Living with Tequila and Titus is far worse than living with a man.

Following a tough workout on Monday with a squash game the next day left me lying in bed this morning, trying to be grateful that I can at least still feel the muscles in my body. Even if I am not able to move them. After dragging myself out of bed I realized that I need coffee to wake up and a hot bath to soak my aching muscles. In this household, and with my cats, this proved to be easier said than done….

Mitzie switches on the kettle for some much needed coffee and start running some bath water while waiting for the kettle to boil. The water looks so inviting, she decides to leave the coffee until later and make her way to the bathroom.
After wrestling Tequila off the side of the bath she can get in and feel the warm water heating up her aching muscles. Tequila is not impressed and decided to spite Mitzie by lying on her towel. Mitzie gets up and kick the cat off the towel.
She gets back into the bath, and shut her eyes as she lies back to really soak those muscles. She forget about the risk of doing so and before long it happens. Titus the great warrior attacks the innocent toes.
Another cat gets slapped.

Since Titus can not open the tequila bottle to drown his sorrows after being kicked off the side of the bath, he settles for binging on the rest of his food.
Mitzie is happy, she can lie back in peace. And then, Titus having eaten too much, gets sick.
In front of the bathroom door.
Mitzie decides to relax in the bath and deal with that later.

There is movement. Tequila is back. She does not go down without a fight
She is trying to get to the water in the bath and eventually looses her balance.
Mitzie receives a few scratches while Tequila scrambles to get out of the bath.

It was expected that Tequila will now jump on the bed with her wet fur and start to lick herself dry.
But she has a better plan and decides that it is a good time to use the litter box,
leaving a trail of cat litter that got stuck to her fur all over the apartment as she makes her way back to the bathroom.

She tries try to settle on the towel again.
Mitzie decides to give it all up and get out out of the bath as she is chasing the cat off her towel with brutal force.
She should have had the coffee before the bath.

Mitzie continues to dry herself and rub in all her lotions and potions all over her body … finding it rather soothing. She is calming down.
It is chilly and she runs for the bedroom to get dressed.

But she forgot about the regurgitated catfood …

A friend so dear
for so long we were not near
Though time was not on our side
memories will forever be vast and wide

We are never truly apart
you have your special place in my heart
You are watching over me
and forever I know that is where you will be.

In loving memory of my dearest Cornè (May ‘75 - Aug ‘02)

Also known as Chinese Venice … During my recent trip to China my colleague and good friend made arrangements for a quick trip to Suzhou, a city that surely has the potential to be a very romantic experience if you focus on the canals and gardens. I definitely want to go back there for a little boat trip on the canals … I kind of ended up having to choose between shopping and the boat ride and that was of course a no-brainer ! It was a great weekend, the fun factor was in overdrive and by the Sunday night I was just too pleased to use the next 12 hours on a train to Beijing as a good excuse to take it easy and get some much needed rest.

A few images from Suzhou …

Why is it that I tend to only remember the photographed events ? The most memorable moments are often those without the pictures …

It was 1999, a *daring* team building exercise and I can remember the excitement, the doubts, the fears …

What an amazing experience it was … the doubt crept in when we were taken through the preparation and my ‘mind’ did not play along. We were holding a ball on a piece of string between thumb and forefinger and had to ‘move’ the string backwards and forwards in our minds. After 5 minutes mine was the only one not moving. I was told that I am ruining the experiment (tongue in cheek of course) and that the point to be proven here is that everyone was actually starting to move their fingers and that is why the ball is moving … illustrating that sometimes you think your mind is controlling something but it still require some physical involvement. By now I was a bit concerned that my ‘mind’ would not be able to tell me that the coals are cool !

But standing in front of those coals … facing them and then taking the first step, doing the actual walk, crushing them under my feet, getting to the other side and not being burned. It didn’t feel like glowing coals … it felt liberating and uplifting.

So what am I on about ?

Just that sometimes things are not as they seem.

And sometimes things do no turn out as expected.

And sometimes, it is time to face the firewalk. Whatever may be.

After all, if we avoid the fire, how will we ever know ?

The acomodador or giving-up point. An event in your life that is responsible for you failing to progress. “It can be a trauma, a defeat, a disappointment in love that has lead us to loose our courage in life. The development of our self-awareness can only proceed if we can liberate ourselves from the ‘acomodador’ “

Another bit of inspiration from a remarkable book by Paulo Coelho. Is it possible to read his work and not be touched in some way ? Usually a personal-beyond-comfort kind of way.

I read The Zahir just over a week ago on a plane from Dubai to Cape Town. The pages kept turning and as the plane was touching down on the runway there were 20 pages to go - I couldn’t wait to get home to finish the book.

And of course the acomodador has been playing on my mind ever since … So many things that I have started just to drop it too quickly. Too many regrets about things left hanging in the air. Time to tackle these things again. Perhaps I will share them some time. But I have taken the first step … even a few more …

It has been identified. And I’m liberating myself from it.

No thoughts on why it is not possible. No procrastinating. No stagnating.

Just do.

Still on the topic of wildlife …. a few photos of up close and personal experiences with a Giraffe, Elephants, Lion Cubs and a Cheetah.

Each one of these experiences were indeed very memorable … and it is good to know that by having the experience you are also contributing to funding for research and care of them.

But there is something to be said about seeing wild animals in a natural habitat … a whole different experience.

Chatting to a friend of mine about a possible safari holiday in South Africa brought back so many memories. Growing up, I was always looking forward to the next camping trip. To those few days where everyone would be relaxed and I was free to run in the field, play in the river and lie on my back to look at the stars. And going on the game drive, I could hardly contain my excitement, trying (and mostly succeeding) my best to spot the animals first, always having my camera(it was my prize possession) ready to get that perfect shot.

Of course camping safaris take on a whole different perspective as you grow older. 20 years on I remember sitting around the campfire, sipping some wine, listening to the lions roaring in the distance, a branch breaking close by … could it be a baboon, a buck or a monkey ? Solving the problems of the world and singing songs in that perfect moment. Looking up at the sky and wishing upon a star.

Man. It has been too long.

Give me a book any day. To read is to be free. To let your mind wander wherever your imagination will take it. Isn’t it the great Einstein that said “Logic will take you from point A to point B, but imagination will take you anywhere.” ?

Of course .. you get books, and more books. Authors and other authors. And then you stumble across something one day and it is not just a favourably regarded book or just amazing writing. It is a divine experience.

I read the first sentence of the paragraph…. the hair in the back of my neck start rising.

I read about a dance… starting so slowly … I can feel the rhythm build… faster … and faster … faster …. round and round we spin. I am one with her. I am energy.

“And suddenly she stopped”

I have goose bumps all over. I have to put the book down and close my eyes. Slowly calming down and coming back to my present reality. Not quite sure what just happened. I decide to read the paragraph again.

Rising hair … dance … slowly … rhythm … round and round … we are one … all this energy … STOP. goose bumps. Have to calm down.

Every once in a while, you stumble across absolute amazing brilliance.

Like Paulo Coelho. Like “Witch of Portobello”.