Here is my contribution to this week’s Share Your World from Sparks

If you had to sum up the whole human species in 3 words, what would those words be?

Unique, gifted, confused!

Where is the strangest place you’ve relieved yourself?  Obviously in an emergency situation.

When you pitch your tent in an unfenced campsite of an African Game Reserve it is not advisable to walk around at night – not even to go to the long-drop toilet.   If you need to go, it is better to take your trowel, dig a hole and have someone stand guard with a torch.   I have had to do this on one or two occasions when the urge could not be ignored till morning.  The problem is, the duty guard is always my husband.  Hurry up, he will say.  I see eyes – probably a lion!  This does nothing other than to produce nervous giggles and a perfectly natural function becomes the most difficult thing in the world to perform.

What is the worst smelling place you’ve ever been?

Strandfontein Sewage Works.  It can pong if the wind blows a certain way.  But it doesn’t stop me going there! It’s a beautiful place and the birdlife is prolific.

How drunk is drunk enough?

When you’ve had enough to make you a little merry but still know you shouldn’t drive.

Gratitude Is An Attitude!

If you’d like, please list five things that are priceless to you.

My husband

My amazing daughters

My fabulous grandchildren

Caravanning in the bush

The Kruger National Park

Here is my contribution to this week’s Share Your World from Sparks

QUESTIONS.   

(the last two are courtesy of Teresa of The Haunted Wordsmith)

Is it wrong to sell store-bought pastries at a bake sale?

I don’t think so.  The point of a bake sale is to raise funds for something.  Providing something to sell is contributing to a good cause.   Personally, I would buy something ‘home-made’ and then contribute that to the bake sale.

Have you ever interacted with the police?

I have indeed!  I was the passenger in my friend’s car when two cops pulled us over and one became very angry and abusive about some trumped-up charge.  My poor friend shrank and looked terrified. The big burly officer yelled at her – “What do you think you’re doing? You crossed over a double white line!”  (She was simply trying to change lanes so she could turn left.)  He displayed enormous anger while his partner stood at his elbow looking embarrassed but did not utter a word.

I piped up – “If she’s done something wrong – write her a ticket and quit the yelling!”

He then yelled at me “I’m not talking to you – I’m talking to the driver – You shut up!”

Well, that was a red rag to a charging bull.   I pulled out my phone and said – Where is your name badge?- What is your name?  I am going to report you.  Give me the number to ring!

He yelled back – You shouldn’t have pulled over here on this barrier – Go and park over there!   He pointed to an impossible place.

Just drive – I said to my friend – don’t pull over again.  She did and I looked to see if the policemen followed but they didn’t.   I then googled the number to ring and reported the abuse.  Unfortunately, he wasn’t wearing his name tag but I told the person on the other end of the line exactly where the incident occurred.  And that was the end of it.  We were never contacted again about the outcome.  Why the cop was so angry, I have no idea.   He probably thought I’d taken a photo of him with my phone – I didn’t think of that at the time – and so he didn’t follow us. My personal opinion as this cop just felt like scaring two old ladies for a bit of fun!   It might have been fun for him but it wasn’t for us.

What will you remember most about this past year (this question will show up again, in late December, just FYI)

I will remember the stunning cruise we took in March/April as a big highlight of the year.

Is it better to have fungus on your toes, your tongue, or your pizza?

Mushrooms are a fungus so definitely on my pizza!

What is one slang word that makes your skin crawl?

I can’t think of one.  I actually quite like slang.  It can make one’s speech more interesting.   Words fascinate me and a living language will change.  What is slang today, might become a dictionary word tomorrow.

Some years ago the word ‘larney’ crept into South African slang.  It means ‘posh’.  I didn’t like it at first but now I use it regularly.   It can also be used to name a posh or rich person.   Eg  “That larney lives in larney house and drives a larney car.”

Here is my contribution to this week’s Share Your World from Sparks

Are you more a thinker or a doer?    (credit to Cyranny of Cyranny’s Cove for this one)

I would say that I am more of a doer than a thinker.  I tend to act before I think about all the options. Usually, it all works out well because I am quite intuitive too.  But there are times when I should have thought it through first.   For example, I tend to rush to the aid of someone without thought of my own safety which results in my becoming hurt too so I can’t help that person anyway!

Why is beauty associated with mortality?

Is it?  Although I guess when one sees a dead loved one they do look as if they’re at peace.  Is that a kind of beauty?

If everyone spoke their mind (told the literal truth), would this world be a better place?

Probably not. Sometimes being too truthful can hurt feelings.   However, I like it when people talk straight.  If we could find a balance between telling the absolute truth and breaking it to others gently the world would be a better place.

Can religious beliefs affect scientific thinking?

When I was a child I had blind faith but now scientific thinking has affected my religious beliefs.   For example, I have no trouble blending my belief in both creation and evolution.   In my opinion, God caused evolution. But if the creationists want to believe the ancient story it does nobody any harm.  Scientists will always think ahead.   If they didn’t we would never have found out that the world is a sphere and that ships would not fall off the end of the earth.  After 350 years the Vatican finally admitted that Galileo was right about the earth moving around the sun.  It doesn’t do poor Galileo any good now but the persecution at the time didn’t move him to change his theory.

Attitude of Gratitude

If you’d like to, share some gratitude in photo, written form or song. 

My grandson, Josh, and I took a wonderful walk along Struisbaai Beach on the weekend.  I’d been in the hospital for five days so I had a fresh appreciation of being able to enjoy the fresh air and I expressed to him how much I loved living here.   He wanted to know why and if I could back to being thirty would I choose to live here. My answer was No – I wouldn’t change anything about my past life.  There was a season for everything.  I’d loved raising my children and helping his mom raise him and his brother.  My life certainly hadn’t turned out the way I’d thought it would but when we were thrown a curveball we made choices on how to deal with it.  All of it made us stronger and happier – so no regrets – just grateful for the awesome life I’ve had and am still having.

Here are some photos that make me so grateful to live where I do.

Struisbaai’s picturesque harbour

A dikkop on my driveway

Not scared at all – a Sealy visitor to our beach

Two black oyster-catchers and a kelp gull enjoying the rock pools

A Bokmakierie seen on one of my walks

Our stunning beach

Here is my contribution to this week’s Share Your World from Sparks

Do you think there is such a thing as a ‘gendered’ brain? 

Yes I do.  Males and Females are different and I believe our brains are wired differently too.    This must be remembered when teaching a class of both male and female learners.   I taught at a school where First and Second Grade children (Aged 7 and 8) were taught in separate gender classes.  In these early years it is beneficial to concentrate on the learning styles of their gender.   Studies have shown that boys and girls need input from each other in the later grades so they are integrated from the third grade on.

What is the silliest fear you have? 

In this country a fear of wild animals and criminals are not considered ‘silly fears’ – but those are the two things I fear most.  I don’t roam around in game reserves where wild predators abound and I avoid high crime areas where gangsters might attack me.  Actually I’d rather take my chances with the wild animals!

I do have slight phobias about modes of transport that I am not in control of – Air and Sea travel are the ones that concern me the most.  The chances that something might befall me while engaging in these modes of transport are very slim so I push these fears right to the back of my mind.  Once I’m on the plane or ship – I’m just fine.   It’s the build up to the journey that unreasonably scares me.  Anyway the point I’m trying to make is that I’m not going to let a silly fear prevent me from ultimately having fun!

The Earl has no such fears – it’s border posts and security checks that get him into a state of angst.

Out of your family members, who are you closest to?

The person who is Number One in my life is my husband.   Now that we’re retired we are together 24/7 and it’s just as well that we get on well together. Of course we sometimes annoy each other but neither of us could live without the other.  We plan to die on the same day.

Even though I don’t see many members of my family often enough, I do feel close the them – I’m closely bonded to my children and grandchildren.  I think about my siblings every day and I’m always interested and concerned about the lives of my aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews and their offspring.   I am eternally grateful to The Internet and Social Media for making it easy to keep up!

What is something you’ll NEVER do again?

I asked my husband what he would never do again, and without skipping a beat he replied, “Make babies!”

So that’s a relief because I certainly won’t be giving birth to any!

Other than that I’m still able to do just about everything else I’ve always done.  I no longer teach but I can’t say I’ll never do it again because anything is possible.

I once ate a Mopani Worm – Maybe I won’t do that again.

If you’d like, please share a photo or a comment about something good that’s happened recently!  Thanks! 

Two of my aloes burst into flower!

Here are my answers to this week’s Share Your World Questions from Sparks

Do you consider yourself a pessimist or an optimist?

I am an optimist and it works for me.   Things always tend to work out for the best.   “This too will pass”, is my mantra when things are bad.   It may seem to most people that I live a charmed life in which nothing goes wrong but believe me I’ve had my problems and I believe it’s my optimism that has got me through.  My hubby tends to look on the dark side which is just as well as my optimism and his pessimism balances out to realism.

Can War ever be just?

We live in an imperfect world.  There is Good and there is Evil.  There really is.  And sometimes Good must War against Evil.   Sometimes being politically correct just doesn’t cut it.   The Good needs to go in there and wipe out The Evil.

Think about the people you love most in your life, what do you do for them?

During my life, I have done whatever necessary for the people I love. If friend or family member or even perfect stranger is in need – nothing will be too much trouble.

But perhaps the question implies what do I do for them on a daily basis?  Simply love them unconditionally, be available to them and enjoy the blessedness of the relationship.

Are you health conscious?

Yes, I do want to be the healthiest corpse in the graveyard.

I can’t think about what might befall me in the future but I do believe the present is also important and I want to feel good now!   That’s why I choose to live a healthy lifestyle.  I don’t eat junk food – if I do I feel sluggish and sick.   Exercising and keeping fit means I enjoy doing things instead of just rocking in my chair and watching the world go by.

Having said that I am aware that many dread diseases hit even the most health conscious people but I’m not using that as an excuse to make bad choices.

Of course I have my vices – but I don’t over indulge in alcohol, drugs or cigarettes.  I drink a glass or two of wine every day.  Every now and then I eat chocolate in some form or another and if I don’t get a good cup of coffee at least once a day I might go into a decline.

So while I can I will eat well, maintain the right weight, exercise and be happy.  I pray that when it’s my time to go it will be sudden and painless.   If, however, I do have to suffer a dread disease – then give me drugs!

Gratitude, Thankfulness, Wonder, Awe and Joy!   

Every day I try to find something wow – and it’s not hard – here in our neck of the woods we are surrounded by beauty – even though winter is closing in.

Our beautiful harbour never fails to wow me

Planting veggies in my neglected patch brought me joy this week.   The feral rabbits have disappeared – probably adopted by holiday makers to Struisbaai – and I miss them – but it does mean my vegetables are safe from their thieving!

Here are my answers to this week’s share your world from Sparks

If you could interview anyone from your life living or dead, but not a celebrity, who would it be and why?   

I would like to interview my maternal grandmother because although she told me lots of stories about life in the early 20th century, I would love to know what she thinks of the 21st.

As a child, did you have a nickname?  Did you carry that with you throughout life or was it only in childhood that you used it?

I had plenty of nicknames. Some were hurtful but I was taught – Sticks and Stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me.  That was the way life was in the sixties and you just dealt with it.  No point crying to Mommy or Teacher.  One such name was Fatty Boom-cracker – by family members no less – they thought it was very funny.  But it didn’t go on for too long although snide remarks about my weight were often made.  I don’t think anybody meant to be nasty – but I would not encourage my own kids to give nasty nicknames.  I also had a long unpronounceable Greek surname.   Perfect for kids of the sixties to make fun of.  My siblings and I used just laugh along with them.   Our name sounded like – Penny-for-a-cart horse.   In the ninth grade a smart-ass boy converted it to automatic cart horse which of course was very funny.   I was also called Helen, Helen Watermelon.   At College I was simply called Penny and that lasted all three years there.  I didn’t mind that one! Actually none of them did any harm – all character building which I think might be lacking in the over-protected world of today.

Give us three words that describe you:

Enthusiastic, Positive, Kind

Sneaking into a second movie at the theater (if you go to a movie house)?  Is that wrong or just harmless ‘fun’?

Well if you’re a kid it’s just harmless fun.  But for adults – no way!  Pay up!

If you had a time machine would you go back to the past or forward into the future?  Why?

Definitely to the future.  I believe I am already on a journey to the future – and have reached some stations already and I love them.  Imagine what’s coming up – the most awesome technology.   I hope I make it to some more of those future stations.

I have slipped out of routine and neglected my blog for a while so have decided to do Share Your World this week.  Soon we will be off on another adventure and internet connections will be erratic so my blogging may once again be put on hold for a month or two.  This post is to reassure everybody that I am still here!

I love this week’s questions and I’m answering them before reading anybody else’s.

What’s the first thing you notice about a person?

I’m not too sure – it’s not hands, eyes, body shape or anything like that.  I think the first thing I notice is more subtle – friendliness, enthusiasm, personality – or some sort of connection I feel toward the particular person.

What three habits do you feel would improve someone’s life?

Weeeellllll that is a difficult one –  What’s good for the gander might not be good for the goose but this is what I think might help!

• Start the day fresh, with a positive attitude that things will go well
• Drink a cup of hot, strong, coffee – preferably freshly ground espresso, Americana, filter cappuccino -whatever floats your boat.
• Do some yoga exercises.

The first I’ve tried all my life – even if the previous day was awful – I would try to start with a positive attitude the following day – Sure things would go wrong but I would deal with them and then start fresh again the next day.

The second might be met with horror from those who think coffee is not healthy!  It is!  It’s an essential food for any working person or when there’s stress in your life.  But the coffee must be good!  Currently I am drinking an excellent blend, brewed in an Italian Coffee Pot.  I take it hot, strong and black!

The Third – Is something new in my life.   I have always had some sort of exercise routine but after retirement I neglected all kinds of routine.  But recently I started Yoga. It’s just me and my new teacher/friend.  We do it every week day morning at 6:30 and it’s both challenging and calming.  I am loving it and becoming so much more ‘mindful’!

What takes up too much of your time?   Would you stop that if you could?

In my current life, time is my friend.  I can do what I want when I want.   I spent enough years being selfless and splitting my time among all those who needed my attention – not that I regret one moment – I always made time for myself!   BUT now the only other person I have to consider is my darling husband – and that’s just not a problem!

I spend an indecent amount of time on the computer – NOT GAMING!   I Blog and learn languages.  I started Italian on Duolingo in May 2016  – Conosco un sacco di parole, ma non posso avere una conversazione.  (I know lots of words but cant have a conversation)  I’ve probably worded that incorrectly in Italian – but there you are – I can construct a sentence!

My ancestry is both Italian and Greek – and I have just started learning my father’s language – Greek!  I learned about 20 words when I was a child but never the alphabet.  I’ve mastered that now – and wow – it’s awesome to learn another language in a strange script!   I doubt I’ll ever be fluent in either of my new languages but it’s fun trying.  It’s an awesome way to keep Alzheimer’s at bay.      Γεια σου ειμαι Ελενη  και αγαπω τη ζωη   Hello My name is Helen and I love life.

So that’s what takes most of my time – The Earl thinks I’m crazy – but he’ll thank me when I can at least read the street signs in Greek on our travels!  Did I mention we’re boarding an Italian ship for a 28 day cruise in a week’s time?  It leave from Mauritius and ends in Venice – stopping in at Seychelles, Oman, Israel, Jordan, Cyprus, Crete, The Greek Islands, Croatia and Italy!  Who knows when I might need my smattering of foreign vocab.

Those of you who South Africa Afrikaners reading this – don’t worry – I haven’t neglected my Second Language – Ek kan nog Die Taal praat.    It’s just the indigenous languages that I have not yet attempted!  They’re unfortunately, not on Duolingo! But I do have a daughter and grandkids who can make themselves understood in Xhosa.  To quote Nelson Mandela – If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.

Would I stop if I could?  Sure – but why should I?

Cookies (biscuits to those elsewhere), pastries, pie or cake?   If not, what does your sweet tooth crave?

It is most definitely another essential food group no matter what diet you’re on!   I can say chocolate I want chocolate in three  languages other than English! Ek wil sjokolade hê,  Voglio cioccolato, θελω σοκολατα

Gratitude?  Are You Happy?  If so, why?  If not, why not?

Yes I am happy.   BUT Happiness is a state of mind.   I don’t believe other people can make you happy.  I do believe other people can make you unhappy at times but it’s up to you choose happiness as a state of mind.  Now for some people this is not easy and perhaps not even possible.  If your circumstances are dire or you suffer from anxiety, depression, paranoia or any kind of mental illness it’s a constant struggle to just hang in there.  There are people out there who have no reason to be miserable but something in their make-up prevents them from emerging from the doldrums.   Those of us fortunate enough to choose to be happy can’t judge them.  But we can help.  We can accept them the way they are and help them to deal with whatever it is that makes them struggle with their demons.

The rest of us need to sort our our attitudes.  I have met people who are going through the toughest of times, yet remain happy within themselves.  I know it’s a cliche but tough times make you stronger – it’s how you handle it that counts.   Also I do believe you can be sad, concerned, worried, angry while deep down, you have peace and contentment.

I was not always a chirpy little soul – specially not in my childhood. It’s taken work to deal with stuff that I thought was making my life such a drag.  Now I’m very happy.   “Even the bad times are good!” I’m grateful for the good times and the tough times.  And I’ve chosen to BE HAPPY.   Of course sometimes things happen to “spoil” things and I get mad and want to slap or kill someone but after a while I just ‘deal with it’  and “move on.”  Now I know and understand that NOT EVERYBODY is able to do that.  I’m not judging nor saying PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER.  If we know somebody’s story we start to understand and love them in spite of everything.

I HAVE been through tough times.  I have had to deal with stuff but seriously, it’s all been worth it and I am now determined to MOVE ON and ENJOY my old age and have as much fun as I can.  I feel  irritated when people who have pretty good lives and are probably twice as privileged as I am simply don’t appreciate it and will find something to complain about.  These are the ones who will say, “You’re so lucky.  You have this perfect, wonderful life.”  I don’t disagree with them because nothing I say will change their attitude – that’s up to them – and maybe I don’t know their story.   I simply reply, “YES!  I KNOW – Aren’t I lucky! – Perfect husband, wonderful kids, fabulous grandchildren, stunning health!  What more could I ask for –  what’s not to make me happy!”  It really annoys them – hee! hee!

A few years ago at work, I bounced into the teachers’ lounge and cheerily greeted a colleague.  She replied, “Stop being so chirpy – It’s irritating!”   So if this post has been too chirpy – I apologise most sincerely!