An introduction to another blogger from Hoedspruit.

I have not met many people in Hoedspruit who write blogs. I guess there are so many other things to do here.  A week or two ago my friends from the US were here (the lads who gave me my wonderful camera) and they introduced me to the people who they rent part of their home to.

Michaela and Ian are a wonderful young couple who have recently gone through an awful ordeal, and Michaela has written a blog about their difficult journey. Through her blog she has been able to raise most of the funds to pay her huge hospital bills although they will still be needing a bit more to get back on their feet.

It is written beautifully and from the heart and I hope you will pop in to her blog and leave a message of encouragement.

You, me and the big C by Michaela Shoebotham

Oh my blog!

My blog got an award.  This is not just any award.  I don’t usually do the blog award thing but this one is different.  Because I earned it.  I fought for someones honour.

My blog-friend Mark from The Idiot Speaketh was attacked by a retired war veteran with PTSD and NPD and called many bad things and he has awarded this award to those who stood up and defended his honour.

However, he also requires the following from me to be able to show this badge:

1. You must display this award on your own blog so that others will know of your service and bravery.
2. You must do a solo interpretive dance to any 70′s Disco song of your choice, preferably while wearing underwear.
3. You must list on your blog a detailed description of your most embarrassing obsessive-compulsive disorder affliction.
4. You must try to visit at least 3 new blogs today. Go to blogs you already visit and then visit the blogs of 3 commenters who’s blogs you have never visited.
5. You must approach someone within your family, workplace, or school, that is obviously having a bad day, and you must grab them by the shoulders, shake them violently if needed, and then scream at the top of your lungs…”Lighten up already!! SMILE!!!! Life is too freaking short to be in a bad mood!!!”. If you honestly have no one you can accost, a small pet, toy, stuffed animal, or ham, will also work.

Some of these things are really difficult for me – I think I live in a different world.

1. Is easy – you see the badge.

2. I like music, but never remember the title, the singer, or which era it came from. Also I don’t have much of a music collection.  Send me a song Mark and I’ll dance (and I always wear underwear 🙂 )

3.  I don’t have OCD and any form.  I wish I did.  Then at least something in my home would be neat and orderly.

4. Done.

5. My child is happy, my dog is happy, I don’t have a workplace and I live miles from anyone else.  My minimalistic lifestyle is such that I don’t have stuffed toys or a ham. So instead I found a tree that has “weeping” in its name and gave it a hug.  Hope this will suffice Mark?

Hmm – that’s a beautiful tree –  think I’ll tell you about it next …..

Definitions:

• PTSD – Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
• NPD – Narcissistic Personality Disorder
• OCD – Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Lets remember this : You can disagree, you can get cross, you can get angry, you can even shout, but there is never, ever a reason to be rude or hurtful.

Breathtaking photography

There is one area of my life where I get so frustrated with my attempts at getting things right – and that is my photography.  I am living in one of the most amazing places in the world with photo opportunities around every corner.  Although I have a decent “happy snappy” digital camera I am so limited with what I can do.  Chances are that I will never get a fancy camera with lenses to play around with as my great money earning days are behind me. I need to find a way to be satisfied with what I have and just enjoy the beauty around me.

I love perusing good photography sites, especially those focussing on African wildlife and nature.  Today I am going to point you in the direction of two great photographers who, in my mind take some of the best photos of the African natural environment.

1. Jon Hrusa

Although my original fascination with his photography was based on his photos of African wildlife, his other photos tell some amazing stories about South Africa and the transition we have gone through.

For more than 25 years, Jon Hrusa has been telling stories through a camera lens.

Based in Johannesburg, South Africa, Jon specialises in documentary news, sport, humanitarian, and nature photography. His photographs have appeared in the New York Times, TIME Magazine, National Geographic, Global Health Magazine, the Los Angeles Times, and the Times of London, among others. Jon has received numerous national and international awards, including a World Press Photo Award and the South African Press Photographer of the Year Award.

Jon is more than a photographer — he’s a story-teller. He chooses his stories carefully, examines them from every angle, and boils them down to their visual essence.

To visit Jon’s photoblog please click here

 

2.  Wild Aperture

This photoblog is written by Steve Walker – a local 21-year-old university student.  His blog was started a few years ago while he was still at school.  He is a nature lover and this shows in his beautiful photography.  Although his blog is only updated sporadically it is well worth a visit.

Another reason for my admiration, which I must mention, is that he is currently dating The Bean.

Visit Wild Aperture by clicking here

 

Please take a minute or two out of your busy schedules to visit these two blogs.  Please also leave a comment. Comments mean so much to bloggers and it is a wonderful way of showing your appreciation.

Related Articles

• 12 Great Online Tutorials on Wildlife Photography (oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com)

1000!

The blog received it’s  1000th comment on its blogoversary – how awesome is that!  Thank you!

Comment 1000 comes from Julie Mckay who lives off the grid on a remote 40 acre island, Shelter Island, just off of Drummond Island in the far eastern Upper Peninsula of Michigan (in lake Huron). You can take a look at her wonderful blog here.

My 1st Blogoversary!

Last year on this day I started this blog. It has been my company throughout the year and it has become a reflector of my life.

You have all been through a crazy year with me.

• moving to the bush
• starting a new job
• buying my farm
• settling in
• the end of a long-term relationship with my partner
• learning to be alone but not lonely
• finding myself
• learning to live a slow and happy life

Inspiration, company, happiness, knowledge, slowing down,  my spot for interacting with the world, my space for sharing my feelings,  learning about other people, making new friends, a part of my life. These all came true right here in this place of mine.

• 981 comments
• 231 blog posts
• over 23,500 hits from all over the globe
• 1 newspaper article about the blog
• 1 post freshly pressed by WordPress

As always, it’s the readers who ultimately decide whether a blog succeeds or fails, so to you all  – I say thank you. You have helped make  this space such a wonderful place to be for me. Many of my regular commentors have become good friends. It wouldn’t be the same without you.  Thank you.

Some good reading on the net

(from XKCD)

Today I updated my blog link sidebar to include some excellent new blogs that I have found and thought I might share them with you.  When you have time I recommend you visit them for some superb photography and reading.

• 2Summers – Adventures of an American suburbanite in quirky Johannesburg
• Eremophila’s Musings – Photographic views of the natural world
• Greg’s World – Photography, Birding, This and That
• Notes from Africa– Photography and interesting posts about Africa
• OneStonedCrow – Photography and nature posts from Namibia (and a stone cottage renovation)

I hope you will enjoy these blogs as much as I do.

This one is about you

 

Today I posted my 200th post.  I got to thinking about you, and why you come here to read my ramblings.  I have read quite a bit over the past year about blog readership and other bloggers opinions.  There seems to be a trend in most blogging communities of more comments being written by women.  In fact, a friend of mine (who shall remain anonymous) calls his blog readers his harem.  Of about 1500 of his readers he has only managed to count 6 men. I think it may just be because we women tend to offer our opinions more freely.

When one owns a blog with WordPress (or other hosts I would guess), you get a nifty bag of goodies that comes with your blog.  We can see how many people visit over a specific time period, we get to see which search engines find us, and also what these people type into the search engine. There are however some things that these tools can’t tell us.  So today I would like to learn more about you.  Please would you kindly complete the following polls. All it takes is a few clicks – no registrations and no name taking.  You can also take a look at the results at any time.  After you complete each block, please click on the “vote” button.

 

 

 

I’m betting there are a few more men than estimated out there reading blogs – in fact, I know of quite a few who read my blog – so boys if you don’t complete the polls – I’ll hunt you down 🙂

Thank you for participating.

Have a lovely weekend.

Reflections

I am taking the rest of the week off so I can spend some time in the bush so I will not be posting again till Monday.  Hopefully over the weekend my blog hit counter will reach 1000.  Thank you all for coming back so often to read my musings.  I am going to leave you with a picture of our main cottage taken at night.  I took it last night while we were eating our dinner outside.  With the new moon at the moment the night is pitch black with a billion twinkling stars in the sky – beautiful!