Dear Annetta Miller,
thank you for sharing these stories with us :-)
And KUDOS once again to Mbuzimoja for turning this amazing booklet into Kiku’s wonderful Adventskalender!
Is there any blog on (african) book reviews? (like this?)
Category: style
irgendwie kewl
tumia rssfeed
This thing is said to be a hoax/fake but I predict there will be a global market for it nevertheless!
BBC knows more…
=> a great incentive to promote broadband internet flatrate packages!? I bet it even features this 450px width picture printing thing so it will just be perfect for all WP Kubrick template users :-)
via [Treehugger] via [OhGizmo!] via [Teapot the Cat]
Guidance protection every day…
1. There’s this France-based German photographer Uwe Ommer who spent four years and traveled 250.000 kilometers (160.000 miles) in a cross-country vehicle to photograph families of the world. He “simply” travelled the world to meet some 2000 families using a Rolleiflex 6008i camera. The result is an amazing collection of 1000 family portraits from 130 countries covering five continents… (PHOTOgraphical.NET)
(KUDOS to Lady Mbuzimoja for showing me this wonderful book :-)
2. There’s this Germany-Jamaica-based German musician by the name of “Gentleman” who spend a long time on Jamaica, sings in Patois (!) and blesses us with wonderful music. Actually, Reggae/Dancehall isn’t my most fav style, but there’s this one song that really got me during the weekend: “send a prayer” – published on Gentleman’s “Confidence” album in August 2004. I just love this song (mp3 preview)! BIG UP TO OUR JAMAA Gentleman!
Gentleman’s new video to that song was released on December 2nd, 2005 and so when I sat here during the weekend, being bored by all this stuff on my desk, I switched on the tv and tuned into the music television channel where I saw it….
The result?
See for yourself and compare:
(all screenshots made with VLC – the best cross-plattform media player around :-)
Update:
Oh, and I eventually managed to get my hands on an mpg version of this nice video – and got to see the last image of it:
“Pictures by Uwe Ommer, taken from the book 1000 Families”
(Now I just wish this associative function way up in my brain could work on more important things as well…. sigh…)
the Leatherman sheath mod
The Leatherman Tool Group (Inc.) deliver most of their multi tools with sheath (Nylon or Leather sheath) which are nice for wearing a multi tool on the belt. Although their product range includes an intelligent approach on a lot of details with those tools, they apparently ignored the sheath issue: that thing is just too small for all the tools included (the LM Wave + a bit set + a small maglite® solitaire) and wayyyyyyy toooo bulky on the belt.
The moment I ordered the new Wave a month ago (shipping from the US takes time!), I already thought about keeping my old brown leather sheath – and the new Wave fits into that old sheath as well so things could have been ok….
On the other hand though, I wanted to use pieces of that LM Bit Kit which came along (consisting of 21 pieces) and maybe also have a small holster for that maglite® – which of course didn’t fit into the old sheath. Should I use the bulky, new and awfully designed sheath?
NO WAY!
The solution? Make your own sheath:
That green canvas which I use as a basic material comes from Kenya, the blue paisley styled fabric is my very special Kikuyumoja version of Bubudiu (the story goes that it once was my grandma’s ball gown that I’ve meanwhile used on different projects ….so what am I supposed to call it except for Bubudiu? poncey?) and the leather….well, I didn’t use that one in the end.
The result:
A sheath big enough to accommodate all my desired tools. Perfect!
The size comparison: my new sheath, the old brown one (love it!), the ugly new one and a smaller nylon version for the Bit Set or the Wave alone.
I’ve also added a button / snap fastener on it so closing and opening on the blue thing will be much more convenient.
Yani, I know some of you will keep on wondering why I used that blue fabric instead of just using that green canvas along with some leather on the side….actually, I don’t know. I think it’s some sort of passion :-)
P.S.: My new blue sheath is a bit bigger than the others but less bulky, so it doesn’t wear up underneath the jacket!
tool time, part 2
Yes it’s tool time again and I would like to tell you about my new Leatherman Wave® 2004 multi-tool. Why 2004? Because they came up with a better version of the LM Wave® some time back in the end of 2004 and since I just love good tools, I needed to get my hands on this new one.
the stuff that makes me happy: old and new LM Wave :-)
Before I continue boring you with more technical details, let me sum this all up and point you to this very detailed comparison report that takes a closer look on the Leatherman Wave® pre2004 (old Wave), the 2004 Wave® (new Wave), the Charge® Ti and the Charge® XTi. I think it’s the most detailed review I’ve come across so far and it actually tells us all we need to know about the small differences between the old and new models. And yes, there is a difference.
This new 2005 Wave just rocks, they improved a lot of things like now all the tools on the interior of the handles lock up which adds to more security and an overall better handling. The only downside so far is that they shrinked the size of the scissors as well as delivering it with a cheap looking leather sheath that doesn’t look as charming as the old one – which still holds the new, slightly bigger Wave®, hence it’s okay.
I almost never leave home without my Leatherman Wave® on the belt, and there have been numerous occasions on which that tool has not only come in handy but has been a sort of life saver. Kudos to Tim Leatherman (“My name is on every tool.”) for blessing us with this brilliant invention!
In case your name isn’t Hash and you’re not yet a proud owner of a Leatherman Crunch®, go and get a multitool NOW! :-)
P.S.: you own a VW Golf? => THIS is the tool you’ll need!
Bertiers
So I was just trackbacking a google search request on kenya+referendum+blog I’d found in my site stats and landed on Ruud Elmendorp’s blog – a Dutch video journalist who has published some of his nice videos on his website. Among those featured videos, there’s one on Bertiers – that very special Kenyan "signboard artist" from Dagoretti, Nairobi, Kenya.
Some time ago I already blogged about other Kenyan artists like Shine Tani, Joel Oswaggo, Maube and Evanson Kangethe (in german, though) and was quite happy when Bwana Shine Tani himself commented on it two weeks ago. Yes, I like East African artists and I know there are even many more, many talented and unique artists that don’t need to sell their drawings at such a low price in order to be promoted and accepted by the western world. So, Thank You, Bwana Bertiers and Bwana Elmendorp for putting even more awareness of Contemporary African Art on the Internet. I think it’s about time my fellow Europeans realize there’s much more to African Art than just batics, wood carvings and Sisal Baskets ("kîondo"). Maybe one day soon I’ll be able to take more pictures so we could at least share them on flickr…
Update: I just figured out the song Ruud uses as the intro background tune for this fine (but too short!) documentary: M’bilia Bel’s "Nakei Nairobi" … YEAH!
safiri salama
There are these two german waZUNGU from Chemnitz, Germany who are planing to take part in the next Plymouth-Banjul Challenge 2006 (PBC 06) – driving their ’92 Toyota Corolla Liftback from Plymouth (UK) through France, Spain, Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania to the Gambia.
"… If you have a sense of adventure but relatively little cash, then the Plymouth-Banjul Challenge might be up your street!"
"Unofficially spoken of as ‘The Ultimate Banger Challenge’, another motley collection of cars costing less than £100 will be assembled to drive over 3,000 miles from the South coast of Great Britain to the West coast of Africa."
Yani, MY car is an old (i say OLD!) Volkswagen Golf 2 from 1989 with about the same mileage as this said Toyota Corolla and I think its market value would be something like 100,- EUR (~ 9.000 Kshs). The next big thing to repair will be the clutch (the pressure plate inside) and maybe new shocks, lakini, why shouldn’t I take this car in 2006 and drive it up to…uhhhmm….Kenya?!
Lady Mbuzimoja, Lady Tembo, Mzeecedric – are you in for the challenge?
je chanterai pour toi
It’s one of those things I’ve been dying to tell you about … and now I am here in front of my computer and I don’t know how to start…
Well, I think it took me 10 years to understand the meaning of Kar Kar in Boubacar “Kar Kar” Traoré‘s name. KarKar is said to be a Bam(b)ara expression for someone who “goes in between” (to dribble @playing soccer), as it is explained in the beginning of this very fine DVD I eventually received yesterday. Eventually, because in 2003, I discovered that there’s a new documentary called “je chanterai pour toi” (I sing for you) by Jacques Sarasin about Boubacar Traoré – le grand magicien du blues malienne, this great musician from Mali who happened to be touring the African continent way back in 1995 – sponsored by the Alliance Francaise (~French Cultural Centre). It took them two years to release it as a DVD and so now I am the proud owner of my very first DVD (yes!! :-)). In fact, the man has been in good old Nairobi in 1995 and that’s when & where I got my first tape of this lovely music. I kept on listening to this tape for hours and days and weeks and months and about a year after that, I got my hands on KarKar’s only available CD “sa golo”. That was in the end of 1996. Later on, the passionate collector in me came across the rest of Boubacar’s discography (+ concerts) and so when I first read about this movie, I was very excited. I *needed* it desperately.
Le monde est fait pour qu’on s’aime.
KarKar is a man of faith. He isn’t directly interviewed, instead, his friends talk about him and describe his biography. They tell us about his lovely wife Pierette who has died and to whom he sings his sweetest songs. They tell us about Mali’s independence and Boubacar’s role in it – his tune “Mali twist” which used to be a great hit on Mali’s Radio. And they also show us what Boubcar KarKar Traoré’s music is all about: love.
It takes a lot of love and passion for a man that doesn’t come from a Griot background to compose and sing such fine tunes. Of course those pentatonic tunes do have a strong historical background – or as friend of mine (from Mali) once told me: “KarKar uses those old melodies that are believed to be our national heritage. He has given them a new meaning”. Think of Ayub Ogada from Kenya (playing his nyatiti) and you have the picture.
When I first checked the Internet about anything on “Boubacar Traoré” way back in 1996, there were only a handful (3-5) sites covering his name. And now the inet is full of interesting information and music, so if this has attracted you to listen into some fine sort-of-blues-music from Mali, and in case you’re still unfamiliar with names like Ali Farka Touré, Rokia Traoré or Amadou et Mariam (to name just a few popular), go and get it!
There are some musicians that put a lot of energy into their music, something you feel, something that really touches you the moment you hear it. For me, Boubacar “KarKar” Traoré is one of those magicians…