PeteandLauren.com

Hi All

I am now on the winding down stage of my leave so starting big projects is out of the question.  Pimping a media centre, though, is just the kind of small project to tackle to keep the mind busy.

I have a Popcorn hour A-100 and while it is an amazing little box of techno wizardry it looks kinda bleh.  I decided to take a two prong attack and modify the Popcorn box and install a Jukebox to better present my Movies and TV Series.

The box generates this boring blue screen that you can see in the picture on the left. When you first get the box it looks all funky and then after a while the novelty wears off. So I decided to change it.  Seeing as how I am watching a lot of Sci Fi shows at the moment I decided to settle on a space theme.

Before I get a million comments, I know that the planets are in the wrong positions.  Live with it!  Each of the planets is an icon that links to a particular Directory or Jukebox.  After I got the Popcorn box sorted out I started working on the movie and tv series directories.

The Jukebox software that I decided to use is called YAMJ.  Yet Another Media Jukebox.  There are loads of different Jukeboxes out there but I like things that are clean and simple which is why I settled for the YAMJ software.

The YAMJ software automatically scans your Movie directory and generates all the posters, plot information and and box sets that make the whole system work.

There is a little tweaking that needs to be done, like getting your file names in the right format for the software to recognise or choosing the right skin for your purposes, but once all that is done the systems looks really cool and works brilliantly.

If you need any help on this check out the links below:

Yet Another Movie Jukebox support

Skins/ Themes

Popcorn A100

Networked Media Tank Wiki

Cheers

Pete

Formerly known as the Eastern Transvaal, Mpumalanga known by any name would still be revered as one of the top holiday destinations in South Africa.  The current name translates into East or “the place where the sun rises” in several African languages.

This was our choice of destination for this year’s holiday.  We were fortunate enough to have friends to stay with and my in laws invited us to spend a week with them at Sudwala Lodge, just 1km from Sudwala Caves.

There is a whole host of activities, places of interest and game viewing is a must, since Mpumalanga boasts the oldest game reserve established in 1898, the Kruger National Park is world renowned.

My holiday started on my own with just Kyra & Kayden.  We made the long haul from KZN to Mpumalanga to a friend’s house, where we spent our last night without Pete.  The following day, with much excitement, we set off for Nelspruit, the capital of Mpumalanga, where the Kruger airport is, to fetch Pete.  …And then the fun started!

We spent another 2 days at my friends house, all the while I was feeling terrible for lying to Jane, my mother-in-law, about Pete not making it home for our yearly holiday, as we’d decided to surprise her with Pete rocking up unexpectedly, since his home coming wasn’t scheduled for another week.

But the guilt was well worth it, when I saw Jane’s face light up with joy at the sight of Pete!  The next week was a very busy one, with us taking in all we possibly could as far as places to go and things to do were concerned.

First on the list of places to see was Kruger National Park.  I was totally blown away, to finally have the opportunity to see the park and all its spectacular game!  Needless to say, my Nikon D60 didn’t know what had hit it.  I clicked away relentlessly, not wanting to miss capturing one moment of the day!

In the days that followed we went to Mac Mac Falls, God’s Window, Bourke’s Luck Potholes, the Blyde River Canyon, Sudwala Caves, the Dinosaur Park, returned to Kruger National Park, Pilgrims Rest and played a few games of putt putt & croquet with the family & enjoyed some time in the jacuzzi at Sudwala Lodge.

Unfortunately our week together drew to an end and teary good byes were said.  Pete, the kids & I set off again to my friend in Lydenburg.  We took this time just to relax and spend some time at my friend’s gallery 1896, that she recently opened.  We also took a road trip back to Pilgrims Rest, where we spent the day and ended it off with a fine meal at a delightful place called Smokey, but also referred to as the Train in Sabie.

The travel bug was growing weary and eventually we decided that it was time to come home.

We would like to thank Jane and Rob for the wonderful stay at Sudwala Lodge.  It was absolutely wonderful spending time with them and the kids loved it!  Of course we’d also like to thank Nadine and Hugo for having us at their house.  It was fantastic catching up and spending the time together.

In the weeks that follow, I will do more detailed post about the areas we visited on this awesome holiday.

I, by chance, came across this organisation on Facebook.

Sparrow Village is a semi self sustaining, miniature town in Gauteng, South Africa.  They support terminally ill children & adults, as well as abused or deserted children or children who have lost one or both of their parents to HIV/Aids.

Since they’re a non profit organisation, they need support any many ways.  From volunteers, host families, sponsors, to food & other items or donations.

Society has become flippant about the HIV/Aids pandemic, since we hear about it all the time and the common thought that if it doesn’t affect our lives, then why should we worry, has unfortunately become too prevalent.

As I browsed the website and looked at each of the little one’s faces,  I wondered what horrors they must’ve been exposed to or experienced.  I look at my own children and realise once again just how very blessed we are!  My children go to bed every night, showered with love, wearing warm clothes, with a full tummy and fall asleep in a comfy bed – healthy and happy.  What we take for granted, is a wonder for these little people.

For a bit of an education on the hardships of the other half or to find out how you can make a difference, go to www.sparrowvillage.co.za

I’ll be heading off to that side of the world in September and I’ll be stopping off there to donate whatever I can, that they need.

Hi All

While taking my stroll around Montrose, I came across a statue of a great big St. Bernard called Bamse.  According to his write up, when the war broke he went to sea with his master and was registered as a crew member of  Norwegian navy minesweeper called the Thorodd.  By all accounts this dog was hero, during action he would stand guard up in the foremost gun tower and would not leave until all the fighting was over.  There are also stories of Bamse breaking up bar brawls by standing with his hind legs and placing his feet on the brawlers shoulders.  Quickly ending the dispute.

There is another account of Bamse saving the life of Lt.Commander Olaf Nielsen.  Apparently the officer was walking along the docks in Dundee when a would be robber attacked him with a knife.  Bamse, who had been following some distance behind the officer, raced forward and standing on his hind legs used his momentum and great weight to push the would be robber away from the officer.  He continued to push and eventually steered the attacker off the edge of the jetty into the water below.  There are a great deal more stories to read and I am sure that I wouldn’t do them justice so I have placed a link at the bottom of this article which opens up the Bamse website for you all to read.

After reading up on the article above I got thinking of another famous pooch that helped out during the second world war.  Tucked away in False Bay, South Africa is the port of Simonstown.  During world war two, a Great Dane called Just Nuisance was also called up to serve.  He was eventually given the rank of Able Seamen.

Just Nuisance never actually went to sea but would regularly follow the sailors into Cape Town.  For those of you who know the Cape Town/ Simonstown area this is a long way so the train had to be used.  Just Nuisance would jump on the train and ride it through to Cape Town.  This, however, was not popular with the ticket collectors and once discovered he would be turfed off at the next station.  Naturally, being a dog of some cunning Just Nuisance would simply wait for the next train to come along and then hop on that.  Eventually such a fuss was made by the rail operators that letters were written to the owner and said that the dog would be put down if the freeloading continued.  Enter the Navy.  They enlisted the dog in the Royal Navy and in those days all volunteer servicemen got free train travel.  Thus the dog was saved and the Navy got themselves a new poster boy.

Naturally there is a lot more to the story than I have just written here, Just Nuisance would also round up all the sailors from the different bars prior to curfew time and make sure that they all got back to their bunks safe and sound.  There are even tales of Just Nuisance “Helping” some drunken sailors back to the base in Simonstown that weren’t even stationed there.

For a full write up on Just Nuisance and Bamse see the following links:

Able Seaman Just Nuisance, R.N.

Bamse

“You Strike a Woman, You Strike a Rock”…

This is the common phrase known today, derived from the original “Wathint’Abafazi Wathint’imbokodo!”, which (when translated) means “Now you have touched the women, you have struck a rock”.

It was a song composed for a women’s march that took place 54 years ago, on this day.  20 000 women marched in Pretoria at the Union building.  They were opposing the proposed amendments to the Urban Areas Act, better known as the ‘pass laws’, of 1950.  For more information about this day, click on this link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Women’s_Day

Since then this day has been known as women’s day in South Africa.

Women’s day would be regarded, by many, as a sexist holiday.  But in a so called “mans world”, would that not make every day, a man’s day?

Throughout history women were made to be submissive and under-represented for their contribution to mankind.  It’s not just from legends and stories passed down through the ages, but prevalent throughout our history.  Great moments are commemorated by the men who defeated adversaries, or invented gadgets and the like or made life changing decisions.  Only a few women are remembered and revered.  This is partly due to their restrictions in education, recognition in professional societies and limitations in various work forces.  It is also due to the idea that it was inappropriate for woman to have recognition without the help or assistance of a male family member or friend.  But thanks to our endurance and a changing society, perspective has changed and towards the end of the 20^th century, women started getting the deserved recognition.

But it’s not just the women who make profound contributions to mankind, who deserve all the credit.

Each of us has a story to tell or a memory to share.  Each of us has made a contribution.  Whether it’s putting a smile on your child’s face in their saddest moments, or sacrificing something so that a loved one may prosper.  All these things make a difference.  In a few years time, that little moment may be remembered as part of what will make them who they will be, or help them to where they will go.

Women are definitely more respected now.  Even though we didn’t have to earn it, since we were never of inferior mind or ability.  We did need to prove ourselves to receive that respect.  Through our strength and endurance we have surpassed what our foremothers ever imagined for us.

It is important to keep our spirit alive.  We should be teaching our daughters to be of independent mind and to recognise and acknowledge the strength within them.  This is our world too and we deserve to be a part of it, in every way.

I’m not encouraging a women’s liberation movement, since there are extraordinary men in the world too.  But this particular post is dedicated to each woman who made a difference to many or even just to one.

Thank you each and every one of you.