A bit of a swinger

Some years ago, I got the sudden urge to learn how to play golf. I’m not sure where the urge came from, but like the proverbial monkey on your back, it wasn’t going anywhere so I persuaded a friend of mine, who had access to left-handed clubs, to take me to the driving range.

Like most beginners I found it really difficult to get the club in the same place as the ball at the same time. Disheartened but determined, I decided to try her right-handed clubs and things started to go quite a lot better. I’m not saying that any coaches rushed over to sign me up or anything but I did manage to hit more balls than I missed.

Now, if you’ve ever been to a driving range you’ll know that the individual zones have just enough room for some clubs, a bucket of balls and your swing. Although I don’t have a problem with the space, I definitely think people should know what level golfer they’re standing next to. My solution? Clearly demarcated sections with the appropriate danger warnings e.g. first timer, hacker, looks better than hits, knows which clubs to use, hustler, pro. I only mentioned this because, the cockier I got, the harder I tried to hit, which is never a great idea when you don’t know what you’re doing. It’s a bit like giving curry to a 92-year old – at some point shit’s going to get real.

And, in my case, it got real for the earnest young man next to me. I wound up like a New York Yankees pitcher, lifted my head, straightened my legs, took my eye off the ball and bliksemed that golf ball off the toe of the club right into the back of his thigh. He shot forward, his back arching away from the pain and turned, wild eyed, to confront the perpetrator of what I’m sure turned out to be the biggest bruise of his life. When he saw me, I’m sure it took every inch of self-control for him to grimace sweetly through teary eyes and say, ‘It’s okay’. However, I’m also sure that if there was no girlfriend next to him and I was male, I’d probably be the proud owner of some shiny dentures.

Despite my less than perfect start I bought some clubs, took some lessons and progressed to the point where I could be let loose on a golf course. My first ex-husband enrolled me at Rand Park where I honed my swearing skills and learned ‘search and recover’ techniques that would have made a Marine proud. I was also taught a valuable lesson by two Irishmen – that if I imagined the ball was the back of his head, I could drive about 20m further.

There’s no doubt it’s a very frustrating game and a great leveller but, if you’ve never played, you should. The elusive, but addictive sound of a perfectly hit shot will keep you going back despite the shanks, hooks, slices, bogeys and missed 2-inch putts. I know.

Shanti

When it was recently suggested that I had the core muscles of a marshmallow, I decided it was time to find an exercise regimen that aimed to strengthen my muscles without actually causing death, to regain some flexibility without snapping any major muscle groups and perchance to lose a kilo or two in the process.

Let me hastily say that I'm not looking to enter Mrs Universe (pensioner division) or do triple salto flick flacks down the passage. I just want to be able to do some gardening without my knees locking so that I'm forced to roll over like a stunned Christmas beetle, then perform the ‘Rock and roll upsa-daisy” manoeuvre and then stagger like Quasimodo for a couple of meters until my knees unlock and I can walk upright again. Entertaining for the neighbours, yes; embarrassing for a teenage child, definitely; undignified, sure.

So I asked around and the answer seemed to be yoga. Nice people, great music, some humming, the odd leg in the air (core training) and incense. So I signed up for a beginner’s class with the lovely Bagua. Lithe, toned and vegetarian she inspired confidence and radiated tranquillity and so, it was without a trace of fear, that I got a mat and sat down.

Luckily we didn't sit in the Reposing Lotus too long otherwise lock-knee would have prevented me from being able to get up to start my asana (hindi for torture). We started with an ‘easy’ Warrior 1 pose and it soon became evident that my balance wasn't that hot. I wobbled my way into Hashtumagatasana (who I thought was a Sri Lankan fast bowler, but clearly not) and then into the Bananainpajhama when I unintentionally fell into a Downward Facing Dog (Adhonwanna Dothis Aneemor). More surprised than hurt, I soon discovered that where my wrists should have been, were some soggy bits of papier mâché.

I lasted about 15 seconds before I had to collapse in an untidy heap (toes not flexed). Sweetly Bagua mentioned that we should only do what we were comfortable with and after another ten minutes it became painfully clear to me that I would have felt more comfortable sitting on the sofa with a cup of coffee.

I managed to bumble my way the rest of my class and I swore at one point that I saw Bagua's eyes roll backwards in her head. However, I think it had less to do with attaining Nirvana than the total horror of realizing she had to deal with me for the next few months.

Wonderful world of wildlife

On my walk with the dogs this morning, it was just light enough for me to see, through the mist rising off the dam, a Purple Heron sitting perfectly still. It was a wonderful picture but as I took a few moments to take in the magical scene, I wondered if birds or animals were actually doing what we thought they were doing. So if you could start reading in your best David Attenborough voice, here goes…

David: And here, on the banks of this urban dam, we see a Purple Heron, Ardea purpurea. Using the early morning mist as camouflage, it’s patiently hoping for an unsuspecting Oreochromis niloticus to swim within striking distance. Then, with a lightening fast strike, it will insert its beak into the body of the fish, killing it instantly.

Purple heron: Crap, it’s so cold this morning I can hardly move.

David: This has to be one of the most spectacular sights on our planet – the annual migration of millions of plains antelope across the Serengeti. Over millennia, this primal instinct is as regular as a porcupine on a high-fibre diet. Majestic. Unbelievable. It’s an incredible display of nature battling the elements.

Zebras: Foooooooooood!

David: In an elaborate greeting, the lesser Flumber bird of Borneo shakes its head and rolls its eyes to show it’s not an aggressor and that it understands its place in the sophisticated hierarchy dominated by elder matriarchs.

Flumber bird: Hey Bob. You don’t understand what’s going on in my head right now. I’m hanging so badly – I’m never doing jungle juice again. Ever.

David: In a life-and-death struggle, these two kudu bulls are using every ounce of their strength to overcome the other. To the untrained eye this is a tussle for superiority and perhaps, even, the right to mate but it’s more than that. The horns, curved and majestic, when knocked together make the sound of G sharp, warning other competitors, in no uncertain terms, to ‘stay away’.

Big kudu: It’s easy. Say ‘uncle’ and you can have Doris.

David: And, in what is the most important time in any animal’s life, the male marmoset must show his female that he’s worth enduring the prolonged and utterly boring mating procedure that involves a curious spitting ritual and the unnecessary flaunting of his inflamed eyeballs.

Marmoset: OMG that curry was hot!

Masterchef Randburg

In my next life I’m sure I’ll enjoy cooking. That’s because I’ll have married a rich person who can afford all the ingredients required to cook awesome food. And the cost of a 3-star Michelin chef to have at my beck and call.

My cooking style has been labelled ‘nouveau single mom’ and is usually a scintillating fusion of ‘viande du porc avec le potatoes mashed with a jus of packet gravy’. Although I do remember that one night I whipped up a pretty good chicken stirfry. I think the Saturn was in retrograde or something but I was certainly never able to replicate it.

There were evenings when, as I served dinner to my daughter, I really felt quite sorry for her and fully understood why she liked to have dinner at my sister’s house so much.  However, I have to admit that, as hormones kicked in, my cooking would reflect the way she behaved (or didn’t) so it devolved into a kind of revenge cuisine. I’m only joking, I’d never been that mean. I mean, I didn’t actually set out to cook badly – it comes naturally – but I was just less apologetic when I did.

Now weirdly and in a strange twist of fate (Saturn had moved into the seventh quadrant) I’ve become a keen watcher of Masterchef Australia.  I don’t understand a lot of what they’re doing, what they’re doing it with, and have no actual interest in wanting to try, but it’s somehow fascinating. Like a mongoose and a snake fascinating. 

The show is generally on while I’m cooking, which means that, while Gary is yelling, ‘Come on, come on, cook from your heart – you’ve only got 3 minutes to go’ and the poor little mongooses are yelling, ‘Yes chef’, I’m rustling up my 2-minute noodle surprise. And it’s then that I wonder what they’d say if they could see what was happening on my stove.

Matt (sliding a look of unfeigned disgust to Gary): “Well, this is interesting!”

George: “I love the way she’s deconstructed the meal in such a way that it looks like an explosion on the plate. I don’t think our theme was ‘Downtown Damascus’ was it, Matt?”

Matt: “No and, my god, and I think she’s used every utensil in the house to make the dish. It’s actually quite impressive really.”

Gary: “I’ll give her points for not over cooking the noodles but that’s about all. I mean, tuna and marmite. That’s bold.”

George (gagging slightly): “A real statement.”

Don’t get me wrong – I love delicious food. And if you’re ever in the kitchen with me, you can ask me to chop a carrot or an onion but please just don’t ask me to cook it.  

Incy Wincy - 2014

Incy wincy spiders, hiding in a box,
Stuck their little headses out and gave poor Shirley shocks,
Out came the Doom and sprayed them all away
Those incy wincy spiders never lived another day.

~  For my friend Shirley who is packing up her mum's house and discovering that the spiders who have been bravely guarding 1982's bank statements without thought of recompense, don't like being disturbed. 

P.S. Before you label her a heartless arachno-killer, no spiders were (intentionally) harmed in the making of this rhyme - she's too scared to get near them.

Sing a song

Sing a song of Zumas
A pocket full of wives
Four-and-twenty tollgates all wrapped up in lies
When the gates were open
And money flowed on in
Wasn't that an Austrian dish to set before the king.

The Unfit Diaries 13 - The Med it ain't

Been there, swum that, got the t-shirt (XL). 

Because the whole swimming world had decided to do the swim (the first of the season), the only accommodation left was a campsite in Bakgatla. (Did they just use the Afrikaans words 'bak' and 'gat' and then add an 'la' to make it sounds ethno? Mmm.)  The morning dawned clear after a late-night shower but quite noisily with Riley and Robin being chastised by their parents loudly and repeatedly. 

After successfully avoiding the ablution blocks (I'm too old for sharing open loos), we herded the teenage cats and a sleepy Danny cat into the car, packed goggles, towels, snacks and set off through the Pilanesberg. And, sod's law, we saw everything - baby jackals, an ellie right next to the road, rhino etc but we couldn't stop longer than for a cursory glance as we were on a mission.

The lawn was already a hive of activity with bodies of all shapes and sizes getting numbered up and sun screened up all over the place.  I couldn't get over how many people were there - we were literally sitting on the lawns cheek by jowl - some of which were not very nice to look at - the jowls especially. 

I must say that when I saw the course I was pretty intimidated. It looked so very far and felt that my training had been pretty inadequate. All too soon it was time for the white caps to get into the (cold) water and wait for the starter's gun.

Bang! And we were off. The water churned as if there was a school of piranha attacking a two-day old dead cow.  I don't know if someone told the old biddies there was a cup of tea and a cucumber sandwich at the finish but the savagery with which they attacked the water was quite intense. 

By the time I could put my head in the water safely, the water was pretty gruesome.  You couldn't see more than about a metre and I suppose, in retrospect, that was probably a good thing. It was quite difficult getting into any kind of rhythm as you were either swimming into someone or someone was trying to swim over you. I soon gathered there were no niceties when it comes to open water swimming - unless perhaps you are Sam or Cameron and you have armed guards beating off the opposition.

We passed the first buoy and set off on the long swim. I moved over to the side to escape the insanity and soon was swimming in calm waters. How nice I thought to myself. Open water, the sun warm on my back, I was feeling good. This carried on for a while until I decided to check on where the next buoy was. To my horror I discovered the reason for the open water. I was so far off course I may as well have been in my own race.  Cursing, I had to make a 90° turn and swim back to the rest of the biddies.  As I reached them things took a turn for the worse.

The green caps of the girls 13 and under were coming through the field and with no respect for their elders, they mowed a swathe through us leaving a pod of white cappers gasping and spluttering.

I was very well behaved until I saw the finish. The little shits in the green caps were behaving as though I was one of their rivals in a catfight for the attentions of the rugby captain and I started to kick like I was warding off an attack from a great white and thrashing my arms like there were bees in the water. I think the only thing that I succeeded in doing was looking like a dork or a drowning wildebeest.

(Time was 41 mins, place was 24th in my category - I was well satisfied.)