A Bunch of Mish-takes: February 2013

Thursday 28 February 2013

It's a Mish-take!

Hello my friends! I am finally breaking the silence! It has been a while since I have done a post. It’s largely, due to too much work and too little time. I have missed blogging!

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A Mish-take

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In a nutshell, work has been keeping me so busy, that I could not blog. A couple of days ago I left the office, something too nine the evening, to join my other half and friend in Long Street for a quick pizza... I know, not very healthy... Anyway, I reached an exaggerated low point when I stretched out my leg out in front of me as I was walking up an incline and then I heard it... The violent rip of my favourite and only pair of jeggings. It really tore me up inside. What little strength I had left to keep my head up, just evaporated and all that was left to be seen was the gaping whole exposing my pale inner thigh! It was a perfect end to a series of unfortunate events.

The highlights of the time that I was MIA:

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A friend of mine passed away suddenly, after a very short sickbed. It reminded me just how fragile life is and how age isn’t a prerequisite for an end to a life. My friend, Louis was a special man and I will always cherish the memories that I have of him.

I had a hellish promotion to do at work that I basically ended up managing… At least it is over now. Thank goodness!

A potentially exciting break lay waiting in the near future. At this point I can’t tell you anything because there isn’t much to say.

I have been too busy and lazy to stick to any healthy habits or exercise!

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I discovered New Girl! I am insanely crazy about this show and Schmidt is my absolute favourite character! You have to watch it. Seriously, a little comedy... and some P-mint tea... You will love it!

Wednesday 20 February 2013

BodyLove: Increase your exercise with these 3 activities!

Why is it so difficult to stay committed to an exercise routine?
I asked myself this question every time I chicken out of a much needed session. I mean it is the best thing you can do for your body and not to mention that it boosts your well being but the lazy or busy factor seems to get the best of me at times.

I had to devise a plan to sneak a fitness session in without thinking of it as the dreaded Ex-words! Extremely sweaty! Extra reps! Exhaustion! Exercise! Oi! Wie het lus daarvoor na ‘n lang dag se werk? The thought of running, doing push-ups, sit-ups and all that jazz did not appeal to my uninspired senses.

So I thought about it and figured that I need to trick myself into increasing physical activity in my life.
Again, just like the concept of BodyLove, there is nothing new about this fitness tip or trickery as I call it. Exercising should be fun. At the end of last month a few friends and I went on a hike... Fresh air, scenic views, fun, chats, laughter and guess what… I didn’t even notice that I was exercising for two hours! How wonderful?! It was a fantastic activity! So another Ex-word dawned on me…Excitement!

I realised that when my vigour for working out takes a dips, I need company to spark enthusiasm again or simply something unusual and or/fun. So after some research on alternative ways to keep active, these 3 activities took centre stage in the production called: Getting Your Active On, The Sneaky Way. I hope you find these activities as fun and effective.

Here are 3 activities to bust boring routines!

Instead of Step Aerobics try Hula Hooping because it burns between 420–600 calories. This is so much fun because this exercise burns roughly the same amount of calories as bootcamp or aerobics. It helps improve flexibility and is killer for toning your arms, abs, back, and legs. Hula hoops are so cheap, you really need to get into the hip swing of things! :)

Instead of stationery bicycle at the gym, try casual cycling for an hour with friends or as in my case… I will be joining the Midnight Mass in Cape Town! Ubuntu Bikes will be giving me this stylish bike to ride. I will do a post on these beauties! Who said that you can't burn calories without any style? Oh, you will burn about 236-354 calories.

Instead of walking for fitness, try hiking with friends for an hour with a back pack. It will burn roughly 500 calories and it the weight of the backpack equals weight trainging which is great for your bones and muscles. 

Monday 18 February 2013

BodyLove: Black Friday

As a woman, I find myself on the road and alone at home on occasion. In my ignorance it never bothered me very much. I have always been aware of the fact that rape is a crime that happens more than it should. As you know… It never really hits home until it happens to you. It didn't happen to me but ever since KFM’s campaign to raise awareness about the staggering rate at which rape occurs… I have been feeling scared for myself, women and children and men.

On Friday people of South Africa united against this heinous crime and turned the day black. We wore black to signify that we have had enough of violence and in particular, this kind of violence.

A rape occurs every four minutes in South Africa. An average song is about 4 minutes long. This means that after every song that plays on your radio, another person falls victim to rape. The ping or beep that interrupted Primedia radio stations such as KFM, signified rape occurrence. A simple sound that struck a note of fear and horror in our hearts.

Let’s stand together and keep spreading awareness about this very serious crime. Nobody alive deserves to be raped.

We should be safe in our beautiful land! We should not live in fear and wonder if we will be next to fall prey to this crime. It is hateful, hurtful. It is a power crime. To the victims out there, you are more than a victims. You are survivors. You are a conquerors. Stop a rape from happening by reporting it to the authorities. Let’s take back the power and report these crimes.

Thank you to the readers of my blog for sending your pictures to show your support. Let this campaign live beyond the Friday!

Stop Rape Now!

BodyLove

PriceCheck

Blogger: Ashleigh Davids Ashleigh Davids blog

Jamie Leewendaal, Media24

Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
Universiteit Stellenbosch University

Sapphire Press team

Amalia Abrahams, Orbit

Alicia Pietersen, NB Publishers

Raylene Harvey, Hapicup blog

Geraldine Young, NB Publishers & TarrynJo from Titbits from TarrynJo

Hiphop artist, Chase Lutron

Friday 8 February 2013

Friday Food Fest is back

This week has been the most productive and stressful. To me Friday only announces itself with a seafood dish! I have to tell you... I am a seafood addict and will give up a chop or chicken on any day of the week for a something fishy!

So this led to my choice of recipe to post this week! I have always wanted to go to Zanzibar and in time, I will get there but until then I am living vicariously through the experiences of Lungile. One of the youngest competitors in the first season of MasterChef South Africa. Lungile now works for Drum Magazine as Junior Food Editor!

On this note, I say... Have a peaceful weekend!

Enjoy!

Squid in Zanzibar spices

Serves 8

Recipe taken out of MasterChef Cookbook

Ingredients

14–16 baby squid

1 ml sea salt

pinch of ground pepper

30 ml olive oil

10 ml turmeric

10 ml ground coriander

10 ml ground cumin

juice of 3–4 limes

3–5 cm piece fresh ginger,

peeled and grated

40 ml sunflower oil

Method

1 Clean the squid by removing the beak and the ink sack and cartilage. Rinse under running water. Pull off the tentacles and the head. Remove the side wings and outer skin. Rinse the squid again.

2 Slice open the squid on the one side and flatten them out. Slice into long strips as wide as you desire.

3 Mix all the remaining ingredients, except the oil, in a bowl and allow the squid to marinate in this mixture for atleast 30 minutes.

4 Heat a little of the oil in a large frying pan over high heat and stir-fry the squid in batches. Add more oil as needed. Do not overcook the squid as it will become rubbery!

5 Serve with crunchy coleslaw.

Serves 10–12

Crunchy Coleslaw

1 head cabbage, shredded

4 small heads red

cabbage, shredded

4–6 carrots, peeled andgrated

125–250 ml mayonnaise

1 ml salt

1 ml pepper

juice of 1–2 limes

Method

1 Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate until cold.

2 Serve with the squid.

Thursday 7 February 2013

Mishtery gets soppy!

The month of love has special meaning to the Mishtery. It is a time of reflection and a moment to stop and have a look back on the path behind her... This winding road lay scattered with beautiful memories and some growing pains as relationships have…Today is the 3^rd year I celebrate love with my partner.

I Lovelee. My hart se punt!

We are still love birds! :)

Mishtery celebrates Love with a giveaway!

I am so excited about this giveaway! Last year, my love and I had the best experience at Cape Town's most beautiful gem located at the V&A Waterfront, the Cape Town Diamond Museum!

To share the love during this month, the Mishtery is running a unique date for two!

This prize is sponsored by Cape Town Diamond Museum, Chocolates by Tomes and Sapphire Press!

To enter all you have to do is Like and Share the following pages:

1. Cape Town Diamond Museum

2. Chocolates by Tomes

3. Answer the following question on A Bunch of Mish-takes Facebook page :
Where is the Cape Town Diamond Museum and Chocolates by Tomes located?

Please note: This competition is exclusively Cape Town based!