Of fun, farewells and seeping black loneliness.......

I had a good weekend if one removes the hours spent working.

My garden has been planted. Something I first grew to love in my bachelor days was rose trees. I started growing them in pots on the balconey of the little pad in which I used live. Well since I am on my own again and have a balconey it stands to reason I would again have a rose tree. Kevin, Marihanda, thank you for a bit of Black Magic.
.

Self indulgently I did go horse riding again on Sunday. Awesome ride on Casper, a horse with a stride that is just awesome. Cantering with Casper is a little like riding a rocking horse with wings.


On the farewell side I feel surprisingly heartsore to say goodbye to my feline friend who adopted me when I moved. It seems Frank has moved on. Every evening I feel a dull ache. I miss the little dude waiting for me when I arrive home with his friendly hello and playful paws. Farewell and Adieu Frank. I hope you found a greener pasture with lots of critters to chase. In your own feline way you made my first uncertain moments of a new life that much easier. I miss you dammit.
.

Maybe the loss of Frank combined with having good weekends is making the week nights seem just a little to rough right now. I have found the last few nights to be very lonely. Not just for a lack of companionship but the physical presence of another person. Yes, I have friends and family I could go see, I cannot do that all the time though. Fuel Bills offer a big restraint for me right now. Anyway enough of that blues song pity party.

On the upside, my kiddies are all coming this weekend. I look forward to seeing them. :)

In other news just in I have borrowed a bicycle and hope to start cycling this evening.

Okay thats me in a nutshell

Punch Buggies and Hug Buggies.........

The kids have had a long standing game called Punch Buggy. The rules are simple the first person to spot a Volksie Beetle gets to thump the others with the words Punch Buggy, Nix. The nix been all important, since you don't wanna get thumped in return.

Of course it is not hard to imagine that sometimes the punches are a little too vigourous and the game can rapidly collapse into misery and tears. So after another game collapse a few weeks ago that ended in tears, I implemented a new rule in dad's car. Any child who plays Punch Buggy, would be would be the receipient of all kinds of punishment. No more punch buggies would be tolerated. The kids been resourceful and not wanting to give up on the competitive nature of the game, devised the all new and improved Hug Buggy. Every time a Volksie Beetle is spotted hugs are freely and vigourously dished out. Now that I do not mind been the receipient off.

When I feel like I need some cuddles from my kids I will be taking them past my new favourite car dealership. Victoria had her first trip there this weekend.

On Friday evening I took daddies little chicken (Victoria) to a Halloween bash held at her cousins Erin and Dylan's school. Mayhem and magic ensued for the Cat, the Vampire and the man with the gunshot wounds. Dylan was the perfect gentleman, and escorted Victoria through the cave of terror multiple times, ensuring that Victoria's cup of Hot Chocolate did not run empty. The adults, got to spend time sipping cocktails and smoking a cigar or two. A fine evening.
This is the view of Brixton around nightfall.

Saturday, Victoria and I spent at the swimming pool complete with a picnic lunch. A nice lazy day. Four and a half hours of swimming left at least one of us exhausted. I promised Victoria a nice roast with potatoes , pumpkin, vegetables and rice. I prepared the promised meal, unfortunately chicks was fast asleep long before dinner was served. I figured at least I have a nice lunch already prepared now for the next day An early night for both of us.

Early Sunday morning I was woken by a very hungry chicken. It seemed like a good idea to go and explore the new Argentinian Bakery that had opened up across the road within the last week. So pasteries in hand we took walk around the neighbourhood.
It was nice just walking, talking and listening to the birds and distant churchbells.

After our walk we took drive out to the Rosebank fleamarket. It was nice to walk around eating ice cream and looking at the stalls. Victoria was enchanted by all the esoteric stalls that had either fairies or crystals. Daddy's new age Chicken ;)

Our roasted lunch was yummy even if I do say so myself. The afternoon was spent at my brothers place, afterwhich I took my chicken home.

The hardest part for me about weekends with the kids,(be it one or all of them), is taking them home and saying goodbye on Sunday Evenings.

A few Sundowners at my Brothers place in the evening went down rather well and eased the moment. Thanks Guys

Overall a good weekend.

A weekend review

Sunday eve has arrived. Monday looms.

I can't complain. The weekend was really awesome. Realisng just how pretty the old Jacaranda tree was outside my bedroom window set the tone for the weekend.


I had the pleausure today to be invited to go horse riding on a game farm. Time on a horse is irresitable. Add to that a lot of open space with wild game roaming around and good company. The views from the koppies are astounding. I could not believe I was a mere 30 minute drive from home. Mindblowingly wonderful. Sheeeeeze does my ass hurt now though :)

Meet my closest companion for the Afternoon. A consumate gentleman if ever I met one. Star is one of the sweetest fellows you could meet. Highly adaptable and very accomodating for the inexperienced rider.

Aside from that, I had the pleasure of not one but two dinners in the company of my friend Stephen and his wife Denise. Thanks guys it was awesome. There is so much pleasure to be found in close company spending time listening to good music. A friendship that spans 25 years running to early grade school warrants a special mention. This friendship has been a constant in my life, and I know always will be. I hold that friendship sacred. Stephen, Happy Birthday for Monday Big Guy. I love ya Big Guy.


Just returned from a cup of coffee and some yummy choc chip scones , at my boetie and sussies place. (translates to my brother and his wife) . Kevin, Marihanda, thanks for your love, support and friendship. I am not gonna ramble here to long, coz I get kinda choked up. Just know I love you guys.

As if my weekend was not full enough I still need to mention a house warming I went too. In an effort to widen my social circle I have made some new friends. The evening was spent eating, drinking, chatting, laughing and in the midst of that a completely baffling card game called UNO. Okay you have probably all played the game before , but it was my first time, and my slightly slowed festive mind had some difficulty in grasping the finer nuances of what the hell was actually going on.

Lastly I want to mention a conversation I had that centers on writing. It left me with a lot of food for thought. I am of the belief all of us have a book in us somewhere. Not everyone will write a book and I suspect I am one of those. (Can I mention that I really hope that the other party to this conversation does.) I dont think I have the creative capacity to create fiction, nor the emotional capacity to write from life. It again begs the question for me, Why do you blog? I know for a period of time I did hoping for a few comments. Now I am not sure. I think it has a lot more to do with having a space that enables human contact, albeit in a virtual world. So why do you blog? (yes I have asked this before).

lol, and yes there were a lot of "I" statements in this post. My english teacher would shoot me.

Moving and meeting the neigbhours..............

Well it's been a few weeks now since I moved into my new place (flat or apartment depending where in the world you are from). Befriended my first Neighboour, or rather was adopted as a pet by Frank. Frank has the blue'est eyes I have ever seen on a cat. He declined to show them off for a photograph and who am I to argue. Here he is on my car. Sorry it's blurred but you get the idea.

Moving has taken some adjusment. I miss the ambient noise of the kids at night. Their sleepy little snuffles, mumbles snores and sometimes laughter in their sleep.

I do find I am struggling to find some kind of rythym when it comes to the domestic side of things. Still I figure if my bed is made and the dishes are done before I head out for the day I am doing alright.


The highlight for me since moving was having the kids over for the weekend. I was relieved to see them settle in an sleep well in a new environment. It was great to spend the time with them. We spent a lot of time playing cards. Who knew I could be an old maid so many times? :). I have opted not to have a television since there is nothing about a television that holds any lasting fascination for me. I was astounded to learn kids can fight over who is listening to what radio station though.

I have named their room the dormitory since they all sleep in straight line. There is something reminiscent for me about the story of the three bears here.


Notably Victoria has taken a liking to Frank, in a I enjoy the adrenalin rush when you come near me because I am scared of you kind of way. She often enquires after the health of Frank on the phone.

Anyway thats me in a nutshell for now.

Peace.

To my precious ones...............

Daddy is so sorry, I hope one day you can understand and forgive me.

Precious, penned by Martin Gore - Depeche Mode

Precious and fragile things
Need special handling
My God what have we done to You?

We always try to share
The tenderest of care
Now look what we have put You through...

Things get damaged
Things get broken
I thought we'd manage
But words left unspoken
Left us so brittle
There was so little left to give

Angels with silver wings
Shouldn't know suffering
I wish I could take the pain for you

If God has a master plan
That only He understands
I hope it's your eyes He's seeing through

Things get damaged
Things get broken
I thought we'd manage
But words left unspoken
Left us so brittle
There was so little left to give

I pray you learn to trust
Have faith in both of us
And keep room in your hearts for two

Things get damaged
Things get broken
I thought we'd manage
But words left unspoken
Left us so brittle
There was so little left to give

Libido Killer discovered in South Africa.............

.....or lost in translation

Photographed in a cosmetics shop not far from here.



Can you say exfoliate?

Too beautiful for this world.

Granoela, Godspeed. I pray you are at rest my friend.

He never done no wrong
He never done no wrong
A thousand miles from home
And he never harmed no one
And he was a friend of mine

He was a friend of mine
He was a friend of mine
Every time I hear his name
Lord I just can't keep from cryin'
'Cause he was a friend of mine.

Hey good people of the USA.

Today is National Blog Voter Registration day. I did promise more information on this.

Yes my South African ass is meddling in the affairs of another country again. Now more than ever Americans need to stand up and be counted, not just for the sake of America but the rest of the world who is hugely impacted by the policies of the present American administration.

I did take My two youngest offspring for an active demontration of our own democratic process when I went to vote in our most recent elections. Liam thought voting was cool. Victoria thought it was boring. I would also have thought it boring at the tender age of 6. I did explain the importance of voting to them. I figure it's never to early to start. I am not offering a picture of my naked ass on this one, Ain't you all grateful. Here is a pic of my South African Voter registration instead. I have blurred out my own ID Number for obvious reasons.

If you think your vote does not make a difference consider this.

1. In 1845, one vote brought Texas into the Union. (Source: Texas State Library and Archives Commission)

2. In 1876, one vote gave Rutherford B. Hayes the presidency of the United States. (Source: www.historychannel.com)

3. In 1960, one vote per precinct elected John F. Kennedy the President of the United States. (Source: John F. Kennedy Library and Museum)

Your vote counts - but you can't vote if you're not registered!

State Voter Registration Requirements and Information

Click on your state name to go to their voter registration information site. Please pass this information on to family, friends, acquaintenances, and work associates.

ALABAMA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a citizen of Alabama and your county at the time of registration
• Be 18 years old before any election
• Not have been convicted of a felony punishable by imprisonment in the penitentiary (or have had your civil and political rights restored)
• Not currently be declared mentally incompetent through a competency hearing
• Swear or affirm to "support and defend the Constitution of the U.S. and the State of Alabama and further disavow any belief or affiliation with any group which advocates the overthrow of the governments of the U.S. or the State of Alabama by unlawful means and that the information contained herein is true, so help me God"

ALASKA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be at least 18 years old within 90 days of this registration
• Not be a convicted felon (unless unconditionally discharged)
• Not be judicially determined to be of unsound mind, unless the disability has been removed
• Not be registered to vote in another State

ARIZONA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Arizona and your county at least 29 days preceding the next election
• Be 18 years old on or before the next general election
• Not have been convicted of treason or a felony (or have had your civil rights restored)
• Not currently be declared an incapacitated person by a court of law

ARKANSAS

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Live in Arkansas at the address in Box 2 of your voter application
• Be at least 18 years old on or before the next election
• Not be a convicted felon (or have completely discharged your sentence or been pardoned)
• Not claim the right to vote in any other jurisdiction

CALIFORNIA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of California
• Be at least 18 years of age at the time of the next election
• Not be imprisoned or on Parole for the conviction or a felony
• Not currently be judged mentally incompetent by a court of law.

COLORADO

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Colorado 30 days prior to election
• Be 18 years old on or before election day
• Not be confined as a prisoner or serving any part of a sentence under mandate

CONNECTICUT

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Connecticut and of the town in which you wish to vote
• Be 18 years old on or before the next election
• Not be convicted of a felony, except conviction for the crime of nonsupport (or have had your civil rights restored)

DELAWARE

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a permanent resident of Delaware
• Be at least 18 years old on the date of the next general election
• Not be a convicted felon
• Not be mentally incompetent

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of the District of Columbia at least 30 days preceding the next election
• Be at least 18 years old on or preceding the next election
• Not be in jail for a felony conviction
• Not have been judged "mentally incompetent" by a court of law
• Not claim the right to vote anywhere outside D.C.

FLORIDA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a legal resident of both the Florida and of the county in which you seek to be registered
• Be 18 years old (you may pre-register if you are 17)
• Not now be adjudicated mentally incapacitated with respect to voting in Florida or any other State

GEORGIA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a legal resident of Georgia and of the county in which you want to vote
• Be 18 years old within six months after the day of registration, and be 18 years old to vote,
• Not be serving a sentence for having been convicted of a felony
• Not have been judicially determined to be mentally incompetent, unless the disability has been removed

HAWAII

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Hawaii
• Be at least 16 years old (you must be 18 years old by election day in order to vote)
• Not be in jail for a felony conviction
• Not be "non compos mentis"

IDAHO

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of and in the county for 30 days prior to the day of election
• Be at least 18 years old
• Not have been convicted of a felony, and without having been restored to the rights of citizenship, or confined in prison on conviction of a criminal offense

ILLINOIS

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Illinois and of your election precinct at least 30 days before the next election
• Be at least 18 years old on of before the next election
• Not be in jail for a felony conviction
• Not claim the right to vote anywhere else

INDIANA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident in the precinct at least 30 days before the next election
• Be at least 18 years of age on the day of the next general election
• Not currently be in jail for a criminal conviction

IOWA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Iowa
• Be at least 17- 1/2 years old (you must be 18 to vote)
• Not have been convicted of a felony (or have had your rights restored)
• Not currently be judged "mentally incompetent" by a court
• Not claim the right to vote in more than one place
• Give up the right to vote in any other place

KANSAS

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Kansas
• Be 18 by the next statewide general election
• Not be imprisoned for conviction in any state or federal court of a crime punishable by death or imprisonment for one year or longer (or have had your civil rights restored)
• Not claim the right to vote in any other location or under any other name
• Not be excluded from voting for mental incompetence by a court of competent jurisdiction

KENTUCKY

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Kentucky
• Be a resident of the county for at least 28 days prior to the election date
• Be 18 years of age on or before the next general election
• Not be a convicted felon or if you have been convicted of a felony, your civil rights must have been restored by executive pardon
• Not having been judged "mentally incompetent" in a court of law
• Not claim the right to vote anywhere outside of Kentucky

LOUISIANA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Louisiana
• Be at least 17 years old, and be 18 years old prior tot he next election to vote
• Not currently be under an order of imprisonment for conviction of a felony
• Not currelnly be under a judgment of interdiction for mental incompetence

MAINE

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Maine and the municipality in which you want to vote
• Be at least 17 years old (you must be 18 years old to vote)
• Not be under guardianship because of mental illness

MARYLAND

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Maryland and the county in which you want to vote
• Be at least 18 years old before the next general election
• Not be under sentence or on probation or parole following conviction for an infamous crime (that is, any felony, treason, perjury, or any crime involving an element of deceit, fraud or corruption)
• Not have been convicted more than once of an infamous crime, without a pardon
• Not be under guardianship for mental disability

MASSACHUSETTS

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Massachusetts
• Be 18 years old
• Not have been convicted of corrupt practices in respect to elections
• Not be under guardianship with respect to voting

MICHIGAN

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Michigan and at least a 30-day resident of your city or township by election day
• Be 18 years old by the next election
• Not be confined in a jail after being convicted and sentenced

MINNESOTA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Minnesota for 20 days before the next election
• Be 18 years old by election day
• Not be convicted of treason or a felony; or have had your civil rights restored
• Not be under guardianship of the person or found legally incompetent

MISSISSIPPI

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Have lived in Mississippi and in your county (and city, if applicable) 30 days before the election in which you want to vote
• Be 18 years old by the time of the general election in which you want to vote
• Have not been convicted of murder, rape, bribery, theft, arson, obtaining money or goods under false pretense, perjury, forgery, embezzlement, or bigamy, or have had your rights restored as required by law
• Not have been declared mentally incompetent by a court

MISSOURI

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Missouri
• Be at least 17-1/2 years of age (you must be 18 to vote)
• Not be on probation or parole after conviction of a felony, until finally discharged from such probation or parole
• Not be convicted of a felony or misdemeanor connected with the right of suffrage
• Not be declared incompetent by any court of law
• Not be confined under a sentence of imprisonment

MONTANA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Montana and of the county in which you want to vote for at least 30 days before the next election
• Be at least 18 years of age on or before the election
• Not be in a penal institution for a felony conviction
• Not currently be determined by a court to be of unsound mind
• Meet these qualifications by the next election day if you do not currently meet them

NEBRASKA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Nebraska
• Be at least 18 years of age or will be 18 years of age on or before the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November
• Not have been convicted of a felony, or if convicted, have had your civil rights restored
• Not have been officially found to be mentally incompetent

NEVADA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Have attained the age of 18 years on the date of the next election
• Have continuously resided in the State of Nevada, in your county, at least 30 days and in your precinct at least 10 days before the next election
• Not currently be laboring under any felony conviction or other loss of civil rights that would make it unlawful for you to vote
• Not be determined by a court of law to be mentally incompetent
• Claim no other place as your legal residence

NEW HAMPSHIRE

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be at least 18 years of age
• Have a permanent established domicile in the State of New Hampshire
• Not having been denied the right to vote by reason of a felony conviction

NEW JERSEY

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of New Jersey and county at your address at least 30 days before the next election
• Be at least 18 years of age by the time of the next election
• Not be serving a sentence or on parole or probation as the result of a conviction of any indictable offense under the laws of this or another state or of the United States

NEW MEXICO

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of New Mexico
• Be at least 18 years of age at the time of the next election
• Not have been denied the right to vote by a court of law by reason of mental incapacity or felony conviction

NEW YORK

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of the county, or of the City of New York, at least 30 days before an election
• Be 18 years old by the date of the general, primary, or other election in which your want to vote
• Not be in jail or on parole for a felony conviction
• Not currently be judged incompetent by order of a court of competent judicial authority
• Not claim the right to vote elsewhere

NORTH CAROLINA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident North Carolina and the county in which your live for at least 30 days prior to the election
• Be 18 years of age by the day of the next general election
• Have your rights of citizenship restored if you have been convicted of a felony
• Not be registered to vote in any other county or state

NORTH DAKOTA

North Dakota does not have voter registration

OHIO

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Ohio for at least 30 days before an election
• Be 18 years old on or before election day. If you will be 18 on or before the day of the general election, you may vote in the primary election for candidates only.
• Not be convicted of a felony and currently incarcerated
• Not be found incompetent by a court for purposes of voting

OKLAHOMA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States and a resident of Oklahoma
• Be 18 year old on or before the date of the next election
• Have not been convicted of a felony, for which a period of time equal to the original sentence has not expired, or for which you have not been pardoned
• Not now be under judgment as an incapacitate person, or a partially incapacitated person prohibited from registering to vote

OREGON

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Oregon
• Be at least 18 years old by election day

PENNSYLVANIA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States at least one month before the next election
• Be a resident of Pennsylvania and your election district at least 30 days before the election
• Be at least 18 years of age on the day of the next election
• Not have been confined in a penal institution for the conviction of a felony within the last 5 years

RHODE ISLAND

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Rhode Island for 30 days preceding the next election
• Be 18 years old by election day
• Be neither serving a sentence, including probation nor parole, for which you were imprisoned, upon final conviction of a felony imposed on any date; nor serving any sentence, whether incarcerated or suspended, on probation or parole, upon final conviction of a felony committed after November 5, 1986
• Not have been lawfully judged to be mentally incompetent

SOUTH CAROLINA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of South Carolina
• Be at least 18 years old on or before the next election
• Not be confined in any public prison resulting from a conviction of a crime
• Never have been convicted of a felony or offense against the election laws, or if previously convicted, have served your entire sentence, including probation or parole, or have received a pardon for the conviction
• Not be under a court order declaring you mentally incompetent
• Claim the address on the application as your only legal place of residence and claim no other place as your legal residence

SOUTH DAKOTA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Reside in South Dakota
• Be 18 years old by the next election
• Not be under a sentence of imprisonment for a felony conviction
• Not have been adjudged mentally incompetent by a court

TENNESSEE

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Tennessee
• Be at least 18 years old on or before the next election
• Not have been convicted of a felony, or if convicted, have had your full rights of citizenship restored (or have received a pardon)
• Not be adjudicated incompetent by a court of competent jurisdiction (or have been restored to legal capacity)

TEXAS

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of the county in which the application for registration is made
• Be at least 17 year and 10 months old (you must be 18 to vote)
• Not be finally convicted of a felony. (Felons regain the right to register when pardoned, two years after receiving a certificate of discharge from the appropriate correction institution, or two years after completing a period of probation.)
• Have not been declared mentally incompetent by final judgment of a court of law

UTAH

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident in Utah for 30 days immediately before the next election
• Be at least 18 years old on or before the next election
• Not be convicted of treason or crime against the elective franchise, unless restored to civil rights
• Not be found to be mentally incompetent by a court of law

VERMONT

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Vermont
• Be 18 years of age on or before election day

VIRGINIA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Virginia and of the precinct in which you want to vote
• Be 18 years old by the next election
• Not have been convicted of a felony, or have had your civil rights restored
• Not currently be declared mentally incompetent by a court of law

WASHINGTON

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a legal resident of Washington state, your county and precinct for 30 days immediately preceding the election in which you want to vote
• Be at least 18 years old by election day
• Not be convicted of infamous crime, unless restored to civil rights
• Not be judicially declared mentally incompetent

WEST VIRGINIA

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Live in West Virginia
• Be 18 years old, or to vote in the primary, be 17 years old and turning 18 before the general election
• Not be under conviction, probation or parole for a felony, treason or election bribery
• Not have been judged "mentally incompetent" in a court of competent jurisdiction

WISCONSIN

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of Wisconsin for at least 10 days
• Be 18 years old
• Not have been convicted of treason, felony or bribery, or have had your civil rights restored
• Not have been found by a court to be incapable of understanding the objective of the electoral process
• Not make or benefit from a bet or wage depending on the result of an election

WYOMING

You must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be an actual and physically bona fide resident of Wyoming
• Be 18 years of age on the day of the next election
• Not be convicted of a felony or if so, have had your rights restored by a competent authority
• Not be a currently adjudicated as mentally incompetent

Source: Federal Election Commission

and you thought I had forgotten HNT

Presenting my mostly naked thigh. Happy HNT folk

To find out why I do this click the image below

.

Calling all Americans HNT week

If you are a citizen of the U.S.A please read the post, if not please read it anyway, and spread the word

You're pissed off. You don't like the actions taken by your Administration and/or by a whole lot of your elected officials. You can sit around and complain and do nothing else - or - you can get off of your butt and start to take action. The choice is yours. But what you do, or don't do, will have an impact on what happens in your country. (to the rest of the world believe me this affects you too)

The first step? Get registered to vote and work to get others registered to vote. That's the way we change things in your country. If every U.S. reader of this blog would go out and get 5 people a month to register to vote ... and if those five people went out and got 5 other people registered to vote ... well, you can see the potential.


You'll hear more about this in the coming weeks (National Blog Voter Registration Day - April 18th). I am including a link to Project Vote Smart. (PVS) for each of the states, where you can find out more information on voting records, etc., of your elected officials. (Please let me know if you find any broken or mis-labeled links).

Take that first step. Get involved. Please join the fight. (Feel free to copy, link, or whatever to this post - anything to get the information out)

1. Alabama PVS
2. Alaska PVS
3. Arizona PVS
4. Arkansas PVS
5. California PVS
6. Colorado PVS
   
7. Connecticut PVS
8. Delaware PVS
9. District of Columbia PVS
10. Florida PVS
11. Georgia PVS
12. Hawaii PVS
13. Idaho PVS
14. Illinois PVS
15. Indiana PVS
16. Iowa PVS
17. Kansas PVS
18. Kentucky PVS
    
19. Louisiana PVS
20. Maine PVS
21. Maryland PVS
22. Massachusetts PVS
23. Michigan PVS
    
24. Minnesota PVS
25. Mississippi PVS
26. Missouri PVS
27. Montana PVS
28. Nebraska PVS
29. Nevada PVS
30. New Hampshire PVS
31. New Jersey PVS
32. New Mexico PVS
33. New York PVS
34. North Carolina PVS
35. North Dakota PVS
36. Ohio PVS
37. Oklahoma PVS
38. Oregon PVS
39. Pennsylvania PVS
40. Rhode Island PVS
41. South Carolina PVS
42. South Dakota PVS
43. Tennessee PVS
44. Texas PVS
    
45. Utah PVS
46. Vermont PVS
47. Virginia PVS
48. Washington PVS
49. West Virginia PVS
50. Wisconsin PVS
51. Wyoming PVS

And Now speaking of getting off your butt, here is mine.

To find out why I do this click the image below

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Consequence................

I have previously written about the origin of the name Furzl, Furzl reflecting a sound I heard while hallucinating thanks to the ingestion of LSD.

Being clean for perhaps 10 years, acid flash backs have become less and for the most part have occured in the comfort of my bed. I can ride them out no harm done.

I was somewhat taken by surprise this morning at my desk, when I started seeing a colourful flickers across my screen that seemed to spread out to the sides across my desk over my phone and up the wall, on the other side across my desk and onto a collegue. I could not see the characters on my screen to carry on typing. By the time the metallic taste crept into my mouth it dawned on me what was happening.

Understanding that not every trip feels good, I felt like utter crap, completely out of myself and dysfunctional. Everything became too bright and too loud. I switched off my screen and shut my eyes. that killed the brightness but not the sound or the colour.

Thankfully I am busy with month end functions so people tend not to disturb me.
A collegue who hung out in his youth at the same respectable establishments I did, did notice me and took a frighteningly accurate guess at why I looked like did. He then offered to put on some appropriate psychedelic music. Sick man.

I feel normal again now. A bizarre surreal experince of perhaps twenty minutes of office life. Just exhausted and craving sweetness. I hope I don't experience that again.

I think I have a renewed regret for indulging in chemicals.

Nightswimming HNT...... X 2 since I missed last week.

Nightswimming deserves a quiet night
The photograph on the dashboard, taken years ago,
Turned around backwards so the windshield shows
Every streetlight reveals the picture in reverse
Still, it's so much clearer
I forgot my shirt at the water's edge
The moon is low tonight

Nightswimming deserves a quiet night
I'm not sure all these people understand
It's not like years ago,
The fear of getting caught,
Of recklessness and water
They cannot see me naked
These things, they go away,
Replaced by everyday




Nightswimming, remembering that night
September's coming soon
I'm pining for the moon
And what if there were two
Side by side in orbit
Around the fairest sun?
That bright, tight forever drum
Could not describe nightswimming

You, I thought I knew you
You, I cannot judge
You, I thought you knew me,
This one laughing quietly underneath my breath
Nightswimming

The photograph reflects,
Every streetlight a reminder
Nightswimming deserves a quiet night, deserves a quiet night

- with thanks to REM.

To find out why I do this click the image below

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<br /><BGSOUND src="http://www.geocities.com/furzl123/night.mid">

Rainy day's and Monday.

Thanks good people for your thoughts on death last week. Our receptionist is not really the hugging kind of person. I opted just to tell her I have no words for her that would not sound empty, and that she was in my thoughts. She seemed appreciative of that.

It was a simple but honest way to deal with it. While I don't usually avoid a situation involving bereavement, when someone loses a child it is just that much more difficult.


So onto this weeks news. Some months ago my company approached me asking me if I would be interested in doing a first aid course. Being a responsible parent with wee folk in the home I thought this is not a bad thing. Sure I will render the odd bit of first aid to a collegue, but it would be great to have up to date info on what to do if something happens to one of the kids.

The first aid course got expanded in a complete assesment of the Occupational Health and Safety Act. (This is the law that governs health and safety in the workplace as well as the impact on the environment.). Just what a computer geek does not need to be doing.

So today I attended the first day of the course.

I hate been in a classroom situation, so I figured I would do what always do. I decided to fly below the radar and sit at the back of the class where I would not be noticed. This seemed like a really sharp shoot kind of plan. So I arrived at the class this morning, a short 100 km drive, (60 Miles for you imperial folk) early. I want to be sure of my seat in the back row................................

TOTAL STUDENTS ON THE COURSE....................... 1 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was the soul student . Just me and the lecturer. I sat under his nose the entire day and was personally tutored in the Occupational Health ans Safety Act. At least I can't complain that the lecturer did not devote enough time to my questions.

That said Judas (that was his name) was a great lecturer. There was certain pleasure in conversing with him over lunch and tea breaks. He is of theTswana tribe, a forward thinking African man who clings to his culture with pride. He told me of his plans to marry at the end of the year. He insists on paying a lobola for his bride. Lobola been an african tradition whereby a the groom pays the brides parents for what they have invested in making the bride who she is.

His clothing though can be found only in upmarket stores. No cow skins for him he says.

Tomorrow I face The Act part 2

All kinds of everything...............

Sometimes one is at a loss for words. The last two days I find myself avoiding the reception area of our company because I don't want to speak to the receptionist. What do you say to a woman who has just lost her son in a motorbike accident. Everytime a parent buries a child I feel something is badly out of place in this world.

Evidence of debauched new years parties. Or is that HNT?

Here I am
just after midnight
on the 1'st of January 2006.
Safe, sober and at home......

..........Nekkid by candlelight naturally.

Wishing you all an amazing, spectacular 2006
filled with love, laughter, prosperity
and perhaps a little nekkidness

If you are still wondering what this is about,

please click the
Half-Nekkid Thursday image below

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