New at Epsom Downs, Bryanston

Mariswe Toastmasters has resumed meetings in person, though still with an online component.  It was an ideal opportunity to visit Epsom Downs. There have been some notable changes: sadly, the florist has disappeared, to be replaced by a pharmacy. A fishing tackle shop has opened. And a Pizza del Forno has opened.

Changes in Sunhill Centre, Sunninghill

There was also an opportunity to visit the somewhat remote Sunhill Centre in the north of Sunninghill. The big news there is that northern Sunninghill now has a supermarket. Namely, Checkers, complete with a separate pet food shop and a Checkers Liquor.

In celebration, the centre has been repainted a stylish drab grey. Taste of Punjab Restaurant and the famous Bosco Italian Restaurant are still there. Below is a restaurant review for the latter.

Coming to Morning Glen Mall

Pick 'n Pay Clothing is returning. They will open on 1 March.  The shop is coming back opposite where it was before, to Shop 17 where Mashumi Art Projects is now.  That gallery is moving upstairs to shop 40.

Hobnob Bubble Tea is now open.  Blueberry Beacon Family Restaurant will open on 1 April in Shop 77.

Rumour has it that a skate park is coming too

Odd Jobs:  Back to top

Q: What is a fortune-teller's favourite colour?
A: Unforeseeable Fuchsia.

New on the Block, Movers and Shakers  Back to top

• On 1 February, Durban Seafoods is moving from Sunhill Shopping Centre to Chilli Lane Shopping Centre Sunninghill – shop selling fish, prawns, crabs, calamari, seafood delicacies.
• Hobnob, Shop 35, Lower Level in Morning Glen Mall – Bubble tea. Experience it for yourself. Free delivery up to 5 km, and every 11th one free with loyalty card.
• Padel Perfect, Lower Level in Morning Glen Mall – 6 outdoor panoramic Padel courts at your disposal – 4 doubles, 2 singles. Access: Kelvin Drive entrance, straight in to the north open-air parking, then down to the lowest level.
• Pressed In Time, Shop 01B, Ground in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Domestic and commercial laundry and dry-cleaning. Carpet cleaning. Mattress cleaning. Alterations. Shoe repairs.
• Bass Warehouse Bryanston, Shop 10A, Ground in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Fishing tackle, reels, rods, baits, lures, accessories, clothes.
• New Star Fashion, Shop 23, Ground in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Affordable stylish clothing, accessories, purses, make-up and more.
• Giggles & Kurls Nail Studio, Shop 21, Ground in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Acrylic, gel, biosculpture, polygel, sculpted, ombre. Nails, toenails, male manicure, male pedicure, threading, unravelling.
• The Local Choice Pharmacy Epsom Downs, Shop 10–12, Ground in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – One of a like-minded group of independent pharmacists.
• Del Forno Epsom Downs, Ground in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Pizza, pasta, salads, burgers, grills and desserts. Wide selection of Mediterranean meals. Tequila. Sit down meals, take away or delivery.
• Frozen For You, Shop G07, F: Main Square in Hobart Grove Centre – Pre-prepared frozen home-style meals made with quality ingredients using traditional methods. Wide variety and serving sizes, priced approximately the same as in a restaurant. They deliver.
• Checkers Foods Sunhill, Ground in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Extensive supermarket: Groceries, fresh and frozen produce, bread, household cleaning, beauty and personal care products, etc.
• Pet Shop Science, Ground in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Pet food and requirements. Part of Checkers.
• Checkers Liquor, Ground in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Full-licence liquor store. Replaced Sunhill Liquors.
• Tabacconist, Ground in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Smoking requirements, hubbly-bubblies, vaping needs.
• Post Link Sunninghill, Shop 08, Ground in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Copy & Print, ID Photos, Stationery, Large Scanning & Printing, Graphic Design, Domestic Courier, International Courier, Vehicle Licence Renewal, Lamination & Binding, Internet Station, Packaging Material, Shredding, AutoCAD, Canvas Printing.

Today's Mondegreen

"Excuse me while I kick this guy".

Correct lyric: "Excuse me while I kiss the sky" from Jimi Hendrix's 'Purple Haze'.

The Restaurant Review Back to top

You know you're in South Africa when...

Julius demands a national shutdown in March to assert his party's "rights" while disregarding everyone else's.

Feeding the Worms:  Back to top

• Levingers Dry Cleaners, Shop 01B in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre.
• Pandora, Shop 23 in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Fashion, Clothing - Ladies.
• Sorbet Beauty Salon, Shop 21 in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Health & Beauty: Face and body professionals. Massage, aromatherapy, hot stone massage, Demalogica, Environ, Essie. Skin Care. Waxing. Nails. Manicure, pedicure. Facials. Grooming: eyelashes, eyebrows.
• N R Cellular, Shop 10 in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Repair centre and accessories for almost any make of cell phone.
• Flowers of the North - Sloane Florists, Shop 12 in Epsom Downs Shopping Centre – Independent florist that designs and delivers.
• Pressed In Time in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Washing, Drying and Ironing for Households, Restaurants, Commercial and Domestic. Coin-operated Washers and Driers.
• Minuteman Press, Shop 09 in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Business communications services: Copies, booklets, brochures, business cards, colour copies, printing, flyers, labels, letterheads, manuals, paper supplies & stationery, rubber stamps, binding, embossing, lamination, logo design.
• Sunhill Convenience Store, Shop 13 in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Mini-market. Foodstuffs, bread, household items, brooms, sweets, charcoal.
• Sunhill Car Wash in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Car Wash.
• Sunhill Liquors in Sunhill Shopping Centre – All types of drinks. Free delivery in Sunninghill.
• Elegant You Beauty Salon, Shop 14 in Sunhill Shopping Centre – Relaxers: Organics, Ladine, Dark and lovely, Optimum, Revlon, Precise. Braiding: cornrows, dreadlocks, waving, manicure, pedicure.
• Feng Shui Guest Resort near Sunhill Shopping Centre – 21 Naivasha Road, Sunninghill. 6 en-suite units, 1 self catering suite, furnished and serviced self-catering 2 & 3 bedroom, garden flats. Traditional breakfast. Lunch and dinner on request.

Disturbing Thought for the Week:

If you are delaying insulating your geyser, are you lagging with your lagging?

Living Longer and Stronger

Is ageing a disease? Many maladies manifest as we age. What if ageing is the cause? What if we can treat ageing itself?  There are scientists who say that we can!

One of them is David Sinclair, PhD (video).  Dr Sinclair is a geneticist who has specialised in ageing for 30 years.  He has a lab at Harvard Medical School. He is over 50 and looks 37. Dr Sinclair wrote the book "Lifespan – why we age, and why we don't have to".

He says that, over time, our cells lose information. We know about the information in DNA also called the genome. The same genes, the same DNA, are in all your cells. Then what makes a liver cell different from a skin cell, or a brain cell? –Structures called the "epigenome", meaning "above the genome".

DNA is like a bicycle.

A bicycle can’t stand on its own because it is “two-tyred". It needs someone to steer it and pedal: A rider! For DNA, that rider is the epigenome. It controls which genes are expressed, and which are suppressed.

Bike riders also fix punctures. Similarly, the epigenome repairs broken DNA.

A bike rider is more fragile than the bike. Similarly, the epigenome is less robust than DNA It degenerates, becomes less able to control and repair the DNA. Information is lost, errors accumulate, diseases result, like cancer: The liver cell thinks it is a brain cell.

Dr Sinclair says we can "wake up" that natural cell repair method with nonlethal stress. He suggests

• Intermittent fasting –skip some meals!
• Exposure to heat and cold –forget that jersey! Take a sauna.
• Periodic high-intensity exercise: Get out of breath.

Well, you may not live longer, but it will feel like it!

There are also supplements that help.  Dr Sinclair mentions Resveratrol and NMN.  In South Africa you can order these online from Genologix:

Another Anti-Ageing Strategy:

On the other hand, as I spotted at Pick 'n Pay 'n Pay recently, you might prefer to try an anti-ageing detergent!

Overheard at the Checkout

Teenager: "I wish I was dead!"
Mom: "No, no, dear, you must never say that!"
"Why not?"
"Because the correct English is, 'I wish I were dead'."
(acknowledgement)