Monday

Fickleness, Fickledom, Fickility.

Yes, I am fickle. To that end, this certainly did not last. I couldn't be kept away from Tumblr. Tried for a while...but its fairer to Blogger to simply end this affair and move on. I am continuing on www.thiswillnotlast.tumblr.com. Please do find me there. Thank-you so much for following me here on blogger. xx

Tuesday

check out the skyline



New York, you were wonderful. The Mother City calls, however. She isn’t my real mum, but I love her still.
I'm listening. You have to respect the call when it comes. Was due to fly back to Cape Town last Mon. But it was all a little too soon. I was in Boston part dreaming and surrounded by love when the plane left from JFK and I wasn’t on it. My spirit wasn’t ready to leave just then, and there was too much to do.
But oh, the U.S has been incredible. The wonderful people I have met and experienced, the places I have been from the National Poetry slam in Boston, to Manhattan, to Brooklyn…the artists and poets I have been lucky enough to meet and spend time with, the love I have felt.
Where else…fried chicken, cornbread, collard greens and cupcakes all in a day?
Where else never sleeps?
Where else…6 different Snickers flavours in one kiosk (in this kind of place, how can any one person fully decide on a life partner?) Ah, the paradox of choice.
To my dear, beautiful friend Rosa for housing me…feeding me, clothing me (sometimes) to Wonderful Sam, to lovely, lovely Cynthia. Love you folk. Catch up soon.

Saturday

You said, 'I love you."

Why is it that the most unoriginal thing we can say to one other is still the thing we long to hear?
'I love you' is always a quotation. You did not say it first and neither did I, yet when you say it and when I say it, we speak like savages who have found three words and worship them.

Jeanette Winterson. Written on The Body.


true love.

Thursday

Ten things that I want to say to ten people right now.

1. You are beautiful.
2. I believe in you, do better.
3. I miss you every day. We all do.
4. Make an effort.
5. Thanks for everything. I think that you're lovely.
6. I wish I could take us on holiday. I want to hear your plans and drink with you.
7. I always want to say so much to you, but it's difficult.
8. Don’t be so hard on yourself.
9. Cut your nails. Please.
10. I think that you may be lost.

Thursday

What if you slept
And what if
In your sleep
You dreamed
And what if
In your dream
You went to heaven
And there plucked a strange and beautiful flower
And what if
When you awoke
You had that flower in you hand
Ah, what then?

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Send this to somebody you like...or maybe love.

"Like"
(c) 2004 Mike McGee (www.MikeMcGee.net)

I like you the way I like my wonton packed full of shrimp
Like too much syrup on my pancakes (and in my beard)
Like Mr. Furly enjoyed eavesdropping through kitchen doors
Like blue whales like to say, "Hrrrreeeeeewhuuuuuuhhhwwoooaaauuuhh."

I like you a whole bunch of a lot
You're a pocket full of awesome

I like you not unlike Aaron Neville likes his mole
Like Texans like Texas
Like fat kids like cake
Like two likes three and four likes six (five has issues)
Like tuna sandwiches like teeth
Like cherry flavored Slurpees like to wash down convenience store nachos
Like La-Z-Boys like Sunday afternoon asses

I like you whole bunch of a lot and a little bit more
You're a bottomless basket of extra crispy French fries covered in awesome sauce

I like you similar to the way pirates and frat boys like booty
Like newlyweds like Holiday Inns
Like bohemians, yuppies and Japanese like sushi

Like David Copperfield likes performing grand scale, yet, lame-assfeats of illusion
Like the U.S. Government likes performing grand scale, yet, lame-assfeats of illusion

Like testicles and homeboys like to hang
Like homeless people and breakdancers like cardboard
Like Americans like ranch dressing
Like Muppets like fisting

I like you a whole bunch of a lot a whole lot more times infinity
Maybe that's starting to dip into equation of love
Nevertheless, I got a thing for you like magnets got it for refrigerators
I'm stuck on you and I like it

I like you an official metric fuckload
I think you're a body full of soul and I hope you like me back
Even if it's like dust likes furniture, at least you're all over me

I'm making a "pledge" because I guess I'm tired of meeting people
who define themselves by what they don't like
I just don't like that

However, I do like holding you
The way your pillow holds your head when you sleep
The way gay, lesbian, transgender, transsexual, Irish and Mexican people hold parades
The way PBS holds fundraisers
The way the Earth holds the moon and the sun holds the Earth and how they'll constantly spin around each other forever and even though that metaphor doesn't really make sense with regard to this poem because that would imply that there were three of us
(which would also be awesome!)

You get the idea

In my book you rock, and I like rocks
and just because I spent an hour
or so writing this down doesn't mean you have to like me back,
but dammit,
I would really like that

Thursday

The Single Story - BEWARE.

If you have read Half Of A Yellow sun, That Thing Around your Neck or Purple Hibiscus, then you will be familiar with best selling novelist Chimamanda Adiche. I'd only ever seen the picture of her on the inside of the back cover and had certainly never heard her speak before, until I came across this. TED again. I cant get enough.

Chimamanda warns about us about the danger of a single story - when we think of a country, place or group of people according to the one dimension that we have been taught and the danger of the misconceptions formed as a result. She speaks about growing up as a little girl in Nigeria and her early introduction to literature, which was comprised up of American and English literature. The characters never looked like her. They drank ginger beer and had blonde hair and blue eyes. In fact, she did not know that people who looked like she did had a place in literature at all. It all sounded very familiar.

I'm hopeless at summarising things which speak for themselves. So if you have eighteen minutes to spare, click the below.

Tuesday

What's this? Positive Affirmation in rap?

Missing Home






but only a little.

In ♥ with Joshua Bennett



Joshua Bennett is a New Yorker and spoken word artist. His words take my breath away. He has even performed at President Obama's "Evening of Poetry and Music" at the White House, as well as Sundance and much, much more.
Young, cute, in love with literature and with God? Joshua. I think I'm in love.

(Sent to me by somebody wonderful. Thankyou so, so much. You know me so well.)

Friday

All things recent


When nothing happens for a long time and yet things don’t feel the same, it is a very unsettling feeling indeed. When life is not are not quite what it was but then you have no idea what it is becoming – the present can almost feel like some sort of half-truth. Like you are lost in space or out at sea in unfamiliar territory. It is important to be aware of your surroundings, but what if they are a chasm of uncertainty, a series of random and unfamiliar events?  Although you may feel as though nothing has changed, perhaps it is you? 

Today, I woke up again to find myself in a new country -  a country that I have been an inhabitant of for yet another six months. I arrived here for the first time in 2009 with no real plan but a feeling deep within my bones that I wanted to be somewhere else. 

Now in 2011, it's onto round two.

If you want to, I would say just do it. Nothing to lose. You only live once

… and any other unbearable clichés.  


Recent stuff

Kalk Bay







Presenting for the Sports Channel - Absa Extreme X 2011







Stormers V Hurricanes (...still not becoming a sports freak.)




Recently spotted...










Wednesday

A HORROR STORY

Once upon a time in a far-away land with depressing and terrible weather, there was a girl with seasonal affective disorder and bad circulation who thought that maybe her genes were intended for sunnier climes and thus decided to go and work as a model in South Africa for the season. On arriving in the country she realised contrary to what she had been previously advised, that it was not at all possible for her to work on a tourist visa and so she was recommended to an immigration advice company, highly recommended by the agency that she was working with at the time and many others in the industry.

After a few months, and no receipt or word from the immigration advice rep the girl began to get anxious and suspicious and asked for her British passport back. The immigration advice lady made appointments and broke them and also didn’t answer her phone or reply to emails for a while. When she finally re emerged from her ‘leave’ she assured the girl that everything was fine, but you see, quite a lot of time had gone by then, so the girl decided to inform the British consulate…who, most displeased with the situation, proceeded in telephoning the immigration lady and gave her a very serious telling off.

To cut  a long story short, the girl eventually got her passport back, after nearly six months and was fined heavily and nearly detained for an overstay on her departure from South Africa back to her far away land. 

All of this came to past a almost a year ago. This is the girls second time in South Africa, and now she found a charming immigration special, but lost all her money from the first tragic and disappointing attempt. Sadly, it doesn't look as though she see any of that money again. You will be pleased to know that the Bad Immigration lady (who cheated close to 150 other people) is now in jail where she belongs, of course.

Be very, very careful.

Sunday

In ♥ with TED


TED (short for Technology, Entertainment and Design) is an enlightening and motivational non profit organisation who put together international conferences inviting inspirational, funny, powerful and unique speakers from all over the world to come and speak about their area of expertise or passion. I was lucky enough to be introuduced to the website last year. The fantastic thing about the conferences is that they can all be viewed online, completely free of charge. In some cases, the speakers are well known, in some they are not. There is pretty much something for everyone - from illusionists to brain scientists, from comedians to serious speakers on the topics of health, global or political issues.

One of the videos to really blow me away was a talk by William Kamkwamba, a 14 year old Malawian, who on deciding to attempt to build an elecricity powered windmill (as you do) did just that, with only the help of some rough plans that he found in a library book and scrap parts from around the village.

Inspiring stuff.

Monday

Hahaha!

On a hair extension packet near you....(if you happen to live in west Africa, to the best of my understanding.)


shall post them if/when I come across them. 
if you spot one first...give me a shout :-)

Friday

Monday

Marques Toliver

It happened like this...

in the summer of last year my friend Emilyne Mondo  and I were ambling around in East London's Brick lane (after some ill advised casting which neither of us were particularly suitable for) when I heard something special. It seemed to be coming from underneath the bridge. Recognising the sound immediately, Emilyne (already a huge fan of his) started running towards the cobbled street area, crying 'Oh, Marques is here...Yrsa, you have got to listen to him!'

I believe that there is nothing I can say to describe how beautiful I consider his music, short of giving you a little sample here. So that is all I will do, letting this incredible talent speak for himself.

Here he is on Jules Holland.



they talked... caught up...and then I sat in the sun and listened. He made me cry.

N.B Have seen him at gigs since and he is always wonderful.

Thursday