Birthdays and Bucket Lists

This birthday, instead of making up a wish list of material things that don't matter, I decided to write down my bucket list. Because experiences hold far more value than any shoe/bag/ring or other sparkly things ever can.

On My Bucket List...





* Work at a fashion magazine. It may not be obvious on this blog (hahaha) but writing about fashion is my greatest passion, I'd love to live that dream. Do you remember in the movie 'The Devil Wears Prada', everyone tells Anne Hathaway's character Andy, "A million girls would kill for this job"? Well, I am one of them.

* Volunteer at an animal shelter. I have a love of cats and all things furry, and this is something I've wanted to do for ages. Unfortunately there isn't a shelter near where I live, so starting one here would be even better.

* Take creative classes - anything from art to origami, photography, floral arranging, tap dance (seriously, I've always wanted to try it), cooking and cake decorating. I truly believe that you will never what you like or what you're good at until you try everything!

* Visit the magical city of Prague. It's been my dream destination since I was young, I even started a 'Prague Fund' while I was in school. I want to immerse myself in the glorious historical architecture and bohemian streets of this enchanting city.

* Attend the couture shows at Paris Fashion Week, especially that of Elie Saab. The designer gowns are spellbinding on-screen, but to truly appreciate the exquisite craftsmanship, I would love the opportunity to see them up close. 

* Master another language. I tried French while I was in school...only to find that I would need some sort of nose-and-throat operation in order to properly pronounce the words. So I'm thinking maybe Spanish, as it's one of the world's Top 3 most widely spoken languages.

* Learn to make authentic home-made Italian pasta in Florence or Tuscany. Pasta is my staple diet, so it would only be fitting that I learn to do this.

* Publish my series of children's books. I have yet to find an illustrator for them. I had written the series a while back, I just need to muster up the courage to show them to a publisher.

*Audition for SA Idols. I think this would be a nerve-wrecking, pulse racing but nevertheless exciting once-in-a-lifetime type of experience. I know that I don't have a snowball's chance in the Sahara of making it past the first round. But you never know, I may stand a chance at winning the highly coveted wooden mic award (for the worst singer of the season). 

Aim high, Shoot Low ;)

* Switch lives with Elena in 'The Vampire Diaries'. Okay, so I must admit that this one is on my things-that-will-never-happen-but-a-girl-can-dream-anyway list. I don't even know a thing about acting. But Nina Dobrev has the best job in television series. She gets to play two completely contrasting but magnetic characters - the sweet, lovable Elena and feisty Katherine; and she has the unconditional, eternal, (and literally) undying love of both Damon and Stephan Salvatore. A role made in TV heaven, don't you think?





If you're also celebrating your birthday today or in February, wishing you a wonderful one!

P.S



One of my best friends read my bucket list yesterday and decided to help me out on my last wish. It may not be the real-life Stephan Salvatore...but it's a good start! Thanks Ms Mocha, That's what I call a really great friend :) Most Thoughtful Gift Ever! 

What Not To Wear...Ever

Our All Time Worst Fashion Trends

from The Friendship Files Archive



We all have blindly bought into a bad fashion trend at least once or twice in our lives. Okay, maybe more. But it's good sense and friendly advice that has saved us from repeating these vile style mistakes. While compiling this list, I polled some of my friends, asking them to rate their worst fashion trends of all time. At the top of the list, and not surprisingly, were harem pants. It's interesting to see that what some people consider as their 'worst' fashion trend, others may regard as their 'best'. Here is what made the list:

What is The Worst Fashion Trend Ever?

*Shoulder pads and giant puffy sleeves...Dynasty was cancelled for a reason.

*MC Hammer drop-crotch pants thats sneaked its way back into fashion. Please send them back to a sealed vault in the 80's where they belong.

*Wearing sock with flops. I don't know whether it's only a South African thing, but I see way too many people wearing fuzzy socks with their flip flops and Birkenstocks. Make it Stop!!!

*Crocs, I die every time I see a pair. Your feet may deserve comfort but not the fluorescent, rubbery, Teletubby kind.

*At the age of about 12, I wore leg warmers with stockings and skirts...Yuck! I looked like a clone of my 88 year old granny. Why didn't anyone warn me?

*Wearing every piece of the jewellery you own all at once. You just need to plug yourself into a socket to light up.

*High waisted trousers...I just can't...

*Aladdin or Jasmine or Genie pants, I have no clue what it's called. Taking your fashion cues from a fictional Disney character is a Huge No-No.

*Jelly babies! My friends and I had one in every colour when we were young. I think we were responsible for that ban on plastic.

*Those mocassin shoes that's everywhere again...omg and the glitter one's! Nooo!

*Everything the Spice Girls wore in the 90's was outright trashy. But back then, we all thought those crazy high platform sneakers were so 'cool'.

*I see girls wear strappy mini dresses with furry knee high boots...in 35 degree weather. It's scorching hot outside, people are basically melting in the heat - who knows whats going on with your feet? Gross!

*Remember when everyone was wearing low rise jeans with their Swarovski thong straps showing? It still gives me nightmares.

*Denim dungarees, it's only okay if you work on a farm, someplace no one will ever see you. 

*Cropped tops that show off your belly. Where is the rest of your top? Did it get caught in the dryer?

*My biggest fashion don't is wearing a black bra under a white see-through blouse. So tacky!

*I'm seeing these peep toe boots in stores now that can't decide if it's a boot or a sandal.

*People that are not nerds and not optically challenged that wear nerd glasses. It's like they're directly poking fun at those of us who are 'forced' to wear specs.

*Balloon dresses are horrid. They make everyone look fat, so why wear it? 

*Velvet tracksuits that the glossy posse wear out absolutely everywhere. Worse were the ones written 'Juicy' on the butt. Cringe! Keep your tracksuits at the gym, not the shopping mall.

*Skants or skousers - which is a hybrid of a skirt and trousers. Yes, I owned one but I was young and misinformed.

*Three letters - VPL.

*Wearing your PJ's, slippers or hair rollers out in public. No one wants to know what you wear to bed.

*Mum jeans that sit on the waist line are ridiculous and so old fashioned. But then again, super low jeans that show butt-cracks are also off-putting.

*Ripped jeans - did a dog get to it before you did?

*Wearing oversized clothes is just as bad as wearing clothes that are three sizes too small for you.

*Scrunchies - a fashion fad so bad that we had to learn just how bad it is on an episode of Sex & the City.





Thanks to all my friends for sharing their biggest fashion don'ts with me. What have been some of your all-time worst fashion trends?

The BlackBerry Brigade

Are You A BlackBerry Addict?

I am seriously starting to worry. I am in danger of losing All my friends. They barely speak to me or msg me anymore. They have stopped filling me in on what's going on in their lives. I've even forgotten what most of them look like, as they don't send me any photos via MMS.

All this because I don't own a BlackBerry.

I have been ostracized from this pervasive group of smartphone users, which I have nicknamed, The BlackBerry Brigade. I realise now why this phone was so aptly named CrackBerry, in reference to the highly addictive nature it has amongst users, much like a drug-user's dependency on crack cocaine. People have this communication device permanently attached to them wherever they go. They live, breathe, walk and talk Blackberry.

I bet you know exactly what and who I'm talking about. You've seen them, you may even know them personally. Perhaps, you too are one of them. The BlackBerry Addicts. If you're not too sure whether you're an addict or not, here are a few tell tale signs to help you find out.

Signs That You're A BlackBerry Addict

• You don't go to places that have signs saying "All Cellphones Must be Turned Off". You simply won't compromise your BlackBerry usage.


• You have convinced the majority of your friends and family to get this phone so you can freely communicate with them via BBM. You have lost contact with all those who didn't listen to your ten page speech on the benefits of BlackBerry. (Like me)


• You've learnt how to drive with your knees. Actually, you have forgotten how to drive without texting.


• You've only joined Facebook so you could become a proud member of the BlackBerry South Africa group.


• You have been dragged off a flight (more than once) because you adamantly insisted in sending just one last message while taking off. If you do make it on the flight, once you land, the first thing you do is switch your BB back on and check for updates - before you inform your family you've safely arrived.


• No one knows your phone number. They only know your PIN.


• You send instant messages and emails while getting dressed in the morning. Then when you get to work, you realise that you have two mismatched shoes on.


• You can't remember the last time you actually spoke to someone while looking at them, as your head is permanently down, glued to the screen.


• You send BBM's to the people you live with to exchange important information like: 'Dinner's ready' or 'Going to buy milk' or 'Have you seen my charger'. It's much easier than walking ten steps to the next room and having to actually speak to them.


• Your knees weaken and heart rate increases at the sight of the latest BB model.


• You take your BlackBerry absolutely everywhere you go. Even to the bathroom. You stress that you will miss out on the BB action while you're in the shower. Because of this, you even consider buying a waterproof case for your phone.


• When you wake up in the morning, the first thing you grab is your BlackBerry. Or maybe it's still in your hand from the night before.


• Not only do you type in abbreviated form, you have begun to talk that way too...LOL, OMG, BRB, etc.


• You have BlackBerry ADD when you change your status and profile pic more than 30 times a day.


• When someone says something bad about your BlackBerry, it actually hurts your feelings.


• If you haven't received a BBM, email or update for 10 minutes, you start to panic that the network may be down. So you send yourself an email to make sure your connection is in working order. Oh c'mon, you know you do.


• You're reading this blog post on your....?

Passing Youth

Birthdays may celebrate all the years that have made your life beautiful, but it also indicates that you've grown a year older. Another year signifies that our carefree, idealized youth has passed and we unwillingly have to settle into responsible adulthood. As if trying to cram 20-something candles on a cake wasn't bad enough, there are many other signs out there that prove you're getting old. 

"Age is a question of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter." Satchel Paige 

You Know You're Getting Old When...

• The songs you listened to when you were young are now referred to as 'Classics' on the radio. When did Genie in a Bottle and Britney's One More Time become 'Classics'?


• All your friends have kids old enough to call you Aunt or Uncle. After all, they were taught to speak to their elders with respect.


• Chatting to the above-mentioned kids, you begin all sentences with, "When I was your age..."


• You've not only had to invest in an anti-wrinkle cream, but the entire anti-wrinkle, collagen boosting, skin-tightening, cell renewing, line eliminating product range.


• You have to ask a 13 year old to interpret abbreviations & slang used in emails, IM's and sms's you've received.


• You have no idea who Willow Smith, Justin Bieber, Taylor Momsen or Selena Gomez are. You've heard their names before and just assume that they are part of that Twilight movie or The Jonas Brothers.


• You avoid going to places where the music's too loud and the crowd's too rowdy. In fact, you're appalled by the behaviour of 'Today's Youth', forgetting that 10 years ago, someone was appalled by your behaviour.


• You don't use the newspaper as a floor-mat anymore, you actually read it.


• You don't stay out later than 9pm on a Sunday, any later and you won't be able to wake up early for work the next morning.


• You don't need to show your ID anymore to prove you're over 18. However, you need it to prove that you're still under 35. Ouch.

Present-ly Surprised

February is Birthday Month, and (hopefully) that means that there will be exciting presents in store. There are 3 different types of presents: The gifts we spend the whole year wishing for, the gifts that we get in reality and finally, the gifts that we'd rather 'return to sender'. Still, you have to smile, say thanks and pretend you like it anyway, secretly wondering whether the tag is still on, so that you can return it to the store. I find that the simplest presents are always the best & most thoughtful, but there's no harm in making a Birthday Wish List, right?

This is my Birthday Wish List for 2011

• A weekend getaway to a luxury spa resort


• A Louis Vuitton bag or 2


• A perfectly straight smile worthy of a Colgate advertisement


• The entire charming collection from beauty brand Benefit


• A Ragdoll. It's actually a cat


• A Carrie Bradshaw inspired walk-in closet


• A year's subscription to all local and international fashion magazines


• The new Alfa Romeo Giulietta. Now that's Wishful Thinking.

The Presents I Hope I Don't Receive

• Birthday cards. Besides not being sentimental, have you seen the price tag on some birthday cards? Instead of buying a R50 piece of cardboard, please donate the money to Save the Trees Foundation


• Teddy bears or any stuffed toys. Do I really look 3 years old?


• Anything made from exotic animal hide. I am a serious supporter of Animal Anti-Cruelty campaigns


• Novelty gifts - that means anything from Cardies. Like weird balloons, boxes, badges, ornaments, frames and t-shirts with silly sayings on them.


• Gold & Silver jewellery. Believe or not, I really dislike precious metal jewellery. I may be the only girl in the world who does.


• Anything in polka dots. Serious phobia. Don't laugh


• Crocs - Tractors for your feet. Enough said.


• Flowers. They barely last a week and look best in a garden.

Happy Birthday to everyone also celebrating their birthday in February. 

May it be present-ly surprising!

Love and Marriage

• A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend. A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

• To be happy with a man, you must understand him a lot and love him a little. To be happy with a woman, you must love her a lot & not try to understand her at all.

• Married men live longer than single men, but married men are a lot more willing to die.

• Any married man should forget his mistakes, there's no use in two people remembering the same thing.

• Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed. Women somehow deteriorate during the night.

• A man inserted an 'ad' in the classifieds: 'Wife wanted'. Next day he received a hundred letters. They all said the same thing: 'You can have mine.'

• A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't. A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, and she does.

• A woman has the last word in any argument. Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.

• A man said his credit card was stolen but he decided not to report it because the thief was spending less than his wife did.

• There are two times when a man doesn't understand a woman - before marriage and after marriage.

The World's Weirdest Diets

This past holiday, most of us have had our cake and ate it too. Lots of it. We welcomed the new year with snugger fitting clothes, some extra pounds and an overall rounder appearance. To kickstart the weight loss process, many of us will attempt the dreaded diet. This will probably include you holding your nose as you throw down a bottle of apple cider vinegar, drink cups of strangely scented slimming tea and get hoaxed into buying all sorts of diet pills, which will turn you into a jitterbug and keep you awake for weeks. 

You attempt to only buy fresh fruit and veg when you're at the grocery store, but get sidelined by the smell of freshly baked doughnuts from the bakery. Then you (accidentally on purpose) turn into the snack aisle and with one swish of sugary sweetness, your diet flies out the window and junk food sneaks back into your kitchen cupboard. 

We've always been told that in order to drop the kg's, we have to have a healthy balanced diet, cut out sugar, carbs and anything with taste as well as exercise until our knees give in. There is no quick and easy solution to losing weight. Or, is there? Well, according to some absurd dieting tricks, you can, and fast. But is it actually safe? Crazy diet regimes may work for short term fixes, but in the long run, it can cause your body some serious damage.



Here is a round up of the weirdest diets I have ever heard of:

The Cookie Diet 

Now, don't be fooled into thinking that all-you-can-eat Oreos, Choc-kits and Chips Ahoy is the basis of this diet. Not at all. This diet, created by physician Dr. Siegal, will have you eating 6 hunger control cookies a day, made from a 'secret' amino acid protein blend, combined with prune sweetened oats. Anything that's a 'secret' should not be consumed in my book.

The Raw Food Diet 

Raw foodies believe that cooking food breaks down necessary enzymes and by eating food that's raw, you will have greater energy. On paper, this diet sounds like an extremely healthy one to follow, as raw foods have more nutrients and antioxidants than of food which has been cooked. You will be safe from additives, chemicals and preservatives too. The raw food diet consists mostly of organic fruit and vegetables. But you can have uncooked rice if you want to. Say goodbye to your roast chicken and hello to the carrot sticks. 

The Cabbage Soup Diet 

This classic option entails a diet of cabbage soup - and only cabbage soup, for seven days. All the spice in the world wouldn’t make this leafy green veg more palatable. On the up side, there are no restrictions on quantities, you can eat as much cabbage soup as you want. Aimed at the dim and desperate, this diet claims that you can lose up to 4.5kg in just one week! 

The Baby Food Diet 

The reason babies weigh under 10 kilograms is because all they eat are little jars of low calorie pureed food. That's exactly the amount of food they need. For an 80kg adult to replace their normal meals with baby food is just out right ridiculous. All the bottles of Purity on a supermarket shelf will still not be enough to fill you up. However, this diet is ideal if you're too lazy to chew. Which brings us to... 

The Chewing Diet 

In the early 1900s, Horace Fletcher unveiled a new weight loss technique, under which you had to chew your food 32 times or 100 times a minute, without swallowing it. He theorized that your body would absorb all the nutrients it needed and you would be able to enjoy the taste of food without the risk of weight gain. He must've been the skinniest health food faddist of the Victorian era. There is truth to the fact that chewing your food thoroughly is good for your digestion, but just make sure you swallow it.

The Lemonade Diet 

Also known as the Master Cleanse, this diet is very popular with celebrities. Drink a mixture of water, maple syrup, cayenne pepper and lemon juice for 2 weeks, and you will lose 10kg. No food required for this diet at all, so it will really save on all that time you waste cooking. This is a potentially dangerous way to lose weight and could you really stay sane while guzzling down a sweet spicy sour drink for 12 days in a row? 

The Red Bull Diet 

Another senseless celebrity supported slim down. Try having Red Bull, water and nothing else for 8 months. The results? You will lose 45kg like a young New Zealand mum did, after trying to shed post-pregnancy weight. Consuming up to 14 cans of this energy drink a day will suppress your appetite, but be prepared for the serious health repercussions. Like a heart attack, stomach cramps, anxiety, shaking, nausea, exhaustion...the list goes on. That's why this drink was banned in Norway, Uraguay, France and Denmark. Red Bull gives you wings? Yup, flies you straight to the ER. 

The Ice Cube Diet 

Need a snack? Why not have an ice cube? Not just any ordinary ice cube though, but a block of Hoodia. These ice cubes contain lemon juice mixed with 90% of pure Hoodia, which is a plant extract that is believed to restrain your appetite and cravings. Hoodia was supposedly used by the San living in the Kalahari, to ward off hunger while on hunting trips. It curbs your cravings and it's cooling on a really hot day. At over R500 for a 40 day supply of these frozen cubes, I say just have some for free from your own freezer. 

The Grapefruit Diet 

Do you like grapefruit? Enough to eat it for every meal? Well, on the grapefruit plan, you will…for 12 days. Grapefruit for breakfast, lunch, snacks, supper and dessert.  Sound boring? Absolutely. Will it work? Probably, but only because your daily intake on this diet is around 600 calories or less. However, it should be noted that just as quickly as the weight drops off, your weight will rebound when you begin eating like a normal person again. 

The 5 Bite Diet 

Dr Alwin Lewis's book, “Why Weight Around?” describes a diet that allows you to only eat 5 bites. Per meal. That's it. Talk about portion control. You can have 5 bites at lunch and 5 bites at supper. You can drink stuff too, but only if it has no calories. After 3 days, your body should trick itself into thinking that it's satisfied with bird-sized servings. Try it if you want to look like Victoria Beckham. Actually, I think she eats less than that.

And finally, the most delusional diet in the world is:

The Cotton Ball Diet 

Ever wondered what a cotton ball tastes like? Me neither. Can humans possibly consume them? Apparently so, there are some people (and supermodels) out there who do. They eat these fiber-filled fluffy balls of goodness that makes you feel full, so you won't feel the need to eat real food. There are 2 ways to eat them, dry or soaked in gelatin. Deeelicious! If you live to survive this one, let me know.

All that Diet Talk has made me hungry. Anyone for 5 bites of a Lemony-Grapefruit flavoured cookie with a side of cabbage cotton wool soup? Nope, didn't think so :) 

Snack inspiration...

*Images from Weheartit

Resolutionize

It is that time of year where we complete Chapter 12 of 2010, and begin afresh with 2011, eager to fill the blank pages with rediscovered dreams, new hopes and fervent aspirations. It is also a time when we reflect upon the year that has passed, willing to right the wrongs and change our lives for the better. This is when New Year Resolutions are formed, where people make (sometimes impossible) pledges of self-improvement and commit to accomplish (often unreachable) goals. 

I don't do New Year's Resolutions. Simply because it's pretty hard to stick to. It's no wonder people make the exact same resolutions at the beginning of every single year. January goes as well as planned, you're still motivated in February, March is when you begin to slip, you start to neglect them in April and May is when you wonder why you made such unrealistic resolutions in the first place. You completely forget about it for the rest of year, until December, when you pledge that you will fulfill all those unresolved resolutions that you couldn’t attain within the year. It's a vicious circle. 

These are some of the most popular new year resolutions that people make: 

• Lose Weight and exercise more 


• Quite smoking 


• Get out of debt and save money 


• Find a better job 


• Improve on their education 


• Go away on a long holiday


• Find their soulmate 


• Volunteer to help others 


• Buy a house or move to a better place 


• Become more organised and less stressed 

I bet that 3 or more of these were on your list for 2011. Instead, why don't you try some of these funny new year resolutions that I stumbled upon: 

• I will no longer waste my time reliving the past, instead I will spend it worrying about the future. 
 


• I will not bore my boss with the same excuse for taking leave. I will think up other innovative excuses. 

 


• I will not spend every weekend in my PJ's, lazying in the living room. I will move the TV to my bedroom instead. 


• I will give up chocolates totally. Completely. Honestly...Ok maybe just the white ones. 


• I will stop sending e-mails, BBM's, SMS's and be on the phone at the same time with the same person. 
 


• I will not bribe any more traffic cops, but only because I need the money for petrol. I'll try to drive closer to the speed limit. 


• I will learn to make decisions... 


• I will cut my hair. I will grow my hair. Okay, maybe just a trim? 


• I will stop worrying about things that don't worry about me. 


• I will keep my opinions to myself. Yeah right.

Here are some resolutions that anyone would be tempted to keep: 

• I will aim for the world record for number of hours spent watching TV.


• I will read something other than the newspaper. Like fashion magazines.


• I will chat more over phone. 


• I will get more credit cards and max them out shopping. 


• I will gain 15kg. Putting on weight is much easier and more fun than losing it. 


• I will stop exercising, because it's such a waste of time. 


• I will procrastinate more. Think I'll start sometime next year. 


• I will spend less time at work. 


• I will eat more junk food.


• I will take up a new habit. Maybe smoking, it helps keep tobacco workers employed. 

Wouldn't it be easy to keep these resolutions for more than a week?

Okay, onto the serious stuff...My New Year gift to you is the wise and wonderful words of Everybody's Free to Wear Sunscreen (which I modified slightly). It's a timeless and insightful piece of modern poetry which will alter your view of life in some way or the other. 

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of 2010, 

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas, the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience…I will dispense this advice now. 

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; you will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked…. 

You are not as fat as you imagine. 

Don’t worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday. 

Do one thing everyday that scares you. 

Sing 

Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts, don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours. 

Floss 

Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind…the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself. Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements. 

Remember the compliments you receive, forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how. 

Stretch 

Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t. 

Get plenty of calcium.

Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll have children, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary…What ever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either – your choices are half chance, so are everybody else’s. 

Enjoy your body, use it every way you can…don’t be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own. 

Dance...

Even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room. 

Read the directions, even if you don’t follow them. 

Do not read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly. 

Get to know your parents, you never know when they’ll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future. Understand that friends come and go, but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young. 

Live in Johannesburg once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Cape Town once, but leave before it makes you soft. 

Travel. 

Accept certain inalienable truths; prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do, you’ll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders. Respect your elders. 

Don’t expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out.

Don’t mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40, it will look 85. 

Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth. 

But trust me on the sunscreen… 

Wishing you a very Happy New Year! 

Looking forward to sharing more Frills and Thrills with you in 2011. 

Happy Holidays

The weekend holiday is here, with high spirits and a festive atmosphere all around. 

This is a great time for each of us to spread the happiness by engaging in some good deeds. Your acts of kindness and compassion will add a spot of sunshine to someones day and inspire others to do the same. Don't worry, you don't have to donate your entire xmas bonus to charity, being benevolent doesn't cost a thing. The greatest reward is seeing how your positivity reflects upon others. 

Sprinkle some fairy dust this holiday with these altruistic ideas:

1. Be courteous to other drivers on the road.


2. Instead of being plugged into your phone, laptop or iPod, spend that quality time with family and loved ones. “Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it you can never get it back.” Harvey MacKay


3. Hold the door open for the person behind you, especially if they are carrying packages, bags or babies.


4. Thank people that provide a service to you; waiters, cleaners, cashiers, etc. Remember that they have to work while the rest of us enjoy the public holiday.


5. Offer to housesit for friends or family that are going away on vacation. They will have peace of mind knowing that you're there.


6. Thank your mum or gran for the wonderful meal they prepared. They need to know that they are appreciated.


7. Help someone who is lost and looking for directions.


8. Offer to babysit for friends so that they can have the night off. They will be very grateful.


9. Give out at least 5 compliments per day. Everyone needs some positive reinforcement.


10. Smile, it is the simplest act of kindness. "All the statistics in the world can't measure the warmth of a smile." Chris Hart

Wishing you a lovely long weekend!