Monthly Archive: December 2016

It’s not all that meets the eye

People on the social networks are finding all sorts of symbolism – and satire – in the latest Time magazine Person of the Year cover I mentioned last time for...

Lies, lies, lies and more lies …

Well, well, well, what a sorry state of affairs we find ourselves in. Here we have US$100 issued by a bank in single, grimy one dollar notes – the only...

No more cop outs on climate, please

Our man at the helm has been at the climate change summit, Cop28, in luxurious Dubai, a place better known...

Tough Times

I’m not the only one who puts words on paper - it’s rich and rewarding, except financially. I’m not alone....

Lessons from extremes, then and now

The spectre of Iran hangs in the air … today, as war rages, the indelible hand of the ayatollahs,...

Haunted by a very black Black Friday

Harare, Zimbabwe Black Friday, usually around November 24 every year, is not a shopping bonanza in this neck of the...

Elvis and his blue suede shoes

Harare, Zimbabwe If the world has too many problems right now - endless wars, famine and pestilence - it might...

Remember Popeye perchance? Now the real olive oil

Ostuni, southern Italy. For foodies. Popeye the Sailor Man had a girl called Olive Oil whom he dearly loved. Whenever...

Trivial pursuits

A Trivial Pursuit question: Who was the white South African dowager who said she would prefer to be murdered in...

A nun’s breast and Hannibal crossing the Alps

In these parts, if you order tette delle monache with your cappucino you’ll get a delicious cream-filled cake...

No escape from the night stalker

In the cyber world, there is no escape. Switch it off, or go to a place without it. A desert...

Travellers’ Tales

No booze on EgyptAir from Joburg to Cairo to Rome and so I got stuck into the best book I’ve...