HBD to me

A few months back, I started to compile a list of some (30) things to do before I turned 30 and after a bit of thinking and looking back at my own goals and things that I keep talking of doing and putting off, here they are. Do feel free to suggest more things.

1. Write daily for a month.

2. Participate in a 5km anda 10km race.

3. Start/join a book club.

4. Read through the entire Bible in a year.

5. Volunteer in a short mission.

6. Continue with swimming lessons.

7. Learn to ride a bike.

8. Get married.

9. Learn to speak and/or write an African language.

10. Give time and money to a cause.

11. Visit 5 African countries within a given region.

12. Vote in an election.

13. Host friends to a grand dinner party.

14. Go to pottery classes and make something.

15. Knit andstitch an item of clothing and actually wear it.

16. Go on holiday alone

17. Bunge jump/ some equally insane adventure thing – Canopy tours

18. Make a reading list of 30 books, read and critic them.

19. Road trip to Namibia.

20. Learn to bake/make a decadent dessert.

21. Wake up at Xhr for 28 days to pray for one hour.

22. Take part in a demonstration for a cause

23. Pose for a painting/ have professional pictures taken

24. Pick a restaurant and systematically eat as many things off that menu.

25. Learn to play chess.

26. Watch one of the Grand slams live.

27. Pick a Book award and read all the books from that year’s nominees.

28. Watch movies nominated for a given category at the Oscars.

29. Go on a Christian retreat.

30. Leave the Continent.

31. Start my PhD.

32. Go to a World Cup game in a country I don’t live in.

33. Reconnect with an old friend/ get rid of a particularly stressful friendship.

34. Move out and live on my own for 6 months to a year.

35. Work with my alma-maters and use my skill sets to develop them.

What’s on/ would be on your list of to-do’s?

favourite scents

Bvlgari Pour Femme

Bvlgari Rose Essentielle

Recently, I got Lady Million by Paco Rabane and so far, so good.

2O11/2012

Merry Christmas and a happy, happy new year.

This is a scheduled post that will happily find me at home, surrounded by those I love and find dearest.

Here’s to 4 good years of blogging and many more to come!

December/January reading list

If you can’t see too clearly, these books are:

The Tenth Circle – Jodi Picoult

The post-birthday world – Lionel Shriver

Divisadero – Michael Ondaatje

We need to talk about Kevin – Lionel Shriver

Hopefully, a book a week over the next four weeks.

words only my parents use

Disclaimer: These are probably common English words but I have only ever heard my parents use them.

galavant – as in walk around aimlessly or roam about.

hullabaloo – as in loud protesting noise.

riot - as in to go out

What other things do your parents or the olds or the folks say that tickles you to no bit?

link love

Links I have looked at this week and liked.

What’s with all the porn on Facebook?

Stuff to do in Johannesburg.

A single currency in East Africa?

The world’s first cocaine bar.

I don’t get why she had to do this!

beautiful imperfection

*the title is from Asa’s latest album and probably has nothing to do with this post  

Growing up, we had a wall map of Africa hanging in our dining area. Other than the endless hours of entertainment it provided, I also came up with the totally rad idea to get a kombi and drive up all the way from Nairobi through the Strait of Gibraltar and head to Spain for a holiday. I must have been around ten at the time and I kept thinking when I turned 21, the golden age, I would do this. My father just smiled and only years later did I find out that so many others had caught onto this idea and were willing to die, suffer thirst and risk dying on the water in order to make this same journey.

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What other memories do you have of being a kid that were dashed in your adult years?

man down

The post’s title is from the Rihanna song that I have been playing in the background all week.

This afternoon, I went to do my hair and got talking to my stylist and this is an abridged version of that conversation.

The guy doing my hair always has this huge turban and looks full on Rastafari and once we got speaking about hair and why we wear our dreadlocks. In my case, it is a hair style but for him it is a whole spiritual thing. He tried to convince me otherwise but we decided to agree to disagree. Then we met today.

He started my asking what I do and when I said, he wanted to know what economists do. Tricky one, without having to go through the limited needs and unlimited wants first year vybe. So then he tried to guess my age and I thoroughly disabused him of the notion that I am a young ‘un. Then silence, while I savoured my hair wash when he randomly asked me if I like to go out (to set the mood, the music at Knoxx is largely Reggae and blares fairly loud) as he was dancing through some song and I twisted my nose and said no. So he asked why not and I said, well, I don’t have time and I am not really a fan of the whole going out scene. Silence again. Then he asked me, are you married? (Side note: I wear a silver band on my left fourth finger AND, I didn’t know where this conversation was headed). So I say yes and he then asked, so does your husband (Side note: always said, I’d call my husband, Hubstar or The Hubs, so henceforth, acquaint yourself with relevant terms) also not go out? I say no, fictitious Hubstar works too hard to go out in the evenings. So he asks, what time is too late and I say, 8 to 9 on most evenings. And then he asks, what time does he leave in the mornings? I say 6:30. So then he asks, doesn’t that put a strain on the relationship. when do you guys get to hang out? And I say at the weekends, and on the few occasions that he does come home earlier than that, we hang out and its not so bad. Then Silence. So later, he asks, do you have kids? I said no. Do you want any? Nope! He then asks, does The Hubs know this, with a look of such pity for the poor imaginary Hubs). So finally, he got talking about himself and his chick and the crux of this post.

He was telling me how God’s order to all of us was to go forth and multiply and that we need to do that. So I nod and ask him if he has any kids and he said no, and how he told his current chick that if they ever had any kids, he would have to have them tested. And first I didn’t hear that bit so I say,huh and he repeats it again. Turns out, he has been with the chick for four years and in the last year, she has stepped out on their relationship and played him and that’s why he told her to her face, turn up preggers and I’m getting the kid tested to check its mine! So then, he goes on to tell me how he found out she had played him. (If you are wondering, I was at the salon for about 1.5 hours, hence the intensity of the conversation.) Apparently, she was crying and this dude came and comforted her and he kissed her and she kissed him back and the rest is history. So he asked her, why didn’t you think of me while you were doing this? Good Q. But apparently, he got so pissed off, he HIT her. He beat her up and then he cut her hair. Apparently, the latter is prescribed by the Rastafari community and for certain “baddies”, the prescribed punishment is cutting of said (spiritual) hair.

What pissed me off about all of this is the double standard. The fact that, he beat her and no one cut his hair and it was fine for him. He went on to say how he had been provoked to the point of no return and how he needed to stand up and let her know she was woman and he was man! There’s other ways to prove this point, me thinks! There is no justification for beating a woman and that’s it! There is nothing more that anyone can say. He tried to argue and say that he had been pushed to breaking point, one time too many and he had to  do this. No, nothing like she made you do this. I agree, that in relationships you do have ups and downs and moments when you drive each other to breaking point and while the guy might argue that she made me do it, what does he think she will do when he similarly provokes her? There is no possible explanation to beating women or men. Walk away and when it gets to the point where you are done walking, split up. Its not worth it.

 

getting my wedding on ..

A few wedding related things that have popped up in the last couple of weeks.

What a lovely idea for wedding favours.

A lovely outfit for after the wedding.

Very cute engagement shoot.

In one day, that’s good!

on friendship and its dynamics

So I have a friend, who is dear and loved by me, but of late I feel like I have allowed the relationship balance to tilt so that all I become is a listening and/or sounding board for her stuff and mine just bounces back. I feel really bad for saying this but I have thought about it long and hard and questioned the feelings of hurt and I arrive at the same conclusion.

I read this post recently, and it struck a chord with me.

I feel like last year I had a lot of stuff happening in my life, the permit, starting work and the paper, oh the paper. And maybe I bent my friends ears with them having to listen to me and encourage and comfort and so this year, I knew, that a lot of it would be about listening and doing the same. I suppose that’s the thing with friendship – its a cycle, and the roles keep changing between all the players involved. And I guess, I would do well to roll over and read this new script for the moment.

Sadly, I really dont mind doing any of this, I just wish, that she would listen to my stuff and just acknowledge it some of the time.

afternoon break

Always goes so much better with this:

What is it you ask? A strong cup of rooibos tea with a portion of steamed milk …. a red cappuccino if you may. New love!

Anything new caught your fancy of late?

kitchen wish list … pt 1

My next house must have a kitchen pantry. Of whatever size ala

Source

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Small or big, doesn’t matter so much to me.

independence day 9 October

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Happy 49th birthday Uganda ….. God bless and keep you always. Bless our land, our leaders and people.

A little storm in Johannesburg

With Summer, comes rain in Joburg. Except, sometimes it storms and it can turn a lovely evening into a dark and grey night.

1806h

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1820h

Turns out that some parts of the city and the country experienced tornadoes last night.

Brain dump … reality TV ed.

1. Its a sad day when Ice and Coco have their own reality show. I mean, what do we wanna know from them?
2. I oddly totally like Khloe and Lamar. I think they are a lovely (TV) couple. Very chilled and believable.
3. Please don’t let Kim and her man have a spin-off reality show? Please?
4. I am not a parent, but, Kimora Lee’s kids are all you need not to mix parenting and any sort of money or privilege. They are such spoilt little so and so’s.
5. Please DSTV could you bring a new season of Whose Wedding is it anyway.
6. And the original one, not the spin off: surprising the bride or bride v groom. Nah, just the original edition please.
7. Masterchef Australia! YUMMY Don’t know about the South African one, but I hope they continue with the third season of it!
8. My new secret love like is Come dine with me. But as I don’t feel too passionately about it, I actually can’t wait for the local version and snoop on people’s homes!

Wanted to hit ten, but 8’s just as perfect, yeah. The sad thing about reality TV is that its inane, mindless and sometimes un-inspired but day after day or each week, we tune in and feed on it some more. Eeek!

Something’s bubbling inside ….

Something’s creative is brewing inside and though I’m still mulling over things, this is a little taster of the inspiration.

And something else …

 

Another movie recap

A night at the movies

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Since I’m not exactly a movie buff, this could be a couple months weeks overdue.

No strings attached & Friends with benefits. These two are combined as they are intrinsically the same thing, one better than the other. I dislike JT and that coloured my appreciation (OR LACK THEREOF) of this movie. It was lacklustre, it had nothing new to add to entertainment and so, no, dont watch! run in the other direction. I liked No strings, there was a story line and the characters were adorable and it tugged the right strings and just worked. So watch this, if you have nothing to do and are in the mood for a RomCom.

Bridesmaids & Something borrowed. Two different takes on weddings, taking on the best friend bride-matron of honour relationship. How many times do we pine away for some guy we think is great for us and then end up falling for the sweet dependable one, right under our nose? Kristen Wiig is adorable. Love her on SNL, love her in this movie. We could totally be best friends in real life. Love her! I liked Something Borrowed and throughout the movie, I kept thinking of how Ginnifer Goodwin was from her Big Love character. I love soft, chick flicks so definitely, watch these two!

Columbiana. Zoe Saldana is devastatingly beautiful and utterly fierce in this movie. Loved, loved, loved it. Would definitely recommend it to anyone unless you don’t like any sort of gunfire. Was utterly distracted by the choice of houses and how I would have decorated them if I lived there. The beginning was a bit dodge, Zoe at 11 years old was hard core and I mean, how real is that. (Aside: Doesn’t Zoe look a bit like a younger Jada Pinket?)

Source code. If this is the direction that movies are taking in the future, then I am good to sit at home and practice my needle point. I dont get this movie, I dont get the premise, I dont get who their target market is. I did not like this movie and would not recommend it to anyone. The end.

So what movies have you watched recently?

Little restaurants that mean something to me

Ok, not so little but just places that over the years I have enjoyed going to and definitely hold a dear place in mine heart. This is in line with my new desire to write more about South Africa. So these are restaurants that I have been to in the last three or four years and repeatedly returned to. Before, going further, I must say, that the difference between going out for a meal in Nairobi and say here is the fact that i can have a two or three course meal without breaking the bank.

JB’s corner. I definitely remember the first time I went to the one at Melrose Arch. It was three years ago in October, and it had been raining all evening. We’d been invited to a friends birthday dinner that was being held here before karaoke here. Now of course I did not sing, but that’s a whole other post . Initially, we had sat outside and they had blankies and all sorts of heaters to keep us warm, then as the pack headed to the Colony, we got a table inside and had dinner. I loved the service, the vybe and the company. I have been back once since and it did not disappoint.

Koi. Now I’ve been to the one in Sandton and the one in Rosebank and now found out that they have another one in Pretoria. Added to my imaginary to-do list. Only been to this place for dinner and so maybe at lunch it has a different feel to it. We went during the World Cup fever last year and there was a game in the background so there was all that loudness and noise but it was also very chilled and if you wished, you could have a intimate conversation. Loved the vegetarian spring rolls starters (it had mango) … Wasn’t too in love with the salmon served on wasabi mashed potato. The flavour was just too intense and it soured the mashed for me. I have since been back and enjoyed the grilled line fish with stir fried vegetables. For dessert, we had the chocolate brownie and cheesecake (we had starters and a main the first time and then mains and a dessert the second time)But see what they  have to offer here.

Doppio Zero. I like this restaurant, both the Rosebank and Greenside one, makes me feel very trendy and almost grown up. I like the food, the service, the cheesecake. (Yes! Its my thing, to look for the best cheesecake in Joburg). Have had breaky, lunch and dinner here and this place is perfect for loud groups, girlie meet-ups and intimate dining arrangements.

Wanna treat me to any surprise, check out the stuff here or suggest a meal at any of these places and I’m sold.

after the weekend

Something I read today.

Something I will watch later today.

Make me smile Monday

Just, for just

Always wished I could be an illustrator and draw such whimsical things. But all these prints are available from Nidhi Chanani all available here. Her work is also reviewed here.