One week in!

So, the week is only a week and a bit old and it's back to work again. I've decided to cheer me and you all up with a picture post today - my posts have become way too wordy anyway!

The New Year started better than probably any New Year ever before that. Because fiance and I live far from my friends, our circles have yet to properly mix - if they ever will. But on New Years it just so happened that both of us had our best friends with us. So I found myself wine glass in hand, standing in the kitchen with a smile on my face, listening to the happy chatter between the three of them as I made (yet another) curry. The curry was a bit watery, but the conversation, the walk to Long Street for the minstrel carnival, two courses of dessert and the warm fuzzy feeling inside, made up for it. Isn't it nice to have the people you love around you? Yes, indeed!
Here they are:

Fiance - pulling funny face

fiance's friend listening intently to my friend's passionate explanation of ... something or other

Friend (and bridesmaid!). Probably thinking 'do I HAVE to do this smiling thing now? am explaining something important!'

me - under influence of wine and so happy I couldn't bother to hold camera still

Then came the first week of work... stormy, to say the least. We were on deadline, I was in a mood, etc, etc.
So I took a few pics of the beautiful neighbourhood I live in to cheer myself up. Isn't this gorgeous?:

 

 

 

c-street, just down the road from us. Isn't it gorgeous?

mosque

 

 

william the cat waiting to get in. Food, food, food! 

William only a whizz of tail now as Manon arrives hot on his heels. Food, food, food! Who wants to say hello to the humans when there's a nice bowl of woolies pellets waiting? (yes, that's right - they only eat woolies. They actually lost weight when we tried to feed them cheaper food - they simply refused to eat it. Now that's what I call posh taste!)

view of our street in early sunlight on the way to work. 

 

Bliss....

 So the wedding planning, you may ask... Fiance and I kind of woke up for the first time since we started planning and made a list of what still needs to be done. YIKES!!! A suit, a ring, putting stuff on the registry, getting the lighting sorted, the wedding contract AND the fact that we haven't sent out all the invites yet (despite that the RSVP date was this week!) - that's just a small part of our 'to do-list'. But this weekend we killed a few birds with one stone - looked at rings, added some stuff to the registry, tried on suit and printed more cards. So we're getting there!

Also big news: fiance and I found a place to stay in! I now officially have a month left in the Bo-Kaap house. So sad :(. But do not fear, because Filmmaker, American Journalist and I are planning a mean party for the end of the month. Details to follow! 

As for running, I have an announcement to make.
This might sound like me bailing out, but since 'learning something' is also one of my goals, I think what I'm going to say now is ok: I don't think I'm going to run a marathon.
'No!', you're all screaming, I know. 'How can she bail on one of her goals?'
It did cross my mind, but here's why I think it's ok: In the past two months (after the last disastrous half-marathon I wrote about), I've realized that my biggest challenge is not to run far - but to run consistently. In fact, in my entire life that is the challenge. Not to be nice - but to be nice consistently. Not to do good work - but to do good work consistently. So I am officially changing one of my goals. It will now read 'Exercise at least three to four times a week, always' instead of 'Run a marathon before I get married'. I think the mistake I made was to think that having a goal will automatically keep me running at regular intervals.It didn't.
I'm not sure, but I'm guessing this lesson will come in handy in other areas of my life too... 

So finally, I leave you all with a video of the amazing Kaapse Klopse (or minstrel carnival - but the Afrikaans word is so much better!). We missed them on the night of the 31st, which is when they traditionally perform, but then there was a surprise waiting in the streets a few nights later, just before midnight. Apparently it goes on like this in the Bo-Kaap until February each year! What a joyful sound...