Blade runner divides SA

You’ll be hard-pressed to find any newsfeed without mention of the Oscar Pistorius ‘murder’-the Pistorius news cloud has gripped the country and the world’s attention since the tragic shooting last week.

I remember when I heard the news broken on radio, I was begrudgingly sitting in traffic on my way to Midrand, I literally gasped in disbelief and as the traffic was going nowhere I quickly bbm'ed to let people know the news. Regardless of the outcome of the trial, Valentine’s Day will forever be associated with…’remember when Oscar shot his girlfriend…’

I’ve been in rigorous training sessions, regarding a new venture, over the last two weeks but found myself unable to concentrate and regularly checking and refreshing twitter feeds for the latest news (B.t.w there is no better news source than twitter to keep abreast of proceedings).

I don’t think a story has ever affected SA the way this one has, the Pistorius shooting is our equivalent of America’s OJ Simpson trial.

Pistorius at the 2012 Olympics

It was only a few months ago when the country shouted his name in unison as he participated in the Olympics, now someone who once united the nation has split it in two; those who believe him and those who don’t-and of course there’s a third lot the rational ones who will wait for all the evidence to be presented and a proper trial to decide his fate.

I have to admit, before the shooting I didn’t even know who Reeva Steenkamp was but now I’m so terribly saddened and touched by her tragic death that it feels like she was a friend.

In my head I play out the different scenarios of what could possibly have happened on that fateful night and wish that somehow someone could’ve warned her.

We obviously don’t know what the outcome of the trial will be anyone who has been following the developments has no doubt played judge, juror and lawyer around their dinner tables. But the truth is we may never really know what happened and this leads to a whole lot of speculation.

Hopefully we have a justice system that would see an innocent man walk and a guilty man jailed but as we have seen over and over again a trial is as much about the facts as it is about the strength of your legal team, and so far Pistorius’ attorney Roux has outwitted the state.

Oscar Pistorius in court

Oscar’s affidavit:

I fail to understand how I could be charged with murder, let alone premeditated murder, as I had no intention to kill my girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp ("Reeva"). ... I deny the aforesaid allegation in the strongest terms. ...

"On the 13th of February 2013 Reeva would have gone out with her friends and I with my friends. Reeva then called me and asked that we rather spend the evening at home. I agreed. ... By about 22h00 on 13 February 2013 we were in our bedroom. She was doing her yoga exercises and I was in bed watching television. My prosthetic legs were off. We were deeply in love and I could not be happier. I know she felt the same way. She had given me a present for Valentine's Day but asked me only to open it the next day.

"After Reeva finished her yoga exercises she got into bed and we both fell asleep. I am acutely aware of violent crime being committed by intruders entering homes ... I have received death threats before. I have also been a victim of violence and of burglaries before. For that reason I kept my firearm, a 9 mm Parabellum, underneath my bed when I went to bed at night.

"During the early morning hours of 14 February 2013, I woke up, went onto the balcony to bring the fan in and closed the sliding doors, the blinds and the curtains. I heard a noise in the bathroom and realized that someone was in the bathroom. ... I felt a sense of terror rushing over me. ...

"I believed that someone had entered my house. I was too scared to switch a light on.

"I grabbed my 9 mm pistol from underneath my bed. On my way to the bathroom I screamed words to the effect for him/them to get out of my house and for Reeva to phone the police. It was pitch dark in the bedroom and I thought Reeva was in bed. I noticed that the bathroom window was open. I realized that the intruder/s was/were in the toilet because the toilet door was closed and I did not see anyone in the bathroom. ...

"It filled me with horror and fear of an intruder or intruders being inside the toilet. ... As I did not have my prosthetic legs on and felt extremely vulnerable, I knew I had to protect Reeva and myself. I believed that when the intruder/s came out of the toilet we would be in grave danger. ...

"I fired shots at the toilet door and shouted to Reeva to phone the police. She did not respond ... Everything was pitch dark in the bedroom and I was still too scared to switch on a light. Reeva was not responding.

"When I reached the bed, I realized that Reeva was not in bed. That is when it dawned on me that it could have been Reeva who was in the toilet. I returned to the bathroom calling her name. I tried to open the toilet door but it was locked. I rushed back into the bedroom and opened the sliding door exiting onto the balcony and screamed for help.

"I put on my prosthetic legs, ran back to the bathroom and tried to kick the toilet door open. I think I must then have turned on the lights. I went back into the bedroom and grabbed my cricket bat to bash open the toilet door. ... Reeva was slumped over but alive.

"I battled to get her out of the toilet and pulled her into the bathroom. I phoned Johan Stander ("Stander") who was involved in the administration of the estate and asked him to phone the ambulance. ... I carried her downstairs in order to take her to the hospital. ... I tried to render the assistance to Reeva that I could, but she died in my arms. ...

In my opinion:

To a layperson, like me, Oscar’s affidavit leaves a lot of questions unanswered; Why didn’t he notice she wasn’t in bed when he went back? Didn’t he think it strange she didn’t answer when he asked her to call the police? (And on that point he was ‘too afraid to put on a light’ but not too afraid to ask her to call the police?) Why was the toilet door locked? Surely no-one would just sit quietly and be shot at, so assuming she had screamed after the first shot why didn’t he stop shooting? Also his actions indicate he believes one should shoot first and ask questions later and all is not well if one has that type of psyche.

If he is 'innocent' and things played out exactly as he said it did then it’s heart-breaking that he has to mourn the loss of his girlfriend while being accused of her premeditated murder.

Reach for Recovery gets R570k boost

What started out as a good idea three years ago has mushroomed into a hugely successful initiative that raised more than R1 million for cancer support group Reach for Recovery since 2010. I’m talking about the Pink Punnet drive that saw Pick n Pay, Samfa (South African Mushroom Farmers Association) and Yucca packaging join forces to donate R1 from every pink punnet of mushrooms sold during October (breast cancer awareness month) to Reach for Recovery.

The biggest contribution toward that R1 million came from last year’s campaign, which amassed a fantastic R570 668 for Reach for Recovery. Today being World Cancer Day it was quite fitting that an organisation dedicated to supporting breast cancer patients received such a massive boost as recognition for the incredible work they do.

 

Cheque handover:Ross Richardson (Chariman of SAMFA) and Beaulah Jankelowitz (Reach for Recovery)

So what’s the link between mushrooms and breast cancer you ask… research has shown a significant link between mushroom consumption and reduction in breast cancer- the first time I heard this I couldn’t believe it either! but it’s true, eating 10g of mushrooms everyday can half the risk of breast cancer. You can read all about the results of that research here: Cancer and mushrooms

Reach 4 Recovery members: Stephne Jacobs, Greta Treisman, Maro Arvanitis, Josey Nonkonyana, Cherry Hart, Wil Hanssen, Beulah Jankelowitz and Dorothy Lewis

 

I interviewed Beaulah Jankelowitz a breast cancer survivor and the national co-ordinator of Reach for Recovery, on my radio show last week. Here’s the podcast of that interview:
Jozi Today 31/01/13

 

The ultimate Michael Jackson tribute show

 

Kenny Wizz as Michael Jackson

 

Michael Jackson’s trademark ‘woo-hoo’ pierces through the darkness of the theatre and the crowd erupts as the beat of Jackson’s 1983 hit Wanna Be Starting Something, kicks off the musical biography HIStory ll.

I’d seen pictures of MJ impersonator Kenny Wizz but was still a bit sceptical about how much he would resemble the King of Pop and if he would live up to the rave reviews. As the stage lights focussed on the star of the show my scepticism vanished, replaced by awe as the soft spoken Kenny Wizz, on stage in front of me, was Michael Jackson incarnate!

While he belted out the first few songs I wondered if it was him singing but as the show progressed it became quite obvious that he was actually singing (unlike some lip-synching, American anthem singing divas-recently in the news).

 

Slash in HIStory ll

 

Yeah he is one of many Michael Jackson impersonators but there was something so authentic about Wizz's portrayal- it left us totally captivated and there were times when, with just the right moves and in just the right light, it felt like Michael was right there with us at the Joburg Theatre.

 

From ABC, Smooth Criminal, Beat It, Thriller to Billie Jean and many more fan favourites the show delivered non-stop entertainment. HIStoryll will have you questioning reality and remind you why the musical genius that was Michael Jackson will never die.

The encore was magical, the crowd chanted out ‘Michael, Michael…’ and collectively cried out for, arguably Jackson’s greatest hit, Billie Jean.  

Through song, dance and with Wizz’s live band and talented dancers you will be transported to the era of Michael Jackson, an age as timeless as his music.

 

Getting to meet the man himself

RATED: Lookalike- 9/10, Dancing- 7.5/10, Singing- 6.5/10, Overall entertainment value- 10/10
 

Catch HIStory ll at the Joburg Theatre on until 10 February 2013.

 

At the launch of 3SIXTY Liquid Lounge

Walking the cobbled paths of Montecasino in high heels is always an arduous undertaking but it was a walk worth the risk, as across the cobblestone bridge within the confines of the casino floor lies the spectacular new entertainment venue 3SIXTY^oLiquid Lounge.

 

We were greeted by hot girls with painted on skin and a delicious drink that I could have done with a boot load of (Champagne I think).

 

The modern, chic interior boasts a restaurant and bistro, cigar & cognac lounge, cheese & wine room and frost-top bar. From the bar you can get; candy floss shooters served in test tubes, Black Forest shooters, Tequila with berries and the BullMeister where Jagermeister magically floats on Red Bull, to name but a few.

The menu is world-class with design it yourself options to boot and we got to try a few tantalising samples.  For entrees I tried; lamb fettuccine with snow peas, roast plum cherry tomatoes and parmesan shavings and the aged Karan beef fillet with shimiji mushroom, carrot puree and beef jus. Both of which I thought were simply delicious however I have to admit to testing the drinks before the food so my judgement may have been slightly impaired, as my companions were not as impressed by the fillet and thought it lacked seasoning. 

But by far the best treat, and on this we were unanimous, was the chocolate mousse in phyllo pastry. One bite of this decadently divine dessert (the beauty lay in its simplicity)and a week of effort at the gym would be undone-I had to try this cone-shaped wonder twice just to make sure the first one wasn’t a fluke of course. The star of this dessert that literally and deliciously held it all together was the phyllo pastry- delicate sheets of sheer delight- if you need just one reason to visit 3Sixty then this is it.
 

 

As beautiful as it may be, beware of the cobbled paths! Make sure you have a sturdy shoulder to help you over the cobbled walkways, after a night of over-indulging and one too many’s falling off one’s high-heels is a very real possibility.

 

For further info on 3SIXTY^oLiquid Lounge or for bookings: 011-510-7341

 

The legacy of Liliesleaf Farm

On a breezy afternoon I explored South African heritage through a guided tour of Liliesleaf Farm. Nestled in the heart of Rivonia, the farm nurtures the memory and legacy of South Africa’s struggle heroes.

The tour began with a 12-minute, black and white video depicting the historical events that shaped the country’s future. The guide, Zain Khumalo then led us through corridors, were the walls seemed to teem with nostalgia, across green lawns and to the Manor house.

Khumalo explained the significance of the house. “Arthur Goldreich, a member of the Communist Party, and his family, fronted as the white owners of the farm, to keep up the façade of that time.”

Nelson Mandela moved in under the guise of a caretaker and took the alias David Motsamayi, the name of one of his former clients. “He wore a simple blue overall that was considered the uniform of the black male servant.”

But the farm was actually the meeting place for prominent leaders who fought against apartheid, until that fateful cold day in July 1963 when it was raided and ANC leaders were arrested. However it was through that injustice that the world’s attention focused on the tyrannical government in South Africa.

While 60 percent of the original brickwork was kept during renovation and maintain a semblance to the decades gone by, the technology that unfolds that past is a true testament to the innovation of our present technological era.

At the Manor House history is retold via a 3D interactive table of video, images, audio, and text.

Emerging at the back entrance of the house we were shown the coal shed where Madiba’s documents were discovered which ultimately led to his 27-year imprisonment. As we passed the outbuildings I was in awe of the rich history that just this one place held, we have certainly come a long way since the days of the ‘dom pas’ but there’s still a long journey ahead on our democratic path.