WooooooHooooooo

My HOLIDAYS have officially started ........

I am leaving work right now ... walking out the door ...well as soon as I have posted this blog LOL .... Only Back to School on Wednesday 9th January ...

If I don't manage to post over the Holidays .... cos I'll be way toooooo busy soaking up the HEAT in POLOKWANE ...

Or maybe the 20.12.2012 'THING' happens !!! I'm just putting it out there to you all:

Happy Christmas ... and a Peaceful New year

Just have to share todays O.I.A moment ...

Picture this ... it's 3.45am ... I am FAST asleep ... dead to the world ... not even thinking of waking yet and SON-shine wakes me with a 'JANET' .... I'm like W.T.F ... he said he'd called MUM at least 5 times and I did'nt even move LOL

Anyway ... why is he waking me at that un-GOD-ly hour ??? Seems he was woken by 'something' slapping him in the face !!! WHAT ... he said he was fast asleep and felt something slap his face ... he said he switched the light on ... but saw nothing ... curled back into bed and was just about to go back to sleep when he felt this thing moving in bed with him and he dived out of bed and RAN into my room (PMSL) ..

SO the time it takes me to drag my old aching bones out of bed to find his mystery visitor he then tells me its flying around in the lounge !!!!I told him it was probably a big moth or something ... but he says 'no it's way bigger ..

WELL folks it was a BAT...next was the funniest thing you can ever imagine !!! there I am trying hard to distract this poor creature and get him to fly out of the front doors ... all I'm gonna say is if the neighbours were awake at that crazy hour they would have called the 'Funny Farm' for me !!!! You know those ground crew guys that direct the planes into their places at the airport >??? well there I am in my PJ's with a couple of tea towels instead of paddles and I'm 'directing' my 'airbat' out the door ... It was freekin hilarious ,,,, eventually the poor chap escaped through the patio doors ...

ONLY IN AFRICA !!!

Well ... that's it ... I survived

Another academic year draws to an end ... today is officially the last day of school for 2012 ... well for the kids anyway ... we staff still have to go into work for 2 days next week ... but just to tidy up and get started on plans for next year ... Can you believe it but I have survived my first year 'back at school' LOL

 So this last week has been chaos ... what with the end of year PROM (which turned out to be a huge success) ... me as the 'photographer' ... over 1000 photos taken and I spent a further 16 hours editing !!!

Of course SON-shine was with me on the night so he just had to strike a pose !!!

But having him there meant I was able to get my face in a few pictures too ... the Super 7's staff:

The clean up afterwards ... all the end of year class parties etc ... running around from left to right and back to front ... everyone expecting their things to have priority !!! Grrrr ... don't do the 'octopus' thing too well ... but I promised myself I would NOT be loosing the temper or the plot !!! OK so I did loose it a little ... all I'm going to say on this matter is that I now have 1 less Christmas present to buy !!!!

Today we also had our 'staff' lunch ... it was really great to be able to let one's hair down  ... sadly though some let down yet more than their hair ... and this time I'm glad I was not one of them ... you know that old saying ... something about becoming like the company you keep !!! Well I'm pleased to say I've changed company recently !!! I went, I ate and I enjoyed my lunch ... and at just the right time I walked away...LOL

Kelsey's last day was on Wednesday ... so now he's finished his Gr 9 year ... don't know about his results yet ... we have to wait for the report card to be delivered in the post ... so we wait in anticipation !!! I know he's passed Gr9 ... but I still want to SEE the results ...

And so now my Christmas preparations start ... got things to make, places to go and people to see ... Paul arrives here next week Friday ... we planning a trip up to Nan's place in Polokwane (well I need to some sunshine ... so I figured if the sun ain't coming to me ... I'm going to it) Kelsey is hoping to spend some time in the bush with Alex and I'm gonna spend some quality time with BFF ... well that's the plan anyway ...

WeatherSA myTown: Durban (Hillcrest)

WeatherSA myTown: Durban (Hillcrest)

RAIN>>>>>>>>RAIN>>>>>>>>>RAIN !!!

Oh LOOK ...

The forecast for tomorrow .... MORE RAIN !!!

Now there's a surprise !!!!!!

Guess What !!!

Its raining ...Still... Again ... in fact has it actually ever stopped .... like ever ??? I mean exactly when was the last time it didn't rain ... no honestly people ... has it always rained and I just imagined the SUN-shine??? Was that all just a DREAM???

Right ... I have ranted and I have raved ... so lets move on again ...

SO What's been happening ??? Well SON-shine (that's the only type of SON I seem to be able to get these days !!! LOL) has almost finished his final exams for 2012...can't believe it ... only 2 more exams to go and then we wait with crossed fingers and hope that he has passed Gr9 ... I think he has ... I've pretty much left him alone this year ... well since I started working fulltime I don't have the 'time' to be there as much for him ...and to date he's made me very proud ... he's managed to pass 3 out of the 4 terms ... but that only accounts for a 1/3rd of his final marks ... BUT I have faith ... I believe he can do it ... and I have given him a huge incentive too ... he has been 'hassling' me to get a tattoo ... so I've told him ... decent marks = yes to a tattoo !!! (Teenagers ... everything is a bargain or a negotiation ... mmm wonder what's gonna happen when I run out of those 'chips' ? )

And me ... we're doing all the things that a school does at the end of every year ... wow ... it's unbelievable the things that have to be done ... the kids in our school are all finished their exams and the teachers are running around frantically getting final reports done, planning for next year and such like. Sally & I -  we have to do all sorts of stock takes ... count all sorts of crap  - like old books, equipment blah, blah, blah ... cover all the new books for next year ... we're moving onto a new 'programme' so we have something like 3000 books to cover in plastic ... HOW EXCITING --- NOT !!!

However ... this week I have had a fond reminder of St. Joseph's ... the Gr4's have been responsible for doing the Nativity this year ... and as the T/A for the Gr4's it has been my job to organise the programme... get all the words of my favourite Christmas Carols, help out with their costumes etc. ...and as you all know I LOVE CHRISTMAS ... so with tonights performance the kids just brought the Spirit of Christmas right into our hearts ... it was really lovely ... I was very proud of them ...

Sally and I are also working on the Gr7 Prom ... well she's doing most of it ... I'm just there to lend a helping hand ... and of course my main job ... Photographer for the evening (Oh the proms this Friday by the way) ...which means I know what I'm going to be doing all weekend ... PHOTO EDITING !!! The theme this year is Island Party ... we even gave the kids a message in the bottle as their invitation !!! See sometimes parts of my job are being 'creative' ... and from tomorrow we're in the hall 'decorating it ' for Friday night .... The diversity of my life LOL

Oh and going back to Christmas ... I've started my Christmas 'Cre-ating' ... but of course I can't show you any of it as that would spoil the 'surprises' for those of you who read my blog who may or may not be thinking they're getting something from me this year !!!(sorry M have I lost you again???) BUT I will set myself a reminder to post photos of the creations once Christmas is over ... cos I'm liking this years ideas ... even if I say so myself!!!

Gonna go now ... so wanted this to be a quick post (ROFLMAO) me ... do a quick post!!! hell no I post just like I talk .... LOTS!!!!!!!!!!

NOW... what the hell...

So here  I am ... minding my own business (hahahah) and getting used to the signs of old age creeping up on me, the aches and pains ... the body moaning and groaning cos of the damp and the cold ... when BANG ... a pain in the left foot ... (OK I have a high pain threshold ...and I don't like doctors!!!)  so I ignore it ... for a few weeks !!! as only I can ...until the ankle begins to represent something from Elephant Man ... and then I give in ... and go to see the doctor ...

Guess what ... I have torn the Achilles tendon in my left foot !!! W.T.F

Doc says to me "my guess is Mrs Bell that this has been a problem for a couple of weeks" DUH you figure !!! OK so my doctor knows me too hahahaha!!! Anyway .. Doc ... how does this happen ... he tells me it usually happens with athletes who haven't warmed up properly (ROFLMAO) or athletes that do quick sprints (hell yes that's me !!! practising for my next Olympic games) ... doesn't usually happen to lazy fat cows !!! But then again ... when have I ever been normal !!!

So the cure ... REST hahahahahaha ... guess my doc doesn't know me that well then does he ??? Oh and I also have to change my shoes ... try to get me a pair of shoes without heel or straps ... need to get some 'backless' shoes !!! (Hell yes another excuse for shoe shopping ....wahoooo)

And while we're on ailments and injuries ... on Friday SON-shine is in the garden ... enjoying the odd 20mins of NO RAIN ... me ... foolishly playing ball with Kleo ... SON-shine 'rocket launches' the rugby ball out of his hands into the air ...shouts "heads up" too late .... BOOOINK onto the top of my head !!! OMG I saw the whole of the Milky Way in that split second !!!and heard my vertebra CRUNCH together .... well that pain took away the pain in my foot for about the next 4hours ... and boy oh boy I woke up on Saturday morning with the stiffest neck EVA !!!

SO I used my son's 'beating and battering of mum' to guilt trip him into going shopping with me (sorry M am I being too random again???) mind you ... he did want to look for new rugby boots ... so it was 'nt all about ME ... and we got the Christmas shopping started too ... so overall a good weekend ...all be it a painful one !!!

Evolution ...Africa style !!!

That’s it ... I am officially suffering from W.A.D..... WEATHER AFFECTED DEPRESSION!!! I woke up this morning and discovered WEBS growing between my toes ... and this bad ‘croak’ ... this ‘pissing’ rain is turning us all into amphibians!!!!

They said on the radio this morning that the average annual rainfall for our area over this past 3 month is usually 95mm of rain ... we have had 135mm of rain JUST IN OCTOBER alone !!! Now do you understand why I think I’m becoming an amphibian???

Between that and the lack of bloody electricity on this fecking complex … we are becoming nocturnal amphibians!!! Today was the perfect example ... sun was shinning when we woke ... 6am the power went out ... it was out for 5hours ... only came back on at 11am ... the sun did'nt even last that long !!! 3 hours before the mist rolled back in and now you can't see your hand in front of your face !!! BUT we still sitting with the doors open cos it's so sticky hot !!!

Anyway why bother complaining about things that one has no control over ... but you know me I just have to have a moan!!!

WOW can you believe it another month has gone by!!! And yet again another HECTIC month...

Once the UK visitors (Paul & Martyn) left us ... we were back into our routine ... and this term Kelsey (although he said he was going to have a break from too much sports!!!) decided he was joining the Touch Rugby Squad AND Water Polo ... so yet again EVERY day bar Friday he was in training until 4pm and until 6.30pm on Tuesday and Thursday ... now what I’m about to say will probably make me a bad mother... but it has been sooooo nice having my afternoons to myself ... especially when I finish work at 2.30pm and I didn’t have to collect him till 6pm some nights .... Managed to get a bit of reading done... and some ‘sorting’ of ‘stuff’ ... but it hasn’t lasted ... now the stress levels are up ... we are 1 weekend away from starting year end exams !!! Grrr RRRrrr ... and having a “know it all” teenager in the house!!! AAAaaaarrrrggggghhhh!!!!

Not having rugby on weekends has also been bliss ... to actually have my weekends to myself has been nice ... well not actually having the weekends just to myself ... but not having to be on the side of a rugby pitch for several hours during the weekend has been nice ... although I still have to be Mrs Taxi ... between mum and Kelsey!!! But at least there are no deadlines and no definite plans, and it’s all socialising LOL...

OH! OH! I just have to tell you ... I have re-discovered my MOJO ... YES ... you heard it right!!! ... I’m a born again Crafter ... and why all the excitement and enthusiasm I hear you say ... well ... Last week Saturday I attended a WOW (Words of Wisdom) Workshop ...( I know some of you are seriously going to be rolling your eyes right about now) ... and this workshop was on ‘something’ that I have tried my hand at before .. Art Journaling ... and BEFORE ... I just didn’t get IT ... but I don’t know whether it was the venue, the people, the teacher or maybe just IT was the RIGHT TIME... But WOW is most definitely the right word to use.... I came out of that workshop ... REJUVENATED, REVIVED and “enlightened” ... the teacher Sharyn ... she just seemed to be able to find the right buttons to push ... and now all I want to do is journal and paint and colour and craft and make pretty ...BUT as The Princess of Procrastination ... even though I am very motivated!!! I am still able to find oh sooo many reasons why I can’t be doing more!!! BUT one day when I’m retired!!!! LOL

My 1st WOW page ...

Oh and we have a new material shop in town … I know you can all stand back up again … yes ME and Material … well after Sally very kindly taught me how to make simple elasticised top trousers (we had to make them for the school play) I decided maybe it was time for me to ‘have a go’!!!… AND Sally has been getting a new sewing machine … well … we have been ‘inventing’ new clothes … Sally has been sewing and actually again as P of P … I have been buying the material … and I have been buying yet more material!!! As only I can!!! Not 1 stitch has been sewn by yours truly YET!!! But I will … one day when I’m retired!!!

Can you believe it ... but Kelsey has only 13 more days of school this year then he goes to Grade 10 ... I have 17 days of work and I have completed my first academic year LOL and ONLY 38 days till Christmas !!! 27 more days till Paul arrives (again) ... time is just going by sooooo fast . Been soooo busy trying to organise and sort out all the plans for Christmas ... who's going where ... who we gonna see for Christmas etc.etc.etc.

Yes it's me .... and this IS gonna be a long one

Yes people ... Don't all pass out now....I'm back on line ... And hoping that now that I finally have yet more technology at my fingertips that I may just ...".nah not even gonna make any promises that I'm not going to keep".... Ok forget that ... as I've just broken part of my new technology !!! Oh crap"

Anyway moving right along !!!

So my last post ended with the school play ... which was loved by all and a huge success... and another thing crossed off my 2012 list ... and of course I have to mention Kelsey and HVJR .. sadly their team was beaten in the finals but our boys made us proud by bringing home the silver cup... well done HVJR U15A squad ... another hugely successful season over.

Wow  !!!

What an awesome and eventful October we have had ... And it's not even over yet......

And where do I start ... SADLY at the end of September we lost a very valuable member of our family Indiana 4 Paws ... she was taken ill and the vet thought she had biliary (doggies version of tick bite fever) unfortunately it was worse ....after tests and eventually the vet operating on her it was discovered she had a tumour the size of her stomach and unfortunately there was nothing they could do to save her...

R.I.P Indi 4th July 2008 - 27th September 2012 (she is missed every day)

Paul and Martyn arrived ... safely (see Martyn flying ain't so bad is it???) on Friday 28th September and no sooner did the guys arrive than our holiday began ... we drove up to Polokwane ... my idea was for Martyn to enjoy the scenery and see the vastness and  just some of the beauty that South Africa has to offer. I loved seeing South Africa through someone else's eyes... does that make any sense ??? And I do believe Martyn liked what he saw... well he has promised that in true Arnie style(or Schumacher ...inside joke LOL) ... he'll be back !!!

We had an AWESOME couple  of days up in Polokwane with Nan and the kids ... fantastic 30'c - 36'c  HOT HOT HOT SA weather ... (oh I soooo miss the Summer !!!) Martyn was given the full SA heat treatment LOL ... he learnt to appreciate why most of us have pools at home ... we all swam, sunned and consumed copious amounts of alcohol (all so we did not get dehydrated of course) of course Nan and family were yet again the perfect hosts ... Nan had organised for us to join Alexia and Meghan at Jembisa Game Lodge for the most amazing 2 days of game drives, bush walking and even boar hunting ... yes you read it right ... Kelsey actually shot his first wild boar ... what an experience for both Kelsey and Martyn ... and of course I got to spend time with my bestest ever friend in the whole wide world ... what an absolutely wonderful wonderful couple of days ... thank you Nan, kids, Andy & Lorraine ... we'll see you guys again soon ... Christmas is not that far away

The boys swimming in crocodile and hippo infested lake ...

The last of the great white hunters !!!

Kelsey's  first kill ... approx 60kg warthog !!!

So after an awesome couple of days in the bush it was back down to the coast ... and of course had to make sure Martyn got the full treatment .. the Hillcrest fog, rain, mist, wind and everything else that this town has to offer... We did the Phezulu African Village/Safari and Fear Factor Lunch !!! (in mist and rain !!!)

Martyn picking a new wife from the Zulu Village LOL ...

Fear Factor lunch ... eating in the crocodile pit ... and YES that is a REAL crocodile !!!(BUT the lunch was NOT crocodile ... they ate beef burgers ... apparently the croc likes those too, as well as human butts LOL ...)

One of Phezulu's newest arrivals ... the latest 'Baby' Giraffe , and he was a right poser, I managed to get some awesome up close and personal pics ...

Next we did the true Durban experience ... the Beach and the Indian Ocean ... followed by uShaka Marine World and Aquarium ...we had to make sure Martyn saw everything that Durban has to offer ...

Sun, Sea & Sand ...

Paul & Kelsey took advantage of the scuba diving at the Aquarium ...

While Martyn & I did the dark depths of the aquarium ...LOL and then we offered the sharks a tasty morsel ... Kelsey or Martyn???

To add yet MORE to Martyn's SA experience ... we trekked inland to go swinging through the tops of one of our indigenous forests at Karkloof ... yes he experienced the Karkloof Canopy Tour ... regular fans will know Kelsey & I did this a couple of months back and it was fantastic then ... but this time there was THICK mist and fog ... what an even more incredible experience ... you set off on the zip line into the fog and had no idea what was coming at you .... WOW

Check out the mist ... Martyn playing Tarzan ...

And Paul swinging through the trees...

To prove we were all crazy enough to do this ...

Boys being boys ... and having fun

And of course we had to do a bit of local sight seeing ... took a quick detour to Howick Falls...

Martyn thought he's try the balancing act on the railings ... scared the shit out of me ...

and of course Paul had to do his pose too... thankfully he did'nt feel the need to try the balancing act ... cos knowing his luck ... he would have fallen !!!

Boys ... where to next???

Even after all this ... the boys still had another week here !!! K and I went back to school /work but I had sooo much for Paul & Martyn to do ... after all I had the HHS Sports Award Dinner to organise ... and they were my Biatches for that week LOL ...

Needless to say the sports award dinner was a huge success ... (of course it was ... yours truly organised it ... was there any doubt???) The theme was the Olympics... I had the boys hanging the 5 rings from the ceiling .. we had the Olympic flame on each table with the flowers representing the flames and the tables were the colours of the Olymipic rings ... shit I'm good at this stuff ... should've made a career outta it or something !!! Hahahaha

Kelsey was invited to join the DRSU  U15 invitational squad ... to play rugby of course ... which was pretty awesome as it meant Martyn & dad got to watch him play ... and typical Kelsey ... he plays the whole season with no injuries ... dad comes to watch him and he ends up with a bloodied eye !!!

We celebrated Paul's birthday with friends and the twisted sisters ... (well Martyn could not come all the way to SA and not meet them now could he???) another fantastic weekend and of course copious amounts of alcohol was consumed ...

Martyn made a few new friends before he left !!!

And then their 2 weeks holiday was OVA... and it was bye bye Paul & Martyn and back to normal for us ... and so that pretty much ends this epic chapter !!!

I'm back at work, Kelsey is back at school and the other two have gone back to the UK ... and our lives have gone pretty much back to BORING !!! Although I'm sure I'll find a few other bits and pieces to tell you about in the next post !!!

Time for an Update ....

Would love to be telling you that this update is going to be so riveting that you won't be able to take your eyes off my blog ... but eh NO !!! our life is actually very BORING at the moment !!!

Its work, work, work .... followed by rugby, rugby and rugby ...

Finally we have finished all the costumes for the school play ... dress rehearsals were on Friday and we've done all the necessary alterations ... now we just wait for first show tomorrow to the school ... then first public appearance will be on Wednesday night ... good luck to all the kids and well done to all the teachers and their spouses who have put in many hard long hours to get it ready ... will keep you posted !!!

K's team played in the Semi-Finals on Sunday ...  beat their opposition 47-7 ... so that means next Sunday we're in the finals ... I really hope the boys win Gold this year .... they have worked sooo hard ... would be nice for them considering they have'nt lost a match this season ... all HVJR Colts teams have done well this season ... they are all in the finals of their respective leagues ...

And the only other thing to mention ... the weather ... it has been so unpredictable of late ... heavy rains caused this weekends Currie Cup match at The Shark Tank to be more like Water-polo rather than rugby .... the teams had great fun aqua-scoring their trys !!!

I warned you ... my post was going to be BORING ....but we have another long weekend coming up ... Heritage Day on Monday ... everyone should be out enjoying a lekker braai ... mmmm maybe NOT ... and then schools out from Friday 28th September ... when Dad (and hopefully Martyn) will be arriving ... the 'hopefully' Martyn comment is due to the fact that he has promised he's coming over for a visit ... but he's absolutely terrified (ok maybe just not happy) about the flying bit !!! We've given him the full rundown on how to be on the flight but 'miss it' ... hopefully the drugs will work ... or maybe he won't even get on the plane !!! (Martyn ... get on the plane!!!) ... fans ... I'll keep you posted on that too... Martyn ignore the last paragraph ...

I've done it ... Finally ...

How clever am I ???? I've FINALLY re-set my laptop so I can SEE all the icons etc ... so now .... hoooorrraaaayyyyy ... I'm back in business !!! (oops still a few missing ... but lets see how we go)

SO does this mean this is gonna be a long post ... probably !!!!!!

Lets see if I can give my 'fans' a brief run down of what we've been up to in the last 7 weeks .. we got back from our UK trip hitting the ground ...RUNNING !!! Kelsey was straight back to school and the start of club rugby ... so my weekends are a blur of SUNDAY rugby now as opposed to Saturday rugby ...

Oh we had a long weekend break 9th - 12th August ... and we (Kelsey, Heini, Granny, June, Irena & myelf) all went away to Margate to celebrate Kelsey's 15th Birthday ... stayed in a great self catering 'cottage' near the beach and it was fantastic ... the weather was perfect and the boys had a blast... it was so nice to be within walking didtance of the beach ... we even managed to get mum to the beach ... as soon as she found out there was Wimpy right on the seashore she was a happy camper LOL.

Then from 13th August - 29th August we had a 'visitor' from the UK ... a young lad called Theo ... he was here in SA with a school group from London... they were working and supporting one of our local 'community' schools ... and we were a host family to him ... what a lovely young lad ... K and him got along like they had known each other all their lives ... luckily Theo is a rugby player ...he's studying for his A levels and a bit of a maths 'boff' which was awesome for K ... cos the time he was here he was able to assist K in his maths homeworks and studies ... Theo's girlfriend Kyah was also part of the group and she stayed with HHS family too ... so it was nice to be able to take the two of them places ... we just had to take Theo to a live Shark's game ... Kyah joined us and their enthusiasm was so infectious ...and you can't possibly come all this way and not go the beach ... what another really fantatsic day ... made nicer by the fact Cheyne & her kids joined us as well as a group of K's friends ... and others from the 'visiting group' also joined ... in the end we almost took over the beach LOL ...

No sooner did Theo leave than we got a 'surprise' visit from dad ... wow feels like I'm running a B&B here at the moment LOL .... can't keep up with who's in and who's out !!!

Typical of Paul to choose an incredibly busy weekend to join his family ... I had to work 1st september ... the Gr7's had their annual Spring Tea ... so Saturday was FULL ... and on Sunday we had the pleasure of joining the Archery's at The Helenic to celebrate Babes 75th Birthday ... and before you knew it the weekend was biting the dust !!!!

AND another farewell to Dad ... Paul was off back to the UK Monday night but the nice thing is only 3 weeks and he's back again ... Holy Shit ... just where is this year going ???

WORK is manic ... it's been from school photos, to Maths Olympiads, to Gr7 Entrepeneurs Day to Spring Tea, to Gr7 school play costume production, to sports day and all the other stuff in between ... I'm really struggling to keep the head above water at the moment ... and I'm already wishing it was the end of September ... this has got to be THE busiest term ever !!!!

The weather has been crazy too ... from snow in the Berg to temperatures of over 32'c ... it's just so hard to keep up ... and all of this has been in winter ... who knows what the summer is going to be like !!!!

And so endeth another UK trip ...

WOW is it really over already ???

Seems once Wednesday hit last week it was just down hill from there ...  actually no Thursday was a brilliant day at Meadowhall with JJ... and dinner with the boys after at Chiquitos ... awesome ... ;)

But from Friday 13th !!!! aaaah that was it ... the bad luck Friday ... with the crappy shitty pissy rain all day (not that today is ANY better) but it just really set me up for a crap Friday ... ended up going to bed by 7pm with the shivers, feverish, nausea you name it ... waking 2 hours later with the sweats flushes oh .. woa is me I felt like I was dying !!! NOT GOOD...

SO Saturday saw me at the hospital ... now pumped full of anti-biotics with a Kidney infection ... flippin hell come here to get sick or what ??? ...but once the drugs started working I must admit I wanted to live again ...

We had a fab (wet) Saturday Braai with the Bawden's Clan ... awesome to finally meet ALL the kids ... Marty'ana and I spent the whole afternoon trying very hard not to 'POL'... we were being 'Dipler', 'Dipless' or 'Diplessness' ... it's just a word we made up but kept us very entertained for the whole day ...

And Sunday saw some fantastic SUNshine .. which was great cos my SON-shine and Marty'ana' played ..... FOOTBALL... for the Costa Coffee Foundation Charity ... a grand day was had by all ... some photos to follow when we get SA side ...

Sadly it's home time again ... bags are now packed and we're just wasting time till we're for the off !!!...

Great to see all the familiar faces, meet new people, spend some quality time family time together ... laugh drink and be very merry ...

See you on the flip side !!!!

Another quickie...

Was up playing chauffeur early this morning !!! well if you can call 8.30am early ... it is for UK side ... 5.30am is early SA side ... OK never mind that debate ... and after dropping off my passenger it was decision making time: home to await the arrival of the parcels or out and about in town ...

As the weather was soooo shitty it was very nearly home and back to bed ... but I braved the cold and went 'SHOPPING' !!!

Ended up in Mansfield (of all places) had to call into ASDA just to check out what they had in case they had something other stores didn't have ooops ... managed to buy a few bits & pieces there (nothing over £5.00 mind you !!! that's the rule) ... then into town centre... it had been my goal of this trip to visit some of the 'charity shops' based in all the towns ... to see if I could find the bargains I'm desperately searching for ... full length winter coats etc...needless to say I've pretty much run out of time now and visited 0 charity shops !!!! I've still managed to buy loads of 'stuff' none of which is on my 'list' !!! Oh well there's always next year ...

BUT I did manage to get some Christmas shopping done .... I can cross a few people off that list !!!Not going to say who or what !!!Wait and find out ...

So strange I can get my CC to work (the locked out one !!!) in jewellery stores and clothes stores .... but NOT in food stores LOL !!! Priorities ... me thinks MasterCard is controlled by women !!!

And sooo very pleased I did not decide to stay home an await my delivery ... it never arrived ... phoned PDP to be told their driver "ran out of time" to deliver !!!! So now it's going to be dispatched tomorrow !!! BEFORE 12 !!! hahahaha

Me thinks I shall have a lazy 'shopping free' day tomorrow ... OR NOT !!!

A quick one ....

After a really rough night (just couldn't settle and the aching bones played up all night !!!) ... managed to make a decision this morning and went to McArthur Glen retail outlet ... got there at 10am ... even though I had planned to be up and out by 9am ... but thankfully didn't miss much ... they only open at 10am hahahahaha !!!

First shop M&S factory shop ... an excellent start to the day and it just got better and better .... needless to say Paul not too happy that I managed to satisfy SOME of my addiction ... managed to cross a few things off the to-do list as well as the boys joined me just after lunch ... well K's list is a little shorter anyway !!!

And as for the weather ... didn't care really I was in the shops !!!!

P has volunteered me for chauffeur duty tomorrow morning !!! but hey I'm not complaining it's a good excuse to be up and ready by a specific time ... only question now is ... do I go out straight after chauffeur duty or do I come home and wait for some of my deliveries !!!! mmmmm next decision !!!!

Oh buggery me ....

and here I was thinking ... hey I'm on holiday ... I can blog daily and keep everyone updated !!! NOT !!!

I swear time goes sooooo much faster here UK side !!!

So quick catch up ... since we've been here ... I saw the Olympic Torch relay ... wow did not expect to see anything about the Olympics in our neck of the woods... but it was really nice to be part of a piece of history ... got the pics, got the badge ... did not get the t-shirt LOL !!!

Since we've been here have met up with Gussy Tucker, Billy No Mates1 and Mrs McD.... fantastic to catch up with the girls, get all the gossip, have a great old laugh ... really miss the good ole' times ....

Went shopping with Jane ... took a quick visit to YORK ... wow another unexpected ... well P & K were up there working ... done IKEA shopping, Chesvegus a bit of shopping ... still have more to do there ... in fact this next week is going to have to be just shopping .... cos I'm running out of time ... my list is longer than the days !!!

Ooooh stocked up on some crafts... thanks to Trimcraft, placed quite a few Internet orders this weekend ... now to wait for all the stuff to arrive during the week...

Oh!!! was abandoned by my boys Wed - Friday ... they were down south working ... so really had all my time to myself and still managed to run out of of it !!! My new TOY BOY Martyn (PMSL) kept me entertained for part of the time they were away !!! Poor lad was left all alone with me and my rantings & ravings ... I doubt he'll ever forgive P & K !!!!

Disaster of the whole holidays .... I only managed to LOCK myself out of my SA bank accounts ... now stop laughing all of you ... it's almost a cataclysmic disaster ... I am struggling to shop without all my 'spendy' money !!! and now I HAVE to let Paul know how much I'm spending ... can you see why that was such a disaster ???

Took K back to his old school this weekend, they had their Summer fair...shame it was rained out so early ... a bit of a trip down memory lane for both of us but felt really good when a couple of the mum's made such a fuss over him ... and me !!!

And so we're onto our final week AGAIN !!!

I'm not going to say MUCH about the weather !!! only that it has been CRAP ... or rather typically BRITISH !!!

UK Holiday 2012...

Day 1... so slept like the dead last night ...it was awesome not having to get up 3 times thru the night to let the dogs out ... even more awesome waking at 5am and it was already daylight ... but these English folks don't start moving about till after 8 !!! WTF ... half the day is gone by then !!!

I had fun watching the street wake and get moving !!! It's really strange the things you miss/get used to ... living on a complex in SA you don't see a soul from 1 day to the next ... so I enjoyed sitting with my cuppa this morning watching the kids walking to school ... the rows of houses that had cars on every driveway till about 9am and then there were none !!! Strange the things we notice or not !!!

Weather was very unpredictable this morning ... when I woke I could see across the valley ... then by the time I went in the shower thick clouds had formed and there was even thunder & lightning. The boys were out by 8.30am ... got me breakfast that was supposed to be an Egg McMuffin but seems McD's here is just as bad as SA side and we ended up with a sausage one ... I can't stand the taste of the sausage ... so breakfast was a couple of hash browns instead ... have to mention I'm sure they're bigger here !!! (the hash browns I mean)

Fashion watch today: normal jeans, patterned t-shirt and denim jacket with black Crocs on the feet... well I was only going Tesco shopping !!!! But one still has to look respectable ;;; what ???

Tesco's shop took 3 hours ... and that was the small one here in Clowne where half the shelves were empty ...so you can imagine how long it's going to be when I go to the 'beeg' one in Ches-vegas !!! But had a really good 'mooch' around ... of course HAD to check out the latest books and while I was standing there 'observing' I noticed that a lot of ladies were picking up this set of 3 books by E.L.James ...apparently they are being talked about everywhere ... so needless to say I had to have me a set ...apparently not books for the prudish !!! Classed as Romance, Suspense & Erotica !!! Hell yes ... gotta have me some of that !!!

After my luxurious food shop I dashed home between showers, unpacked the groceries ... did'nt have to worry about space as the kitchen was empty ... went through my pile of mail ... craft catalogues etc.... ooooh luverly stuff ... and then climbed the stairs to the computer room... before I knew it the boys were in and it was talk of dinner ...

We went for a Carvery at The DeRhodes ... cheap but really good wholesome food ... you should have seen the pile on SON-shines plate ... and NOW the boys are plonked in front of the TV ... me thinks K has won the battle and he's playing games ... P is slouched on the couch playing on his I-phone .... happy families !!!

Really loving the fact that its 10pm and it's still light outside ...

So ... we're off again ...

Just have to mention this .... I HATE THIS NEW BLOGGER !!!

Right now that that's out of the way ... the suitcases are standing at the front door... mum & dogs have been dispatched to Ginger-Ricki's ... and now we're waiting for our lift ... The Moodley is taking us to the airport ... and the time is just dragggggggggging ...

Oh in case you don't know where we're off to ... it's our annual UK vacation ... 3 weeks back home, in my own house ... playing Happy Families again ... I plan to get lots & lots of shopping in ... see some of the oldies ... maybe make some newbies ??? and generally have a relaxing (and by the sounds of it) ...wet time.

Happy to be leaving the cold SA winter behind, although the days are really lovely ... the temps are still getting up to about 22'c here in KZN ... but the mornings & nights are chilly and I won't miss the DARK 5.30am wake ups ... well not for the next 3 weeks anyway !!!!

SO ... how did the last couple of weeks go ??? Fast ..is all I can say ...

School Rugby season is finally over ... we had a great Finale' ... our DERBY day ... and thankfully our U15's didn't let us down too badly ... they didn't win but they didn't loose either, drew 5-5 ... and the boys all brought tears to my eyes before the match as everyone of them wore something pink ... FOR ME ... I'm gonna miss that team ... it was probably the last match those boys will play together ... next year we don't have an U16 squad so the boys then play in Open's ... which means they could be spilt up into any one of the 4 teams in the Open Section !!!!

Son-shines school report wasn't bad either ... in fact I'm very proud of him as he did it ALL himself this term ... so I'm very pleased with the results ... he's not ... he had set himself some very high goals ...which isn't a bad thing and he's now committed already to achieving those he didn't reach by the end of the next term ... that's all I can ask ... is that he keeps doing his best and striving for more ... that he never gives up ...

Work has been ... just work ... I've only been there 6 months and already I'm thinking "mmm, maybe this is a mistake" LOL ... we're just never happy ... but I have gotten used to the money now ... so i guess I have to 'grin & bear' it !!!! Missing all my crafting and have a few of my customers moaning because they want me to do 'stuff' with them !!! Oh well ... feels good to be in demand LOL ...

And that's about all I can add to my blog for today ... maybe I'll have lots of fun and exciting things to share on the home-side ...

OH oh ... yes ...I did it ...

OK I’m going to start out by saying SORRY to all (LOL) my Blog Fans.... yes I haven’t updated the blog in like ....months ... and now the complaints are pouring (ha!ha!) in ...

BUT hey do you want me to give you the truth or the excuses ???

The truth ... I just haven’t had the time ... or since blogger changed to this new format ... the inclination to work it all out...

The excuse... well ... um ... I’ve been hectically busy ... it takes time to compose such literary works...

I’m sure most of you knew Paul was here for the Easter break ... it was awesome having him home again ... although neither him nor SON-shine wanted to go to the beach with me!!!( Not going to let either of them forget that in a hurry ... I mean the fact that I wanted to go to the beach should have been a shock enough) But it felt like a short holiday??? I think the fact that Easter weekend was at the end of it didn’t help ... Kelsey literally went back to school on the Tuesday after the Easter weekend !!!

In April I also had 4 photo shoots in a row ... so I was kept hectically busy with those ... taking the pics was one thing then all the editing ... In fact I was soooo busy with that I had to give ‘delay discount’ LOL !!!

In May we have one of our biggest fund raising events at school where we work our asses off ... and so most of May was taken up with that .... Working late ... working weekends...working, working, working...etc. etc. Etc.

And then its SON-shine’s RUGBY season ... so its matches every weekend and I think this season has been the hardest cos just about every match is an away match ... so it’s up early ... driving here there and everywhere ... and then my Sundays are spent trying to catch up with shopping (for food!!! although I have to say I have been a bit naughty with the clothes shopping too!!!) cleaning, sorting and even sleeping!!! ... The getting up at 5am 6 days a week is taking its toll on this ‘aged’ body of mine LOL...

O! Oh! I did do 1 extremely exciting thing this past month.... I went completely mad and did The Karkloof Canopy Tour (.http://www.karkloofcanopytour.co.za/)... what’s that I hear you all say??? Well I swung through the trees like a monkey on a wire(the official name for it is Zip-Lining) !!! YES just a wire!!!And at times I was over 30m above the trees!!! CRAZY!!!! Or what ??? But a serious adrenalin rush and YES I’d do it again!!!

Check out this crazy chick !!!!

And SON-shine ...

Whoa ... check how high I am ... feeling giddy just looking at this ....

We saw, we did, we conquered ...

The Crazy GANG ... Noreen, ME, June, Kelsey & Irena....

Grrrrrr !!!!

In case you think I'm ignoring you all ... I'm tearing my hair out with this new blogger !!! so yes I'm still here people ... just trying to figure out how I'm going to sort out this technical problem !!!!

I spent 3 hours today writting a new post for you all to tell you all my news etc... and now GRRRRR I can't get the damned stuff posted !!!!

SO please keep checking back ... I will post my news once I know how to !!!

A week of crafting !!!

Can you believe it ... yes I'm on holiday and I've just had a whole week of crafting !!! (working actually... can't wait to get back to my other job for a rest !!!)

My craft week started on Wednesday teaching in Pietermatitzburg at MACS (Midlands Arts & Craft Society) I taught an 'Altered Book' class !!! Yes weird I know cos I could never understand the point of changing a perfectly good book !!! But these ladies had asked if I could teach this particular class and hey money is money ... and the ladies loved it !!!! And I now have the foundation of an altered book .. not sure what I'm going to do with it .!!! But I'm sure I'll find a use for it ...

And then on Thursday I found myself teaching a card class at LaDomaine ... these are all mature ladies who formed a card making group way before I got here but they are all self taught ladies and have never really had any formal lessons ... last year before I got my job I gave them a few lessons .... one a month ... and the other 3 weeks of the month they practised their new techniques ... lovely bunch of ladies and some of them have plenty of cash to spend and time to craft ... so the ladies asked me if I could give them another lesson ... taught them some floral punch art ... and I spent most of my lesson reminiscing about the fantastic ladies I had as my students back in the UK ... the awesome times we had in class and the fun we used to have.

Then believe it or not but Friday saw me at a Consumer Show ... yes surprisingly enough we do have the odd one here ... very small one only about 40 exhibitors but it's over 3 days and they have it every year ... in fact the first year I was here I helped my sister-in-law out ... with her polymer clay business ... don't know if I mentioned that 3 years ago ??? LOL ...

Well I kinda forgot about that show till Adele (she's the lady who originally introduced me to the Thursday group and she reminds me a lot of Glynis !!! she's into everything crafty !!! she spins, she weaves, she sews, and all the paper crafts too ... she has a son a year older than Kelsey and they play rugby together ... and she's also quite a go-getter ... once I showed her all the stock in my garage she started finding me customers etc... in fact she's also the lady who introduced me to MACS) well she reminded about the show ... and off we went ... reminded me a bit about the times a group of us in the UK used to go to the consumer shows together ... do you remember gals ??? Well the show has new organisers and I've been in touch with them to hopefully exhibit there next year ... I'll keep you posted !!!

And I've even had Paul & Kelsey involved in my crafting endeavours ... well sort of ... I've had them unpacking the garage for me today so I can try and find some of the stock that my 'customers' are desperately looking for ... Chalk Inks !!!! The things I really miss !!! Well actually after this week I'm really missing my crafting, my business and most of all my customers who became really good friends ... those I miss the most ;(

So last week I left the boys to their own devices ... but I'm going to spoil their fun this next week and force them to keep me entertained LOL !!!

Paul was really enjoying the HOT steamy weather this past week but yesterday he got a taste of the unpredictability of our weather and saw just how quickly it can change and become very cold !!! Like long trousers and jacket cold !!! ... well it's preparing him for his return to the UK at then end of the week ;(

Holey Cashmoley !!!

(oops sorry started writing this on Thursday ... didn't get it finished or posted !!! AND I'm finished this post on SUNDAY 25th !!!)

Look at the date ... where the heck has the last 2 weeks gone again ... AND where has the last 3 months gone ... ???

I mean it's the end of March ...well almost ... so that means my 3 months probation at work is almost up and there's no sign of me getting fired !!! well not yet ... and seeing as how we are officially on leave now until the 10th April ... I guess I'm not gonna get fired and my 3 months probation will officially be over by the time we go back to work !!!!

That and the fact that Paul arrives tonight marks the end of the 1st term of 2012, the 1st holidays for the year ... and the 1st school report for 2012 for SON-shine !!!! WOW ... where the hell has this first 1/4 gone ???

So how did SON-shine do ??? All his marks he has equaled or bettered EXCEPT for MATHS .... he has dropped from 80% right down to 48% and I am one very, very p'd off mum because of that .... BUT in fairness I am not laying 100% of the blame on him ... I blame a huge portion of that on the school ... the fact that for the first 3 weeks of the term they did not have a Maths teacher (shame the woman was diagnosed with Cancer and I know I should be a sympathetic person and feel sorry for this .... which I truly do feel sorry for the woman ... BUT the school should still have made an alternative plan and not left our kids for 3 weeks without a teacher) Kelsey says " but mum my Afrikaans has improved" because in the lessons they should have had maths they had an Afrikaans subs teacher !!! Well now I'm sure that will stand him in good stead for a future career in ????????????????

But as for the rest ... this term I left K to do all his own studying, his own projects and his own study programme... so (don't tell him but I am very, very proud of him) ... however he is disappointed because he did not come 1st in class this term .... 1st time since he started High School ... and this is because his maths marks dropped his aggregate !!!

As for me ... work has been exceptionally manic .. wait a minute I say that every time I write on my blog ... we were not supposed to break-up till Friday but the school had asked for special permission to have Thursday/Friday off .... you see we had a public holiday on Wednesday 21st ... Human Rights Day !!! and we just knew that most of the kids would not come back into school ... we only found out at 11am on Tuesday that the Dept. of Education had given us permission ... that means we have left A LOT of unfinished work at the office ... Oh well Sally will probably go in and do it ... but hell NOT me !!!!!

So now here I am on Sunday, this post is still not finished and published !!! ... and have yet more to add to it .... yes Paul arrived safely ... great to have him home ... just love the 'big suitcase' he always brings ... we now stocked up on the essentials .. oxo, Bisto gravy granules, Thornton's toffee ...although I'm not going to mention the fact that yet again he didn't bring me my Brazil Nut toffee ... oops did I mention it ??? and of course all the lovely crafty goodies that I've ordered over the last 3 months ... every time he gets here it's just like Christmas !!!!

Well my Thursday ladies will be happy ... they have some new thangs to buy LOL !!!

Of course K is always excited to have dad home... he's no longer the only man in the house ... and all the goodies dad brings for him LOL ...

Oh I have to tell you this ... about 2 weeks ago ... after SON-shine gets back from his little rugby tour ... he lost his cell-phone ...no actually what I should say is some bastard at school nicked it !!! His 'white'berry ... all the kids here have blackberry's ... they chat to each other on BBM ... no I don't profess to understand it all, so child of mine has been phone-less for the past 2 weeks ... no it was not insured and no I can't afford a new one for him ... so I chat to Paul ... he goes onto e-bay and manages to get K another 'White'berry at a decent price ... but I don't tell SON-shine, then Anne (a mate of mine who runs the quiz night at our local Keg) informs me that CellC (a phone service provider company) is sponsoring last week Tuesday's Quiz Night and they have 4 Blackberry's up for grabs !!! I tell SON-shine and he asks if we can go see if we can win him a phone (me laughingly says yes sure of course I can win him a phone !!!! ME the unluckiest person on planet earth, me who can't even win a bloody argument) WELL GUESS WHAT .... I won him a BLACKBERRY !!! I was sooo excited ... nearly burst Cyndi's eardrums screaming so loud when I won ... 1st thing I've ever won ... and something we actually wanted !!!

SO ... Paul arrives and K now has 3 Blackberry's !!! the one I won, the one dad bought him and a one Nigel gave to Paul that was lying around in the office !!!! From 0-3 in just a few short days !!!

Friday saw Paul & Kelsey out on the golf course at 8am ... bloody fools and it was a scorcher of a day ... of course Paul is over the moon that the weather is playing nicely for his trip ... I got to spend Friday till lunch time 'crafting', well doing prep for my classes this next week (then I joined them for lunch) ... and yesterday we were all at the High School catering at the Easter Sports Festival ... why oh why do I always say yes to these damned things ??? Making damned pancakes all day ... I must be mad !!! Oh and then we gonna do it all over again on Monday !!! Most definately MAD !!!!

oooH what a week ... AGAIN !!!

This week has been sooooo crazy I don't even know where to start ... oh actually now that I've had time to check out the last week ... I realise it's actually been 2 weeks since I last blogged ... so that goes to show just how crazy it has been ...

Mostly it's all work related craziness ... but between that and the SON=shines crazy rugby schedule ... I feel like I should be sitting in a white padded room ... in fact when I put it to paper it sounds even worse !!!!

Last week at work we had 'mid-term' assessments so it was tons & tons & tons or should I say trees & trees & trees of printing to be done, and all the deadlines to meet ... meetings to attend, catering to do, posters to hang, FFD stuff to sort etc.etc. etc.

Then guess what ... we did it all over again this week ...ok so not so much copying to do but still ...all the collections for our annual fun day are coming in so they have to be sorted and priced ... Easter Eggs have to be packed and wrapped for the Outreach Programme and finally our tickets for our Win-A-Car competition arrived so now we have that to administrate too ... oh swimming galas to cater for, Open Days to do teas for etc.etc.etc !!!!And someone want us to try and draw up a job description .... bwahahahaha !!!!

SON=shine ... I've had him to an eye specialist ... seems he has an infection in his eyelashes !!! well that's the lay-mans term for it ... Dr Whatshisface... went on and on with the real medical terms etc ... Long story short ... can be fixed if he does this whole swab, clean & cream thing !!! 4 times a DAY !!! yeah ...boy + teenager + sweat + dirt = constant moaning mum !!!

Still trying with the diet thing ... not sure how it's working .... feel good ... but the lumps & bumps are still there !!! LOL

Weather ... last week = awesome ... hot, hot, hot & hot ... the weekend ...well SUNDAY actually Cyclone Irina hit and it started raining like it's never rained before ...and it rained & rained & rained ... first time we really saw sun this week was today !!! and then it was HOT again :-)

AND now today SON=shine was off on his first ever rugby tour ... only a long weekend ... but it's classed as a tour ... and only in Greytown (1hr48mins away LOL) but it's still a tour ... and guess what ... I'm driving up there tomorrow to watch them play ... he contacted me tonight to tell me they won their first match/trials ... 8-3 and he got 'whacked' !!! IN THE EYE !!! Boy oh BOY !!! and BOYS !!!!

So tonight I am husband-less. child-less, dog-less and even mother-less (LOL) so this is what SWF feels like ...

And now that I have finished this ... I can go to bed ... can't remember the last time I could say I'm going to be bed before 9pm !!!

Oh and talking of time ... for the record ... Autumn is literally around the corner ... sun-rise these days for me is now about 5.58am and sun-set is 6.23pm ... and it seems to be setting at least 5mins earlier daily ... Oh well February was a good summer month :-)

Oh Boy, Oh Boy ...

I sooo wanted to write a post earlier in the week ...

WOW!!! FAB & FANTASTIC .... Off the HOOK !!! Brilliant ...

That's all and more that I have to say about the 80's Rewind Concert ... It was fandabby dozey !!! We had such a fantastic time ... even Kelsey had to admit that it was a fantastic day out ... and the music wasn't "that old" (cheeky shit!!! LOL)

We waited till Saturday morning to decide what we were going to wear ... and when the sun shone brightly and the day looked liked it was going to be a hot one ... I phoned Irena and said there was no way I was wearing boring jeans ... and in the space of an hour we had 2 fantastic very 80's outfits thrown together ... not sure what is the most frightening ... the fact we could throw together 2 outfits so quickly or the fact that I have soooo much lace and frills in my cupboard to make 2 x 80's costumes ... ROFLMAO

Kelsey had to add his bit by pointing out "mum you actually do still wear some of that stuff now" ... Of course we had to take the photos etc ... and I'm busy photo shopping all the FAT out of my picture before I put it up on here (LOL that's gonna take a while)... after all I was not this fat during the 80's !!!

OH MY GOD !!!Have you ever seen anything so freekishly hilarious ??? I mean even Indi is roling around on the floor pissing hersel laughing ... check bottom right hand side of this pic ...

YES PEOPLE ... I actually went out in public dressed like this !!!

As I said the sun shone ... and shone... and shone ... I think it was the hottest day of the year ... but that didn't stop us from bopping and partying ... IT WAS FANTASTIC ...

And Midge Ure !!! WOW ... although he's no longer the gorgeous spring chicken he used to be, he was still brilliant ... he still has that gorgeous voice and he can still string that guitar !!! He was most definitely my favourite of the day ... but then again in my youth I followed Ultravox around Europe so I knew all their songs !!!

Other artists on the day included: Lee John (Imagination) Marc Almond (Soft Cell), Go West, The Village People, Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet), Martin Fry (ABC), Nik Kershaw, Howard Jones and finally Rick Asterley, who really sent the crowds wild when he came out dressed in a SHARKS rugby jersey ... which if anyone reading this doesn't know ... the concert was at Kings Park, home to the bestest rugby team eva The Sharks !!!

All in all and absolutely outstanding day ....

And thanks to how long it takes to upload pics onto blogger !!!... It has only taken me a week to get this posted ... I started it on Wednesday at work ... came home to load some photos for you all to see the hilariously dressed ME ... and since then I've not had the time to add the pics ... so hopefully tonight I will get this posted !!!

T.G.I.F ...

OH BOY WHAT A WEEK !!!!

I feel absolutely shattered this week !!!! We have had one heck of a strange week ... what with the usual office work, the crazy collections we have had coming in for our Family Fun Day, that we've had to sort out and find storage space for it and the running around in Hillcrest hanging from poles to put up promotional posters !!! The things I do for this new job ...

And the crazy strange weather ... from pissing down rain, to gale force winds and soaring temperatures in the upper 30's and even hitting close to 40'c .... I am absolutely cream crackered!!!

We've had 2 days this week with no electricity ... seems SA is running out of power again ... and SON-shine has also been hectically crazy busy ... with his school work, rugby training and he's also been involved in swimming gala's etc. etc. ... the 2 hours of homework !!! and he's collapsing in bed by 8pm ... TOTAL LIGHTS OUT...

Adele ... one of my croonies from the Thursday Ladies Club has been an absolute star these past 2 weeks ... she's keeping the ladies motivated which means I have to get my A. into G. and keep digging out new stock for her ... but that's not such a bad thing is it ... in fact because of her I'm feeling the desire to do some crafting ... mmmm me wonders what I should be doing ???

Maybe I'm feeling like this cos tomorrow should have been my craft day?? ... but I'm off to the 80's concert instead ... I'm really looking forward to it ... will keep you posted :-)

The shortest month of the year ...

yet why does it seem to be dragging by???

I was so sure that next week was the beginning of a new month already ... but then again I would have missed the 80's concert so ... no it is still only the 19th today !!!

Maybe it's cos I've had such a boring droll ...week that has made it go so slow ???

No desires to quit the job ...NO it doesn't mean I'm ecstatically happy !!! hell that is so not in my nature LOL

The only weird thing we had to do this week was drive into DBN central with 110 'corroboard' posters to have them 'stamped' by the municipality ... Dept. for external advertising LOL and then drive back up to Hillcrest ... my arms were aching by the time we'd hauled all the stupid things up to the office !!! I just had to laugh ... typical municipality/council workers !!! about 50 people in the office sitting on their computers ...doing ??? They all looked incredibly busy once there was work to be done ... now we know where all our taxes are going !!!

Oh and apparently Friday was 'half term' which means what ??? Oh we get to leave at 1pm ... hellooooo that's the time I'm supposed to leave anyway PMSL ... not like we get an extra day off or anything ... but the way everyone was going on you'd think we were going on holiday !!!! Or maybe it's the mile-stone to half way thru the 1st term... Sally says it means we half way closer to the holidays LOL

In fact peeps I have very little to tell you about .... my week has been incredibly boring and non -eventful ...

I'm at work, K is at school as well as doing lots of rugby training .... the weather has been ??? So not worth talking about ... rain, cold, wet, then hot, heat, mist ???

Exciting what ???

I guess there's always a 1st time for everything !!!

First time since I opened my own business 13 years ago that I have had to cancel a class/workshop due to poor response !!!! ... BUT 2 weeks away from my next workshop and only 2 people have booked and paid ... although about 15 people sent me their reasons for NOT being able to attend !!!

Maybe I chose the wrong date ... or maybe people are still struggling to get over the over-spend of Christmas ??? or MAYBE everybody is just sooo busy so early in the year ... but anyway I have CANCELLED my February Workshop ;( ... (sad face)

And there I was all ready for this class ... projects done & dusted ...
"BUT I WILL NOT GIVE UP" ... I've never quit on anything (except for a diet !!!) and I don't intend to quit on this ... well not after just 1 poor response ...

All I'll do is pick another date later in the year ... gonna have to be MUCH later, due to my hectic 'rugby' life from the 10th March ... and use these same projects and go from there !!!

BUT here I am today ... supposed to be sorting out my 'CRAP' in my room .... oops I mean stuff ... and instead I'm trolling the net ... doing anything but what I'm supposed to do (P.of P. woke this am again) ... and voila ... between 1 site and another ... I get me another epiphany ...and I find myself jotting down ideas,doing some drawings and sketches and I'm planning my next THANG !!!! SO I've still got IT ... whatever IT is !!! bwahahahaha

Sorry am I rambling here ??? I get like this when the 'creative' brain is at work !!!

Oooh ...ohhh ... oh ... but there is a good thing come from all of this ... because I've cancelled I'm now free on the weekend of 25th February .. so yesterday I booked tickets for myself, SON-shine and the twisted sisters to go to the 80's Revival Concert at Kings Park Stadium !!! How awesome is that ??? One of my 'school girl' crushes is going to be there ... Midge Ure from Ultravox !!!! I followed that band around the UK like a true Groupie !!!! (I was going to marry that man !!!) ... awesomeness or what ???

OK last week ... I nearly did QUIT on something ... the damned job !!! It nearly got to me ... yes ... I almost lost the plot !!! Between the 15 odd bosses I seem to have and the crappy attitude of some of the other folk in the building !!! Doesn't matter about the 600 odd muffins I baked for them this week, even without electricity ... and went and 'used' BFF June's oven to finish baking them, was up at 3am making fresh muffins for their damned function ... NO ... none of that matters ... when they want to drop a ton of crap on you, for doing something that no-body bothered to tell you, you shouldn't do !!! Apparently I was supposed to ASSUME it ... well all I know about ASSUME is it makes an ASS out of U and ME !!! (seems it is most definitely every MAN/WOMAN & CHILD for themselves!!!)

BUT STOP ! NO ... this is the year of POSITIVITY and I WILL NOT LET THEM GET TO ME ... however I have now realised WHY a lot of the people at work are soooo cynical:

cyn·i·cal  /ˈsɪnɪkəl/ Show Spelled[sin-i-kuhl] Adjective
1. like or characteristic of a cynic; distrusting or disparaging the motives of others.
2. showing contempt for accepted standards of honesty or morality by one's actions, especially by actions that exploit the scruples of others.
3. bitterly or sneeringly distrustful, contemptuous, or pessimistic.
Synonyms. Cynical, pessimistic, sarcastic, satirical - imply holding a low opinion of humanity. Cynical suggests a disbelief in the sincerity of human motives: cynical about honesty.
Antonyms . optimistic.

And that is all I'm going to say on the matter ... well for this week anyway ....bwahahahaha ...

I actually ... for the first time in a long time (oooh there's another 1st !!!) said TGIF ... on Friday ... and I'm happy to have the weekend to pull myself towards myself !!!

It was MUM's birthday on Friday so the twisted sisters came and joined us for Pizza's and we had a really great evening ... then we've had Penny & Lawrence join us for a Birthday breakfast for mum ... so all in all the weekend has been a good one !!!!

All be it the weather has turned crappy ... it was jeans, t-shirt, jacket AND closed in shoes yesterday ... last night the winter slippers were on and today it's warm clothes SUNDAY !!!!

And on a SAD note ... R.I.P Whitney Houston ... another huge loss to the music industry ... all because of damned drugs and substance abuse !!!

Just an observation ...

I've noticed ... strange as it may seem .... but the mornings have suddenly got darker at 5.30am ... or maybe I should be saying they are getting lighter later ... it feels like its been a sudden thing ... last week when the alarm was going off at 5.30am it was very light and therefore I was keen to get up ... so far the 2 mornings of this week !!! it has been darker and so harder to get up .... oh whoa ... please don't tell me that summer is over already and here we are into autumn already ???

Mind you according to the forecast our temperatures are still supposed to be in the upper 20's ... but first thing on a morning we do have dew on the grass .... the weather patterns are very strange !!!

And then this leads me to my next observation ... those damned weavers in my big tree have either become very noisy or there are so many more of them ??? AND they're making MORE nests ... so you see not just us humans are confused ... it would appear nature is confused too !!!

I'm sneaking this post in while at work .... oooh you naughty girl ... but every one's in meetings and doing their thang !!! The work that I was left with (bwahahaha) I've done and hey ... what the hell thought I'd take the opportunity to blog while I can .... at least I'm not social networking hahahaha !!!

Yesterday was a really great day ... thoroughly enjoyed doing the whole catering thing for the NPO ... the performance was also fantastic ... I'm going to a free sundowner performance again tomorrow evening and sally & i have been told we don't have to work so that's an added bonus ... well it's been designated as a fund raiser for the REM unit !!! and there seems to be 'them' and 'us' policy hahahahaha !!!!

Ooops they're coming out of meetings ... gotta go !!!

Another weekend in Paradise !!!

Yup so here we are at the weekend again ... and what a week we've had ...

Crazy hectic and even a little scary !!! Teachers loosing the plot & their minds ... kids accident prone ... working in a place with way tooooo many Chiefs and just not enough Indians !!! Being over qualified and INVISIBLE too ... wow ... what a week !!!

Haven't yet received my job description ... but was told verbally that I was a 'dogsbody' so
Noun
1. dogsbody - a worker who has to do all the unpleasant or boring jobs that no one else wants to do....

Yup that just about sums up my job !!! This week I have probably administered about 120 tablets ... cleaned about 50 wounds, applied about 30 ice packs... that's job1. Then copied about 5000 pages of STUFF ... phoned and begged oops I mean asked in a nice manner, companies to support our fundraising drive ... typed about 50 letters of some description or other ... been told HOW to set up cocktail tables (this was the funniest ... cos as you all know I've never done any form of catering, never worked in the hotel industry for the past 20 odd years )... don't know how to dress a table, add overlays, make it pretty !!!! In fact based on my current job... I'm pretty much not able to do anything PMSL !!!!

And all of that was just for work... then it 's been SON-shine and his requirements ... school ... finding out he's not had a maths teacher for the past 2 weeks !!! Grrrrr... his sports life ... and on Wednesday night we attended the 2010 Prize giving ... sadly SON-shine didn't receive any awards for last year ... seems 1st in your class for the year doesn't count for much ... only the top 3 kids of the GRADE (out of 200 kids) get recognised !!! But who needs a crappy piece of paper... I'm still so very proud of him for being top of his class for 2010 !!!

Friday night we had a Supporters Club Braai .. not sure if I should say much about that ... all I am going to say is ... next year when I'm in charge there will way more people there !!!And on Thursday night it was HVJR club first committee meeting ... OMG is it really that time of the year already ... I know I said roll on rugby season ... and when I said that I was thinking KB .... now I'm going oh crap that also means my time gets stretched a helluv a lot too ... Oh well no peace for the wicked !!!

Shew the weather has played very nicely this week too ... have had a chance to wear just about ALL my summer stuff ... can't decide if I like the 'dressing up' part of going to work though ???Mmmm gonna have to be making me some more matching jewels ... can't be letting the side down now !!!

And so that pretty much sums up this last week ... BORING MUCH ???

But next week sounds like it's going to be a bit more exciting ... we have the Natal Philharmonic Orchestra coming to the school to perform in a mini concert for the school on Monday, and offering a free evening concert on Wednesday ... I have to put on my catering hat for that ... Monday we have to organise the NPO's lunch and on Wednesday it's serving coffee and muffins to the guests ... so gonna get a bit of culture in my week next week ... and on Friday we have a Teachers Conference at our school ... gotta serve about 600 hungry teachers tea/coffee & snacks on Friday ... mmmm looks like maybe my catering background will help with all this ??? Or not if no-one bothers to ask me hahahaha !!!