Reunion update

Let the saga continue.

We got the evening started off by the current Principal(flanked here by myself and Mr Lesotho) who gave us a brief welcome etc which happened in the bar area. He was about to run off to another function when I hawled him into the main hall for a quick pick. What a pleasant gentleman???

Hope this picture of Mr Lesotho will make my dear Katt happy?

The rest of Friday evening was spent catching up. We were lucky that a few of our old teachers joined us. I did manage a pick or two.

We did have loads of laughs though. At one stage one of the guys grabbed my camera and said he wants to take a couple of pictures. Surprise surprise!! I found these three pictures amongst the ones he took....



There's another Black Label for you Dawn!!

What followed was a lot of drinking and laughing. We had 102 people there on Friday night and most of them were still there by midnight. I took close on 200 pictures so there is no way that I can publish them all here. I will share a couple of good ones with you.



I have hit a glitch. Unfortunately the end of Part 2 has arrived due to internet access problems!!

Watch this space because I have some more funnies coming shortly!!!!

It happened!!!!

What a blast!!! The reunion was a huge success. All the months of hard work, planning, organizing, phone calls, e-mails and meetings finally paid off. The turnout was fabulous. The atmosphere was absolutely amazing. I didn't experience any awkward moments. People walked in and got stuck in the entrance and I eventually had to ask people to move through into the hall so that we could start our programme.

We had to decorate the venue on Friday morning. Drapes were hung by ourselves and tables carried around and arranged etc. Thankfully Mr B was there to help. By 16h00 I rushed home to shower and change and was back at the hall in record time. I almost panicked because the snacks for the evening should have arrived at 16h00 and they only got there at almost 17h00. Thankfully everyone stuck to the arranged time of 18h30 and we could get everything in place before the first guests arrived.

This is what the bar area, hall and some of the snacks looked like. I couldn't get to the other snack table as it was always surrounded by hungry guys. It had pastries and so forth on it.

We eventually dragged everyone into the hall and quickly got the formalities finalized. We have two couples who were at school together and are still married today. What an amazing feat don't you think?

We also handed champagne to all the parents who have children in our old high school at the moment (Mr Brut being one of them). Two ladies and two gentlemen made us proud. What astonished me though was how many people are raising their offspring as English and not Afrikaans.

I was honored to receive the Build a Nation trophy seeing that I have 4 children. I just don't think that anyone else would own up(heeheehee). What was my prize? A shining trophy. Definitely not - I received two stress balls!!!!

After we completed all the formalities, we attempted to get people to get onto the dancefloor, but to no avail. Everyone found a group and they were all just chatting away. I saw people moving from group to group and I have never experienced such an awesome atmosphere. People were genuinely happy to be there and to be around each other. I heard so many "remember that" and "remember when" and "wasn't that the girl that....". I found myself sitting in a corner at one stage and took pictures of all these little discussions going on.

I think I will have to end it here. Let's make this the end of part 1. I am sure there will be a few more to follow.

Almost there.....

The long anticipated reunion is this weekend. Friday all the fun will start. Everything is in place. Caterers have been paid. The music(caused a couple of headaches) has been sorted. All that is left to do, is to decorate the venue on Friday and then the party can begin. I know it is going to go well. I have put so much time and effort into it. Most importantly, I put a lot of myself into it and I just want everyone to have a good time.

Please hold thumbs for me.

I'll resume normal posting as soon as this weekend is over. Prepare yourselves for some pictures of the event. There will be Mr Lesotho pics in there too. I know he has a couple of fans on my blog!!!!

Body painting follow up!!!

Three posts ago, I published a bodypainting picture that I have had on my computer for ages. I received it in a mail and I found the site where it came from. My friend Katt was eager to see what Virgo would look like. I took the liberty and added the picture for you to see Katt.

Isn't it amazing what this artist can do?

You can go here to find your own starsign. Have a look at the Leo and Aries.

I am Cancer and this is the artist's impression thereof.












Ok, so I said I was tired and felt stressed in my previous post, so now I ask myself, how did I manage 2 posts on one day???

Priorities, priorities.........

Now to get back to work!!!

Have a great day and I'll be back soon(I hope).

Roses are red........

I feel exhausted. I am running around with work and the upcoming reunion has got my stomach in knots!!! It is only 2 weeks away and I thought I had worked hard up to this point, but boy was I wrong. Now it is really beginning to take it's toll. I have sent out invitations months ago, organized the venue, caterers, bar, music, attendees, collected photos, babysitters, games and jumping castles. Now I have to start collecting money from those who will be attending. Half of the money is in and now to get the other half to pay!! I am not sleeping well and I am not eating right either. I haven't been to gym in over a month because I am simply too exhausted to even think about it. I am battling to get to all the blogs I enjoy reading and that is also very frustrating. I haven't been able to sit down and just browse because work has suddenly picked up at a frantic pace. I have demos scheduled and training and product upgrades and I just don't know where I am going to find the time. Thankfully, I can stop over at the pub for a couple of games of pool before I go home in the evening. I destress and by the time I get home, I can love and cuddle the little ones while preparing supper and doing all the motherly things required. I normally fall asleep infront of the telly, but then can't sleep again when we go to bed. I find myself tossing and turning and keeping Mr B awake. I keep telling myself, just two more weeks and it will all be over. Well, some of it anyway!! So today, I am sending myself a bunch of roses.
If you feel like I do, enjoy them with me.........

In remembrance

This will be a sad day in world history for many more years to come. I am not an American. I didn't know anyone who lost a life on this sad day. The actions of a certain group of people on this day horrified me. I remember being in my office at work and one of my colleagues screaming that we must turn on our radio's. We couldn't believe what we were hearing. I was a member of a motorbike club and we used to meet Tuesday evenings at a local pub. I have never seen a more somber pub. People weren't drinking. There was a stunned silence as we watched the broadcast as the towers collapsed. I cried when I saw the people trying to jump to get out of the burning building. I shot a prayer up thanking God that I was safe.

A very special person started a very special project and I feel that this is a small thing that I can do to help his cause. He started the 2996 Project. If you haven't read about it by now, please visit 2996 Project . I did just that and here is my contribution. I am not a writer, but I feel I have a story to tell and I try to do it to the best of my ability.

James D Halvorson(Jim) was a husband and a father. He worked as Head of Global Infrastructure Group, Marsh & Mclennan Cos Inc. He worked there for 30 years. He was an insurance broker who traveled the world and worked on many large overseas construction projects. He visited Russia, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and many other places according to http://1cf.newsday.com/911/victimsearch.cfm?id=2075.

He grew up in Devils Lake, N.D. There he attended North Dakota State University and the University of Montana from where he graduated in 1967. He then moved to Long Island, New York. He must have met his wife during this time because they had been married for 31 years and they have a son named Doug. He was also an accomplished skier and runner. He completed the New York marathon in 1991. From the little snippets that I found on the net, I could clearly see that he was a well loved man. He was someone that others looked up to and yet he had a personality that endeared him to all he met.

When disaster struck, he was in his office situated on the 99th and 100th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Centre. It is believed that that was were Flight 11 hit. He lost his life together with 295 of Marsh & Mclennan Cos Inc's employees on that day. But not just that, he lost his life together with 2995 other people on that day. I shall always remember 911 and the aftermath thereof. I shall always remember the fear it has instilled in all our lives. I shall always remember this special person assigned to me through this project.

I shall always remember Jim.

If a member of Jim's family ever gets to read this, I want to ask them to contact me as I would love to learn more about him. I would love to be able to tell a story about a man whom I believe has a beautiful story to tell!!!!

I know I am bending the rules, but I won't have internet access tomorrow so forgive me for posting this a couple of hours early!!!

Body paint

I feel that I have to somehow get rid of the bad taste the tattoo in my previous post left. I have had this picture on my computer for ages and it is an amazing work of art. So in an effort to redeem myself for the nasty, I offer you one of my favourite pictures. I have no idea where I got it from and therefor categorically state that it is not my work and all honour to the original artist!!!!!

You have a great weekend and don't forget about the 2996 project!!!!!!

Is this for real???

Now, I am not a tattoo person. I don't have any on my body, but I do appreciate a good tattoo when I see one. I have a friend who has the most beautiful tattoo on his back. It is a lady sitting on a rock with her reflection in the water underneath her. Fantastic!! It is not completed yet, but it already looks awesome.

Now, I have seen some clever tattoos. You know the ones you get on e-mail, that leaves you looking over your shoulder to see if someone else saw you looking at it???? Well, I got one of those today, but it wasn't as bad as it is clever. Now, this leaves me wondering if this is for real??

You have a look and let me know what you think....

I just noticed that this was post #100!!!! woohoo!!!!!
I know they weren't all good, but I have enjoyed writing each and every one of them!!!!

8 Below

I have wanted to see this movie for such a long time. I read good and bad reviews about it, but being the individual that I am, I thought it best to judge for myself. I must admit that I was skeptical after some of the reviews, but I enjoyed it!!! I am not looking for Oscar winning performance or anything like that. I want pure enjoyment from a movie. That is my main criteria when watching a movie. This movie has breathtaking scenes. Yes, there is the predictable love story but who cares. This movie is about the love between a man and his dogs. The evidence of the bond between Paul Walker and the dogs are there. I cried like a baby. I actually left the lounge and stood outside. I couldn't bare to think or even try to understand what those dogs had to endure. Paul Walker isn't the best actor but I believe that he was the right guy for this film. I give this movie a total thumbs up because I felt like I was there with them. I felt the cold and when the ice cracked, I quickly looked to see if I was in a safe spot. So, call me a softie or call me a bleeding heart, but I will watch this movie again. If you still want to see the movie, don't read further!!!!

One of my favorite scenes in the movie was where the lead dog Maya said goodbye to Old Jack who was busy dying after being tied up for 15 days. He didn't have the strength to break the chains like the others did. She gingerly licked him and then walked away...

The character that stole my heart was Max. He was the one that lead all the surviving dogs back to their base after Maya was injured and in so doing ensuring their rescue. He is a beautiful animal. Even though this was a Disney production, it is a movie that families will enjoy. It was wonderful being able to watch a movie without profanity, sex, violence or any of the normal "Blockbuster" ingredients.

HAVE A SIXPACK!!!

Here's a little something I dug out for my fellow bloggers who love to open a sixpack every now and then!!!!

or if you would prefer another brand.....

So, you have loads to "drink".

Have a great week!!!!!