to let production carry on unhampered by health issues or the impacts to our tourism industry. Hotels and B&Bs empty overnight, restaurant bookings are cancelled when people cannot stomach food as no one can tolerate the stench. 

Yet we pay some of the highest rates in Cape Town. 

I wonder how the cyclists coped or whether the factory ceased production for the day? We cannot detect it at our house today and I couldn’t stomach going down to the village.

So we carry on… Powerless to make a change.