The Time of Our Lives

Pic: AP
R.I.P Patrick Swayze 1952 - 2009

They're a-Comin'!

It seems to be that I get a musical wish granted every December. Last year I got to meet, and experience a 3-hour concert by, Wyclef Jean. Ever since my brother played Gone 'Til November for me, I've been such a fan of this hitmaker. The year before I got to meet and interview Dave Matthews - the SA-born singing star who sells out stadiums in the States. He didn't perform but he did promise that the band would come and perform here before 2010 - or at least during it. So, yay for that!


This coming December, it's going to be another big one. One of my musical favourites, The Killers, are heading to South Africa for two shows. The other night there was a little taste of their performance on The Jonathan Ross Show. It was broadcast in the UK a few months ago, but it was still a yummy little taster of what's to come...



Wonder if my other musical dreams will be granted in Decembers to come?

R.I.P Vanilla Charlotte Nurse

I got this email from Justin Nurse, whom I first met back in the day when I joined in the march to the High Court in Cape Town for his 'Black Labour' court case issue. The story about what happened to his little girl is beyond tragic and I know he has written these words for publication but I want to share this because of the message towards the end; about how he and the family are choosing to focus on her life rather than blame or get angry. Such strength and bravery in the face of something so horrible and incomprehensible.

Vanilla Charlotte Nurse 02/09/07 – 02/09/09

Statement from her parents, Justin Nurse and Camilla Colley.

Vanilla, our beautiful angel, passed away last Wednesday, on her second birthday. She lived a full, happy life. She was very much her own person, with an enthusiastic curiosity that was infectious to all those who knew, or only just met her.

Vanilla was blessed in that her life on this earth was filled with an abundance of love and vitality. Life is all that we have, and the loss of it — whether it be your own daughter, a parent, a loved one, or a favourite pet — is almost always tragic at first.

But when you begin to be able to see through your own tears, you can catch a glimpse of a prism of colourful refracted light that playfully reveals itself in a fleeting moment. And you find that the reward of truly embracing life and its challenges, day in and day out, comes from savouring each precious moment — catching as many glimpses of the rainbow as you can.

We would like to express our immense gratitude to the family, friends and complete strangers in this beautiful country and indeed, this world of ours, that have compassionately cried with us, and have expressed their grief, love and care. South Africans at home and abroad have revealed their true colours to us during this tragic time.

We are united by our tears of sorrow and our tears of joy. Displays of love, kindness and support in the form of flowers, phone calls, text messages and prayers, have touched us deeply and we can now take steps towards healing — feeling nourished, supported, held and loved by so many.

Honda SA have been gracious and empathetic in their dealings with our family. We have chosen not to focus our energies on attributing blame or cultivating anger. Why, when love and life are all around us? With time, our hurt will turn to happiness and baby steps will become confident strides.

We have chosen to celebrate the birthday that Vanilla never had by celebrating the present, every day, and with love.

~~~~~

Long Walk to Freedom - for Kiddies

Pic courtesy Debbie Yazbek/Nelson Mandela Foundation

I love the idea of this!

As someone still making their way through the 600-odd pages of the insightful Long Walk To Freedom, I like that it's now been abridged to be accessible to children too. After all, as I've said before, Nelson Mandela is the biggest celeb of them all, so it's great to know that youngsters can learn about his roots, his early life and how he made it through 27 years of imprisonment. Author Chris van Wyk (Surely, Goodness and Mercy) did the abridging and Cape Town-based artist Paddy Bouma did the illustrations.

There's another book as well - Nelson Mandela's Favourite African Folktales - that's also currently out. A beautifully-illustrated look at some of those classic stories Madiba likes children to hear. Famous actors from around the world have added their voices to the recording of the stories - Don Cheadle, Matt Damon, Whoopi Goldberg, Hugh Jackman, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Helen Mirren, Charlize Theron and many others. It also has a special message from Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and original music by Johnny Clegg and Vusi Mahlasela. A must-add to any child's book collection.


As for my reading, Long Walk to Freedom sits on my bedside table as I collapse into bed, night after night. Perhaps I should take a weekend out in the bush and just finish it. Otherwise I might just have to get myself a copy of the kiddies version too.

So much to do...so little time?

I went to the launch of the Joburg Tourism's Spring Fever campaign yesterday - and it just hit me how many wonderful things are taking place in the City of Gold this month. I mean, don't get me wrong, I already know about many of the events taking place as I do a weekly What's On slot on David O'Sullivan's show on 702. But seeing all the festivals - 10 to be exact - in front of me, just made me smile with delight. And yes, it has a little to do with the fact that I am a huge fan of the Whisky Live event ;) Oh, and that there is also something called the Joburg Shopping Festival!


It's just the excitment of things to do. One of the reasons I love New York so much is that on any given day there is a host of things to do. Okay, look, a lot of them are also free and spontaneous, but there is nothing better than being spoilt for choice when it comes to the arts and being entertained.

Pic from Joburg Tourism Company

The lineup includes:

• The Johannesburg Shopping Festival running until the end of September

• Arts Alive! running from September 3-27 at various venues in the city.

• Soweto Festival taking place from September 24-27 at University of Johannesburg’s Soweto Campus

• Sanlam Fashion week running from September 16-19 at the Sandton Convention Centre.

• Taste of Joburg running from September 30 to October 4, showcasing 16 restaurants

• Soweto Food Festival taking place from October 1-4

• WineX running from October 30-November 1 at the Sandton Convention Centre

• Soweto Beer Festival running from October 30-November 1.

• FNB Whisky Live Festival taking place at the Sandton Convention Centre from November 11-14.

Now, if only I could find time to make sure I go to all ten of the events!

The Dirty Skirts vs Tumi and the Volume

Picture it: an old ice rink just waiting to come back to life, 2 stages facing each other, and a DJ box in the middle of the room with one of the country's finest perched on it. And you have the setting for the Redbull Soundclash - The Dirty Skirts vs Tumi and the Volume. I loved the idea behind the event - taking two hot bands and give them the chance to show just what they can do.

This was no ordinary "battle of the bands", but a true show of musical prowess combined with the ability to charm and win over fans from two of the hottest bands in the country. During each round the bands had to gain support for their efforts - the louder the applause, the higher the number on the metre placed up on the ceiling. First off, both bands performed 3 of their own songs.

Tumi

The Skirts

Round 2 was hilarious - both bands had to cover the Spice Girls' Wannabe, as chosen by the superstar DJ that is Kenzhero. Both totally changed the song around and made it - for a few minutes - acceptable to like the Spice Girls. In the last round they had to bring out a secret weapon...

Thandiswa helps out the Dirty Skirts

Zolani from Freshlyground plays for Team Tumi

In the end The Dirty Skirts won, but it was a tight competition and both bands absolutely shone up on stage and made it a night to remember.

It made me want to see another one of these nights again. How about 340ml versus aKing? Or Taxi Violence versus Kwani Experience?

District 9

It's being billed as the film of the year and it's no wonder. Walking out of a preview screening of District 9 I thought about how this is unlike anything we have ever seen come out of South Africa. By now, I'm sure you'll have heard the buzz about the movie - how it was directed by South African Neill Blomkamp and produced by Peter Jackson, after the whole 'Halo' concept fell apart.

Using a pseudo-documentary style mixed with realism and fiction, the movie is about an alien ship that docks, not in New York, not in Washington, but in Johannesburg (gotta love it!), and how the residents try to contain its inhabitants who are condescendingly called Prawns (and as Gus Silber says, this could be in tribute to our very own Parktown Prawns). Much of the film was shot during the xenophobic violence that flared up last year so some of the scenes are very close to home, but the story is cleverly spun around and it works.

District 9 truly blew me away! And I am not a sci-fi kinda gal. It was smart and and had me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire film. Part of the reason I think I was won over is that at the heart of all the gunfire and CGI is the main character Wikus van der Merwe. He's played by Sharlto Copely in his first big acting role. When he laughs, you laugh with him but when he becomes terrified, you become terrified. I think Copely is outstanding in his breakout role.

The film has also had an effective marketing campaign - first via the online viral trailer that was released and then also the on-thr-ground bus and seat signs such as these that I saw in the States.

Check out the trailer here. The film releases locally on the 28th of August.

Smoorverlief, aka Oppikoppi '09

It comes but once a year - well, for those who can only handle it once a year, it does. The annual Oppikoppi music festival, and it turned 15 this year.

I can clearly remember being a 15 year old teenager and desperately wanting to go to Oppikoppi. I was a huge Fetish fan (still am) and one year the band was part of an online broadcast that was being streamed out of Northam. I didn't have the internet at home so I found an internet cafe to make-pretend I was in my own little stretch of Northam for one afternoon.

Now that I get to go whenever I want, I try not to take it for granted. To have all these great bands together in one space for one weekend is still as marvelous now, as the allure of it was back then.

So, highlights from this year's fest?

Friday night was very festive - what with the new Jose Cuervo Black doing the rounds. It tastes a little like chocolate so it was going down very well ;) I had been invited to the launch of the new tequila which took place right on the koppie - with one of the best views of Oppikoppi, overlooking the bands and fans below. Aking's Laudo Liebenberg performed on the intimate Cuervo stage, which was only accessible to VIPs ;) Met and chatted to former Idols' contestants Pixie and Graeme. Discovered that Pixie has almost as much energy as me! Violin player extraodinaire Brendan Jury was also enjoying the party as well as the guys from Bed on Bricks. It was good to see a friend from Cape Town days, Agony Barman Dave - otherwise known as comedian Dave Levinsohn - who introduced the new drink to us.

Aking's Laudo

In between the goings on atop the 'koppi, the great vibes of The Sick Leaves and Bed on Bricks could be heard filling the Most Amazing Mainstage. Voodoo Child had warmed the stage up earlier in the evening - they are sounding tighter than I have ever heard them.

The weather on Friday night was surprisingly warm and that made Saturday such a lovely day too. Surprise find of the day: Melissa McClleland and Luke Doucet. Although there were only a handful of people at the start of their set on the Levi's Original Bushveld stage, word soon spread and a big crowd had gathered, hanging onto their melodic voices. They're performing in Jozi this weekend so I am keen to see them perform again. Doucet recently toured with James Blunt and McClleland worked with Sarah Mchlachlan but they really are artists in their own right.

Husband-wife duo Luke and Melissa

Van Coke Cartel and Gerald Clark were perfectly placed to play the Saturday afternoon set unplugged on the Levi's stage. Francois van Coke cleans up quite well! He has cut his hair and was wearing a suit. Also enjoyed Isochronous on the Main Stage and of course Koos Kombuis, then later on in the evening Karen Zoid. I hadn't seen the fiesty songstress perform for some time so I really enjoyed her set - wedding veil and all!

I missed the Sunday Women's Day lineup, because I had to get back for a wedding. But I hear Die Antwood, featuring ol' Waddy Jones, was the real crowd-pleaser of the day. Wonder if this latest incarnation by Mr Jones will last until next year's Oppikoppi? Hope so...