Monday Ramble: Handbags and Brownie Points

It was my birthday recently. And it was on a Sunday two weeks ago that my darling husband phoned me from the mall and asked if I would like to come and choose my birthday present. Long story short, he had been handbag-shopping for me, and wanted to make sure that I liked what I got. (+brownie points for handbag, +brownie points for handbag-shopping, +brownie points for having the sense to know what this girl would want for her birthday) 


So off I went, only to find that hubby had not just been handbag-shopping, but had been shopping at stores that only sold branded handbags... Diesel, Guess, Gucci, Louis Vutton.... Hubby was going to buy me a quality bag, and he meant business about it! After an hour of looking at all the possibilities (+brownie points for an hour of patient shopping), we settled on a beautiful Guess handbag which cost enough of a fortune to make me cringe, even though we twisted the salesman's arm into offering a small discount. 

I thought my handbag was just perfect (+brownie points just for the hell of it) and boy, I was thrilled! Imagine my disgust, fellow inhabitants of this planet, when I discovered this past Sunday that the stitching that holds the handbag strap on had come loose, and the whole bag was quite literally hanging on by a thread. After two weeks! Well! *hell-hath-no-fury-face* Off I marched, back to the store from whence the offensive bag came, where I was greeted and treated with the most sincere apologies, and a salesman only too willing to allow me to select another bag.  


And I decided that I have a real problem with that. If you are going to manufacture a product like Guess and then charge someone's arm and leg for it, you better make damn sure that every single product leaving your factory be immaculate and worth that arm and leg. The whole glorious idea behind branded handbags is utterly destroyed for me, and by principle, I refuse to ever own one again. 


So I took a pair of jeans and a T-shirt in place of the bag. (+brownie points for unknowingly giving me two birthday presents instead of one) 


My thanks to the shop Branded, for their beyond-exceptional services, and my thanks to my husband, for being the most thoughtful man on this planet. *love*


Oh, and another ridiculous thing about branded handbags: did you know that they give you a bag to store your bag...? A bag for your bag, well I've never!!

Indulgence Alert: Kutai Raw Chocolat

Today, I had the pleasure of accompanying my parents to the Bryanston Organic Market - which is essentially an 'elite' fleamarket, which sells predominantly organic products. Organically grown food, clothing made from organic materials, toys made from wood, soya candles, art made from natural products, and local crafts and semi-precious stones... It is a collection of extremely interesting people selling extremely cool merchandise.


I first discovered the market a few months ago, and in the middle of my very own Johannesburg, I had a complete culture shock. Without intending to stereo-type, I felt like I had walked through a time-warp, into a land of hippies. Now, please understand, I mean that in the most complimentary of ways - it was the most wonderful experience, and I fell in love with the overall aura of the market. (Listen to me, talking about 'aura' and all...)


It is no surprise then, that I decided to go back there today, and took my parents with for the experience. Now, my sole purpose was to spend some time with my folks, but there was an underlying agenda, of course... chocolate.

At the very heart of the market, one will find a small understated stall that sells organic chocolate. There is something magical about this stall, and I'm not just saying that because I love chocolate so much. Dorileela Kutai, the owner of this budding business, is a beautiful young woman, with doe eyes and a stunning head of gypsy-like dark hair. With a foreign accent, and a charm about her that can not be explained, purchasing her chocolate for the first time made me feel like I had been transported into the movie Chocolat, and was being bewitched by the decadence of real, raw chocolate... if you've watched the movie (which is delightful, by the way) and been to Dori Kutai's store, you would know just how bizarre the similarities are. In fact, I figure if I hang around the market long enough each Saturday, Johnny Depp is bound to show up eventually.


So what is it with raw organic chocolate? The major difference seems to be that it does not contain any sugar / sucrose, gluten or dairy (both of which a lot of people are unknowingly intolerant of). Raw organic chocolate is also cooked differently to regular chocolate. In any case, the end result is an amazing flavour with the added bonus of being healthy.... yes.... healthy chocolate.


Having done some reading up, here are some of reasons why you should get your hands on Kutai Raw Chocolate:

• Cacao beans are the richest source of anti-oxidant on earth! By weight, raw cacao has more antioxidants than red wine, blue berries, acai, pomegranates and gogi berries combined. Raw cacao has 540% more antioxidant power.
• Over 300 compounds of minerals: sulphur (“beauty” mineral, helps build strong nails and hair, promotes healthy and beautiful skin, helps detoxify the liver, and supports healthy functioning of the pancreas), calcium, iron, zinc, copper, potassium, and manganese, Vitamin C, plus some of the B Vitamins. Cocao also appears to have anti-aging and anti-inflammatory properties.
• Rich in magnesium, it’s good for your heart! Cacao seems to be the number one source of magnesium of any food! Magnesium is one of the great alkaline minerals. It helps to support the heart, brain, and digestive system also important for building strong bones.
• Food for your brain- Increasing focus and alertness. Phenylethylamine (PEA) helps promote mental alertness and the ability to concentrate. The PEA in our chocolate can be of help to students taking tests, and to senior citizens who want to retain the mental capacity of a younger person and postpone the onset of dementia.
• Awakens the Love chemical (PEA) found in abundance in cacao.  PEA is the chemical that we produce in our bodies when we fall in love. This is likely one of the main reasons why love and chocolate have such a deep connection.
• Helps with weight loss – Because it has appetite-suppressant properties, cocao is often added to weight loss products to help control hunger.
• Anti-depressant, Cacao brings instant comfort and acts as a mild anti-depressant by increasing our serotonin and endorphin levels. Cacao helps stimulate the production of “pleasure nuerotrasmitters”, the chemicals in your brain that also get released during pleasurable experiences from intimacy to laughter with friends. These pleasure chemicals (serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine) also act as anti-depressants for the mind.
• Natural aphrodisiac – The ancient Mayans used dark chocolate for fertility as well as for hightened pleasure during intimacy . The Aztecs also revered dark chocolate for its powers of erotic stimulation… yum!

(Sourced from: www.completeyoga.co.za/2010/11/raw-chocolate-the-healthy-news)

Of course, at the risk of being too obvious, I must point out that this is nothing like your regular grocery-store chocolate. So, don't expect it to taste the same - it does have a very different taste, and will take you by surprise. It's rich without being creamy, it's dark without being over-powering, and it's sweet without a nasty after-taste. Please, do yourself a favour, Fellow Chocolate-Lovers, and get some. If you can't get to the Bryanston Organic Market, you can order online on the Kutai Raw Chocolate website.

You can also hear from the lovely Dori Kutai herself on YouTube. 

It is only natural that my longest blog yet be all about chocolate :-) Peace Out!

Ramblings of the sick and bored

I just feel like writing something, but I have nothing in particular to say. So I'll write a little something about a few nothings, just to get the feeling off my chest. 


I am home with flu, but lying in my bed facing the window, so that I can see the garden outside. The grass has begun to turn green and already one of our bushes has burst into pink blossoms. I just love Spring!

I've already gone through a full box of tissues - in one day - and so, in the name of being economical, have moved onto a roll of loo paper. Have you ever wondered how they print the flowers and butterflies on loo paper? Is it actually ink? And what's with the people who print puppies on their loo rolls? If you really think about it, it's a bit strange.

I read a whole book this weekend, started it on Saturday morning, and finished it on Sunday night. It's called Nightshade, and it's about werewolves. Oh sorry, "Guardians".... but really, they're just werewolves. Ever since reading the Twilight saga, I have acquired a taste for 'supernatural' type novels, but have yet to find anything in this genre that is not somewhat juvenile. I enjoyed Nightshade, but it lacked a certain substance that Twilight possesses. I know that some fools who have only watched the Twilight movies would try to tell me that Twilight in itself is juvenile. But anyone who has read the books will know what I'm talking about. 


So, having gobbled up Nightshade in a weekend, I'm due to start on my next somewhat-juvenile supernatural novel, Beautiful Darkness, which is a sequel to a book I've already read, called Beautiful Creatures. If I start acting like a teenager, you should all know why. 

I baked bran muffins this weekend. :) Mm. 


I told someone today that they look like the singer Pink. Someone else then made a remark, insinuating that this is not really a compliment... What?! How can you say that??? Pink's personality may be a bit rough around the edges, but she is a beautiful lady. This is a picture of Pink that looks exactly like the person I was talking to...

Pretty right? 
Exactly.


Guess that's all I have to say right now. Best get some rest, so I can get back to the office tomorrow.

Peace out dudes. 

Hidden Tastes, Hugs from Moms and Italians

I was feeling significantly weary yesterday morning, and I wasn't sure what to do with myself. Eventually, I had the urge to just chill out and put on some classical music. Chopin, to be precise. So I reclined on a pillow, hit the 'play' button... And remarkably, within 3 short songs, I was feeling "together". And somewhat cheerful.


Today, I was stuck in traffic, iPod plugged in, which is sometimes the only way to survive the hour-long trip home each day. My iPod consists mostly of heavy rock, punk and a pinch of metal - It's an aggression-release thing, don't ask. Somehow, an opera album has mysteriously found it's way onto my iPod - Andrea Bocelli, to be precise. Again, don't ask. Well, imagine, after 45 minutes of pure rock and roll, my iPod whops out a quirky Italian tune by Mr. Bocelli. And oh my... I felt so much better for it. 


Hrumph... Classical music and Opera... ??


Not something I've been interested in since I was a young girl, so quite a surprise, the effect it had on me. I suppose that having a professional pianist as a mother has given my ear an appreciation for the finer musical talents... and in hindsight, hearing the light-handed tinkles of Chopin yesterday had much the same effect as receiving a hug from my Mom. Just what I needed. 


As far as Andrea Bocelli goes, I only recall wanting to marry him when I was a teenager, so I can't speculate on what the deal is with that. But it was nice. 

Here's to hidden tastes, hugs from Moms and Italians! 

RockaBye

I'm feeling low today. I don't usually like to admit it - I'm one for the philosophy that if you don't have anything positive to say, don't say anything at all. But I need to say it, for my own sanity. 

I like to try keep a smile on my dial and a friendly face for the people around me, but right now I really do want to be morose. I want complaint about how unkind life is to some people that I love. I want to be angry about their pain, and I also want to be angry about some of my own pain. I want to grieve about my shortcomings in life that at times never cease to haunt me. I need to be real today, and be sad about a beggar on the street and a dog dying. 

I'm usually confronted with immense guilt at such feelings, being prompted by some deep-set obligation within me to 'always be happy', otherwise I may seem ungrateful. But I was lying here a moment ago, and it occurred to me that Jesus Himself wasn't always pleasant. He got angry, and charged into the temple with whips and a temper. He got confrontational, and called a group of people a 'brood of vipers'. He was deeply pained at the death of His friend Lazarus, and He cried in anguish in the garden before his crucifixion. 

I find comfort in knowing that the most legendary Man who walked this planet was assaulted with the same emotions that I am. And so, for the first time in I don't know how long, I am going to guiltlessly admit that I am depressed. I have had a heavy heart hanging in my chest for a few weeks, and I find it remarkable that I keep hearing that old song by Shawn Mullins, "Everything is going to be all right".. Maybe that legendary Man is just trying to help me hold my head up with this lovely tune, I don't know.

RockaBye - Shawn Mullins

Tomorrow morning I will get up and put a smile on, and try to be brave. For now though, I hope it's all right that I am as I am. 

Tribute

It's been a rough week, this last week. It feels like every task on my plate is suddenly due, like a bowl full of fruit that all goes ripe at once. And I'm the one playing 'chubby bunny' with it all, trying to stuff it all in before the proverbial poo hits the fan. 


I pulled a few hours over the weekend, and have worked 10-12 hour days. I've been tired and grouchy, emotional, and high on exhaustion. I've been a bitch to some, and have been extra-kind to some others. I've rolled my eyes at the mention of some names. Yep. It's been a rough week. 


And in the past few days, I have encountered... kindness. From someone I haven't paid attention to, I received compassion. From the one I was bitchy too in a moment of weariness, concern for my health. A helping hand from someone as busy and overwhelmed as myself.  A knowing smile from someone across the room, while I roll my eyes at the mention of another name. An encouraging pat on the back from one, a funny story from another, a moment of light-hearted playfulness.


Surely the kindness was there before, and I have just been a bit blind to it...? What NICE people I am surrounded by. I may have had a rough week, but my life is so much more colourful for better knowing the beautiful people around me. 


Blessed, grateful and overtired! 


Peace out!

Titillating Tuesday Tunes: So What Robot

FuNnIeSt music I've ever heard - love it!


Check out my review here.

Rrrrant of the Day: Cartoon Network (Now that’s Ranty!)

This rant is for all the souls out there who mourn the loss of the Real Cartoon Network. When they stopped showing the likes of 'Courage the Cowardly Dog', I was forced to grow up.

They stopped airing ‘Dexter’s Laboratory’, I started to like vegetables as a result. They cut back on ‘Cow and Chicken’ and ‘I am Weasel’, and I started to dress responsibly. Ed, Edd and Eddie became ancient history, and… well, I just became ancient. What is child entertainment without the Powerpuff Girls and their never-ending war against Mmmojo-Jojo? How will children learn, without I R Baboon’s ridiculous logic, and Johnny Bravo’s impeccable stupidity? And what have they done to Garfield, stripping him of any wit that Jim Davis ever gifted him with???

But the ultimate act that murdered my youth was the total discontinuation and abominable abandonment of ‘Sheep in The Big City’. And after only one season. *Hangs head in anguish* Anyone who ever endured more than two episodes of this legendary toon knows only too well what I mean. The puns, the satire, the oxymorons, and the morons themselves… we are lost without them.

Curse you Cartoon Network! You’ve mothballed our childhood, and replaced it with the likes of Ben 10 and Gumball. You only allow us the priviledge of nostalgia when you see fit to point at us and laugh in condescending glee.

In honour of all twenty-something’s, who miss how things used to be, please enjoy what was once the finest of child entertainment. He was allocated a minute at the end of every ‘Sheep in the Big City’ episode, to express his opinion on cuticles, coffee tables, juggling and other mundane objects. Yes, fellow ancients; It’s every Rant ever given by the The Ranting Swede… in one... glorious... video...