Bourne and Bread

I've discovered East London's newest, and coolest, bakery - Bourne and Bread.  It was a tipoff from friend Nicolee, and has proved a dangerously good find.

Lying between the butchery and the bed shop in Chamberlain Road, Bourne and Bread is where its at if you like freshly baked goods, especially if you like 'em large.
I've visited many bakeries in town, and few hit the value sweet spot quite like B&B.  I'm holding thumbs its a sustainable model.  Not sure if my waistline is sustainable either way.

So far I've hit 2 footlongs, a burger, a breakfast schwarma and a loaf of their brown bread.  All of it was good - ladies, steer clear of the footlongs.  That's man food that is.

The one provisor is that this isn't a health food shop.  One glance at a glistening custard danish will right any misconceptions, although you can get a side of salad with your meal.  Sort of like sending a sympathy card to your heart, delivered by a tank full of assassins.

Telephone number: 043 721 1755, Address: 2A Chamberlain Road, Berea.

Download a menu here

Morning thoughts

I was leaning up against the basin yesterday morning with one finger under the hot tap, staring at my forehead in the mirror.  In all of my hedonistic greyness.
I took a moment wondering how much time the world wastes staring at hot taps, waiting for them to produce hot water.

I had similar thoughts once about the cost savings to be enjoyed globally if everyone's name was only 4 characters.  This one is likely to remain strictly hypothetical.

Andrew, from Onsite Electrical, was venting about the use of energy saving lights in bathrooms a few weeks back.  They provide only ambient lighting for the first few minutes, in an awkward attempt to romanticise a wholly unromantic event.

My bike is finally back in action.  It took 6 weeks, a trip to the garage... and a battery charger, apparently, to bring it back to life.  My biker cred has taken a knock with Honda Wing East London.  You live, you learn.

Client service

I've been in an account management role since January, and have made some observations...

Client service is like the edge of a tectonic plate.  You're just the buffer between two independant bodies, ramming up against each other.  I think we should all join a club; commiserate together.  Sometimes I feel like a gladiator - forced to fight other slaves.   There are times I wish I had a sword to complement my 'strongly worded emails'... but I usually go with the 'frustrated pause' in the follow up call.

Today I gave up with emailing and dropped in unannounced on a supplier.  Its like the Fission bomb of communication.  My efforts induced the 'cringe of shame'.  Its rough.  Account managers are at the mercy of staff who don't give a biscuit about their customers.  We are the peace makers.

Robe Life: First impressions

Entry 1:

I now own a robe.  A dressing gown.  Call it what you like - its pure excess.  We didn't stop at a soft blanket... oh no... someone went to the next level and sewed arms and a belt into it.  Its a comfortwear revolution.

I'm going to keep you updated on my long term test.  It's been about a decade and a half since I owned one, and I get the feeling I'm going to get a lot of blog content out of it.

On Saturday, I was driving home in it.  It's the sort of outfit you never want to be wearing in the event of an accident.   It would be like stepping out of the wreckage in a Nazi-dress up suit - people can't help but make assumptions.  There are few positive robe-stereotypes.  I'm looking at you Hugh.

Gubu Dam

I've lived in East London since 1995... that is before some of my younger friends were born.  Shocker.  Yet it is only in 2012, that I discover that despite the jokes and the lack of traffic lights - there is something to Stutterheim.

We went adventuring in Stutt yesterday, first lunch at the Manderson and then using visual clues and what I could remember of the map... we made our way to Gubu Dam.

The Manderson is nice, its not luxurious - but the restuarant is cozy, and the food was good and decently priced, and we caught up on local news.   I'm not sure if AlgoaFM is suitable mood music (mood news broadcast) for a lunch, but it was the only real issue.  I did get what looked like a Pastel Invoice when I asked for the bill.  Their bookkeepers aren't messing around.

Gubu Dam was the highlight of our trip.  You basically just drive straight out of Stutt, and keep going until you see a sign that says 'Picnic and camping' and huge amounts of water just behind that.
The pine needle carpeting at Gubu Dam is even thicker than the Manderson's lounge.   And the place was deserted.  Just us, and the trees... and all other sounds absorbed by the pine needles.  Not even Darren and Carol Anne's breaking news spoiling the scene.

Pine angeling it in the needles...

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Track visit

After binging on Olympics this weekend, Pete and I hit the Jan Smuts athletics track after work this evening.

Did you know that the 10km runners run at about 16 seconds per 100m... for 10 000 metres.

Our evening went pretty much exactly the same as every other time I've hit the tartan.  Maybe a little less of a shock this time.  Mid-way through our first 800m my limbs started going numb, and my usually careful breathing gradually decayed into uncontrolled gasping.
There was some mutual shock as we discovered that we were already 20 seconds off the women's 800m pace after lap 1.  All dreams of 2016 were drowned out by further gasping.

It sounds like I'm whinging.  I'm not - it was a fun visit, humbling, but fun.  I'll be back after September - until then its hills, hills, hills before the Sole Destroyer. (Sept 2012... See my race review here)

We had to jump the fence to get inside.  Apparently an entire soccer team had shown similar perseverance.  No questions asked.