A typical house in the high density suburbs of Bulawayo- including a roof accessory... :)

I know no one uses Nokia anymore (except most of the world still does, but appearances are everything); also that this post is almost or possibly already redundant. Partly because that's the truth about technology, but also because in the very near future I'm adding Android to my accumulated life experience. But my E72 has been awesome to use, and although most (US-based) companies producing phone apps have worked hard to make me feel irrelevant and unhip ;P, there are some useful apps and services that have made my E72 experience worthwhile- as follows, briefly:


-Mail for Exchange is too awesome -Google Talk & Skype have kept my sister (2 000 km away) right next to me

 -Opera Mini- can one ever not sing the praises of this amazing invention? Seriously, the built-in browser is fine and all, even useful for flash-based sites, but I don't always want to finish my prepaid units on loading one page. Actually would mostly prefer not to.

-Sugarsync: although I haven't used it very much, this is also very high on my list. I have used it to sync stuff (all sorts of stuff) between my phone and PC, and also to sync (and access) Dropbox. Just feel more secure knowing I can back up to the (almost mythical) mystical Cloud; also nice to put stuff online to access on the go. 

-Foursquare- although I had to quit my job and move to South Africa to access Ovi Store to download it as Zimbabwe is apparently country non grata, it's so clever, this thing, & I love that I have it on my phone. So do stalkers I guess.

 -QuickOffice: yeah, nifty! The fact that I can read pdf docs, make notes, scan business cards (who does that as a matter of course? But I'm not a business person yet). Yes, all of this is lovely.

 -S60 Bible, & other Java bibles (they have no name, as far as I can tell, but they are off Econet's mobi site). How awesome is it that I have the Bible on my phone? I wish I could wake King James up to show him. Whoever he was.

-Snaptu: by far the bestest thing ever, even better than sliced bread (I mean seriously, sliced bread???). I don't even care that Twitter's revoked DMs. I access fb, twitter, and about a gazillion feeds. I don't use the shortcut links (cos that leads to frustration with Nokia's browser again, & no prepaid credit left), but they are there.

-Nimbuzz: love the chat client integration, also loved the direct access to Twitter until Twitter revoked access to DMs *sadness* 

-Socially: I use it once in a while. I think it's prolly quite nifty, but I just get the feeling it hogs bandwidth, so I don't use it much.

-Vlingo's a fun little thing that I always forget to use- still fun 

-Whatsapp has allowed a little irritation into my life- why is it always on, even if I exit?!- but is also terribly useful. I HATE giving my number out, so at the very least it's taught me to do that (heh).

-Just started using biNu.... Yeah it's not very pretty, is it though? But how nice to have 4 free texts (is it every 10hrs or something?).

 -GTD: nifty little to-do app. Basic, clear.

-Milkshake: another to-do thing. A little more to it than GTD, so necessarily a slightly steeper learning curve (but not very much so).

-Fring: never seemed to stay properly online (-is that because they actually built something in to indicate your online status?) so I stopped using it. Now that I've remembered it's there, will try using it again.

-Just for the record: the Bubble Popper game lol.


I think Google is the company that's tried hardest to have a global view of things- you know, not everyone's on Android & those other things (heh). (Disclaimer: I'm a big fan of things Google). I have Google search and Gmail on my phone, and all the email accounts on my phone are Gmail. I sync Remember The Milk and Google Calendar with my built-in calendar (which, I must say, I've always hated- it's ugly! I wish there was an alternative). The only thing I've missed (a lot!) is Evernote, or some sort of decent note-taking app. On my PC I use both Evernote and OneNote. So I guess what's prompting my future move to something Android-powered (as my main phone, though I'm keeping my Nokia) is partly my love for Google (heh), but also the dearth of stuff for Nokia. Exacerbated, probably, by lack of Ovi Store access (I wonder if Nokia can hear me). I had thought of waiting for a Nokia/Windows phone- but ultimately, why bother? I have my eyes set on the Samsung Galaxy SII.

Our cat loves to play with light patterns reflected onto the wall when the light falls on anything shiny- from my cellphone, to light from our rechargeable lamp on mirrors during our too-frequent power cuts. Well, not so much loves as is obsessed with and wants to kill. So of course we love to tease her, and she hardly ever catches the maddening thing.

Watching her this morning, I wondered what she'd do if she did catch it. First, she seemed puzzled, because even with her paws on it, she must have been conscious that there was nothing there. Not really anyway. Then she sniffed at it. Then she looked around to see if she'd really caught the thing she'd been chasing. Then she looked at it again.

As I laughed inside, I began to ponder mystery. There are so many things we simply do not understand. Perhaps we don't have the intellect to do so (like the cat- I assume). Maybe some things are really just beyond understanding, because they're elementally mysterious. Too often we assume we know everything, that we should know everything. Especially about everything. Mystery is often a call to humility, a reminder of how finite we are.

Proverbs 30:18-19
There are three things which are too wonderful for me, Yes, four which I do not understand:
The way of an eagle in the air, The way of a serpent on a rock, The way of a ship in the midst of the sea, And the way of a man with a virgin.

There's no moral to this blog post; just a note to self about staying amazed in the face of what I do not know.

I went to the Fair today! ...Yes, I went to the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair, an annual event that used to be the highlight of the year here in Bulawayo. I remember walking around the grounds and in the halls collecting every useless brochure (usually from mining companies and random foreign airlines) and sun visor I could get, eating loads of ice cream and candy floss, and topping it all off with a visit to the Luna Park. (In case you're quite confused, this would be when I was in junior school). I later became too cool for the Fair- teenagehood- and then moved away to university... But in the meantime the Fair was overtaken by changes in the Zimbabwean economy, and the general madness that came to be plastered on newspapers and tv screens everywhere. In fact, when I made the decision to go this year, it was because of the positive changes that are gradually happening in Zim. I thought that would be a good place to take the temperature of the economy, to see if things are really improving as much as I think.

Well, we went in early, and one of the first things I noticed is how small the crowds were compared to what I remember. By the time we left at lunchtime, things were a little better. (I think some people were probably twiddling their thumbs at home, and finally decided to check it out). The problem, I think, was the cost of entry; most ordinary people could not afford the $5 ticket (for adults). Still, I did see harried adults with streams and streams of children flowing behind them, so I guess some people made the sacrifice.

The second thing I noted was that there were not as many foreign exhibitors as I remember from my childhood. It seems to me there were many banks, NGOs, government departments and medical aid societies. There were some local manufacturers, and many, many SMEs. That seems a really good snapshot of the Zim economy right now. There are also many universities in Zim now- there were a lot of stands representing them. There were also a few countries represented, but it seemed to be mainly the SADC ones, and Iran.

I also saw a guy parachuting into the main arena- and people rushing towards the arena, attracted by this sight- so some things don't change, I'm happy to report :) Oh, and the interesting painting of the President- sorry, I didn't get the name of the artist :(

All in all, it was a good day out, and it brought back memories. I also did a bit of shopping, which is always the best part of any outing- right?

Images: The Coke Fountain, the Fair Spire, a painting of the Pres, the ZRP stand.

I'm sure that I will always be
A lonely number like root three
The three is all that's good and right,
Why must my three keep out of sight
Beneath the vicious square root sign,
I wish instead I were a nine
For nine could thwart this evil trick,
with just some quick arithmetic
I know I'll never see the sun, as 1.7321
Such is my reality, a sad irrationality
When hark! What is this I see,
Another square root of a three
As quietly co-waltzing by,
Together now we multiply
To form a number we prefer,
Rejoicing as an integer
We break free from our mortal bonds
With the wave of magic wands
Our square root signs become unglued
Your love for me has been renewed.

-Dave Feinberg

Thanks for the heads-up Zo :)

In church on Sunday, distracted, I looked around at all the very different women... Hair all different... Clothing expressing each different personality.. Made-up or not... And I thought about the beauty of Eve. Her uniqueness in creation. There is something really special in being a woman, something perhaps holy and mysterious. Something we forget when we try to look like the next woman, compete with our friends or enemies, lose our identity in bad relationships, hide behind layers and layers of masks. My prayer today is for women around the world, hurting women, happy women, married moms and single mothers, wives and singletons, professionals and housewives. For the redemption of womanhood, for individual purpose achieved. For us to do what we were created to do, for His glory. Because- we are ''the crown of creation''.*

Happy women's day! <hugs and cute pink stuff>
-------
* from the book Captivating.

Hannah's song
1 Samuel 2:1 And Hannah prayed and said: "My heart rejoices in the LORD; My horn is exalted in the LORD. I smile at my enemies, Because I rejoice in Your salvation.
2 "No one is holy like the LORD, For there is none besides You, Nor is there any rock like our God.
3 "Talk no more so very proudly; Let no arrogance come from your mouth, For the LORD is the God of knowledge; And by Him actions are weighed.
4 "The bows of the mighty men are broken, And those who stumbled are girded with strength.
5 Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, And the hungry have ceased to hunger. Even the barren has borne seven, And she who has many children has become feeble.
6 "The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and brings up.
7 The LORD makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and lifts up.
8 He raises the poor from the dust And lifts the beggar from the ash heap, To set them among princes And make them inherit the throne of glory.
"For the pillars of the earth are the Lord's, And He has set the world upon them.
9 He will guard the feet of His saints, But the wicked shall be silent in darkness.
"For by strength no man shall prevail.
10 The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken in pieces; From heaven He will thunder against them. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth.
"He will give strength to His king, And exalt the horn of His anointed. "

Mary's song (The Magnificat)
Luke 1:46 And Mary said: "My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48 For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
49 For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name.
50 And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty.
54 He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy,
55 As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever. "

(NKJV)

There've been interesting discussions on Twitter since the fall of Mubarak. It puzzles me a bit that people can say that it happened in Egypt, ergo, Zimbabwe is next. It's important for the world to understand that you can't transfer a revolution- no such thing as a cut-and-paste revolution (or solution), especially in Africa. And certainly not for Zimbabwe.

While I admire the seemingly relatively 'easy' transition in Egypt, I suppose I must be considered a bit of a skeptic. I don't think overthrowing a government is a solution, especially because it leaves a power vacuum (currently being filled by the military in Egypt). The masses are always pleased by sudden changes in such a situation, but what happens next?

The current political crisis in Zim is very telling. Just today there was a demonstration against Tsvangirayi ('because he's not doing enough'). I have always said MDC's biggest problem is that it's a conglomeration of people and groups with wildly different interests, united by one thing: to remove Mugabe from power. It's a protest movement, standing for nothing, but against something. Once he's gone (if, maybe), will the MDC splinter into many groups pulling the leadership in different directions? Shouldn't we think at least a little about where we're going before we create chaos?

That's my ideological issue with the Egyptian revolution as a solution; removing Mubarak seems great today, but will whoever replaces him be tomorrow's horror?

Or is that just fear?

One blogger's take on the Egypt/Zim question: Hope For Zimbabwe

I'm going to recommend this article on Gizmodo:

Is the Internet God?
By Dave Pell

Thoughtful and raises an interesting question. Be sure to read the comments.

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."

Luke 4:18-19 (ESV)