About Bo

Dog lover. Runner. Although very slowly. Keeping up with the stresses of running and life...

Relaxing in the Waterberg

Posted on January 4, 2013 by Bo

Last year was a year where “Keeping up with the Walkers” both in the road races as well as work & life proved to be a tough task. So getting away from it all was such sweet reward.

It’s the second year that we’ve started our December holidays by heading out to the Waterberg. It’s a week of doing absolutely nothing except for loads of eating, drinking and relaxing and is the best way to wash away some of the stresses of the year.

To be surrounded by the most beautiful scenery, visited by warthogs and buck in the afternoons and engulfed in a star-filled sky each night, the Waterberg is a magnificent escape. I left my phone in the bedroom and soaked up as much sun and quiet time as I could.

Pity it flies by so quickly…

Dear Matriculant, there’s something I need to tell you.

Posted on January 2, 2013 by Bo

I can remember the day I received my Matric results like it was yesterday. I was standing outside the gates of the school staring at the words on the piece of paper. I had passed Matric but with conditional exemption to University. I had failed Maths. I had failed it so badly that even though they had pushed me down to lower grade, I had still failed. If I wanted to do any degree at University, I would need to re-do Maths.

I was 17 years old when I matriculated. How the hell anyone at that age is supposed to know what they wanted to do for the rest of their lives is beyond me!

My parents did not have enough money to send me to University. My dad handed me a cheque for R2000 and wished me well. Whatever I had planned to do from that day on was solely in my hands.

The pressure to do something weighed heavily on me and so, I took the R2000, registered at Technikon SA for the first 5 subjects of the Library Science National Diploma. I figured that I loved reading and I loved books so why not study something that I love. I also started working at the Public Library in Bedfordview. Studying through correspondence was tough but as long as I passed, I got reimbursed for the money I had spent which paid for the next year’s subjects. It took me a full 6 years to finally obtain my BTech Degree in Library Science. By this stage I had also managed to get a job at Anglo American Corporation and a couple of years later, I moved to Standard Bank.

With my library and information background, I have managed to use that skill to not only do information centre work, but competitive intelligence, environmental analysis, strategic analysis and media. You see, it’s not the degree that mattered; it was the skill that I had picked up along the way. I was like a sponge and ensured that whatever I did, I was brilliant at it.

But more than that, the people I met and the mentors I chose right from day one made all the difference to my success. Added to all that has been my attitude and will to succeed. Today I regard myself as a highly successful career woman with a stunning CV with my name on it.

I feel really bad for kids when I see how low their marks are. I was there. I was not a stupid child. In fact, I was getting B’s and C’s for all my other subjects. But Maths was just not my thing.

The lesson is that it’s not the end of the world if you have bad marks. It’s what you choose to do now that will determine your future. And believe me, there is a future. Don’t get caught up in what other people think. Find a skill. Do something you enjoy doing. Even if it’s as simple as reading books. The world out there is nothing like school. It’s better!

I wish you all the best!

18th January 2022 * UPDATE*

I left my job in corporate in November 2018 & started my own business called Conversation Station. I am now a proud & successful business owner. Never stop moving forward. It feels like my life has only just begun! XXX

Forgetting 2012 (well, most of it anyhow…)

Posted on December 30, 2012 by Bo

I’m very happy to be saying goodbye to 2012. If I look back, it wasn’t a pleasant year for me. Yes, there were happy moments scattered through the months here and there, but generally, it was a year I’d much rather leave behind. I’m moving on from…

A heart breaking decision to drop out of running my 4th Two Oceans half marathon. I might have been physically ready, but the mental war that rages in my head and self-doubt overwhelmed me and I caved.
My health plagued me more than ever. Three major enteropathic arthritis flare-ups this year meant days off work because I was left immobilized and unable to even dress myself.
It was a year I learnt the hard lesson that someone’s personal baggage and hurt can spill over into work and damage my reputation. You become known by the company you keep.
It was a year where I struggled to lose weight. Eating salads and avoiding the Friday take-out gang at work was not enough. The scale would not drop affecting my moods most days and leaving me feeling pretty miserable.
It was a year I started stressing about getting old. A 20 year school reunion, monthly visits to the hairdresser to cover my greys and my folks moving into a retirement village sounded like alarm bells going off.
It was a year where being Proudly South African was incredibly tough to be. To stand tall among family and friends who have legitimate reasons to hate this country brought me down too many times and I kept quiet instead of defending what I loved and all that is good about this place.
Getting caught up and swept away in the politics swirling around me in the office was a challenge. I knew the issues were not about me or even my colleagues, but the leadership made it very hard to ignore.

I’m unsure how I feel about next year. I suspect another difficult year is ahead so I’d much rather adopt the “wait and see” approach than be all über positive now. I’m crossing my fingers that it’s an exciting year. I expect many challenges and will seek out as many opportunities as I can.

New beginnings

While writing this post, I did come across a tweet from @LeeAnnMayimele. She tweeted, “Today I am grateful for every challenge 2012 threw at me.” I like her attitude and I guess in a way, I agree with her.

Christmas in our home #pics

Posted on December 13, 2012 by Bo

With just 12 more sleeps until Christmas, isn’t the build-up to the day just great! I hope everyone who reads this is enjoying it as much as I am! I’ve really gotten in the mood this year with a couple of trimmings scattered around the house.

(ps: if you happen to receive my blog via email, please go online to check out my site. You might catch a glimpse of snow falling…) Coffee table