Body Talk

     

     You all know that I am affection starved.

     How many times is a human being supposed to be touched in a given day? I don't know. But I do know it's definitely way more than what I'm getting these days.

     And because you all know that I live an almost nun-like existence (Infer what you will, it's pretty much appropriate at this point), my old fall-backs just won't do; nor is that really what I'm after.


     With that said, I had one of thee most stressful weeks last week. I'll do my best to fill you in on the highs and the lows in the weeks to come. But the events of last week left my body in some crazy knots.

     Often I appear to be a calm and peaceful person, but anxiety is but a breath away many times. And after a week like the one I just had, I find that my body has held on to that anxiety in some extreme ways.

     This time, I knew it was time for an intervention:

     A full body massage.

     I was worked on for an hour and half. Praise!

     The end result: My body loves me. And I love my body.

     So until I begin my free late night cuddles with my future boo, I'll be booking my next appointment with Linda ASAP.

     Get on my level.

Wisdom's Knocking:

"Touch seems to be as essential as sunlight." 

- Diane Ackerman

The Line

      Rory

      Once again, the television series, "Doctor Who" has inspired me.

     "The Girl Who Waited" episode:

      Just let this dialogue simmer and blow your mind...

Future Amy: All those boys chasing me, but it was only ever Rory. Why was that? 

Amy: You know when sometimes you meet someone so beautiful and then you actually talk to them and five minutes later they're as dull as a brick? Then there's other people, when you meet them you think, "Not bad. They're okay." And then you get to know them and... and their face just sort of becomes them. Like their personality's written all over it. And they just turn into something so beautiful. 

Both: Rory's the most beautiful man I've ever met. 

Amy: Please. Do it for him. 

Future Amy: Ah, you. You're asking me to defy destiny, causality, the nexus of time itself, for a boy. 

Amy: You're Amy. He's Rory. And oh yes, I am.

Wisdom's Knocking:

The heartbeat of true beauty is love.

Put the Comedy On

     I woke up this morning so agitated. I wanted to kick rocks. Seriously. I was like a 2 year old this morning, kicking the covers off of my legs.

     What spurred my current agitation? Lots of things. I'll give you 3 guesses. One of those 3 is most likely correct.

     But nonetheless, today was a pretty productive day. I somehow stayed focused. And it did my heart good to find some comedy in my current life's predicament.

     And in addition to my own real life comedy, I truly discovered that laughter is the cure for agitation.

Wisdom's Knocking:

You're either gonna punch phantom bricks or laugh till it hurts to ease the pain.

Dowry Talk

     I got wayyyyy too distracted today surfing the web. In my aimless search, I came across this beautiful couple:

Christian Parkinson & Kutlwano Maliabe

Photo Credit: BBC News

     They were married in late 2010 in South Africa. And, I was fascinated with their particular courtship. It got me thinking...how much would my Dowry be?...I mean I'm educated, have no children, and have been considered beautiful on more than one occasion. According to Christian, these are premium traits when doing Dowry Talk. Good to know.

      Here are a few snippets from their story (As told by Christian):

     Here in South Africa they call it lobola or bohali. But the tradition of paying a dowry of cattle for your wife is practised across Africa.

     When I first met Kutlwano, two years ago, the tradition struck me as archaic and somehow demeaning to women.

     But I've seen how important it is here and how seriously it's taken. 

     When I realised that I'd finally met the woman I wanted to marry, I knew I had to do things the African way - and hopefully earn the respect of Kutlwano's family. 

     Bohali isn't a simple procedure. It is a long, elaborate process with many rules - each depending on the tribe and inclinations of the families involved. 

    My first duty was to write a letter to Kuts' father, informing him that my family intended to pay a visit. [...]

     As for Kutlwano, she was excited but also worried that her family would expect too high a price for her.

     She is educated, beautiful and doesn't have any children. All of which puts her at a premium. And people here tend to assume that white foreigners are rich. (I'm certainly not.) 

     Kutlwano spoke in private to her mother. Word came back that we shouldn't worry. The price would be fair, and not based on my nationality.

Back home in Leicester, mixed-race couples are not a big deal. Here in South Africa they are still very rare. 

People often stare at us if we hold hands in public, though mostly they're just intrigued. [...]

---

     Even in modern, urban South Africa, the cow remains the unit of negotiation.

     Then the bidding started.

     It's considered bad form in South Africa to talk openly about how much you paid for a wife. Let's just say it cost me a herd. And it was worth every cow. [...]

     But that's not the end of the wedding ceremony.

     Twelve weeks later, I'm back on the same street in Soweto. This time I'm wearing a traditional lampshade-shaped Sotho hat, an off-white linen suit and brown sandals. Not my usual style. 

     I'm dancing, clumsily, down the road - my entourage singing Sotho songs and laughing at my footwork. 

     The whole neighbourhood is out in force, singing and shouting encouragement.

     I reach Kutlwano's home, and push my way through the wall of people surrounding her, pulling her away from her family, and into mine, completing the ritual. 

Article Credit: BBC News: Getting Married the South African Way

Wisdom's Knocking:

Know your worth.

Crushing Celebrities

     I thought I had already blogged about this person. But after searching through all my blog topics, I couldn't find nare one on this beautiful human being. That's about to change.

     This actor stole my heart in the 2010 film, "The Social Network". For me it was like he came out of the blue, like a summer storm.

     I'm usually up to date on hidden talent, but he had escaped me somehow. And when I watched "The Social Network", I could sense his gravitas through the screen. His sincerity broke my heart. I could have sworn he was going to be Oscar nominated for Best Supporting Actor this year (To my shock and many others, he wasn't). Subsequently, after watching "The Social Network", I spent an entire night Googling every detail about this person's life I could find.

     And now, he's about to broaden his audience. He's the new face of the Spiderman film franchise, which will make it's debut in 2012. If this new reboot actually succeeds, it will be because of one face in particular.

     Who is the face? And who is my current celebrity crush? With respect to his rumored GF, Emma Stone...It's 28 year old, Andrew Garfield.

Wisdom's Knocking:

There's nothing quite as attractive as sincerity.