Can you believe that we are about to turn the tide and move very steadily towards winter! Already!

  This last month came with tragedy – we all know what I am talking about. The participation in the ‘Glow Walk’ in remembrance of those lost in that tragic accident on the R40 was amazing, as the town pulled together in support. Kruger2Canyon News was the first media outlet to run a report on social media. Our thoughts and prayers are with all the families mourning their loved ones.

  On a happier note – March is already upon us! This is the month we celebrate all the amazing women in our lives with International Woman’s Day on the 8^th March. Celebrate with appreciation and joy – without them we would be lost, and the world would be that much a poorer place. Happy Woman’s Day to all the women out there.

  Here are some interesting quirks about March: March has two birthstones – aquamarine and the bloodstone. It is named after Mars, the Roman god of war, and was in fact the first month of the Roman calendar. The first tweet on Twitter was made on the 21^st March 2006 – how time flies.

  And of course, we have the March equinox on the 20^th, when we well and truly begin the journey into winter. This means that the Earth is perpendicular to the sun, with the sun shines in a straight line to the equator, so the days and nights on both the north and south poles are exactly the same.

  Our continued problems with infrastructure in the town are ongoing issues and is brought to light in our lead article this month.

Love The Hoed® Titbits

Kampersrus cameras

  Great news from Farmwatch that there are now cameras in Kampersrus – this extends our net of security which is so integral in our community. This is a community funded project. Thanks must go out to AM Tech and Herotel for their invaluable input. Thorough training has been done, and monitoring is well underway, with some significant successes already! Well done to Farmwatch and all those involved – keep up the good work. You can participate in the project my WhatsApp’ing Marie on 084 0459 236.

Phalaborwa SPCA

  Phalaborwa SPCA lost a bakkie in an accident – courtesy of a pothole! They are urgently looking for a bakkie to continue their good work. Any help would be welcome. They can be contacted on 015 781 2415.

Load shedding

  And for some inexplicable reason, load shedding has raised its ugly head again. Just when we all thought that the government had got something right, we get thrown back into the dark! Some analysts state that we have been lucky over the past year in escaping the loadshedding ‘pandemic’, but the resurrection of this plague seems to be as a result of Eskom treading close to the line – a stumble and you’re back into loadshedding.

  Communication from Eskom is poor – “there will be stage 3 loadshedding” – with no indication as to what might be the problem. The energy plants are old and they really have been pushed to their limits. At the time of going to print we have moved to stage 6 (!) and Eskom does not really know what is wrong! Light the candles.

Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor,

  I am writing this letter to ask when, if at all, will the Mall be built. I find that there has been less than transparent communication in this regard. There are so many stories floating around town about what will, what will not, what might, what might not, be the current situation in this regard. We hear that finance has been cancelled, investors have baled, and another one is that the main business, being Checkers, has reversed their intentions of being the key lessee. Please can you investigate this and shed some light on what’s happening.

  Apart from an ugly mess and the decimation of the flora on site, nothing much has happened in a very long time.

  I look forward to reading the result of some investigation.

  Thank you for your paper, it is my months highlight, as I am retired and not on the web, and it really is the only publication worth reading in these parts.

  Regards Mike

Editor: Thanks for the letter, Mike – and of course the compliment. Unfortunately, I received your letter the day before we went to print, and so there was little to no time to investigate. I will reach out to the party concerned (as per my last interaction some time ago) and see if there is any news about the mall that I can pass on, and maybe shed some light as to the progress.