Syria

Can someone help me please?
This is what I know about the situation in Syria at the present moment...and please correct me if I have any facts wrong here...
There is a struggle within the country between two opposing groups AND the United States wants to invade the country because president Obama believes that the Syrians having chemical weapons is a direct threat to American national security.
This whole situation has me asking a few questions:
1. Has the Syrian government ever verbally expressed that they want to chemically bomb the US?
2. Does the United States have any authority to invade another country (especially without provocation)?
3. What exactly is the function of the UN? Can they not prohibit the US from invading Syria or inflict some severe punishment on them if they do? They do it often enough to other countries...for perceived war crimes and if the US proceeds with their military invasion, that is indeed what they will be guilty of.

World politics is a crock of shit. What is good for the goose isn't good for the gander and what we see (all the time) is countries like America, Britain, France, Israel, etc. making a mockery of the laws which they themselves have come up with and enforce on others.

Guys@Work

‘Girls can do it better than boys.’

Well, maybe some things, yes. However, this is not the case at SAWomEng, and it was refreshing to see some gentlemen on the team. These are the guys I had the pleasure of meeting during Conference week.

 ITAI CHUMHUNDU

The third-year Electro-Mechanical Engineering student joined SAWomEng towards the end of 2012. He had heard about the work that the organisation was doing and applied online to join. One interview later and he was officially a part of the SAWomEng family.

Itai looks after the money. His duties include bookkeeping, handling petty cash, tracking the budget and any other administration.

UMRAAN HENDRICKS

The Chemical Engineer has worked for Midas and is currently busy with his PhD. He and Traci Reddy, who sits on the National Executive Council of SAWomEng, were class mates at university and he was persuaded to apply through listening to her talk of the work they were doing.

Umraan also wears more than one hat. He is responsible for promotions and is in charge of Logistics for Conference – arranging hotels, flights, buses, etc.

AMIEN PHILLIPS

In Amien’s words, he is an ‘unofficial’ member of the SAWomEng team. His introduction to SAWomEng came in 2010 when he was working for a web design company called 9 Degrees. The company was approached to construct a website for the organisation. 9 Degrees has since closed its doors and Amien has taken over the maintenance of the SAWomEng site.

Amien is the official photographer for Conference.

Experiencing Conference with SAWomEng

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” ~ Nelson Mandela

“Problems become opportunities when the right people join together.” ~ Unknown

It took me a while to get a handle on how I was going to tell this story. Then I came across the two quotes above…and an energy-saving fluorescent light switched on in my head.

August is Women’s month here in South Africa. My Women’s month started on Sunday, 30 June 2013 (the start of this year’s conference). Prior to that day all I knew about SAWomEng was that they were an NPO focused on helping women in the Engineering sector. I did not know exactly how this help was given at the time and I walked into the conference venue that Sunday afternoon unsure of what to expect. Like most people, I had a stereotypical image of female engineers and when I saw a whole lot of petite, pretty ladies (in heels) I was completely confused. I walked into the conference room and ended up in a 1920’s night club. I was convinced that I was at the wrong venue But was assured that it was all part of the introductory ‘ice-breaker’ – an opportunity for the sixty delegates (who were carefully selected from numerous applications) to get to know one another and for the conference team to acquaint the ladies with their schedules for the remainder of the week ahead.

So, what exactly is Conference? It is one of three strategies that SAWomEng employs to assist females in Engineering. Conference specifically targets female students who are either in their penultimate or final year of study at university and its purpose is twofold: firstly, to impart soft skills that will assist the students when it is time for them to seek employment; secondly, it gives them an opportunity to flex their cerebral muscles and apply their theoretical knowledge to a technical challenge. Conference is a five-day marathon, jam-packed with workshops and lab time, with a few networking opportunities thrown in.

SAWomEng has been in existence for eight years and there have been eight Conferences. What makes an SAWomEng conference unique is the technical challenge. Every year, the technical project is centred on an engineering and environmental problem that we face in South Africa and this year the big issue is that of hydraulic fracturing or fracking. The delegates were split into six teams of ten, each cheekily named after a gas associated with fracking: Methane, Ethane, Hexane, Propane, Butane and Pentane. The technical project had two deliverables: a two-page written report and a debate on the final day.

When I walked into the conference venue on the first day, I felt completely out of place. I am not an engineer. While I loved Mathematics at school, Science and I were not friends and to say that I was happy to leave it after I’d finished high school would be the understatement of the century. Things of a scientific nature have never interested me, so my scientific knowledge is minimal to non-existent. The strongest emotion I felt when I was invited to tell the story of Conference 2013 was fear – I didn’t know whether I would be able to understand the technical side of things and do justice to their story.

However, I was warmly welcomed by the SAWomEng Conference team and as the week progressed, I found myself learning more than I’d thought I would. What was supposed to be a ‘job’ turned out to be an incredibly enriching experience for me. It would take me forever to go into all that happened during Conference week but there were three aspects that were particularly inspiring to me…

1.      Delegates were selected from all over the country and flown to Cape Town for the week. Sixty young ladies, away from their homes and families, with a monumental amount of work to do with group members they have never met. I was impressed by the maturity they displayed but what impressed me even more was how they tackled the work part of conference – they showed us that they were confident in their knowledge but also hungry and eager to add to it. They had the privilege of meeting some illustrious personalities from industry, and I’m pleased to say that the delegates made the most of those meetings by asking lots of pertinent questions and engaging with the various workshop speakers and industry engineers.

2.      On the third evening of the conference, the delegates were treated to a dinner by Unilever, a multi-national consumer goods company which manufacturers over 400 household brands (when I use my Vaseline now, the U symbol pops into my head immediately). The purpose of the evening was to enlighten the delegates on how engineers fit into their organisation and how they are attempting to address some pressing global environmental and social issues. The delegates got firsthand experience as to what it is like to work in the supply chain at Unilever by playing the ‘Supply Chain Game’. For all the fun they had, the best part of the evening was meeting the Unilever team. Most of the ladies in the team were ex-delegates from previous conferences, SAWomEng success stories – a validation of the work that the organisation does, an embodiment of how education can change the world and hereby exemplifying that when the right people join together, opportunity will present itself.

3.      Being an educator myself, it was very gratifying to see the delegates put their new skills to use. Some of them even came to practice their networking skills on me during the evening of the @Network Cocktail (which I found rather amusing, as the one delegate said to me, “We saw you every day and wondered who you were because you never spoke”). Even I found myself completely engaged in and able to follow the arguments of the technical debates.

      

Mark Twain said, “Write what you know”. Though I may be able to venture a guess as to how the sixty delegates felt when they left Cape Town after Conference, I will never know exactly how it has affected their lives.

I do know that it has affected mine in the best way.

To the entire conference team I would like to extend heartfelt THANKS for making me feel welcome. This experience has been both eye-opening and educational. But there are a few in particular I would like to thank…co-founder, Naadiya Moosajee, for extending the invitation to attend Conference 2013, and Bhavani Morarjee and drill sergeant, Sameeha Osman Latib, for accommodating me in all the activity on the last minute.

To the delegates of Conference 2013: you ladies have inspired me to be more than I am. The corporate and working world is indeed a ‘zoo with wild animals’ – but I have full faith that armed with your new weapons, you will traverse the jungle and change the world.

Mothers

My sister and her husband have gone for pilgrimage. They left four days ago and will be home in five weeks' time. They have two children - an eight-year old daughter and a four year-old son - who are staying with us while their parents are away.
Each of them has their favourite - my niece loves my sister and my nephew is fond of me. So each of us have adopted one to focus on for the next five weeks. And my one is the one that requires the most physical attention and energy.
I have a newfound respect for mothers...more especially working mothers who still manage to do a decent job of raising their kids, but all mothers who make a concerted effort in the raising of their kids. It is a job that requires copious amounts of physical energy as well as an inexhaustible supply of patience.
I more fully understand why mothers are given such a high position in Islam...their jobs are difficult.
But when my nephew jumps into my arms every day when I come from work with a smile, hug and kiss for me and says, "How are you Tietie?" I melt...and become envious of the women who have the privilege to be mothers.

If you forget me - Pablo Neruda

I came across this poem today..
If You Forget Me

I want you to know
one thing.

You know how this is:
if I look
at the crystal moon, at the red branch
of the slow autumn at my window,
if I touch
near the fire
the impalpable ash
or the wrinkled body of the log,
everything carries me to you,
as if everything that exists,
aromas, light, metals,
were little boats
that sail
toward those isles of yours that wait for me.

Well, now,
if little by little you stop loving me
I shall stop loving you little by little.

If suddenly
you forget me
do not look for me,
for I shall already have forgotten you.

If you think it long and mad,
the wind of banners
that passes through my life,
and you decide
to leave me at the shore
of the heart where I have roots,
remember
that on that day,
at that hour,
I shall lift my arms
and my roots will set off
to seek another land.

But
if each day,
each hour,
you feel that you are destined for me
with implacable sweetness,
if each day a flower
climbs up to your lips to seek me,
ah my love, ah my own,
in me all that fire is repeated,
in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten,
my love feeds on your love, beloved,
and as long as you live it will be in your arms
without leaving mine.

© Pablo Neruda

Missing you guys

Leonore, Caron, Gino, Jessica, Thembelani and Keenan.
I MISS YOU GUYS!!!!

Man, I did not realise I was going to miss you guys so much. Hope you are all well, hope you are writing. I am trying to develop my 5 picture exercise into an actual short story and am slowly making some progress on my fiction.

I tried to get two magazines to buy my personality profile but one rejected me and the other just ignored me.
Oh well...

My favourite places in Cape Town

A tourist will rarely (if ever) have bad things to say about Cape Town. We have beautiful beaches and botanical gardens, friendly people, shopping malls, the wonder that is Table Mountain, amusement parks...the list is quite extensive. The balance of natural and man-made attractions is what makes Cape Town great. However, when you're a resident, less famous places tend to become your favourites. These are some of mine...

Gordon's Bay Beach Front: besides the clean, warm smell of the ocean, there are two things in particular that I absolutely love - the Uncle Barry's ice-cream parlour and a book shop called 'Pop-In"...quite an ironic name because once you walk into the shop, there are books everywhere! Under the tables, on top of the tables, piled against the wall or on shelves. You actually have to spend a whole day in it to be able to browse through even half of the books. 

Pop-in Bookshop at Gordon's Bay Beach front

Cape Town Company Gardens: situated on the corner of Adderly and Wale Street, this has become a recent favourite of mine. A friend had her wedding pictures taken here and we had to tag along. While the wedding party was busy, myself and another friend bought something cool to drink and took a leisurely stroll around the Gardens. What a serene place - from the floral scents, kids playing and feeding the squirrels to other wedding parties taking their pictures against the  beautiful green canvas of the Gardens. My only regret is that I don't get a chance to sit there often enough.

Company Gardens - Cape Town

Strand Beach: This town has sentimental value to me as it is the place I was born. Whenever I need to be alone or calm down, I take a walk along this beach until I cannot walk anymore and find a spot on the sand to inhale the salty scent and listen to the waves.

Strand Beach

St. George's Mall: This is part of my morning journey to work. What is actually is-a brick paved road with shops, banks, offices, etc. on either side and informal traders dotted down the centre. It stretches from Wale Street to Strand Street and is only covered in spring and summer - by a leafy bottle green canopy. Outside are park benches and seating from the various eateries and coffee shops, and despite all the foot traffic, it is actually a peaceful place to enjoy a drink, meal or smoke.

St. George's Mall

the end of something wonderful

I sit at my computer with a heavy heart this morning.
This evening will be the last lecture of my Journalist course before our exams next week.

The last four and a half months have been...I actually have no words to appropriately describe it.

Even after a long day at work, I looked forward to every class.
And it saddens me greatly that it is coming to an end.


I have met some amazing people.They have each left a lasting impression on me and collectively they have been responsible for a large part of my personal growth, as a professional, as a human being. But some of them have left a bigger impression, and it is to those that I dedicate my post today...

To Jean...'thanks' would be grossly insufficient to express the gratitude I feel for what you have unlocked in me the last four months. I thought I had a skill...you made me realise that it really is there and have shown me how to use it. May God give you the health and strength to continue to do for others what you have done for me...

To Alan...I've never been on a roller coaster, but I imagine it feels a lot like being lectured by you :)) and whether or not your complimentary remarks to me were honest or not (although I feel that they were) they have boosted by confidence and validated my abilities. Thank you.

To Gino...it took a while but you opened up. I missed you the times you were not in class because you bring a unique dimension to our classroom dynamic. Your mind is as fertile as the banks of the Nile, and your take on things are...uniquely yours :) Continue to pick up skills and improve...you have a great deal to offer the world through the written word. And I am flattered that you trust me to read what you've written :)

Finally, to Leonore and Caron
I am a firm believer that the Almighty sends certain people to you at certain times for specific reasons. I have begun to feel...undervalued and unappreciated in certain areas of my life. And the two of you have made me feel...special. You've made me see that I have things to offer the world that only I can. You've given me a hearing when I couldn't speak about things to anyone else....
And once again, 'thank you' hardly seems enough. I hope we will continue to be in each other's lives and that I may, in some way, be there for you as you have been for me.

Good and Bad deeds for the week

A dear friend was telling me that she had started writing again.
Of course, in my head and heart, I was doing Olympic level gymnastics at hearing this news. I have come to find that writing is very cathartic and sometimes putting a thought onto paper helps one greatly to deal with it.

She was telling me that she was trying to write everyday...and if nothing terribly exciting happened on a given day, she would simply pen her good deed and pen apologies for any bad deeds. It got me thinking...what a brilliant idea for any person to do! It will definitely make one conscious of one's behaviour towards others.

So...thus far my good deed for the week - helping a friend with some homework.
Bad deed - swearing at my children because they pushed me to my limit.

Must attempt to hold my tongue today, and try alternative methods of discipline.

Rejection

re·ject

  [v. ri-jekt; n. ree-jekt]

verb (used with object)

1.

to refuse to have, take, recognize, etc.: to reject the offer of a better job.

2.

to refuse to grant (a request, demand, etc.).

3.

to refuse to accept (someone or something); rebuff: The other children rejected him. The publisherrejected the author's latest novel.

4.

to discard as useless or unsatisfactory: The mind rejects painful memories.

5.

to cast out or eject; vomit.

Rejection is one of the most painful things a person can experience.

I have had many rejections and while I do not consider myself an expert on this matter, I do have a lot of experience with it.

Rejection can be divided into two main categories.

1. Direct/Open rejection. You are directly informed that someone has refused to grant you something, recognize or accept something. Most commonly experienced when applying for jobs, to schools, when you're a teenager and it comes to friends, etc. Stings like hell, when it happens. But, surprisingly, one tends to recover quickly from this kind of letdown.

2. Apathy/Aloofness/Indifference. Most commonly experienced with matters of the heart. In my humble opinion, this kind of rejection is the worst, as it takes an unnecessarily long time to recover from. Sometimes, you just don't recover from it.

I wish that people would learn to be direct. Directness is considered one of my many flaws, but I consider it to be one of my better qualities. I am learning the art of tact, but I still am honest with the people around me.

It is better to let someone know where they stand, rather than to let them wonder...