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It's the biggest global social upheaval since the Second World War, and now the entire world is wrestling with the realities left behind. And the biggest question is - how much of our old way of life will we reclaim, and how much of our lives have changed forever? Only time will tell.
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One thing is plain - we can forget New Normal. There never was a Normal in the first place. We have lived in a country where the lunatics are running the asylum, where only the most brutal and senseless crimes ever make the news, where political jokes get elected, where the last person to leave cannot switch off the lights because of loadshedding.
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Our legendary 'Boer Maak 'n Plan' resourcefulness has been sorely tested, and it is a testament to our resilience as a nation that we can still make jokes about our future. While being convinced that, yes, there is a future.
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Taking the motto 'What doesn't kill you makes you strong' we are dedicating this issue mainly to survival stories. Not 'Braving the COVID' type stories, but more 'Braving the New Normal - whatever that is going to be'.
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The new live-action Mulan hit Disney+ this last week, to mixed reviews. Some people liked the fact that the film differed so greatly from the animated original, others asked the important question: 'Why?"
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It is a daring experiment from Disney, who put the movie on their streaming service instead of a theatrical release, and charged more for the privilege.
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Personally, the original Mulan is, IMHO, one of the best animated movies of all time and Disney meddles with it at their peril.
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Unexpectedly, Mulan has also become a gay icon (in both versions) with the stirring message that a person should be true to themselves and not conform to social constraints. And I will drink to that!
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Lift doesn’t go to the top and other SA snafus
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An MEC blames salty air for hospital woes while the Red Berets find a handy cause célèbre.
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From femicide to glory: the work of Lebo Thoka*
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Lebo Thoka's art does not deny the horror and brutality experienced by victims of femicide. Rather she proclaims the inherent dignity of the women, that can never be taken away from them. A version of this article was first published by Sunday Times Lifestyle.
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Persevering in a pandemic.
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There can be few people on Earth who haven't experienced at least some of the impacts of the Covid-19 global pandemic. Lives have been shattered, livelihoods lost, and economies wrecked. But amidst all the doom and gloom can be found inspiring stories of human resilience and creativity.
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Brave New (Virtual) Worlds
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COVID has changed our lives. Of that we are sure. What the long lasting effects will be, however, we don't know.
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A Poet's Appreciation for a Lyrical Masterpiece - 'Vincent' - By Don McLean.
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In ‘Vincent’, the refrain, “Starry Starry Night”, in the first row of each verse, is catching and it sets or resets the scene for each verse. The contrasting and matching phrases used in the lyrics are remarkably effective, for example, “Portraits hung in empty halls, Frameless heads on nameless walls”.
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Writers, you shouldn't do your own editing.
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In an ideal world, most people - and all clients, especially those who are not trained writers - should not edit their own writing. Here's why.
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Your 5-point plan on being retrenched
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Being ‘let go’ will become a reality for thousands in the coming year. Here’s what to do if it happens to you.
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Is advertising keeping up with social media?
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Traditional advertising is shifting to digital marketing, and this has changed the way companies spend their time and money. Listen to the experts in this podcast.
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The Virtual Pandemic: Webinars go wild. You go wonkers
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The real pandemic is an unreal, unexpected reality which has been thrust on us. It is WEBMEET-20. It is spreading faster than COVID-19. Almost everyone is infected. Read what Peter Ucko says about the great timewasters.
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Where Words Take Us - Kerb
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To have been at the spot where the Dublin part of this week's column took place, to have passed that corner on a weekly basis, seems unreal and dreamlike as I look out the study window into the garden, back in South Africa, where the hadedas are having a field day with whatever they're mining from the lawn.
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All of our bodies suffer the wear and tear of time. In people, our hearts are often our weakest organ. In dogs and especially cats, it is often their kidneys that wear out first.
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If I had R100 for every time I got distracted, I wish I had bowl of ice cream.
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It's a mad world, and getting madder by the day. Our phones are supposed to help us navigate the frustrations of life, but sometimes they only make things worse
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