Getting your money's worth

Every Monday after our Tai Chi class, I have coffee down at Fish Hoek beach with one of the elderly ladies from the class. She drives us down to the beach because she has a season ticket and then I don't have to pay R12 to drive over the railway line. We go to the Bistro where there are benches under the palm trees and spectacular views across False Bay and of the whole of Fish Hoek and Clovelly beaches. There we can watch those brave souls who are still swimming despite the water temperature dipping down to 11 degrees sometimes, while the air temperature is not all that warmer, but the sun is shining and the wind has abated.

This morning we were treated to a yoga display of the Sun Salutation by a lithe young woman in a bikini, standing slightly away from the edge of the water. Her grace and suppleness was an example to us all, not to mention her complete lack of inhibition that most people would feel about performing such an exercise in public. With that body and level of skill, she certainly had nothing to be ashamed of! She then lay down on the damp sand for about 10 minutes in some form of meditation, I was reliably informed by my companion, who revealed that in her younger days, she too could do the Sun Salutation.

She is a lady of quiet but determined demeanour and without making any noticeable noise about it, will display her displeasure at the drop of a hat when it comes to the quality of her coffee or the slice of anchovy toast she is so fond of. She will give strict instructions about exactly how thickly it should be spread, and woe betide the poor waitress who brings it to her cold. It will go straight back to the kitchen. Today she pressed me to share a pancake with her. They duly arrived, quite crisp and stone cold. After I had munched my way through most of mine, not really caring about the temperature or texture, she suddenly stood up, marched into the restaurant and came back a few minutes later to say that they would be bringing us new pancakes as she considered these to be old. And five minutes later they did, almost hot and not nearly so crisp!

They must tremble when we arrive there on a Monday, knowing that they are going to have to foot the bill for cold toast and cold pancakes. She is always adamant about not paying for the first one and I just hide behind my coffee cup, pretending not to be there. Of course she is perfectly correct to demand quality, as it is being paid for, but I would hate to be dining with her in a top-end restaurant, as she tells me that she always sends something back. The problem is, she won't accept the way the chef does it, apparently. The chef must do it the way she orders, even if it is just anchovy toast!

But to look at her, you wouldn't think she would say boo to a goose!