Chasing Noodles

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 (very quickly realising that my husband is no hairdresser

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, fertility issues, and more. It's endless. But what this means

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