I have had alot on my mind lately but very little time to blog. Here are some of the random trivialities that have whizzed through my head this past week while I have been away from the blogosphere:
- How come GIMPA Executive Conference Hall lobby looks better than Kotoka International Airport Arrival Hall?
- Should one be wary of a sweet gesture of unexpected chocolate from a random new friend?
- Racing down a dusty road barefoot and screaming at night: a great way to celebrate the Black Satellites FIFA Under 20 World Cup glorious victory or the best way to get tetanus?
- Do you speak Ghanamechanic-ese? How to avoid being taken to the cleaners by mechanics in Ghana
- Balloon Boy Saga: is this just a case of wanting 15 minutes more of fame when your 15 minutes are already up?
One thing that saddened me was that I missed the Blog Action Day on climate change. Kudos to fellow Ghana bloggers Maya, Kajsa, Edward and Holly who had thought-provoking postings on the subject. I would also recommend the latest BBC Focus on Africa magazine for their special issue on climate change in Africa. Even the cover captures the barren, dust-filled desolate landscape that is inevitably encroaching upon us all. The desert IS coming.
Why is it that the topic of climate change does not spark enough anger and indignation among more people living on the African continent? Aren't we noticing that the weather is getting much hotter, aren't we wondering where all the parrots that used to inhabit our forests have disappeared to? Aren't we appalled that the thick, lush, equatorial forests of the hinterlands are thinning down? Apparently not. Maybe we feel powerless, maybe we are not well-informed or maybe we are just living for the moment?
11 comments:
Abena,Climate change is a collective and should be collective all hands on deck approach.What happens in Africa ,china ,America,Europe ,Asia affect us all.They need to stop always using Africa as post boy pleas....
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2009/6/4/1244125356080/Garbage-a-waste-disposal--003.jpg&imgrefurl=http://climateprediction.net/board/viewtopic.php%3Fp%3D83910%26sid%3D8ed6869ddce36bce3a6cb96055901d95&usg=__YasYFQZVH1hIVAUHqbXCZ9i01d4=&h=500&w=349&sz=102&hl=en&start=25&um=1&tbnid=WE5x0awfQ-3HbM:&tbnh=130&tbnw=91&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dwastes%2Bstream%2Bin%2Bindonesia%26ndsp%3D21%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26start%3D21%26um%3D1
Ramblings thought of a systematic Rambler. Hmmm, sometimes if you are careful too much you would lose the fun so you just jump outside and start your celebration. If you happen to be in loafers, good! if not then god be your helper.
As to the balloon boy hoax, I believe there is more to it than we are being told. These guys would do everything for fame. Hmmm...may be I should fake my death and appear again on the third day...I would rival Jesus the Christ.
Climate Change? Do our leaders have the power and will to act? In Ghana the weather is gradual changing making farming so difficult, harvest unpredictable and famine lurking in the corner. Flooding has become part and parcel of our daily lives. Yet, we seem incapable to act. In fact, some people have argued that the global warming issue is just a hoax and the government's (US) ploy to increase taxes. When the former Russian President (Putin) was asked to ratify the Kyoto treaty he said that if the weather would become hot, then Russians would spend less on wool. Imagine that! Back home...Timber is one of our foreign earnings not tourism to the forested sites. If you cut down all the trees what do you expect? Yet we can develop the forest and gain much more from it than the timber.
Haven't been to GIMPA or KIA...except the domestic flight section...
I was hoping to see the lobby in the link- that arrival hall at KIA is something else.
And that balloon boy saga- didnt really know what was going on till I got home and watched the news. That family is pretty weird, especially the mom. And those have to be some of the most foul american kids ever. They were on a reality show once.
Cute picture by the way!
@Patrick: Indeed, it should be a collective effort but it appears that most countries are looking out for number 1! I'm sure you heard about the Maldives cabinet meeting under the sea recently. The country was trying to make a point about the effects of climate change and how rising sea levels will affect them. I'm sure some people took it as a weird and wacky publicity stunt to showcase their absolutely beautiful islands.
@Nana F-A: That Putin story is classic and perhaps demonstrates the problem of countries looking out for themselves only. So I take it I should go out and enjoy life....barefoot? Rivaling Jesus Christ? Wow
@Anonymous: I actually wanted to take a pic of the GIMPA lobby but my phone is having major issues. I guess pictures will really buttress my point since it is a completely subjective observation.
As for the Balloon Boy saga, the family got the publicity they wanted but not quite what they had in mind! *Oh the irony* Yes, they had their 15minutes on Wife Swap and just wanted 15 minutes more.
Thanks for the pic props:)
More than enough random thoughts for one post. I like your style. There are many items I have items to blog about but not enough time to sit down and blog.
Keep up the good work. :)
Thanks David. So much to blog about yet so little time! It's a real Blogger's dilemma..
That's a lot of things on your mind for sure, Aby. About Mechanic-Speak, do not even bother. It will change as you catch on. About low interest in environmental issues, I plead "GUILTY"! About chocolate from a stranger, I have asked for and accepted some in the past 2 months. It didn't kill me, but my hope that it would create a new 'flirtship' failed! :(
@NY, lol, I wish I could get hold of a Mechanicspeak dictionary but as you said it is such an evolving language. I guess you have to try and look out for monetary redflags and divide everything by 5.
Hehehehe! As for the chocolate from strangers...looks like the new flirtship is 'on course' 'at my end' to borrow from the Ginglish phrase-book. Hopefully no flirtship fizzle in sight!
@Nana Yaw: BTW; totally random but I cannot post comments on your blog. For some reason Blogger won't allow me to! Something to do with the embedded comment forms. Does not allow me to choose an identity. Real shame..
In regards to balloon boy: isn't it sad just how desperate people have become for instant fame? How does it benefit a person to have everybody know their name? Sounds like my idea of hell.
Also, having flown to Kotoka from Gatwick recently, it wins against Gatwick hands down! Apart from the annoying, overbearing security guards who make up random rules just to feel important that is....
@Sankofa; I totally hear you. Fame would be torture for me. Strange that these parents wanted to put their kids through this whole charade.
Kotoka wins against Gatwick? Wow I'm impressed! No wonder it is up for sale. I'm always annoyed by the Kotoka immigration people asking for what I have brought THEM from that magical place called abroad.
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