UPDATE - March 21, 2008

March 21, 2008

Hi! This is Victor.

UPDATE

Today is Good Friday but was also Human Rights Day. So South Africans were confused: Should I be an activist or a Christian? Can I be an Christian activist? Apparently Good Friday and Easter Monday are public Holidays, but this year both days are double public holidays. Easter Monday is also Family Day (this might be normal here, not sure). The bigger problem was Good Friday. Good Friday happened to also fall on Human Rights day this year. This conflict had been established for sometime. But it wasn’t until Maundy Thursday (yesterday—the day before Good Friday) that they decided to move Human Rights Day to May 2^nd. So we don’t have to decide to be a Christian or an activist. The funny thing about the move to May 2^nd is that that week now has three public holidays—Monday, Thursday and Friday. So Ryan and his friend are going to drive to PE (Port Elizabeth) for that weekend on Wednesday or Thursday. I might do that as well to go visit Rhodes; splitting gas two or three ways is cheaper than a bus which is cheaper than flying which is cheaper than driving alone and paying for the gas (I think that’s the right order). After that week in May and winter break in June/July, there are probably only 2 or 3 more public holidays for the rest of year.

Very sorry about the pictures in the last e-mail. Beautiful friend Jen told me that the links in the last update didn’t allow you to view it without being on Facebook. I hate that. And I never send pictures where I require you to sign up for the service. So that was my fault. I sent the wrong link as there is a way to do it without that requirement. I believe the links below do work without any requirements.

These are January and February and March pictures mostly of Jeannie and Haley who usurped my photo-taking abilities.

http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=3003514&k=33FYQ3SRS3TA6CCHRE3Y

http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=3003514&k=Z2G6P2R4Q35MYBEGYAX6T

http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=3003514&k=ZZL5Z364W34MYBEGYAX6T

http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=3003514&k=Z5L626UZ4X3MYBEGYAX6T

In South Africa, companies like banks will say that you cannot have an account with internet banking unless you have a cell phone. All of this is untrue, but people will say this. I’ve done fine without one for a long while. But. . .

I also got a cell phone. Everyone has complained for 7 months that I need one, I must have one, I am dead without one. Everyone tells me how they are going to start a Get-V-a-cell-phone fund and campaign across the country, how they’ll pool their money and just buy me one with a plan. No one, not one has ever done it—other than my mom who sent me a US phone and Hales who brought the phone my mom sent to South Africa.

I had the phone since January and asked a cell phone shop owner if I could use it. He said I must bring it in. I hadn’t brought it in for a month and a half. Then two weeks ago Wednesday, I missed my life-group meeting during which I was in charge of teaching some new songs. I missed it because they text messaged the meeting location and I went to the old location. The next day I went to the shop to see if they could activate it for South African use. People here (students at UCT) don’t use e-mail and don’t check it. Some don’t understand it. They don’t use it as much as it is used in the States. Even a task such as notification of audition results isn’t done through e-mail. So I must go in person down to the drama campus to see the rehearsal times.

All of a sudden, people, who acted like you didn’t have a home phone or a work phone, now call you up for social things (many people will tell you they couldn’t reach you when you were sitting RIGHT NEXT to a landline). Interesting.