It's that time again

... Time for the Vodacom Durban July, the biggest annual horseracing event in the country, and one of the most elegant, over-the-top events on the South African calendar. Every fashionista and glamour-girl will be there to strut their stuff in their very finest creations, the champagne will flow pretty much all day long… Oh yes, and there’s also the really amazing horse race to crown it all. (Note: I’m not really into horse racing. I’m still not sure about the whole ethical thing. But I do think that horses are just beautiful and this is a great opportunity to see some of the finest horses in the world!)
This year’s theme is “Baubles, bangles and beads”, and this is the “poem” that Vodacom posted on the race website (www.vodacomdurbanjuly.co.za) to invite people to dress up according to the theme. The copy made be vomit ever-so-slightly – I don’t think I’ve ever read something so badly written! – but at least you know that the theme is all about. Here it is:

2006 FASHION THEME - BAUBLES, BANGLES AND BEADS
It’s baubles, bangles and beads,
Sequins, crystal, diamonds and pearls.
It could be bling! Show that ring!
Hey! Hey! Hey! Diamante.

Raid the loft – something soft.
Styles meet – marcasite!
Beau-ti-fy, tit-i-vate.
Pret-ti-fy, dec-o-rate.

Do not worry about the cut or cloth,
No panic about the seam or stitch.
Don’t tell that it’s Chanel or Shopwell,
Just take your “fave” and make it rave.

Adorn, enhance,
Catch the judges’ eye.
Dress it up,
At the Vodacom Durban July.

GAG!!! “Pret-ti-fy”?!?!?!?!?!? Anyway… This year I’ll be going as my mom’s date, and we’ll be in the SABC tent, which promises to be very nice. (I’ll also be sneaking off on occasion to my best friend Gail’s tent – The Hardy Boys – where I’m sure the party is gonna be rocking from first thing in the morning! Heh heh heh! Gail, keep some shooters warm for me, babe?)
Last night was “dress-rehersal-night” for my dress, hair and makeup, and much to my delight, everything looked really beautiful. It fits! That’s all I wanted! I’m going very African this year, in a skirt and top in a similar style to the red dress in the pic. But, I’m going with earth tones – greens, browns, rusts, mustards, reds, etc – and I’m pulling it all together with wooden African beads and bangles. Should be nice, hey?
Look out for an update on Monday, on how it all went down.
Wish me luck… No wardrobe malfunctions! Crossed fingers!

Fashion designed by Sfiso Mthethewa.
Pic and event logo taken from www.vodacomdurbanjuly.co.za.

Virgen del Carmen

So there I was just messing around on the net and I discover… this! It’s the Virgen del Carmen. How cool is that?! I just love icons and religious art stuff so I was blown away to find something with my name attached. Read on to find out more about her…

Andalucia.com: To understand why the Virgen del Carmen should be held so dear […] we need to go back to the Old Testament. Downshifting in his old age, the prophet Elias retreated to a cave in Mount Carmelo near Haife (Israel). Many centuries later, hermits following in Elijah's footsteps asked for the protection of the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmelo - the Virgin of Carmen. Stella Maris, as she was also known, was soon adopted by mariners and fishermen everywhere as their patron.

In Peru: Four hours from Cuzco, in the town of Paucartambo, thousands of devotees hold festivals in honor of the Virgen del Carmen, known locally as Mamacha Carmen, patron saint of the mestizo population (Webster's dictionary defines mestizo as "a person of mixed blood; a person of mixed Spanish and Amerindian blood."). The gathering, that raises the curtain on these days of celebrations is held in the main square, where troupes of musicians play their instruments while richly dressed choirs sing in Quechua. The setting gives way to a series of ingenious choreographies that portray events in Peruvian history. For five days, dance companies in various costumes (Doctorcitos, Waca Waca, Sarjas) take to the streets to accompany the Mamacha throughout the entire procession through the main square, the church and the city streets. On the main day, the virgin is borne aloft in a procession to bless those present and scare away demons. The dancers take to the housetops, performing daring gymnastics, showing off their colorful Inca and colonial garb. At the end of the procession, war is waged on the demons, from which the faithful emerge in triumph. Finally, the gathering ends up in the cemetery to render homage to the souls of the dead.

My Hluhluwe Getaway - Day 4

I don’t normally sleep in the car if we’re going long distances, but this time I was officially pooped. Mom, dad and I got out of bed, packed, got all our stuff into the boot of our car and sauntered down to the dining room for our last breakfast at the Hluhluwe Hotel. Everyone was tired and cheerful but kind of sad to say goodbye… So we didn’t. We sorted out our bill, which is always a mission, and hit the road, stopping at a fabulous arts and crafts place with an African art gallery called, Ilala Weavers. I got a really nice pair of bead earrings there. (That reminds me! Why haven’t I worn those yet?!) It was my gran’s birthday, so I called from the car to wish her, promising to make a batch of crumpets for her and her mates later on in the week, and after an hour or so we made our final stop, an awesome arts and crafts place on the side of the freeway. From the road, you could never have guessed how huge the place was, so when we eventually walked around, what should have been just a quick stop, turned into an hour! This pic really doesn’t do it any justice. I managed to pick up some beautiful beads and a stunning bracelet for The July (the theme is “Beads, Bangles and Baubles” – or something like that) and we were on our way.
I had decided to wear one of my new African skirts that I bought in Hluhluwe on Day 3, and the compliments kept rolling in. So I’ve decided that’s definitely the one I’ll be wearing in 2 weeks to South Africa’s biggest and most elegant annual horseracing event. I might just jazz it up with some other elegant stuff I’ve been hiding in my cupboard.
I must’ve been out-for-the-count for at least 2 hours, because when I opened my eyes we were pulling into my neighbourhood.
It was nice to be home and to see my brothers and Beena. Looks like she really missed me too. She slept in my bed for two nights after we got back, - something virtually unheard of, seeing as I’m a kicker and she prefers to sleep in the boys beds where she won’t get the boot.
It took me two whole days to recover. I basically walked around in my pajamas for two days, unpacking on day one and catching up on some tv on day two.
And that’s my holiday in a huge nutshell.
Would I do Hluhluwe again? Most definitely! Although just driving through St Lucia on the way to our boat ride, I think that would be more to my taste… On the water. Quant little restaurants, shops and pubs. A really laid back vibe. Yeah! I’m looking into St Lucia for the next round...

My Hluhluwe Getaway - Day 3

Day three started off with a full breakfast – AGAIN! (Aside: The only good thing about a dinner-bed-and-breakfast arrangement is that you skip having a heavy lunch.) We missioned around Hluhluwe for a bit, where I managed to find something ethnic to wear to the Durban July, and then we relaxed around the pool. I seemed to be the only one longing for some down time with my book, so I skipped the book and joined the gang, nibbling on Aunty Maureen’s mince pies and making sure Tatum doesn’t do a swan dive into the pool. I also managed to wander around for a bit with my camera, pretending to take some arty pics. Here’s one of them. I call it, “Blue sky through really big tree”. Heh!
Our last planned activity for the holiday was our visit to the cheetah project. Those for you who know ANYTHING about me will know that I love cats, so to stand less than a meter away from a wild cheetah while she waits for her dinner was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I’ll never forget it! The thing that got me the most is how much my own little Sabrina (Beena) has in common with them. Big cat, or little domestic cat – the feline instincts are there. At one point, the female cheetah grew tired of waiting for her meat while the game ranger told us about the project, so she stopped jumping around and sat with her back to the game ranger, pretending that she didn’t care about the huge chunk of meat sitting just three meters away from her. When Beena’s tired of begging, she does the same thing! They both peep over their “shoulders” now and again to see if you’re giving in or not and then pretend to ignore you again. I loved every minute of it!
The dinner wasn’t all that nice this time, with the hotel forgetting to keep a table for us, and the food not being up to scratch. But we didn’t let it put a damper on our weekend. On the whole, it was a great experience. I believe that this was the first time the hotel had ever advertised this promotion, and I really don’t think that they were prepared for the number people that descended on them. However, they did their very best to make us comfortable, and to be honest, I think they did very well in the face of possible disaster. I’m sure that the next time the put a good deal on the internet (and a couple of flyers in the mailbox) they’ll be better prepared for the hungry, demanding guests that attack the place.

My Hluhluwe Getaway - Day 2

Day Two started with a 3 hour game drive around the Hluhluwe Game Reserve. We all got together in the parking lot at 6:30am with our jackets and a few blankets (included in the tour vehicle) but NOTHING could have prepared us for the cold. Mid-winter, misty air, whipping past your head and neck at 6:30am in an OPEN game-viewing vehicle is no joke. Please bear in mind that I was still on day 2 or 3 of my flu antibiotics, so I was sure that this cold was going to be the death of me. El then bundled me up in one of his jackets and rolled me up in a blanket, and by the time the sun decided to come out for sure, I was toasty and LOVING it.
Wow! What an experience. I’ve never been on a game drive before so it was all a great adventure to me. We saw three of the Big Five (elephant, rhino and buffalo) plus loads of little duiker, birds, giraffe etc. We sadly didn’t get to see any lion and leopard – that would have been the best! – but any self-respecting cat would NEVER have been moving around in that cold morning mist anyway. Trust me. I know these things. The highlight of it all, for me, was getting to see the hyena. I could never, in my wildest dreams, have imagined how big and ferocious they are. They came right up to the vehicle, one with a kudu leg in its mouth, and gave us the hairy eyeball. Shiver!
Then we had breakfast and a quick game of football on the lawn at the hotel and in no time at all we were off to the St Lucia estuary for our 2hour boat ride. I had to keep reminding myself that we were just three hours from my hometown. St Lucia is a world heritage site with good reason. There aren’t too many places on this planet where could you see a 5day old baby hippo playing in the water, while you sip on a glass of white wine and listen to the gentle waves lapping at the side of the boat. The pic you see is of the sun setting over St Lucia. Breathtaking.
A sumptuous dinner of fresh, steamed salmon and grilled wild boar made it a day to remember.

My Hluhluwe Getaway - Day 1

Mom, dad and I only had to check in at 2pm at the Hluhluwe Hotel, so we decided to run few errands in the morning and then leave home at 11am-ish to be there by about 3pm-ish. We were driving so we made sure that we had enough padkos (mince pies, chicken breadrolls and whisky) and a bunch of cds to keep us going. Three-four hours is a LONG time on the road.
We had a short pit stop just outside Matubatuba, where dad was flabbergasted that he had to pay a buck to use the loo, and a minor detour around to the back entrance of the hotel (the front is under construction), and suddenly we were there at the front desk checking in. Yay!
The Hluhluwe Hotel was every bit as nice as we thought it would be and the rooms were very comfortable. I thought that the bathrooms could’ve used a bit of work, but the rooms themselves were nice. And the dining area, curio shop, lounge, pool area and bar were really nicely done in an African theme – of course.
We popped down to the Boxer supermarket across the street for some junk food for the room and then settled in to wait for the rest of my family to get there.
The rest of that evening is kind of a blur… Heh heh heh.
The rest of the gang consisted of – my dad’s sister, Maureen and her husband Clem, their two kids Shaun and Lyn and their partners (Debbie and El). Shaun and his wife Debbie have two little ones, Liam (5) and Tatum (11months).
Well! One whisky turned into ten whiskies, turned into some wine, turned into a couple of shooters… Groan!
Dad got so wasted he took over the band. It was their first night there and I doubt they’ll take a weekend booking there ever again. Being the musician that he is, dad couldn’t STAND having someone else there on stage hogging the spotlight, so he kept running up, song after song, grabbing the mic (AND a guitar at one stage!) and taking over! The people loved it, but mom and I were mortified. The more shooters the audience sent his way, the more raucous he got, until eventually mom and I packed him off to bed.
The next morning at breakfast, everyone treated him like a celebrity and wanted to know if there’d be a repeat performance later that night. With a filthy glance in dad’s direction, mom and I assured them that there wouldn’t be.

Rich Man Poor Man *****

I think I must be one of the few dorks on this planet who hadn’t read this book yet. And if you are one of those dorks too, do yourself a favour and get your hands on a copy of Rich Man Poor Man by Irwin Shaw. Whenever you mention this book to my folks, their eyes always glaze over with nostalgia and they simply lose it, raving about the tv series way-back-when. I was too little to pat attention when it was on, but I’ve always kind of known somewhere in the back of my mind that this was a really cool thing. So when I found a second hand copy of the book at a book sale for like five bucks, I bought it and put all 600plus pages away on my bookshelf for a day when I really be in the mood. Having nothing but a bunch of suicide novels to read from bookclub this month (don’t ask!) I finally picked it up, and didn’t put it down until I had finished it.
What a book!
No wonder it sold millions of copies and was made into a “major television series”. And if the tv series was half as good as the book, no wonder my parents rank it in their Top 10 All Time Best Ever Tv Experiences.
The plot is a lot like Jeffery Archer’s Kane and Abel. The story follows Rudolf, Gretchen and Thomas Jordache as they grow up and make their place in the world - all their triumphs and sorrows, success and failure. Rudy is the polished businessman, Gretchen the beauty who wants make it big in Hollywood and Tom is the aggressive black sheep who gets thrown out of the family and is left to survive on the strength of his fists in the boxing ring.
Oh man! I say again… What a book!
And what an ending?
I never saw it coming and it left me devastated.
I’ll say no more. Just get your hands on a copy and enjoy all five stars of it.

Now THAT'S what I call 'roughing it'...

I know you probably think that the novelty has worn off...
I can hear you from WAY over here, thinking, “Ja! She’s forgotten all about the blog she started so lovingly, not too long ago.” But I can assure you, you would be absolutely WRONG in assuming such things! I could NEVER forget about you, my dear blog visitors. All three of you will always have a special place in my heart.
The reason that I haven’t been blogging lately, is that I simply haven’t had all that much to say. We’ve been snowed under at work. (One person was on baby leave, one got married and one was never really there to begin with. You know who you are!) So I was left to stress about a lot of stuff. The guys really pulled it altogether, but somebody has to lie awake at night and stare at the ceiling, and as next-in-foodchain, that honored person was lil’ ol’ me.
Those were excuses numbers one through six.
I also had the flu… nay HAVE the flu.
Etc etc and so on and so forth!
Onto the better news…
This weekend I’ll be going away with my folks and my cousins to the Hluhluwe Hotel for four days (and three nights) of African Safari bliss! It’s gonna be very interesting, seeing as (many of you will know) my idea of “roughing it” is having only 6 dstv channels. Eek! Many of you will remember that my motto in life is “Life’s too short to wear ugly shoes”. The second part of that motto pertains to the many invitations that I get to join people on their many adventures. That line goes: “If I can’t wear my stilettos, I really don’t want to go!”
SO! You can imagine my “apprehension” when I discovered that the holiday comes with a free 3hour game drive. (Double EEK!) I LOVE animals, don’t get me wrong! But other than cats, I generally love my animals medium-rare on a bed of sweet potato chips… Heh heh heh! (Cats are safe, ‘cos they’re GORGEOUS!) I don’t do bugs. And I don’t do snakes. Or lizards. Or mud. Or hiking trails. (Cringe!) I walk several kilometers a week – on a treadmill. And my idea of braving “The Wild” is trying to find an organic lettuce in the fresh produce aisle that doesn’t have any worms in! (CRINGE!)
But I really couldn’t have been happier when I checked out the pics of the place on the ol’ inter-web! (Also don’t do computers. Or science. Or math.) It’s beautiful. Just check out the poolside pics… Stunning, hey? So (antibiotics or not!) I will be sipping on cocktails, lounging by the pool (in -10 winter weather!), wearing my beaded Indian wrap skirt, my tan stilettos and my green, safari-inspired jacket.
I hope they have a salon. I might get my hair blow-waved before I go down to Sunday breakfast…

Memoirs (The Movie) ***1/2

Okay... So I've changed my mind!
Go and see "Memoirs of a Geisha" the movie. It IS worth the price of the movie ticket. I thought that the casting was pretty good, except for Sayuri (THE MAIN CHARACTER!), but other than that, the rest of the cast was well suited to the roles. If you're an art director / creative / design type that gets a great big woody when you see a pretty picture, then you should DEFINATELY go and see Memoirs. Each and every shot was so beautifully crafted/directed, they all could quite easily qualify as works of art. For the readers in the house, I have to say that they stayed pretty true to the book. There were a few changes at the very begining and WAY at the end, but nothing that made me go, "Argh!". Memoirs the movie gets three and a half stars from me, even though I was determined to give it a -10.
So there.

Doomed from Day One...

I really enjoyed one of Noodle’s recent posts where she showed off the Playboy cover from the month and year she was born. So I thought I’d try to find mine. “Might be good for a laugh”, I thought.
It’s a big giant butt.
Figures…

Running with Scissors * or ***** (Can’t decide!)

Augusten.com says: The #1 bestseller, Running with Scissors is the true story of a boy whose mother (a poet with delusions of Anne Sexton) gave him away to be raised by her unorthodox psychiatrist who bore a striking resemblance to Santa Claus. So at the age of twelve, Burroughs found himself amidst Victorian squalor living with the doctor's bizarre family, and befriending a pedophile who resided in the backyard shed. The story of an outlaw childhood where rules were unheard of, and the Christmas tree stayed up all year - round, where Valium was consumed like candy, and if things got dull, an electroshock-therapy machine could provide entertainment. The funny, harrowing and bestselling account of an ordinary boy's survival under the most extraordinary circumstances.
Running with Scissors spent over 70 consecutive weeks on The New York Times bestseller list. To date, it has been published in over fifteen countries. A film based on the book is currently in production.
I say: Shag a brick?!?! Could this story be real?? I HATED this book so much. I just wanted to climb into the pages and save this little boy and give him the home and love that he needed so desperately. It is one of the best books I’ve ever read. I couldn’t put it down. Check out augusten.com to learn more about him. After this book, I’m really struggling to find something else to read. What could possibly follow a story like this?

Smacked ****

Kalahari.net says: For six years Melinda Ferguson was driven by one motivating force - the next hit. For this, she would abandon her promising film-making career, lose her comfortable suburban home, her husband, her two children and, in a grueling finale to six years of remorseless self-destruction, herself. Rescued from the maw of Hillbrow's drug and prostitution underworld, Melinda not only survived, but recovered to tell this harrowing tale of how an intelligent, middle-class girl from Joburg hits rock bottom, face first, and claws her way back to redemption.
I say: Maybe it’s because I know people who’ve battled with dwelms (and lost?), maybe I know what it is to be around alcoholics, maybe it’s because I know there’s a very VERY fine line between being “a party girl” and a sad slave to chemicals… I don’t know what it was. But this book really spoke to me. I don’t think she’s an awesome writer. I don’t think she’s trying to be particularly clever with words or language, but my GOODNESS, what a story! It will make you think twice about trying that harmless little first pull on a joint…

Memoirs of a Geisha ****

Memoirs of a Geisha is coming out on circuit soon, so I’m sure that many will skip the book and go straight to the popcorn, technicolour version. But that would be sad! Maybe it’s because I lived in the Far East for a while (a shout out to my little peeps in Taiwan – NEE HOW MA!?) or maybe it’s because I seem to gravitate towards cool stuff from that part of the world, but whatever it is, the story just felt real and believable to me. I know a little about the culture, so I could see how this could have happened to girls in Japan, back in the day. I enjoyed letting the few Japanese words in the book roll around in my mouth – feels nice – and the landscapes, characters and wardrobe were simply stunning. (Boy, those geishas sure know how to throw on a kimono or two, hey?) Anyway. Don’t make Ster Kinekor / NuMetro rich this month. Read a book instead. Your brain will thank you for it someday.

The Bonesetter's Daughter ***1/2 stars

Okay... So I've dished the dirt on book club, ie. I've told you about all the drunken debauchery and virgin sacrifices, but I've only alluded to the "literary discussions and sh1t" that goes on. So to prove to you that I have in fact read a couple of books this past year, I've decided to do the odd book review on the ones I've enjoyed so far.
(Please note! I have read more than just the couple of books I’ll be raving about every so often. It’s just that I thought I’d review the ones that really meant something to me. So there!)
The first, The Bonesetter’s Daughter, is the kind of “standard favourite” you would expect to find at any decent book club. It’s the book equivalent of a “chick flick”, but I gotta say, I really enjoyed it. In the first third of Bonesetter, I thought that maybe Amy Tan had lost her mojo, and was trying to bore me to death, or at least lull me into a coma so I’d never be able to tell anyone how bad the book was… until! Kah-boom! She whacks you with a story so rich, sad and incredible, you really can’t put the book down until you know it’s all gonna be okay. I think that maybe I didn’t enjoy the first part because I really couldn’t identify with the character of Ruth, an Asian-American who finds her old, eccentric Chinese mother to be an embarrassment to her in the ultra-slick, super-western world of America. The mom is very secretive about her past (wanting to protect Ruth from her sad story) so you could say that maybe Ruth doesn’t understand her mother and that’s why she pushes her away. But when her mother writes her story down for Ruth to read, Ruth is too busy (or lazy?) to have it translated and the mother’s story lies at the bottom of a desk drawer until she eventually starts to get sick, and Ruth (“I might lose my precious mom – WOE IS ME!”) finally decides to learn what her mother is about. (Lazy cow.) Anyway! If it were in dvd format, I would skip the Ruth bits and stick to the mom’s story, which is just… just… Trust me! Really REALLY amazing. So read it!

Mother culture.

Instead of hanging around the house all Sunday and getting wasted (the way we normally do!) we decided to do something special – especially since it was Mother’s Day, etc. So we packed a picnic basket and bundled my gran into the car and drove off to the Botanic Gardens. The Mr Price Music at the Lake concert was on, with the KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra playing. Despite the park hotting up to what felt like 40degreesC (and one too many waltzes!) we had a really great time. The place was packed! We were lucky to get a nice spot near the stage, even though there was no shade. I’d do it again, for sure. My mom had a blast and my gran was beaming. That’s what it’s all about hey? - happy moms and grans on Mother’s Day.

Take me drunk. I'm home!

What a great Friday night!
It was my best mate, Noodle's birthday, and man! What a jorl.
I got home from work thinking that I'll just have a couple of glasses of wine at the birthday dinner. I had just enough time for a shower and a brief session in hair and make-up before I had to leave the house, but as I walked in the door my folks cracked open a bottle of scotch, and it pretty much went horribly wrong (or so-very right? - I'm not sure...) from there. I had 2 (double?) shots while getting dressed. (Even though I knew I was going to KILL my diet at Cafe 99 and had been starving myself the entire day, I made sure I had something to eat with the scotch, or else it would have been way, WAY worse I'm sure.) I was fine on the drive over to Silverton Road, but as I swerved into my parking bay, something funny happened. I instantly got horribly, badly, insanely, crikey-what's-going-on-herey WASTED! I hobbled up to the restaurant carrying all the gifts and took my place with Noodle and Maria. We ordered a bottle of wine and the night got off to a boozy start! Eventually everyone rolled in and soon there was no more place at the table. (What can I say? Noodle's popular.) I think it was the great company? It might have been the loud/fun atmosphere? Or the small portions I kept ordering? Or the fact that we destroyed 2 bottles of wine at the table (one of them was Noodle's birthday pressie, a 1.5LITRE RED!!)? I'm not sure what finally did it, but eventually I had to give in to the fact that I was completely cross-eyed and there wasn't a damned thing I could do about it. A case of tee many martooni's if ever there was one.
Happy birthday Noodle Pops! You're the best.
I love this picture of you, even though it's kind of grainy and fuzzy. Come to think of it, everything I remember about Friday night is grainy and fuzzy. So I guess this picture captures it all really well!
:-)

Mama needs a new pair of shoes!

So, do you think I'll get anything from Whiskas for this product endorsement-type-of-pic starring my precious Sabrina? it wasn't too hard to get her to sit next to the box, 'cos trust me, she sees that purple packaging and loses it everytime! I can barely get the little sachets open and pour them into the bowl without spilling it all over the place - Beena gets so excited waiting for her chow, that she manages to knock everything over in her path. This can be particulary tricky at 3am, after stumbling out of bed, eyes still closed, trying not to wake the family up, and trying not to step on her tail...
Are there any Whiskas brand managers in the house? I think it's time Beena gets a job.
No?
Oh well...

We had a big meeting at work yesterday...

Nobody at the meeting looked like this.
I think that's quite sad.

Behavioral Issues

This is a picture of my child sitting behind the dstv decoder, mnet decoder and hi-fi thing at home. There are loads of wires back there, so you can imagine my concern. She seems to do this when we have people over (at HER house - how DARE they?!), or she wants to get my attention, or it's cold, OR she's in a not-so-nice mood. There used to be a time when she was a little "slimmer" that it bothered me, but not too much. Now that she's... erm... well... a little more "voluptuous", I am very concerned! 'Cos every time she wants to jump down again, she drags half the equipment with her! It's a good thing I've been there to catch the stuff before it hits the ground, - still my mom (the REAL owner of the house) is not amused, with good reason, I think you will agree. I've tried The Stern Talk and The Look of Utter Disappointment, but neither have worked.
My brother, Brendan, has tried to perform an exorcism, but I think maybe that was a step backwards. (I'm not sure we had the right equipment?) I had a friend whose kitty was chewing on her tail (anxiety attacks) and had to see a kitty shrink here in Durban. I don't think it's reached that stage yet, but I might be getting there slowly. I wonder what the kitty shrink will prescribe. I don't like anti-depressants. I was miserable trying to get off them the last time.

Well done, Kim!

Book Club was hosted by my friend, Kim, last Thursday, and it was AMAZING! In fact, it's right up there with my very first time - at BOOK CLUB that is! Candice was the host, and for dinner we had her dad's pumpkin/butternut lasagne. It was the creamiest, yummiest, most crave-worthy dish I'd enjoyed for a long, LONG while. And then came Kim, with a bottle of red wine so big, it could sink a fairly large cruise ship! And boy did I get sunk! By the middle of the evening I was slurring and by the end I was cursing and guffawing like a common fish wife. Not at all attractive. Especially when you consider that my book club actually READS books. We really do talk abut actual books that we've read. Granted that roughly one hour of the actual ±4hours we're together is really spent on books, we still do READ and ANALIZE literary sh1t. So you can imagine. (I hope Kim won't be getting thrown out of her building any time soon.) The chinese stir fry was GREAT, even though I didn't quit my yapping long enough to put away as much as I normally can, but it was the sweets that really did it. Shortbread, kissed with a layer of caramel and smothered in chocolate. Well all lady-like reserve went out the window. I had TWO there and had her wrap up another 2 for the road. Giggle!