… and landed all over me 🙂
A florist exploded…
30 things you didn’t know about me…
In honour of my birthday on Monday, here are 30 things you may or may not find interesting about me…
1. By the age of one I could speak in full sentences.
2. I was born bald and only really got hair around my second birthday.
3. I was an only child until just before my seventh birthday when Matt was born (Cliff was born 15 months to the day later).
4. I used to dance ballet, modern and tap.
5. I broke my nose in standard 5 jumping on a trampoline.
6. The only thing I hate more than snakes is lizards, they are snakes with legs…
7. I have a ‘thing’ for vampires.
8. I was that kid in primary school that everyone teased, sometimes affectionately.
9. I never finished varsity.
10. My first job was working in a toy store, I think I lasted a month.
11. I can sing, badly.
12. I could never be a vegetarian, I love meat too much.
13. I could have done better at school but I was too lazy.
14. I am very uncoordinated, I drop things a lot, ask Paul.
15. I tell people I am 5 foot but really Im shorter than that. Â Just.
16. I spent just over 8 months on a kibbutz in Israel.
17. I tell myself stories when Im lying in bed to put myself to sleep.
18. I almost always fall asleep after Paul.
19. I can read a novel in about 3 days, I don’t speed read.
20. I love salt!
21. I had naturally blonde hair as a child.
22. I have died my hair pretty much every colour except black.
23. I hate wearing make up.
24. I dont like touching anything fluffy (mohair, lint from the tumble dryer etc…)
25. I gag at the thought of wet paper.
26. I have been held at gunpoint in my own home, been smash and grabbed and been hijacked.
27. I LOVE South Africa.
28. One day I will live in Israel, maybe sooner rather than later.
29. I am beginning to be happy with who I am, I am a work in progress and thats ok.
30. The thing I love the most in the whole world is my family!
Getting excited for Sunday!
Really really excited.
I had a moment last night where panic set in… What if no one turns up, what if the food is bad, what if people hate it and leave early?
I was so upset that I got out of bed and went to Paul for a hug. I sat on his lap and cuddled and told him all my fears. He asked a few key questions and suddenly I realised Im not worried about people coming, we have already sold so many tickets and the food will be great and everyone will have a fantastic time.
The WIZO AVIV Shaffa ladies have worked our butts off to make this a success and I have every confidence that that is exactly what it will be!
Now this morning I am so excited I could burst. This is going to be an amazing event with amazing women.
Seasons
Today I could not stomach the thought of wearing jeans and boots again. I had to wear a skirt and a pair of slip on ballet type shoes, I just had to.
I also caught myself looking at the trees and shrubs on my way to work and trying to see if there were any green shoots yet.
I am beginning to hate winter, I want to be warm, I want the colours of spring.
Another little known fact…
I love romance novels.
A little known fact…
I have always wanted to write a book that starts with this line:
“It is with deep regret that I must inform you…”
Wish List
I have so many things I need want to get for myself I thought I would put them down in writing. Â Maybe this will help me prioritize and even motivate me to get my arse in gear and make a plan to get these things.
Photo frames – I have a ton of family photos I want to put up in my dining room, one of the walls is painted a deep red and I think it would make a really great feature. Â I want to frame everything in black and silver and randomly scatter the photos on the wall using various frames.
New lingerie – I have very serviceable undies, some of them very sexy too but I want to treat myself to some REALLY sexy stuff.
Shoes – I am very lazy when it comes to shoes, I buy a pair I like then wear them until they fall apart. Â I also tend to go for flat comfy shoes and I think its time to start wearing more interesting funky shoes.
ghd – I won a competition last year to attend a ghd Style Lounge event.  It was awesome and one of the friends I went with won a ghd.  I can borrow it whenever I want but i really want my own one!
A holiday – I can cross this one out cause we have booked to go to The Nest in the Drakensburg at the beginning of September. Â I CANT WAIT!
Visit my brother – he is in the army in Israel and I really miss him!
Blog more – ok, so this one isn’t going to cost me anything more than time but I have been finding it very difficult to blog at the moment, writers block I guess. Â So I promise myself to make an effort to blog more!!!
Getting involved…
I work for a non-profit organisation. We raise fund not only for the local Jewish community but for Israel as well.
I had resigned from my previous job with out having another job lined up. I had just had enough. I was a misery at work and I was becoming very difficult to live with at home. After three years at a job that I had started out loving and slowly started hating, leaving so drastically had seemed the only option.
About a week into my notice I went for an interview with a recruitment agency. As I was leaving I remarked that I would like to work for a Jewish company. The agent called me back to her desk, made a phone call and in 2 minutes had set up an interview for me.
I would be lying if I said that I took the job because I was passionate about Israel and the local community. I took the job because it was first and foremost a job. The hours were also great and I got all the Jewish holidays off. It was also 5 minutes from my house.
In the (just over) 2 and a half years I have been working here, I have become passionate about the work that I do. Yes, living 5 minutes from work and all the holidays off are great, but I truly believe in what I am doing!
Recently I have become a volunteer/member of another great charity organisation, WIZO.
The organisation is comprised of branches that are volunteer run. The branches raise funds to send to Israel to help with womens empowerment, child safety and soldier rehabilitation to name but a few key areas.
The branch that I am involved in is called WIZO AVIV Shaffa. Shaffa is a coloqueal term for a sexy woman and that is what we are about. Young, sexy and dynamic. We aim to raise funds and have fun doing it.
At the moment we are organising a Womens Day event. I will post the details shortly.
All in all I am far more involved in my community and with Israel than I have ever been before and I feel good about it. Its gratifying to have a purpose and to know that what I am doing with my time makes a difference.
I am an ostrich
I have been burying my head in the proverbial sand for weeks.
My gran on my moms side is sick. She has been sick for quite some time. She has a degenerative liver condition. It cannot be cured. At her last doctors appointment the doc told my mom she is getting worse and that she probably will not make out the year.
I am very very lucky to have had all my grandparents up until last year when my grandfather on my dads side passed away at almost 94 years old.
My gran is the youngest of my grandparents and I am not ready to say goodbye to her. I think out of all my grandparents I am closest to her. She was my confidant as a child and as a teenager I could talk to her about anything.
Somehow, even though I know logically death is a natural end and if you are lucky you get to live a long and productive life, it never really occurred to me that I would someday not have my grandparents around. It is hard to wrap my brain around the concept that one day, probably soon, my gran will no longer be with us.
That being said, I have done a rather great impression of that ostrich and have tried very hard to ignore the facts.
I need to put my big girl panties on and spend more quality time with my gran and take Aaron for more visits and just spend as much time as I can with her.
Life is to short (no matter how long your life is) to be afraid.
Live every minute as if it may be, not only your last one, but the last minute of your loved ones too!
Positive Customer Service!!
A few months ago I noticed that Pick n Pay, Clicks and Dischem stopped stocking white Lux soap.  I asked around and was told that they are no longer manufacturing it.  WTF!
I use white Lux soap because it does not make me break out, its really the only soap that is ok for me to use. Â I have tried literally a dozen other brands for sensitive skin and I have a reaction to most of them, others have a smell I cant stand or a texture I dont like. Â Lux was my Holy Grail.
So I Googled it and found that Unilever makes Lux and an email was sent off post haste.
I didnt receive a response… until today. Better late than never I say.
Here is the email I received.
Dear Gina
We  recently discontinued our Lux White Bar due to a new Global Lux  Re-Launch which did not include a plain white bar.
After receiving literally thousands of requests from loyal users in South Africa asking us to reinstate the product, immediate investigations were undertaken with our manufacturing facilities to determine whether we could reintroduce this variant without compromising production of the full range.
The outcome was favourable and Lux White is now back in production. Available in both 100g and 200g bars, Lux White will be in stores from the end of June 2009 everywhere in South Africa.
May we suggest that until the the White bar is back, that you try either our Vaseline white bar or our Sunlight white bar as an alternative.
We pride ourselves in understanding the real needs of our consumers and providing them with products that not only meet, but exceed, their expectations of our brands.  Please could you kindly forward me your postal details, so I can send you a formal letter with regards to the return of the Lux white soap.
Thank you.
Kind Regards
Sindi Ngcobo
Personal Care
Consumer Affairs Department
Unilever SA
Well done for listening to your customers!