Doctors are Monkeys

So I am a day late, and for that I'm sorry. Recovering from a sucky operation in a tiny mining town with really bad Internet connection has delayed me.

So last week Monday I had the dreaded tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. Which seemingly went well until the next day, when I couldn't keep anything down. Upon leaving the hospital and going to visit my family I found out that the surgeon made a teeny tiny little mistake. When removing my tonsils, he hurt the nerves connected to my gag reflex. Meaning anything I swallowed triggered the gag reflex and I became the victim of involuntary bulimia. Which is just what I needed. Not.

After five days of dehydration and starvation I finally got myself eating, but it sucked. It hurt like a bitch, and I can tell you that stomach acid running over an open internal wound sucks even more.

I'll write something more interesting at the end of this week. All this experience has proved to me is what I've always known: Doctors are morons. Sorry, but if you study for eight or nine years and then have to spend your life practising you know there's a problem.

Now I'm going to finish the toffee I've stolen from the cupboard and proceed to be so feverish they should put me on the weather charts.

 Happy Monday everyone.

Well, they do say an apple a day....

Minor Operations: When Everyone Thinks You're Screwed

So during my school vacation (its always during vacation!) it was discovered that after nearly three months of being constantly sick, I had tonsillitis. So bad, that even though this was the first time, I was told to have them removed immediately. We went to see a specialist, and Bob's your uncle the operating date was set for Monday the 23rd of April. Meaning tomorrow.

The funny thing is that I am completely fine. I'm not stressed, or worried, I just want it over with. In fact I'm pretty excited to spend my first night in a hospital. Everyone else however, is not taking it so well. And that's putting it very lightly.

My mom has religiously bought medicine, and now provisions for my recovery week. Provisions like kid's toothpaste, marshmallows and purity (baby slop). She has sworn not to leave my side until she is forced to.

My stepfather, who generally keeps his distance when I'm sick, has taken to giving me inspirational and motivational speeches every five minutes. Which sort of makes me feel more like I'm going off to war instead of getting a simple tonsillectomy.

My step mom has advised strongly against taking my tonsils out, since I may need them in the future. I have no idea what she thinks I'll do with them. My father has decided to keep his distance and only said good luck now and then. I almost prefer that.

My very nosey grandmother phones every chance to tell me that I must:" Instruct your mother to look after you properly." She then phones my mom anyway to harass her.

My teachers look at me like I'm a mental patient, my friends say goodbye as if they'll never see me again and I'm pretty sure my boyfriend is going grey. The only other happy person about it is my cousin's boyfriend who suggested that i ask for my tonsils in a jar, add some glow stick juice and make a nightlight. Are we seriously the only ones that don't think its that major?

A tonsillectomy is a pretty straight forward 20 to 30 minute operation which has been done millions of times. The recovery time is about a week. I don't understand why people are pretending I'm going to die. Do they like the drama? Do they want to comfort themselves? Or do they just want to scare the crap out of me? Either way, I'll report back next week.

P.S We reached more than a thousand page views this week. The first milestone. Thanks to everyone reading :)

The Titanic: 100 Years Later

April 14th, on an icy night, and on the early hours of April 15th, the RMS Titanic plunged to the depth of the ocean, killing 1514 people. This year marks the 100 year anniversary of the sunken vessel. I thought I'd put up a few pictures to remember the biggest maritime disaster of all time.

The Titanic soon after its departure on April 10th, 1912

The Titanic as she might have sunk

Part of the wreck on the ocean bed

The other half of the wreck

Haunting proof of someone that was once living

A survivor, known as the "Unsinkable Molly Brown". She persuaded one of the lifeboats to go back and rescue more survivors

The band that never stopped playing

One of the propellers

A newspaper article announces the loss of hope

The port side of the Titanic, before the tragedy

Many lives changed in the aftermath. Some questions remain unanswered. But 100 years later, we still grieve the loss, and wonder what could have saved those people on that night of unexpected terror.

Julius Malema: Part 1 Of The Madness

Politics in any country is difficult, but in South Africa it’s a wild, mud-slinging, playground scuffle with lots of name calling to go around. The forerunner of this is, of course, Mr. Julius Malema.

He was born to a single mother and joined some type of anti-Apartheid group at age 9, where his job was putting up posters. Now I, as a history lover, know that several of our leaders were major Apartheid's fighters in the Struggle. It just annoys me that Malema pretends he was rioting and imprisoned when in actual fact he was just a child.

And looking at the present, what has he really done for South Africa as a leader? You know, apart from spreading hate speech and attacking BBC journalists? He petitions for mines to be nationalised, and makes scandalous headlines but that’s about it. Who could forget the ANC Youth League rally in the poorest of townships where he,” Felt the people’s pain and suffering,” with a designer suit and Rolex?

Furthermore he slanders other politicians, and even the president who technically employs him. If he isn't singing “Shoot the Boer” (shoot the farmer) then he's calling Helen Zille a political toddler. I find it hard to figure out if he's the puppet master or if he's dancing to someone else’s strings.

Apartheid ended in 1994. Racism was supposed to die out when the new generation was born. Instead, Julius is teaching the youth hate speech and prejudice. He has been suspended, but I sense this is only the beginning.

Can’t we sing:”Shoot the slimy-former-ANC-Youth-League-president-with-a-bazooka" instead?

Fallen Stars

Recently in South Africa we have lost many performers to untimely deaths. The most recent of these was Andrew Thompson who committed suicide. He was 26. This week I would like to pay tribute to them. This is to all the fallen stars.

(Video courtesy of Elize Smit-Labuschagne)