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www.thevillagenews.co.za
8 July 2020
FROM THE EDITOR
Show your love by staying away The next edition of The Village NEWS will be available on 15 July 2020. The NEWS can be found at over 300 distribution points in the Overberg.
De Waal Steyn PUBLISHING EDITOR E: dewaal@thevillagenews.co.za T: 083 700 3319
Hedda Mittner CONTENT EDITOR E: hedda@thevillagenews.co.za T: 083 645 3928
Raphael da Silva ONLINE EDITOR
President Cyril Ramaphosa eloquently articulates in his letter to the nation on Monday 6 July the importance of keeping the elderly and those with comorbidities safe. He writes: For those fortunate enough to have an elderly parent or grandparent still alive, not being able to spend time with them has been one of the most difficult parts of the lockdown. Because of social distancing regulations, most of these activities have been curtailed, potentially leaving them feeling socially isolated and lonely. And leaving their loved ones anxious for their wellbeing. The reality however is that in keeping our distance from our elderly parents and grandparents at this time we could be saving their lives. Coronavirus
Sugar & Spice
SUB-EDITOR & JOURNALIST E: elaine@thevillagenews.co.za T: 084 343 7500
Taylum Meyer PHOTOGRAPHER & PRODUCTION MANAGER E: taylum@thevillagenews.co.za T: 084 564 0779
Charé van der Walt MARKETING REPRESENTATIVE E: chare@thevillagenews.co.za T: 082 430 1974
Nickey Jackson MARKETING REPRESENTATIVE
In addition, data released by the Department of Health indicates that people with underlying medical conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, renal disease, asthma and chronic respiratory disease are more vulnerable to developing severe complications and dying from Coronavirus. According to new research published by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, a third of patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 had at least one comorbidity.
More than 4.5 million South Africans have diabetes, a figure that has doubled since 2017.
and continue to take their medication. One of the lessons from this pandemic is that we need a holistic approach to health. Anecdotal evidence suggests many of our people have used the lockdown period to make positive lifestyle changes like doing more exercise or quitting smoking. Reducing the burden of lifestyle-related diseases on our health system is ultimately in the best interests of our health, our economy and our personal finances.
In the Western Cape alone, diabetes is a co-morbidity in over half of all COVID-19 deaths. In the Western Cape, testing is being offered to people with comorbidities such as diabetes, whether they show coronavirus symptoms or not. This smart approach to screening and testing is part of our effort to limit infections among those most vulnerable. People with underlying medical conditions like diabetes and hypertension should be extra cautious. They should observe social distancing, stay home if possible and stay away from crowded places. Like everyone else, they should practice good hygiene
While the COVID-19 fatality rate is low in South Africa compared to the rest of the world, the rising number of infections is a caution against complacency. – This is the good NEWS - Ed
Is your glass half empty or half full?
E: raphael@thevillagenews.co.za T: 074 125 5854
Elaine Davie
can infect anyone, but older people are among those at highest risk of getting severely ill and possibly dying. Sadly, there have been several Coronavirus outbreaks at old-age homes and care centres, resulting in a number of deaths.
for Stupid (Sorry, Donald). If you can accept these three truths, your life will be so much easier.
By Hélène Truter
Y
es. It's a shitty situation. Try saying that when you're drunk (which probably includes about 80% of the population.) In retrospect, 2020 has been a unique Leap Year. It had 29 days in February; 100 days in March; with April, May and June spread over five years. How many more weeks in the month of July? I don't know, my brain can't compute the numbers being thrown around these days. One hundred billion stolen... Three trillion in debt... How many zeros are we talking here? Nevermind, it's a rhetorical question. However, there's hope, folks. We may be living in unprecedented times (I so hate that overused word) but three fundamental truths will never change: 1) A buttered slice of bread will always land on its buttered face. 2) Incompetence has always been the ‘new normal’. 3) There is no vaccine
Sometimes it feels as if we're fighting three pandemics at the same time – Covid-19, Fake News and Stupidity. My husband warns me not to take on the Stupid. They're a dangerous bunch. Don't fret my skat, Stupid is too stupid to know it's stupid. No, I'm not being a Stupid-ist. Some of my best friends are stupid. They send me WhatsApps like this one: All smokers and people over 45 will be forced to go back to Level 5. If you don't comply, you will be dragged kicking and screaming to a quarantine facility. When questioned, my friend (Ann) is adamant: "It's true. My cousin's mother-in-law goes to the same hairdresser as the Minister of Land Reform's chauffeur's wife." That's where Ann heard it. And it's on WhatsApp, so it must be true. Ann has a degree. The old-fashioned kind of degree that you actually had to study for. Common sense is currently whizzing over us like a frisbee over a fat Rottweiler's head.
Since my last lament, hairdressers and beauty salons have opened. Yaaay! Not just for the sake of our small businesses, but after three months of lockdown there were some pretty ugly women walking our streets (including yours truly). I have realised that I don't know any women who sport their natural hair colour. Some wise person stated that this lockdown has exposed people's true DNA. Lockdown in my opinion has shown our true roots. I apologise to my acquaintances whom I simply didn't recognise in the street. Not just because of the masks, but that hair! Those unplucked eyebrows! And as the mask slips... is that a hairy lip I see before me? Mask up sister, you're scaring the kids. After all this is over, I wonder if we'll have a tan line on our faces. I'm not sure I'll be able to give up my mask so easily. It's great to be incognito, quickly slipping out in your old faded tracksuit to buy milk. And some other stuff. No, I'm not the masked woman buying cigarettes. That would be illegal. I wonder if there's enough jail space for the 11 million smokers
who are currently breaking the law. On the other hand, they are supporting small businesses (albeit illegal). This was Tannie Kopdoek's legal argument. Nope. Didn't read that on a WhatsApp group. It's a well-known fact that during World War II the sale of lipsticks soared. Without women’s love of Pretty, I too would have gone under. I hope that our love for delicious food will save our restaurants. We're been deprived for so long. Spoil yourself! And in the process we can help each other. Let's get over our negativity. If you see your glass as half empty, pour it into a smaller glass and stop whining. See? I feel much better already. I sometimes wonder what I will do once this all ends? It's kind of handy using the virus as an excuse for not seeing people you don't want to see, and for not doing things you don’t want to do (like exercise, for example). Although, truth be told, even before lockdown I constantly forgot to go to the gym. For three years in a row, in fact. Now I can simply blame Covid. My cup runneth over.
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De Bos Dam 38.84%
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Last week 38.57%
Last week 28.6mm
WEEKLY TIDE TABLES 11 208 audited weekly circulation
HIGH LOW HIGH LOW
05:10 11:16 17:39 23:46
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05:48 11:51 18:18
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Tides sourced by www.sanho.co.za
00:28 06:28 12:29 18:59
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01:13 07:12 13:11 19:44
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02:05 08:03 14:02 20:36
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03:07 09:07 15:04 21:37
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04:16 10:23 16:16 22:44