Soccer star

With the world cup fever gripping our country Joshua is seeing more football on TV now that he ever has before, although Andrew has always loved football...

Last night the Netherlands/Slovakia match was on, and when one of the goals was scored I got Josh to watch the replay and then suggested that we make a goal for him. So I got his little table and put a blanket over it, and then encouraged him to kick at goal. Well this was the result...

He has always been able to kick pretty straight - even across a 5 metre room and at a goal that is only half a metre wide! But if it doesn't go where you want it to... then just position it right and celebrate the victory! And just to note that I didn't show him how to celebrate, he did this all on his own ;o) This morning Andrew kicked the ball with him some more and showed him how to do a real victory lap, but this video was all natural Joshua!

And then here are some photos that my dad took a couple weeks ago. He was involved in some project where he needed to take photos at a specific time, and he chose to photograph his beautiful grandson...

The World Cup is here!

I remember sitting in my bedroom at my parents house all those years ago and hearing on the radio that South Africa had won their bid to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup. With everyone else I was excited that we'd won the bid, but it was so far away...

And now it's here! Tomorrow is the kick-off. The country has been counting down since 1 000 days to kick-off, and it is finally here. In some ways it really is quite unbelievable.

But as I look around me I really am proud to be a South African today. There is such a spirit all around! I can't think of any other event in our country's history that has brought everyone together in this way.

Everywhere you go you see the signs - the flags on everyone's cars, the soccer jerseys that everyone is wearing, the vuvuzelas that you hear all the time... I personally really don't like the sound of the vuvuzela, but yesterday at 12:00 they had asked everyone to show their support for Bafana Bafana, and I must be honest that when I started hearing the (thankfully) distant vuvuzelas being blown I did feel a real pride in my country come over me.

I do think that this World Cup has done more for us as a country than anything else could possibly do. There are some things which will leave definite lasting legacies, and others which we will still have to see if the legacy is effective. But it has shown us as a nation that we can be united behind something, and that is probably the most important legacy of all.

So again, today I am really proud to be a South African, and when I hear our national anthem being sung tomorrow I know that I will join with the millions of South Africans who all feel the same!

Here's to us as a nation!

Construction work - 2010

I recently had to go to Somerset Hospital to fetch someone, and from where I parked the new Greenpoint stadium was right there... It's been interesting to see the progress on this stadium as I occasionally go through the area.

So here it is in July 2009. They expect construction to be finished by the end of this year.

I can believe that they'll finish this... But I find it hard to believe that all of the roadworks will be finished by December, like they have also said. We'll have to wait and see for that one...

Elections

Well, the elections finally came, and have gone...

On 22 April 2009 we all went to the polls to cast our votes. We didn't have to wait too long to vote, because we went in the afternoon, but many of the reports from around the country say that the queues were only ever this long in 1994. So the country took this one seriously!

Our town hall where we voted...

The extent of our queue. The queue did carry on inside the foyer a bit, and into the hall, but it really wasn't bad.

Some people ahead of us casting their vote.

The mark (which is almost gone now) to show that I took part in this democratic process in an effort to make this country better.

The results are now official, and I personally am very happy with how it all worked out. The ANC got 65.9% in the national election, so they did not get their two thirds majority again. I think that we are all relieved about that, although they didn't make any major changes to the constitution in their last term, I feel it is better for one party not to have that power. Jacob Zuma will be sworn in as the country's president next week.

And in the Western Cape the DA got an outright majority, and Helen Zille will be sworn in as our new premier next week. She has been the mayor of Cape Town for the last few years, and I think by far the most effective mayor that we've had in years, so I think the future is bright for the Western Cape.

I also feel quite strongly that although there are a great many South Africans who do not want Jacob Zuma as our president, the reality is that he is. And we now need to deal with that fact, and look for the positives that will happen over the next five years. There will be positives. I know that. There will in all likelihood be negatives too, but there have been over all of the last 15 years, so we cannot say that everything bad that happens can be laid at his feet.

Despite Zuma's history, we need to give him a chance to govern this country. The people have spoken, and although there are many who are uneducated in this majority, there are many who are educated and who don't have anything to gain personally, and yet they have thrown their support behind this man. We need to stop holding onto the past, and have an open mind as we view the future. If we don't, we will only make ourselves miserable, and things still won't change. But if we can be positive, then I'm very confident that we'll find that the future is not bleak, and there is still much reason to be happy to live in South Africa.

I'm still very happy and proud to be South African!

Election fever

The country is being gripped with election fever. This is definitely the most historic and significant election in South Africa since 1994, and it is being felt all over. Every news bulletin will have something about the elections or some politician or other. In some ways I can't wait for it all to be over, but it's also exciting to have this happening when I am at an age to be able to appreciate it. I was only 11 in 1994, so I had a very superficial understanding of events. And although I have voted twice already, like I said, this is a big one.

One significant event for all South Africans is that the constitutional court ruled that South Africans abroad can now vote (see IEC website for details). I think for this election it is only citizens that are already registered, but I think that there are many South Africans abroad that can now make a difference to our country's future.

The next six weeks are going to be interesting times. I'm sitting waiting with anticipation! I hope we can all be reasonably happy with the outcome.

The last two weeks...

The last two weeks have been hectic! Hence the lack of posting. But I've been storing up the photos and details that I wanted to share, so that's why there's a deluge today! (I took my February posts from 3 to 10!)

Firstly a comment on the weather... While the UK have been having the worst snow in 18 years, we have been having the worst hot and dry weather! Fires are becoming a standard part of life in Cape Town at the moment... This was the headline 2 weeks ago, and over these past 2 weeks this number will be have grown hugely!
And just to make the weather even better there was a terrible stomach bug that we managed to pass around so that only my brother Andrew and Joshua didn't get it... So last Saturday Andrew and I were completely flattened by it. But of course Joshua is completely on top of the world and wanting all the attention that a 10 month old will...

At one point I put him in his cot and just sat/lay on the floor trying to find some interest in life... Well Joshua did manage to brighten things a bit. Who couldn't be at least a little happy seeing this face!

Because Andrew and I were doing so badly my parents took Joshua from the middle of the afternoon, and he had his first sleep over! We set up the camp cot in my parent's room and he was so good! He slept well, and didn't give them any hassles! Of course when your parents are right over the road it does help the whole situation... It was SO weird not having him at home with us! But it was really great to have a good night's rest! We woke up feeling much better the next day, but really weak after the lack of food... But by the middle of the day we were tons better!

I don't know when exactly this was (well, I can read that it was 9 Feb, but can't remember what was happening...) but I just love these photos! I love these two SO much!

For those expats no longer living in South Africa... We went shopping last week, and this was just about at the end of the shop, so it really wasn't a bit shop: R824... And the only item over about R30 was a pack of 68 nappies for R140 (which are the cheapest good that we can get in Joshua's size - the one thing with a big baby is that things like nappies are more expensive as they get bigger... And we didn't have long on the smaller sizes!)

Joshua really likes eating my shopping list...

Joshua doesn't often have a bubble bath. In fact he often showers because its so much easier to have an almost instant source of water... But we gave him a full on bubble bath the other day, and he decided he really rather enjoyed these bubbles!

He is now climbing everywhere he can! He's just starting to pull himself along the furniture, but its much quicker for him to sit down, crawl to where he wants to be up again, and then stand up... So ever the lazy one...

But this was him crawling around behind Grammy and Grandpa's couch and then I'm not sure if he pushed the cushion out, or if Andrew moved it so that he could see what Josh was doing, but he ended up like this:

Joshua has FINALLY cut his second tooth! And then today we found that he's actually also cut his first top tooth. So he's a 3-tooth boy now ;o) I'm hoping that while we're busy with the teething he'll at least cut the other top tooth so that he can be a bit more even now... That one bottom tooth was out so far that he really did look very amusing!

Joshua has also completely weaned himself now. We made it to just under 10 months with him still having some breast milk, and although it was traumatic for me, I know it is better that he's the one who stopped, so that I know he really was ready for it. But when it comes right down to it, it's just easier and faster to get milk from a bottle, and my boy loves his food! He doesn't want anything slowing him down!

Oh, and other major events in the (local) world...

We had our budget speech this week, and I think we're all feeling as positive as we can about it... I really think that Trevor Manuel is someone we can trust to make sure that things go as well as they can financially in the country.

Zimbabwe's Morgan Tsvangirai was sworn in as Prime Minister this week, to serve in the unity government with Robert Mugabe. I think we're all taking a wait and see approach...

Yesterday, quite by chance, we heard the Democratic Alliance's election manifesto being launched. Helen Zille gave a speech, outlining their manifesto and what they have very carefully put together, and costed, as their plan for governing the country. I can't help but feeling confidence when I hear her speak... I think we all know that it's still very unlikely that the DA would win this election, even with COPE that will hopefully split the ANC vote. But, as some analysts are saying, they are no longer talking like an opposition party, but rather they have started talking like a ruling party. And I think that that's the really important thing. And they really are aiming their campaign at all the demographic groups in the country. One of the other parties is busy in court trying to get South Africans outside of the country the right to vote in the upcoming election. I really hope they get it right, because I think that all of the expats can also help to make a difference. But the DA are aware that this election will probably be the ANC again, but their plan is to win in 2014. If they carry on as they are, I actually really think they have a chance!

And then the last exciting thing is that these past 2 weeks may have been pretty tough and hectic, but they've cut in half my time left at PwC until I start at UCT. Just 2 weeks to go! ;o) And I think that the next two weeks are definitely going to be better than the last two!

A day of miracles!

Yesterday was quite an amazing day. It's funny how sometimes so many things happen on the same day...

To start off we had a partial eclipse. It's so cool feeling that there's just something different in the air. It's interesting how light, and a change in the light, can affect us so much.
So that was Joshua's first eclipse as well. Incidentally, I remember that the day my brother Richard was born there was also an eclipse. After watching it with my cousins I went to my grandpa's house, and he told me that Richard has been born. So I think eclipses just have something special.

Then South Africa beat Australia in the 4th ODI of the series, winning the series with one match in hand! Always a great achievement! And especially after having just won the test series! Apparently now Australia are talking about whether they should keep their captain... Sound familiar? But no thoughts like that for us this time round.

And then, what was just so amazing for me... CapeTalk had a radiothon yesterday, raising money for orphan children around Cape Town. The organisation that's getting the funds can feed, clothe and give basic shelter to a child for R150 a month. So they had the radiothon to try and raise money, and they were hoping to get about R1 million which would take care of about 500 children for a year. They were asking people to give what they could, but if possible to fund one child for a year, and the interesting thing was that they weren't targeting corporates like they normally do, but rather just the normal people around Cape Town.

Well, what a day! The only other thing on the radio that makes me cry like that is when KFM does their Christmas Wish List... by lunch time they had R1.5m, and it just kept on growing and growing. I heard one guy saying he's finishing paying off his car this month, so what he would have paid next month he'll give. I heard a 13 year old boy saying he would give. I heard small businesses saying they'd take care of 5 children for a year, challenging other businesses to do the same, and then the other businesses took up the challenge! And then Foschini... When the total raised was about R2.8m they called and pledged to take care of 100 children, but not just for 1 year - for 3 years! It's amazing to me to see when a worthy cause comes up how people, from the big companies that have lots to give, to the small individuals who give what they can, open up their hearts. All in all R3.75m was raised, which will take care of over 2000 children! What a blessing organisations like this are, and the community who are willing to try and uplift the people around them.

Truly a day of miracles! Another day to be proud to be South African!

Inauguration day thoughts

I watched the inauguration of President Barack Obama this week, and I was really impressed, and moved by what I saw and heard. I don't know whether or not I would have voted for him, if I was American - I never had the reason to study both election campaigns so that I would be in a position to make that decision... But as I sit as an outsider, and watch a man that inspires such confidence and hope, I can't help but feel that if anyone can lead America, and possibly even extend his influence to leading the world, to a more positive future, then Barack Obama can.

I was very impressed with his speech. His delivery was incredible - including the fact that he had no visible notes or prompts. To speak for over 20 minutes (and I've seen a transcript of his speech, and it's 4 full pages) is really amazing, and noteworthy.

But I felt that his message was really great too. I was impressed with his frankness in the way he tackled the issues, and the message of hope that I couldn't help but feel.

I think what I really appreciated as well was how he emphasised their "patchwork" history, and how their pioneers and forefathers went through everything they did in the hope that their children would have a free nation to call home, and have a better life than they did. I feel a greater responsibility to try and make our country a better place for our children.

Many parts of our history is South Africa are similar to the American story. And as I look at the country that we are part of today, I think that our forefathers - of all races - also endured much so that we could have the country that we have today. It is certainly far from perfect - with sometimes more issues than there are pages in the newspapers to cover them. But there are MANY positives. And I am proud to be South African, and to be trying to make a good home for our future generations.

I certainly hope that our politicians can look at the example set by Obama, in every aspect of his campaign, and his acceptance of office, and try to do things a bit differently in our upcoming elections. I don't really expect it to happen, but we can hope anyway.

But I am glad nonetheless to have a world leader that seems to have a true desire to use his influence for good.

"America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations."

I hope that we can give that same gift of freedom to our future generations.