Nhlakanipho Ngubane does the splits!

What a way to wrap up the final leg of the Roadshow! This is the important part of the journey, where the youth take to the stage and to the next level. Check out the photo of the VERY impressive dance move from Nhlakanipho Ngubane  from Pietermaritzburg… Doing the splits,  he actually tore his pants! Well done for the dance and thanks for making us laugh – ha ha ha!  Never seen such a move… From the coastal team, goodbye until next year!

Party time peeps! It’s the weekend! And for those who missed it, happy St. Paddys day for Wednesday… which is also now known as Coffee-day as you can see in Taryn’s blog why!

What a day this past week has been, with the arrival of a new college on the roadshow, the Hydro International College. We have seen all sorts of weird things, from broken fingers to black eyes to slit wrists… all inflicted by Sonya with some very handy make up skills, problem was that they look so real that at one school we had a teacher nearly kill us for what we did to her pupil, but once we told her it was make up, she in fact wanted a chopped off finger too!

Well now its time for some good old R&R and a new beginning to next week and after that… Holidays! So all the matrics have extra time to study hahaha .So I leave you with Wise Words from Watkins (WWW if you will)… If you can’t get coffee today… try again on Wednesday! Hope  you all have a great weekend!

Welcome to the East Rand!

Well, our first day in the East Rand got off to an interesting start. We arrived at Dinwiddie High an entire hour before our set-up time so we decided to get some coffee. “GPS, take us to the nearest petrol station…We need caffeine NOW!”. Less  than a minute later, we found ourselves at a very desolate spot. We saw a lady outside the shop with what looked like a cup of coffee so we asked.” Do you serve coffee here?” She relied…”Do you serve coffee?” “No, No ma’am, do you sell coffee here?” She replied again…”Oh you sell coffee here?” Huh? What planet is this woman from?! We all laughed and decided to look for another petrol station. Yippy! At last! A real petrol station will actual attendants and a shop. We asked the attendant if the shop was open and if they served coffee and he said…..WAIT FOR IT, WAIT FOR IT…ONLY ON WEDNESDAYS! I thought I was dreaming or something or maybe having a hallucination from lack of sleep. Was I in another country? Then I remembered, I’m in the EAST RAND!

Luckily there was a Wimpy nearby (I still don’t understand why we had to go through a tollgate to find it.) and they did serve coffee on Mondays and no we we were not the ones selling or serving the coffee, the staff of Wimpy were.

Despite my “frog like” voice from this silly throat infection, the first few shows in the East Rand have been awesome. The energy and enthusiasm of the learners really makes my job so much easier. Where do you get that energy from if you can only have coffee on Wednesday?;) Thank you for all the lovely comments on our feedback forms and Facebook page.

Here’s to approximately one more week of school before the holiday!

CAN I GET A HELL …hElL….HeLl…cough….cough….arghhh…yeah?! (Sorry, my voice did it’s disappearing act again. Let’s try this again)

CAN I GET A HELL YEAH?!!!!

Today turned out to be one of the best days ever.We went to the ETA Gymnasium and met a boy who is currently studying at ETA. The boy recognised Pascal from last year’s RFR show and admitted to us that he made his career choice after we visited his school (Hill Crest High) last year. It felt good knowing that we do make a difference in people’s lives. LIVE THE LIFE YOU LOVE AND LOVE THE LIFE YOU LIVE!

I can’t believe the last leg of the Gauteng tour is about to begin. What a week!

It’s never easy saying goodbye to friends and this week was no
exception. Unfortunately, a few of the colleges who joined the tour in
Johannesburg won’t be doing the last leg of the tour in the East Rand.
No more jokes, lollipops and easter eggs from ACCA, no more skits from
City Varsity, no more pranks and a big, strong helping hand from FLB
and no more radiant smiles from the ladies of CPMD. Every one of you
will sorely be missed.

It’s fun doing the show at girls’ schools especially when they’re
warming up for a play rehearsal and doing some interesting stretches.
Ahhh…Chris that lovely shade of red on your cheeks really brings out
the colour of those blue eyes! However, I think the real highlights of
the week were some of the sick dance moves from Jason and Maoi from
Krugersdorp High, Tasha from Metropolitan Raucall and the breakdancers
of Trinity House. You guys rocked! What a great way to end off our
time in Jozi.

Aah…those were the days.

Chris and I had a week of nostalgia as he returned to his old high
school Allen Glen and I returned to my first school Holy Family
College.

Chris seemed to be quite the celebrity until a girl in Grade 11
remarked that he was a real “dweeb” at school. Poor guy! No worries
Chris, everyone else still loves you and thinks you’re way cool.

Unfortunately, I didn’t know anyone at HFC because I left the school
at the end of Grade 4. (I can’t possibly tell you the year because I’d
be giving my age away.) It was weird being back at my old school, it
doesn’t even seem that long ago. The best part of that experience was
being back on the stage where i performed one of my first plays.

Durban rocks and rules! Just an awesome way to start our week, with an early start and with welcome drinks to ease the temperature at Brachet High school –  and with a light lunch  when leaving the school. Thanks to Mr MR Williams and the rest of the school! It was an awesome pleasure being at their school.  Apparently, they wish we could come more often. And a big thanks to our team –  Pascal and Mzi – that’s the spirit of team work. If each and every day was like this day, I would do shows for the rest of my life! Lastly, the rugby first team ended the show with dance and left the crowd laughing at Port Natal school.  At last… it shows that rugby boys can dance!

Fame, Glamour and A Life full of action! Everybody’s dream, right? Well all our “Fame” caught up with us today when Taryn and I had our own groupies waiting for us after the show! But when I was asked for my home address, I started to get abit worried… and Taryn was even asked for her ”Digits.” We all ended up laughing as we both turned the colour of fresh red tomatos! Thank you girls, we were both very flattered and abit embarrassed! Since Monday, we saw some killer dance moves and of course the boys winning most of the time. Today we saw the beautiful school of Heron Bridge High School, which I could’ve just spent hours looking at –  the scenery and the amazing river flowing past the school. Tomorrow is a big day for us as our show will be taped and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t alittle bit nervous, as you have all seen what happened during my first clip of my L.O project! But I’m sure with the help of the awesome schools tomorrow, it will be a great success.  I leave you with W.W.W (Wise Words from Watkins)…  Dream As If You Will Live Forever, Live As If It’s Your Last Day!

It’s a hot Thursday afternoon, the last show of the day and everyone is exhausted. Somehow, everyone manages to keep it together despite the heat and lack of energy. Chris has his regular dose of Coca Cola, Musa has his Iron Brew and I’ve got some extra strong coffee. Let the games begin! Everything goes off to a smooth start and the kids seem to be having fun but during the last five minutes of the show, we have a power failure. Hey! I thought this load shedding thing was over, Eskom…Thank goodness we had a great combination of improv skills, vocal projection and a small group of learners to ease our troubles.

If we only we lived in one of those countries where your tertiary education is paid for by the government… But we don’t! So it’s time to face facts, and think about how you can pay to get the education you deserve. Even if you have involved, loving parents, the responsibility for your future is all yours, and you need to take an interest in how you’re going to reach for your dream. Even without a fat savings account waiting for you, there are ways to get ready for life after matric.

WORK!

When you think about how much just one year of varsity costs, you might be tempted to throw in the towel right now. That would be a terrible mistake! Do whatever you can (without resorting to crime, of course) to find a part-time job, as early as possible. Sure, it means you’ll be tired sometimes, and struggle to find enough time to do everything you have to. But that’s real life – it’s only going to get harder when you leave school. Save as much as possible. Varsities require a deposit of anywhere from R4000 to R10 000 when you start a course, and if you have that money in hand, you can register. From there, you have a fighting chance to move on to phase two…

STUDENT LOANS

If you know someone with a good debt history, like a parent or other family member, or even someone who just really believes in you, then you can apply for a student loan. You need that person to sign for you, and that makes them liable for your debt if you don’t repay it, so it’s a serious business. While you’re studying, you only pay the interest on the loan. The rest becomes your responsibility as soon as you start full-time work. Any of the big banks will be happy to give you the information you need.

OR YOU CAN WORK SOME MORE!

Studying and working part-time is TOUGH. But many, many people before you have done it and made it work. There is a lot of work available for students, from waitressing to doing promotions and tutoring. Most campuses even have an office where you can put your name down for student employment. On the down side, don’t expect to get much sleep until you’ve finished your degree.

BURSARIES AND SCHOLARSHIPS

So many matrics pin all their hopes on getting some kind of bursary. We’re not saying you shouldn’t try – of course you should! But understand that bursaries and scholarships are given to the top achievers, and there is a huge amount of competition for very few of them.

GET YOUR FUTURE EMPLOYER TO PAY

You can study for free, or close to free, if you are going to be a teacher, a policeman, or a military person. There are also private companies that will happily pay for you to study, as long as you keep passing, and you promise to work for them for three to five years after graduation.

CHOOSE AN FET COLLEGE

FET’s (Further Education and Training) have, in many cases, become great places to study. They have extremely low fees (as little as R5000 per year for some courses) and certain diplomas, like electrical engineering, or civil engineering, can be done FOR FREE, if you pass all your exams. Not all the FET’s have the same high standards. Do your research carefully before you choose one.

There’s always a way, if you’ve passed matric and you’re eager to make a good life for yourself. Don’t let anyone tell you differently!