connect

I was checking out my mates blog and it reminded me of my bestest Calvin & Hobbes cartoon of all time.

It kills me every time! The woes of being a designer…

I found an online thingy to help search the archive of C&H cartoons. Bomb ass.

are you okay with the situation?

Where else have you heard of things like this happening? A corrupt businessman is found guilty and manages to evade serving his sentence in prison due to high blood pressure and depression. He gets to wander around the hospital all day, fully dressed and enjoying the view. And this isn't all stealthy cloak and dagger. Its in the news, everyone knows, but we allow it to happen.
A pakistani man is kidnapped from his home and hasn't been seen in 16 months, and our government can give us no answers… how do we let them get away with that?
A sowetan rose who was once known for her charity and kindness is now torturing journalists and inciting violence.
People are violently robbed of their possessions, their lives every day. It has become a way of life, it is acceptable. We are afraid to walk on the streets of our cities. Once I was with a friend in Joburg and she stopped for petrol. She didn't fill up her tank, so that if they steal her car they won't get as far. Her fiancé has bulletproof glass in his car. But, we say, thats just the way things are… Why do we feel that we should put up with the situation? Why do we just shrug our shoulders and accept it?
Champayne Heathen has just commented on this situation. Its NOT normal and its about time we stopped complaining about it and did something.

There will be a March Against Crime on the 10 March 2007. It may not be much, but the very least we can do is publicly join together and tell the people in charge that we are NOT happy, this is NOT normal, and we are waiting for them to do something about it. I don't know what else I can do.

(Hmmm, I've never marched before, I'm gonna need a t-shirt and a banner with a good slogan… and maybe a good chant.)

lark

Gawd, its Tuesday already! I am so busy at work right now, I have about 9 job bags on my desk and not enough time in the day. I work my lunches and stay late, but its hectic. I hate having lots of work and not enough time, especially when its the difference between something being mooi or not. But its all good, I'm enjoying myself. The Big Change in the studio is supposed to be happening in the next few days, so watch this space. It might go pear.

This weekend was awesome, money in the bank and sunny skies and my waxing appointment. All the key requirements for happiness. Went to see LARK play at Society on Saturday night. We all arrived diligently at 8pm and then had to hang out for 3 hours waiting for the band to play. Pretty much just loafed on the day beds and reelaxed. There are only so many coca colas a girl can drink… Downstairs was a VIP A1 slash Tokyo Sexwale birthday party thing going on, so I kept trying to sneak a peek at the schlebs, but didn't see anyone interesting.
By the time the band played I was tired and my feet hurt so things were heading downhill. I brought my camera to take some pics and I kept getting some dudes big hair in the way, so I threw in the towel there pretty early. Decided to focus on the music rather. Now I've heard there album before, and I love how different thing are and that definitely comes through in the performance. That is one straange chicky, but it works. I was surrounded by a group of young punks who were moshing like crazy and knew all the words to their songs so at least they aren't completely unheard of in Durban. I got a bit bored though and my feet were sore so I started losing interest.

Its still the most different thing I've seen in this country for a while. Go check out their myspace, they are quite an ensemble…

Lent has been hard so far. I really have to kill that urge for a glass of wine when I get home in the evenings. Give me about a week to detox I reckon…

I've gotta get back to work. Bloody hell.

24

I have just had the most interesting 24 hours in a long time… I have just returned from a mid-week jaunt to Jozi to see José. What nice diversion.
Angel picked me up yesterday at OR Tambo and dropped me off at Sandton City for a good 3 hours of solid window shopping. I can now claim to have 'done' Sandton. Here's a pic of me on the rooftop parking. Say cheese!


We then headed straight home for a quick dinner and freshen up before heading off to Wits. There was a very nice crowd at the venue, lots of studenty artsy types. I want to be a studenty artsy type again…
The opening act was Harris Tweed. I'd never heard of them before but they were pretty good. They are actually playing at BBB next wednesday fyi. They are usually 6 of them but we just had the 2 of them last night. I enjoyed their performance, but I think the chicky was belting out the songs a little louder than necessary.
Then onto Josés performance. Where do I start? He plays the guitar like its the easiest and most natural thing in world. He played all the tracks from Veneer and they are even more exquisite and heartfelt heard live. The percussionist was amazing to watch, all these gentle wiping motions - I don't know how drummers keep a rhythm like they do. They announced that they had been in South Africa for 5 days already, for the percussionists wedding to a south african woman and how hospitable the family had been. José had even learnt the old 'sharp' sharp'…
They ended off with some great covers. A hauntingly beautiful rendition of Kylies 'Hand On Your Heart', a very dramatic version of Massive Attacks 'Teardrop' and a very different 'Small Town Boy' originally by Bronsky Beat. I love a good covers, there are a lot of jaded pop songs out there with stunning lyrics. All you need is a cleverly unexpected and original take to breath fresh life into it. Overall the show was goosebumps and mesmerising and breathtaking. Me and my folk music.
We went backstage afterwords to get our albums signed (groupies!) and met José. He's smaller in real life, whatever that means. As we arrived the entire extended family arrived en masse. I'm talking about 20 people from intombazana to gogo. We legged it soon after, but I was cool to get to meet the them. I guess you expect them to be larger than life, but they're just ordinary people.
This morning I slept in and woke up to kitty popping in for a nap. Much better than rushing off to work.

Relaxed for a bit and then Angel came to take me to the airport. We stopped at vida e caffé in Greenside for a coffee fix. Oh my, that place is fabulous! I'm talking ultra mod Starbucks. Joburg for me has always been the east rand, but I am glad to finally get to know the real joburg that everyone talks about. I love big city life, and the lifestyle is so refreshing. I could honestly move to Joburg and I think would dig it. I get a bit tired of the small town mentality here in Durbs sometimes.
Anyway, I arrive at the airport to check and who do I bump into but José and his crew on their way to their Cape Town gig, also flying cheapo 1time airlines. I think they thought I was stalking them…
Now I'm back at work, and its as though I never left.

gung hay fat choy!

Happy Chinese New Year peops! We are now in the year of the Pig, and it is great to see the ass of the Dog year.

Today is also Pancake Day (Shrove Tuesday) which means that Lent starts tomorrow! For the last 2 years I have given up booze for Lent and its been good. Only when I have a reason to stop do realise what a habit it has become. Its a nice test of will. Although I don't usually have a problem - its a decision and once I've made it, I've made it. So ja, thats me for the next approx 40 days. This will be a good time for me to sort out the final leg of the house clean up and then I can do a little Easter rebirth of Me. All organised and ready for the rest of the year.
And of course, Lent conveniently ends just in time for Splashy…

So what would you miss for 40 days?

this weekend

Lets get it started with old Nathan at swimming lessons, trying on my glasses…


Saturday afternoon was Taylors birthday party, and after an iffy morning the weather turned out friggin hot. I think you could say it was a good party, lots of kids running around like crazies, eating sweets. That's about right for a bunch of 5 year olds.

Here are some pics of the shenanigans…




Straight after I headed off to the Wheel to see a fillum. Yes, the Wheel. Movies are only R12 bucks there, but I wasn't being a cheapy, there was this 'art' film showing only at that theatre. Firstly, I have never ever been to a theatre before when so many people took phone calls during the film. I'm talking multipy calls, and there was no embarrassment or apologies. Interesting, it was only nigerians and some oriental hoodies - so hopefully at least south africans still have some hint of etiquette.
Back to the movie. Lie With Me had been recommended by a few friends and I just had to see it. The newspaper describes it as 'the first sex film of 2007' and flippin heck there is a LOT of it. But the is more to it than that, and it is vaguely romantic without being anything close to a chick flick. If you need no other reason, go see it because it it HOT. Just a warning, the sex scenes are full on from word go, its not really first date material. Though, after seeing the movie, it might be for some people…

Sunday I went shopping on credit (I need payday NOW) and spent the afternoon reading and frying my bod in the sun. I am determined to get these thighs looking bronzed before summer fades.
I also did a bit of End Of The Month Salticrax cooking. I'm pretty damn chuffed with my concoction. A tub of danish feta (those danes really know about feta), a tin of lentils, some coriander and pasta. Dee-lish!

happy anniversary to ME!

Oh. My. Word. I completely flippin missed my first blog-anniversary. Dumbass.
I have officially been a blogger for a year and a week. Wow. It's been good fun so far and here's to many more posts! Thanks to all the peops out there who visit and comment regularly - its nice to know that my little blogette is appreciated…

SOS Earth

So the word on da street is that Al Gore is planning these worldwide concerts on the 7 July 2007. Johannesburg, London, Shanghai and Sydney are apparently among the host cities. So far there are a lot of big names Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kelly Clarkson, Lenny Kravitz, Foo Fighters, Snow Patrol, Paolo Nutini, Duran Duran, Keane. Obviously each venue will have its own selection of artists and there will be some sort of live link up to each city. They reckon each concert will last up from 4 - 8 hours and will also include local artists. Besides raising awareness on global warming, they want to create a model for a 'carbon neutral' event.
I am quite keen for a huge music event and I'm sure Al means well, but how about getting the USA to uphold the Kyoto Protocol before worrying about me using energy saver lightbulbs. Hell, I know if everyone did something small it would all add up, but if the US keeps farting out greenhouse gases we don't stand a chance.

josé in jozi

Sooo, guess who is going to see José González play in Joburg next wednesday? Me! I am so excited, this is as spur of the the moment that I have ever been. It is gonna be BEE-OOTIFUL.
And the first I heard of it was 2 days ago, I know, great publicity. He is playing on friday night in Cape Town as well. It's gonna be good…

His South African concerts will be intimate, all-seater events in theatre style settings where he will be joined on-stage by Yukimi Nagano on backing vocals and Erik Bodin on percussion.

wtf

Okay so for the last week I have been getting these weird phone calls. My phone will ring, number Unknown. I answer and get a pre-recorded message telling me to please hold as they are transfering a call to me. Sometimes I get cut off, other times I get put through to this person with an OTT american accent asking if I am Miss xxxx? They then continue to say that they are calling from blahblah. Now this part is complete gobbledygook. I know they are speaking english, yes with an very fake accent, but they are honestly using a made up word. At this stage I usually reply that I can't understand a word they are saying and they ask, 'do you speak english?'. The last time they rang, I said listen here peops, why are you calling me? And they hung up!
Is this a scam? Is it worth hanging on to hear what they are about? Friggin weird man.

whats cooking?

I hardly ever cook anymore. When I was living with the ex I cooked almost every night, I felt obligated to (womans work…). So when I moved out on my own I didn't want to even LOOK at the stove. But now I am at the stage where I would like to cook, but currently my cupboards are very bare - which is a rare anomaly for me. So on monday when my mom popped in and shoved a pack of broccoli and chicken fillets in my hands - I took it as a sign…
Last night I came home and whipped up my famous sesame chicken. Shit, I used to make this twice a month, and haven't made this in nearly a year! I found some soba noodles in the cupboard and steamed the broccoli. Sesame oil is one of my favourite ingredients, it tastes good over everything: noodles, vegetables and of course chicken. Mmm, my first home cooked meal all year.

autumn days

We had a miniature cold snap this weekend (plummeting to 20ºC!) and something in the air changed… it was the smell of a hint of autumn. Now autumn is one of my most favourite times of year, the weather is near perfect, but autumn is also the time for Splashy. I was quite a regular during my single student days, but haven't been in years for various reasons. I am so keen to go again and relaaax in the sun, under the stars, hang out, get drunk, mission around, make friends, kiss boys… oh, and I think there will be some live music too. Its so great to have something to plan and look forward to, Splashy here I come…

here are some pics of me and my poncho circa 2000…

mjb

I'm not a huge R&B fan but I am so happy for Mary J Blige. She has been belting out some serious ballads for years and it about time she got some props. I so prefer her version of 'One' and her false eyelashes rock.

By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept

You have to take risks, he said. We will only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the unexpected to happen.
Every day, God gives us the sun–and also one moment in which we have the ability to change everything that makes us unhappy. Every day, we try to pretend that we haven't perceived that moment, that it doesn't exist–that today is the same as yesterday and will be that same as tomorrow. But if people really pay attention to their everyday lives, they will discover that magic moment. It may arrive in the instant when we are doing something mundane, like putting our front door key in the lock; it may lie hidden in the quiet that follows the lunch hour or in the thousand and one things that all seem the same to us. But that moment exists–a moment when all the power of the stars becomes part of us and enables us to perform miracles.
Joy is sometimes a blessing, but it is often a conquest. Our magic moment helps us to change and sends us off in search of our dreams. Yes, we are going to suffer, we will have difficult times, and we will experience many disappointments–but all of this is transitory; it leaves no permanent mark. And one day we will look back with pride and faith at the journey we have taken.
Pitiful is the person who is afraid of taking risks. Perhaps this person will never be disappointed or disillusioned; perhaps she won't suffer the way people do when they have a dream to follow. But when that person looks back–and at some point everyone looks back–she will hear her heart saying, "What have you done with the miracles that God planted in your days? What have you done with the talents God bestowed on you? You buried yourself in a cave because you were fearful of losing those talents. So this is your heritage: the certainty that you wasted your life."
Pitiful are the people who must realise this. Because when they are finally able to believe in miracles, their life's magic moments will have already passed them by.

By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept, Paulo Coelho

a typical saturday night…

It was my sister's belated 21st party on saturday aboard the portnet catamaran. She spent most of the morning blowing up around 200 balloons to deck the place out. We were really hoping to go out to sea, but the captain said that although the wind had dropped, they were expecting it to turn around and bring 'some rain'. We had a good chug around the harbour, I don't know when last I did that. Saw so many nooks and crannies that I didn't even know existed. Once we got as far as the old thirstys it got really choppy and we turned back. It wasn't a traditional 21st to say the least, but I think the kids had a fun time, and even the older peops as well.

Once we docked, we did some light cleaning and then headed off to Burn. Just as we left the boat the rain started, and it must have belted down for at least an hour solid. Tracy was the ol' designated driver and it took us ages to get from the esplanade to umgeni road, we could barely see anything ahead of us. A one point as we drove past the stadium, lightning struck something nearby and everything went pitch black. Friggin scary. Okay so we arrive at Burn in one piece, but now it it coming down in BUCKETS, I'm talking torrential. So we waited about 10 minutes, and eventually I suggested we just make a run for it, how bad could it be? With my suede wedges tucked under my arm, I stepped out into ankle deep water and ran and screamed for what seemed like forever, although I was soaked in the first 5 seconds. Met up with Ulindi and Nadja and the boys inside, they had just been to Green Mango for dinner also just missing the rain.


The main reason for the excursion to Burn was to see LA Cobra play and they did not disappoint. I couldn't name a single song that they sung, except for a Twisted Sister cover, but I had such a laugh. The high pitched screams of 'rock n roll!' and 'c'mon!' in between songs nearly killed me. They knew what they were doing, at the same time were so taking the piss. But it was good fun to rock old school stylee. Good. Fun. You can't do glam rock without the obligatory lead singer with long blonde hair, bare chest and tight jean pant - and they did not disappoint. I'm thinking… a shower, shampoo and terry cloth robe and I probably wouldn't say no. I even scored a hug (oo-eer) later when he bummed a smoke off a friend, cos his jean pant were too toight for him to keep his smokes in. Aren't we all teenage groupies at heart?
By this stage I had kinda dried out to a slight dampness, but the alcohol had taken its toll and it was home time. Geez, I was so grateful for the rain on sunday, it was perfect 'sleep off a hangover' weather. I got out of bed at about 2.30pm only to go get some Casbah and go back to sleep. I woke up and watched some Planet Earth, it was all my brain could handle at that stage. Having fun is hard work…

That is a dinner plate, not a side plate, to give you a sense of scale…

mika - grace kelly

Mika has been number 1 in the UK for a number of weeks. He describes himself as Beck via Queen and Elton John with a touch of Rufus Wainwright. I am loving this song. It makes me happy. What do YOU think?

bookclub

Last night was our first ever Book club! Carmen did a LOT of organising, and filing and stuff and booked a table for us at Elements at the Beverly Hills. What a beautiful setting, all white and serene - with the waves right outside. Not many places in Durban like that sadly.

We had a great time, and have ended up with a nice stockpile of reading material. Its more of a book exchange really, we have all chipped in a pile of our own good books. I can't wait to get reading…

The food was good, I had a creamy avo pasta that my sister recommended. Well, I don't know if she had mentioned something to them, but I have never seen so much smoked chicken in my life. I was battling to find some pasta, and left a huge pile of chicken behind.
I am also a little phuza faced this morning, but completely unintentionally… I ordered a rather innocent Mai Tai, but I swear they quadrupled the alcohol content. It was so strong I could barely sip it, and my legs went numb after half an hour! I was a bit annoyed cos I didn't want to get shitfaced and then have to drive.
The first bookclub was a great success, and hopefully by next month we will have our full 8 peops.

Who would have thought that bookworms were so hot…

L.A. Cobra

check these dudes out, doesn't this pic just rock? they are playing at Burn on saturday and I have to see them play. I missed the whole Guns 'n Roses thing the first time around, so I get another chance at being a sleazy hair metal groupie… that's rock n roll.

good : no so good

whats not doing good

• work - I was told last week that the entire studio will be changed before the end of the month. new system, new teams, new friggin seating plans. No one has asked the studio what we want. How to Piss Vanessa Off in 3 Easy Steps
• the heat - I'm TIRED of sweating
• my hair - I'm so fed up with it. One minute I want to shave it all off, the next, I'm not bothered
• cash - mmm… can barely afford petrol, what happened this month?

whats doing good

• my car - it gets me around, I'd be lost without it
• design - I've really been in the zone this last week, designing stuff I like, hope it lasts
• spring clean my life - made some more progress this weekend, things are looking up
• career move - waitressing is starting to look more and more appealing

the prestige

I saw The Prestige last night, and on the way home I was thinking about how I would describe it in my blog. It feels like I really battle to express myself, and although my vocabulary is quite big I can seldom find the right words to explain how I feel. I seem to use the same adjectives over and over. Maybe it's because I don't really know how I feel…

Anyway back to the movie. I loved the story, the casting, the costumes, the clever trickery. Now I know no one likes a smartasss, but in the press interviews they mentioned that there are clues throughout the movie… well I picked 'it' up very early on the movie, in fact it seemed pretty obvious, but then I WAS looking. It's SO clever. At one point I wanted to stand up in the theatre and say LOOK, can't you see?
And then there is the question: what is greater, to be born with an innate, effortless talent or to just use sheer ambition to succeed?

Oh, and did I mention that Christian Bale is undeniably gorgeous?

BTW the movie makes reference to Nikola Tesla, and without going into detail, he really was a genius in his own right and deserves a special mention. I can't believe half the stuff he devised in his lifetime. Look him up…

status report

Righty ho. So the other day someone asked how I was coping, with everything that happened with my dad. After thinking about it, I realised I am as fine as can be, dealing with things as they come along. But you know what I haven't dealt with? The 5 year relationship I ended 6 weeks before my dad got sick.
When I broke up with the EX, I thought all would be okay. Yes, it was sad but I felt a weight off my shoulders and looked forward to my new 'free' life. But each day it becomes clearer that I have a hellava lot of issues to deal with. Some old regulars and a couple new ones compliments of the relationship. I had planned on taking this year to get back on track, but I'm feeling a bit of pressure. Its as though people are expecting me to behave in a certain way because I'm single. I don't want to have to explain myself. The thing is, I'm enjoying time on my own. I'm enjoying not being rushed - to be able to heal in my own time. I'm not looking to meet a knight in shining armour (wanna know a secret? they only exist in fairy stories…) I just want to relax. Chill. Have fun. Start to figure out who I am and what do I want?
I have to admit that I haven't quite adjusted back to the 'single' mindset. The girl I was shortly before I met the EX was confident and optimistic. I believed in myself. Unfortunately I have taken a few knocks and need to regain that self esteem. I am hesitant to even THINK about relationships and romance, I need to get my head around all the disappointments I have experienced. I think of 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'. It always starts off cute and rosy, but the ugly end is inevitable. How is THAT for an issue? Yes, yes, I know that we are here to learn about love, not have perfect relationships blah, blah… But I'm not feeling the love right now. Literally and figuratively. I guess I just need to heal the old hurts before I make any new ones.
But hope is not lost. There is always Christian Bale…