“Dolce far niente” : The joy of doing nothing

There is something delightfully extravagant about doing nothing after a while of doing everything. Christmas is my favourite time of the year. Like birthdays, it’s a time for me to come together with the most important people in my life and look back on the year before, in the midst of laying the table on Christmas eve, pulling crackers, washing the dishes, walking to church on Christmas morning, opening and giving presents and swimming in the amazing South African heat at 12pm on Christmas day.

Some people think tradition is cheesy; I think it’s classy – and extremely special. Every year we do the same thing at the same time, and I love that. And as I write this, everyone’s gone back to their own homes, the ripping of wrapping paper has ended, and I’m sitting on my mom’s bed with her watching television series. I haven’t a worry in the world, and best of all – its Christmas day.

So this got me thinking a lot about a line in a recent movie with the spectacular Julia Roberts in. Thanks to Matty, I watched Eat Pray Love twice, and the second time I listened extra carefully. When in Rome, she learns an Italian line; Dolce far niente. The joy of doing nothing. And she wakes up late in Italy and makes some food and sits in her tiny lounge eating it for what seems the whole day.

I fully agree with this romantic Italian phrase. But I think what makes it much more special is who you are doing nothing with. This holiday has been a busy one, but a couple times I have experienced a dolce far niente with people that mean the world to me.

I visited Matty after Sugar Bay at Michaelhouse. Now this place is in the Midlands, where if you stand in the front yard you simply see green and blue. Nothing else. We spent amazing time with each other and I got to know Matty even better than I already did. I got to know him out of Rhodes and in his life back home. We talked and laughed and were silly, but we also sat together in silence. We baked and we watched movies and we went for drives…We did nothing, together. And that’s what made “the joy” in doing nothing, so blissful.

I think if we all took the time to do nothing, with people that mean something important in our lives – we could live much happier lives. If a couple more days of my life were like Christmas day and similar to life at Michaelhouse, I would realise more how easy life actually is. What humans do is we automatically trouble ourselves with things that don't actually matter at all, we like to complicate things. We have this need to create noise to fill the silences, and we yearn for things to do to keep us busy. We don’t always need to be busy and crazy to be considered as people “living their lives’. Sometimes, all we actually need is a longer bath… and someone, anyone, to sit in the silences with.

Merry Christmas happy readers!

Love actually is, everywhere

In procrastination for studying for my Drama exam today, I was surfing Youtube and came across the new T-mobile advert in England. They have another one where everyone sings in Trafalgar Square, but this one reminded me so much of one of my favourite films, Love Actually. This quote says it all:

"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion... love actually is all around."

Love is probably one of the most important things in life, without it - you really don't have much. Whether it is love of a family, a friend, a companion or love for the world - it pops up somewhere in your life. In big or small pieces, love is everywhere. Finding love in life makes you realise how important it id, and how important it makes you feel :) When that person leaves - its shows how much they mean to you, and how hard it would be to not have them around.


When we are born, our parents forget about their own hunger and turn to ours, they feed us love and when we are old enough, we learn to give back. Loving someone in any shape or form means having to give compassion, no matter what kind of love it is. It brings with it all other kinds of emotions, and without love - those emotions wouldn't be as powerful as they are.

With that, I leave you with this video - and getting this down means I can continue with some Drama learning, because after all, I may not enjoy studying, but I love Drama.

I remember

As I was sitting in my room the other day, temporarily minding my own business with Season 8 of Friends on in the back ground – I realised it was a mate’s 20^th birthday coming up. Having realised that, my own age jumped out at me too. Twenty. Two decades. Well, shit that went fast. So I subconsciously skimmed over my life and as two decades flashed past, I had an urge to put some of those mental panoramics into words. This is inspiration from something we did at the beginning of the year for Journ. I’m sure I will be adding to it and randomly remembering other things that should be here.

I remember being brought up as a South African.

I remember the first time I put on a school uniform, just to go to school with my mom for the day.

I remember taking baths, and sitting in them for ages after the water had run out.
I remember episodes of Barney and Banana’s in Pyjamas

I remember learning how to tell the time with my mom

I remember playing kissing catches. And soccer.

I remember the Bee, Dragonfly and Butterfly classes at Klerksdorp Hebrew Nursery School.

I remember getting a baby brother.

I remember being at a 20/20 Cricket Match with my parents and colouring in.

I remember my first day at school, with my maroon pinafore, my brown-box suitcase and my denim pencil bag.

I remember learning to read.

I remember Christmases and the day I decided they were by far the best day of the year.

I remember making up dances and songs in my room and performing them for the family.

I remember Holy Rosary School; choir competitions, jungle jims and the tuck-shop.

I remember giving my brother a tea party when he was upset.

I remember my Barbie house and spending ages in the toy room making up their life stories.

I remember Greg’s spider man outfits, batman outfits and power ranger outfits to the tee.
I remember Grandad building the treehouse.

I remember sleep over’s with Megan every Christmas Eve.

I remember my Dad’s tickle attacks.

I remember Greg singing Jeremiah was a Bullfrog for his school concert.

I remember holidays at the Cavern, Drakensburg Sun and Manaba.

I remember times spent with Megan: dolls, make-over’s and drawing up hordes of TV Guides, cheque books and lists of children.

I remember Aromat on toast.

I remember Brownies and Girl Guides.

I remember caravan holidays with Gran and Grandad.

I remember digging in the sand to find the ball and flooding the stoop from bathing our babies.

I remember my Mom, for she makes up most of the better part of my two decades.

I remember my first “BFFs”: Alyssa. And Meagan, Seona, Kailynn, Laura, Gaby and Kristin and Tubz.

I remember the day Laura and Mom fetched me from Kailynn‘s house and told me Dad was in hospital.

I remember my First Holy Communion – and going to visit Dad at Milner Park in my dress.

I remember when he came home. And I remember Mom’s valour.

I remember the first time I flew by myself from Rowing camp to Durban – a prelude to all the flying I would do in the future.

I remember my first time overseas to England – with Megan, Gran and Grandad.
I remember having a Princess Diana dress up doll, and I remember her death on the news.

I remember putting salt instead of sugar into the crumpet mix for Grade 5 crumpet day.

I remember getting two gorgeous baby cousins, and loving them eternally after that.

I remember being in the shows My Fair Lady, A Midsummer night’s Dream and A Lad ‘n a lamp during school.

I remember my trip to Robben Island, and learning about the man who played a massive part in saving South Africa.
I remember failing my first test and getting my first A

I remember my holiday to Ireland and England with my family; falling in love with the country but learning to appreciate South Africa.
I remember seeing the Twin Towers fall on the TV.
I remember getting ready for the disco with Kristin...

I remember being on the First Aid Committee in my last year of Primary School.

I remember entering high school, my Matric year, my gap year and my first year at Rhodes.

I remember getting kicked out of class in Grade 8 with the nun in the corner.

I remember the 4-O, really well; laughing, dog piles and Mrs Lourenco’s office.

I remember Hockey tours; the dodgy camping guy who stalked Simone, Amy kicking me out of my bed and taking photos on Katie’s phone.

I remember Katie.

I remember my innate love for Eminem.

I remember Rowing for HRS, egg and bacon rolls on a Saturday, being involved in the titanic like sinking, winning in our A-crew and getting a silver at SA Champs in the pair.

I remember Buffalo regattas and J.A.R

I remember dancing with my Dad at the Debs Ball.

I remember being introduced to the royalty of Friends – and quoting it in at least one conversation a day from then on.

I remember discovering my love of writing, and the day I decided that’s what I want to do.

I remember filming over our English project with Tubz and Katz dancing.

I remember Musa, and how I learnt not to care what society thought.

I remember how my mom and I spoke, how I could and can always talk to her about anything.

I remember experiencing World Youth Day in Australia.

I remember Irene Flee Market trips
I remember bird watching with Mom

I remember movies with my friends and “fishin’ for love just like a good girl should”

 I remember laughing for ages with Greg and Ryan.

I remember Dad running the Comrades again, and going on to do the London, NY and Berlin marathons.

I remember leadership camp.

I remember Grandad’s singing, and Gran rolling her eyes – but secretly loving it.

I remember Mom introducing me to St. Elmo ’s fire, The Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink.

I remember walks home from school with Katie; and stopping off at each others houses for egg on toast.

I remember discovering the greatness of The Beatles.

I remember Lady and Mojo.

I remember Fall Out Boy, 46664, My Coke Fest, Nickelback and Pink Concerts.

I remember after school Art and Mrs Mac.

I remember Maths Lit classes and Wimpy breaks.
I remember the day Greg became more than a brother to me; he became a best friend

I remember KFC runs with Katz, and auditioning for Idols.

I remember Sun City; trying to get into an 18+ club – and not.

I remember the first time I got drunk.

I remember falling in love for the first time and how special it was.

I remember my Debs Ball, and my Matric Dance and Valedictory. And the cuts on my arm after wearing that dress.

I remember my 18^th birthday, singing karaoke till the early hours of the morning with a Champaign glass in my hand.

I remember Vaal holidays; the stuffed lion and the utensil puppet show.

I remember the airport and leaving home.

I remember meeting Rose when she was jetlagged, and driving up to the glory of Canford School.

I remember our little flat; our Harry Potter marathons and our gossip.

I remember the Common Room, babysitting the Burlie kids and coaching the girls.

I remember London, with all my heart.
I remember the day I started to build up my dreams.

I remember spontaneous Barcelona trip with Rose, and walking almost every inch of that city until our feet gave in.

I remember working in the White Hart, and the locals Mic, Jim and Richard.

I remember travelling the UK, spending hours on a train at a time.

I remember the raucousness of the Henley Regatta, Topdeck and the Pub Parties.

I remember the warmth in my heart when I saw my Mom, Grandparents and Greg for the first time in 8 months.

I remember philosophical talks with Niall at the White Hart

I remember discovering Eddie Izzard.

I remember my hockey team, and how bleak they got at the thought of exercise.

I remember catching the last bus to get back to Wimbledon after a night out in central London.

I remember being helplessly broke on sam's couch.

I remember buying a dress for the Summer Ball.

I remember Camden Markets, Nottinghill Carnival and seeing a play at Shakespeare’s Globe.

I remember The Church.

I remember when it snowed.

I remember nights out in Bournemouth.

I remember Roz.

I remember my trip around Europe, and being in awe for all of it.

I remember browsing the Tate Modern, the Picasso museum and Louvre.

I remember Sam, Beans and Tess.
I remember being lost in Wimbledon with Jordan.

I remember the friends I made, and the smiles they brought.

I remember seeing the Lion King at West End.

I remember saying good bye, and getting on a plane to come home.

I remember listening to Johnny Clegg as I saw the South African sunrise out the plane window.

I remember feeling the African sun again.

I remember that Christmas, and it being particularly special for me.

I remember seeing my friends again, and partying with them, Joburg style.

I remember the night I almost killed Katz, and how she still drove with me after that.

I remember arriving at Rhodes, O-Week, serenades, the Friars experience and when the word chilled became a part of my vocabulary.

I remember Greg and I telling each other we had made friends.

I remember the O-Week field party. But not really.

I remember discovering Mama Pans, and late night walks up the hill.

I remember George and mine’s first DMC at the Wimpy.
I remember Ben screaming PENIS in the dining hall.

I remember Dress to get Laid, bad-taste party, St Paddy’s Day, Trivar, Boatraces and Nicky’s 21^st.

I remember meeting Matty, and falling in love with him.

I remember learning things, academic things.

I remember the Rhodes Drama Department – and the many hours spent there (and the rewarding feeling after bowing at the end of a performance)

I remember George flinging me across the room with a single kick.

I remmeber Nicky and Nuni.

I remember my first interview for Activate, and my interview that got me Arts & Entertainment editor.

I remember the night Greg was brave enough to come out to his friends.

I remember laughs with George. Endless. endless laughs. And her getting into bed with me when the electricity went out.

I remember pre-drinks with the Walker girls.

I remember having naps with Greg.

I remember Nicky doing my make-up and tweezing my eyebrows.

I remember the Soccer World Cup in South Africa; the flags from the Airport to home, and seeing Bafana beat France.

I remember riding the Gautrain.

I remember my hippie photo shoot with Sim.

I remember precious time with my family.

I remember Bovril toast with Mikey

I remember gwam jam talks with Chayse

 I remember the trip to Durban with George and her family, and painting our faces with the Ghanaian flag.

I remember the night Matty and I kissed for the first time.

I remember the Cougar Monday of Doom.

I remember singing Don’t Stop Believing in Pirates, and taking my mom to Cougar Monday.

I remember The Dirty Skirts, Wrestlerish, Zebra & Giraffe and Farryl Purkiss coming to Grahamstown.

I remember dustbin photos.
I remember sneaking out of lectures, unsuccessfully

I remember late night essays and considering getting an LOA for the last Journ one.

I remember singing somebody to love and filming it, Savvas’ piano playing and cat, and skype sessions with Greg.

I remember nights spent in CB; time with Matty, and smiling – a lot.

I remember Cape Town with my friends; the old lady/dog, the trip to Fish Hoek on the train and Georgia’s raucous night.

I remember surprising my friends and family at home for the weekend.

I remember how chats over good food with Katz never get old.

I remember tea in bed nights with Gran watching BBC.

I remember taking a lot of photos in my life.

I remember drawing up my bucket list, and vowing to never forget about it.

I remember my 20^th birthday.

Something different

I put up a post recently with all my favourite artists. But all of them have passed on, so it got me thinking of artists today - ones of our time, and why I am drawn to them. We all have to appreciate the classics, yes? But we can't live for the now if we don't acknowledge whats going down around us right?

The first artst that came to mind was one I discovered last year when I walked past one of his works on the street. Bansky is a British graffiti artist, political activist and painter whose identity is unconfirmed - which makes him even cooler. His street art is satirical, subversive and combines irreverent dark humour with graffiti.

After many debates during Art classes at school, inspiration from Mona Lisa Smile and thoughts from my own head - I have decided that art lacks a satisfactory definition. It is certainly one of the most subjective topics of the world, and it should stay that way. Art is not something to be judged. It has to be looked at with both eyes, wide open and ready to accept or reject, with reason of course.

So with that, I give rise to Banksy - with an open mind, an admiration and after looking through a few works, definitely some sort of love.

More rules to the SA race game - Story for Journ

A story I wrote for an Online Writing assignment for Journalism 1:

Nestled on the slopes of Table Mountain stands one of Africa's top higher education institutions, the University of Cape Town (UCT).

Over the past century, it has produced distinguished graduates such as the late Professor Christiaan Barnard, a world-renowned heart surgeon, as well as Nobel laureates such as Sir Aaron Klug and novelist J M Coetzee.

UCT is a prestigious and internationally recognised institution, but what has tainted its reputation somewhat is its insistence on applying a controversial race based admissions policy. At the heart of the problem is the management's widely held belief that "race is a proxy for disadvantage".

To stand a realistic chance to study for the MBChB degree at Cape Town, white pupils must get at least 90% in five matric subjects, 80% in the sixth and 80% in a national benchmark test. African pupils, on the other hand, who get 70%-79% in six subjects and at least 50% in the benchmark test, stand a good chance of securing a place.

Vice-Chancellor of UCT, Dr Max Price writes in an article entitled “Is there a place for race at a university?” that he “does not dispute that policies using race or disadvantage will reduce the number of white students gaining entry. But we must not forget the context in which white students still currently have accesses to higher education”.

An example of such a scholar is first year medic student Zanré Nell, who is currently studying at the University of Witwatersrand. Nell applied to UCT in 2009 with 9 distinctions in subjects such as Science, Mathematics and Biology. She was also the leader of various committees and sports. “I thought I would have been easily accepted into UCT, I felt rather rejected” says Nell.

In opposition to Price, and in support of students like Nell, Professor Neville Alexander, director of PRAESA, wrote an article in response to Price entitled “We’ll pay the price for race cowardice”. He mentioned that having such a policy would be a “disastrous moment in the history of higher education in South Africa”. Nell echoes Alexander; “When I was rejected, it felt like I was in the old South Africa. UCT need to eliminate the issues of the past”.

In a Sunday Times article entitled “UCT urged to scrap race criteria” Alexander rebuttals to Price’s comments stating that the admission points score should be the same for all pupils. "I don't believe in this nonsense of race. It's silly and unnecessary; we need to find a better alternative” says Alexander.

Perhaps Alexander is right, but looking at it from a black student’s point of view, the situation proves to provoke sympathy for both sides. Lusanda Zibaya, a medical student at UCT says the race-based policy is “merely a way to try to assist those smart kids who come from disadvantaged areas but have done significantly well considering their educational circumstances”.

South Africa has toiled for over a decade at becoming a democratic, non-racial and multicultural country. However this cannot happen overnight. Of course, UCT cannot expect a calm response from people when they use race as a proxy for disadvantage; it essentially perpetuates racial identity. But by selecting more black students, UCT is certainly taking the step to transform society and erase the stereotypes that black people are disadvantaged.

Keeping the peace on the Jammie stairs

Nevertheless, where is the line drawn? New students are still required when applying for admission, to classify themselves according to race. Consequently, Nell and many others feel that by ticking the “white” box, they lessen their chances of getting a seat in a lecture theatre.

Debates continue, but it is hard to tell when the day will come that students like Nell and Zibaya will not feel disadvantaged to one another in any way.

The crux of the matter remains; when will South Africa and its education system finally put the bitter issue of race to past and back out of the race game entirely?

(See live debate on UCT campus or televised debate on ETV for full coverage of the debates)

Finally - "The Bucket List"

I started a lame list of about 5 things I wanted to do in the next year or so when I was in Grade 8. Over the next few years though, it became a bit longer, and I started completing some of them. Eventually I decided to add things to it. I suppose I liked the idea of having some dreams and goals written down. I have been fortunate enough to complete some of the things and once that started happening, it seemed to me easier to just add more.

 
So, here is my list that I have spoken about in the last million posts :) It is ridiculous and virtually impossible of completing, but its here. Maybe all of them will have a bullet next to them by the time I kick it :) Happy reading

Things to do before it’s too late

• Send a message in a bottle
• Keep a diary for a few years
• Make friends for life
• Backpack through Europe

Watch as many Best Picture Oscar winning movies as I can

Get myself to the 2012 Olympics in England (fail :(

Learn to wolf whistle

Succeed at something I’m not particularly good at: running/swimming

Learn to cook a proper meal, not just egg on toast 

• Campout in my garden
• Have a big 18^th birthday with all my friends, and a grand 21st
• Spend a year away from home
• Use public transport by myself
• Get kicked out of a club

Create my family tree

Run at least a half marathon with my dad: Entered: Two Oceans 21km April 2012

Experience weightlessness; skydive, and Bungee jump 

Watch the “top 50 movies of all time”

Read the “top 50 books of all time”

Get another tattoo and piercing

• Sing karaoke, really loudly. And sing normally in front of people.
• Spend a night in a tree house
• Get something published

Ride an elephant in Thailand

• Meet someone famous (Hansie Kronje, Johnny Clegg, David Hasselhoff!)
• Stay in a really cheap, dingy hostel
• Jump off the Orlando Towers in Soweto
• Go on a barge through England
• Say a big speech in front of a big crowd
• Have a holiday romance
• Work as a waitress at least once
• Be a bartender
• Go to a strip club
• Stand inside the Colosseum 
• Go on a road trip with friends

Ride in a convertible with the top down

Sit at the Li River in China

Learn how to dive from a diving board

Learn how to play a song on the guitar

• Learn another language after school: French, Rhodes, 2011
• Be completely and helplessly broke
• Have a snowball fight and make snow angels
• Gamble at Monte Carlo
• Paintball till I look like I’ve been beaten up

See the Sistine chapel

See the Imperial Palace in Japan

Get smashed on tequila in Mexico

• See my name in print
• Stand in a seriously ancient city

Swim with dolphins

Walk down Miami Boulevard

Go to the Pamplona Bull Run

Climb Mt. Kilimanjaro with Greg

• Bake a cake

Go to the La Tomatina Valencia – Tomato throwing festival in Spain

Get over myself & eat spicy food in India, fish and chips in London and drink coffee in Costa Rica

Be in Australia/New Zealand for Anzac day

Take my mom out for a spectacular dinner

See every bit of my beautiful country

• Go on the best road trips with the best people: The Vaal (Katz), Gtown runs (Palesa and Mom), CT (George and Matty), Mpumalanga (Matty and I)
• Go on a cruise
• Complete matric, and go to Rhodes

Become a journalist, and go on to be a great photo-journalist and photographer

White water river raft

See the rose-red city, Petra in Jordan

• Notting Hill Carnival, and see the blue door from the movie.
• Go to a wedding (and dance to cheesy wedding music)

Keep in contact with all my friends from school, university and Gap.

Go on holiday with Megan

See the Hollywood sign

Take Greg to an awesome rock concert

Tango in Argentina and Samba in Brazil

• Take photos, of everything
• Come home when the sun is coming up
• Drive the Garden Route and the Winelands through Stellies

Speed-datefor fun

Plant a tree

Go to a Mardi Gras

Visit the Holy Land

Walk the Great Wall of China

Walk the streets of Tokyo after dark, and see a sumo wrestling match during the day

Go to Auschwitz

• Fall in love – helplessly and unconditionally, give my heart to somebody who is worth it.
• Attend at least one major sporting event

Keep on dancing

Go to Summerfest (Wisconsin)/ Bonnaroo (Tennessee), TOMORROWLAND, the biggest music fests in USA

• Go on a blind date
• Go on a real, amazing date

See Vancouver, Canada

Do the Santiego wine tour in Chile

• Have a roommate/house mate (Rose 2009. Greg 2012)
• Make a completely embarrassing video... and put it on the internet

Walk within the Amazon

See Mt Fuji and take a ride on the Shinkansen Bullet Train in Japan

Visit the Eternal Spring Shrine in Taiwan

Run to the top of the Statue of Liberty and the Eiffel Tower

Go to Earthdance (Cape Town), Splashy Fen (Drakensburg), Ox Braai (EC) &Oppie Koppie (Limpopo)

Scuba dive in the Great Barrier Reef

Experience real traffic in Calcutta

Lose more money than I can afford at roulette in Vegas.

See the Buddha statue near Po Lin Monastery in Hong Kong

Never EVER go to an old age home.

Go up in a hot air balloon

Be in at least one production on the west end, even if I’m just an extra

Smoke a freshly rolled cigar in Cuba

Go to the Glastonbury festival and Bestival festival in  the UK

See the Taj Mahal

Sit at the Milford Sound in New Zealand

Donate to a charity, anonymously

Swim with dolphins

View a cherry blossom in Japan in April, spring time

Take the road to Mandalay River course in Burma

Go skinny dipping at midnight in the South of France

Be an extra in a film

Go to the heart of Bali in Indonesia

See a Sonya Tayeh dance

Go to the Dubrovnik Summer festival in Croatia

• Spend some time in university being completely healthy and treating my body well (ha) DONE :)
• See the Sydney Opera house
• Ride a mechanical bull

Drink beer at Oktoberfest in Munich

See Vietnam

Shower in a waterfall

Go to the Hagia Sophia in Turkey

See a soccer match at the Maracana stadium in Brazil

• Attend a Soccer World Cup match
• See a play at the Shakespeare Globe and the West End
• Go to the Grahamstown Arts Festival

Go to Waldon Pond in Massachusetts and read a book while drifting in a canoe

• Eat strawberries at the Wimbledon tournament
• Ride a camel
• See the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona

Own a room with a view

Have a school reunion, 2018

Watch an orchestral performance in Vienna

• Get high in Amsterdam
• Finish a 2l beer in Germany

See an Opera

Walk through the underwater tunnel on Sentosa Island in Singapore

Go to Burning Man, in Nevada

• Teach/help someone to read (Inkwenkwezi 2011 plus more)

Photograph an endangered species, to capture the fragility of life

Go to the source of the Nile, to witness a humble beginning

Get married and have a family

• Climb the great pyramid of Egypt
• Drink Jagarmeister in Austria

See a match at Soccer City Stadium, Soweto

• Cross a country

See Les Calanches – the mountain in the middle of the sea near France

• Visit Robben Island

Write a letter of gratitude to Nelson Mandela

Knit a scarf

Go to a gay pride festival

• Stand at the Berlin Wall
• Go to the heart of art and culture - Florence
• Party with the Greeks on a Greek Island
• Have a ride on the London Eye
• Go to the Henley Regatta
• Visit Rozski

Lie on Copacabana beach in Rio

See a Lunar Eclipse

Sit deep within the country side of Scotland

Stand at the North or South Pole

Go to St. Petersburg, in winter

Visit the birthplace of Van Gogh, in Zundert, Holland and Monet in Paris

Drive the Great Ocean road along Australia’s southern coast

Go to the Rio carnival

• Eat a lot of bread in Paris, and snails.

Own my own house, and spend time making it a home. (Make love in every room with the person I end up owning it with)

• Also, have great, life changing, crazy, adventurous, slow, fast, fun, loving and mind-blowing sex - with the right person. (A bit explicit, but its a life experience)
• Go to the Oxford Cambridge boatrace

Uffizi Gallery in Florence

Go on a long, thorough safari in Africa

• See the Mona Lisa in the Lourve

See Anne Franks house in Amsterdam

Witness the serpent coming down the steps at Chichén Itzá in Mexico (during autumn or spring equinox)

Do the Lewis and Clark trail in West America, Portland

Experience complete solitude at the Skeleton coast in Namibia

See the Neuschwanstein Castle – where Sleeping Beauty’s castle got its inspiration

Do the Otter trail

• Kiss the Blarney Stone

Go to the Caribbean, Bahamas, Ibiza and Bermuda islands

San Juan Islands between Washington and Canada

Catch a cab, shop and try to walk in NY City

Visit San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, Texas

See the ring road, the only ice free landscape in Iceland

Walk through the La Mezquita columns in Spain

Sand board in Dubai

See the Niagra Falls

• Write on the John Lennon tribute wall in Prague
• Be someone’s mentor
• Go to the top of Table Mountain
• Visit and appreciate the Tate Modern

Do the Inca trail up Huayna Picchu in Peru

Watch Africa’s wildlife mass together after the rainy season in Kenya at Masai Mara

• Buy a Venetian mask, have a toga party and ride a gondola in Venice
• Have a picnic under the Swiss Alps
• See the Stonehenge

Learn to surf in Australia

See the White House

See the view of Corcovado in Brazil

Tiptoe through the tulip fields in Amsterdam’s Keukenhof gardens

See Ayres Rock in Australia

Torres Del Paine National Park in Chile/Argentina

Camp under the stars at the Kruger Park

See a show at the Moulin Rouge and see Notre Dame

Volunteer overseas

• Take a photo holding up the leaning tower of Pisa
• Paint canvases, lots of them, of whatever I want

Stand at the Amalfi coast

Go to as many World Youth Days as I can

Go to the Salzburg Festival and appreciate where classic music came from

Go back to the UK to work and live in London for a while

Do an exchange year from Rhodes

Dream job(s):Travel photographer, commercial/studio photographer for a fun commercial magazine, photojournalist, magazine editor.

• Backpack-travel (without a plan)

Set foot on every continent and put my feet in every ocean

Live in a country that doesn’t speak English, and learn the ways of life from the locals (Holland 2014, make it happen)

Make a record of everywhere I go (travel blog etc) and then publish something about it.

See the 7 natural and manmade wonders… plus every other wonder

Natural

-          Mt. Everest (Nepal/China)

-          Great barrier reef (Australia, Queensland coast)

-          Grand canyon (Arizona, USA)

-          Victoria falls (Zimbabwe)

-          The harbour of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

-          Paricutin volcano (Michoacán, Mexico)

-          The northern lights (Norway, or any northern, cold country)

Man-made

-          Hanging gardens of Babylon (Euphrates, South of Baghdad in Iraq)

-          Statue of Zeus at Olympia (Athens, Greece)

-          Temple of Artimis at Ephesus (Turkey)

-          Mausoleum at Halicarnassus (Turkey)

-          Colossus of Rhodes (Greece)

-          Lighthouse of Alexandria (Egypt) 

•    Pyramids of Egypt (Cairo)

Linklove: but linking the gingers

This is what happens when you get distracted by Grahamstown/work/roadtrips/term time and the general loveliness of the people around you. You forget about your blog. I was only reminded of it in a journ lecture the other day where the topic was well, blogging. So I decided to sit down this Thursday afternoon and type something intelligent, or what may seem intelligent. But just for you Jude, I will add some link love. And also let my "personality, relevent aspects of my experience and learning and informed opinions illuminate on my small screen".

Much has happened since the July holidays, Mom and Greg came for a visit and it was possibly one of the best weekends of term. The annual frivolty of Trivar and Boatraces has passed, Nicky turned 21, Georgia passed more wholesome and hilarious comments and our group of friends found a happy grounding and bond. I also took a Rhode trip down to Cape Town with my friendlings. I hadn't experienced the city since I was 9, and then I wasn't grown up enough to appreciate the beauty of it.

But the loveliest news of late, and probably the most head turning news for the campus populous is that; I am dating a ginger. Yes. Yes I am. And when we walk together or when you glance at a photo of us, it is almost too much red to see at once. Not really though.

Matty has one of the biggest hearts I know. He is a natural at care-giving, and the best listener I know. Although he is almost the exact opposite to me - we seem to gain a lot from each other and I am loving him a little more each day. 

And beacuse we are both gingers, we seem to understand each other - in our ginger-powered ways (its true).

I found a GINGERS HAVE SOULS blog. And they do. If you have witnessed this video you will know how entertaining it is, and how much fun can come out of speaking about our type. I know people here love teasing but I also know that there is love there.

Non-gingers love gingers (secretly) - and evidently - we love each other too :)

Much more blogging to do, and much more thigns to say. Stay tuned!

Shiny.

My mom and I have always been really close. And when I think of her when I miss her in Grahamstown, one of the first things I think of is how annoying her message alert tone is on her cellphone. Sweet huh? Haha no it is her favourite Parlotones song Bird in flight and it plays the entire song until she finds her phone to turn it off. It has one of those really loud bang bang intros that when it comes out the phone speaker, sounds like hardi-dar birds. But, I end up missing hearing it.

Anyway, as a post world cup musing I went to watch one of my favourite South African bands, The Parlotones. When they first became known, I didn’t think much of them but slowly song after song I started listening to their lyrics more carefully, which on their new album – are particularly inspiring. These are some of the lyrics from my mom’s favourite tune;

Stop holding on so damn tight - love is like, it's like a bird in flight. The tighter you grip. The looser it slips, love is like, it's like a bird in flight.

When I was watching these guys I was reminded of last year a lot. When I let go, I believed that what I lost would come back to me one day. Now I see that it isn’t about that. Whether the bird you let go comes back to you, isn’t up to you. Exactly what the lyrics say, the tighter you grip the more it slips away. So only recently I stopped holding onto this idea I had of creating my own fate. Whatever happens surely is meant to be. And to be a total cliché, everything happens for a reason. This might just be a convenient formula that allows us to shed responsibility for our actions, but if you’re living your life and feeling good about it – then it must be true. Nothing happens by means of chance or good or bad luck. Everything in life tests the limits of our hearts. If whatever your bird is you may have let go, if it flies back to you, then it was meant to be. But if it doesn’t, then that isn’t up to you anymore to make it. I am equally free as the love in my life is, after all.

I am back at Rhodes now after a nice long break, and I was just telling my mom that I feel like I have 'rebonded' with a lot of old friends. It was so nice. Katz, Sim and I had a big drunk sleep over the other night which was hell fun :) It reminded me that the precious things in life are always there, you just need to take the time to appreciate them. Sim took these photos of me that are up which are really cool too. Katz once told me that things happen when you stop looking. She was right. And plus, life is too short to look for things. It doesn’t make any sense to waste that time. I believe what the Parlotones say in one of my favourite songs by them;

Feed me fantasy, so I'll believe - We're gonna fly to the moon. Side step reality - Build my world on fantasy, We're gonna fly to the moon. We'll build a ladder, we'll build a ladder and we'll climb to the moon. We'll grow some wings, we'll grow some wings, And we'll fly to the moon.

And we'll dream with open eyes, not in the recess of our murky minds. (I adore that line)

I might not be totally aware of reality, I’m quite ditzy sometimes actaully and I often try and side step reality’s harshness and pretend I am in my own fantasy world. Have a little day dream every now and then, okay actually a lot. But its what I live off. I live off my dreams and I get all my energy from just knowing that making them into reality is actaully possible. As ridiculous as they might be. And they really are. I keep meaning to put up my bucket list but I add to it almost every day – so it would have to be edited all the time. This isn’t a bad thing :) But the cool thing is that reality is sweeetass too. It is when your fantasy world merges with your real one that firework explosions happen in life.

But people generally still seem to be concerned with what their purpose is and where they are meant to be going and are they heading in the right direction or not. My answer? It’s surely not worth worrying about too much. If you have goals and dreams to go somewhere and do something, then it is surely up to you to make that happen. And when it does, life will take you somewhere else, and you will meet people who might change your life. And ones who might not. And ones who may come back later and ones you will neer see again. How do we know what life’s plan is? We don’t. Its that simple.

I read somewhere that the description of fate is the universal principle by which the order of things is presumably prescribed. I like to think that whatever is prescribed all has meaning. And when it happens, whether we make it happen or it catches us somewhat offguard, it was meant to happen anyway. And if you are absurdly keen to know what life has in store for you, remember this – we often meet our fate on the road we take to avoid it. A french proverb told me that. It’s smart.

Einstein, that genius of a man once said; strange is the situation here upon earth. It is strange, and people are strange. But it is wonderful. As I have grown up and the people around me have grown up I have seen that everyone is starting to realise that life is too short. Especially at university and any student vibe.. It is just full of young people wanting to make something out of their lives. I think we have all come to realise that instead of being taught something and then being tested on it like we were at school, we are now just given the test straight away and the outcome teaches us the lesson.

Some Hindu spiritual guy says that the key to life is to take up one idea and make that idea your life. Think of it, dream of it, live on it. Let the brain, muscles, nerves and every part of your body be full of that idea and just leave every other idea alone. I like to think that ideas and dreams are limitless and over and above the pain this life may cause sometimes, having more than one idea or dream gives us the right energy we need. Seriously, the possibilities of this world are endless.

After all, the sun comes up every day doesn’t it? And until it doesn’t, we better give it a good reason to shine for us.

Let’s all be indispensable. And when our lives flash before our eyes one day, let’s make sure it is worth watching.