It really
did, didn't it? It flew and on this last day of 2013 I am left feeling very
restless. I guess if I have to sum 2013 up: I did a heck of a lot of stuff but perhaps not
quite what I wanted to do.
In June I
stopped working at Bassline:
During the 3
years there I developed a wonderful appreciation for African music: reggae and
its big grand-daddy – raga, kwaito, hip hop, township jazz to name a few – and stand
up poetry was a winner. I was certainly shaken out of my tame musical ‘rut’. I found
out that I love very, very loud music and I knew about twerking years before Miley
Cyrus did her stuff on stage this year. The Bassline twerkers knock spots off Miley
- her twerking would be classified as ‘novice’ by some of the Bassline gals!
The gaiter
business carries on:
Our desert
gaiters are becoming a firm favourite around the world. Quite a bit of business
is word of mouth but a lot comes via Lisa’s website. www.ar.co.za. She gets 12,000 – 15,000 visits a
month (her blog gets about 10,000) – with this audience our little business is doing well. An interesting thing is how
different the markets are for each of the 3 gaiter products – the desert
gaiters are by far the most fun; apart from standard stock items in very ordinary
colours, we frequently get requests for the brightest, most flamboyant colours
and designs you have ever seen. This amazing
photo of a team racing down a sand dune in Abu Dhabi shows our bright green
gaiters (made to match the shirts) is a real winner!
Reading,
reading, reading:
I read a lot
this year – favourites that really stand out are: The Auschwitz Violin (very
haunting), The Luminaries, The Goldfinch, The Signature of all Things, Silent
House, The Book Thief, Big Brother. And lots of other bits and pieces thrown in
for good measure.
Travel:
Nothing to
speak of this year but I do have plans for 2014 and 2015. Hopefully this will
take care of my restlessness!
Bracken:
Our little
tabby cat is still going strong – she turns 19 on 1 April 2014. She is quite
vocal these days and sets up a howl of many decibels when she wants someone to
go running to her. It amazes me that one little cat can generate such a huge
sound! We really are blessed to have this little animal in our lives.
2014 plans/goals
and resolutions:
My only
resolution is to write down all the goals for 2014 – plan properly and make
sure everything (well just about everything) gets done and ticked off.
With 2014 in
mind, my very best wishes to you all. May it be a fun filled, productive and
interesting year.
