FTVOM October Issue by Feeling the Vibe Online Magazine

Feeling the Vibe online Magazine

What we have in stored 1. Stranger than Strange

2. Conflict at work

3. Sort yourself out

4. Become an early bird

5. Feature 1

HARDBASE ISLAND THE SKETCHY BROTHERS 6. Feature 2 ( international )

DJ POT 7. DIY

AUTHOR LETTER So we are back on popular demand.

I would like to thank our faithful supporters for all their comments and suggestions, we are looking to improve all aspects of the magazine , though it may take some time , we promise to ensure we write you , and respond on your suggestion for pieces. This issue we had the privilege to meet an INTERNATIONAL DJ from the USA, this enabled us to take the magazine abroad, and this is an absolute growing market for us . I hope you enjoy each part of the magazine , and please keep posting those comments , and ensure to write each months , your suggestions are wonderful when I reach a writer block.

ADVERTISE WITH US Liza du Bruyn Editor/CEO Ehlkproject@gmail.com www.feelingthevibe.weebly.com

Stranger than Strange

We all have that one friend or know that one person, whom wears so much make-up that you can scratch it of their face with a spoon. Maybe to keep it subtle and sweet, refer them to this story as just an interesting conversation, absolutely bizarre way to pass on.

We live in a world where the word strange has several meanings, you could either use it as a figure of speech, or to pin point an effect something has on you. We read in all the papers daily of strange accidents that occur , and sometimes we sit stunned at the fact that it actually happened , we may even ask ourselves a few days later if it was possible that something like that could happen, then you get people like me , we sit around over thinking the story told and start researching ...

The Goiânia accident was a radioactive contamination accident that occurred on 13 September, 1987, at Goiânia, Brazil. Considered one of the worst nuclear disasters in history, it took place after an old nuclear medicine source was scavenged from an abandoned hospital site in the city, which serves as capital of the central Brazilian state of Goiás. It was subsequently handled by many people, resulting in four deaths and the serious radioactive contamination of 249 other people. The dispersal of radiation was equivalent to a medium-size dirty bomb. About 130,000 people overwhelmed hospitals. Of those, 250 people, some with radioactive residue still on their skin, were found to be contaminated through the use of Geiger counters. Topsoil had to be removed from several sites, and several houses were demolished. All the objects from within those houses were removed and examined. Those that were found to be free of radioactivity were wrapped in plastic bags, while those that were contaminated were either decontaminated or disposed of as waste.

Mostly all of your strangest incidents can be found in history books as most of the stories has never occurred afterwards. This intrigues the mind with all sorts of questions. I decided to only apply a few stories in this piece that I personally found quiet strange.

Bouncy Castle Disaster In July, 2006, a bouncy castle, with 30 people inside it, broke free from its moorings and took off into the air in a freak gust of wind. It flew 50 feet into the air, turned over, and travelled 150 feet before landing on the ground. The castle seriously injured 13 people and killed two. An eye-witness described the event thus: ―I heard the snapping of tent pegs and a lot of screaming, then the inflatable flew up into the air and bodies were dropping from it. It was just carnage. There were people everywhere lying on the ground. Some had been on the inflatable when it took off; others were hit on the ground.‖ Will you hire another ―bouncy castle‖ or as we South African‘s know it as a ―jumping castle‖ for your child‘s next birthday? I would suggest keeping an eye on the weather forecast for the suited day.

Goiânia Accident

I would recon, an absolute disaster.

London Beer Flood On October 16, 1814, a vat of beer at London‘s Meux and Company Brewery cracked open. Beer gushed out, causing yet another vat to open. The result was 550,000 gallons (or 4.4 million pints) of beer pouring through the streets of London. The wave of beer destroyed two homes and crumbled the wall of the Tavistock Arms Pub, trapping teenaged employee Eleanor Cooper under the rubble. The brewery was located among the poor houses and tenements of the St Giles Rookery, where whole families lived in basement rooms that quickly filled with beer. Eight people drowned in the flood. The disaster was ruled to be an act of God.

Death of Lady Coventry Lady Coventry, or Maria Gunning, was a celebrated beauty of her time. She devoted herself to applying pasty white makeup and red rouge every day. This was the style of the time. Her husband hated this practice and tried to stop her from doing it, but her vanity prevailed. She probably should have listened to him. Lady Coventry died at the age of 27 from over use of leadbased makeup. 8

The Ball of Burning Men On January 28, 1393, King Charles VI of France hosted a ball to celebrate the marriage of Queen Isabeau‘s maid of honor. Charles had the brilliant idea to have himself and five of his friends disguise themselves as savages. The idea took a strange turn when the men decided to cover themselves with

pitch and feathers. Remember, pitch is very flammable and the primary sources of light indoors at the time were torches.The men entered the ball disguised this way and chained together. A horrible accident occurred when a man approached them with a torch so that he could get a better look. The men went up in flames immediately. The king was saved by Jeanne de Boulogne, who threw her petticoats over him to put out the blaze. One other of the men was able to throw himself into a vat of water. The other victims of this strange accident were not so lucky. Two burned alive that night at the ball. The other two died within days from their injuries.

have been prevented in almost all cases if the right repercussions were followed. The human mind has advances to such a stage where logical decisions‘ can be made and based on the amount of freak accidents that occur these days , I would say , the old were wiser than the new generation.

Recently in our Era I found the following reports on freak accidents , these will show you my argument on the decisions made by our era. Bad Night at the Ski Resort

Boston Molasses Disaster On January 15, 1919, a tank of molasses exploded in Boston‘s North End. The explosion caused a huge shockwave that was sufficient to knock houses off their foundations. Shards of metal from the tank were found up to 200 ft. away. Right after the explosion this accident took a very strange turn.The tank was filled with 2.3 million gallons of molasses. When the tank exploded, the molasses formed a 25-30 ft. wave, that went through the streets of Boston at speeds of around 35 mph. People caught in the wave were either smashed against large objects, or they drowned in the molasses. This strange accident caused 21 deaths and 150 injuries. Rumor has it that, on a hot day in the North End, the air still smells sweet.

Sidoarjo Mud Flow In May, 2006, while drilling for gas in East Java, Indonesia, company PT Lapindo Brantas caused a mud volcano to erupt. By September, 2006, the hot mudflow had inundated rice paddies and villages, resulting in the displacement of more than 11,000 people from eight villages. Twenty-five factories had to be abandoned, and fish and shrimp ponds were destroyed. Transportation and power transmission infrastructure has been damaged extensively in the area. The mud flow is still ongoing at a rate of 100,000 m3 per day, at time of writing. A study has found that the mud volcano is collapsing under its own weight, possibly beginning caldera formation. It is expected that the flow will continue for at least another 30 years.

Those were the strange accidents that happened In our history books , which is stated as true , but the full truth lies with those that was there. In our modern living repercussions are taken at all times but still this does not stop strange accidents from happening. In those days these types of accidents were named only by its strange nature , in our modern living today we call them freak accidents and look past the fact that most of these accidents was not necessarily a freak by nature but it could 9

Stratton, VT – In a tragic case of bad luck, two college students spending a night outdoors were killed in the collapse of their snow cave, apparently after a piece of heavy machinery dumped snow their shelter while they slept. Jake Shumway, 19, and Robert Carr, 18, freshmen on spring break from Plymouth State College in New Hampshire were found buried in the collapsed cave by friends early Saturday morning at the Stratton Mountain ski resort. Avid outdoorsmen, Carr and Shumway had gone to Stratton to watch the US Open Snowboarding competition. To save money, they dug a cave at the edge of their parking lot while the rest of their group spent the night in cars, campers, and a motel. Dan Davis, a county official, said the tragedy was caused when a bucket-loader dumped snow directly on top of the cave. Crews from the ski resort had been sanding the parking lot and moving snow around trying to clear the area for more parking spaces. This yells out , that those two boys never really thought the situasion through , in our days money is one of our biggest killers.

Bad Day at the Circus A circus act in Romania ended in tragedy on 23 January when fire-eater Vlad Cazacu, 43, belched in mid-performance and was blown to bits. Incredibly no one came to his rescue as stunned onlookers assumed this was part of an amazing illusion. Consequently this unfortunate man, who probably could have been saved, was allowed to just lie there and die."In the first part of the performance," said fellow circus performer Nicole Antosu, "Vlad held a flammable cocktail in his mouth to spit fire at a burning torch. Somehow, he must have swallowed some of the liquid, because when he burped he triggered an explosion." The Parrot (Accra, Ghana) - 2-8 June 1998 Now isn‘t that tragic. Bad Day at the Zoo Paderborn, Germany - Zookeeper Friedrich Riesfeldt fed his constipated elephant 22 doses of animal laxative and more than

a bushel of berries, figs and prunes. The plugged-up pachyderm finally let fly. Standing next to his elephant, Mr. Riesfeldt suffocated under 200 pounds of elephant manure. Investigators say Riesfeldt, 46, was attempting to give the ailing elephant an enema when the beast unloaded on him. ―The sheer force of the elephant‘s unexpected defecation knocked Mr. Riesfeldt to the ground, where he struck his head on a rock and lay unconscious as the elephant continued to evacuate his bowels on top of him,‖ said flabbergasted policedetective Erik Dern. With no one there to help him, he lay under all that dung for at least an hour before a watchman came along, and during that time he suffocated. It seems to be just one of those freak accidents. Bordeaux, France - A French zoo director was crushed to death on 1 November by a frightened hippopotamus. Jean Ducing was cycling around the park in Pessac, near Bordeaux, when Komir, a seven-year-old male hippo, charged through an electrified fence after an employee driving a tractor stopped to distribute food. M Ducing, aged in his 60s, had trained Komir. Posters for the zoo feature a picture of Komir with M Ducing's head in his mouth. Investigators concluded the animal had fled to Ducing for protection. AFP – 2 November; International Herald tribune - 3 November Bad Day on the Road Detroit, MI – A 41-year-old man got stuck and drowned in two feet of water after squeezing headfirst through an 18-inch-wide sewer grate to retrieve his car keys. Unable to remove his head, the man drowned when the continuous downfall eventually raised the water level in the sewer. Bad Day at the Junkyard A German couple in their 50s took their old car to a scrap yard. They parked, completed the paperwork, but got back in the car to shelter from a sudden squall of rain. "The driver of the crane was told to process their car", said a police investigator. "He did so without realizing that the couple were sitting inside again." The car was grabbed by the crane's steel claws and dropped in the crusher, which normally reduces cars to a small cube. It was stopped when the crane driver heard the woman's screams, but it was too late to save her husband. The crane driver was hospitalized for shock, but was expected to be charged with "negligent manslaughter". Daily Mail – 14 April 1997 Bad Day for Stripping Consenza, Italy - Stag party friends were curious when a stripper failed to jump out of a huge cake. Assuming she was no longer in there, they received a nasty surprise when they found her dead inside it. Gina Lalapola, 23, had suffocated after waiting for an hour inside the sealed cake. Daily Record - 30 August 1997 10

Bad Day at the Pyramid Cairo, Egypt - Adam Gotz, 34, from Baden Wurttemberg, Germany, threw himself to his death off the 613ft (187m) Cairo Tower on 28 July to demonstrate to his friend, Sarah Klimer, his Pharaonic belief that the dead return to life. Gotz, a student of Egyptology, the study of ancient Egyptian history, had told her he was a "spiritual psychiatrist" who believed the Giza pyramids provided spiritual energy to enable believers to transcend humanity. Ms Klimer has not reported any further contact to date. Reuters, Associated Press - 31 July 1998 Bad Day at the Ice Pond (Note: This story is false according to Snopes) Akeley, Minnesota – Jerry, a Labrador Retriever, died in a freak accident that also cost Harry Jenkins his new Ford truck. It seems Mr. Jenkins and his two buddies went ice fishing one day at nearby Ten Mile Lake which was completely iced over. In an attempt to create a large hole for fishing quickly, Mr. Jenkins first lit, then tossed a stick of illegally obtained dynamite across the ice. To his horror, his pet dog raced across the ice in an attempt to retrieve the dynamite. The dog fetched the dynamite despite screams from the men to come back, but then they realized they were in worse danger than they thought when the dog began to return to them with the stick in his mouth. Now the three men began to run in the opposite direction for their lives with the dog chasing them. The men narrowly escaped death in this way, but the explosion damaged the ice near the truck, which then plunged to the bottom of the lake. In addition to losing his dog, Mr. Jenkins was a double loser when the insurance company refused to pay on his claim for the sunken truck. Bad Day at the Magic Charm School Abidjan, Ivory Coast - Pascal Gbah,49, a colonel and electronics engineer in the Ivory Coast army, was fatally wounded by gunfire on 24 August as he tested a "magic" belt supposedly with powers to protect him from bullets. He died on the spot near the western town of Aboisso after being hit by a bullet fired from his own service pistol by a 20-year-old son of the magic belt's maker. Gbah's cousin Andre Gondo, who made the belt, insisted that its protective powers were real, provided one abstained from sex while wearing it. Gbah is survived by a wife and six children. An army spokesman said Gondo had been arrested, but that his son was on the run. Reuters - 26 August 1998. Bad Day at the Military Academy Dahonega, GA - According to police, ROTC cadet Jeffrey Hoffman, 23, fatally stabbed to death fellow cadet Nick Berrena, 20, in a tragic accident. In a case of very poor judgment, Berrena died when he dared his roommate to stab him in an attempt to prove that a knife could not penetrate the Kevlar flak vest that Berrena had just purchased from a mail-order

catalogue. According to the catalogue, the flak jacket guaranteed complete safety from bullets, knives, and hand grenade fragments. No mention whether it was manufactured in the Ivory Coast.

was allergic to bee venom, and died of suffocation en-route to the hospital.

Bad Day for Messages

Santa Clara, California - A 25-year-old man died on 7 September after being struck on the head by a woman‘s outstretched foot as she whizzed by on a roller coaster at Paramount's Great America Theme Park. He jumped over a fence into a resticted area to retrieve a hat blown off his wife's head while she was riding "Top Gun". A woman accidentally kicked the man when her car passed him and was treated for leg injuries. The man was initially identified as Hector Mendoza, 25; but it later appeared that he had taken over the identity of the real Hector Mendoza, who was alive in Mexico, and whose driver's license and social security number had apparently been stolen. The dead man's identity was a mystery. Associated Press - 7 September; San Francisco Chronicle - 12 September 1998.

Johannesburg, South Africa - A young Saudi man, camping with two friends on top of a mountain, was killed instantly when he took a call from a friend on his mobile phone during a storm and the phone was struck by lightning. Johannesburg Citizen – 4 September 1998 Bad Night at the Beach Darwin, Australia - Christopher Pane, 34, and an un-named woman of 25 drank 11 bottles of beer and then went on a sexual romp in the sea near Darwin in Australia. They had intercourse in the water when the woman decided to go underwater for a different activity. Pane became excited, put his hands on her head and kept her submerged. Micheal Carey, prosecuting at Payne's trial in the Northern Territories Supreme Court a year later, said Pane told police that when the woman stopped sucking, he wondered what was going on, so he let her up. She had not tried to get up and wasn't kicking or splashing. When he realized she was dead, he "freaked out", dressed and drove away. He was arrested two days later and during his year in prison had constant nightmares and was treated 12 times for outbreaks of boils. Pane's counsel pointed out that the woman might have passed out from drink: she had consumed six times the legal driving limit. Sydney Daily Telegraph - 3 October 1997 Bad Day Watching the TV Football Game St Louis, Missouri - James Shivers, 60, fired a pistol at his 26year-old son Tony for standing in front of the television during a Holiday Bowl football game between the University of Missouri and Colorado State. He missed (later he told police he did not mean to hit his son), but the son grabbed the pistol and began beating his father until the gun broke apart. The elder Shivers then got a shotgun from a cupboard and fired twice into his son, killing him. Reuters - 30 December 1997 Bad Day in the Back Yard Los Angeles, CA. Ani Saduki, 33, and his brother decided to remove a bees‘ nest from a shed on their property with the aid of a ―pineapple grenade‖. A ―pineapple‖ is an illegal firecracker which is the explosive equivalent of one-half stick of dynamite. They ignited the fuse and retreated to watch from inside their home, behind a window some 10 feet away from the hive/shed. The concussion of the explosion shattered the window inwards, seriously lacerating Ani. Deciding Mr. Saduki needed stitches, the brothers headed out to go to a nearby hospital. While walking towards their car, Ani was stung three times by the surviving bees. Unbeknownst to either brother, Ani 11

Bad Day at the Amusement Park

Bad Day at Suicide Rock Normandy, France - Jacques LeFevrier left nothing to chance when he decided to commit suicide. He stood at the top of a tall cliff and tied a noose around his neck. He tied the other end of the rope to a large rock. He drank some poison and set fire to his clothes. He even tried to shoot himself at the last moment. He jumped and fired the pistol. The bullet missed him completely, but cut through the hanging rope instead. Freed of the threat of hanging, Mr. LeFevrier plunged into the sea. The sudden plunge into the freezing waters extinguished the flames and apparently made him vomit the poison as well. He was dragged out of the water by witnesses on the beach below the cliff and was taken to a hospital, where he died of hypothermia. Bad Day in the Bed Newton, NC - Kenneth Charles Barger, 47, accidentally shot himself to death during the night. Awakening to the sudden sound of a ringing telephone beside his bed, he reached for the phone but grabbed instead his Smith & Wesson .38 Special which he kept on the bedside table next to the phone. The gun apparently discharged as he drew it to his ear thinking it was the phone Killer Whale Lawsuit Dropped Orlando, Florida - The parents of a man found naked and dead on the back of a killer whale at Sea World Orlando have dropped a lawsuit alleging Sea World caused his death by portraying the dangerous orca as safe and huggable. ―They voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit,‖ Sea World executive vice president and general manager Vic Abbey said. ―This was a

very tragic accident that occurred, but as we‘ve said all along we felt the lawsuit had no merit.‖ Patricia and Michael Dukes of Columbia, South Carolina, had filed suit on September 10 seeking several million dollars fro pain and suffering at the loss of their only son, Daniel, 27, a drifter who was found drowned to death in July in the whale tank. Heavy intoxication apparently contributed to this untimely event. Tuesday, October 5, 1999 Bad Day at Law School Toronto, Canada - Police said a lawyer demonstrating the safety of windows in a downtown Toronto skyscraper crashed through a pane with his shoulder and plunged 24 floors to his death. A police spokesman said Garry Hoy, 39, fell into the courtyard of the Toronto Dominion Bank Tower early Friday evening as he was explaining the strength of the building‘s windows to visiting law students. Hoy previously had conducted demonstrations of window strength many times according to police reports. Peter Lauwers, managing partner of the firm Holden Day Wilson, told the TorontoSun newspaper that Hoy was ―one of the best and brightest‖ members in the 200-man association. Bad Day at the River Kiev, Ukraine - A fisherman in Kiev, Ukraine, electrocuted himself while fishing in the river Tereblya. The 43-year-old man connected cables to the main power supply of his home, and trailed the end into the river. The electric shock killed the fish, which floated belly-up to the top of the water. The man then waded in to collect his catch, neglecting to remove the live wire, and tragically suffered the same fate as the fish. In an ironic twist, the man was fishing for a mourning meal to commemorate the first anniversary of his mother-in-law's death. Bad Night at the Ski Run Mammoth Lakes, CA - A San Anselmo man died early yesterday morning (at 3am) when he hit a lift tower at the Mammoth Mountain ski area while riding down the slope on a makeshift sledge of yellow foam. Authorities said Matthew David Hubal, 22, was pronounced dead at Centinela Mammoth Hospital. The accident occurred about 3 a.m., the Mono County Sheriff‘s Department said. Hubal and his friends apparently had hiked up a ski run called Stump Alley and undid some yellow foam protectors from the lift towers, said Lieutenant Mike Donnelly of the Mammoth Lakes Police Department. The pads are used to protect skiers who might hit the towers. The group apparently used the pads to slide down the ski slope and Hubal crashed into a tower. The lift towers are meant to be cushioned by this foam, and the tower he hit was discovered to be the same one from which he had stolen his sledge. As the report said "There's a moral in there somewhere". The Guardian - 6 February 1998

Bad Day at Church Melvyn Nurse, 35, a clergyman, used a .357 calibre Magnum revolver loaded with one blank round to dramatize his sermon before a packed congregation at Livingway Christian Fellowship Church International in Jacksonville, Florida on 26 September. He illustrated each of the seven deadly sins by playing Russian roulette, spinning the chamber and holding the gun to his head. After one spin, the gun fired and the cardboard wadding in the blank pierced his temple, inflicting fatal brain injuries. He fell out of sight and the congregation of 250, including his wife Debra and their four daughters, waited, thinking Mr Nurse would resume his sermon. He was eventually rushed to University Medical Center, where he died five days later. Blanks contain a hard cardboard-like wad that shoots several feet from the barrel when fired. It seemed likely that Nurse didn't realize they could cause injury. AP, Reuters - 2 October, Daily Telegraph - 3 October 1998 Bad Day at the Homemade Bungee Jump Reston, VA - A 22 year old Reston man, Jeff Lucas, was found dead after he tried to use Occy straps (those stretchy ropes with hooks on each end) to bungee jump off a 70 foot railroad trestle. Fairfax, VA police said Eric A. Barcia, a fast food worker, taped a bunch of these straps together, wrapped an end around one foot, anchored the other end to the trestle, jumped and hit the pavement. Bad Day at the Movies Harrisburg, PA – Apparently inspired by a scene from the movie ―The Program‖, which contained a famous scene where three drunk college athletes lie prostrate on a major highway in order to prove their manliness, two high school freshman were seriously injured and a third was killed when an 18-wheeler ran them over. In the movie, the truck was able to veer off and narrowly miss injuring anyone, but in real life two of the boys had their legs amputated while the unlucky third boy was unable to move fast enough to avoid being crushed to death. The driver said he never even saw the boys. After this tragic event, the scene was removed from the movie. Director David Ward said he never dreamed anyone would have trouble distinguishing fantasy from reality. Beware the Barking Dog : Bad Night for Walking the Dog A Russian woman took her dog for a walk after it started barking late at night and then apparently left it in her yard tied to a post, still barking. Annoyed neighbors called the police. According to Izvestia, the Russian daily: "The policemen, without any reason, decided to shot the dog." The first nine shots from their pistols missed, bit one of them broke the leash, sending the animal running frantically around

the yard. "The policemen ran after the dog, shooting at the silhoutte in the dark. The 13th bullet hit the owner, who was trying to catch the animal, in the heart." This incompetent manslaughter landed them in Yekaterinburg court. Reuter - 27 May 1998 Bad Days at the Dance Studio Lisbon, Portugal - Dance teacher Alberto Fargo tangoed to his death straight out of a fifth-floor window. Police in Lisbon said Fargo was showing his dance class how to keep the head high by looking at the ceiling. Sunday Independant (Dublin) - 15 November 1998 Barcelona, Spain – Rogelio Pena died in a fall from Mr. Pena‘s thirdfloor dance studio. Other instructors said Mr. Pena was demonstrating a difficult Pasa Doble maneuver to his student Francesca Olivera and never even noticed the open window.

Bad Day on the Island Gumilid Lantod was alone in the jungle catching bats on Mindoro Island in the Philippines when a 23ft (7m) python bit him on the foot and squeezed him to death. Pythons can tell when their victims are dead when they can no longer feel a pulse. Then the monster swallowed the 154lb (60kg) man. Friends later found the snake and slit it open, finding the father of six already half digested. Express (Germany) 3 April; [AFP] 7 April 1998 Bad Day for the Terrorists Hebron, Israel – A switch away from daylight savings time turned the tables on a group of Palestinian terrorists who had neglected to note that Israel had made a premature switch from daylight savings time to standard time due to a religious holiday. The bombs had been prepared in a Palestine-controlled area by explosives experts and set on Daylight Savings time. The drivers in Israel had already switched their watches to standard time 13

and failed to note the time difference. They were in their car still en-route to their destination when the explosives detonated an hour earlier than they expected. Death Really Stinks Jonathan Capewell, 16, was so obsessed with smelling fresh that he would cover his entire body with deodorant at least twice a day. When his parents told him he was using too much and they could taste the stuff downstairs in the kitchen, he laughed it off. He was found dead after spraying himself with antiperspirant in his bedroom in Oldham, Greater Manchester. Three empty deodorant canisters were found. A post mortem showed that his body contained 0.37mg of butane per litre of blood and a similar amount of propane. Only 0.1mg of either gas can kill. It is believed the gases built up in his body after six months of intensive spraying. The death was thought to be the first from accidental inhalation in the country and there was no evidence to suggest that he was a solvent abuser. Manchester Eve. News - 28 October; Guardian, Daily Telegraph, Independant, Northern Echo - 29 October 1998

You can do your own research on the matter, just follow the understated name. References - Strange death page contribution

We all enter a working environment with some uncenrtainty , when we sit in that interview , the interviewer makes everything at this job seem so perfect , even your own mind plays a role , you can see yourself becoming a success at this organisiation , building a name for yourself , everybody respects you , you name it. Well its not really the truth. The truth of the matter is , every interviewer tries to make the position seem so unbelieveably good that even the truth of the matter resides within the lines . after you accepted their offer , you seem to start noticing all the cons of the workplace you have entered , and unfortuanitly its the truth is always bent over backwards and shaped to fit your profile . In my personal experience I have noted that it doesn‘t matter what person you try to be at work, there is always conflict , its utterly inevitable , making peace with it sooner than later , only makes the conflict less scary. We are all different and even if our opinions are slightly the same, they differ in some way in the end. We are all different people, our background differ and our ethics, and personalities , the things we live by , the rules and boundries of our own lifes differ . it is said that the human mind is a fighter of its own reality... that is the truth , you believe what you believe and changing your opinion almost always causes some sort of conflict. A wise man once said , learning to defend yourself verbally does not mean that you can defend yourself at work , that is a different art to accomplish. One of our readers asked us to do a piece on this , as we all experience it in some way throughout our careers . I personally can relate , and decided to share my story with you. I was once employed for an enormous firm , and during the interview i was told so many great stories , and as any person desperate for a job , i believed every word. It was stated in the interview that the job is permanent and my skills are just what they need. I was exited out of my mind, i thought that this would be the perfect place i would be appreciated. I started work a week later , and my duties was not really defined by then . I am a qualified project manager, and during my years i have learned how to sort out a mess , and manage a mess to the best of my abilities. Never have i thought that this which i had myself in was going to break me . The project i handled was such a mess when i got there , until today i do not know how they really coordinated the whole thing , and how they really generated an income for the past year , I was absolutely shocked. I did not have all the recourses needed to sort out something like this , as other peoples money was

involved and their careers I saw this as essential , it had to be done ASAP , for the sake of the client . If I had to think of wearing one of those client‘s shoes for one day , I would be either furious or would‘ve left the company already . I worked day in and day out . There was not one day that passed that i was not swore at or yelled at in some other way, by clients whom could not understand how everything could be such a mess. By the 3rd month of employment the project was running smoothly . And the clients loved working with me , even though they did not even know what I looked like , they only knew me by voice and my sense of humer. During this time I not only sorted out 4 years of a mess , but also gained a load of new clients , whom insisted on only working with me. I was very proud of myself , since I knew the amount of hours i put into this , justifies all the positive feedback i got. My working environment was not of the best , as I did not fit the department culture at all. And most of my co-workers could not really stand me , or so i was told by my manager. I got to a point where i wanted this unprofessional behaviour at my work to change , and tried sorting things out, to my shock most of my co-workers stared at me blankly , and their feedback shocked me. I learned that day to never leave things to sort themselves out, especccially not in a working environment, things should never be left undone. I did my homework on effective ways to solve conflict at work , as this was one of my most worn down events in my life. This is what I found . And it works. Handle conflict sooner rather than later This is the single most important tip to successfully resolve conflicts: Do it now! It‘s very tempting to wait for a conflict to blow over by itself, but it rarely does – in most cases it only gets worse with time. 90% of conflicts at work do not come from something that was said, but from something that wasn‘t said! It‘s tempting to try and smooth things over and pretend everything is normal. Don‘t. That‘s the most common reason why conflicts at work escalate: Nobody does anything. Everyone‘s waiting for the other guy to pull himself together and ―just admit he‘s wrong, dammit‖. It may be unpleasant to tackle the issue here and now but believe me, it gets even more unpleasant after the conflict has stewed for a good long while. Ask!

In the early stages of a conflict the most powerful tool to resolve it is simple: Ask! If somebody has done something that made you angry, if you don‘t understand somebody‘s viewpoint, if you don‘t understand their actions – ask! Do it nicely. ―Say, I was wondering why you did ‗X‘ yesterday‖ or ―I‘ve noticed that you often do ‗Y‘. Why is that?‖ are good examples. ―Why the hell do you always have to ‗Z‘!‖ is less constructive :o) Sometimes there‘s a perfectly good reason why that person does what he does, and a potential conflict evaporates right there. Also: Never assume that people do what they do to annoy you or spite you. People typically have a good reason to do the things they do, even the things that really get on your nerves. Never assume bad faith on anyone else‘s part. Instead: Ask! Giraffe language For more entrenched conflicts that have been going on for a while, use giraffe language. It‘s the best tool around for constructively conveying criticism and solving conflict. An example: You and a co-worker often clash at meetings. It‘s gotten to the point where each of you are just itching to pounce on the slightest mistake the other person makes. You can barely stand the sight of each other and have begun to avoid each other as much as you can. This has been going on for a while now. Here‘s how you can use giraffe language to adress the conflict. There‘s an invitation and six steps to it: Invitation Invite the other person to talk about the situation. An example: “Say John, I’d really like to talk to you. Do you have half an hour some time today? We could meet in meeting room B”. A hurried conversation at your desk between emails and phone calls won‘t solve anything. You need an undisturbed location and time to adress the issue. And make no mistake: Giving this invitation may be the hardest part of the whole process. It can be remarkably hard to take that first step. Do it anyway! At the meeting itself, you need a way to structure the conversation constructively. Otherwise it could easily go like this: The good thing about giraffe language is that the conversation doesn‘t degenerate into mutual accusations. Without a proper structure the meeting could also go like this: “John, why are you always attacking me at meetings?” “What are you talking about – I don’t do that!” “You do. Yesterday you jumped on me for suggesting that we add en extra programmer to the team.” “We’ve talked about that a thousand times, we don’t have the budget for more people.” “That was no reason to stomp me and the idea at the meeting.” “Well that’s what you did to me when I suggested that we review the project model.” Etc. etc. etc. 16

Ever had one of those discussions at work? Not much fun and not very productive either! Giraffe language keeps accusations, assumptions and mutual attacks out of the conversation and makes it much more likely to reach a solution. Here‘s how it goes. It‘s important that you prepare the meeting thoroughly and write down notes to each step so you know what you‘re going to say. After each of the steps (except ii and iii) ask the other person if he agrees with your thinking and if he‘d like to add anything. Observation. Identify what you see in neutral, objective terms. “John, I’ve noticed that in our project meetings, we get very critical of each others ideas. For instance, the other day you suggested reviewing our project model and I jumped on you for suggesting it, though it’s actually a necessary step. I have noticed that we’ve ended up doing something like this in almost every meeting in the last few months. It also seems to be getting worse. Would you agree with this description of the situation?” This is where you describe the facts of the situation as objectively as possible. What is actually happening? When and how is it happening? What is the other person doing and, not least, what are you doing? You‘re only allowed to cite observable facts and not allowed to assume or guess at what the other person is thinking or doing. You can say ―I‘ve noticed that you‘re always criticizing me at our meetings‖ because that‘s a verifiable fact. You can‘t say ―I‘ve noticed that you‘ve stopped respecting my ideas‖ because that assumes something about the other person. ii) Apologize. Apologize for your part in the conflict. “John, I want to apologize for attacking you at the meetings. It has a bad effect on the mood of our meetings and I can see that it makes you angry. I apologize.” If you‘re 100%, totally and utterly without fault in the conflict you may skip this step. That doesn‘t happen too often, let me tell you, usually everyone involved has done something to create and sustain the conflict. Remember: You‘re not accepting the entire blame, you‘re taking responsibility for your contribution to the situation. iii) Appreciate. Praise the other part in the conflict. Tell them why it’s worth it to you to solve the conflict. “I know we don’t always see eye to eye and that we have very different personalities but I want you to know that I really appreciate your contribution to the project. Without you we would never have gotten this far in the same time. Also the way you communicate with our clients and your ability to find out what they really want are second to none and a boost to the project.”

This can be difficult, few people find it easy to praise and appreciate a person they disagree strongly with, but it‘s a great way to move forward. It also serves as a lithmus test: If you can‘t think of a single positive thing to say about the other person, you may not be ready to resolve the conflict yourself. In this case see tip 5 (mediation) below. iv) Consequences. What has the conflict led to for you and for the company? Why is it a problem? “I don’t like this situation we have now. It’s making me anxious before meetings and it’s making the meetings less productive. I also think some of the other project members are starting to wonder what it’s all about. Jane asked me the other day why the two of us can never agree on anything. I think this is actually harming the project. Would you agree?” Outlining the consequences of the conflict shows why it‘s necessary to resolve the conflict. It also helps participants to look beyond themselves and see the conflict ―from the outside‖. v) Objective. What would be a good outcome. “I would like for us to listen more an appreciate each others ideas more. You have some great ideas and even if I don’t agree with an idea, I can still listen and make constructive suggestions. Does that sound like a good goal?” It‘s essential to set a goal so both parties know the outcome they‘re aiming for. That makes reaching the outcome a lot more likely :o) What if all of this doesn’t work? There is no guarantee that the method described here will resolve your conflict at work. It may or it may not. But even if it doesn‘t work you have the satisfaction of knowing that you’ve tried. You have risen above the conflict for a while and tried to address it positively and constructively. No one can ask more of you. One kind of conflict at work is particularly tricky, namely a conflict with your manager. With a good manager who responds constructively to criticism, this is rarely a problem, but a conflict with a bad or insecure manager can seriously impact your working situation and needs special handling.

I NEED TO SORT OUT.... We all live with the need to sort out something in our life‘s . it is essential for any human to live in an organised environment , the less organised our lifes the less organised our decisions in life. As young adults we do not pay much attention to this factor , because we strive on remembereing to enjoy life to the fullest , have as much friends and outings at possible, but have you ever notices , when all the fun is over , you still need to go home to your unorganised life . whether you noticed it by now , or whether it will still come to you , a cluttered life affects your mood to be the full you , without any of the other fun you intend to do. Studies have shown , that even if you think that you are resting, you aren‘t , you‘r brain is designed in such a way , that sleeping in an untidy apartment , or looking at unwashed dishes makes you feel unorganised and untidy . And when you go to sleep at night or come home from a wacked out party , the thought of your own living environment haunts you . Its not healthy at all , for you to be able to enjoy life to the fullest, you should be able to enjoy your own living arrangements and the time alone to the fullest . Its so frustrating to search for hours on end for something to wear or something that you have misplaced to find it under a load of rubbish or unwashed clothes in the end , it destroys a good mood almost instantly. Here is a few tips to better your life after the party ...

“I’ve found that it’s best to use small steps in getting where you want to go...” For the next two weeks try this schedule , just to get you started . Studies have shown , it takes two weeks to get into a habit of doing something you actually dislike doing , completely random. 1.

Do not wait for the washing to become a whole room full, do small amounts at a time.

Put a bundle in before you leave for work , and tonight you hang them , before you leave for your outing.

Ensure that all papers (including school papers, post-in notes, bills, etc) in one in basket. o

Name the box, and place it in your closet , or in your underwear drawer , where you know you will be sometime during the day , to just chuck it in there.

Decide on one day in the month that you will sort all those papers, and mark it as paper day on your calendar .

Make envelopes , and sort the papers by naming the envelopes : Bills, Scrap , Filing , or whatever you regularly get , and ensure to keep these envelopes stacked in you closed on one pile .this will ensure when you have to pay bills or need to find a bill that was already paid , you will know which envelope has it.

Hang your clothes up or put them in laundry basked immediately. o

Wearing a jean once does not mean it is filthy , you can wear it twice , especially if it was only worn to work and back . although I would wash it , if you were out and about with it.

Why wear different Pajamas each night? I trust that most of us get into a shower each night.

Do your washing at least twice a week. o

The wonderful thing about technology is : you don‘t have to do the washing with your hands or feet , its literally just a switch of a button.

Keep you sink clean and shiny (wash dishes immediately, clean sink after)

Have you noticed when your busy cooking, there is always a moment where you end up staring at the food , cooking themselves. Well that is your gap.

straight to that spot and place your work stuff there , NEATLY.

Make the sink full of dishwashing water , and as you finish with an utensil , quickly run it through the water and let it dry on its own .

Now, these are a lot of habits, and it might seem overwhelming, but if you tackle one at a time (in whatever order you like), it won‘t be that hard. Give yourself several months to get there – don’t expect overnight change!

Keep a wet , sanitized cloth nearby , or on your shoulder, so that when you use a knife , you can just wipe it clean , and don‘t take another one out of the drawer.

pick up before you go to bed and before you leave the house o

You need to do this to help yourself not to keep a load of uneccecary nonsense .

clean your shower, toilet and bathroom sink after each use . o

Purchase some bathroom cleaner , and place it somewhere in the bathroom where it will be in easy reach .

Before you close the shower water or even unplug the bath plug , throw some cleaner in the water and quickly rub of the sides of the bath or the floor of the shower .

make your bed each morning o

This step is absolutely essential. if you know you will be returning home tierd, make sure the house is neat before you leave or get into bed . put everything on their place , and then only leave .

15 minutes decluttering sessions each day o

After you have eaten , just quickly clean the last few dishes and let them dry on their own.

This one takes some time getting use to . When you wake up in the morning , have you coffee and before doing anything else of your morning routine, make the bed .

keep flat surfaces (counters, tables, desks) clear of clutter

10. put away your stuff as soon as you get home o

Get a set place in your house to put all your work stuff , and when you get home , walk

Here’s how to tackle each habit: 1. Write down your goal. 

By doing this , you enable yourself to see where you want to be ..

2. Keep a log/journal and make sure you write in it each day, noting whether you were successful or not for that day. 

Most people find this very irritating , but its good for each individual to keep some sort of journal or log .



Make notes of what happened in your day . you will see later years, when we tend to forget what happened In our lives , those journals come in very good handy.

3. Actually, if you fail that day, take a minute to see what went wrong, and how to correct it. 4. Find a way to keep yourself focused on this goal for at least 2-3 weeks.

Benefits of Rising Early, and How to Do It ―Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise‖ – Ben Franklin, famously Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise‖ – Ben Franklin, famously We all struggle to get up in the morning, just as we all have different morning breath, but it all comes down to one thing, its not a good smell , its bad , therefore I see being a night owl or an early bird is an absolute in the same thing , if you find it easier to go to bed late at night and still find it easy to raise in the morning, good for you, but me on the other hand , if I go to bed just a little bit over my due time, you can explode a bomb next to me the next morning to get me up , it would not be the most feasible way to wake me. I know of a few people whom judge our routines in the following manner , they say you get the morning person, and the Night owl. Which one are you. I am defenitly not the morning person , nor am I the Night owl, so what do they call us , who fall smack down in the middle ? I looked this up , they call us Normal. Leo Babauta wrote a piece about the benefits of rising early in the mornings , I took the time to test his theories and came across my own opinion. started working on my articles at 8 :00 , that is a record 1. Greet the day. Leo Babauta. I suggests creating a

for me)

morning ritual that includes saying thanks for your blessings.

Day 3: …‖ the coffee went down so good this morning , got a lot to get to today …‖ ( I started switching my

This theory I found as true, for more than a week I

quiet time with God from the evenings to the mornings )

forced myself to wake up when my husband leaves for work ,normally I would help the family get ready and as

Day 4 : …‖ I kind of slipped a bit today , o well a few

soon as the front door closes I would cuddle myself

hours exstra wont do me any harm ― ( later that

back in bed with my dogs. but for the week I woke up

morning) ..‖ you idiot , now I‘m going to be gloomy and

early. It was absolute horror for me , I took the time to

grumpy the whole day ― ( this was very true , was not a

note my feelings in my journal , so that I can see if it

good day for my family)\

actually worked to make me feel better during the day , I quoted a few of my own personal thoughts throughout the week . Day 1 : …‖ this is absolutely ridiculous , how can I feel better and have more energy if the bed is right there for me to endulge myself in another hour or so ― Day 2 : … ― urgg another day, the hours of this day is taking to long , what will I do this morning ― ( and I 23

Day 5…‖ And a new day has come … what to do with … maybe I should once and for all declutter the garage‖ ( it didn‘t stop at the garage , I did the whole house) Day 6: … ― I feel so good today , thank you Lord for a new day ― Day 7 : …‖ lets wake the family , and go for breakfast‖ ( and I actually did )

Till today I am still rising at 5:30 in the mornings, and

3. Quietude. No kids yelling, no babies crying, no soccer

only go back to bed when the day is over , the

balls, no cars, no television noise. The early morning

statement Leo Babauta.made , was that you should be

hours are so peaceful, so quiet. It‘s my favorite time of

thankful for each day , that you actually got another day

day. I truly enjoy that time of peace, that time to myself,

added to your lifespan , as each day is a gift .

when I can think, when I can read, when I can breathe. With this one I do not need to quote my Journal , but I have to admit this is absolutely true 4. Sunrise. People who wake late miss one of the greatest feats of nature, repeated in full stereovision each and every day — the rise of the sun. I love how the day slowly gets brighter, when the midnight blue turns to lighter blue, when the brilliant colors start to seep into the sky, when nature is painted in incredible

2. Amazing start. I used to start my day by jumping out of

colors. I like doing my early morning run during this

bed, late as usual, and rushing to get myself and the

time, and I look up at the sky as I run and say to the

kids ready, and rushing to drop them to school and

world, ―What a glorious day!‖ Really. I really do that.

come in to work late. I would walk into work, looking

Corny, I know.

rumpled and barely awake, grumpy and behind everyone else. Not a great start to your day. Now, I have a renewing morning ritual, I‘ve gotten so much done before 8 a.m., my kids are early and so am I, and by the time everyone else gets in to work, I‘ve already gotten a head start. There is no better way to start off your day than to wake early, in my experience. This was absolutely true , lets look back again

Ok, I have to admit , I didn‘t really focus on this , as I live in the city, its not really visible from where I am , in any case had to much other stuff I wanted to do. But I will try it this week. 5. Breakfast. Rise early and you actually have time for breakfast. I‘m told it‘s one of the most important meals of the day. Without breakfast, your body is running on fumes until you are so hungry at lunchtime that you eat whatever unhealthy thing you can find. The fattier and sugarier, the betterier. But eat breakfast, and you are

Day 1 : … ― I actually finished the lunch packing and

sated until later. Plus, eating breakfast while reading

breakfast for my family this morning..‖

my book and drinking my coffee in the quiet of the

Day 2 : …‖ research done for most of my articles , and

morning is eminently more enjoyable than scarfing

did some shopping‖

something down on the way to work, or at your desk.

Day 3 : ..‖ The exercise felt wonderfull …‖ Day 4 : …‖ Didn‘t do much today , bleh not feeling like anything..‖ Day 5: …‖ feels good to know my house is sorted out, so much rubbish that I gather‖

Absolute true. 6. Exercise. There are other times to exercise besides the early morning, of course, but I‘ve found that while exercising right after work is also very enjoyable, it‘s also liable to be canceled because of other things that come up. Morning exercise is virtually never canceled.

Well I am use to exercising in the mornings , or let say

everything ive done , well its not , you get a certain feel of

late mornings , but I started trying it earlier for the week

satisfaction looking back and seeing what you have actually

gotten done, and how in the past , you seemed to haven‘t gotten anything done?! I quoted the following , which I followed step by step . It actually works. Let me know if it worked for you. How to Become an Early Riser 

Don’t make drastic changes. Start slowly, by waking just 15-30 minutes earlier than usual. Get used to this for a few days. Then cut back another 15 minutes. Do this gradually until you get to your goal time.



staying up late, perhaps watching TV or surfing the

Day 1 : … ―This was horrible, it was freezing outside , I

Internet. But if you continue this habit, while trying to

cant feel my flippen nose..‖

get up earlier, sooner or later one is going to give. And

Day 2 : …‖ COLD , but it was also refreshing‖

if it is the early rising that gives, then you will crash and

Day 3 : ..‖ The exercise felt wonderfull …‖

sleep late and have to start over. I suggest going to

Day 4 : …‖ skipped the whole exercise thing, why ? I

bed earlier, even if you don’t think you’ll sleep, and

just don‘t feel like it , I look alright..‖

read while in bed. If you’re really tired, you just might

Day 5: …‖ it was misty this morning, and I made sure I was warm enough , walked with my little /large dog , nice and queit time for me‖

Allow yourself to sleep earlier. You might be used to

fall asleep much sooner than you think. 

Put your alarm clock far from you bed. If it’s right next to your bed, you’ll shut it off or hit snooze. Never hit snooze. If it’s far from your bed, you have to get up

7. Productivity. Mornings, for me at least, are the most productive time of day. I like to do some writing in the

out of bed to shut it off. By then, you’re up. Now you

morning, when there are no distractions, before I check

just have to stay up.

my email or blog stats. I get so much more done by



Go out of the bedroom as soon as you shut off the

starting on my work in the morning. Then, when

alarm. Don’t allow yourself to rationalize going back to

evening rolls around, I have no work that I need to do,

bed. Just force yourself to go out of the room. My habit

and I can spend it with family.

is to stumble into the bathroom and go pee. By the time

8. Goal time. Got goals? Well, you should. And there‘s no

I’ve done that, and flushed the toilet and washed my

better time to review them and plan for them and do

hands and looked at my ugly mug in the mirror, I’m

your goal tasks than first thing. You should have one

awake enough to face the day.

goal that you want to accomplish this week. And every



Do not rationalize. If you allow your brain to talk you

morning, you should decide what one thing you can

out of getting up early, you’ll never do it. Don’t make

do today to move yourself further towards that goal.

getting back in bed an option.

And then, if possible, do that first thing in the morning.



Have a good reason. Set something to do early in the morning that’s important. This reason will motivate you

I have to say , this statement I have found to be essential. Take

to get up. I like to write in the morning, so that’s my

the time in the mornings , to plan your day , write it down , and

reason. Also, when I’m done with that, I like to read all

mark everything throughout the day , as you completed the

of your comments!

tasks. At first I thought this will be absolutely ridiculous to mark 25



Make waking up early a reward. Yes, it might seem at first that you’re forcing yourself to do something hard, but if you make it pleasurable, soon you will look forward to waking up early. A good reward is to make a hot cup of coffee or tea and read a book. Other rewards might be a tasty treat for breakfast (smoothies! yum!) or watching the sunrise, or meditating. Find something that’s pleasurable for you, and allow yourself to do it as part of your morning routine.



Take advantage of all that extra time. Don’t wake up an hour or two early just to read your blogs, unless that’s a major goal of yours. Don’t wake up early and waste that extra time. Get a jump start on your day! I like to use that time to get a head start on preparing my kids’ lunches, on planning for the rest of the day (when I set my MITs), on exercising or meditating, and on reading. By the time 6:30 rolls around, I’ve done more than many people do the entire day.

A healthy body, leads to a healthy mind.

Sketchy Bro’s So with this feature, it was a very personal interview, I personally know one of the DJ‘s, and so do you, so here goes.

DJ Earth boy

The sketchy brothers started out 3 months ago, July 2012; it was a gimmick of meant to be. They have never met or do not know each other at all, but during my chat with them I noted the fact that they really respect and drive each other each day. The future should be quiet indulging for them, and we will make an effort to follow them. They hosted an event in the same weekend as H2O, and still achieved success, which makes them a good opposition for most DJ’ing talent out there. The interview turned out to be just one big chatting session more to say than what a normal interview would go by , these men are very down to earth , even though fame knocked on their doors , there is no sign of the inevitable fame sickness most people get when their names starts to travel. You would see them as the average Joe’s in any community, but then again, as soon as they open their mouths, everything falls into rhythms of their music produces.

Goals and objectives

For you out there reading this, I will ensure you get to know them personally without speaking one word to them... They spent the night finishing each other’s sentences, the passion for music enlightened both of their faces, the level of positivity was incredible, and the motivation left me speechless for moments. It is rare that you come across artists that intend to grow, not for the fame, but for the love for what art they produce.

“We can play as one entity” 29

―My goals are a bit limited now, to getting the Sketchy brothers

I waited 6 years for someone like Ally who I can play with and share the up and running smoothly,

same type of full blown passion with‖ Favorite sports / hobbies ― Well my hobbies does not stop with music , it extends just a little bit , I played Base ball and have my protea colors , and I studies for years , to be a network engineer‖ Strengths and weaknesses ―I would say my weakness lies mostly with friends, as I‘m very gullible and somewhat predictable at times, but most of all my biggest weakness would be my mother, I am a pleaser , and absolutely everything I do , I somehow need her approval .‖

Career development plan ― I don‘t have everything planned out at the moment , but success in our events would be somewhere in there‖

Did you have any prior experience or other qualifications ?

Personality

“ The music taught me”

― Happy go Lucky , I‘m chilled‖

What is your political views

Girlfriends comment

“ he is a total nut

job” Describe your personality

―Id rather not get into this‖ What is your spiritual views

, I still stay focuses on the Man upstairs” ―I am a Christian , though I do loose track sometimes

― I‘m very open minded , and people find me very interesting when seen for the first time‖

What other than music is your passion in life

Describe your feeling towards oppositions

―Skate boarding‖

― Neutral‖

what do you do for your community ?

What is your music style and why?

“ Hardstyle , it moves me”

“ I try to inspire the younger generation to think outside the box” What would you say is the passion behind your music ― Music is a universal language , we can differ by culture , but when the beat starts we are in same state of mind‖ what is your life quote?

“ Don’t dream your life , Live it” if you had to lead teenagers or young adults what would be your first plan of action ? ― I would teach them about building things with their own hands, like we built our stage for the island event. I would also try to help them get a feeling of what music is all about ― When and how did you start?

“ I was 10years old when I got my first vinyl , my brother was an old time DJ and I looked up to , therefore I also learned the style , and enjoy it to bits today” 30

Readers i would say DJ Earthboy , is a respected part of his community , he is loving and caring , and seems to live life with some sort of energy that most of us lack. He drives himself , and seems to be able to stay positive through bad times. He has been through some hardship in life , but clearly stood up again smiling and going forward. He is motivated to achieve success , and trusting that he is not the type of a person that walks the straight and narrow , whether my perception of him is wrong or right , I personally believe the future for this young man is very colourful and one big journey he will one day look back on.

In our previous issue we did a piece on DJ Ally , most of the information he gave us last time hasn’t really changed , except this time I had the privilege to spend a bit more time with him , and get to know him personally , so here goes

Describe your day to day lifestyle ― I wake up at 8 :00 or 9:00 or maybe later , eat something for breakfast ,

and get back in bed, sleep till I feel like

waking up , and start with my day‖

Describe your personality ― I can really only say one thing ,

I am a people’s

pleaser” What is your music style and why ? ― I love my trance , but turns out I‘m more of a freestyler than anything else‖

“Time teaches a man”

What breaks your speed in life ―Dishonesty …. The rest I can handle‖ If you could change one thing in our country /your country what would it be? ― This is a tricky one , if I could change one thing , the first thing

“ Changing the street names back again” on my list would be

DJ Ally Strengths and weaknesses ― I would say my strengths would be friends, and the ability to handle constructive criticism‖

“ My weaknesses would be woman , and the my soft heart”

What do you see as social responsibility?” ― To show young people , that

following your

dreams is the only road to complete happiness”

What is your spiritual views ― I‘m a Christian in my own way , I am getting to know the man up there a bit more everyday‖ What will be the one thing you will never want to experience? ― I would recon if I end up playing for an empty dance floor‖ what is your life quote

“ Everything happens for a reason” ― Still the same

Do you enjoy attention or like your alone time? ― I actually enjoy both , depends on which side of the bed I got up in the morning‖

Readers we all know DJ Ally a bit now , but spending a bit more time with him , made me see another side of him, he is passionate about life and his friends. Its not just the music that makes him , him , it’s a bit more , he enjoys good company and during our interview he did not mention fame or riches once, for him the finer things in life is more precious than a big pot of gold , an evening with just music is more than enough to feed his soul for the next day. Hardship is something he does not talk about , he lives for the future , and leaves the past where it is suppose to be. He is someone a lot of young adults can look up to. I noted that he is the type of man who does not easily through in the white flag,

he will always find some way to make something happen. He has some sort of dry sense of humour , I cant really put a name to it , but its entertaining. Seems to me like he is very clued up on what he wants in life , and where he is heading at the moment. And I must say he was quiet the charmer.

http://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=157049647695692&re fid=17&m_sess16selp-r2fldakh

www.djallystranceheaven.yolasite.com or

Grobler.allen@gmail.com

Allen Grobler : 076 4631159 36

International Feature

DJ POT Opotija D.J.POT Williams - NY

We would like you ( our readers) in to meet a DJ , that‘s new on the scene , eventhough its not really a local DJ as we always feature, it has come to our attention that our readers abroad are growing rapidly . Those abroad he is not really a new face , but to us here in SA he is a new artist with new tunes , and a new and different feeling about music . Awesome ! To FTVOM he seems like a clued up individual , he has dreams and at the moment he is living them , full of confidence and the excitement of success in his own way. BIO

How about a DJ who has the credentials, experience and versatility to meet all of your requests, for all occasions? Then look no further, you‘ve come to the right place. Brooklyn‘s Finest, DJ Pot, has got you covered! Whether large or small, public or private, DJ Pot goes above and beyond to ensure that your party meets all of your expectations. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, DJ Pot has earned the respect of the streets on account of his perseverance. "My versatility is what separates me from some other dj's that maybe just do mix-tapes. Some may just do tricks like scratching. Some dj's can't do the whole club atmosphere. Then there‘s those dj's that just do parties but can't do mix-tapes. As for me, I can do it all,‖ he said. DJ Pot plays it all: Reggae, Rap, R&B, Classics, Oldies, Reggaeton, Salsa, etc. D.J. Pot‘s resume includes: mix-tapes, clubs, live shows, birthday parties, anniversaries, bridal showers, after work parties, sound engineering and even Christmas parties. He‘s worked with

artists such as Black LIB (NYC, UK), Bombay Entertainment (NYC), Triple S. Entertainment (NYC), Real Live Show (NYC), Crucial Click (NYC), Skillz Media (Milwaukee), and Reggiment (NYC, LA, UK). "I just look for the vibe of the artist that I'm working with. I do it for them," he said. In 2010 D.J.POT received a feature article in the Phoenix Newspaper. In 2011, D.J.POT teamed up with Urban Lax Entertainment to release a series of mix-cd designed for unsigned artists and teamed up with Jean Grae‘s crew ―The Writers Guild‖ to put ―Home for the Gifted Dragon The War is Coming Vol. 1.‖ In 2012, D.J.POT became a Coast2Coast mix-tape D.J. and became the Marketing Director of an independent record label ―Stable Musik Group.‖ Some of D.J. Pot‘s legendary influences include: Kid Capri, Red Alert, and D.J. Grand Master Flash. DJ Pot's advice for young, up and coming dj‘s: "Get into it for the love of music, not for the money.

Stick to it and don‘t let anyone tell you that you can‘t do it I have done marketing and promotions for a lot of labels such as Roc-A-Fella Records, Blood Line Records, Def Jam Records and a few others.‖ Lastly,“D.J.

Pot

aspires and looks forward to working with other artists in the industry who are as serious about their crafts as he is about his love for music”

“I am a happy person that likes to express myself”. I

don‘t let anything bother me. It‘s hard to make me mad. I like to joke and have a good time. How many shows do you do and attend in a month I attend about 4 – 5 shows a month What is your music style and why?

Bmariemanagent takes care of my booking in the Midwest area.

Interview

Where do you see yourself in 5 years? ―I would like to be one of the world most famous DJ and be able to have people look up to me. Someday I would like to teach up and coming D.J.‘s art of Being a Professional DJ and the business side of the underground music industry. What do you see as social responsibility? Like to have fun, love music. Want everybody to have a good time. Be a mediator when problems arise . I want to give back to people in my community. Describe your day-to-day lifestyle ? My day-to-day life style is to get up and look at my calendar to make sure I do what is needed by the due date. Set up daily meetings and do what‘s needed for my family. I focus on keeping people happy and getting the neccecary done for my day , I plan each day , to ensure I get the most out of each day.

―Try to keep people happy” Describe your personality

I don‘t really have 1 music style. I enjoy more then 1 kind of music Rap, Soul, R&B, and Reggae. They are my style because of the rhythm and lyrics depending on the mode that I am in. example: Bob Marley expressed his political views and how he felt about life in General. Jean Grea born and raised in Cape Town South Africa she expresses herself and her attitude of her life. A lot of they stories I can relate to.

When and how did you start? I started at the age of 7, Being around my dad who was a music lover and watching my uncle who was one of the first DJ that I was around. I started making tapes for people

around on my block and then it moved to do local parties and I continued to expand myself as a brand. Did you have any prior experience or other qualifications?

What was the worst thing that happens to you? When my father passed on.

I am a Studio Engineer, I am in the process of getting my college degree in Marketing / Business.

It Caused me to feel that I don‘t want to do music anymore. I became lazy it made me want to become lazy and don‘t care about anything but as I sat there thinking; I started to think about what he wanted me to do with my life.

What drives you in life?

What was the best thing that ever happened to you?

To get up and learn something different everyday.

The day I turned my hobby into a business. I proved to myself that I could do it.

Keep creative people in my circle who is going to push my to the limit by giving me a challenge. What breaks your speed in life? Unorganized people and waiting for people. The people that don‘t try ―Don‘t fail because you did not try Fail because you tried and it did not work‖ If you can change 1 thing in your country what will it be? I will change the way people think about other races. What are your political views? Democratic: I don‘t really get in to details about that What is your spiritual view? I am a Christian, I do believe in god, I am not the person that goes to church every Sunday but I do believe in god.

How do you advertise yourself? I use the Internet social media (Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, google etc.) Magazines flyers newspapers I put all my services out there so everyone can see what I do. What other than music is your passion in life? My other passion in life is learning and traveling. I want to

see every country at least once. What do you do for your community? I sponsor a few non-profit organizations by providing my service free of charge. I also donate my time to different groups and teaching kids how to stay on track and stay out of trouble. What would you say is the passion behind your music? The passion behind my music is good music. The thrill of wanting to go to the store and buy that new CD that is coming out and wanting to hear the beats and lyrics together and see what that artist come up with. Why music?

“It has a song for every mood that you are feeling in life”. I design my day-to-day task around music. I do everything to music from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to bed. The beat moves me and keeps me on point.” 40

What do you think we can change in the magazine to make it more attractable? I think it could use more creative pics from different people. I like the fact that ya‘ll are reaching out to independent People to provide a platform to be heard. Do you enjoy attention or like alone time? It depends on the mood that I am in.

At time I want the attention, when I am doing a party I want people to crowd around me and see and listen to my mixes. When I am home I want the alone time so I can clear my head and plan my next day. What would you improve about yourself? Keeping up with Dues dates and Staying in touch with Goals and Objectives My goal is to expand my brand and to travel to different countries (UK, Africa, Jamaica etc.) to DJ and to teach kids the art of DJ‘ing Achievements & Accomplishments Got the respect and worked with some of the biggest people in the industry in the world. I turned something from nothing in to a business Favorite Sports / Hobbies Hobbies: Music and Traveling Strengths & Weaknesses Strength- Multi-task and my ability to over come problems and to motivate myself to push myself What is your life quote? ―Life is what you make it‖ If you do nothing to better with it, you will achieve nothing. If you had to lead teenagers or young adults what would be your first of action? My first action will be is to teach them to go for there dreams and walk them through every step. Teach them to never give up

Weakness- don‘t know how to express myself at all times. Career & Development plan. I plan to continue to develop my passion for music by learning more and more about my craft and to be able to teach music.

Blog pages and any other information. www.iamdjpot.blogspot.com http://www.youtube.com/user/IAMDJPOT Twitter @djpot

http://www.facebook.com/djpot?ref=tn_tnmn YouTube page.

http://www.youtube.com/user/IAMDJPOT?feature=plcp This is a few links of a few parties that I have done. http://theminorityreportnyc.blogspot.com/search?q=dj+pot http://theminorityreportnyc.blogspot.com/2008/09/flashinglights-paparazzi-pics-pt174.html http://theminorityreportnyc.blogspot.com/2009/11/flashinglights-paparazzi-pics-pt232.html

DJ43 POT

own life , God has given each of us the ability and recources to use to the full of our potential , it might not work the first time , or the 100th time , but you did not fail , you just found a 100 reasons why it wouldn‘t work , and there is many more times to establish the absolute right method to make things happen for yourself. I looked up a few ways to stay motivated, and positive in following your dreams. you need to establish the reasons behind everything you

Staying Motivated Our lives are so full these day‘s , even thought we think that if we were part of the older eras we would have an easier life,

attempt, you will note it doesn‘t matter how small , or useless your reason might be , it‘s a good enough reason for you to put energy and effort into something. You can establish the reasons with the following guidelines:

truth of the matter is , we would , technology is absolute necessity in our lives. Don‘t get me wrong , I support every



doing something you normally don‘t like doing at all

aspect of technology , and see it as our future , but certainly it didn‘t simplify our lives in all aspects , where in the past , you



personal gain – you will learn something new or will perhaps improve yourself in a certain way

never had to worry about loosing contact because of a dead battery or no signal , it didn‘t matter , you just send some

a material reward – quite often, you will get paid for



a feeling of accomplishment – at least you‘ll be able to

some sort of telegram . Or worry that you might miss a

walk away feeling great about finding the motivation and

meeting , because of all the traffic or because your alarm

courage to complete such a tedious task

clock didn‘t go off, those days the rooster was your wake up



a step closer to your bigger goal – even the biggest

call or one of those old clocks , that never seem to loose time.

accomplishments in history have started small and relied

Maybe you feel different , but the pressures of this era is so

on simple and far less pleasant tasks than you might be

unpredictable and this causes an impeccable stress level for

working on. Every task you complete brings you closer to

young adults. Unfortuanitly in our Era work is one of the most

the ultimate goal, and acknowledging this always feels

scarce needs in our lives, each year over 50000 youngsters

good.

matriculate from high school , and most of the business out there , view this as an opportunity to get these youngster in with the business, this is a full blown marketing strategy , as it is easier to employ someone who‘s opinion you can shape to fit your needs , than employing a young adult , with his/her own opinions and motivations in life, and who has learned the finer lessons in life. I seem to see so many of these individuals going down the wrong road , making bad choices, just to make ends meat or survive in the crucial outside, therefore I saw that the lack of motivation for the young adult is one of the biggest problems in our Era. There are organizations out there that get exited by young adults whom have a vision and know where they want to go. Its important that you know , that you shape your 44

After you have established the reasons behind your actions or reactions, you need to keep yourself intrigued with the specific task or goal you are embracing. You need to look at the task from an objective point of view , I would advise to write it down on a piece of paper , and let your mind run away with you for a moment. 2) Make it fun When it comes to motivation, attitude is everything. Different people may have completely opposite feelings towards the same task/goal: some will hate it, others will love it. Why do you think this happens? It‘s simple: some of us find ways to make any task interesting and fun to do!

Depending on how you look at it, you can have fun doing just

certain stage in your process. Recognizing is taking time to

about anything! Just look for ways of having fun, and you‘ll

look at a bigger picture and realize where exactly you are,

find them!

and how much more you have left to do.

The answers will pop up momentarily, as long as you learn to

For example, if you‘re going to read a book, always start by

have the definite expectation of any task being potentially

going through the contents table. Getting familiar with chapter

enjoyable.

titles and memorizing their total number will make it easier for

3) Take different approach When something doesn‘t feel right, it‘s always a good time to take a moment and look at the whole task looking for a different approach. You may be doing everything correctly and most efficiently, but such an approach isn‘t necessarily the most motivating one. Quite often you can find a number of obvious tweaks to your current approach which will both change your experience and open up new possibilities.

you to recognize your progress as you read. Confirming how many pages your book has before starting it is also a good idea. You see, reading any book you will be automatically looking at page numbers and chapter titles, but without knowing the total number of pages this information will have little meaning. Somehow, it is in a human nature to always want things to happen at once. Even though we split complex tasks into simpler actions, we don‘t quite feel the satisfaction until all is done and the task is fully complete. For many scenarios

That‘s why saying ―one way or another‖ is so common: if you

though, the task is so vast that such an approach will drain all

really want to accomplish your goal, there is always a way.

the motivation out of you long before you have a chance to

And most likely, there‘s more than one way. If a certain

reach your goal. That‘s why it is important to always take

approach doesn‘t work for you, find another one, and keep

small steps and recognize the positive different and progress

trying until you find the one which will both keep you

made.

motivated and get you the desired results. Some people think that trying a different approach means giving up. They take pride in being really stubborn and refusing to try any other options on their way towards the goal. My opinion on this is that the power of focus is great, but you should be focusing on your goal, and not limiting your options by focusing on just one way to accomplish it it. 4) Recognize your progress Everything you may be working on can be easily split into smaller parts and stages. For most goals, it is quite natural to split the process of accomplishing them into smaller tasks and milestones. There are a few reasons behind doing this, and one of them is tracking your progress. We track our progress automatically with most activities. But to stay motivated, you need to recognize your progress, not merely track it. Here‘s how tracking and recognizing your progress is different: tracking is merely taking a note of having reached a 45

5) Reward Yourself This is a trick everyone likes: rewarding yourself is always pleasant. I‘m happy to confirm that this is also one of the easiest and at the same time most powerful ways to stay motivated!

Feeling down about doing something? Dread the idea of working on some task? Hate the whole idea of working? You‘re not alone in that, I‘m telling you! Right from the beginning, agree on some deliverables which will justify yourself getting rewarded. As soon as you get one of the agreed results, take time to reward yourself in some way. For some tasks, just taking a break and relaxing for a few minutes will do. For others, you may want to get a fresh cup of coffee and even treat yourself to a dessert. For even bigger and more demanding tasks, you may want to reward yourself by doing something even more enjoyable, like going to a cinema or taking a trip to some place nice, or even buying yourself something. Your progress may not seem to others like anything worth celebrating – but take time and do it anyway! It is your task and your reward, so any ways to stay motivated are good. The more you reward yourself for the honestly made progress, the more motivated you will feel about reaching new milestones, thus finally accomplishing your goal. Mix and match Now that you have these five ways of staying motivated, it is a good moment to give you the key to them all: mix and match! Pick one of the advices and apply it to your situation. If it doesn‘t work, or if you simply want to get even more motivation, try another advice right way. Mix different approaches and match them to your task for best results. Just think about it: finding good reasons to work on your task is bound to help you feel a bit better. Identifying ways to make it fun will help you enjoy the task even more. Finally, if you then plan a few points for easier tracking of your progress and on top of that agree on rewarding yourself as you go – this will make you feel most motivated about anything you have to work through.

DIY seventhandfrederick

Here’s what you need:     

Shade Base Linen (1 yard should be fine) Sewing machine Scissors, hot glue, rotary cutter (optional), tracing wheel

Step one: Cut a strip of fabric for the flower petals. I cut on strip that started at about 3 inches wide and ended at 5 inches. This way the petals will be varying lengths.

Step two: Using scissors or the rotary cutter, cut petals out of your strip of linen. I cut 37 petals and had the EXACT amount necessary to cover my 10 inch dome lamp.

Step three: Cut a strip that in 2 inches wider than you lamp shade is tall and 5 inches longer than the circumference to be safe. Start at the seam and begin wrapping and gluing the linen to the lamp. Because it isn’t a perfect dome (the shade tappers slightly at the top) the material will want to pull down. I wasn’t very concerned with keeping the linen pattern perfectly vertical, so my pleats are small. The linen is also not perfectly flat. 48

Step four: Using a sewing machine, sew along the edge of each petal, about 1/3 of inch from the edge.

Step five: Pull the threads on the outer most edge of the petal. The threads at the widest parts can be pulled all the way off. Towards the top and the base of the petal, pull the threads enough to fray the edges and then trim the hanging threads so that they are around the same length.

Step six: Using a tracing wheel, trace along the sew line on each petal before you attach them to the shade. This encourages the petal to curl at the edges

Step seven: Begin gluing the petals to the shade. I began with a six petal flower, so all the other flowers are based off of that. I would recommend gluing the petals at the center (overlaping) and not gluing them at the sides and tips before you know where you will place the flowers that surround the one you are working on. This was you can overlap easily for a natural effect. Place some flower centers in the middle of the shade and some on or near the top and bottom. This was in some cases you have full flowers and in others your have partial flowers.

Step eight: The Anthropologie lamp does not have centers. I liked the way centers looked on the flowers so I made some of my own. Cut strips that are 1 inch by 3 inches. Fray all the edges. Tie a knot in the center and twist and fold the ends across back of the knot and glue together. Glue to each flower in the center.