Some like it hot...

I'm a brat... and if you live within in 50km radius of me then I know you are one too.

We Jo'burgers, we're so fickle apart from our hard coreness (as in ooo look at me I live in one of the most dangerous cities in the world and I rock it hard core kinda way). So rush hour and high jacking aside it seems that we have little left in our heart to deal with bad weather. See we're all weather brats, badly!

I know this because I'm so connected see. Thanks Facebook and the likes. Have one cold day when things are supposed to be heating up end of terrible winter, and the the twitter sphere freezes over with icy comments about how unbearable it all is.

Have one real summers day (like today 24C) and all is well with the world again. It's as if people are step away of skipping along and giving out high fives to strangers. I know that's what I feel like doing.

So high five Jo'burg, summer is coming to a lapa, patio, pool, park, air-con less car near you! Snaps for summer.

xoxo blossom brat

Jokes for change at the intersection

Now see, there is nothing fun about poverty.
Nothing amusing about being at the point where you need to beg for bread.
Nothing funny about unemployment.

And I don't want to make lite of these depressing subjects either. But happily some people do, and the local intersection is just the place.

Other than the weird to pointless gadgets and what-nots that may be purchased at intersections one mostly run into sad signs like these:


Or the heartbreaking guys that beg around the Cresta shopping center in rags, literally going down on their knees for your extra brown cents. They don't even have a sign. I would feel like a real asshole taking pictures of them just for the purpose of a blog, so nothing to insert here.

So, unemployment, poverty and hardships being what they are in this country it's rather refreshing to find someone in that position with a sense of humour. Check out this guy I found on the way to Fourways on Saturday:



I love that the Ninja's are American.
I love that he adds a website (which if you're bored enough to check it out is mostly about teeth by the way).
And just in case you don't get that the sign is supposed to be funny he adds "sense of humour", good job.

Then coming back from where ever I was going on Saturday I found this guy at another intersection:
It's a bit of an action shot, but basically he's like those human statues that will move if you tip them. A rather complicated matter seeing as the man needs to move (or in his case dance) on over before collecting the spare change, all before the light turns green again. But hey he's at least trying to entertain. Give him that.

Introducing...

I have this problem.

I’m not the only one I’m sure.

But it’s getting to me.

My problem is, is that I think Jo’burg is boring and I need to leave as soon as I can. The fact that I’ve lived in crazy cool Hanoi for the past year and a half has only reinforced this longing.

Where I used to be able to walk out into my alley and take half a dozen ‘cool’ pictures of ‘what-it’s-like-living-here-cause-it’s-so-super-different’ I walk out not into my drive way and I’m I don’t feel like it’s a good idea to walk beyond the electric fence with my nice camera.


Right outside my alley in Hanoi



Right outside my house now, in jolly Jo'burg


I’ll stop there because the above paragraph is exactly the opposite of what I hope to accomplish with this new blog.

So here is my purpose:

Find the joy in Jo’burg.

My tainted and ‘everythings-beter-somewhere-else’ eyes are not trained to spot this again.

I realize that satisfaction and joy and good things in life is a heart thing, not a location thing. So in a way it’s more than just being back in Jo’burg and making it work, it’s about finding the cool in the mundane, the beauty in the face brick apartment complexes and the freedom beyond the security fences.



And here with the first offering:


surprise baby at the Jo'burg zoo