HAPPY XMAS 2012

Well the world didn't end before Christmas as the Mayans supposedly had predicted, and we are left to enjoy what's left of 2012. This is a very brief Xmas message from me to you.........let's hope that you fulfil yourr dreams. With 2013 just around the corner it's time to reflect on the past and look to the future. Here's wishing all my readers a very Merry and Blessed Xmas and a prosperous 2013!!!

BORN THIS WAY -The Sequel.

Grace Jones

It was reported in the news recently that the South African Council of Churches (SACOC) said something like this: " If the South African government can stop the Dali Lama from coming to South Africa, we can get them (the SA government) to ban Lady Gaga from here too!"  Say whaaaat????? Firstly how can they compare the two people? The reason why the Dali Lama was not allowed into the country was because the Zuma regime did not want to tarnish relations with China. If you read the history books, China invaded Tibet which caused the Dali Lama to seek exile in a neighbouring country. So what has this got to do with Lady Gaga? Apparently there's a Top Eleven list of musicians who according to reports are all connected to Satan. They say if you play their songs backwards, you get satanninc messages. What a load of hogwash! Maybe I should start playing Christian music backwards, I really dread to think what could be revealed here. One lady who was trying to stop the Lady Gaga tour because she said the woman is satan, is a die hard Carlos Santanna  fan. Yes, you heard right! She listens to the devil rythmns of  "Evil Ways" and "Black Magic Woman". Does this make sense to you. When I was a twenty something youth I had all the Black Sabbath and Uriah Heep albums, and thirty years down the line I'm no satanist. I was and still am a Grace Jones fan. And I consider Ms Jones to be the original Lady Gaga. In fact I would say that Lady Gaga is the next Grace Jones! What about Madonna? Isn't she a satanist too? I have her Dvds and have watched them many times, and I'm still no satanist. So what is the point of all this? These religious freaks should get a life, there are a lot of local celebs out there who are doing things which are influencing our children. And in closing compare the two photos on this post. Do you see much difference? I didn't think so..........

Lady Gaga

CONGRATULATIONS, MR OBAMA.......

Being a South African, American politics have always fascinated me. I think the whole world has been watching the 2012 US Elections with keen interest, hoping that US voters would not make the wrong choice. Well we can all heave a sigh of relief as President Obama was reelected for a second term. And as the pro-Romney supporters either cringe at the thought of another four years under President Obama or plan a mass evacuation to the United States of Romney on some off-shore island that the billionaire politician has acquired, back here at home in South Africa it's business as usual as builders continue work on Zumaville. All eyes are on Parliament after opposition parties displayed a vote of "no confidence" in Mr Zuma, and Helen Zille had given him 78 hours to respond to the R200m spent on his luxury villa in Nkandla. I think even people in the street who were staunch supporters of him and his political party have lost confidence in them. It has just come to my notice from Helen Zille, who tells me that they are now going to start court proceedings. For those of you who were following the DA "march" to Nkandla, you will recall that a charge against Mr Zuma was laid with the police, giving him about 3 days to respond. Failure to do so, he would be taken to court. The public will be keeping their eye on that piece of news. And whilst the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, just because some politicians don't get caught with their hand in the cookie jar, so life goes on for those who believe the ANC is trustworthy and those are disinterested in politics. But yet they are the first ones to write to the newspaper, when the price of groceries go up or when someone gets mugged. I am no politician, but when I read about schoolchildren without textbooks or those who have to wade through a river to get to school because there's no bridge, all because the  president spends R200m on his house so he can feel safe. The mind boggles. Let's not forget the people living in shacks, with no proper housing or money for food. Do they feel safe and warm in their homes with the roof that leaks when it rains? And to Americans who voted for Romney: Another 4 years with Obama is heaven compared to this. Try living in my neighbourhood where 6 vehicles got hijacked/stolen in one evening! Suspected corrupt politicians in goverment. A bunch of lunatic church groups trying to ban Lady Gaga from South Africa, and you think you have problems? I would vote for President Obama any day!

DEAR MR ZUMA........

Cartoon "borrowed" from the internet.

As an ordinary citizen of South Africa, it is my duty to imform you about two things: (1) Once you start using tax payer's money to upgrade your private homestead, your home is no longer private. (2) When you became president you lost the right to privacy. I want to know just about everything about the person running the government. Nowhere in the world does a president spend R200m on his private residence like you are doing. Oh I forgot.......our neighbour Uncle Bob does, but then aren't you two friends? Okay so you said you would pay R10.5m of the costs, big deal! What bank do you bank with that you managed to save all that money from your salary? Or is the money "borrowed" from somewhere? These are all questions that need answers as you and your "private" army refused acess to the DA delegation yesterday. People are homeless and hungry; school children in Limpopo don't have text books or proper classrooms; just because you used the money to protect yourself with bunkers and bullet proof windows! The majority of South Africans are getting fed up after the latest stunt you pulled, so don't be surprised if by 2014 they change their vote and support the opposition. You even refuse to make a statement about it, or so I hear. Helen Zille has challenged you to give South Africa the answers to all these questions. So Mr President do the right thing and prove us all wrong!

YOU HAVE 70 SHOPPING DAYS TIL XMAS!

Me & my siblings posing with a very scary looking Santa.
I'm the one on the right.

I was checking the stats on my blog this morning, and noticed to my surprise that the most read "post" of mine was the one from December 2010 entitled "HAPPY XMAS". Now why are people so obsessed with a Xmas "post" written almost two years ago, when it actually wasn't a very long post at all. Then I studied the "traffic sources" of the views and discovered that a lot of people are googling "Xmas" and "Xmas Pictures". So I thought why not post something about the festive season? Afterall my local Checkers is already selling festive stuff like fake Xmas trees, tinsel and other decorations. They've even "decked the halls with boughs of holly" so to speak, what with their Xmas decor draped all over the place, and it's still more than 2 months to go. I'm now waiting for SABC to start broadcasting those Andy Williams Xmas Specials, and the other reruns that they have just to save money so that their board members get big fat Christmas bonuses! And that's not all, wait for the milkman and the road sweeper, even the postman, to come knocking on your door asking for a Christmas donation of sorts. I know it's the time for giving but surely the donation should be given to the poor, hungry and homeless? Just asking. Somehow I don't expect to see the fake Santa's in the malls and departmental stores til two weeks before Xmas. Yes kids, the real Santa employs these people to do his dirty work for him, as he cannot be in two or more places at the same time. Father Christmas is real, kids, and he's married to Mary Christmas, his beloved wife of over 100 years. Wow! That's a long time to be married. Enough of these useless facts, I have some early Xmas shopping to do, so until next time. Have a fun filled day!

IT'S ROUND TWO: THE RESULTS OR IS IT?

Evo & Drumkit

After the first round of semi-finalists sang, danced and tumbled their hearts out, we waited to hear their fates the following evening. I was not surprised that the PJ Twins were one of the two acts who made it through to the final. The other finalist to go through were the young dance team of Cameron & Donlynn, who I think deserve to go all the way. But what happened to Tiego, another favourite to go through? Well I hope your favourites in Round 2 from Thursday night don't suffer the same fate tonight. After viewing Thursday's six semi-finalists, it was another mixed bag of talent. There were three acts that stood out for me: T-Squared, Iziqhaza, Evo & Drunkit. But people will probably vote for the cute little girl (Botlahle), and the lady with the dog (Xander & Finn). I have no idea why people vote that way, but they do. I thought Tiego wasgood enough to be in the Top 3 of round one, and what happens? The public give Rabbit & Bones more votes than Tiego. And the college duo showed us nothing new in the semi-final except a bench as Shado so aptly put it. With a few hours to before the results of Thursday's round are announced, the suspense must me killing us the viewer and of course the contestants. They had to wait an extra day, not like the round one contestants who knew their fate the following day! Why oh why has eTV instituted this very odd way of running this contest, is subject matter for another blog post after the Finale next week. So watch this space! With that said it's time to see who tonight makes it through to the Finals. Be sure to tune in to SA's Got Talent on eTV tonight at 6:30pm (check your schedules) and find out who will be the lucky contestants!

NATIONAL BANDANA DAY - 12th OCTOBER, 2012.

Being a cancer survivor myself, I support this worthy cause. Started by The Sunflower Fund , this annual event is meant to give Lukhemia sufferers hope and support. A lot of people out there are diagnosed with the disease and initially need a bone-marrow transplant to survive, and just by supporting National Bandana Day and purchasing yours and wearing it today, you give them hope. Let's take a moment to remember those who were not so lucky to get a life saving transplant, but you can change all that just by purchasing a bandana for R20. Let's hope that South Africans who read this will support The Sunflower Fund.

DID YOUR FAVOURITE GET ENOUGH VOTES?

After some consideration I decided to blog about the the first six contestants on the SA's Got Talent "live" show last night. By time you retire to bed tonight, South African viewers will know which two acts made it into the Grand Finale on the 18th October. That is next week Thursday, and I'm a bit confused as to how many shows we will see until then. I'm assuming that this Thursday will see another six acts perform  for your votes and then next week Tuesday will be the last six, with the results being announced the following evening in each case. But why the big rush to get to the final? Why only 30 minutes to vote? Surely not a lot of people will vote or have the producers not enough of a budget to hold a longer season? I'm really confused as to their thinking. I would have thought they would have had quarter finals as well. So far I've only seen the majority of acts once which to my mind is not enough to vote on them. Some of the acts shouldn't have gone through to the Top 18 at all. Xavier & Finn is one such act. How much more of an act can be done with a very talented dog? I think she's shown all she can. And what about Njobula? Okay he can rap fast, but so what? I wonder how he is going to impress us when it's his turn to get the public to vote for him. We shall have to wait and see! So after last night, which two acts do you think deserve to be in the Grand Finale? My votes go to young Tiego from Atteridgeville, and Donlynn and her dance partner Cameron. Those two acts really impressed me and I think this year it is the "year of dance". The PJ Twins are a close third, but personally even though they are great singers, it's all been done before. Pleae note this is just my opinion, and I may be completely wrong about the two brothers. They may surprise us. As for the other three acts, nothing really to write home about, and I can see why Ian buzzed two of them. We will have to see what happens tonight! Oh that's another thing the results show tonight clashes with one of my favourite programmes on VuzuTV. Oh dear choices, choices, choices!

THE TOP 18 -- SA's GOT TALENT (Season 3)

A lot of people watch the show SA's Got Talent and after last night, some of us can't remember all the names of the Top 18 contestants. So without further ado, here they are in no particular order:

1. Domkop & Clowns
2. Luke Greyling-Nxcele
3. Sammy M
4. Xandre & Finn
5. Rabbit & Bones
6. Tiego Ndhlovu
7. Iziqhaza
8. Adam Ferguson
9. Bothale Boikanyo
10. Donlynn & Cameron
11. Evo & Drumkit
12. Girl Power
13. The Krinsky Brothers
14. Melanie Adams
15. New Edition
16. Njabulo
17. PJ Twins
18. T Squared

I will not be putting the link to this post on the SA's Got Talent Facebook page, as this imformation is already there at the moment. But feel free to share this with your friends on social networks. Next week the "live" shows start on Tuesday 9th October at 7:30pm. That means my blog will be coming out a day earlier. So watch this space!

ONE STEP CLOSER (The Final Auditions)

The Happy Boys

I would like to congratulate the producers of SA's Got Talent  for bringing back this show to our TV screens. With all the strikes and violence going on, every week for the past six weeks we have been able to forget the turmoil and enjoy the talented entertainment that South Africa has to offer. And what a line-up of entertainment has been. The three judges had a difficult task ahead of them selecting the Top 18. All of us may not have agreed with the judges choices, and I'm sure some talented contestants were left out. A lot of people are commenting that there should have been a Top 30 and given a few more of those talented acts a chance to make it through to the final. Are the producers pressed for time? Or is the budget not big enough to cover more rounds of the contest? But more about all that later in another blog post. It's on to the selection of final auditions that were showcased before the big announcement. First up was a young lad, Adam Ferguson, who had the judges eating out of his hands, literally. And that was including Kabelo. Boy are we adults a suckers for young kids with talent! With Adam booking a place in the next round, it was the chance of four young ladies (The Fantastic 4) to show off their dancing skills to the three judges. They proved that you don't have to be slim like Beyonce to be able to dance and shake that booty. They danced as one unit with well choreographed moves, which a lot of dance groups these days don't have. Clips of various acts being buzzed out of the competition were next, some were hillarious and some were just downright embarrassing. Thankfully we weren't put through the pain and suffering they must have given to the judges by hearing too much of them. They at least gave us the viewers something to laugh about. It was back to serious business, when Sammy M took to to the stage. At first I thought to myself, "please don't embarass yourself" as he walked on. But he proved that he could sing and stands a good enough chance to make it to the finals. The Krinksy Brothers, three young acobats, were up next. It was case of "Don't try this at home!" as some parts of their act looked very dangerous. There is so much talent amongst our young people of today. Celeste, a singer with a big, strong voice,impressed the judges with her version of "Big Spender" and got a thumbs up through to the next round. A bit of the Cape Town's Coon Carnival was next, when The Happy Boys performed on stage. Singing the old favourites like "Die Alabama" and other well known Afrikaans traditional songs, they had the entire audience singing along! In my opinion they were the best of the night amd was a bit surprised afterwards to see that they were not in the Top 18. I seem to recall that Kabelo said "No" but don't quote me on that. I do remember seeing Shado and Ian singing along though! Next week it's the start of the "live" shows. So later today I'll post a complete list o the top 18 for your scrutiny. In the meantime here's a pic of one of my favourite acts of the season.

Tiego

AND THE WINNER IS...........

 Here we go! Dim the lights, cue the music! The winner of SA Idols 2012  is Khaya Mthethwa !" Well I  suppose it came as no surprise to #TeamKhaya as he has over 80,000 "Likes" on his Facebook page or was Mnet gunning for their first "black" winner? I use the term loosely as South Africans are not supposed to see colour. Did I think Khaya deserved to win? The answer is yes!  But having to sit through a 90 minute show where some white dude won the wooden mic and didn't even show up to collect his trophy, when clearly the winner should have been the girl from Durban who thought she could sing like Lady Gaga. Now that was hilarious! Bring back her hilarious audition by watching her here on YouTube . But back to last night, there was an awkward moment after the Wooden Mic winner was announced, because apparently some audience members thought that Dave Van Vuuren(Last seasons winner) who performed after the annoucement, was the winner of the wooden mic. How embarrasing for Dave. And what about the supporting guest artists? There are no words to describe Jack Parow's embarrasing singing talent. His performance spoilt my night! Well this blog is not about Wooden mic contenders or past season winners of Idols. It should be more about Khaya Mthethwa and his outstanding talent. This young man will go far as he has the musical talent, sung solos with Joyous Celebration and above all he can really sing. I'm sure there are a lot of questions you would like to ask Khaya. Maybe I can get him to answer those questions right here. I will let you know if it works out or not. Meanwhile below I present to you  my personal favourite who should have won this year's Wooden Mic Award. I rest my case!

CHOICES, CHOICES, CHOICES!

As the current season of IDOLS SA draws to a close and we wait with baited breath to see who will be the new SA Idol for 2012 later this evening. Let's look at the topic of toothpaste brands, afterall an idol should have the whitest teeth when they smile for the cameras after winning the competition. I was sitting watching TV after the Idols show on Sunday night and an advertisement for a "new" toothpaste called Pepsodent. Do we really need another brand on the market? Most brands do the same thing, make your beath smell nice, but they don't make your teeth any whiter than they already are. And the choices you have, about half a dozen different varieties of Colgate and almost twice as many choices for Aquafresh (does it all in one Mum) toothpaste. And the advertisements for all these brands: "9 out of 10 dentists recommend.........", well I have news for them as my dentist must be the 1 out of 10 as he doesn't recommend any particular brand. Although I do recall his "oral hygenist" tried to sell me an electric toothbrush for R150. I refrained as I believe in manual brushing. And these different brands seem to come in different flavours, fresh and minty is the one I like. I remember when we were kids, my Mom used to buy a toothpaste called Signal (the mouthwash in stripes). I wonder what happened to that one? Advertisements are misleading, like the one with an actor dressd as a dentist tells you why he recommends Sensodyne. Mmmm, didn't the Colgate dentist just do the same 30 minutes ago? He's not even a South African actor, he's American. It's like the othe shampoo advertisement wich is obviously dubbed into English from Russian or a similar language. How can you believe them? For me a toothpaste is a toothpaste........ they all do the same job. Maybe after the new SA Idol is crowned tonight, we can ask him or her which brand of toothpaste they use to have that million dollar smile!

THE BATTLE FOR THE FINAL IS ON.....

With less than 15 hours to go before the voting lines on IdolsSA close, it's no longer a battle between Khaya Mthethwa and Melissa Allison but a fight for votes between #TeamKhaya and #TeamMelissa. With both camps campaigning on social networks, it's obvious who I would vote for. Here are some updated statistics: Khaya has 75,511 fans on Facebook and 48,774 followers on Twitter. Melissa has 10,321 fans on Facebook and 9,028 followers on Twitter. Now if each of these so-called fans/followers voted 100 times to me it's obvious who the winner should be, but then I may be wrong. Khaya has been very consistent right up til the end, Melissa on the other hand had a few bad reviews from the judges. Okay so the secret is out, I'm supporting our homeboy......Khaya Mthetwa. At least he didn't say that one of the reasons he wants to win is because he'll get a car. Maybe I heard wrong when Melissa said that. The bottom line to all of this is, that whoever doesn't win will probably still be a popular artiste. Look at past seasons of IdolsSA, non-winners who are making a name out there for themselves are Sindi Nene, Lloyd Cele, Melanie Lowe and the list goes on. And dear readers, please don't throw a tantrum and get full of hate when your favourite loses and then be full of hate for the winner. We don't need that sort of behaviour here in South Africa. It's now all up to you at home.........vote, vote, vote! You have less than 15 hours left! And please note the date at top is American........You have till tonight (Monday, 1st Oct) 10pm to finish voting. May the best contestant win!

YOU GUYS NAILED IT!

Rashid The Magican in action.

With the audition episodes nearing the end, episode 5 of  SA's Got Talent pulled out all the stops to bring us another very entertaining show. With a few exciting dance routines, a magican, a rapper, an Elvis impersonator, and some acrobatics on a stripper's dance pole must have kept the viewers virtually glued to their seats. It certainly brings home the meaning of "variety is the spice of life" cause there was something for everyone! First up was a dance crew (they call them that nowadays) calling themselves Ninja Turtles. Heaven knows why they had that name as they didn't look anything like turtles. Maybe they need to work on a name, as there seemed to be nothing wrong with their dancing. Some very athletic dance moves and the audience watching them seemed to love the performance, although Kabelo didn't think so. "I don't find you believable" is what he more or less said to them and gave them a resounding "NO". Luckily for them the other two judges thought differently and put them through to the next round. Do you like acapella singing? If you missed last night's episode you would have loved the D-Seven. Some of you may remember the group Naturally 7 who performed at the Montreux jazz festival? Well D-Seven are similar, performing without musical instruments and using only their voices to great effect. Their performance caused Ian to utter "You guys nailed it!" and all three judges, including Kabello, to vote "YES" and put them through to the next round. Once awhile someone cmes along and has a passion for what they do, and as one of the judges said that "they share their passion". Last night a young man called Canvin Van Wyk, did just that! He certainly delivered the passion in his dance moves. Well done, Canvin! Even the judges were visibly moved and voted him through to the next round. Have you ever heard of a fast rapper? Najabulo is known as the Bullet Man  and can rap as fast as lightning, impressing all three judges enough to put him throught to round two. Another act that impressed all three judges, was Elvis impersonator, Andrea Gigolia from Durban. I was brought up on Elvis and this guy was spot on with his impersonation, his costume, his mannerisms and voice. In between all these acts I've just described, was the best and the worst in the form of short video clips, showing Kabelo buzzing out the odd "classical" act. A former contestant from one of the earlier seasons, Rashid The Magican was back to wow the judges with his routine of comedy and magic, with a little help from presenter, Tats Nkonzo. He presented one of those simple illusions that makes you say: "How did he do that?" . This display of talent had Ian again saying "You are fantastic!" and his fellow judges agreeing wholeheartedly. A slightly nervous Elsa van Niekerk sang to audience and the judges in Afrikaans. Her voice impressed the right people, the three judges as they all voted "YES" to a very emotional Elsa. A spot of pole dancing with a difference was next, when two girls called Vertical Vixens, did acrobatics on a strippers pole that you wouldn't have thought possible. The judges all voted "YES" with Shado making some comments which were very complimentary to the two ladies. This show always saves the best for last! A 16 year old boy from Atteridgeville, Tiego Ndhlovu, danced into everyone's hearts as he did his routine. He says he gets his inspiration from Beyonce. I did a bit of research and found that he had won  the Strictly Strreet Finals 2012 in the category Male Solo (13 to 17 years). I do hope he is one of the Top 18 next week, because that is talent! I can't wait!

I SMELL A RAT!!

I've said it before and I'll say it again, Tshidi Tenyane should have been in the Top 2 of the IdolsSA contest. Since I last looked at her Facebook fan page she has increased her "likes" from over 15,000 to nearly 18,000. Where were these people when the talented singer got voted off? And why is Melissa in the Top 2? These are all questions which need answers and don't look at me, cause I'm not the expert here. I can only tell you what I hear people talking about. In my opinion, Khaya Mthethwa should win this competition. He's managed a total of 72,799 "likes" on his Facebook page which is like three times more than Melissa has, and for those who like statistics....it's 7,118 more "likes" that Idols page itself. In the time I typed this last sentence, he gained another 200 likes. Let's just hope that all 72,801 Facebook "fans" vote for him!

      It's amazing, as it seems that Khaya has just gained over 200 more "likes" in one day, and definitely a sure winner of Idols. Just for a moment let's turn our attention to the "other" contestant in theTop 2: Melissa Allison, who has a mere 9,500 "likes" for her page compared to the almost staggering 73,000 "likes" of  Khaya's page. Her mediocre performances in the Top 3 didn't even come close to Khaya's heart stopping performance of Nikki Minaj's "Super Bass". That alone has got everybody talking, and will get him votes. So what's left for me to say? The fans must vote, vote, vote! I can't tell you who to vote for, do so wisely. A person with talent is better than a person who has absolutely no singing talent at all.

HAS THE IDOLS WINNER BEEN PRE-PICKED ALREADY?

A little over 2 years, on a suggestion from my niece, I started blogging. It started out as thoughts about subject matter that nobody ever read, that was on the 10th September, 2010. As you progress you discover new ideas and subjects that people want to hear about. One just needs to go to Facebook and browsing through the pages one can get hundreds of ideas from Breast Cancer to Lady Gaga. Here locally there has been a lot of hype around the talent show IdolsSA and judging from all the comments people are suspecting a rigged contest. Are they? I'm going to ask you two simple questions: Where is Tshidi Tenyane and Shekhinah Donnell ? Why aren't they in the Top 3? Let's look at the three contestants left and see if they deserve to be there. Let's first look at the Facebook stats of these two ladies. Tshidi has over 16,000 "likes" whilst Shekhinah only has 7,300 "likes". That's already telling you something cause look at Melissa Allison who only has about 8,000 fans on Facebook, Monde Msutwana has just 5,200 fans and Khaya Mthethwa has..........wait for it......a staggering 67,531 fans! Ok looking at those stats shouldn't Tshidi be in the Top 3? Maybe the voters that voted her off thought she was safe, with so many Facebook "likes"? I really wonder now, where is the real talent? That's enough questions from me, but judging by the amount of growing Facebook fans Khaya will take the crown this year. That is if the 67,500 vote! Maybe people who vote via SMS, don't have the internet. We will have to see after tonight! Readers of this blog can also find me on Twitter: @MrDurbanite, where I Tweet about all sorts of things. Let's see who wins IdolsSA 2012!

SORRY, IT'S THREE NO'S!

Iziqhaza

It was that time of the week again, last night, when everybody tuned their TV's into eTV to watch Episode 4 of South Africa's popular show SA's GOT TALENT and were treated to some more entertaining acts. There are a lot of people out there who are wanting repeats of the episodes and perhaps another 30 minutes of talent. Personally I would like to see some more of the worst auditions too, and hear the three popular judges' remarks. I'm sure they were very entertaining. But for one hour we still get treated to nine of the best/worst auditions. Now I'm no dancer, so I am no judge of dancers (I have two left feet). I say this because the first act on was a dance group from Cape Town called Origin. According to the leader of the group they have only been together since January and that would impress anyone as they danced together as if they had been together for years! Their dancing skills got them three yeses, even causing Ian to remark: "It was FAN-TASTIC!", and that would cause anyone to dance for joy! The next act we saw, Marshall Smith, I'm still trying to get my head around why he got 2 out of three judges saying "yes". Was it because Shado challenged him to remove his wig? I notice Kabelo gave him a resounding "no". The guy was classed as a singer and although he seemed to entertain the crowds, he certainly wasn't my cup of tea. And just when you thought that nothing could get worse, along comes Sarel vd Merwe. The name alone sent out alarm bells to me. Was this another Van joke? Ladies and gentleman, this was no joke. He described his act as a "Blitsvinnig Sketse Kunstenaar" which for those of you don't know what that is, loosely translated it means a "lightening-fast sketch artist". Well the end result of his sketch looked more like something you would expect from Mr Bean. But this guy was being serious, he acrually thought he coud draw! Okay, judges let's vote. Kabelo: "No"; Shado: "No"; Ian: "No". I'm sorry, but that's three no's, thank you for coming in.This is where the show needs to be lengthened by half an hour so we can watch a few more contestants make idiots of themselves on national television. In between the short clips of the worst were clips of some real talent that the judges had given a "yes" to. Hopefully we will see more of those lucky contestants in later stages of the competition. Then everyone was surprised when a lady called Melanie walked on the stage and started singing. She had the most beautiful voice I have heard in awhile, and was surprised when Shado voted "No" because something about not hearing her voice properly. Luckily for her both Kabelo and Ian voted "yes" and she is through to the next round. Then we were treated to an outstanding performance by two amateur opera singers. With colorful costumes and excellent operatic voices, Dolce Tenori wowed the audience and the judges. Two girls, who called themselves, Girl Power, were next and gave a graceful display of arial acrobatics. The judges were again impressed and all three voted "yes". Then two nerdy looking guys came on, and gave us the "white" version of psantsula dancing, Calling themselves Rabbit & Bones, it was another clear round of voting for the judges. They were followed by a forgettable preformance of sound effects, by Xolani who did not make the cut. The highligt of the show was probably the last audition shown. Two young people sang a traditional Zulu song, and all I can say is "Wow!" That's talent right there!! Who said Durban doesn't have talent? Iziqgaza has just proved those people wrong. I can't wait for Episode 5...........will you be watching? We need to get eTV to show us some repeats on a weekend. There must be a lot of people on night shift that would love to see the show. So how about it eTV?

WHO ARE YOU TO JUDGE?

For the past three weeks we have watched the good, the bad & the terrible audition for season 3 of SA's GOT TALENT and most of us have totally disagreed when acts were either sent home or put through to the next round. But there are three people who must be congratulated for having to sit through thousands of hopefuls and wannabes, some of whom have no talent whatsoever. I would like to take this time to write about the three judges and look a little more closely at whether they are the right persons for the jobs. Let's start with "new" judge Kabelo Mabalane, who replaces Randall Abrahams. I must apologize if I was a bit harsh on my criticism on him a few weeks ago, but lately he has been "spot on" with his "yes". Maybe because he is a new judge, he is still finding his way? Afterall he is a man of many talents, being a musican, a TV presenter and now a judge. Oh let's not forget that Kabelo has also run the Comerades Marathon a few times. Give him time behind the buzzer and I'm sure he will pick out a few winners in the competition. Next up we have esteemed radio personality, Shado Twala. She knows what she is doing as she's been a judge right from the start with Season 1. Between her and Ian they probaly hold the record for sitting through the most auditions for any South African talrnt contest!  It was her birthday this past week too. Happy Birthday, for the 10th September, Shado! I just love her bubbly personality and that smile of hers. No wonder she's a popular judge. Probably just as popular as the third judge, Ian von Memerty, an entertainer, musican, dancer, presenter of Strictly Come Dancing, and of course a judge since season 1 too. I don't know if the judges will read this, but could Ian tell us wether there will be another season of Strictly Come Dancing anytime soon? Oh and another thing Ian, you should copyright your trademark saying: "That was FANTASTIC!". Now that we know a little about these three judges and their qualifications to judge............let the show continue.  

AND THE TALENT KEEPS ON COMING

Episode 3 of SA's Got Talent (Season 3) was broadcast a few hours ago, and again some amazing talent was showcased. It is obvious that not all the acts that made it can be shown as the episode is only 60 minutes long. Perhaps they should consider extending it by half an hour? Just a suggestion as I would like to have heard the complete performance of that young opera singer that got 3 yesses from the judges. But what we saw was very entertaining. Please forgive me if I get the acts names spelt incorrectly but I'll try my best not to. First up were two young men who called themselves Drumkit & Evo and had only been together for one month. Anybody who can produce natural sound effects with their vocal chords is talented to my ears. An act like Beatboxing (if that's what it's called) can be very entertaining depending on the person or persons and this duo certainly did that, getting the judges stamp of approval and had the audience applauding for more. After that we were entertained by a dance group called Warrior Knight who describe themselves as a mixture of traditional and modern (hip hop) and it worked for them. Even though Kabelo gave them a "no" they still got through to the next round with their energetic mix of Zulu and street dancing.

Cameron Lombard in Season 1

Xandra & Fin, an act consisting of a young female doctor and her pet dacing dog, caused Ian to comment: "You two are FANTASTIC!", with their energetic display. Fin, the dog, really seemed to enjoy  performing for the crowds and was wagging his tail continuously, even getting Kabelo to applaud and say "yes" in the end. And just when you thought it couldn't get any better, along comes Jacob, the human car. This was poetry with a difference, and was all about a car (complete with sound effects) that Jacob saw one day on the road. The crowd loved him, so did the judges except Kabelo, and Jacob was through to the next round as well. How does one tell Nicole Smith, an 11 year old girl she cannot sing, without upsetting her? Well to be honest I thought she had a terrible voice, but Shado calmly told her she was not "ready" for this competition and to come back when she's a bit older. I still don't know exactly what the judges thought but that's not the point here. Never tell someone of that age directly to their face exactly what you think unless you want to upset the child in public. I take my hat off to the judges on this occasion, you handled it with dignity. Normally I'm not a fan of Gospel music, but the gospel group New Edition's harmonies were pleasing on the ear and certainly impressed the judges. "Saving the best for last" is an age old saying but they, SA's Got Talent, certainly kept their word in this episode. Remember Cameron Lombard from Season 1, the 8 year old ballroom dancer who made the Grand Finals. Well he's back 5 years later and he's got a new partner, whose name I didn't quite catch. He literally blew the judges away entertaing everybody. Oh how I love to watch Latin ballroom dancing. That was FANTASTIC! I can't wait for episode 3, can you?

DOES REALITY REALLY SUCK?

You must have heard people at one time or another say: "Reality sucks!" With all these reality TV shows on at the moment, I suppose we are drawn to the fact that "I can do better" or "She can't sing to save her life!" We are so obsessed with these facts, that we leave our day job to enter, only to find  out that we are worse than the contestants we criticised and when we return to work we find someone else has been employed in your place! That was the case in the reality show SA's Got Talent when one guy booked a flight from Durban to Jhburg, then took a taxi for another 500km to the audition,  only to arrive 10 minutes before closing time. When he got on stage, he couldn't sing at all! On top of all that he was given the boot by the three judges, and probably took a long taxi ride back home to Durban. Most contestants enter these competitions to win the big prize and the chance to appear on national telelevision. But would you rather engage on some survival  mission like Survivor right in the middle of the middle of nowhere by eating bugs for breakfast and having no communication with the outside world? Or perhaps you find running around the world and completing puzzles and difficult challenges in The Amazing Race, your idea of fun? I think it would probably stress me out. But let's get back to the local talent shows, which seem to be extremely popular because everybody thinks they sing, dance or act! Our SA IDOLS is now down to 4 contestants. Simphewe was the  latest contestant to leave after Durban's beloved Shekhina Donell's departure last week. All five contestants were rapped over the knuckles on Sunday night by the judges for making lousy song choices in their first performance of the night as each of them had to sing twice to garnish votes from the public. I suppose singing from the heart also has something to do with it too if one wants to win! At the end of the day you either have it, or you don't. Most of the time contestants have the latter. My question is: Does reality really suck? It depends if you are a contestant/ participants on these reality contests/shows and what type of reality show it is. An example being The Jerry Springer Show. Maybe you don't mind airing your dirty laundry on national television? I have said it before and I'll say it again: Americans are crazy!! Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!

THAT WAS FAN-TASTIC!

Thursday nights are SA's Got Talent nights on eTV, and today it was episode two. I suppose there's not a lot you can show in one hour, except the best and the worse of the auditions. Tonight we were treated to a disabled bodied dancer, a pair of tap dancers, a large dancer, a young girl who performed poetry, a female singer and a guy who couldn't sing. But before I start giving you my opinion of the acts in this episode, I have to say that the judge Kabelo Mabalane seems to have no idea how to judge. Every contestant with a guitar, according to Kabelo, was not entertaining enough. Hello? The competition is called SA's Got Talent not SA's Best Entertainers! Can Kabelo play a guitar? Kabelo, we are not interested to know that you wouldn't pay to see the contestant, just remember in the end we the public do the voting! With that out of the way, the first act we saw was a dancer, Mustapha Moos. Now I like dancing, whether it be hip hop, ballet, or latin American, but the novelty of watching a large guy doing hip hop wears off after awhile. I remember in Season 6 of the American version of the show there was a large guy who danced.A fter awhile ended up being voted off because he never did anything "new" in his act. So the same could be said for Mustapha. Maybe I'm wrong? After that we were treated to Kabelo buzzing several musicans off the theatre auditions, some of whom I thought were quite good. And then a young blond singer in stiletto boots came on and sang a some forgettable song and Kabelo says "yes"! I don't get it? She didn't blow me away, and I don't remember her name either. Once in awhile some talent comes along that is really an inspiration and I'm referring to young Nahlanhla Luke Nxele.

Even though he was disabled, he could dance and do all the moves an able bodied person could do. Truly Inspirational! You can watch his audition on the link above. Then there are some people will go to great lengths to get to the audition. Sandile, originally from Durban, booked a plane ticket to Jhburg, travelled in a taxi to the auditions and arrived 10 minutes before the closing time. After all that he ended up being buzzed off because he couldn't sing. Now that's courage for you. I forgot to mention earlier that I also find tap dancing very entertaining, and before you ask I gave it a try once but kept falling into the bath. Having watched the master of the art, Michael Flattely, dance on DVD many times before; I thought the act T-Square were very good. With precision timing, the two young guys danced together as one. Well done, boys! The last audition we were treated to was a young girl, Bothale, who looked to be about 11 years old, and preformed poetry. I'm not a big fan of poetry, and I'm not sure this act belongs in this competition. Don't get me wrong, she was very good! No wonder the judges liked her. I was just thinking now, what if this contest offered a head-line act at Sun City, would the acts have been judged differently? Would young Bothale have been given 3 yes's? Just a thought!

ONE DOWN, FIVE LEFT




Shekhinah Donnell

 
The IdolsSA contest is hotting up with now the Top 5 contestants left to battle out to be South Africa's next Idol. One of the biggest upsets though this week was when Shekhinah Donnell was voted off the competition. In my opinion she was destined for the Top 3 and should not have gone home today. But as they say if you don't vote, vote, vote for your favourite, they will land up in the bottom three, which this week was the bottom two. But fans of Shekhinah need not fear, as she and Khaya will be appearing at the Moses Mhabida Stadium in Durban on the 9th September, 2012 to celebrate Durban Day. Now that there are only five contestants left, I wonder who will be the next one to get the least votes next week? It is a known fact that if you have made it so far in the competition, you have already made it! If you know what I mean. Have you made your predictions for the Top 3 yet? Well mine has gone haywire, now that Shekhinah has gone home. I'll never make it as a psychic now. LOL   It's back to looking at the contestants closely and find someone who can replace her my Top 3 prediction. Somehow I think Tshidi Tenyane has what it takes to make it. In my next Idols blog entry I'll look at the performances of these talented youngsters next Sunday and then we can make some serious predictions. Watch this space!

LADIES AND GENTLEMAN: IT"S SHOWTIME!

With all the hype surrounding the popular singing contest SA Idols on Mnet, another popular contest SA's GOT TALENT was launched by another local channel eTV last week. With an episode filled with singers, dance crews, and Marimba bands it was very entertaining. As the saying goes: "Variety is the spice of life". This contest is different to Idols as the contestants don't have to be under 30 years old, and it's for those who can only dance, or play a musical instrument.  I noticed that even Durban's Michael Jackson impersonator,Vincent Jackson, who tried out for SA Idols, had a go auditioning for this contest but unfortunately failed to impress these judges too! The judges themselves seemed to be a fairer bunch than the Idols threesome. Randall Abrahams has opted out of being a judge this season  as he has his hands full with being recently appointed MD for Universal Records and continuing as an Idols judge. You may remember that season 2 of "SA's Got Talent" used to be shown on SABC 2 and since it's move to eTV it still seems a popular platform for showcasing local talent. In the first episode, two acts stand out for me. At the beginning of the episode, 3 black guys in colorful outfits and clown make-up (calling themselves Domkop & Clowns) appeared on stage with several marionettes and a guitar, and gave a very entertaining display of local song and dance. I might add they also gave a bit of a display of  being contortionists too. But the icing on the cake were the PJ Twins who sang their hearts out to the audience. What voices! Truly magnificent! I have a strange feeling that they will definitely be the ones to beat and with their operatic voices they could just walk away with the prize. As judge Ian Von Memerty said: " That was FANTASTIC!" Can't wait for Episode 2 this Thursday evening at 8:30pm.

IDOLS SA: DOES IT ALL BOIL DOWN TO SONG CHOICE?



The Top 10 SA Idols 2012



Have you ever watched one of these talent contests where the viewers and the contestants fans have to vote for their favourites via SMS or online? There are a lot of these reality shows on the small screen and people sit glued to their couches as they watch contestants make complete idiots of themselves or can actually sing and become top singers. At the moment on South African TV we have the popular Idols contest where at the moment seven young people are battling it out for the title of "The Next SA Idol", people vote like mad, probably 10 times a day, hoping to save their favourite. Whilst the official SA Idol's Facebook page is filled with comments from armchair judges giving their opinions on who should go and who should stay. Some of these people even judge the judges, cause whilst we don't always agree with what the Idol's judges say, it's the votes from the public that count. I have often wondered myself if by acquiring a large fan base one could actually win the competition with votes and not with talent. It would seem that way with some of the contestants. Just tonight one young man landed up in the infamous "bottom three" of the results show for the third week running. Unfortunately for him, Dominic Neill got the least amount of votes and was sent home. Let's be fair here the past preformances of his have not been great and one wonders after hearing his horrendous version of the Coldplay hit "Utopia" how on earth he made it this far. Contestants who were far better than him were getting voted off. Some of the names that spring to mind are Chloe Kiley, Nosipho Mngomezulu, and Obakeng Ramaboa. So how could Dominic have lasted so long in the competition? Maybe the three ex contestants mentioned above made the wrong song choice? Or did not enough "fans" vote for them? As I said before it is possible to get all your aunties, uncles, cousins and siblings to vote for you because from what I hear one can vote every hour. According to the T&C for Idols every viewer can vote a maximum of 100 times which if you multiply that by 10 family members, that's already 1,000 votes for one contestant. Get the whole neighbourhood behind you and it's a hell of a lot of votes! Methinks that this was the case for Dominic, but then who am I to judge? Well now that he has left, I think the real competition is about to begin. Who is next to go in theTop 6? We will have to see what song choices are made by the remaining 6 very talented contestants!

BREAKING NEWS:.............OR IS IT?

You have probably at some time or other opened you local newspaper to see some shocking revelation about your favourite celebrity. "KATY KITTYKAT HAS AFFAIR WITH TOP DJ" or "LOCAL MALE MODEL IS A CROSSDRESSER BY NIGHT". These are the type of headlines that cause sensation and nine times out of ten the story is untrue and just made up so as to sell newspapers. It's called sensationalism and usually the journalist involved gets a pat on the back and sometimes some sort of promotion as well. And the sad thing about it is that they don't seem to care whose reputation they ruin along the way. I could ruin reputations and name names here as far as a certain local newspaper goes. But my motto is: "Never believe what you read in the papers!" unless of course it comes straight from the horse's mouth so to speak. With that being said let's look at some real news headlines that nearly ruined real people's lives. Recently a local gay socialite was accused of having a "fling" with a local singer/muscian. The socialite cried foul and the singer said he was "straight", but who are we to believe? And where does the reporter get his imformation from if both parties involved have said that it was untrue? Sometimes someone "spills the beans" so to speak if they are jealous of one of the persons, and want to get back at them for some wrong doing. Well if that's the case then I should "spill the beans" on a lot of people if I wanted to, but I'm not that kind of person. Some people make the "front page" for all the wrong reasons too, like our imfamous "Spear" painting. Newspapers need stories that will sell their publications and there's nothing better than a bit of sensational gossip to fill the pages, boost the sales and start the tongues wagging! My advice to all of you out there is: "Never believe what you read in the papers!"

DURBAN GAY PRIDE 2012

You may wonder why this blog has gone all pink and colourful? It's time for a change, a time to stand up and be counted. I have always believed that one of the reasons people especially teenagers are bullied is because they are gay or lesbian. Some people will say that "being gay" is un-Christian and that those people will burn in hell. To that I say: "What utter nonsense! God loves everyone!" I could support my theory by talking about Adam & Eve, which according to scientists never existed because we evolved from apes. A whole lot of other facts are freely available to support this theory, but we are not here to prove anything. Everyone to his own belief!
    As lady Gaga sings:
"Don't be a drag, just be a queen

The Deo Gloria Church at the march.

Whether you're broke or evergreen

You're black, white, beige, chola descent

You're Lebanese, you're orient

Whether life's disabilities

Left you outcast, bullied, or teased

Rejoice and love yourself today

'cause baby you were born this way.

Some of the "ladies" signing the pettition

On the 30th June, 2012 a few thousand members of the LBGT community took to the streets in the annual Gay Pride in Durban, South Africa. With support from a few political parties, the Democratic Alliance was the only party to actually take part in the march. It was a colourful event, with the drag queens out in full force wearing shoes that looked impossible to walk the route of the march in. Most participants wore outfits with vibrant colours. And there was a lot of photographers taking photos of just about anything that moved. This year the violent "hate" crimes were highlighted and in the opening speeches all speakers agreed that the goverment must put a stop to this. The DA had taken the initative to organize a pettition and get people's signatures so as to make the government aware that this is not something that can be simply swept under the carpet. For more photos of this colourful event click on the tab above.

BORN THIS WAY? (The Final Chapter)

This is an open statement to all those people out there who have suddenly decided to "play" God by judging others just because they don't conform to their morals. The other day a lady and I were mentioning a friend in our conversation, and who should walk into the room but the friend. "Speak of the devil!" I said to the lady I was speaking with. Now does this mean the friend is evil? I'm sure a lot of you have heard the expression: "Better the devil you know, than you don't" or something along those lines. My point is that the word "devil" according to the dictionary has 10 different definitions. There is the so-called ruler of hell, which no one has said does or does not exist. No living person has been there yet unless you watch TV series like "Supernatural" with images of fire and brimstone. One of the other definitions says "An energetic, mischievous, daring, or clever person" which by the way is what Lady Gaga is. She is a performer and an excellent one at that. It's called art. People want to see a show that has dramatic stage entrances, outrageous costumes and not some conservative looking lady standing in front of a microphone, some forgettable song. Cliff Richard, a practicing Christian, always sings "Devil Woman" at his preformances whilst gyrating his hips and dancing with his scantily clad female dancers gyrating behind him. Does that make him the devil's child? Or is he a satanist in disguise? I think not. I would like to put this whole matter to rest and make a few final satements. We were not all made the same, as everyone has different opinions, different ideals. If we were all the same and liked the same things, this world would be a very boring place to live in. As for saying that South Africa belongs to Jesus, what load of hogwash? Jesus came from Jeruselam. Nowhere in the bible does it state that he travelled to South Africa. He would have been attacked by tribes on the way. As for trying to stop Lady Gaga from coming to South Africa with Jesus, may I remind you by your rantings that Jesus loves everybody and he does not discriminate! And with that said I hope we can all carry on with our normal lives, I think I'll play my Lady Gaga CD.

BORN THIS WAY? (Part 2)



Grace Jones Preforming at the Queen's recent Diamond Jubilee concert.

Whew!!! What a week it's been on the social networks, what with fans queueing online to buy tickets to Lady Gaga's upcoming tour to South Africa and causing the site to "crash". Then on the other hand the "happy clappys", as my late father would call these "bible punchers", trying to gather support to ban her tour from our shores. Their reasoning? She's a she-devil! Well some people's mother-in-laws are also called that too. But aren't they forgetting that Lady Gaga has had record sales (excuse the pun) of her CD's and DVD's already? Surely the FPB (Film Publications Board) would have had her music banned a long time ago if she was as evil as these religious "loonies" say she is. Their quest is so newsworthy it hasn't featured on any of the local news channels or appeared in any local newspaper. Back in the 80's we used to listen to another outrageous singer/artiste/performer, the legendary Grace Jones, whose costumes and stage antics were just as bizarre as Lady Gaga's are. Even some of her lyrics were considered erotic at the time. Now at 64 she recently preformed for Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, wearing a dress that looked like she had borrowed it from Lady Gaga's wardrobe. So why wasn't she banned from South Africa? Her music and Dvd's are freely available. I would go as far as to say that Lady Gaga is the next best thing to Grace Jones, cause soon  Ms Grace might decide to retire and then someone would have to take over her fan base. I don't know if some of these people who are trying to protest against Lady Gaga realize that in the 60's, Elvis Presley was also "banned" by Christians and bible punchers for gyrating his hips and singing "devil" music with lyrics like "I'm all shook up" and "And don't you......step on my blue suede shoes". They publicly smashed his records and announced that "rock and roll" was music of the devil! I could go on............but let me leave that for another chapter in my blog. As Lady Gaga would probably say "Have a fun filled fabulous day!" 

BORN THIS WAY?

I am angry, well that's putting it mildly, I'm more than angry. How dare someone tell me what sort of music to listen to, which artists to support? Just because international singing star, Lady Gaga, announced that she was going to perform in South Africa, a few nutcases have decided to try and stop her coming here "in the name of Jesus". Isn't that being a bit blasphemous? How on earth are they going to stop her? This is a serious case of bullying in my eyes, and I will make sure this gets posted on my Ant-Bullying page on Facebook. I'm sure a lot of people will agree with me when I say that fans will not be bullied into not liking Lady Gaga and then telling them she is the devil! That's hate speech, isn't it? Lady Gaga is a humanitarian as far as I know.  A staunch supporter of the LBGT movement worldwide, she and her mother started "The Born This Way Foundation" which focuses on youth empowerment and other issues like ant-bullying and mentoring. She also contibutes in the fight against HIV and Aids, by educating young women about the risks of the disease. The sales of Gaga-endorsed Viva Glam lipstick and lipgloss have raised more than $202 million to fight HIV and AIDS. And that being said, surely Lady Gaga is a christian herself; why call her the devil? I think the majority of South Africans will buy their ticket and dance the night away. Maybe because she supports gays and lesbians, these protesters want to stop her fom coming here. Well I have news for them, there are thousands of gays who will be buying tickets, I mean 52 million likes for her Facebook page says something!

THEY'RE BACK!



This was a really "Bad Romance". 

 Yes, you heard correctly: "They're Back!" Who is back I hear you say? Randall, Unathi and Gareth. The three SA Idols judges are back on our small screens or if you have a widescreen TV -our big screens. This is probably the best part of the competition, because thousands of hopefuls stand in front of these judges and end up making us the viewers, laugh or cry. Depending on how good or bad they are. The really good ones get a golden ticket to Sun City, whilst the really bad ones can compete for the "Wooden Microphone"who are are voted for by the viewer. Like this girl who tried to sing "Bad Romance" and she was not the only one who thought she could sing either. Actually this girl stands the chance winning the Wooden Mic hands down. I feel really sorry for some of the contestants, like the one youngster, Thabiso, who actually had a promising voice. But I think it was his cocky attitude that made the judges all vote a resounding "No!", and made the youngster burst into tears and blame poor Randall for "ruining my life forever". Come on kiddo, don't be such a baby. Think of it this way.......you are now famous and will be the talk of Durban in years to come.You won't win the Wooden Mic that's for sure as you were better than the Lady Gaga wannabe. Try again next year! You could be a future SA Idol! LOL

THE WEEKEND IS HERE.............AGAIN!

They say "time flies, when you are having fun", but that is always not the case. Some of us just look forward to the next "payday" because we're broke already and we try to keep ourselves busy just so the weeks go by more quickly. I remember at work there were people whom I called "clock watchers", who just couldn't wait for the boss to give the "okay you can all go home now" nod to staff members. One lady, I'll call her Millie, was always the first to leave the workspace, barge her way into the ladies locker room get her handbag and then virtually run out of the building to her waiting lift which was usually the daughter or husband. Thank goodness I don't have to contend with all that nonsense anymore, being retired was the best stress free decision I ever made. The only downside to it is we pensioners need an increase, and cannot survive on the amount we get every month.  So unless we pensioners end up protesting outside Post Offices, I'm a post office pensioner, I suppose we will never get a pension that we can survive on. I can just imagine pensioners with walking aids, and wheel chairs "toy-toying" waving placards and the riot police cordoning off the building in case some old geezer accidentally sets fire to the place. But I'm straying away from the subject a bit, now that the weekend is upon us. I'm trying to keep myself occupied by going to the gym three times a week, so today being Friday it's my last session this morning. A lady once confided in her best friend that she "was doing gym, three times a week". Her husband somehow got to to hear about it and immediately filed for divorce. Shame! I once had a classmate called Jim. I doubt it was him because he's gay! LOL! Well my weekend will probably be busy too, what with a DA Info table at Windermere Centre tomorrow morning and then watching the rugby match where South Africa take on England on the TV in the afternoon, "Time flies when you're having fun!". 

Run For Your Life!

The Wall of Honour at Botha's Hill.

Today the 3rd June, thousands of men & women donned their running shoes and gathered in Pietermaritzburg for the start of South Africa's world famous ultra road race, The Comrades Marathon! For a gruelling 89kilometer or a 56mile down to Durban, runners of all shapes and sizes battle it out for Gold. This event attracts a lot of spectators too, as they line the roadside cheering the athletes on. Bruce Fordyce, who has won the event 8 years in a row from 1981 to 1990, is said to be running again this year. His record time of 5:24:07 for the "up" run in 1986 stood for 21 years. But this not just about Bruce, it's about people of all races, religions and cultural backgrounds coming together and partaking in the most famous ultra marathons in the world. Runners from all over the worl come and partake. Russia, Holland, America, these are just a few counties represented today. I wish all the runners the best of luck, the race is not over yet!