You, Me & the SABC…..
Hello my lovelies! This edition of the blog is dedicated to the good people of Morning Live. Showbiz & Live TV is another ball game & you never really know what happens behind the scenes until you find yourself there! So big ups to them for their character & perseverance to show up each day & make it happen so the rest of us can get the info we need!
When the opportunity presented itself, my first instinct was to decline because of the daunting “live” tv situation but after speaking to a few very close friends, I had changed my mind. Things were chilled for the week & I felt like I had everything under control. I didn’t do my normal pros & cons list or a list of questions to prepare, I thought all of those things would make my anxiety flare up unnecessarily.
I think it was a Tuesday afternoon that I got the call from Promise to confirm the details of what was required in terms of timing, content etc. She was very vague on what I would need to really talk about & was very casual, so I felt comfortable. She asked for my company details & website & some video’s/ photos of my work.
By the next day I thought I’d get a list of questions to prepare but I didn’t & I started panicking. I got some pointers that it would be conversational & I would be talking about my business & my goodies & that was good enough for me. Like who would know more about my business than me! Yeah right…..
By Wednesday afternoon I was a hot mess – I lost my mind & started panicking. What if Sakina asked a question I didn’t know how to answer, what about all the camera people looking at me, what about the millions of people at home watching my every move! I was beside myself & the anxiety had taken control. I told my husband to get some calmettes & hoped it would be enough to help me sail through the interview without having a panic attack.
Just so happened that he had to do a last minute long-distance trip to Rustenburg in the evening so what was meant to be a calm & preparation evening for me turned out into a worrisome one. By midnight he wasn’t home yet & I had tried to sleep but couldn’t. I thought I contracted a stomach bug but it was literally the anxiety attacking my body functions. By 1.30am he came home & I thought I’d be able to sleep – no such luck, by 5.30am when I had to wake up – I felt like death, the pit in my stomach hadn’t filled up with anything & I was super scared.
I cannot tell you how many prayers I said & we were eventually on our way. During the car ride I had 1 calmette (instructions said 5). By about 20mins later, I was feeling exactly the same so I took another. Riccardo tried to talk me down but eventually made it worst my asking if he could tell everyone about the interview when I had entered the studio. By this stage I had almost lost my mind with panic & I explained to him that the reason I didn’t tell anyone was because they would all want to message & that would make the anxiety worst. Thinking that people I actually knew wouldn’t be watching that Morning Live episode is what was actually keeping me alive at that point.
We arrived at the studio, everyone was so welcoming & professional. I was missing a button from my chef coat & I was going to sew it like I had sewn the 4 others on the way to them (missed one obviously) but the runner was kind enough to take it & do it for me while sending me to make up. The make up artist asked me some questions about who I was & what I did & shared the same of him which made me feel a little better. Then I went to the waiting room where I met someone who was going to do a “fashion tips” segment on one of the shows & we got to talking & he calmed me down the most. He could see how afraid I was & he was so cool & calm & spoke to me until I needed to go on. In the mix of it he also asked if he should video the broadcast for me for my socials which was so great!
When I entered the studio, the mic man was there with his son ready to “mic me”, everything was happening so fast & so many things were happening at the same time. Sakina did the set up of all my goodies with the help of some of the other crew. Another crew member asked if he should record me using my phone which was also so great. There were multiple cameras, I was so confused but Sakina gave me a little peptalk prior & it really did the trick. She was so warm & welcoming & down to earth, I really appreciated that.
By the time I needed to start, I had already taken 3 more Calmette tablets & they had kicked in shortly after about 35 prayers I was saying while Sakina read the viewers comments on the election poll.
I couldn’t bring myself to watch the full interview. The type of personality I am would’ve just dissected it to shreds & found all the things I did wrong. This was the longest & most fun 5 minutes of my life! After leaving, my adrenaline was so exaggerated that it felt like I was coming off a high (don’t know how this actually feels just seems like the best comparison). I came home to loadshedding & went straight to sleep. I had received so many messages by then because Riccardo decided to call & message the entire world to let them know about the interview after he dropped me off. It was absolutely surreal the number of messages I had received, some very disappointed friends because I didn’t inform them prior & therefore, they were watching the “aftermath”. It was super funny how upset they were. The consensus though from most of my friends were why didn’t I “ditch the doek”, this was also something Riccardo said on our way there, but I wanted to stay as authentic as possible to how I show up everyday on my socials & for pick-ups.
My Instagram following increased by 13 followers within minutes. My preview video to the segment was view 4000 times. I had messages from about 15 Morning Live viewers asking all sorts of things, even all the way from CPT asking about classes. I was so happy!
By the weekend when I went to church, some of the elders there had said they saw me on tv & didn’t know I could/ was making all these things, God gave me so many different talents. One even said he heard my voice from the other room & then came to the tv to check. If you didn’t know by now – my voice is super distinct lol.
I was humbled by the experience, the messages of support, pride & encouragement. I was famous for a good week after that, whenever walking into a family event or via socials – it was EPIC!
Until next time – remember to bake someone happy!.
