Hi there to you all

I hope that you are all well and getting used to the marvellous summer conditions we are experiencing at the moment….we never seem to be happy….either too cold or to hot….but for me, I am chuffed with the weather…as I have walked down life’s path, I have found my intolerance of cold weather has increased….and would far rather be sitting in a heat wave at the pool with a beer in my hand….than sitting all wrapped up with layer upon layer of clothing…..

I was able to get away to Natal to see my son last weekend…..so it was wonderful to dip my tootsies in the ocean….and also spend quite a bit of time in and at the pool in the sun….the prospect of the traffic congestion and poor driving tactics, was outweighed by the satisfaction of spending time with family and loved ones…..but coming back to reality on Monday was quite crazy as we cooked through Ladysmith with a sweltering temperature of 36C….

As I mentioned…back to reality…so here is my report back on the happenings of the North…. The new format of the Joker seems to have caught to attention of the Members, as they begin to realise the benefits in the Joker twist….. in that you are able to get a “second” chance as a Member…if you don’t choose the joker, but match the card on display above the Joker cabinet as a Member….you will receive 10% of the Joker jackpot immediately on your Membership card….a lovely little added advantage of being a Member of this great institution of ours….

Back to the history of our new draw…the first week had Hector King’s name drawn from the beeeg black box….and Hector was only able to show us where the Queen of Clubs was….but as a non-member, he was not able to be considered for matching the card on display….and with that, the Jackpot moved up by over R750…..and settled on R10784…..one card gone….and the nine of hearts was the new Members bonus card for the next week….as I was away….my most competent stand-in was the Chairman of the social section Mark Hardman…and his ability to choose a new name form the entrants, was a success as he drew Sharon van Wyk from Athletics….who didn’t wait too long to make her selection….and then waited for the card to be turned over….fortunately for all of us….she drew the king of spades, which didn’t correspond to the bonus card….but being a member, she still had a R500 voucher loaded onto her card to be used at her discretion in the future….so this week we have R11624 for someone to chance their luck and come up trumps with the Joker….remember as a Member, if we aren’t able to find the joker, you have that second opportunity…and if you happen to draw the three of clubs this week….you will win 10% of the joker jackpot to be put onto your membership card immediately….. (please keep your beady eye out for the bonus card, it is on display above the Joker cabinet….and there is a new card every week….) Please also remember that the Joker draw tickets are on sale daily from Mondays in the Scimitar….buy your R5 tickets and put them in the beeeg black box at your leisure…..the only pre-requisite that is still a necessity, is that you are present at the draw on Friday nights at 19h30

And another little bit of good news….there is a band playing again at the Club this weekend….we have come up with an arrangement with one of the Club favourites, the five piece band Omega….they will be playing up a storm on the Patio area (under the tent) on Saturday afternoon starting at 15h00….please note the change in date and time….I wanted to make sure that we weren’t caught out off-sides by a curfew, or early closing times…so the decision to make it on Saturday is hopefully the correct one….I am sure that this will be a successful start….and we are able to pursue this line of thinking until this COVID disaster is a thing of the past….please join us for a fun afternoon….

Some of our sports are beginning to get their act into gear…..with hockey now participating in practices and hockey 5’s being a reality…. Soccer is about to embark on a shortened Summer league season…..our athletes are out there, pounding the streets on a regular basis….I have heard that the news on baseball is positive and about to start off….whilst rugby and cricket are lagging behind a little, but perhaps these will be in the fold shortly…

Hope to see you all on Friday at the Joker draw and/or on Saturday under the tent as we jive to the sounds of Omega….

Take care, keep safe and have a great time….
Rod