Epic Weekend Much Much Much!

Whoa…what a freaking weekend…I’m actually relieved in a small way that it is actually over.

Friday evening was supposed to be pretty tame(yeah what was I thinking?) with a couple of drinks with my sister at Cool Runnings in Benoni. It’s always great to start the weekend with an ice cold Hunters and great conversation. I was due to leave when my sister did but I ran into friends that askedme tostay for a couple of drinks and this turned out to be the rest of my evening, with me bumping into more people that I knew that insisted I stay for “one” drink…but it seemed like every time I turned for the door, another drink would appear…must say I had a Tequila Slammer…which proved to be pretty tasty.

I eventually had to drag myself away from the hooligans at Cools and headed over to my intended destination for the evening which was “Book Club” with the gal pals. On arrival I was greeted with the warmest of wishes, a fire in a wheel barrow and sparklers(thanks to MINKI!). The drinks were plenty and we really did have a jol, speaking of life and love and friendships. The evening drew to a close and I greeted sleep with open arms.

Saturday morning we woke up fresh and early, remember Restless Parent Syndrome, and got ready for our paintballing excursion at PaintballCity in Germiston. There were a tota of six of us, three men and three women, and very cleverly(insert sarcasm) decided to have a battle of the sexes. We donned our outfits, where we women looked more like Smurfs and the men like Terrorists and loaded our guns…can anyone say HKGK!

For half of us it was the first time,including myself, and I really did not know what I was getting myself into. After being struck the first time I promptly decided to forget about the flag and take cover for the duration of the game.

The Ginga Ninja dominated the game, capturing the flag for his team 3 out of the 4 games we played. He also barely got shot, until the ast roud where, after he had run out of bullets, tried to make a Geronimo jump over a ditch in an effort to capture the flag, but alas I was waiting(scared outf my mind) at the bottom of this ditch hoping that I wouldnt be shot. Well I was lucky, as he jumped I managed to shoot him in the leg, he fell then  me and demanded my ammo!

Mr Montie perhaps sustained the worst injuries as he landed in a tight squeeze where my sister had the perfect position to shoot him and she did, at close range. Paintballs are not fun, in fact they leave horrible purple welts that are pretty sensitive to the touch.

Ze German played a very tactical game, taking captives, blocking enemies coming from all sides and getting the women to work together as he ended up with us on more than one occasion. In the last round we were able to use his skill to win the game.

Minki was pretty fearless…pushing forward in order to capture the flag.

My sister and I had te same idea, stay put and look after the flag, which is what we tried our best to do.

That said, Paintball is definitely a winter sport. Once all your gear is on, you literally start sweating buckets. It is nasty. Trying to sit and wait for your enemy to sneak up on you, you have sweat literally dripping into your eyes,you clothes are left soaking wet, and it feels like you have lost hundreds of pounds.

Other than the welts, it was great fun, it got our adrenaline pumping and is a definite must, at least once in your life!

That afternoon it was off to a Homecoming party, where we were able to chill and enjoy great conversation and awesome music. The food was great…in fact I have to get the spinach salad recipe…oh my soul it was absolutely devine! We also hada couple of moments with Jeffrey, yeah, he was there too, how do we know….by the call of the birds….kaaa kaaa!

The Minks and I then did something almost entirely unheard of….we went home and were in bed early. But there is always a reason…and this was becuase the following day was the much anticipated bungee jump! This time we wanted to finish the job as the rain interfered with the First Attempt.

We were all up birght and early to go through to Orlando Towers in Soweto. We were a little worried as the morning was heavily overcast, which if it rained, would yet again postpone our bungee jump, which would’ve been completely unacceptable. So off we rushed to get there in time, we got there, already a little bitof liquid courage under our belts. We were told to register immediately because of the impending rain. So off we went to sign our lives away and get weighed and then strapped in. It was then time to go up in the elevator, where we were a little worried as the actually had an elevator repairman working on it with insulation tape. Up we went, right to te top again, where the heavens decided to be kind and the sun shone through.

Minki, being the one with the greatest fear was told to go first by us. It cant have been easy, in fact, I realize it must’ve been almost impossibly hard to do, but after encouragement ad a few tears, she took the leap into space and fell 100m until the rope bounced her back up and down again…Kaaaa Kaaaa!

No one had to tell Duff to jump twice, he jumped off and into the nothingness no problem, but lot his car keys, which thankfully sailed to the mat below. My sister was up next but after seeingte incident with Duff’s keys, realised she had one loose item she had not taken care of.

Her glass eye!

She was about to put it into her bra but luckily they had a special bag they attached to the bungee rope for such occasions(but doubtfully ever before for an eye!)

My sister jumped and then it was me, and for a few moments I actually considered not jumping. My heart was beating a little faster and I realised that I was frightened. Hell it was a long way down!

I got to te patform where they ran through the safety checks swiftly and asked me to stand on the edge with my toes slightly over…well my body did not want this at all, butI raised my chin and stuck my arms in front of me……and jumped!

For the first few moments when you are free falling and you see the ground rushing up to your face at an impossible speed…well…thats when I thought I was going to die! But then te cord pulls you back up and you feel like you are flying, a totally intense feeling, adrenaline coursing through your veins…totally insane. You the go hurtling to the ground again, and I tried to back peddle as much as possible but, gravity says no.

I was lowered to the ground, my body flooded with excitement and acheivement…I had done it, we all had done it….AMAZING…no….EPIC!

We spent the rest of the day celebrating this great achievement.

What an awesome weekend, spent with great friends, old and new and crossing off items from my Bucket List…one by one.

Yes, a fantastic time was had indeed.

It’s The Weekend Baby!

Weekend is here again….time to make bad decisions, let your hair down, be a little reckless and spontaneous. I can smell it’s going to be a good one!

Remember to have a Ripper!

 

Bitch Please….

We are well into the new year and another weekend has gone by,a busy one at that, and that’s the way I like it.

Friday night my dancing feet got itchy so with my Irish friend Emma we headed off to no other place but to Nicci Beach. Euphonix was on the decks and the music was fantastic, nevermind the fact that the place was brimming with beautiful people. There was plenty of Jose Cuervo going around and then to top the evening off, my gal pal from the North, Ronel, joined us in shaking our booties.  How I do love this place, it is not often that I leave before closing, that’s me and the other few hundred people that were still there.

I was also called a Bitch that night, and contrary to polular belief I have no problem with being one. If being a bitch means I have standards and morals and I value my life then so be it. It might seem otherwise with my posts and I am the first to say that I take myself lightly and I indulge in a  little self deprication every now and then, but I take issue when others invade your personal space. You know the one’s that stand a little to close to you, or they grab your neck when they talk to you or very inappropriately place their hand on the small of your back? Especially when it has been clearly stated that you are not interested….wait did I look interested? No? So if you aren’t going to take the hint then I will so politely tell you to back the fuck off.

Besides it was girls night and all I wanted to do was dance to the rythme and beats of house music.

The next morning I woke up to  my alarm and very cleverly decided to dismiss it and not snooze it. The idea was to close my eyes for two seconds…well that two seconds turned into more than forty five minutes so it was a mad dash to get to work on time, which I did. Well there is nothing interesting about work, so after that I got my stuff together and headed of to the Minkster and the to my mother so that we could raid my late fathers stash of camping equipment.

You see, even though Oppi Koppi is a good seven and a little bit months in the future, we feel it imperative to get our acts together and make sure that the long weekend away, in the dust and the thorns and the bush, is going to be an awesome one. We even visited Outdoor Warehouse to check out cool and innovative camping goodies to take with, like the ever needed portable shower.

I then went to Mrs Allycat, for a little birthday shindig. It’s always great listening to good music with great company, sampling some treats and eating delicious pizza. Allison your tattoo is spectacluar! And I d ohope that you enjoyed your “19th” birthday

We then stopped at my god brothers birthday where the heavens had decided to open up…well it was great to see Elton and his beautiful fiance’ Adel, who hosted a fantastic birthday party, the only wish is that I was able to stay longer.

Sunday morning was pretty chilled, I got to test drive a VW Beetle, and I fell in love. They are really such awesome little cars. Us women also decided to wash our cars…and boy was a good clean for my car sorely needed.

A few things I learned from this weekend:

Never, ever drop your standards, you are worth it and you deserve the best.

To hate and hold grudges is to do yourself a disservice, don’t waste a precious moment of your time, hating yourself or someone, or holding a grudge, it will do you no good.

Love yourself, change the things you can, and accept the things you cannot. You can’t change the fact that everyday your body is growing older, but you are as young as your heart says you are. And there is one great thing about growing older, and that is growing wiser, not worrying about what people say about you or think about. That you can look in the mirror and see all your faults, the wrinkles, the blemished skin, the little bit of extra weight, the fact that your teeth arent perfectly straight, or your nose may not be as small and cute as you would like it to be….looking at all of these things and still being happy, still loving that person, knowing that person is doing the best they can.

Savour and treasure the memories you have and make new one’s, it’s never too late to start a bucket list, you can always meet new people and you can always have fun. Never close your heart to anything. Be cautious but not too cautious. Live every moment and don’t sweat the small stuff…

And one last tHing I have confirmed….come hell or high water I am soooooooo at H2o Avicii come the 31st of March.

You, Me and Cuervo…Now!

Move over everyone, the Goose has herself a new best friend, if you could call Tequila a best friend.

Tequila I have known through the years, we were never really mates but now and then we used to party hard together, who could forget bodyshots on the bar counter at the tender age of 18? But we parted ways. Jose Cuervo was a hooligan and for a while I set aside my dancing shoes and became the tame housewife of Benoni. Jose understood. He waited patiently, knowing I needed that time.

To cut a dreadfully long and boring story short, it is afterall Saturday and I am sure manyof you have more important things to do than read my blog, like go to the farm or rustle up Oppi Koppi supplies(which is in fact what I will be doing later).

Tequila and I re acquiented ourselves with each other last night. Yes, I have had a few shots in the 4 months since my divorce but Jose just never did it for me, until, like I say, last night. He was there and my friends introduced me once again. And if tequila were a person, well he’d probably be like my friend, Schalk, sarcastic and a little thorny around the edges. Not to everyones taste becuase you can never be quite sure if he is being serious with you(I’d like to think that it’s mental warfare all the way, and as soon as you start thinking he is serious, wel, that’s when you are in deep deep shit). The same goes for Tequila, you cannot be deathly serious and have a shot, you are either hardcore, downing it clean, or like me, the sissy that I am, you use salt and a little lemon.

There are two routes you can go with Tequila…you can either dance your ass off or you can hug your toilet bowl. I prefer the dancing your ass off option personally, but when it comes to Jose it is a lucky dip, because you never know when that one will be the one sending you retching your lungs out.

Last night Jose and I came to an understanding. he shall be there for me through thick and thin, but mostly when its Nicci time. He shall stand by me where other drinks shall fall short. He shall help me in my quest for the next blackout. He shall party right there with me. But he shall never be there for me in the morning. No, Tequila, I’m sad to say, will not be there to hold your hand while your head is pounding and your body is aching,oh no, tequila does not like morning afters. But hey, you have to accept it for what it is. You have to take the good with the bad.

But what is true, Tequila will always be there when needed.

Just one, two, three…oh fuck it….four shots away.

Happy New Year!

I’d like to say I’ve been too terribly busy to write a new years post…but it’s more like it has taken me 4 days to recover from the New Years Party. Not that there were loads of people, it was actually just a small crowd, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t rip the ring out of it.

The party was hosted at Minki’s house and began with a”tame” game of 30 seconds…well not really…we had to add a drinking rule and that we did. There were alot of good laughs with the men pitted against the women. At one stage us girls “threw” a couple of rounds just so that we could drink a little more. As for who won? Well the women of course. Not to say that the men didn’t make a valiant effort.

There was drinking,laughter, dancing, a fire that kicked ass until the heavens decided to open and a frank kitchen discussion that had the Minkster(www.minkipraat.wordpress.com) blushing. As the clock struck we all had sparklers thanks to Minks…a cute little touch that was pretty awesome…although I was unable to light mine(I’m blaming the alcohol here). There was an escapade in a car that has left my shoulder a little bruised and a game of Kings that left a table cloth stained with wine.

I fiercely maintain that the bigger the hangover is…the better the party…well this one was huge, all of us suffered on the first day of the year. It was really and truly awesome to lie in the sun and bake, heads pounding, having the occasional dip in the pool and then later to chill and watch the sometimes if not gross antics of “Kenny vs Spenny”(although that didnt help any of our stomachs much when it came to the humiliations).

Regardless of how you bought in the New Year I do hope it was a happy one. If you’ve made resolutions I hope you can stick to them, and even if you don’t, it’s never too late to change no matter what day of the year. Take each day as it comes, some may be spectacularly great and some may be spectacularly bad. There will be changes and some things will remain the same.

If anything this year, resolve to live each day as if it were your last. Get things done, smile, cry, do what needs to be done. Help a friend, ask for help. Take chances, start a retirement fund, skydive, get married, get divorced…dance until your feet are broken, laugh until you cannot speak, open up to the experiences this year has for you.

Happy New Year!

 

Rocketeering, Gangsta’s, and a Birthday…

So…I didn’t end up at the coast. After an emotional evening it was decided I would remain in Jozi…Woohoo!

It been a pretty eventful time since deciding to stay up here and all of it good…no…awesome.

Friday the 16th was my sisters birthday, so we had a good old fashioned piss up…you know…the one where you start dancing and singing along to Bon Jovi…there was also a little bit of karaoke but I do believe that I broke the machine or a few eardrums…I can’t be too sure which. It was a great time, a bit wild, but with a few Scots in the mix, it always tends to get a little bit crazy.I was also almost involved in a cage fight with my god brother…but I decided to save him the embarassment of having his ass kicked by a girl.

Saturday I was invited to witness Schalk and Jaco’s Rocketeering(to catch up on previous episodes you can check it out @    http://www.youtube.com/user/Groendakkies).

Put simply, they cook homemade rocket fuel, drink alot and then attempt to launch, up to this point the rocket has had performance problems, but really, the making of it is hysterical. And live it is so much better.

I think it has already been established that The Wild West has no brakes. And as always, this time was no different. A game of Kings got us nicely stukkend, especially when the ‘strafdop’ (penalty drink) is a mix of Sambuca and Tequila Jack. There were also other shooters but they were avoided like the plague(by me at least). The rest of the evening was mostly talking(of which I was mostly to blame…apparently I can talk ALOT).

Which reminds me of a famous quote…Silence is Golden, Duct tape is Silver…and I am sure that Jaco, Schalk and Marius would have loved to have used some duct tape to shut me up that night.

The next morning we were rudely awakened by the fact that Silent Bob’s wallet was missing. After an endless search for said wallet,i was eventuall recovered and Bob could smile again. Jaco prepped the rockets while his super enthusiastic partner, Schalk, did as little as possible….his ass was glued to the La Z Boy the entire morning. I found it difficult to get up myself. In fact it was difficult to do anything from lying still, sitting still, talking, not talking, eating, not eating…everything I did was a sad attempt…

After preparations we could leave and shoot some rockets. Let me tell you, you get some really weird and concerned looks from people when driving by with a rocket in your hand(can anyone say Terrorist much?). We went to a remote area give or take 10km from Roodepoort…but more on the give side…and boy was it a scorcher…why we actully needed to ingite the rockets is beyond me, that’s how hot it was.

Rocket number One was an explosive, and we were pretty lucky not to be hit by shrapnel(the closest piece must’ve been around 2m from where we were standing). The next rocket the men were able to “launch” 3 times. Once there was a little airtime for the rocket, the other two launches were more about making a “big boom”. I must say there is alot of fun in the ‘uncertainty’ of shooting homemade rockets. You feel young and somewhat reckless and obviously there is an element of danger. But please kids…do not try this at home…

Better luck next time boys.

As tired as I was I did not get lost whatsoever coming back from Roodepoort. So all in all a weekend without getting lost…HUGE SUCCESS!

Is it too gushy to say tha I’m loving life at the moment?

Well I am.

Brakes…Where we’re going…We don’t need Brakes!

I’ve decided that weekends are way too short. There is only so much that can be done and two days and two nights are never enough.

I had a fantastic time doing my laundry on Friday night…yes I did my laundry…on a Friday night. And then I put myself through the agony of watching a dreadful movie on E tv called “Prey” which is about some silly Americans being attacked by homicidal lions. Needless to say, the lions did a killer acting job…not that I know how it ended…I fell asleep on the couch it was that riveting.

I was up fresh and early on Saturday morning and I hit the shopping malls before they became suffocatingly full with Christmas shoppers. If there is one thing I do not like(in fact despise it), are queues. It seems when people are queing they forget all about personal space and boundaries, so much so that you can feel their breath on your neck as you are waiting your turn. I feel claustrophobic in these circumstances. I was relieved to be done with all the shopping before this happened. The perks of being up before 7am on a Saturday morning.

That evening it was off to The Wild West again. It is with confidence that I can say that I can make my way to Roodepoort with no problem whatsoever anymore(I cant say the same about coming back though) . I had to stop at the local mall to get my drinks for the evening. I was pretty dissapointed in the variety of soda’s they had to offer(which was next to nothing), I was looking for Sprite, where the Checkers did not even have a buddy bottle. I came right at the bottle store, although I had to buy two 1 litre bottles as opposed to one 2 litre bottle.

The evenings dinner was pizza…simple but effective. And for the evening’s entertainment we were to watch some Jimmy Carr, not the live South African show, but from the comfort of La Z Boy couches.

I must mention that as comfy La Z Boys are there is a slight degree of difficulty when trying to do certain things…stop right there with your dirty minds…have you ever tried to drink while lying down on a La Z boy with your feet up? And then there is the cuddle problem, which is almost impossible due to the fact that as soon as your weight is not evenly distributed on said couch, ,it retracts back into the seated position. Overall though, comfort far outweighs anything else….my overall rating is an 8 out of 10.

A big thank you to Jaco for always being the gracious host. I did not have to pour one of my own drinks. Granted I had to keep up which meant downing quite a few of those glasses of vodka…but it’s the thought that counts.

I’d love to fill you in on the gory details of the rest of the evening but things are a “little hazy”. I can tell you that I didn’t get away from the evening unscathed. I am now the proud owner of not one, but two Hickeys. Which is all well and good unless you have to see your mother and your ex the same day.

I’ve given up tring to sleep in over the weekends, those elusive extra hours of sleep I will never get again…the struggle is over, RPS(Restless Parent Syndrome) has won.

I spent the morning watching Transformers with one awesome litte guy, playing with cars and then discussing the greatness of Ben Ten.

True to form when in the West, I got lost, again. Thankfully it wasn’t a major detour, I simply missed a turn off, so I was able to get back on track easily enough. But it sucks greatly nonetheless. Got back to Boksburg, and went to lunch with my mother and two sisters where we devoured copious amounts of seafood.

All in all a very good weekend…

PS: Anyone got tips on covering up a hickey?

Flat Out…

Where do I start to describe the weekend?

Well, it didn’t come soon enough. Friday afternoons at work really are torture, especially when you are eager for the weekend to start. Minutes turn into hours and if we are all completely honest, how much work really gets done between 3 and 5pm on a Friday afternoon?

Eventually it was time to hit the road and for the weekend to begin. And what better way to begin by spending the evening in Roodepoort(well, maybe not so much for the city, but for the company there).

The challenge was to cook a meal for my boyfriend without blowing anything up or killing anyone, or, as is my forte, flooding the kitchen. Well I’m happy to say we both made it out alive, nothing flooded, no one died and nothing was blown up. I know, next time I’ll try be a little more careless…we know that makes for a much more entertaining blog. The rest of the evenings plans were pretty simple, a couple of UFC’s and a movie.

The plans were slightly diverted and we ended up watching the highlights of a few movies, such as the unforgettable fight scene between Neo and Mr Smith from the movie classic The Matrix. And then for a couple of laughs, Cheech and Chongs Up in Smoke, anyone looking for some Labrador?

All in all a very relaxed evening, especially when only one bottle of vodka was consumed by only two people(In hindsight it is perhaps never a very wise idea to try drink as much your boyfriend). It is only a miracle that I have not yet hugged a toilet in Roodepoort.

Restless Parent Syndrome is a bitch. We were both up before 6am with pounding heads…and a slight blank on how and when the bedroom curtains were shut?(after some deliberation it was decided that I had indeed shut the curtains when we decided to go to bed). A few headache tablets later and a couple of cups of coffee and I was almost functional again. Jaco made an awesome breakfast sandwich that I surely would have eaten with gusto on any other morning, but my stomach wanted to hear none of it , so it ended up being a few feeble bites.

And then there was serious business to attend to. I had to get my ass back to Boksburg in order to do some shopping.

Let me add here that for the first time, I did not get lost coming or going from the Wild West….but I may have picked up a traffic fine.

Back in Boksburg the Minx and I hit the stores with what energy we could muster ,as we were both suffering intense hangovers. Two malls and dozens of stores later(which, if I had listened to Minkster, could have been prevented) we eventually found the perfect outfits.

I word on clothing store dressing rooms: unless you are perfectly preportioned nothing will quite look fabulous on you when you try it on in a dressing room. More often than not harsh flourescent lighting is used and this is the worst type of lighting as it brings up every flaw you hve on your body. If you are unsure, buy the item of clothing and try it on at home and if it still looks crap, return it.

It was time to get a move on to Kempton Park(and yes, my shoes were off within the first five minutes of being there). And honestly, what is a weekend without the Goose getting lost. Yes, I got lost in Kempton Park, but it was minor. The worst part being we had to travel on a dirt road.

We really did enjoy ourselves kempton style, with no shoes, lying on blankets in the shade. And of course, all of us had hit it pretty hard thenght before so it took a couple of drinks for us all to regain our “personalities”. As the perfect host, Schalk delegated the braaing to his brother and the salads to the women(well, I can tell you, I have had just about enough domestication after this weekend). The food was awesome!

All too soon it was time to get ready and get our asses off to Nicci Beach. And we did so in style. There is nothing better than dancing the night away with great company, the overall crowd was also really cool. Schalk I will never forget your little moonwalk. Silent Bob(aka Marius) actually spoke and quite often. Minki, my dear, danced her her feet off. Jaco played cameraman well. And me, well I was in my happy place.

Sometimes a person just cannot describe an awesome evening and such is the case. But the big dogs definitely showed the Goose a thing or two.

To memories made.

Only One Way Out…………Flat Out!

Yes indeed, another week has seen it ass and the weekend is upon us. Not only that but it is exactly a month until Christmas and 37 days until the New Year.

Can I hear a Wooohooo!

With so little left of this year I urge you to go out and make the most of it while you still can. If you have had a miserable year, now is the time to turn it around and do something fantastic for yourself. It is your mindset that matters, make it worthwhile!

As for me, well plans have been laid out this weekend and I am ALMOST ashamed to say it is going to be one of complete and utter debauchery.

Tonight the goose will be cooking a meal in the Wild West. Yes, this blonde is going to be working in a kitchen. So if you perhaps see smoke on the western horizon this evening, it’s most likely that I’ve blown Roodepoort up. I’ve also asked Jaco to have an appetite, he will need it if he is going to have to eat a plate of my food. All that I am hoping for(other than stuffing dinner up) is not to get lost either way. But just in case, I filled my petrol tank(who knows when I might accidentally find myself in Bloemfontein).

Tomorrow is the Big One…a dear friend, Schalk, is celebrating his birthday and I have been warned to bring my “A game”(And I know he means business as his “breakfast” this morning was a shot of Tequila, Jagermeister and Red Bull). Yes he plans to make a party out of the entire weekend(No,one day isnt good enough for the Shalkinator, he has to rip the ring out of the WHOLE weekend!)

Well my first priority is to make sure I survive The West, and if I do my partner in crime(the one and only Minkster) and I are planning some serious shopping. Tomorrow the Malls should be afraid, very afraid…no…DEATHLY afraid!

I’m only hoping that I do not get lost in, dare I say it….Kempton Park(you know, that town where you have to check in your shoes before entering). But I have Minx to help me navigate.

And seeing as the party is starting in Kempton it can only mean downhill from there.

Guys and girls I can only hope I make it out of this Weekend in one piece. And with that said, there is only one thing left to say:

“Hasta La Vista, Baby!”

Keep on Rollin’

After Friday afternoon’s dilemma, I must say the weekend was well worth the hangover I experienced yesterday.

Friday evening was pretty mellow considering the drink we had, can you say PO10C? I dont know why we even force ourselves to drink something that looks like methylated spirits and has much to be desired in the taste department. But we did it, we drank the bottle. We also had meaningful gal pal chats and good old fashioned dancing. It was also on Friday evening that I realized that I need to start putting my debit card into my purse, as opposed to dumping it into my handbag, which I may fear is also black hole(I am forever searching for something in there, amongst the cash slips and make up and cards and chargers and jewellary, you name it, it’s in there, somewhere). And you know its particularly bad when you won’t even let your boyfriend have a peek inside(I kid you not).

What was particularly interesting was the fact that, for the first time in a long time, my mother and I had a true heart to heart, and for those of you who dont know me, this is pretty big, especiall at 12am a night. Mom, thank you for lending me your ear, it is much appreciated.

I woke up the next morning, somewhere between a hangover and not feeling too bad. The worst being I was up at 6am, and that I had to work that morning. The best about it, having a little sister to make you a cup of coffee.

Work went as it always does on a Saturday…painfully. I tried to while away the hours by actually doing some cleaning, yes I did, I actually mopped floors…[insert startled surprise here]. I’d also like to say thank you to the genius who brought us www.stumbleupon.com , there is no better way to surf the net than stumbling.

After work and a little bit of hurried preparation, it was off to the Wild West again. It was third time lucky for me as I managed not to get lost going there (Fist Bump if you please). I knew we were in for an evening when I was greeted by not only Jaco but also Marius and Schalk. One of the toughest decisions that afternoon had to be whether or not to buy a bottle of tequila. But while we stood there we all seemed to realize it was a really bad idea. So we got another bottle of Vodka instead.

The plans for that evening were simple. Go to the drive in(which I hadn’t been to in at least 20 years), have some drinks, watch the movies and then go home. Nothing is ever that simple though, is it?

We arrived an hour early, obviously to get a decent “parking”, which we did. We all had ourselves drinks and with a couple of blankets, a bean bag and a few pillows we were set. The radio was tuned into the correct frequency and all we had to do was wait. The movies that evening happened to be ”Three Musketeers” and someting to do with love…I cant quite remember the full title. Now I’m not too sure but sometime before the movie began we stumbled upon a dire fact. The fact that Schalks battery as flat, his car battery. It seems not only the radio but an annoying light in the boot of the car that refused to go off were the culprits.

Now everyone must’ve had his happen to them at least once. It is not fun, and it is made much worse when you realize that you have to push start the vehicle in the middle of a Drive In(Blind One), amongst hundreds of other people(Blind Two) and you aren’t quite sober(Blind Three).

Back to this a little later.

We were still adamant to watch the Musketeers movie, the only downside being we had to strain to listen to it from the vehicle next door. It was probably in th first 5 minutes that we realized(at least from my point of view) that this movie was going to be kak. Other than the appearances of Mila Jovovich and John Malkovich, the rest of the cast and the acting was somewhat lack lustre and undeserving of our attention. So we did what any good samaritans do and spoke(if not bellowed) to one another about various “taboo” subjects throughout the movie(well we actually werent ther long enough to see the whole movie but you get the point).

Schalkatang seems to be a very appropriate nickname for Mr Lavis as he demonstrated his simian like skills by throwing stones at Jaco using only his feet. Marius showed us that silence is indeed a weapon(cause that is how he rolls). And Jaco, well, what is there to say about him? Other than being able to easily give me a piggy back to the drive-in bathrooms(I may be a skinny bitch but I am not petite so it is pretty cool that someone can pick me up and carry me a few hundred metres without dropping me or falling over.) but his sense of humour and his enthusiasm are second to none.

Come to think of it, who needs to watch a movie about three musketeers when you are in the very presence of a few.

About half way through the movie it became blatantly apparent that we were just not going to watch the rest of it, so we decided to hit the road. This meant being push started halfway through a movie wiht a ton of onlooker. I did as any woman would do, I promply got into the car and hid my face so as not to be recognised.

I believe all that were in earshot of us were happy to see us leave. Push start and all.

The rest of the evening was indeed very memorable, which I can honestly say, is a welcome change when visiting the West.

The next morning there was an attempt at “cliff diving” which did not go too well. Jaco made a dive but the rest of us were not too interested in getting frostbite(among other things). Due to our hangovers we were also not very inspired and I wore the personality of a rock(merely talking was enough to have my grey matter smoking from the effort).

After an attempt at watching Pirates of the Caribbean and a nap I had to head back to Boksburg….

…..but a trip to the Wild West would not be complete without my getting lost now would it? Indeed I did. And not only once. I found myself in Van Der Bijl Park, then Kibler Park then in the middle of Johannesburg and then in Germistion before eventually coming out in Boksburg. I tell you I was in no mood for it, especially on top of my hangover.

Other than that, the weekend rocked, I loved every minute of it. And although things may no have worked out as planned I’d like to think the journey counts just as much as the destination.