O, I know I want to..

I discovered that some things don't matter...

You might have made this discovery a long time ago...and I knew it to be true (for certain things)

It doesn't change who I am, in fact, it doesn't really change anything;
...except that I wanted one, I could get one and I got one...

...an eyebrow piercing...

I wanted one since Gr 11 (roughly age 17)...I thought it was just a rebellious phase (and I could in anyway not get one because of school)

4 years later...I still wanted one (of course it didn't consume my every thought)...it wasn't just a phase...so I got one! 

In a couple of years...who knows...I might not like or want it anymore...(I have a tendency to analyse things ever so slightly...), but that's okay...I'll just remove it. The corporate world probably (P=0.99999...depending on the industry) won't approve, and by then I'll have had my fun and it'll be more okay to move on and to let go. 

Because I define it;  it doesn't define me.

...and a little hobbit skipped through Hobbiton...

Have I mentioned that I'm an avid Lord of the Rings fan??

You missed it??

O...not to fret!

On Tuesday, 28 December 2010...I (among others) took Gandalf (here not referring to the wizard) for our 2 hour tour of Hobbiton, just slightly outside Matamata on the Alexander Farm;  while "the other four" waited for me in the car...it being a public holiday in a small town at about 5 in the afternoon, there isn't much to do, especially when it is cold and wet...but thank you guys, thank you so so very much!

I signed a non-disclosure agreement...dum dum dum...do you'll have to go to: http://www.hobbitontours.com/default.aspx to see some pictures and get some details since my lips (have to be) sealed...

"All" I can say is: "It is absolutely AMAZING!", I was completely awed, it is just so real...it is real...if you imagined miniature sets on tables with fancy cameras...you are wrong!

I'm 2cm "too tall" to officially be able to "be" a hobbit...

There and back again...and then a little (2cm too tall) hobbit skipped through Hobbiton...

Skydiving

I read Elmarie's entry and thought: "There's a mistake, I'm sure we only went skydiving the beginning of this year" (within the first few days);  should have known not to doubt her (memory)...especially after her facebook message nearly giving the dates for everything we did for an entire month!

It started out as a frustrating Sunday evening...too many things we wanted (and needed) to do and not enough days to do it.

Ever been in a predicament like this? And this wasn't even assignments or studying...this was all fun! Where to fit everything in?

Weather plays an important part in skydiving...yes, the views, but also turbulence, wind currents, among others that might make your life more interesting that you really want it (on the other hand....Elmarie? you'd prefer that right?)

Elmarie went skydiving for her birthday...

She went as Luigi...

And this time...

She went as The Princess...
All those hours of Wii are paying off...even in skydiving you are coming through as a Mario Bros. fanatic

What colour did I choose...?
It wasn't really a choice, more an extension of being...you see, my blood is pink:

 "My Alles vir Altyd vir Magrietjie!" (My All for Always for Magrietjie)

...Magrietjie is my residence at university - just in case you are confused...

Wian (my brother) wore the yellow jumpsuit...we figured it can go as the yellow mushroom from Mario Bros...don't you think? Especially with the little hat (helmet replacements)...

Where was I...?

O, yes - the weather...Tuesday was a rainy, dreary day (the lady told us that it would be and that we can't go skydive on the Tuesday...) But that Wednesday, 29 December 2010 would be D-Day (not the WWII one, just the one where we would jump out of a plane from 10 000 feet...)

Our chauffeur (thanks Mabs!) stopped at Starbucks and off we were...driving...driving...all the way into Matamata (a town)...with no airfield....the airfield was apparently "just outside" Matamata...gee, thanks Mr GPS and Madam Website, now we have to worry if we were going to miss our jump (it was a really weird feeling)...mostly mush...excited-scared, scared-excited, annoyed (couldn't there have been this huge arrow with lights pointing to where we needed to be...like they have in the cartoons!?), paranoid that it was all going to be in vain (the driving, the excitement, the nervousness, the facebook status updates about jumping out of planes...) - also a good thing that I was in a car with people who have impeccable manners...they phoned to say we were late...(and can't find the place...etc ect...)

Did I mention that we went for a tandem skydive? not a solo one...
It helps, no training...and somebody gets to pull the straps if you can't find it/loose track of time/forget/loose consciousness (chuckle), that type of scenario...AND I still get to jump out of a plane at 10 000 feet!

O, and did I mention you then have a scenery guide (since you are only going up, they can't really be tour guides)...we could see sooooo much! Mount Ruapehu (with snow), Mout Ngaurahoe (aka Mount Doom!), Lake Rotorua...that’s on the plane ride up, on the freefall, I was trying to see everything…but at 200km/h or 9.81m/s², things do tend to look a bit different.

Apart from one solo jumper, I jumped out of the plane first…girl’s choice…I must say, there are days when I absolutely adore being a girl...

Skydiving in Retrospect:

I did sleep well the night before, I was slightly nervous and woke up before I "normally" would (it is, however, debatable if that is due to my alarm clock or nervousness)...
My hands were sweaty and cold (nervousness) or perhaps let's be positive: excitement?

And then, just calm, I didn't feel giddy, my heart wasn't racing, I wasn't particularly excited, I just felt freakishly calm...

We got into the plane...as per usual (I'm sure) the instructors ask you how you feel...and he assured me that my heart will be racing by the time the flap is opened and I can feel and hear wind blowing past the airplane...then shifting over and dangling my feet outside the plane...

I couldn't feel my heart race...and I couldn't hear it racing or pounding (a pounding heart would in anyway be no competition to the airplane's engine and the wind)

We took a photo, my instructor counted and we jumped/fell (whichever sounds more adventurous...) and I didn't FEEL anything...I was waiting for the adrenaline (from fear, from ecstasy)...all I could feel was the wind blowing up my nose and thinking that it feels the same as when you go swimming in the ocean and your sinuses get completely flushed by a wave - except here there is no water (another debatable point), or at least not water en masse.

I was trying to find the views I had just seen in the plane and realized that I had lost my entire sense of direction.
I know my reaction-time isn't what it is, or what it should be...considering the fact that I'm quite sure that my instructor had to pull the cord that deploys the parachute...since I couldn't find it.

Flying with the parachute...is awesome...it's quiet, you can have a conversation...time goes by slower per meter than during freefall (for obvious reasons: you're falling slower...wind resistance)
And nobody sustained any broken bones during landing (which is always a bonus...a trip to the hospital wasn't on the schedule)

When I got to the ground I would so have geared up again and go do it again! Although I felt completely and utterly drained...perhaps there was some adrenaline involved...(or disappointment)

Will I ever go skydiving again? YES, so definitely YES...! (I will just ask if I can get goggles of some sort that can cover my nose...)  

But the experience bothered me...the fact that I didn't FEEL anything, I felt somewhat zombie-like, somewhat numb...as if I could construct a barrier and keep myself separate and only hype myself to FEEL more, but that "feels" so fake...so rehearsed.

I mentioned it to my wonderful friend, Imke, and I'm glad I did, thankful I did.

I'm me, and I'm more than okay with that.

Slightly Insane but Perfectly Understandable

A mind is a wonderful thing. The way it works is incomprehensible to most of us.
Capable of analysing a word and immediately translating it into what it means to you, as a person.
Your mind associates every word with a feeling; chocolate, rain, sunshine, alcohol, cars. The feelings associated with these words are usually determined by your life experiences.
For example someone who dislikes fitness will associate the word ‘exercise’ with a negative feeling, whereas someone who enjoys fitness will associate the word with a positive feeling.
I am not sure when, but at some point in time, my mind decided that the word ‘normal’ was under no circumstances associated with a positive feeling. It is instantly translated into BORING.

In defence of what I am about to say; I believe it is because of this, that I am not so ‘normal’.



Something that you should know, is that I am a Class A adrenalin junkie. There is something about the combination of fear and excitement that makes me feel.. Alive.
The split second of uncertainty, like jumping out of a plane, and knowing there IS a possibility that the parachute wont actually open this time, being metres up in the air on a steel pole and attempting to flip backwards while catching the back of your knee on the pole - thus saving you from the fall. I don’t expect you to understand why I love jumping out of planes or hanging from poles, how could you? Unless, you, yourself have experienced it. We all have an obsession, pure enjoyment from something that isn’t necessarily explainable. I wish for you to think about your unexplainable obsession and to therefore understand my urge to fulfil mine - adrenalin.

I have been in a few car accidents now; perhaps more than average for someone of my age. Though, in my defence; they were not all my fault, nor were I the driver for all of them.
After the adrenalin, the fear, the impact, the shattering glass and the rush of energy, I can’t help but feel the need for a replay button. No accident is the same; the impact is always different. And although I understand it is not the healthiest adrenalin, I do still think, that if safety tests were still done the old fashioned way (where a person drives the car into a brick wall) I would very much want that job.

Maybe I am slightly insane, but there is a moment, right before the impact, where you realise that you have NO control over what is going to happen next.
So even though the things I enjoy may be classed as slightly insane, worrying about dying is a sign that you want to live, right?

When we were in Waiheke during new years, we stopped at the dirt track to watch what the races. The very last event was the ‘Demolition Derby.’

If you are unaware of what a Demolition Derby is, please see the link below;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demolition_derby

At that moment, I realised that this would be my new ‘thing’ for 2011. I couldn’t help but to imagine the feel and sound of each impact! My competitive nature would definitely add to the intenseness of the adrenalin rush. Hmm!!!

Having been skydiving more than once in 2010 (Estie can elaborate on this) I felt that this year should bring a new adrenalin rush and what better way than to race around a wet dirt track while deliberately aiming for other cars.

Bring on 2011, the smell of petrol, the impact, the noise, the spinning wheels..
Let’s lose control!

Tongariro Alpine Crossing

What is it that when someone says that you can't do something that it makes you more determined and more resolute to do it anyway...

There are two things you need to know:

1) I love Lord of the Rings (I don't think that I am using the word love here lightly, however, upon close consideration I do think that a better word choice would be obsessed)...I am obsessed with Lord of the Rings...sure, I don't claim to be THE biggest fan. I've read the books once (including The Hobbit), watched the movies twice (one time being the extended edition :-) and busy watching it again, and planning a marathon in the near future. And did I mention six hours of special features?!

2) I don't think I've ever walked 19.4 km (regardless of the conditions)

My aunt was, I think, quite aware of number 2) and probably having my best interest tried to dissuade me from doing it; the walk/hike was mainly going to consist of black rocks (yay...MORDOR!!) and suffering (I suppose I could relate...Frodo and Sam in Mordor on their way to Mount Doom)

I was soooo going!!

And I wasn't really planning on surviving

We had to catch the bus, quite early, as this is roughly an eight hour hike...it was cloudy...not a problem for me, I wasn't going for the views in anyway (it was only going to be black rocks, right?!)...wait, I was doing this...why?precisely....?

 I was disappointed...there were fauna and flora AND other type of geological objects to be found...not just the black rocks I was expecting.

...then the inclination started...

I was motivating myself by saying that I wasn't planning on surviving in anyway.

I was so nauseous I wanted to puke...so this is what self-inflicted sickness felt like...not good.  I now know that I hope that I will never have the ambition or even the thought of the ambition to climb Mount Everest! 

Little steps, little baby steps...one stair at a time...breathe breathe... 

At least the majority of the inclination consisted of black rocks...MORDOR...it helped...at least nobody was going to asked me if I appreciated the view...(but I did! I wanted it to be black rocks, dark clouds and Mount Ngauruhoe looking all red and evil like Mount Doom is supposed to...)

I made it!! (well we all did, but my survival was definitely the most sketchy)...to the Red Crater...(the topmost part of the official trail)

 It was all downhill from there...
I could finally eat my lunch (feeling nauseous while exercising is not exactly a good motivator for eating)...needless to say I felt better...it might have been the food...or it might have been the fact that we were going, I don't know:  downhill...and I was feeling ever so slightly less over exerted...chuckle (should so have started jogging - like I wanted to - before going on holiday)

Oee, and next came the Emerald Lakes...really beautiful (smelled a bit of sulphur...probably another sign of Mordor, or just geo-thermal activity...who knows?)

We walked on...saw many different kind of landscapes;  hills, crinkly roads, mountains, mist, woods, even streams with water as cold as ice.

Why did I walk the Tongariro Alpine Crossing?

So that I can say I did it? ...perhaps...
Because someone said I couldn't?...perhaps...
Because it has to do with Lord of the Rings?...perhaps...

Perhaps before hand, but afterwards, yes I don't want to do it again...

But something changes, doesn't it? When you do something that you think you didn't even plan on surviving?  I can undoubtedly analyse it and come up with an explanation; but I won't...I just know that the person that took the first step and the person that went to bed that night wasn't exactly the same anymore...

And these "not exactlys" add up...

Ode to 'The Lost Ones'

As it turns out you are not suppose to continuously switch your memory card between your phone and your camera...it will result in...

Epic Fail

and

Lost Photos!

There is now no physical (digital) proof that I was at any of these places and the fun we had...is fortunately more than a figment of my imagination. Thank goodness for the blog! I now "have to" write about it and relive and screen through the memories in my head.

I want to formally thank Mabelle Teh ;-) who spent countless, frustrating hours trying to recover my photos (and videos) on my seriously messed up memory card...
Here's to the ones you did find...!

Thanks Mabs!

Catching up with the holiday madness..

How the Grinch TRIED to steal Christmas

The few days before Christmas were spent cleaning and dusting.
Trying to prepare the house for the 20 people; coming over for Christmas lunch.
There was a Christmas tree, with the presents waiting underneath.
The weeds in the garden had been trimmed.
And the pool was nearly clean.
It was looking like everything was finally coming together.
Like the weeks of stressing and planning had paid off.
Mesmerized by the lights on Christmas Eve, it had felt like nothing could possibly go
wrong…

Oh, boy was I mistaken! 

A few hours till Christmas and the toilet won’t flush!
The water tank is… full?
The water pump, however… has decided that this would be the time to stop pumping. 

After hours of smacking the pipes, turning switches on and then off, brain storming, more smacking, testing all the taps and double checking the water tanks, we went to bed, with our heads down, our cheer destroyed and minds filled with disbelief.
We went to sleep with our fingers crossed.

And in the morning, as the sun was rising, it brought with it some Christmas spirit and happy cheer.
As guests were arriving they brought with them, the usual foods, drinks and deserts. Though one thing different, was the bottles of water that came this year.
We had such a great day. Between the smiles and the laughter the lack of water was easily forgotten. The food and the drinks, the happiness all around.

This made me think, of something we are taught when we are young, something so simple, yet something so easily forgotten. The Grinch isn’t necessarily an angry green monster who hates Christmas, sometimes it symbolizes something as simple as.. water.

And he HADN'T stopped Christmas from coming! IT CAME!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling:
How could it be so?
It came without ribbons! It came without tags!It came without packages boxes, or bags!
And he puzzled and puzzed, till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!

"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.
Maybe Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more."