the polite mugging with accent and word usage limitations

excuse me ma'am, he said. give me your purse.
i say, excuse me?
he says, give me your purse, ma'am, or i'll poke you?
i say, i'm sorry, what did you say?
he says, i'll poke you! i'll poke you! give me your purse.
i say, oh. of course, my "purse"... here, have my bag.
and i wave him off as he runs off back to the bush.

eclipse

lunar eclipse
Originally uploaded by ladelentes.

this is the las time that i see a lunar eclipse. the last time i stand in a veranda, smoking a cigarette. the last time i smell jasmine and opportunity, an early spring night in the south. the last time i do this. and that. and the other. the first and the last time for everything and something else.

orange moon rising over johannesburg

the dogs had been waiting for this all day. i wanted to take them out but had no leash. i need a leash. and someone to take control of it. so i waited until someone took all three of us for a walk. the dogs run around the empty golf course. the sun came down. he pointed out the tree where the fairies live. and showed me the orange moon.

See more progress on: find at least one thing each day that makes me happy

fauna

in the furthermost part of the moon lives a little fairy with wings like drops of crystal and eyes like a lynx. small but beautiful, we can see. the little fairy has been learning how to fly for a couple of years now, but is too impatient and keeps falling to the ground, but nevermind. there is, next to her willow tree, a microscopic elephant who likes to sing the blues. he's a little off-key, but we don't tell him, cos he's got a temper and in spite of his negligible size he can throw quite a tantrum and even the proverbial bull in the china-shop would be hard pressed to wreak more havoc. this is the thing. these creatures are all there, and a few more too, but sometimes the moon is just too orange and it's all that we can see.

reasons for excessive use of the word sorry

• prolonged exposure to english culture
• remnant of early language learning confusion between excuse me and sorry
• feeling sorry, for everything

variety

a night in johannesburg may consist of: four real time car-crashes in the corner of a house, an intricate, illustrated conversation about a toilet that doesn't fit with the imagined version of it, a tender recollection of a child's wonky teeth, a story about tungsten wire harnessed dancing paper dolls, a quick song and a dance, a quart of whisky, a puff of smoke. some coffee.

questions, enthusiasm, success

i. say. these things. you. say. and then. we go. you stop. i count. things move. they do. i care. you worry. we part. i sleep. it sticks. it sucks. you sigh. i scream. this success. this story. our loss.

everything is going to be ok

everything is going to be ok
Originally uploaded by ladelentes.

seeking wisdom from my spam mail has produced no pearls no more, but now i can find comfort in south african urban graffiti

what i need

i need a man like a warm bath. a man i can immerse myself in. a man who relaxes me. a man who makes me dream away. a man with bubbles.

going there, just there

a small adventure, a mini-taxi, a walk to the mall, a taxi rank outside a mall, a moment's hesitation. she wants to go there. wants to walk alone along the dark street. wants to defy rules. transcend conventions. put herself outside the norm. stay in character. but. but. there are certain things, she knows, that are not needed as life experiences. not wanted. not to be called upon oneself.

first impressions

aries woman, the book said...

the southern cross is reassuringly still to be found just four lengths of an imaginary line away from the true south.

after the second play of the week, the girl walks along a dark road, heels clicking on the pavement, skirt floating in the calm breeze. a story is told about another heel, in another pavement. this will be our little secret, she says, joining in the joy of walking around forbidden times and places.

cockroaches scuttle away on the kitchen work-top, antennas betraying their owners relaxing behind the useless trap. a taxi is called, a bottle of wine fetched, locks locked and double-locked.

shooting starts are not the same as falling ones, he says. what is the difference? which kind am i? when will i find out?

physics

an object travelling at constant speed will, by inertia, move smoothly along in the initial direction, at the chosen speed, perpetually a prisioner of the original trajectory. the only thing that will affect the object in this state is the application of an external force. a sudden obstacle in the path, an unexpected jolt to the system, a hand gently applying pressure on a knee, a sideways glance, a kiss...

evil wasp

evil wasp wakes up in the morning, puts on a stripy t-shirt -- mental note: must go get some different outfits -- and sets off on her way to work. the day goes as days goes, meeting after meeting in the office. in the evening, after a few drinks, she gets lairy with a passing arm, shouts a few insults, gets no response, and lashes out for no reason whatsoever. the arm is still wondering what happened.