One thing that Cape Town has taught me is that we should look around every day and appreciate what we have. We should experience, every day, a moment when we just stop for a second and say ‘wow’. I want to share these moments with you from time to time, with Project Snap Happy. (*Warning – there may be plenty of sunsets and view shots for this. Possibly all there will be…)
The first one: ‘Intensity’
Casual sex – let’s talk about that. Because nobody else is and apparently that is what it’s all about when you’re dating after the age of 25. It’s an interesting time of our lives to be single, it seems.
Dating is a schlep, let’s be honest. We’re established in our lives, run heavy businesses/careers and have proper adult responsibilities. We have a rough idea of what we want and a good idea of what we are comfortable with and what we’re not. Your friends are having babies on purpose and you enjoy them, and then enjoy giving them back when they turn into brats. We’re just enjoying life as we determine what that should be, without much tying us down.
Yet, we still have this need to date. We stress about what we’re looking for, how we’re going to find it, batting off the not so lucky attempts and getting excited about the lucky ones. We primp and pluck and always wear our good undies. The result? Congratulations – you are a piece of ass!
Welcome to the world of dating at 30.
‘I’m not looking for anything serious’ means ‘I want to sleep with everyone I can and that includes you! Aren’t you lucky?’. It’s accepted, it’s the norm, how can we think that’s not what it’s all about?
Correct me if I’m wrong, but there’s no such thing as detached, emotion-free sex, particularly for us gals (or am I disillusioned?). We all attach some sort of meaning to it, whether it’s love or power or psychological needs or it’s because of ‘daddy issues’ (says Freud) – it’s not just a physical act.
Anyone heard of STD’s? Even with protection, it’s still pretty dangerous.
Is it really all about going around and banging everyone we find attractive? Call me a prude if you like (which I assure you I am not), but f*#k me (excuse the pun), this is all a bit crazy.
I love me a good story. And well designed accessories for my pretty little gadgets. It is for these reasons that you absolutely have to check out Veltwerk.
Veltwerk is ‘a range of handcrafted backpacks, clutch bags, laptop/iPad sleeves, satchels and lifestyle accessories designed with the discerning urban commuter in mind’. Their products are produced from locally sourced, vegetable-dyed leather and imported luxury felt. They look and feel so damn good!
And here’s the story: Each bag in the range tells a story and has been named after a famous field worker. These individuals contributed a wealth of knowledge to his/her field of study by immersing themselves in their subject and doing the exhaustive legwork required for in-depth research.
*Photos courtesy of Veltwerk on Facebook.
They’re too gorgeous. I feel I need to ride through the streets of Cape Town on an old bicycle with flowers in the basket, don’t you?
It gets a hearty high five from me (and a cheesy grin, apparently).
The Bay Harbour Market last week Friday brought us a gem of a performance from Australian duo Jamie MacDowell and Tom Thum. These guys… yoh! Two guys, a guitar and some serious talent.
See for yourself:
They’re too fun.
I’m in love is all.
(They’ve left SA already to continue their tour, but catch them on iTunes)
Mandela Day is one of the best initiatives to come out of our beautiful South Africa, I think. Making a celebration of spreading kindness and love – need I say more? What gets to me, though, is the thought of joining cause for the day (to paint a school, or feed the homeless etc.), posting your photos to all your social media networks to show how caring you are and then forgetting about it for another year.
Every day is Mandela Day. It’s not a day, it’s a way of thinking. It’s about realising that everybody is capable and responsible to influence change, starting in their own communities. For some it can be expressed through helping out at a local school or orphanage, or giving your doggie bag to someone on the side of the road, or whatever.
For me, it’s a little different. Yesterday I swam in the Cape Town sea in the middle of the winter in the rain to help feed a child for a year in the ‘Big Freeze Double Dip Polar Bear Swim’.
Yes, it’s a bit crazy but it was lots of fun and half an hour of my time of being a nut-job helped feed a child. That blows my mind.
On a less extreme note, though, next Sunday you can help a little 3 year-old dude get a cochlear ear implant by taking a 3km beach stroll and parting with R50. AWESOME!
Here’s little Owen:
It’s hosted by Cape Town Beach Cleanup - check them out and have a look at all their initiatives, they’re pretty awesome. You can find them on Facebook and Twitter too.
Do it. Because every day is Mandela Day.
Big Freeze photo credit: Mecheal Wickham
6.30am: Woke up before my alarm – winning! Then realised it’s because my head feels like it’s splitting open from the inside of my skull. This is what they call a ‘detox headache’, friends. Painfully regretting Sunday’s champagne escapades.
Peppermint tea helps to ease it.
9.46am: I seem to have lost my sense of humour with these headaches. Peppermint tea does help a little, but doesn’t take them away.
12.03pm: THIS HEADACHE! Maybe one day of this is enough. I mean, how toxic am I, really? At least I’m not hungry, I guess.
2.05pm: Lunch in a glass
5.30pm: Felt hungry for the first time today
6.22pm: My kingdom for a piece of cheese on a cracker. I’m not asking for much.
6.23pm: Lost the will to live. I think my body ate it.
6.24pm: I think it’s dinner time. More juice from this… (at least my grocery/food bill over the past 2 days has been minimal)
7.00pm: Okay, I’m calling it. Will break the fast sometime during the day tomorrow. This life where I can’t have champagne and oysters while watching the sunset is not the one for me (also, I’m sick of freaking peppermint tea, dammit).
It’s been real, guys, I’m all cleansed.
Apart from my annual digital detox (where I turn all my gadgets off and throw them away for a week or two) I also try and do an annual detox cleanse, where I give my digestive system a bit of a break and flush out the toxins.
Seeing that I am currently out of action with any exercise at all (long story, but my back has given me the finger since I’ve not been doing my strengthening exercises, like an idiot, so am back in ‘rehab’), and the next few days are fairly quiet, so I figured that this is a good time to give it a good go.
How it works is that you cut out all food and only consume fresh juice, water and herbal teas for a few days. It’s not dangerous or stupid, it just flushes out your system and recharges your digestive system and cleansing organs, so to speak. (If you’re an idiot and do it for extended periods of time or for the purpose of weight loss, then it’s dangerous.) A combination of fresh juices (I love ones with carrot as it’s energising), water with lemon and cayenne pepper (lemon is a natural detoxer and cayenne pepper stimulates the circulatory system) and delicious herbal teas (try Lady Bonin’s!) throughout the day, you can make it through without feeling too crazy. I also write this at the beginning of my quest, so I’m fairly sane right now.
It’s not an easy thing to do. It’s difficult for me because I’m usually so active that I need the sustenance of food and can’t find a few days where I’m happy to do nothing. The most difficult part of it all is that I need to cut out social coffees, lunches, dinners, after-work wine etc. during the detox. SUCKS. But if it’s only a day or two, I can cope.
I’ve decided to give you some insight into my crazy head by blogging my way through. I hope you enjoy my updates (I’m pre-empting a fast progression from sane to bat-sh*t crazy within the day, just warning you)…
7am: Woke up feeling sluggish and bloated from a weekend of mad eating and drinking (unusual for me, but I’m clearly not coping too well with not being able to exercise at all!). Excited to get rid of all the toxins.
10am: Don’t feel much different. I’m usually only realising now that I forgot to eat breakfast.
12pm: Grumpy as all hell. Can’t figure out why. Realise it’s because I’m hungry. Drink more special water.
1pm: Make lunch
3pm: Insane focus. Please hold while I take on the world.
3.30pm: Stomach yells at me. Rawr.
4pm: Off to a coffee meeting. Ready for the awkward ‘not for me, thanks – I’m on a detox’ conversation
5.47pm: Starving. Not sure what to do with myself if I don’t have to make or fetch dinner. *Shrugs* Making more tea.
5.53pm: Has it only been 6 minutes since my last update? This is going to be a long night
6.47pm: Now that eating/cooking is out of the way, I have SO MUCH TIME tonight. Think I’ll knit a scarf. For an entire African country.
7.40pm: Feel like a bowl of popcorn on the couch with some movies. Do you think I could juice popcorn? No, that’s not right. Will just have some dinner.
And so the crazy subsided. Time to relax into the evening with an Epsom salts bath. Maybe if I detox enough on Day 1, Day 2 will be better?
It’s not often that I splurge on shoe shopping (farm girl at heart would rather not wear any), but when I do, I get so excited to find exactly what I’m looking for and the quality that I love.
Awesome, go get ‘em at Dune London SA.
I chose these beauties. Aaaah… mad love.
This one’s for the Joburg folk.
I may not be living there anymore, but I’m still there quite often for work (let’s face it, somebody’s got to work on our GDP. Kidding. Capetonians, don’t kill me, I’m one of you now) and often in need of a cab. SnappCab is a free smartphone app for iOS, Android and Blackberry 10 devices to cab around the city.
Here’s how it works:
(Find them at www.snappcab.com; facebook/snappcab; twitter @snappcab or instagram)
Giveaway!
They’re also quite nice people and want to give you R135 free credit for your next trip! Just comment on this post and follow them on Twitter/Like their Facebook page (tell me in the comment if you’ve liked on Facebook, followed on Twitter, or both). Credit will be allocated at random and is valid until 31 July 2014. Giveaway closes on Friday 27 June 2014 at 12pm (so that you can be surprised with credit just in time for the weekend!).
To make it easier, you can use the nifty tool below to enter.
I started reading this book during my recent move from Joburg to Cape Town. I had just had a grand idea in my head that I could live a beautiful life by the sea and take up jogging on a promenade, while children play in the park and laughter surrounds me. I took a quick trip down to Cape Town to suss out the scene and decided on the first day in that I would do what it takes to move my life there.
I then had a very brief flash of some kind of buyer’s remorse and bought an armful of self-help books at the airport, as one does. The first one that grabbed me was F**k It – The Ultimate Spiritual Way, by John C. Parkin.
It’s exactly what it says. It’s a guide to saying “F**k It” in your life. To not worrying about what the masses think of you, to removing attachments and letting go. It’s about freedom and relieving your life of those dark and ugly things that weigh you down.
I get it, I do. Sometimes you just have to say F**k It and leave that job that bores you, wear those ridiculous 90’s tracksuit pants, tell people you love them even if you’re scared, or in my case – pack it all up and move to the sea to jog on the promenade while children play and laughter surrounds me.
From a concept perspective, I loved it. It was exactly what I needed to be told. F**k It and follow your dreams. From a reader’s perspective, I didn’t finish it. I got what I needed and then bailed out when it started getting too hippy for me because, well, F**k It.