I am Durban

I AM DURBAN from Kierran Allen on Vimeo.

A very cool time lapse film on Durban, the city I live in and love, by two very talented local fellows
Kierran Allen - facebook.com/kierranallenphotography and Matt Wilkes - m.facebook.com/MattWilkesPhotograghy

Great work guys what a beautiful city

At the heart of it

The Ships engines deep thrumming in the distant background - the sound and smell of the Ocean lapping against the Harbor wharfs, while its distant body rages itself against the shore, lights glinting across the bay and the murmur of people after a satisfyingly relaxing Sunday chilling to all of the above.

That’s what greeted us as we arrived at Zacks @ Wilsons Wharf. After helping Loz unload and set up his drum kit we took our beers around the side of the building and sat with our legs dangling over the worn concrete wall that dropped down to the harbor waters.

Absorbing it all as we sat there four, the shear size of the cranes used to load the ships against the size of the ships themselves which aren’t small, the realization that this part of the city never sleeps and as such the city doesn’t sleep. Just rests, there has always been a vibe about Durban, a great one, and I’ve always had the sense that it never sleeps, merely moves into moments of restfulness (which are beautiful when you’re in them).

Now I was looking at its heart surely, the clank and clunk and deep thrumping sound of the engine that drives the blood of this city, surely Durban is a tourist town – but this is where it started this is where it grew from, the rest is just the prettiness that has been appreciated. This is the biggest shipping port in Africa, and you can tell, though so often we don’t see it as we’re absorbed in one of its other many beautiful distractions…

I liked seeing the grit of what pushes its pulse though, attractive to me in its own right, the same way that a fathers sweat work streaked arms are attractive to his young child. There’s a security there in its solidity, as Loz said so long as you see the Ships lining up to get into Durban Harbour you know the economy is doing okay.

We finished off our beers and headed inside to tune up our guitars and get ready for the show, it was our first performance in Durban as the band, and we didn’t want to disappoint.

We gazed back over the water at the bump and clang just as we’d loaded the last of Loz’s drums back into his Car, sipping at the last of our beers. The shake of hand and hugged shoulders for a shared experience, then a drive like slumbering pushed blood into one of the city’s resting organs.

Where we is at

Wow two years gone, well almost – without anything. I’m surprised the powers that be didn’t just pull down my blog. No excuses it’s just life – to be honest I only kept regular updates on here when I first started the blog

I’m not going to make the promise of keeping my posts regular. I think my motto going forward is only make statements or commitments you definitely intend to keep. While I’d love to post to my blog regularly, it will end up taking I back seat to many other things in my life, saying that I’d like to post more of where I’ve been and what’s happening.

There are many experiences in the intervening year and a bit that would have been great to share as they happened… who knows perhaps if I get struck by the memory of it or find photos of them I might put a post up about it.

A lot has gone on during my Hiatus, in the world at large in my life and in my head, a big part has been getting myself right emotionally, something I think we all go through from time to time a big part of this was also my choice to move to Durban and New Jobs, all the while moving further away from Family and friends and the core of where our band was. I’m glad to say I was moving to other good friends at least and that I am now really settled and happy in my current Job and Durban as a whole – I see friends and family in the midlands at least one month a weekend, and the band are back to working at our music and getting out there and playing.

I don’t think anyone goes through life without picking up emotional scars; just don’t let them affect the way you carry on with your life.

So yeah I’m good and 2012 holds promise.

I’ve posted a couple pictures from a night out playing foozball with two of my best mates down here.

just saying

its all blue, and in the end it's still you. Where did you go? I heard the sound of tears on the street below my window. Muffled by snow, that wiped away the evidence of the crime.

It's all flat and bare, But Ill manage to keep things going until i get there… why the end of course, or the beginning to something more.

We can hope

… that is life.

sometimes you have to wonder where it all changed, did it need to change?

Why change a good thing when all it sometimes needs is a fixing.

Sometimes fixing something could seem like an awful lot of hard work… but that never hurt anyone anyhow…

- just saying

Feed burner

Just added feed burner to my Blog, whereby you can subscribe (to the right of screen) and recieve emails whenever there is an update... so basically just testing.

To My Fellow South Africans

I’ve had some thoughts these last couple of days with the continuous strikes going on in our country (south Africa – I’ve been reading that there are a couple happening in Europe at the moment too) and while they’ve been put on hold (for now, who knows when they’ll flare up again) I can’t help but reflect on the damage it has done.

I’m all for equality, decent wages and benefits but I question the manner that it’s taken place and think there may be better ways to make yourself heard.

The Major strikes have involved the public sector with teachers and Nurses coming under direct fire for the lack of responsibility for their actions, both fields by striking directly influence the well being of another (many others in fact) people can (and have) died without the required medical attention. Student’s education will suffer and I’m sure many Students in their final year of school will fail as a result of the strikes.

To add to this there is still an international recession happening, I know this makes everyone feel like they need more money but what can you do if it’s not there to be had, and I’m not attempting to attack what the strikers were striving for more the means, which brings me to the main part of my thought and possible solution.

The Government pays your wages and half the strikes I’m sure are started because you see higher officials lavishing their money on New vehicles, Fancy trips and beautiful houses. While they still fail to meet you’re measly in comparison demands, they know they haven’t left enough money to do so and quite honestly don’t seem to care.
So what’s my solution? Vote in the opposition, they’ll do a better job, and if they don’t and also seem to be bent on spending all the countries Money on their own lavish lifestyle. Then vote against them too, I know the ANC was very instrumental in playing the part of gaining this country and it’s people it’s Freedom, but now it’s using the Loyalty gained from that to enslavement of another kind.

You have a voice, use it, it’s the only way government can become liable for their governance. If the country stood up and started using its votes as a voice, people in charge would have to take notice and start trimming their budgets in order to make sure that the money was going to the right places. If they don’t they will be replaced, like any ob you can often become complacently comfortable not doing it to the best of your ability and you need a kick sometimes to realize it.

In addition to my appeal for you to use your “voice” to make Government accountable, I’m asking each and every one of you to do your job the best you can, and honestly. You’ll be surprised at how your hard work can pay off; people will notice and hopefully lead you to greater things. If you’re already in a good job and you’ve become complacent in the job, then perhaps it’s time for you to move on and allow someone with a fresh desire to take over. You’ll be surprised at how a change will make a difference in your approach to work too; you’ll find excitement again where you lost it.

So stand up South Africa, like you did in the world cup, and let’s work to make this country all it can be. We’re a proud Nation all of us, lets not let ourselves down.

Toe & Hitch - "Gone Fishing"

(Colour Version Coming Soon)Hey They're back! With a lot of help from Caroline - while I love reading Cartoons and drawing them, I battle with the right thought process to be able to come up with a convincing series. Where the characters are developed and they have a background so you can come up with funny situations and continuations of stories time after time.

Anyway thanks to Caroline for feeling bored enough to tackle another "Toe & Hitch" strip for me, she put a lot of thought behind the characters & their backgrounds I know you don’t see it all here but it helps me when I’m drawing their expressions when I have a solid understanding of what the character is like, and obviously for any future strips you’ll do. I mean there’s a whole new cast of characters she’s created with her character background. And of course this funny storyline… well we think its pretty funny. Hope you enjoy!