daars vissies in die water... kyk hoe swem hul rond... daars voëltjies in die lug ...♪

veels geluk aan die swemmers

Cameron van der Burgh

Chad le Clos ( onder )

♥

new winners

new winners

kraakvars wenners

geluk SA

ons is trots !

in awe of tennis

the moon was shaping itself into a tennisball tonight

as it was peering over the centre court stripes...

"Quiet please"

♥

and wished it could've been part of the action

no sooner has it dusted off its pale face 

ace

♥

the players shake hands and walk off.

it feels pushed around the celestial court by the sun

it merely keeps the tented- queues company 

until the sun comes up 

and serves it into the far-side...

ace

six

love

♥

"There are so many fragile things, after all.

People break so easily, and so do dreams and hearts."

-Neil Gaiman

Friday which feels like Monday

I almost have that feeling you sometimes get when you wake up at 6am on a Saturday-morning and realise that bliss upon bliss: you don't have to get up.
Since yesterday was a public holiday, I feel a margin of that happy/light feeling as the weekend is lying ahead and though today feels like the start of the week, it is happily the end to it.

My legs are not (yet) sore from yesterday's mountain-climbing, so I am savouring the flexibility.
My head does not hurt (since I had no wine yesterday) and I am savouring the clarity.
My house is being tended to, Sanna is here, my saving angel, and I am savouring the order.


So then , more on the Table Mountain walk/climb/ scramble.
We set off at 7.45am at the circle where I usually go down towards toward Camp's Bay.
Johann and Du Toit were there. Du Toit's old-lecturer Prof Theron, Prof's friend from Holland, Peter. The group also included Inge, Thomas Theron and his soon-to-be wife ( March 2011) Dalena as well as Rina ( vet who had her own practice for 10 years and suddenly finds herself having to start all over again )
and her partner (also an academic giant, but I never walked behind him so I don't really know what his field is)
Oh, and a couple who has that solid-vibe of "we've been -married- for- a- long time". I'll get their names from Johann next week.

pictures taken during break-times announced by Prof Theron and me graciously complying.

fantastic views and quiet beautiful vegetation... fynbos... by midday we were at the top... post a bit of rock-climbing ( Thanks Thomas and Johann for kind assistance ) and scenic -viewing.

amazing piece of floral kingdom condensed in a 15 km radius.

(Johann and Du Toit below)

and of course my blond angel: Inge (who carried the snack-bag ALL THE WAY)

there were times where I felt that I'd be walking till the day I die... just putting one foot in front on the other and seeing more rocks, mud, prickly bushes, high climbs, till forever.. like there IS NO top of table Mountain... like it is a myth.
My days will be spent climbing higher and higher and then its cold and the cool mountain breeze makes you reach for your top and then the sun comes out later and you take it off again but you are constantly stretching your calf-muscles till they're white hot.
. . and still you are not seeing the top of Table Mountain, just Clifton becoming smaller and smaller and some cloud-wisps breathing down the folds of the mountain to cool you down.






and then we heard a siren... which reminded me of an airport-boarding call... and I knew that the cable car service had reopened. I was told hours ago that due to the unfavorable wind, it was not operating. I ran to the Cable- car office.. willing to offer R200 for the ride down. The sense of accomplishment and joy and victory and strength. really really wonderful.

I'll do it again with this crowd.

"All good things are wild, and free."

-Henry David Thoreau

Cheers, M

Run Forest Run

There is something magical about an early-morning run. ( Fair enough: this picture was taken on the farm in the West Coast, it is Chris and Alain) and a run on the farm with the cool sea breeze would be lovely... but I'm talking about this morning in suburbia.

It is fresh and the day is new and full of promise and you feel a sense of accomplishment as well as "cheating" the lazy half of yourself, which blasted full-throttle excuses about why getting up at 6am is a bad idea... so you feel a sense of victory about that part of yourself which you like a little less.

and its about the small victories I think.

So: happy days; the office is slowly clearing out and I'm getting evermore "out of office-replies"
and by the same margin more relaxed.

Chantelle and Rochelle Fourie, a powerful duo, is leaving for their world-trip soon and their farewell is tomorrow night. They will be traveling the world for a year.. yep.. not just 20 days or so.... 365 days.... how is T H A T sitting with you on the jealousy-meter?
Diemersdal.
I will definitely post more about this remarkable undertaking soon.

World aids day 2010

I don't know what to make of the fact that the 3rd largest merger in SA-commerce history also falls on World Aids day.

Hopefully the MMI- holdings future will be.... mmm......long and... healthy?
that's rude
I know
I apologise.

anyway- December's dawn is always a special time for me.
The sweet smell of holiday and spring flowers and sunshine food is so alluring and it all orchestrates to make me so happy.
A deep kind of happy, the type that Christmas can bring.

The day transpired as an adrenalin rush of note. I pushed to get presentations done and then before I could worry about it: 18h and I had to get dressed for the annual Metropolitan 10 km race.

There is a type of sports/fitness challenge (voluntary) program at work run by Wayne do Rego, Kelvin Massingham and Paul Turner. Sweat-oozers.
So our team of 4 ladies was called: Swoozer-Sweethearts
Team: Marilize van Niekerk, Inge Aucamp, Jann Penfold, Maria Swanepoel.

me 63 minutes and I haGreat race, great weather (cool air without humidity)
Jann did great:55 minutes
Inge 59 minutes
I'vve yet to get Marilize's time.

This is the toughest (most hilly!) road race in the Cape Metropolis and truly a challenge!

Great fun
Great girls
Great spirit


Closed my eyes that night; a happy champion.

Tooty- Fruity Tuesday

Its officially Tuesday... well all of 12 minutes past the midnight-hour.


Lovely weekend afterglow is behind us now
to make room for a lovely Monday lunch at Zibaldone (one of 4 year end-meals I will attend/ devour this next 30 days!)
I feel like a pig just WRITING this !!!


Then we went off to Cape Town, The Pasta Factory. 18.30 date
Inge, Johann, Janico, Konrad, Sarika, Gaffie, Riana and briefly Kelly....






good laughs and we caught up on the "shop talk" I think.



Tonight: Paarl.
Yay- l♥ve Paarl.
SalomonsVlei
Yolandé is hosting the annual- Varsity- girlfriends-Christmas dinner.
more eating !!

no worries: Tomorrow is the MET 10km.... aaarrgghhhh

cheers for now, M

feel it .. it was here

the hole.. emptiness left by the excitement of the world cup... ai toggie
ah well... part of the afterglow is looking at the photos and perhaps going back to Paulaner Brauhaus for another lager?



cheers, ayoba-time, Maria

phew.. out of breath but with a smile on my face

Jann and Inge (to my left and right) are my inspiration.
Determination personified.
Metropolitan hosted on of the last road-race events of the 2009- runners' calender and a year ago I would not have paid it much attention.

Inge and I started running in May.
A lovely open-air alternative to sweaty gyms. The winter provided crisp evenings around Sonstraal Dam and as summer lept up on us (we experienced cold & rainy weather a couple of weeks ago) our running pattern shifted into evening-runs. Thanks ladies for an excellent start to December, Love Maria