About the hand holding the pen

I am a 65 year old retired bank official and grandmother of one, living a life of complete and utter stress with a demanding husband and a wonderful daughter who keeps numerous weird and wonderful pets.

I grew up in the arid, barren region of Namaqualand, which is well-known for its springtime flowers after a “good” rainy winter season.

We recently moved to a beautiful and quiet coastal town in Kwazulu Natal.

My blogs, which seem to write themselves without much help from me, is all about our daily lives, past and present:

Genis’s Fat Dog Diary is an English blog which I started writing from the viewpoint of The Dog Himself, to motivate my family (and especially my husband, the determined dog-spoiler) to ensure that Genis keeps to his rigorous diet which the vet prescribed.

Genis was named after a character in the Afrikaans TV series Koöperasiestories, very popular during the 1980s  (circa 1983-1987), due to his very bushy eyebrows. The little rascal, a rescued puppy adopted 9 years ago, loves to eat and will swallow anything and everything if he is not watched all the time. As a result of this lifestyle, he became grossly overweight and his health started to deteriorate. The blog documents his painstaking progress, and the trials and tribulations of a strict diet, helping him to regain his health. Genis is now a well-known dog with his own Twitter and Facebook accounts and, of course, this blog.

‘n Geseënde leeftyd (A Blessed Life) is written in Afrikaans and is a reverie about living and dealing with an aged parent. In this blog I recall memories of the person that my mother used to be and our family life then, as opposed to the the 96 year old, withered little woman who was slowly losing her memory when I started this blog. My mother has since passed away.

Dis Ekke (This Is Me), also written in Afrikaans, contains the rantings and ravings, and recalls the joys and blessings, of a 65 year old retiree – Me.