Words

Picture yourself in a boat on a river, 

With tangerine trees and marmalade skies 

Somebody calls you, you answer quite slowly, 

A girl with kaleidoscope eyes. 

When you dwell in the Land of the Mountain Kingdom and have adjusted to the pace dictated by non-Western influenced society, you have the option of either venting and complaining or alternatively embracing it.

There are many factors to add to the collage that is my mind and imagination as I contemplate who I am and where I am today, a love lost, but 2 amazing daughters came from it. Retrenchment, unemployment and depression followed by grave moments of self-doubt that have brought me to where I am now, starting anew despite financial organisations that seek blood and marrow of my soul. 

I am in possession of a well maintained belly, one that has withstood the abuse and taunting of grass eating cow hugging vitamin popping aliens whose intent it seems is to die healthy, my belief is that entry into heaven will not be decided on how many push-ups or carrots I have endured, I will not be asked how many desserts I turned down or cups of dark sensual hot aromatic coffee I enjoyed either alone or in the company of friends and family.

Lesotho has reminded me that an evening playing Scrabble with a dear friend and chatting to a loved one via messaging is more meaningful than I ever imagined it to be.  You may be wondering about the quote at the top of the page, well it is a picture painted with words, embellished with imagery that is so surreal you could close your eyes and picture it. My point is that we do not play enough with words, tease with them, roll them around our tongues and then set them free with a twinkle in our eye. Do not criticise another if they do not have the words in an order specified by some ancient rule still enforced and tolerated, instead embrace the fact that they are prepared to share an opinion or conversation with you. The age of electronic messaging has brought about the emergence of a new language, to deny it would be as foolish as ignoring the importance of botox in the life of Sly Stallone, stupidity in Paris Hilton and swearing in the Kardashian household.

I have come to appreciate all communication from family, friends and loved ones in my time here, it is often the absence of something taken for granted that is seen as a pearl amidst all about us. A simple greeting and word of encouragement reminds one that they are not forgotten and still somehow needed and loved. Silence has a manner of playing havoc on the mind, almost like giving a 2 year old a fork and a bowl of peas. 

I have not enjoyed being away from my special people, but have learnt so much by being forced to be alone and sharing a confined space with my demons. 

Let me finish with a quote from Sore Klerkegaard, " Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced"

Nite All

Moth to a Flame

A month away from home.
It contains 3 weeks of hard work and rest with exciting meals in-between  added to that are weekly trips to the local cinema where we watch movies still played on a reel film system and the purring of the projector and occasional jumping of the picture.
The trip to and from Maseru is a mixture of dodging mad pedestrians who consider themselves bull bar proof and sheep who stroll in front of you as if to remind you that the are permanent residents and you are the ex-pat. To complete the trio of the "Cannonball Run" are the local vehicles. No rear lights, travelling at 50km/h in the dark on the national road and the tendency to freeze at the sight of a vehicle approaching them from the rear.

The fourth week is when it reaches the point where the chemicals are required, nerves are raw and all on Site have a tendency to growl at each other like a wife and girlfriend meeting each other for the first time, Days and hours are counted down as the weekend home looms closer and with it a list of tasks and appointments, some for necessity and some for pleasure.

And this brings me to the subject of dating, courting and flirting and wining and dining.


My first responsibility lies with my daughters and together we anticipate the meeting after a month, a long hard hug with huge smiles and a kiss, then the next four days will be a succession of hugs and tales and holding hands as all that happened in the past month is shared and resolved if necessary.
These moments are often followed with me just watching and admiring my little ladies as they blossom into womanhood and start putting their stamp on who they will become.

I have friends that I need to see as they feed me with the positive energy and love that is so essential for my healthy mental state and positive input, these are also the creatures that know me and my devious habits and love me despite that. They share their families with me, their lives and in exceptional cases their puppies, they have become my circle of trust and those that I am accountable to.

Finally, the lady. Yes indeed, she flirts with my intellect, bedazzles me with imagery and brings a smile to my face as we discuss likes and dislikes and past and future. There is a common grasping and appreciation of food, wine, privacy and need of both intellectual and physical attractions and appreciation of family values.
I am continually intrigued on how the lack of chance applies to our lives, it serves to remind me that it is not a random rolling of the dice and many experiences and instances in our lives are moulded to bring us to where we are today. I am unique, however my circumstances are not.
The lady is a spark in a dark room and I shall continue to be drawn to her flame, perhaps this time I will not get burnt.

Nite all

Miles of Smiles Part Two

Beach & Shopping

Rested and fed and fed again, the girls and I headed to the beach and our first of many encounters with the surf clothing shops, Country Feeling, Billabong to name a few. 

They shopped, and shopped, then shopped a little more and when I was proudly holing up a white speedo for all to see they simply shook their heads in disbelief and shopped a little more. No, I was not permitted to try on the white speedo and sing YMCA for the fellow shoppers, I was sent to purchase water. 

R12 for a bottle of 500ml water, I asked the shop attendant if that included the vaseline to make the whole episode less painful, the blank stare I received told me all I needed to know. I returned to my girls and ignored the security whose frail attempts to inform me that refreshments were not allowed in the shop, imagine I slipped and spilt some bottled water on a bikini or a towel, heck they would have to throw it out.

And so the shopping ended with a drunk stumbling barefooted local showing me how to reverse and then patiently waiting for payment for his expertise, we arrived at the beach. I removed my shirt and slops, flexed and relaxed my wobbly bits and with my camera round my neck followed Simon and Nicole to the waters edge. I was finally on holiday, I clicked and focussed and shot everything in sight, spoke to bikini clad ladies and then photographed them, the girls were on a venture to collect shells so I photographed them as well.

The sea air, the laughter, the little kid who splashed me and whose head I was now holding under the water, it was just what I needed. 

We arrived back at my parents house and raided the fridge which was bursting as usual, went to check on my Dad and he looked much better than the previous day, the cooler weather was definitely helping. Mom and I discussed Christmas lunch which would included 3 different meats and enough food to feed  a troop of JW's if they came a-knocking.

My Mom is so in control and bubbly that you would never guess that she is a pensioner/wife/nurse/cook/Mom to 4 and Granny to 3. She wakes up with a smile and just gets through the day taking all life deals her. She deals with her sorrow and hardships with a strong faith and never say die attitude. 

A final trip to the shops for some last minute Christmas shopping for the girls and some more photo shooting for me and we were ready for a family Christmas. This was what the girls and I had been talking about and planning for more than 6 months, Christmas at my folks with Granny's cooking. Simon had made her now famous trifle and we fell asleep with smiles on our faces.

It was hard to believe that this was the same shattered, bruised and broken family of three that had to face Christmas three years ago, raw from divorce. Time, hard work, love and faith can indeed work miracles.

Miles of Smiles Part One

Getting There . . .

It was a road trip that we had dreamt of, discussed and planned for months, and it was finally here.

My girls awoke me at one in the morning, we packed Daisy to the hilt and headed off to the coast, I was the designated driver and Nicole sat next me riding shotgun and keeping me awake.

Nighttime, toll roads and tarred roads as long as Granddad's tales of "when I was your age", as the road rose to meet us I found myself as relaxed as a fatboy eating a bucket of KFC and not having to share. With the sound of Sugarman humming in the background, i reflected on the past year, tough - yes, lonely - hell yes, rewarding - undoubtably. The sacrifice that my girls and I had made when I took on my Lesotho adventure had made this holiday possible, this was the icing on the top complete with a lit candle and singing voices.
We drove and chatted and sang our lungs out, my version of white man rapping had my girls hiding their heads in shame ad thus I persevered. By the time we got to Grahamstown, it was 40'C and we were melting, no-one was singing anymore and Simon was as pale as she was red and flushed, it was as if someone had switched the cold water off in a shower we could not escape. This continued for and hour and a half and then we saw the ocean. We had arrived in JBay.

My Mom met us with hugs and a smile that I had sorely missed and I went through to see my Dad.
He was lying on his bed. He looked like a stroke victim with a huge scar on his arm when he had had a plate inserted after he had broken it. I was shocked and shaken, but put on a brave face, afterall this was my Father, my hero, the man who loved and encouraged me to reach the sporting standards I had, and now he was lying here staring ahead with no recognition of me at all. My Mom came into the room and I put my arm around her and we chatted about Dad, how she managed to stay so positive through all of this will remain with me forever. The words "for better or for worse, through sickness and in health till death us do part" brought a tear to my eye and I rubbed it away quickly.
In the days ahead my Dad would improve and slowly get stronger, the Parkinsons has eaten away at him yet he fights it daily with the aid of a loving wife who refuses to give up and leave her partner of 48 years. Were it not her, my Dad would have left us years ago.
She feeds him, washes and clothes him and changes him when he has messed himself, she talks to him throughout it all and lies with him when he sleeps. She is as protective over him as a teenager with her first Blackberry.

We had arrived, tired, hot but happy.

It Approaches

It's a wonderful time of the year, well almost. School kids are already finished with school and the first "I am sooo bored" has already made its appearance. For parents, most of us are counting the days down until we are on holiday.

I have enjoyed Lesotho immensely and yet I welcome a break from it now, I need a shower everyday, I need water that I can drink and a break from fried mess hall food. Oh and the flies, the African Budgie, a beast so lazy and disgusting it pales in comparison to computer generated exes. They seem to send in wave upon wave of flying raisins and rest on all that is sacred and edible, definitely more irritating than a 2 year old throwing a tantrum in a shopping centre whilst Mommy dearest tries to reason with it. I use the term "it" because if it was any other species, the mother would do the honorable deed and eat the little beast in full public view of any other potential brats.

A month away from my girls is never easy and when I am weakened by a stomach bug, it makes the whole process a little harder. My body aches more than a 55 year old mans whose 29 year old girlfriend has lured him to yoga lesson because it will help him to reach that spiritual place when they are making love. I cant wait to hit the road with my girls, road-trip  music, adventure and visiting family, this memory creator will be documented by way of blogs and photos, blank spaces filled in by fresh fruit, ice-cream and beer and as many hugs as a man could bear.
It will also be a time for me to spend with my Mom and discuss the way ahead for my Dad, a conversation I don't relish but one that must be dealt with.

It is also a time of the year where Simon, Nicole and I have been on the receiving end of friends kindness and I am indeed overwhelmed that this generosity has been bestowed upon us, I find it difficult to respond except say thank you.

This to me is the true spirit of these approaching holidays, sharing and laughing with loved ones. It is a time for friends and family to reflect on the past year and forget about the hard-times and just revel in that moment of happiness.

Nite All

December Beckons

I started writing this blog under a heading entitled "Lovers" and then I basically ran out of words of the positive nature.
Why?
Well I contemplated that as we approached Christmas, it was the time that more suicides are committed than any other time of the year, so I have decided to entitle it "Surviving Christmas".

My first 2 Christmas's after my divorce were absolute hell and I longed for the day to end and for folk to leave me alone, I could see through their smiles as their eyes told me that they felt sorry for me. It was a time where was it not for my beautiful Simon and Nicole, I would have fled and just kept running.
However, friends embraced us, they welcomed us into their homes and they acted normally and didnt make a fuss over us, they allowed us to hide, blend into the shadows and withdraw when it became too much.
My 3rd Christmas was much better and I was able to interact and my girls and I smiled and joined in, we had found our niche and our reduction from 4 to 3 was now stronger than ever, bless you Brian, Dee, Zane and Trav.

Financially the past three years have been all about survival and in most cases we were not even able to give gifts, this for me was a humbling experience as I battled to receive and not return the favour. On reflection it was a time where I truly learnt more in that period of my life about grace, love, compassion and God working through people as they blessed us with gifts, love and even food.Our first Christmas together was 2 weeks after the divorce and I was so broke that homeless folk slept better than I, I had no home a Fiat Uno with all my worldly possessions in it and we were housesitting a friend of a friends home. A friend took me off to Pick and Pay and bought us groceries for the holidays so that I wouldn't have to worry about feeding my girls. I will never forget that.

So this year, my wish for you and me is the same, find some friends, family or loved ones. If you have none of these then make an extra plate or two of food and drop them off with folk who would appreciate them, any old age home will have forgotten folk who will welcome sharing a cup of tea with you.

I plan to visit my folks, my Dad with advanced Parkinsons no longer remembers me and it pains me to see him in this state, but the memories are so alive and filled with love that it will be great to see him. My Mom is the rock that has and still does keep us as a family together and I have so much love and respect for her.

Dont leave it till the last minute, start your planning now and make it a Christmas to remember.


Nite All

Bullies

We all have a thorn in our side, a bug who we would like to squash and strutt away into the sunset sipping on a canned beverage.

Some of life's problems can be resolved by turning the other cheek, being the bigger person or smiling in the face of adversity, others however . . . . .
In the early days of divorce there are so many raw emotions and confused thoughts that you wear your emotions on your sleeve. Snapping, outbursts and overwhelming emotions with a tendency to take all comments personally don't help the situation.

It has now been close to three years that I have been divorced and friends, family and a very patient therapist have turned me into a human being, well not according all that is. What has changed is that I have learnt to express my self, so instead of saying "That was not the most intelligent decision of your life" I might be tempted to utter "OMW did we have to flush all our braincells away this morning? Could we not have saved 3 to keep us ahead of Neanderthal man? Really"
Being honest has helped me to stop myself from having my third stroke, so far so good.

Back to the thorny little bullies, in this case a limp wristed pencil pushing spoilt human who has no people skills and the tact of a sailor in a brothel, someone who has no management experience and uses their lack of skills to bully those below them by means of pulling "rank". Such a spineless silver spoon fed protected enema of a human specimen only understands one form of response, attack.

So I lost it, not proud of my actions, but in this case justified as it required this method of interaction to send back the slithering sloth to the hole from where it crawled.

Bullies only understand a show of force, it requires this for them to leave you be and search for an easier prey who will bow down to their little power plays.

Inner peace, meditation and calm, maybe tomorrow.

Nite All

My Girls

I sometimes have a need to write and just clear my head of the little chaos that is currently weighing me down, I have 2 sounding boards and will reflect my thoughts and let me actually hear what I am saying.
When I have spoken to Regan or Candy, I come away with some of the mess and wandering philosophies boxed and stored in a system I am able to make sense of.

I am not the easiest person to live or work with, ask my ex-wife and I am sure she will oblige, I strive for perfection and the word "anal" has been raised on more than one occasion. I am however generous to the point of stupidity and loyal as a dog and expect nothing except a thank you in return.  My latest concern has been my girls, two beautiful loving individuals who are blossoming into young ladies and have a grip on my heart so tight I could cry just thinking of them.

Simon turns sixteen shortly, she is bundle of teenage energy, master of accents and baker of note. She has the potential for greatness and I pray for her to find the right person to share this with. Show her a cookbook or the cooking channel and she will sit under her blanket and absorb and make shopping lists of "essential" ingredients as she does.
Nicole is my baby and my fighter, she wears her emotions on her sleeve and is passionate about her decisions right or wrong. She has also challenged many of my grey areas of beliefs and ideas and shattered them beyond recognition. When she decided to date across the racial line, it was time for me to reconsider my comfort zones regarding my princesses, and when my girls sat with me and discussed it and we shared our ideas I felt truly blessed to have them as my girls.

As they have grown and their independence and personalities have become more evident, I have been able to open myself to a different view and outlook on life. One should never underestimate the many ways God will reach out to us and prompt us to question what is acceptable and what needs to be challenged and perhaps thrown out if it is unfounded.

So in short, thank you my girls for your input into my life and keeping me on my toes mentally and emotionally, Daddy loves you more than you can ever imagine. Our relationship has been one of the blessings from my divorce.

Nite all

My Teenage Treasures

I have 2 teenage daughters that are the reason I breathe, they are the smile on my face and the bounce in my belly when I dance.

When I look back on the past 2 and a half years of my life and the trauma and adjustments that were made and endured, I am amazed how "normal" they are.
Both have battled initially at school but did well at the end of this year, both have had and do have relationships and I have only threatened to kill one individual of the male species.
Both initially shared a bedroom with me and then a tiny bachelors flat and never complained.
They accepted the fact that they was no money and when I was unable to be a Dad, they cared for me.

The result of this experience is that I have 2 fighters who although polite and well mannered, speak their minds and are blossoming into amazing woman.

We have created our own new rituals and routines and now operate as a unite of 3. This includes sharing one bathroom and I have done a combination of a raindance, exotic tapdancing and howling and begging when their 10 minute bath somehow exceeds 30 minutes.

I praise God that I am where I am and upon reflection I have no idea how I survived on a single salary. My budget doesn't allow for fruit and bran but somehow accommodates chocolate cereal, beer and cheese.

So as this year draws to an end for Simon, Nicole and I, we would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas filled with love, laughter and lunacy. May your hearts with love and your homes blessed with visitors.

To my amazing family (especially my Mom) and fantastic friends, an Oprah sized extravaganza of a hug to you.

Nite all

Pictures courtesy of iCandyphotography

Goodbyes and Hello

I parted with my Italian Stallion, my sportscar, my wanna be Vespa today. My Fiat Uno 1100cc has found a new home and we will no longer be the irresistible force any longer.

Gone are the days where my vocal engine sounds drowned out the real engine, where I would make tyre squealing sounds and look at myself in the rear view mirror in a look of amazement and pure joy.

So soon I depart for the shores of the Port of Elizabeth to pursue new adventures, meet old friends I have never met, friends I miss dearly and spend quality time with my parents. Alas Matt we cannot share that beverage I was so looking forward to, next time my friend.

My Dad has very advanced Parkinsons and there is very little chance he will even recognise me. My Mom has stood by his side faithfully and looked after him and cared for him as if he is a baby.
I am proud to call them my parents and even though I haven't seen my Dad for over 3 years, I know it will be hard to see him now.

I will be driving the 1100km back next Monday and will use the time to contemplate the past 2 years and determine the path for the year ahead.
The open road, good music and an overactive imagination, how much trouble could I get into haha.

So I am hoping that the Dark Ages are behind me and the Season of Light is about to dawn. I have packed sunglasses just in case.

Nite All

Take my Breath Away

There is a song from the eighties that is called "Take my Breath Away" sung by Berlin. I have encountered this and find myself amazed and caught in some sort of time capsule. There seems to be moments in my day where I am an onlooker gazing into my world and seeing all as if for the first time.

My girls, my precious angels who care so deeply and honestly for their Dad. Bless them as they too have been drawn into a divorce that was not their doing, the innocent suffer and they too must deal with the consequences and harsh realities. And they have, I am so proud of them and their honesty and manner in which they have walked beside me.

It has been 2 years and much has changed, I am a little more grey, a little more realistic about life and love and definitely less critical and judgemental than I used to be.

I have a home, a den to rest, recharge, think and entertain.
It is warm and smells of hope and dreams.
It reminds a little of the past and offers a glimpse of the future.
It is slightly disorganised because it is lived in and comes alive when people are in it like a puppy greeting its family when they return home.

And then, in the far side of my image is a new light, a new energy, an aura of warmth, joy and companionship with the promise of so much more. This is the hope that has crossed my path and added a silly smile to my face and the occasional blush to my personality.

"Take my Breath Away"

Nite All

The Nite Before Easter

Easter has come and gone and it was spent with my girls. That should be all I have to say.

Nite all

Ok, you need more body to the blog so here goes.
Twas the night before Easter and all was still, gentle rain caressed the earth and a slight chill filled the air.

The father and daughters were watching television and oblivious to the threat that lurked in the room next to them.

When they least expected it, darkness struck and absorbed all the light. A gasp escaped the lips of the girls and their eyes widened, a mild panic set in.

All they had were candles, food for a week and chocolate bunnies, these were grim times indeed.
We interrupt this transmission for a word from our sponsors, ACNE (African Candle Natural Exporters) where candles can be spotted everywhere.

In truth it is Easter that I first discovered my partner for 23 years loved another and this occurred 2 years ago. I have been dreading this Easter and unknowingly have built myself up into a state about it all. I shared with D and C and they helped me put it all into perspective and calmed me down.

I cannot go through life ignoring certain periods because of the past, I have to confront them the same way a Dad faces a babies leaking nappy for the first time. You don't have to like it but you have to deal with it.

There is no quick fix, there is no "get out of jail free" card, there is life and it comes with baggage and joy and laughter and pain.

So in short, The Nitemare Before Easter has been renamed "The Nite before Easter"

Bless you

Nite All

Scenes from a Sunday Sidewalk

A cuppachino at the sidewalk cafe was my solution to having run out of coffee at home. So much happening in the little pockets of tables around me, it is like a mini soap opera unfolding, hold my hand and journey with me.

A family of 4 with a 3 year old daughter with tiara who is so in love with her Dad. She is chatting and giggling and when she sits on the chair her chin is level with the table. The mom is a beautiful blond with long flowing hair and oversized sunglasses, her baby son is getting fed the froth from her cuppachino and loving it. Dad is explaining with the aid of his fingers that he will be 32 in 2 days time and she repeats "thirty two?" as if he may as well be 100.

At the table next to them is a young lad not much older than 8 with very short hair, chubby red cheeks and huge eyes. He is wearing a blue soccer top and sharing his table with his grandparents and one of their friends. The old folks are muttering about the motorcyclists and how some areas are going to hell because no-one cares anymore. The lads eyes opened so wide that I feared they might pop out of his head when he saw the size of his milkshake and he could hardly sit still when his breakfast arrived.. His Grandad is furiously cleaning the screen of his cellphone the same way a mother attacks her children's faces on a Sunday morning before church.

Table three has 3 male friends in their sixties all very specific about their Earl Grey tea and unbuttered toast and tomato (not cooked please). At their table is a lady in her early forties with long dark hair, lovely figure and smoking a cigarette. She seems unattached and you seem to wonder if she is a daughter or a lover, most intriguing. The gentleman next to her stood up and starting packing his pipe with tobacco as if he were about to tell a tale of the high seas to all. His food arrived and he collapsed deflated as if his moment of greatness had been stolen from him. The dark lady without so much as glancing at him put her had on his arm and he seemed to pull himself together again.

Each table touched me in a different manner and it was good to be out in the sun and share breakfast with complete strangers. Open your eyes and look around you and see what is happening, there might be a whole new world waiting to let you in.

Nite all

MSG

MSG!
How many of you know what it means?
Yes it is that whatchamacallit they put in food that has the potential ability to sprout forth a third eye, grow hair on the palms of your hands and permanently stain your clothes if you spill it on them.

But it could also be something completely different, we have a little game we play at the dinner table called "MSG" time. In our partially normal universe it stands for, "What made you Mad, Sad and Glad today"? And so we go around the table and share and express ourselves to each other. It is not only therapeutic (although my girls have at times called it irritating) but allows for healthy conversation over supper.

So, didn't think you would get off that easily did you, what was your MSG moments today? And take a few seconds and list them, try it.
Mine are as follows:
Mad - I made a basic admin error that wasn't noticed by me , but was picked up by one of our juniors. I was wrong to get mad about it but I did.
Sad - in my counselling session I was saddened about the destruction divorce causes to all those around it. It can so easily harm innocent bystanders unless it is addressed and worked on.
Glad - I shared a bowl of popcorn with Nicole tonight as we watched the Mentalist together.

It also forces us in times of hardship and depression to find a ray of sunlight, some hope in a seemingly lost world.

Give it a try and let's see what comes out of it.

Good Nite All

Christmas in Cuba

I want to go to Cuba.
Not the new Americanised Cuba of old, but the one Hemingway fell in love with.

Stunning colours and old American cars, small dark bars that smell of rich Cuban tobacco. Friendly faces and the sounds of children playing in the streets.

Beautiful tanned ladies with swinging hips and smiling eyes whose voices mesmerize you and take you far away. Makes you forget about your worries for a while and life seems nice.

So we have Cuban cigars, rum, beautiful people, music that moves you and food man oh man food cooked by a large hairy woman who grunts and mumbles to herself but cooks like an angel.

Sounds like a damn fine Christmas if you ask me, but something is missing, the one vital ingredient.

Family.

Family includes special friends.
If you have no-one to share it all with you may as well not celebrate it at all. Life is about sharing, be it love, sorrow, pain or joy.

Add all of the above together and you have memories. That's the best gift anyone could wish for this Christmas.

Good nite

Where the Heck is Friday

I was awake at 04h30 and working in the office from 06h00 and then it didn't stop.

Yesterday was frustrating and a long chat with a lawyer left me feel despondent, confused, angry and scared. You can't afford to get out of your situation but there is no system in place to assist you. Everyone wants your clothes off your back, your blood and your soul if they can negotiate that as well.

So my circle of friends jumped in to put it all in perspective and give me the good old tally ho. Thanks guys. It meant the world and knowing that I am not alone in this, prayer, encouragement and those hugs that just break all resistance.

And now today, it was a race against the clock and I got 3 missed calls from Nicole, just checking that I had not forgotten that it was my turn to collect them. We had such a laugh on the way home and had an old man in a car in front of us that kept rolling back towards us.

Nothing beats chatting to a friend when you've had a rough day, it is therapeutic and makes you feel better knowing that you have a 'people' out there who actually do care.

I miss my brother very much and would love to have him around, maybe one day.

I was blessed today by a friend who had my car cleaned and then filled the tank, bless you Mark you old dog. I really do enjoying driving her and with the addition of a radio again I am so cool I burp ice cubes.

I should arrange supper but I am tired and gravity Is wrestling with me and winning at the moment.

Goodnight

Tuesday Done

Soccer was awesome, supper was great and the two cuppachino's were excellent. Throw in a game of Heroclix and you have an action packed evening.

The day didn't start off on the best note and so when I felt down instead of keeping quiet and slipping further into it, I followed the advice of a friend and told her. Her response, 'hey Ted, look on the bright side, smile while you still have your own teeth!'

That's what good friends do, they understand and are willing to pick you up when you don't have the energy to carry on. They will carry you, drag you and in some instances even kick you in the bottom to get you going.

Thank you!

My Mom fell outside the bank today and broke her left wrist, she then drove herself in her manual shift car to my Aunt who drove her home. She looks after my Dad who has advanced Parkinsons full time and now has to contend with a broken wrist as well. I really wish I could be there for her now, but finances are non existent at the moment.

Nicoles puppy is back from doggie hospital after her run in with a pitbull and has a heavily bandaged leg, Nicole has been very upset about the whole affair.

I am battling to keep my eyes open and have an extremely busy day starting with mobile homes and finishing with pipe inspections tomorrow, so good night one and all.