Ek Bly 'n Bul- The iWalk series

Our manager/mommy
Nicola Brosnihan

When I am not studying, reading, writing or blogging, I dance for an entity that has its roots in radio, service provision and sport. Plainly put, I am a Vodacom Bulls Babe along with twenty other talents and the answer is, “I have no clue" to all of you queuing up to ask me anything about our delectable players. We may have the best seat at Loftus stadium but when the final whistle blows we all go our separate ways. The ladies I dance with all come from different backgrounds and beauty isn't their only claim as we have people studying or working in various corporate or entertainment disciplines from homeopaths, Bcomm accounting students, financial administrators, events managers, brand managers, accomplished drama and dance teachers and graduates but I think we unanimously agree that our favourite job is the one where we get to be girly in our make-up, bring sexy back in our game day gear and put on our "Sasha Fierce" personalities as we dance to an audience of hundreds and sometimes thousands!

 Game day preparation is always such a religious experience, the hustle and bustle that sets the tone of excitement while outfits are being distributed and organised, the clattering of make-up cases as we experiment with shades that transform us from girl next door to vixen, that subtle but intoxicating scent of all our different perfumes, hair spray and eyelash glue and the scuffle at the mirrors as we double and triple check that we have achieved a look that will sell the fantasy of a babe to the audience. I feel like a little girl as she watches in awe while her mother transforms herself into a beautiful butterfly and I am privileged to be a member of such a lively spirited group of ladies but it would all fall apart without a captain and my captain, Mrs. Nicola Brosnihan steers the team with such precision. I am never insecure about the management of our schedules, changes in outfits or the introduction of new girls because she has an eye for talent, personality and beauty.

 Our outfits, I must admit, are sometimes weather inappropriate and that does not dampen our gees one bit, infact it is during these moments where we have our most fun using dance, laughter and the energy from an enthusiastic audience to keep the chill at bay. Our game-day gear has borrowed inspiration from a time machine, with crop tops that have puffy sleeves, halter neck dresses, shorts and hoodies and the common thread that binds all our outfits, the diamante. The more bling the better! All in all we are reviving the 60's with a twist from the 2012 and who does not want to re-live an era that broke many fashion trends introducing box-shaped PVC dresses, the pillbox hat, go-go boots and of course the bikini. We are a brand that embraces the treasures of yesteryear and innovation of modern day fashion. Be sure to catch us in our new game-day gear, a body conturing unitard and our new sizzler of an opening routine on the 10 August 2012. Till then, live, laugh and love.

With great winters come great responsibility- The iWalk Series

The day is 25^th July, the air of spending spreads around Pretoria as the euphoria of pay day sinks in and it finally makes sense, the late hours in the office, the overbearing boss and complaints from the girlfriend/boyfriend who hardly gets to spend time with you. You have arrived.

I take this time to reflect on the impact that this winter has had on my life. One often associates winter with the end or the downtime of things but this winter has forcefully brought me to life in such an amazing way, affording me a chance to further my studies and challenge myself as I walk in a dream that I want to turn into reality and possibly be an employee for my favourite magazine. The one thing that the winter has stolen from me is my fashion sense. Being a summer baby, my hippie self thrives off summer dresses, high-waisted shorts, light crochet tops, open-toed shoes and shaved legs and although the winter has made it possible for me to start a small fire with my legs and gather some much needed layer of warmth around my waist most commonly known as the muffin top it, has rested my mind’s capacity for fashion innovation.

What interests me about this indecisive Pretorian winter, besides the hourly change of weather forecast, is how many of the citizens of this mad hatter city seem to just ‘GET IT’ when it comes to fashion. The winter here is much friendlier than in most parts of the country so its citizens have the upper and economic hand and can still get away with wearing their summer apparel and I must admit that my little green monster rears its ugly head when all I can come up with for a solid cold fighting outfit is a hoodie and track pants. I feel my bright spark personality fade into the persona of a sad house-wife who has lost her groove after getting too comfortable in the security of marriage. Thank the heavens that I am not confined solely to the four walls that make up my cosy apartment and that even though I may be fashion’s ugly step sister I have an eye that appreciates the effort, creativity and the absolute zeal that people have when it comes to what they put on. The streets of Pretoria merge into one huge canvas where the art is not dictated by trends but rather by emotion. Just as feisty as the weather, the citizens of the Jacaranda city wear their hearts on their fashion sleeves and it all comes together and sets the city ablaze in a kaleidoscope of colour.

The diverse people of Pretoria who take winter ever so seriously, who do not acknowledge it at all, those who take it with a pinch of salt and those make ‘fabulous on a budget’ look divine. I am inspired by your valiant efforts and as I soldier on towards my winter fashion journey I say a silent prayer for you all to live, laugh and love.

20-WEALTH

So after the treacherous climb that varsity presented I too had reached the finish line and 2012 looked like a man with Jesus' abs and the face of Brat Pitt. I was a graduate, I had arrived, I had reached a milestone that many had given up on for whatever reason and I was ready to conquer the corporate world. Surely after all the sweat, blood, tears and the academic fights that took place between mummy and I, I surely was destined to reap my rewards? Work would fall into my lap; companies would be begging to employ this young, smart, dynamic and strong individual to head up their projects. I would finally move into a cosmopolitan neighborhood and drive in a car that would make men drool and form a love/hate relationship between other women and myself. Oh yes, 20-wealth had my name written all over it and I was the star of the show BUT boy was I mistaken!

No great companies or any companies for that matter called. My mornings were spent in pj's waving goodbye to my boyfriend as he went off to his new job. I also discovered that looking for a full-time job IS a full-time job ladies and gentlepeople. The money spent on internet searches for the type of job that is suited to your qualification, the faxing or emailing of your c.v, the dreadful waiting and of course more time in your pj's eating yourself out of house and home. Now some of you may say that I lack patience and it has not been long enough for me to begin with the hair-pulling exercise that comes with being unemployed but a song once told me that "mama may have and daddy may have but God bless the child who has her own" and I want nothing more than to make myself proud in that regard, plus leather boots are very expensive. I know that I am swimming in shallow waters as far as the time I have spent looking for work but when you do not finish varsity in record time the journey at the end is so emotionally draining and it makes no sense why the world cannot see the hard work you put in just to get to that end.

I even have employment envy towards my boyfriend. Everyday is different from the last and it is so lovely to watch him happily skip and hop to work knowing that the opportunity to challenge himself presents itself on a daily basis. I am very proud of him but because misery loves company, there are times when I want to kick him in the nuts and have him stay at home with me so that we can rock in the same boat.
Thank goodness for the blessing that is dance, it helps patch up where the bills have a hole hahaha

I have had slight depression, for lack of a less dramatic word, episodes but I continue to put my best foot forward and make lemonade out of life's lemons. I am currently an employee in the unemployment line and will one day resign from this position and instead of making women hate to love me, I will take a sister by the hand and help her find her feet. For now, I work at finding work.

Live Laugh Love

Return to the bloggersphere

So I am back and to be totally honest it is quite scary. I have read my old pieces and not to sound arrogant but I enjoy my wirting *toot *toot! This is going to be a short post simply because have to shake the dust of my writing tools and do ot want t ramble and lose both you and I in my sporadic thought process. I will be bck soon, keep your minds and hearts open and warm for the occasion. For now I bid you adue. Mission: To land safely back in the bloggersphere
                              To stay true to all that I publish
                              To entertain and celebrate life through my words
P.S- Smiles are free

Some scars take their time to fade...



In happier times-when turning the door handle lead to adventure

 Up until a few weeks ago I was your regular Pta citizen. I relished the long walks through Arcadia on my way to school, I enjoyed seeing its colourful  people as they went on their merry way trying to make a living from their inventive sweet stalls and chicken dust stands, I loved walking past the park on Park Street with its homeless people who read newspapers and the drug dealers that blend in so well with the rest of society but mostly I loved being a citizen of Arcadia because it was the safest I had felt in a long time after my incidents in Sunnyside. Then I got mugged. My whole esteem is so unsure of itself right now. I went out for the first time by myself yesterday to catch the school bus and I thought I would have a mild heart attack! Everyone, according to me, looked like they wanted to attack me, every street corner suddenly looked too dark and dodgy and even the park looked threatening, yes with its swings and all. I love to joke about my mugging experience to friends and family in hopes that the shame and fear will leave me soon but the truth is I am terrified to go anywhere by myself, just the mere thought of getting out the door to face a possible attack grips at my heart with such intensity that I need to collect myself before going out. Half the time I just want to break out into tears and I now obsess about that Sunday I got mugged, could I have done something different to protect myself? I knew I was not over the incident when I went to dance practice on the 18^th June. Practice had been cancelled but I had not gotten the memo because I had forgotten my other phone at the flat. As I approached the venue I saw no cars and immediately I want half crazy, I was not safe and that dirty guy calling out to me was not making me feel better. I hid in a store just to calm my nerves and after much deliberation I went back to the flat. Today again I have to call on every superhuman power I posses because I have an important errand to run and hope my armpits do not fail me as I sweat when I feel threatened or nervous. My boyfriend says that there a certain things that only happen to certain people like his friend who got kidnapped for no reason, was beaten up in the car and then dropped off...I hope getting mugged is not the thing that happens to me.

Where did it all go wrong...?

The greatest moments are the unexpected ones

I truly think planning for anything is a recipe for disaster. Look at me and my good friend Zola. We had planned that last weekend was going to be an all girls party weekend with mini adventures along the way, we planned on this weekend being one filled with late nights at the clubs and alcohol in our systems but our expectations were soon shattered by reality,  ladies and gentle people. Friday night: That must have been the most fun we had this weekend, we went to dance practice, we had a mini road trip to Zo’s boyfriends house where three taxis left us on our way to Zo’s flat, had a lovers’ quarrel with Zo and we watched television with KFC in our mouths and sleep in our eyes. Saturday was meant to be THE day my people. The day of dressing up and eating foot (go ja loto), the day I would rid Zo of her fear for eye make-up and the day I would, for the first time experiment with eye shadow BUT this is what happened: I went to the mall and died over things I could not afford so I got some nail polish and eye shadow instead, Zo and I took a road trip to Silverliakes to pick up a friend and I got motion sickness on the way to and from our destination and of course the fact that our KFC evening totally obliterated our finances meant that Saturday night was going to be a night in with a bottle of wine at least. This is not the first time this planning strategy of mine has not worked, in fact, if I my memory serves me correctly planning only works in the academic sense. You want to be rich, you plan, you want to get an A on that exam, you plan and if you want to be leave your mark on the world, you plan. I believe now that happiness is something you cannot plan, all the little things life has to offer that put a spring in your step you simply stumble upon. You cannot plan to have a great time, you must just let life happen and by all means avoid motion sickness-totally uncool. Now fast forward to Sunday and there is sadness in Zo’s flat as she gets some terrible news. I feel so helpless around her and I silently beat myself for not trying hard enough to give her the Saturday night of her life and say a silent prayer for her heart to heal. After leaving Zo’s place I decided to walk home instead of taking a taxi, I mean Arcadia is pretty close from Hatfield. Biggest mistake of my life-I got mugged for, wait for it, a record seventh time. My fourth cellphone is taken and the two hundred rands I need for my dermatologist appointment is also taken but the worst is my fear is back, I thought I was safer here than when I was in Sunnyside but life is teaching me other things and I now trust nobody. Writing really makes it feel better. Lol, my boyfriend and I made plans to go to Gold Reef City on June 16 and after all the let downs I have had with planning I look forward to seeing how our trip is going to unfold. Till next time-take care of you and yours! Mwah!

VARUSHKA-My winter blanket, my weave.

Yes, I always, without fail, pose like this lol

So I have a weave...here is her story. Varushka and I met under stressful situations.I had a game performance and desperately needed a quick-fix hair do and she had been imprisoned in her packaging for a long time without a head to call her home. I would say that we both needed a friend. I went to the salon a lil apprehensive, I have not had weave in over a year and was not sure if I would make the right hair choice. The salon owner greets me warmly, of course he does lol, and we proceed to talk hair. He brings me three samples and immediately I fell in love with all fourteen inches of Varushka's awesomeness!!! She is soft to the touch, has a sun-kissed brown highlight and she reminds me of spring and sun dresses. I must have her. Now this is where I realize that I am an amateur weavist-the salon owner tells me that I will need to use two packets of Varushka and it will set me back a good R480.00. LMAO, any one in their right mind would have seen through the lie immediately. Firstly, fourteen inch weaves in a single packet alone will cover your head and you will still have a little bit extra to make a skirt, so imagine how much of a struggle it was to try fit all two packets on my head?! The poor hairstylist was being tasked the hardest trying to weave twenty eight inches of hair on my  head and mind you I do not have the smallest head but we ran out of surface area fast. Fast forward to two weeks later and these are the pros and cons of trying to wear twenty eight inches of hair; Winter cannot touch you lol, instant glamour and I never struggle to get dolled up when going out, boyfriend has a new toy to play with and I am a total camera whore lol-facebook will be forever changed with my influx of uploads. On the other hand, I take hours to get to sleep at night because that is the only time Varushka itches like mad, I had to move the bang from the right hand to the left because it gives me terrible headaches when I catch Varushka out the corner of my eye,and boyfriend complains that new toy is leaving its DNA everywhere-this hair breaks the realest. The long and short of it is that me and my Varushka live in a symbiotic love-hate relationship. She has cut down my preparation time by half and I make it on time to my meetings and I have a companion to whip back and forth in the clubs. The beginning of a long and beneficial relationship perhaps?