I’m sitting here, wondering where to begin. Today was a nightmare and tomorrow, I’ve got so much work to do, it’s not even funny. I will be glad when it’s over and I can crawl into bed for the weekend.

On Monday, I found out that my right front tyre had a puncture. We’re not quite sure when it happened, but Marc thinks it may have been at the Spur on Sunday night. He recalls hearing a pop. So, that afternoon, I phoned to enquire about tyres. I was told that the Durban branch had stock and that it would arrive on Tuesday. Yesterday, they arrived and Marc took my chair in to have them fitted.

The manual wheelchair does not have space for a cushion. I feel bent over or about to fall out if I use one. Usually, I manage the whole day, but on Tuesday, I could not get comfortable and my back hurt. I had to frequently push myself away from my desk, bend over and stretch. Wednesday went better, since I decided to slouch back in my chair, pull they keyboard closer and rest my arm on the arm rest.

Last night, I did a little research on African Violets and came across this site: Perfect African Violets. From what I read, I must be doing something right, since my one plant is flowering so well. I was under the impression that because they were house plants, they did not require any natural sunlight. The site says differently and that if you cannot find a suitable place to put your plants (like a windowsill), use artificial light, on a timer.

My plants are on a bedside table (more a desk, really) with a lamp next to them with an energy-saving bulb. I don’t know the wattage. The one with the most flowers is the closest to the light, while the one with no flowers is the most distant from the light. I have now rearranged my table so that they are all closer and will see how they do.

The next thing that I want to get is a soft brush, like a baby’s brush, or a soft paintbrush to brush the leaves and clean them of dust. I cannot use a damp cloth, because of the fuzzy leaves and I learnt a long time ago (but don’t remember why) that you should not get the leaves wet. That is the other reason why you water from the base of the pot, not under or over the leaves.

I am becoming disillusioned with Facebook. Or maybe just disappointed is a better description. Not of the site, which is great, but most of the people connecting to it. I suppose I could fall into the same category. What I mean is, everyone is so eager to find old friends and reconnect. Then you get the inevitable, “Hey, haven’t seen you in ages, what have you been up to?” There will be a couple more replies, a vague promise to meet up again in the near future, and then nothing.

I had a chat (via e-mail on the site) with one friend, who I’ve not seen in 12-13 years. She lives in Johannesburg, like I do. Typical start to the message, “How you doing?” etc, “we should meet up”. I wrote back that I had noticed she was in Joburg and had mentioned to Marc that I would like to catch up on old times. She still has not sent a reply.

Then there are friends who have requested to be my friend, which I accepted, which have not sent me a message at all. The site is fun, and I still check it daily. But what is the point of reaching out and getting in touch with old friends if you do not want to take it past a computer screen and rekindle the friendship that faded so many years ago?

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