Boots & Bones

Moved

2008-09-15T17:25:00.001+02:00

I have found that it is more pleasing to chat about wine alone so please find me at my new blog:

www.investigatinggrapes.blogspot.com

What I want most

2008-06-26T11:26:00.001+02:00

More than a decade ago I was privileged enough to taste and fall in love with that sweet, precious nectar that is: Le Petit Liquorelle Petillante. This special 200ml drop bottle of rich amber champagne liqueur was first made by Moet and Chandon in the 1980's. It's composition is a guarded secret but apparently it's a clever blend and fermentation of champagne and brandy. After a process that takes many years, a delectable and ever-so-slightly-bubbly liqueur is produced.

To my horror and disgust, this wonderful drink was discontinued in the mid 1990's and I have been without ever since. I have often kept track of the sale of a lonely bottle here and there on eBay and recently found 9 bottles for sale from a reputable cellar in Spain - way out of reach and price range! Each bottle is priced at a mere 16 Euros, which is more than affordable. The postage per bottle to South Africa, however, is 32 Euros which puts the cost per bottle at around R600. I found these precious bottles a few days ago and have been dreaming about that taste (I can remember it as if I had a sip yesterday) ever since. The only thing keeping me from purchasing a bottle or two or three is a short mantra: "I have rent to pay, I have rent to pay, I have rent to pay."

If you are ever lucky enough to find, buy and enjoy one of these rare treasures of bottled poetry, be sure to have one small sip in honour of those who will never taste that sweet, decadent pleasure and to those who might never taste it again.

On hiatus

2008-02-17T20:49:00.000+02:00

I will be back when time permits.

Good holiday / Bad holiday

2008-01-04T00:18:00.000+02:00

I went to Umdloti (pronounced um-shloti) in Kwa-Zulu Natal for a short holiday. It is a lovely place but I can't decide whether or not my holiday was good overall.

Good Holiday

Umdloti is a beautiful place with a warm sea and perfect sunny days.

I stayed in a very nice holiday apartment that had an incredible view.

It was close to Umhlanga and Durban.

There are many interesting shops and restaurants.

Very friendly and helpful locals.

I got to go target archery shooting with some archery champions – was so much fun!

The sun rises at 4am and sets at around 7pm, so you have nice long days.

Spent New Year’s on the beach, watching an awesome fireworks display with a rising orange moon and the sea as a backdrop.

Spent some quality time with family.

Bad Holiday

The place has 100% humidity and part of the beach has been washed away by storms.

The damn monkeys kept coming into the flat to look for food and destroy the kitchen.

Lots and lots and lots of people.

There was not enough holiday eye candy.

I got a really nasty sunburn on the archery day and now I have peeling lizard skin.

I had lots of work to do, so I didn’t get to go out as much as I would have liked.

I got a bit drunk on New Year's Eve and said the word “fuck” a lot because my laptop (with all my work on it) had been stolen earlier that day.

I didn’t get a New Year’s kiss from a cute guy.

I don't feel very rested but at least I got to go elsewhere, saw a place I had not seen before and had some fun with family I don't see often enough.

A quick tour

2007-12-06T11:39:00.000+02:00

My research takes me to all sorts of places. Those of you who stop in here often will recall my last research/holiday adventure in Namibia. This time, I traveled through my own country, making sure I took the scenic and historical routes. The first stop on my journey was Mossel Bay, a historic city that dates back to 1488 when Bartolomeu Dias sailed into the bay. It’s a lovely town with many historical buildings, museums and a very smelly seal island.

I then drove through spectacular Frontier country on my way to Grahamstown to look at skeletal collections housed at Albany Museum. I don’t really like Grahamstown. I love that it is steeped in 1820’s Settlers history, has an amazing cathedral and fantastic university but the town itself is dodgy. Accommodation is very expensive and fairly crap and the locals, although colourful, can be quite unfriendly. I am, of course, in the minority when it comes to disliking the place and this comment is sure to be met with scorn and contempt by ex-Rhodes University groupies. The drive north through the Eastern Cape towards my next stop, Bloemfontein, was breathtaking. I can’t say the same for Bloemfontein itself. Granted, I did not stay there long enough to enjoy the sights of the predominantly Afrikaans city because I was located at a research centre in Florisbad (it’s about 50km away from Bloem where only jackals, rats and mosquitoes keep you company), but most people have only good things to say about the apparently funky city.

A short drive from Bloem took me to Kimberley. What a nice place! Lots of diamond mining history (the Big Hole really is huge!), rock art sites and friendly people in an amazing flat Karoo landscape trampled by predictable afternoon thunder storms that you can see coming from miles away. I then made my way to Johannesburg via the farm lands of the North West.

Johannesburg, my home town, is still a fantastic, bustling city but I was more than pleased to make my way back to Cape Town two weeks later. Perhaps I was tired of the research and the traveling or perhaps I just missed the mountain and sea.

Surname celebration

2007-09-28T18:14:00.000+02:00

I have been trying to change my surname for ages. I applied for the change in April 2006 and was told that it could take anything from 3 to 9 months for the paperwork to go through. 17 months later, I am still waiting. For academic purposes, I really need my new surname legalised and because of this, over the last year, I have contacted home affairs almost every week and pleaded, begged, lost my temper and begged some more in the hopes of getting this sorted out.

Today, miracle of miracles, not only did someone answer the phone, but someone helpful answered the phone! I was told that all I have to do is take my proof of payment for said change of surname (thank goodness I kept that for 17 months!!) to any home affairs office. I then need to fax this person a copy of the receipt (along with some other details) and she will pass it on to yet another person dedicated to dealing with just such problems. I have been told that my surname change will be sorted out within 2 days. Sounds unbelievable, huh? Well, I am very hopeful. So much so, that I have decided to celebrate the possibility with a dinner with good friends and a bottle of my favourite bubbly.

Not the greatest photo, I know, but I was in a hurry. This is a fabulous bottle of champagne. I know it says "sparkling" but it is made using the cap classique method, so it's legit. It is unusual because it is a proper red champagne, made from pinotage grapes. It is apparently very difficult to get bubbles in a heavy red wine without adding tons of sugar but Graham Beck has successfully created a gem. It is rather odd, as you might expect but it has a lovely berry palate with a heavy red wine follow through. It tastes just like a pinotage, with bubbles. It is not for everyone and some red wine fans don't really like it. It is difficult to assess this champagne because it is the only one of its kind that I have tasted (or seen?) so all I can tell you is that I love it! If you can find it, I recommend that you try it.

Happy Birthday

2007-09-13T12:22:00.000+02:00

This was the first book I ever read for myself, by myself and I can remember it so clearly, it's like I read it yesterday. Happy birthday Roahl Dahl and thank you for turning me into a reader.

He would have been 90 today.

September 1979

2007-08-27T17:24:00.000+02:00

In my continued quest to wade through hundreds of musty boxes at the museum, I am always pleased to find something that distracts me. Bones wrapped in old newspaper is a definite winner. I still find French newspapers from the 1930's (as previously posted somewhere here) but yesterday I found a newspaper I could understand: The Argus from September 20, 1979.

The newspaper offered some interesting titbits such as a horrid interview with P.W. Botha about the growing South African economy and how segregation actually benefits it (what was the Groot Krokodil thinking?). I also found out that you could buy a new bakkie (pick-up) for around R6000 ($810), a house in Hout Bay for around R30 000 ($4000+) and a book for less than R10. New movies to us at the time included The Deer Hunter, Assault on Precinct 13, Rocky II and Alien. But you could only watch them from Wednesday to Saturday, two shows during the week and four on the weekend.

Adults only

2007-08-04T13:39:00.000+02:00

I have always wondered about the history behind movie ratings and censorship. Here is a rather abridged version of events that changed movie pleasure for the better or worse.

1909. The introduction of the Cinematograph Act, which granted local authorities full powers of censorship. A few years later (1912) the British Board of Film Censors (BBFC) is instituted to establish uniform standards countrywide.

1922. After the rather nasty Fatty Arbuckle rape and murder scandal, Hollywood establishes a self-regulating body: The Motion Picture Producers And Distributors Association of America.

1932. After creepy-for-1930's films like Dracula and Freaks, the BBFC institute an adults only certificate for horror films. These types of films were branded with a 'H' for many years or were just banned.

1939. David O. Selznick (producer) fights authorities to allow Clark Gable to use the word 'damn' in Gone with the Wind.

1951. The BBFC removes the 'H' certificate and replaces it with 'X'. This bans children under 16 from certain films. In the 1970's this splits and a rating of 'AA' is added to ban children under 14 and 'X' changes to refer to no children under 18. In 1982, 'X' is replaced by '18'. It is all very confusing. I never paid attention and always went to see what I wanted to.

1953. Producers of the movie Moon is Blue battle censors to use terms such as 'mistress' and 'virgin' in a sexual context.

1959. The first nude movie, The Immortal Mr. Teas, is released. Don't get excited, there was no full frontal nudity in the film. From the sounds of it, you only saw ladies from behind and had to use your imagination extensively.

1963. Andy Warhol broke some barriers with his attempt at film. Blow Job is a 35 minute focus on a guy's face as he receives oral stimulation off screen. Not exactly blockbuster stuff, but rather unique in an artistic sense?

1964. First boobies. Allowance for female breast nudity is granted in the U.S. for the movie The Pawnbroker.

1966. U.S. film rating systems are challenged and ultimately changed. We also see the first use of the word 'bugger' in the commercial film Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

1967. Here comes the violence! Bonnie & Clyde are killed in a hail of bullets paving the way for future gruesome endings. Also...

1967. Welcome the word 'fuck'. Marianne Faithful in I'll Never Forget What's'isname, was the first actress to use the word (actually, 'fucking') in a major motion picture.

1968. The establishment of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), which actually rates the movies instead of just censoring them. This is where we get movies rated G (general viewing), PG (parental guidance) and R (restricted for under 17's).

1970. For the first time, a X-rated movie with a gay theme takes home the Oscar. John Wayne, winning Best Actor that evening, didn't like Midnight Cowboy and is appalled at the movies' achievement.

1971. Sexual violence is everywhere! Rape scenes are big in film this year as seen in Straw Dogs and Stanley Kubrick's oh-so-creepy-and-not-so-nice, A Clockwork Orange.

1972. The emergence of more and more pornographic material appearing in films leads to the institution of the American X certificate. This rating caused problems for filmmakers for years who wanted to tackle adult subjects but didn't want to endure media restrictions.

1984. Movies like The Evil Dead and Zombie 2 leads to the UK Video Recordings Act, which regulates what people can watch in the privacy of their own home. I think they were worried that people wouldn't be able to sleep at night.

1992. The MPAA introduces the NC-17 certificate. This is now the rating given to movies with an adult theme that are not hardcore porn. Henry and June was the first movie given this classification.

2006. Shortbus has the most explicit sex (gay, straight and everything in between) ever seen in a mainstream film.

2007. Uber violence, I am sure. Tarantino and Rodriguez never fail to shock and surprise us with new and inventive ways to splatter blood and brain matter. I am sure that Grindhouse (also known as Planet Terror and Death Proof), their latest double feature, will thrill horror fans as usual.

We have really come a long way. Whether these changes are good or bad is up to you but personally, I can't wait to see what the next few decades will bring.

Facts, including dates used in this post were taken from Empire Magazine, June 2007.

Tagged

2007-07-22T10:56:00.000+02:00

I don't really like being tagged. I don't know why?? But Wreckless asked so nicely and attached a compliment, so how could I refuse? As requested, here are 8 random facts about myself.

1. I have about 700 books in my room. I have not read them all.

2. I love assembling puzzles. If I had space (and spare time) I would always have one somewhere in the process of being built.

3. I have a beautiful black cat named Penelope. It is her eyes that make my avatar.

4. I plan to marry John Cusack one day. These things are never reasonable, so don't question it!

5. 54 000. That is roughly the amount of dental measurements I need to take for my research before the end of September. As of last week, I am a third of the way.

6. I hate green, red and yellow peppers. I also always eat my toast in the shape of a square.

7. I am allergic to caffeine.

8. I always buy myself something for my birthday. Part of my present this year was the 7th Harry Potter book. Yes, I was one of those people who went and bought it as it was released (1.01am here). The balance of my present, the 2nd & 3rd seasons of another fabulous 80's show, should arrive from Amazon soon.

Seven Wonders

2007-07-09T09:49:00.000+02:00

In January, a private foundation launched a competition of sorts, allowing voters to decide on the new Seven Wonders of the World. Although not fully supported by UNESCO, the U.N. body that designates and protects World Heritage Sites, the competition received enormous attention. Nearly 100 million phone and Internet voters worldwide had their top 7 choices revealed at a star-studded event in Lisbon on Saturday (07/07/07).

Voters had a short-list of 21 architecturally (and some archaeologically) significant sites to choose from including the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the statues on Easter Island, Britain’s Stonehenge, the Acropolis in Athens, the Angkor Wat temples in Cambodia and the Statue of Liberty in New York. This is what the world chose:

The Incan ruins of Machu Picchu in Peru

The rose city of Petra in Jordan

The Taj Mahal in India

The ancient Mayan city of Chichen Itza in Mexico

The Colosseum in Rome

The Great Wall of China

The statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro

I think this was a great idea! I don't necessarily agree will all of the choices but this event will no doubt recreate an interest in not only these 7 sites specifically, but antiquity in general. It was about time too. The old 7 wonders of the world, originally chosen in 200 B.C., are really outdated and only the Great Pyramid of Giza remains. Now everyone can see and enjoy the new 7 but please don't touch! We don't want to lose them as well.

P.S. For those of you who don't remember what the previous 7 wonders were, here they are: The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, The Statue of Zeus at Olympia, The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus (modern Turkey), The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus (also Turkey), The Colossus of Rhodes, The Lighthouse of Alexandria and the Pyramid of Giza.

80's revival - Part I

2007-07-01T11:36:00.000+02:00

"Theorizing that one could time travel within his own lifetime, Dr. Sam Beckett stepped into the quantum leap accelerator and vanished. He awoke to find himself trapped in the past, facing mirror images that were not his own and driven by an unknown force to change history for the better. His only guide on his journey is Al, an observer from his own time who appears in the form of a hologram that only Sam can see and hear. And so Dr. Beckett finds himself leaping from life to life, striving to put right what once went wrong, and hoping that each time, his next leap, will be the leap home." *

I have recently completed watching the 5 seasons of this superb 80's show (it only took me a year!). I loved it when I was younger and could not resist purchasing the DVD’s when they were released. I am always apprehensive when reliving anything produced in the 80's because inevitably I enjoyed it so much more (and was very impressed) 20 years ago. I am happy to report that although the show was a little dated and perhaps a bit banal, it was still fantastic!

Donald P. Bellisario (creator of Magnum P.I., Airwolf, JAG and countess other TV. hits) outdid himself when he brought together hunky Scott Bakula (Sam) and charming Dean Stockwell (Al) to create this unique-for-its-time science fiction series.

You are not going to find show details here. There are enough fan websites to keep you updated. You can even attend the Quantum Leap convention in 2009 if you are that way inclined.

There are a few things I found interesting... The show’s future is set in the late 1990’s. It is quite funny to see what people thought our future would look like. We were supposed to be wearing hideously colourful, strangely shaped (and sometimes flashing) clothing and drive cars that sound like my washing machine and look like a Dolorian with added horizontal hood lights.

Granted, the show has a fairly pedestrian theme but it’s such a wonderful trip through American history (1950’s – 1980’s), how can you not love it? You get to see Sam “leap into” and influence the lives of men and women, some famous (Elvis Presley, Lee Harvey Oswald, Marilyn Munroe) and some not so famous. As a viewer, you also get to experience the shows social commentary and nostalgia through major historical events.

It’s just such a feel good show with classic script writing, lots of humour, blatant gender discrimination and good triumphing over evil every time. No wonder it has a cult following!

* A spoken introduction to the show that explains the series’ premise. In later seasons, the voice to this introduction is that of Ziggy, the supercomputer that runs Quantum Leap.

Spiritual travel

2007-06-17T16:49:00.000+02:00

The new tourism craze is a form of New Age travel. You now not only get to visit amazing places but enjoy a metaphysical and spiritual awakening at the same time. This is a growing trend in the travel industry where people go in search of the mystical and divine and find themselves chanting in burial chambers of ancient civilizations. Tourists searching for spiritual focus gather together in "religious" spaces such as the sarcophagus in the King's Chamber inside the Great Pyramid at Giza (pictured on the left) to perform various rituals with candles, bells, chimes and chants in the hopes of improving themselves and the world. Some travellers even claim to feel the power and presence of the ancients possess them, drawing them into the metaphysical plane and the boundary between this world and the next.

I wonder what they think they will achieve? Do they really believe that ancient civilizations had the answers to "life, the universe and everything" and will you really find these answers and spiritual guidance at an archaeological site? I must be a very spiritual person.

As an archaeologist, I think it's a bit ridiculous. But putting my thoughts about spirituality and religious belief aside, I have a real concern. Surely these kinds of tourist visits will just further damage precious artifacts? I completely understand that people need to define their place in this world and find fulfilment (and that others will always find a way to make money from that need). I only hope that most people seeking spiritual enlightenment will have the savvy to be mindful of our treasured past and in their quest for calm and happiness, leave no trace of their visit behind.

I visited Mordor, Gotham and Gandalf's

2007-05-28T11:31:00.000+02:00

As a teenager, more than a decade ago, I never considered myself a full-on Goth but I did partake in many of the cultural habits. I often dressed in nothing but black, only wore docks, had the long straight hair, adorned my eyes in black eyeliner and carried the appropriate morbid expression of leave-me-alone-life-sucks. Those days are long gone, although some elements like the docks and Depeche Mode remain.

Two weeks ago, after a substantial amount of margarita, a friend and I decided to take a trip down memory lane and go to the Goth club Mordor. It was closed, but Gotham next door was open. It was surprising how much I enjoyed the evening. The music, the darkness, the solitude dancing and the strangely pierced individuals brought back such memories and flooded my senses.

Last Saturday, we decided to go again. This time we went to an angels and demons party at a place called Gandalf's. It was an experience! There were very definite groups of people inside. The ultra pierced and spiked mingled carefully between men and women clad in corsets and fishnet stockings. The emo guys were huddled in the corner trying to be cool or hiding from the vicious head bangers giving themselves whiplash. Then there were those (like me) not dressed to any goth style...I felt out of place. I didn't even have any appropriate accoutrement! Many people had horns and wings and whips and chains.

The music was hard core: A heavy metal trance (is that a genre?) amalgamation that was quite intoxicating and very, very loud. Not to my taste per se, but interesting. Very surprisingly, when the DJ played the Cure's 'Lovecats', a poppy remix of Soft Cell's 'Tainted love' and 'Sounds like a melody' by Alphaville everyone stayed and danced. I never saw that coming...

I had a lot of fun but in the end it was a bit much. I suppose I am not a Goth after all, although I could be temped into a corset.

Wreckless endangerment

2007-05-15T08:44:00.000+02:00

I received my first wine label in the mail! Wreckless was kind enough to substitute wine for usual beer-and-sport afternoon to provide me with this interesting label. How strange it was to get a label sent to me from the United States with the name 'Johannisburg' when a major city in my country is Johannesberg. The city's name is derived from an Afrikaans name still commonly used today, albeit a shortened form (Johan). How odd to see that name (or close) on an American wine label. It's a small world. Anyway, thank you Wreckless for enjoying a wine-and-sport afternoon.

Many visitors to my site have asked how to get the labels off the wine bottles. Here are some tips.

1. The method I use the most often involves steam. I take a steam iron and hold it over the label for a few minutes. The label usually peels right off. Sometimes the labels are really sticky and a bit stubborn often resulting in a label that is not pristine, but most of the time this method is successful. Just please beware of that hot steam. The bottle gets quite hot!

2. Many people just peel the label off directly. It is good to test this method but don't persist if the label does not start coming off immediately unless you want to buy another bottle to enjoy...

3. Some people soak the bottle in hot water for a few hours. I have had limited success with this method but find it annoying because it just takes too long!

Seeing as I am writing about wine and drinking, I thought it was appropriate to talk about driving. Leaving varsity a few weeks ago, I found this note on my car. A younin' had rear ended my vehicle and driven away. I was not impressed. I contacted the good Samaritan Mike, who told me that she reversed into my car twice as if it was done on purpose. So dramatic! I don't have enemies that I know of. My guess is that she was either a stressed new driver or had enjoyed some intoxicating nectar.

I am still waiting for our local police to actually contact her and tell her that "I know what you did last month" but that might take a while.

I'll start

2007-04-02T08:45:00.001+02:00

This was one of the first bottles of wine I bought for the label. The bottle was shared with my good friend Karen a few days ago while watching (and bitching about) old episodes of Sex and the City. It was a good day.

The wine is from the Fairview vineyard in Stellenbosch. It is a lovely wine farm to visit! You will drink some fantastic wine and eat lots and lots and lots of cheese - another of their specialities.

I will be honest, this bottle of wine was not great but the label is and the friendly company was.

Gimme your labels!

2007-03-19T08:21:00.000+02:00

After doing a bit of research on wine labels around the world, I realised that it would be IMPOSSIBLE for one person to collect all these nice wine labels on their own. And since the response to my collecting wine labels habit has been fantastic, the sensible thing to do is enlist others to help me. So please send me your wine labels! I am not too picky. Send me any label that is unusual, interesting or just nice to have - like this one.

Although, you might have to send me the bottle as this is not really a label that you can peel off. This is the probably the most expensive bottle of wine in the world. It's the Chateau Lafitte 1787. A nice little bordeaux from the famous 600+ year old winery situated in the village of Pauillac, France. This bottle of wine was sold at auction at Christie's in London in 1985 for the low low price of 105 000 Pounds. It was apparently found in Thomas Jefferson's collection. Undrinkable I am sure - It's probably vinegar by now but what a nice collectible. So if you stumble across it, enjoy the wine but please send me the empty bottle.

This is the address you need to make a note of:

P.O. Box 34136
Rhodes Gift
7707
Cape Town
South Africa

Also, please write on the back of the label where, when and why you enjoyed (or not) the bottle. It will make it all the more meaningful. I will be sure post the nice labels on this blog so that everyone can see.

Thanks all! I wait with breathless anticipation for my first label....

Collecting

2007-02-28T09:50:00.000+02:00

I never used to be a collector. This has changed somewhat over the last few years ever since I started to work in a book shop and met certain people. It was around this time that I began collecting books, trying to complete series' that I may never read. I am now trying to stop (who am I kidding, curb is a better word) collecting books because it's expensive and space consuming. Alas, my need to gather interesting goodies still persists and I need to replace one collection addiction with another. I have found two.

I recently discovered a very nice vinyl record store in Observatory - the student hang out in Cape Town. Revolution Records is a very well stocked time warp where anyone with an interest in any music genre can lose a few hours scanning old album covers and looking for that gem. It was here that I found some old and almost 'like new' Depeche Mode vinyls. I have bought the shop stock and am now on the hunt for the others. I must be honest though, I am a little weary of pursuing the vinyl path. I think it is huge! And, I am not the insane collector that needs to have every single thing ever put to vinyl....or maybe I am....

I have also started collecting unusual wine labels. This is a very clever new hobby. Not only do I satisfy the need to gather things, but I also get to drink and enjoy many bottles of interesting wine. There are some real strange wine labels out there. Funny, wierd, pretty and sometimes just insane.

So the next time you enjoy a bottle of wine and notice an unusual label, please peel it off for me and send it my way (steam works well). And don't be shy to send any DM vinyl that you want to get rid of too. Postal address on request....

I made this!

2007-02-14T11:07:00.000+02:00

As you all know, I moved into a nice old 3 bedroom apartment in December. I love our place. It still needs a bit of work but I think we have done well! When we moved in, we had to spring clean. I think the previous tenants didn't own a cloth and didn't know what a cleaning agent was. It was the first time in my life that I experienced fear from filth. I will never forget some classic cleaning moments. My sister Nicci, was horrified when cleaning the balcony. I have never seen anyone get so angry and upset over a blocked drain pipe! Karen Little's reaction to pulling a really large and nasty hairball from the bathroom drain was unforgettable! As a doctor, she deals with some gruesome stuff but she couldn't handle the hairball. Her pale face with a gag reflex expression and her rather calm comment of "Wendy, I need a glove" will stay with me for a long time.

Lots of D.I.Y. followed. Who paints a bathroom gun metal grey? I felt like I was in a psych ward every time I went to pee! We painted it white and Nicci added some interesting (and uneven) potato stamp designs. After scraping 2 year old sticky coffee like goop off the tiled floor and adding some colourful bathroom mats and a plant or two, the bathroom looks better. No psych ward, no creepy filth.

Warning: women with power tools ahead! Naaah, we were not that bad! We got the hang of it quickly and (after lots of swearing) were able to put up lots of towel racks. It was most entertaining watching tiny Karen negotiate a large drill. In case you are wondering, no, we did not need 4 holes. It was a mistake that resulted in some exploratory drilling.

I have a lot of books. I need bookshelves! I was most disgusted at the ridiculous prices of bookshelves, (over R1000 -about $150- for a smallish one!) so I decided to make my own. I was determined. I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS. It is much cheaper but it 's a huge job. I must admit that I had never attempted anything like this before and didn't really know how to go about it. I even phoned a friend to find out how close to a plug I can drill for fear of electrocuting myself and/or cutting off the electricity to the flat! But after a bit of sweat, sulking and swearing, I have some awesome, BIG shelves.

Now just to fix up the pokey kitchen and add a splash of colour to the walls...

I love random information!

2007-01-25T09:43:00.000+02:00

Where do people find the time to figure this stuff out??

Al Capone's business card said he was a used furniture dealer.
A "jiffy" is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second.

An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.

Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds. Dogs only have about 10.

February 1865 is the only month in recorded history not to have a full moon.

In the last 4,000 years, no new animals have been domesticated.

If the population of China walked past you, in single file, the line would never end because of the rate of reproduction.

If you are an average American, in your whole life, you will spend an average of 6 months waiting at red lights.

The cruise liner, QE2, moves only six inches for each gallon of diesel that it burns.

The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket.

There are more chickens than people in the world.

There's no Betty Rubble in the Flintstones Chewables Vitamins.

Winston Churchill was born in a ladies' room during a dance.

Leonardo Da Vinci invented the scissors.

Back in the saddle

2007-01-10T12:09:00.000+02:00

So the Christmas crazyness is over. Thank heavens because there are a few things I just can't stand anymore!

Saying "Sorry, we are sold out."
Saying "Sorry, all our branches are sold out."
Saying "I can only get you a copy of the book in January."
Saying "No, there is no way Amazon will be able to deliver to South Africa by Christmas (which is 5 days away)."
Saying "Yes, we had hundreds of copies last week."
Smiling.
I am quite sick of booze. I am wined out.
Holiday traffic - cars and humans.
Spending far to much money.
Eating.

It feels good to get back to important varsity work and leave the book store behind. On my first day back in my little office, I realise that there are a few things I just can't stand anymore.

The massive amount of neglected emails that have piled up.
The massive amount of work that awaits me.
The fact that my elbows get sore from leaning on the desk while I type and read.
First year students that don't leave me alone - do I look like I can enrol you?
Hunting for fund money.
Overdue library books.
Printers and scanners that don't want to work properly.
That the coffee shop has hiked their prices by R3 per cup!
That it is a perfect beach day and I can't go.

To be honest, I take the varsity irritations over the bookshop any day as long as I can have a serving of the beach and sunset cocktails at Camps Bay with friends on the side.

Gone fishing?

2006-12-12T13:48:00.000+02:00

Yes, I know and I am sorry. I should have told you all that I would be away for some time. My blog has been left unattended for good reason! I have been traveling. No, not the fun in the sun type of traveling unfortunately. I have been visiting various museum basements (or dungeons) to collect data. Thank goodness that's over with for a while! I did see some friends and family for a bit as well and that was nice. When I got back home, it was time to move. You all know that moving house is a pain and it always takes much longer than you think it will. I am still busy. It is not just moving furniture and books! My sister and I have painted the bathroom, put up curtains (that sounds easy but it wasn't), renovated odds and ends, cleaned, cleaned and cleaned. In between all this, I have also had to work, sleep occasionally and maybe enjoy a nice long hot bath.

I will be settled soon and will then be able to tell you of some interesting encounters I had. Until then, I wish you all happy holidays and festive fun! For those of you in the snow - I am envious. Please make some snow angels for me! I will take a swim in the sea for you and probably get a nasty sunburn.

If you are blogging Santa, please note

2006-11-01T10:19:00.000+02:00

Friends and family will be surprised with this post because I NEVER tell them what I want because I never know. This year is different. So, in no particular order, this is what I want for Christmas.

Lets put the ridiculously unaffordable item first... The 30GB iPod Video. Black, sleek and sexy. The must-have-one-day but really don't need item that you can justify buying with your last pennies all day long.

Say it with me Santa, "electronics are good, electronics are good, electronics..."

There is alway the I-need gift. I bought a cute little digital camera this year and it is wonderful. The only problem is that it eats batteries for snacks so I really need a battery charger.

"...electronics are good, electronics are good..."

Because I work in a bookshop it is no surprise that I would love to get some of the books on my rather long list. I will settle for this book or one of the hard to find Vintage Blue titles to help complete my collection. You know what? Gift vouchers will do. Why is it that as soon as you work in a book store, nobody gives you books for gifts anymore?

I am a dvd junkie.

LOOK, its on sale!

I move into a new apartment in December. It would be so nice to be able to buy things like curtains for my new home. So a voucher or two from Mr. Price Home would be great!

And WORLD PEACE...

Thanks for stopping by Santa. Let me know if you need anything.

Love, Wendy.

"All we are breaking are stones"

2006-10-20T08:27:00.000+02:00

Ancient Mesopotamia is what archaeologists consider the 'cradle of civilisation.' In other words, it is where the human race really began to shine, where life as we know it began. From around 5000 BC people in this area were settling down, domesticating plants, building, craft specialising, creating complex societies and feverishly inventing everything. It's here we have the earliest glimpse of religion and philosophy, writing and international trade. It's the land of people you have heard of - Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians and Persians to name a few. Today we know it as Iraq. Archaeologically it is one of the richest places in the world and unfortunately, one of the most threatened.

Iraq was in chaos after the 1991 Gulf War and by 1993, thirteen museums in the country had been ransacked. In April '93 the Baghdad archaeological museum (see before pic of museum on left and after on right), which had long been regarded as perhaps the richest of all such institutions, was looted. Approximately 15 000 items were stolen including cuneiform tablets, cylinder seals, statuettes and other archaeological artefacts. Can you imaging the British Museum being looted or the Met in New York? Since then, as a result of an amnesty for looters, about 4000 artefacts have been found in Iraq. The scary part is that many artefacts have made their way to Europe and the U.S. and have been sold to wealthy collectors who, I am sure, are most annoyed when these goodies are confiscated. Strange though, the artefacts confiscated have still not been returned to Baghdad??

The black market value of antiquities is incredible and it is almost impossible to control. It is often equated with the drug and arms markets! For this reason you find many artefacts smuggled into Western countries. There are 1000's of archaeological sites in Africa and the Middle East that have not yet been excavated and recorded. The locals know where these sites are, they excavate these sites themselves and sell the artefacts for a few dollars to whoever is buying (often Western soldiers on their way home or illegal antiquity brokers). What you need to realise is that a few dollars in Chad is 2 months salary... People are starving and struggling there and collectors in the West are eager and wealthy. It makes for an insurmountable problem - irreplaceable cultural heritage being exchanged for a meal.

The problems continue...

Tourism. I love to travel and I am a tourist when I do. I will go to Macchu Picchu and visit the ruins and go to Egypt to see the pyramids but I won't draw on them or take a piece home to put in my little collection box! What is wrong with people?!*@#! Enough said.

And what is this? Since when can you have military drills on a 6000 year old world heritage structure? This is the ziggurat (stepped pyramid) of Ur from Ancient Sumer (Iraq). It is the most well-preserved monument from the remote age of the Sumerians. Tourists are not allowed to touch...

And then there is this....

In February 2001 the Taliban militia supreme leader Mulla Mohammad Omar issued a decree ordering the destruction of all statues in Afghanistan including ancient pre-Islamic figures. The militia destroyed several ancient relics in Kabul Museum as well as the Bamiyan Buddha statues (see pics below).

The tallest Buddha figure in the world, 55m. Carved in the third century AD.

Now just a few meters of rubble.

When confronted by media and UNESCO about the destruction of priceless world heritage, a Afghan militia leader casually said "All we are breaking are stones."

The sad thing is that these are not isolated incidents. People can really be complacent and/or negligent with regards to cultural heritage. They forget (or just don't care) that once these things are gone, they are gone forever.

Lift your spirits

2006-10-13T14:25:00.000+02:00

It is rare that you are pleasantly surprised. I had hearn nothing about this movie but was told by EOH to go and see it. I have always trusted his taste in films, so I went the next day. What an amazing movie! It is something you probably wouldn't go see if you read what it was about. It sounds like a formulaic drama about a family who go on a road trip in their dodgy VW to get their young daughter to a beauty pageant. But don't be fooled! A genius screenwriter, Michael Arndt, and a fantastic cast take you on a real bumpy but hilarious ride that will feed your soul and make you smile. I want to tell you what it's about but I could never do it justice. Just trust me and go see it this weekend. Let me know what you think.

Cast includes: Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette & Alan Arkin, but they are all incredible!

20

2006-10-07T13:44:00.000+02:00

I was tagged by Karen and in true blog spirit, I comply by offering 20 random things about me.

1. I am a born and bred South African.

2. I lived in New York for 3 years during my teens. I loved it and would go back in a heartbeat if I could.

3. I am currently slogging through my PhD in Archaeology.

4. I have a cat. Her name is Penelope. She unfortunately doesn't live with me at the moment; she stays with Grandma. She is black and fluffy with bright green eyes and a has real bitchy personality.

5. I like dogs too. Bulldogs & border collies (sheep dogs).

6. I work part-time in a local bookshop.

7. It is here that I am able to feed my appetite for books and religiously read 4 magazines: Time, National Geographic, Empire & Longevity. In that order.

8. I hate those fashion girly magazines.

9. I am highly allergic to any stimulant. Yes, that includes caffeine. And yes, of course I love coffee and chocolates. You always want what you can't have.

10. I have my best ideas in the shower.

11. I have never been married but have had 4 different surnames.

12. I love my Doctor Martens boots or 'Docs'. My first pair I had for 15 years but eventually had to let them go. They were falling apart. I recently bought a new pair while in London because I just can't do without them.

13. I have the travel bug. I always want to add to the list of places I have visited.

14. I hate Iceberg lettuce. It tastes like sand. Why does every restaurant insist on using it when there are such nicer varieties available?

15. The sport I participate in: archery. The sports I love to watch: baseball & formula 1.

16. I support the New York Yankees & McLaren (don't even metion that red team).

17. I am an avid photographer - SLR (film) & Digital. The 2 best photo's I ever took were of a desert dune in Namibia & the light hitting the Alta Fjord in Norway.

18. When I am stressed I misplace things. I have found the sugar in the fridge, my car keys with my toothbrush and my cell phone in the laundry basket.

19. I always buy myself a Christmas present. While writing this post I bought the new Depeche Mode Touring the Angel dvd on-line. It will go under the tree. I also wanted to buy the 3 new remastered collector's albums but £40 is way over budget. Any donations?

20. I have attended 4 primary schools, 5 high schools and 3 universities.

And just for interest sake... I had an argument with a woman in the grocery store yesterday. She was swapping small sized eggs with jumbo sized eggs in order to pay less for her regular dozen (a whole R2 / $0.30). I (very nicely) accused her of stealing and she went ballisitc. Just goes to show you that everything has to do with the price of eggs.

Typical...

2006-10-03T13:13:00.000+02:00

Now I look like a complete idiot because my blog is magically restored.

Conspiracy thwarted?

If any of you can remember your comments about my Mensa questions please forward them to me. I still need to fill in those gaps.

It's a conspiracy

2006-10-03T11:42:00.000+02:00

My blog is currently a mess. My apologies but I am not to blame. All I did was post. Blogger decided to create interesting gaps and glitches. I have tried to fix them; have even deleted the post, but nothing works. I know people can't comment and I don't know if this note will post... I think it is a conspiracy to force me to upgrade to Beta Blogger. I will fix it soon but until then, any advice on how?

The whales, the flowers, the ice cream...

2006-09-27T10:59:00.000+02:00

Yes, I know I have been away for some time. Life gets busy and blogging ends up taking a back seat. I thought I would share with you my continued journey of discovering Cape Town. This is what I found lately.

The whales have arrived. I have never been on holiday at the right time to see the whales arrive on our south and southwest coasts. Now that I live here, it is fantastic. A quick 15 minute drive to St. James and Kalk Bay and I get to see them en masse. The Southern Right Whale migrates to our don't-even-stick-your-toe-in cold sea for food during the winter and spring. Our coasts are their mating and calving grounds. They migrate to colder food-rich waters near Antarctica for the summer. They must be the only animal I know that chases the cold. These guys are huge! 50 - 80 tonnes and 11 - 18 meters. Each. That's a lot of krill... It has been amazing to see them chilling and doing their thing.

It's also so nice that they are doing their stopover in Kalk Bay because there are all sorts of other goodies to do there. Turkish delight and chocolate chip ice cream - come on! That's a winner. Interesting curios, clothing and antiques and there are great places to enjoy a drink overlooking the Atlantic. I also found the best veggie guy around. He has a small stall selling fresh fruits and vegetables on the side of the road. Cheap, super fresh & yummy! Much better than Woolies. Way to go Harry. I will be back.

I also took a day trip to the West Coast National Park last week to see the wild Spring flowers. This is another one of those things that (shamfully) I had never done mostly because of the distance you need to travel to get there from Johannesburg and the crazy timing. You can only see these flowers for about 6 weeks of the year during August and September. It's a big thing when it happens. Millions of flowers bloom practically overnight creating endless fields of colour. It is so easy to take a trip through the flower sactuary, then go and sit on the rocks with your picnic lunch (defending it from eager seagulls) and enjoy the ocean view. It's pretty incredible!

Name calling

2006-09-08T14:25:00.000+02:00

I have had a really rough week. Lots of work and lots of deadlines can make me very grumpy. Having to deal with annoying and inconsiderate people at the same time makes me want to inflict bodily harm and scream out some profanity! I am proud of myself, I resisted. But it made me think of anything you could say to someone that was in fact an insult but would not be construed as one. I didn't come up with any. So if you think of some, please let me know. I did get these though and at least they made me laugh...

Please tell me...

2006-08-31T16:09:00.000+02:00

These are great questions to pass the time! I am sure some of you have come accross them before...

Why do we press harder on a remote control when we know the batteries are flat?

Why is it that people say they "slept like a baby" when babies wake up every two hours?

Why do banks charge a fee on "insufficient funds" when they know there is not enough?

Why does someone believe you when you say there are four billion stars, but check when you say the paint is wet?

Why do they use sterilized needles for death by lethal injection?

Why doesn't Tarzan have a beard?

Why does Superman stop bullets with his chest, but ducks when you throw a revolver at him?

Why do Kamikaze pilots wear helmets?

Whose idea was it to put an "S" in the word "lisp"?

What is the speed of darkness?

If the temperature is zero outside today and it's going to be twice as cold tomorrow, how cold will it be?

Do you cry under water?

How is it that we put man on the moon before we figured out it would be a good idea to put wheels on luggage?

Why do people pay to go up tall buildings and then put money in binoculars to look at things on the ground?

DID YOU EVER WONDER....

Who was the first person to look at a cow and say, "I think I'll squeeze these pink dangly things here, and drink whatever comes out?"

Who on earth was brave enough to eat a lobster for the first time?

Why is there a light in the fridge and not in the freezer?

Why do people point to their wrist when asking for the time, but don't point to their bum when they ask where the bathroom is?

If quizzes are quizzical, what are tests?

If electricity comes from electrons, does morality come from morons?

Why do the Alphabet song and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star have the same tune?

Stop singing and read on . . . . . .. . . . .

Do illiterate people get the full effect of Alphabet Soup?

Did you ever notice that when you blow in a dog's face, he gets mad at you, but when you take him on a car ride, he sticks his head out the window?

Does pushing the elevator button more than once make it arrive faster?

Great archaeological moments

2006-08-24T08:47:00.000+02:00

2 questions always come up when teaching 1st year archaeology students.

Is it really like Indiana Jones?
What amazing stuff have you found?

The answers are easy. To the first question - NO. The answer to the second is a good blog entry and it sticks to the top 5 list fever going around...

My Top 5 Archaeological Finds (in no particular order)

2nd year undergrad

I worked at a Stone Age site called Olieboomspoort. It's near the Waterberg in the northern Highveld. After days of excavating nothing but coprolite and nearly insignificant clumps and slowly realizing that I will never be a Stone Age archaeologist, I unearthed the most beautiful stone tool I had ever seen. It was a small bright green scraper that had been frequently used and lovingly retouched. It was perfect. After thousands of years in the dirt, you could still see how it was held and how effective it would have been.

3rd year undergrad

I was able to work at the now heritage Iron Age site, Kaditshwene (kud-it-chweni), also far in the north. Iron Age sites are always a lot more exciting because the things you find are a little more "modern" and large scale. I tackled a 1m x 1m square early one morning and constantly found scattered beads and polished stones but nothing fantastic. Now you have to imagine brushing away sand for hours in the hot african sun and only being rewarded with a teeny tiny bead. It can get disheartening! But at around 3pm I noticed some unusual colours - pink, green, purple. Strange since I was making my way through 50cm of brown soil. I started brushing more carefully and saw that the colour spread over almost my whole square. It was a complete burnt mudbrick floor. Now I know this might not seem exciting to you but for an archaeologist it's awesome. These floors just don't survive hundreds of years!

Also 3rd year

I found an amazing polished bone tool at Olieboomspoort later that year. It was about 10cm long and fairly thin and almost looked like one of those really fat leather needles. It was associated with at least 50 ostrich eggshell beads, perfectly round and sculpted and some not so sculpted
yet. It was as if someone had left their afternoon activity of making themselves a bead bracelet or anklet for us to find.

Honour's year

I worked on a few different Iron Age sites in the Limpopo Valley, near the Botswana border. It was here we battled with mole-like rodents destroying our perfect excavation squares and dealt with elephants walking through our site. The elephants were scary, the rodents were just annoying.

It's a famous area with famous sites. You might know one - Mapungubwe. It's where archaeologists found the golden rhino. We excavated in this area and found the most beautiful blue, green, red and yellow glass beads. They are small, round or rectangular, delicate and bright. These tiny, handcrafted beauties made with imported glass provide us with evidence of ancient trade with Asia and the Middle East.

Same year, same area

About 1m down I found a bone. It was a tiny phalanx (finger). As I carefully removed more and more sand, I found a skull cap and realized I was uncovering a burial. It was of a child, approximately 5 years old or so. It was the first time I had encountered human remains like this and was quite unnerved. I felt like I was intruding and I felt quite sad! But I got over it. I found a lot of associated grave goods that were just amazing. Bracelets and necklaces made from glass and ostrich eggshell beads and clay figurines that looked like toys. This find made such an impact on me and it is what led me to the work I do today.

So, not Indiana Jones but exciting none the less! Enough to give me goosebumps...

You never know what you will find.

2006-08-15T08:37:00.000+02:00

Lately, I have been stuck in the bowels of the Iziko Museum (previously the South African Museum) looking for ancient teeth. I have to find and analyse these teeth as part of my research. My experience is just like you see in the movies. A dark, musty warehouse dotted with artificial light and filled with hundreds of boxes, each covered in a layer of dust on shelves that reach the ceiling. It is cold, very quiet and fairly creepy. Being surrounded by skeletons doesn't help. All these boxes are filled with archaeological material found over the last century or more. The boxes I am interested in are the one's marked 'Human Skeletal Remains' (Twanji, just breathe). These hunter-gatherer remains are from archaeological sites around South Africa and date from approximately 500 years ago to about 9000 years ago. They were catalogued, boxed and stored in the museum since the 1920's. But this is not what I want to tell you. While going through these boxes I have found some interesting things - besides the bones.

Strange and very old containers have been used to store loose teeth and fragile small bones. Old containers like little decorated pill boxes and ancient cigarette cases of brands I have never heard of. The most interesting find was a newspaper that was protecting some skull fragments. It was the 'La Tribune de Geneve' dated November 16, 1939. It was amazing to see faces from that time staring back at me. There were articles on the war, on the postal service and something to do with government. If I could read French, I would have been able to understand more. You could buy a teddy bear for 1.35 - Franks, I assume and cheese for even less. There was also a cartoon about Hitler and some crosswords and games for the kids. It was great reading! The world was very different then.

What else happened in November 1939?

World War II news

Japanese forces advanced into southern China.
The British government declared a blockade on German imports.
The Red Army invaded Finland.
Germany formally annexed western Poland into the German Reich.
Joseph Stalin formally annexed eastern Poland into the Soviet Union. (Shame, poor Poland!)

Other news

Baseball: The youngest of the three DiMaggio brothers, Dom DiMaggio, was bought for $40,000 by the Boston Red Sox from San Francisco.
Apparently, its the release of Volume 1, issue #3 of the Superman comics and the creation of Batman.
Blogger won't let me upload the cover of Vogue magazine. Its a pic of a woman in a red suit with a chicken. "FASHION MEETS THE CHALLENGE OF WAR"
George S. Kaufman, playwright and humourist was on the cover of Time Magazine for this week.
Ernest Orlando Lawrence gets the Nobel Prize for Physics (uranium-isotope separation in the Manhattan Project).
Top grosing films are Gone with the Wind and Wizard of Oz.
Margaret Atwood, novelist and poet, is born.
Interesting reads: Coming up for Air by George Orwell, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck and Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Elliot.
Cole Porter was the music favourite.

I have worked in retail too long.

2006-08-08T07:39:00.000+02:00

After working in a bookshop for nearly 5 years, it still amazes me that people come into the shop to buy a book but they don't actually read. Before you get all confused, let me clarify. The people that come into the bookshop buy a book to read and most likely go home and read it. What I am referring to is everything else printed around them. It infuriates me that people are just not aware and are to damn lazy to take note. Let me illustrate with an example or two.

1. I cannot tell you how many times I have dealt with a customer who does not know what shop he/she is in because they didn’t read the sign at the door! Now there are not a lot of bookshop chains in South Africa. In fact, there are only 3, one of which sells more stationary than books. The chain that I work for is the biggest and all the freaking shops look the same! You really don’t have to be paying much attention to know where you are.

2. Head Office is currently revamping our store so we have moved to a temporary shop down the hall. The old shop is boarded up and there are AT LEAST ten big signs (I am not exaggerating) spread out at the old shop, new shop and in between explaining why we are closed, the location of the temporary shop (with a big damn arrow pointing you in the right direction) and the date of the reopening. It is obviously not enough. People come in all the time complaining that we should put up signs so that they know where to find us. Even when I am standing right next to one of these posters explaining EVERYTHING, I am always asked: “So, what are you guys doing?” and “When are you opening the new shop?” and “Is this a temporary shop?” and “Why haven’t you put up a few signs?” We are also not selling newspapers in the temporary shop because it is a real pain in the ass. So we put up a sign right at the counter that says “Sorry, no newspapers.” Enquiring minds are so entertaining, especially when the 37th customer of the day comes up to me and asks if we have newspapers. And I have to be nice to these people?@%#$^?!

3. People are far too lazy. Many come to buy a book but are not willing to read the short and informative 4-line blurb to see what the book is about. It is a lot easier for them to hound the poor bookseller at the counter who has obviously read all 40 000 titles in stock and can recall what each one was about at the drop of a hat. I am amazed that people actually get upset with me when I tell them that I have not read the latest Jodi Picoult or Jackie Collins. Book clubs are the worst! They come in to buy or apro up to 10 books and are far too lazy to choose books for themselves. The bookseller then has to guess what kind of books the club will enjoy because all the book clubs say the same thing: “We read everything.” When you then recommend a Coupland or Palahniuk they wrinkle their noses and say “That’s not for us.” So, I have realized that when they say they read everything, it usually means that they only read main stream light and fluffy chick books.

Please don’t get me wrong. I am all for great service and I am good at my job. I am more than willing to help you within reason and if I do, you will leave the store feeling satisfied that you bought the right book and maybe feel a bit more informed about the books that are out there. I also know that not all customers are bad and many have had aweful service and experiences. I just wish that they would realize that people who work at night and on the weekend are most likely students working part-time. We are therefore busy people. We don’t have time to read everything and surprisingly don’t like every book and every genre. We also don't appreciate it when we are faced with rudeness and antagonism when the recommendations are not easily forthcoming. So maybe you (the customer) could use that amazing brain of yours, put a lid on that temper, leave us alone and choose your own damn book.

Rudimental categorisation

2006-07-31T07:51:00.000+02:00

I went to The Green Dolphin jazz and supper club for some live music last night. I saw two excellent local bands - Love Jones, an eccentric rock band and The Rudimentals, who provide an eclectic mix of Bob Marley reggae and Madness funk with an African flavour. While watching The Rudimentals some locals were commenting on the multi-instrumental and multi-racial attributes of the band. The band has many members. There are guys playing a sax, trombone, trumpet, bass guitar, lead guitar, drums, keyboards, a very verbal vocalist and a couple of scantily clad ladies offering backup. What makes this band unique - besides their awesome sound - is the racial integration. The locals enjoying the music were saying that it was great to see black, white and coloured people together on stage having a blast! The American tourists sitting next to me looked very confused and horrified. They proceeded to ask (in hushed tones) what was meant by the term 'coloured' and was it not racist? It occurred to me that other countries have different terminology when talking about race and they cannot identify with, or don't have a reference for, the completely different ethnic group of 'Coloureds'.

It is not politically incorrect or offensive slang for this group of people, it is a categorisation term just like 'white' or 'black'. They originate from the Malay people brought over from Southeast Asia as slaves centuries ago by the Dutch East India Company. The predominantly muslim community has a rich cultural heritage and their own colourful traditions and life ways. They have caramel skin and are often incorrectly thought of as a mixed race by foreigners (and some locals) i.e. a black mother, white father or vice versa somewhere in the family tree.

Ethnicity is politically loaded and historically painful for South Africa, so it is important to get these things right. That said, I must admit that I find it amazing that everything, from our basic conversation, to the forms I filled in last week, to the most average reference, is still based in some form of categorisation. We always think of each other in terms of colour categories. Is it the same where you come from? Is everything still categorised by race?

I can only hope that these colour prefixes will eventually fall away. We are after all, Homo sapiens ("wise man"), the only living representative of the family Hominidae - biologically all the same.

Adoration

2006-07-25T13:05:00.000+02:00

I am a hopeless romantic. Always have been. I love those romantic movies - one of my fav's is Notting Hill - and I love the idea of being swept off my feet. I know it's mushy and unrealistic but I get such a warm fuzzy feeling when I think about a love life like that.

I often think about an elderly couple I saw a few years ago at work. They must have been at least 80 years old. They came into the bookshop hand in hand and as they asked me their questions about some book we had in stock, I noticed how in love they were. They had been together for over 50 years and were still smitten. They were so attentive to eachother's needs and so caring. It was wonderful to see and it gave all the girls working that day a bit of hope. Now most of us girls just want a nice, kind man to adore us so that we can adore them in return. That kind of relationship is unfortunately not something you see much of these days. Or so I thought....

My mom came to visit me this past weekend for my birthday. She came down with her new beau, a strapping gentleman named Allan. A few days with those two and I realised that the adoration business is thriving. They were like two teenagers! It was great and so entertaining. It was wonderful to see my mom smile like that - or was that all the red wine?

I started to think about the people around me and those I see almost every day and realised that almost everyone is adoring someone at the moment. Even me. mmmm....Dave. Granted, our relationship is a little long distance and slightly more complex than most.

So today I hope you are being adored and adoring in return. I hope it makes you smile.

Superman, but less offensive.

2006-07-13T15:51:00.000+02:00

I went to go and see Superman Returns because I grew up with him and it's therefore one of those must see movies for me. While having coffee before the show, my friend Dave told me that the makers of the film had to digitally reduce the size of Superman's "package" because it was too offensive. Now I had never specifically looked at Christopher Reeve's "package" when he did the old movies but surely Brandon Routh (the new Superman) is not that well endowed? (I bet I know where you are looking now!)

Needless to say, I did not concentrate on the movie as much as I should have because I kept watching out for a glimpse of the family jewels clad in snazzy red underwear. I must admit, the "package" was rather small and smoothed out - no buldges and gasp effect! I will have to go and watch the old movies now to compare. I looked on the internet for some comparison photos but could not find any good ones. I bet Brandon loves this kind of advertising!

P.S. The movie was not bad. A bit mushy for Superman, but fun.

Body Conditioning

2006-07-05T14:29:00.000+02:00

I go to gym regularly. It is a small local gym supported by a lot of students and people who just want to get fit. There are none of those people who go to gym to pick up someone or show off their new diamond earrings and Prada gym outfits (do they even make gym outfits?). It is really down to earth. You do however, find some who are a little self absorbed. There was one guy a few days ago - gorgeous. I did a double take. I was on the treadmill watching the pigeons outside bob timeously to the Gorillaz telling me to Feel Good through my headphones. Mr. Gorgeous hopped on the treadmill next to me and started running while examining his almost perfect body in the very large full length mirrors that I avoid eye contact with like the plague. Just as the Gorillaz where nearing the end of their song, I heard this high pitched squeal and all I saw was flailing arms. Mr. I-can't-stop-looking-at-myself had been distracted and had been spat out the rear end of the treadmill like a human cannonball. I stopped and went to help him without an ounce of judgement or a snigger. He said he was fine and that the machines can be really tricky. I just agreed and carried on with my workout. He disappeared shortly thereafter and then I laughed. I am sure he will never speak to me again!

The next day I decided to attend one of the aerobic / dance classes they have because I am so sick of the treadmill and that horrid machine that makes you look like you are cross country skiing in thin air. I didn't know it was a sort-of-dance class and was pleasantly surprised when we were gyrating to interesting African tunes and building up a sweat at the same time. It was a uniquely African experience. I unfortunately caught a glimpse of myself in those dreadful full length mirrors trying to move my flabby hips like some of the girls (and 1 guy) can and I nearly collapsed in laughter and embarrassment! I obviously was not there when the sexy gyrating hip moving gene was handed out. I donated mine to Shakira. I am going to go and try it out again later today and see if there is any improvement.

It's all about the food

2006-06-22T10:59:00.000+02:00

Karen Little and her significant other came to visit me in Cape Town this past week. We had a great time and I got to see a lot of my new city. I have been here for 4 months and have not had a chance to see all the sights - bad, I know. I shall endeavour to visit more places so that I can be a good tour guide next time!

What I realized over the last few days is that Cape Town and surrounds has an incredible amount of restaurants. You can eat at a different place every week for the next 20 years! The food is also so good - everywhere. Granted, the food could taste good everywhere because you are in 1 of the most beautiful parts of the world and most likely enjoying this food with great company and incredible red wine. But no, the food is really good and the wine flows. I think it is fair warning to say that if you are hungry, stop reading now.

I have previously been to a quaint restaurant that needs mentioning, called Madame Zingara. A gypsy style restaurant with all the trimmings including belly dancers. Here your taste buds will sing the praises of the grilled Camembert with cranberry sauce and chilli chocolate fillet steak. It's just one place that we didn't visit this time around that you must add to your list.

Aaah, Long Street. A plethora of interesting restaurants, strange clubs offering any vibe from reggae to trip hop and bars a plenty. We went to a tiny vegetarian cafe called Lola's for some dinner before venturing to a music venue. It was here, sitting at a 1970's melamine table surrounded by that flowery decoration that we hated when we visited grandma, that I had the best macaroni and cheese on the planet. Yes, even better than yo' mama's. Mr. Pickwick's Deli (also in Long street) is amazing. A good lunch stop as we discovered. It's a teeny tiny sandwich and coffee bar where you can have Oreo or peanut butter bomb milkshakes to name a few and a sandwich with anything and everything on it. Yum.

Aaah, Observatory. No, not really. It's the student district and can be a bit dodgy but you do find a nice Italian restaurant there called Diva's. Not an original name but some original pizzas, like Brie with cranberries. The semi-student prices are also good. A really nice touristy spot to visit is Camps Bay. Expensive sundowners overlooking the cold blue Atlantic ocean is always a good idea. When you're hungry pop into the Bayside Cafe. The best ribs and a sirloin stuffed with figs and topped with blue cheese. If you don't eat cheese and don't drink wine, there are other options, like going to visit Durban or Johannesburg.

The last place I am going to mention is called Die Wynhuis. For those who don't speak Afrikaans, it translates to The Wine House. It is in Stellenbosch - wine country. So after a day of wine tasting at various farms we ended up here to enjoy some seafood and obviously, drink some more wine. Seared tuna fillets with a light wasabi sauce and crème brûlée. Orgasmic. (Winters: women are allowed to use sexual innuendo when describing food) It doesn't really get better than that. It was just a bit expensive. 2 bottles of wine and a meal set us back R210 each (about $30). Expensive for us South Africans. I have no idea if $30 is pricy for you?! But please let me know.

Incredible food, great wine and fantastic company make for a good few days! After writing about all that, somehow my mineral water, yoghurt and dried fruit for lunch, by myself, just doesn't do the trick today.

Bad movie day

2006-06-13T07:57:00.000+02:00

Charlize and I went to the cheap R8 movies as we usually do. Unfortunately, we had seen everything on circuit except Mission Impossible 3. Now, I don't mind a good action film once in a while but this really was a mistake - even for only R8. Not only was the movie bad but we were sitting with the worst audience I have every experienced! Aggressive, testosterone-filled (including the women) and noisy! I am not one of those people who get very upset when people are eating or whispering a bit in movie. I tend to switch off to what is happening around me and concentrate on the screen. It has to be pretty bad for me to notice and get annoyed. But in this movie, it was ridiculous! People were talking and others were getting upset because people were talking. Someone had gone shopping or something and was rummaging through their packets looking for who knows what! Everyone was eating something from a very crinkly packet and the guy next to me was chewing himself!? No really, he was. Soon some interesting verbal abuse and threats were flying around the theatre, one aimed at Charlize who was very surprised when the woman in front of her turned around and said something like, "Let me get a look at you so that we can sort this out after!" It was crazy!

I don't know if it was the movie genre that attracted so many psycho's or if it was just a bad movie day but my advice to you is don't go and watch M:I:3. Not only is it a bad movie, but you might be assaulted while you are trying to watch Tom Cruise save the world again.

5000km

2006-06-05T09:59:00.000+02:00

I had never been to Namibia before and was thrilled I had the opportunity to go! I have always had a thing for the desert - or at least thought I did considering I had never seen it! So, with no ulterior motives and a 1991 Opel Kadet, I left Cape Town and headed North for the desert with Grazia, a hot-blooded Italian dying to see her travelling boyfriend Tom, the next day and Katie, a funky American wanting to renew her visa for South Africa and learn how to drive a manual car. Now, for those of you who don't know, to drive to Namibia is really far. We left at 6am, got to the Namibian border around 3pm and got to shower and sleep later that night in the small town of Keetmanshoop. The next morning we ventured to the very German town of Windhoek, had lunch and continued north to Tsumeb - only 150km or so from Etosha National Park. It was here that we met up with the British hooligan, Tom, who had just finished his 5 week trip around West Africa.

The next day we headed for 2 days in Etosha with visions of seeing every animal on the African continent. Now being South African, I have already seen all the animals on the African continent on more than 1 occasion and even though I still enjoy it immensely it is a lot more fun to see the reaction of those who have not experienced 'the safari.' I don't think I have ever seen people more excited over a zebra and springbok than this crazy group! Can you imagine what it was like when we saw lion and elephant. Just let your imagination run wild... Etosha is incredible and you really get to see everything. You also get to enjoy a cold beer in a nice swimming pool at sunset. We then headed Southwest for Swakopmund and Walvis Bay on the coast. You drive for what feels like forever on flat, desolate and fairly good dirt roads, stopping only to check that you are in fact going the right way - hopefully.

Swakopmund is a small German and Afrikaans town in the middle of nowhere but it is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen when you have been driving on dirt roads for a full day in the heat, in a car with no air conditioning and the windows open. Dust becomes like uncontrollable hair gel after a while and by the end of the day we all looked ridiculous. It is the most unusual place - the sea next to the desert. We went quad-biking in the dunes, got chased away by Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's body guards, saw millions of flamingos, climbed Dune 7 (apparently one of the the highest dunes ever - man I was tired!) and had numerous sundowners on the dunes watching the sun disappear behind the sea - not necessarily in that order.

2 days later we were on our way south to the Fish River Canyon hoping to stop at Sossusvlei (the red dunes) on the way. Now when you say 'on the way' in Namibia it means about 400km out of the way. So we only arrived at Sossusvlei at about 3pm, had a quick walk around this spectacular place and then headed back to try and get to the canyon before midnight and then relax in the hot springs. But as luck would have it, the trusty car that had been going so well for so far decided that the dusty and bumpy roads were enough and called it a day just after we had seen a small prop plane make an emergency landing on the road in front of us. She decided to break down about 40km from the nearest spec of civilisation. We sat in the car playing games to pass the time waiting for someone to come past us. It only took 5 hours. Some wonderful people were nice enough to tow us into the tiny village (population 20) of Sesriem at 10 o'clock at night and give us their lounge for the night.

The next day is a disaster. The car is.... well, f***ed. The timing belt has snapped and who knows what damage it has caused. The German tourists wont help and there is no spares shop for 350km - the town of Marienthal. Finally we pay someone to take 2 of us to Marienthal (we nominate the love birds), buy the spare part and get back so that the "mechanic" (actually a guy who sort of knows something about cars -he thinks) can fix it. Grazia and Tom arrive back, part in hand and we are very excited. But alas, the part does not fit. It is now Saturday night. We are now broke and I have to be back at university on Monday morning, as does Grazia and we are still 2000km away from home. So instead of worrying we party with the locals and once again exchange beer for the priviledge of sleeping in their lounge.

The next morning armed with a smile and my Afrikaans I stop a guy in a bakkie and start telling him our sad tale. I find out that he is South African, here on business. After a bit of begging, he agrees to tow us to Marienthal - that's 350km people, on a dirt road through the pass! So nice of him! We leave an hour later. The love birds in the Opel getting blasted by dust and stones and Katie and I with Tony (our saviour) listening to "Sokkie Treffers #7" cruising at 80km/h. After about 5 hours or so of really bad Afrikaans disco mixed with a bit of Steve Hofmeyer and Kurt Darren and lots of small talk, I felt in touch with my lost Afrikaans side. After that adventure, I decided to come home. Katie and I took the bus (a dodgy one) from Marienthal on Sunday night and were back in Cape Town by lunch time the next day. The love birds fixed the car and were back 2 days after that.

So all in all, it was great. I didn't get to go to the canyon or laze in the hot springs but I will do that next time. My advice is that you go to Namibia as soon as you can! Just go in a 4x4 with air conditioning though, with a few spare parts in the boot. BUT GO! It is the most amazing place with the most amazing people. A must for every traveller!

Will you still respect me in the morning?

2006-05-23T08:47:00.000+02:00

Should I answer interview questions? I thought that the whole idea of a blog was to remain fairly anonymous and mysterious, not letting anyone really know you, hence allowing you to write anything from meaningless drivel to Shakespeare like prose without consequence or a care in the world. An experience not unlike a one night stand where you experience the fun and excitement and don't have to deal with or worry about the touchy feely emotional stuff. Both parties (or more if you like) leave the bedroom satisfied. If you start introducing the touchy feely emotional lets-get-to-know-each other stuff, your partner is going to make a run for it perhaps even before you orgasm. I think the trick to answering the interview questions is to be creative. Make sure I'm slightly interesting and maybe a bit unusual so that visitors come back for seconds and still respect me in the morning. So this is what Karen Little asked me:

1. Define, for once and for all, your ideal man. (You're not allowed to say 'Dave Gahan')

The problem with being totally smitten with someone you will never even meet is that your expectations become really high. I guess I would have to go with what everyone else wants in a partner... Lots of money and very well endowed. What? You disagree? Ok, you are right. There is that whole money can't buy you happiness thing. So... I will have to say that my ideal man would be established or well on his way (by that I mean not still living with his mother and delivering newspapers on his bicycle), motivated, worldly and intelligent. He must have a sophisticated charm - suave, be a gentleman (I like to have my door opened for me) and a bit of humour never hurts. Jeez, I don't ask for much do I?

2. Give me your top three top fives.

That's a little vague. I could do anything. For example, top 5 #1 --- my top five pics of Dave! That's probably not what you meant. Anything to get him on my blog...

Top 5 #2 --- 5 greatest archaeological sites!

Çatal Höyük

This is an amazing site! It is possibly the first ever city. It is in ancient Anatolia - basically Turkey and is the oldest and largest Early Neolithic (about 6300BC) site. It is huge. You can't see much today except around 300 mudbrick houses. But the exciting bits lie just beneath the surface... It was one of the first farming communities and provides evidence of the domestication of animals, farming of things like lentils, cereals and peas, the making of pottery, murals and sculpture. The list goes on and on. Most importantly, it could be the first evidence of organized religion. These guys loved women. So much so that they worshipped the "Mother Goddess." She was all powerful. Now before you swoon and have visions of a Cindy Crawford-with-a-whip type goddess, this is what she looked like. Only 1 acre of the 32 acre site has been excavated so can you imagine what will be found next?

Maccu Picchu

Now this place is incredible. It formed part of the estate of the Inca king Pachacuti [AD 1438-1471] and is made up of granite buildings, streets, plazas and terraces. In case you want to go and find it, it's located 3000 ft above the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountains in the town of Cuzco, Peru nestled between two peaks and draped in clouds. Archaeologically these people are known for their masonry. Irregular building blocks of up to 30 corners each fit together perfectly without mortar. The joints are so tight that you can't fit a knife blade between them! They are also known for some bronze goodies, worshipping the sun and being exterminated by flu in 1527.

Yes, that is the places name. A really famous city in its time and my personal favourite. It was situated in southern Mesopotamia, also known as Sumeria. Today this area is known as Iraq and Ur was where southern Baghdad is today. These people (the Sumerians) were so smart! They are responsible for almost everything from writing (cuneiform was theirs), to mathematics, astronomy, mechanics, agriculture techniques, law etc etc etc. They also built the first ever pyramid (see pic), called a ziggurat - yes, they were first, not the Egyptians. Ur was the capital and the trade gateway to the rest of the Near East. Around 2600BC its the biggest city in the world - only 65 000 people. It doesn't look like much in the picture but trust me, it was grand. Most of the treasures excavated here are at the British Museum so you can have a look there, but here is a taste.

Emporer's Qin's Terracotta Army

Everyone knows this one... The ruler Shihuangdi became the first emporer of the Qin Dynasty around 220BC. He was awesome. He standardized writing, started building the Great Wall of China, built roads and got rid of pesky feudalism. He also built a semi-subterranean mausoleum called the 'city of death.' It measures 2100 x 975 meters and inside you will find 7000 life-size sculpted clay terracotta soldiers, chariots, and horses, an admin building or two and the emporer himself of course. The amazing thing about these clay soldiers is that each face is different, individual. They are sculptures or perhaps even casts of the actual soldiers serving in this guys army. And they just stand there, eternally on guard.

Aksum

Aksum has been called Aksum since the 1st century BC. It's on the horn of Africa, in Ethiopia. Thanks to the Red Sea, it was the major trade city and therefore, trade route between Rome and the gold, ivory and yummy food of Africa. It is so important archaeologically because these people loved to write. They wrote everything down and they wrote it everywhere. Tablets by the 1000's and carved obelisks scattered all over the place. Most obelisks are now destroyed but they were huge - 500 tons each and up to 100 ft tall. So besides the very high literacy rate, these people minted their own coins, built ships and everyone knew a guy who knew a guy who could get you anything and everything. These days it's not quite like this but they do claim to have the Ark of the Covenant stashed in a tent and guarded by the Coptic monks?!

Top 5 #3 --- Things to do on a lazy Sunday afternoon.

I think I thought of this because I have not had a lazy Sunday afternoon in ages...

Curl up on the couch, watch a good dvd and eat chocolate.
Curl up on the couch, read a really good book and eat chocolate.
Curl up on the couch and sleep for at least 2 hours because I can.
Curl up on the couch and watch the F1 Grand Prix.
Curl up on the couch with a guy -- the rest is censored. Then eat chocolate.

3. What exactly is your ten year plan, missy?

Plan of action:

2006 - 2009: PhD and to fit into my Depeche Mode t-shirt.

2009: Finish incredibly good and well received PhD. Receive lots of praise and job offers.

2009 etc: Change South Africa's methods in crime scene investigation and forensic analysis with regards to human burials and remains and drag them kicking and screaming into the first world technologies of forensic science. Then I think I will go and work for the United Nations and help out the genocide and mass grave investigators. Somewhere between all this I would like to write that commercial fiction novel that will make me wealthy because digging up bones will not. It would also be nice to find the man I mentioned above. No, not Dave. I am realistic. Unless you are reading this Dave in which case, I was referring to you.

4. You've been kidnapped by first years, and they won't let you go until you get a tattoo. What is it, and where?

I have always wanted a tatoo but I could never decide what it would be. For ages it was a gekko on my right boob but I figured it would look like a crocodile by the time I was 80! Then I went on a rock art expedition in the Drakensberg mountains a few years ago and we found this tiny rock art site called Christmas Shelter. It's here I saw these 3 little trance men and thought that they would make a good tatoo. I have not done it yet because then I would have three little men with elongated heads and erect penises on my body forever. Not everyone would understand that and it would get really annoying explaining it all the time! There is also the stick man motif on the Depeche Mode One Night in Paris dvd that I like a lot. So, if I were held captive and my freedom depended on a tatoo, I think it would be one of these, most likely on my lower back or shoulder blade.

5. If you could be anywhere right now, where would it be, and who would you be with?

That is easy. I don't mind where I am, although a nice warm European country is appealing right now only because I am freezing. I would like to be with my friends. They are all over the place. Pretoria, Johannesburg, somewhere in New Zealand. I miss you all terribly.

Today, tomorrow, together

2006-05-10T08:22:00.000+02:00

I have a Pick 'n Pay Go Banking debit card that works like a credit card. I call it my Amazon card because I use it for internet purchases and I only ever buy from the great and powerful Amazon.co.uk. I need this textbook that only they have and as usual I put money into the account and log on and purchase. I get this nasty little email back saying that my payment has been declined and order therefore cancelled. Alarm bells go off and I start wondering where the hell my R600 has gone.

I usually pay money into my Pick 'n Pay account at a Nedbank teller but this time, I transferred it electronically. I had called Go Banking to find out what they needed as reference for the transfer and I was told all that they need is my name and account number. I frantically check that I sent the money to the correct account and that the numbers and names are all accurate. They are. So I go to Nedbank. I explain my sad story and ask, ever so politely "where is my money?" I am told that the money is not in my card (and I am thinking -- duh!). The teller asks me if I used the correct account number and account holder name. I say, "Yes, I did." Since I bank with Absa and I sent the money electronically from Absa, she suggested I go and talk to them. Makes sense.

At Absa another friendly teller lady is baffled by my dilemma. After gazing at me (for what seemed like forever) with a very confused expression on her face, (you can just see the cogs working) she asked if I had used the correct account number. "Yes, I have." Correct name of the account holder? "Yes, I have." Click, click, click on her little computer and many uh-huh and hmmm's later she tells me that the money is sitting in a dormant Absa suspense account that Pick 'n Pay used to use. This means nothing to me. I enquire as to how I get my money out of this strange money stealing account. I get that same confused stare... She then disappeared saying she will call the internet banking people and see what they say. And I wait... and wait... and wait. I am then approached by a supervisor of sorts who wants to know the story. After telling her she asks me if I used the correct account number and account holder details. "Yes, I did."

By now I am not as calm and collected as I was 2 hours ago when I decided to sort this out. I am told that Go Banking (run by Nedbank) must allocate the funds to my account and the money will be released immediately. They give me proof of the successful transfer and the details of the evil money stealing account. I go back to Nedbank. I tell the now very long and complicated story to three different people as I get passed up the food chain. Each of them asking me if I used the correct account number. "Yes, I did."

I am told that Go Banking is not part of Nedbank (Huh?). Obviously, 'run by Nedbank' is bank code for 'we have nothing to do with Go Banking, they just use our operating system.' I think I am in the twilight zone! Finally (now 3 hours and counting), they phone Go Banking. I speak to a not so helpful James who stupidly asked if I had used the right account number. "YES!" He asks me if I am sure. "I am not a moron James. Lets move on." He cannot help me. He claims it is an Absa problem. I wonder if anyone I know has a machine gun or a stash of explosives.

They then phone Absa. I am given the name and fax number of an Absa consultant who wants me to fax her proof of the successful transaction (which I have in my hand), proof of identity and proof of the Go Banking account number and account holder (they don't believe me) but only tomorrow because the banks are now closed.

So I faxed this morning. I now wait with baited breath for Absa to get back to me. I now know why their slogan is 'today, tomorrow, together.' It's because today they can't help you and you will wait until tomorrow. Together because who the hell else are you going to go to when they have hijacked your money!

A presentation to the mind in the form of an idea or image

2006-05-08T12:17:00.000+02:00

I went to the Picasso art exhibition at the Iziko: SA National Gallery. The display was average, but it was very nice to see some of his sketches and a few paintings. It was very interesting to see how the museum represented how Picasso was influenced by Africa. Whether they are accurate - who knows? My 1st year tutlings go the SA Museum next week as an excursion. One of the students said that the Khoesan display offends her and she doesn't want to go. So in a tutor's meeting we ended up having a heated discussion about how people and cultures are represented in a museum. For those who don't know, the reason for the debate is the rather large display of "Bushmen" in their "natural environment" i.e. the desert, circa 1700's or earlier. The clay figures are actual casts of modern Khoesan people from the 1970's. The figures were then clad in traditional dress and placed in this fake desert scene. Its bad because the group has been typecast so to speak and paraded like animals. Its offensive because of 1) the manner in which these casts were made (they were stripped down naked and physical casts were made from their bodies), 2) the "lesser" view it portrays and 3) the fact that we don't see any cast of the ass of a white South African put on display in his/her natural habitat of the local coffee shop. Its just like the Saartjie Baartman thing - watching "the other". Anyway, the display has been closed off for a few years now, but it's still there. You can see where it is and try peek through the prefab walls shielding it. Some people say that without displays like that, how are people going to learn what other cultures are like? It is interesting to note that the people saying this are the white, middle class who have never been previously marginalized. I think in general one group has no idea how to represent another and no idea of how representations affect.

What kind of 'presentation to the mind' do we get from things that happen everyday? Yesterday, a work colleague was mugged by a large transvestite prostitute holding a pen. It was apparently very polite though. Over the weekend I helped the classic Cape Town ya-hey-bru surfer boy choose a gift for his mother. Ladies wearing burka's were looking at colourful scarves in Woolies on Saturday. A coloured male customer, upset because he couldn't order an out of print book, told me that I need to be educated. So these few events over the past few days have really got me thinking about how we are represented to others and vice versa. Perhaps representation is just another form of social, gender and racial intolerance. Anthropologists must have a tough job! Thank goodness I deal with the dead!

Rude awakening

2006-04-28T08:13:00.000+02:00

So at about 3am this morning I was rudely awoken by a torch light through my bedroom window and someone trying to open my door! The house alarm went off and after the perp was sufficiently spooked off and my heart rate headed southward of 220 beats per minute, I sat in bed wide awake wandering what the hell was going on in this country! The neighbours alarm then went off. Since I have been a victim of crime (violent and other) and know many others who have had similar experiences, I decided to do a little research on crime in South Africa - focusing on violent crime. This includes any kind of aggressive robbery to murder. I think you will be shocked at what I found!

There is not a lot of current statistical information out there. So bear in mind that these stats are a little out dated. There is also very little info pre 1994. Crime stats can be very misleading and varied! This is due to the differences in recording methods and the likelihood of victims reporting crime. It is estimated that up to 60% of crimes in South Africa are NOT reported. Keep this in mind when considering the following stats! This information was obtained from www.gunowners.org/fs0304.htm. These thoughts and inferences are not my own. Please refer to the website for more details and a full bibliography.

Lets take murder in 2000. South African Police (SAP) annual report show that there were nearly 22 000 murders. The Medical Research Council (MRC) says nearly 33 000 and the Department of Home Affairs say there were around 30 000. The Democratic Alliance stated that the average daily murder rate is South Africa is 55. But if we go by the MRC's stats its 90 per day. Now Interpol says 148 per day. So who do you believe? I am inclined to (unfortunately) side with Interpol here. They do crime rate statistics for all countries around the world. So what else do they say? Well, we rank right up there with Colombia. In fact we are worse than they are when it comes to organised crime and murder. Namibia is not bad either?!? According to Interpol and the Crime Information Analysis Centre, in 1998 the highest murder rates (per 100 000 people) were: Jamaica 37, Namibia 45, Colombia 56, South Africa 59 (Just for interest sake - United States 6, Brazil 21). Now if we add the insanity of the DRC and Zimbabwe post 1998 and the increased crime in SA, it "probably makes southern africa the most murderous societies on earth" (The Nedcore Project 1996:6).

To make matters worse, convictions around this time are not great either. The failure of the criminal justice system is portrayed by the following stats: For every 1000 crimes committed in South Africa, only 430 criminals are arrested and furthermore, only 77 are convicted. But wait there's more. Only 8 are sentenced to 2 or more years of imprisonment. And now remember, a third of SA's crime is violent and up to 60% is not reported!

There are various socio-economic explanations for the crime levels. We all know them. I am not here to preach. I just want people to be aware of what's going on around them and want them to realize that we cannot afford to be blasé about crime and its victims.

Who knew it could be this much fun?

2006-04-26T09:08:00.000+02:00

Is life not grand? Well, today at least. Here I am sitting in a varsity room with an incredible view of Cape Town whilst listening to Depeche Mode on my Ipod, blogging on internet I don't pay for and drinking a really good decaf cappuccino. And my feet are warm in my favorite shoes.... There is nothing like a little self indulgence once in a while to make life feel filled with pleasure. Although I must be honest, my self indulgence phase has lasted a little longer than anticipated.

Jetting off to London to see DM live 2 weeks ago has left me in holiday mode and day dreaming about Dave. I mean look at him. Just delicious.

A mini movie fest has not helped either and its just going to get worse with the new releases in May. I don't even want to think of the books I am not going to get to, already collecting dust on my bedside table.

Then there is the window shopping. There are such wonderful shops still to discovering here. Antique and book heavenly hideaways in town and in Kalk Bay and funky new retro stores like PopTart in Cavendish Square. They sell movie and music posters (vintage and prints) - an awesome stop before work. Now I just need the large loft apartment to house my choices.

All these distraction are so much fun. Who would have thought?