"I'm gonna make a change for once in my life, gonna feel real good, gonna make a difference, gonna make it right....I c the kids in the street, with not enuff to eat, who am i to be be blind, pretending to see their needs ...i am starting with the man in the mirror, i'm asking him to change his ways, no message could have been any clearer, if u wanna make the world a better place take A LOOK AT YOURSELF THEN MAKE A CHANGE" -Michael Jackson

It has absolutely no bearing on this weeks mail, just woke up with it in my head, so thought i'd share it with u all, trust all is well with da masses, i am a bit sore this morning, good weekend coupled with 2 hrs of touch rugby yesterday might do that to an old man like myself .

Well lemme tell u about my week last week, picture this monday, feeling pretty stukkend from a rather silly yet funtastic long weekend, get a phone call get crapped on from a dizzy height, fair enuff, move on, but no thats not enuff, this same person sends me an email informing me that i am the most childish and irresponsible person ever...then there is peace in Yaw land till friday mornin, where i wake to more kaking out . this time i must admit i deserved it, totally offsides i was, trust me i didnt think so when i was committing the misdameanour..A WEEK ago...but a week ago!! what happened was over the long weekend, yawza got in a horrible state of stupidness, with the help of the housemeates, vino, cider and gin, all mixed together, luckily i was wise enuff not to drive, NEway at like 1 in the morning, i felt the urge for some coffee, but in my state of stupidity, i still managed to realise we had no brown sugar, so i had a conversation with an ex-who knows what we were, and asked if she could spare a brother some 'brown sugar'(this whole coffee thing is a lie, just my way of trying to contextualise what i was doing, cos i still dont know, actually i do, but this is a family newsletter)...anyway back to the newsletter....for some reason i was under the impression that it was all good, so at 4 in the AM, like Nandos the craving had spoken, so managed to source me a lift, but as luck would have it she was out for the count, which i found hard to believe, i mean honestly who is asleep at 4 in the morning, anyway so i left, no harm done, well so i thought...but unfortunately in my drunken state i left a voice message saying i was at the door blah blah splutter...anyway on friday morning...a friggin week later i get reprimanded for my unruly behaviour, y i didnt get the roasting when i saw her on tuesday is beyond me but anyway it doesnt end there, apparently i am crazy, psychotic, in need of some professional help, i am a mean and nasty guy who trys to canvass this meanness by acting like i care....(cos i have so much time and i want the whole world to love me, cos that is what i live for) and i am a crazy drunkard, guys it looks like my life is going down the drain, i just have nothing to live for no more so i am turning to the bottle...save me please....anyway,the moral of the story is guys if u gonna go out and get stupid, leave your cell phone at home!!! Would have been scott free,like 5fm, had i not left the message, cos she didnt even know i was there, but i guess its the priciple of the matter hey Rudi, but it was a good laugh on friday morning, i get an email and a phone call considering me persona non grata, and dont this that or the other, then a few hrs later i get 3 sms, askin me questions, how o i reply those?? no, but i felt as kak as i should have felt A WEEEK BEFORE, though, well until the Blues beat the Brumbies (rugby), then i started feeling a little bit better.

What wasnt funny though, was me scratching poor Veronica(car) on one of those short little friggin pole efforts that u struggle to see in parking lots....aaarrgggh, so if any one knows of a reputable pannelbeater, in Jo'burg, please drop me a line. I guess it was just bad carma getting a hold of me.

But on a more positive note, we signed our first deal at work, that i was involved in on friday, so i might have found something to live for yaay.

Will try write another email during the week, this wont even go on the notice board, just thought i'd share some personal experiences with ya'all.

Birthdays

1 April - Carnita (and thats no joke...ha ha)bad humour appologies...anyway las, have a sublime day and are spoilt rotten, was good to see u out shaking your thang this weekend, lemme know where the party is at.
2 April - Diana B, girl hope u having a great time at Standard bank, hope u have a splendid day.

Quote
"Move beyond the familiar patterns and experiences of your life to the
dreams and plans and imaginations that wait with you to be fulfilled."

Dr Myles Munroe

"Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The
round heads in the square holes. The ones who see things differently.
They're not fond of rules. You can quote them. Disagree with them. Glorify
or vilify them. But the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they
change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them
as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to
think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

Quotes thanks to Thabo H and Claude B

Outta here need to go find me a bar..., oh ja by the way how is your 40 day 'sacrifice' going, unfortunately the end is drawing near, but i have thus far really enjoyed it, missed yesterday, but honestly i tried hard to find someone, but true as bob, i couldnt find anyone begging last nite, just gotta do a double shift today.

Have a great week, u might hear from me again this week. Respect to the max!!

Well i tried to delay this mail for as long as i could, and it has come to me...a man has writers block. I am sure we all know about the war, CNN, SKY and BBC and every other expert i know is doing a good job of airing their views and this and that, so we'll can me adding my 2 cents for now, all i gotta say is y is it always gotta be the brother?? this is in reaction to the US marine who threw grenades into the army barracks of his seniors, its a conspiracy i tell u...

This week i improvise, some call it plagarism, but potato, pot-A-to u know what i mean, received this email from my sis, and i share it with u all, next week i try harder, but this week i just cant did it, who knows maybe between now and friday 5 something hits me, trust me u'll hear all about it...so here goes...

1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.

2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.

3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America contest.

4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer prize.

5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and
actress.

6. Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners.
How did you do?

The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday.
These are no second-rate achievers.
They are the best in their fields.
But the applause dies.
Awards tarnish.
Achievements are forgotten.
Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners.

Here's another quiz. See how you do on this one:

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.

2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.

3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.

4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated.

5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

6. Name half a dozen heroes whose stories have inspired you.

Easier?



The lesson:
The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with
the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards.

They are the ones that really count.



Birthdays
26-03 Ang, happy b-day las, hope it was a good one

Quotes

Matthew 6:34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day [is] the evil thereof.

Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow; it empties today of its strength.

On that note i sign off, appologies if this was a poor showing, but hey...

as expected hey Mia....Maximum respect and i am out, have a great weekend

"Heal the world make it a better place for u and for me and teh entire human race there are people dying if u care enuff for the living, make a better place for u and for me" - Michael Jackson.

Welcome to all those i have added...without their consent...oops, but anyway.... what this is, is a weekly email, just talkin about whatever, should you want to leave a comment please go to http://mondaymail.blogspot.com or alternatively u could mail me. If u wanna be removed from the list please do drop me a line i wont be offended trust me. Back on the replies thing spoke to a couple of people recently and they indicated going onto the blogspot was a bit of a mission, so i suggest if u have a reponse for all to see, send it to me i will post them on the site and mail it to everyone.

If anyone is aware of an organisation that needs volunteers, for tutoring, building, etc, please let me know.

Well here we are on the eve of another war, necessary...unnecessary u decide. But all i can say is, all those people going to act as human shields, as noble as your efforts truely are, I fear they are in vain. America is going to bomb regardless of what the UN says, yes that is correct the friggin United Nations. They are gonna kill civilians, they have even said it, in war there are casualties. Unless you are superman, there is no way on earth, even in hell that u will stop a propelled missile from ripping through its intended or misdirected target, as brave as your actions are, i fear they are more stupid and pointless than they are noble and brave, unless there is a programme that goes beyond my eyes and ears.

My question is bomb Iraq then what, will that be the end of it??

Talking about war, I am sure most if not all of you are aware of the mail that has been circulating, about x million infants dying in africa alone from disease an malnutrition, but let someone fly a plane or 2 into the world trade centre, we will spend billions turning mountains into more sand, send troops into deserts lookin for the invisible man, which turned out to be a waste of money. Cos Osama is still globe trotting with his camels. Now imagine what a difference sending even if it was half that money they had to spend on arms on like food aid and medical supplies to third world countries, who can unfortunately not provide for themselves, who knows, 11 september possibly could have been averted on a whole.

Watched Pearl Harbour last nite, and in all honesty i see no point to war, it kind of reminds me of a big bully at school, no one has time or respect for u, possibly they fear u, but trust me any opportunity to take a swipe at u will be accepted with glee.

Anyway moving faaaar off the war tip, got thi email i think i should share with u...thanks Nas...

We tend to live in "shadow land" living by perception, blindly accepting "information" about ourselves, other people, situations and circumstances, as true. How often do you take the time to question the validity of the information. How often do you check it out for yourself.
Would you try to describe a tree merely by looking at it's shadow. If you could not, or did not, see a shadow would you then say that there was no tree. Yet how often do we base our opinions on shadows. We do not have first hand experience, we do not KNOW yet we act as if we do. The trouble is that we will treat people and circumstances the way that we think they are.
How often have you acted on "information" about a situation or a person only to find out that the information was wrong, or incomplete, or biased. How often have you embarrassed yourself because you acted on a presumption that was based on incorrect information.
Just like the shape of a tree’s shadow depends entirely on the position of the sun, so the information you receive will vary depending on the source. Learn to take all information with an open mind. Realise that what you are hearing is the situation described from a certain perspective, and that there will certainly be different perspectives and that you may experience, or may have experienced, something quite different. Also realise that all information is dated. It may have been true at the time, but is it necessarily true now?
Learn to ask questions of yourself and the people that you get information from. You are told something about a person or a situation ask "What makes you say that?" "What happened to make you feel this way?" "How do you know that this is true?" "Where did you get the information from?" "How did the event affect you?" "Why do you think that it should be this way, or that this will happen?" It is your responsibility to verify the accuracy of any information, before you go ahead and act on that information.
Accept that the shadow is merely an indication of the real thing. The shadow cannot give an accurate representation of the real thing. If the shadow generates interest in you then take the time to learn more about the tree preferably by personal experience. Realise that only fools blindly accept or reject a subject they have not studied. So from now on accept that "You cannot know a tree by examining it's shadow"

Birthdays
18th Nasrin...happy 21st girl ;0) hope u have a great day

no quote

respek

Come under a bit of stick cos of my mid week mail, askin u all to join me in helping out someone in need for 40days. Dont even know y i have to defend myself, but here goes...I am not trying to be a saint, I dont even want a pat on the back. What i asked about the 40 days, was something that i was gonna do regardless of who knew or who was gonna join me, but because there are like 100 or so people on this list, i thought at least one other person would think its a good idea and do likewise. It was not meant to be a self serving thing, i mean in the greater scheme of things if i die today, whether u think i was a good person or not will have no bearing on where my soul ends up, so y must i go out of my way to impress mere mortal????!!!

Bygones, moving on, I think another person or 2 were added to the list, but i cannot for the life of me remember who they were, anyway, please accempt my humblest appologies, but welcome none-the-less, should you have comments to add, and there are a few being posted from time to time, please do visit the site http://mondaymail.blogspot.com

Got a pretty interesting idea for a topic last week, thanks Thabo. And its pretty relevant to us today, i am gonna mould it to add a few of my thoughts on it as well. Technology is taking over the world today, are we gonna soon reach a stage where the english we learnt @ school will be considered as archaic, and viewed in the same manner as we viewed the english of the Shakespearian area and prior to that? With email and sms takin over our lives, words like cos instead of because, l8r instead of later, plenty colloquialism (SP??) seems to be taking over, the days of getting a long letter in the post is all but gone, even getting cards are almost a thing of the past with e-cards dominating the scene at present. Is technology taking over our lives?? But is that necesarily a bad thing??

To follow on from that what is becoming of kids nowadays? 10 and 12 year olds talking about sex, 10 or 12 i was thinking, sheesh how can i annoy the girls at school the next day? How do i convince my pops to get me that he-man action figure? How can i get out of going to the library on saturday morning for like 4hrs? Now kids talk sex drugs, i think the first time i ever saw weed was when i was in first year, good 17yrs old(yes i am a slow starter), now u walk around and you see youngsters puffing away. What ever happened to running around, falling, climbing trees, falling, riding bicycles, falling, building skateboard and go-carts?? Now its all about playstations, tv, sex, drugs and alcohol, what u gonna do when u grow up??

And the labels, my gosh, lighties only wanna wear labels, we used to cruise around in clothes the old folks bought, none of this diesel, nike, soviet crap, it was all LA-voertseks, and pep specials. Those were em days. And if u had an issue with another guy, easi, come break time or after school behind the gym hall or on the rugby fields, u just go and spank each other around. 10 minutes later its over, and a few weeks down the line u all mates again once the bruised bums have healed, try that now, boys will pitch up with a 9mm, or a big ass knife.

Where has the youth gone???

Anyway, guys writing part one this week, all the best, and if i can impart any advice, its just if u think it write it, no one can give u marks for a blank page!!! So whatever comes to mind just put pen to paper, u'd be surprised, I was....twice!!

Birthday

10th March Steve, the man i taught to play football ;-)
11th March Bontle
14th March Isabella
15th March Scot Mc
Anyone i missed out, oops, i missed ur b-day cos i dont got the date, so please do forward it to me, but to all of u, please do have a grand day, and may the year ahead bear the fruits of the seed that you sow...sometimes i just surprise myself, where did that come from??!

Quote
Be faithful in small things because it i in them that your strength lies - Mother Teresa
Not gold, but only men can make people great and strong - Men who, for truth and honour's sake, stand fast and suffer long. Brave men, who work while others sleep, who dare while others fly - They build a nations pillars deep and lift them to the sky - Ralph Waldo Emmerson

Maximum respek to the masses!!

Holla ma-peeps?!

Hope all is well with u all!

Sorry for sending another mail this week, but i had to. Seems like i got my dates mixed up. I thought Ash wednesday was next week, when in fact it was yesterday. Ash Wednesday for those who dont know is the beginging of Lent (40 days before Good Friday) when Jesus spent 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness resisting all temptation, and abstaining from all creature comforts. It is a period of soul-searching and repentence, a period for reflecting and taking stock.

This period is seen to be one recognised by Christians, and they try and get closer to Jesus and God, by imitating his withdrawal from the niceties of the world, through abstaining from things like alcohol, chocolates, sex etc... Well this year, here is my challenge to us all, not just Christians, everyone who is actually reading this e-mail and anyone else u can convince to join. I say for the next 40 days, you go out and find a hungry person, a person in need of clothing help whatever, andif u r living in South Africa it wont be too difficult to do, just go to the next traffic light. When you find this person, give tehm a loaf of bread, 500ml of milk, an item of old clothing, whatever, but dont give them money cos that is the easy option. Actually make an effort to make one persons day for the next 39 days (cos we missed yesterday, i say we catch it up sometime, by helping 2 people out).

I know you cant change the world, but u can have an influence on one persons life, even if its just for one day, its one day easier for that person. Giving up booze, chocies etc. is pretty easy, how many times do u actually drink or eat sweets?? once, twice, three times a week? Who benefits no one really, maybe your liver, blood sugar level, but thats about it really. A loaf of bread cost like R4.30, cheaper than the bottle of beer you would have bought.

So what say u all, hope u are with me....

Have a great day!!

Quote courtesy of Rowan L

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not;
nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not;
unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is
full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are
omnipotent." - Calvin Coolidge

"..emancipate yourselves from mental slavery none but ourselves can free our minds..." Robert Nesta Marley

New additions Fatima and Al, welcome all, should u ever wish to delist, please send me a mail and i will do just that, should you have anything to say emphasis on anything, please mail me directly or go to the site http://mondaymail.blogspot.com dont be shy to use it and that goes for all of u.

Well a pretty depressing day if u r South African or stand by them, another draw, another cheap exit, absolutely devastating! But hey waht can u do, what is meant to be will be. Can't deny that it was not a vintage South African performance through out the tournament, but in my view they were good enuff to make it to the super sixes at least, but not meant to be...the cruel hand of mother nature spoils once again...but on the other hand, farmers got some rain, thus potentially increased food supply, thus reduced costs of food ;-)

Plenty thanks to all those who sent me emails, sms, even called me on wednesday, it was a ripper... spent most of the day on the phone or returning mails/sms' i soon forgot that i am mos a year older, sheesh even got a call all the way from London...thanks Liz.

So another week has dawned, another monday mail to write, another week of scratching my head to find some material...Thanks to miss Guilia, managed to find something...Ever since i was at school i have just wanted to travel and go and c other countries, whilst makin some cash to sustain the lavish lifestyle i am so accustomed to (whatever). How often do i sit here green with envy, when Bellinda sends me an email about how great New York is, or Ed telling me about his weekend in San fransisco, Ingo tellin me about the women he is dominating in Virginia, Mbumbs, Cobbs and Steve just lovin London and Ireland.

So y didnt i go too? after school, varsity, articles? Is it cos there was no cash after school and my folks would be far from impressed if I'd gone after school? Maybe...or is it cos after varsity there was that three year spell of articles? well fair enuff? but whats the excuse now? Is it cos i am a coward with no cahunas to take a risk? huge possibility.... yes granted i have a great job with huge opportunities and my family and friends are all here, but i have no house, dog, girl, plants no responsibilities right now and this time would definately have been the best to go, yet still i sit here in sunny south africa, reading peoples emails about where they have been and what they are doing....Y am i not there, is it cos people that take time to go cycle accross America, dive off florida, work on ships etc, are seen as spoilt little rich kids? Or is it just plain and simply doing what u think is the responsible thing to do??? Help me out here?? cos as i sit here now, even though loving my job, i am keen to go overseas, but yet if someone offered me an opportunity i'd be slightly hesitant in taking it....y?? Or am i just confused?

Birthdays
3 March John aka Zorba and Al 'Anakin'
4 Kakra and Penyin
6 The country with the best people (Ghana)'s independence
9 Nicolette

Well to all in sundry a great day is/was my wish to u, may u be blessed with many more...and may "God bless our homeland Ghana, and make our nation great and strong" what hypocracy, cos here i sit in South Africa, wishing my country of birth well....oh well, story for another week i guess!!

Quotes

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. - Reinhold Niebuhr
Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires courage. - Ralph Waldo Emerson
There are people who put their dreams in a little box and say, "Yes, I've got dreams, of course I've got dreams." Then they put the box away and bring it out once in awhile to look in it, and yep, they're still there. These are great dreams, but they never even get out of the box. It takes an uncommon amount of guts to put your dreams on the line, to hold them up and say, "How good or how bad am I?" That's where courage comes in. - Erma Bombeck

On that note i bid thee fare adieu, till next our paths cross with bated breath i wait...