Diary of a Daydreamer, I bid thee farewell

It is a bittersweet day as I bid thee trusty 4-year-old blog farewell and migrate over to my second chapter on the bloggersphere that I'd like to call "State of Wander." 
In honor of Diary of a Daydreamer, I would like to say that this has been a place that has seen me grow from a young day-dreaming girl into a woman who puts dreams to flight, and I will ever be thankful for the opportunities it has provided me, especially those of self discovery and expression. 
I'll never forget the weeks spent fumbling around trying to create my very first blog, and the ear-to-ear grin as I clicked 'publish' on my very first post, or the feeling I felt when the first follower was gained, first comment received and even first appearance the blog had in a local magazine. But, perhaps my favourite moments out of this blog have come when I've received messages, both personal and anonymous from those dotted across the globe who have found this to be a place they love to visit, and receive doses of inspiration. Through this little piece of the world wide web, I've been able to help and inspire others to embark on their own blog ventures, and knowing this, has made the past four years and 353 posts utterly and entirely worthwhile. I know I'll visit this place often, perhaps even bring my children here and show them what their 17 year-old-mother got up to in 2010, and it will always be dear to my heart, hence the reason I'm leaving this blog live, and will do so until the day blogger decided it'll be no more. 

So, as I wave goodbye to a place that has been an online journal, scrapbook, resting place for thoughts, ideas, inspirations and memories, I truly hope that all my brilliant and wonderful followers would wander over and join me as I start afresh in Chapter 2.
But before I go, I'd like to propose a toast:

To Diary of a Daydreamer. To 353 posts. To four whole years. To 150 lovely followers from the globe's many corners. To transitioning from teenager to grown-up. To fumbling around on blogger and managing to create something wonderful.  To putting dreams to flight. To California diaries. To thoughts, ideas and inspirations. To traveling the world. To making friends with accents. To deciphering html. To starting afresh. To waving goodbye, whilst saying hello. 

So, won't you join me over at State of Wander, feel free to visit often and always drop in and say hello. 

One Direction 'This Is Us' Giveaway

As many of you know, very soon I will be launching a brand new blog that will take the place of Diary of a Daydreamer, but before I do, I wanted to out with a bang and end off this amazing 4-year blogging stint with my first ever blog giveaway!

Two weeks ago, I was lucky enough to have been given complimentary tickets to a secret screening of the brand new One Direction movie "This Is Us," and whether you're a fan of this English-Irish boy band or unfamiliar with their work, what could be better than a cute boy or five, right? 

This movie that takes an in-depth and behind the scenes look at the life of these easy-on-the-eye pop stars is a definite must see, and if you're a lover of their wholesome, catchy tunes that have power to get anyone's toes-a-tapping and heads-a-bopping, then pencil the 27th of September into your diary and get in on the nationwide premiere action. 

"This Is Us" is your all-access pass into the touring life of five British Blokes, who went from the boys next door to international pop sensations through competing on the X-Factor show and proving to the world that there's still room for one more boy band. These five talented young men open up about what's it's really like to be One Direction in this inspiring movie about life, times, concert life and dreams fulfilled. 

If you are a 1D fan like myself, then you'll want to enter this amazing giveaway that I'm hosting in conjunction with Vodacom Color  and stand a chance to win yourself a jam-packed One Direction This Is Us hamper. The lovely team from Vodacom Color sent one of these amazing hampers my way earlier this week and I'm loving all the #IDThisIsUs gear and can't wait to give away another one of these hampers to one lucky blog reader!

The hamper consists of the One Direction "Take Me Home" CD, a Vodacom Color journal and laptop pouch, a 1D T-Shirt and two tickets to any Ster-Kinekor movie of your choice.

To win, all you have to do is comment on this post and tell me what your favourite One Direction song is, and then tag me @jessicaleeswart #VodacomColor and #1DThisIsUs in a tweet. Easy enough? I think so. 

Good luck follower friends and I'll be announcing the lucky winner on Friday September 27th 2013. 

(T&C's - Winner must live in South Africa. Winner will be selected at random) 

Gangs of Ballet - Day Dream

Everybody, Everybody, tune in to 5fm this arvo at 4pm for the Fresh Drive with DJ Fresh and listen to Gangs of Ballet's latest single "Day Dream." I've had the delight in having a little sneak preview of the song and let me tell you, it's a cracker. Good times for South African musicians, we are so proud of you! 

Exciting News...

Hello friends and readers,
As per one of my previous posts, I am currently in the process of creating an entirely new blog that will take the place of Diary of a Daydreamer. The reason for this is that I feel that I personally have evolved beyond what this blog is able to keep up with, and I'm ready to hit the bloggersphere with a page that better reflects the person I have become, as I started Diary of a Daydreamer when I was just a teen with very limited knowledge of the online world. 
Although I will soon no longer be posting on here, I will not be deleting this blog, but rather having a referral URL to my new site, so all of those who would like to follow me over to my new page are most welcome to do so, and I would love your support. 
So, stay tuned for the launch of the my new blog. I am most excited about it and can't wait to disclose the new name, look and site URL to everybody.
But for now, I'm enjoying my last few posts on Diary of a Daydreamer, and stay tuned for more info regarding my new project.
xxx

Mr Price Pro Ballito

This past week I got to work at the Mr Price Pro Ballito, an event I absolutely love as not only do I adore the sport of surfing, but the event takes place in my neck of the woods, practically in my back yard.
It was so divine to be a part of the event buzz and hear all the foreign accents meandering around the beaches and taking to the Ballito waves. Apart from the final day, the weather wasn't the greatest, but despite that, the crowds flocked to the beach to show their support. Good form Ballito, good form. 
The event was flippin' amazing, and I was so proud of our Saffa surfers Dylan Lightfoot, Beyrick de Vries and Jordy Smith for surfing outstandingly well. In the end, it was Jordy Smith (SA) and Julian Wilson (Aus) that went head-to-head in the final, and my God, I have never seen surfing like that in a final in my life. The hugest airs were being punted and landed, turns were being smashed and perfect 10 waves were being ridden. It was an edge-of-your-seat-bite-your-nails kind of 30 minutes as we supported our local man Jordy who ended up placing second to Julian Wilson who took out a well deserved win of the event. 
The prize-giving ceremony was loads of fun and I got to stand under some champagne showers as the boys celebrated their results. Such a beautiful day watching the world's best do their thing on Ballito waves. I already can't wait for next year! 

 (Yours truly in the green shorts on the far left)

Congrats to Jordy and Julian!

{All pictures from the Mr Price Pro website}

On Location

You know, the more I come to think of it, Durban isn't the smallest place. I mean, it's no NYC by any stretch of the imagination, but for the small town vibe it has, it really isn't a small town. Anyway, in true Durban "small-town" style, I had been back in the country for all of a week and already I'd received a call from a good mate who happens to be in one of South Africa's most popular bands, Gangs of Ballet, asking me if I'd like to be in their new music video. I love how Durban mates can always be counted upon to hook you with the sweetest deals. Anyway, needless to say I said yes despite wondering how my experience in film, or lack thereof, would fair in front of the camera. 

Last Saturday, I drove up with the Gangs guys in the band van to our location in the KZN Midlands and we began filming the video for their newest single 'Daydream' at golden hour. It was the most magnificent setting and there under the trees as the setting sunlight illuminated the countryside, I had my first experience in front of a film camera. The filming was quick and effortless and I had the most fun taking direction from the crew and putting their vision into action. Had a little peek at some of the footage afterwards and the crew did a phenomenal job at capturing the scene. I can't wait to see the final edits, so stay tuned because I'll share the vid on here once I get the link. 

Also, come and join me in supporting Gangs of Ballet as they play a live show at the Mr Price Pro weekend concert on July 6th at Salt Rock beach, and check out their page for tour dates and album release updates. 

Thanks so Brad, Josh, Jono, Migs and the film crew, such a treat to work with you all. 

After four months of silence... She speaks!

Dearest followers, I am in fact still alive and kicking despite my four month silence on the www. 
There simply isn't an explanation for my unplanned sabbatical other than I simply got "too busy." Yes, yes, I know that sounds pathetic, and quite frankly, it is, but in my defense, a whole lot of 'life' happened to me all once during my absence and before I knew it grown-up things like priorities and relationships sneakily crept their way above blogging on my list of daily activities. Ironically, time management was even a little skill I attempted honing in, but evidently that was a flop. 

Anyway, over a series of posts, starting from now, I'll shoot some breeze and catch Diary of a Daydreamer up with the happenings of my life from then until now. It's actually a little bit humorous as to the fact that most bloggers would give their front teeth for a backlog of interesting content to write about, but here I sit, almost a bit deterred at having to recap on too many monumentous (is that a word?) occurrences. I mean, the list goes from a 2 week long road trip along the Californian coast with best friends, to graduating my second year, to meeting the man of my dreams, to a fourteen day trip to England, to sipping coffees in Portland to moving back to South Africa, and everything in-between. I wasn't overreacting at the "whole lot of life happening to me all at once" bit, can you see?

And also, although my thoughts have not been colliding with the pages of my blog for a while, this little piece of personal cyberspace has been on my mind a fair bit. As one who always likes to shift, change and improve, in my own daydreams I've been brainstorming what the next phase looks like for my blog. I am actually 95% sure that I am going to be closing the final chapter of Diary of a Daydreamer very soon, only to open up a new book, I mean blog, and start afresh. I shall explain why and how and when in a later post, but I thought I'd maybe ask my followers for some thoughts on the idea? I think it's time for a change, as I feel my life has grown and evolved above and beyond what this little blog is capable of keeping up with. I'm thinking: name change, design and logo change, content alteration, the works. Good idea, yay or nay? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

With Love,
Jessica

When I spent three months roaming around Australia in twenty ten, I made a number of insightful discoveries. I learnt that Australia is South Africa's cheeky and more trendy cousin, that you really can get away with calling stranger 'mate,' that Aussies are in fact coffee snobs, and that the country is a hub of creative brilliance. One of my most loved discoveries made in my three-month trip, was surprisingly not Max Brenner's white chocolate chai's, but actually Triple J radio.
Every year during the 'Australia Day' weekend, this alternative radio station launches their Hottest 100, a poll of the most loved songs amongst its listeners. This countdown of trending tunes has become an annual Aussie tradition and is usually accompanied by a barbie and an obligatory beverage.
I am yet to actually experience an Australia Day in all it's summer warmth and barbecuing glory, but it's one the bucket list and should be ticked off in the not too distant future. Until then, I'll just be experiencing the good vibes via Triple J. 

I've been listening to the Hottest 100 of 2012 all week on Spotify and it's one heck of a playlist.
My favorite song at the moment is 'Feel The Love' by Rudimental, but you can check out the full playlist on Triple J's website by clicking here

I beg your pardon?

This year means prioritizing more time to expand and explore my graphic design skills, even if it means taking a whole hour just to chose the perfect font. Here's a project I worked on tonight; typography meets quirky quotes. 

It seems that I took an unintentional blogging sabbatical, but alas, I'm back and reading to make 2013 my blog's best year yet. 

The irony here is that I've probably had more blogpost-worthy material in these past two months than I've ever had, but I guess my busyness has been inversely proportional to the spare time I've had in which to document all my adventures, finding, memories, thoughts and photographic memorabilia. 

From the time I wrote my last post until now, I spent my second Christmas in the USA and also my second Christmas away from home, family and festive season traditions. It was a divine Christmas nonetheless and I was spoiled rotten as I sat under the tree and unwrapped an iPad send overseas by my parents. Not to mention all the Australian delights that were brought here with my friends Emma and Rachel who flew over to spend Christmas with me. These included the Frankie Magazine journal that has been on my wishlist since before Channing Tatum had abs, and then of course the 50th Edition of Frankie Magazine complete with a hand stitched cover. Of course no Australian present would be complete without an abundance of tim-tams and a tub of Lucas Papaw ointment. Let's just say I felt like a kid on Christmas. 

Another of my adventures included a 2 week long road trip down the Californian coastline with my Aussie girlfriends. We hired a car, set our cruise control and with our Starbucks in hand and blaring chick-tunes, we drove down the 101, thriving on being young, single and having nothing but the open road ahead of us. We visited Santa Barbara, Malibu, Santa Monica, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Laguna Beach, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, San Clemente and San Diego. It was the road trip to top off all road trips, and I practically got writers cramp from checking so many items off my bucket list. 

The girls and I waved goodbye to 2012 whilst sipping red wine and watching the sun set into the Laguna Beach ocean, and welcomed in 2013 with a seafood dinner in the Newport harbor. I feel even more madly in love with OC, and I will tell my children's children of our great road trip and the adventures of the Sisterhood of the traveling Vans. 

In other news, I started the second semester of my second year and now I face decisions of what lies next for me. To be in California for third year or to return to South African shores is the prominent question on my mind. I must say, it does feel great to still be only twenty years old and know that whilst I have so much under my belt, the world hasn't stopped being my Oyster, but instead the adventures that lie ahead are sure to outnumber those that lie behind. 

I also found myself a handsome Australian bloke who I now call boyfriend, and he has ensured that my 2013 has gotten off to a sterling start. 

Despite being busier than I've ever been and having to put on my big girl pants and get serious about time management, this little blog of mine is so close to my heart, and although it has somewhat slipped to the bottom of my task pile, I want to ensure that this year really is my blog's finest hour. 

I have so many plans, ideas and creative imaginings regarding this little piece of cyberspace, so stay tuned for a great year here at Diary of a Daydreamer.

Love to all my faithful followers,

Jessica