Robyn on a roll

New blog

2011-01-25T09:54:00.000+02:00

Hello my lovely readers!

I've got a brand new blog - of this great one I ran for a year - which is now available at:

www.robynsilverstone.com

Pop on over and let me know what you think.

See you on the flip side :)

Taking it easy

2011-01-10T15:15:00.000+02:00

The song Taking it Easy by Good Luck is rocking and it's all South African goodness.

Check it out below and try hit some of their upcoming gigs, wherever they may be...

Twitter and real life

2011-01-06T13:34:00.000+02:00

Think about your Twitter stream and the people you follow. How many have you really met, if you take out your friends and colleagues? In my case it's around 40% that I've been lucky to recognise, meet, or bump into at industry events or around the town.

I sometimes think it's amazing at how one can knock down all walls on Twitter and have conversations with strangers yet when it comes to real life, those walls are built as high as the Empire State Building. The honesty, openness and directness to Twitter conversations is mind-boggling. People aren't afraid to open their mouths whether it's to congratulate or hate - loudly - online... yet I'm sure if they met face-to-face, would they really have the guts to be that direct.

Real life 2.0

I know I wonder what some of the people I follow and converse with are like, especially those who I have a lot of respect for. So when the opportunity came up on Monday night to come meet some of them, I grabbed it by the horns... or balls, considering it was one ridiculous 'sausage fest' as the tweetup organiser, Paul Cartmel called it in reply to me.

Long story cut short, Paul from New Media Labs and Mike Sharman decided they were going to attempt the R60 000 challenge at Caprice after the d-list celebrities; Lee-ann Liebenberg and Nicky Van Der Walt got into a huge PR mess with Caprice the week before.

Mike: "@PaulCartmel are we bevving this week - you around?"

Paul "@mikesharman fo shuua, should we klap R60k at Caprice ;) - perhaps @raouldejongh @lifeissavage @mrtuckbox will join us?"

Lots of back and forth between people and Paul's realisation: "Oh god how sad, I think I've organised a tweetup" *&%$

After following Paul, Ben Wagner from Native (Stonewall) and Life is Savage for a while, I got to meet them, along with some other pretty cool people like Mike Sharman, Liesl De Bruin, Secret City Project, Gaby Rosario and Murray Legg. It turned out to be a great night, full of laughter, lots of talking, ridiculous dance moves and being the people we are, snapping away and tweeting the hilarity that ensued.

A little later, I noticed a tweet from the awesome, Life is Savage, where he said this...

"My faith in meeting twitter folks in real life has been restored. What a group of stellar people. #goodtimes"

I couldn't agree with him more.

Let me know what you think?

The list

2011-01-03T12:11:00.000+02:00

We're trying something different this year with a friend's to-do list where we can all hold each other accountable - for the lack of a better word - on resolutions or things we want to achieve and experience together.

Below is the list, written in my new Moleskine (always wanted one).

Excuse the my writing

For those that cannot see the image:

More outdoorsy things like adventures / hikes - so getting our asses outside more
Baby vacations once per quarter - Getting out of town more often on mini breaks
More personalised dinners at home - instead of eating out, rushing and on budget, we will eat at home and have quality nights
Less lunches, more brunches - We found the breakfast / brunches totally chilled us and gave more time in the day
More going out - self explanatory
If you're having a bad day, pick up the phone
More Cape Town events
Road Trip - depending on our personal holidays
Volunteer work
Take up a new hobby - photography, golf or mountain biking as examples
Book club
Take a risk - getting over a fear or doing something brave
More Jewish events - I worded that point weirdly but attend more events and make an effort
Be less judgemental

If you made some plans, put some ideas on paper or want to let me know what you think, holler below :)

Weekend of happiness

2010-12-20T12:46:00.000+02:00

What a weekend. Filled with love, laughter and everything else including 2 weddings for two very special people.

Sometimes words aren't enough so it's probably best that I post a few pictures to better illustrate the wonderful weekend. What did come out of this weekend was something clear: two sets of couples who are completely and utterly in love with each other and the same phrase coming through in the speeches. "I'm marrying my best friend". I hope everyone gets this opportunity to find that someone special and commit to them in whatever form you may choose; marriage or another.

So... lets begin

Friday sunset

New puppy

Wedding #1 @ St George's Cathedral w/ the lovely Anthea and new hubbie

Wedding #1 venue

Wedding #2 Bridal table :) in Yon's garden

The bridal table before the wedding obviously involved a lot of good food - being Jewish has it's perks - and lots of photographs. It was beyond special and we were involved during every part of the process, which made it even more special.

The Chuppah at Suikerbossie

Table decor - Vintage

Bride and Groom

The cupcake cake

Croquet aka hockey and golf

Mr Jones

Photobooth with Root

Awesome. Just awesome!

How to drag flick

2010-12-15T10:55:00.000+02:00

This was our last match of the season where the legendary Jess - after practicing the whole season against me in the box - scored one of the most awesome drag flicks ever :)

And then, we won the season after 11 years of a Maties stronghold on the title.

Lived to tell it all

2010-12-13T14:31:00.001+02:00

The great thing this week will be bringing, is more happiness and smiles to everyone around me, including me. Yes, it's wedding season and after counting about 7 bachelorettes dancing the night away at Tiger Tiger on Saturday night's not-so-debaucherous-as-I-thought party, we are on the way to a great upcoming wedding weekend. (Did that make any sense?)

After a month or two of planning, we were able to see whether all this hard work (majority my friends) really pays off. We pitched up at Dr Yoni's house to prepare the food and set up all the decorations. Our dear inquisitive friend was starting to sneak her head around the corner or out the window, where we were hanging up the giant penis piñata. But after I threatened to come upstairs and break her new pair of Pradas in half if she peered one more time, she didn't make another peep.

Piñata hung - excuse the pun - and sweets and decor looking superb, we bought her downstairs to the celebrations. First up was the surprise guest and no, not a stripper. All those bits flying around didn't sound like a good idea, so instead we hired a bellydancer. She arrived, dressed our bride-to-be and along with the 2 dances she did as an intro, she taught all the guests bellydancing basics for 45 minutes. Tons of laughter, booty shaking and abdominal exercises later, we sat down to the next part... supper then questions.

Last Monday, we interogated Steve with about 20 questions about him and Dr Yoni. Obviously we filmed this and then set it up to film her answers. Turns out these 2 people actually know each other. Can you believe it. In all honesty, the video was tons of fun to prepare, interview and watch again after some amateur editing done by Fat Pam.

Our last victim was a piñata that was hanging outside filled with sweets and accessories Dr Yoni had to dress up with for the night out. Two minutes later there was absolutely nothing left of the pinata and all the sweets on the ground the girls swiftly helped clean up and dispose of.

Toiger Toiger bound we were and 5 hours later after dancing on every part of that dancefloor to the speakers to hanging out - what felt like the entire time - at the shooter bar, we left and head back for toasted sarmies and cheese cake at 04:00.

What our Dr Yoni appreciated? She didn't throw her name away and she will remember her bachelorette party, which for her was the best outcome of the night. And... well the little whisper to me while we were sitting at the table eating our cheesecake: "You know what Robs, I'm very very lucky to have Steve" put a big smile on my face

Lyrics: Oh Darling - Happiness

We don't sleep when the sun goes down

2010-12-10T10:14:00.001+02:00

What's great about today? It's Friday and it's going to be a weekend of fun, shopping (I found one dress for one of the weddings, thank the dog) and recovery.

One of the only times you'll ever see me in a dress

After a few months planning, many many threaded emails that have confused us more then anything else and some sneaky Adult World shopping on Long Street, the bachelorette party is finally here. Obviously I'm not going to let up on much as you never know if my friend reads this or not, but there is a cool theme that is tied in with the food - being Jews we can NEVER under cater - and some hilarious accessories that will add to what is going to be an awesome night ending in... Tiger Tiger. So help me G-d, that is the only thing I'm worried about. The shooter bar, that dance floor or feeling like you are 70 in the shade it's going to be mayhem and especially with my Dr Yoni, there will be some snaps to keep in the blackmail bag for later.

Checklist:

1 x dress approved by fashion queen and gossip columnist JShevel
Food
All accessories shaped like the male appendage aka a penis
Taxis
Pro-hep
Limit on transaction amount
Charged camera batteries

Must buy

Salt and Vinegar chips and a 1.5l Coca Cola (hangover helper thanks to my time at women24 and food24
1 x dress for next wedding
New identity for Dr Yoni when she has most probably, thrown it away at Tiger Tiger.

Sunday = recovery. The end

If anyone has some superb recovery programs that coincide with shopping as I'll be looking for another dress, please share.

Title lyrics: Adrian Lux - Teenage Crime

The obligatory TV post

2010-12-09T09:02:00.000+02:00

This is a preview for the latest Bones airing in the USA tonight, so if it's not your thing, I am sorry. But if you're a fan like me, this is going to be epic.

Cannot wait!

This girl I know needs some shelter

2010-12-06T13:03:00.000+02:00

We are nearing the end of a year that has flown past fast. Lightning fast. I don't know about you but over the next 3 weeks, it's going to be mad busy as work finally slows down into the holidays. Anyway...

There's no I in Team?

Planning our friend's hen's party has been quite interesting and I totally underestimated the work that is involved. Thankfully, my friends have taken the responsibility of organising the party and wonderful experience as I'm - admitting this on my blog - not able to properly focus on anyone else other then myself now. It sounds horribly selfish but for the past couple of months, I've been feeling what some might term: a crisis of faith. I'm not talking about the religious aspect but rather going through a period of doubt or questioning parts of my life.

I'm finding it weird that the more I open up to people and gauge their reactions, the more I seem to doubt my decisions throughout the year. Maybe I'm hypersensitive at the moment but I feel like every corner has the doubt monster waiting to jump out and add more bricks to my wall. I made the decision at the end of last year to return to my family and friends after living it up in London with a fantastic bunch of people who were in the same space and there are definitely no regrets in returning home and I'm happy enough to make that statement.

Validation may be the word I'm looking for. Maybe it's not? I've never needed validation to make myself feel good about my work and achievements. I tend to look at my past as pat on the back to what someone can do with obstacles put in ones way and then focusing on a goal and going for it. A 16-year-old girl lasting at Sea Rescue? Never would say the naysayers but 10 years later I'm 1 test and 5 tasks away from becoming the first female rescue coxswain at my station. Of course there has definitely been doubt along the way and there still will be doubt when I get my ticket but over time and through my actions, I'll definitely either prove and hopefully get rid of people's preconceived opinions of me

Which brings me to my 'work'. I'm not the person to aim for that nice little thank you amount, in the form of a bonus but would rather let my work speak for itself. Is this right? Should I be more vocal? Maybe I've got it all wrong this past year because I am doubting everything I've done. "Wait. Have I done this? Of course I did" happens at least once a week. A simple 'good job' is not something I crave for but maybe every few months an acknowledgment would be nice is what creeps up now and again.

It's even odder that there is this need to validation when my life is revolved around as many people as possible, working as a team, being the last person to be noticed to the first person everyone looks to when the shit hits the fan. Is this silent leadership? I don't care what it is really but that lingering feeling of doubt is causing havoc in the Robyn warehouse up top.

Something isn't kosher right now and I'm trying to find the source, which is taking a little longer then I expected. But I'm amazingly blessed and lucky to be surrounded by fantastic friends - who've gone through enough shit to make my rubbish look like a walk in the park - which have taken up my slack in the planning something as trivial as a hen's party.

So here's hoping that my mini-break in a few weeks will shine the light where it's a little foggy right now.

Note: This post is, as it is.

The Putt in the Putt

2010-11-24T11:52:00.000+02:00

I love a spontaneous evening. Ja.

After a chilly after-work walk with my friend Root on the beachfront, another one of our crazy friends, Batsy hollered on the cellphone with an idea. A game of Putt Putt. We were initially hesitant as all we could hear was our stomachs talking but it was right where our cars were parked, so why say no?

We've been frequenting this very popular place since we were kinder joys and it's still the same fun and definitely a fun way to start the week (except with the South-Easter starting to sneak over the table top).

The price is still super reasonable with a game being coined at R14. Add the ridiculous shots, laughter and time with friends or family, it's worth every cent especially when you get 2 hole-in-ones after another.

Anyone want to go Pro?

Saying goodbye

2010-11-22T09:40:00.000+02:00

If you've been following what I've been mumbling about throughout the year, you will have noticed my family and I have been hit by a lot of deaths this year.

My lifelong best friends have been on the receiving end over the last few years and at the beginning of the year, we lost another dad in our group of 5 to brain cancer.

The consecration aka unveiling of the tombstone was held at the Jewish Cemetery in Pinelands yesterday in the rain - call it pathetic fallacy - as family and friends said a final goodbye to a fantastic teacher and father.

There are no more words that I can fill this post with, so all I really have to say is I'm ready to see this year end, take a holiday and reflect. It's been filled with fantastic times but also taken far too many family and friends and I think we all are looking forward to a new year and fresh start.

Robyn behind the Audi A3

2010-11-16T12:56:00.000+02:00

There is one thing I'm kind of snobbish about and that my friends is cars. I blame my father and (Wheels24 for letting me go on the Audi R8 test drive) cause it's always easier to blame someone else when you have a problem.

From an early age - let's put it around 2-years-old - my father decided that buying me toy cars every day seemed like a better option then buying me dolls, fluffy toys or typically girly toys was a great way to nurture your kid to like what you like.

So a couple of years later and - now my mom's daycare full of my old toy cars - Robyn has a slight weakness and love for things that go vroom. It's an expensive taste considering the wheels I tend to go gaga to, namely Audi, Porsche, Alfa, Maserati, Aston Martin and occasionally the Mercedes-Benz.

2 hours of happiness

My car of choice is the Audi. I'm the proud owner of an Audi A3 2.0 turbo-charged 6-speed Ambition (tiptronic), which I picked up at a great price when I returned from London at the beginning of the year.

Exterior of goodness
Carrying on with my favourite colour, she is a beautiful silver blue with standard mags carrying the 17-inch tyres. The side mirrors fold in should you park on a narrow street and are worried someone will take out your side mirror when misjudging the gap. She's also fitted with smash and grab on the windows

As a hatchback, her lines are really stylish and that's the one thing I've always loved about the Audi A3 range since they were launched many years ago. The in-your-face grill that starts on the front bumper upwards brings a menacing front to a very smooth ride.

The lights wrap around the front making the grill and the Audi's 4-rings carry off itself with a lot of elegance. The early boxier shape of the Audi A3 has been gone for a long time with the rounded and lengthier rear-end to make the 3-door more spacious then one would think including the boot which has fitted my goalkeeper kit and hockey stick bags to my golf clubs and extra Sea Rescue gear.

Interior
My driving area just works. Everything I need to reach whether it's the lights, move the side mirrors, change the radio, use the onboard computer system is right where I need it to be. A flick of the button off the one indicator, controls the settings for the onboard computer along with all the information I need is right in front and not being centred to the left of the wheel or on some small display above the radio.

Leather seats, rear-window visor, front and side airbags, traction control, electronic stabilasation program (ESP), cup holders, card holder, power steering, air-con, sound system of sheer pleasure, climate control for myself and my passengers to massive amounts of leg room in the back seat makes it a pleasure for me to take friends and family for road trips or Sunday drives.

What makes her tick
She's a turbocharged 6-speed automatic (tiptronic) where one minute she's leisurely cruising along the beachfront and the next she's kicked in to overtake on the N2. Within a matter of seconds it's pleasure cruising to sheer power and you can feel it under your seat, on the wheel and the noise from the engine.

When I feel like playing around, I tend to shift the drive to the tiptronic aka the sequential manual gearbox. Basically to move gears up and down you tap the gear lever, forward or backwards. This has been the fun part to really give her a go and play with her when cornering and having more grip - though sometimes higher revving - when taking her down to a lower gear. Judging the right moment to move up and down has also been totally different with my previous Opel Corsa (The Blue Bomber)

The basics:
0 - 100km/h - 6.9 seconds
Max power - 147 kw @ 5100 rev per min.
Max torque - 280 NM @ 1800 rev per min
Top speed - 230km/h (According to a few road tests)

Is she worth it?
If you're a fan of Audi, most definitely. There are other options out there including the BMW 1 series, which I found a very disappointing to the new Opel Astra (yet to experience) and definitely another one of my favourites; the Ford Focus and the Golf 6 are strong contenders in this price category.

Before I left 2-years ago, I said to a friend I would buy an Audi when I return. She thought I was joking. I returned and 2 weeks later she was sitting at my home and every time I get into the car, turn on the ignition and begin my journey... it's always with a smile on my face.

It's not over

2010-11-08T16:01:00.000+02:00

Four crazy friends dressed chilled, hucked, ate Nando's wraps sitting on the side of the fountain and waited for Daughtry during an awful opening act. Gorgeous smile himself showed up, entertained, sang his heart out and made the entire experience worth it.

There is still U2, Faithless and Imogen Heap still heading around the corner next year, which is most exciting. Tickets are available from Computicket as I mentioned in my previous post on the concert madness. You can check that out here

Robyn plays golf

2010-11-05T14:26:00.000+02:00

Took up a new hobby last month after finally taking the plunge to buy a second-hand set of golf clubs off Gumtree. I had been tinkering with the idea for a few months after hockey ended to keep myself entertained and grow my list of hobbies a bit more.

I found a near perfect set of Pinseekers and took them for their first round / klap last weekend at the River Club in Observatory

I've still got it!
Turns out, I can still hit pretty straight - barring the few I hooked - and there is still a lot of power in these arms, which makes me happy.

Bought a Mizuno glove to make me look a little bit more professional :)

So now the fun starts. Maybe get a few lessons, practice some more and get onto the mashie course at River Club will probably get me going and laughing

Anyone else play? Tips for this beginner is appreciated.

The music IS the best of me

2010-10-21T15:11:00.002+02:00

In the space of a week the entire music section of my life got thrown into complete happiness. There were a few rumours in the weeks leading up to Big Concert's 'big' annoucement that U2 were coming to our shores in February next year but on Monday 18 October is was officially announced, they were coming.

Scurrying on U2.com to register to mad back and forth emails between friends as to how many tickets and who is booking, we are this close to booking our places on that field in Cape Town stadium. My boss went one step further and upgraded her account to buy the tickets during the presales for the club members and then continued to chirp

Boss: "I'm the one who's been around long enough to enjoy their whole career. Not you"

Me: True

But still, I'm most excited. Tickets start from around R161 - R2600. Choose your poison at a Computicket .

It's Not Over

Chris Daughtry is here next week and is playing at Grand West Arena to what I suspect will be a packed out crowd. My friends and I have rocked out to his music in the car, on the phone, on BBM and most likely on email.

There will most likely be dressing up and acting like 16 year olds which is pretty close to our mental age but it's simply going to rock and be an awesome gig

Come Here Boy

Imogen Heap is coming to SA! I was happily living on a music high until I opened my Tweetdeck application on my iPhone and low and behold Talya Goldberg breaks even more bank breaking news

@TalyaGoldberg: "Imogen Heap here in February. Zomg."

Some screaming. Some WTFs later. I replied back needing to know the details

@TalyaGoldberg: "Its true! Imogen Heap concert at Paul Cluver Forest Amphitheatre in CT on 5 Feb! She better sing Frou Frou.."

Shit. Whatever she sings. Frou Frou - my favorite of her work - to I Megaphone or Speak for Yourself, I simply do not care. Imogen Heap is going to be playing at Paul Cluver Forest Amphitheatre on 4 & 5 Feb 2011

Why Go?

Then there is Faithless. A dance act that has been around since I was a lighty growing up providing some of the most popular dance tunes that are still pumped to these awesome days. Faithless are at Grand West Arena on Friday 4 Feb 2011 and tickets also range from R395 upwards from Computicket - again.

Now all Robyn needs is Sarah McLachlan and Florence and the Machine and I'll be the happiest chick in the planet.

Anyone going to any shows?

Teenage Crime

2010-10-18T22:54:00.000+02:00

This (Adrian Lux - Teenage Crime) is quite the awesome tune so checked out the video on YouTube, which was quite interesting.

Have a listen to the pretty vibing song and the music video.

The Conversation Prism 3.0

2010-10-14T11:28:00.000+02:00

"The art of listening, learning and sharing"

The Conversation Prism from Brian Solis and JESS3 has been updated = The Conversation Prism version 3.0. More on the evolution of the 'conversation prism' can be found on the above link.

I'll light a fire in your new shoes

2010-10-12T15:39:00.002+02:00

A month has passed since I've been on the healthier way to eating and exercising. Now that hockey season is over and Sea Rescue (NSRI) has calmed down, I can focus on myself and accomplish some goals before the year is over - which is super soon if you look at your calendars.

I've gotten back into the jogging / running that I so enjoyed back in London. It's a time to focus, push yourself and listen to some vibing tracks. With hockey twice a week, Sea Rescue twice a week and then dinner dates with my best friends, my time out was set back. But now it's back and I get to focus on what I need: to lose weight, become fitter (sounds hilarious considering I love my sports) and well move this forward into the next year where I am to get a breast reduction (I'll get to that)

The Running Club without the breakfast

What's made the new running club is the introduction of my best friend and the return of my good friend and flatmate from London who now join me on Mondays for our Atlantic Seaboard route. We start around Putt Putt and push through to Bantry Bay and back, which is around a 7km run. Aside from being absolutely awesome for the soul with fresh air and the beauty of the ocean around you, I get to have a great laugh with my friends and we all push each other to our limits and so far we've all coped. That said, we are all on different fitness levels, different running styles, walking styles and breathing techniques. But as time goes by, we are pushing our pace, running further distances and our recovery times are getting quicker. I'm the only geek in the bunch so it's up to me to monitor the session with the RunKeeper app on my iPhone that reports back on where we are improving or need to improve.

Lose weight now. Ask me how?

Actually don't but you're more then welcome to ask how I'm trying to conquer my London pudding sitting on my stomach. I've cut out carbs after lunchtime, which means no carbs for dinner and the inches have fallen (thanks to the running as well) in the right areas. Rookie error may have been to not weigh myself but I tend to judge it by my clothing.

The boob job

One of the main reasons for this health kick besides the need to look better is to get the reduction. Unfortunately I'm not comfortable with my breasts and being bluntly honest; they have drooped and with the weight gain over the years, it's caused scoliosis of the spine and makes me look twice my weight due to their size.

I remember my mom saying a few years ago, 'it's a blessing Robyn. Be grateful' but about a month ago while shopping with her and looking for the right push-up bra (yeah I needed one) for a black-tie event, she happened to peek at the state of my chest area and for the first time since I've been complaining, did she finally acknowledge the situation. That acknowledgement kind of kicked me in the gut and put me into 1st gear to get things sorted.

Due south

As I said, I'm a short and super sporty girl so besides the running and the staring along the beachfront, to wearing protective kit as a goalkeeper in hockey or looking like a red teletubbie at Sea Rescue and not being able to do certain things I have to do on the boat, has all boiled down to the breast reduction.

I'm not ashamed or sad. It's just part of my journey and it's going to cost me a ridiculous amount but probably will do me a world of wonders. There will be some pain and timeout from the high-impact sports for about 2 months but when it's all done, I'm going to look fantastic.

The Blogosphere 2010

2010-10-11T11:46:00.000+02:00

Here's a nifty infographic on the 'State of the Blogosphere 2010'

Infographiclabs designed this, which was featured on Blog Herald

MWEB's edutainment videos

2010-10-07T13:29:00.000+02:00

Had a link land in my inbox earlier on MWEB's very cool edutainment videos on 'how the internet works' and 'how ADSL works in South Africa'. If you have a friend or family member (aka my mom) who doesn't understand how the interwebs work then this is a great video for them to watch.

Have a look for yourself

How the internet works

How ADSL works in South Africa

Choose your Centrum Guardian Hero

2010-10-07T11:39:00.000+02:00

It's the Centrum Guardian Hero time again and the NSRI has another great story of what we do and the lengths our unpaid volunteers will go to, risking their lives to save others.

Sean and his family on Durban beachfront.
Credit: NSRI / Rogan Ward

"Our rescuers are just ordinary people. They are someone’s brother/husband/father/neighbour. When they get a call they leave their families to go out and help a stranger. Centrum Guardian has selected some of the more adventurous stories and highlighted them, to remind the public of the work that the emergency services do.

Sean Serfontein’s (Station 5 - Durban) story is a little different, because this is not his day job. Sean is an unpaid volunteer... Read the incredible story and cast your vote."

Cast your vote

Your vote could win you one of 250 instant R200 cash prizes and earn NSRI R30 000.

Cape Town International Boat Show

2010-10-06T15:51:00.002+02:00

It's that time of year folks when Robyn gets all excited about cool toys and accessories only to realise she doesn't own a boat or has the boodle (money) to buy said gear. She is on the design of the notepads that the NSRI (Sea Rescue) will be using to take down comments, names, donations and so on.

If you are in Cape Town this weekend (8 - 10 October 2010), it takes place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre where more than 150 exhibitors will be on display. It starts bright and early at 10:00 till 18:00. Boodle is R60 for a ticket and children get in for free.

There will be demos on both days at the Alfred Basin in the Waterfront by the Cape Grace Hotel or the Coca-Cola man. I'll be on the water partaking in the demos so be sure to stop by and say hi!

Credit: Paula Leech

More information on the Cape Town International Boat Show's website

It's back baby

2010-09-23T08:41:00.000+02:00

Been waiting since the May when season 5 of Bones ended on well [spoiler alert] the team deciding to take time off for the year.

Driven by Brennan (Bones) who had pretty much had too much of the crime-solving and her need to get perspective on her life and her relationship / stance with Booth led to our super hot knight in shining FBI standard issue armour also taking time off to return to the US Army to train soldiers. Angela and Hodgins who married towards the end of the season went on a long honeymoon to Paris, while Cam and Sweets stayed behind.

The long story short... Brennan and Booth couldn't carry on the path they were going: the 100th episode ended in a kiss, which in a heartbreaking scene saw Brennan deny Booth to further act on his feelings for her, - though hers were fully evident as well - led to the decision being made to take a year off.

Here's that heart crushing scene...

And so we have it. Nearly 4 months later and we are ready to start season 6 only 7 months later after the team is called back to help out Cam. As a fan for the past 5 years, I'm honestly looking forward to this season.

The season 6 teaser

Forget PigSpotter

2010-09-22T11:14:00.001+02:00

In all honesty, all this fuss over PigSpotter (Jhb, Cpt, Dbn and so on) is getting a bit old and if the police are so blind to what social media is and the power of crowdsourcing information, then so be it.

Knowledge is power

Think of it this way: If I see a police trap I tend to phone (using handsfree) my family and friends and warn them about this awesome oke, looking like a yetti, hiding in the bush on the M5 north towards the N1. It's the same with social media, just using a different method of communication and being on... say a more visible and public platform. As @art2gee put it so simply: "We are all @PigSpotters"

So as a hard working (tax payer) individual like the majority of the people in this country, I simple ask one thing of the police:

Forget PigSpotter and sort out the taxi chaos on the roads. I know it's an age old issue but I drive the N2 to Stellenbosch every day of my life and cannot tell you how bad it is. Day in and out taxi's are travelling at 140km/h on the right lane (at no safe distance whatsoever) only to swerve across three lanes (yes, cars are in those lanes) to the emergency shoulder only to do the exact same back to the right lane again.

Here's another...

On Tuesday I watched a taxi swerve past the back of my car and drive in the emergency lane narrowly missing a motorbike. This is just one incident of hundreds that happen daily on my journey (which is only 50 minutes) and what do I see?

Traffic officers on the opposite side of the road stopping the wrong vehicles stuck in bumper to bumper traffic
Traffic cars parked on the N2 watching the traffic by the old Athlone Towers
Provincial Traffic cars by the airport station ALL parked and not on the roads during those peak driving hours

Incidents like the Blackheath train tragedy where 9 innocent schoolchildren lost their lives or the underage taxi driver who knocked down and killed my mom's friend Kevin Brookes in a hit and run in the centre of Cape Town (in front of another family member who witnessed the entire incident) is becoming out of hand. There are many stories like this and I fear every time I get on the road to work that I may become a statistic and no one in their right mind should have to fear to drive to work.

So wake the *&%k up and sort our roads out. I'm not worried about PigSpotter or your traps, in fact I welcome this type of information because it promotes awareness / better driving among the public.

I'm worried about something more dangerous on our roads: death by a taxi driver.

Wear a lifejacket

2010-09-21T13:33:00.001+02:00

It's that simple...

Music Monday

2010-09-20T15:03:00.000+02:00

In honour of loving the great Florence and the Machine right now, who has had a revival on my iPod, I give you her latest video: Cosmic Love

And cosmic it is

Running around painting this old town

2010-09-19T21:11:00.001+02:00

Absolutely loving 'Lovesick' by The Arrows.

If you've never heard it (where have you been?) then watch the video

Getting a grip

2010-09-17T15:05:00.000+02:00

I used to think I had a grip on my finances, a very important part of any person's life but I was a little wrong.

My bank account was outdated and I had no idea what package I was still on along with no online banking or sms notifications when I've made a transaction pretty much was screaming at me for a while. I dragged myself into ABSA today and within an hour I had sorted out my life.

Goodbye student account (why I still had it, I don't know)
New package
All cards linked to my cheque account
Internet banking setup
Mobile banking setup
SMS notification setup
Secondary card

Tried to go to FNB to open a savings account / whatever will work account but the branch is having renovations.

Anyway, today will be the day I start getting a grip on my finances, starting with my bank account and I've organised a chat with my financial consultant friend to explain some more on how I can save effectively and use my finances efficiently.

Excited that I am getting some part of my life in order, especially on the day I nearly lost my life.

What's the fuss?

2010-09-15T14:20:00.000+02:00

A few weeks ago a bunch of us folk decided to head to Paulaner Brauhaus opposite the Clock Tower at the V&A Waterfront. Being a German beer house and restaurant I wondered what I could possibly have to eat taking into account that I don't' eat pork.

"We'll find something on the German menu" said Folk 1

"Or you could just eat a lovely piece of wors" chirped Folk 2

Folk 3 killed the Jew jokes with "You could have their chicken schnitzel"

Victory I thought and victory is was but what was the best part of the evening is that I found a beer that I actually like. The last time I found a beer I drank, it was at a dodgy local pub at my first job in London around the corner from Leicester Square called the Chandos. It was an in-house, sweet and smooth, had a hint of honey and well for 3 pounds it went down super well after work.

But my new find is the Paulaner Weissbier which is sweet and smooth but most important, drinkable. Should I ever feel the urge to have another beer, that will be the option.

Is there another fine 'woman friendly' beer I'm missing out on in Cape Town?

Where it started

2010-09-11T10:09:00.000+02:00

The show that started my love of art on the small box: Alias. Found these promos on YouTube from years ago by Channel 4 in Finland. Now I don't need to understand Finish (is that correct?) to know how awesome this show was. In fact I'm thinking of pulling out the 5 DVD boxsets and started an Alias marathon for the next few months and with Bones season 6 starting in 2 weeks, it will be a great TV treat

5 years of espionage, family drama, relationships, friendships, love, conspiracies and a superb cast including Jennifer Garner, Bradley Cooper, Michael Vartan, Ron Rifkin = happy tv fan

Blindingly beautiful

2010-09-09T18:05:00.001+02:00

I love my music. I'm a big fan of Florence and the Machine who's popular song 'The Dog Days are Over' has been on the local airwaves for a while. Her debut album Lungs is an absolute pleasure to listen to and I've been lucky to have it for a long time. Her song I'm currently absolutely hooked on, is the powerful 'Blinding' which strikes every nerve in my body that makes my hands turn into Dancing Phalanges.

No more dreaming like a girl so in love...

All guts, no glory

2010-09-02T10:03:00.000+01:00

This was originally posted in the Sea Rescue magazine (Winter 2010 edition) and is the editorial post from CEO Ian Wienburg...

"President Harry Truman once said “it is amazing what you can accomplish if you don’t care about who gets the credit". I think that sums up the ethos of Sea Rescue. Anyone who wants to be the hero or who has visions of leaping in front of the camera does not last long. All of us clean the bathrooms and all of us wipe up behind the casualties. Very few of the 920 unpaid volunteers appear on the evening news, very few of them have their names published.

So while you may often see my name and my face or even more frequently hear the words “Craig Lambinon said....” – we are merely the mouthpiece for a phenomenal team."

On Thursday 26th August, the NSRI honoured some of it's volunteer crewmen, woman and public - who performed courageous acts for mere strangers, some in the middle of the morning (03:00) to just before midnight (the Seli 1 ground in September 2009) - at the NSRI 2010 AGM.

Award winners Steven Freeborough, Reinhard Geldenhuys , Darryl Moon, Jaco Louw, Jody Foster and Sandile Mkari at the Sea Rescue AM awards. Picture Andrew Ingram/ Sea Rescue.

So if you want to see the everyday faces of the people who will drop whatever they are doing and head out into treacherous seas then look no further then the NSRI AGM 2010 gallery

Where you can find the NSRI online:

I won

2010-09-01T10:43:00.000+01:00

The first time I've - probably - ever won anything and all because I love me some Valpre sparkling water and happened to be playing with 'stuff' on my desk, got bored with that, SMSed the barcode and ta-dah; winner!

Pretty

A Traditional Tea by the Sea for Two at The Twelve Apostles Hotel (part of The Red Carnation Hotel Collection).

Winner!

How to break 9 years

2010-08-31T15:23:00.001+01:00

Right there. On that boat. On that day, I tore, broke, said goodbye to my 9-year-old faithful and fitting Sea Rescue (NSRI) crew shirt.

Yes, those are shipwrecks behind me

I did weep a little - that smile is all a lie - underneath those awesome Ray-Ban Wayfarers and took a snap to remember the day my crew shirt with so many memories finally said bon voyage.

Sparkling new blue shirt is in my boot waiting to be ironed, fitted with badges and christened on training or a callout creating new memories

Me in an infographic

2010-08-31T08:56:00.000+01:00

Nothing new but still kind of nifty that I get to pretend I've just created an infographic representing yours truly.

Spotted this on my twitter stream this morning from Rich Mulhollond's blog post: Make your own personal infographic. Basically questions are already set up by IONz and by providing the answers, it tallies them up and gives you that wonderful infographic.

It's been a long time coming

2010-08-30T08:11:00.000+01:00

Yesterday we achieved something great. After a full season of consistently superb and clinical hockey we won our last game and became the new Ladies Grand Challenge champions.

After an 11 year stronghold on the league title by Maties (Stellenbosch University) it came down to one game which was played on the 25 August against the 'feared' team. At 10pm we walked off the field as winners in a game that pretty much decided who was going to take the league title. Every single player gave everything they had in that game and it showed that we had been the better team on the night and pretty much the season.

A professional unit built on trust, friendship, skill, experience and short, simple ball (and cake) won us this league and it's about time

In honour of Keep Calm

2010-08-26T11:46:00.000+01:00

Considering I'm quite the Bones fan and I love a good ol' 'Keep Calm and Carry On' creativity, the two images below I just couldn't resist.

The delectable Seeley Booth in that fitting FBI t-shirt

Hello

And Brennan smacking the kak out of the Gravedigger

Boom!

You can find these awesome images on thecrazyotic on Tumblr

Keep Calm and Beat It

2010-08-24T14:21:00.000+01:00

If there is one show you must see this year, it's Michael Jackson's tribute show, Thriller Live.

I wanted to see it on the West End but failed miserably with trying to cram in everything else before I left London. The legendary gossip columnist, Jenna Shevel was raving about it straight after seeing it and I'm sure she even invited me to join but Robyn is clearly an ignorant fool when it comes to things like these.

Dun dun dun dun dun, dun dun dun dun

So when my friend smsed me suggesting we go see Thriller at Montecasino in Johannesburg - I was there for tech4africa anyway - I jumped at the opportunity and aside from it being way cheaper and getting better seats, it was frakkin' (Battlestar Galactica reference) fantastic.

It's going to be in Cape Town from the 9 - 12 September so grab your loved ones, paid ones or imagined ones and book a ticket on Computicket.

This message is sponsored by your local neighbourhood store.

Picture: http://fuckyeahpopicons.tumblr.com/

And then it was gone

2010-08-23T11:04:00.000+01:00

Just like that and 3 minutes early too... the Athlone Cooling towers went BOOM and then poof in a quick cloud of smoke and well... it's cheers to those landmarks.

Before

And... after

After

What's next?

The Geosocial Universe [infographic]

2010-08-23T07:52:00.000+01:00

This is a cool infographic that I spotted on the Digital Buzz blog this morning. It was created by JESS3, a creative agency specialising in social media, branding and data visualisation.

Check out the infographic below which illustrates the biggest players in the geosocial scene

Credit: JESS3 blog

The Bones recap video

2010-08-22T20:48:00.001+01:00

For those that need a refresher of what's been happening on Bones. Here's quick but awesome season 5 recap

CANNOT wait.

The top Location Based Services [Infographic]

2010-08-20T08:01:00.000+01:00

Spotted this on TechCrunch this morning: A great explanation of the key players of Location Based Services wrapped up in an infographic including the newest competitor, Facebook Places. Although Facebook Places isn't available in our country yet, when it goes live it will hopefully bring more attention to the potential of location based services and what it can offer to the users, which is like Foursquare have driven it; engaging with your customers and creating an incentive to drive them to your business.

Credit: Mark Fidelman

Hi-res versions are available for download here

Check your Facebook application on your phone (if you use it) for the latest addition from the social networking king. Took some screencaps when I updated my version on my iPhone yesterday

Does anyone really use apps like Foursquare, Gowalla or BrightKite? Would you use Facebook Places to share more information with your friends or is it becoming too much?

A little slice of heaven

2010-08-19T13:32:00.000+01:00

I was voyering my news feed on Facebook and noticed brand spanking new pictures from my very good friend who had been travelling around magnificent European countries over the past month or two. A few weeks ago she had mentioned in her status update - which she rarely updates - she "is convinced Cinque Terre is the most amazing place in the world... I had to tear myself away."

I had to google the place and she wasn't kidding. Cinque Terre is a small area on the Italian Riveria in the Vernazza village (one of five in the area) and it's homes are built on the cliff faces overlooking the beautiful bay. No more words are really needed as the picture speaks for itself

Credit: The Exotic Travel Destination in the World

The best bet would be to go onto Flickr and search for 'Cinque Terre' and have a look at the gorgeous images travelers have taken over the years.

Love it.

The Athlone cooling towers to go boom

2010-08-18T12:34:00.000+01:00

In a few days time - Sunday 22nd August 2010 to be exact - this famous landmark along the N2 will be sent off to construction heaven with a loud bang and lots of spectators watching all over Cape Town from Rhodes Memorial to UCT to Table Mountain.

For those who need to get to the airport, I suggest taking different routes to Cape Town International. Speaking of the airport, it's going to be interesting when explaining to visitors how to get to the city especially when I tend to say "head towards those big towers along the highway and big mountain and keep driving straight" My kind of directions? Well now it's going to be: "Use your Google Maps"

Goodbye another part of my childhood upbringing

It's about the passion

2010-08-17T12:40:00.000+01:00

A few weeks ago I had a friend complain about her long working hours - post call delusion as she likes to put it - at the hospital she is interning as a doctor. Instead of ignoring the email, I decided to reply back and said something along the lines of: " ... to put things into perspective; you’re getting married & get to save people’s lives: be it big or small, you’re helping someone. Not many people get to say they do that shit so I think it’s an awesome job and you get paid moola for it. I wish I got paid for Sea Rescue (NSRI). Just saying"

How it began?
Looking back on nearly 10 spectacular years as a volunteer, it was probably the dumbest and best decision of my life. I so innocently agreed to do my community service project for school at the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Table Bay station based at the V&A Waterfront in 2000 as I didn't feel like playing with babies (my mom owns a nursery school) or spending time elsewhere. My aunt's then boyfriend mentioned something about boats and the sea and I thought; cool.

First impressions always count right? Yeah, they definitely do in this case and after spending part of my first afternoon at the station scrubbing down a boat in miserable, stormy, horrendous Cape Town weather, I joined the rest of the crew upstairs where they were happily having lunch until a callout came through from Cape Town Port Control. A yacht had capsized off the breakwater with 3 people on board and was sinking. Within a few seconds the crew had thrown their lunch down on the table and rushed downstairs to the old Rescue 3 - Spirit of Safmarine II (12 metre rescue vessel) and the old Rescue 3A (5.5. metre RIB). I stayed behind with the shore controller watching them literally launch within in a few minutes and dash out into horrendous sea conditions - I kid you not. For the next 2 odd hours it was a waiting game for a very inquisitive 16-year-old girl who had no idea (honestly) what they could be doing. They finally returned soaking wet but smiling and chatting about war stories that happened in those few hours. I left shortly after and returned the following week to continue with my last few hours of the project.

Spirit of Vodacom

This time I got to go out training with the crew that was on duty that weekend in a blistering south-easter. I'm not even sure what training they were doing but I remember we had a callout that day. A resident at Clifton spotted a parachutist fall into the ocean off Clifton beach. An extensive search was conducted and nothing was found. What I learned later is that when the south-easter blows like that, 'white horses' as we like to call them, form on the ocean surface. You can mistake a 'white horse' for many different things such as a capsized boat to paraglider in trouble to an upturned kayak.

NSRI wedding advert done by Ogilvy

It's not all a blur
Now I don't know when I officially decided to go sign that indemnity and become a trainee crew at Station 3 - Table Bay but I will always remember the date that ultimately changed the course of my life. 24 February 2001 is when I rang the station doorbell after being dropped off by my mom. I was greeted by a crew member and taken upstairs to 'start' with my NSRI volunteer crewwoman career. I was 16 at the time and obviously still at school and extremely busy with hockey playing nearly 4 times a week for club, WP schools and the year before I had made S.A U16 so I was fully committed to the sport on all levels. What I always laugh at is it never really occurred to me that I may not last or never be accepted due to my general oblivious / ignorant nature that I do at times have. Nearly a year later the station decided to have an action cricket day and invited me to join. That was the day, I officially become one of 'them'. The day I bowled one of the coxswains middle stump, twice and had a great partnership with another crew member. That's not to say I was never accepted before. From what I've learned over the past few years is the crew is one big family and forming life-long friendships with new people every month only to be let down when they leave gets tiring, so the crew take their time in getting to know the trainees.

Some of the amazing people

Over the next couple of years I had been taken under 2 crew member's wings in the form of Giles and Jaco who I now see as my older brothers and nearly a week after my 18th birthday I was officially given my crew badge, my pager and allowed to buy my red Musto foul weather gear. An extremely proud moment and one that involved a lot of hard work. The experiences we've gone through together as one big family; engagements, marriages, births, tragedies, deaths and the daily journey of life, continues to this day. And that includes all the different types of callouts from tow jobs, capsized vessels, groundings, drownings, plane crashes to looking for a needle in a haystack, we have literally done it all and every callout is different, bringing out the best in our training and adapting it to the situation that is presented to the crew. It's a never-ending learning experience and we get to save lives on South African waters in the process.

Doug, Jaco, Giles & Pieter (L-R)

I could probably go on forever in this post but what I do know is this: it is something that continually inspires me and adds to my reason to get up in the morning. Being surrounded by a fantastic bunch of people, the people who I call my family (even cooler is some have met their husbands or wives here) is something I will not give up on in a heartbeat and will continue to passionately volunteer for no pay, if it means that I get more value out of the 'job' then I would have being paid.

Do you volunteer your time to charities? Would love to know your experience.

NSRI JP Andrews advert created by Ogilvy.

The MiX Women's Day

2010-08-10T13:14:00.001+01:00

About a month ago during one of our weekly Marketing team meetings, our Manager, Sabine bought up that National Women's Day is around the corner. I thought, cool, public holiday = sleep late, chill, sleep and chill again. "Where are we going to have it?" were the next words out of her mouth. Some planning, a new venue and some great prizes later and it all turned into this mornings event.

Credit: Katy Roberts

National Women's Day may have been on Monday 9 August but we invited all the women working at the Stellenbosch office to a morning breakfast at Stellenbosch Lodge. As our glorious ladies started arriving, they were given a warm drink to start on a very chilly Cape Town morning. With everyone in their seats, our Marketing Director, Cath Lewis took the spot by the fireplace and introduced everyone to the 2nd MiX Telematics Women's Day event.

Winner winner
With breakfast finished, we got onto the important part: the lucky draw. We were able to receive 3 goodie bags from Discovery, 3 vouchers from Stellenbosch Lodge which included a Spa treatment, breakfast for two and a 2 night stay. The last gift was a glamourous pair of gloss black oversized Pradas courtesy from the awesome Sunglass Hut's @Wedaad, whose phone call on Friday really happily surprised me. Guess there is a reason why I (and a lot of people I know) show support into brands that put an effort into their customers.

Cath wrote a post a while back called 'Thoughts on MiX' to which I mentioned that I was thinking about writing something similar, especially from the new kid on the block. Ideas like innovation, never a dull moment, passion - a very important aspect to work, in my opinion and lastly the way they value the company culture, which has rolled over to the very talented staff. There is this value on the people that work here which makes it great like a big family (full of Apple fanboys & girls), always wanting the best for you when they're not too busy creating new innovative products and solutions for their customers.

The winners of the prizes were:

Lauren Young - Goodie bag from Discovery
Bronia Paulse – breakfast for 2 at Stellenbosch Lodge
Radheeka Reyatt – 2 nights stay at Stellenbosch Lodge
Miriam Phuthumani – Goodie bag from Discovery
Dandeline Philander - Goodie bag from Discovery
Nicci Jenkins – Spa treatment from Stellenbosch Lodge
Concetta Isolano – Prada glasses from Sunglass Hut

Winners of the prizes incl. Concetta with her Prada sunglasses

Thanks once again to:

How to train your dragon

2010-08-05T09:47:00.001+01:00

I would love to know how training a dragon works out for those poor souls. And yes, I know it's a movie but there are many weird search queries out there especially if you carry on with the word 'put' (do it). It just gets awkward and slightly gross.

Surprisingly, 'how to destroy angels' comes in at number 4. Disappointed it didn't come in at number 1 but you know... a man's got to look good.

On the other hand, 'how to find a Jewish guy' brings up next to nothing in results. Thanks Google.

How does the Internet work?

2010-08-03T09:26:00.000+01:00

Found this through the glorious Twitter via @AdsMitchell. A nice easy to read and understand infographic on "How the Internet works" especially for my mother ;)

Via: Online Schools

Source: Makeuseof.com

The story of the ring

2010-07-30T12:54:00.000+01:00

Many people ask me what is says on my ring. Not because they are illiterate but because it's in Hebrew; the language spoken in Israel and by this 26-year-old Jewish girl who learned it at Herzlia for 10 years.

Looks dirtier in the picture

The story starts back in 2005 when we were sitting on a very dodgy bus on a very high mountain travelling to the Dead Sea for a painful swim in salt water. One of the girls that was on tour had a different ring on with the inscription of "גם זה יעבור" (Gam Zeh Ya'avor) translated to "This too shall pass". Quite a popular saying but a reminder that whatever you may going through, it will soon bugger off. The interest was peaked when the girl mentioned you could get the rings made at this little shop in the Kotel aka the Western Wall in Jerusalem. What was even way cooler is that all 170 of us were staying at the Jerusalem Gate Hotel. Convenience? Fate.

My best friend of now 23 years circa the time we were running around Vered Pre-Primary and Nursery School in the Glen in Camps Bay or making a lot of noise on the beachfront decided she was to get one too. The night before the early wake up call aka 6:30am, many had decided to go out on the jol and even though I retired early due to being horribly ill with pneumonia and bronchitus, my friend rolled in and literally said "get dressed, we're going."

6 of us in a cab later, we arrived in the wee hours of the morning to a beautiful sunrise over the Kotel and just for that peace, quiet and beauty was worth it all. Morning prayers could be seen and heard from 3 of the world's biggest religions in the holy city. At that moment, it was a city at peace.

I don't follow the leaders

The name of the shop is Hadaya and the owner always gives discounts to his first customers so we were lucky to get an amount off those dollars we spent. I decided to go with a different inscription and decided to take an excerpt out of the Traveller's Prayer (Tefilat HaDerech). Now if you know me, then you'll know I was in that bus that careened down Ou Kaapse Weg in 1998 and was saved by a small barrier from a 60ft drop and most probably a worser outcome. So I lost a spleen, had a bit of plastic surgery to the left side of my face and a lot of rehab on the left shoulder but I'm alive and that's all that matters. And with all the NSRI activity that I do, it probably added to my different decision.

The inscription reads:

שֶתּוֹלִיכֵנוּ לְשָלוֹם וְתַצְעִידֵנוּ לְשָלוֹם. וְתִסְמְכֵנוּ לְשָלוֹם. וְתַדְרִיכֵנוּ לְשָלוֹם. וְתַגִיעֵנוּ לִמְחוֹז חֶפְצֵנוּ לְחַיִּים וּלְשִמְחָה וּלְשָלוֹם

"...Guide our footsteps toward peace, and make us reach our desired destination for life, gladness, and peace."

The inside inscription says Rivkah - my Hebrew name

Basically, it means "May you get to your destination/path in life with happiness" Not too much to ask for right?

And that folks, is the story of the ring.

P.S. Maybe my next installment should be the story of the Tiffany & Co ring

Social Media... now!

2010-07-21T09:55:00.000+01:00

A few months back I posted the What the F**k is Social Media presentation up on the blog by Espresso and most importantly, the Bonafide Marketing Genius, Marta Kagan.

Well now there is an updated version called What the F**k is Social Media NOW? and it's got new stats, cats, Sad Keanu, Prince, same language and more to ponder about.

What the F**k is Social Media NOW?

View more presentations from Marta Kagan.

View the presentation on Slideshare

Building castles in the sky

2010-06-30T13:08:00.000+01:00

Cape Town's semi-answer to the London Eye is the pretty Wheel of Excellence opposite Audi Cape Town and right by the Hyundai World Cup fan park. Not as big - thank god - as the London eye and a decent view of Cape Town, Table Mountain, Table Bay, Millllllerton, Peeeerrrel (really?) and the V&A Waterfront, it's pretty when lit up with it's LED lighting at night.

Prices aren't half bad, starting at 80 bucks for an adult and 50 bucks for kids under 12, it's quite a bargain. My friends and I are pretty keen on going in the next 6 months - the length of it's stay - when the light stays around for a little longer on a beautiful summers day.

Snapped a picture of the pretty below.

Boys not for sale

Shosholoza: Feel it. It is here.

2010-06-29T14:05:00.000+01:00

A year ago today, I posted this on my old 24.com blog called Shosholoza. That night when I watched it, my eyes were red with tears and definitely marked the beginning of a journey back home.

Watching it again, after experiencing the World Cup atmosphere so far - with fan walks, chatting with tourists, going to the matches and singing that song in my home country - it still sends a shiver of excitement down my spine.

And then the silence surrounds you

2010-06-27T14:07:00.000+01:00

That's where the lead singer of Stateless, whose song, Bloodstream made me absolutely love it: that line in the title... der by dat side.

Give the song a quick listen on a chilled Sunday afternoon.

Talk about town

2010-06-15T14:36:00.000+01:00

♫Everybody wanna be the talk about town...♫I was there. In that stadium. In the pouring rain and chilly cold snap that took over Cape Town yesterday, I was sitting in beautiful category 1 seats, 5 rows from the middle of the pitch and at 1pm, I still never had tickets nor thought I would be going.

Thanks to work giving AMA-zing seats to 5 of us, which there was a little task to do aka biggest fan vibe... I scored - out of the luck of a hat - a ticket to the Italy vs. Paraguay game. I'm easy with bullet points so I'll put everything down in a nice little list

the atmosphere is AMA-zing
the traffic not so much
the fan walk is AMA-zing
the rain not so much
the seats and view of the game was AMA-zing
the food and pricing not so much
the fans were loud, blowing their vuvuzelas, speaking in different languages, accents and it was an AMA-zing cultural experience from a South African Italian telling a Paraguayan fan to eff off politely to Italian fans/tourists blowing their vuvuzelas in Long street
the grid-locked traffic was a nightmare but not only because of the World Cup.
the police presense was pretty awesome and the volunteers were super helpful.
the whole organisation was on par with other international sporting events I've attended.
did I mention the atmosphere?
did I mention I got to watch ITALY play and see Fabio 'I'm HAWT' Cannavaro 20m away from me
did I mention I watched a World Cup football match in my backyard; Cape Town

Yes please!

Waka Waka eh eh.

Lyrics: Freshlyground - Big Man (Radio Africa album)

Nothing compares to this

2010-06-10T15:50:00.000+01:00

Best decision - after my decision to go to London - was most definitely to move back home. I swear if I was still in London now, I would be in my home, curled into a ball, crying on the floor and most likely on the phone to all my family and friends wanting to know about the vibe and the excitement.

In fact, I couldn't think of a better place to be right now, if you take into account what is happening right on our front freaking step. The Football World Cup or soccer for Americans and ourselves. How AMA-zing is that? We get to blow vuvuzelas, decorate our cars in flags and funny colours, wear supporter gear and totally go nuts just because the whole country is. And when 2pm tomorrow comes around, we are going to be beaming proudly watching the opening ceremony and at 4pm, I'll be singing - and crying - the national anthem with more gusto then I've ever done being on the hockey field in my youth.

There will be traffic chaos, people chaos and other random chaos but it's going to be AMA-zing chaos filled with smiles, laughter, different languages, messed up diski dances, ridiculous clothing and tons of spirit and support. Think about those fan parks filled with the public and their loved ones all there for the same goal and sharing a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Everybody said we'd never pull it off. There has been negative comments about SA riddled with crime and how our services will never work and so on but you know what, deal with it. We won't mess this up. We're centre stage to the world right now, everyone wants this to work. Think of all the benefits when we pull this off in front of the entire globe. It's endless.

It's going to be AMA-zing even though I have no idea what to expect and I'm just running off hype, excitement and the gees, I'm fully behind Bafana Bafana because I'm proudly South African and because what we have in this country right now is hope and a little bit of belief starting to come through for our national team. How do I know this? Look around you. Look at yesterday's parade for Bafana in Johannesburg. Look at the 12pm vuvuzela blowing - and continuing sounds around you. Look at your offices, cars and look within yourself.

How freaking awesome is this? Nothing can compare to this right now!

Feel it baby

2010-06-03T20:59:00.001+01:00

I don't know about you but was driving my car to Sea Point this morning to check her into the doctor and noticed literally every single car had some sort of patriotic symbol on it. Be it a flag, mirror socks, aerial flag or an opposing team's - I'm guilty of this - flag hanging in the window, it was freaking fantastic.

I felt a little emo twinge in my heart and put my smile on as I sang to the tunes on the radio.

So... decided to go purchase SA mirror flags, Italian flag and wearing them proudly on the Tranquil Terror.

Yes. I support Italy as well. Not only for their faces and bodies but they have some skill too...

Special foursquare special

2010-05-31T12:56:00.001+01:00

It was a lunchtime on this Monday when dear Robyn was playing on her iPhone while walking towards Woolworths when she noticed an uncommon feature on her foursquare application. What is this she thought? 'Special'. So I clicked on the special and low and behold saw my first proper foursquare usage by a restaurant. Now if you've seen this before, then I apologise but finally, the pretty awesome potential of foursquare is being played with. Whether it is successful for this restaurant, time will tell but for now, all I wanted to do was jump in my car and head over to Umami Restaurant in Dorp Street and shake their hand.

Took some screenshots

What is this?

Clicky Clicky

And nog a World Cup special

So I'm guessing according to Gartner's worldwide mobile phone estimations that "172 million smartphones were sold last year, up 24 percent" we could have a lot more of these foursquare specials popping up - creating incentives to drive customers to your business - in South Africa. Then this application will become more then a 'look where I am' - which even I am guilty of - and more of a location-based social media marketing tool or service (however you see it) and an even cooler way for brands to engage with their customers.

If there are any specials around South Africa and specifically Cape Town where I dwell, please drop a line and let me know about those places

Sunrise over the Fairest Cape

2010-05-25T14:59:00.000+01:00

You either seize the opportunity to capture the moment or not. I did.

M3 by UCT

Google you legends

2010-05-23T17:45:00.000+01:00

Pac-Man. That is all.

In our house made of paper

2010-05-23T17:21:00.000+01:00

I love my music. I've said it a million times and I'll continue to say it. My sister introduced me to Ellie Goulding's Starry Eyed a while back and I thought... funky.

Now I've heard 'Under the Sheets' and it's fantabulistikiss. The Jakwob remix is phenomenal with a beat that kills and his dub step mix of this song is a must to listen to, at the gym, in the car or at work. It just works.

Here is the original Under the Sheets music video and more of Jakwob's work

Sik tune. Sik

This Bones fangirls' finale theory

2010-05-12T15:23:00.000+01:00

I've listened, I've read, I've had a chat with @forensicmama but here's my only theory based on the conference call and the following articles released.

Max is back and as they both said... him never being an onlooker via Screenrant's article

On Max returning for the Gravedigger trial:

HH: I would say that he’s not just there for moral support. How’s that Emily?

ED: Yeah, I think that’s accurate.

HH: It’s a bit more than that. He’s a mysterious, multifaceted, character. He’s not an on-looker, at heart.

ED: No, never an on-looker.

HH: Boy, I don’t want to say anymore than that.

The Gravedigger story is still open

HH: What do you think Emily? I don’t think there’s a lot of closure.

ED: No, there isn’t a lot of closure. Maybe the Gravedigger, there’s some closure there.

HH: Yes, there’s some closure and some not closure. Closure is not the word I would use as we barrel into season six. What do you think, Emily?

ED: [jokingly] Agreed. I think it’s over-rated. We don’t need closure. [laughs] We’ve got a whole other season, at least, to go.

Summed up into 3 sentences

Maybe... just maybe, the Gravedigger is killed at the end of the finale. Max is the culprit -> committed the crime to protect Brennan, Booth and the other squints from future harm/torment and somehow Brennan sets herself up to protect Max from going back to jail. That or the same theory about the Gravedigger being killed and Brennan is the main suspect. Ends with Booth coming to arrest Brennan at the end of the finale = cliffhanger.

They are serious. I'm more serious about them getting together after 6 years. Angst = bad for health

And then they run away, get married, have babies and live happily ever after.

Okay, the last sentence was my thoughts running away from me but how outrageously cool would that theory be?

Net Prophet... in the lands

2010-05-12T13:25:00.005+01:00

Most excited about Net Prophet on Thursday 13 May which I will be attending, along with my boss @mixbine at Mutual Park, in Pinelands (the lands), Cape Town. It's my first time going to this event and it has some fantastic speakers lined up with the likes of Vinny Lingham founder of Yola to Adriaan Pienaar who is the co-founder of WooThemes and many more

The vision of Net Prophet is to "take the most innovative/successful/creative/ambitious thinkers and entrepreneurs in the Internet space, and ask them to share their stories, ideas and predictions for the future in a format that is fresh, relevant and engaging. The result: Net Prophet."

It's sponsored by Old Mutual, Yola, White Wall Web, RSAWEB and Twokats Communication for their PR which means this AMA-zing event is gratis, free, no-money-no-no.

My old work colleague from 24.com skyped me with a pretty bummed message: her colleague was supposed to register her for the event but forgot to and only found out now. Unfortunately, you're going to miss this agenda - which is a copy from Net Prophet's website:

07:00 – 09:00 Arrival, Registration, Tea and Coffee
09:10 – 09:40 A Rising Tide: Tech Entrepreneurs in Africa
Erik Hersman
09:50 – 10:20 Building a global business – lessons learnt
Vinny Lingham
10:25 – 10:50 Tea break
10:55 – 11:25 The Woo Themes story
Adriaan Pienaar
11:30 – 12:00 Top of the BOPs: Observations from building online business in Africa
Stefan Magdalinski
12:10 – 12:40 Social Media: The side effects
Richard Mulholland
12:45 – 13:45 Lunch
13:50 – 14:20 Giving up Gutenberg: Shaping the future of Internet publishing by shrugging off the past
Patrick Kayton

14:30 – 15:10 Panel Discussion: International trends and opportunities that local entrepreneurs can tap into
Sarah Lacy, Stephen Newton & Stephan Ekbergh.
Hosted by Richard Hardiman.
15:20 – 15:50 The next generation
Stuart Ntlathi
15:55 – 16:15 Tea break

16:15 – 16:45 The Sophisticat, the Elephant, and the Secret of the Digital Native
Arthur Goldstuck

16:50 End
19:00 Afterparty @ La Med - reminds me of my childhood

They also, so neatly sent out a list of the attendees, which really helps when going to big events like these and thankfully recognising people on the list. *wipes forehead*

I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to some enjoyable brain food.

Maaaaa - those loving words

2010-05-06T12:15:00.000+01:00

I swear, every time utter those words I know my mom cringes thinking 'what does she want now?' And I utter those words all the time. I've recently moving back home after living overseas and it's been tough adjusting to having my mom always needing to know where I am but I guess, that's one of the things about living back at home you can't run away from. It's what being a mom is - from what I've heard - is all about.

I don't feel like airing my mom's dirty laundry to get into detail as to why she frakkin' rocks and deserves all the happiness in the world, so I'll make it short and sweet using bullet points.

Mom with my goddaugher :)

She gave birth to me
She had a dream of being a teacher and without any degree, she has single handedly built her business from 6 babies in our old home to a wonderful, loving and nurturing nursery school.
She doesn't stop there but for the last few years has been running Safe Childminders, making sure the crèches, nursery schools and daycares are all up to standard for your little ones.
She is the friendliest person I have ever met.
She has been at every single one of my hockey matches over the last 12 years and put me through 6 tournaments a year at her expense, for my happiness
She never says no
She dealt with my father's infidelities with a lot of strength
She is friends with my friends
She has to deal with my brother, my sister and me all the time. That deserves an award.
She gives the best hugs in the world
She loves education and it's awesome to sit in her school and watch the children from 3 months - 5 years grow and learn.
She doesn't only have 3 children but 2 nieces who adore her, 5 school kids who are like her own and has touched the lives of 100s of children and I can't wait for her to look after my own when I have some babalaaas.

Mom with my cousins

She makes a mean cheese cake. There is NOTHING better then her cheese cake. Same for her sweet and sour chicken. Nomnomnom
She loves the TV shows I do; Alias, Bones, Gilmore Girls and it's great bonding time.
She deals with my crap and laziness. Props to that.
She loves her family

My mother's name is Maxine Silverstone. If you ever see her (she'll be the one talking loudly), let her know that she rocks.

Dealing with us 3 (old pic). The end :)

The xx brilliance

2010-04-20T22:13:00.001+01:00

I love my music. Anyone who knows me, knows that the music is always pumping in my car, on my iPod, on my laptop, when I'm at work or discovering new artists. It can be rock, indie, pop, classical to dance. The genre doesn't matter. Give me a great song or artist and you're guaranteed I will love them.

I happened to cross paths with The xx, an indie-rock band from Wandsworth in South West London - when one of my favourite songs by Florence and the Machine - You Got The Love was remixed by them, which slowed it down to give a whole new dimension to the already brilliant classic that Florence Welch redid. A few weeks ago, a friend sent me a link to a superb playlist which once again featured The xx. One click later on Basic Space (Pariah remix); I found my new favourite artist.

I'm totally enjoying The xx and they have some fantastic songs to offer such as:

The xx - Basic Space and the Pariah remix (fantastic)

The xx - Crystalised

The xx - Shelter

The xx - Stars (which is also different version within Notorious B.I.G album they remixed)

Have a listen, let me know what you think?

Chaos vs Order

2010-04-11T21:44:00.000+01:00

Or currently the state/explanation of my favourite TV show... but still, this is awesome

I spotted this on my dashboard on Tumblr and it's taken from this website Adam & Eve were kitsch as well... which has some pretty amazing artwork

The Game Changer: To be spoiler-free or not?

2010-04-08T14:23:00.001+01:00

Friday night - after Sea Rescue, dinner and feeling guilty for 5 seconds that I ate too much sushi again - I shall be watching this:

The 100th episode airs on Thursday night in the USA and from what I've read with regards to articles, reviews and critics pleas to fans and praise pieces, it's going to be a art at its very best; on tv.

Truth Be Told
Now I love game changers, I have to admit that. I've loved good television since I was a little lighty absolutely hooked on Alias where week in and week out, I would be sitting on the edge of my seat watching the story unfold and be left absolutely shocked, surprised, happy or frustrated and most likely screaming blue murder at J.J Abrams and his dream team of writers. Why would I always be on the verge of heart failure week in and out you may ask? The answer is simple: spoiler-free.

I stayed spoiler-free not because of choice but because of my late arrival to technology and internet adoption in my household. By the time I had even figured out about spoiler sites and destroying some of my favourite shows; Alias or Gilmore Girls it wasn't worth it and definitely not worth the dial-up frustration...

Then in 2005 I picked up on a really enjoyable show aka Bones. Somewhere along the way - after being happy with just getting an episode from a friend - it got to a point that we needed the episode (I blame season 2's greatness) and where it is today, is quite sad. I HAVE-TO-HAVE the episode. I'm blaming spoilers for this problem and well... the internet - and maybe my need to control things.

Maybe it's cause I'm a little too emotionally invested in the storyline and it's characters... so shoot me. Maybe it's cause it's absolutely brilliant storytelling and like every book I am hooked on; I need to turn the next page to find out more (being the new episodes) or maybe I'm a little sadistic in being able to 'drop hints' to my poor friends who are spoiler-free but here's my point:

Truth Takes Time
I'm starting to think that being a spoiler-whore may be ruining the experience of watching television shows and allowing the story to unfold week-to-week as intended but with information at my fingertips, dedicated websites to spoilers on shows or having the ability to either scream with frustration to the creator of the series via twitter or say how brilliant the episode was, it's just to easy and very hard to avoid spoilers about the show. That and I most-likely have no willpower anymore when there is up-to-date access to information via my iPhone or laptop where I spend majority of my time on.

This is probably why...
It's pretty upsetting if I think about it and especially after the mess that happened about 2 weeks ago with a 'critic' posting an article on a pretty big website totally disregarding 'spoiler' warnings that should be an option in an article of that nature. Shouldn't a fan have the choice to read about events that have major impact on the storyline or at least not be shit scared to click on a link about the show that may be of interest to them? Unfortunately, quite a number of fans did read that article and a lot of critics and reporters whom I follow were pretty shocked and disgusted that an article like that was written. One that can totally destroy any type of viewing pleasure when it's basically spoiled the entire episode and future plots. Motivators TV blog had a plea from one of their writers to avoid the spoilers which was brilliantly written and most likely sums up the point of TV, great storytelling and it being another art-form to enjoy

Image: Screen Rant

But maybe that's it, the game is changing. The way we view television is changing from being able to watch an episode and chat with it's stars on twitter (read Annie Stammel's article on Twitter and TV) asking them questions about the episode or being able to completely spoil future episodes by needing to know everything that will happen. It's all down to choice. The choice on how you want to experience the show whether it's to stay spoiler-free - which for me will be highly unlikely even after this post - OR to interact, dig, discuss, build conspiracies and opinions, having that real-time information, instantly at your fingertips even before it has been filmed or aired, will be the way you shape your viewing experience.

For a great explanation on why these things called spoilers exist and most likely why they will never ever disappear - unlike your friends or the online communities that you can just delete - read Annie Stammel's (@Stamos on Twitter) article on the Huffington Post called Lost, Bones, Whatever: Why Not Spoiler-Free TV?

Let me know if I'm not alone... or if I am; maybe leave me a word of encouragement or the nearest clinic

Didn't see that coming

2010-03-28T21:15:00.002+02:00

I think I experienced one of the worst rides of my short life this weekend. And I mean in the drivers seat.

The BMW 1 Series... 118i to be exact was the car of the day that needed to be driven to Langebaan and I volunteered just to get behind the wheel and experience a car I was initially interested in purchasing while scoping out the car scene back home. Yes, how could I want to buy a car and not taking it for a test drive? No... I'm not that dumb. Just gave up on the option when I had a squizz at the prices it was being sold at.

Driving Miss Crazy
It was pretty easy getting all my things into the car, figuring out the remote control key and then opening up the boot, which was disappointingly small. I got into the drivers seat and started the car with the start/stop button and plopping in the clutch for the car to start. Laying out a comfortable driving position is what caused the first problem cause it pretty much sucked trying to get my seat at the right height (Yes, I'm disadvantaged in size; 5ft 4inch is not amazing but I still rock). I won't lie, I battled for about 10 minutes cause every position didn't feel right and looked like I was hugging the steering wheel. I had to get out of the car to get the seat heightner working in the pouring rain. Once that was done, did I only notice how kak the layout is with the clutch, brake and accelerator.

The car for the day - on the left if you didn't get the drift

Close your eyes
Imagine your pedals in your car... now move your clutch to the right a bit so there is a foot rest where it was and angle your foot to the right. Well that's how it is and super close to the break which in my opinion, is uncool. So the whole time my left foot is at an angle when changing using the clutch to change gears. Major fail BMW.

Number 2 or 3; the seats are uncomfortable. Enough said. The steering wheel is super cute but for a car that has power steering, it's horribly stiff. Could this be due to the size of the wheel? I have no idea but it felt like I was driving my old Corsa which had the same size sports steering wheel aka the tractor turner. I'll just let that one go.

What got me the most, wasn't really all of the above but how hard of a ride she is. Seriously... I felt like I was on the road, bum on the ground, getting an ass massage. Hard, bumpy drive and I'm not sure if that has to do with it being a racing suspension - it probably does - but dear god, driving at 120 on the West Coast road makes for a very unpleasant ride. Speaking of the West Coast road... she did overtake well but had to drop her down a gear or two to get the proper speed and power to overtake. There was none of that putting foot down on the accelerator and she would be off, style driving. That could also be turned on me and said that's the point of driving. Yes, I agree but she lacked the power that I've experienced in my Audi, my friend's Audi, Volvo s40 T5 and well my uncle's BMW 3 series etc.

The free massage comes to an end...
When I finally got to Langebaan and arrived at my destination, I met up with the person whose car it was and she asked me how it went? I said... it's nice but quite a hard ride (I was being nice yoh). She then asked if I would buy the 1 series? I 'aaaaaaaahed' for about 10 seconds and she said what pretty much summed up it up: "You're either an Audi fan or BMW fan".

And that my friends... is how the story goes. I Robyn Cara Silverstone, am officially an Audi fan and thats the reason why my legs go weak at the sight of the Audi R8 or why I smile when I get into my A3 everyday and why I continue to dream of driving an A5. I am smitten with those four rings of awesomeness.

So BMW fans... let me know if I've misjudged your brand

Doing it all wrong

2010-03-23T08:29:00.000+02:00

Like most people, I don't like to admit when I've done something incorrect, wrong, not cool or made a boo boo. I can go on forever the types of no-no's that are applicable but lets cut to the chase.

Made da circle beega
I used to blog constantly on the Letterdash platform under the women24 community and decided to move my blog onto blogger to start afresh with a new adventure and 'new' Robyn. My style and tone is definitely my own - or so I've been told by people who know me and read my blog - I say it's my twin I decided to chow down on when I was still in the womb. Anyway, it's my wonky style, getting across the idea.

Dear Robyn here decided I would focus this blog for more of my thoughts on the industry and trying to write more technical blog. Big fail number one. Now I ain't the most technical person on the planet and people tend to lose me when they bring up all these magic words. I understand it in my own language and considering I work online it's a blimmen' miracle I still love this industry. I'll leave the techinical pieces to the Mashable's and Techcrunch's of the world thanks.

In future, I'm going to blog, what I did at the beginning; keeping my followers - whoever you may be - up to date with the random musings I write about. This is normally about what's potting in my life from friends, family, Sea Rescue (NSRI), the online industry, television aka Bones, gadgets and maybe have my own styled technical posts.

Rollin'
I need to get back to basics, speak in my style, keep the conversation happening - which is what happened on my old blog - and enjoy my blogging, otherwise... what's the point?

So, I'm going back to simply... my way.

Hope to carry on the conversation again

Twidroid vs HootSuite Lite

2010-03-03T19:45:00.000+02:00

Now it may seem unfair comparing an app that has had time to develop into what is has become vs one that has just launched itself on the market - excuse the pun - but it's there. I am fairly addicted to Twitter now so it seems fair for me to play with with both and see which suits my style and choose the winner.

HootSuite Lite

The bird has turned into a robot covering version 1.6 upwards which thank god meant I could use it on my HTC Magic. I'm an AVID HootSuite fan and use it everyday... at work. I can monitor my personal stream and the company I'm working for. The great thing about it; scheduled tweets and the owl.y shortner which is one of the best in the business for tracking your URLs and accessing stats. It just works and it's extremely easy to use, especially when explaining work colleagues how to use it. That brings me onto another point, multiple editors on your Twitter stream via HootSuite. I'm blabering on but you get the drift. I are a fan.

But here comes the but. HootSuite Lite is okay. It's not fantastic and it hasn't blown me away. It does its job. Home screen is like everything else; everyone you follow. To get to the profile you need to access your specific stream, so you have to go back to go forward. Once I'm where I need to be the tabbed options are now at the top of the screen only thing is, they aren't that explanatory. Let me explain; the people you follow, your followers and your lists all have the same icons. Shouldn't you differentiate? Once I have a diddle daddle on my stream, I pressed my 'back' button only to exit the application thinking it would take me back to my stream page, so I had to restart it.

Image: Mashable

I quickly jotted down a list as to what works and what doesn't while I opened the app.

The good:

Big text
Streams for multiple profile use
The ow.ly shortner for tracking the URL which only works if you pay $1.99 for the upgrade
Image platform to ow.ly, again helpful with tracking
And a feature that will be on both pro and con; the Ads by 140 proof which is integrated into your tweets shown

Needs work:

The 'back' button option without it closing
Tabs need a major work and need to be a stable feature
Ads by 140 proof - people may get irritated
Going between streams and profiles - going back to go forward at times
Tabs aren't really helpful at all. One icon for following, followers and lists

So where do I think it lies? It's going to take a bit of work for it to get up to the level where twidroid is, especially as a free app.

Twidroid

I've used twidroid for about 5 months now and have been extremely happy with it. The developers are constantly updating it and making it the best it can be. As a free app, it's definitely one of the best on the market and extremely popular on the ever growing Android market with 400K in downloads. Unlike HootSuite, you don't get the option to have multiple streams and will need the PRO for it but that is what I can use Lite for should I need to tweet off my phone for work. I don't have many cons for twidroid but as it stands the only real issue at times is the text size with regards to the layout of the homepage and your profile pages. Anyone with a bit of an eyesight problem is going to battle.

Image: twidroid

Why I use it?

Tabs are at the bottom and the icons differentiate what the options are
Image uploading is simple and quick
The option to follow or unfollow while on a profile
Easy menu options as in one click and I am where I need to be.
Option to RT with a comment
Usability is probably the best word in my opinion

Again, it needs to be reminded that twidroid have had time to develop the app but then again, HootSuite which is a pretty big player in the game, should have had a proper play around on all the Android Twitter apps out there and developed a competitive app to what the best is; again in my opinion; twidroid

It's definitely going to get interesting between twidroid and HootSuite, especially if the Lite version can up it's game to get to where the twidroid free app is sitting; as an Android twitter app leader.

Enough of what I have to chirp about. If you're an Android user, let me know what your opinion is on the best Twitter app out there?

Look at your man... now back to me

2010-03-01T22:43:00.000+02:00

Been meaning to post this the whole of last week. Slow on the uptake but can now say this is a hilarious advert, worth it's 'viralness'.

And the follow up is even better...

In fact, just go to the Old Spice YouTube channel and have a great laugh.

We need you! And chocolate needs me...

2010-02-23T13:14:00.003+02:00

Well... the NSRI needs you to come have a chilled Saturday evening (weather dependent) at Clifton 4th beach for Moonstruck 2010.

It's the 10th anniversary of the event sponsored by M-Net and 567 Cape Talk that is supporting the NSRI (National Sea Rescue Institute) aka Sea Rescue - my awesome NGO I've been volunteering for the past 9 years, saving lives on South African waters.

Really, what's better then having a picnic and sundowners, listening to a band with friends and family?

Bring your family, friends, aunt with 9 cats, the dog to 'play' with the cats and your Gran Hilda to this awesome event in support of our dedicated volunteers.

Courtesty of my old HTC Tytn taking at Moonstruck 2005. Beautiful sunset... no?

This clear biased post was sponsored by me, will be flogged by me and will definitely see you there - unless I get a callout ;)

Check out legendary photographer and Station 2 coxswain of a gabillion years; Andrew Ingram's panoramic images of past Moonstruck events...

A Buzz full of noise?

2010-02-11T13:14:00.000+02:00

If you've been living under a tree for the past few days - like me - then you'll have missed the latest Google feature that's been added to your beloved Gmail. It's called Google Buzz and right now, it's a whole lot of distraction & 'noise' as majority are calling it, in my inbox.

Don't get me wrong, I love Google and their products/features/store/mobile phone/the list goes on but right now, all that is happening is that it's integrated my 'social' profiles from Twitter, Picasa, Flickr, Google reader etc to my dear inbox and hoping I get the conversation going with followers - which aren't many - and people I'm following - which are many.

Thing is, the people I have as contacts/friends in Gmail are most likely to only read their email, reply and log off. They aren't the people to join the conversation and share content in the way it's intended, which sometimes, especially since I live and breath online; sucks. So what's happened is the people I genuinely find interesting with regards to the digital industry are now the ones having fat conversations in my inbox cause I'm following them but honestly, I'm following them on Twitter, friendfeed and their personal websites so why more noise on another product I use? I dunno. I dunno if I'm even making sense? I need a hug.

What do I like... besides Steers chips?

From the integration point of view, it's great way of simplifying all this information overload and bringing it into an area that I use all the time. As for the conversation, it does definitely work and I'm all about the conversation; finding ways to discuss ideas, interact with the users, finding ways to get messaging across and learning what works and what doesn't does tickle my fancy so there could be some potential there.

I do like the idea of the fast sharing experience and the real-time updates have been pretty quick. Also looking forward to see the location based sharing work on mobile and if that will have an effect or be a threat to the Foursquare and their check-in idea?

Anyone have thoughts on this? How will it add/simplify/take more time off our hands/manage our lives?

Bloggers note: I put these ideas together half awake, half trying to catch a mozzie last night so excuse the random thoughts, word vomited onto my blog post. I like it chilled anyway...

What's your poison?

2010-01-25T11:52:00.003+02:00

Mac, PC, iPhone, Android OS, Windows Mobile...?

There are a few things that I've been looking at, some around hype (word of mouth), most around brand loyalty, a lot around experience and surprisingly not so much around research.

So brand/product choices if you had to choose one:

What Smartphone are you?

Mac or PC baby?

Browsing the lever arch file

2010-01-12T00:21:00.000+02:00

Was having a look through my bookmarks and came across this presentation on "What the F**k is Social Media - remembering that it was pretty brilliant and straight forward for those that are so scared of it.

The amount of times I've heard someone saying to me "It's for my daughter who sits on Myspace & Facebook" is countless and normally has me re-enacting the weekly incident of head meet desk ... but in all seriousness, if you haven't seen this presentation then you've hit the jackpot

What the F**K is Social Media: One Year Later

View more documents from Marta Kagan.

Courtesy of @mzkagan

It was those 3 words that saved my life

2010-01-09T16:43:00.000+02:00

Repost from 7/12/09

And countdown has commenced. It's exactly 1 week today where I will be on my way to Cape Town aka home. At this point I am shitting balls if you excuse my French but it's probably the best way to describe how I am feeling. After a successful and fantabulistikiss time in London for nearly 2 years, I'm on my way home.

Snow snaps

I've probably said this before but I'm super excited for the future with 2 job interviews lined up and hopefully another one at the creative division of my old work (holding thumbs for that one), so we will definitely see. Family, friends, lifestyle, sea rescue and hockey (at this point being persuaded out of retirement by a few people) and a new job. What could be better?

So, random checklist of what I'm super chuffed with over my London experience:

Independence - learned that I can do things for myself
Lived in my own flat - with 2 other friends and didn't burn the house down. Only victims were my clothes
Challenging job in the digital industry - check :)
Make a British friend - well that wasn't a goal but definitely have a lifelong friendship with my friend from my work
Travel - check: Paris, Amsterdam, sailing around Greece & Turkey, Dublin, United Kingdom
London baby, the entire nightlife and cultural experience
Play hockey and quit on the same day - that was definitely a first
Go out to sea and River Thames with the RNLI
Movie premieres
Walk through Leicester Sq & Piccadilly Circus at night - spectacular when you realise where you are
See the Queen - Yes, twice in one week
Create a family/community out of school and university friends where we all lived. Really amazing

These are just pointers that are quite important to me but really happy with and now have in my back pocket to move forward on my new adventure.

So, whatever that may be? Bring it on!

OT:

This trailer looks awesome: Dear John

And the song from the title is Cheryl Cole ft Will.I.Am - 3 Words - which is

What I want for Chrismukkah? The Google phone

2010-01-09T16:40:00.000+02:00

Repost from 21/12/09

I had the pleasure of having a sneak peak aka demo - and play around - on the Google phone, courtesy of a friend who happens to work for Google. Now I may not be the most technical person in the world but one thing is for sure; I love my gadgets. This at times - 90% of the time - causes pain to my bank account and well satisfaction with a new toy I've just purchased. Less then 4 months ago, I got gatvol over my Blackberry and the boring experience it provided me and trotted along to Vodafone and upgraded to my HTC Magic which uses the Google Android OS.

I. do. not. leave. my. phone. alone - which probably irritates my friends to no end but I'm continually using the apps whether it be creating calendar appointments, Gtalk, Foursquare, Places Directory, Facebook, Twitroid, Maps, News24, Meebo IM to my new found fun for the time being, Google Goggles. I love it. Aside from the basic everyday usage of email, internet, messaging and phone calls, these apps keep me happy and well connected with my world; online and offline.

So when I heard every Google employee received the rumoured 'Google phone' as a Christmas present, I had to get a look at this smartphone. Luckily, friends had organised dinner on Saturday night and the dude came along. I pre-warned him on FB chat an hour earlier that I wanted to have a looksie and play around to which he said cool after a few conversation pieces of 'it's sikkkkkkk' and oh wait... "it's absolutely a sikkkkk phone" etc.

"A sexy beast. Like the iPhone on beautifying steriods"

I remember having read an article online a few weeks ago about HTC's new handset products coming out next year and they are looking pretty awesome. Hence when I saw the leaked pics of the 'Google phone' online, I remembered that one looked very similar to the HTC Passion. Now according to the dude, Google went to HTC with designs of what they wanted (clearly the experience they wanted to give users), which is the end result and a beautiful, sleek and stylish result it is. It has a much larger screen and has done away with the 'buttons' other then the trackball, it's pretty flat, fits in the palm of your hand and I want to say has that chrome feeling - for the lack of a better word as I've forgotten the name of the texture. Like the pics; it has the Android design on the back with a much larger 'lens' for the camera feature.

Pic: Mashable.com

What I love about the phone - in Robyn's language:

Literally 99% touch screens aka getting rid of those blimmen buttons which on my Magic has lots of chocolate bits finding it's way in
A larger display aka a bigger screen which makes for a much better viewing experience IMO.
A 5MP camera with flash - finally! Do you know how kak my images come out when trying to take pictures in dark places - not cause I'm shady - and at night. After taking random snaps on Saturday night and having seen the quality; it's made of awesomeness. From what the dude said, it uploads the pictures straight away to your Picasa album which is pretty nifty
There is quite a cool text recognizer tool which my old HTC Tytn had and I've forgotten the name. Basically, draw any letter, shape or symbol on the screen and it searches your phone for what the best possible match may be. Made of awesomeness no. 2
With a larger screen means there is more space for shortcuts and widgets on your home screen. I have been rearranging my phone's layout and majority of the time I receive a message saying "not enough space on the home screen" rubbish especially when I added my calendar, accuweather, power tool bar, taskiller - you get the point.
The menu section is completely made of awesomeness. Why you may ask? Well, when running through all your apps through your menu, it looks like a wheel moving forward and you can see the apps you've been through in the background as you keep going past. Wait. That doesn't make as much sense as I would have liked. Okay. Think about those movies where they run the text/short story in the beginning and the stuff you've read fades off at the top of your screen. You can still see it but as more comes along it disappears as you go through the rest of the story/text. Well, it's like that. I want to say the Star Wars movies and I'm hoping to the dude above that I've got the right movie. Anyway, it's absolutely awesome.
It runs on Android 2.1 if I remember correctly.
The overall user experience - well me trying to be one with the phone - is easy, enjoyable and all I really wanted to do was play around even more on it but I think the dude was quite worried I was going to try play around on a test product - which is awesome by the by - they are working on.
I'm still learning about wireframes, IA etc but I really think Google and their genius employees have really thought about the experience, layout, design, yadda yadda yadda that they want the users to have. Really, it is a pretty sleek and superb phone providing a superb functional tool - well definitely for me - and one that is definitely going to succeed

There is probably a reason I would happily give my left arm to work for Google and the reasons are all over the world wide web. From the everyday products I use; Chrome, Gmail, Gtalk, Reader, Calendar, Maps, Alerts, Picasa, Wave, YouTube, Docs, iGoogle to the OS that runs my mobile phone, there really is no stopping the creativity, innovation and forward thinking that comes with Google. And to think that their 'mission statment' is: "to organise the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful."

Dudes, going back to the 'Google phone'... I would be slightly worried if I was Apple - there is only one iPhone?!. This phone is made of awesomeness even on my most basic level of understanding and passion around the industry. As I grow and learn about the technical aspect of web and mobile, I'm sure I'll be blown away at how the whole wheel really works. But right now, in my little mind if Google were to create a competing product to the iPod (totally going off topic here but hey), I would probably be the happiest girl in the world.

Google phone, Google muso, pump (for pumping my tunes - lame? I know) and most likely in the future; Google OS on my laptop. As an article in The Next Web said... Google is taking over my life.

Counting all different ideas drifting away

2010-01-09T16:39:00.000+02:00

Repost from 10/12/09

After nearly 2 years in London, I've decided to come back home to Cape Town.

Recently, I went through some of my old blog posts from when I was leaving Cape Town in May 08 to basically where I am today and boy am I a little shocked and proud of my growth. I don't normally give myself a pat on the back for anything and that goes to years of representing Province and S.A. for hockey to 9 superb years at Sea Rescue to making it in London. It's hard work dammit but boy is it absolutely worth it.

Leaving Cape Town to come to London, I was a isolated, definitely not independent 24-year-old little kid. Naive to a point about how tough the world can be, how lonely it can be, demanding, amazing and ultimately mind-blowing brilliant. Now I haven't travelled the world but definitely am a lot more worldy or wiser; whichever one you want to say. Yeah?

Innit

After toughing it out for 4 months and honestly thinking it was not going to work, I got the break I needed... in Government. Can you Adam and Eve it? Government. Coming from 24.com, South Africa's biggest Online Publisher and definitely most innovative media company at the moment in the S.A environment - I ended up going into the public sector where walls are higher then JHB homes and the words 'policy' and 'rules' are the norm. Well... I was right about most but I was completely off about what I thought the experience I was going to have. We had a tight digital team of 2 (my boss and I) and that was going into a new Agency - one of UK's biggest and boy did we learn. Anyhoo, details aside, I honestly thought I would be lock and loading and maybe learning a few more things and that was another assumption I was completley wrong on.

Areas which I absolutely enjoyed and were defo highlights:

Thrown into the deep end and having to get the website live for Dec 1st was the first major thing - check.
Start developing new wireframes (with our supplier) for the interim site involving many project meetings, usability testing, designs, mock-ups etc - check.
Develop the social media side by using the appropriate tools for the Agency and to get their message out there, engage with stakeholders, key partners and public - check. Social Media introduced and now in growth stage of the PLC if I had to put it in those terms - check
Get my hands stuck into mini project management with developing more functional sections on the website, new 'tools' and finally getting my hands on managing a process. Learned a LOT - check.
Digital Marketing strategy - This is one of the areas I really want to go into and with our suppliers we developed a strategy for going forward. Since Dec 08, my boss and I had been quite reactive with the work, finding our feet and now the new faces in the Digital team have a strategy going forward.
Learning, learning, learning. When Helena said that we should find a topic and discuss it every month (or something like that), I was honestly shitting bricks. I had no clue with regards to what to talk about, where do I find the information, what do I do? We never talked monthly. After finding my feet, we were discussing new trends, technology and tools we could use, DAILY and my passion for the industry was definitely developed by this continual learning process. Even though half the time I was probably mumbling to myself (constructive nonsense as I like to call it), a lot of our ideas were developed from us just talking.
But I couldn't have done it without my old boss and friend; @HelenaB

Now I'm ready, grown, put on a bit of weight, done a fair amount of traveling, had an amazing experience both work and with friends but it's time to get my lifestyle, family and friends back and start growing in the industry even more around what makes me tick.

And for those that have ever read my blog posts; past and present, the title is most of the time - lyrics from fantabulistikiss songs. This one Phoenix - 1901, which I stumbled upon on the New York, I love You trailer ;)

Sketching = Events

2010-01-09T16:32:00.000+02:00

Old post from (9/11/09)

A few months back my colleague who we delegated the events section on our website to, came to us - or maybe we (@HelenaB) and I looked at the page and thought it looked a bit messy and needed to be redesigned. The point I'm trying to get across is that, we got a bit gatvol (irritated) with the way it was looking.

So first on our to-do-list was for Hayley and myself to do quick research on what other event pages were looking like around on the net and write down what we liked and didn't like about them. A bit of tree killing later - which we recycled - I dragged Hayley off to the empty desks armed with a pad of paper and pens and the all important coffee. We looked at a few event layouts on a few different websites and once we got a few ideas in our head, we started sketching on the pad of paper.

After a few ideas were jotted and drawn really badly down on the paper, we came up with a pretty cool layout and most definitely a better user experience then what is was then. What was it? Well, imagine a table with the date, venue and name linked to their page and you have the events page. Now that said, our site is still an infant and only turning 1 on Dec 1st so there was a lot of development work around it at that stage and finding our feet as a digital communications team of 2 people and another 2 wonderful people who we have delegated sections to for their ownership and responsibility.

I couldn't find the previous version on the staging site for comparison of what it looked like then but this is what it looks like now.

Step 1: Robyn's pretty wonky drawing and wonkier ideas on Paintshop Pro (The notes were to our suppliers and for their people to come up with the most functional 'tool' for the user based on our random ideas)

The idea was to have the months as tabs so easy navigation around the different months and then once you have clicked on a month, it would open up to a page full of events. Obviously my artistic drawing doesn't convey my full meaning behind this but once you click on the event, the information (a short description with the essential information) would open up and then if you want to find out more, you can click through to the full event listing).

Step 2: Send off CR to our suppliers and after a few back and forths, ironing out the event page and testing, we have the final product.

I really wish we had the previous version...

You want to find further info on the Smaller Housing Association Conference? Click...

Event geocode (do I speak Greek?): Ooh... look at that map embedded (go to Google maps, put in postcode, take out certain coordinates - feeling like I'm back at Sea Rescue - and paste it in the dedicated area) in the event. Pretty cool. I thought it was another cool feature added to the idea and really adds a nice touch to the events, especially with having all the information you need at your fingertips.

If you were to click through to find out more about the event, a full standard 3-C layout will give you all the information you need and the event's website for further further details.

Like most of our web development, it's always a lot of fun, applying your skills, learning new technical aspects that sometimes, when I listen to our developers, I wonder if they superhumans and well having a lot of fun being creative and providing a better user experience in the end of the day. Though it may seem very small, the little things do make a difference to your experience on a website and in the end of the day, it makes your journey pleasant and worthwhile, instead of pulling your hair out and makes us happy that we've produced a useful tool. Well, definitely makes me happy.

Didn't Twitter start from sketching? Anyway, for an interesting read, head on over to 20fourlabs and read the article Innovate successful products: sketch!

Playing around with subject lines - 14/10/09

2010-01-09T16:27:00.000+02:00

It's odd that I would speak about work on my blog considering I've considered it to be a more personal and chilled side to me but I'm going to give it a bash, much like the topic I'm chatting/debating out - technically to myself if no one responds - in my head.

I always remember when my Content Managers were sorting out the Wednesday newsletter; aside from being terribly stressed and wanting to kick Lirus the Virus (stand to be corrected) that there was always talk about subject lines. Spam Wilson (@SamWilson1) was always saying never use words like 'sex' in your subject line because it would go straight to the spam box and I'd always wondered what would happen if we had used those words, even though it's much more fun thinking about synonyms.

Even from the time when I was there - probably making coffee for the bunch but yeah - the topics to subject lines to overall design of the newsletter is really engaging and what it's all about. If you can get the users to open up that email; put a foot through the door, then your first job is done and now it's about keeping them there with good content and call-to-actions.

I read a really interesting article from iMedia Connection this morning while going through my feeds with a cuppa coffee about 7 fixes for terrible subject lines by Wendy Roth. It bought up a little debate/chat/do we have the resources and time?/I think we should do this argument that my old boss/work colleague/friend (@HelenaB) - who decided to move to Malawi - and I were having at the time.

Article highlights:

Personalization in subject lines can cause problems in several ways
Make your call-to-action clear, and let readers know if an offer will expire soon
Funky punctuation and cryptic language is not clever -- it's annoying

We had been doing the newsletter for 8 months at the point when the topic was bought up; "do we change the subject lines"? It was a really cool idea considering our subject line is very simple and doesn't add much call-to-action as the people who have subscribed to our newsletter know what they are getting. We aren't in much competition with other companies nor do we have sales targets to hit other then to make ourselves happy that the newsletter is still in it's growth stage and is growing steadily every week without much promotion (aside from every page on the website) around it.

For us, it was a matter of time and putting a plan around it and thinking back, if we had the time it would have been a great test to do. Our sign up page allows us to collate all the information that the user wants to hear about and it gives us the opportunity to use our data appropriately. Our aim was to see what our click-through rate was like with different subject lines and I think we would have had success in trying something new, especially by engaging with our users and start targeting their preferences more precisely not only making their experience better but also by enhancing our digital experitse.

Big words, I know but email marketing is part of this so-called 'digital expertise' and getting it right only means good things in terms of exposure about your business and/or product (which you know anyway). Despite only having 6 weeks left at my current job (contract, she is ending), I'm quite looking forward to the future. Who knows, hopefully one day, you'll be reading and clicking through some of my work.

Side dish: I'm relatively new to actually blogging about what I'm passionate about and finding my feet with how I write and get ideas across. I tend to keep my professional interests on Twitter but this is something I am quite interested in and well, I just decided to word vomit on the page.