From the editor:

Retrospective review.

I’M LIKELY THE 927th person this month

to have mentioned it but, man, has this year been heavy. So in the interest of keeping things light as we close out 2020 – a year during which we’ve spent more time at home than anywhere else – I thought I’d mention a few of the observations I’ve made over the past seven or eight months. In no particular order, here they are:

Why is it that load-shedding kicks in just as you’re about to log into an important online meeting? Lesson learned: I really need to connect an uninterrupted power supply to my modem and router to keep my fibre functioning 24/7.

I just cannot stand dogs that bark incessantly, or rather, their owners who seem oblivious to it. While there are many advantages to working in a home office, suffering through my neighbours’ yapping dogs is not one of them. Lesson learned: Move to the countryside where the nearest neighbour is a minimum of two kilometres away.

A copious amount of time spent behind a keyboard does not make you physically resilient, at all. I tackled the task of laying paving on a 12 m² area outside my house during August, and quickly discovered aches and pains in places that I didn’t know I had places. Lesson learned: Mad respect for people who do manual labour on a day-to-day basis. There’s no denying it, you’re seriously tough.

In keeping with the home-DIY theme, wearing tough work boots when doing heavy-duty tasks around the house can make a world of difference. Gravel and dirt don’t get inside, and your toes are always protected. Lesson learned: Kudos to whoever came up with the ankle-high leather work-boot design. (I presume it’s the Aussies, or was it our local farmers?)

No matter how many times you request that courier companies call you on your cell when delivering a package at your home office, because your bell and intercom system has been disconnected, they won’t. The preferred method of communication is invariably shouting, hooting, or rapping on the metal gate using something solid and heavy. Lesson learned: Remember to reconnect the intercom that was deliberately disconnected because some random passers-by were always ringing it.

In one way or another, this year has been a challenge for everyone – in ways that are mostly much more serious than those I have mentioned. So if you’re reading this in November or December 2020, give yourself a pat on the back for making it this far.

Now, sit back and relax, and let the next 98 or so pages entertain you. Afterwards, be sure to pen us an email – we’d love to hear from you.

All the best for the endof-year break, and we look forward to engaging with you again in 2021.