SKIN.

Truth be told I'm scared. Despite wandering off at the tender age of 17 to Croatia all by myself and subsequently traveling solo to Senegal, Gambia and Ethiopia, I'm nervous about my impending trip to Cape Town, South Africa. 

I love Africa irrevocably, its why I continue to keep going back there. Something happens when I get off the plane it's like I've returned home to a place which both wants me to stay and wants me to leave. Everything about Africa is a challenge and a risk but its one I'll continue to experience over and over. 

This trip is blog related, I'm going to work with Save Africa on a surf project which assists township children with education and offers surf programs. The prospect of going to iconic South Africa to surf waves which are legendary should be filling me with excitement. 
I am, of course excited, but not to the level I usually am pre surf trip. 

I'm thinking about sharks, I'm thinking about missing home but mostly I'm thinking about how I'm going to hate being away from Mr Sunny. I talk a lot about being an independent woman, about striving to carve my own niche in this big wide world, but I want to clarify that as a feminist I can also adore and miss a man. I can want to be with him and not beat myself up for feeling vulnerable when I admit that I'm going to miss him like crazy. 

I've been away from home for longer periods and regular readers will be aware that I've also done long distance with an ex I used to write about *awkward* 

Mr Sunny has inadvertently become my best friend as well as being my boyfriend, at the moment we're living out of each others pockets and so its this closeness I'm going to mourn. 
Isn't it funny how certain people get under your skin, whether it be friends, love interests or family? 

Mr Sunny and I pratting about on a penny board.

 


































When I'm feeling anxious I do what I always do, I write to you guys and I hit the mat for some yoga time. Lately I've been loving Ali Kamenova's Interval Yoga classes which can be found on youtube. She conducts very athletic yoga postures which still contains an aspect of spirituality and friendliness. One of the hightlights is her giant pit bull esq dog which saunters in and out of shots *love it*

I think more than ever I need to do this trip precisely because it feels out of my comfort zone. Its ok to not feel brave all the time, actually its quite good to be scared because the strength it takes to overcome those irrational fears are what will carry you through life. 

To Cape Town! 

Until next time 

Stay Strong, Surf Well 

 

Better Together.

Vintage Denim shirt thrifted for a mere £5, happiness is a 1970's heirloom! 

Today's blog post is a homage to the musician Jack Johnson and happiness. It was because of Jack Johnson that I was inspired to try surfing, if the ocean is the vector which carries me Jack Johnson was the catalyst. If you’re a regular reader here at Real Women have Curves and Surfboards (La Sirena is my nickname), then you are well acquainted with my honesty surrounding my struggle with sadness. 

It wasn't depression because I was never diagnosed or had to go on medication but I think it was pretty dam close, the fact that suicide became a viable option at one point is an indication of how serious my thinking was during those dark days straight out of uni. 

I'm able to talk about it because I'm determined to use my experiences and surfing as a vector for positive change. I want people struggling with mental health issues to try surfing and I hope as a soon to be trainee occupational therapist, that I'll be able to apply this in reality. Surfing has the capacity to influence so I hope my outreach can include adults and young people from all creeds and backgrounds. 

I've seen Jack Johnson twice in concert, once when I was happy and once when I was on the road to recovery. Recently on the Newquay surf trip, whilst being held by Mr Sunny a new land locked surfer club member began singing better together as we watched the sunset. A lump formed in my throat and I started to struggle to keep my composure. Here I was completely utterly blissed out and like a little sign from the universe one of my favourite Jack Johnson songs played. It’s my accompaniment to life, reminding me to savour the precious gift of happiness I currently have. 

I'm incredibly lucky to have found someone like Mr Sunny, its scary putting that down in words because you always run the risk of having it sabotaged but I think, like the Jack Johnson songs have reminded me, we must acknowledge our joy. 

So anyway...My vintage style Hawaii poster arrived from etsy, its another contribution to the surf art wall so I'm a happy surfer girl! Today the lovely Mr Sunny and I visited Twycross Zoo which felt all the more wonderful being that it was gloriously hot. I overheard a child declare that they were going to I quote 'have a penguin selfie' which is lingo completely new to me. Mr Sunny also ended up helping a kid spot a yellow bellied marten by literally holding him up Rafiki and Simba style. My ovaries were clapping the scene was so utterly adorable, here's some snapshots of our highlights! 

 

Until next time, 

Stay strong and surf well
Love

Weekend outfit: Dress a £3 wonder, shades and necklace all from a charity shop, shoes borrowed from Momma.

  




Memories are made of this, long summer days, BBQ's and time spent putting the world to rites with people who make your grin ache.
Lately life has been accelerating and I've had little time to update my blog let alone contemplate and reflect on the events unfolding around me. I've inadvertently made that sound melodramatic, nothing is wrong, in fact I'm ruddy marvelous, other than tired from doing more than my fair share of night shifts! 

Being a bright eyed bushy tailed at 6am kind of person, night shifts have always filled me with a sense of dread. Even when I was a wild young thing all night parties were never my bag, it was probably the only time in life I went along with the crowd. I wanted to make sure I wasn't missing out on any experiences, but having partied all night I can honestly say it was good then but I think my raves are well behind me. Give me dawn patrol with a surfboard over that nonsense any day of the week!

The trouble with night shifts during nice weather is not only the problem of bright light when your trying to sleep during the day but constantly feeling like your missing out. This is exacerbated in British people as our weather is so changeable you need to seize a good weather day like its your last day on earth!

Being negative about ones situation is boring and unnecessary which is why I decided to use my night shifts as an opportunity to think, listen to some new surf tunes and whilst doing my work keeping a surf film playing in the back ground. I finally watched the iconic Riding Giants. Over the ironing I watched in horror as surfers took on waves the size of Everest, it made me even more vehement in calling surfers athletes.

Speaking of fitness, my South Africa trip to work on SAVE AFRICA'S Surf project is a mere three weeks away and my noodle arms are less than ready for paddling against waves which look like billowing monsters. I'm fairly certain I'm going to look incompetent and a tiny part of me hoped that when I finally went to South Africa my abilities would make me worthy of J-Bay. This is not the case but like when I lived near NGor left in Senegal I went as a complete beginner, every wave is a lesson, no ego. You can't have an ego surfing. So I swallow my pride, practice another land based pop up and get my butt to the swimming pool!! 

Shades were 50p finds from my favorite charity shop, dress another charity treasure courtesy of my mom, the photographer was a coerced Mr Sunny!

 ...Pretty things I saw. 

 

I've got a lot of love for Staffordshire Bull Terriers at the moment, so many are left to perish in rescue centres, overlooked and unloved. Perhaps my new addition should be a staffie?! 

Hope your enjoying the weekend water babies and surfing for your land locked friend! 

Stay strong, surf well
Love

Junk Shop Tales.

Does my vintage look big in this? I found this original vintage dress on a market for a measely £10.

Let me tell you a story. Not so long ago I bought a bike from a junk shop and called it Ethel. Its a classic 1960's Raleigh model designed specifically for a woman. Not only is Ethel in fine working order, I also bought her for a mere £20, a totally un-hipster price from my local junk shop! The benefit of living for most of your life in a small West Midlands town is that you start to know shop owners. Like Naggie the lovely French Muslim man who runs the gift shop Treasure Island, or my new friend who owns my new favorite junk shop. 

Junk shop owner (we haven't swapped names yet) called me over this afternoon to tell me about the bike. He said it was bought in by a man in his 80's who was giving it away because it belonged to his wife who had sadly passed away. The old man wanted to know that the bike had gone to a 'nice person.' Well Junk shop owner told the old man all about me explaining that I was a 'nice lady.' He mentioned how overjoyed I had been and that I'd returned to say thank you stating that my families dog had also taken to running alongside it. 

How great is that? Not only am I mega chuffed that I got a vintage bike for peanuts, in the process its managed to make an old man happy knowing his wife's bike has I quote 'gone to a good home.' This is precisely why I love vintage/charity shops because you are buying stories and life histories, can you say that about your river island top?  

This week I've been scouring charity shops for frames for the purpose of creating a surf art wall for my new seaside abode. Wilkinsons (to my UK readers) sell sample pots of emulsion for a measely £1.10 which is exactly what I used to jazz up the frames as well as some wave painting. As you can see the surf art is really starting to come together. 

I've also been busily crafting shabby chic flowers which is an almost free way of creating table art, all you need is some scrap magazines and sticks! 

 A scene from Birmingham, this is near the Custard Factory which is a great hub for artists and vintage! 

Here's my shabby chic flower arrangement, I'll show you how to make these in a post shortly.

 Above and below are all my own creations I've been making over the last few months. The frames were salvaged from charity shops and spruced up with sample wall paint. Eventually they will hang in my seaside home a la surf wall! 

Point Break so bad its good right?! Love this find on Ebay, it will be framed to go along with my surf wall art project! 

The sunnies (please excuse the ridiculous face I was doing duck lips on purpose!) were 50p from a Christian charity shop. Again so bad they are good right?! Amazing how ghostly my self portrait function makes me look on my phone! 

     





































Until next time 

Stay strong and surf well
Love

Ama

As women, they were believed to be better suited for the task because of an extra insulating layer of fat on the female body that allowed them to hold their breath longer than the men. With this advantage, they could also make more money in a single diving season than most of the men in their village would make in a year.

The Last Japanese Mermaids by MessyNessy Chic 

Meet the beautiful Japanese Ama women who for two thousand years had the remarkable livelihood of hunting the ocean for oysters and abalone. The photos were taken mid 20th century, by law graduate Iwase Yoshiyuki, who returned to the fishing village where he grew up to capture the dying profession of these incredible women. 

Read the full article here on MessyNessy Chic. I suggest you get yourself a cuppa because this site is very interesting, before you know it you'll be reading about Namibian Rapunzel! 

Stay strong & Surf well

Love