The Zündapp crash, serious injury and discovering I’m not indestructible – by Rubin van Niekerk
As young guys most of us believed that we were immune to injury or ever becoming frail especially while we were still so young.
August 7, 2026
As young guys most of us believed that we were immune to injury or ever becoming frail especially while we were still so young.
If you’ve scrolled through an interiors account recently, you’ve likely come across the term “Japandi” — and for good reason.
I bought a magnificent 130 Watt Sony sound system that could extract the magic from LP’s that increasingly reflected my musical nostalgia. Courtesy of my Film Fun Fans I managed to buy this extremely expensive sound system that tried to challenge Bose and B&O unsuccessfully but at half the price.
For decades, the story told about queer life was almost entirely one of coupledom — find a partner, settle down, mirror the milestones straight society had long prescribed.
I had to rebuild every relationship. Returning to Framesby was tough but also promising. Old schoolmates and the same old sinners in the choir embraced me in a warm welcome back.
Moving to an apartment in Central was disruptive as I was happy at school and my little milk tart business was doing fine.
My encounter with the attractive motorcycle cop left me unsettled in ways I hadn’t expected.
I missed the regular mischief Kevin and I got up to, but we were both getting older. Somehow, we had managed to keep a friendship alive since birth despite attending different schools.
Our family, neighbours, friends and members of our congregation surrounded us with extraordinary kindness in our grief after losing my dad, Nick. He was our handyman, mechanic, fearless protector and patient listener, quietly teaching us how to find peace through his down-to-earth philosophy of simply being.
Steam locomotives captured my imagination long before I understood that my father was quietly shaping my own journey.
In December 1985, I spent my postgraduate vacation with my gorgeous and heart-warming boyfriend, Dolf Claassens, on his father’s renowned farms in Bothaville, in the Orange Free State, South Africa.
For many of us in our community the spectre of religion is fraught with so many complex and deeply felt emotions.
We’ve all heard of Marie Kondo, but Swedish death cleaning might just be gentler and easier to do.
Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic raised eyebrows in 2019 when they replaced their flying pinup girl mascot on its aircrafts, with amongst others, a beefy boy wearing a pride-coloured lycra.
A solo trip to Thailand and Cambodia. Culture, shopping, incredible food and much, much more.
Hair plays a pivotal role in shaping our appearance, self-perception, and confidence. It frames our faces, conveys vitality, and reflects our unique identity.
In the vast spectrum of colors that captivate our senses, one hue stands out as both enchanting and elusive – purple.
Can you remember the first time you recognised yourself in a book?
Have you ever walked into a room and instantly felt calm — or, conversely, slightly on edge — without quite knowing why?
Given the advent of the internet, and most especially search engines such as Google, there is a plethora of information available at a person’s disposal.
Picture it…: Early 1970-something. A small Free State town named Rosendal where my grandparents lived. A family gathering. And me – the one who could never have been in the closet even if I tried.
I had to look up what the difference is between ‘misinformation’ and ‘disinformation’.
There comes a time in everyone’s life where the years have mounted up in numbers…okay, you’re older than you would like to be…, and you realise you need to slow down and rid yourself of things that require constant attention.
There are few things as controversial as the naked human body – and few things as obsessively adored.
The politically correct alphabet soup devalues our cause.
Falling in love is unlike any emotion known to mankind. You put your best foot forward, you spend hours on the phone with this person, you feel energised, you skip responsibilities, you ignore your friends.
I migrated north 28 years ago from Cape Town instead of south like most sensible people have done in Africa for 500 years.
Have you ever noticed how slipping into a sharp jacket makes you feel instantly more capable, or how a soft jumper can make a stressful day feel a little kinder?
Inspired by some of the research and a collection of essays on Viking Culture By Gunnora Hallorva as well as Adam of Bremen’s Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae Pontificum published in approximately 1080 on pre-Christian pagan religious practices in Sweden.
Polymaths usually score exceptionally well across several aptitudes and consequently excel in at least three fields, but they may sometimes blend rather blandly, whilst laying foundations for the supercharging of the spiritual and intellectual evolution of the human race.
Anybody who loves history would find societal attitude towards sexual freedom fascinating to delve into.
Ageing confronts all of us but mostly offers wisdom in return.
Your passion project or side hustle might just keep you sane, and provide a bit of income.
By Rubin van Niekerk
Move over boring! There’s a new look in town and it is gorgeous, collected and not a bit minimalist.
The term “political correctness” or “PC” came to the fore in the west in the 1970s by activists of various causes and politicians at the time.
Your passion project or side hustle might just keep you sane, and provide a bit of income.
The new, fully electric MINI model generation continues to grow: in 2023, production of the new MINI Countryman will begin at the BMW Group plant Leipzig.
The annual pride march was held on Saturday in Buenos Aires Argentina.
It is always a mistake to give up our privacy in exchange for convenience.
Actor, author and social commentator Stephen Fry has perhaps summed up the crux of what I want to say in a meme.
My journey to winning the coveted Mr Gay World title was a long roller-coaster ride. Nobody told me the road would be easy, but I was up for the ride in the name of my dreams.
John Whaite and dance partner Johannes Radebe are keeping UK audiences on their toes.
Growing up gay isn’t easy. From the confusion and loneliness to the bullying and shame, even young gays with the most accepting friends and family can have a difficult time coming to terms with themselves.
As I’m aging, the prospect of my later years and retirement are becoming more and more important. This is a typical human reaction. In our younger years, we hardly pay the thought of getting old any attention. The business of being young and having fun is most important. And that is as it should be.
Regular visits to the gym can be an addictive lifestyle choice, but can it become an addiction at a relatively older age? Or should the fast-paced house of pain be avoided?
Ikigai is an ancient Japanese word meaning something like ‘your reason for living’. Finding your ikigai is understanding what makes you get out of bed every morning. To meet this purpose, you must follow a five-step roadmap that will require a good deal of self-awareness.
I have yet to meet a gay guy who has not heard of Tom of Finland. Frankly for most boys these sketches of hunks personify their earliest experiences of homoeroticism as art.
The beauty of being a human is the freedom to make our own choices,
to discover our own style, to design and engineer our own belief systems.
For over ten years, Jono Dry has been mastering the art of graphite,
working on large scale, hyper realistic pencil drawings with surrealistic
subject matter.
The talented and openly gay South African musician, Armand Joubert (AJ), is a great role model for being unashamed about who he is both as a person and as an artist. He opens up to Jacques Botha in an exclusive interview.
The Sabi Sand Game Reserve adjacent to the Kruger National Park is possibly our favourite place. It’s a place we return to often, lured there by the natural beauty, the abundant birds and game and, of course, the people.
A previous trip to Earth Lodge several years ago had imprinted the lodge on my mind as one of the best I’d ever visited. This second visit confirmed to me that this is indeed so. It was as beautiful as I’d remembered and everyone went out of their way to make our stay memorable.
My “Coming of Age” story in the Summer edition had an incredibly good response, but almost everybody wanted to know more…