Chasing Noodles

Um, everything. Hair has everything to do with it! "Gorgeous hair is the best revenge" -Ivana Trump "A woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life" - Coco Chanel "Good hair days make me feel like I can rule the world." - unknown (or every female in the world) If you're having a bad hair day, chances are you're going to have a bad day. Same if you're having a good hair day, things just suddenly all into place. It's just how the universe works.  My love/hate relationship with my hair started many years ago. (hate is a strong word, more like not love so much) When I was about 8, I got the unmentionable lice. And instead of combing out the nits like everyone else, my Mom sent me to my Aunt (NOT a hairdresser) to chop all my hair off into a very boyish style. I use the word style very loosely. It was horrendous. A dark time in my life.  The next hair moment that stands out is my confirmation. Finally, my hair was almost m...

What better rule to use for the first one in what feels like 50 years. Hi! Happy New Year and Merry Christmas (for the past 4 years) I have written posts for days, but have been deleting them just as fast. It's amazing what fear can do to you. I became so self-conscious of the judgment I'd get for my lack of writing skills that I simply stopped writing.  Since the last blog post, I've graduated, moved back to Cape Town, got engaged (in Zimbabwe), taught at two different schools, been to Australia to meet my Godchild, got married, went on honeymoon to Canada and Ireland and have settled into my dream job. I have also been battling the lessor spotted (actually probably as common as the house ant but totally underdiagnosed) Hashimoto autoimmune disease, which I am finding incredibly hard to explain to people, but that's a post for a different day. For now, I just want to check in and hopefully, by posting this, I'll be rid of my fears and go back to posting b...

Self-confidence;  a feeling of trust in one’s abilities, qualities and judgement .  Something most women have issues with in everyday life in general. Add cancer into the mix and the concoction can be devastating.   My self-confidence took a huge hit after I was diagnosed with breast  cancer at the age of 29 . It was a whirlwind of doctors’  appointments,  preparations and wig shopping . I started treatment immediately and the reality only began to sink in  after I had completed  my first red devil chemo and  my scalp became  sensitive .  I was going to lose my hair and I was devastated. I had always had “mermaid” hair. It flowed down my back and had always been my crowning jewel. I decided to shave my hair before it started to fall out in chunks, I felt like it made me more in charge of my destiny. My adoring husband shaved his head first and then we started on mine. We first cut it into all sorts of funky styles (ver...

This is the title for an article in the October Fairlady: What cancer means to me. Just let that sink in for a minute.  In the "old" days, we would hear about aunties brothers wife's cousin that had cancer, but now days it's hitting closer and closer to home with most people having someone they know directly or having it yourself.  If you type in "Cancer  Blogs"  uou'll  get  38 100 000 results.   There is even a "Best Cancer Blogs of  2016" site!!  You'll find blogs written by  husbands, parents, wives and children  of cancer  survivors and hundreds of  blogs with  with the latest on news and clinical research on the causes, treatments, and path to a potential cure for cancer, blogs  covering a broad spectrum of the cancer field, from new patients to seasoned experts. There are support communities and blogs  about “chemo brain,” post-treatment depression, fertilit...

Today marks 100 years since the birth of the worlds number one story teller. For as long as I can remember Roald Dahl has been a part of my life and words like  gloriumptious,  frightsome,  whoopsy-splunkers ,  and  frothbuggling from Dahl's " Gobblefunk " (his own language) are normal words to me. In honor of the centenary of his birth this month, the Oxford English Dictionary added these six new words from Dahl’s writing: Dahlesque, golden ticket, human bean, Oompa Loompa, scrumdiddlyumptious and witching hour. As an almost teacher, I think it is incredibly important that every child has the privilege of experiencing the magic of Roald Dahl in their lives and for as long as I teach, I will do my best to do just that. Happy Birthday Roald Dahl!

...because "good" advice is necessarily 'safe' advice, and though it will undoubtedly follow a sane pattern, it will very likely lead one into total sterility - on of the crushing problems of our time.  - Jules Feiffer I love this rule and for those of you who know me, know exactly why i love this rule and you're probably rolling your eyes at me right now too. Okay, focus those eyes and hear me out. I have the most wonderful family and friends who are constantly looking out for me. They have all given such good advice and I always listen very tentatively to what they say, but nine times out of ten I'll end up doing the opposite or else something completely different. For example, when I decided I was actually in the wrong career and made the decision to study again and start over, everyone was happy for me and incredibly supportive. So began the process of studying but after a year and a bit I became a little bored, for lack of a better word, and needed a ...

And just like that, the end of 2015 is upon us. For some, this may have been a life changing year, filled with adventures and new beginnings. For others, it may have been a difficult year of loss and hard lessons. But for the majority of us I’m sure it was probably a very average, run of the mill year with some highs and some lows. On top of that, your new year’s resolutions list is more than likely untouched which means the exact same things will be on the list again this year. ‘If you’re anything like me, your list of New Year’s resolutions reads like a sort of global to-do list. We resolve to change our diets, exercise more, travel to new places, finish a big creative project. We resolve to be better by doing more. ’ Here’s an idea though. Why not skip the list this year? Why not tear up the previous one while you at it? Why not, instead of setting these unrealistic goals that leave you depressed and angry and most of all disappointed in yourself because you stil...

On a recent trip to visit my best friend in Australia I had the privilege of seeing the incredible Chris Cornell at the impressive Queensland Performing Arts Centre in Brisbane. By some miracle we managed to get our seats bumped up to a couple rows from the front, pure luck! Unbeknownst to me, Chris had a supporting act, a certain  David Le'aupepe from the band 'Gang of Youths'  and I can tell you something for free, the second this guy stood there in front of the mic with his guitar and began talking to us, I fell hook, line and sinker for this stranger and his music. Just mesmerized.  I'm not sure if it was his haunting beautiful voice, the way he connected with the audience with his stories between songs, the way he would scoop his hair back or the pure passion and energy that captivated me, but I was floored. At the end of his set I was devastated that it was over, I needed more. So the obvious next step was to go old school and buy their ...

It sits in the cupboard, whispering your name.  "Suze".  "Suuuuuze!" "You need me. You won't be able to sleep until you've just had a block". "Just one. I swear. Tomorrow, you can start that diet again."  And before you know it, you've eaten the slab. And then regret sets in.  About a year ago, I gave up chocolate. Why? Well,thank you for asking.  Why does anyone give up something they love?  There's actually a couple reasons. For one, I loved chocolate so much, so much it would sometimes hurt but chocolate didn't love me back, it just made me feel ugly and yuk and powerless afterwards. It always made me believe I needed it, like my life would stop without it and I would surely die. Chocolate also made me think I was the only one, but I didn't realise when I wasn't looking, it would let anyone take a bite. It would also always make me feel so happy in the moment when it was around but left me with what felt ...

Day one It's one o'clock in the morning and I'm feeling a little more tired than I should on a Saturday night out but brush it off as old age and the fact that I'm not drinking tonight. The drive home was exceptionally long and tedious but I made it none the less. Day two When I woke up this morning, my muscles were super stiff but I put it down to that awesome Kayla workout i did yesterday, suddenly a bit more proud of myself. Must have pushed myself harder than I thought. Silent high 5. Drive off to family for tea and cake and after drinking my tea I don't feel like cake. Why? Why don't I want a piece of this extraordinarily delicious cake? Muscles getting a tad more sore as the day goes on but need to pull myself together, I have a week of prep to get through for my practical this week. Maybe next time I'll take it a little more easy on the workout. Get home and take out my laptop, search a couple pages and suddenly feel a monster headache on its ...

comfort zone n 1.  (Psychology)  a  situation  or  position  in  which  a  person   feels   secure,   comfortable,  or in  control:      encouraging   people  to  work   outside  their   comfort   zone . Two years ago today I arrived back from my whirlwind trip of Spain. A big leap out of my comfort zone. I planned to come back to Jo'burg for a family wedding and then head straight back to Spain or go to Mexico or move to an island somewhere. I'm still here. I guess then, this is what you call a comfort zone.  During my time in this "comfort zone", I have made incredible friends, found a superb job and reconnected with family and friends. So that's the big picture. But if I look really carefully, I have taken a few steps out of this zone. I took a leap of faith and flew to an island, I signed up for WAY too many subjects, I ran my fi...

So I haven't written about a rule for a really long time. Really, really long time. It's time again, and who better to start off with than the one and only Oprah. These days, no matter where you look, you'll find all sorts of answers and inspiration. How to live a better life, how to lose your body weight in 10 days, why he's just not that into you... you see where I'm going with this. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for a miraculous secret to quickly fix everything. I have the vision board, the Kikki.K "message a day" next to my bed, a board dedicated to inspiration on Pinterest and enough life-changing quotes to go the distance of the Great Wall of China. But at the end of the day, none of these are big secrets, they're guidelines or mentoring and, of course, some are total hogwash but by no means life's big secrets. I think what it comes down to is that in this day and age we find ourselves in, we seem to be desperately searching for t...

They other day I had a Tim Tam. That's a lie. No normal person can have just one Tim Tam, so let's just say I had more than one. The thing about Tim Tams is, you can't just eat them like a normal biscuit. There is a very special way of eating them. If you've had one before but not done the Slam, I'm very sorry for you but you have been deprived. Here's how to do it.. The reason I'm telling you this very drawn out story is because when I had my more than one Tim Tam, and was letting the biscuit melt in my mouth, I had the clearest flash back of my life. Suddenly I was back in the flat, standing under the flicker of the kitchen light, in what feels like lifetimes ago. I could hear laughter and felt a surge of happiness and for just a second I was reminded of a really awesome moment in my life. A moment I had all but forgotten until then. Then, just as quickly as the sensation arrived it was gone. Like I said, this was years ago and many memories from...

the thing about Shazam is, no song will ever have to go unknown again. Found this gem by Ray LaMontagne and I am completely in love. The album, Till the Sun turns Black, was released in 2006 and I can't help but feel sad that it's taken me this long to find it. 

Photo by Suze   The site of Durban was visited in 1497 by Vasco da Gama, who named it Rio de Natal. Natal means “Christmas” in Portuguese   Durban Harbour is the 9th largest Harbour in the world   The Gateway shopping center is the largest shopping mall in Africa and the Southern Hemisphere     Ushaka Marine World is the world’s 5th largest aquarium    The spiritual leader of the Indian independence movement, Mahatma Ghandi began his political journey in Durban    Excellent signage at the beaches provides maps and names of the different beaches, although it’s really one stretch of sand with different names    Keep an eye out for the incredible sand sculptures done by locals, depicting anything from mermaids to lions.  The uShaka Beach has activities from surfing lessons to kayaking.    Warning: The surf and currents at Durban’s beaches can be dangerous. Always swim in patrolled...