ME
DOB: 28 February 1974
Where: Johannesburg, South Africa.
Why: Still trying to figure this one out myself, but the journey has been swell.
- internally -
Too soft for my liking but then again, the world is too full of hard asses anyway.Great sense of humour which gets overshadowed by anger when in contact with a hard ass.
Passionate about the things I love:
- my folks (blessed out of my socks with these two),
- my 2 sisters (you hurt, you die),
- my familia (will not find a closer knit),
- my work (strange as it may seem),
- my dancing (must be the reason I'm here),
- ice cream (gino ginelli, yes please!),
- to see people and animals suffer (why?),
- boredom (it breeds sin),
- sarcasm (makes you ugly),
- poachers (you live by the sword, you die by the sword.),
- the string of plastic you use to open the wrapping of new CDs (can somebody speak to these people!?),
- parktown prawns (don't bring those things near me man!),
- brussel sprouts (no thank you!),
- fingerprints on my monitor (go fetch the windowlene!),
- externally -
Blessed with one healthy human machine.- 1.87m of lean, human flesh,
- I drive a Honda Ballade 160i called "Avis". (Quite corny; the car looks like an Avis car, or you could say; "A-vis is a nice car!",
- I would like to drive:
- a Mercedes Benz 230K Sport Coupé (this will be my next car, thank you) or
- a Plymouth Prowler (THE VACUUM CLEANER, picks up all the fluff on the street) or
- a Harley Davidson Heritage Softtail Nostalgia (let's make some noise) or
- a Jaguar XK8 (the most expensive hairdrier you'll ever buy) or
- a Lotus Elise (one in every colour please)
EDUCATION
îLaerskool Fairland (1980 - 1986) |
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Had my first crush on a senior, and my first fight (lasted a whole 5 seconds) at break. Vague memories of fétes ended off with toffee apple & cotton candy tummy aches. I even starred in my first operetta as an acrobat.
îHoërskool Randburg (1986 - 1991) |
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This period had a whole lot of firsts.
My first real job as a paper delivery boy, hear they get "Danger Pay" nowadays.
Not only did I have my first real steady girlfriend but also had my first real
kiss at 15. Oh, the nostalgia....
Accepted a dare from the rest of the class to ask a lady teacher I fancied, to the
Valentines Day Ball, just to be horribly declined.
You won't believe it but I actually learnt a lot from my subjects. Not only book
knowledge but a bit about the great big world out there.
Enjoyed Science, Biology, Afrikaans and Woodworking the most and loathed maths.
Still using all my woodwork projects.
Belonged to the Voortrekkers (similar to Scouts, for those who don't know) a whole 12 years. Man, those were the days. Camping, hiking, making a fridge out of sticks, some rope and newspaper. Learning to shoot with firearms, using morse code and signalling flags. Survival in the bush with no food. This movement really helped prepare me for life in general.
Come to think of it, if I could do it over, I would relax much more and just enjoy it, guarding against taking myself too seriously.
îTechnikon Witwatersrand (1994 - 1997) |
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Not only did we learn to make oral prostheses but a piece of jewellery also saw the light every now and again.
Had a part time job during this time that any student, would die for.
I worked as a chauffeur and personal assistant to foreign visitors to our country.
Driving them around in the most expensive of cars and super-stretch limousines.
The adventures we had were just awesome. Places we saw and people we met; ASTOUNDING!
And the best thing of it all; I GOT PAID TO DO IT!
îCTI Randburg (1998 - 1999) |
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So I changed my career, (after wasting thousands of dad's money)
qualified with a Computer Science Diploma in my hand, and a running start in the IT world,
just to hit the wall at full force, hearing I needed experience to get a job,
not a qualification.
Life Lesson no. 1 - "It's not who you are, but who you know, that will get you places."
Did however get a job at a company with help from
Life Lesson no. 1. Months later, I got a better job offer (UK owned company) 1,400km from home,
also with the help of Life Lesson no. 1, but after the escalating crime rate and
severe job losses, overseas investors withdrew their interest out of the country, and left me without a job.
Sorry to say, but many South-Africans are seriously disillusioned with current matters.
Life Lesson no. 2 - "The Golden Rule: He who has the gold makes the rules."
So up to now I've been fending for myself, in a strange place, highly trained in two careers, but barely scraping through each month. Lost my house & my independence in the meantime, wondering why someone, who really wants to work, and is trained for it, is not allowed to help get this country out of a 3rd world standard.I really do not wish to leave the country to seek employment elsewhere, this is where I was born and grew up. My family is here and what use would it be to go and live in another country where they don't even speak your language, or have the same culture as you?
HANG-TEN
If I could make a living out of it I would.
Our dance troupe presented a couple of shows around the Western Cape. We did
a couple of restaurants, a shopping centre, Spier Wine Farm and the BMW Pavilion
in the Waterfront.
Check out the studio's website: www.brazilia.co.za
Recommended Ballroom and/or Latin clubs:
- The Valve (THE BEST CLUB IN THE WHOLE COUNTRY!)
- The Dance Palace (The best one in Gauteng)
- Bossa Nova (Mambo and Salsa all night long)
- Greens (Don't need a partner to go here)
- Klipwerf (Binneboud langarm vastrap dansvloer treffers!)
In the Western Cape:
- Kirschtenbosch Botanical Gardens (Perfect picnic & Sunday afternoon stroll/snooze)
- Cape Point Nature Reserve (The drive there is part of the fun)
- Theewaterskloof Dam (The best kept secret of the Western Cape)
- Noordhoek Beach (Whenever we need to toast an occasion)
- Brittania Bay (Serious "Oxygen Hunting")
- Big Bay (If the surf's up we ride it)
- Cedarberg Mountains (No phones, cellphones or TVs, just you and nature)
- Rawsonville (FLYFISHING ADVENTURE!)
- Gansbaai (Great White experience & Perlemoen)
- Knysna (The forest, the Heads & Dalene Matthee)
- Wilderness (Oxygen Hunting #2)
- Jeffreys Bay & Gonubie (The supertubes of J'Bay and the right hander at Gonubie)
- Tsitsikamma National Park (You just want to disappear in the woods)
- The Kruger National Park (Unfortunately too expensive for any South-African)
- Sudwala Caves (Courageous? Go caving!)
- Graskop (Centrally located between all the major sites)
- Mac Mac Pools & Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Horseshoe Falls, Lone Creek Falls, Sabie Falls ....
- Bourke's Luck Potholes (Did the Blyderivierspoort trail)
- Blyderiver Canyon (Makes you feel very small)
- Pilgrim's Rest (Step back in gold digging times)
- God's Window (Where you can look as far as tomorrow)
- Long Tom Pass (Do not attempt in mist, I repeat, do not.)
- Dullstroom (Fly fishing at its best)
- Kaapsehoop (Fantastic horseriding!)
- Hartebeespoort Dam (Watersports galore)
- Witwatersrand Botanical Garden (Amazing Black Eagle Project)
- Emmarentia Dam (Jo'burg's sea, stunning rose garden with fountains)
- Crocodile Ramble (Arts & Crafts Adventure)
- Sun City (Game drives, fun rides, strip to moto-x shows)
- Northcliff Hill (Striking sunsets and sunrises)
- The Sound Stage (Richard Loring at his best)
- Northgate, Eastgate, Southgate, Westgate, Sandton City, Rosebank Mall & Rooftop Market, Cresta, Randburg Mall & Waterfront, Kollenade, Hatfield (Shop till you drop baby.)
- Lifestyle & Garden World (For the people with green fingers)
- Kyalami & Tarlton (The Need For Speed!)
- State & Civic Theatre (Culture cultivation)
- Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve (How I miss the bushveld)
- The forrests of Wartburg (Been places the public will never see)
- Midlands Meander (Hardcore arts & crafts, take a lot of money)
- Karkloof Nature Reserve (Unspoilt oxygen hunting)
- Howick, Karkloof & Albert Falls (I've got a thing for waterfalls )
- Margate, Ramsgate, Ballito, St Lucia, Umhlanga, Amanzimtoti (Take your pick from the most beautiful beaches)
- Sodwana Bay (Scuba valley & raggy alley)
When I do have time/money, I let the carpenter in me loose, or I grab a welding machine and some heavy metal. Still using everything I've made.
Rollerblading and paddleskiing also gets a chance every now and again.
AHA MOMENT
îSouth Africa's man in a billion, mark shuttleworth, shares his greatest epiphany - the realisation
that fate has as much to do with his success as natural talent and hard work. |
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WHEREVER I LOOK, I SEE AN EXTRAORDINARY tapestry of magic at work, not only in my life but also in the lives of everyone I meet. I have no explanation or label for the conviction, I don't try to fit it into any textbook philosophy or religion, and I don't try to extrapolate any "deep" fundamental conclusions. I simply draw courage and comfort from the knowledge that my life is in good hands. |
Over a period of time, through a series of revelations, I have learned to identify and recognise astonishing patterns, coincidences and connections in my life. Take the time when, all set to study physics and mathematics, I fell hopelessly in love just before starting university and ended up in business school, where she was, instead.
Up till that point, I had been terrified of business school because I thought I had no aptitude for it at all. Most of my success in high school had come via "hard science" and I was certain I'd be worse than useless doing what amounts to a social studies course. For the universe to get me there would require an extraordinary amount of manoeuvring. And yet that's pretty much what happened. As it turned out, the romance didn't last, but am I ever grateful now for the way things turned out!
Think about the best things that ever happened to you. How did you meet your partner? How did you come to the job or hobby or dream that inspires you every day? How did you really move into each of the major phases of your life?
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When I think of events that seemed to be major setbacks at the time they
happened, hindsight reveals to me a link between those stumbling blocks and
subsequent joys. While you're "in the moment", a major setback can be
devastating. Plans fall apart, and you find yourself questioning everything.
"Why me?" Or just "Why?"
And then serendipity goes on to unfold unexpectedly wonderful things. I remember getting fired from a consulting job in my last year of university. At the time, I was devastated, but the experience firmed my resolve to start a business of my own. Similarly, I was stunned when I failed to win a scholarship to study at Oxford. I had no job lined up, no Plan B. But from that setback came the radical plan to start a company in the field of Internet security. |
The best things in life (and the worst!) are often completely accidental. But does it make sense to stop working towards your dreams simply because providence plays such a big role? Not at all. For me, serendipity is most powerful for people who are open to unexpected possibilities while working towards passionate goals.
| Ultimately, action brings opportunity, even if it isn't the opportunity we were expecting. Sitting on your bum waiting for serendipity isn't likely to bring dividends. But recognising it does mean that you can let go of the intense attachment you have for a particular outcome. Sometimes I work really hard to achieve a certain goal and it doesn't happen. But so what! There's a bigger plan at work - I learn something, grasp a new opportunity, meet someone... |  |
I love those moments when things come into focus, when the outcome finally clearly reveals why something happened as it did. I now find myself growing less and less intense about the "big issues" in life, because I have faith that things always work out as they should. I also find myself worrying less about the unknown.
The biggest disasters are unpredictable anyway, and - with time - even the deepest wound can heal into a scar signifying your survival.
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Having been so fortunate early in life, I went through a period of obsessing about failure, not wanting to lose the momentum I'd acquired so unexpectedly. Now, whenever life kicks me in the teeth, I know that there will be a silver lining even if it isn't obvious at the time. |
Seen in this light, every failure is as valuable as a success. Suddenly, failure can be a good thing.
I'm willing to take bigger risks and take on bolder projects because I'm less concerned with succeeding than with discovering the amazing and unexpected things they might lead to. It's actually become something of a game, trying to spot the upside in the bad news.
| When I'm lucky enough to meet interesting new people from different walks of life, I'm curious as to whether or not they too see patterns and connections in their lives and whether they feel the gentle hand of serendipity nudging and tweaking their life's direction. I'm reassured to find that more and more people I meet are conscious of the same sense of harmony in the universe. |
Our lives really are in good hands. •
Article by: Mark Shuttleworth
The Oprah Magazine
(South-Africa, August-September 2002) p.33
