Sad Times

I had a frivolous and light post planned to on Friday night and then with the news of the bombings and shooting in Oslo it just didn't seem appropriate.  Such a gentle and peaceful nation it is going to take sometime before they bounce back - although STRONG is something I would tag any Norwegian.


So I thought I would write about something I know little about but my closest friends know lots about GOD.


Where I work we hire certain rooms out for weddings we also have the most beautiful and charming little church on the estate, I love going in there and as a traditionalist at heart I find it very peaceful.   Sadly, the church is not used very often for weddings as most of the couples getting married choose to have 'civil' ceremonies.  I have never attended a 'civil' wedding before so it was quite a surprise to hear that God, Heaven or anything related is 'not allowed' to be mentioned during the ceremony.  Oh I didn't like that!! I hear some of my friends sniggering :)  I mentioned this to a colleague who abruptly laughed in my face and said but there is no God or Heaven anyway so why are you surprised?  The pianist started to play and the wedding began. Conversation over......


This colleague is very interested in starting a blog - more a business blog than personal as she is quite a private person so I often chat to her about blogs.  I was reading Caz's blog on Friday during lunch and I read her 16 July post to my colleague to illustrate Caz's healing process on the loss of her baby nearly 2 years ago.  My colleague burst into tears!  The post was about Heaven...interesting?  And she has never lost a baby.

I Love It

• Erin is 'working' for the next  two weeks at a hair salon about 45 mins bus ride away, it is work experience fortnight, everywhere you go there are 15 years olds working.  She catches a bus to work and home again.  I love this country.  She is just blossoming from the independence.
• Scott is looking like a Greek god, he has just arrived back from 2 weeks away on a Greek Island with his friends from school back in Cape Town.  I love this country - he paid every single penny for his trip, because he works and gets paid money he can do something with, his mates from Cape Town have never worked a day yet and speak of their dads getting them work ultimately because that's the way it works.  He is going into his last year of school in September - he has already started the work and is busy filling in his uni application forms - together with the study loan applications.  I love it.  
• My teens are fun to have around at the moment, my house is buzzing in the morning with everyone off to work and looking all grown up.

Lessons in Shutting Up!!

I have a really great job and tomorrow (Sunday) is the very important Annual Shoot BBQ - 170 people that 'shoot' or are associated in some way.  I get to be invited along with my family 'just because' and I don't think it has occurred to anyone that not everyone gets off on shooting birds and bunnies but hey we get to eat, drink and be merry.   The season is not due to open just yet this is the celebration of the 'purchasing/releasing' of the juvenile birds (partridges and pheasants) into pens in the woods to fatten them up and protect them from other animals until they are a little bigger.  A bit like canned hunting really for all sorts of reasons I won't go into here, I heard that sign of relief.   E did a little clay pigeon shooting at the football event on Tuesday night so she is looking forward to doing a little more of that tomorrow.   A rare glimpse into another world - a world that I don't belong in but I feel a little privileged to have this opportunity to get to know these people as different as they are to you and I.  I have added the video which illustrates the gentry perfectly.  

Bucket Lists

With Wimbledon still fresh in my mind I thought I would write an un-bucket list (things I don't have any intention of doing before I die) just for fun!

• Wimbledon - I don't do crowds and totally overpriced tickets blah blah.
• Glastonbury - couldn't think of anything worse.
• Bungi jump.
• Sky dive (well maybe).
• Eat at a restaurant in Soweto or any other township.
• Las Vegas.
• Sleep in an ice hotel.
• Stay in one of those Ashram thingies in India.
• Have dinner with a famous person just because they are famous.

Highs and Lows

Busy day at work today but I have arrived home feeling a little down.  The bride and groom from one of the weddings I 'watched' over a couple of weeks ago popped in to see me and collect some belongings.  I don't think I mentioned that when they left their wedding I bundled the bride and dress into the limo and placed her sleeping baby on her lap and then her new hubby gave me a big hug and we ended up crying together!  Why?  Very very sad.  He is pretty much riddled with cancer and doesn't have that long left so they wanted to do the right thing and get married blah blah.  OMG can you imagine the scene.  Thank goodness I had only been told half way through the night by his Mum - so much about him fell into place (I often can't hear him because he slurs and gets very tired when he speaks).  Today I was a lot stronger but he seemed a little weaker, the honeymoon has drained him - poor soul.  What a lovely couple and I managed to stay dry eyed when they hugged me goodbye. 


On a fluffy and lighter note another reason to feel depressed one of the models from the photo shoot we have had all week is 30 and has 3 kids!!! for goodness sake - that is just wrong!!  I spoke to her like she was 16 (the other model was 16) and yes I do speak to 16 years olds differently especially as this one was from a country way up north and couldn't communicate that well.

Btw the photo shoot was for the glossy that starts with a V and after catching a glimpse of the girls now and again in the hallways I cannot imagine who would rush to buy the clothes as beautiful as they are.  I am looking forward to a week without beautiful people all over the place.