It is hot. It has been hot for days and it looks like it will continue to be hot for the next week at least.
Yesterday it was 39 degrees Celsius. It felt like I was back in Africa, a wall of sweltering heat awaiting me outside the shelter of anything shady. Today is going to be the same and tomorrow is going to be hotter.
It is on days like these that I ascend the stairs in frantic haste in order to get to the office. On my wife’s desk lies a small white device covered in buttons; the air conditioner remote control! This is the only space in my house, apart from the bottom of the pool that has the potential to be a life saving oasis.
My kids, however, seem to have more intense afternoon sport than ever. The next few days will see a number of swimming galas and cricket matches. Hours in the heat of the afternoon sun! This, after hours of heat crammed into classrooms. And then there is judo, which is just sublime. A heavy white suite, vigorous exercise, hot house of a hall, and rivers of sweat; the epitome of discomfort! I almost feel sorry for them.
Sleeping has become an exercise in Zen control. As the evening approaches, the dying wind heralds the next full force mosquito invasion. With air as thick as pulp, one slowly leopard crawls to bed, trying desperately to avoid any exertion and the resultant sweat. Now that I am wise, I no longer towel off after my cold water shower. That way the possibility exists that If I am extremely lucky, I will be asleep before the last of the cold water droplets evaporate.
So glad we invested in solar heating, although I cannot remember what we needed all of this super hot water for anymore...
Monday, February 28, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Respect
I got my hot sweaty run all right; and a whole lot more...
As I was on my way out, Matthew asked if he could come too. He loves running around the block with me, and hence impossible to refuse some good father son time. Five hundred meters later, Matthew made his sprint to the finish.
And then I was off.
It was incredibly hot and the South Easter was gale force. With my arms pumping, heart pounding, and legs burning with effort, I charged at a snail’s pace into the teeth of the wind. The thought of a route that avoided it was enticing but the challenge of running headlong into a wall of fury sparked my imagination.
My legs seemed to have a life of their own, they just felt like running. I found myself loping up a particularly steep hill and then into the countryside. Surprisingly there was another runner up ahead. Catching him up, I discovered he was a big chap in his early sixties. We ran side by side for a couple of kilometres, sharing runner trivialities. The running seemed to be effortless yet my time had run out, and I turned for home.
The roaring of the wind in my ears was immediately replaced by music which had till then lost the battle to be heard. The wind pummelled me from behind, lengthening my stride, and the merciless sun solicited rivers of sweat from my tiring body.
The kilometres flew by and I was soon home. Fulfilled and fatigued!
It was only in the shower that the thought struck home. I had run a couple of kilometres with a sixty year old man, a man more than twenty years my senior, and he had effortlessly matched my pace into a gale force wind. He had talked of long runs into the mountains with glee and waxed lyrical about races longer than 160km.
Now that’s worthy of respect! And goes to show that age is never an excuse!
As I was on my way out, Matthew asked if he could come too. He loves running around the block with me, and hence impossible to refuse some good father son time. Five hundred meters later, Matthew made his sprint to the finish.
And then I was off.
It was incredibly hot and the South Easter was gale force. With my arms pumping, heart pounding, and legs burning with effort, I charged at a snail’s pace into the teeth of the wind. The thought of a route that avoided it was enticing but the challenge of running headlong into a wall of fury sparked my imagination.
My legs seemed to have a life of their own, they just felt like running. I found myself loping up a particularly steep hill and then into the countryside. Surprisingly there was another runner up ahead. Catching him up, I discovered he was a big chap in his early sixties. We ran side by side for a couple of kilometres, sharing runner trivialities. The running seemed to be effortless yet my time had run out, and I turned for home.
The roaring of the wind in my ears was immediately replaced by music which had till then lost the battle to be heard. The wind pummelled me from behind, lengthening my stride, and the merciless sun solicited rivers of sweat from my tiring body.
The kilometres flew by and I was soon home. Fulfilled and fatigued!
It was only in the shower that the thought struck home. I had run a couple of kilometres with a sixty year old man, a man more than twenty years my senior, and he had effortlessly matched my pace into a gale force wind. He had talked of long runs into the mountains with glee and waxed lyrical about races longer than 160km.
Now that’s worthy of respect! And goes to show that age is never an excuse!
Monday, February 21, 2011
Taking it easy
I have managed to take an easy day.
I find that working for myself is exhilarating in terms of the freedom it offers me. I get to choose what I want to do, and I get to do that every day. For obvious reasons, I often choose to find work and deliver it, as work is not always around when I need it. When working for yourself, one has to make every moment count!
There are times when I have done everything I can do, and still have some time over. Times like today.
Normally all of this loafing would make me feel thoroughly guilty. Perfectly good time wasted. Surely, I should have been chasing up some new clients or relooking my preparations for work on the go, or even learning some new skills for the future...
But today has been a guilt free day of leisure. My wife and I did milk shakes, a mate and I did lunch, and the whole family will be doing dinner . In between, I have read the Zigzag (a surfing magazine), played with my daughter, and spent some time in Facebook.
It has been wonderful day. A break from the mad world, which has left me relaxed, and ready for more! It has also been a non too subtle reminder that not only it good but essential to take some me time and to forget about the stresses of business.
My only concession to the real world is a very hot and sweaty run in about an hour. And strangely enough I am looking forward to it!
I find that working for myself is exhilarating in terms of the freedom it offers me. I get to choose what I want to do, and I get to do that every day. For obvious reasons, I often choose to find work and deliver it, as work is not always around when I need it. When working for yourself, one has to make every moment count!
There are times when I have done everything I can do, and still have some time over. Times like today.
Normally all of this loafing would make me feel thoroughly guilty. Perfectly good time wasted. Surely, I should have been chasing up some new clients or relooking my preparations for work on the go, or even learning some new skills for the future...
But today has been a guilt free day of leisure. My wife and I did milk shakes, a mate and I did lunch, and the whole family will be doing dinner . In between, I have read the Zigzag (a surfing magazine), played with my daughter, and spent some time in Facebook.
It has been wonderful day. A break from the mad world, which has left me relaxed, and ready for more! It has also been a non too subtle reminder that not only it good but essential to take some me time and to forget about the stresses of business.
My only concession to the real world is a very hot and sweaty run in about an hour. And strangely enough I am looking forward to it!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Kindly suck it up!
Ah Valentine’s Day, what fun it has been...
Romance tossed quickly aside as the prickly issue of parenthood reared its ugly head again. We spent the day in debate, trying to fathom the right way to deal with this issue. A decidedly funny issue, so long as it is not your child involved, otherwise just plain mean and nasty. Not two of my favourite words to describe my family!
This is big enough to teach him an important life lesson. A lesson that will stand him in good stead throughout his metamorphosis into a wonderful man! It means that we need to be clever parents; that we need to think deeply before we act. There are many books and movies that speak to way out events that have made fundamental differences in people’s lives. They are easy to read and watch but creating those events is a whole different story.
Obviously banning the usual stuff like parties, surfing, TV, and computers, or extra chores, or no pocket money, or, dare I say it, a hiding, are not going to have the impact we are seeking. They will make him feel bad for a bit, but will not alter the fundamental issue; other people have thoughts and feelings too.
Our soul searching led us to an idea that seemed to fit on many fronts. His punishment is to achieve ten random acts of kindness, and to write about it all in a diary. It seems a little intense for a 9 year old, but then again his thoughtful Valentines gesture was rather radical. We walk a fine line between associating kindness with punishment, but hope that the diary and our daily discussions will help him to see the light. We also hope that he will begin to understand that small gestures of kindness are highly appreciated and incredibly valuable as opposed to self centeredness.
These discussions have been energising in a sense, real parenting at work. More than that, they have opened a window of deep insight into my wife, an incredible privellage!
And with all of this kindness, we may just rediscover the true meaning of Valentine's Day!
Romance tossed quickly aside as the prickly issue of parenthood reared its ugly head again. We spent the day in debate, trying to fathom the right way to deal with this issue. A decidedly funny issue, so long as it is not your child involved, otherwise just plain mean and nasty. Not two of my favourite words to describe my family!
This is big enough to teach him an important life lesson. A lesson that will stand him in good stead throughout his metamorphosis into a wonderful man! It means that we need to be clever parents; that we need to think deeply before we act. There are many books and movies that speak to way out events that have made fundamental differences in people’s lives. They are easy to read and watch but creating those events is a whole different story.
Obviously banning the usual stuff like parties, surfing, TV, and computers, or extra chores, or no pocket money, or, dare I say it, a hiding, are not going to have the impact we are seeking. They will make him feel bad for a bit, but will not alter the fundamental issue; other people have thoughts and feelings too.
Our soul searching led us to an idea that seemed to fit on many fronts. His punishment is to achieve ten random acts of kindness, and to write about it all in a diary. It seems a little intense for a 9 year old, but then again his thoughtful Valentines gesture was rather radical. We walk a fine line between associating kindness with punishment, but hope that the diary and our daily discussions will help him to see the light. We also hope that he will begin to understand that small gestures of kindness are highly appreciated and incredibly valuable as opposed to self centeredness.
These discussions have been energising in a sense, real parenting at work. More than that, they have opened a window of deep insight into my wife, an incredible privellage!
And with all of this kindness, we may just rediscover the true meaning of Valentine's Day!
Monday, February 14, 2011
And my heart broke
I am flabbergasted!
I found out on the way to school that one of my sons sent a Valentine’s Day card to a girl at school.
Inside, he simply wrote, ‘You suck!’
He thought it no big deal. I suspect when he returns home later this evening, he will find that it is a very big deal indeed! Truth be told, I have no idea how we will be dealing with this issue. There must be a way to introduce a positive outcome, but I am a little stumped right now. At least we have the day to think about it.
I found out on the way to school that one of my sons sent a Valentine’s Day card to a girl at school.
Inside, he simply wrote, ‘You suck!’
He thought it no big deal. I suspect when he returns home later this evening, he will find that it is a very big deal indeed! Truth be told, I have no idea how we will be dealing with this issue. There must be a way to introduce a positive outcome, but I am a little stumped right now. At least we have the day to think about it.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Meetings with Angels
My time lately, has been spent working on an incredibly exciting project; the business plan for a Catholic film agency and television station. Obviously I know heaps about film, internet broadcasting, and social media. More precisely I know almost nothing about those things, but theoretically have a great business understanding.
It took some time for me to get my mind around a way to build a business around something like film. Film is fun but tremendously expensive. Eventually inspiration struck, then weeks sped by as I built the plan, and got everyone else on the project thoroughly excited.
It really was a great plan except for the fact that it required a heap of cash from a number of angel investors in order to make it fly. In itself, not a problem, except a long hard sell! So far, we have been blessed to find money for a trip to the USA, in order to approach some angels. This was a big step forward, hugely exciting, but meant our business case had to be rock solid.
Luckily I had a little inspiration and thought to send the business plan to a venture capitalist friend of mine. Then it took a while for us to hook up for a discussion. Then she blew me away! I guess she sees hundreds of business plans every month for a multitude of wonderful business ideas.
She was not too impressed with my plan. In minutes she had ripped the foundation of its argument to pieces and then she suggested I put it together in another way that was nothing short of brilliant. My head has not stopped spinning!
More weeks have passed and the business plan and financial model have been completely rewritten. They look better than ever; and hopefully angels will be lining up to assist.
I am very interested to see if we will be able to secure some funding. If so, I have no doubt that we will be able to attribute it to the incredible gift of a friend sharing her wisdom. It makes me wonder about the angels we meet every day, all rolled up into people who would never class themselves in that way at all!
I also jokingly suggested that I sign up as an intern in her business, but perhaps there is more truth to that need than I would care to admit!
It took some time for me to get my mind around a way to build a business around something like film. Film is fun but tremendously expensive. Eventually inspiration struck, then weeks sped by as I built the plan, and got everyone else on the project thoroughly excited.
It really was a great plan except for the fact that it required a heap of cash from a number of angel investors in order to make it fly. In itself, not a problem, except a long hard sell! So far, we have been blessed to find money for a trip to the USA, in order to approach some angels. This was a big step forward, hugely exciting, but meant our business case had to be rock solid.
Luckily I had a little inspiration and thought to send the business plan to a venture capitalist friend of mine. Then it took a while for us to hook up for a discussion. Then she blew me away! I guess she sees hundreds of business plans every month for a multitude of wonderful business ideas.
She was not too impressed with my plan. In minutes she had ripped the foundation of its argument to pieces and then she suggested I put it together in another way that was nothing short of brilliant. My head has not stopped spinning!
More weeks have passed and the business plan and financial model have been completely rewritten. They look better than ever; and hopefully angels will be lining up to assist.
I am very interested to see if we will be able to secure some funding. If so, I have no doubt that we will be able to attribute it to the incredible gift of a friend sharing her wisdom. It makes me wonder about the angels we meet every day, all rolled up into people who would never class themselves in that way at all!
I also jokingly suggested that I sign up as an intern in her business, but perhaps there is more truth to that need than I would care to admit!
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Hats and feather boas
There seems to be a rush on turn 40 at the moment. We have 40th birthday parties coming out of our ears, but I am not complaining!
This weekend a good friend of ours did the nasty deed. She managed to borrow someone’s house, with the most magnificent view, and threw her thrash right there. She had asked me to set up a little photography booth where people could select from a wide range of ridiculous hats and feather boas, and then take silly photographs of themselves.
This was a happy party. Not much alcohol drunk at all, yet the place was filled with laughter. Just lots of really good mates connecting on some deep levels. A great experience, and the photographs tell an amazing story!
I now have a late New Year resolution; it is time for me to start collecting some bizarre hats. I just don’t know when I may need to be someone else in a hurry!
This weekend a good friend of ours did the nasty deed. She managed to borrow someone’s house, with the most magnificent view, and threw her thrash right there. She had asked me to set up a little photography booth where people could select from a wide range of ridiculous hats and feather boas, and then take silly photographs of themselves.
The concept provided me with a number of technical challenges, all easy enough to overcome with ones fingers on the dials, but not so when trying to rely on some automatic process. I gave up after five minutes and decided to set up lights and do the deed myself. It was a beautiful evening with lights twinkling prettily in the background.
Party girl started off the process in some ridiculous attire. Now this is where it gets strange. Most people cannot stand being in posed photographs. Yet let them put on a wacky hat and suddenly they transform into these camera happy beings! It smacked eerily of the movie, the Mask! It was heaps of fun being behind the camera as all sorts of creativity unfolded in front of it.
This was a happy party. Not much alcohol drunk at all, yet the place was filled with laughter. Just lots of really good mates connecting on some deep levels. A great experience, and the photographs tell an amazing story!
I now have a late New Year resolution; it is time for me to start collecting some bizarre hats. I just don’t know when I may need to be someone else in a hurry!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Give him some space and time
I had another great chat on night number two with Victor, another good Johannesburg friend of mine. I love going to visit his house as it is filled with children and plenty of action.
We talked about our children and our role as parents. It seems to be a common thread that links many of my conversations. I expressed my concern about failing as a parent. My oldest is only a couple of years away from being a teenager and there are still so many things he just does not get.
Victor made an interesting point; as parents we can only do so much. So long as we are doing as much as possible in our children’s best interests, we are doing the right thing. Then he went on to say something about parents not being the only influence in a child’s life.
Now that really struck home. My father was not at home much whilst I was growing up, and yet I managed to find my way. The reason, apart from my mother’s influence, was that I had some rather awesome substitute mentors. In high school, when I had the greatest propensity to go off the rails, I was instead taken under the wing of two people; the vice head master and the school chaplain. Both took this incredible interest in me, providing wonderful shining examples of how men should be. I can still feel their influence in my life today!
There was also one of my friends that made a huge impact. At the most influential time of my life, I had a friend who would change it for the better in so many ways. It could so easily have turned out differently. Instead this friend helped me break out of my shell and become the ‘me’ I was supposed to be.
Interestingly enough, just that morning, the two of us had spent an hour together running and catching up. 25 years on and we are still important to each other!
It was with a great sense of relief that I thought about my son. I am not alone in helping him to find his way. Of course I must make sure that there are a number of great mentors in his life. People that he would feel comfortable turning to in times of trouble. Those times when parents will just not do!
And then hopefully he will take some responsibility towards making his life really wonderful.
We talked about our children and our role as parents. It seems to be a common thread that links many of my conversations. I expressed my concern about failing as a parent. My oldest is only a couple of years away from being a teenager and there are still so many things he just does not get.
Victor made an interesting point; as parents we can only do so much. So long as we are doing as much as possible in our children’s best interests, we are doing the right thing. Then he went on to say something about parents not being the only influence in a child’s life.
Now that really struck home. My father was not at home much whilst I was growing up, and yet I managed to find my way. The reason, apart from my mother’s influence, was that I had some rather awesome substitute mentors. In high school, when I had the greatest propensity to go off the rails, I was instead taken under the wing of two people; the vice head master and the school chaplain. Both took this incredible interest in me, providing wonderful shining examples of how men should be. I can still feel their influence in my life today!
There was also one of my friends that made a huge impact. At the most influential time of my life, I had a friend who would change it for the better in so many ways. It could so easily have turned out differently. Instead this friend helped me break out of my shell and become the ‘me’ I was supposed to be.
Interestingly enough, just that morning, the two of us had spent an hour together running and catching up. 25 years on and we are still important to each other!
It was with a great sense of relief that I thought about my son. I am not alone in helping him to find his way. Of course I must make sure that there are a number of great mentors in his life. People that he would feel comfortable turning to in times of trouble. Those times when parents will just not do!
And then hopefully he will take some responsibility towards making his life really wonderful.
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