MAKING AN APPEARANCE

version with Glynis Suttie, and children are very much the centre of the cast. “Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus are a local family with the baby always the star,” said Terry.

In 2020 and 2021 the Covid-19 pandemic caused a change of direction with a virtual Carols pageant placed on the Rotary Facebook page the week before Christmas for 2020. In 2021 a small cast was filmed in a garden in town. “It is wonderful to be back in the Cathedral with live actors, audience and candles this year,” added Terry.

The Grahamstown Feral Cat Project presents the ‘Pawsome Mini-Christmas Market’ at Grahamstown Veterinary Clinic at 18 Park Road on Saturday, December 10, and the big news is that Santa Claus will be making an appearance.

The red and white-clad gentleman with the long white beard will arrive at 10am, but children and their parents are requested to be there at 9am.

Feral Cat Project spokesperson Lynne Grant has asked parents who will be attending with their children to drop off a small gift for their children at the vet clinic no later than December 9. “Gifts should cost no more than R100 and be clearly labelled with the child’s name and surname,” she said.

Entry fee to the market is R15 (adults) and R10 (children), and books, cakes and sweet treats will be on sale.

UNDER THE TREES IN THE BOTS

The cool weather under the towering trees in Makana botanical gardens at parkrun on Saturday, when 79 runners and walkers took part, saw nine personal best times (PBs) being achieved.

These were recorded by Colleen Duffy, Monde Duma, Luke Freimond, Megan Lawson, Javier Martin, Jo Pieters, Morgan Trauernicht, Aya Zilwa and Hymie Zilwa. The first five ladies to finish on Saturday were Kim Weaver (1st), Jo Pieters (2nd), Nikki Kemp (3rd), Melissa Bodenstein (4th) and Siposetu Krutani (5th).

The first five men were Cee-Jay Porthen (1st), Trevor Shuttleworth (2nd), Jonathan Gouws (3rd), Luke Freimond (4th) and Samuel Hockly (5th).

Parkruns are held at 8am each Saturday from the entrance to the botanical gardens in Lucas Avenue.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

In a statement issued last week, Makana Municipality said it was “glad to announce that the other compaction unit truck is back on the road”. Two compaction unit trucks are now up and running.

Also back on the road is the roll-on container truck.

“Refuse removals are back to normal,” concluded the statement. Residents are hopeful that this will be the case for many months to come.

ON THE STOEP

Christ Church holds a ‘stoep sale’ outside Grahamstown Properties next to FNB in Pepper Grove Mall from 9am to 1pm on Saturday, November 26. On sale will be wors rolls, books, plants and sweets, while Father Christmas will be there too.

ON THE WATER

The 22nd annual SA Schools’ Boat Race takes place on the Kowie River at Port Alfred on December 9 and 10. The event is hosted by St Andrew’s College under the auspices of the SA Schools’ Rowing Union and sponsored by Standard Bank. Racing is from 2pm on the Friday and from 7am on the Saturday.

JUBILEE TUNES AND COMEDY

Graeme College’s 150th Founders Weekend takes place on March 3 and 4 next year, and the Old Graemian Union has announced that the band Sunshine Rockers will provide the music for the spit/steak braai on Friday, March 3 at the Graemian Centre.

The three band members are all Old Graemians Gordon Phillips (vocals and guitar), Peewee Dickinson (drums) and BJ Ford (bass guitar).

The following night, Saturday, March 4, will see the acclaimed Boet ‘n Swaer comedy duo of Alan Weyer and Brian Mullins strutting their stuff in the marquee on Somerset field at the Founders jubilee dinner.

Wonder if they still use sneezewood fencing poles as props or if they (the poles) have not stood the test of time!

UNKEMPT

One of the main entrances into Makhanda from the N2 is via Grey Street at the foot of the 1820 Settlers National Monument. Sadly, it’s not such a ‘grand entrance’ these days as one might expect, considering just how busy it is.

The verges are badly overgrown and unkempt with bushes, weeds, grass, small thorn trees and litter. One would at least expect Makhanda’s entrances to be neat and tidy, not so?

CANNONS ABOUND

At the side of the road on the N2 to and from Gqeberha are quite a few signboards depicting cannons. I thought these particular Frontier Country signboards were done away with years ago and replaced with signs depicting aloes. Must be mistaken!

RAVING RAVENS

A reader of this column, himself a musician vocalist and guitarist of note said he read the recent story about the Ravens band’s contract with the Langdon Hotel in Port Alfred with great interest. He e-mailed: “I remember as a young boy of approximately 10 years peeking into the hall over the low hedge-type fence (at the Langdon) and watching a band play it was the Ravens. I remember the hall having a lot of coloured lights around it, and I’m sure it had a thatch roof, and it was where the parking lot is now. Splendid memories indeed!”

DRIVE AND CIRCLE

The official listing of local streets, compiled in the 1960s, states that Espin Circle was named after Mrs Catherine Espin, first headmistress of the Diocesan School for Girls, and Mr Cyril Espin of Espin & Espin, the “first attorney to Grahamstown Municipality”. Wonder if Espin Circle is the same as the present-day Espin Drive up there in Oatlands North?

SUMMER SPORT

Rhodes University Sport has announced that the university will be represented at four University Sport SA (USSA) tournaments in December.

Cricket will be hosted by Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) in Pretoria, chess in Kimberley, basketball at Wits University in Johannesburg and soccer in Mpumalanga.

POP IN FOR CITRUS

It was quite sad, really upon seeing the vacant piece of land again where the PopIn citrus farm stall used to be alongside the N2, at the entrance to the Moss family’s Mosslands citrus farm.

Until it closed down a few years ago and the small building demolished, the kiosk sold oranges, orange juice and other homemade treats.

Not too far away, in the direction of Sevenfountains, is the Kariega River, and it was disappointing to observe last week that the river is bone dry.