Am typing this from my hotel room in Kigali, wondering how fast time flies, one minute i was wondering should I? shouldnt I? and the next, am here, I remember a few things from the last four weeks,

there was edith and Reinier's wedding




father of the bride, cousin and I doing the family band thing.



then there was the bad business that is writing the farewell email




and now, here I am, In Kigali,

the next f

Ok, so over the last couple of months I have been here and there, well, three places really, The Island (Banda) with Eve, Rukungiri with the family and Rwanda on my own.

All really lovely places.

unfortunately my pictures don't do them justice, but i at least have to try

ok first up, the island





the candle could be from rukungiri, the view from the incomplete building definately is.

I just found this poem after nearly forever,
Our poetry teacher from High school, made us go over it so many times, that it very nearly lost its magic, but now, after all these years, finding it and reading it again, I am once again - captured.

Tarantella
Do you remember an Inn,
Miranda?
Do you remember an Inn?
And the tedding and the spreading
Of the straw for a bedding,
And the fleas that tease in the High Pyrenees,
And the wine that tasted of tar?
And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteers
(Under the vine of the dark verandah)?
Do you remember an Inn, Miranda,
Do you remember an Inn?
And the cheers and the jeers of the young muleteeers
Who hadn't got a penny,
And who weren't paying any,
And the hammer at the doors and the Din?
And the Hip! Hop! Hap!
Of the clap
Of the hands to the twirl and the swirl
Of the girl gone chancing,
Glancing,
Dancing,
Backing and advancing,
Snapping of a clapper to the spin
Out and in --
And the Ting, Tong, Tang, of the Guitar.
Do you remember an Inn,
Miranda?
Do you remember an Inn?

Never more;
Miranda,
Never more.
Only the high peaks hoar:
And Aragon a torrent at the door.
No sound
In the walls of the Halls where falls
The tread
Of the feet of the dead to the ground
No sound:
But the boom
Of the far Waterfall like Doom.

2008 is gone, unbelievable, but not half as interesting am me finally going on leave. yes,after working my ka butt off this past year, am going to take the next two weeks off, and just chill. well, mostly chill.

I will finally have time to complete work on Uganda calling, I also get to spend time on banda Island which has no power or piped water or any other connections to the 21st century, and maybe three days in Rukungiri.

yes, this is going to be good. *fingers crossed)

i suppose i will need to load up on camera batteries and some books. should have a batch of bites and scratches pictures when i get back.

yay, wish me lack (especially with the boat ride)

So, i thought i would do a separate post about my fall, after doing this one but on second thought, am just going to do them together,

THE FALL,

So am teaching web design to a class of 10 students, today was day today, and i had a good feeling about it, since we were beginning to do the real stuff, so anyway, at one point, one of the trainees, asks a question, i go over to their desk, to show them, now, as i am walking away, and this happened really fast, my feet get tumbled in a batch of cables, and the next thing i knew, i was just flying through the air, feet tangled, and wham! on the floor.  true story. and thats all am saying about it,

MY SPECIAL BROWN SESAME BREAD

Both my parents are diabetic and i have been looking for ways to get them nice sugar free, low calorie breakfasts, and thus, - brown sesame bread. i put together this recipe and i totally love it, the, bread came out, finally after 3 hours, of preparation, rising, kneading, rising, seeds, rising, baking, looking rather hideous, but the taste, already has me hooked.

today was the first day of the easysites course, about 3 months ago, my boss asked me if i would like to be the trainer for that course, i said sure no problem, (am still not so sure why i said that) today i walked into that room scared as hell, my palms sweating, my mind completely blanck i couldnt even remember what a website is, but the trainees turned out to be a lively bunch, and am soooo glad, i cant wait for day two of training.

Today i saw my friend Joppe for the last time, tomorrow he and Maleine will leave Kampala for the Netherlands and i don’t know if i will ever see him again, it seems really strange, that  i won’t be seeing him again, that i have to find someone new to go watch weird movies with, that i he won’t be there to tell me that its ok to watch family guy, that he won’t be here to completely mess up my hair after i spent ages getting it in shape, that there will be no one for me to turn to and whisper  ‘I hate gimp’ or ‘adobe rules’ . it seems weird that he will be gone. its seems even more weird that after nearly seven months, i cant find one picture of him on my hard disk

Goodbye Joppe

So Kate from Church came back from her 1 year trip, and her family thought, hmmmm this would be a good time to have a seventies party. (had to wear an afro wig, since, i dont have my afro anymore. still it was great)
And so they did, my camera was in a bad mood but am still going to upload the pictures.

Ok, things you will not know from these pictures,
- they only played music from the 70's - AWESOME.
















and so on and so on, we really had a lovely time, the outfits were to die for,
the food was great, the music.... the music was... amazing to say the least.
It was a great night

so after five years (since 2003) of wearing my hair in an afro, this weekend in a sudden bout of excitement and part sheer lunacy i decided to turn my hair into dread locks, and this was the result.



the locks are still short (they had to make my hair shorter before doing the dreads),
and  I have about six months to decide whether i want them to be permanent.
Am still not sure, should i keep them? or should i go back?

so nearly 2 months ago, i gave up my excerice routine i had actually code named it 'the road to 120'  I gave up that routine, my excuse was I had a new puppy and he was so much work and i had to spend all my after work time with him, ....
WELL I just found a solution, - road work, an early morning 45 minute jogg, I've been testing it the last two weeks and i think its pretty, neat, so am going to keep at it, something good just might come of it. and, its all between 6:30am and 7:30, so i am not having to cut down any hours i would have otherwise spent with Duke, and when he gets older, he gets to be my workout buddy.
I have also decided to start reading up on yoga, am going to learn everything i can. Then i might take some classes.  might.

you never know what i might end up discovering in these ancient scripts

So I started writing here maybe 3 months ago, on and off mostly, and now i realise, i come and write when i have something nice to write, and now i realise that is not really the proper way to keep a journal. today, for instance, am mad, am mad as hell, i could ofcourse sit at my desk and brood, untill it waves over but i dont even have strength for that, i could ofcourse listen to a nice piece of music and wait for it to pacify me, but why should I.

Most days are great, i wake up and am bright and shiny, fix my dog's breakfast, feed him play with him for a while, go to work, have a great day of just working and discovering new worlds, end my day, go back home, hang out with my dog, if am lucky, maybe with another person, do some more work, catch a movie, and go to bed, next day, same cycle. but it doesnt happen like that everyday, somedays, are just.... somedays are just like today,

this being my journal and seeing as there isnt that many people who read it, am going to do some venting.

You know what I hate? ok lemme rephrase, You know what I can't deal with.

I can't, I dont know how to deal with loss, am not good at lossing people.  My very close friend calls me up to tell me he just lost he's father, am in shock, was he sick? what happened? No, HE WAS STRUCK BY LIGHTENING, in northern Uganda, in one of the hottest districts in this country, ofcourse I could kick some soil and scream and ask God why, but I dont, i stopped doing that a while back. Apparently His ways are higher than ours and the question is not why do bad things happen to good people but rather why do good things happen to bad people at all, because we are a lost rest and blah, blah, blah. you know what, I HATE THAT, I hate hearing it.

You know what else i hate
lazy people, bums, people who sit around waiting for life to come walking towards them, preferably on a silver platter, they sit in mindless chatter all day, complaining about who has more than them and why.. you know what, SHUT UP!! get off your ass and work. see if the world will have anything on you.
Am 24 years old, my father happens to presently be the Deputy Commander of Uganda's Airforces, so just about everyone who thinks they know me always imagine, oooo there is daddy's little girl, or they are living on government money, they sit back and 'eat our money' you know why this ticks me off, because from when i was fifteen i have had to work my butt off, to have anything that i have to my name, i did odd jobs, for Lord knows how long. went to uni and i would stand outside halls selling second hand books, printed and sold t-shirts, sat for hours on end, coining stained glass artworks to sell, I dont do that now, i have a regular job, even so, i cant remember the last time i slept for more than 6 hours, cause am trying to make an extra shillings. I have had about 6 jobs, not one of those jobs was got for me by my father. but nooooooooooo, all that doesnt count, its probably because am a westerner.... you know what that is crap! and then those who think know our family, dont know this, that the man that walks around as a Deputy commander today, was at one time a private, in a post Amin Uganda, and i was there to see it, I was there when Tanzanian troops came to our home and beat my father within an inch of his life for some silly mistake he had done, and because he was a private, he took that beating silently, I was there for days, when my mother would send me to the neighbours to ask if they could help us with some extra sugar, if they had some, i was there for the nights we went to bed without food. am still here now, i have seen my father go from rank to rank, i have seen him work late hours, so that he can give his family a better life. I have never had to take handouts from him and he doesnt except me to ask for them and i dont, because am of sound mind, and as long as i have my mind, i will work,

so if people want to sit around and talk, about who is getting it easy, you know what, go ahead! there is no one so ignorant as one who will not learn. Am sick of making excuses for people, am sick of people expecting me to be ashamed of being successful. Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: -so shall poverty come upon a man. (proverbs 6:10-11)

and am sick of complaining about all these things, this is not me,

enough.

Was up in Rukungiri this weekend, longest drive ever for me, must have taken like 8 hours to get there (380 km) but i had a really great time, dont have loads of time to write about it now, probably will later on in the day, but i can say this though, it was beautiful, being there, and just chilling, felt good waking up to the sound of birds and  cows mooing and there was this small river (might have been a stream) close to where we spent the night. all very lovely, what am i doing, i promised to write about this at a later date. for now pictures

me, and my workmates in the traditional dress. shiny


batch of us closing in around the bride and dude (that would be jan)
 the really shiny one is patience the pride, the tall one is Jan the groom



the cake cutting or minutes before the..



Jan doing his dance, not sure what its called yet

it seems that over the last few days of my life, i have been losing hold of my life, mostly because of my puppy duke, who is completely adorable, but he is also a lot of work, he came home exactly two weeks ago an in that time, i haven gone to the gym, i haven't done any artwork to speak off, i haven't even posted anything to my journal or read any of my friends' posts, i usually end the day feeling worn out, and its not that i regret having him, i don't but my goodness, he is quite the buzy fella, what with chewing and hiding shoes, then trying to keep him and the cat apart, then trying to do his obedience lessons with him, and then he does love to play , and i mean  he loves to play A LOT!, I feel like a zombie,

I  i love him but i miss my gym days, my instructor must think i gave up on my fitness plan (and thank goodness i haven't gained any weight since , but i haven't lost any either) but i didnt give up, i actually found some great work out DVDs,  i think am going to start on those- soon, not today but soon (I hope) I miss being able to come home from work flop into bed and watch movies for the rest of the evening, i miss having quiet time, I miss getting out of bed at 10 on saturday, knowing that the only thing i had to do was go to choir practise at 11 and then gym at 5

and a picture of Duke, on the carpet in my room playing with one of my old salamandas :)

first glimpse, and am already in love.

So, here's the thing, over the last few years, i have managed to keep finding and losing this quote, am going to put it here, that way i know that it will always be here and i can always find it when i need.

The kingdom of Uganda is a fairy-tale.
You climb up a railway instead of a beanstalk,
and at the end there is a wonderful new world.
The scenery is different,
the vegetation is different,
the climate is different,
and, most of all, the people are different from anything elsewhere to be seen in the whole range of Africa […]

Under a dynastic King,
with a Parliament,
and a powerful feudal system,
an amiable, clothed, polite, and intelligent race dwell together
in a an organised monarchy upon the rich domain between the Victoria and Albert Lakes […]

there is a Court,
there are Regiments and Ministers and nobles,
there is a regular system of native laws and tribunals;
there is discipline,
there is industry,
there is culture,
here is peace.

 In fact, I ask myself whether there is any other spot in the whole earth where dreams and hopes of the negrophile, so often mocked by results and stubborn facts, have ever attained such a happy realisation. …What message do I bring back?… 'Concentrate on Uganda'.

For magnificence, for variety of form and color, for profusion of brilliant life -- bird, insect, reptile, beast -- for vast scale -- Uganda is truly the pearl of Africa.

~Winston Churchill, (My African Journey, 1907)

This i think is week three of my diet (i dont know if i can call it a diet, i think its mostly a fitness plan) or is it four, not sure, I don't remember, yesterday was my best day ever, since my discovery of the daily plate (www.thedailyplate.com) which i discovered from Diet Girl. The cool thing about the dailyplate, is you know with your regular activities, how many calories your body needs per day, so, as you pick out your food, you know just how much you need. yesterday i stuck to it and it was sooo worth it. and i went to the gym after work ( which by the way is getting really crowded these days, its like the whole city suddenly decided they wanted to live an extra five years. Which is really cool though i kind of miss the days when there were like only 7 people working out in the gym and the instructors could go from person to person, helping out or pushing you to do another set when he just told you that was the last one. I miss that.)

But what i really miss are pringles, and digestives, and cookies and cake, I had guests on saturday, and i baked carrot cake for them but here's the thing, they ate like 2 cup cakes between them and there was all this cake left and by sunday evening it was all gone, i ate it, well not all by myself, but i ate lots of cake. the week before that i made cookies and i was eating like 4 cookies an hour, so i did what i had to do, put them in a container and  gave them all away to my friend who works like 3 minutes from where i live and she looooves cookies. it was the only thing i could do.

I have a sweet tooth, that is my confession, i mean even before i started on this fitness plan, i didnt mind not havin dinner or lunch even, i could have swapped any meal for pringles and digestive biscuits. cant i really still have these, i mean if i can still go to the gym and burn it off, cant i keep having them.

Why am i posting in the middle of the day when i could be writing code for the new DARC GROUP website? why that's easy, you see i just made another great discovery, my pastor (pastor Brian, Calvary Chapel Kampala) keeps going on about how our Jerusalem is where we are. you know how people are always going on about reaching the nations and of course they think of a far away place in Africa, or Asia or south america, because apparently that's where the poor and suffering are. Which is mostly true but what if you are already in that Place, I come from Africa, and not just any place in Africa but Uganda, which is regarded as a third world country. This is my Jerusalem, this is where i have to start, here, at home, and i want to help, because God has blessed me abundantly.

Anyway, today i found Uganda Calling, http://community.livejournal.com/ugandacalling/ ; and its seems like a nice place to be, am joining, if they will have me.

Went to the gym friday after work, even though i kept trying to put it off, thinking i could do it on saturday instead, but am sooooo glad i went, because saturday came and i was really busy, i had guests coming over and i thought i would bake for them, which i did saturday morning, then i had to dash off to choir at around midday, my guests were supposed to be home at around 3:30pm, so the instant we we done at practise i was back home with them. We had a great time. My friend Jan from the office is getting married to Patience who untill our saturday meeting was known to me only through stories, and now it turns out she is my distant cousin. Am excited about their upcoming introduction and giveaway ceremony in true KiKiga culture. or by the way, Jan is Dutch, he has been living here in Uganda for  the last two years, Patience is from here and she is a sweet girl. i hope it goes well.

i dont remember what happened the rest of saturday, oh yes, i watched part of Horton and part of stewie, the untold story before my father came home and made me play secretary, so i spent the rest of the evening typing and printing letters. that is untill power went out.

Sunday is what was really cool. Was at church all morning with the choir, and it was really great, we are starting in the book of Hebrews and am excited. I also got a new bible so i really had a fun time. left church, came home and had a nice nap. watch cartoons and how i met your mother season two the rest of the evening. now that for me was a great weekend

I also found the guy who is going to build my kennel for me,
am still looking for a name for my new puppy.
it should be arriving this weekend, am excited.

now, i have to get back to work, and maybe find my self a new friend today.

later

Ok, what it really is, is 6:15 and am still in office that is really unacceptable, what do i think am doing, spent the biggest part of the afternoon reading people journals because i think that is a fun thing to do. and then everybody seemed to dissappear i feel like i have spent the last 3 hours alone in the world, i dont know if other people on the outside are still alive, anyways am leaving for the gym in a few minutes, i will look around just to be sure.

this has been a good week, i mean, really.
dont think i will be online all weekend, that means i will have loads to write about. my crush hasnt called yet to ask me to a date. so am .... waiting. hahahha, am not going to let that go unless it turns out that he really doesnt see me.

anyway, am off to the gym.
doei

its Friday!!!!
end of another long and yet really great week. and something good has already happened, I have discovered the daily Plate and registered and starting with today's lunch and already using it.
its great, and their calorie calculator is really a life saver, coming from a country where the calorie content is not always marked on food packaging, now i have gym and these guys to see me through my resolution.
things are looking up.