FACEBOOK

I have been a Facebook member for a few years now.  Initially I became a member because someone invited me and I really wanted to see what it was all about.  From the very start I found old friends and thought it to be wonderful, especially when it goes back to your school and college years.  Facebook is actually a big gossip column….everyone knows everything about what’s going on in certain peoples lives!!!!

Sometimes it makes you laugh about who wants to be your friend.   A couple of weeks ago I received an invite from someone that I have not spoken or heard about for years (naturally I never, ever hold grudges but years ago something happened that made me want to knock her over with my car!!) and am sure she felt the same way about me.  I looked at the invite and thought ……what on earth makes her think we can be friends again?  At the same time the saying about “Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer” made me accept her invite.  (Up to now she is still behaving herself)   I now realize that there is a competition about who has the most friends on Facebook!

Over time I have become more cautious and made a rule that I won’t accept ANYONE I don’t know. You cannot trust the “so-called” social media out there…not when you receive faceless invites without reason!!  How important can it be about just how many friends you have on your list?  How many long lost friends have you met on Facebook?

Brain Teaser:-  Who were the Twitter founders?

Hands

 

As the eyes are the window to your soul, so are the hands a definate testimonial of your life.  It tells a lot about who or what you are as a person. Most of everything we do, are done with our hands and the signs of what we do, will show.   Marks and little wounds will tell that you are working with your hands.  Long nails on one hand and short ones on the other, might be that you are a serious guitar player. Well manicured nails might mean you’re a perfectionist and perfect painted ones in just the right colour might be a little worldly and vein.  Hard calluses on hands are a sign of very hard work.  A woman with strong hands might be an excellent baker or cook in the kitchen…and what says it better than someone with dirty hands and broken nails….have they given up on life?

Hands can make or break….We write emails, blogs, text messages!  Documents all over the world are being signed (and can destroy lives) with our hands.  The book you read are being picked up with your hands, we care for ourselves with our hands….everything we give or take, goes through our hands.  Many times we communicate with our hands (I do.. all the time)  A warm, strong handshake immediately tells me a person might be trusted….and what is more personal and romantic than a kiss on your palm?

Hands have always fascinated me…..feet is another…..but I’ll leave that for another time:))))))

Enjoy your meal, Ma’m!

Now you have to admit that few of us would complain having food at a restaurant.  You’re looking forward to something special and delicious.  The best part is that you don’t  have to prepare it yourself and on top of it all….no dishes!  How wonderful.  Now I have to warn you…don’t read further if you are going out for dinner tonight!

Recently I’ve listened to a program on the ABC radio where they interviewed people working in restaurants.  They did not have to use their own name for obvious reasons!  Waitresses will bring out your plate of food, even if some of the food landed on the floor…and so will chef’s too (as long as there is no damage done)  They also admitted that sometimes they  sneeze or cough (which happens quite often if they can’t turn away soon enough)  Some of them admitted that they don’t always use fresh produce, to cut cost and as long as no-one knows…..”Bob’s your uncle!!!”

The real shocker for me was just how easily they have forgotten about the very 1st lesson we were taught, even before we learned to read or write!  Wash your hands after you have been to the bathroom!  Most of them DON’T…. said there is not enough time (hardly time to have a widdle)  To me that also means that they obviously don’t wash their hands after a sneezing or coughing attack.  There has been the odd occasion where a client was grumpy and neurotic about something….some have admitted to spitting on their food and drinks!  My mind has been working overtime since as I do food critique locally and I might start to act a little bit neurotic myself visiting certain places in future. Maybe hygiene should be on the list of qualifications   All these facts make you think…..are you still enjoying eating in restaurants?

It’s just one of those days

Ok……… so when blog hits are low, it’s time to throw in a funny pic.  Everyone loves a good laugh:) 

Friends

I have learned so much about my special friends over the years.  I have learned that a friend is someone I truly can trust to be by my side when I am at my weakest and totally exposed. These are the people who, no matter how hard it is at times,  willing to be with me when I am so vulnerable. If I can trust you with my deepest thoughts and heart,  and conversely, we are true friends.  It’s never been about whether you are trustworthy or receptive, it is the actual act of trust that forms the essence of friendship.  If I can trust you to be honest, you are a friend. If I have to be aware of what I say….then it is something other than friendship. Friendship is not a mindset, it is an act.  It is just something you do from the heart, not about how good or bad you are.  It is a trust that is returned.   My life would be empty without the love, understanding and acceptance of my true friends.

Thomas Jefferson summed it up so perfectly:-   But friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life, and thanks to a benevolent arrangement the greater part of life is sunshine.

Anzac Day

ANZAC Day (Sunday 25 April 2010)  goes beyond the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in 1915.  It is the day we remember all Australians who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations. The spirit of ANZAC, with its human qualities of courage, mateship, and sacrifice, continues to have meaning and relevance for our sense of national identity. On ANZAC day, ceremonies are held in towns and cities across the nation to acknowledge the service of our veterans.

This is the day I will also honour my own grandfather who served in World War 1 back in Africa.  I was only 6 years old when he passed away but still remember him so clearly.  I adored him and remember the day’s I sat on his knee, eating “Treacle”.  I have the medals he received for serving back then and it is one of my greatest treasures and hope it stays in the family forever.  To him and my Great Grandfather, who was tied to a tree, stoned by the Zulu’s in 1899 (Boer War)…and his ringfinger cut off to take his wedding ring……. I say…….Lest We Forget.  You will live on in history forever and I am proud to be your family.

Missing YOU

I have been waking up again this morning at 5am, like so many other times,  with a mind full of thoughts and memories and no chance of switching off to get some more sleep like the rest of the house!    Always among these thoughts rushing through my over working brain, are  my wonderful children back in South Africa!   And I go about evaluating and calibrating these moments as only a person who overthinks everything will truly appreciate.  I try to construct these emotions but am not always doing as well as I would have liked! 

I have been living in Australia for 10 years now….”sure” you’ll say..it should get better after such a long time.  I am sorry to say, these feelings of longing and emotions have been crippling me, I still experience a quiver in my chest and feeling a tear well in my eyes.  We talk on a regular basis and see each other often enough but I still feel like I have walked into a vacuum…..go into autopilot and feel empty and broken inside.  I don’t think I’ll ever recover from this.  Some days I feel it is all under control and all my waking moments will be totally functional and productive but whatever the trigger, I still experience the sadness enveloping my heart.

Will I ever get past this?  Probably not…thoughts, memories,  moments, love…some of them cannot be categorised.  Sometimes they just are and we just need to let them be…..I am a mother with sooooo much love in my heart for them.

Barbarians

Being and ex-pat from South Africa, I try to keep updated and have an obvious keen interest of what’s been happening in my birth country.  One of the issues that causes great concern (and has for years) is the rape endemic.  On this issue the police, politicians and rape survivors all agree.  A silent war has been going on for a very long time, the war against woman and children.  It is also a well known fact that a woman born in South Africa has a much bigger chance of being raped than learning how to read!  One in four girls faces the prospect of being raped before the age of sixteen.   Baby rape is not a new actuality in the South African Society but it is becoming more “accepted”!  One of the reasons is the delusion (widespread in South Africa) that sex with a child or baby will rid a man of HIV or Aids.  (There is already more than 4.5 million people living with HIV, more than any other country in the world)

A typical senario recently where seven thugs came to rob a tuck shop in Johannesburg….when they did not find money, they gang-raped the owner’s girlfriend and forced him to watch!   Now I want to know, how does a prison term (no matter how long) change these barbarians.

I say bring back the death penalty for rapists or even better…..let them be stoned in public by family members of their victims. All the so-called intellectuals argue that crime is the result of poverty.  Do you honestly want to tell me that these beasts raped this woman because they were hungry?  Give me a break!!!!!!

Arbonne

As most of my close friends whould know by now, a couple of months ago I embarked on something that has changed my life immensely!!   As you well know, I am the type of girl that loves to feel and look good and by saying that, we all realise  that it gets harder and harder as time goes by and the years creep up on us.  So when a close friend approached me about another Beauty Product, I was very hesitant and thought, ” oh…here we go again, another one of those”!!…and ignored it.   I saw her again after about 6 weeks and could not believe the difference, she was radiant and it looked like she lost at least 10 years in such a short time!!   Now I am NOT easily convinced about just any fly by night product and I certainly will not identify myself with crap….but seeing what it did for her, I thought I’d give it a go.

My journey with Arbonne started and I have not looked back one single second!!  Most importantly, we as woman don’t realise what we put on our skin on a daily basis.  A study published by Bionsen, a company in the United Kingdom that sells aluminium-free body products, found that the average woman applies 515 chemicals to her face a day!!!!  Yes, you have read it right!!  Make-up, perfumes, lotions, mascara and other beauty products all contribute to the toxic brew that is causing health problems for many woman.  Arbonne products are formulated without ANY animal products, animal by-products or mineral oil!!   It blew my away when I found out where these animal by-products come from!  Farm animal carcasses (including all the steriods and hormones pumped into livestock), euthanized pets from vets and shelters (including insecticidal flea collars) road kill and the entrails from slaughterhouses.  These carcasses are sent to rendering plants where they are boiled.  Fat rises to the top, is skimmed off and sent to a purifying plant.  (Who do you think is their biggest customer?)  They shipped to the major cosmetic companies around the world where it is used as thickeners and expaders in most skincare, cosmetics and hair care.  So in the end, we put all the hormone altering  and cancer chemicals on your bodies!!!!!   97% of skin care, make up and toiletries on the market today contain animal fat and are tested on animals!!

So why is Arbonne so different, you would ask?   Swiss Formulated products, (La Prairie, Valmont and ARBONNE)  are normally extremely expensive and not readily available, primarily only for the very rich and famous.  Because Arbonne distribute only through Direct Selling Method, we all can now buy SWISS SKINCARE at VERY affordable prices!!

To top it all…..it is  free and safe from all these toxic burden we are using on a daily basis!!  (Not me anymore!!!!!!!!!!)

It is time to outgrow ageing ladies…….reverse, repair, rejuvenate and renew in a safe way!!!  I am soooooo passionate about this and need to share what it did for me!!!!!

“Tollie”

Yesterday I received an email from my very special girlfriend, Freda,  back in South Africa.  It was so funny, I just had to share it with you!  A couple of years ago, while she was still living in London, one of her girlfriends stayed overnight and left a “dildo” as a thank you token (it was a joke between the two of them) 

Her grandson, Xavier, will only fall asleep if you hold his hand and sometimes it can take forever.  Freda got tired from bending over the cot and thought it a good idea to place this “soft” dildo in his hand…..and it worked!!  Since then, he does not want to go to bed without this “Tollie”. 

Now here’s the dilemma…..Xavier and his parents are leaving for London on vacation and “Tollie” has to go with…..in his hand!!!!  Just wondering how they will explain this to the airport staff?  CLASSIC!!!!!!!!