48 Days of Running

 This year marks the 14th year of my pre-birthday challenge and this year I am going back to basics.

My running has been fairly decent, crossfit is going well and I'm feeling good; but I can do better and I also need to do more for me. I haven't run much on road for the last 3.5 years and I could do with some mindless running, sans dogs, that is focused, faster and for me only.

My birthday challenge this year, which starts on 2 May, is 48 Days of Running (I'm turning 48 this year!) where my objective is a 4km run on road five days each week - I usually do the GTR Social Run on Mondays and the time trial on Thursdays, both on trails. Crossfit and dog walking will slot around the daily runs.

This should do me a world of good and is exactly what I need right now.

Heave ho!

One-year anniversary since my life changed with Vagabond

 On 22 June last year (it was a Wednesday then), my life changed when the doors of the factory that made my Vagabond Kayaks were locked by a sheriff. A year has passed. It feels like only a few months ago. This past year has been traumatic. I fought to save Vagabond's assets. I fought to save Vagabond. I mourned and I grieved and I went through deep sadness dealing with the loss of this business that I had invested heart and soul, years and sacrifice to build. And then, exhausted and broken, at the beginning of this year, I found the energy to look for solutions to get Vagabond back on track. But, it wasn't my decision to make.

While I'm relieved to no longer have the responsibility of Vagabond, there is so much about this past year that makes me desperately sad. I know that it will take time to work through so much grief, heartache, heartbreak and anger. I have learned from this experience.

It is the one-year anniversary of the day everything turned upsidedown and was the start of a cascade of months of events that make for 'truth is stranger than fiction' tales.

Thinking about or talking about Vagabond today has caused me waves of tears and distress. A lot this past year has been emotionally overwhelming, from being bullied, to legal battles and the fallout and loose ends that have consumed almost every ounce of my being.

On the whole, I am fine and most days are actually great. Life goes on, the heartache will fade - as it does with broken relationships and dealing with the death of people who were precious. Vagabond was precious to me.

Looking ahead, I have exciting new projects with rebuilding YOLO Compost Tumbler and growing AR Gaiters . I have great people in my life, phenomenal dogs, things that make me happy and bring joy, and much to be thankful for.

13 Rules for Being Human

 I love Reels on Facebook / Instagram. Oh yes, they're often totally mindless and a complete waste of time, but I like them. They're distracting and absorbing. For as much junk that I've watched, I have also gained. I've learned some cool woodworking tricks, I've discovered cooking and baking recipes, ideas and techniques and I thoroughly enjoy the biokinetic / functional movement / range of motion clips. How to make mini fried eggs and getting avo out of the skin without resorting to peeling back the skin (which I've always done) are some of the recent gems that I now use regularly.

This one came up a day or two ago. "13 Rules for Being Human" 

The guy who eloquently delivered the rules said they come from "ancient Indian scriptures" that have been passed down. They're also in business books, adopted by motivational coaches and written up on shareable images on the internet in any number of rules from nine to 13... Wherever they have come from, they're pretty decent. The Reel came at a good time for me to listen and consider each one.

13 Rules for Being Human

One: You will receive a body

Two: You will learn lessons

Three: There are no mistakes, only lessons

Four: A lesson will be repeated until it is learned by you.

Five: Learning lessons does not end.

Six: "There" is no better than "here".

Seven: Others are merely mirrors of you.

Eight: What you make of your life is up to you.

Nine: Life is exactly what you think it is.

Ten: All the answers that you seek lie within you.

Eleven: You are whole. You are enough.

Twelve: You will forget all of this.

Thirteen: You can remember this whenever you want.

Year of the Frog

 My year started with a bang on the 2nd of January, at my desk, eating a frog. Figuratively.

I used this expression with a few friends and they didn't know it. For me, it is about doing tasks you don't really want to do but that you need to do. They're often tasks that take a long time to get around to doing and could take a lot of focus and time to complete. When they're done, you feel great, but eating and swallowing them takes effort and energy.

I looked up the origin of the expression, which comes from Mark Twain; I've found two quotes online.

The principle of 'Eat the Frog' has been adopted by loads of life and business coaches to help their clients stop procrastinating. The method aims to help you to prioritise tasks so that you can be more productive. The idea is that you identify one challenging task (the frog) and complete the task first thing in the morning (eating it) and then move on to everything else that needs your attention. 

This year, I've been eating frogs. Lots of them. Never mind mornings, I'm reveling in frog-eating days. I'm getting lots done. I don't like to eat frogs, but there is a reward in accomplishing tasks.

Forget Year of the Rabbit; 2023 is my Year of the Frog. 

But I'll go with the Rabbit too.

According to the internet, this is what the Year of the Rabbit represents:

2023 is a year of the Water Rabbit, starting from 22 January 2023 (Chinese New Year), and ending on 9 February 2024 (Chinese New Year's Eve). The sign of Rabbit is a symbol of longevity, peace, and prosperity in Chinese culture. 2023 is predicted to be a year of hope.

Find three reasons

The monthly calendar that is sent to me by a friend each month was titled Meaningful May for the month of May. Each day's block has a few words that remind, nudge or guide you towards more meaningfulness - like "Focus on what you can do rather than what you can't" or "Listen to a favourite piece of music and remember what it means to you".

For Tuesday, 31 May 2022, the entry reads, "Find three reasons to be hopeful about the future".

Know what? I'm stumped. 

By any standard, I have a good life. I live in a great location, I have friends and family, I've got amazing dogs, I run my own business (through ups and downs and challenges) but I am not very hopeful about the future. Or my future.

According to the American Psychological Association (APA), "having hope is having an expectation that something good will happen in the future or that something bad won't happen". 

Man, I'm the girl on the couch, holding a taser, waiting for the boogeyman to burst through the door.

There are a number of issues that my mind turns over regularly, 

I'm not hopeful for the environment, marine life, sustainability, reducing deforestation and halting the melting of Greenland and Antarctica. 

I'm not hopeful for the millions of school children in South Africa whose only meals are served by their schools. I'm not hopeful that they will have the homes, upbringing, education or jobs that they should have. 

I'm not hopeful that the hundreds of thousands of young people who have left school or tertiary education will find work. Or that those older people, who had jobs and lost them because the business that they worked for haven't survived, will be able to find jobs to support their families.

I'm not hopeful that there will be, in my lifetime, a decrease in the current rising number of teenagers with serious behavioural and mental health issues; and I'm less hopeful that there will be sufficient professional help for them - as well as for adults with mental health issues. 

I'm not hopeful that prices of fuel and the knock-on increases in food, transport and goods costs will come down and that earning potential goes up. There are so very many people on the edge; too many will fall over. This is not just a 'tightening of belts'. This is serious.

I'm not hopeful that South Africa can kick the rot of corruption and pocket lining at the expense of its people as well as the lack of maintenance and infrastructure development, and the wrong people in the wrong positions because of their political affiliations instead of their experience and knowledge.

An article I read online about being hopeful says, "Being hopeful relies partly on having a sense of control; it’s the idea that you can exert an influence on the world around you and that the actions you take can have positive consequences in your life."

I think that this is part of the problem: in all of these things I've mentioned above, as well as many work challenges, I have no sense of control. 

I can compost, but I can't save the Amazon. 

I can stop using plastic shopping bags and clingwrap, but I can't force those around me to change their behaviours. 

I can pick up litter daily on trails, but I can't get the people to stop throwing their wrappers and bottles on the trails.

I can help a lady to get to study for a course to do a job she will love, but I can't give her a job that will make all the difference to her household. 

And I can't give jobs to the 80-something mostly completely unqualified young people that applied when I advertised a position last year. These people are unlikely to get jobs anywhere.

We can't make kayaks and I can't fulfill orders if we don't have plastic.

I drew up a YOLO ad last night to promote the other products that I have brought in - all of them being long-lasting, reusable alternatives to single-use items. 

YOLO is indeed an acronym for You Only Live Once. I was thinking of a tagline of sorts like, "You only live once. Live a good life".

While I have not been able to think of three reasons to be hopeful about the future, I can still live a good life where my actions are inline with my values and expectations for how I'd like the world to be.

This time last year

With the City Nature Challenge on iNaturalist starting tomorrow, it marks one year since I discovered this amazing resource and almost a year since I developed a thing for fungi. This time last year I wouldn't have known that Trametes was a genus of fungi and now I know the difference between Trametes and Stereum as well as many other genera and fungi categories - from gilled mushrooms, polypores, brackets, stinkhorns, jelly fungi, bird's nest, puffballs and earthstars. 

In 12 months, I have logged 495 observations with 205 confirmed different species identifications.

With this in mind, I started thinking about this time last year...

This time last year work was incredibly stressful as the factory was dealing with huge challenges with their rebuild. I hadn't had YOLO products for almost seven months, kayaks were only just coming out, and orders were queued to be fulfilled for local and international. We'd hoped that 2021 would the THE year - just as 2020 was aimed to be THE year. Come mid-April, I was sent packing for a few days by my colleagues to spend a few days away with Rusty - and no internet or mobile signal - because I was actually just so cracked and broken. I'd taken massive emotional strain.

While this year is not free of challenges, there has been a lot of progress. I keep reminding myself that start-ups take 3-5 years. We're approaching year four since launch and two of the years included COVID lockdown, no power, major factory move and rebuild, and the global shipping crisis (still ongoing). I very much feel like we're only really in year two now. That we're still here is quite something.

This time last year I was working from home, which I'd done for the bulk of the past 21 years. The office section at the factory was completed mid-June 2021 and I moved into my office around end June. My plan was to do mornings at the factory and afternoons at home. This didn't happen on the first day and it hasn't since. While I have the freedom to come and go as I wish, the bonus of being the boss, the reality is that I'm generally tied in.

I loved working from home because I got to be with Rusty and Rosy all day, every day. I do like being at the factory because I can be on top of things and I'm in the thick of the action. I also like that my files and work things are all in my office at work and not in my home, which has always been the case. I still work a lot at home at night and on weekends, but all I need is my laptop. We're a small team on the office side (different companies, related, but same space), plus there is the Adventure Base Camp kayak store with my right-hand lady Mpho. This makes for good social interactions in the day.

Thankfully, I have a 6km / 12-minute commute to work each way. As the days get shorter with the approach of winter, I'm finding my time out to be challenged. When working from home, I could quite easily be out the door at 4pm, be out with the dogs for 90 minutes and then pick up where I left off. I leave the office mostly after 16h30, get home, grab the dogs and then have an hour before it gets dark. I'm finding a disconnect (and flagging motivation) between walking out of the door at work and starting up again at home.

I miss the dogs during the day, especially my Rusty. At about 11 years young, the clock ticks and I feel like I'm missing out on so much time with her. Sometimes I take her to the factory with me and if my mom is away, I take all three dogs with me. They like the factory but it is definitely more fun for them to be home with a garden to play in and their granny to throw balls.

This time last year I was three months into working with a biokineticist to remedy my not-a-knee-injury knee injury. By this stage I'd been out of running for eight months (only walking/hiking). As I recall, I was improving in terms of muscle group balancing and strength and getting knee inflammation under better control. Not great, but better where I was mostly hiking with light trotting occasionally.

My recent experience at the chiropractor - working on my big toe joint - has changed things completely for me. I'm inflammation free for the first time 20 months! I did two parkruns in April. Port Alfred over Easter weekend was a fast and flat 26:03 for me. I'm chuffed with my time considering that it was my second 5km run both this year and for many months. 

This time last year I had not done any of the higher hiking trails nor any of the '6 Peaks'. 

Since November, I've done two >20km hikes and three (one of them twice) of the 6 Peaks. I do not yet see myself doing the 6 Peaks FKT route any time soon - more because of the downhills than the ups.  I'll see how I'm doing in six months. 

This time last year I was still relatively new at dog school. I'm still a novice, but I know more than I did a year ago. I only started Rosy with agility this year and she is loving it - it suits her temperament. Rusty passed her first assessment last year with something like 98% and she is in the advanced class.

I'm really the weak link for the dogs because I don't do enough homework with them. I'm trying to do better and succeeded yesterday in a better way to keep the dogs separate (and quiet) while I work with them one-by-one in the garden. I built some DIY jumps

This time last year my household had two dogs - Rusty and my mom's Rosy. We now have three.

Bella, a maltese who originally was my mom's neighbour's dog in Parys, came to live with us in September. My mom would often babysit Bella. She went to a new home prior to my move to George. Then, middle of last year, her owner came down with serious covid, was in and out of hospital and her family took her two dogs to an SPCA. This poor woman! She died shortly after Bella was rescued by my mom from the SPCA. Bella has become quite the little trail dog.

This time last year I didn't own a drill, sander or jigsaw.

I now own these powertools and I know how to use them. In February, I did my first furniture DIY when I built a kitchen cabinet - with two sliding drawers - from repurposed pallet planks. Designing, sanding, measuring, cutting, painting, assembling, screwing - all on my own. It came out really well and was a good learning project. I have a bunch of other projects I'd like to do and now I have more confidence to do them. I've subsequently started an online course on furniture design and construction for beginners (making slow progress).

This time last year I was living in a house that irritated me. Six weeks after arriving in George, I moved into a house that I would rent for the next 13 months. It was actually a really sweet house with an excellent kitchen and a heavenly shower. But, the house had a number of issues that drove me crazy. When it rained, water would pour out of the back retaining wall, carrying silt from the embankment across the paving outside the kitchen. Water would continue to trickle across the paving for weeks with ongoing light showers. Mud, wet, dogs and nearly-white tiles inside. I swept a lot and cleaned floors a lot. The circuit board in the garage (yeah, I turn my geyser on and off) and the short and steep driveway that had visitors laying down rubber. I don't miss these.

At the end of January, we moved into a lovely house not far from the first. It is an older house with less fancy kitchen and bathroom but it has solid bones. The living area is bigger (previous living area was the size of a matchbox) and the back garden is enormous - it was the spacious, simple garden that won me over. And my landlady is really sweet. The dogs love the garden.

This time last year I wasn't into open water swimming (for no other reason than just that I wasn't into it). 

Since December, I've done a bunch of casual open water swims, I joined a friendly masters swimming club and I put in some pool sessions in March. This past weekend I participated in my first 1-mile swim event.

It often feels like I'm one step forward and two steps back so it is good to look back on this time last year to see how things change and that they do change to put life into perspective.

Erica Terblanche's love of life and running (book)

There are running-themed books that are good. Some very good. And then there are running-themed books that awaken, revitalise, ignite, and go on to be legendary. Erica Terblanche's book 'Run - For the Love of Life' is one of these.

"This book is going to stand as one of the greats in running-themed literature."

 

I first met Erica almost 20 years when she jumped in to the sport of adventure racing full of grit and passion, and always with a smile so big her eyes squeeze almost shut - even in the coldest and darkest hours before dawn.

During Erica's years in London, news would come through via a common friend and snippets on social media told of Erica's adventures and successes. What I didn't realise, until I read her book, was just how many. 

Drakensberg overnight hike, Feb 2016. At the back is Faye, then Tracey and then Erica and me in the front.

'Run - For the Love of Life' is a story of life and love, and running. Erica opens her heart to bravely share her life in this honest memoir. She elegantly weaves a colourful cloth of her experiences, travels, races, relationships, career changes, successes, and sorrows, which are related simply, but yet so beautifully, and without fanfare. 

Erica's writing is as exceptional as her athletic accomplishments. Every word used counts. Like each step that makes up a kilometre, and each kilometre covered makes an ultramarathon completed, Erica's words, paragraphs and chapters take you on a journey through the dozen years and major events that are the focus of this book.

It is significant that Erica did not just win the women's category at almost all of the gruelling ultramarathons in which she competed; she blew away most of the field to stand or knock on the podium. Overall. Again and again, and again. Her hard-won achievements will uplift and inspire, motivate and encourage - especially women - whether or not you are a runner. 

Erica's courage stands out in the telling of her life story. She exposes her soft underbelly and leaves you in awe of her resilience, determination, focus, and bravery as well as her kindness, compassion and wisdom.

You do not need to be interested in running or to be a runner to be enthralled by this book. The ultramarathon events in which Erica competed are portals to her experiences. This book is about so much more than running. Erica's narration of her extraordinary journey of her life - through racing and traveling, and the people she loves - will enrich yours. 

GET A COPY AND MORE

'Run -For the Love of Life' can be ordered from Publisher.co.za and also from Amazon.com (Kindle and paperback). In South Africa, RUN will also be available from Exclusive Books.

Listen to this 35-minute podcast of an interview with Erica - HERE.

This is an interview with Erica by Pippa Hudson on CapeTalk.

Comparing is not good self-care

 A friend forwards me these monthly calendars from actionforhappiness.org. Each month has a different theme.

The calendar for September 2021 is 'Self-Care September'. This one resonated, for me and others. I printed a copy and stuck it up at our office so that I would at least get to see it and think about it and so would others.

The item for 21 September, yesterday, is a good one. 

On social media, it looks like I spend my time out with the dogs on beautiful trails looking for fungi. The reality, of course, is considerably different. 

Being out on the trails is what I love. Being with the dogs keeps me sane. These are the things that make the long hours of work, as well as business and financial stresses tolerable. These get me through frustrations, lows, disappointments. So often, there doesn't seem to be light at the end of the tunnel. And then I head out on the trails with the dogs and my perspective is improved.

It is so easy to assume that everyone's life is going better than yours because our friends and family are sunny, shiny, happy, content, fulfilled, successful and doing such cool stuff on social media.

What does trouble me is that those of us who grew up before social media have a better frame of reference of real life than those in their 20s and younger. 

We just need to remember, and remind others, that there is real life reality and there is social media reality (the good stuff) and not to compare how we feel on the inside - and how we see our lives - to how others appear on the outside and our impression of their lives. Apples and oranges.

Feel-good viewing

For the past few months, I've been working my way through a number of series on Netflix. I may watch one episode a night, sometimes two and sometimes none, so it can take a while to complete a season.

The types of shows that I am really enjoying are skill-based reality shows. Aside from deriving pleasure from watching and learning about different talents and skills - and seeing these develop as the season progresses - I most enjoy the feel-good element of these shows.

The shows usually involve competition and an ultimate winner; someone is eliminated at the end of each episode. But, the interactions are not dog-eat-dog. Instead, the participants are supportive of each other and the judges too are personable, positive and encouraging.

When you mouse-over shows, they have, a la TED Talks, three words that encapsulate the show, like Sentimental * Heartfelt * Emotional or Suspenseful * Mystery * Drama or Controversial * Provocative * Investigative.

I'm into shows where one of the words is Feel-Good. 

I'm not sure which one got me started but the shows that I have really enjoyed include:

Blown Away - glass blowing (two seasons)

The Big Flower Fight - pairs and large scale flower arranging (one season)

Glow-up - make up artistry (two seasons)

Next In Fashion - fashion design pairs battle it out with themed challenges each week (one season)

Interior Design Masters - interior design pairs have to do make-overs (one season)

Restaurants On The Edge - a restauranteur, chef and interior designer travel to different locations and help a struggling restaurant to get back on its feet with the tools to survive and thrive (two seasons - just finished this. More, more, more!)

In terms of creative crafts, I'd like to see a ceramics version of 'Blown Away'. Or even something with wood working or welding. 

How about a musical variation? I'm thinking music composition,  mixing, songwriting... Participants (composers / songwriters) can come from different styles i.e. classical, rap, pop, blues, jazz and even a DJ and each episode they have to create a piece of music that meets an objective according to a theme.

While some participants may be quirky, they are nice (with very few exceptions), as well as appreciative, positive, hard-working, and thankful. There is a lot of kindness involved too.

Feel-good viewing is working for me. 

A fit and healthy lifestyle (reminiscing and lessons learned)

On Saturday, I had the pleasure of speaking to a group of children, teens and some adults from the Parys Multisport Club, which is run by Pierre Fourie. Pierre coaches children from primary and high schools for athletics and cross-country and he also has a number of adults who he coaches. Pierre started the club only a few years ago and he hosts a weekly time trial here in town. He has also been involved with organising and hosting school cross-country league events. 

Photograph with Pierre (in the middle) and Wilfred, an experienced athletics coach who I actually first encountered in the late 2000s when I was working for SuperSport's Let's Play programme (Wilfred is also a karate instructor).

Pierre invited me to speak on 'A fit and healthy lifestyle' as I have been active throughout my life and for me sport is very much about health and wellness. Too many teens stop doing all sports when they leave school. 

In thinking about content for this talk, I considered my very diverse sport participation and the lessons I've learned along the way from this. It really is too good not to share, and so I'm writing it down here - for me to remember and reflect on too.

All kinds of sports

At primary school (perhaps from Grade 4 on?), I played netball and did swimming. Netball is the only activity I can really recall for which there was any coaching / practice. Swimming was mostly during phys ed lessons but perhaps in Grades 6 and 7 I recall some swimming practice and also races against other schools.

Athletics was a minor event in primary school with only the annual sports day (little to no preparation for this - just a trial to determine who runs what. 

Outside of school I was always swimming and rollerskating, climbing trees, riding bikes and spending lots of time outside.

For my first two years of high school I went to Potch Girls. I played netball briefly (decided it was no longer for me), swam briefly (the 6am morning training sessions were not for me) and stuck with athletics early in the year. Athletics at the school was pretty good and I jumped into the sprints (100m and 200m and relay) as well as long jump, high jump, hurdles and javelin. After school I remember hours spent rope skipping - solo and group (remember those neon ripper skipper ropes?).

Back at school in JHB, athletics moved from summer to winter and I had a great coach and loved our training sessions. We had 'matches' once a week in season too. At this stage I never thought that I would run further than 200m!

A friend on the athletics team (and classmate) invited me to join him and his dad at a 10km road race. They came to fetch me and off we went. Henry ran with me. I remember taking a few walks too. It must have been on our third or fourth event - a 10km Nite Race in Alberton - that I ran the whole way without walking and clocked a sub-60. After this, they would come to fetch me and we'd all run our own races (Henry was faster than me). This continued through to the end of my schooling and I am so thankful to Henry for that first invitation (and please with my young self that accepted it!).

I must have been 15 when I first joined a gym - Vic's Gym at the top of Sovereign Street in Kensington / Bedford Gardens. There I got into super circuit and aerobics (high impact and step). I would walk up the hill to the gym, do circuit before aerobics, nail one or two aerobics classes, and then run home downhill.

At university, I was enticed by the Underwater Club and within my first two weeks began playing underwater hockey. For the first year I played once a week and loved it. I dabbled with climbing but as I was at the gym daily and playing underwater hockey, it never stuck.

By first year I'd moved to the Health & Racquet Club in Bedfordview. It would later become a Virgin Active. There I discovered treadmills, which I loved. Also the StairMaster, still super circuit and also aerobics classes - still high impact and step but also powerpump and yoga. Later they brought in spinning classes too. I was at the gym seven-days-a-week.

Within a year or two I was playing underwater hockey one or two nights a week and then on Sunday mornings too. I made the Provincial B side and then the Provincial A side, by which time I was playing five times a week. And then the National side. 

I was still doing road races on weekends.

In 1998 I went to the US for a few weeks and there I had no underwater hockey or gym. I started running every day on the road. Returning home it was a juggle with gym, road running and underwater hockey - but I loved it.

In mid 1999 I discovered adventure racing. Where underwater hockey had been my obsession and I couldn't imagine my life without it, adventure racing took over every inch of my brain. I was obsessed from the start. Adventure racing changed the direction of my life.

I got a mountain bike after the first race but had not yet done much with paddling. I was still mostly running and in the gym.

Adventure racing led to ultra trail running and staged racing. I had the fortune of running in the US (Pennsylvania, Virginia, Colorado and Hawaii), Brazil, Costa Rica, India, Namibia and SA, trading writing for running in most cases. (Much of these before I started this blog in Jan 2006).

In the mid-2000s I was doing a lot of media work in adventure racing - travelling abroad to write for races and teams, but also local work in writing and tv. From this I got experienced that I would never have been able to afford but I found it challenging to keep up my own training with the long hours that I was working. 30-minute runs kept me sane and somewhat fit.

When I started adventure racing, I also got into orienteering to improve my navigation skills and, from about 2000, I was regularly at orienteering events for the next 15 years. I also loved orienteering coaching for schools and for our junior team. Orienteering led to rogaining and I have had the fortune of doing doing two 24hr events abroad - in Estonia and Ireland - and many (all but one, I think) of the local annual rogaining events, which have always been a highlight every year since about 2003. We hosted two rogaining events out here in the hills surrounding Parys.

Adventure racing also led me indirectly to staged ultras. My first being the Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon - must have been 2001. I found out about it a week before the event because of a product review (bivvy bag) that a magazine asked me to write. Running through the night on the ultra stage was very definitely one of those epiphany moments that I'll never forget.

In 2001 I got pulled into the ladies team for Camel Whitewater and this is where I got a good water base in rafting and understanding water. By the mid-2000s I was paddling occasionally (K1 and K2) but it was only in 2008, in preparation for my first (of three) trips to participate in the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge, that I properly began to paddle properly. Paddle coach Russell Willis sorted out kinks in my technique and built me a solid paddle style. For three years I would paddle for four to six months of the year. 

Around this time I also gave up my gym membership, something I would never imagined that I would ever do. I was out on the road, trails, water and in studios - not enough in the gym to warrant a membership that I wasn't using.

By mid-2008, I had started pole dancing. I'd heard talk of it and found a class in Edenvale. I loved it from the first because it was hard! After six months I did an instructor course and then taught one or two pole classes a week for the next 4.5 years. 

I started going once or twice a week to Ashtanga yoga classes in 2011 (for a few years) after an introduction to acroyoga at the 2010 Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge.

In 2012 I heard about aerial circus classes and would head off there once or twice a week. Trapeze, silks, ropes, lyra, chinese pole and a lot of strength and flexibility drills. It was brilliant and rewarding. The school closed after a year or so. I went back to some pole but mostly was into running, yoga, paddling and a dash of biking.

I've been out of adventure racing for a long time, mostly because I don't have the disposable income for it. It is still in my blood though.

My running has been diverse from road to trail, parkrun to ultras and also multi-day staged events, ultra relays and circuit races. 

10 years ago, when I turned 35, I began my annual birthday running challenge where I run the consecutive number of days of the age that I am turning in the lead up to my birthday. I needed this to restore balance when I found that I wasn't prioritising myself or my training  - too much work and event organising. I still do this birthday challenge now although I'm more on track so it is not as impactful as it has been in some years.

In 2015, I was juggling life between Parys and Jo'burg so I was mostly running and orienteering with a little paddling and probably some yoga.

Since I've lived in Parys (Dec 2015), my proportion of paddling has increased - mostly flatwater and some whitewater in the last three years. I've done some yoga classes, some self-practice (never enough!). Running is still my base - mostly on trails. I used to ride my bike around town a lot but I haven't done so since I got Rusty (my dog) as she is often with me (I need a bicycle sidecar!). I'm always short on time and for the most part I do activities where I can also get Rusty out for exercise (or just an outing) - so running and paddling dominate and I haven't been on my bike for too long.

I've been the Event Director of our Parys parkrun for five years and so I've been very involved as a volunteer and a regular participant. I enjoy the myRun too on Sunday mornings. We also have a Friday-evening Ultimate Frisbee game, which I thoroughly enjoy. Tough game!

In the past five years, the activities that I have really missed have been orienteering (especially for my orienteering family) and pole.

I enjoy competition and have had some really good results over the years (ultra running), but sport for me has been very much about having a fit and healthy lifestyle and trying all kinds of activities.

LESSONS LEARNED

Don't ever stop!

It is easier to just keep ticking over than to start from scratch. When you're unfit and heavy, any training is hard, hard work. Rather just keep doing something, all the time. 

Having a base fitness also means that you are ready to jump at opportunities that come up, like running a seven-day staged ultra with a week's notice or running 70km through the night with a friend that you are crewing for.

Give everything a try

Don't dismiss anything until you have tried it. I used to think circuit races made no sense. I decided to do one and loved it. I've done four and I'd do more in a heart beat.

 

Specialist or master of none? 

Back in the late 90s and early 2000s, I was running up a storm. I focused on short, hard and fast in training and had not yet gotten into ultras. I'd run 5km in 20-22 mins without too much strain, my 21km PB is 1:36 and my only marathon is a 3:29 (3rd lady!). And this was on treadmill running (8km a day) and aerobics classes. I was pretty much always in the Top 10 women's placing at 21km events in JHB (8-10 usually).

I've also had some great results at ultras (overall, not just women's category), but again with really not much focused training put in.

Sure, the environment now is different to what it was 20 years ago, but could I have been a trail running star? I don't think I have the temperament. 

Instead of being a specialist, I'm a master of none. I'm good at lots, but not expert or champion because I've never focused on any one discipline, even running. I usually juggle a bunch of sports because they all give me so much joy and satisfaction.

That said, if I had focused on one discipline, I could have maybe been a champion but I would have missed out on so many other experiences that have contributed to making me who I am.

Injuries

A number of years ago, my mom's friend asked me why I was never injured. She had runner friends who were regularly out of action and at the physio. 

I had two answers to this. 

1. While I've been running distances of 10km or more, and running almost daily for 30 years, I've always gone with quality vs quantity. I think the only 100km weeks that I've ever put in have been because of an ultra race that week!

 2. I am all for cross-training instead of a single-discipline focus which is sure to result in an over-use injury. Mixing it up strong legs, strong upper body, strong core. Good genetics helps too.

I can count my injuries on one hand:

2000 - stress fracture in left shin as a result of worn shoes 

2002 - foot injury at a race when I took a bad step on a round rock. Doctor suspected a fracture in a bone on top of my foot, strapped me in a cast for two weeks. I then began months of proprioception and stability exercises.

2003 - weird pain in my groin directly as a result of a fault in a pair of new shoes. It took me a bunch of unhelpful physio sessions to nail down the cause myself. I never had another problem once I stopped wearing the shoes.

2020 - currently dealing with a toe and knee issue (more on this in another post). Physio and orthopod and x-rays have ruled out any knee issues. I slammed my big toe into a rock about three months ago. But, I actually suspect that my 'injury' and discomfort is from my new trail shoes! I'm in the process-of-elimination phase.

I've had other niggles not lasting longer than a few days and stupid stuff like a cut foot, sliced knee, near-decapitation rope burn and the like that have seen me off for a few days here and there.

Keep a log

In my early days of road running I received an A5 running logbook at a race. I began using it. When it was finished, I made my own version, printed copies and used this format for many, many years. I would log running distance, time spent at aerobics and yoga classes, distances cycled or paddled, races, runs, people, illness, injury... I swopped to a digital log on an Excel spreadsheet but it was never quite the same as that paper booklet.

I haven't kept a log for at least the past seven or eight years. And right now I can kick myself because in trying to establish a timeline to pinpoint when my knee niggle started and the possible causes and influences, I haven't got a log to refer to.

A log is not just about time and distance spent keeping fit, it can also record when you get new shoes, a change in diet, your weight, friends who have joined you on training runs and adventures and races, and events and places that you've been to.

If you need a goal, set one.

I don't need a goal to train but they are handy. If you need the commitment to a race date to get you out of bed, find a race (real or virtual) and enter it.

Find a friend

In my last years in Jo'burg, I had three running fixtures that kept me on track. On Wednesday evenings I ran with Rob. On Friday evenings I ran with Jason and once a week I would take my friend's huskies out for a run. Regardless of whatever else was going on, these fixtures kept me going. And I loved them for the exercise, more distance than I would have run alone and their companionship. I had always run on my own and starting to run with people was daunting initially. I found this to be a blessing.

Nothing lasts forever. 

Underwater hockey was my life. Going to the gym was my life. Then adventure racing was my life. At each stage I couldn't imagine my life without any of these. I have been deeply passionate and involved in all of my activities - orienteering, pole, circus, yoga - but nothing lasts forever and the time that they occupied in my life was significant, rewarding and memorable. But there are other things out there too.

It may be that you have to give up a sport. You may move away from it, have to give it up because of financial reasons or a change in life and availability. Or you may have an injury or illness.

Let go. There is always something else.

There is always time.

(not necessarily a lot, but there is always time)

My annual birthday game reminds me of this again and again. There is 20-30 minutes to do something each day.

I'm always pushed for time but taking Rusty out is a non-negotiable. Where I may not prioritise myself, I prioritise her.

To go paddling I must drive to the paddle club, get out my kayak, get on the water, put in a session (30-45 mins), get out, store my kayak, drive home... all of which ends up taking 90 minutes.

But, I can run or walk from my doorstep. A 20-minute, 4km session is the best exercise value in terms of time, effort and gains.

If you're writing exams, still do 30 minutes a day. It clears your mind and exercises your body. Not having time around exam time is a poor excuse.

If you leave school and are not longer playing team hockey or athletics or another sport that has been presented to you on a silver platter, find something new that you can do on your own or join a club. Leaving school is not a valid excuse to stop doing sport.

Working? We all work. I work crazy hours but I go crazy if I don't do anything. I take off an hour or two in the evening  and I work at night, often till very late.

I'd say the big juggle is working and caring for children, especially if you have no spouse or the spouse doesn't assist. Put the kids to bed and follow a fitness video on YouTube, push your baby in a pram or baby jogger. While you won't necessarily make it everyday, a few days a week should be doable. 

Sport is about people and communities

My underwater hockey family. My adventure racing family. My orienteering family. My parkrun family. My running family.

Through these communities and various events, I have made friends.

I was Parys parkrun Run Director on my first weekend in Parys and I quickly learned names and recognised familiar faces at the shops and about town, especially of the volunteers and regular participants. I also started going to the paddling time trials and meeting people at the club. It was the best integration to a new town that I could have had.

Meeting people and making friends is mostly about just showing up, being there and being involved.

The physicality of activities is its own reward but the people that I have met along the way, around the world, have truly enriched my life.

If you ever move to a new town or even a new part of a city, join a club, show up at time trials, volunteer at a parkrun or take up classes in something new. Say hello, be friendly and extend a helping hand. 

Surround yourself with people that are like you and have common interests and you'll find it easy to enjoy a fit and healthy lifestyle throughout your life.

Handbag handout

With Women's Day celebrated on 9 August, there are often women-focused initiatives. One of our parkrun ladies passed a flyer on to me that asked for donations of handbags that are no longer used and also toiletry products to go into the bags.

I passed the flyer on to my bookclub friends and so the wheels began turning. One of the women has a side business in handbags and she tries a lot of them. She gave me six of her used, but in great condition, bags. I hit Clicks and took advantage of 3-for-2 specials on basics like bath soap, body lotion, face cloths, tooth brushes, tooth paste, deodorant and the like. I also had some crochet headbands and flowers on hand to add. 

My mom and I provided contents for four bags and we also handed in the other two bags to be filled with content provided by others.

While walking around Clicks, I was thinking about women (same applies to men and children) in absolute dire straits. Shampoo or food on the table. Of course, food. But there is something to be said for being able to brush your teeth and scrub your skin to feel fresh and clean.

A bottle of store-brand shampoo is at least R40/bottle. Toothbrushes are at least R10 to R15 each - but purchased in a pack of two so that's R30. Toothpaste is R12 at least. Same for a bar of soap. 

And then there are 'feminine hygiene products'. Sanitary pads are not cheap! I've had a mooncup and washable, reusable products for years but these are not cheap purchases (even though they last for years and years) and they also rely on you having access to clean water - which is not a given if you have no home. What if you can't afford the R22 for a pack of pads? 

I have very few toiletries. I don't need any more than what I have. Shampoo, conditioner, soap, a big tub of rich aqueous cream that I use for body and face (this dry highveld sucks every inch of moisture from your skin), toothbrush and toothpaste (also mouthwash and dental floss), sunblock, lip balm, deo, razor, face cloths, nail brush. That's about it for what I use daily.

I do have a stash of a few other items collected over time - bought by me (like a bottle of tissue oil, nail polish etc) or received as gifts (other body lotions or shower gels). I enjoy these and work my way through them.

And I do have toilet paper. 

And so when I wash my face in the morning - using my face cloth and water - and then brush my teeth; or when I take a shower after a run, wash my hair, scrub off the dirt from running trails, I am thankful for this special privilege of having a hot shower, dry towel and a tub of cream. 

This handbag initiative is such a 'simple' one but what a lovely and thoughtful initiative it actually is. In the big picture, food, warmth and shelter are key. Everything else is an extra. 

The parkrun lady who coordinated things on this side, delivered a boot-load (full car trunk) of filled bags today to the lady who started this initiative in our area. 

A few dozen women will receive a bag filled with the next layer of essentials. These hygiene products may allow a few women to feel that bit more fresh and clean. I'd say 'pampered'. Yes. But for me the basics are about hygiene and just feeling fresh enough to make it through the day ahead.

Is post-lockdown going to be your second chance?

Opportunities abound and too often we don't use or appreciate what we have until it is taken away from us.

Around the world, people are in lockdown and they are restricted from going outside to exercise. For the runners, walkers, cyclists, paddlers, gym-goers, dancers and others who participate in individual and team sports regularly, they have made do with exercising at home by doing online classes, body-weight exercises, indoor equipment and running circles around their homes.

As restrictions begin to lift, there is an all-encompassing worry that thousands of people will now 'suddenly' become runners and walkers and cyclists and thus exploit the lifting of restrictions.

IMHO - Good. For. Them!

In the years when I created and organised the FEAT adventure speaker annual events, I was always quite intrigued by emails from people (looking to speak or for sponsorship) that told of great losses and how this changed their life and that now they were going to run across continents, climb mountains, swim oceans... Before the loss, they were neither runners, mountaineers or swimmers.

As someone who has done sport and exercise daily or almost daily for the whole of my conscious life, I can come up with many reasons why people don't do any activities but I just don't get it.

Too much work. Too little time. Get home too late, leave for work too early. Stress. They are overweight so exercise is an effort, difficult and uncomfortable. They have never found a sport or activity that they love and that fuels their self-motivation. Young children and no partner or an unsupportive partner so leaving children alone to go run is not an option. And dozens of others. I've been intermittently caught by a bunch of these over the years and they severely curtailed my motivation and activities.

But then, the person survives a terrible accident that leaves them wheelchair-bound and having to learn to walk again. Or, they are clear of cancer after rounds of chemo. Or they recover after a heart attack or kick a drug habit.

Then something happens. The outdoors, adventures and expeditions beckon and they go on to live a second life where being fit and healthy and active and outdoors is so much a part of their existence.

It seems silly that we need a wake-up, shake-up to tell us how important our health is and how rewarding (mentally and physically) being active can be.

While I don't get it, I also figure that it is better late than never for someone to discover a new passion and to live a life so much richer for these new experiences.

Is this global coronavirus catastrophe and severe lockdown going to be a wake-up, shake-up for some? A figurative bash on the head that shouts, "GET OUTSIDE NOW!".

I hope that the expected surge of new runners, walkers and cyclists is not just a 'New Year's Resolution' fitness spike but that it really is a second chance for them. The chance to incorporate outdoor activity, learning new disciplines, discovering lovely places to be active, and embarking on expeditions into this second chance at life, and to share this with their children, partners, families and friends.

Stone in the pond

Back in my previous life when I was in the medical research academic arena, I wavered between loving science and considering that I really should rather be in medicine - more people orientated. At one such junction, I remember very clearly a boyfriend saying to me that when you're a doctor, you help people one at a time. He said that in research you have the ability to change the lives of millions.

As things happened, 20 years ago I left that life and ended up in writing and media because of my passion for adventure racing and trail running.

As I've often thought about apocalypses, I have been under no illusion that most of the work that I've done in these two decades - writing about events, writing articles, doing public relations writing for companies, running and editing websites, creating events - has been a 'frilly' occupation. When an asteroid hits the planet (or a virus spreads throughout humanity!), those websites and articles and words don't matter. My sewing, crochet, cooking and gardening skills are more valuable. People with skills like mechanics, plumbers, electricians, builders, medical... they are really critical.

One thing I am really good at is building communities and bringing people together.

The first website I ever built back in 1995 was one called, "Underwater Hockey Tourist", a website that listed underwater hockey clubs, venues, training days and times, and contacts around the world. I'd been playing for a year by then and much of the world's interaction was through an email group list. I saw so many emails by people writing that they're travelling to XYZ and did anyone know if UWH was played there... The idea behind the site was to provide a directory so that a travelling underwater hockey player could hook up with a team to enjoy their company and a game. One big friendly and welcoming family. I passed this website on in about 2002 and it still exists - although in a very different format to the HTML coded one (every page was hand coded) that I built all those years ago when the web was young.

In 2001 I built the www.AR.co.za adventure racing website, which I ran and edited for 15 years (the site has another owner now), and then a year later created AR Club. By the late 2000s, I'd created AR Gaiters. I ran dozens of navigation clinics over 15 years. In 2010 I created FEAT, an annual adventure speakers event, and Forest Run. And then there were the Metrogaine events, annual Winter Spruit run, Summer Series events... When I moved to Parys in December 2015, I was immediately involved as an Event Director of our Parys parkrun. In 2017 I launched YOLO and in 2018 we launched Vagabond Kayaks.

All of these, with the exception of YOLO, which has a bit of a community element, are all sport and activity related. Great for health and wellness and fitness, but hardly useful in an apocalypse.

Despite my 'realistic cynicism', I am aware of difference that AR.co.za, an article that I've written or a workshop that I hosted may have had on the lives of individuals. Indeed, there are dozens of people that attended the annual FEAT events for whom a speaker's talk touched and changed their lives, which lead to a cascade of events.

I received a "How are you doing?" whatsapp from a dear friend yesterday. We've been good friends over many years although we haven't had much interaction in recent years, especially with me living in Parys. His life changed direction a number of years and much of his work focus is as a running / trail / fitness coach. He is good at it and it so very much suits him. His message was so special and it brought tears to my eyes - of warmth and appreciation.

He wrote:

"You've been on my mind.

"I think you've been in my thoughts especially now because I'm putting my trail skills course online and I have been remembering how valuable ar.co.za was to me when I first started racing.

"I turned up to race with three guys I'd never met before. I had all the right gear, I knew all the language. I was this fountain of AR knowledge and it's because in the two weeks leading up to the race I had read everything you'd written.

"You just never know the impact you have by putting stuff into the world. It's the stone in the pond; ripples go out.

"I have 50 clients who I have managed to keep fit and motivated to train to a greater or lesser degree during this time [lockdown]. I get glowing feedback from some on having helped them to get through this. They all have stronger immune systems right now. I probably wouldn't be doing what I'm doing if your writing hadn't helped my start on this path.

"You have touched a lot of people with your words and your example. Thank you."

It is the frilly things that bring joy to our everyday existence - to go for a run, music we listen to, movies we enjoy and a kayak that we paddle. These give us a lot of reasons to wake up in the morning and contribute to making us who we are.
They're not the same as caring for the sick or building a water purification plant but they actually are just as important. A life lived is one filled with interests and activities.

'Frilly' has its place. I've saved this message in this post so that every time I despair and ask myself yet again "What am I doing with my life!", I can be reminded that frilly has a place in the world, even in an apocalypse.

Stone in the pond indeed.

What if you forgot the last 10 years?

One book that I thoroughly enjoyed and that I finished listening to this morning is "What Alice Forgot" by Liane Moriarty.

The base theme of the story is around the main character Alice who falls during a step aerobics class, hits her head and forgets everything that has happened in the past 10 years. She comes round on the floor of the aerobics studio not recognising anyone and wondering what she is doing in a gym (her younger self didn't go to gym or exercise at all).

She goes back into her life not knowing her three children (she had them withing the forgotten years), not knowing why she is in the process of divorcing her husband, who her 10-years younger self still loves dearly, and nor why she and her sister are somewhat estranged. So many things that her older self does, her younger self does not.

If you forgot the last ten years, would your younger self recognise your older self? More importantly, would your younger self like the person that you have become, shaped by your experiences, activities and interests? Would your younger self like to be living the life that you currently have? 

Our lives can take such a different direction to what we may have envisaged, especially when you have the freedom to open the door to opportunities that arise. Not necessarily better or worse, just different.

A good story. I've read The Husband's Secret and I enjoyed the TV series of Big Little Lies. 

The Art of Wronging and Righting

Over the past few weeks I have given a lot of thought to wronging  - both from the perspective of the wronger and the wrongee. To wrong someone is to act unjustly or dishonestly towards them. My feeling is that wrongs are seldom done with intention or malice and that it is our perspective that makes a wrong just that.

image from the internet

A couple of weeks ago I was wronged. Strictly speaking, there was no misdeed that took place, there was no malice or intent on the part of the wronger and I could logically reason the whole situation. But emotionally - that is where it hit me. I was hurt. Very hurt.

Of course, time and perspective sorts everything out, but I also had to work through how to move forward and to arrive at some kind of peace in order to interact regularly with the wronger.

As it would happen, a couple of weeks ago I unintentionally wronged a friend. And I didn't even know it until a via-the-grapevine message got back to me. In short, I was standing up for him to get R2200 from our club instead of the R720 that he expected. He took offence because I'd declined payment of the R720 because it was his personal expense but I wanted to give him the R2200 because it was money that he had spent that should have been refunded to him.

As you can see from this, the way in which I wronged him was completely unintentional, unbeknown and totally without malice. But he said nothing and so I didn't even know that I had wronged him. And he remained mad at me for weeks. Even though I have explained my reasoning and apologised to offending him, he is probably still a bit mad at me.

I have fortunately had very few instances where I have been wronged to the extent that I have limited or cut off contact completely with the person. In the two cases that I can recall, I was straight in telling them that I was mad with them and why. It changed our relationship.

These recent wrongs got me thinking about righting - when you are the wronger, how do you make things right and what level of 'forgiveness' can you expect from the wrongee?

I have come to the conclusion that I should treat the wronger the same way that I would expect to be treated if I was in their position. Because, that is what I would want.

That said, it is only possible to move forward and carry on with a healthy interaction if the wronger has acknowledged their wrong (even if the wrong was unintentional), understands the impact that the wrong had, and has apologised for the wrong.

In this light, forgiveness is possible.

On Wiki the definition of forgiveness is "the intentional and voluntary process by which a victim undergoes a change in feelings and attitude regarding an offence, and overcomes negative emotions such as resentment and vengeance".

 I also found this as a comment on forgiveness and it rings true for me: "Forgiveness means letting go of the pain the incident is causing us. We forgive to give ourselves peace of mind, and in hopes that one day someone will return the favour if we ever offend them".

While I wish you no wrong, either on the giving or receiving end, if you find yourself offended or offending, I hope that you'll be able to make right after some thought and a lot of understanding and compassion.

A good funeral

The mothers of two friends, who live together and are both older than me, died last week. I missed the funeral for the one on Friday but I went to the second today.

This was a good funeral in that it was for a remarkable 92-year old woman. 92! That's a good, long life. Olive was sharp and with it until the end. She was not well these past months and she slipped away at home, with her daughter nearby.

Funerals for people who have not yet seen out their lives are sad affairs indeed.

For this one, I was sad for my friend and what she has been through caring for her mom, but not for Olive. She was a remarkable woman and an inspiration of how to grow really old beautifully.

At her funeral were her five children and a bunch of grand and great-grand children. How fortunate these grand children are to have grown-up with Olive in their lives and to have actually known her as older teenagers and adults and not just from the perspective of a young child.

The number of relatives present today and their collective memory that will span decades more is a wonderful celebration and legacy of Olive's life.

This was a good funeral that marked the end of a long life well lived.

Vaal Explorer 2019 Awards - silver!

On Wednesday night, Celliers and I attended the Vaal Explorer 2019 Awards.

Vaal Explorer is a magazine & website, Facebook platform that promotes tourism in the greater Vaal region - from Heidelberg to Venterkroon and Vredefort, including all kinds of little places you've never heard of.

This region is on Jo'burg and Pretoria's doorstep and the offering of places to stay, restaurants and cafes, spas,  activities, operators, galleries, and wedding and conference venues is as good and better than anything you'll get in popular far-flung locations.

This Awards evening was held at the Three Rivers Lodge in Vereeniging - I'd never heard of the place. What a lovely venue it is. The Awards so impressed us for the places and services that won bronze, silver and gold awards. This should be drawn up as a must-visit list in the region of the quality and diversity of the offerings.

Vaal Explorer's Petra Stuart is passionate about tourism and this region and in promoting all that there is out here. Petra and her son Brandon are the people behind Vaal Explorer - they are doing wonders for our region.

We were chuffed to be a nominee for the awards but even more so that we received a silver award.

Although awarded jointly to me and Celliers, this award is certainly a tribute to Celliers' almost two-decade contribution to putting Parys on the map with his acclaimed kayak designs, the creation of his first kayak company and now our company Vagabond Kayaks, which manufactures kayaks in Parys and, the writing of his books 'Run the Rivers of Southern Africa' and 'African Veins'. In the paddling industry and community, this has put Parys, paddling and the tourism elements of the area on the map.

For me, it was inevitable that my two decades spent organising people and events would be carried into the four years that I have lived in Parys. From my Forest Run trail run in the Vredefort Dome to being Event Director for the Parys parkrun and now my kayak-centric focus with Vagabond Kayaks, Paddling Race and Paddle With Us, I'm just getting warmed up.

This award was more in an individual capacity than strictly Vagabond for our proud, individual representation of Parys and all that this town has to offer. Celliers and I are only at the beginning of what we aim to accomplish for our town, community and for the activity of paddling.

What would you do all day if you didn't have to work?

I often think about this and yesterday evening Karen and I were talking about it on our run-with-dogs.

Work and having to make a living gets in the way of spending time on other projects that I'd like to get around to.

Although Parys is a town with young (like me) people, there are also a lot of retired folk who spend their days at home. My parents are also of an age where their friends are retiring (although many of them are going strong and working over the age of 65).

What are they all going to do with their days?

Every town and city in South Africa has people-in-need; from babies and children in care facilities to the very elderly who sit in chairs doing nothing all day.

I've started a list of things that I would do if I didn't have to work every day:

• Spend more time with Rusty doing things (not just having her lie next to my desk as I work)
• Walk, run, paddle, bike more than the minimum I'm currently ticking over
• Travel
• Do online courses on different subjects for fun
• Read books to old folk who are no longer able to read
• Read stories to children - a morning/afternoon slot
• Get involved with a literacy programme
• Teach children and adults how to crochet and develop community projects
• Wash and groom dogs and cats at the local SPCA
• Get involved with or start a Funda Nenja branch in my town; a project that changes the lives of township children by teaching them dog care, training and ownership
• Be a volunteer sports coach at any school that needs me
• Create maps - lots of them!

(And I'd also spend time hiding in bushes to catch the people who continuously dump trash at a number of spots in our town. Catching them is essential to stopping them. I plan to be armed with a paintball gun, to make a citizen's arrest and to make them cleanup by filling bags and bags with litter. I fantasise about this!)

I've always been community orientated and I struggle to understand why people who have no work or people who no longer work can sit around doing not much when their precious skills and hands will be treasured by organisations desperately needing volunteer help. 

Volunteering is not eight-hours-a-day; it may be two-hours twice a week.

Sure, I understand that having nothing to do can make a person less likely to do anything - lack of motivation, depression all play a role here.

There are many things that one can do that will not cost you a cent. They cost time.

Not everyone is for washing dogs and reading stories. Someone who is good with child care can help to change nappies and feed orphaned babies; a person with accounting and bookkeeping skills can assist an organisation with their books; good photographs of animals in community papers helps to find homes for abandoned animals; a passionate cook may help prepare meals at a food shelter; a hairdresser (or regular person who is good with a set of clippers) can transform the homeless.

Needs are great. Hands are few.

If you are out of work and looking for work, doing anything is a feather in your cap and an entry on your CV.

Doing something for others is rewarding. It gives purpose. It keeps you busy. It creates friendships.

If you had every day to fill, what would you do with your time?

My VW Polo clocks 250,000km

I bought my VW Polo in mid-2006. It was second-hand (2003 model) and had 35,000 kilometres on the clock.

On Monday afternoon the odometer hit a new milestone of 250,000 kilometres. I love my Polo. With its seats down it acts like a bakkie ('pick-up truck') to carry equipment, gear, bicycles, products and even a lawnmower. It has been a faithful race scouting vehicle, off-roader, commuter vehicle and an all purpose car. It has taken me to races and places. I've transported any number of items on my roof racks - from kayaks to wooden poles, ladders, plumbing pipes and metal bars.

Polo, I look forward to many more adventures with you.

Handing out beanies at Mponeng Primary

Yesterday afternoon I went to Mponeng Primary to drop off the handmade beanies and to help the school principal Rene and the teachers to place the beanies on each child's desk. They took time to consider each child and their preferences to choose the right size and colours. Judging by the children's expressions this morning, I think they got it right. Children who were not at school today will get their beanies when they next attend classes.

These colourful beanies were made by me, Abigail, Elaine, Brenda, Denise, Diana and Penny. Thank you kind people. xxx

We have leftovers of some very small beanies - for babies - and a bunch for those in the 3-8 year old group. I'll pass them on to an organisation here in Parys that has involvement with pre-schoolers in the township.

Here are some photos from my visit this morning.

These are the sweet pre-schoolers.

These are the next younger grades - 1 to 4.

The children in grades 5, 6 and 7 in the school's dining room. For many of the school's children, this is their only meal of the day.

Some children in a classroom.

And in celebration of the lovely handiwork that went into making these beanies... Here are photos of some of the approx 140 beanies!

Some of Denise's creations

A few of the gems from Abigail and her mom Elaine

These bright colours are me - with thanks to my friend Sylvi who gifted me some balls of yarn

Bren's combinations are delighful - I had to keep our children away from the ones with the lovely fuzzy yarn

Some of the 76 loom-knitted beanies made by Di and Penny in Cape Town.