Kony 2012

Got 30 minutes to spare? Well even if you don't, free up thirty minutes to watch this video!

Now I try not to tell others to donate money to a cause where I can't vouch for how the money will be spent, but I do think it can be worth spreading the message by sharing it on blogs, Twitter and Facebook.

I don't need to add anything to the message, it's all in the video, but aside from all it entails I am amazed by the fact that in the time I spent watching the clip, the number of viewers rose from 4,285,570 to 7,377,102. More than three million people watched the Kony video at the same time I did! I will never stop being amazed by the power of modern media and the powerful changes it can make.

Need I remind you of my favourite 2011 phrase - the Arab Spring?

Beautiful Ghana

My friend posted a link on Facebook which I wanted to share. For those of you who love Ghana, those of you who are proud of Ghana, those who'd like to catch a glimpse of Ghana...and those of you who are just tired of seeing starving children surrounded by flies, as the image of Africa.

It's so lovely to see the Ghana I know and love, roads I normally drive on, buildings I pass and even domestic houses I recognise.

Now what I'd really like to see is Nana Kofi present a similar slide show of Ghana, adding his usual artistic genius, and perhaps with a bit more focus on people and foods too? Then again, I guess that's what his blog does for us on a regular basis.

The power of modern media

I'm sure almost every Swede on Facebook saw a link to a video of three girls singing Robyn's Call Your Girlfriend, using only empty margarine cartons as 'instruments'. This link started spreading sometime late last week, Thursday perhaps.

By Friday, I had about four different Fb friends linking it, the Guardian (that is the UK Guardian!) featured them and today the group, known as Erato, performed on one of Stockholm's radio morning shows (this time using empty cottage cheese "Keso" containers).

Not only am I impressed by their talent and innovation (dare I admit I prefer their version to the original?), I'm so inspired by how quickly a video of three girls can spread from a kitchen in Sweden to West Africa and the rest of the world!

Death on Facebook

Speaking of death, I read an interesting article on a topic I have considered many times. How does Facebook handle the death of its members? Remember my friend G? It's been three years and I still get birthday reminders on Facebook. I am sure I'm not the only one of his friends who sees these as a painful reminder of his death. Still, it would feel strangely cruel to defriend him just because he's passed away (in the same way it is difficult to erase a dead person's phone number from your phonebook).

In the article, Liza Campbell mentions how one of her deceased friends makes a new friend a good four months after passing away. I too have seen that happen.

I know many prefer for the dead person's Facebook page to still exist, as it becomes part of the grieving process to look at old pictures and updates of the deceased. Would it not be relatively simple though, to say that upon the receipt of a copy of a death notice/certificate, Facebook will at least disable the deceased's account from being able to make new friends and from having birthday notices sent out?

Or am I thinking in too simple terms?

KFC in Ghana?!?

I decided to take a break from some very intense drafting to check Facebook, and what do I see? Apparently KFC has opened its first branch in Ghana, on Oxford Street!

The news comes as such a surprise and I can't help but be excited. Not by the thought of eating their breaded, fried chicken in the heart of Accra, but as always, by the idea of something new happening. Of course I am also a bit anxious about what this means for us; will there be an influx of other unhealthy fastfood joints? How soon before we start seeing an increased number of US-style obese people on the streets of Accra?

Before my thoughts wonder any further, can somebody kindly confirm whether this news is true? According to this article, 4 outlets are to be opened in Ghana this year. Send me picture evidence, pleeeeease!

Crookeries!

Facebook has been all over the news since management decided to hold off on its plan to take ownership of facebook user's content. Funnily enough this seems to be making more headlines now than at the time they actually changed their terms of use to claim ownership of our photos. I remember hearing about it some time ago, but kind of brushed it aside. It seems other facebook users were more proactive, leading to facebook 'holding off' on the ownership issue.

It only hit me yesterday, the audacity of what they were trying to do. So I go out, carry my camera around, aim to take good photos, upload them onto facebook, using my electricity and internet connection, then suddenly the photos are owned by facebook even after I end my membership?! Kwasiasem!

What a smart way to steal valuable art from innocent users! A quick scour round our pages and I'm sure they've found top notch photos of celebrities, heads of states, historical moments, etc. and without paying a penny facebook can claim these and pass them on as their own.

It then hit me that if they get away with it, what's not to stop blogger, wordpress or other engines from doing the same with their users. Imagine, as a blogger, that one day, everything you've written on your blogger's site is owned by the engine supporting you! I must say it is a very cost-efficient, convenient way of finding works to be published as books, articles and columns. Considering the amount of blogs that have been turned into books, e.g. Petite Anglaise, Girl with a one track mind, it would be quite a lucrative idea, indeed.

When I thought of this, and remembered the hours and hours I have spent thinking, working, writing and editing my blog, I felt horrified. Based on that, and the general cheekiness of facebook, I'm glad it looks like they're handing back ownership of our property to us.

Team work and good old gossip.

This weekend I have the most interesting task so far. So interesting, that I am skipping a funeral I really should go to (biggest Ghanaian faux pas ever, but Virgo will represent me) and missing most of a birthday barbecue, but will probably make it back there for leftovers at least.

A friend who I'm doing some independent legal work for has asked me to run a team building day for his company on Saturday. Learning of my past as a Starbucks employee probably made him think I'm much more of a chirpy cheerleader than I actually am. But not being one to say no to a challenge, I have agreed and just spent the last two hours researching team building exercises. After discarding the ones that seemed too fluffy and cheesily American for a bunch of Ghanaian construction workers, I think I have a handful I can work with. Now, all I have to do is find all the tools and materials I'll need to make it happen...Where's a Woolworths (the UK, not SA version of it) or a Panduro Hobby when you need one?

Meanwhile, a Swedish blogger writes about her heavily pregnant friend who realised that her husband of about 8 months has been cheating with a woman from his office, a woman with a live-in boyfriend. Her revenge? Finding the mistress' Facebook page and sending a message to ALL her friends and her boyfriend with details of the sordid affair and photos to prove it. (She also dumped her husband). As much as I'm impressed by her strength and actions (her baby is due in a week), I can't help but feel her husband is getting away easily with his dignity intact, while the mistress will be shamed forever. After all, the most random people can be our Facebook friends.

Even more interesting, how would such a thing be dealt with in Ghana? The sentiments towards affairs seem...slightly more relaxed, I get the feeling some people would send a message back to the wife going "Ah, but you, why?", leaving her seeming as the one who has overreacted.

But most of all I wish I knew who these people were so I could get hold of that Facebook message and see exactly what she wrote and what the following reactions were. But that's just the scandalous gossip in me talking...

Massa planer

Kan knappt fatta att meilet jag hade skrivit till K i facebook bara forsvann, kanner mig skit knackt! Far val skriva nagot nytt senare idag. Nu maste jag forsoka hinna klart tva grejer innan jag traffar Ruby ikvall, ska ju traffa energi-killen ocksa senare. kanns som att det ar lite grejer pa G nu, pa lordag ska jag o Linda traffars och reda ut saker for att kunna borja baka, kolla containerpriser och sa, sen vill jag halsa pa kara gammelmoster, har inte varit hos henne pa over ett ar! Darefter blir det meet the parents (nervost!!), far hoppas att det gar bra.

Pratade med Virgo om Dagen, kanns som att han borja oroa sig, kanske tycker att det kommer lite tatt in pa allt? For mig spelar det ingen roll, vill bara vet sakert nar det hander, istallet for att vela fram o tillbaka hela tiden.
Na, nu ska jag kolla in A o D's bloggar som K gav mig. Har inte bestamt mig an om jag ska ge ut denna bloggen till dem. Hm... far tanka lite till pa det.

Nu kan jag bara skicka lite mentala styrkekramar till K och hoppas att bebben borjar gro snart.