Alms For A New Day

It's getting so that

I don't recognize the girl

in my mirror

Telephone rings
fingers fly filling pages
notes for next story

children mourn days

before hum-filled house reigned with 

laptop burning vision

a paycheque- my dues

recognition won in alms

A New Day Begins

On The Road

After driving through Rundu and Grootfontein, we ended up in Tsumeb, where I spent another night on the ground under chilly cloudless skies. My travelling companions were headed to Etosha to take in some game viewing, but I had had enough. While I would have loved to see Namibia’s premiere game reserve, I could not afford to continue with my new friends. My pennies were feeling pinched and the date on my airline ticket had me counting the days. So I bid adieu to my rag-taggle group, was charged for gas and rental fees while in their car, and departed from them N$122.50 lighter. At that rate, if I had continued with them, I would have been left in the middle of the game park to bunker down with the lions again! Egad!

So I struck out on my own again, this time with my thumb as my only travelling companion. It was a brand new day and my third in Namibia. It was about to get a little more exciting, but NOT in a way that I would have liked. In fact, it shaped up to be one of the scariest days that I endured throughout my whole  stay in Africa.

So after my rented ride roared off, with high spirits I plunked my backpack on the side of the road and stuck my thumb in the direction of passing vehicles. It didn’t take long before one of those motorists stopped. In hindsight, I wish he had not, but things happen for a reason and on that day, I climbed in with a gracious smile. For my efforts, a crooked smile was returned, before the driver aimed his car back onto the road. The word “aim” was the best description for what he was attempting. I quickly discovered that my driver was three sheets, or more, to the wind. He reeked of booze and swerved all over the road. Every time he talked to me, the car veered in the direction that his head was facing in. I was terrified. My smile turned from gratitude to horror, as I clutched at the door, bracing for impact with oncoming vehicles. I knew it was a miracle that the driver did not flip the car every time he grazed onto the gravel shoulders and manically thanked my guardian angels for every near miss. Their wings were fluttering like mad that day.

How I got out of the car, I have blocked from my memory, but suffice it to say that I did. I felt like I was down a life or two, but still had miles to go before I could call anyplace home. With a little more trepidation, I clung to the side of the road again, praying that my angels would forgive me my transgressions from months gone by. Cars zoomed by and I remained where I was. I was only half discouraged, as my last ride remained fresh in my mind.

The arrival of a young woman broke me from my train of thought. She appeared to be about my age, perhaps a little younger, maybe a little older. It was hard to tell and no common language could rectify that. She was obviously a local woman and travelled with a large bag, minus the live chickens that I had become accustomed to.  I remembered that I was in Namibia though, and life here was a little more progressive. While both of us were still hitchhiking, it was on a good paved road and lines even ran down the middle of it to define left from right. As it was obvious that we were going in the same direction, we both gravitated towards each other, despite our lack of verbal communication. A shy smile passed between us and that was enough to let us know that we were on the same path. So when a big rig applied his brakes and rolled to a stop, we both ran together to jump in for the next leg of our journeys. I prayed that this ride would prove to be less eventful.

Saturday's Email of the Week - Time to Breathe

Saturday's Email of the Week

My week has been a whirlwind of activity. With two new clients, plus a few other existing clients, I have had to learn how to better utilize my time management skills. Hmm, yeah. Have to say that they have sucked so far this week. Up late most nights and crossed eyed in the morning over coffee. What with a "Meet the Teacher" night thrown in mid week, a PA day at the end of the week and a house full of guests expected for the weekend, I feel like I have not had a minute for me at all. We still made it to swimming lessons, ergo a dip in the pool for me too, but my aquatics class was vetoed due to eye appointments for the girls. Always at the bottom of the list it would appear.

I don't mean to sound like I am complaining though. I am thrilled to have new clients. In fact thrilled to be able to say I have clients at all! Last year at this time, I was blogging away for myself like mad, half-heartedly blogging for a baby boutique and doing some basic PR work for a friend's blog talk radio show. Better than nothing, but not like this year. Can I tell you a secret? I even had business cards printed out a while back, as it looked like I just might have need of them. And oh boy, I have! Well, I have given them out to friends, family and a few other souls, but still!

So before the rooster crows morning, I will leave you with a brief look at what my week has looked like via my inbox.

"you okay?" - SL


"send along the info about this story you mentioned" - DC

"Can I drop off your wood about 1:30?" - CM


"retweeted to 729 followers" - AI


"Check out my stuff" - MC


"today i am in a very awkward state. i could use a word or two from a friend. my love to y'all in an attempt not to hate." - JT


"I'll get back to you on time, but dinner first would be fun" - CA 


"Let me know so I can present the idea to the board" - ME 


"A new device named "home" logged into your Facebook account"


"LAUGH!!!!!" - BL


"Register before September 23rd" - LSBC


"Would you consider writing a press release" - MC


"My goodness! I'm speechless for once. Thank you so so so so much." - SP


"I hope all is well" - CM

I like that last one. How about one more that put a smile on my face from BL. I hope you all have a great weekend and find time to stop and smell the roses! I sure am going to try (after I vacuum the house, wash the sheets on the beds, mop the floor, buy some groceries, clean the counters and put away the salsa that I canned a few days ago). Agggghhhhhh!

~~~

 The couple were 85 years old and had been married for sixty years.
Though they were far from rich, they managed to get by because they
watched their pennies.

Though not young, they were both in very good health, largely due to the
wife's insistence on healthy foods and exercise for the last decade..

One day, their good health didn't help when they went on a rare vacation
and their plane crashed, sending them off to Heaven.

They reached the pearly gates, and St.. Peter escorted them inside. He
took them to a beautiful mansion, furnished in gold and fine silks, with
a fully stocked kitchen and a waterfall in the master bath. A maid could
be seen hanging their favourite clothes in the closet.

They gasped in astonishment when he said, 'Welcome to Heaven. This will
be your home now.'

The old man asked Peter how much all this was going to cost. 'Why,
nothing,' Peter replied, 'remember, this is your reward in Heaven..'

The old man looked out the window and right there he saw a championship
golf course, finer and more beautiful than any ever built on Earth.

'What are the greens fees?,' grumbled the old man.

'This is heaven,' St. Peter replied. 'You can play for free, every day.'

Next they went to the clubhouse and saw the lavish buffet lunch, with
every imaginable cuisine laid out before them, from seafood to steaks to
exotic deserts, free flowing beverages.

'Don't even ask,' said St. Peter to the man.. This is Heaven, it is all
free for you to enjoy.'

The old man looked around and glanced nervously at his wife.
'Well, where are the low fat and low cholesterol foods and the
decaffeinated tea?' he asked.

'That's the best part,' St. Peter replied, 'You can eat and drink as
much as you like of whatever you like and you will never get fat or
sick. This is Heaven!'

The old man pushed, 'No gym to work out at?'

'Not unless you want to,' was the answer.

'No testing my sugar or blood pressure or....'

'Never again. All you do here is enjoy yourself.'

The old man glared at his wife and said, 'You and your fucking Bran
Flakes.

We could have been here ten years ago!'

Without A Kosher Passport

Dear Victoria Falls; home of temptation, excitement and over-indulgence to the extreme. I loved you with all that you represented, but had to say goodbye. My journey was winding down, as was the not-quite bottomless pit of money that was stashed in my money belt. It was definitely time to move on. At the last minute, I was graced by a visit with Max once more. As I hadn’t seen him, he convinced me to spend one more night, but this time with a roof over my head at his place. After three nights spent dozing in rough gravel, the warmth of his home was a welcome treat that I could not resist.

It was not to last though, as the fates offered me a ticket for travel again.  A highly orthodox Jewish couple and a vegetarian Seventh Day Adventist, who had just left his volunteer position in Rwanda, were heading into Namibia. That was the direction that I wanted to go in, so I stashed my rugged pack in the trunk of their car and climbed in with my newest travelling companions. Not to besmirch the gracious offer, but I have to say that this wandering posse was one of the stranger ones that I had hooked up with.  Far be it from me to snub anyone’s religions, but I wondered how easy it was to travel with the heavy restrictions that these young people had. I had found it difficult to find fresh water at times, let alone kosher food and carrying two sets of utensils to maintain kosher law. And while “God” is everywhere, how do you find any church, let alone your preferred church, temple, synagogue or mosque, when the only structures to be found for miles were often a collection of trees or dusty rondavels. I suppose God is in the heart though. My heathen ways would have had me bursting into flames if I tried to enter any holy buildings while I travelled anyway, so it was fine for me that they were few and far between.

With a quick backward glance, I now looked ahead to a new country though. We first had to cross through Botswana, a journey of only about half an hour, but this almost proved our undoing. While Eric and I handed over our passports with no problems, Israelis needed a visa to enter Botswana. This they did not have. What they did have though, was the car that we travelled in. The border guards threatened that they would have to go back to Lusaka or Harare to obtain proper paperwork, which would have either meant a delay in my travels, or me suddenly hoofing it from the border onwards. Neither option appealed to any of us.

After much negotiation, their passports were finally stamped and we were on our way again, next stop Namibia. This border crossing was much easier and suddenly, I had a brand new stamp to admire in my passport. I had already travelled through nine African countries. This was now my tenth and last new country to explore. The road ahead was gravel, and although dusty, a fairly decent one to traverse. We were headed across the thin Caprivi Strip, before falling into the rest of the country. Popa Falls would be the first place for me to lay my head in Namibia, and lying on the chilly ground once more, the Namibian stars were beautiful to behold. 

Saturday's Email of the Week: Reaping the Rewards

Saturday's Email of the Week

Happy Saturday all!

I have to be honest with you. This week was not what I expected at all. I don't know quite what I was expecting, but I was riding off of saying goodbye to my friends/teachers from daycare, losing a client and finally losing my babysitter. To say the least, I was not in a very good mood. Kind of glum in fact. I had a big internal pout on and thought about crying into my shoes. 

Instead, I bought mulch and gardened. Mother Nature has a way of taking all your ills and whisking them away, while you toil in the dirt. At least that is how it works for me. A little meditation if you will, as I imagine things growing here, flowers blooming there and edible bits popping up in the lawn (yes, clover, violets and dandelions are all edible!). I am in the moment while debating terra firma and the rest of the world disappears. 

On Saturday last, I pulled every plant out of a small garden and rearranged it freshly and nice. It all started with a peony that refused to bloom. People say that they are particular about their depth - too deep or too shallow and they will not bloom (YUP!). So I uprooted it (to show it what for), set it aside, then debated where to replant it. That lead to the day lilies coming out, the balloon flowers moving to the front, irises being added into the mix and wishing adieu to the transcendentia. I can't always visualize so well, so I just pulled them all out, added in some new and divided the others to replant elsewhere. By the time I was done, it looked much better, but all the existing mulch had either been turned under or ran for the hills while I wasn't otherwise engaged with staring blankly at the blank slate of dirt that I had created. 

So with plants newly arranged, I headed out to the closest big box store on Monday and purchase me 6 more bags of mulch to disperse hither and yon. Most in the 'new' garden, but a bunch in places where divisions found new homes as well. I might have been just hiding from responsibility just a little bit, but at that point I didn't care. My internal pout felt pretty comfortably in place and I used the full moon as another excellent reason to indulge my escapist whims. I have to say, by the time I was done, it looked pretty darn good too. 

Eventually I could not ignore the clock any more though. I might have been down a client, but there was still work to do and only so many hours left before I would have to pick the kids up from school. Plus we were expecting friends for dinner. They always come with wine and sympathetic ears, so I kept that thought in mind and plodded through the rest of the afternoon.

Well, wouldn't you know, but they brought good news in tow! At a Car-Free Festival, I had met a woman who was a friend/business associate to my dear friend. They had chatty chatted about me in my absence, and lo and behold, the woman is in need of some social media help. By mid-week, we had a coffee date and I had a new client in my roster! Not only that, but another friend of mine contacted me the same day asking about this "social media thing" and wondering if there was a reason to get into it as a small business person. He showed up at my house with coffee in hand and left with a promise from me that we would start him out on a new path too! Two new clients on the same day!

So with my head spinning by the end of the week, I look forward to a new start next week with fresh clients, new and very different topics, and an upgraded schedule to set my days. I am excited for the challenge, nervous about how I will handle it, but ready to face the day. Perhaps my reward for tending to Mother Nature's patch was a little helping hand in the fate department? I am going to take that as a yes and head into the weekend with a smile on my face and a much lighter heart. And with that I leave you with a little light-hearted humour to go out into your day with. 

Daddy, how was I born? 


A little boy goes to his father and asks 'Daddy, how was I born?' The father answers, 'Well, son, I guess one day you will need to find out anyway! Your Mom and I first got together in a chat roomon Yahoo. Then I set up a date via e-mail with your Mom and we met at a cyber-cafe. We sneaked into a secluded room, and googled each other. There your mother agreed to a download from my hard drive. As soon as I was ready to upload, we discovered that neither one of us had used a firewall, and since it was too late to hit the delete button ,nine months later a little Pop-Up appeared that said: Scroll down...You'll love this 

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...... 'You got Male!