2007: early reflections

2007 is here. Like most of the years before it, it did not so much stagger ungracefully into the room as materialize almost magically. It is here now so we might as well go into the kitchen and make for it some coffee while acting as good hosts. In reality we will probably be bitching about it behind its back. Anyway a very happy new year to my friends and the bloggers who stop by here.

Random thoughts:
-I spotted some guy standing infront of the old taxi park in town. It was around 7.00 so it was already fairly dark. However our friend was holding a pair of white jeans stiffly infront of him waiting for someone perhaps to squint at the strange figure there and decide on the spur of the moment to buy a pair of white jeans in the dark.
-Although it is often said that alcohol impairs movement and reflexes, I saw a convincing argument to the contrary. About a week ago while drinking with Sunny at Virunga, some rowdy guys participated in possibly the most enthusiastic bear hug I have seen in a while. Unfortunately they knocked the table next to us in their excitement. In a blink of an eye- before I could even move a muscle or even detect any danger- Sunny had snatched his glass of beer, his bottle and the empty bottle he had finished earlier and leaped to his feet. You had to be there, but it was quite an achievement.
-Witnessed an interesting fight at Virunga. I was sitting down drinking my beer in peace when I looked up and saw a furious girl charging in my general direction. I would be exaggerating if I said that my life flashed before my eyes, but I did get a kind of abridged version in the second I saw her bearing down on me. It turned out that she was heading for the girl who was standing near me and she was determined to kick her ass. Thankfully people managed to intervene before shit hit the fan. Cue a lot of hysterical shouting and several attempts to break free from her captors and carry on the fight. The girl who was being targeted in this love-triangle gone bad (then again, have we ever had a love triangle that turned out well?) also managed to throw a ferocious punch that could have proved fatal had it connected. She later insisted to us that she had connected with the punch, but Sunny claims she missed. The drama ended with the screaming girl being carried out by her boyfriend. Later I wondered if we should have stood back and let the fight go on in a winner-takes-it-all scenario. We couldn't do this of course because the attacked girl was in our circle, but still....
-TV Rwanda's Christmas eve coverage was entertaining although not necessarily in the ways they would have wanted. One highlight was when a group of motorcyclists were interviewed about what Christmas meant to them. As one of them was droning on, someone right behind him lifted a live chicken and held it up for quite a while. What this was expected to accomplish I don't know but I half-expected our feathered friend to give its own shout-outs to its equally doomed buddies.
-Chelsea dropping four points from their last two games- you had best believe I am gloating. However before their last two draws, they had a very lucky escape. I was at the Virunga bar (God I spend a lot of time in that place) to watch the Chelsea-Wigan game about ten days ago. The game was tied at 2-2 with a few minutes of injury time to go when Arjen Robben (you bastard!) popped up to grab a late winner. One loud Chelsea fan-who thought that chanting 'Jose! Jose! every ten seconds was either enlightening or witty- immediately dashed outside to the balcony, knelt down and spread his arms dramatically while opening his mouth. His friend grabbed his beer glass, dashed outside and poured its contents down his throat. Then they continuted screaming. It makes me wonder whether a teams' fans do indeed reflect the team itself.
-When you are the MC at someone's wedding, isnt it the ultimate faux pas to spend a few minutes talking about the groom's dead wife and how much his new wife looks like her? This is what I witnessed at the intercontinental on Saturday. I also thought I've got to do something to make my wedding a bit different- weddings these days are so similar that they all kind of blend into each other. Mind you I might not even show up for my wedding- it might be fun for the spectators but the bride and groom often look bored stiff.
-Apparently polar bears can beat a lion in a fight. Fact.
-Funny headline I saw recently over at The onion- "Kevin Federline, wife divorce"