Awkward Tourist Gifts

Its always a difficult task to bring back gifts for family and friends, you want to buy something that is unique to the area your visiting, and made locally.  This is generally an expedition that does not yield these fruits, instead you end up buying generic Chinese crafted merchandise that you can get anywhere in the world.

Walking around DC today, I ventured into the White House Gift Shop (for the first time) and chuckled to myself as I looked at the merchandise on offer.

A Michelle Obama 'carrier bag' the caption below reads "First Lady of Fabulous"
Now I ask why is the White House attached to a parachute and whats with Bambi?

Christmas Ornaments of Michelle Obama - Hmmm*

The Dome of the Capitol building functioning as a Serving Tangine.  I have no words.  (A tangine is a plate like bottom with a conical shaped lid) I'll buy 8 to complete my dinner set, it screams class?

Michelle Obama bobble head with a Barack Obama action figure.  I do own a Barack action figure with the tag line 'An Action Figure We Can Believe In' on Justin's suggestion maybe I should purchase a Michelle bobble head, it will be like owning Ken and Barbie.

Picture this...

Sitting in a NY city apartment on a crisp Autum evening, jazz music from the restaurant across the street streams in through a slight crack in the window, you are reclining on the sofa enjoying the tranquility while you sip on your glass of red wine.

Under Enemy Fire*

Having just gotten dressed, in a pretty sun dress and lathered on my sunblock, I decided it was time for a cup of tea.  I walked out of my room into the sunlight and across the lawn towards the kitchen, thinking of the prospects the day held and the things I needed to get done.  With a spring in my step, a song in my heart and a smile on my face – today was going to be a good day.  Suddenly out of the blue, I felt it hit me on my right bare shoulder, a bullet hurtling through space, I was under enemy fire.  Ouch I yelled as I felt the wet warm blood course out, take cover.  Stop drop and roll!  Okay that’s for fires but it does have a place in these hostile war like situations.  The blood cooled down quickly, the stinging pain was still there, but wait it smelt funny, it didn’t have the iron make me wanna gag smell that generally accompanies blood.  No this had an ‘I want to gag’ smell make no mistake about that but from the eu de toilet range.  Yes odour the toilet – definitely a waste excrement.  As I gathered my wits about me and looked down at my shoulder, forcing my nasal passages to encounter this aroma more fully – I saw the mustard yellow colorant boardering on khaki green, the birds kept flying overhead and I thought – “is this really supposed to be good luck?”

God see's

I try start my days out by reading my bible and spending some time in prayer, the prayer part I battle with, but practice makes perfect right?

Last Friday was a day where I didn't have time for my morning quiet time, I might have slept late or had a "give me a few more minutes with my head on the pillow" moment, or had errands to complete around the house before I went out, I really cant remember which, knowing me it was probably the second one.

I got up and was getting ready, trying to figure out what to do with my hair, I looked in the mirror and thought "Good grief my hair is a mess" no amount of brushing was going to tame my thick bleach blonde tresses.  A ponytail wouldn't work because I 'gasp' need to retouch my highlights, so I opted for the half pony and styled my hair to hide the dark root re-growth.  Departing with the mirror with a final thought of "At least I dont need to look at me today - sorry for everyone else".  Bad hair day!

I was at the bank doing a transfer, the information lady came up to talk to my teller and then touched my hair and said "You have the most beautiful hair."

What I saw in the mirror that morning, was my reality, but someone else saw the same thing and had a prescribed a different reality to it.

This brief interaction immediately woke Gods voice in me with Him saying "I see you Justine and although you didn't 'meet with me this morning' I'm still here and I still see you through my eyes, not yours."

Junk and treasure*

A friend of mine recently had his mother move out of her flat into a retirement village.  She basically took her clothes and left, echoing the exit of a jilted lover who couldn’t get out of there fast enough.  In her hasty exit she left a lot of her ‘treasured’ possessions behind and you know what they say about the meaning of one mans treasure to another man.

As witness to the chaos that she left behind the clutter and rubbish kept for who knows what purpose (how many lidless tupperwear can one person keep?).  I’ve begun to examine my bounty of treasure, which I can identify as junk.  Stuff I’ve collected and kept from primary school, posters inside my cupboard (removed from the outside about 4 years ago) that no 24 year old girl should still be hanging onto, to further intensify this creep factor, I have a box FULL of Princess Diana Scrap books (about 6 of them) compiled by me from the age of 6 until about 16.  Its time to get rid of the junk!

I don’t use it and it will be of use to no one.  In throwing out my clutter I will be saving my family the terror of having to sort through my junk and throw it away themselves if I die.  I don’t have space for it and if I had to move to Tristan da Cunha I would not waste the money on shipping it with me.  Should this situation arise I’d tell my mom to throw it away, so I might as well save her the effort and do it myself.

I’m prepared enough to leave a sealed envelope with my email, banking, facebook details and request of songs I’d like to be sung at my funeral – I’ve never claimed to be normal, I know I’m odd.  So might as well limit the amount of stuff they need to sort through should the need to open that envelope arise!

Seeing how much junk other people live amongst is cathartic to propel you to get rid or yours! 

Hair raising experiences*

After

Before

Oh dear what was I thinking.

A friend of mine once told me that your strengths are your weaknesses harnessed, and that your strengths can also be weaknesses.

My strength is being capable and thinking I can do anything, with this as my outlook on life I approach most situations with an heir of success and accomplishment before I’ve tackled the task.  This week I had my heart set on putting highlights in my hair.  I wanted to do it on Tuesday the 20^th but life got crazy and I wasn’t able to get round to doing it.  So today Wednesday the 21^st I decided would be the day, as I had missed my ear mark on Tuesday.  I went off to Clicks to buy a highlight kit; I had my club card and R26 off coupons.  Standing in front of the hair dye I looked over at the options ‘golden-brown’ or ‘blonde’?  Hmm the safe option would be the golden-brown, subtle and slow change, but if I’m going to dye my hair I should go all out-give it horns! No half measures!

I texted Meegs and asked her if she was keen to dye my hair, the poor girl was sick so in my full capability I decided I could do my own hair.  I bought the blonde kit and the maintenance hair spray.  This was it; I was going bay watch blonde!

Mistake Number 1!

I couldn’t find out highlight cap so I figured I would just do it freestyle, no cap no foil.

Mistake Number 2!

Because I couldn’t find the cap, I didn’t have the application brush; I decided to use a toothbrush.

Sitting in front of a mirror and I started applying the dye, clump by clump.  Trying to make sure it got to the roots.  After an hour I’d finished.  I will admit I got board halfway through, having realised I had just messed my hair up and laughing hysterically; I just threw caution to the wind and applied the dye haphazaroudly.

45 Minutes later – hair under the faucet rinsing out the dye, I looked up and there it was my WHITE blonde fringe, dark roots, horizontal stripes and a few polka dots that impressed my hairdresser, my hair ranged in colour from white to yellow to orange.  In a word it was a DISASTER!

NEVER!

Say give it horns when you’re doing your hair – take a deep breath put down the dye or scissors and re-think what you’re doing.

I HEARBY SOLEMLY DECLARE

That I will never cut or dye anyone’s hair ever.  I swear to leave all hairdressing up to the professionals and realise that just because I think I can do it, doesn’t mean I have the ability to dye and cut hair, mine and anyone else’s.

The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at or repair.  Douglas Adams

Just-in Africa Day 10 - 20 June 2010

The day started off leisurely, Justin needed to get to the airport we had plenty of time to get there, check in and have breakfast and get Justin onto his flight.

Leaving the hotel we went to the airport, hmmm Durban International is not here! GULP*  Turning back and following the King Shaka Airport signs we got to the airport which is crazy far from Durban city.  It was a mad rush, but Justin got there checked through and was off on a flight back to Joburg and the DC.  I went back to Durban and spent some time on the beach journaling and enjoying the summerish weather, before driving back to a cold Johannesburg.

http://nogimmickneeded.blogspot.com/2010/07/south-africa-trip-day-11-flying-home.html