Book: Kamee, Roela Hattingh

I met Roela at at a Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa (PRISA) conference earlier in the year (2016) in Durban. She is one of those amazing people that you just like the minute you meet her. After a long day of conferencing, there was a gap before the evening's plans were to commence; I had a meeting close to where she and her colleagues were staying, so we walked together and got chatting. 

I had not anticipated that the distance between the conference venue and the meeting place would feel like a half a marathon in my incredibly unpractical high heals; Roela being so finely in tune with those around her kindly brought me a pair of her shoes to the function later that evening, who does that? What an incredibly wonderful gesture. Maya Angelou's famous quote springs to mind,"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." I don't think I'll easily forget what Roela did for me or how she made me feel. 

During the December holiday I finally got a chance to read Roela's "Kamee". Her first book, a book of short stories. I absolutely love well written Afrikaans books. Roela has a magical way of working with words, describing a scenario and adding incredible detail. The stories make you think, some let you make your own conclusions. I don't really get too emotional when reading, however there was one specific one that did actually bring a tear to my eye. 

Roela's "cameo"is incredible! Really looking forward to reading many more of her books!

Book: Byleveld, Dossier van 'n baasspeurder, Hanlie Retief

One of my all time favourite wind down activities on a weekend is to watch Channel 171 on DSTV; the crime channel. What is it about the macarbe and "whodoneit" that fascinates us so much? One of the other programs that I really enjoyed watching was "Die Byl"on Kyknet. A story loosely based  (I assume) on the work of Inspector Piet Byleveld. 

Much was my excitement when my Mom had taken out the Inspector's story from the library over the Christmas holiday. 

Each chapter is a different case that he had solved, f a s c i n a t i n g! I finished reading it within a day. How he ever managed to trust anyone having to deal with so many mass murderers is remarkable. Hanlie Retief has a wonderful way of capturing and relaying a story; a most enjoyable read. 

Book: The Power of Positive Thinking, Norman Vincent Peale

I've seen this book on my Mom's bookshelf since I can remember. This year I decided it was time to read it. Initially, when I started reading it, I was a bit concerned that it was going to ram religion down my throat; the author does say right up front that everything is based on Christian values. I have absolutely nothing against religious books; in fact I think many problems exist because people don't have / live according to higher being guidelines anymore. My problem with religious books is when you feel preached at. Mr Peale's writing does not come across as being 'high and mighty'; he shares good stories and examples. It may not be everyone's cup of tea; being more positive, thankful and tapped into higher powers can only be beneficial. It was good to get reminder about this.

Book: Inside Coca-Cola, A CEO's Life Story of Building the World's Most Popular Brand, Neville Isdell with David Beasley

Enjoyed reading more about the history of Coca Cola through the eyes of Mr Isdell. I absolutely love the Coke brand and what they stand for, so it was great to get even more insight into this wonderful company through the eyes of one of their CEOs. 

Race: West Coast, 21.1 kms

Time: 01:42

Book: Maverick! Ricardo Semler

Ricardo Semler was/is years ahead of his time in terms of how he managed Semco, and then influenced other businesses to do rethink the way they do business. Very enjoyable read. 

Race: Gun Run, 10kms

NOTHING refreshes like that Coca-Cola after a run!

01:06

Race: Ommiedraai, 10kms

23 October 2016
01:04

Race: Landmarks, 21.1 kms

30 October 2016, super early start; 06:00 (thought it started at 07:00). Beautiful scenery; favourite part is through the park along the river heading towards the brewery. Time: 02:38

BOOK: Three Cups of Team, Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

Great read! I know (embarrassing) little about that part of the world; so it was wonderful to learn more. It was good to read a non business related book in between all the other books.

Race: Old Mutual 10 km, 26 October 2016

Hot! Met Moegsien for the first time.
Time deplorable: 01:14
Cool reflective gadget.

BOOK: Happyslapped by a jellyfish, The words of Karl Pilkington

A fun quick read; I enjoy Karl's sense of humour and how he perceives things. 

Race: Sanlam Cape Town marathon

Looong day, kept up with the 05:30 bus until 21kms. Then went over to run nine mins, walk one minute. Time: 05:55. Just glad to have finished!

FNB One run 12 kms 01:17:19

Run: Satori Camel Run

Not running the hills made a huge difference. Not so dead at the end and time 5 mins faster than last year! 02:08. 

Race: John Korasie, 30kms

Started, well. Made it to the top of Red Hill without stopping! In fact made it to 15kms before my first stop. Graham was in Durban, so race was solo. Forgot my watch and instead of run walk strategy I pushed myself for less stops. Mistake. Run / walk strategy is definitely the trick. Also, I experimented with Barocca instead of Gu's. Mistake II. 

All four seasons in one race, pelting rain, winds, sun!

Was dead at the end and time abysmal!

04:10!

Back to training and drawing board. 

BOOK: Born to Run, Christopher McDougall

Thoroughly enjoyed the read and the way it was written. At the end of the day we have all been designed to run. Interesting stories of ultrarunners, trail running and running barefoot. 

UCT Memorial 10kms

02 May 2016

Muizenberg Monster, 10km

27 April 2016, 10kms 

Spookhill 15kms 01:52:00

25 June 2016 01:52:00

The Bushman Winter Has Come, Paul J. Myburgh

My eyes are nicely open. 

Book: Old Pretoria, Dr Gustav S Preller

Based on my last blog indicating my lack of historical knowledge, I borrowed a book from my Mom about the history of Pretoria. It was fascinating to read more about the history of the town I grew up in.

What I found particularly interesting was the abundance of wildlife that used to roam the veld. It is actually rather obvious to be honest, however, I didn't put two and two together; places like Koedoespoort and  Elandsfontein was so called due to the vast amount of that specific buck found in that particular area. 

Growing up, Lion's Bridge was the place to go for garden supplies and advice. Needless to say, Lion's Bridge was so named due to the high number of lions in the area. The newly arrived voortrekkers would go out hunting each weekend and hunt between five and eight each time. 

When I looked at the index, I saw there was a chapter about 'Pretoria in the sixties,' I still thought to myself, oh goody that will be interesting to learn more about the swinging '60's in Pretoria. Little did I know that they were referring to the 1860's! Which I should have considered seeing that this book was published in 1938!  

Very interesting to learn more and where the street names came from as well. They had quite a lot to say about the possibility of name changes then, can you just imagine what they would have to say about all the new names today! So we move on and grow as communities, towns, cities, provinces and a country. 

Book: Healing Habits – the key to understanding your underlying emotional issues – Ann Gadd

Interesting book explaining why we subconsciously do things. e.g. scratching, throat clearing, driving too fast, arriving late or early and so on. The first part of the book looks at what exactly a habit is,;habits being a mirror of what we are experiencing; how habits can be used for healing etc. The author also touches on how habits are linked to our chakras. The second part goes into more detail of each habit – very interesting.