Writing It Randomly

Although it feels like this post should be titled 'Part 200'. This whole year (in terms of #hikegoals) was try, fail, try again... Right now, I'm not sure if I'm ever going to be ready for a multi-day hike like the Fish River, but I am sure that I will not stop trying to live a life worth living. For me, that kind of life is one that needs regular refills of love,  healthspo,  and travel. PC: IQuitSugar on IG

Yes, I am one of those terribly annoying people who get a kick out of these silly almost-every-day celebrations, and tomorrow it's  Face Your Fears Day  (2nd Tuesday of October each year). Don't fight it. Shhhh...

It's been 20 years.  I forget just how ridiculous those boy bands were. (And how much we were into them.) Poor Kurt Cobain would have risen from the dead only to die from embarrassment knowing his face graced my bedroom wall at the same time as a Backstreet Boys poster. The horror! A lot has changed for me since the 1990's. Pinks and feminine florals no longer repulse me, my taste in music is now much more inclusive, and I've even quit smoking. The bad taste in my past is something I'm quite comfortable admitting to now, but SMH. Why, oh why, was I ever into this  other  'N Sync guy?

How Can A Step Back Take You Forward? The story of Noah, the Ark, and the Great Flood taught me how. I reread it alongside Wendy Blight's 'Obeying When It Seems Impossible' teaching on Genesis 7. At the end of it, she asks whether there are any seemingly impossible tasks in our lives, and what we can do to take a step closer to accomplishing them. My life so far had nothing as daunting as Noah's instructions from God, but I recalled advice my father once gave me. He said that I need to surrender control once I've asked/prayed for help. You see, my dad jokingly told everyone that my very first words were "Ek wil self" ('I want to do it myself'). Although this paints a clear picture of me as a toddler, I have since learnt that it is important to ask for help. The only part of this whole thing that I haven't mastered yet, is to allow enough time and opportunity for others to help me after I've asked them to. Rainbows are a sign tha...

Most of us who struggle with our weight know exactly what to do. I have all the resources I need to get my body on track to reach those #hikegoals I set for myself  last year . Instead, I've crawled back into the old habit of damaging this body the good Lord gave me. I've fallen off the #healthspo wagon and can't get up. How can someone who's such a hard worker be so pathetic at nurturing relationships and living life? My Boot Camp participation wasn't what it could've been during the second round. Social fun feels like a myth. Mornings, breakfasts, and meals in general, have gone to hell in a handbasket. Tomorrow is the 1st day of quitting sugar AGAIN. I'm shitting bricks! Are there others out there trying and failing like this over and over and over? "I am made for more than a vicious cycle of eating, gaining, stressing..." - Lysa TerKeurst I'm still hanging onto the straps, but I don't know how to make my arms pull me up and o...

More importantly: What is a Floppotron?

I surprised everyone in the kitchen this week. This revelation might seem trivial to you, but it's almost unheard of in my Kitchen Catastrophe world, and I'm super proud of how the meal turned out. Every Tuesday Night is Girls Night, and this week was my turn to cook. In keeping with my  #healthspo journey  goals, I scoured recipe books (and Pinterest, of course!) to find something suitably low in carbs. At the same time, I knew we had some tomatoes and baby spinach in the fridge that was hanging on to the far edge of freshness (you know - that last day before mould sets in), so I had to come up with something to include those because I hate wasting food. Here's what I made (and it was delicious): Prawn, Spinach & Tomato Bake Ingredients : 200g cherry / small vine tomatoes (you can use more, but might just have to increase seasoning) olive oil, for drizzling PnP pizza & pasta seasoning mix, to taste^ 1 tbsp chermoula paste 1 squirt lemon jui...

Apparently, the solution to E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G. Now, fight the urge to hurt me for being so corny and go build a bridge instead. Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Week is here! What do you have planned? Do you even celebrate it? We've never been really big on it. We'll give each other a little something, I guess, but for the most part, it's just another day. (Perhaps we would've been bigger fans if we received Valentine's gifts in high school. I wouldn't know.) Declaring your love whenever you feel it is a way better idea than hoarding it for one day a year, but I am a sucker for the silly celebrations, so to start our own tradition, we'll be doing something different for Valentine's Day. We're getting tested for HIV! I know that seems odd, but did you know that - even if you only have one sexual partner, you can contract the disease by accident ? And if you do, but never get tested, you can infect the love of your life without even knowing about it, becoming part of the vicious cycle? When you know your status (and check it regularly) it is less stressful & kind to others. ...

Boot Camp Weeks 11 - 15 [1 January - 4 February 2018] The Numbers : Day 14 = weighed in for Boot Camp registration and another 0.6kg down.                    ≈4.1kg ↓ so far Day 15 =  Boot Camp  starts Day 28 = completed my 2nd 7.5 km hike Additional Notes/Comments : A great opportunity fell into my lap - a free 4 week fitness boot camp just became available via Facebook. I had some residual aches & pains that I first had to get checked out, but as soon as the GP gave me the all clear, I tackled my first ever body boot camp. My diet has gone to hell, so I've been too scared to weigh in as well. Trying to muster up my courage, because I'm expecting to have gained all of the weight I lost over Nov & Dec 2017... *Disclaimer: I am not a health/medical professional. This lifestyle plan was developed to suit me personally (I suffer from PCOS & insulin resistance and I'm on...

And, having listened to the entire song, I think that light sometimes feel like oncoming traffic. The Smiths - weird, sad and beautiful.

Facing your circumstances (and yourself) head-on takes courage, but when courage is required, it doesn't mean that you should fear what's ahead. See it as a sign that whatever lies in front of you is filled with  possibility . Source: Facebook

New Zeal(and) I know. I know. This post is ridiculously late. Blame it on the super relaxedness I found at the bottom of the Hobbit Hole. For over a week I had no idea what date or day of the week it was. It was fantastic! The only days I managed to keep track of were my birthday, and Christmas. Obviously. Admittedly we feasted full on. Wining, dining and reclining at leisure. My saving grace was the fact that I already had a pretty stable #healthspo foundation in place before going on holiday and that we were pretty active together (on average, we got up, got out and did something every second day or so). Weeks 7 - 10 [4 - 31 December 2017] The Numbers : Day 4 = weighed in before Christmas @ another 1.7kg down but then gained back 1.5kg before New Year's Eve.                    ≈3.5kg ↓ so far Additional Notes/Comments : At least my tardy writing did not spill over into my #hikegoals. With all th...

We're fortunate enough to still have the Cheriffic First Lady of Pop (despite the fact that she's no longer touring), but for a Bowie fix, we rely on recordings. Like this one from 1975: