The great exodus

This weekend our very close friends Greg and Taneth Cox and our beautiful god daughter Kelly emigrated to Australia.
Greg is an experienced and excellent Advanced Life Support Paramedic and Taneth a Radiographer. Yet another scarce skill leaving the country as our country has NO IDEA how to look after it skilled workers.
Greg and Taneth are the god parents of our Erin, and I know that we will all miss each other’s company so much.

Greg and I first became friends a few years ago. I was working at Netcare 911 in Durban, having recently relocated from JHB. Greg moved down from JHB as well, and ended up on my shift. As colleagues and friends we became close and then our friendship extended to his wife Taneth, whom he married only a month after the move. Our friendship continued with me moving to ER24 and then back to JHB. In fact, it has been one of the closest friendships I’ve ever had.
They came to JHB from Durban this last week to say goodbye and fly out, and Erin and Kelly really had a good time playing.
Kelly is four, a cute tiny little one, who is not much taller that Erin.

They are moving to a town about 1000 km from Brisbane, on the Great Barrier Reef, how cool is that.
We went to Australia in Jan 2006 for 2 ½ weeks, one of the best holidays I’ve ever had. I certainly wanted to move there after our visit.





Then we have the Kerfoots. Andy was a fireman at the time I was working at Benoni Fire. Many years later we ended up working together back in Benoni, him at ER24 and me at Glynnwood hospital. An excellent rescuer and fireman who is taking his family and talent to Perth. His oldest daughter, Keena, goes to the same playschool as Erin, and there youngest, cute little Gaby, is under a year old.

I want to tell you lies!

I WANT TO TELL YOU LIES"

I want to tell that little boy his Mom will be just fine
I want to tell that dad we got his daughter out in time
I want to tell that wife her husband will be home tonight
I don't want to tell it like it is.....
I want to tell them lies.

You didn't put their seat belts on, you feel you killed your kids
I want to say you didn't ... but in a way, you did.
You pound your fists into my chest, you're hurting so inside
I want to say you'll be ok......
I want to tell you lies.

You left chemicals within his reach and now it's in his eyes
I want to say your son will see, not tell you he'll be blind.
You ask me if he'll be OK, with pleading in your eyes
I want to say that yes he will.....
I want to tell you lies.

I can see you're crying as your life goes up in smoke.
If you'd maintained that smoke alarm, your children may have woke.
Don't grab my arm and ask me if your family is alive.
Don't make me tell you they're all dead........
I want to tell you lies.

I want to say she'll be ok, you didn't take her life
I hear you say you love her and you'd never hurt your wife.
You thought you didn't drink too much, you thought that you could
drive.
I don't want to say how wrong you were......
I want to tell you lies.

You only left her for a moment, it happens all the time.
How could she have fell from there? You thought she couldn't climb.
I want to say her neck's not broke, that she will be just fine.
I don't w ant to say she's paralyzed........
I want to tell you lies.

I want to tell this teen his buddies didn't die in vain
Because he thought that it'd be cool to try to beat that train.
I don't want to tell him this will haunt him all his life
I want to say that he'll forget........
I want to tell him lies.


You left the cabinet open and your daughter found the gun.
Now you want me to undo the damage that's been done.
You tell me she's your only child, you say she's only five.
I don't want to say she won't see six..........
I want to tell you lies.

He fell into the pool when you just went to grab the phone.
It was only for a second that you left him there alone.
If you'd let the damn phone ring perhaps your boy would be alive.
But I don't want to tell you that.........
I want to tell you lies.

The fact that you were speeding caused that car to overturn
And we couldn't get them out of there before the whole thing burned.
Did they suffer? Yes, they suffered, as they slowly burned alive
But I don't want to say those words........
I want to tell you lies.

But I have to tell it like it is, until my shift is through
And then the real lies begin, when I come home to you.
You ask me how my day was, and I say it was just fine
I hope you understand, sometimes............
I have to tell you lies.

Am I preaching?
Am I nagging?
I guess I am just telling it like it is.......
Or I could just tell you a lie.

And the next time you hear a siren in the distance, don't just say a
prayer for the victims and their families. Say a prayer for the people
that face these tragedies every day and do the best they can to save
someone that is loved. We never see the tears of these brave men and
women, but God does.

--Author Unknown

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dedicated to all the Police Officers, Firefighters, EMTs, Paramedics,
Emergency Flight Crews who deal with the tragedies of life and death. The saddest of all, being those thatcould have been prevented. Wear your seat belts. Keep poisons,flammables, fireworks, etc. out of reach of children. Never, ever
drive if you've been drinking. Never leave your toddler unattended.
Be responsible drivers, obey all traffic lights , speed limits,
Keep your guns locked and out of reach.

Golf day

I played golf today at Benoni Country club. What a wonderful course. Very well looked after, greens immaculate, except for the springbuck hoof marks on them.

(photo with cell phone)

There are a wide selection of different type of buck roaming free on the course, in fact there is not a single hole that you dont see a herd of them running around, or just standiing in the way. At no time do you see anyone on the course, thats how well spread out it is. Its a bit tough compared to the other courses in the area, but I played fairly well considering i had never played there before.

IM BACK

Well im back... Three weeks ago inbred local indigent scum broke into my house and stole, amongst other items, my computer, thereby restricting my ability to blog, facebook or pretty much all else related to computers. And in this day and age, thats everything.

I was working over my birthday... what a weekend!!!

A mom and dad were walking with there 9 month old baby across a parking lot and a learner driver turned around into the lot, down the wrong way, and took out the pram.

Baby was still alive, barely, when i arrived, unfortunately all efforts were fruitless...... She was a beautiful little girl.

Then the next case was a 4 x 4 that rolled, ejecting a lovely little 3 year old girl that was sitting on mom,s lap (who had a seatbelt on of course) out the windscreen.

Nicole was working at A1 grand prix, and i was picking up broken children. Dont want a repeat of this birthday again, without a question the worst one i have ever hadf.

On a good note, the next weekend we went to my folks for a braai. Erin was able to see granny and Grandpa (whom she hasn't seen since Christmas)

she had sooo much fun, and played her heart out.

(pics by Avril de Montille)

Above is Grandpa and Erin playing in her sandpit. I hosted my Masonic Lodge braai at our house this last Sunday. Our lodge has been doing these monthly braai's for 35 years, without missing a single one.

Mom and dad came as well, much to Erin's delight, so and made use of the time playing with "gampa".

Nicole brother and his girlfrien joind us with their son Joshua, who coincidently was born and the same day as Erin, only a year later.