A fairy tales

A repost from way back in 2007...


The title is all wrong, I know, but honestly, I did start with a fairy tale, but as my thoughts wandered, I ended up with a few. I suppose the title should have been "Alice in Wonderland and other tales", as it was Alice who got me going.

One thing we brought with us to Brazil is my upside-down book. Holding it one way, I had the stories of "Alice in Wonderland" and "Through the looking glass" and flipping it over, I had "The five little Peppers and how they grew". I loved that book, not for the stories inside (confession... I never did read "The five little Peppers"), but for its upside-downness. I never could do handstands, so I would often find myself hanging off the edge of my bed, surveying my world from a different angle.

I got to thinking this morning that I am much like Alice... often bewildered at the oddities that life tosses my way. Some days, I eat my slice of mushroom for breakfast and I grow. For the day, I feel big and capable and sometimes, even powerful. Though sometimes, the bigness makes me uncomfortable and clumsy and not fitting in anywhere. Other times, I take a sip of what is meant to be my coffee and I shrink. I would feel so small and easily trodden on. It has its advantages though in that I often fit into places and situations then that I wouldn't otherwise fit into as me, but then, who is me... and how big is me?

Then I got to thinking about the creatures... sorry... people we meet. A couple of days ago, the doorbell rang. At the gate was a youngster of around school-leaving age. Tea cosy pulled down over his ears, random piercings, baggy clothes... Yep, you guessed it. My instinct was to shake my head at a distance and tell him 'no' without finding out what mischief he was up to. I went to talk to him though. He carefully showed me his student ID card and then proceeded to tell me how they were on a drive to collect clothing and such for charity. Well, I never... Then there's the lady I met a little while back. She was determined to be friendly. I said to Tat, "but I have absolutely nothing in common with her!" This lady has taught me a few things, indirectly, of course, one of them being that there's room in my life for all kinds of people and I don't have to have anything in common with them. Heck, I may just discover something new, such as how much fun Mad Hatter's tea parties can be!

Some days, I'm a lion, desperately needing courage. Other days, I need a brain (actually, most days), then there are days, to my shame, when I need a heart. Tat will tell you that I'm quite capable of being the Wicked Witch of the West, when all I want to do is click my heals and go home, but home is so very far away. So in the meantime, I spend my days running away from the evil stepmother who is determined to feed me the poisoned apple or playing with the little children in Never Never Land. I live with Peter Pan, y'know ;)

*for Tat - have fun!*

First things

This photo was taken of the pond at the bank where I teach. I thought the bottle was noteworthy. It was a beautiful day!

Kat did this. I'm copying. I have actually had a lot happening these past two weeks. As I think of writing one thing, a new event takes over, so the first only gets remembered later and seems stale. I may still try to blog it, but then, it may remain a blank period. I'll see.

Ok, so Firsts...

1. Who was your FIRST prom date?
We didn't have proms, but we did have a boarding school dance once every term. My first dance, there was no date. It was a free-for-all. The second, I had a blind date. He was... um... not exactly my cup of tea (to put it mildly). I *think* his name was John. I looked totally and utterly bored in all the photos. I mean... really bored.

2. Do you still talk to your FIRST love?
No

3. What was your first alcoholic drink?
Wine - My grandparents believed in letting us try things like alcohol under supervision. We had a glass of wine on Wednesdays with supper and with Sunday lunch at the restaurant... in proper wine glasses, not kiddies glasses.

4. What was your FIRST job?
Part time during school holidays - I worked as assistant to the chief of Social work for our district. Sounds glorified, but all I did was sort files and cases. It was a dusty, heartbreaking job, but I was in heaven.

5. What was your FIRST car?
I never owned a car. Our first car was a Toyota corolla hatchback we called 'old faithful' for good reason.

6. Who was the FIRST person to text you today?
No one texts me unless it's to cancel a class. So far, nothing, thankfully.

7. Who is the FIRST person you thought of this morning?
Someone I don't know yet who lives in Wales.

8. Who was your FIRST grade teacher?
Miss Shapiro who became Mrs Mitten in during my first grade. She wore teensy minis... and was terrified of mice.  A mouse ran through the classroom one day. She was sweet though.

9. Where did you go on your FIRST ride on an airplane?
To Johannesburg.

10. Who was your FIRST best friend & do you still talk?
Winnie, though she has since changed her name. I think being called Winnie the Pooh finally got to her. We are in contact, though we very seldom communicate.

11. Where was your FIRST sleep over?
At my mom's. I was terrified. There was a huge spider in my room and the room was an unaccustomed dark. At home, I had a veranda light outside my window.

12. Who was the FIRST person you talked to today?
Specs. Oh wait... person. That would be Jurgis. The only other human here.

13. Whose wedding were you in the FIRST time?
I've never been *in* a wedding besides my own. In fact, I've been to three weddings.

14. What was the FIRST thing you did this morning?
I spent ages trying to get my internet to work, then put laundry on to wash while I waited for a reboot and put the kettle on.

15. What was the FIRST concert you ever went to?
4 Jacks and a Jill at the Port Elizabeth Feathermarket Hall. Now I'm really dating myself. Most people have never heard of them.

16. What was the FIRST record/tape/CD you bought?
It would be the 4 Jacks and a Jill record

17. FIRST hospitalization?
Tonsils - age 3

18. FIRST foreign country you've been to?
Mozambique by cruise liner... looong looong ago

19. FIRST movie you remember seeing?
The Sound of Music

20. When was your FIRST detention?
Standard 6 (Grade 8) for refusing to do afternoon sports because I would get home too late to do homework.

21. What did you do with your FIRST paycheck?
Paid the rent, bills, groceries, etc. My gran was a pensioner... my earnings were needed.

22. Your FIRST social networking site?
Yahoo groups, then Delphi and MSN groups, after which I graduated to blogging on 360.

23. Who FIRST invited you to Multiply?
No one. I discovered Multiply by randomly surfing. My account here was already a good few months old when 360 migrated.

One of those alphabet thingamebobs

Image from http://www.alphabetbooks.com/abc.htm. If I were teaching kindergarten, I'd spend more time there. Great illustrations. Check out the partridge in a pear tree under 'Christmas'. Wow... while looking for an alphabet image, I stumbled across this:



Very clever!
Actually, I was looking for a melting alphabet. That would be appropriate. It's hot here. No. It's not hot. It's HOT. I don't do heat well. Yuck. Luckily, my noon student is on vacation and I only have the late afternoon until 10:30pm teaching stint. Poor Tat is out there in the heat.

A - Area: Concrete jungle aka São Paulo

B - Broken Bones: Right baby finger metacarpal, left shin (have an attractive ding there) and left knee.

C - Camera:  Canon Rebel

D - Dance: Even jelly wouldn't dance in this heat. Saturday late night fling-your-body-around-when-we-have-enough-energy fun with Tat, yes. Doubt any sane person would call it dancing though.

E - Exercise: See above dance response. Oh I do try other forms of exercise too, when energy levels and time permits.

F - Flavour:  Y'know they put chillies into booze here and apparently it's sweet? Next flavour to try if I can pluck up the courage.

G - God:  God as in a title? Or god as in.... everyone has one.

H - Height: 5'7 Average in everything. That's me.

I - Instruments you play: Um... attempted the trumpet because it looked cool. Desperately wanted to play the piano. Can pound out a version of Somewhere over the rainbow... the first line anyway.

J - Jobs: statistician of sorts and considering my woeful abuse of anything resembling a number, that was a Bad job; seamstress; upholsterer; sales lady, secretary, receptionist, teacher, jill-of-all-trades

K - Kid(s): "Children!" My most often used expression when Jurgis and Tat are around and misbehaving.

L - Living arrangements: A typically Brazilian, very narrow house with a strip going up the side that the dogs use as a race track.

M - Mom's name: Annetjie

N - Nicknames:  Corrie (vile), Có (Brazilians like to use the first two letters as a nickname), Tint (of course), Chicken (don't ask), and a few very unflattering high school nicknames.

O - Owies:  Right now? This minute? None *is grateful*

P - Pet Peeve:  I have a list. Litterbugs! Inconsiderate people.

Q - Quiet:  I crave quiet. I've forgotten what it sounds like.

R- Right or left handed: Right

S - Siblings: 2 brothers, 1 sister

T - Time you wake up: It varies between 4:30am and 9:30am depending on how early I'm teaching or how late I was teaching the night before.

U- Underwear:  Cotton (can't help but wonder why everyone always wants to know that in these quiz things)

V - Vegetable you dislike:  Okra. *shudder* <<<< yes!! Other than that, I love all veggies.

W - Ways you run late: Procrastination. Nuff said.

X - X-rays you've had: teeth, hand/wrist, spine

Y - Yummy thing you make to eat: I'll have to ask the family. Jurgis is napping and Tat is out teaching. I rather like my mac 'n cheese. Oh and desserts... and potatoes au gratin... and rice salad. Ok, it was a stupid question.

Z - Zoo: My house on a good day : )

Bag lady

Some days I feel like one, lugging the world around with me. I never 'grew out of' the baby bag era of carrying everything, including the kitchen sink with me. I've been getting better at not carrying too much, but, as you can see, I'm still something of a hopeless case. My excuse is that I was a Girl Guide and my motto is "Be prepared".

Apologies for the colour in these photos. My video card driver was updated yesterday and now Photoshop screams at me when I try to work on a photo. It shows all white as yellow and does some other strange colourific effects.



My bag is what some here call a postman bag. Tat got us each one for teaching. I prefer the idea of a messenger bag. It's strong, sadly not waterproof, and versatile. Attached to the bag is a little pair of clogs Jurgis brought back from Amsterdam. I felt the bag needed brightening up.


Now for the innards...
1. Teaching book and folder with lesson plans. I had a different one in, but swapped it out for this photo, as the other one had the school's name on it.
2. My bright little notebook for random notes and blog-thoughts while out.
3. Headache stuff (Dorflex) and a mini-nailcare thing... just a nail file and orange sticks (I had good intentions).
4. Chase the Wind by EV Thompson. My current, rather tatty read.
5. My pencil case... with whiteboard markers, pencils, pens (all working), paperclips, etc etc.
6. Tissues (handy stuff that...)
7. A note pad that I scribble random notes to random strangers on : )
8. Psychedelic post-it pad for leaving little notes in random strange places : ) I have a ready note on there. Just needs to be stuck up when the urge hits.
9. Sunglasses case, complete with sunglasses.
10. Pen and pencil set sent to me by Tat's friend for Christmas last year. Hair pin sticking out underneath that my hair is currently too short to hold.
11. A diary that I bought in a moment of urgency when I saw my schedule take on a life of its own. I just knew I was going to mess up if I didn't have it all with me.
12. Small comb, hair-tying-up-thingie, Vitamin C sweets, Tic-tacs (sweets in question are old. I keep forgetting they're there).
13. Keys... with Swiss army knife. That knife is ancient.... I think from '96 or around then.
14. Soap I bought on the way home. I love spicy, fruity soaps and find them hard to get. This one is lemon scented.
15. My makeup... 1 cover stick and 1 lipstick... the most I ever wear.
16. A packet of Trident sugar-free gum, spearmint flavour, an old Trident wrapper, a copy of my ID card, and under that, barely visible, my business card holder.
17. Mp3 player, and just above it, the most awful lip balm I have ever used. Can't get decent stuff here. Blegh. I now use petroleum jelly with mint oil stirred into it. Works well.
18. 2 plastic bags... just in case. I have had to virtually swim home with my bag before. That is to protect the more valuable non-waterproof items. Pen - a more handy one kept in an outside pocket. The most used one too. Uh... and paperclip.
19. Little fold-up umbrella.
20. A wallet Jurgis bought in Lithuania. It's embossed with a scene in Vilnius. I commandeered it when my wallet wore out.
21. Bus recharge card and phone card. I always carry a spare phone card. Never know when you'll need it.
22. Um... a plant. Hen and chickens, to be precise. I filched a plastic water cup to keep it 'safe' in my bag. Oh.... I filched the plant slips too. I don't often have plants in my bag.
23. Bank slips, cash slips and random coins.

There you have it. Oh wait... my cell phone isn't on that pile. It goes with me too. Ooooh... I almost forgot. I have a wooden thingamebob that Jurgis made that makes carrying grocery bags home a cinch. It lives in my bag too. It wasn't in the photo because I had taken it to the kitchen with the groceries. He should really market those things. It's brilliant!  Picture this sort of thing made from a lightweight, dark wood (much more elegantly). I'll photograph it sometime.

 

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Silly things

we laugh over silly things
until the tears roll
we cry over silly things
the tears through the smiles
we argue over silly things
tears washing over heartbreak

tears and silly things
go together
laughter comes so easily
tears too
declaring our passions
arm in arm

we have mused for hours
over the big things
no subject left untouched
but it's the silly things
that fill the gilded pages
of our memories

I never knew it was possible
to feel so deeply
about silly things

© Tint~

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Interview with my offspring

I filched this interview from Sandy whose kids gave the most adorable answers. Naturally, my kidlet is a little more 'growed up' (19), so her answers will have a somewhat different twist.

1. What is something Mom always says to you? "Brat!" or "Noob!"

2. What makes Mom happy? When the chores get done without her having to argue about it or supper gets done for her.

3. What makes Mom sad? Arguing (for the most part)

4. How does Mom make you laugh? Being herself (she's very funny when she wants to be)

5. What was Mom like as a child? I didn't know her back then  ... But if she was anything like me.... *cough, cough*

6. How old is Mom? 41

7. How tall is Mom? 1.75m (5'7")

8. What is Mom's favorite thing to do? Blog, chat, take photos and laugh, I think...

9. What does Mom do when you're not around? How'm I supposed to know if I'm not around?? O.O Sneak chocolate? LOL

10. If Mom becomes famous, what will it be for? Writing (she's an awesome writer) or photography

11. What is Mom really good at? Just about anything she turns her hand to, especially writing, English and being really creative though.

12. What is Mom not very good at? I can't think of anything off the top of my head...

13. What does Mom do for her job? She's a mom (sorry, I hog her ;P). Photo restoration, photographer and English teacher.

14. What is Mom's favorite food? I'm not sure... She's a bit like me... If it's yummy and on my plate, I'll eat it! ... Does chocolate count?

15. What makes you proud of Mom? The fact that she's not afraid to be herself. She's brave, unique and everything she does, she pours all her efforts into it. Nothing is left half-done.

16. If Mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? They haven't made one *quite* like her yet

17. What do you and Mom do together? EVERYTHING!!! ... And I wouldn't change that for the world =D

18. How are you and Mom the same? We have similar opinions and tastes on just about everything, we even look alike! People always ask if we're sisters.

19. How are you and Mom different? She's more mature and level-headed than I am. I'm more explosive and slightly violent, while mom doesn't like violence at all.

20. How do you know Mom loves you? She shows it in a million different ways, big and small, but mostly because she tolerates me when I give her sh*t and still hugs me after I've been annoying and crabby all day.

21. Where is Mom's favorite place to go? PARATY!!  Which is incidentally my favourite too.

22. Where does Mom not like to go? Ummm.... She doesn't enjoy being in a big city. She doesn't like being in stuffy places or banks.

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Why Tint?

I am in the process of moving my entire personal site to Multiply. This is off my site...

Back in 1984...  ... when I was completing high school.... The annual tradition was to have what we called a "Matric Farewell Dance" and a "Matric Banquet". The dance was our final year dance to which boyfriends, friends, blind dates, etc were invited. The banquet was a more formal event to which only parents were invited. In both cases, the Std 9 (or grade 11) students did the decor and planning for the event. Our banquet theme was 'Fantasy' and each Matriculant received a personalized scroll.

This is mine.... 

That was not the end of the story though. It was a brilliant help with finding a name that wasn't already used in my earlier Yahoo days. Tintalasia became my ID, but a little long for regular use, so my dearest friends at the time... the Gyms... nicknamed me Tint and it stuck. You will find that if you Google 'tintalasia', it is my login just about everywhere : ) So there you have it! The 'Because...' part of Tint!

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Baby(ish) - little me, him and her

I was tagged by an old friend who has been very patient with me - not that she had any choice in the matter. In short, I have to post a baby photo of myself, one of Jorge and one of Tatiana (she's gonna love me for this!)

I don't have baby photos of me. My earliest appearance in front of a camera was when I was around 3. It was an old slide. Sadly, I have no idea where it is now. Some of you may already have seen this photo or at least another version of it. It is the closest I have to a baby photo. This is me, being strangled by my brother, Hamish. Poor guy was probably told to give me a hug.


Jorge has never been one for smiling in photos. I can't think why. It is a habit that started very early on. Every photo of his from babyhood is ultra-serious. I am deliberately posting a slightly older photo of him, as there is no true baby photo of me. Got to love that hair!


And now, ladies and gentlemen.... the pièce de résistance. Tatiana, comfortable as ever. We still harp at her about slouching ; )


Omg... I just noticed the similarity in the photos...... I'll say no more. Let the viewers decide and it has nothing to do with the peculiar fashions haha!

Approximately 100.... nay... a few things about me

You may want to go off and get yourself a cuppa, a blanket and a pillow. This could take a while. I'm posting this now, as I have other blogs I want to write. If you want 100, add them yourself hahaha! Uh... then again... maybe not ; )

1) I am South African
2) I have been living in Brazil for almost 9 years
3) The only Brazilian to pronounce my name correctly was a cockatiel
4) I'm terrible with names and regularly put my foot in it
5) I am certified to interpret South African deaf sign language at conferences, but I'm horribly out of practice
6) I dream of living in the country again
7) I don't have a TV
8) I play an online game with my daughter. We play as twins
9) I tend to have a wicked sense of humour
10) I don't like vulgar humour or language
11) I lost 6 pairs of glasses in my first two years of school. My gran then gave up. My vision is now perfect
12) My 'look' scares Tat's boyfriends
13) *correction* According to Tat, my look scares everyone
14) I have a low tolerance for rude or inconsiderate people
15) I am an optimistic realist
16) I have tinnitis and struggle to hear, so phone and voice messenger often frustrates me
17) I don't drink nearly enough water
18) I have an extremely sensitive sense of smell
19) I can't tell a joke to save my life
20) I love herbs and will use them in preference to bought drugs
21) I would love to qualify as a herbalist or reflexologist
22) I have no idea where any of my family, aside from Jorge and Tat, are. I wish I knew
23) My favourite passtime is tickling Tat
24) I'm hopeless at multi-tasking. When a friend talks to me on messenger, I stop doing everything else.
24) I'm the world's worst housewife
25) I used to make all my own clothes and Tat's, a lot of Jorge's too
26) I am self-taught in pretty much all my skills (I use the word 'skill' loosely lol)
27) I taught English privately to corporate executives, engineers and school kids for my first 7 years here. I also taught grade 1 and 2 at a private school
28) Tat says she's grateful I don't have the figure I want or I'd dress freaky ; )
29) I'm an e-mail packrat - I store e-mails... just in case... you never know
30) Garfield would be the perfect companion for me (Tat's words)... comfort food, lasagna, sarcastic, doesn't like mornings, likes sleeping
31) I'm a procrastinator
32) I plan to live in a cottage in Tat's back yard with my cats and my garden when I'm old - possibly even while I'm young
33) I throw nothing away that might possibly come in handy as a cat toy
34) I enjoy recording my dreams and analysing them
35) I would love to do a painting course
36) My dream as a child was to be a social worker
37) I love pigs... and cows... and chickens... and geese... and
38) I'm passionate about animals
39) I want to live in the country (just so I know you got the point)
40) I love buying gifts for people.... I like to buy a whole selection of gifts for each person every Christmas/birthday and other times
41) I'm uncomfortable receiving gifts
42) I am always prepared. I took my Girl Guide motto seriously
43) I carry a very full purse as a result of #42
44) I'm a night owl... 2am often finds me doing housework
45) I'm not into fashion. I go for comfort
46) I love gadgets, especially in the kitchen
47) I'm full of business ideas, none of which I can use
48) I love collecting semi-precious stones and crystals
49) I can generally be relied on to 'make a plan' with whatever tools, materials or facilities I have on hand
50) I was electrocuted at the age of 7 and lost my voice for a week (the neighbours were probably grateful), but still went to school
51) I never missed a single day of school. All childhood illnesses and other dramas 'conveniently' took place over weekends or during holidays
52) I love macro photography. There's a whole new world out there!
53) I am not in the least afraid of spiders. They fascinate me. I often feel I have a 'bond' with them
54) I love collecting Christmas ornaments from all over the world... some of which aren't exactly Christmas ornaments, but hang on the tree anyway
55) I rely on my nose to tell me when the food is cooked or something has finished baking... its often more reliable than the timer
56) My favourite dog is the Great Dane. My favourite cat is the ginger cat
57) This is the first time I have ever been without a ginger cat in my life
58) I dream of riding a bicycle. I can actually visualise it, but all my attempts have failed
59) I have little sense of balance
60) It's 3:30am. I should be in bed. I wish my sketch pad had an undo button
61) I believe every child should have the experience of raising silkworms
62) I'm the least squeamish person I know, but I cannot stand the smell of blood. It brings to mind the smell of burning tar, hot metal and oil
63) Right after the training wheels were taken off my brand new chopper, I crashed my bike into my grandad's combi. I never rode again
64) I need to fall asleep on my left side and will probably remain in that position the whole night
65) I need to touch trees
66) I cry easily
67) I can walk for miles, but put me on an incline and I'm finished
68) TNT is highly explosive under the right conditions
69) I'm hopeless at math of any sort
70) Have you fallen asleep in your chair yet?
71) I desperately miss being able to call up a friend and meet for coffee
72) I cut my hair short from waist length in Grade 7 because my best friend cut hers. She found herself a new friend almost immediately
73) I never regretted my short hair, except on cold winter mornings
74) I spent over 24 hours in a chocolate factory, ate two chocolates and couldn't face any more
75) I find it hard to make friends
76) I drove illegally for 4 years - yep... bad
77) I was employed as official driver for my husband's company for 6 months (after I got my license). We travelled the length and breadth of the Eastern Cape
78) I was secretary to the mayor of the Kloof Town Board for 3 months
79) I went to live with my grandparents after I jumped into an open heater at the age of 3
80) I think it was around then that I gave up all hope of being a gymnast ; )
81) I couldn't cook to save my life when we got married
82) We ate risotto for the first 3 months, as it was all Jorge could cook... then I bought recipe books
83) I love Christmas carols, but can't bear them to be sung outside of Christmas
84) I am a bookworm. I could read round the clock. I miss having books available... oh to have a library!
85) I love bright, bold colours
86) .........

I'm giving up here. This list has taken far too long and yes, that is #86... I have trouble in finishing things ; )

Added by Tatiana:

hmmm...
87) Have wheels, will travel!
88) Sarcasm? Your middle name!
89) Incredibly talented with graphics ;)
90) You love stationery. A LOT. (Guess who I got that from? LOL)
91) That one line one of Barbra Streisand's songs "move into the white house, paint it yellow, speak Portuguese and Dutch..." fits you perfectly (I always think of you when I hear that song).
92) When it comes to gift wrapping, you're a perfectionist.
93) Those who know you, invariably love you.
94) You have an amazing voice (especially your phone voice.. GIMME!)
95) You were born with a camera attached to your arm.. Only no one knew it back then.
96) You're not a girly-girl, but you're not a tom boy either. You're just the right mix.
97) You can never talk about yourself... You always have difficulty finding something to say when you try.
98) You never buy for yourself - always for other people (in case no one noticed, you're very altruistic).
99) You're quite modern for a mom and you give a lot of slack (Lucky me ;D) (ALMOST 100!! WOOHOO!)
100) You're my mom, my friend, my crutch, my non-maraschino cherry on top of the black forest cake! You rock *grins*

WEWT! 100 THINGS! =D