Mirpo's Misc.

When a Number Becomes a Face - World Aids Day 2011

2011-12-01T09:43:00.001+02:00

Today, 1. December, is World Aids Day. Today we are reminded of the large number of people still affected by the disease. But with statistics reminding us of the magnitude of the problem, I sometimes tend to forget about the people, the individuals living with the disease. The human faces behind the statistics. I actually know quite a few people living with HIV – no wonder really since more

Miracles in Lusaka with Doctor Muyonjo

2011-10-22T15:06:00.000+02:00

When I first tried to force myself into putting something on this blog, I choose a light but serious issue - anal itch. The inspiration was from an article in the Zambian newspaper, The Post, in which a Doctor Brown Kamanga explained what anal itch is ("an irritating sensation around the anus" - surprise!) and he offered advice on how to deal with anal itch (I've always wondered how to go about

Julius Malema - possessed or just plain poisonous?

2009-03-24T08:39:00.011+02:00

Last week as I was typing away on my computer something in the background caught my attention. It was a news story on the radio about a possessed man. The possessed man's name was Julius Malema.Now I paid attention for two reasons. Firstly I find possessed people fascinating. But more importantly the possessed man, Julius Malema, happens to be the leader of the ANC Youth League.Julius Malema is

"Is the pope Catholic?"

2009-03-18T10:52:00.008+02:00

The saying "Is the pope Catholic?" serves to emphasize the obviousness of something. Even though it is technically a question it is used as an answer to questions where the obvious answer is a definitie YES! (The Americans sometimes use "Duuhhh!!" - it serves the same purpose)Example 1Q: "Is the pope against the use of condoms in AIDS-ravaged Africa?"A: "Is the pope Catholic?"Example 2Q: "Is the

Inflation1

2008-10-20T13:00:00.010+02:00

Efter omkring fire måneder i Zimbabwe er jeg begyndt at have en sådan nogenlunde forståelse af, hvad det vil sige, at bo i et land med hyperinflation. Men det er ikke det samme som, at jeg forstår mekanismerne bag. Det jeg har en forståelse af, er det, jeg har brug for at forstå, for at overleve og få mine finanser til at vare en måned. Forleden faldt jeg over artiklen "ZIMBABWE: A day in the

The price of power

2008-10-18T13:49:00.006+02:00

Amidst these times of negotiating on a power sharing deal in Zimbabwe, you may think that this post is on politics. But it's not.. not really anyway. And the again - maybe it is.Well, the post is on electricity. On service delivery - and the lack thereof.Today (Saturday 18th October) at 8 PM it will be exactly 21 days - or three weeks since I found myself cooking meatballs in complete darkness.

Purple Harare

2008-10-17T10:17:00.005+02:00

One of the things that Zimbabwe is famous for is the months where Harare - and other cities - turn completely purple as the jacaranda trees are in bloom. The purple flowers are now making way for green leaves as the rain season is about to start.Here are a couple of photos of what Harare has looked like in the last 6-8 weeks.

Blog Action Day 2008

2008-10-15T16:33:00.005+02:00

15. October is Blog Action Day 2008 and the theme is poverty.Being in Zimbabwe makes you think a lot about poverty - and the causes. Whereas nature and natural ressources can be factors that cause poverty, in some cases the level of poverty is fuelled by humans. Most often politicians. Years of drought have played a role in promoting poverty in Zimbabwe, but the human factor is by far the

A day in the life of Mikkel

2008-10-15T15:25:00.008+02:00

Det er lørdag morgen. Slutningen af september og jeg skal holde fødselsdagsmiddag om aftenen. Vågner kl 08:00 uden vækkeur – så har jeg også sovet længe. På hverdage står jeg op kl. 05:30 – eller i hvert fald senest kl. 06:30, hvis jeg sover over mig (ved ikke om jeg skal forbande eller takke personen, der opfandt snooze-funktionen). Var til den årlige uddeling af journalistpriser NJAMA (

Moffar1

2008-09-21T12:24:00.007+02:00