Peek-a-boo!

Hello guys, sorry for the very very big online presence. A million and a hlaf things have been happening since my last post. Most importantly the FEI came and went and old Finesse and myself won the event with a score of 72%, also the highest score in the Southern African region which was a bonus. We backed that up a month later winning the Zim Nationals. I've quit working at the riding centre I was at (bad pay and not the nicest working environment) and been offered to run my own riding school at Carole's. So we've acquired four ponies, another to arrive in Dec, and lessons kick off after Bjorn and Lara have gone. So it's all full steam ahead and going great! Mark's work is taking off now that summer has rolled around... its hot at the moment and we're all dying for the rainy season to kick in... but the wind keeps blowing the clouds away. At least that means the trip to Mana Pools should be a blast. It's a holiday long looooooong overdue and we've been working all day every day of the week for the past two weeks with two major catering events as well. Other than that all is peachy :) Hope life is treating everyone well. Big hugs!!! J xo

Fine...

If you're gong to get bored, Fats, then I might just have to write another post... but time is running out on the net so it'll be a quick one. Nothing exciting since last week (online twice in the space of a week... amazing!) to report... Happy Birthday Kris!! Hmmm.... thats it hehehe... will have a better blog ready for next time!!!

Happy Chocolate Eating!

Hello everyone!! First up, HAPPY EASTER!!!! Again, it’s been a long time between postings, but we’ve been busy little bees. Well, we’re finally going to be moving out this week (I damn well hope it’s this week!)…. Yay!!! It’s on the other side of town, but it’s a sweet little place that we’ll be sharing with a mate of Mark’s and his fiancé. Will be great to finally be out of this house and have a little more independence. Still hunting for a car, but that’ll come eventually. Was quite chuffed this weekend when one of my students, a woman who hasn’t ridden in 25 years, went to her first competition… and not only did she win her class, she also won the championship!!!!! I was so proud! Made the sunburn I received that day worth while ;-) Other than that, there’s nothing exciting to report. Got my first competition myself in 2 weeks time… the little (well, rather big) baby girl will have her first outing… should be good for a laugh! Zim is looking up every week… little things are on the up again, garbage men are (finally!) out collecting rubbish, verges are getting mowed and potholes are getting fixed. The tide may finally be turning!!! Hurray! Anywhos… time for me to have a bath (not fun house-sitting for the weekend in a place that has no water…)! Catch ya later peeps! Me xo

Boo!

My apologies guys and dolls… it’s been forever since my last blog! For those who don’t know, neither Mark nor I got the job we applied for. He was too smart and over-qualified and I couldn’t handle the male environment, apparently. Needless to say I was royally pissed off at such a bullshit excuse, but hey, it’s their loss and someone else’s gain. So, what now you may ask? Well, since I’ve sorted my visa and am allowed to stay (and considering what I paid for the damn thing) we’ll be staying here and try to make a go of things. I’ve got quite the clientele set up in the horsey industry… both training horses and coaching other riders, so I’m not really struggling. And Mark has gotten in with his old mate/boss (Chris) who he did pest control work with in his gap year. Apparently Chris has more work than he can handle, and Mark has given him a proposition to take over the work in town; an idea Chris was very happy with. It’s a little goldmine! It’s a field he has experience and knowledge in, and to top it off he’s pretty much walking right into a solid client base too. So next on our plans is to get a car and move out of this house. We have a mate who’s just moved back from the UK to his folks’ old house (they now live in Zambia, hence the house is empty) and he’s keen for some house-mates, and since it’ll be rent free, how can we say no! Hehehe Other than that, life carries on as usual… improvements are happening here, albeit slowly, but a change is brewing. It’s a great time to be here, on the gradual upswing… so who knows how things will pan out. But it’s exciting!! Hope all is well with everyone! Till next time (and hopefully not in such a long time), catchyalater!

Hello From the Dark!

Hey peoples!
Well, typical sensitive internet decides to fail only when I want it to work! Grrrr.... but at least I've managed to jump online for a bit. Actually quite a while... power is off at home and there's nothing to do, so hanging out at the supermarket listening to hellish R'n'B is somewhat of a change hehehehe. Just thought I'd drop a line and let everyone know that all is well on the dark continent. Had a job interview on Monday, but won't find out for another 2 weeks how it went. Lots of applicants for both the managerial position and the hunting apprenticeship. So we wait... getting good at that! Hahaha... keep well guy and dolls!
Me xo

Power to the People!

Well today (and yes I realise I've posted 2 blogs at once... but I wrote the other one a few days back) I had my first encounter with the Department of Customs and Irritation... and I won! Muahahaha... Was expecting a package from the folks in Oz via DHL, and it was quite the large box... so I got a phone call from DHL that ZIMRA (the customs people) wanted to charge me $92 US for import duty tax. Needless to say I was peeved... but a visit to them and a presentation of my tourist visa sorted them out quick smart. Used personal clothing required no tax, especially for a visitor... so I walked away with my stuff and no charge, yay!!!!!! Heehee... on that note, tomorrow we welcome a new Zimbabwe... fingers crossed it goes smoothly and that the future is prosperous for us all!!!! Keep well guys ;-)

My Bad, Peoples

Sorry about this morning guys, I was really bummed. The internet here has been a bit of a pain lately, especially since they've been swapping phone accounts into US dollars. Which means that although I can access the internet from home, I dont want to spend too long on the phone line as they are charging ridiculous amounts at the moment. Rumours of $6000 phone bills are not uncommon... they have no idea of the true value of a dollar here. So until that settles down into reality, I'd rather go to an internet cafe and use wireless. Which is what I did today (as internet is free on the weekends and after 10pm weekdays). And this is the first time that ZOL, the internet provider, has been down for me. So no joy. Moo. Anywhos, I'll be aiming to do the same next Sunday, so for whoever is interested, I'll log onto my Yahoo Messenger. That's all folks! Ciao

Quarter of a Century

Just a quick note to say thanks for all the bday wishes! Sorry I wasnt home when some called, but I got the message :) Had a great day... nice and relaxing with a game drive at a nearby national park. Didnt see any rhinos like last time, but still saw plenty of other game. This was followed up by dinner out on the town... proper portuguese chicken (a tribute to my love for Nandos!) which was super yummy :) Anywhos, hope everyone is well! Nice to cath up with those I had a chance to chat to :) Other than that, I had a fabulous week and also did a fair bit- of coaching and riding, which was a bonus. It's great to already see improvements in a few of them and they really enjoy learning. A great bunch :) I'm also in charge of trying to teach this one horse flying changes because the owner is having troubles... and boy, it's a heavy HEAVY stubborn little bugger, but we're making progress :p Nothing like a weight-lifting workout to get the muscles in action again!! Well I better sc-daddle... hoping we can organise a chat session next weekend (see email that's coming your way!) Hehehe Cheerios

Magical Malilangwe!!

irst up, Happy Australia Day!!! Well, if you've been wondering why I've been out of comms recently it's because we've just gotten back from a place called Malilangwe. A privately owned game park (owned by the 5th richest guy in the world), this place was amazing! No expenses were spared in the making, running and maintenance of this place... absolutely fantastic. Managed to scam a spot with the Mas-East Natural History Society (a fancy name for a group of old farts that used to live near each other and are avid bird watchers), of which Mark's folks are members. An old mate is the head-vet at the place and recomended we come down and stay free of chrge whilst there were no tourists... and to our surprise we weere supplied 4 guides and two open-top landrovers, free of charge, to buzz around as we liked. They wrote it off as training for the guides, and we weren't complaining! Even though I could slaughter anyone else who wants idea another freaking bird, I'm not going to vent on that matter. I was thrilled to see my first ever hyaena, and have fallen in love. I will show photos of the one I dubbed Gorgeous George, a young hyaena who snuck up on our car. On top of that I had my frist ever serious close encounter with two bull elephants who were not further than 10m from me... my heart has never pounded like that... primeval fear!! I even filmed it expecting them to charge, but they were happy to let us sit and watch. Also saw my first ever Black Mamba (those who are unsure should read up on them!) and was happy to see it go away from us rather than attacking us, contrary to the impression I had gotten from all the horror stories... so typical! On top of that we also witnessed lions mating not 15m from our car.. not the slightest bit phased either!! And I also went on a horse-ride safari, but thankfully didn't run into any hungry bugger :p But we had a fantastic time, shame we couldn't stay longer... definately a place to head back to though! So my encounter with leopard, buffalo and black rhino will have to wait until next time :) Until next update, cheers big ears! PS. Photos most likely to be posted on the family site this weekend so stay tuned!

Happy 2009 Everyone!!

Happy New Years everyone!!! I trust you all had a great time wherever you are :) Sorry
I didnt get a chance to email sooner, we had last minute (and I mean very last minute)
plans to head out to the Eastern Highlands, a place called Nyanga, where a mate of ours
has a cottage. So there were 8 hooligans that raided the place and needless to say it
was a fun New Years. Played some useless golf (Tiger - no need to panic yet), hiked
what I considered Zim's Mt Everest, almost stepped on a venomous adder, there was a nasty bout of food poisoning for Mark, and we had car troubles that resulted in the 8 of us and our
accompanying luggage being squished into the one car!! All in all it was a hoot, and
it was nice to get out of town for a bit. Well now that it's 2009 it's time to get
back into work... or find some at least, heehee. Keep safe everyone!! Until next time,
Famba Mushe (look, I'm learning the lingo!! Hahahaha)

PS. I heard a new song by Chevelle... looks like they have a new album out... might be
worth a hunt down ;-)