Floss, Gloss And Go
It happens once you get engaged, married or become pregnant. Everyone has advice—all good, solid cases based on experience. The problem is which one do you follow? If I had to take up all the tips, tricks and warnings I’ve had in the past week, I’d have to employ Sherpas to trek with me. We’d...
Gearing Up! Ready To Take A Hike
A few decades ago, I celebrated my 40th birthday in Namibia. That night, the rotund chef at the Waterberg Reserve’s restaurant made an entrance and, in true operatic style, serenaded me in a booming baritone, singing “Happy birthday to you” beautifully. It’s something I’ll never forget. I have...
Jolly July - A Progress Report
Slow, steady, and streamlined is what’s happening with our Honey Badger. Blueprint? There isn’t one. Plan? There isn’t one. But I want to acknowledge the team and partners whose dedication keeps us. We’re feeling our way, like building a tree house, with everyone's input shaping our progress....
Winning Winter Warmers–Soup, quiche, curried pickled onions
While we wallow in winter weather, we wish-wash with water, wet, when willowy wind whistles. When we wake, winter withholds wondrously, while we wish the weather would warm. Yes. I know. I'm trying my hand at alliteration. It reminds me of poetry slams with my son. This is the best I can do....
Catching Kate In Vermaaklikheid
Bad news spreads like a rash. The world is upside down. Our own Juju is giving away his secret recipe and weight loss plan. The UK is in a shambles after Brexit. In the US, there’s a possibility that a megalomaniac with a Hitleresque attitude and a permanent bad hair day might become the...
Clowning About - From Your Besotted Glam’ma
This is a back-to-front letter. Your Mom has celebrated her birthday; we've pampered our Dads; you've turned one; and I've got a few more grey hairs. The mountains are covered in snow, but the sun still shines warmly on our backs. Landmarks flash past as the year speeds up; typically, all we...
Progress Report - This Is No Faerie Tale
Work continues at a steady pace. The piercing, shrill, whining screech of a grinder fills the air, while the white light of the welding rod blinds, yet fascinates. Sparks fly. Work is progressing. The air is infused with the smell of grease, lubricating oil and diesel. Men in overalls and...
LynnV Has A New Shoot In Franschhoek
LynnV has a side hussle (or GIG) in Franschhoek. Today we're celebrating Lynn’s new salon on Main, we're proud to share her journey from dreams to reality and invite you to experience her new space. We’ve all had visions of an empire, of shedding old skin and re-inventing ourselves. Often,...
The Old School Tie
Somewhere at the back of a wardrobe, we all have one. Mine was stretched to its limits; having knotted it in Standard 6, it had to keep up with the times, dragged over my head, like a noose, the knot wound tighter. The tie grew filthier and grubbier with each passing term, and as the years...
Stocking Up For Our Trip To Zimbabwe - Camping lists and Recipe Moroccan Tagine
In December, all roads lead to Cape Town, Hermanus and Plettenberg Bay. But in July, we take revenge, and as soon as the school bags slam shut, we flip our lids and head north to warmer climes, crossing the Orange River in droves as we migrate. Planning and packing the Engel (camping...
Getting It Right - Camping At Mana Pools
Position, position, position! No 20 is the sought-after campsite, and we had it! With a large, ancient Wild Fig tree offering us shade, we made camp just beyond the branches’ reach, where the early-morning rays would be our alarm clock and, at night, the hippos' calls would send us off...
Mesmerizing Mana Magic
Here, 21st-century human noise has been obliterated, and Nature's silence is deafening. That’s really all I can say. Magical Mana. Magical Mana. Spiritual and Supernatural. The mighty Zambezi snakes through the enchanting forest of indigenous trees. Earth and water. Such powerful...
Friendship - There Is No Value
That's what you wrote in our Guest book before you left for the last time. You won't remember leaving a copy of your book titled "Sand In The Wind" with a note: 8:30 am “Good Morning!" Book under chair, something to read by a waterhole, perhaps. Best Keith” It took a while, but we made it to...
Time Travels Through Zimbabwe
The clock struck one, and time stood still in Zimbabwe. It’s here that one fully appreciates that man’s influence on the Earth is small and insignificant. Still, the conundrum is that technology also has the upper hand, for a while anyway. Plumtree border post marked our entry into Zimbabwe,...
The Fearless Earl And The Honey Badger
The Precious Prince has been on safari, but that’s a story for another day. While he’s been gallivanting all over the Kingdom and beyond, the faithful Earl and his troop of knaves have worked tirelessly, not letting up with their determined efforts to complete the task at hand. Things...
Meanderings During The Merry Month Of May
My favourite month by far: not too cold, not too hot; skies are bluer than blue, and the landscape has changed into its autumn coat. Sharing the beauty of this vibrant season helps the audience feel inspired and eager to experience similar moments. We were awake before the alarm could buzz...
Around The World In A Coffee Cup With A Storm Brewing
A whirlwind weekend wandering is possible from home, one just needs to know how. When the seasons change as they do every Easter weekend we have four seasons in a day. It’s hard to pack considering the weather. The only certainty is that it’s time for comfort food. We travelled the world...
The Precious Prince - A Faerie Tale
Once upon a time, a travel-loving Prince and Princess dreamed of exploring the world, with her eager to see unknown places and him less so but willing to go along. Although they are a dream team and know that compromise is the name of the game, they are troubled by Marie Antoinette and...
Mood Swings Unplugged
A metronome taps a beat; the clock ticktocks; seasons officially change. Nature follows suit. The harvest's in the bag; we charge our glasses with this season’s vintage. It’s Earth Hour at Davis' Pool, and locals arrive in drips and drabs to set up their deck chairs and blankets while...
The Rollercoaster That Was February
Forest Gump’s mother said, “Life was like a box of chocolates”. February was like that, but the metaphor looked more like the box my sweet sister-in-law presented us with two weeks ago. The box was beautifully crafted and finished off with a red bow, but, alas, had melted into one snotty blob....
The Honey Badger Diaries
We’re not beating about the bush anymore! It’s been two years since I had my momentum elucidated and announced our longing to spend our “retirement” bushwhacking throughout Africa. Our dream is a reality. With fingers crossed, Precious secured a viewing of a vehicle, and on Thursday two weeks...
A Facial In Time Saves Nine
“People are seldom naturally perfect, and that's why God made stockings, shoes and cosmetics." Estee Lauder. Last week I stopped to chat, which ended with the promise of a gift. Juliette must’ve seen the need for a relaxing facial when she saw me dragging my sore calves unenthusiastically...
Pampered Parent Goes Pearshaped
Parenting at the best of times is difficult. Few know the rules, and when we slip up, it’s with the best intentions. We all know there are no shortcuts, and it’s an unforgiving task. It’s not surprising; my offspring were much cleverer than me. They hardly had teeth before biting me with...
The Weakest Link Takes A Hike
History tells us that contemplation, meditation, soul-searching, and philosophising often take place on mountaintops. Jesus, Mohammed, Moses, Mandela and Gandhi did it. I had a close call, a wake-up call, a bruised ego, a sore bottom, and a chipped toenail. Last week, I embarked on a...
In Etosha We Slosha In Galosha
A distant rumble, a short, sharp whip crack, the skies light up while the heavens become darker, heavier. The smell of rain rolls over the dry, cracked earth. Every animal becomes aware and focuses on the storm as it gathers momentum. Stifling heat cools down. We’ve arrived in Etosha—the...
A Voice, Brains And Books
Dolly Parton, C.S. Lewis and Nelson Mandela had one thing in common. Rather diverse characters, I’d say, but for their love of children, books, stories, and getting children to read. I firmly believe that our saving grace is education. To read must be the greatest gift one can bestow upon a...
My Ten Cents Worth
Our friends' enquiry about the weather in Zimbabwe got the ball rolling rather unexpectedly. We were on our way to Mana Pools for the summer holidays when I put a spanner in the works. I like glamping. Sadly, a wet tent doesn’t do it for me. I’ve got the (wet) T-shirt to prove it. Picture...
Resolution, Revolution Or Right On From Where We Left Off
The choice is always ours. New Year has come and gone a few dozen times in my life, some good, some indifferent, and some jolly awful. My New Year's resolutions have been a fickle affair, based on the belief that if we try and don’t succeed this time, we can start all over again in 365 days. ...
Finishing In A Flurry
Things are tight in this house. We have a couple of hours left to finish packing. This year has gone by in a flash, yet we’ve achieved much. Our country has reached all-time lows, and, surprisingly, we’ve become more unified and resolute about our future, our freedom, and our democracy....
If A Cobra Can Spit So Can I
That’s the extent of my frustration. If a gadget works perfectly one minute, why not the next? Sending a Kodak film to the lab was so much easier; let them sit with all the hassles. What’s more, if you went to Clicks, you didn’t even have to take all the duds. My card reader has just died a...
Collywobbles On A Monday
Collywobbles is what I’m going to have. Unless I stop sneaking into the kitchen to grab a handful of sun-kissed apricots, they’re sweet and tangy with the rosiest cheeks. As I brush the furriness across my lips, I must confess I imagine my grandson’s bottom, those plump, sweet cheeks. The...
Juanita Conchita Margarita
There is a light at the end of the tunnel for sure. What could’ve turned into a “slit my wrist” moment became a re-kindling of a friendship sorely missed. My hopes were restored and my budget stretched like old garter elastic. Every time I walk into her home I gasp, by the time I get to...
Posh Nosh On A Friday In November
To stop me smoking in the tickey box (phone booth), my Mom dangled the “once you’ve written your Matric you can do as you please” carrot. It didn’t work. But what I did do once I was my own boss was have a large slab of my mom’s delicious Chocolate Cake for breakfast. I did it guilt-free; it...
Of Times Gone By - Kleinplasie Farm Museum
My afternoon ends with a monkey's wedding; the drops are minuscule, more like a drizzle, but irresistible. Couldn’t really call the wet spot on the cement porch next door a puddle, but I did it, my first umbrella shot for the winter. I believe it's in sympathy with the lousy bridge hands I...
Doing A Street Beat
It’s a strange, strange world we live in, Master Jack; it’s a very strange world, and I’ll never go back. Don’t take my word on lyrics; I make them up all the time. It is through living that we discover ourselves, at the same time as we discover the world around us.” ― Henri...
October November A Weekend To Remember
My job is opening farm gates; there were 18. This time I didn't have to open any. That pleased me. It delighted me to know our swallows had returned earlier this week. Catching up takes time; unfolding and laying out the tales needs time and space. It's best to do so somewhere quiet,...
Bargains Budgets And Builders
The evening was perfect: balmy, windless, with a promise of summer. Perfectly groomed gardens all around us as we mingled on the manicured lawns under the stars at Leipzig, right here on our doorstep in the Nuy Valley, a mere 10 kilometres from Worcester. This was a celebration of good...
A Spring Celebration In The Nuy Valley
The evening was perfect: balmy, windless, with a promise of summer. Perfectly groomed gardens all around us as we mingled on the manicured lawns under the stars at Leipzig, right here on our doorstep in the Nuy Valley, a mere 10 kilometres from Worcester. This was a celebration of good...
Monday Musings And Trip Advising
Reflecting on age, I realize that travel keeps my free spirit alive and inspires my audience to see aging as an opportunity for fresh adventures. This morning, while spinning, I forced myself to stop looking at the clock's very slow tick and instead let my eyes drift over my fellow spinners. ...