April 9 2016 - Pretoria Botanical Garden

April 10 2016
03:04
As I'm sure you can guess from the time, that PLP has me in it's grip.
We went to bed at about 23:00, and I slept very well till about 1:30 when I got up to pee. As I laid back down the PLP started. Finally at 2:30 I just got up, and moved to the other room, so hopefully Maddie won't be disturbed.

Yesterday (Saturday) we went to the Pretoria Botanical Garden. Very large and well done.
We both really enjoyed walking through the gardens.

My prosthesis is now at a weird stage, where it shrinks very fast during the day. I start the day with just the silicone liner, and soon the socket is to loose. I have to take the leg off, and put a wool sock over the liner to make it bigger to fill the socket, then put the leg back on. On some days I will keep adding socks through out the day. A few days ago, I needed three socks to thicken the stump enough to be able to use the leg.
The socks are special and expensive.

I carry a bag with all my special leg tools in it. I always carry a small spray bottle with a glycerin, alcohol mix to lubricate the leg as I put it on over the stump. I also carry spare socks, a small towel, an allen wrench set, and a tool for adjusting hydraulic movements on the leg.

At the gate to get in the Garden we had to pay. I convinced the cashier that not only was I disabled, but also a pensioner. If I was also a student, they would have had to pay "me" at the gate.

There were many things going on in the garden. three separate weddings, many family picnics, and a few kids parties. We seemed to be the only people there to just look at the gardens.

All throughout the garden were large metal sculptures of different insects. Each was about 2 meters (6 feet) long. Very well done. Here is a mosquito.

They had a special display of ways to save water in a garden. Ways like water tanks, and using mulch.
They also showed many ways of gardening with succulents. Here is one small attractive garden.

They had a display of tricks for disabled people to garden easier. The caption for all the pictures was also done in braille. I wonder if that just explained the picture, or was for the blind people as they looked at the pictures.

Here is Maddie in a posed picture.

And me sitting in the branch of a nice tree.

I got real good exercise walking on the grass. Uneven ground is a challenge. 

Often I would rest on a bench and Maddie would zoom off to take pictures of boring plants.

We stopped at one of the cafes for some coffee and a muffin.

Here is spy Maddie trying to take a secret picture of me at the restaurant. Me taking her picture, must mean I am a counter spy.

At the cafe was a great tree. We both thought it needed it's picture taken.

While walking we passed a flock of Guinea Fowl. A minute later we came across a single male making noise. It looked like he had lost the flock He would stop and make a funny squeak, then look around and listen.

I don't think he was impressed by me being in his way.

We stayed at the Garden for about 4 hours, and I walked about 2 km.

I hope this staying awake doesn't spoil our Sunday plans.

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