Volcanoes

Since I last wrote I had a lovely weekend away in Nyanga. Managed to do a spot of painting and we were lucky enough to catch the msasas turning. A friend has contacted me to ask if they can use some of my msasa leaf photos in their magazine. Have also been commissioned to try capture some close ups of the erythrina flowers (lucky bean tree). There is an unusual one on Kew Drive in Highlands, that has peachy blossoms. Took some photos on my phone today but plan on going back with my camera to play with the macro lens.

Last week wasn't so good. I suddenly got very anxious about the NILD course and woke up feeling very panicky. I don't usually have anxiety but it was not pleasant. I ended up deciding not doing the intensive residency week this week. It would have been lectures from 8-5 every day and then assignments every night and I just didn't feel I could cope with then starting school next week straight after. I think I made the right decision and it has given me time to finish preparing stuff for school. It's going to be a long, very long! term. My class is going to be doing marble runs and construction for content. Need to stockpile loo rolls.

Just been looking at flights and trains for December. Hoping to visit friends in Berlin, Frankfurt and then Lausanne before I head to England for Christmas. Excited but it's going to be cold! Hard to imagine sitting here where it is getting warmer and warmer.

Lausanne

Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (Rolex Centre)

Used the book Dinomania with my Chinese five year old and after working on making a paper mache volcano for the last week and painting it, we finally got to eruption day today. He carefully measured out bicarb, vinegar and tomato sauce and then it bubbled away perfectly. He was really chuffed with it and at the end said "Again!" - oh dear I think he has taken the dragon Again story to heart. We also re-read the Julia Donaldson story Tyrannosaurus Drip (one of my favourites). My five year old decided his dinosaurs weren't going to go extinct and were going to be in a "safe cave". Was a fun lesson. Baby brother, his mum and the house keeper all came to watch too.

Burning birthday cake

It was a good birthday yesterday. Had a picnic with friends on the public holiday on Tuesday in the Botanical Gardens. A whole lot of my favourite people came, including my Chinese five year old and his family and dog. We went exploring the "rainforest" with him mid afternoon. On my actual birthday I met with friends for lunch after art with Sarah Fynn (where I painted Mugabe). My five year old came running out to greet me when I went to teach him and said "Happy birthday Kitty!!!" His mum said he told her I should have chocolates as the toiletries were "boring". The special man in my life then took me out for dinner, which was lovely.

After a lot of birthday cakes - yesterday seemed to be a continuous process of consuming cake (wonderful but not good for me when I am still trying to lose weight) I had personal training this afternoon and I think my trainer knew. She avoided eye contact which was a sign it was going to be hard and it was quite a work out - lots of skipping. For the last rep she asked if I would rather do jumping jacks - er no - skipping any time rather than that, but maybe I should have - all that cake!!

Tomorrow I teach in the morning and then head to Nyanga with my boyfriend, his family and a few friends. The msasas might be out which will be stunning when we drive through Juliasdale. I am taking a canvas and acrylics - let's see if I actually use it :P

Today Monday really is "canceld"

It's been a really good weekend so far and the beauty is it's not over, there are two more days :) Yeeha! My Chinese family has given me today off. I will teach my Chinese 5 year old tomorrow before a birthday picnic in the Botanical Gardens. I think my 5 year old will come with for the picnic - trying to get his family to all come too (I don't know I want to baby sit, although it will be lovely to have him there). The weather is glorious at the moment, with clear, crisp blue skies and warm, but not too hot yet, sunshine. I think I definitely am a little manic but it is making me do some much needed spring cleaning at home, so I need to harness this energy to the full. Am doing a bit of work for school too - nearly finished my plan for next term. Just got to see about comprehensions on Twinkl.

Saturday morning I went to see a lady whose animals I will be checking on in Monavale. She is going to Italy to do a course on homeopathy and she has an amazing collection of herbs in her herb garden - love it! She does however have a resident cobra and has lost a dog to a snake earlier this year - eeeek! I am fine with spiders but not so good with snakes. I will take a torch if I am going early evening. I have been added to the Monavale Whatsapp group as they will let me know if there are any fires - a potential threat to the house I will be checking on. (I have officially become a Monavale hipster/hippy 😛😜😝).

I went from Monavale to the Maasdorp Market and got some super veggies from one of the farm stalls. So nice to have no plastic packaging and they give you a wicker basket to carry your veggies in to the car (and you're buying local!) Had wanted to get some chicken liver pate for Matt but it was sold out already (need to get there early). Went to a farewell of a Ugandan friend who is going to study in Sweden at Jam Tree on Saturday night. Been a while since I went to Jam Tree, I won't lie.

Sunday was really good. Went to mass with Matt at St George's and we went to the pub quiz at Reps (our team came first - yay). Matt came for lunch in our garden and we had fun picking coffee beans off our coffee tree, will see how the coffee turns out. Matt reckons some beans I accidentally left in the oven and I thought burnt, might make a good roast, we'll see.

A friend, Bronwyn, wants to organize TED talks in Harare in October or November on mental health and depression. I am happy to give a talk and help organize. Can maybe try to show the film Loving Vincent concurrently - I haven't forgotten about it. The talk below is really good on bipolar - want to watch Paul Dalio's film Touched by Fire, which is based loosely on the book by Dr Kay Redfield Jamison (who also wrote An Unquiet Mind). Apparently people are being referred to my Facebook group Unquiet Minds by medical people at the Annex - I am really chuffed and it is gaining momentum and awareness. Still so far to go. I might try see if we can have a talk on adolescent depression with the GTLD Network in Zimbabwe (“gifted and talented” students with “learning differences.”). From NILD, depression is a form of learning difficulty as it makes a child "mentally unavailable" to learn.

Heroes Weekend

It's been a good week. I am possibly slightly manic. My psychiatrist did warn me when I last saw him that I could be at this time of year with the lengthening of the days and more sunshine. Need to up the lithium but hey, I would much rather be manic than depressed - more productive and I am happy with life and the world at large.

Had a fairly busy week with teaching, starting to prep for next term and then doing an assessment of a new student for Spectrum. Shame, he had been bullied at a previous school and was very anxious but a sweety. I haven't been into school before now (decided to have a good break before tackling work again). I returned to find my desk tidied for me and my classroom all shiny and clean - thanks to Patricia - I owe her big time. Not only does she organise my desk but also provides me with coffee during term time - my life line - I'm not joking!!

Really enjoying my two students that I'm coaching. My Chinese five year old is suddenly into knights in shining armour in a big way. His all time favourite story is Saint George and the dragon but I introduced him to King Arthur and the knights of the round table today. Somehow we got onto Transformers - it was because he had a toy, and I showed him the trailer of the 2007 movie. Never mind Disney (he is really not interested in any of those). Transformers is now something he is very keen on. I will have to look for comics.

Have a friend's farewell tomorrow night at Jam Tree and then will go to church and a quiz on Sunday with Matt. We had a really fun quiz at Mustard Seed on Tuesday night. The quiz mistress picked questions according to decades from the 70's through to now. It was predicted that our age group would do better as the decades progressed and we did. The one question that baffled us was what did the film The Little Mermaid mark the beginning of in Disney history. I thought possibly the Disney princesses but Snow White and Cinderella pre-date that. Turns out it is the beginning of what is known as the "Disney Renaissance" after the "Disney Dark Ages" after Walt Disney died (the films prior were not very successful). Who knew?!

Not a bad start to the week

Have just finished packing up my current house sit (car is a little chocker full). Now just waiting for the person returning to come back. Taught my Chinese student this morning and gave him a photographic story of my trip to Hippo Pools which he enjoyed. We also played a board game and he made his own dice. I then started with a student I used to teach before her family relocated to the UK. She's back for the school holidays and staying with her gran. I was quite chuffed they sought me out to give her lessons again. I had a delightful lesson sitting out in the garden with her by a water feature and it is nice to reconnect with her again and pick up from where we left off. Made me realise that teaching one on one is what I really love and is when I am happiest. We read What the Ladybird Heard on Holiday by Julia Donaldson - can't get enough of her books. Suddenly getting so many requests for extra lessons - I can't take them on as want to keep my afternoons free for school work. Wish I had had this response when that was my main line of work.

My classroom this morning.

I need to start working now on school stuff for next term. I have to go in on Wednesday to do an assessment of a new student. Will use it to also sort out my classroom a bit and get going. I hope to start doing my term plan this afternoon, we'll see.

It is beautifully summery and is putting me on a bit of an upbeat high again. Can start putting my winter things away, although we might get a final cold snap. Going to miss my current house sitting spot and the ridgebacks. They are looking a bit worried with my packing up. Trying to tell them their mum is returning from France any time now.

Hippo Pools, fluorescent scorpions and spring

Well after a not so great week in the history of Zimbabwe I headed out of town to Hippo Pools, near Shamva for a camping weekend away with friends on Friday. It was a great reminder of why we still live in Zimbabwe and of the good things. I taught my Chinese student on Friday morning and then we headed off on Friday afternoon. When we got out of the car at Umfurudzi National Park a voice called out, "Hello Katy" from the car in front of us. Turned out to be a family I know from Amanzi quizzes. Bumped into a girl I was at school with this morning just before we left too - you still bump into people you know out of town.

The first night was a little uncomfortable camping as the air mattress deflated and I woke up first thing frozen but it was bearable. Some adjustments the following night made for a much better night's sleep. My friend visiting from Germany did an amazing job catering and we went for walks along the river. Last night we went in search of scorpions with a UV light and found two tiny ones. We also took in the breathtaking night sky, with a stunningly beautiful Milky Way - the clearest I have ever seen it, with clouds of constellations arching across the sky. We sat by a small dam in the starlight and the stars were reflected in the water.

On the way home we managed to find a large baobab and the boys climbed through a hole into its centre (I get claustrophobic so wasn't keen). Spring is in the air. It was really rather warm this weekend and the bush was alive with colour with yellow, red and orange leaves - not the msasas but other trees.

Ready to start preparing for next term now and going back through my NILD stuff before the intensive week's residency at the end of the holidays. Have my Chinese student everyday and have just been contacted by another student that I used to teach who is back on holiday from the UK and wants some help. I am packing up my life where I have been house sitting for the last six weeks or so. I have so enjoyed this particular house sit and will miss the Rhodesian ridgebacks. Back to Milton Park from tomorrow and closer to my own doggies. Life continues despite the politics but things do a little dismal politically, I won't lie.