advice
Workplace advice for any issue, problem, or concern; from changing careers to co-working advice and decorating needs.
Two in the Morning in a Suburb I Could Not Name. AI-Generated.
The heat came off her like a stove At two in the morning I had my hand on my daughter's back and I could feel the fever through her pyjamas. Not warm. Hot. The kind of hot that made me pull my hand away for a second before I made myself put it back. She was fifteen months old and she was making a sound I had never heard from her before, a thin whimper that trailed off into nothing and then started again. Her cheeks were red. Her hair was stuck to her forehead in wet little curls. When I lifted her up she did not grab at me the way she always did. She just went heavy in my arms, like a sack of mielie meal, and that frightened me more than the crying.
By Josh Maraney10 days ago in Journal
The Corner of Lawn That Refused to Die. AI-Generated.
The green that made no sense There is a rectangle of grass near my back fence, roughly the size of a single bed, that stayed a deep bottle green all through this Pretoria winter while everything around it went the colour of weak tea. I am sixty seven, retired from teaching high school Physical Sciences for the better part of four decades, and I have spent enough of my life explaining why things happen to feel personally insulted when something happens for no reason I can see.
By Josh Maraney10 days ago in Journal
The Night the Rain Came Through the Roof and the Old Tower Gave Up. AI-Generated.
The storm that broke everything came in on a Tuesday in March, the kind of Durban rain that does not fall so much as land. I remember standing at the window of our little studio in Glenwood, watching the gutters give up one by one, water sheeting off the neighbour's carport in a solid grey wall. The air had that heavy, green smell it gets here before a big one, jasmine and hot tar and something electric underneath. I had a set of drawings due to a client in Umhlanga on the Friday, a double-storey renovation we had been fiddling with for months, and I was thinking about nothing more urgent than whether the taxi rank down the road would flood again.
By Josh Maraney10 days ago in Journal
Planning a Tub-to-Shower Conversion for a Safer, Easier Bathroom
Key Takeaways A tub-to-shower conversion can make everyday bathing easier for people with balance, mobility, or caregiving concerns. Keeping the shower in the existing tub footprint may reduce plumbing changes and disruption. Safety, waterproofing, drainage, ventilation, and lighting deserve as much attention as finishes. Removing the only bathtub may not suit every household or future buyer. Written estimates, permits, and contractor credentials should be confirmed before demolition begins.
By Solution Boxes13 days ago in Journal
Are you an excuse generator?
Weak people are professional excuse generators. Yup. Somebody has to say it. It’s their go-to move whenever things get uncomfortable. Instead of tackling awkward convos or owning up to a mistake, these types of people whip out an excuse faster than you can ask ‘what happened?’ They create excuses to avoid responsibility. They use them to deflect blame. They want to make sure they let us know the sob story. I’m sorry, I mean the back story— about how it was the situation or someone else that messed things up for them.
By tatiana vitas14 days ago in Journal
What Does Your Work Mean To You?
Sometimes it is not easy to be honest with ourselves when we have made bad decisions, or have not achieved our aims. But acknowledging why we are doing the job we do, or have taken a certain career path, could also help to clarify who we are, where we are going, or what we need to do to confidently reach that state.
By Elaine Sihera 16 days ago in Journal
