ONE STEP BEYOND

I am in serious danger of fully completing my transmogrification into Martha Stewart. One of these days I'll be walking along in a mall minding my own business and plotting the demise of a gaggle of teenagers, when I'll find myself gazing wistfully into the window of a Biggie Best store and imagining how I'd arrange the cottage print scatter cushions on my black leather couch back home...

What I am referring to of course is the abrupt (and surprisingly successful) change I was forced to make after the "break up" from playing house-house with someone who did things like cook and a lot of other stuff around the house, to a situation where I am forced to fend for myself. This includes creating nutritious and delicious meals and keeping the abode just above "squatter shack" tidy.

Ok, it's a little ambitious to call the early attempts at culinary proficiency "nutritious". In my case it was more like "barely edible but enough to sustain a growing boy". I have however been taking on more and more ambitious meals, some even combining more than 2 or 3 ingredients. We've reached a point, I am thrilled to announce, where I made a full sweet n sour pork casserole all by myself last night and the only distress call I had to make to The Sister was to find out how many tablespoons 25ml was. You see, I don't have one of those little cuppy measury thingies. Great success! Which is a good thing, considering I'll be eating my wonderful creation (actually it's a recipe off the back of a soup packet) for a week...

In other news...

What the fuuuuuuuck! It truly is raining babies! Almost every couple that I know has either recently had children or has recently announced that they too are expecting. What is this? Is there a 2-for-the-price-of-1 sale on Huggies somewhere?

In a most terrifying development, my good friend, Crazy Rob, is now the latest to join this illustrious group of people. He is going to be a father. God help us all.

Oh and congrats you two! A Biggie Best baby-grow is in the post.

Seems I am missing the boat a little, what with all my going out and partying...

On a far more cheerful note, why is it that humanity loves to be seen to be a part of something, but when it is called upon to act in support of whatever, it slinks back into the comforting shadows of suburbia and pretends to be all of a sudden very concerned with the state of its lawn and makes muttering noises about getting out the mower?

South African Music scene...

Let's for one minute cut away the obvious hurdles. The shambolic state of broadcasters that couldn't deliver an accurate version of what's been aired if the government gave them another bail out package. The societies that are meant to look after their writers and members but prefer to spend their resources on "how to incorporate bullshit political and HR jargon into an equally bullshit excuse why things aren't getting done". Record companies that have sacrificed their integrity for so long trying to stem the flow away from buying physical product that they now can't afford to do anything other than plug their leaking ships by cashing on on worse and worse one hit wonders. Radio stations that pander to the lowest common (and I do mean common) denominator and playlist the biggest bunch of kak on heavy rotation. And last but not least. The public. Those wonderful people that put up with it all and buy crap because the TV tells them to.

Now that we have the annoying little things no one can do anything about out of the way, let me get to the point I was trying to make. Every so often someone or a group of people come along and genuinely attempt to make a difference, to change the apathetic face of local music, to commit to the betterment of it and to actually make a meaningful contribution. My question is this. Why then do these people have to struggle so to keep their noble efforts afloat, when a meagre contribution from partners in the industry would be so infinitely mutually beneficial?

I can of course not mention specifics, but there are those entities which strive to deliver a quality product or service and are forced to downscale their involvement due to lack of backing. Come on! Just one little ad in a mag. Or go to one more gig in a month. Or something. Anything!

I should probably leave it there...

NGDG: "Why do people act surprised? It's perfectly reasonable to kill game by hiring prostitutes. Unless your game is good enough to withstand that kind of stigma."

Spread The Love. Make Meatloaf. Or Show More Support For Local Music.