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Seemingly random thinking took me back to a day when I couldn't have been more than seven years old. Saturday morning. Up early as any excited child would be. My sister and I went to what had to be the biggest mall in the country at the time. Walking around to look at sparkly new things. To smell the preparation of menu items from around the world. To be hypnotized by a rainbow of ice-cream flavours amongst the bustle of individuals with unique purposes. Nothing quite got my attention like the toy-store, however, and it was at the window of that very one that convinced me to let go of her hand..

I pointed at the items in the orchestrated display. Still talking, I turned around - only to see a sea of unfamiliarity. Fearless I trusted that she would be around soon, so I entered the store to get a closer look.

Colours and sounds. Big boxes of treasure. Small packages of entertainment. But even the toy-store had limited aisles and soon enough, I got bored. A whole mall to explore - so why wait here?

It must have been hours.

The interesting stores were running out and I've seen enough. Even to a young me, the richness of this mecca ran out of potential. I wanted to go home and started searching for my sister. Clearly she wasn't interested in the cool stuff, so I entered the grown-up stores one, by one. So many people, very few alone.

The popular clothing stores yielded no results.

The restaurants had many patrons, none of them my sister.

The fountains churned merrily, yet not in a familiar voice.

A lot of walking and nothing really captivating lead me back to where I started. No sign of her.

With sager eyes, when I glance back, it was a pure miracle to happenstance around the corner that lead into the arms of my sibling. I don't think I've ever felt happier while getting the teary-eyed scolding of a lifetime. It was obvious the wavering yells weren't really in anger.

It may seem sad to need to belong somewhere. I think it's worse if it's not where you are.

The temperature is moderate under a grey sky of featureless clouds, after all night rain. I could see myself pretending to be sick on a day like this one to spend under a duvet with plenty of media. How can something so wrong feel so right?

And that is probably the soppiest intro EVER for a birthday wish...

Congratulations Obsidian, turning 11 today!

My sinuses have seen better days, come to think of it...and there's a little scratchiness to the throat.. *koff* *koff*

;)

Hi all, and welcome back me! Yes, I've been away spending some time down at the coast, locking myself into my room for some serious gaming and/or media. R & R the way it was meant to be *beam*

Yep...the coast *reminisce*. A long, long drive away from home. This year - done in a Porsche, no less. Literally flying down, arriving with a windscreen testament of exactly how juicy Karoo butterflies can get and a shirt testament of how much perspiration a body can produce in ten hours (due to an unfortunate turn of events, the airconditioner was less than operational, and said Karoo is unforgiving).

I know I left without any greetings, and I do apologize - so without further ado:

Yep! I've not been completely idle, and y'all can look forward to many more doodles in the following couple of weeks - I've been stocking up! ;)

What good is a new year's post, without ye olde cheezy resolution type message? Pretty good, I'd say - and against better knowledge and risking mockery by bloggers everywhere, I'd like to finish up with mine..

This year, I want to aim towards improving my art, experiment with colour again, work on some larger pieces and maybe do something lasting.

Wishing you all, a prosperous one!

While catching up on my recommended daily allowence of syndicated news, a post on CrunchNotes.com caught my eye; Bidirectional RSS feeds!

RSS was the new black - it is, in fact, the palette from which many new colours will be mixed.

This link was brought to you, courtesy of an RSS feed.

As I dropped my new electric toothbrush into my shopping basket this morning (my old one broke - when bathroom gurgles turn ugly..), I was not completely unaware of history repeating itself.

I was also not unaware of how a new electric toothbrush might not meet the demands of an annual serendipidous moment. The flashy new rechargeable one (also availalble) had a better chance, I confess...but instead I opted for the new toothbrush, and a new razor.

4 blades! I kid you not..

Predictive text input (or T9® text input) has forever altered the way I view messaging. Pure genius.

This very pure genius has been the cause of many a cryptic SMS, however, often with very humorous results (why some nerd somewhere decided I would need to type "book" more often than "cool" is beyond me - even nerds use "cool" to describe their books, don't they?).

To my delight, I've recently learnt that these little anomolies have received a name (unfortunately, I've found very little to substantiate this, but if it's on Wikipedia, it must be true).

From Wikipedia:
Adaptonyms: Words that can be typed with the same sequence of keys on a Cell phone that uses predictive text.

For example 2-3-3 can give you the following adaptonyms: bed, add or bee

Also called "Textonyms" or "Cellendromes".

Have fun today by looking up your textonym-name (the default value on your cellphone when you type your name).

PS: This handy tool can help you decipher (what I've lovingly dubbed) "midnight-message encryption".

PPS: * The title translates to "I'm home safely"

Two hours and R 700 later, I resemble something of a cross between Frank Zappa and J.D. (That's "Dr. John Dorian", and not "Just Dog").

I was the embodiment of confidence more or less up to 30 minutes before the appointment. One's mind wanders as it would during the inevitable (first of many...not quite sure what's up with that) hair wash, and panic and doubt changed to a deep sadness...I am unsure of the exact reasons. Probably an end of an era? Who knows..

I'm happy to announce, the choice of Salon was indeed perfect. My hairdresser resembled a beer-swilling rugby fanatic. Large and hairy. Not exactly what one expects, I know, but he set my mind at ease in mere minutes. He was confident and clearly on top of his game. He listened to what I had in mind, and gave honest, professional feedback. I wish I could've sneaked a photograph of the burly man concentrating intently on my hairdo. A true Kodak moment.

Family was mostly unimpressed at first glance..Everyone expected a very dramatic change, and I still resemble me, I guess. I feel confident and comfortable. There's a lot of attention, while most seem like they intentionally try not to discuss my hair. The next few days will have the first impressions of some friends...some who has only known me with long hair. So a better overall impression will probably reveal itself soon. Stay tuned ;)

Soon I'll be leaving for my annual visit to Glentana to spend Christmas with my family. I'm literally counting the days (my powerbook has a little countdown timer on the desktop...*swoon* I love my mac :D ).Three weeks of unadulterated doing-nothing...Nwotbliss

Back in my hard-rocker/metalhead/goth days, I had much resentment for this season. Lots of unnecessary deaths in what is supposed to be a holy time, commercialized into a frantic shopping nightmare.

Only recently have I realized that there's more to the season that meets the eye. All that negativity was centered around me, I've never noticed the effect on others.

There's a special glint in my mother's eyes, while she's preparing the dinner table. My father has a certain tenderness in his voice all day long. The lunch is filled with conversation and laughter from parents and siblings alike.

If someone is not at that table on that one day of the year, there's a certain sadness around it - and what effort does it take from me to spread so much joy? One day in a mad mall is a small price to pay.

Here's wishing y'all a merry festive season and ample presents (it is, after all, a wonderful perk).

I sit at work staring at my monitor in disbelief of what I'm suddenly faced with. A taste of my own medicine I guess - hard-headed ignorance is leading to the detrement of something conceived out of passion and undoubtedly beautiful.

I've never expected true conviction could be misconstrued as a personal attack, while I myself have felt insulted and belittled, beit unintentional or not.

I fear the worst. My days at Obsidian might be numbered, for reasons I'm not at liberty to divulge here, and due to people who I am not willing to mention.

I also fear that I will not be willing to be shakeable in my convictions. If the worst does come to pass, then so be it...perhaps it's the sign I need to move on to somewhere I'm understood and respected in a way I deserve.

The point, I guess, is that I'm worried and maybe not as strong as I thought...it's going to be a long month.

I know, I know. Everyone who's ever had an opinion, claimed something similar, but some things just need to be said. The easter eggs of life. Only observed from the corner of an eye in this manic blur of routine.

You know what I mean. Sometimes you notice someone's "extra mile". Someone, somewhere, put in a little effort into something to make your day go smoother. The little things...designed to be unnoticed.

Like the toothpick at the bottom of a Woollies bag of biltong...Or the way a BMW interior light stays on after you've closed all the doors...Or the way the little orange light turns green when your Powerbook is fully charged...or the indicator button on your Powerbook's battery....Or the way your Mac dutifully reads out the time in it's quant robotic voice on the hour, every hour...Or the way your Mac just adapts to the network you just joined...or when your Powerbook...*sigh*...I love my Powerbook!

This post dedicated to Maximus, for making it all possible: Dude, she rocks my world! Thanks :)