Month: Dec 2005

Hair pee hairpee Kiissymoose!

It seems when my thoughts turn to Blog they veer towards a religious theme. I think it is Jon the man that does it – he is so admirably unaligned, even when sober.
Mind you Helly raised some slightly unreligious ideas when we watched ZCars in uniform together!!
Abe seems to veer towards an anti Great Satan rant quite easily – beware the American Imperialist !!!
I suppose it is good to have a slant!!
What has really been scratching away at my random thoughts is the reason for the season…..
Gathering together & renewing ties, resting & feasting & joining the community in old rituals… expressing goodwill!

So be friendly & joyful, sing out, smile & wave .. and remember to help with the washing up!!
May your lives be increased with some happiness & silliness, whimsy & folly
P.S. The best defence to the gift of a necktie is to play the “If I was an extra terrestrial student of earthlings, what could this be used for? game…

Bloggers’ Block

Death & Damnation!! I eked out a miserywinge, squealing about the greyness of days and lifting ones eyes to the horison and that boring glare that hurt the eyes …and lost the blog somehow.
I have had to cancel cricket because of the unrelenting rain – I can see consolation in the form of an Ultimate Double Whopper from Burger King .. and perhaps a vanilla shake (things are looking up).
However, in that blog, I confessed to a sneaking, naive … no – really stupid sort of faith that what a young Irish priest said to a young impressionable altar boy (now, now, don’t get ahead of yourselves)might come true – M……, God has great things in store for you!. I have sort of in my hazy daydream type thoughts, nurtured this belief: National Hero (saving the Queen from a rampant bulldozer), Martyr (dressing lepers’ sores on Molokai); multiple Lotto winner (notable charity patron & bon vivant)Gifted Athlete (better than Jean-Pierre Rives & Lawrence D’Allaglio)……. well not yet & opportune moments have slipped away. I am now grey, plump & timid. Not your fault, God – you have been pretty generous. That well meaning nice young priest, fresh from the seminary didn’t really have a direct connect to You – I assumed it. And great things have been given – just not the material & venial indulgences of my dreams.
So strike that light & get on with real life, boyo. I’ll have to start providing for my own retirement & not relying on provision from Above.
That’s probably what this grey, dirgy lump in the throat and faint urge to headbang is all about. Apprehension of the limits of mortality.
Grow up, son: Life is hard & then we die!
Mind you, life has not been hard, DG! & DV will continue in that way.

Asi Mbonanga

…. is the title of a song by Le Zoulou Blanc, Johnny Clegg, who makes South African style music which was very challenging in apartheid days, but is now mainly nostalgic.
It means: I no longer see and recounts how leaders like Mandela & Biko were no longer seen (because they were imprisoned or assassinated)
Clegg did a concert in Auckland on Tuesday, attended by thousands of expatriate Africans, 94% white 4% brown. (The only black Africans were on stage!)
It was sad to see the people arrive, eagerly/anxiously scanning for acquaintances (I did it too). How endearing were the injections of common slang and mimicry of typical types.
The thing about emigration is that it is difficult to go back – maybe that is pride? It is still sadtough after 8 years, … I still wish I was on the passing planes winging away homewards..
I know too that I would not be completely welcomed. I rejected my heritage & left them all to survive the hard times & bleated our heartsore & longing.
Asi mbonanga iAfrica …. ek verlang aan my tuisland.