A Week in the Life of a Yoylie: Typical Tuesday

Tuesdays come soon after Mondays. For a Yoylie,the week begins on this particular day. It comes with a lot of coffee,tiredness and wet clothing...

5:30 Alarm goes off.Wake up and put on snooze.Go back to sleep.
5:35 Get up.Collect things for a shower.Realize some one has beaten me to the bathroom. Sit on bed trying to stay awake.Fail.
5:50 Wake up and rush to the shower.
6:05 Pack backpack with the day's essentials such as batteries,2 minute noodles and hair elastics.
6:15 Read Bible.
6:45 Go downstairs.Eat Pronutro while watching Morning Live.
7:00 Go downstairs (to ground level) to wait for lift.
7:05 Run upstairs to collect various forgotten items.
7:10 Go downstairs to wait for lift.
7:15 Wait.
7:20 Wait.
7:25 Wait.
7:30 Get in the car.
8:00 Arrive at church and make coffee.
8:10 Go down to the Yoyl Room. Put things in locker. Take off shoes (if indeed wearing any)
8:15 Grant arrives and gives the day's schedule...twice. Grant writes the schedule on the whiteboard and explains it again.
8:30 Stack about 300 chairs and move them from the small hall to the auditorium. Arrange chairs incorrectly.
9:15 Mix 20 litres of juice in large bottles. Stack 150 plastic cups. Set up 2 trestle tables with 5 jugs of juice and 50 glasses.
9:30 Get called back to rearrange chairs. Collect tennis balls,soccer balls and cones.
9:45 Go down pre-school and collect a group of about 20 6 and 7 year olds. Teach them to throw,catch,kick and run. Play duck duck goose and tag.
10:15 Return group and collect about 25 5 year olds. Repeat exercise with less success.
10:30 Return group and collect about 15 2,3 and 4 year olds. Show them how to catch a ball. Stop them from running away. Comfort crying ones. Give up teaching them to throw. Play duck duck goose.
10:45 Return group. Go back to the Yoyl Room. Have coffee. Wash dusty feet and pack away equipment. Eat a few bites of lunch.
11:00 Tidy and vacuum 5 storerooms.Wash 2 cars. Get a bucket of water thrown over me. Have coffee.
12:30 LUNCH TIME!!! Have coffee.
13:00 Go down to Yoyl Room and wait for Grant.
13:15 Vacuum behind curtains in small hall.
13:30 Have coffee.
13:40 Wash 3 cars.
15:30 Go down to Yoyl room for coffee.
15:45 Check church grounds for litter.
16:00 Meet up in the Yoyl Room to be released. Unpack locker.
16:10 Make 2 minute noodles. Hang out on cappuccino counter till waiting for lift.
16:30 Leave.
16:50 Arrive at home. Shower.
17:10 Find something to eat.
17:30 Read.
18:00 Eat supper.
18:45 Wash dishes.
19:00 Chill upstairs.
19:30 Home group.
21:30 Have Milo and Rusks
22:00 Go upstairs. Log onto Mxit.
22:15 Journal.
22:45 Get in bed.
23:15 Get up and brush teeth.
23:20 Get distracted by Blue Like Jazz.
00:10 Put book down and go to sleep.

And that,dear cyber space,is what a Yoylie does on a typical Tuesday.

Yoyl Room Wall

A Week in the Life of a Yoylie: Mundane Monday

Because of Sunday being a full working day,we yoyls get Mondays off. While the rest is welcome,Mondays are fairly boring..

5:30 Wake up.Realize it's Monday. Go back to sleep.
6:00 Wake up and panic. Realize it's Monday.Go back to sleep
6:30 Jump out of bed. Realize it's Monday. Get back in bed. Go back to sleep.
7:00 Wake up. Realize you've done it again. Go back to sleep
8:00 Wake up.Get fed up with waking up. Get out of bed and read.
8:30 Wander around.
9:30 Go downstairs and eat meusli,because today there's time to spend hours chewing through oats and seeds,while watching TV
10:00 Wash bowl.Check facebook.Load the week's photos.
10:30 Read Bible and journal
11:30 Put on a kilogram of subscreen and walk up to the university for the free lunch hour concert.
12:00 Realize we left early again. Hang around trying to look like students instead of loiterers.
12:15 Watch concert.
13:10 Start the long trek home.
13:30 Arrive home and collapse on couch
13:35 After downing too much water,eat lunch while watching something constructive and stimulating,such as the cricket or Tube.Log onto Mxit
14:00 Tidy room.
14:15 Discover the wonders of long lost bubble mixture and floor fans.
14:20 Stop filling the room with bubbles and tidy.
14:30 Read some of a book I thought was lost
14:40 Tidy room
15:00 Journal,try catch up on the whole week's activities.
16:00 Reply to emails.Check facebook..again..
17:00 Set the table for supper.
17:15 Fall asleep.
17:30 Read.
18:00 Eat supper
18:30 Chill at the table.
18:45 Wash hands and clear up.
19:00 Shower
20:00 Watch Survivour.log onto Mxit..agin
21:00 Have Milo while discussing Survivour.
21:30 Brush teeth.Read
22:00 Log onto Mxit
23;00 Fall asleep.

 And that is my Mundane Monday..

Coming Soon To A Blogspot Near You

I have neglected this little spot of mine for some time now. Why is this,you may ask. The answer to that question is the same as nearly every question asked of me lately. YOYL. Where did you get that bruise? YOYL. Why are you so tired? YOYL. What have you been up to? YOYL How does one paint a wall,a ceiling,wake at 4:30 to cook,stack 500 chairs,wash 200 dishes,make a 3D heart,bake 27 batches of shortbread,visit an orphanage,learn how to lay carpets and burn CDs,wash 5 cars and teach ball skills at a preschool all in a single week? YOYL. YOYL stands for Year Of Your Life. It is a year given wholly to the service of a church called Redpoint. Over the next week I will cast some light on my current situation in a series of blogs I have named,oh so originally,A Week In The Life of a Yoylie. Coming soon to a blogspot near you..

Eagle has left the nest...

“If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together.. there is something you must always remember. you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. but the most important thing is, even if we're apart.. I'll always be with you.”-Winnie the Pooh

My whole life in a few suitcases..

Unlike most people,I never wanted to grow up and leave home. I was never going to take a gap year or leave home,until I was married. By some strange twist of (God orchestrad) events,the opportunity to study fell through. The job I was going to do instead became unavailable. Rather than take a lazy year,I am now doing a gap year in Pinetown and living in Durban. Despite all my earlier desires to remain at home,I became the first to leave. With my entire life packed into three large suitcases and four small bags I left Springs for a a home across the country. I exchanged friends for strangers,dry air for water logged air,my family for a rag bag collection of 13 people aged 18-20. I swopped absolute dependence for total independence,Spring's paleness for Durban tan and lay days for 8-4 work days.I miss my cat,my ragged couch,my crazy,amazing little sister,my beautiful Mawma,my obsessed father and brother and my best buddy,my Twilight-comrade,late-night chatterer,absolutely awesome older sister. Like a pilot carries a photo of his sweetheart in his plane,I carry my family with me on my journey. .Even though my metorphorical wings of independence are small and rather weak,this birdy has flown the coop. It's going to be a glorious flight...

Out of the mouths of babes..

By doing babysitting and Toddler's Sunday School (pretty much the same thing),I get to see a glimpse of the smaller species' inner workings. They have the most amazing opinions on love,food,hairstyles and ife in general..

"I had lunch! Gum is lunch coz you chew it."- Dominic,5

"When we're done here,are we going to another planet?" "Heaven" "Yeah that planet"-Dominic

"I will love my sister so much,I'll let her scribble on my bed..with pink"-Dominic

"I gotta die next week,coz I never saw Jesus.But I'll come back"-Dominic

"Is Gavin gonna marry your sister? He gave her a hug today,and he used both arms"-Troy,8

"We buy food at Lick n Pay!"-Kirsty.4

"I love that game with the baked beans!"-Robyn,5  (bean bags)

"Zoe is like her hairstyle,all bouncy. It's like you,you have long thin hair.."-Che,9

"The boat is like Jesus,it can walk on water.''- Gemmah,4

"If the dog jumps on you,say 'bees'.Everyone is scared of bees"-Dylan,5

"Go away now!I want to take my pants off"-Mark,5

"You always wear the same scarf.Are you poor?" Kirsty,4

"I weared the pink dress coz you like pink and now we can be friends and I can follow you around"-Jordan,6

They're amazing.

There goes one...and here comes another

Step back
Stop the world
Stop the time
It's always running
Just trying to catch my breath
Just trying to take it in

Unfold and calculate
Concentrate and reach for something

Here's to the good times
The bad times
The times that could have been
To the wrong times
The right time s                      -Prime Circle

2010...from starting matric,to the world cup to losing two amazing friends and making even more,ladies camp,nights at the duck pond,and more studying than anyone should have to endure,trips down to George and Pinetown,double Christmas and a very wet new year's,it's been a roller coaster ride of note. The soccer was not all that exciting to me. Matric,despite all the encouraging it's-not-so-bad comments,was H.A.R.D. Final exams were awful. People I thought would be around for forever left. People I thought I'd never talk to became closer than family. Some memories I'd like to erase,others I never want to forget. I never wanted to finish school,but 2010 didn't listen,it just kept going. The world did indeed keep turning. Last night in the rain,the year left,and in came another =) happy new year oh cyber space =)

This Is Me,The Big Kid

This me,Helen Dean. Who are you and why are you reading this?
Having recently matriculated and turned 18,I hereby promise to become as adult-like as possible.I will not stay up late for no reason,unless I really feel like it.I will not go on mxit when I should be doing something else,except if I'm bored.I will no longer spend ridiculous amounts of time on Facebook,unless I need some social interaction,have to do a quiz,send a button or update my status.I will be more responsible,except when I'm being irresponsible.I will not laugh hysterically or be stupid,unless my mental health requires it or it's Friday.I will not act like a lunatic in public,except if I'm with my friends.I will stop being obsessed with Twilight and Jacob Black,unless I can no longer quote the movies or haven't read the books for a week.I will stop consuming insane amounts of coffee,except if I'm at church,Coffee Bar or home-group or if I'm tired,thirsty or some one offers me some.I will keep a blog diligently,unless I have other things I'd rather do,like sleep or eat chocolate.


I will use words like,"Good Evening" and "Fantastic" instead of "Wootzarby" and "Awesomenistic",unless the person I'm talking to is under 70.I will not fake a British accent,except if I'm saying "Good Evening" or "Fantastic".I will stop saying "Purple is my favourite number in the alphabet" unless I am speaking to little kids,my friends or other alien creatures.I will not write run on sentences they are hard to read except if i want to see how it will be read aloud it will be funny.I will stop drawing on my shoes,unless I have a pen that works.I will behave,be neat and be silent,unless I am awake.I will not chew gum while someone preaches,except if it is after 7 a.m.I will eat more vegetables and less McDonalds,unless the McDonalds tastes better.I will not play my music loudly,except if I'm home alone or if I like the music.I will never draw cartoons in random places,unless I'm not baking scones.I will keep my opinions to myself,unless Some one asks me or I fell like sharing them.I will always finish my sentences,except if.I will become mature and responsible,unless I'm being me.