Moving to the Western Cape Blood Service

On moving to George, I learned that SA National Blood Service (SANBS) doesn't cover the whole of South Africa! The Western Cape Blood Service (WCBS) takes care of my new home province. 

Today, I made my first donation at the WCBS donor centre in George - and an excellent experience it was! For five years, I've been used to the mobile clinic that visited a church hall in Parys. Here, the centre has plush chairs and an established vibe. The staff were superb and just as friendly as those from my Parys clinic. My donor records will be transferred as I work my way towards milestones. Today's experience was clearly exciting - I set a new bag-filling record of 4:37. With much sought after O neg blood, I'm an overachiever blood donor.

Just remember, once-off and annual 'feel-good' donations are.not.used! You get a 'regular blood donor' status by donating 3 to 6 times a year. Only then will your trusted donation be used. The blood services never spell this out clearly with their 'One donation saves three lives' message but you'll find the procedure on the FAQ page on the SANBS website. If you can, donate - regularly!

Putting emphasis in the right place

 Marketing guru Seth Godin writes a post-a-day and he has done so for many, many years - well over a decade.

There are times when Seth's posts just hit the mark. Today's was a good one. The title is "What does it mean to do well in school?". You just learn, remember for as long as the test, get a good mark and you're considered smart. 

Seth quite rightly asks, "Where do we look up insight on your resilience, enthusiasm, cooperation, curiosity, collaboration, honesty, generosity and leadership?".

This made me think about a post I wrote in 2013 called 'Valuing female brains'. I wrote it after reading a blog post 'How to talk to little girls' and this was shortly after a girlfriend had her first baby -  a little girl.

As Seth described, emphasis is placed in school on marks and not on the very important elements that make us good contributors to society, good friends and good colleagues. There is definitely value to getting good marks and the satisfaction of achieving them through keen attention, participation and hard work; but I'd certainly prefer a colleague with the qualities that Seth has listed than one who was a straight-A student.

As for talking to little girls - that post struck a chord and has stayed with me since. I still make a point of asking girls about their interests and activities rather than remarking on what they are wearing.

I see that the link for the original blog post is no longer active. But look what I found online -  a short youTube video (1 minute - watch it).

And here is something in the same theme, written around the same time (2011) on the Huffington Post by author Lisa Bloom. And an informative post - same theme - on powerofmoms.com written in 2019. I've enjoyed the refresh and ideas presented in this latter article.

This is actually quite relevant to teens and women too, not just little girls. We're in a period where social media posts of value get less likes than ones showing cleavage and skin. I'm in luck as my most Liked posts feature Rusty. Hahaha.  Still, I can totally see the impact of social media and how you present yourself on the confidence, self-esteem, perceived value and appearance rating of teenage girls especially. Not nice. Again, value on how you look and pout and flash rather than who you are.

We're not going to change this any time soon, but our one-on-one interactions - and how you talk to girls - make a big difference too.

The blocks of our lives

 I was thinking the other day how our lives can be measured in blocks. Blocks can be marked by changes in relationships, jobs, sports or locations.

My chunks look something like this:

The years I don't remember. Too young.

Primary school

High school #1 (Potch for two years)

High school #2 (back in JHB for three years)

University (1994 until April 2000)

I was studying, working part-time (first waitressing and then internet tech support and then part-time lecturer and tutor posts in my department). For me, sport was all about running, road races and underwater hockey. Adventure racing came into my life in April 1999. This changed my life.

The Lost Year: 2000

This year was a mess. I deregistered from university, packed my car and drove. Adventure racing was the only thing in my mind. I returned to JHB maybe that November (it is all a blur) and was very depressed, directionless, purposeless and in a bad way for a few months.

The Mixed Years: 2001 to 2010-ish

These were filled with adventure racing / starting and running AR.co.za / TV crew work / media / travel to events abroad / some full-time work like at Supersport / some part-time work / some freelancing. Lots of orienteering. I worked at a lot of events and participated in fewer in the later 2000s.  I tried a lot of things to find something that worked for me in lifestyle and financially. I never got it right.

Event Organising Years: 2010 to late 2015

These were all about FEAT and Forest Run and orienteering coaching and Metrogaines, while also still writing and freelancing. Minor event participation.

The Parys Years (2016 to October 2020)

Moving to Parys, Celliers in my life, starting YOLO and Vagabond, getting Rusty, girls bookclub, paddling regularly (gaining skills and loving trips), running with dogs, separating from Celliers, covid and then the craziness that was 2020 and the mad rush of our move to George - these mark the Parys years.

The George Years: November 2020 to present

A new block has begun with my move to George. Vagabond, YOLO, exploring trails, paddling, dog school... these are my present. 

It is amazing how much of the past three months is a blur. Things are not set to slow down but losing track of the days and time passing so quickly leaves me feeling that life is slipping away too fast.

What do I wish from this block? 

Less stress, better fitness, success in business, stability, peace and, of course, adventures.

Why I need to start a women's paddling group

 Yesterday evening, I joined the local canoe club, my new canoe club, for time trial on a private farm dam. 

I arrived early to test a new setup that I've done to my footrests for our rudder-pedal system. A husband-and-wife couple were already there in their car. As I don't know any of the local people, I have no idea who people are and at what level they're paddling.

On the dam, I saw them in a K2 looking very shakey on the water. Going around the top, I came up alongside them and asked if they were ok. They said it was their second time in the kayak.

Let's hold it right there and digest this.

• Two brand-new paddlers in a K2 together. The Knysna Racing Thor is not a kayak that I know. It is listed as being "very popular for beginner paddlers. Big, stable and very comfortable. This legend is ideal for larger beginner crews who want to take on big water". From the look of it, I don't think that it is as stable as the Accord K2, my favourite. I'd need to get into it to see.
• Him - significantly heavier - in the front, her - smaller than me - in the back. We usually put the heavier paddler in the back.
• No PFDs (I was the only paddler there wearing a lifejacket; when Celliers has paddled he has been the only one too). If you capsize, you've got 6.5m kayak full of water to guide and swim to the bank.

I know what it is like to teaspoon around a dam, wiggling and trying not to capsize. It isn't nice. Worse with waves and a side wind. And it is exactly this that results in hundreds of people being lost to the sport of paddling each year. 

I offered to them that once they were done, they were welcome to give my Marimba sit-on-top a try.

It started drizzling and I saw them get off the water. I got off to chat to them.

The wife seemed keen to give my Marimba a shot but the husband was not (and he prevented her from having a go). He is of the "We'll get it right eventually" camp. The problem is, it could take them weeks and weeks. They are paddling once a week. It will take them even longer. During this time, they are developing bad posture, bad form and bad habits that will be a nightmare to get out of them (I did tell them this). They have no skill, no technique and no confidence. And, if they stick with it, they'll go from paddling one unstable kayak to the next, thinking that this is what paddling is all about. 

Celliers wrote an excellent article for The Paddle Mag on this point. In the article he says, "If a paddler can’t put 100% of their pulling power into a forward stroke because of the need to use some energy to maintain their balance, the paddler is in the wrong boat".

Just as a baby and then toddler first crawls, stands, walks and then runs, so too can new paddlers take a step-by-step approach. In paddling you need to learn technique first.

In this whole situation there are a bunch of issues. New, keen paddlers who have been welcomed and given access to a kayak sans hand-holding or instruction (and I totally understand limited club resources - it is usually a struggle for clubs). No PFDs. Him overruling her. Closed-mindedness to trying another kayak and accepting my offer of assistance. I don't take it personally - they don't know me either.

What to do?

My solution would be to paddle the kayak with one of them. It helps to have a more experienced paddler to stabilise. But, I don't think he is going to 'release' his wife to paddle with me. 

I've had it in mind to start a women's paddling group. My friend Nicola has a Monday morning women's group in Cape Town. It totally rocks.

I saw a couple of women at the time trial last week (the first that I've seen). Two in a double (I didn't see which double) were slower than I was in a single plastic. I didn't see the others on the water. I did pick-up that the one was learning to paddle - paddling a K1 from the club trailer - and seemed to be challenged and possibly taking swims. She said something about "trying again next week". That made me sad for her because it is unnecessary to be in that position.

A women's group would offer a more supportive (and fun) paddling environment. It also removes interference (psychological or otherwise) from the faster, more experienced male paddlers who may be their partners / husbands / brothers. I've found all the paddlers that I've met to be very friendly but this 'interference' is a real thing (even if totally unintentional and unconscious like giving the woman an unsuitable kayak to paddle) that can inhibit the women in their lives and prevent them from finding their paddling preference and confidence. 

There are already too few women in paddling. We don't need to lose more of the keen ones.

(I've been in George for three months and already I can't help myself from organising something!)