Happy Valentines Day

To all the hopeless romantics out there....

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY

Chatterbox February '07

My February column....

TIME TO HIT PAUSE!

My aunt, Aurora / cousin, Trusha / late uncle, Dalpat (aka Dully)

The month of February is a celebration of love! So I’d like to wish all readers a very Happy Valentines Day for the 14^th. I hope you spoil that someone special in your life with an abundance of love and affection, although I’m sure you do that all year round, right?!

I’m dedicating this month’s column to my uncle, Dalpat Makan (pictured) who passed away on Christmas Eve. He was on holiday in the Philippines with his wife and daughter. My family in South Africa was certainly not prepared for the dreaded phone call we received at three in the morning alerting us of the accident. The next call a few hours later told us that my uncle was in a critical state and was going to be taken off life support.

We are a very tight-knit family, and this is the first time that we have had to deal with such a tragedy.

My uncle’s death has inadvertently forced me to look at life in a different light. To evaluate one’s life is certainly not an easy task. To ask who oneself is can prove to be even more challenging. I have begun to realize that there are bigger things to be concerned about, and most of the things that we obsess about are often materialistic.

I feel like we are so caught up in trivial things throughout the day, that we forget to step out of our busy lives and think about the finer things in life. We all need to analyze ourselves as a person. Ask questions like, “Who am I?”, “What is my purpose in life and what contribution do I want to make to the world?”

I am just as guilty for being concerned about material things, but now that I’ve been thinking of it, it’s all so irrelevant. The way I see it is that we are all on earth for a limited period of time, and so we shouldn’t waste it on complaining about things we know can’t be changed.

I want to stop worrying about where I’ll be in the next ten years, and concentrate on the impact I’m making today…now. I also want to stop conjuring up the image of the perfect person, because I know very well that he doesn’t exist. As days pass by, I am beginning to realize that life is like a rollercoaster ride. Nothing is easy, and almost everything – especially relationships require time, dedication and commitment. These are life lessons that can only be learnt from experience, and I need to place more of my energy into understanding and realizing it.

As I mentioned before, my uncle’s untimely death has forced me to hit the Pause button on my life. I don’t want to occupy myself to the extent that I forget to stop and smell the roses, so to speak. Life has an unusual way of panning out, and I really don’t want to be worried about what should have or could have been. Rather, I want to enjoy life for what it’s offering me today – good health and a loving family!

Have a great month and see you in March!

Anonymous

Dear Anonymous

No, the truth doesn't hurt...and besides, people who don't have the balls to sign off with their real name is a non entity, in my opinion.

...why do you continue logging onto my blog then?

I'm still around...

To say this post is long overdue is definitely an understatement.

First of all, since I’ve been back from university, I’m using a slow internet connection so blogging has become a nightmare!

Nevertheless, I hope everyone had a great festive season and that you’re all back into the swing of things…

And now for the really sad news…

My uncle (dad’s younger brother) passed away while he was on holiday in the Philippines with his wife and daughter. He was involved in a freak accident where a motorcycle hit him while he was waiting for a taxi.

My aunt called us at 3am (South African time) to alert us about the accident, but we didn’t know the severity of it. A few hours later we received another call saying that he was being taken off life support. It all seemed to happen so fast, and writing about it now makes it feel like it happened a long time ago.

Meanwhile, here in SA we carried out the necessary prayers (following Hindu custom).

My aunt Aurora and cousin, Trusha arrived back in the country on Saturday, 13 January 2007 with my uncle’s ashes. From the airport we proceeded to the crematorium to bury my uncle’s mortal remains. It was very emotional and heart-wrenching to see the remains of an adult man in a plastic packet which sealed in a black plastic container.

Today (Thursday) my mum and I took my aunt and cousin to my uncle’s workplace to clear his desk and empty his drawers. There’s still so much to be done – lots of admin.

My internet connection seems to be behaving today, so hopefully I can be more regular with my blogging from now on.

JAAN-E-MANN

What a disappointment....

When I heard that Jaan-e-mann was a sequel to Mujhse Shaadi Karoge, I thought it was going to be a hit. The music seemed above average, and the starcast (Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar & Preity Zinta) seemed to be promising.

To be honest, I didn't even finish the film...I still have to watch the second half of it. The first part was so painful, that I had to put it off and go to bed.

Has anyone watched it? I mean...what was up with Akshay being in the spacecraft? And Salman's weird dream of being at the Filmfare awards? And the worst of all - Anupam Kher as a midget? And then the silly song of Akshay's as he is dancing with dwarves?

Someone save me!

One week to go

Today is the last Saturday I'll be spending in Grahamstown as a university student. The past week has been one of reflection and sadness...especially having to say goodbye to friends, who I may or may not see at our graduation next year in April.

On Wednesday, my friend Sean and I decided visit all the places in Grahamstown that we havn't been to in our four years here. Other places, we decided to visit for the last time as students... We had such a fantastic and fun day. We laughed like little kids and definitely made it a day to remember. Here are some pics on from our 'field trip'!

I've added the rest of the pics to my flickr page.

Botanical Gardens

Old Goal
Once a jail, this place is now used as a backpackers accommodation.
This jail cell would hold 8 prisoners


Albany Museum

South African Library for the Blind

Brail typewriter

Observatory Museum
At the top of the building is a camera obscura, where there's a mirror at the top of the building that reflects a 360 degree view of the town which you can see from inside.


The museum is a replica of a house that would have existed in the 1820's


Sean and me

Chatterbox November '06

Dear Friend: I think you’re great and I like you!

This is the unedited version of my column. The version that was published had to be cut down for space.

I usually get asked, “So where do your column ideas come from?” Most of the time, idea’s pop into my mind at the most random of times, sometimes just before I fall asleep to while I’m eating my breakfast in the mornings.

My idea for this month’s column came to me as I spent an evening with two friends – Himesh and Nikhil. We met at university and because the three of us studied in different faculties, we didn’t see each other as often as I would have liked.

However, it is only since this year that I can honestly say I have gotten to know them. Both from Zimbabwe, Himesh and Nikhil are cousins and although I met them separately, it’s pretty hard to think of one without the other.

They say opposites attract. The words could not ring more true when it comes to these two guys. Himesh studied Pharmacy, Nikhil studied Information Systems and I studied Journalism. So our paths rarely crossed, unless we made a conjoint effort to meet.

Journalism is a field that requires 200% dedication and commitment, so during my years of studying, the majority of my time was spent with my peers. Therefore, the socializing I did was minimal and usually confined to the people I studied with. During my fourth year, I felt bored and un-stimulated. I longed for fresh conversations and challenges. More importantly, I wanted to gain new perspectives on things, and I found it hard to do that being with the same people everyday, all day.

So spending time with these two friends was like a breath of fresh air for me. It was almost as if it was “just what the doctor ordered.”

One day, while reflecting on my life and the people in it, I thought to myself, “Why don’t we tell people that we like them?” Then I thought – perhaps they’d get the wrong idea? Maybe when I say that I “like” them, it will be misinterpreted as me having feelings for them.

But I have some fantastic people in my life that I would like to say, “You know what? I think you’re great and I really like you!” Many of us are used to saying such things in greeting cards, letters, e-mails or SMS’s, but how often do we say it verbally? I would say – almost never. It’s one thing telling our family we love them, but I wish more people told their friends that they liked them. I think it’s so important to make people realize their worth and value – and what better way to do it, than by actually telling them that?

So one evening that I was with these two great guys, I told them that I thought they were really awesome and that I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with them! Much to my relief, they didn’t go running for the hills, thinking I had developed feelings for them overnight! Rather, they accepted the compliment and thanked me for it.

I wish I could mention every single friend of mine in this column and tell them all that I think they are superb. But this month, I have decided to dedicate my column to these two friends who are not only caring and considerate, but are great company to be in. I’m so glad to have met them, and I know that where ever life takes us, we will somehow find a way to keep in touch with each other!