“Listen…I woke up this morning, And heard the TV saying something, About disaster in the world, It made me wonder where I’m going, There’s so much darkness in the world, But I see beauty left in you girl, And what you give me lets me know that I’ll be alright” Justin Timberlake, I so hope that song gets stuck in ur heads for as long as its been in mine for and it doesn’t want to leave me!

I sit here and smile quietly to myself. The Boks are world champions. Everyone is proudly South African, flags are waving, Bok stickers and flags displayed on cars, the country is one again. Watching the news yesterday morning and seeing the masses at the airport, irrespective of what one was wearing, the size of their noses, the colour of their skin u name it, all there shouting with one voice. Absolutely lovely to see.

But vark it people, I don’t buy it. What happens in the next week or two post the euphoria. Are we back to normal? Do all of the expats living in the UK, OZ, New Zealand or wherever else, who are all now talking about our country our this our that, do they go back to their prior country bashing ways. Saying THOSE people are screwing up THE country. 2010, what a joke, its going to be a flop, crime has become so bad in this country ever since the ANC took over. Corruption…and the list goes on.

So prior to Saturday what were we? Unproudly South African? I have to come clean, as most people know I am not a big Bok supporter and that has nothing to do with not supporting the country, its purely for rugby reasons, and for those that do know me, you’ll know that I struggle to follow blindly… and before anyone starts with the but why, cos you live in the country, well so then I guess you good folk living in the UK etc should start supporting England etc.

It frustrates me that one day, week, month whatever we can all just get along and be cool with life inspite of itself and then the next day for 4 years everything is going to the dogs. I sit here and I think about all my mates and other people I know who have left these shores and making the UK’s or Australia’s economy tick over nicely, what a difference they could make to our hospitals, banks, transport system whatever, if they came back and instead of biatching and moaning about what is so wrong about this place we started correcting what we see to be wrong some way…somehow. I am not an ostrich with my head in the sand, this country has some huge problems bubbling under, education to me is the key, because in my mind and with respect, there are some major idiots in some pretty high up places. The schooling system is still fraught with many a challenge, but there are so many well qualified teachers offshore. Yes I know government doesn’t pay well, but what is stopping you all from coming back and starting your own schools? Healthcare another problem doctors are running away and heading overseas to put drips in people and take blood, wasting their damn hard work, get back here start a practice. Crime is pretty nasty, the police cant cope, what is stopping those of us with the relevant training and connections from starting a community policing outfit? This is definitely the land of opportunity, there is money here, Standard Bank has got PLENTY  you only have to look at the amount of damn dust on our cars to see how much cash is being tossed around at the moment. You say there are no jobs, then create jobs.

You keep telling a child they are an idiot when they do something wrong and trust me and idiot they will become, correct solution show them the right way!! All of us home and away if we truly love our country like we have been professing to over the last few weeks, why don’t we channel that energy and positive spirit into making it the country we want to live in.

Enter the questions or statements of really Yaw, what can we do. I know he is not on the same level as we are, but Nelson Mandela was an ordinary guy raised in a little village in the Transkei, he was one man, part of an organization, but one man nonetheless who went to jail for asking why he had to be a slave in his land, he was set free lost most of his life in a jail cell, yet he came out bitter or not, he came out and did his best to unify this nation…well at least try. This one man I know jumped on a bicycle (cos he is a tad mad) and cycled to Tanzania, then climbed a mountain, with the hope of raising some money for orphaned and vulnerable children. He is not trying to save all the orphaned and vulnerable children of this country, but even if its 5…15…30…that’s 5…15…30 less potential muggers, rapists, hijackers etc. and they get given an opportunity to have a life.

We can’t just always be fair weather friends, our country is going through a pretty terrible phase at the moment, I mean who the hell kills Lucky Dube? We need a lot of healing and a whole lot less persecution. We won’t heal by paying lip service. Jake White may well get the good ol axe, good thing bad thing, I have my views, but I will keep them to myself and unleash them on my rugby newsletter , but that doesn’t mean we should start pointing fingers and fueling the fires of negativity!

Maybe it’s the Piscean in me…living in the fairytale land that my mate Tebs so beautifully sang about many a year ago  Maybe…

Anyway birthdays
23rd Pearl
24th Philip
26th Adrian H
27th Chief M

One love and maximum respect!

Y

Que sera sera

PS I’d love some comments on this one maybe I missed the point somewhere in my thinking. Either mail me or www.mondaymail.blogspot.com

“Nobody said it was easy, Oh its such a shame for us to part, Nobody said it was easy, No one ever said that it would be this hard, Oh take me back to the start
I was just guessing at numbers and figures, Pulling your puzzles apart
Questions of science, science and progress, Do not speak as loud as my heart
Tell me you love me, come back and haunt me, Oh and I rush to the start
Running in circles, chasing our tails, Coming back as we are” Coldplay

Yet another addition to the mailing list. Teboho, welcome bro. If you have any suggestions or comments please mail me or go to www.mondaymail.blogspot.com. We hope you enjoy your time with us.

I woke up early this morning with a great intention of going to gym, but the rain she was falling hard, and I took it as a sign to stay in bed and start my weekly email instead. Don’t u feel loved, huh?

NE waaaay, what’s news? Other than getting caned 8-2 at pool last nite, I can’t really complain much. Other than that I’ve never been better and if I have, well I can’t rememberJ. Oh wait I lie, I have ISSUES, no man, its not the ex AGAINNNNN, much love for her still, which is no secret J, but thanks to my shrink we are almost there, and they say money can’t buy you happiness?! I am thinking of leaving therapy now so ladies CALL ME or tell ur friends to call me I need healing…yes yes yes I got jokes! Tsk tsk

Ok so as I said I got ISSSSSUESS!! We don’t have too much time so I will just mention one or two of them. Guys I am sooo scared, this weekend my team (the All Blacks) come up against the French in the quarters and if they are successful they come up against either the Aussies or the English (preferably the English) then against the beefy Boks! Eish I don’t know…

Okay, on a more serious note though, for those of us who don’t live in SA, there is a story floating about that the PSL (Premier Soccer League) bosses organized a fat commission payment for arranging a sponsorship deal and TV rights for the PSL. Well done to them for being smart enough to see a gap here, but there are bigger fundamentals that I disagree with. The amounts that are being banded around are R200mil worth of commissions between 5 of them. The PSL clubs don’t pay their players too well unless I am mistaken. They provide the entertainment that keeps the masses interested, filling up the stadiums, glued in front of their TV sets. I believe the players and the game will be better served if the proposed bonuses are paid to the players as tournament bonuses etc. or to upgrade training facilities at certain clubs, or set up academies to show the strikers how to shoot J or whatever! The Iron Duke and co have made plenty cash and are making soo much more.

Next issue for the week…. I am really bothered by the amount of beggars on the roads at the moment. I don’t think there is one intersection that I pass where there isn’t at least one blind person, a woman with a kid, a person with an alleged deformity (and I say this with caution) etc. Clearly they keep coming back because there is a market for them at these intersections. Yesterday my bro and I noticed how many people actually give money to the beggars. That’s all good and well but are we, who give money actually making a difference or making the situation worse? I am all for helping out the less fortunate, but is this the right method? Last I heard there are roughly 4.5mil taxpayers in this country. Lets say 1% of them follow the practice of giving money to beggars every day and donate R1. That would be R45 000 a day. Over a 22 day a month period that would all add up to R990 000 A MONTH! I am sure there is something very constructive, in the vein of job creation, building houses, something sustainable that can be dome with that kind of ammo! I suppose its all good and well to talk about these things, but action now there’s something that would make a difference! Any ideas?

That’s me for another week. I hope u all have a great weekend. If you are in Jozi and need your car washed please come to QBar on William Nicol road on Saturday between 8-12 where a whole bunch of us, guys and gals will be washing cars to raise some funds for charity. The charity in this instance will be the Lonely Road Foundation. A charity set up to help orphaned and vulnerable children

Birthdays…
4th Liam
That’s all I have, if I have not got your birthday this week oops but hope you had/have a great day.

Before I go, I heard this clip a while ago and again earlier today honestly brought a tear to my eye…hope your firewalls doesn’t block it. It’s a perfect example of not judging a book by its cover! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oxTy7KIAaA, its absolutely beautiful!

Ey, head up, chest out, whatever it is, honestly it will pass!! Oh and before I forget, and I nearly did, I am not in therapy although many people think I should consider it.

Big love and maximum respect

Y
‘que sera sera’