#Writing: This is what I've been up to during the last few weeks

THESE last few weeks have certainly been the busiest of my life while trying to juggle everything I love doing, of which writing content and publishing it here on Steemit is one of them and, something I've definitely neglected.

Ever since joining Steemit, I've really felt a strong need to share with Steemians some of the things I get up to in my daily life of which, bonsai has been the most prominent.

For those reading one of my articles for the first time, I've included links to some of my bonsai articles below and, if you also write bonsai related content, there will be even more details on how you could help us spread the bonsai word at the end of this article.

#BonsaiNews: Crepe Myrtle - the tree, shrub, bonsai that you'll love to have

#BonsaiNews: A sacred tree rich in history, favored both by gods and spirits and protected by man

#BonsaiNews: The art of Jin and Shari, an expert's technique at illusion of age [UPDATE]

Now, back to what I've been up to these last few weeks.

Again, for those unfamiliar with me, I am employed as a full-time journalist covering all forms of local news relevant to our area of the South Coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa - I'm sure some of you have heard of South Africa, especially in international headlines.

Despite our more than failing economy, high level of corruption and plain old weird happenings at times, our country is beautiful, as propaganda-sounding as that may seem.

So, our graphic and layout designer for the first time in years I dare not count, opted to go on a month long holiday to New York and so far, she's visited nearly every place on the map and even travelled as far down south Fort Lauderdale in Florida to go visit her brother who she hasn't seen since 2002 when airplane tickets were relatively affordable.

That means, while she was and is still away, I've not just been the journalist but, that I've also been doing the layout and design of the newspaper every week for the last three weeks, with one remaining issue to be published next week Tuesday.

Before I finalised the first paper I worked on, I had only had two weeks worth of experience using Adobe InDesign so, imagine my surprise when I finally got the paper done and dusted with no errors whatsoever, while still writing articles and keeping our local community up-to-date on news that matters.

Below is a copy of the first front page I designed. I've kept it high resolution so that everyone can read it - by the way, the accused mentioned in this article will be appearing in court again this Friday (tomorrow). Our laws in South Africa prohibit us from naming the accused until he has plead guilty. Furthermore, in cases where victims are South African, in this case there aren't any, The Press are prohibited entirely from naming the accused, even after being found guilty.

Needless to say, I've been having a lot of fun designing these newspapers and will definitely be entering a few of them into our annual excellence awards competition under the categories of Best Front Page and Best Sold Newspaper.

Now, in our tiny neck of the woods over the last few weeks, we've had quite a few protests which have turned violent as residents battle for a response on some of the most basic services not being provided while our local municipality is alleged to have employed corrupt officials - residents in the area want these officials fired with immediate effect however, procedures are required to be followed as well as an investigation.

Meanwhile, were an investigation to be done, these officials would be suspended with full pay until the investigation is concluded. Residents are also upset about this fact.

Here is a link to the article surrounding the protest action which lasted several days.

UPDATE: Police disperse more protesters en route for Scottburgh during the night

Below is another article detailing demands made by protesters:

UPDATE: Amandawe marchers to hand over memorandum to Umdoni Mayor [PHOTOS]

During my second week designing the paper, our local municipal officials again made headlines, this time when the leading party officials were not present at the time of council convening.

We also had the annual Scottburgh Classic Car Show in which cars from across the country travel to our little town and are put on display, some even sold.

Unfortunately the car I was eyeing was not for sale but you never know what happens at a future event.

Below are some pictures of some of the vehicles:

Classic cars aside, this latest edition was somewhat easier to put together however, I definitely had one of the scariest experiences while working as a journalist.

Now, I've been to violent protests before and have had a gun pointed at me, a knife drawn on me and yet, despite all the scary stuff we as journalists go through, we tend to somehow 'get over it' and get right back to doing our jobs.

Earlier this week was a different story when my colleague and I went to cover one such protest and soon after arriving, we were stoned by angry protesters who must have mistaken us for something other than journalists.

I actually ducked just in time to avoid taking a rather large stone to the head, which merely grazed me along the back of my head, no need for stitches luckily.

The stoning lasted for about half a minute but what really got me furious was the fact that we were standing right next to children as young as three-years-old and older people going well into the 80s and 90s, my heart broke watching them try to avoid being hit by stones.

Needless to say, protesters realised that we were indeed journalists and ended up inviting us up the hill to cover the story - there really is no greater fear than not knowing if you are being called to listen to what the people had to say or perhaps if you are going to be assaulted and believe me, my fear was not misplaced.

Long story short, protesters again made headlines this week and below is a copy of the latest front page.

For those not familiar with South African roadways, the N2 is a national road used by thousands of vehicles each and every day.

I've included another link to the online article which includes pictures and video.

UPDATE: [WATCH] Protest action continues at Umgababa as fires are set and road access blocked off

There is currently so much more going on in our community but unfortunately, I only have so much time to share what I've been up to during the last few weeks so, I'm going to make these last few lines about one of my bonsai.

This is a baby Black Monkey Thorn tree and it has been in training for about a year and three months now. I've taken to using a plastic fork, like one of those you get when you order take-away foods, in order to expose the roots slowly over time.

Eventually, these roots are dried up by sunlight and really will add a dramatic flare to the overall appearance of the bonsai.

Black Monkey Thorn trees grow quite easily however it may be easier for most people to grow them from cuttings but, if you want to do it from scratch, find yourself some seed, cosmetic cotton pads and a little bit of water.

Ply open the pads, place the seed and water. Do not over water the pad, just enough to keep it moist for two to three days and then add water again. Continue to do this until the seed starts to sprout and then plant it up in an area where it receives morning sunlight and shade in the afternoon.

Bonus photo - my apple seeds have finally started to sprout and soon, they'll be transplanted into pots like in the above photo and turned into bonsai.

That's a wrap.