Rest in Peace my Gumdrop

Yesterday morning at 09h55, probably about 2 hours after mom first called me to tell me the nurses didn't think he had much longer, she called to tell me that my grandfather (her father) had died, aged 83. Thankfully she'd called before then and let me speak to him a little on the phone. Apparently hearing is the last sense to go, so although he couldn't respond, I hope he heard my voice one last time.

As I said before, it was far from an unexpected call, but somehow when I finally heard ... it was as hurtful as ever. So I wanted to spend this post remembering my Gum, my Gummy (when I was younger), my Gumdrop (and Roddy or Twenty to everyone else).

I grew up far closer to my mom's folks than my dad's. A process of geography rather than anything else. The Peeb & I grew up spending a large part of our childhood at their home. Especially in school holidays when we went there while Mom worked (only a half-day mind you, she was a dedicated Ma).

The story goes that in my first week home from the hospital (after having been born), Gum held me as he walked around the garden and told me the names of all the plants. He retired only a few months before I was born, at a younger-than-usual age for most. He'd been a rather successful Architect in his day and had an obsession with cars.

I was the eldest grandchild (on both sides) and am still convined I was his favourite Grandchild ;) I guess it's also cause I was around for more time than any of the others. I remember our special made-up game called Squiggles, which usually took place while I was curled on his lap. We took turns each drawing a "squiggle" (a nonsensical collection of lines) and then we'd each get a turn to try turning the squiggle into an actual picture - needless to say he was far better at it than me! When we slept over (a treat during the holidays), we'd sit in their lounge (naturally he designed their L-shaped house) and he'd draw the things he saw in the shadows on the cobbled fire-place and I'd have to try guessing which stone it was.

I remember Joe King (the brother of Nosmo King) and the way he used to get me giggling every time we went out for a family dinner ... Dad always threatened to separate us :) He used to tell us so many stories from his youth, it's hard to remember them all. I know he won a prize after varsity and traveled up the coast of Africa (to Mombasa, I think) on a ship with the prize-money. I also know he went back to Tanzania and Kenya with Marga (my gran) and was held over for questioning in a murder case on this trip - he didn't do it, obviously. He was sharing a room with some guy (Marga was sharing with her mother, don't ask me?) who went out, got drunk and happened to trip and fall and knock himself unconscious ... on the edge of a lake which led to his drowning.

I still look out for the wall-steps at the Princess Alice Hospital that he designed every time I drive along Tokai Main Road. I remember the money puzzles he used to make for us as gifts. For someone who's official line was "I don't give Birthday or Christmas presents", he sure spent a lot of time making up complicated puzzles with coins for me & The Peeb (sadly our much younger cousins missed out on that) to try to work out the amount of our actual monetary gift. His collection of vinyl records introduced me to Tom Lehrer (the Weird Al Yankovich of the 1950s) and we'd listen for hours and laugh at the lyrics.

Most of all, I remember his garage. Gum's garage was huge and supplemented by even more rusted car-shell's at the bottom of the garden. He had an idea that he'd spend his retirement fixing them up. It never happened. Gum eventually bought the house next door and turned it into an even bigger garage. But nothing was ever finished, he was a perfectionist thru and thru and enjoyed the journey without ever reaching the destination (which I think drove Marga nuts!). Above all things Gum had a passion for cars. Plastered over his garage doors were stickers of all the old-style rally's he drove in (with Marg as navigator - I maintain that's where I inherited my good sense of direction from!) with his amazing old Lagonda, those rally's where you have to mask you gauges and calculate it all on-the-drive. When I was younger he could even lie in bed at night and tell Marga which car had just driven around their corner.

I'm also reminded of the long letter I got on my 21st birthday explain in detail why he didn't think his Austin Healey would be a very good car for me and why he'd ended up deciding not to give it to me in spite of my pleading (at this point I should explain that the car was in pieces in his garage for as long as I can remember, but I wanted it anyway ... just because it was his).

I'll also never forget the history he left us (along with Marga) of Miller's Point, where our beach cottage is. Gummy inherited his one, Marga bought her siblings out for hers (the one we still own). Most of the rest of the houses are owned by some extended member of one of the families. That's how they met all those years ago :) It will always remind me of them both.

And I remember his crazy liqui fruit box drawers - now I know that really won't make any sense unless you saw them. But he kept any number of things in these drawers from erasers in one to short pencils in another (medium-sized and long pencils would each have their own drawer too) and if we needed something he could tell us off the top of his head exactly which drawer to find it in. His garage was much the same with one entire wall lined with jars containing all sorts of things. Every time I found a rusty nail on the side of the road while out walking with Marga, we'd have to pick it up and take it home for Gummy. And depending on it's length and other nail-properties (don't ask me what they might be), they got deposited in a specific jar (and no, I don't think they were ever used, but he kept them regardless, just in case). Although he mostly seemed disorganised, there was a very particular order to everything he kept, admittedly he was the only one who understood this tho :)

It's been hard watching him lose his memory over the past few years to Alzheimers, sometimes even scary (when he hid a hammer under his pillow to protect himself), watching him wither away, captive to old age and deterioration. He was a fabulous grandfather and I will miss him. But I'll always, always remember him and rest secure in the knowledge that I am privileged to have known him and be loved by him :)

Sob

Another evening spent at home. But I did take some cute bunny pics to keep you entertained. Varen and I really *meant* to go back to gym last night but somehow it just never happened :( It's so cold at night and all I want to do in climb into a nice toasty warm bath with my latest book and read and then hop straight into bed.

Sadly my internet is being very annoying right now ... so I'll have to put the pics on hold till later. And since this isn't a very exciting post either, it can wait too :)

Damn, and during all that waiting I got a call from my mom to say that the nurses looking after Gum (her dad) called to tell the family to come in ... it looks like he might not last the day. Sheesh. You know when you know somethings coming and you know it's so much better for the person (he has no quality of life anymore ... with his alzheimers and his lack of eating, and he barely registers that anyone is there visiting him anymore) but you'd still rather it never ever happened. That's how I feel right now. This is going to be a long day.

Ahem

Nothing much to say this morning ... which is why I've posted 2 book reviews for you ;) That and I'm having a good old catch up with Jam on GoogleTalk ... has been ages since we last chatted cause she is doing her community service in Umtata at the moment!

More Twisted by Jeffery Deaver

Jeffery Deaver loves writing short stories. 'All bets are off,' he says. 'Short stories are like a sniper's bullet. Fast and shocking. I can make good bad and bad badder, and most fun of all, really bad seem good.' This is collection of short stories that is instantly gripping and impossible to put down.

Loved loved loved this :) But then again, I'm generally a huge Jeffery Deaver fan, especially of his Lincoln Rhymes novels. The short stories don't quite have the weight of his usual novels, but I love the twists ... and they all twist ;) Boy, it's hard to review a collection of short stories tho cause they're all quite different. But it's definitely worth reading if this is a genre you enjoy!

> Follow Jeffery Deaver on Twitter

Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

When millionaire Dean Robillard meets Blue Bailey, she couldn't be more down on her luck; her ex has stolen all her money and she's got no place to go. A football hero, Dean is taking a holiday while recovering from a career-threatening injury. He'd planned a solo road trip to get his head together. The last thing he needs is a damsel in distress tagging along for the ride. However, despite Dean's misgivings the two find themselves thrown together and soon Blue has moved into his home and is merrily turning his world upside down. Their attraction is mutual but can their relationship really survive when the only other thing they have in common is their distrust of love?

I thought this book was great fun in a typical Chick-Lit sorta way. The characters are all great and I'd definitely recommend it as an easy holiday / relaxed weekend read :) Some nice light warm-and-fuzzy distraction from real life where things don't quite always work out the way you planned (at least not in the Hollywood predictable ending sorta way, anyway) ...

Second bloggirls Lunch

So Friday started out innocently enough and ended up impacting the thoughts of the rest of my weekend.

Fairly early on in the day (before lunch), I got a call from a good friend of mine who told me a rumour was going around that another good friend of mine (from a few years ago, who I admittedly haven't had much recent contact with) had himself a boyfriend. This is surprising in itself because a) he's well past the age I would guess that folks generally figure out their preference and b) cause he's had a couple of long-term girlfs in the time I've known him.

So I immediately dropped him an email. The way I figure it is, if the rumour isn't true, the boy should at least know what's being said about him and well, if it is ... I'd hope we'd once been good enough friends that he'd be honest about it.

Turns out it's all True. He mailed me back and laid it all on the line. On the plus side his current group of friends and his close family have all been very supportive. But it still kinda left me feeling weird. Not because it bothers me ... I guess just because I'm wondering about the person I knew. Inevitably by lying to himself about certain things, he must've ended up lying to other people for everyone to be so surprised by this news. Meh, I don't really care about that but, it's also started me wondering about another thing regarding "coming out". This boy has quite a developed group of guy-friends (being that he's slightly older than me already) which makes him quite lucky cause they've mostly all been mates since varsity or school or whatever. So these friends of his just have to accept him (which they apparently do). Whereas (and I could be wrong here) I don't think most boys who come out at say 21 or thereabouts have such a firm group of solid male friends ... they tend to have a lot of very good female friends (I'm not saying they have no male friends, I'm just talking majorities here, people). So I can't help but wonder if realising it (or rather, just admitting it - I'm a pretty firm believer in the genetic argument, with a sprinkling of nurture thrown in on top) later in life has been better for him? But then again pretending for so many years as he must've done (Can you really not know, is the mind that powerful?) must've taken it's toll on him too. Sigh. As long as he's happy, hey?

Anyhoo. The weekend. Varen & I headed over to his folks place (they're away at the mo') for dinner Brother Swoop, his girlf and Brother Zion to celebrate Brother Zion's 21st birthday earlier in the week. I must say, it turned out to be really nice evening. And I for one and really glad that Brother Swoop & his girlf are back together :) Saturday was a truly lazy day, with no pressing admin to be done and Varen & I both still quite exhausted from our busy week. We watched movies at home and got take-out (from Ghazals!) and pretty much lolled around doing *nothing*.

Two faiths, two empires, two rulers - colliding in 1588. Papist Spain wants to bring down the heretic Elizabeth. Philip is building an armada but needs a rationale to attack. With covert intrigue, Spain sets a trap for the Queen and her principal secretary, Walsingham, using as a pawn Elizabeth's cousin Mary Stuart, who's under house arrest in the North. The trap springs, and the armada sets sail, to rendezvous with French ground forces and to attack. During these months, the Virgin Queen falls in love with Walter Raleigh, keeping him close to court and away from the sea and America. Is treachery or heroism at his heart? Does loneliness await her passionate majesty?

I was looking forward to this cause I remember enjoying the first Elizabeth movie that really launched Cate Blanchett's career. Sadly I felt this one fell short. Was kinda weird to watch it so closely after The Other Boleyn Girl, and I will say that Cate has certainly gotten older than the first movie (a good 10 years ago, so fair enough). I dunno, I just didn't think the story they chose was that interesting. Although Clive Owen was lovely, as always :)

Jigsaw and his apprentice Amanda are dead. Now, upon the news of Detective Kerry's murder, two seasoned FBI profilers, Agent Strahm and Agent Perez, arrive in the terrified community to assist the veteran Detective Hoffman in sifting through Jigsaw's latest grisly remains and piecing together the puzzle. However, when SWAT Commander Rigg is abducted and thrust into a game, the last officer untouched by Jigsaw has but ninety minutes to overcome a series of demented traps and save an old friend or face the deadly consequences.

Sigh. I'd heard that this Saw movie would be going back to the good old days of the original clever and twisty Saw movie. I honestly didn't think it was that great at all. I mean it's gory in the true Saw sense of the word, but I had to read up on Wikipedia to try and figure out the ending. Not a good sign and I'm usually quite quick with these things. So, in my opinion, they tried to be far more twisty than I think they managed to successfully achieve. Disappointing.

A year after the accidental death of their father, three drug-addicted brothers -- each suffering from depression - meet for a train trip across India. Francis, the eldest, has organized it. The brothers argue, sulk, resent each other, and fight. The youngest, Jack, estranged from his girlfriend, is attracted to one of the train's attendants. Peter has left his pregnant wife at home, and he buys a venomous snake. After a few days, Francis discloses their surprising and disconcerting destination. Amid foreign surroundings, can the brothers sort out their differences? A funeral, a meditation, a hilltop ritual, and the Bengal Lancer figure in the reconciliation.

Okay, this is for all you folk who loved The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. We did watch the "short movie" before hand, Hotel Chevalier. I thought that was most bizarre and I don't know if it affected the movie, knowing some background, as it were. But I enjoyed the movie in a light-hearted sorta way :)

Sunday was the 2nd bloggirls lunch. I am disappointed that neither of the other's (Cape Town or Durbs) actually got off the ground (as far as I know) and I must say our 2nd attempt up here wasn't nearly as well attended as the last one. I sorta felt like I ended up at The Bad Mommies Blog lunch, surrounded by Angel, Exmi, Ydnic and Bridget :) Was especially fabulous to meet 3 new bloggirls. Was awesome to meet Exmi, since I've been reading her blog for absolute ages now ... and I'm thrilled to say it seems she's back online after an extended lack-of-internetless :) It was also very entertaining to meet Bridget. I've never really followed her blog daily but have visited it occasionally and I must tell you she is absolutely lovely in person and far more crazy and funny than I've found her blog to be ... if you can even imagine that!

Oh, and I almost forgot, the lunch was at Cool Runnings, a favourite haunt of my youth (the one in Observatory, Cape Town ... which has apparently closed down. An end of an era!). Let me tell you, the cocktails went down swimmingly. Even tho I was supposed to be off alcohol (I know, I know ... but cocktails, people!) I thoroughly enjoyed my Vanilla Mojito and Feeling Erie :) For lunch I had Chicken Nacho's - haven't had nacho's in ages and I did enjoy them ... but they probably could've been better if there'd been a little salsa alongside.

After the bloggirls lunch I ended up having a afternoon nap (while Varen read his book - a little role reversal from Saturday afternoon!). And that was about the weekend.

Exhausted Friday

So this is a boring post, I'm afraid ... but it wasn't a quiet night. I had book club and Varen had poker & whiskey night with the boys. Book club was at J9-double0blonde's house which was great because we were treated to home made Minestrone soup (by Squeak) and their delightful fireplace - what more could a girl ask for in winter?

In typical boy-style, Varen got in after 1:30am this morning and then proceeded to snore all night. I barely got a wink of sleep ... which is why I'm in such a fabulous mood :P Oh well, at least it's Friday people :)

Oh, and I've decided (after the excessive week) to try and "go dry" for a week (till dinner with JofH next Thursday) ... I've really over-done the alcohol this week, that's for sure!

Oh, What a Day!

So there's a quite a lot of catching up to do here ... where was I yesterday, you ask? Silly me forgot to mention that we had a Company Away Day (more on that later, naturally). Which is why I cunningly left you with some belated book reviews.

Now, casting our minds back to Tuesday evening. I dutifully went out shopping after work to ensure there was something to masquerade as dinner and chilled at home with Bell & Henna waiting for Varen to get home from work. Then we went thru the usual gym discussion:

She said: "Do you wanna go?"
He said: "No, why do you ask me, of course I don't. Plus, I'm still sore and I'm not feeling 100%"
She said: "But we really should"
He said: "I know ... "

But she was determined that gym was the right thing and even went so far to say: "Well, I'm going to go, you can join if you want but either way, I'm still going".

See, I was going to be good, I was determined. And then Squeak called. Turned out that Tuesday Dinner group was at J9-double0blonde (formerly GalleryGirl) and Squeak's that night. I know, I know, why would we even care, right? But the two ladies in question who have excommunicated me (after this and this - okay, so I also still don't really know why they're not talking to me anymore, but they're not and that's that) happened to both have other commitments for Tuesday evening. And, as the beta group, we cracked the nod and dutifully skipped gym to go hang out with the the girls, Koet & Nambi and Zej. It was a lovely night, with a nice warm fire and some delish home made (by J9-double0blonde - jees, but both of those girls can cook!) Cassoulet (hers looked wa-ay better than that dodgy pic on the wikipedia site, I can assure you!). I'd never even heard of it before then, but it was so yummy!

Zej regalled us with one of the *most* horrendous stories I've ever heard. Now, either it's an amazing experiment in social networking (like how fast can you start a new urban legend), or it's true. Zej tells us earnestly that it in fact happened to his brother's girlfriend's friend ... even tho it sounds like something out of an urban legend or horror movie and I haven't seen a word of it in the news (and I can't imagine it wouldn't be reported)! So, with that in mind, I make no claims of validity or truth about this ... but if it turns out to be true, it's some scary-ass shit! Anyhoo, the story goes like this (if you're eating or just not into this stuff, scroll past it, I'll highlight a marker telling you when the hideous story is done) ...

So the girl is question was out at The Hat (a local Joburg night club) and met this nice boy who she proceeded to spend the night kissing. It was getting late and the frisky boy asked her if she wanted to go back to his place. Apparently she just wasn't *that keen* on him (and really, she didn't know who the hell he was - that'll be the moral of our story here folks!) and said that she had to drop her friends at home but if he gave her his address she'd meet up with him there later - delicate, polite and lying like a politician ;) She proceeded to leave the club with her friends and dropped them all safely at home before heading back to her own bed and proceeding to fall asleep.

She woke in the morning to find this giant rash spreading over her lower face and down her neck and rushed herself off to the emergency room (don't ask me which). The docs and nurses swab her and take blood and do all the usual doctor-y stuff needed for diagnosis. They come back with stern faces and tell her she needs to go thru her entire week with them and tell them everything she's done. Nothing out of the ordinary, she assures them. But when she get's to the part about kissing the stranger in a night club they become far more interested in him. Do you know his name they ask? No, but I have his address (she tells them, still pretty confused till here). Thanks, we're going to need that, they say.

Turns out she has some kind of bacterial (if think ... or viral, it's always one or the other) infection ... (and here's the frightening bit) that you can only get from corpses. The hospital called the police who headed on over to the creepy dude's house and discovered 3 dead girls that he'd been overly playful with. This girl had narrowly escaped becoming number 4.

Now everybody say it with me: Eeeeuuuuw!

---> you can start reading again, the story is over.

Wednesday was fabulous, we started the day (later than usual for me, which caused no end of traffic chaos) at the Mangwanani Spa at the Indaba Hotel. It is a very nice Spa venue, they've done the decor and gardens really nicely and you feel like you've stepped into the bush, although you're still on the doorstep of Fourways. The treatments themselves were also wonderful. We started with a Head, Neck and Shoulder massage and ended with a Foot and Calf treatment. Pity we were so rushed and promptly told that we couldn't hang around after our treatments. Pretty rude, if you ask me.

After that we headed to Da Vincenzo's for lunch. The girls arrived long before the boys and were well into a 2nd bottle of champagne by the time they joined us (they went quad-biking). It's not my favourite restaurant and I won't be recommending it, but then again, I've been told, I'm a restaurant snob and I've heard people rave about it :) I prefer what I refer to as boutique restaurants. And although this place isn't a chain, it's a spralling faux Italian (I think?) stereotype. But, since we were a group of 32 they could comfortably accomodate us in a separate area (although there were maybe 2 other tables there, maybe). The food was decent in typical set-menu style. I had the chicken. And the chocolate mousse was also very good.

I'll also say that I was thrilled not to be driving when the 3rd and 4th bottle of champagne and the round of tequila's got ordered :) I ended up getting a lift back to JofH's house with him where I was collected by Varen en route home at 6pm.

We didn't even head home, I'd finally booked our anniversary dinner at Casalinga (silly going to another restaurant on the same day, but it slipped my mind). Now this, this is a restaurant.

Varen ordered us a 400-rond bottle of Meerlust Rubicon 2004 (very good) and I started with Haloumi and Zucchini Fritters (which were divine!!) while Varen had some truly decadent Salmon Pancakes. I honestly couldn't tell you which was better. Yum :) For mains we were very boring, both ordering the Veal fillet topped with Parma Ham which was also superb but a bit of a big portion for me, which I think Varen quite appreciated :) And yes, being our anniversary (and even tho we'd both eaten out for lunch earlier), we decided to splash out and have dessert ... a heavenly slice of lemon meringue pie for me (the only one I've had that tasted just like mom's, which is a truly high compliment for me to give food!) and white chocolate tiramisu for Varen (he love love loves tiramisu, I just don't get it?)

It was an amazing day, although I'm definitely feeling like I ate the export produce of a small country :) And I must say I really did enjoy my drive into work with Varen this morning.

A Time of Angels by Patricia Schonstein

Primo Verona is born with a gift of clairvoyance so strong that he is able to predict his own mother's death while still in her womb. Brought up on a rich diet of astronomy, philosophy, and storytelling, Primo accurately reads the futures of the local community who pay him in honey cake, tiramisu, and other delicacies. Pasquale Benvenuto is the owner of a beloved wine bar and delicatessen whose culinary reputation rests on recipes for the fruited breads and salamis his father taught him to make.

Together Primo and Pasquale form an easy friendship triangle with the beautiful Beatrice, Primo's wife and Pasquale's former girlfriend. But when Beatrice leaves her husband for her old love, Primo is devastated. He casts spells to spoil Pasquale's creations and to win back Beatrice -- but inadvertently conjures up an unexpected visitor.

So this is most definitely on my top 10 list of bizarre, unexplainable, how-did-you-get-paid-to-publish-this list of books. Seriously. I totally did not get this plot, although it's fairly nicely written but there's plenty of additional detail that just makes zero sense (not least of all the "unexpected visitor", the angel Lucifer). Oh, and the gift of clairvoyance barely rears it's head thruout the story either. Hello? So yeah, I really can't say (even after reading this) what on earth it was actually about. If you've read it and you have a clue, then please, please let me know!

The Gum Thief by Douglas Coupland

The first and only story of love and looming apocalypse set in the aisles of an office supply superstore. In Douglas Coupland's ingenious new novel - sort of a Clerks meets Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf - we meet Roger, a divorced, middle-aged “aisles associate” at Staples, condemned to restocking reams of 20-lb. bond paper for the rest of his life. And Roger’s co-worker Bethany, in her early twenties and at the end of her Goth phase, who is looking at fifty more years of sorting the red pens from the blue in aisle 6.

One day, Bethany discovers Roger’s notebook in the staff room. When she opens it up, she discovers that this old guy she’s never considered as quite human is writing mock diary entries pretending to be her: and, spookily, he is getting her right.

These two retail workers then strike up an extraordinary epistolary relationship. Watch as their lives unfold alongside Roger’s work-in-progress, the oddly titled Glove Pond, a Cheever-era novella gone horribly, horribly wrong. Through a complex layering of narratives, The Gum Thief reveals the comedy, loneliness, and strange comforts of contemporary life.

Coupland electrifies us on every page of this witty, wise, and unforgettable novel. Love, death and eternal friendship can all transpire where we least expect them …and even after tragedy seems to have wiped your human slate clean, stories can slowly rebuild you.

This book was mostly pretty peculiar, with only the vaguest hint of discernible storyline. But, the characters (of the book and of the book within the book ... eep) are entertaining in their peculiarity. /*Spoiler Alert*/ Seriously tho, I thought Roger & Deedee would totally hook up in the end. Clearly one too many a Hollywood movie for me! Meh, this book was neither here nor there for me.

Bunny Update

Well last night was fairly quiet, as usual for a Monday ;)

We skipped gym cause Varen was still feeling sore from practicing his golf-swing, hell and my shoulder was pretty stiff too. And I proceeded to give myself a seriously painful bruise on my calf by almost slipping in the bath. Seriously, it's sore when I walk even ... this morning still. And it's raised a nice bright colourful mark! Sigh.

But I thought that perhaps it was time for another bunny update - I even took some more pictures of them yesterday afternoon :) Mostly cause it's I arrived home to find Varen playing on his laptop and the bunnies running in the garden. Sounds about perfect, right? So I went outside to say hello to the buns and found Bell to be less than her sparkly white self. Turns out someone had managed to chew thru the charcoal bag and began rummaging in the coal, giving her quite an amusing grey face and paws :)

She was also terribly difficult to get a good pic of because they've both become very friendly and she keeps moving and running around me when I lie on the grass to try catching a good shot.

Henna has also become a real little darling. We've taken to hand feeding them the basil and mint or whatever (so that we can make sure that they mostly get their fair share because Henna eats like she thinks she might wake in a desert tomorrow morning!) and she'll jump up onto my lap to eat and follow me around when it's gone, just in case I have any more. It's too cute :) She's also grown a lot and developed this hysterical (Varen & I try not to laugh too much at her tho!) orange stripe on her forehead. I mean, it's probably the same colour as the bulk of her body fur, but her ears are tinged darker by the "blue" genes and because the darker fur extends down around her eyes, it ends up leaving this orange-looking stripe (as you can quite clearly see in the photo!). I must say she's far easier to photograph than Bell :)

She also supremely impressed her mom on Sunday evening :) They've gotten to the stage where they are smelling the ground to determine where to do their business and regularly going in the same place, prime time to start potting training! So we bought (an in hindsight too small) pot-plant base to use as their "potty", lined it with newspaper and set it in their current spot of choice (this is only for when they're inside the house, obviously). While Varen & I were cuddled watching The Other Boleyn Girl, Henna climbed into the pot-plant base and turned around abotu 3 times before perching. I was hoping she was going to the loo, but she looked like she just might've found somewhere slightly warmer than the floor to sit. But when she got up and ran off, she'd made her mom very proud and used the "potty" for the first time :) We didn't have as much luck last night, but Rome wasn't built in a day ;)

Am so loving these cute little bunnies :)

Improve your Golf Swing

Well another weekend come and gone. But it was a good one ... although we started out with very little planned. Friday night was very quite hell, i barely remember what we did. I don't think anything except chill out at home.

Saturday morning we were up early-ish for climbing. I realised that it's not a great passion for me and although it's sometimes fun to do, I doubt I'll extend my membership when my month is up. It's a neither here nor there thing for me ... does that make sense? Anyhoo, I realised I neither missed it or minded that we hadn't been for 2 weeks. But I did have a good time on Saturday morning and made it to the top 4 times (on two different (grade 13 - the lowest) courses - although I tend to do a bit of a smartie course ;) I'm convinced they've left out some protrusions in each colour!)

After that we did some general admin type stuff ... hmmm, I don't rememebr exactly what actually. Varen had his hair cut. I stayed home with my bunnies. And then we got to gardening. My previous attempts failed simally, except for 1 thriving spinach plant. Me thinks it's because for some peculiar reason none of the 3 pots I bought came with drainage holes. So I dutifully emptied out all the potting soil and Varen drilled me some. After that we hit the nursery and restocked on potting soil and some yummy plants for the bunnies ... and a handy fence-type thing to stop them getting to the plants before they've had a chance to grow. It was a nice ordinary Saturday afternoon spent gardening :) more relaxing and fulfilling than one might realise!

That evening we headed off to dinner with GalleryGirl (soon to be redubbed J9-double0blonde, a recent more suitable nickname she's been given ;) ) and her sister Squeak, at Plaka in Illovo. Dinner was delish, I do love a meal of tapas and picking at different flavours. And when we were all done we decided that we weren't quite ready to go home just yet so headed off to Melrose Arch to enjoy a cocktail or two at JB's Corner. Yum, I really can recommend their Chocolate Martini and Black Forest Gateau (consider these cocktails a replacement for dessert!).

On Sunday we skipped climbing and we were supposed to go to a potjie at one of Varen's friends, but it got cancelled. Instead we did a little more admin - headed to Makro to get myself a shiny new keyboard & mouse for work to replace the awful others I'd previously returned. And let me tell you that this morning I'm very happy with the purchase :) We also took a wander around Clearwater Mall - Varen has a compulsive needto visit the Apple Store every so often and drool ;) While wandering around, we decided to stop at Milky Lane for a waffle. I can't even remember the last time I had a waffle! The were as good as I remember and after scooping off half my ice-cream and only finishing three quarters of it, I'm good for waffles for another few years ;)

After that we headed to Vodacom's World of Golf. I'd decided a little while ago that there were a few weekend activities (like climbing, golf and berry-picking etc.) that I'd like to do. So this weekend we dusted off Varen's very old golf clubs (or sticks as I prefer to call them) and went a-swinging (also incorrect lingo). It was quite fun, as an occasional activity ... it seems I feel much the same for golf as I do for climbing: can be a few hours of fun, but I wouldn't want to plan my life around it. I'm not too shabby, but I certainly hurt afterwards (as did Varen who hasn't played in ages!). I couldn't find any details on the website about day-entry fees, but it's about R120 to get in there as a non-member. No doubt we'll go back for another afternoon on the driving range (or Target Tess as they call them), but probably only in a few months! I had a laugh remembering the good old days when I worked in Cape Town (2003) and the boys and I headed down the road to Pollsmoor Prison during lunch to use their driving range.

After that we had a little bit of a snooze (well Varen did, I read my book) and later watched The Other Boleyn Girl.

A sumptuous and sensual tale of intrigue, romance and betrayal set against the backdrop of a defining moment in European history: two beautiful sisters, Anne and Mary Boleyn, driven by their family's blind ambition, compete for the love of the handsome and passionate King Henry VIII.

It was quite an entertaining movie, although I'm pretty certain (even without the obvious knowledge that it's a Hollywood film) that it must be historically inaccurate, I still enjoyed it. Anne was portrayed as quite a conniving, egotistical bitch (and quite insane towards the end) whereas Mary was quite clearly the one you were supposed to feel sorry for, chasing after love and all. The King of England, I thought came across as quite a weak character. I thought both girls were fairly well cast. Generally, I liked it :) For further reading, check out Wikipedia.

Banking Secrets

So, I've just been on the phone with (one of) my bank(s), Standard Bank, and it's prompted a second post this morning.

I simply wanted to move some money around, transfer some cash across to my FNB Credit Card. But I noticed that my Monthly EAP Limit had shrunk, it was sitting at like a third of what I'd just bothered to go into the damned branch (hate having to do this!), queued and increased it to prior to making my holiday payment last month.

As per SB's website: What is an electronic account payment limit? An electronic account payment (EAP) limit is a monthly limit that you load to your card that allows you to make electronic account payments using Internet, telephone or cellphone banking or an AutoPlus machine. The limit is reduced every time you make an electronic payment. If you have loaded future-dated payments, the limit will be reduced on the day of payment. An EAP limit can only be loaded at a branch.

See, I need this amount to be huge, otherwise my money (and savings) are pretty much inaccessible to me. So I call them up to find out what happened. I mean to increase it I have to schlep to a branch, but I know I can decrease it via their Internet Banking. But I also know there's no way I've done this. Oh and also, the rule (as I understood it) is that you could increase it to whatever amount you liked, as long as you had those funds available in your accounts at the time.

Turns out they've just (01 June, I guess) implemented a new policy (post some kind of audit on they system) that will automatically reset your Monthly EAP Limit back to your salary each and every month. So please understand this: If you increase it today, it'll be back to your salary amount on the 1st July. What's even more annoying to me is that at The Big Corporate, my bond amount was deducted off before I got my salary (don't ask too many questions here, it didn't affect my tax one bit, sadly!), so the amount that they are using as "my monthly salary" is like just over 50% of what it actually should be! Which means I have *the most useless* Monthly EAP Limit in the world! And I'm now going to have to reset it on a monthly basis. Double sigh.

20080620 @ 15h50 Quick Update: I forgot to mention that you actually can save yourself the hassle of going into the branch to increase your EAP limit. You can send them a "secure message" (don't worry, it's one of their menu options) from within your Internet Banking Profile asking them to increase it. But you're still gonna have to do this on a monthly basis.

Needless to say, they haven't bothered giving anyone a heads up about this new little gem, apparently there were too many people to tell or something equally ridiculous. And naturally, I hear, they've been getting complaints a-plenty.

So aside from really needing a good moan about this, I thought it only fair that someone should be letting all you unsuspecting banking victims into the loop ;)

20080623 @ 09h35 Follow Up: So I got a call on Saturday morning from good ol' Standard Bank regarding my Secure Message requesting an EAP increase. Oddly enough (and in complete contradiction to what I'd been told on Friday), the woman asked me if this should be a "permanent increase". I don't know how long the non-permanent increases last for, but I definitely opted for the permanent option! I mean, hello? So fingers crossed that this monthly EAP revert may not be a definite thing :)

A Quick Update on Work

So last night was another quiet one, nothing much to report.

In other news, work is going nicely. I got assigned to a new project (or rather the second phase of the project I was busy with last week) on Tuesday and am proud to say that although I'd been assigned to it for 3 weeks, I had it all done and ready to be tested yesterday afternoon :) So, Friday morning has started out nicely with me feeling quite proud of myself ... and hoping I get a relaxing day at work! But apparently it's probably not to be, I hear murmurings of other work my names been scheduled on ... sigh. Back to the grindstone, but I'm really loving it!

Hmmm, F!sh

Last night was pretty fab. Went out for dinner with Varen's family - his folks are jetting off to Canada & USA for 2 & half weeks. Was minorly disgruntled since I had been planning our belated anniversary dinner for last night, but when they're leaving the country, what can you do?

Luckily the evening turned out nicely and they even met us half-way (another of my minor in-law pet peeves) at F!sh in Rosebank. Wow, this restaurant is definitely moving onto my Top 5 list! This time we skipped starters (a good idea, leaving space for our mains) and I re-ordered the Grilled Salmon Teriyaki I'd had last time (incidentally Varen also order the same dish he'd had last time, the Seared Tuna). I highly recommend you order the Salmon seared as well tho, it definitely makes for a melt-in-your mouth meal :)

In other news, I've recently joined the world of the podcast listeners ... what with the iPod set up in my car, it makes for interesting drive-time listening. My current favs are Skeptoid (these are nice 10 minute bite-sized information chunks) and the BBC Documentaries. If you have any good (and free) podcast recommendations, please let me know :)

Oh, and ps ... I added a pic of the adorable lion cubs to yesterday's catch-up post! Didn't have enough space there for this one tho, so I'm including it here. See what I mean about those giant paws (that's my adult-sized hand holding it!)

Double Cross by James Patterson

From the man the Sunday Telegraph called the 'master of the suspense genre' comes the next high-velocity thriller in the Alex Cross series - James Patterson and Alex Cross fans cannot wait to read DOUBLE CROSS. Alex Cross rejoins the DC police force to confront two of the most diabolical killers he's ever encountered. Just when Alex's life is calming down, he is drawn back into the game to confront a criminal mastermind like no other. The elaborate murders that have stunned Washington, DC, are the wildest that Alex and his new girlfriend, Detective Brianna Stone, have ever seen. This maniac adores an audience, and stages his killings as spectacles in public settings. Alex is pursuing a genius of terror who has the whole city on edge as it waits for his next move. And the killer loves the attention, no doubt -- he even sets up his own website and live video feed to trumpet his madness.

Now this book I raced thru, maybe because the last one had dragged so. Or maybe because I had so much free time this long weekend. I'm sure it was both of these, along with the fact that I was quite eager to be reading some crime fiction after the last two non-fiction books I've read.

It's a pretty easy reading novel and not that in depth plot-wise (although it's clearly trying to be ... but I find that a lot with James Patterson's books, maybe it's just me?). Read it, or don't read it. Either way, it's probably not going to make it onto your Top 10 Reads list but it's still a fun piece of distraction at the end of the day :)

Back by Choice

So I'm back from my brief Internet hiatus. It's the first time ever that I've actually chosen to be "offline". I didn't open Google Talk, I didn't blog, I didn't update my twitter status. Admittedly I did keep on reading my favourites on rss, but as an anonymous reader rather than myself. I didn't comment on other blog posts and I didn't poke anyone on facebook (do people even still do that anymore?).

I am sad to admit that it was great. And having the long weekend (and our work internet connection down since yesterday) certainly helped :) But blogging has become part of who I am in the last 3 years and I refuse to let certain incidents and people get me down about it. So, although I don't really want to, I've decided to turn on those comment moderations. I've also read quite a few other opinionated blogs (easy to find on Thought Leader) and I'll be taking a page out of their book ... I won't comment back to everyone who deigns to say hi (well, maybe the people who just say "hi"). But, if you're missing my point, I'm not going to try drumming it into anyone. And if people want to disagree, I'll be leaving them to it and not getting embroiled in any sort of debate after I've stated my piece. Because, really, I've found it doesn't really accomplish anything healthy in this environment (there are plenty of other places where it can, tho). And hell, if something I've said really gets you thinking, chances are if you're commenting here, you probably have a blog yourself, so rather use that energy and tell your readers your detailed point of view :)

So, here's the lengthy catch-up, you didn't miss out on much! Thursday and Tuesday night weren't worth mentioning ... just the usual hanging out at home with Varen, Henna & Bell (must take some more pics soon!). But, we did have a long weekend here in South Africa and I *was* looking forward to mine. Not least of all because of the distance it would provide me mentally, but more because we were headed to The Farm with Varen's family.

But first, we had a dinner to attend. Singher had organised a semi-work dinner for Friday night - let's just say that everyone round the table (except one!) had either worked at The Big Corporate or was still working there. She'd chosen Wombles, with my help and as far as I know, all 16 of us enjoyed the food. I tried something different (my last meal there, although good wasn't exceptional). Tomato and Basil Soup to start and their grilled Gammon steak (honey glazed and served with pineapple) for main. It was yummy although the portion size was more than adequate (which I think Varen quite appreciated!).

Unfortunately I wasn't in the best of moods as I had found out shortly beforehand that our restful family weekend at the farm was off the cards. Varen's dad had invited his whole family (that's 6 of them and a possible 3 "extra's" if all in tow) as well as two other family's (of 4 and 5 people respectively ... one including 2 kiddies under 6!). Now whether or not I'd be interested in a weekend away with Varen's folks friends isn't even relevant, there's simply not that much sleeping space on the farm. So Varen & I got into a shouting match because (hello?) if you want your fan-damily there for Father's Day (something they're into but, my family isn't so it's a hard enough concept for me to grasp ... more on that another time, perhaps?) surely you either a) stay at home where you're accessible to be visited and showered with cards, attention or whatever your thing is or b) you make a plan to provide enough available space to accommodate your family where ever it is you might be (and as far as I'm concerned, I'm not entirely sure a one-way 3 hour drive is in the realm of "close-by" enough to warrant a Father's Day visit). But apparently I'm wrong on all accounts because my weekend plans got canned and Varen (and his 2 brothers) drove himself (and his car as you will hear later) silly to get himself there to share Father's Day (and the barely available floor-space for sleeping) with 13 other people. He stayed over (no point in spending 6 hours driving there & back in one day - at least we agreed on that one). And yes, I could've gone ... but I just wasn't up for the schlep of it to hang out with his family and 9 other random people, sleep on the floor and share a single bathroom. That was not what I had envisioned for my restful, relaxing long weekend at the farm. I'm now determined that we go there another weekend by ourselves tho, even if it gets down to minus infinity degrees at night, it's still always a fabulous break-away!

Sigh, so we tried to make the most of the one day we had together on the last long weekend for a while. We went for breakfast (very boring, at Europa) and even both did some spontaneous shopping! In the afternoon we visited the Lion Park - I'd been once before with Mom when I'd first moved up to Joburg ... before I started working even! Unfortunately the maid hid the camera download cable so pictures will follow (good thing Varen found it last night, but now the camera battery needs charging first too!).

We had a lovely time and got to play (read: touch ... when they stopped moving about, they're energetic little things, but sooo cute!) with the young lions. They were about 3 & half months old only ... but such big paws already. And we also drove around the park, into their lion enclosures.

And then we decided to do a double feature at the movies. We started with The Incredible Hulk (hmm, I wonder who chose that?), followed by Deception.

The Incredible Hulk kicks off an all-new, explosive and action-packed epic of one of the most popular superheroes of all time. In this new beginning, scientist Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) desperately hunts for a cure to the gamma radiation that poisoned his cells and unleashes the unbridled force of rage within him: The Hulk. Living in the shadows, cut off from a life he knew and the woman he loves, Betty Ross (Liv Tyler), Banner struggles to avoid the obsessive pursuit of his nemesis, General Thunderbolt Ross (William Hurt), and the military machinery that seeks to capture him and brutally exploit his power. As all three grapple with the secrets that led to The Hulk's creation, they are confronted with a monstrous new adversary known as The Abomination (Tim Roth), whose destructive strength exceeds even The Hulk's own. One scientist must make an agonising final choice: Accept a peaceful life as Bruce Banner or find heroism in the creature he holds inside: The Incredible Hulk.

This was surprisingly enjoyable :) But I am untainted by the mediocrity of the first Hulk movie ... It was all fun and action in the typical marvel-comic to big-screen sorta way that these flicks are.

"Are you free tonight...?" Four simple words, but the way one man answers that question will change his life forever. Jonathan McQuarry (Ewan McGregor) is that man. An anonymous corporate auditor adrift in a sea of New York's power elite, "all work and no play" isn't quite Jonathan's problem. He's more "all work and no life." A chance meeting with Wyatt Bose (Hugh Jackman), a charismatic corporate lawyer, introduces Jonathan to a New York City that exists only for the privileged - a decadent playground for Manhattan's executive upper crust. In Wyatt's world, the men wear four-thousand-dollar suits and, when they loosen their ties, they frequent steamy underground bo'tes, where the women are drop-dead gorgeous, and available. And for those power brokers whose eighteen-hour workdays don't leave time for a personal life? For them there's "The List," a sex club, of sorts, where, with the right cell-phone number and those four simple words can lead to an evening's sexual fulfillment. It's a world of "intimacy without intricacy," Jonathan's first conquest explains to him, and through it Jonathan discovers a side of himself that he didn't know existed. But an affair with a ravishing and mysterious stranger known to Jonathan only by her first initial, 'S.,' (Michelle Williams) will expose him to yet another world he never imagined - one of treachery and murder.

Now this was so nearly a good movie ... if it wasn't something that'd been done so many times before, making it *completely* predictable! I'm sad to say that this disappointed in much the same way that Fracture did.

And then at 9am on Sunday my man was gone and I was left to my own devices with not a single thing planned. I didn't do much. I did a little more shopping - sigh, retail therapy is worth every cent! And I read my book and lazed with the bunnies at home. I watched another movie before spending an hour & half scanning in old documents (what I actually got the scanner for ... thank goodness I can report it's finally working wonderfully). I know that all sounds terribly boring, but it was actually nice to find some time to get started. Oh, and the movie in question was Dan in Real Life.

The Burns clan is gathering at their vacation place on the Rhode Island shore: Dan (a widower with three daughters), plus his parents, various brothers and a sister and their families. At a bookstore the first morning he's there, he chats up a woman, bares his soul and feels a connection before she gets a call and bolts. She's seeing someone, who turns out to be one of Dan's brothers. It's a dicey couple of days at the house as Dan can't keep his eyes off her, his brother is obviously falling in love, and everyone thinks she's great. In this big supportive family, who will be the first to find the tension too much to bear?

This was sweet and also would've been supremely better if the concept hadn't been done a zillion times ... seriously, who is budgeting these re-charactered same-old plot movies? Steve Carell was very lovable in the role tho.

Monday wasn't any more exciting. Varen got home around 13h30 ish after a flat (should I rather say sliced and diced) tyre on his car caused an unscheduled stop. Hey, at least he can fix a tyre, I dread the day I ever have to attempt such a thing! Oh, and I did manage to make it to gym on Sunday & Monday so am feeling quite proud of myself ... although the clothes shopping has lead me to believe that I should fast be starting a diet of air and water!

We ended the evening sitting on our lounge floor surrounded by the bunnies playing Fluxx and eating pizza from Sugo, which was recommended by JofH, but I wasn't that impressed - they have very few pizza choices, most of which involve either mushrooms or olives, neither of which I eat. But the evening at home together was still lovely :)

Angels of Death by Marsden & Sher

The Hell's Angels leader, Sonny Barger, is toasted as an American legend, and the bikers work hard to promote their folk-hero image. But the facts tell another story. The Hell's Angels are America's major crime export. Their membership has spread to 25 countries including the UK, Australia and Holland, where they have inspired a violent subculture of biker gangs who traffick drugs and suppress any attempt to stop them. Angels of Death opens at the darkest moment of the Hell's Angels story, with the beheading of a woman at a chapter meeting.

It tells the true story of the bikers, their crime empire and the attempt of the police to stop them - with only a few successes. With eyewitness accounts from police officers who have infiltrated the gangs and gang members who have turned informers, and undercover interviews with the bikers themselves, this is a chilling insight into the world's fastest growing crime empire. It also includes exclusive material from the leaders of the Hells Angels - Sonny Barger and George Christie - who have agreed to be interviewed for the book.

Well Varen and I both read this book ... well let's be honest, only I finished it. And that's just because no matter how bad a book is, I can't not finish it - I'm the same with movies. I envy those people who have the gumption to get up and walk out midway. I can never be certain that it won't get any better, so I stay. Oddly enough, the owner of the book (Bug - Lady brought it to book club for us to read), raced thru it and declared it un-put-downable. Curious what piques different people's interest!

This book was interesting, but dragged ... a lot. And as Varen said, kept re-telling pretty much the same story just changing the characters and countries. It's interesting to have read since I've never put much thought into "biker gangs" nor have I ever thought of them as a mafia-type organisation. And even tho the South African Hells Angels get a mention here and there, I still can't quite picture them ... clearly they are not in my sphere of focus. I mean you see bikers riding about on Sundays, but I would never say "Oh, there go the Hells Angels".

This book also highlighted for me that I just don't get gang-culture. It makes no sense to me, but then again I've never been a very peer-influenced type of girl. Still, if bikers are your thing, then you should probably give this a read :)

> Follow Julian Sher on Twitter

A Delish Home Cooked Meal

Sigh. Sometimes I wish I could ignore things and insulate myself from things better and it really does amaze me what causes ripple effects. My (hopefully) last thoughts on the current on-going issue (that seems to have expanded more than I ever imagined - out of respect and at special request I've removed the link to the "online expansion"): I think people need to be aware when they are saying things (on or offline) that even tho they may not see anything wrong with what they've said, it may be hurtful to someone else. I've learned the hard way (and yes, I know I still often get it wrong myself) that it doesn't really matter if what you say wouldn't hurt your feelings if someone said it to you. It's not being said to you, it's being said to someone else and it's them you need to remember. That said, if you're not saying anything to anyone specific, then it probably gives you a loop hole to give your uncensored opinion (aha, paving the way for blog-posts worldwide!).

My personal issue had nothing to do with comments hurting me (although I got the impression there were people who might've been hurt by some of the comments), it had to do with the fact that no matter how hard I tried to convey my actual point, it was constantly being missed (probably my fault, but still). I was exhausted by *that* fact. Which is why I gave up bothering to try to defend my original point (And I can sorta see that happening all over again with the issue over it ... do I convey my thoughts and opinions that badly?). I still remain quite confident in my beliefs on the original point.

Also, debate (on or offline, again) assumes that there are two (or more) willing parties taking part in a discussion. Randomly shouting out your opinion (pro or against) in a comments section does not make something a debate.

So ye, I'm exhausted by this discussion now too ... so you all go right ahead and do what you like, with no regard for anyone else. Leave comments, don't leave comments. Agree, disagree. Sigh, whatever. I'm beginning to be sorry I ever brought it up ... or shared my original opinion for that matter. Perhaps in future I won't ... not, if this is where it gets me.

But on to last night. Varen was home even earlier than I was yesterday afternoon, it was fabulous! So we hung out at home for a couple of hours and by the time we headed out to GalleryGirl & Squeak's for dinner, it felt like we'd had almost a whole evening at home together already (the early darkness helps with this illusion ;) ). Dinner and dessert was absolutely delish. I got to try gnocchi (home made by Squeak herself even ... although Varen & I helped a little!) for the first time and it was really good. And then she spoiled us with creme brulee for dessert (also home made)! How lucky were we?

Oh The Fumes

Yesterday afternoon didn't start out fabulously ... along with the continuous hammering below us (apparently should end this week?) there are now paint fumes infiltrating our air. And sadly, rather than making us all happy and high, I left work with a blinding headache.

But with a nice quiet evening at home with some yummy home-made pizzas for dinner (those weighless pizza bases, again!) and Varen home from work earlier than I expected and in a much better mood than the day before, things quickly improved :)

Very boring post, I know ... but sometimes I have too much to tell and sometimes nothing at all. And I think that's just how it is in life.