Dizzy-Dee's deliciously delightful, dainty and dangerous, daring and dazzling dark dungeon…

I have decided to do a couple of posts under the title of “Only in Africa”. I have quite a collection of photographs & funny facts to share.
This being the first post, here are two photo’s which shows a hippo on someone’s patio, sleeping with his head on the wicker couch. Now this would not happen just anywhere in South Africa, contrary to the belief of some. We are a bit more civilized in the cities, and don’t have hippos walking around. Though I don’t know the origin of these photos they were most likely taken on a lodge, or a game farm.

I did this caffeine click test out of boredom, not thinking that I’d have a very high score, since I haven’t had any caffeine today yet.  Surprise-surprise – I guess it stays in your system for a while, because I had a couple of large mugs of coffee  yesterday.  Either that, or I’m just super responsive.

Created by OnePlusYou – One Plus You

Interesting Medications from the past

Bayer’s Heroin

A bottle of Bayer’s heroin. Between 1890 and 1910 heroin was sold as a non-addictive substitute for morphine. It was also used to treat children with a strong cough.

Coca Wine

Metcalf Coca Wine was one of a huge variety of wines with cocaine on the market. Everybody used to say that it would make you happy and it would also work as a medicinal treatment.

Mariani wine

Mariani wine (1875) was the most famous Coca wine of its time. Pope Leo XIII used to carry one bottle with him all the time. He awarded Angelo Mariani (the producer) with a Vatican gold medal.

Maltine

Produced by Maltine Manufacturing Company of New York . It was suggested that you should take a full glass with or after every meal. Children should take half a glass.

A paper weight

A paper weight promoting C.F. Boehringer & Soehne ( Mannheim , Germany ). They were proud of being the biggest producers in the world of products containing Quinine and Cocaine.

Opium for Asthma

Cocaine tablets (1900)

All stage actors, singers’ teachers and preachers had to have them for a maximum performance. Great to “smooth” the voice.

Cocaine drops for toothache

Very popular for children in 1885. Not only they relieved the pain, they made the children happy!

Opium for new-borns

I’m sure this would make them sleep well (not only the Opium, but 46% alcohol!!!!!)

And we worry about aspirin for children today??

ADULT
A person who has stopped growing at both ends and is now growing in the middle.

BEAUTY PARLOR
A place where women curl up and dye.

CANNIBAL
Someone who is fed up with people.

CHICKENS
The only animals you eat before they are born and after they are dead..

COMMITTEE
A body that keeps minutes and wastes hours.

DUST
Mud with the juice squeezed out.

EGOTIST
Someone who is usually me-deep in conversation.

HANDKERCHIEF
Cold Storage.

INFLATION
Cutting money in half without damaging the paper.

MOSQUITO
An insect that makes you like flies better.

RAISIN
Grape with a sunburn.

SECRET
Something you tell to one person at a time.

SKELETON
A bunch of bones with the person scraped off.

TOOTHACHE
The pain that drives you to extraction .

TOMORROW
One of the greatest labor saving devices of today.

YAWN
An honest opinion openly expressed.

and last but not least…..

WRINKLES
Something other people have, similar to my character lines

As little girls we’ve all dreamed of growing up to become a Barbie look alike, and to our disappointment this never happens. Here’s a graphic designers revenge on Barbie, for all the unrealistic ideals she forced on our vulnerable young minds

It is about time this happened to her….

Lately it seems that South Africa is getting a lot of international attention. Caster Semenya, Winston the homing pigeon, and District 9…

It started off with Caster Semenya’s gender conspiracy. As most of us know by now the majority of opinions now believe that “she” is a hermaphrodite… I don’t have much on an opinion about whether or not a person like this should be allowed to compete. Yes, I guess it is not fair toward female competitors, but keep in mind that this is still a person – who did not ASK to be born this way. I think we should just try to keep this in mind, and search for the little bit of humaneness which still remains in us today. Read more @ The Guardian

Winston the homing pigeon got a short 2nd place (in my books in any case), where he beat the speed of Telkom’s ADSL… (No surprise here ) By the time that Winston had delivered the data card & the data had been downloaded, the Telkom download had progressed a mere 4%!! Aargh, South Africans cannot WAIT for a better connection!! Read more @ Daily Mail

And then lastly, but not least; District 9 – the very popular movie which was shot in South Africa, with a South African director, but which was also shown in the States. I’ve heard very good reviews about this, alas, I haven’t watched it myself. I’ll be sure to write a short review as soon as I have seen it! Read more @ District 9 – ABC News

As per usual I’ve received these from a friend via e-mail, and thought it worth sharing. Hope you enjoy!!

Dispatcher: 9-1-1 What is your emergency?
Caller: I heard what sounded like gunshots coming from the brown
house on the corner.
Dispatcher: Do you have an address?
Caller: No, I have on a blouse and slacks, why?

Dispatcher: 9-1-1 What is your emergency?
Caller: Someone broke into my house and took a bite out of my ham
and cheese sandwich .
Dispatcher: Excuse me?
Caller: I made a ham and cheese sandwich and left it on the kitchen
table and when I came back from the bathroom, someone had
taken a bite out of it.
Dispatcher: Was anything else taken?
Caller: No, but this has happened to me before and I’m sick and tired
of it!

Dispatcher: 9-1-1 What is the nature of your emergency?
Caller: I’m trying to reach nine eleven but my phone doesn’t have
an eleven on it.
Dispatcher: This is nine eleven.
Caller: I thought you just said it was nine-one-one
Dispatcher: Yes, ma’am nine-one-one and nine-eleven are the same
thing.
Caller: Honey, I may be old, but I’m not stupid.

My Personal Favorite!!!
Dispatcher: 9-1-1 What’s the nature of your emergency?
Caller: My wife is pregnant and her contractions are only two
minutes apart
Dispatcher: Is this her first child?
Caller: No, you idiot! This is her husband!

And the winner is……….

Dispatcher: 9-1-1
Caller: Yeah, I’m having trouble breathing. I’m all out of breath.
Darn….I think I’m going to pass out.
Dispatcher: Sir, where are you calling from?
Caller: I’m at a pay phone. North and Foster.
Dispatcher: Sir, an ambulance is on the way. Are you an asthmatic?
Caller: No
Dispatcher: What were you doing before you started having trouble
breathing?
Caller: Running from the Police.

I received this set of photo’s via e-mail, and found it phenomenal to realize -yet again – the power of the human mind and the creativity thereof. These photographs resemble something which I may have dreamed of as a child – something which was so far fetched, that I could only imagine it to be part of a fairytale. I have such an appreciation for people who are not afraid to remember, and then live these dreams. Bravo for the Mexican Architect, Javier Senosiain.

Don’t you find it amazing that there are so many people, in so many different countries, each writing in there little space on the web.  Each sharing his or her opinion, and then in turn there are people reading their thoughts.

I find it amazing to think that I am part of this revolution!  Just think about our parents and grandparents.  They could probably not even imagine something like we have today.

Today we have blogs, Facebook, Myspace, and so the endless list goes on and on.  We’re literally living in a technological overdose.

To all of you who blog, I want to remind you that we’re all part of something new and incredible.  Something which has never happened on earth before.  What a priviledge to be part of this.

I’m loving it!

After hearing about the death of DJ AM (Adam Goldstein) on Friday, I realized again the danger of drugs.

He spoke openly about his drug problems, but also said that he’d been clean for years. Though there will always be some controversy surrounding that, I think its completely believable. Once you’ve been an addict, it will always be a weakness for you, and as soon as live starts pressing down on you, that’s going to be your first place to run to.

Now, I don’t know the facts around this man’s life, but I can imagine that living such a high profile life can have its stretching times, and the only constant in this man’s life was most probably not his friends & family but rather the substances which never rejected him.

Sad to see someone climb the ladder of “success” (as they see it), only to watch them plummet down when hardship strikes. Such a pity though.