Friday, 17 March. Hardly three months into the year 2023 of our Lord and The Rainbow Nation stands at the cusp of some profound events. Not to rub it in, as is the job description of any writer and journalist worth his salt, but that is simply the nature of the beast; to report on …
President Reshuffles, Premier Delivers SOPA and Red Monday Looms Large. Read More »
If there is a sacrosanct dictum that is religiously drummed at food-and-wine-pairings it’s that, unlike relationships, in cuisine and grog, opposites seldom turn out to be a match made in heaven. In fact the opposite applies, namely; species of a plumage – or in wine speak, cultivar – tend to hit it off like a …
Bordeaux, 1989; Colesberg’s Must-visit Restaurants Read More »
Go around a certain small town in Mpumalanga and you are likely to encounter residents who refer to it as eMkhondo whilst others will say it is Piet Retief. Down to a man, however, there will be unanimous agreement that one Pretty Yende is probably the best thing to have ever come from there. A …
The Sensational Pretty Yende and The Would-Be Superstars Read More »
On the best of days for tech illiterates, interacting with computers is, at the risk of sounding melodramatic, embarrassingly awkward. All some of us are certain of around a desktop is that when you double-click, something opens. “And the *##&$# thing,” an octogenarian friend of mine has been known to obscenely vent, “sometimes doesn’t even …
Around 2008 when Zimbabwe’s gradual descent from being “the bread basket of Africa” to a basket case, Charles Gavaza was almost 15 years into a teaching career and still piling the academic accolades to his resume. Little did the younger Gavaza know that things in his native land would deteriorate so drastically as to find …
With hundreds of athletes drawn from the Umsobomvu district converging on the Colesberg Stadium for this year’s schools athletics meet, this was always fated to be more than a worthy contender for Event of the Year. From the barefoot, barely-waist high u7s right up to the buff u19s all swag in running spikes, the battle …
Clash of the Titans as Umsobomvu Schools do Battle Read More »
Ask a random learner from a marginalised community what they wish to be when they grow up and the answers will almost always be one-dimensional. Teacher, nurse, restaurant worker, and yes, the ubiquitous doctor, of course. Can’t blame the children; their responses merely mirror a world in which dignified work readily presumes the stereotypical suit …
When Thulani Mankwenta, voice hoarse from unbridled singing at a traditional ceremony next door hobbles over and makes an unusual request, I quietly wonder whether the guy’s head is screwed on right. “Pour some wine,” he croaks, “and put on some Bowling for Soup.” Uhm…say what? My ears must be mucking about. At his age, …
“Restoring Dignity Through Work Opportunities” reads the slogan emblazoned on the back of an overall worn by a Community Work Programme (CWP) worker. Rake rested on his shoulder rifle-like, he soldiers on in short but brisk strides towards the Mongezi Juda Library to do duty alongside his colleagues. Before “tshay’sa” time at 4pm, the overgrowth …
Though the initial contractions may have spawned hilarious memes when loadshedding first came alive in 2008, 14 years on and the “Eksdom” jocularity is not so funny anymore. With the power utility’s dirty laundry hung out to dry in its own Annual report (released December 23) and the CEO Andre de Ruyter signalling his looming …
