Mark Forrester - Independent digital designer and online entrepreneur

I’m hoping the title of this post caught your attention? Now what is it all about? Tik.

In South Africa, “tik” (a.k.a. crystal meth”) is becoming increasingly popular, and is the latest buzz word, amongst teenagers and young adults. “Tik” is a drug, a drug that is known as “the stay awake drug, that makes you violent”. Otherwise known on the street as “tuk-tuk”, “globes”, “straws”, and “crystal”.

What does it do? (taken from Health24.com)

According to users, the drug gives an immediate, extremely pleasurable rush or “flush”. The rush only lasts a few seconds, but is followed by euphoria (a high) which lasts for several hours. Users stay awake for hours, even days, during which they feel extremely active and energetic. They seldom get hungry and go for long periods without any food. Both the rush and the high are believed to result from the release of very high levels of the brain chemical dopamine into areas of the brain that regulate feelings of pleasure.

Oprah has had a show on it, and locally “3talk with Noeleen” has had a show on it, (Please note guys: I do now watch either, well Oprah occasionally, maybe, what I didn’t say that!) Both of which posted startling facts on the uprise in the users of tik in the USA and more importantly in our home country, South Africa. School girls are using it to lose weight, students are using it to stay awake. Your next door neighbour might be using it, it’s a drug that is attracting loads of first-time users.

This news isn’t that new, neither is that interesting to those of you who have heard about it but not been effected by it in some away or another. It has effected my life and my family’s life though. In less than a month, my mother’s best friend was brutally murdered by a young man painting her house, a young man who I had met, a young man that sang in the church choir in his community. He took tik and he became violent.

Then this last weekend a person I know was raped by two men, both of which were on tik. They became violent.

Yesterday, another man living in the same community as the young man who murdered my mother’s friend, became depressed, on a “low”, after the effects of tik had worn off on him. He walked into the bush near his house, found a tree and hung himself.

Does this make the dangers of tik more real to you. Maybe. Maybe not. You might need an event to personally effect you, before you really understand that this drug is dangerous. But I have given my two cents worth, and I’m telling you, don’t do tik.

My boet watched this movie on the aeroplane the other week and said it was worth watching. So I took it out and watched it on the weekend. And its every bit as good as he and Roger Ebert, the famous movie critic, says it is. One of those movies that gives you the occassional goosebump (even us hardcore men).

Ebert describes the movie as follows: “Crash” tells interlocking stories of whites, blacks, Latinos, Koreans, Iranians, cops and criminals, the rich and the poor, the powerful and powerless, all defined in one way or another by racism. All are victims of it, and all are guilty it. Sometimes, yes, they rise above it, although it is never that simple. Their negative impulses may be instinctive, their positive impulses may be dangerous, and who knows what the other person is thinking? The result is a movie of intense fascination; we understand quickly enough who the characters are and what their lives are like, but we have no idea how they will behave, because so much depends on accident. (read Ebert’s full review here).

So take it out and review it for yourself. My star rating: **** and an eigth.
:)

I’m home! Can’t believe how the holidays flew by, but they always do. I can now admit I have seen most of the different landscapes South Africa has to offer. I have driven through the Western Cape, the Eastern Cape, the Free State and Kwazulu Natal. Our journey took us to Bethlehem in the Free State, Selati Game Farm near Phalaborwa, the Kruger Park, Richards Bay in Natal, Cintsa Mouth on the Transkei coast and Jeffrey’s Bay on the Wild coast. A lot of places to visit in 10 days, but we packed in all we possibly could. I won’t babble on too much about my holidays, but just let you know some of the highlights:

• Kruger Park – seeing Lion’s mating! Can you believe it the female instigated the whole thing. The male just sat there as the lioness approached him and gently brushed herself against him. Then he got up, wham bam, thank you mam! All over in about 10 seconds. Then the female rolled over and lay there very satisfied.





• Badplaas (the smallest dorpie imaginable outside Nelspruit) – “misplacing” my wallet at Badplaas garage and only discovering it was gone 6 hours later in Richards Bay, Natal! Bleakness! Never fear though, a kind man picked it up and handed it in. Not at the garage, where it would have probably disappeared, but at the hotel next door, where he handed it over to the security manager of the complex. The security manager, Mr. Linde, phoned me on my cellphone, after tracking me through my business card in the wallet, and offered to have the wallet DRIVEN to me in Richards Bay by his sister. We were leaving the following morning so instead he couriered it to me in Cape Town, with every cent still inside, 252 bucks!

  

  I am amazed as to the honesty and goodness still found in some South African people. What a start to 2006!

• Cintsa Mouth – staying in the most scenic area in a wonderful, friendly backpackers. Soaking up the sun and drinking too much beer with foreigners.
• Jeffreys Bay – searching for accommodation for 2 hours in the late evening, not to find anything. Eventually, we tried our luck at what looked like a beach mansion offering accommodation, but looking very closed. We phoned the number on the door, and were told to wait for someone to come show us the place. We waited, and someone came. Screeching around the corner with a beer in his hand, “Gavin” threw us the keys and said cheers. No paperwork, no checks to see if we were dodgy Capetonians. We were given the whole mansion to ourselves for a night, for only 140 bucks each. 4 people in a 7 bedroom mansion. A most bizarre scenario, but a quality find.

  Check more of my road trip pictures at Flickr

So the time has finally come where I can happily say, “I’m off!” It’s been a long year, but a good year, our company has grown from a massive 2 employees to a whopping 4, that means we’ve doubled in size! Our services are becoming more and more specific and we can focus on what we enjoy and what makes us the money. Visit our company website early next year, www.gravit8.co.za, to find out more.

I’m off on a roadtrip with my lady, Xenia, and mates Mike and Cailey. We will be visiting Bethlehem, Nelspruit, a private game farm, Kruger and a bit of Kwazulu Natal. Can’t wait! Boerewors and braais, game drives and dirt roads, sun cream and swimming pools, and of course Castle and Windhoek.

So to all of you have a Merry Christmas and a huge New Year’s bash! Unfortunately, no more posts till the 9th of January most probably. But don’t miss me to much, catch you all in 2006!

Ten Four – over and out

Mark