Dr Dlamini-Zuma, South Africa's esteemed foreign minister spoke at school last night - with security checks and the confiscation of water bottles. It would have been an entirely uneventful exposition on the importance of multilateralism, had the London-based Zimbabwe lobby not intervened in spectacular style. First one, then another, rose in the audience and pleaded for increased South African intervention with Mugabe. DZ sat down while 10 minutes of shouting, ejections and arrests ensued. I admired her grace under fire but couldn't help noting the contradiction between her speech and her response to subsequent Zimbabwe questions. While her speech focused on the key role of the UN and the international community in pressuring the aparthied regime, she seemed intent on emphasising the internal nature of the democratic transition (the ANC made the miracle happen). I'm not sure if this interpretation reflects more the propinquity of ANC struggle leaders to the transition, or a retrospective reading to rationalise their public passivity in the face of domestic problems in other African countries (ie: Zimbabwe).

She lamented that it took 40 odd years for UNGA initiatives to take effect, but then implied that this was the correct approach for the international community to take (it all turned out ok in the end so the technique was justified). By deduction, the UN should satisfy itself with empty UNGA resolutions on Darfur and leave the real resolution to the Sudanese themselves. A familiar recitation of G77 pro-sovereignty arguments if ever there was. I'd be very interested for the Minister's views on how this should apply in cases like Rwanda or Bosnia where conflict situations are not blessed with the negotiating tact of the ANC. And for that matter how South Africa will embrace the Responsibility to Protect ('R2P') concept in its coming Security Council deliberations. I suspect at heart the government agrees with R2P - at least intellectually. In practice it will always be difficult to implement - particularly if the implementation falls to contigous countries.

DZ's best joke was her response to a question on why South Africa's parastatal arms industry continues to export arms. With a slightly sanctimonious air she noted that "we only sell arms if we are sure that they won't be used against people in war." Explosive laughter and applause to that!

She dealt with questions on HIV/AIDS tactfully and gave a concise explanation of Thabo Mbeki's views on the matter (deal with the disease as part of the battle against poverty, not seperate to it - an intellectual excess when faced of a national health crisis I would have thought).

At the close a calm-mannered Zimbabwean human rights lawyer valiantly attempted to differentiate himself from his more combative countrymen. He asked a respectful question about land reform in South Africa. To his clear frustration this was a cue for the white Zimbabweans in the audience to interject and reiterate their complaints about South Africa's quiet diplomacy. Two things were obvious - a) the Zimbabwean people's cause is done no service by allowing itself to be taken over by the gripes of expatriate white Zimbabweans (their rude interjections over the top of the mild mannered questioning of a highly educated black lawyer acted as neat metaphor for the old Rhodesia) and b) South Africa has shaped its own historical narrative to fit the policy of quiet diplomacy - and nothing's going to change that in a hurry.

I will be interested to see how the eventful evening is covered in the SA press.

On a grey day, a little reminder of what the southern hemisphere can dish up at this time of year - this a roadtrip snap from South Africa (somewhere near the Lesotho border). A road less travelled merges with the dusty highvelt horizon under an infinite sky.

On my way to school I saw a lady riding her retro bike along the street, weaving in and out of traffic, a set of manaquin legs tucked under her arm. Nobody stared. I saw the curls of train-mist in the arched rafters of Paddington Station. Nobody looked up from their well trodden morning routes. I'm thinking there's an inverse relationship between the number of people in a city and the number of random little things that get noticed. Sad really, but the train mist and the manaquin were all mine to savour today.

The secret to great lasagne, Jamie Oliver, is not your proximity to the photogenic vignerons of Tuscany. It lies in denying the over-subsidised cheese producers of europe the honour of including their product. So I rationalise my absent-minded failure to include any cheese in the lasagne AND deliver a scrumptious meal nonetheless. A post-fact sprinkling of parmesan did its bit, but otherwise the soaring flavours of the courgettes and broccoli were allowed to shine alone - washed down with an upstanding bottle of SA rouge and an ambling catchup with Marcus Sorour. Moral - cheese and lasagne can be parted.

Why does this still make me feel ill?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cz8ezw0P9k

HIDIOUS. clearly the inventors of youtube had Geelong supporters in mind - we're the sort who fill our off-season with secret visits to video sites like this to re-live the visceral pain over and over again - a mantra to remind ourselves that football justice excludes just us.

But like bogong moths to a sleet-resistant flame we'll be back.

Note the link between my landmarks and Geelong's

30 - 2006 - Geelong trounce Port Adelaide at the Oval to win 2/3 of the years championships (a slightly misleading statistic).

20 - 1996 - Gary Ablett delisted - ??????????? - entry to the GFC abyss

10 - 1986 - Gary Ablett listed - !!!!!!!!!!!!! - entry to a decade of blissful home+away seasons

0 - 1976 - sitting pretty at 11wins/ 6losses after 17 rounds (no doubt coupled with premature GF talk in the kardinia park outer). Four straight losses duly unravelled, then a taunting win in the first final and a reassuring thrashing in the semi. The natural order of things I'd say and a good predictor of the next 30 odd seasons.

This is not London. Sunscreen not currently required here. The ominous grey in the background is perhaps more representative of my current environs. But with a few centuries of global warming London WILL resemble Zanzibar, and pound coins will be traded by retired bankers wearing man skirts and thongs.

This picture was taken when I was 28. I'm now 30. How did that happen. Who gave time permission to pass. I shall have to investigate the impartiality of the time keeper because I'm sure its not even quarter time yet.

Hello world

So I thought this'd be a nice way to document a year in london without clogging up my dear fam's inboxes - And to rediscover the ability to write after 5 years of dot dash.

whattayareckon?

So the news. On Saturday I broke my toe (note: from my quick survey of blogs that would seem to be the type of content one should include - or even more tedious).

I did break my toe, and two hours in an NHS waiting room threatened to break my faith in public medicine too.

For the toe I blame three things. 1) Geelong Football Club who encouraged me to drink beer at The Oval (not just any oval) all afternoon as they trounced the Port Adelaide scumbags. 2) India whose celebration of Diwali had me running around Aditi's flat lighting candles in preparation for her family's arrival (we were running late...... for which Aditi blames GFC). 3) my lack of respect for the foundational stength of modern day sofa beds. My pinky merely brushed the sofa base and sent me into a Kent Kingsley tumble.

The NHS eventually handed me some sticky tape to ease my pain (?) but seemed more interested in why an aussie was hobbling around their waiting room. NHS bashing is a national sport so I shall resist lest we find another sport to better the p-geezers at.

Tonight I make my first veggie lasagne. That is all for today.