My Favourite Superhero

On Father’s Day, what better than this set of… erm… photo-drawings from Italian… erm… photo-drawer Giulia Pex?

She took photos of her dad doing mundane tasks and then jazzed them up because her dad is her favourite superhero.

superh

Even at age [quite old] my Dad can regularly still be found on the roof (although not if he remembers to take his medication). I’ve never seen him opt for the pose above though: he’d probably be painting the chimney.

Anyway, this goes out to my Dad and any other father’s out there who are their kids’ favourite superheroes.

Happy Father’s Day.

Quota Instagram photo

Taken earlier this week in Claremont.
Winter sunrise in Cape Town. Gorgeous.

image

I’m out in the sticks again this long weekend, ahead of a hectic week in the lab, so some relaxation is not a bad idea. Braai done, beer done and brandy in hand, I’m uploading this and then I’m going to hit the sack.

And why not?

Meanwhile, running our country…

Gotta love politicians, right? Right.

ANC MPs John Jeffrey and Buti Manamela are in trouble for comments they made regarding DA Parliamentary Leader Lindiwe Mazibuko.

During a parliamentary budget vote on Wednesday, Jeffrey said: “While the honourable Mazibuko may be a person of substantial weight, her stature is questionable”.

While Manamela used her attire as an example of how everything – EVERYTHING – is blamed on Jacob Zuma:

Manamela’s comment was a reference to Mazibuko’s dress sense, saying that if she was arrested by the fashion police, the DA would blame President Jacob Zuma.

Cue complaints to the ANC Chief Whip and Jeffery withdrawing and apologising for his remark.

Also cue the SACP issuing this statement, featuring more comedy gold:

 The SACP contends there is nothing inherently sexist in the example made by Cde Manamela in parliament when he sought to explain how opportunistically the opposition blamed the President for things he didn’t have control of and indeed it is true that the President doesn’t choose Lindiwe Mazibuko’s clothes. This has nothing to do with being a man or a woman but with the fact that Lindiwe Mazibuko leads the opposition in parliament, an opposition that has resorted to a blame game.

Well, ok. So maybe the remark was misinterpreted. They weren’t being nasty about Lindiwe at all.
But then it continues:

Lindiwe Mazibuko is nothing else but a disrespectful kid who has used every single parliamentary debate to treat the President with disrespect and with a condescending attitude. Her level of disrespect has reached completely unacceptable levels. Cde Zuma besides being president is an elderly citizen and struggle hero who deserves to be treated with respect especially by young ones like Lindiwe.

Oops.

Never mind. Just thank goodness these people aren’t in positions of authority and responsibility. Oh… wait…

But here come the ANC Women’s League, taking time away from praying for Madiba’s health with a very sensible statement on the whole matter:

We commend Jeffrey for acknowledging that his comments may have been misunderstood and for apologising. Parliament is no place for tit-for-tat games.

But then ruining it with:

the DA did it first and has not yet apologised: DA leader and Western Cape Premier Helen Zille was yet to apologise for reportedly calling ANC MPL Zodwa Magwaza an elephant, neither had Theuns Botha, who likened Lynne Brown to a hippopotamus.

Zille’s was clever, referring to Magwaza as “the elephant in the room”, so actually technically not a direct insult and probably legit. Botha calling Lynne Brown a hippopotamus was slightly less defensible.

The playground will be open again after the long weekend.

Spooky, glow-in-the-dark clouds continue to spread south…

This is cool. Of course it is, it’s glow in the dark clouds, for goodness’ sake!

The technical name for this phenomenon is noctilucent clouds and they’re not unheard of – they were first described way back in 1885. Because they exist at far higher altitudes than our normal clouds, they can continue to reflect the sun’s light, even after dark:

660px-noctilucent-clouds1

Previously, they have only been seen at extreme Northern altitudes, but more recently, they have been observed more and more regularly and further and further south (not quite as far down as Cape Town though).
Scientists are a bit confused as to why this is, but they are pointing towards higher methane concentrations in the atmosphere, which is then oxidised into water vapour, which then forms these clouds.

Thus, yes, this beautiful sight is actually – apparently – “a warning signal for climate change”. Ugh.

At least they’re prettier than a Greenpeace demo.