Phuthu Stay Phut, Don't go!

A nationwide service delivery strike looks set to hit South Africa next week, While the strike would affect delivery of services in health and safety and security, education would be hard hit as it is the grade 12 learners who will suffer the most as they have less than two months before their final exams.

The strike action by teachers seems unavoidable after labour unions rejected the employer’s “revised offer” last week. At the heart of the dispute is labour’s demand for an 8,6% wage increase; a R1 000 housing subsidy as opposed to the state’s 6,5% wage offer.

What are your views on the teachers strike? Do you think they are entitled to strike at the detriment of their students? Do you think they deserve to get more money regardless of the circumstances? Or is there another way to get their point across without the need for such drastic measures?

I was staring at the screen for a while – I do this sometimes – when the Phuthu Girls Banner caught my eye:

I totally forgot about this post… *guilty flinch* …wonder what this was about?

*crinch*

You can wrap these goals with positive names like My Plans for the Year or What I Would Like to Achieve this Year but all they really come down to are those good ol’  New Year’s Resolutions. Those positive, what-on-earth-were-we-thinking moments when we enthusiastically vow to give up something or start something that we hardly ever can keep up. That being said, we do need these resolutions to keep us going. To keep us trying. Imagine the joy when we actually achieve some of these.

There is of course a less harsher way of looking at this (there is always, you just have to look hard and long). We can call these Our Goals simply because a goal does not have a date connected to it. Well, it shouldn’t. Then we try to work towards these. Life does have a way of happening, or taking over, rather, which can complicate matters slightly, as long as we get back on track once we’ve hit that bump in the road, all’s good.

A good place to start is to remember those vows

Greyville Racecourse will be transformed into a floral fiesta on Saturday as the Durban July looks set to attract another sell-out crowd in what everybody hopes will be perfectly clear and warm midwinter Durban day.

Greyville will be packed with fashionistas, socialites and punters from all walks of life, all dressed for the occasion and providing their own unique interpretation of the theme “It’s a Blooming Great Day”.

Tickets for the day have been on sale for a while – grandstand tickets at R170 each and parking tickets at R50 per vehicle on the Royal Durban Golf Course. Whilst entrance tickets will also be on sale on the day, parking tickets will not and must be pre-purchased.

So have a day out and experience the luxury, the sights, the smells (don’t step on any presents left behind by our four legged friends) and perhaps place a bet or two. If you like me, a complete virgin to betting and horse racing, pick a name below that tickles your fancy and go with it, who knows you may experience a lucky streak and win a bit of money.

My money is on ‘Goat’ I mean who calls their prized race horse Goat anyway?

• 4 Irish Flame 9/2
• 6 Bold Silvano 5/1
• 10 River Jetez 6/1
• 1 Pocket Power 7/1
• 5 Fort Vogue 8/1
• 7 Orbison 14/1
• 9 Ancestral Fore 15/1
• 11 Aslan 15/1
• 13 Happy Valley 15/1
• 15 Lizarre 16/1
• 16 Russian Sage 16/1
• 17 Flying Tristram 33/1
• 2 Rudra 60/1
• 20 Goat 66/1
• 14 Captain Scott 75/1
• 8 Red Rake 75/1
• 18 Service Ace 75/1
• 3 Fabiani 70/1
• 12 Love Is In The Air 80/1
• 19 Vertical Takeoff 80/1

See if you can solve our riddle-

What has a mouth but cannot eat what moves but has no legs and what has a bank but cannot put money in it?

No better time for a quickie than a Tuesday morning!

Kerry
Team Ayoba – translates to “they will be a team”

Louise
Boys with Balls

Elzet

• Amabhubesi, which means Lions. King of the African Jungle. Perhaps there’s a Xhosa or Sotho word that’s a bit shorter?
  Even Inkosi (King) Bafana
• The Real Bafana (would the Real Bafana please stand up?)

The words Bafana Bafana became a global catchphrase, thanks to the FIFA World Cup, but once again life and politics has intervened and stuffed everything up. It seems that the government is up in arms at the fact businessmen are allowed to exploit the name commercially.

Businessman Stanton Woodrush has won two court cases to retain the name Bafana Bafana for his clothing range. Woodrush was the first to apply for the registration of the name as a trademark. You snooze you lose…………….

SAFA bosses were told by parliamentary sports portfolio committee chairperson Butana Komphela that the national soccer team’s name might be changed. The outspoken Komphela, who in the past also threatened to rename the Springboks, told SAFA leaders on Tuesday to either resolve the controversy surrounding the Bafana Bafana trademark ownership or do away with the name completely.

Oh dear what now? Does anybody know what the Zulu translation for ‘Men’ is?