Watch this space

Happy happy!

 

Happy New Year, darlings! 

Can't believe it's 2011 already. Feels like just yesterday we were celebrating the end of the century and dreading the Y2K bug. Ha! So much for that. And now here we are, in 2011. Well anyway, I hope this year brings us all lots of laughter and joy blah blah blah. As for resolutions, I'm not making any. Useless things. Though if I were to make any, maybe I should start with not over-doing the bubbly, like I did last night. 

So it's been a while since the last post. Time flies when you're having fun, though I suspect that time-travel feeling is more a result of hectic deadlines and the general day to day craziness. But it's been a really nice Christmas and though I've only been able to get a week's leave, it's been fun and relaxing. Not really looking forward to the return to the office on Monday, but no use moaning about the inevitable. 

Anyway, time to wrap up - my poor abused little brain cells aren't coping that well right now and so I'm planning on spending the rest of the day on my couch with The Vampire Diaries and chocolate for company!

x o x o

Monday Mumbling

So it's been a week since I started my new job and so far, so good. It's been a bit of an adjustment: getting up so early, battling traffic and having to conform to corporate life - I miss being able to work in my pajamas! But that said, I like that I'm doing something new, and so far I'm really enjoying the perks of working for a magazine. And I LOVE working in Cape Town. At lunch time, I make an effort to get out of office - even if it's just to go for a walk. The offices are in a busy part of town, so there's lots on the go. Last week, I took a walk down Long Street and every now and then I walk to the Lifestyle Centre on Kloof. There are so many interesting little boutiques and inviting coffee shops in the area. I'm going to have to try them all out!

Anyway, my new routine of getting up at the crack of dawn has left me a little dazzled, and my brain is feeling quite fried. So I won't waffle on too much. I'm actually supposed to be tackling some (much-appreciated) freelance work right now, but my brain cells aren't co-operating, so I'm blogging instead before going to bed. I'll tackle the freelance stuff tomorrow night - even if it means a late one. 

I really wanted to show you a pic of a cupcake I was given today. Now you know how I feel about cupcakes! LOVE them! Then this morning, out of the blue, the fashion intern gave us all one of these beautiful cupcakes! Gorgeous! I felt so guilty eating this little work of art so  I took a pic before devouring it. Isn't it absolutely divine?!?!?

And before I go, how cute are these mouse pads?!? They're by Marimekko and I think they are so fab! I'm really bored with my dull, run-of-the-mill mouse pad - I've love to swap it for one of these. Though at $19 (about R140), that's not going to happen. But still. Cute! 

Okay, signing off now...
x o x o

Not so Fabulous in the City

In spite of my best intentions, I didn't actually get to see Sex and the City 2 when it hit the Big Screen back in June. Not sure what happened there - I was so excited about the release of the movie but then suddenly it was a month later and I still hadn't seen it. So I've been waiting patiently for the DVD release, and finally, I rented it from my local Blockbuster last night. 

I have to say, Sex and the City 2 just wasn't that fabulous. 

For the most part, the reviews I'd heard weren't exactly complementary but I wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt. I love, love, love the show! And the first movie was quite decent. But this one? Hmmmm, no. It was just so cliched in all the wrong ways, the outfits weren't so glamorous and the ladies all looked rather well-matured. I know none of them are in their thirties anymore, but all the same, they looked rather hard and leathery. I'm sure make-up played a role in that. 

 

 Anyway, I'm glad I finally got to see it. But I think it's time for Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte to stop with the SATC movies and rather leave us with the glowing memories of the fabulous ol' days.

Mixed bag of all sorts

Hi there. Long time no chit chat! Where did the time go? Seriously, a whole month since I last touched my blog. (Wait, that sounds a little dirty. Meh, whatever.) I don't know how some people post on their blog every single day. Wow. 

Anyway, it's been a while, and though nothing much has happened, lots has changed. Does that even make sense? I guess my biggest news is that after months and months of 'freelancing' (or 'starving at home with the cat', as I like to call it) I'm heading back to full-time employment. It's been quite a ride, and after last year's retrenchment and my deep disillusionment with the type of writing jobs I got paid to do, I was feeling very uninspired and flat. But just as I was coming to terms with the fact I may be destined to live on the streets in a cardboard box under a bridge, a rather cool opportunity came along. So as of the 1st of November, I will be a fully employed Copy Editor. Yay for me! I'm quite excited about this new direction my 'career' is taking. I've wanted to work in magazine since, well, forever, and now I'm finally going to get my chance. However, I'll still be freelancing as a copywriter. The irony is, since I accepted the Copy Ed position, quite a few freelance opportunities have come up. Typical, eh? So yes, goodbye freedom and working from home. Hello monthly paycheques. 

About bloody time.
 

Okay, so what else can I tell you about? Oh yes, I came across a few new(ish) albums that I'm deeply in love with. But I think I'll keep that for another post. That way, I'll be more inclined to write another post sooner than later. (It's really very strange, I just haven't had much to say lately. At least, nothing important.)

Oh yes, last week I watched Eat Pray Love. I thought it was great - and it did the novel justice. Check it out if you have a chance. 

One last thing... Last weekend I went to Buena Vista Social Cafe in Greenpoint. It's the first time I'd been since they moved, but their cocktails and nachos were as delicious as I remembered. Lots of cute boy waiters too, which never hurts. 

And now, to end off with, little red aeroplanes. I shot this pic a few weeks back. There was some or other airshow on just outside of Cape Town, and every now and then, planes would fly over my home. I thought these were really cute.

Cheese Philosophy

Love these Pearls Before Swine cartoons!

Must admit, I feel exactly the same way about cheese. Even the most horrible vegetables become edible if served with cheese. Let's face it people, cheese makes the world a much better place!

Corny but True

The other day I was scrounging around in my cupboard of Ancient Stuff  I Can't Throw Away when I came across this:

It's a story from a Brownie magazine that published (and paid for) a little piece I wrote 'back in the day'. It's no coincidence the newsletter looks like it was printed on papyrus! I wrote that 24 years ago at the tender age of nine. I was a bright-eyed, bushy-haired little chick who loved the Brownies. I went for my writer's badge and the woman who 'judged' it liked it so much that she asked if she could submit it to Times 6, the Brownie mag. A while later, I got news that they were going to print it and I was sent a postal order for something like R1, which seemed like a lot of money to a nine year old in 1987! 

I remember feeling like a bit of a national hero because the pack leaders made quite a splash about it. Ah, good times. Obviously a lot has changed since I was nine, but one thing that hasn't is that I still like being paid to write, though my rates are now a little higher than R1 a piece!

With copywriting, you generally don't get to add your opinion or name to the things you write. That's why I have this blog, so I get to shoot my mouth off and throw my opinion around the Interweb. (Insert evil laugh here.)

Ironically, a few months back, a local fashion magazine sent me some stuff to review for their annual 'Best of Beauty' supplement. Not because my opinion is special but rather because they like to include subscribers in their surveys. Anyway, it was quite nice to open this month's edition and see my two cent's worth (and name) in print. It was only around ten words long, but sometimes it's nice to have another 15 minutes of fame!

Crossing the line

I'm a BIG believer in freedom of expression but sometimes it's perfectly acceptable to give someone a good smack and tell them to shut the eff* up! That's what I wanted to do this morning when I logged into Facebook and saw this:

This guy was dating a friend of mine who I've known since school days. We live on different sides of the country now and I don't really know what she gets up to and 'who' she gets it with. But one thing's for sure. A rant like that is crossing the line. Even if she really is a nasty skank (which I doubt), can an outburst like this one - on such a public forum - be truly justified? Hell no!

Believe me, I know relationships don't always end with a civil handshake while Disney birds sing in the background. When there are emotions involved it's bound to be messy. Yet surely there's room for a little dignity? I'm all for going into details with close friends, which usually happens around the second bottle of wine. Hey, we're all human. But to splash it across Facebook for your friends, family, colleagues and the pope to see?!?!? Not cool. 

There's a little part of me that wants to leave a comment on his page telling him what I think of him. But what's the point? I also feel compelled to tell my friend that her ex is saying some nasty stuff about her. Though it's been so long since I've chatted to her, it would definitely be awkward, to say the least. Need to work on that one. There's obviously more to the story but if this is how he lashes out then I reckon she can do a lot better. Good riddance. She should sue his ass for defamation. Jerk.

*I'm also a big believer of the odd swear word but can't bring myself to write one quite just yet.

Oh no, George Michael

I'm talking about this George Michael.

Not this one. 

It seems George is in trouble AGAIN after getting goofed on weed before driving his car into a shop window last month. (Seriously, surely it takes a LOT of grass to get that spaced out?) Anyway, now he's in trouble and may even be facing jail time. Oh dear. I must admit, I've always quite liked George Michael, in spite of his sometimes dodgy and 'lewd' behaviour. I guess it started off  in the WHAM! days. I used to think he was extremely cute.

Mind you, that was also back in the time of My Little Pony and Gummi Bears. And when being gay meant you were a happy person. Aw, good times!

A Soldier and a Nurse

This is one of my all-time favourite photographs...

 

It was taken 65 years ago, on August 14th 1945 by Life magazine photographer and photojournalist, Alfred Eisenstaedt. I've always loved this image because it represents relief, elation, hope, humanity. A simple kiss between a soldier and a nurse that turned out to be one of the most iconic images in modern history.