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Bob clutches the gold FIFA soccer World Cup trophy
Last night at the Harare airport, the Zimbabwean President Bob Mugabe had his turn to hold the 6.5kg solid gold Fifa World Cup trophy. The trophy is touring Africa before the continent’s first World Cup finals next year. It would have visited 86 countries before arriving in here ahead of the 2010 World Cup Draw on Thursday.
Mr Mugabe said last night the gold trophy symbolised the return of plundered wealth which should be retained by African victory in South Africa reports AFP.
Last night the Zimbabwe Fashion Week was launched at a media function in Sandton. I seldom drive north from Rosebank – always west. So it was with amazement that I drove around a building site looking for the Fashion TV cafe. I found it for the 7.30pm invitation. But I had to leave before the show began which was late due to technical problems.
I did however meet designer Tamburai Chirumo who showed me some of her designs – she uses lots of interesting recycled fabrics. Designer Priscilla Chigariro was also part of the show.
The Zimbabwe Fashion Week will take place in Harare in December.
Daniel Born stayed on and took these pictures.
“I finished my book last night”, said my groggy husband.
Fabulous news, dear one, but right now I don’t care. An ungenerous response? Nasty you might say.
His ground-breaking news broke at 7.15am. The children were fed, not dressed. They were playing cricket with a hard ball down the length of my house close to windows and glass frames. Their noses were dirty, their teeth unbrushed and I’d been up since 4.30am. Right then, I needed to shower, brush up and ship out.
There were 5 minutes left before we had to pile the children into a car for school.
You expect me to be excited? Not now. I need help! Get them brushed, shined and ready for school!
Once that was miraculously achieved, I phoned him ashamed at my lack of enthusiasm at his achievement.
The book has been with us in its abstract form for more than two years. Most of the writing happened at night between jobs, but for the last six months, my husband has been writing full time from home. (A self-employed full-time writer is not a good box to tick when you’re applying for a home loan, let me tell you.)
It’s a long time to have a husband immersed in a tale of his own.
We drove from Johannesburg to Pretoria and back the other day without saying a word to each other – that’s a three hour round trip.
I tried. Nice weather. I slept with Adam last night. Not such nice weather. Did you notice my suspenders?
Nada.
His mind was deep in a story in which I don’t feature.
But that story in its abstract form is over. It has been transposed onto paper and soon it will have a pretty place in published form on our book shelf.
The Simpson’s has taken a satirical shot at the first French couple. The episode broadcast last week in the US depicts Carla Bruni as a beatiful, wine-drinking femme fatale. Sarkozy, eating smelly cheese, answers the phone in the Elysee Palace with the line “You’re getting cosy with Sarkozy”.
The clip has become an internet sensation:
Kate Moss and her “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels” motto brought anorexia to the media’s attention last week. Moss was lambasted for being insensitive about girls and their eating disorders.
This story reminded me of the horror of my best friend in standard six fading away in our boarding house. She ate 3 peas a day when she was at her anorexic worst. Midyear she left boarding school when had to be hospitalised. Later she went home to be with her parents and attend a local school.
She wasn’t the only girl in our all-girls boarding house who was struggling with an eating disorder. Many of those young unhappy girls in a strange place were struggling to control their environment. And controlling what they ate was a way of making sense of their lives at that time. A devastating way.
So I was delighted to see today that Israeli fashion photographer Adi Barkan is releasing a campaign to promote anorexia awareness which demands that model agencies don’t hire models who are suffering from malnutrition.
In this picture, Barkan photographs model Noga Dekel as Aya Barazani, who suffers from anorexia, sits in her wheelchair during a photo shoot for the campaign in Barkan’s studio near Tel Aviv.
Noga Dekel poses for anorexia awareness campaign
(picture AP)
Barack and Michelle Obama waiting for India's PM Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur
Last night the White House held a state dinner – the biggest social event since Barack Obama’s inauguration. Obama reserved the glamour of his first state dinner for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India, in a bid to show his commitment to the world’s largest democracy reports AFP. More than 300 guests arrived including film director Steven Spielberg.
This pool report by the Politico reporters is worth a read. Firstly the excitement about the “fabulousness” of the various outfits is delightful. And the reported random uttering about one of the guests is too funny for words, if not a little a lot rude: Oh my god, a real housewife!
Pool Report: Read More…
Obama shakes Zimbabwean activist Jenni Williams' hand while Magondonga Mahlangu looks on.
More about those awards last night.
Most importantly Zimbabwean activists Magondonga Mahlangu and Jenni Williams were awarded the The Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award this year. The two women representing Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) were awarded for their courageous human rights activism in Zimbabwe. WOZA, says its website, creates space to allow Zimbabweans to articulate issues they may be too fearful to raise alone. It has conducted hundreds of protests since 2003 and over 3,000 women and men have spent time in police custody, many more than once and most for 48 hours or more.
And secondly after the American president presented the award to the two women he and Michelle Obama slipped out of the room prematurely, but seconds later they were sent back. Obama sheepishly said “I’m allowed to stay… I never know what I’m allowed to do.”
Remarks by Jenni Williams and Magondonga Mahlangu on receiving their awards last night: Read More…
This is quite phenomenal. How did I miss this on Saturday night? I was sick home looking after children. Actually no I wasn’t – I was out eating spicy food with friends.
The footage is from the security camera of the Mustek building in Midrand.
The legs.
The picture of the day – a pair of champagne-coloured high heel shoes worn by Michelle Obama at the presentation ceremony for the 2009 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award.
(Reuters)
