Thursday 19 August 2010

Mulatu Astatke in Jozi

http://www.artsalive.co.za/music/details/23

10 September, apparently at WITS. So decent acoustics then.

Woot!

Decision Made - I'm gonna be a cowboy baby!!

Yip, last minute though it is, I have finally made my choice between the two ranches who offered me volunteer opportunities for the next couple of months.
It has been driving me a little crazy so decided to make a decision and the rest will follow (I hope!).

For those who I have not yet told about this (are there any of you who I have not yet told?!)... I found myself in the unexpected position of having time and flights to the US with no real plans of what to do while I was there. Decided it may be the universe offering the chance to fulfill a life dream and go play cowboy for a few months (having quit my job I was reminded by a very wise housemate that finding longer periods to duck out of your life is going to become harder and harder).

So, come the end of August I am flying off to the US and more specifically Colorado (yip, its gonna be CHILLY) to work for Duke and his team on the Chico Basin Ranch for three months! Its gonna be tough and at times I reckon I may be lonely but I am going to be riding, herding cattle and (hopefully) bison (!) and working with their kids conservation education programme.
Scared and Thrilled!

Friday 13 August 2010

Our DRC moment?

The M&G has asked that this week. Do yourself a favour and read Nic Dawes's leader. This Mittal-ICT-Kumba-GOVERNMENT-Zuma's kid thing, along with the media stuff and the low-intensity war being waged against the judiciary is, as Dawes put it, is our fork in the road. The slope may not be steep - we won't implode overnight - but it is slippery.

Wednesday 11 August 2010

one weekend in new york

On Thursday night, we did this:



On Saturday, we saw Sharon Jones and the Dab Kings play at Prospect Park:



And then, on Sunday, we went to this:



I'm really looking forward to coming home, seeing family, and some of you. But. I have to say, its going to be really hard to let go of all of this. I just hope, Tally, that you take over the mantle and take on all that NYC has to offer.

Ya dammit, why not just go the whole hog?

Cool piece of subversive mischief about the proposed Media Appeals Tribunal. Why stop there?

Well I guess it isn't subversive mischief at all, because it's 100% right (in both senses - it's accurate and morally right). Which makes the whole business more depressing. In case you still care, the ANC seems to be committed to this one. All eyes on the September NGC then.

Monday 9 August 2010

I like this too.


Pity the song is so kak, but i love the concept.

Friday 6 August 2010

Musicians taking over the world

First there was Peter Garrat - we know him from Midnight Oil but to many New South Walers in Australia he is also known as the Labour MP for Kingsford Smith as well as the Minister for Environment Protection, Heritage & Arts.

Now there is Wyclef Jean running for President of Haiti and (growing) rumours that Youssou n'Dour will be the next leader of Senegal :)

SA's marketing naivete

Trevor Noah is really big. Really popular. Cell C, not so much. Kinda annoying actually - the clever jokes and branding don't compensate for the really shit service.

I admit I fell for it, ok. But I haven't then gotten on my high horse to try and show just how morally outraged I am at being duped, like many Twitterers have done, apparently.

What am I talking about? Cell C's new marketing campaign/rebranding exercise/boadroom group-wank.

A few days ago a YouTube clip of a small part of one of Trevor's shows - where he lambastes Cell C - started to become very popular. So much so that, a few days later, Cell C took out full page ads in the dailies apologising to all Sef Efrikens, and promising big new things in the near future. A victory for social media. All hail God Trevor!

Turns out.... they were working together all along! Cell C and ol' Trev had the whole thing planned, and all was revealed at something called a media junket (press conference? Glad I didn't study marketing) yesterday. Cell C also revealed their shiny new investments, and made lots of promises, apparently.

I think that's great - good on both of them - PROVIDED it does actually improve Cell C's service, and maybe bring prices down a bit. Trevor's routines could do with some freshening up too, now that I think about it.

Quite why everyone is so upset that Trevor has 'sold out' is a little beyond me.

Thursday 5 August 2010

Monday 2 August 2010

Dan & Anna

For those of you interested in what Dan and Anna are up to you can now follow on the blog: Wild Wild Coast

The New Age has no comment on the proposed Media Appeals Tribunal

Are you wondering why? Are you surprised? No! Because you are not dim.

The best part about the story in which this little nugget was dropped is that TNA's (that's it's commonly accepted abbreviation now - some new readers will certainly be disappointed) editor, Vuyo Mvoko, has a spokesperson. I wonder how many newspaper editors have spokepersons?