FINALLY...A glimse of a Rainbow....?

I have to say I feel a little lighter on the feet since Kgalema Motlanthe was ‘shoved in’ as president. Having heard him speak before his presidency he makes a lot of sense and more importantly he does not seem to be trying to cut a CD with his one hit wonder ‘umshini wami’.

Sure there may be a few leeeettle grey areas, like socialism and communism in his past BUT he seems to bring a much needed calming influence to the ranks of the ANC, which as we know is needed nowadays. It has sadly become a party of self serving twits that are more worried about its ‘leader’s’ trial than leading a country of people in a democratic way.

So a little ray of sunshine appears in what was seeming [to me] to be an endless grey sky… BUT time will tell. A few good moves have been made so far, namely the Minister of Health is now Barbara Hogan and helmet head-Manto has been moved to the presidential office..[think she needs close watching]. Pity she was not fired BUT she aint gonna be a problem in Health anymore. Then someone finally made a decision to fire Robert McBride after 6 months of haggling about his drunk driving charge [costing the tax payers money].. etc etc. It will be interesting to see what happens to Selebi and what will be done about crime…I wait with anticipation!

It will also be interesting to see if our dome headed ‘rock star’ [Zuma that is] does ascend to the highest position in the country in a few months time….Good Lord I hope not, lets have the trial first shall we… Kgalema might start enjoying his new found fame anyway.

So SA politics has suddenly become more interesting and I am 100% sure will hot up as the months roll into election time. For the ANC a new era has arrived..I cant help but wonder if a split in the party is imminent…it would make sense but predictions are not cool nowadays..

Quickly moving to US politics… I think they could have a bigger problem if the Republicans win the election over there. A president that is about to kick the bucket and could end up leaving the rains to his deputy…. Palin. Why is that such a problem you ask…? WELL for one…she has NEVER traveled outside her country! And they worry about Obama’s lack of experience! Palin only got her passport now…in her 40’s! HAVE YOU EVER! How much can she really know about how America fits into the world, what a bad choice! [For her it’s probably more about how the world fits into America..aren't we the world?!....I can hear her asking!] Backwards and Scary. VIVA OBAMA...at least he actually knows where Africa is!

The Country Life - Week 1

So we have moved and are attempting to settle into the country-side life. Moving from a big city, housing millions of people to a village with a few thousand is a real mind shift. I have to say though we are loving it!

We had snow on the mountains this weekend and it was beautiful, there is just something you cant beat about snow caped mountains, a great [real] fire and a bottle of good red being surrounded by vines. So this is life for me now…I feel privileged.
I think I could even [at a stretch] handle the small town gossip- by ignoring it..[not my best I must say]…I may have to give people something to talk about!

So a quick overview of my first few days:

•The view…unbelievable, from every angle…snow capped mountains with clear crisp air…
•Sleepy countryside speckled with the odd farm house, cow or sheep [complete with smokey chimney – just love that]
•Getting caught behind a tractor on the way to school…
•School here starts later, feels weird only getting up at 7 to get to take my daughter to school by 8. School is very farmy…very different but she settled on the first day.
•Spend my mornings sipping coffee in the sun on the tiny main road through the village. [where I am currently typing this!]
•No Woolies [Woolworths] to be found… [still deciding if that is a good or bad thing]
•Hey! I could wear one of my hats that I have been collecting for the last few years… very cool! Gum boots and hats are the norm here!
•Going to a champagne farm this weekend for a launch and lunch… and last weekend spent time at the wine farms next to fires sipping red…
•Everyone knows each other here and people go out of their way to say hi and have a 15 min conversation…trying to get used to that…. [and the Afrikaans…I nearly failed that at school!]

So far not missing JHB at all. Not even a little…I may at some stage I am sure…this is all still new for me and I love the energy that JHB has. There is petty crime here but NOTHING like the violence of Jozi…I can cope with that. I cannot begin to explain how much this place feels like I live in another country but has a familiarity about it that is SA. It is really weird.

Have a few consulting appointments set up…doesn’t feel like work though…every day here feels like the weekend!