Hi, my name is Rebecca Benn, I am a 20 year old (proudly South African) history student studying at UKZN and if there was only one thing I could ask all my fellow South Africans to do this year it would be to live out and seek out joy. The word joy is defined as: a feeling of great pleasure and happiness. Now I would like you to think about SA, think if you can on how you [...]
One of the ways i am trying to prepare myself to be a part of a better conversation in South Africa in terms of race, reconciliation and unity is by learning some of the country's history... ...from different voices than i grew up with. To that effect, after my weekend at Robben Island, i got hold of a copy of Benjamin Pogrund's book titled, 'Robert Sobukwe: How Can Man Die Better' and just finished reading [...]
hey Brett "Fish" [well, this is a little awkward, cos that's me, why are you writing to yourself weirdo?] as the end of the year approaches at pace, i thort i'd i'd just drop in [okay, you're being weird again, you do know this is still you writing, right?] and share some quick thoughts [wait, quick? okay, maybe this isn't you] and comments so you can end 2014 well. [1] Don't stuff your face. i [...]
i flew to durban with four main purposes in mind: The first was to visit and surprise my younger sister Dawn and spend some time with her Glen and my nephew Josh [i am Uncle Fish and i am cool] and some of my really great friends from years and years. The second was to do some networking for The Youth Hub which is my two-day-per-week job, writing 100 words or less youth resources and sending them [...]
In response to a piece i shared on Christmas, which among other things, invited readers to share some of their creative/revolutionary/others-focused ideas they had for celebrating Christmas, i was tweeted by Graham Heslop links to two articles, asking me to check them out. i'm not going to lie, i wasn't super enthusiastic, mostly because the idea of reading more articles feels a little bit like work. But Graham is someone i follow on the Twitterer [@avosquirrel] [...]
It's true, i am the Grinch of all things Christmas. Well, maybe not all things. But christmas carols in October? i literally count the success of my year [in one way] by how late in the year i manage to hear my first christmas carol [Disclaimer: This obviously excludes the Boney M version of 'Drummer Boy' and anyone who says otherwise is clearly lying through their teeth, or maybe their barumpumpum-bum] But between all the [...]
one by one or in twos they arrive starting with family who are here early to make pancakes and watch little ones and then friends also start appearing friendly and awkward chatter takes place in multiple rooms of the house flapjacks are consumed coffee is made and then drunk with equal measures of passion scattered laughter from small groups of people who have not seen each other for a while of whiles and at some point [...]
i am generally inspired, amused, educated or enlightened by a number of posts on the internet any given week and link to them via the social medias. but the week time is busy for a lot of people and so you might find that you got to the end of it and missed out on some of the posts that otherwise might have interested you. so as i look back to this past week, here [...]
Last night, my wife Valerie [aka The Beautiful Val aka tbV] and i won the lottery. Now let me get this straight, i am not talking about the Dutch Lottery that i seem to win with alarming regularity [despite having never sent in any kind of entry or bought any ticket of any kind, but if it arrives in my email it must be true, right?] And i don't mean that time that kind old [...]
I'm not sure how many people feel as strongly as i do about cellphones sometimes, although i sense 'Pearls before Swine' creator, Stephan Pastis, might have some idea. People driving while texting or speaking on their phones lately has really caused me an out of proportional rage reaction [or maybe not. maybe exactly the right amount of proportion. but it does tend to be the only time i swear loudly and aggressively, to myself, when [...]