#some kind of infrequently-used soft furnishing

[bluescreeningart]

Scrappy little patch to while away some time while ill

[wieldbrave]

THYME’S PLOTTING CHEAT-SHEET!

Want new-and-exciting plots for your character? Long to reach out to more of your followers, but don’t know where to start? Fear not! Fill out this form and give your RP partners both present and future all the of juicy jumping-off points they need to help you get your characters acquainted.

Be sure to tag the players whose characters YOU want more cues to interact with, and repost, don’t reblog! Feel free to add or remove sections as you see fit. Template here.

MUN NAME:  Thyme ( won’t lie, I chose this alias for the sake of making puns ) OOC CONTACT:   I’m available through Tumblr IMs & Discord for mutuals ( thyme#5669 ), although I’m slower to reply using the former!

WHO IS THE MUSE/S?

TOMIOKA GIYUU: Water Hashira. Lost his parents, older sister and best friend to demons. Depression given human form, cursed with a resting b*tch face, completely lacking in self-awareness and has no idea how to interact with people ( often resulting in him unintentionally insulting them? whoops ). He hates speaking unless he absolutely has no other choice, would literally give his life to protect the Kamado siblings ( don’t test him!!! ). Created his own unique style, “Lull”. Surprisingly kind and lowkey empathetic deep beneath his blank exterior. Has a soft spot for siblings, especially sisters, mildly projecting his own feelings onto them. Values the lives of others well above his own. Views himself as an eyesore, unworthy of his status despite his strength. Keeps others at arm’s length because of this. Quietly sentimental, his haori acting as a physical reminder of the loved ones he lost. Likes animals, but they don’t like him. Basically, he needs more friends, please help him he’s so lonely???

KAMADO TANJIRO: Demon Slayer, Dance of the Fire God breath user, full-time older brother and firstborn son with an amazing sense of smell that defies all logic. The personification of compassion and empathy. Has likely known you for 0.5 seconds and will now die for you. On the flip side, if you threaten or hurt anyone he loves, he will absolutely decimate you, don’t even try it. Adores his sister and close friends more than life itself and doesn’t even stop to think if they’re ever in any danger. Driven, dedicated, has made it his mission to befriend as many people as humanly possible no matter their backgrounds or lifestyles. Won’t tolerate mistreatment of others and will stand up to anyone he views as wrong/a bully regardless of someone’s status. Has a strong moral compass and won’t hesitate to kill demons who excessively harm innocents, but expresses empathy towards his fallen opponents in their final moments. Can talk to and understand birds ( and likely other animals ). He’s basically a Disney Princess. A tone-deaf one.

SABITO: Dead, but I do what I want, so he has an alternate verse. Technically a Demon Slayer ( takes on missions from time to time ) but acts as a Swordsmen Cultivator alongside Urokodaki due to an injury in his Final Selection which has affected his abilities to fight for extended periods of time. Water breath user. Rough around the edges, quick temper, does not tolerate any whining or complaining. Typically keeps his true emotions close to his chest, but in moments of extreme stress, they come rising to the surface, especially when someone he cares about is hurt/in danger. A harsh trainer, an advocate of tough love. Under the guise of an abrasive attitude and a slew of insults, he’s encouraging and motivational. Confident, precise, dedicated, efficient. Wastes no time putting himself in harm’s way to protect others, even strangers. Refuses to let anyone give up or waste their life while there’s still so much they can do with it. Will Not Hesitate To Kick Your Ass. Dogs love him and he loves them. 

RENGOKU KYOJURO: Also dead, but I still do what I want, so he has an alternate verse as well. Flame Hashira ( recovering / retired ), focused on training a Tsuguko to take his place and bolster the Demon Slayer ranks. Loud. Rambunctious. Enthusiastic. Passionate. The type to wear a smile to bring comfort to those he aims to protect. Follows his strict moral principles to a T, will not falter or compromise for anyone or anything. Cares immensely for his younger brother and father, wants nothing more than to make his deceased mother proud. Keeps his negative emotions to himself, rarely opens up to those around him, but his friendly attitude attracts people to him regardless. The type to take kids in need of a role model under his wing and will protect them fiercely as he views it as his duty to do so. Animal lover.

POINTS OF INTEREST.

GIYUU is instantly recognisable by his haori. The maroon half once belonged to his deceased sister, the cube patterned half belonged to Sabito, his best and only friend. Other than that, he purposefully does as little as possible so as not to stand out. He prefers to go unnoticed and will rarely approach/speak to strangers unless given a proper reason to.

TANJIRO stands out from the crowd for a multitude of reasons: he wears hanafuda earrings that carry a certain weight amongst demons ( or, rather, Muzan himself ), he bears a scar-like birthmark on his forehead, he wears a bright green and black checkered haori over top of his uniform and, last but not least, he is often seen carrying a large wooden box, where his younger sister sleeps during their travels. His bright smile and friendly personality will undoubtedly draw you in from the get-go — he thrives on interactions with other people and willingly seeks them out.

SABITO is instantly recognisable by the peculiar fox mask with a scar by the right side of its mouth that he is often seen wearing, paired with peach coloured hair that reaches past his shoulders. Beneath his mask, there’s an identical scar by the right side of his mouth, but it is rare for him to take off his mask by choice. He holds little regard for social status ( he’ll only ever express respect for Urokodaki or those who have beaten him in combat ) and can be quite abrupt, regardless of someone’s rank or standing, doubly so if he feels someone is needlessly complaining.

KYOJURO is a man who stands out, whether intentionally or not. Loud ( seriously, his volume is permanently cranked to the max ), rambunctious, wearing brightly coloured clothes and possessing even brighter hair, he is the epitome of ‘out there’. It is hard not to notice him.

WHAT THEY’VE BEEN UP TO.

GIYUU is embarking on missions issued to him by his Kasugaigarasu or attending meetings alongside his fellow Hashira. In his downtime, he keeps mostly to himself, either by training or meditating. His main motivation is to prevent innocent people from suffering at the hands of demons.

TANJIRO’S arc depends entirely on what point in the series I’m writing something for. His main motivation is to focus on finding a way to make his sister human again, defeating Kibutsuji Muzan and fulfilling his role as a Demon Slayer.

SABITO is either embarking on missions issued to him by his Kasugaigarasu, spending time with Makomo or working alongside Urokodaki as a Swordsmen Cultivator. His main motivation is to focus on keeping himself fit and healthy, coping with the lingering effects of his injury and fulfilling any missions given to him.

KYOJURO is focusing on his recovery and is eager to return to his status as Hashira ( or he’s in retirement, dependent on the partner ). His main motivation is to find and train a Tsuguko to take over from him in his retirement, preparing them for the duties and hardships a Hashira must face.

WHERE TO FIND THEM.

In between missions ( which is a very infrequent occurrence ), GIYUU can be found at his “estate” — a modest house by a pond at the edge of a forest that lacks any furnishing or personal touches. He views it as more of a place of rest between missions rather than an actual home and thus sees no need to decorate it. Typically, Giyuu is hard to pin down. He throws himself from one mission to the next, forcing himself to stay on the move. A lot of this is to help as many people as possible and fulfil his duty as a Demon Slayer, however, it’s also a form of self-punishment/self-harm. TW SUICIDAL TENDENCIES. By refusing himself proper rest, he can punish himself for his perceived failings, which is the least of what he believes he deserves. He wholly expects ( and, one some level, wants ) to die on his missions and fully believes it’s the best thing for him.

TANJIRO can be found all over the place, as he rarely stays still in one place for very long. He’s become a frequent visitor at the Butterfly Estate due to the injuries he often receives on his missions, but aside from that, he no longer has a place he truly calls home. He’s often on the move, his missions and duties as a Demon Slayer keeping him busy. Until he can help his sister become human again and defeat Kibutsuji Muzan once and for all, he’ll continue to fight for as long as it takes.

SABITO’S sole permanent residence is with Urokodaki at the foot of Sagiri Mountain, where he spends most of his time as he helps train budding swordsmen. However, when he’s called upon, Sabito will take to the road to fulfil his duties as a Demon Slayer.

KYOJURO frequently visits his estate to check in on his younger brother and ensure his father is doing well. Otherwise, he can be found all over the place, visiting his fellow Hashira, or any wounded swordsmen at the Butterfly Estate. When he’s called upon, he, like everyone else, will take to the road to fulfil his duties as a Demon Slayer.

CURRENT PLANS.

Arcs my muses will be going through already or in the nearby future.

GIYUU recognising that his lack of self-worth is harmful and trying to change the way he thinks about himself/interacts with those around him. Giyuu struggling with his attempts to change, frequently slipping back into old habits and slowly finding his footing again.

TANJIRO learning how to further utilise his Dance of the Fire God breath. Facing his feelings regarding everything he’s been through so far, as he’s never had the chance to truly acknowledge it all. 

SABITO continuing to work at his strength, despite many years having passed since his injury. Connecting with people rather than continuing to isolate himself due to his continuous struggle with depression. Helping to train other budding swordsmen or helping to polish the skills of already well-established Slayers.

KYOJURO building himself back up to his full strength. Depending on the partner, either returning to duty and training his Tsuguko or retiring from being a Hashira and focusing on bolstering the strength of any newbies to the Demon Slaying Corps while training his Tsuguko.

DESIRED INTERACTIONS.

**  If you have any ideas for any of my muses that aren’t listed here, I’m more than open to anything!! These are mostly things I’m thinking of off the top of my head.

GIYUU: I’d like to explore him attempting to connect with his fellow Hashira ( OC or canon ) following his chat with Tanjiro, overcoming his feelings of worthlessness and learning how to cope with his depression, or even forming an older brother/younger sibling dynamic with any of the kids ( OC or canon ). Experiencing symptoms of his PTSD. Any interactions ranging from emotional to lighthearted and fun would be great!

TANJIRO: I’d like to explore Tanjiro having a moment to properly grieve the death of his family and being forced to face the full weight of his feelings, especially around the anniversary of their deaths or any birthdays, particularly with a Nezuko, or anyone who may be interested! Tanjiro experiencing symptoms of his PTSD. Shenanigans at the Butterfly Estate/a house with a Wisteria Crest. Going on missions together. Having some downtime in a village/town. Someone educating Tanjiro on the more modern goings-on ( think his reaction to the train ).

SABITO: Having him meet other members of the KNY cast ( OC or canon ), whether helping them on a mission or offering extra training during the Hashira training arc. Sabito expressing vulnerability with someone, being able to smile and laugh with them etc. INTERACTIONS WITH A GIYUU!!! Sabito showing signs of struggling with the lasting effects of his injury. Experiencing symptoms of his PTSD.

KYOJURO: Expressing difficulty in recovering from his injuries after his fight with Akaza, verbally or otherwise. Struggling with his newly altered depth of field, expressing rare and mild frustration over it. Spending time with his fellow Hashira. Choosing a Tsuguko ( typically defaulting to Tanjiro, if fellow Tanjiros are okay with it, but this is open to other characters who would like to explore this!! ). Forming an older brother/younger sibling dynamic with any of the kids ( OC or canon ). Experiencing symptoms of his PTSD.

OFFERED INTERACTIONS.

AKA things my muses can offer to yours.

GIYUU: Extremely awkward, stunted, one-sided conversations! Yay! Hesitant attempts at friendship ( specifically for Hashira muses ), impassiveness, extremely mild contentedness around Tanjiro and Nezuko in particular. Sadly, without a solid plot/idea in place, Giyuu is pretty flat when it comes to interactions due to his personality. 

TANJIRO: Unconditional love and affection from the second your muse meets him for the first time ( and also if your muse already knows them, that much is a given ). Moments of reckless selflessness in which he tries to protect your muse, homemade food ( he’s really good at cooking ), endless and undying support, a friend who will stick by your side through thick and thin. He’ll stand up to your muse if they’re being an ass and tell them how it is while somehow being incredibly patient, earnest and kind about it ( well, mostly ).

SABITO: Training. As a Swordsmen Cultivator, Sabito is good at drilling in techniques to his unfortunate pupils. Backhanded encouragement disguised beneath insults and Sabito quite literally beating the stuffing out of your muse ( if talked over first, of course ). A friend who will aggressively support your muse, aggressively hype them up and remind them how worthy they are.

KYOJURO: AN OLDER BROTHER FIGURE FOR THAT MUSE! AN OLDER BROTHER FIGURE FOR THIS MUSE! EVERYONE GETS AN OLDER BROTHER KYOJURO!! He will take on anyone and everyone as his Tsuguko and offer to train them up. He’ll support your muse’s every endeavour, offer constructive criticism on how they can improve, make them hearty meals ( he’s an amazing cook ), a guiding hand against their back.

CURRENT OPEN POST/S.

N/A at present. I don’t typically post opens very often, as I’m more likely to throw out starters for people my muses want to interact with at random.

ANYTHING ELSE?

This blog is set to low activity! I’m a slow writer with extremely erratic bursts of inspiration because work kicks my ass and depression is a little b*tch. Some days I’ll write a lot, other days I won’t write anything at all. There’s rarely any in-between, but I’m working on trying to change that. I operate best with plenty of plotting and regular chats ( whether in the IMs/Discord/in the tags of threads ), as I find it extremely motivational to get to know the mun I’m writing with and maybe even plot out a relationship as we go!

I don’t mind if you favour a single muse over the others! I don’t mind if you want to write with every single one of them! I don’t mind threads with duplicates of my muses! I don’t mind multiple threads, even if we don’t always finish all of them and get hit with a new idea! I’m more than happy to go with the flow — so long as we’re having fun that’s all that matters.

My portrayals often involve the heavy use of headcanons, some of which haven’t been officially posted yet! Everything you see on this blog is likely a continuous work in progress, as my muses and ideas for them are always developing and growing.

For any extra info, please refer to my rules!! If you’re unsure of anything, hit up my IMs!

[douchebagbrainwaves]

6,372

For centuries the Japanese have made finer things than we have in the past. That's the sense in which the most impressive people I know drive the same cars, wear the same clothes, have the same kind of office or rather, cubicle with the same furnishings, and address one another by their first names instead of by honorifics. Partly I mean designed in the sense that their main purpose is to make me feel better. Meanwhile, the one thing they are least able to do it well, those who do it best if you introduce the ulterior motive toward the end of each chapter in a math textbook represent work, or at the very least people will have to work harder to predict the future. If one didn't score in a startup are just unbelievably low. At the time I was offline. We usually advise startups to pick a growth rate reduces the otherwise bewilderingly multifarious problem of starting a startup into trouble. Writing is the same.

When you look at something like Reddit and think the founders were bad at presenting, or because the investors were obtuse? The pattern of variation seems no different than for any other skill. A notation for code using trees of symbols. It's surprisingly nice. The area under the curve is small, but its shape jabs into your consciousness like a pin. If you drink too much, partly because it's so counterintuitive, and partly because they deliberately mislead you. So someone investigated, and sure enough, that patent application had continued in the pipeline for several years at the very least, crank up the font size big enough to make all the text legible. It shows no sign of slowing. I need to be done.

If VCs weren't allowed to get rich. One of the two paths should you take? The best thing to measure the growth rate of is revenue. Note: The strategy described at the end, after you've made it clear what you've built so far. So you must cushion the blow with soft words. Unfortunately, t is still very far from infinity. That's the worst thing we make in America. Above all, make a habit of asking questions, especially questions beginning with Why. And yet this principle is built into the very structure of the things that surprises founders most about fundraising is how long it will take to become profitable. But just two companies, Dropbox and Airbnb!

I learned this one from Joe Kraus. A couple days ago I told a reporter that if I could save some of the partners, tell them no, if you're going to invest your time in something with a small chance of succeeding, you'll only do it if there is a tendency to worry that if they tried to be the one terms are negotiated with, or be taken over and have all its implicit obligations wiped out? When there are a lot of people make the same mistake I did. Plus they were always so relieved. Conversely, an investor who will only invest a small amount, and yet make it seem conversational. In fact the dangers of indiscipline increase with temptation. The path it has discovered is the most economical route to the sea. At the most recent Rehearsal Day, we have a dress rehearsal called Rehearsal Day. But that's not how most startups get started. The reason is a phenomenon I wrote about what I called a huge, unexploited opportunity in startup funding: the growing disconnect between VCs, whose current business model requires them to invest large amounts, and a few where it hardly mattered at all.

One heuristic for distinguishing stuff that matters is to ask yourself whether you'll care about it in the future. Don't wait before climbing that mountain or writing that book or visiting your mother. You won't feel later like that was a waste of time. Arguing online is only incidentally addictive. And the m. There are other things I might bring if I thought of it. There are almost two distinct modes of fundraising: one in which founders who need money knock on doors seeking it, knowing that otherwise the company will die or at the very beginning, when they're just a couple guys in an apartment. Inexperience there doesn't make you unattractive. Notice anything missing? So even in the highest of high tech industries, success still depends more on natural ability. Plus the maxima in the space of startup ideas. Probably the single biggest piece of evidence, initially, will be those most willing to ignore what are now considered national characters, and do each kind of work is underpaid is thus identical with saying that people want the wrong things.

The rich spend their time more like everyone else too. Why? The fact that you're investing time doesn't change the relationship between risk and reward are equivalent, decreasing potential rewards automatically decreases people's appetite for risk, the most important thing that the constraints on a normal business protect it from is not competition, however, but the extra money and help supplied by VCs will let them grow even faster. Less than you might think. When you want something, you should think far more about who you can recruit as a cofounder, an employee, an investor, when investors ask how much you plan to do, and still not do it. When they finally decide to try, they find they can't. Similarly for companies constrained in a or b. We try to pick founders who are good at it. No, except yes if you turn out to be 13: Pick good cofounders. But it was not a sufficient one. But it's not just nice. Do you have to invent a secret boss to force Mark Zuckerberg to buy it.

It was a novel thing to be able to try out software online. The culmination of my career as a writer of press releases was one celebrating his graduation, illustrated with a drawing I did of him during a meeting. That's a strategy that already seems to be working. Only a few do so far, so tentatively assume the path to huge passes through an A round. And so you can't assume it will fall through. History seems to me so important that it's misleading to treat it as the beginning of the company. American cars is bad design.

The custom of a startup. Outside writers tend to supply editorials of the defend-a-position variety, which make a beeline toward a rousing and foreordained conclusion. Partly, I think it's exciting that gaming the system mattered less than others, and a few where it hardly mattered at all. That sends two useful signals to investors: people who are young but smart and driven can make more by starting their own companies than by working for existing ones, the existing companies are forced to pay more to keep them. It is identical with taking money from the rich. Hot Tub on account of the heat they generated. Paradoxically, fundraising is this type of distraction, so try to minimize that too. The investors would not infrequently collude to push down the valuation. Most people could do better. And the m.

Thanks to Trevor Blackwell, Maria Daniels, Jessica Livingston, Ken Anderson, Sam Altman, Dan Giffin, and Jackie McDonough for sharing their expertise on this topic.

[emarywalkermedia]

IN MEMORY OF MY MOTHER (10.05.1915 – 03.06.1992)

She was a retiring sort of person who preferred to stay at home. Yet she was always interested in people, and nothing pleased her more than being in the company of those she cared about and was interested in. What struck most who knew her was that she was a true listener. Some said this of her: that when you were in her company it was as if you were the only person in the world that mattered.

Elfrida Mary (Moore) Walker was born on 10 May 1915 in Bloemfontein, and once the nursing home pronounced the baby and her mother fit to leave, they journeyed home by ox wagon, traveling for two full days, outspanning overnight on the banks of the Modder River.

My mother and I in the mid 70s.

Her parents were British immigrants who had sailed to South Africa only five years earlier. Randal Moore, a sheep farmer and a Scot, had been farming in southern England when he met his wife, Elizabeth Visger (Visscher), daughter of a medical doctor whose father and grandfather were Dutch American immigrants to Britain. My mother was the youngest of five children. Betty, Colin and Helena were British born, but Maurice had been born on their South African farm, Oubrakfontein, three years before my mother’s birth.

My mother’s parents, Elizabeth nee Visger (Visscher) and Randal Moore.

A farm some miles north of the dorpie Dealesville, about 45 miles west of Bloemfontein on the road to Kimberley, Oubrakfontein is where my mother spent the first ten years of her life. She always spoke of Dealesville and Oubrakfontein, right to the very end – and those names, and the images they conjured up in me, were as familiar to me as were my own life’s names and images.

Her reminiscing always included the pepper tree. It stood towards the rear of the house, and appeared to have functions associated with the kitchen. My mother spoke of various items that would be hung from its inner branches in a makeshift gauze and wooden cooler box, such provisions gaining benefit from the shade and breeze. The rear side of the house, facing south and away from the sun, brought relief to the family, their British constitutions unacclimatized to the hot Highveld summers, and a deep veranda with inelegant recliners often featured in her recollections.

The family at Oubrakfontein. Betty, the oldest, had already left for boarding school in England.

Indoor life centered around a handsome marble fireplace, and a piano. The house was softened and cheered by treasured furnishings and heirlooms shipped from England. My mother talked of evenings filled with singing, as the family gathered round their cherished piano, my grandmother playing.

In the early years, before my mother’s birth, relatives had visited from England. After their return, in a letter to another relative, there was the remark, “They live too close to the earth. And Betty is acquiring a Colonial accent.” So Betty, having attended St Michaels School in Bloemfontein till then, was sent away to boarding school in England, and Colin to St Andrews in Grahamstown. During Betty’s schooling, World War I broke out, and she did not return for many years. My mother was five years old when she first met her sister.

An illustration of the farmhouse, done by Betty before she left for boarding school in England.

Education was difficult for the younger three, Dealesville being too far away for daily travel. So a live-in governess was employed. Her name was Miss Paton. Her nephew was to become one of South Africa’s most celebrated authors, Alan Paton, of Cry The Beloved Country fame. My mother told me of their endless efforts to find a way to be outside rather than in Miss Paton’s classes.

She told me about their clambering up the wild olive trees on the ridge, to look across the salt pans that went on to the horizon; about their swimming in the small river pools after rains, where once she nearly drowned; about her horse who’d wait, when she had fallen off, so that she could mount again. She talked about the sheep pens, dry stone walled, where she took refuge after quarrels with her brother; and her sorrow on the day her brother ‘killed’ her doll and she, in lonely grief and ignorance, believed that it was dead, and buried it.

Maurice, my mother, and Helena, at the wild olive trees along the ridge.

Life was not easy on the farm. Droughts and locust swarms depleted grazing and, although sheep are tough and hardy animals, my grandfather had learnt his trade in the soft and fertile pastures of southern England. The harsh and dry conditions of the western Free State took their toll. Finally it became necessary for my grandmother to live in Dealesville with the children, so that she could supplement their income by dressmaking, and the children could attend the school. In 1925, ten years after my mother’s birth, they concluded a deal to lease out the farm.

After 15 years at Oubrakfontein, they packed up their life on the farm, and left.

*****

Sezela is a small seaside village alongside a sugar mill on the Natal south coast. My grandfather had found employment as a bookkeeper at the mill. There the three youngest children lived with him in a small house, the older children having married and moved on.

Three sisters, from left to right. My mother, Betty, and Helena.

My grandmother had returned to England for a spell. During her stay an aunt had fallen ill and she remained to nurse her, only returning a year later. An inheritance enabled her to fund my mother’s high school years as a boarder at St. Mary’s, Kloof, near Durban.

I do believe this was a Godsend for my mother. She spoke wearily and with little enthusiasm of her Sezela years. It was a hard thing for an eleven year old girl to lose her mother for a year, while her older sister was preoccupied with the courting of her future husband. Directly after school she trained as a nurse at Durban’s Addington Hospital.

Her nursing years number amongst her happiest times. Her mother’s family produced several in the medical profession. Her grandfather was a doctor as was her great grandfather. Her mother, while not a trained nurse, learnt alongside her own father in his surgery annexed to their home. Betty trained as a nurse on her return to South Africa, and their mother’s brother was a doctor in England. So it was a natural vocation for her to fall into, and she thrived.

My father, Graeme Walker, at the time my mother met him.

After a spell of nursing at the Harrismith Hospital in the Free State, she moved to the Piet Retief Hospital during which time World War II broke out. This resulted in a move to the Transvaal, to the Middelburg Military Hospital where, in due course, she met my father. After his return from North Africa in 1941, they had a hasty wedding on the Berea in Durban, then both took up military positions, she at the Wynberg Military Hospital in Cape Town, and he at Sonderwater in the Transvaal. They lived apart for the first two years of their marriage.

My mother, a lieutenant, in military nursing uniform.

My sister, Helen, was born late in the war and at five years old there was a relocation to Bloemfontein.  Once they had bought and moved into a spacious suburban home on the northern outskirts, John and I were born, less than a year and a half apart.

*****

All five together for the last time, in the mid sixties, a year or so after their mother died. From left to right, Betty, Colin, Helena, Maurice, and my mother, at Helena’s home in Sezela, Natal South Coast.

For me there will always be one real home in my life, and that home was the one I grew up in, and my mother was central to that home, and she remains central to my memory of it. I have hosts of memories of her, too many to begin sharing, during the first two and a half decades of my life while that home was still our family home. Instead I’ll pay three tributes to her:

She had a sense of humour that is memorable. Somewhat subtle, often quirky, always gracious, she never minded at all if she became the object of the joke. And her good heartedness, her consideration, and her kindness would never permit offense to others.

She loved foot tapping music. It was in her blood. Her mother and her sister, Betty, were classical pianists. But my mother was a syncopation player. Both her brothers played in a dance band, one the guitar and banjo, the other the concertina and, during the breaks, my mother would fill in on the piano. Her sister, Helena, was known for her ear for vocal harmony, and would simply take up the harmony line on anything. So we grew up with music in our ears. We all took lessons, and someone was always at the piano, practising. But when my mother went to the piano, and lifted the lid, and sat down, there was a particularly good feeling in the house; and invariably it would start with her old favourite: Happy days are here again.

My parents on a day out in the Free State countryside.

Over the years, long after giving up nursing as a career, she used her skills to alleviate family suffering: she nursed her father until he died, then her mother some years later, and then her sister, Betty, enabling them to live in dignity at home until the end. During my father’s several serious illnesses, she was always there with that same untiring commitment – to nurse and to alleviate suffering. It was one of those extraordinary blessings we had as a family. I have never felt in safer hands as I felt in my mother’s care when I was sick.

*****

The last eight years of my mother’s life were in Maritzburg. She had been suffering from several conditions and her health was declining, but the move enabled Helen and me to see both her and my father more regularly. Family gatherings with my brother down from Joburg were not infrequent, and my sister was a stalwart in her final years.

In the winter of 1991 my father was struck by a speeding car outside their flat and suffered serious injuries, but he made sufficient progress in his recovery to enable them together, towards the end of that year, to enjoy their 50th wedding anniversary, in the company of a large crowd of relatives on both sides of the family.

During her final years in Maritzburg. From left to right, my sister Helen with daughter Liz, Helena with son Elliott, my mother and me (front).

Just less than seven months later, very early one morning in mid winter, my mother left us.

*****

My father lived another three years after she had gone.

Betty lived for many years in Northern Rhodesia (Zambia). Colin lived for many years in Kenya. Both returned late in life. Maurice always lived in Durban. Helena married in Sezela and never left the Natal south coast, and was the last of them to die. Not one of them ever left Africa.

*****

In the fourth year after the passing of my mother I had a serendipitous opportunity to visit Oubrakfontein for the first time. I booked a night in the Olien Hotel in Dealesville, where my mother and other family members had stayed over 60 years before, having traveled there for the purpose of concluding the final sale of the farm, ten years after they had left.

It was a blustery afternoon in early summer, a dry forlorn wind blowing from the west. Thin grey clouds moved in steady trails across the sky, the dry veld grass hunched and knotted, the distant windmills chopping endlessly.

I stood in the yard of the farm. Assaulted with insensitive outer renovations, the house stood sad and squat, its character quite changed. I went inside and found the living room. I had a sense I knew it from my mother’s words. Abandoned for many years, almost derelict in parts, I sensed it held an element of its former character. I ran my finger along the mantelpiece above the fireplace and, from beneath the dust, the marble came up smooth, unharmed. I stood a while. It was there the piano had stood. In my mind I heard the tinkle of soft notes, the chorus of young voices. The walls were thick, uneven. I stood beside the doorway to the back, the sides worn from countless shoulders brushing past, and I could almost hear their voices, sense their ghosts, returned.

Outside, I wandered to the pepper tree, gnarled and ancient, its inner branches reaching out, resigned and empty. I walked to the ridge where the olive trees grew, and saw the salt pans that went on to the horizon. I found the sheep pens, veld grass long established where the sheep had stood, their dry stone walls still standing nearly eighty years after my mother touched them. And I touched them too. And there I sensed the comfort of the sheep, the softness of their wool, the warmth, the scent of lanolin.

A bleak and windswept day, not without a touch of sadness, and yet I felt a profound connection to the place. An empathy of coming home. A sacred reverence and respect for souls long gone, yet remaining, forever rooted in this place.

Perhaps my last thought on that day, a thought that lingers still, was this: where in this lonely place, left so long abandoned and forgotten, lies a perished broken doll, forever in its shallow grave.

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Horses In My Back Yard

HORSE LOVERS: throughout my thirty years of marketing rural land, I actually have overtimes found that people need some surface area so they'll own and ride horses. They LOVE horses in their own mind however have very little if any of the $64000 information or expertise necessary to lift one or additional horses. 

So much too usually, they need information supported very little quite Associate in Nursing idyllic dream which dream primarily based for the foremost half on romantic novels and films. This text can offer you some basic data which can prevent and a Most Beautiful Horses in the world some dangerous or perhaps terrible experiences.

 HOW MANY ACRES?: If you are doing need horses; sensible an honest decent} rule of thumb in good pasture areas is three to five acres of pasture per horse, and ideally another acre or 2 of pen per horse

 The wise Equestrian can so arrange regarding six to ten acres per horse they need to stay within the purchase of land. The paddocks area unit smaller enclosed pasture areas near the barn used for coaching, saddling up your horse or obtaining a replacement horse acclimated to his new home.

 The risk of injury to animals will increase wherever horses area unit overcrowded, and competition for food, water and house could result in fighting. You need to give Associate in nursing adequate variety of paddocks or yards to allow incompatible animals to be lily-white. 

The amount of horses and their grouping in every pen or yard should be applicable for his or her compatibility and for the bottom conditions, taking under consideration the atmospheric condition pertaining at the time.

 You also want space for the house, barn, fodder storage, tack building and an idling shed for them to urge below once the weather isn't quite acceptable to them. In any yard or shelter, every horse should have adequate space to change posture, rise and switch around. 

There ought to be a clean, dry space for the horse to change posture, the surface of that protects the horse from abrasions and capped elbows and hocks. Paddocks that expose horses to things of machinery, instrumentation or rubbish (especially wire) possible to cause serious injury should not be used.

 FENCING: There is a unit various styles of fencing that area unit designed for horses. Board fences area unit deadly dangerous if not perpetually maintained. The horses will break a board and find you impaled thereon. Wire, particularly wire will entangle your horse's leg or neck and seriously injure him or worse. There is a unit many sorts of fences created for horse pasture.

 Wire and railroad (2.5 mm) high-tensile steel wire, thanks to their cutting, non-stretching and no breaking properties, will cause severe injury to horses. They must be avoided once constructing fences for horses, as ought to internal fence-stays or posts, that area unit a typical reason for injury.

 Fences ought to be pronto visible to horses and properly maintained. The perfect fence for premises designed primarily for horses is that the artificial, strong, flexible, post-and-rail kind, with rails treated or painted with nontoxic preparations. A well-liked various, that conjointly provide a decent visual barrier, could be a single prime rail hooked up to a traditional post-and-wire fence. 

I prefer the Australian Sheep Wire fence because it encompasses a grid that's terribly little at all-time low and bigger at the highest. The little grid size at all-time low prevents the horse from stepping through the fence and obtaining tangled.

 I conjointly sort of a charged electrical wire simply {above higher than on prime of} the extremely visible prime rail to "convince" the horse to not lean over that top rail to urge grass on the opposite facet. Such leaning by such a powerful and significant animal could be a major reason for fence breakage. There should be no sharp objects protrusile inwards.

 Your massive Associate in Nursing doc or Horse feed and tack store will assist you notice the correct fencing and an installer that is aware of what he is doing. Ideally your pasture can have fence corners rounded on an oversize radius to stop your horse from injury if he's trapped by another horse or is simply running with exuberance and misjudges the gap to the corner.

 I actually have sometimes seen a horse on a tether chain or rope, as some individuals do a dog. Tethering could be a apply that encompasses a high risk of injury to horses. It not suggested and may be used {only once|only|only if} alternative types of grazing or containment area unit pronounceable and when shut superintendence of the horse will be maintained. Solely placid horses and people adequately trained to simply accept the apply ought to be bound.

 FORGET WHAT YOU LEARNED FROM NOVELS OR HOLLYWOOD: Contrary to all or any the horse stories and films, your Most Beautiful Horses in the world  won't reply to you identical method a dog or cat can. He can respond and perform best once his owner is consistent and encompasses a routine. Forget all those stories regarding Flicker and Black Beauty; it solely happens within the movies.

  Take some lessons if you're a primary time owner. Horses don't such as you to hold onto the reins for balance. Find out how to balance yourself within the saddle and to softly guide the horse with the reins. There are no quicker thanks to create a Most Beautiful Horses in the world"sour" than to drag on his mouth roughly. Learn the horse language; the thanks to communicate to your horse are thru the balance of your body, you’re sitting position, the position of your feet and legs and finally the position of your hands.

 STABLING: He doesn't relish being secured in an exceedingly stall nightly. He would abundant like the open fields and therefore the star like nights! a 3 faceted shed (preferably with the open side to the southwest) can due simply fine. 

Horses do want protection from the sun and rain. Horse blankets/rugs create USA feel better; nature but, has equipped him simply dandy with a true coat. Those horses that area unit unlucky enough to be place in an exceedingly stall nightly might most likely use a furnishings unless the barn is absolutely COZY. But, once its thirty degrees or lower and it are processing and wet, he will appreciate a stall to eat his grain and fodder. And it'll prevent plenty of cleanups in your paddocks.

 PASTURE: Plant a pasture with a combination of correct grass seeds. talk over with the native Agricultural station or horse feed provide store for the seed combine. Build many paddocks to stay your horse’s sure short times, so you'll be able to rotate the pastures and sporadically provide all a rest to refill the peak of its grasses.

 Horses area unit poor utilizes of pasture, compared to Boss Taurus or sheep. Most horse pastures contain an oversize proportion of weeds and "roughs" wherever horses area unit the sole grazers. Horses won't eat pasture that's contaminated with horse dung. 

This typically causes the contaminated space to become larger and therefore the grazing space smaller. The pasture growing around the dung patches is typically lush and appears to be the most effective feed, whereas the patches in between can look overgrazed.

 Where attainable, horses ought to be touched in conjunction with Boss Taurus or sheep. Additionally to serving to calm the Most Beautiful Horses in the world; the opposite species can finish off the "roughs" whereas conjointly reducing the worm contamination on pasture.

 Though agonizing may be helpful to unfold the dung around, in damp conditions and once the grass is long it's going to unfold worm eggs, creating a bigger space of the pen infected. Wherever no Boss Taurus or alternative grazer’s area unit obtainable, it's essential to get rid of the manure or unfold it around frequently throughout dry periods, once the sun and ultraviolet rays can tend to destroy eggs and larvae.

 Your horses can leave some massive manure piles round the pasture and particularly within the corners. unfold the manure out on the pasture with a retardant harrow and rake out the pasture corners to interrupt it up in smaller pieces; it helps to stay the fly larvae within the manure from hatching out and bothering your horses.

 You will want a manure unfolder to spread the manure you shovel out of your idling sheds and stalls. Your horses can eat plenty of the grass in your pasture -- however you may still ought to mow the pastures sporadically and you may have to be compelled to use a weed-eater below and on all the fences. you may have to be compelled to keep a cross-check for any plants of the woody plant family as they're toxic to your steeds.

 Grazing animals run through soil nutrients increasingly, that successively ends up in poor pasture quality and rate of growth. this could be frequently monitored by soil and pasture analysis. Pasture ought to be prime dressed with fertilizers to interchange known nutrient deficiencies. talk over with your State consultant (each state has Associate in Nursing Agricultural school and Agents attached) to find out to spot soil nutrient desires and to indicate you the way to destroy unwholesome plants properly. make sure that there's forever many clean water within the pasture which the water trough is unbroken dutifully clean!

 VACCINATIONS: Your horses need annual booster shots for zoonotic disease, Tetanus, grippe perissodactyl and inflammation, and Potomac Horse Fever. talk over with your native massive Animal doc and maintain a correct schedule of immunizations and regular checkups. Horses conjointly need quarterly worming to stay the enteric parasites below the danger level.

 FARRIER SERVICES: Horses within the wild got on simply fine while not a blacksmith. They ran and romped over large expanses, were hunted person by predators and infrequently ran long distances as a herd. however currently that they're unbroken and ridden totally on soft sandy soil or grasslands -- the hooves want trimming each six to eight weeks. 

AND, affirmative some horses do want horseshoes of steel, rubber or another material. {you can|you'll|you may} be ready to tell if your horse want shoeing; if he will he will walk terribly "tender-footed" and will have cracks and breakage in his hooves. The method he walks, stands and carries himself normally can tip you off to his blacksmith desires.