Blog 20 : Mama said there’d be days like this

WOW!!! We on our 20^th blog!

A huge thank you to you dearest, dearest reader. I cannot begin to share with you how very, very, very much I appreciate your enthusiasm, encouragement, support, care and love each week. I often receive some amazing comments of thanks, encouragement and absolute pure joy and love. Not to mention those that I have seen face to face, some of you I was not even aware read my blog – and you relate little odds n bits I have spoken (written) about. Thank you 😊. Honest to goodness my heart is so, so full – this has been a dream of mine, shucks forever! I remember at school loving essay time. I do however remember the one essay I got way, waaaaaay too involved and oh my word the characters were frikken morphing into each other – those that were dead – were suddenly alive. And remember dear reader this was late 70’s early 80’s so there were no Men in black or The Walking Dead – okay there was Back to the Future and Star Trek! There definitely was no Netflix, Hulu, Showmax and and and. So, it was just this young girl’s imagination – frikken hell! I got way too confused as did the teacher. Ok being a bit harsh on myself now as it was only that one essay. But then there was the time (I have shared this before, I know) I wrote an Afrikaans essay – about the beach. The teacher marked me a zero! Why? I had written word, for frikken word the plot of the movie Jaws. Next to my big fat zero was the comment: “Ek het die fliek ook gesien”. I mean really Dizabeth -what were you thinking – it was blady Jaws – Nick Nolte for goodness sake, who hadn’t seen the movie? So already digressing, the reason I am mentioning all this the days before my blog. I wrote about this and that. Entered competitions for short stories waited with bated breath and I did win one or two. I remember with such fondness when I received an email telling me I had won the Reader’s Digest 100-word short story. Gosh in fact I still have the cover of that Readers Digest, a copy of the cheque and my story in print, framed – it fell off the wall and I have never put it back. That nail is now one of many that brag my incredibly amazing two boys (young men’s) achievements, showing them off proudly to all who visit our home (and then there is the Tide wall). As I was saying: I wrote scary stuff, sad stuff, twist at the end (and beginning) stuff and lots of other stuff. When we first moved here each week, I would send a newsletter home (Durban) friends and family loved it. They always commented on the fact that it is as if you are right here chitty chatting with me. That’s when I decided instead of this plot and that “who dun it” – just write from your heart Dizabeth – share your zany life then and now – and you dear readers – have embraced this and are on this journey with me. Thank you. 😊

Right back to the here and now – this week, well in fact this morning I awoke to the – literally the most beautiful what’s app video from my dearest, treasured friend Charmaine. Thank you, it made my day. She shared with me her visit to the beach I assume it was after work – and to see such beauty and I am going to be brutally honest here. To see a “normal beach scene” people and their dogs, cats (not really) and kids – chilling in the early summer season – relaxed – a clean beach – it made me think. Now this blog I have always sworn will never be about politics, religion or whether you have been or are going to get vaccinated – and I intend to keep it that way. But seeing that – I won’t say perfection as I am very sure that beautiful country must have its own highs and lows – but wow it made me reflect on the here and now of Dizabeth’s life. It made me ask a trillion questions  – why the blady hell wasn’t my dad a pilot? Why wasn’t I a blady airhostess? I could have traveled and visited every corner of the blady globe. Why oh, why am I just a frikken plain Jane who lives in a little dorpie – so very, very, frikken blady far from the beach? I know all that smulzy stuff – It’s our destiny, it’s the path that was planned for us, its us who make our own destiny. Well, let me tell you I call bullsh.t to that! I know for sure I wouldn’t have chosen a life with a house that has no air-conditioning when our summer is late 30 early 40! Um I wouldn’t have chosen to wear Mr Price (shucks especially their blady bras) no, no, nothing wrong with Mr P. But really if I could choose Woolies (ok, ok I do have a couple or three Woolies items in my wardrobe) so let’s up this a bit. If I could …hmmm what’s a fancy label? Ok talking off the peg fancy – Forever New is pretty fancy as is Poetry and Queenspark all spring to mind. So, I truly hope I am not sounding bratty here – hmmm Dizabeth perhaps you are – just a wee bit (really am not aiming to sound bratty so forgive me if you feel I am being just a tad bratty). But, dear reader do you get my drift? There are so many beautiful success stories – Elton John and Freddie Mercury. Look at that! Ordinary people that made it big. Absobloodalutely, they worked harder than hard (also partied harder than hard) but what I am saying dear reader. How many are out there – working as hard as Elton and Fred – yet that person who is gonna sign them up – recognize them – another example. Charlize Theron – throwing a tantrum in the bank and whamo an agent sees her! How about that woman earlier this month that wasn’t getting the service she expected at a certain bank? (Yip another bank – hmm note to self – maybe banks are the hip and happening place to get noted?) She striped down – naked – it was captured on video – circulated throughout social media and I have no doubt as I am typing this – an agent is signing her up for a movie deal where she will become a billionaire and dearest Dizabeth will read her rags to riches story in the YOU! Now trust me – I have thrown a number of wobbles in my life. The result: people walk a wide circle around me and totally disregard my tantrum! When Chad is with me, he walks away pretending he has nooooo idea who this dilly woman is!  

How does it happen that the likes of Megan – a normal everyday average young girl – how was it written in her stars – she would commence her life – like me, normal, (hhm define normal I hear you say) marry and even get divorced (not like me) and then – and blady then – frikken meet and marry a prince! She mentioned in the big O interview that before she met Harry – she as an American didn’t know about the Windsor’s nor did she know who Lady Di was! Really? Whilst in the 80’s somewhere in Africa – Southern Africa to be specific there was a young girl – she had a royal name – Elizabeth – that was the beginning and end of her connection with anything Royal. But she idolized Lady Di. She used to wear Lady Di court shoes and even wore a frilly lady Di top to the Durban July – in fact that day she was a definite wanna be Lady Di! She never won at the races that day – nor did any photographer come up to her and her dearest friend Charmaine to take a photo of their (what they thought designer outfits) to appear in the Sunday Tribune the next day! If I had an inlking of an idea that one day Lady Di would have a son who would happily marry out of the “royal circle” – oh my word I would have taken way better care and exercised a stringent skin care routine – resulting in me being as youthful today as I was back in the day – and whamo – Prince Harry would no doubt have married me! But alas, again it wasn’t written in my blady stars!

You look at all the “famous” folk out there these days – “Pleased to meet you – I am so and so and I am an influencer” – what the heck is that? I have been an “influencer” for many years. Back in my youth I influenced Charmaine to play Barbie – I influenced my friends to stop at the local café to buy Wilson’s toffee’s as we walked home from school! I influenced numerous friends to have another glass of wine with me! But you don’t see the camera’s flocking around me – or Carte Blanche lining me up for an interview with this influencer. Nope you frikken do not! All those black hole moments that fell into a big black hole! When I worked in classified department at the Mercury and The Daily News when they had an advertorial – one that springs to mind – Musgrave Centre was doing an advertorial and they asked me to please be their model. Which I did – of course I saw it as that “golden opportunity” – my 15 minutes of fame as Andy Warhol once said – and what happened there? Exactly dear reader – diddly squat! I didn’t even get blady paid! Nope I had to rush back – get dressed back into my outfit for the day and answer those classified phones and type us the “For Sale” style one that the seller wanted to place. Shucks I do recall the one day I had a person call in wanting to sell their car. They read the ad out to me …all was great. Until it was not! They phoned after it had appeared in the papers. It appeared instead of me typing “tinted windows” dearest Dizabeth typed titted windows!

Fun fact: In 1968 Andy Warhol said: “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes “. He said this when he had become famous.

I guess in my skies – on a dark night – when I look up at the stars its meant to be that I am who I am. I have a lot to be grateful and for which I am incredibly grateful. Would I want more money and an airconditioned house – hell yes! But I do have a star struck life – I am blessed, and I may just be Liz  – Gary’s NOT subservient wife. Mama Bear Liz   – mom to honestly the most amazing young men ever. Ryan and Chad – I swear they could not make us prouder if they tried – both are so balanced, well liked, popular and darn I am going to say it – very handsome (hm but then again look at who their mama is! – kidding) I am Liz the worker bee from MySchool who handles the Mpumalanga region – I love my job and all those that touch my day everyday and the difference the MySchool program makes in so many lives each day. Liz the friend – the friend who if you have crept into my heart – there is nothing I wouldn’t do for you, the friend who likes a good laugh and a glass or two of wine together. A friend who treasures her friends and all the memories we have made together. Lastly, I am Nana – Tide’s nana and I truly, truly hope in his eyes – when him and I play “Hide Nana hide!” when he places his precious little hand in Nana’s big gown pocket and pulls out an array of coloured Smarties – I do hope and I do believe – he sees nana as his shining star. And it’s for all these amazing people I truly, truly hope I am written in their stars and will be a part of their lives and make a difference for years to come. Thank you to each and everyone of you for believing in me and my blog.

And with regards to my topic today : Lets face it …Mama said there would be days like this 😊. In other words “Why me (or not me!) Lord – Why?

And with that – see I have remembered – but it is after all early days. I quote Tam from The Block:

“That’s all she wrote”

Stay safe and healthy my lovelies

Take care

Mwah mwah