OYSTERHOOD is reclusiveness or solitude, or an overwhelming desire to stay at home.

— @HaggardHawks

Nothing says ‘homecoming’ like waking up with Glinka on top of me and demanding her share of a rusk.

August: Women’s Day, etc. I grew up celebrating the International Women’s Day on 8 March. In Poland, it’s an affair of cakes, vodka and flowers for all women – I don’t remember much else, but I do hope that it might have acquired a slightly more reflective, feminist, dimension since then. Here, on Women’s Day, there is one text to look forward to – one that will make you appropriately angry and ready to act: Helen Moffett’s famous Women’s Day Rant. She delivered, of course, this year, too: “How to make Women’s Day even worse: just add pandemic plus lockdown.”

There is, of course, another perspective, when one looks beyond the horrors of what it can mean to be a woman – in South Africa, and elsewhere – and that is all of us celebrating women. That kind of celebration cannot and is not confined to a day or a month, but is intensified during this time. In this spirit, I participated in the inspiring Protea Boekhuis campaign, celebrating their women authors.

What else? A day of catching up with work. Going away is wonderful, but sometimes I feel that one should have a holiday after the holiday before facing the everyday again.

sdr

I did not get everything that I wanted done today, but a lot of it (Glinka, quite critical, catssisting towards the evening), so I can get into bed with Harry (next book in the series) and relax. I also have these beautiful roses from my love to make me smile:

In the morning, I had a meeting with a potential Karavan Press author. It is tough to make decisions during this time of absolute chaos. And after the latest sales (or rather: returns) reports at the beginning of the month, it is difficult to remain hopeful. Yet, I refuse to give up. Every little bit will help, so this weekend, I am joining The Alma Café Traders’ Market and will be selling books (new and second-hand) at special prices. If you are nearby, please come to support our efforts: Saturday, 15 August; 20 Alma Road, Rosebank, Cape Town; 10:00 – 13:00.

On the way to the meeting, I crossed the Liesbeek River (the historical frontier), full after the rains. Always a good sign.

Be kind. Wear a mask.

“Physical distancing remains one of the key strategies to curb this pandemic.”

— NICD