Role model of the week : Sasha Lee Basson

 Sasha Lee Basson

 Role model of the week.

So I have decided to add a twist to The Density. I have decided that every week,Mondays to be specific, I will be blogging about my role models. For instance,you know we have employee of the month and so forth? well, I will be having role model of the week so that you guys can see where I get my motivation from. I believe it will get interesting,might just have a public figure or 2 with an exclusive interview, never know. So please do keep following The Density to find out who will be up each week.

Anyway let me get to it.
 

She is one of the most amazing and beautiful souls I have ever met. I have known her since primary school around the 6th and 7^th grade but we were a year apart so when she left for high school it was rather kind of over, perhaps?..

 7-8 years later, I reunited with her unexpectedly through AmbitionZAR. We met at our first official meeting and I was super surprised to see that it was actually her in the flesh!.

Sasha Lee Basson just had to be the first role model on my mind because of her dedication to business. She is so young, full of life and focused. I love that. She is unique and creative. Who would have thought of running an emoji business? I have had business ideas but none of them ever landed up on emoji s. She makes your whatsApp emojis in cushions or cuddly toys. People are crazy about them and I am sure if you saw her work you would go gaga on what she does. 

She is fashion inclined so she not only makes emojis but she designs outfits as well. I look at her and her work and automatically think "you are a game changer in the Vaal and you are going big, just watch”. Sasha Lee Basson, God has blessed with a talent nobody can ever take away from you. You are really creative and that’s what makes you stand out as a young girl from the Vaal. God bless your parents for raising a smart lady like you. 

I get the shivers and feel blessed to be acquainted with you as a sister in AmbitionZAR,a sister in potential businesses and a sister in Christ. 

Keep doing what you are doing! Loads of love!

Here is a sneak peak of what Sasha does! Enjoy..

Xx

Miss Blue

Why 2(016) may be difficult to reach.

016 could have been on the map by 2006 already

so...




It's 2(016)...
Major shout out and respect to my Vaalies who are actually trying to put 016 on the map...


Let's see...  016 on the map....016 on the map...




Don't you think 016 would have been on the map a long time ago already? Think about it...
Maybe if some of our rappers and DJs weren't filled with egos or pride, by now we would have been on the map.


Vaal is actually an amazing place. Small but amazing, it is weakened by egos, pride, greed and selfishness. yes, I said it. If I were to put it in the form of a case study, I would say, Vaal is a house in between House Johannesburg and House Mafikeng.


House Johannesburg doesn't look out its window to see what other houses are doing. It is focused solely on its business, hence it progresses.


House Mafikeng doesn't kick others down as soon as someone makes it, it picks the others up and helps them reach their potential.


what I'm saying is if we are really serious about building the Vaal up, we need to focus on ONLY the Vaal. We need not worry about what Johannesburg is doing. Our biggest problem is that we are checking to see how far ahead Johannesburg is and we are trying to imitate that. NO. That is not the way to go. Let's look at us, make our own trends without throwing shade to other area codes.


Some of our rappers or those who are upcoming and making it ; before they make it,you are their friend. Once they are up there, they don't know you. You are "broke and irrelevant" to them. They become choosy, they prefer a certain calibre of people, yet they forget what their friendships started out as back in their time. They basically lack that humility for their hometown, and we are expecting to put us on the map? oh.


Then again if we want to be put on the map we need guidance from the "head honchos". You know...The now famous Johannesburg people who come from the Vaal... 


Then again, how many of them unashamedly will stand up in a crowd and say "Vaal, my hometown stand up!!!" ???


Soweto artists go back to Soweto to give back a show. Mafikeng artist humble themselves and go back home to give a show. Vaal artists currently based in Johannesburg,where are you?


I don't want to focus primarily on the artists. I want to also talk to the actors, the broadcasters, DJs, anyone from Vaal who is now based in Johannesburg under the title "celebrity". Has it ever hurt to come back home and run a show?
Look I can't say I know the challenges in media when it comes to organising events and so forth but a small "Vaal picnic" ; it doesn't have to be fancy. The newspaper heading can just be " So and So pulls off an amazing motivational talk in his or her hometown, Vaal".


and there it is, a bit of recognition. With that bit of recognition, the future generation of Vaal can easily pick up and carry on building it. We all need each other on this one.


Vaal 2(016) will be a difficult optimum to reach if our attitudes towards each other don't change. As long as our rappers believe they breathe flavoured air, as long as our artists aren't uniting or collaborating, this 2(016) may just be a dream.


Imagine an event hosted by our favourite restaurant where ALL Vaal artists come together at least twice a year, and by ALL Vaal artists, I mean EVERYONE, Sebokeng, Evaton,Vanderbijlpark, EVERYWHERE. Not just the "ex model C" rappers one side and bo m'repa ba kasi another side. I am talking about a serious Vaal collaboration. If and when we do it,let's not try and imitate too much of outside trends. Let's be true to ourselves as an area, let's invite our Johannesburg based-Vaal bred celebrities and watch the space.


2(016) does not have to be just a dream. It can happen.


xx
Miss Prudy Blue

Introducing the AmbitionZAR models!!

Welcome to the new Ambition models!!!

On the 16th of April 2016,to be precise,haha...

On that Saturday,Ambition had its model auditions at Emerald Casino and Resort in Vanderbijlpark. The team was searching for females who can work the camera shamelessly,who had the looks,brains and the sassy confidence!! The two ladies who are selected as the AmbitionZAR models are amazing! Who knew  that theVaal had so much potential!!!

I am personally shocked as to why they have never applied for Miss SA or even considered it.

I personally feel that as a brand AmbitionZAR needs and deserves only the best. God has blessed this team by constantly bringing in the right candidates at the right time.

The photos were taken by a sister who is no stranger to us as the AmbitionZAR team,Mosa Modibe. For a female in her 2nd year at the North West University,Vaal Triangle Campus,she is dong her thing! she is worth what she charges.

So without any further delays of me typing and you reading,allow me to introduce AmbitionZAR model,

Lucia Matene and Ntombizanele Dlamini

Well,done,ladies. you are officially part of the collective!

Why Prudy Blue's relationships ALWAYS fail.

 Prudy Blue and failed relationships.

Well,it is no secret that my love lives are never solid or stagnant. from this one to that one. "he's such a great guy" to "what an ass,I want nothing from him anymore!". The story goes without saying that my relationships are failures.

What could be the reason for this? Do I not have the looks? The brains,perhaps? or it could even be my body...maybe?

(giggles) Sadly though,you can never be good enough for a man who is NOT ready to handle you or not strong enough to handle you.

I am a free spirit,very expressive,I speak my mind and don't sugarcoat the truth. Perhaps my personality comes off as a bit rude sometimes or a bit too strong but actually if you get to know me I am an amazing female. I have the absolute potential to make the ideal girlfriend.

See where I am getting with this? Too many guys are hoping to find perfection when they finally get to be in the same room as me. What perfection are you searching for in me? I cuss,I get mad,I cry,I have blonde moments but above all,I also make mistakes.

Too many of the guys I have been with either leave or start acting up before they get to know me well. I know they say "a female is meant to be loved and not understood" but see,you won't be able to love me because you aren't trying to understand why I do certain things. You make assumptions,you make your own conclusions,yet you failed to sit me down and talk to me like a civil person. If you want to cuss first before you sit me down,that is fine. I usually cuss first before I collect myself. Rather a man who cusses and collects himself than a man who appears to be collected but doesn't sit down and reflect on what happened an hour ago. That's why men leave me,so to say. They expect perfection from me but forget that I am human.

Why I leave them? That has everything to do with them beginning to treat me otherwise and expecting me to be fine with it. Look,I can sit down and reflect but after a certain number of reflections over the same issue then I will not tolerate you. Besides that,my father has been treating my mother like gold for 35 years now. I have seen an example of what it means to be treated right. Why must I move away from what I see at home? mhm?

Technically why my relationships don't work out is because I am extremely misunderstood when we're together in one room. They don't try to get to know me.

If I ever found a guy who had the strength to sit down,reflect,get to know me,ask me why I behave in certain ways,believe me,it would lead straight to marriage.

Besides that,I am young man! haha,there will be someone eventually, but the main point is if guys could get to understand me and not make an image of me to their expectation or perception,then all would run smooth.
 

Girl, don't you stop praying!

If you are reading this, chances are you saw the link on Facebook and are either involved in the working field or want to be..You could also be a dedicated student who is hungry for that qualification.

Anyway, so we know the drill. Early mornings, busy days, late nights and for some of you, busy nights too.   You meet deadlines, have happy customers, making profits, recovering from losses and still manage to have yourself collected emotionally. As a student you have assignment deadlines, semester tests, exams and research and still you made it into another Academic year or passing with beautiful grades. Where does that come from?

Where do you get that strength? Do you have magic superpowers? Do you generate your own source of energy?

 Or is it He, The Great I Am, who showers you with that strength? People look at us and think we don't face any challenges, we don't have problems.  I can't tell you how many nights I cried failing at certain things in my life. At some point I was on the verge of breaking down and quitting.  At some point I was going to break my relationship with Arcon Park Primary because it was just getting too much for me.

Then I realised it was God teaching me endurance and teaching me how to fight and breaking me out of laziness.

 Now, as I'm heading closer to my dreams, I understand WHY He put me through it all.  The things I learned back then, I'm applying now and look at how they are working out for me.

I can't be the only one who knows this experience, I believe you, the sister reading this, know exactly what I'm talking about. Now you probably have more strength and more fight in you to grow yourself ,your brand or business or your academic performance.

I can't say I have grown in business, I'm still very informal with my baked goods due to the way I have set my goals and business plans. However, I am growing in the Education field. I am growing as a student teacher, I am growing quicker than I expected. When I was 18, I said "before 21 I will have signed a contract somewhere". I'm 20 and I literally signed one before 21.  see the power of the tongue?  Believe in yourself, preach Life into your career, have Faith in God and watch yourself grow. I have grown in academics, I am more focused than I was when I started varsity. My working experience links to my academics, see the magic there?  Now i just want to go beyond a degree. Can't wait to finish here and go for another qualification. I'm looking at Radio Broadcasting after this. I want a qualification in that.

 once you feel you have grown, you may want to stop or you may want to continue growing.  I fall under the side who wants to continue growing.  I come from a country where the economy is more like survival of the fittest.  We are hungry lionesses, we want the fattest buck and we are not afraid to ask the Lion of Juda to give us strength to hunt for it.

Our parents look at us and tell us they are proud of us, yet they don't know there's more to come. People are proud of us but there are people who are fighting against us. There are people who want to put curses on us, people who want to do damage.  With a God like ours, no weapon will prosper! They will strike and strike at us but those target shots will miss and miss and miss us.

So tonight before we conclude our busy day, let's get behind a closed door, hit the floor with our knees and fight our way up with a Spiritual Sword. We give Praise to Him for our jobs, businesses, studies and projects.

Girl, don't you stop praying!

Pornstars are more respectable than our "A-listers".

So here I was...




at the gym...
on the treadmill...
out of nowhere something popped up into my head.


something so unusual...




that female pornstars are actually respectable. Crazy, right?


What is so respectful about a female who shows her assets explicitly and does the dirty?  I mean our A-listers don't do that at all!




well, in my own opinion,in my own thoughts....


Pornstars are more respectable because they don't sell us dreams that they are in the industry to motivate young girls, make music for the people,dance or act. In other words a female pornstar is expected to be naked, her aim is not to be a role model to young girls, and funny enough  public she's the most decent looking one.




Whereas our female pop stars and A-listers sell us the idea that they are here to encourage young girls, support and be role models to young girls...then suddenly are the same females who are seen doing explicit dancing and being skimpy in their videos. Kim Kardashian, for one, is seen as "influential", correct?


Now tell me if someone didn't know who Kim was and they heard she was influential, they would not expect to see her post naked pictures of herself. It would shock them because her title or profile didn't describe her as "pornstar". It defined or described her as an "influential model".




feel my point?




I wasn't going to say much on this just that female pornstars are ironically more respectable in terms of that. I am not saying it's okay to be a pornstar, I'm just saying its better to be more honest and open about your title than sugar-coat it and sell the society dreams of the image you portray.


you say you would NEVER look up to a pornstar but Kim is your role model?




wow.

My awkward trip to Sandton...YOH!

You know what...I'm just a girl, I believe it's okay to laugh at myself when I make a mistake or when I face disappointment. It's really okay to laugh and carry on with life.
 
This morning at work, my sister colleagues wanted the dirt on what happened during the holiday when I met up with my former mystery fling/crush or boyfriend?  perhaps?.

Well whatever he was, they wanted the dirt!

So Constance began "and how was it?  how is he?". I replied "wethu! It didn't end well". She was shocked because he seemed nice, legit, you know...anyway I continued...
.I was surprised he didn't throw me out of his car with my luggage, because the way he was so worked up, it was frightening enough to scare flies out of the house before they even attempt to buzz in.  I was really surprised he didn't stop in the middle of the busy traffic and throw me out! What had caused the tension was a delay which eventually landed us up in slow moving, yet busy traffic on the way to Sandton...Gee, had I known he took traffic to heart I would have been a bit more thoughtful and respectful towards his time.. anyway!

 so here we are in his lovely Mercedes and we're riding along, he's playing J Cole, shout out to him for that.  So we're on the road then we face the traffic....understand that we weren't talking. So I would try now and then to break the ice but I couldn't get through to him...He was what we call a true Xhosa man.....

vroom, here we go, in slow moving traffic....then the worst thing happened to me...

.I needed to use the loo...my bladder was sending heavy signals to my brain and that time we're in traffic far from Sandton....I mean, lol, this could have been,my punishment for getting into traffic but what could I say or do.  This man probably won't let me pee and my bladder isn't exactly "survival of the fittest"...I thought to myself "oh no my bladder is going to break in a celebrity's car, oooh nooo!"

I held it in, definitely because I spoke to God....I hope God forgives me for desperstely reaching out to Him while "Can I hit it in the morning" played...finally, I couldn't hold it in, I had to start...

 "uhm....how annoyed are you? " ...He said he wasn't annoyed kodwa yoh that response could freeze hell over! I then told him I need to use the loo, and he tells me he just drove past a garage...I let it go.....tried to break the ice but....anyway we eventually found a garage to stop by just before Sandton, I assume? ....

Trying not to look desperate, I walked out, pulled my dress down and entered.  FFuck!  Another problem, they charge 2 bucks for the loo. I'm dying, I'm desperate, I'm heartbroken, I don't have petty cash on me!  How was I going ask him to give me R2?  II'm sorry but he couldn't even give me his proper attention, how the hell will he give me R2. So I bribe the auntie like "I'll reimburse you, please pay for me, I'm desperate" mind you, I don't know where I will get this R2....off I run into the loo....

I sat in there longer than expected....secretly hoping I won't find my bags outside and him gone...where would I start, I haven't been properly trained to use public transport, what if I end up in Durban trying to get to Dainfern.

 so I'm done, pulled own my dress properly, breathe and tell myself "you've got this"....I thank the auntie and ask her if in could rather purchase and swipe for something.  SShe said I could, excllent!  good shot!  Now, to look calm, annoy him one more time by walking back inside the shop....to avoid awkwardness, I rushed, pulled my card out and went back to the shop. Probably didn't notice because he was busy on his iPhone...so I grabbed 2 packets of chips and 2 bottles of vitamin water.  great, I paid 60 bucks to use a bathroom, because I couldn't ask the angry man for 2 bucks....

I went back to the car and tried to kill the awkwardness by asking if he drinks Vitamin water.  He said "no". Yoh atche!  kanthi what's bugging this guy? ??!

I hopped in and off we went....now here I am chewing my chips "kgrom kgrom kgrom"...I felt like a failure, lmao. Now for sure I felt helpless....shoo, at last we reach our destination.  Hostlilty level?  100000000!!! even our last conversation didn't end well but that's not important...

what's important is that even after all that, I actually look back and laugh HARD at myself. I have no reason to feel like I was wrong. I played my part and apologised, meaning I acknowledged my wrong side of the story. How he takes it isn't my baby anymore. I know I cleaned my bit.

This brings me to the conclusion that it's okay to have such moments and laugh or talk about them as a girl. Don't always be so uptight, laugh, live, love!  Don't be afraid!  Because at the end of the day, you can only be you and not who you pretend to be.....

Time to introduce Ambition!

You may have heard "Ambition this Ambition that".

 Some of you are probably wondering what that's all about.

 Well, Ambition, is the next best thing about to happen to the Vaal triangle.  I mean, we are tired of Johannesburg "doing it first", right?  We preach togetherness in Vaal, right?

Ambition is an upcoming production, founded by Zoe Twala, aimed at encouraging the Vaal youth to go out there and go claim what's theirs in the world.  This means youngsters interested in media are about to have a platform where they can express themselves, learn and become great mentors in the media field.

Young as he may be, Zoe is a big dreamer and stands out from the rest! As  a member of the Ambition team, there aren't enough words to use to give him credit for this magnificent upcoming project.

So, Vaal, stand up.  This is your year, this is 2 (016). Keep following the blog to be updated on what's happening in the project. Thanks for the love, you are amazing and on behalf of the Ambition team, we love you guys!

Education is the key...The key to what?

Growing up, I've heard this a lot...
 "education is the key"...

 Sure, it is but to what?  The key to success? or the key to locking the door of success? For this, I want to put myself in the shoes of a student who is studying towards a career path which is limited in job availability.

  The key to success, you say? You mean succeeding in job hunting for a good 10 years with a qualification in your hand?  You mean having obtained distinctions but can't graduate because you don't "fall under the right economic status"?

 It's funny, we are encouraged to get an education yet once we do, it means nothing for a couple of years. Our qualifications in some parts of the world are considered "weak". So even we graduate this side, what are the chances of being recognised outside our country?

 I am not saying don't get educated, I'm actually strict on education but at the same time I'm baffled as to why our sisters and brothers are supposed to get it if in any case it will  benefit the economically fit and the socially connected ones.

How are our children supposed to believe in Education if top students are rewarded iPads and models are rewarded cars and big bucks?
I especially speak about models because we add emphasis that girls should be educated to change the world and their country but it's the uneducated one or self educated one who gets the biggest piece of the pie.
It's the pretty face who gets to represent the country and not the intellectual one...

Speaking of self education. We also talk about it like it's easy.  "ag man, look for a need in the community ko kasi, o tlaba grand"...Guys?  you know I'm talking to you. 

Question is how easy is it to find a need? Even if you find a need, how easy is it to start working on it? Think about what I'm saying though....We aren't all afforded the same opportunities, that's what some people don't understand...

So when they tell us to go to school...what exactly are they telling us????

Why I defend side chicks.

So. She's a side chick, huh?

 she's the loose one, the heartless one, she's robbing you of your man, she deserves to die...mhmkay mhmkay. I hear you...

what I didn't hear you saying is "my man refuses to cut contact with her".
That might not really be my point but where I'm getting with this is that females who have never been cheated with don't understand.

Your man is the one who tells us he's single. Your man is the one who refuses to wear his wedding ring. Nobody holds a gun to his head and forces it off. He's even brave enough to have a secret apartment where you've probably heard is "the office", which he uses to entertain the side chick you hate so much.

So already, he's convinced her he's a bachelor with no children, no wife. She falls for it because just like you she wants to be loved. Keep in,mind he's promised her what he's already given you.

 She's a female, like you. If positions were switched would you think you're a home wrecker who needs to die?  Thought so.

I fell for a young man, he used the right words, right phrases, I was convinced "This was it".A couple of weeks later, it came to my attention there's a woman in his life. was I also not a side chick without my consent? What about women who date a man for 6 years and 3 days later find out he's getting married? Side chicks don't have hearts, right? Mhm, thought so.

Side chicks aren't always "I'm here to break your home". Sometimes this is a woman who is madly in love and sees a future with this man. Like you, once she finds out, she will feel robbed of what she could have had. Not every woman who "messes with your man" intends on hurting you. Like, me, there are women who would RUN as fast as possible soon as they hear he has a woman already.

 What does he do? He lies about you. He keeps you under the carpet, he doesn't claim your or acknowledge you and she's the bad one? Oh. You say she doesn't love herself because she's a side chick. What I don't hear you say is "maybe I should love myself and start going for what I deserve".
Side chicks, the bad evil women, guess what they have hearts too.

It's him who needs his ass whooped, not her. Why are you even promoting girl on girl violence? Where's the sisterhood? Because funny enough brotherhood allows other men to praise your man for doing what he's doing.

 So...side chicks are the evil ones with no feelings and self respect, right?