Onward!!

The ongoing Zimbabwean elections made me think back to the time I spent living in Zambia. Back then, in the mid-90’s, Zimbabwe was the epitome of an African success story, a country resplendent in its independence. The people seemed happier than in Lusaka, with streets bustling with commercial activity. The several holidays I spent on the Zimbabwean side of Lake Kariba were thoroughly enjoyable, with the region geared for recreation and tourism. I really looked forward to going down there every time.

Every public building from the border crossing office to hotel lobbies had a picture of the stern face of Robert Mugabe peering down on the activity, but so did the eyes of Frederick Chiluba look over rooms on the Zambian side. But therein lies the difference – despite upheaval and problems, Zambia has changed governments. In Zimbabwe, Mugabe still reigns with an iron fist, now aged 83. To be fair, he undoubtedly had popular support for his campaign where 1% of the population (the whites) controlled the vast majority of productive farmland, a staple of the Zimbabwean economy. I’ll readily admit that, as a Northern European, during my visits the western (northern) orientation of the country was attractive. Still, Zimbabwe is an African nation that should be ruled and managed by its majority residents if true democracy is to be upheld. The ruthless suppression of opposition political activity by the ruling Zanu PF and its allies goes too far, however.

I have watched coverage of Zimbabwean elections on several occasions, but this is the first time that I’ve really reflected on the appalling human rights record and economic state of the country that used to be such a model for success. The threats made by officials about any “unacceptable” outcome are truly chilling. Zimbabweans deserve better. I am not qualified in the least to preach on the best alternative, but it seems to me that Mugabe is delusional in his autocratic tirades of a “British conspiracy”. In a country where most of the electorate is struggling for their day-to-day existence due to crippling unemployment (80%) and staggering hyperinflation it is possible for the ruling coalition to discredit the opposition and blame problems on outside forces. Even if today’s elections mysteriously sweep the opposition into power, unfortunately I cannot say I see that as a stabilizing force.

Zimbabwe is a beautiful country. I fondly remember the people, abundant wildlife and natural beauty. Only now have I begun to realize how much time I spent in Africa has affected me. I hope to be able to return there soon, to a country on the road to recovery. If only there was an easy solution.

I think I had forgotten how cool it can be to just hang out with some friends. After end of term, that’s mostly what I’ve done. I’ve been out for dinner with them, jammed a bit (which I hadn’t done in years), played video games and shot the shit for hours. I’ve met some truly excellent new people and gotten to know old friends better. Life has been quite easy after massive stress. Still, I can’t help but feel that I would recover better with some structure in life at the moment. Also, looking at my calendar, the start of the new term is but a few weeks away…

But first there’s more hanging out and touristy stuff as I’ve got friends coming over. Hopefully the weather won’t be too calamitous.

What’s the safest place to store your end-of-term essays, notes on said essays and several related articles? On the University network drive, of course. It get backed up every night, it has plenty of space and I can access it from anywhere with an internet connection. What could go wrong?

Well, the drive could go down. And that’s what happened early this morning, it seems. They’re running integrity checks on it now but due to the sheer size of it (student accounts A-K) it will probably take ages and they don’t seem to have any redundancy measures in place (or they’ve failed too). Funny, that – I was completely psyched and pumped to crack on with my essay that’s due at four o’clock tomorrow, and be done by the time I would have to leave to this gig I’m going to tonight. It really seems like the LSE doesn’t like me.

Update: I went to talk to the course convenor about the issue. He had already heard from another student but was awaiting confirmation that it was not an isolated issue. I told him I work part-time in IT services. He remarked “Ah, at the coal face” (a thoroughly appropriate English expression). Not quite, I replied, but I had received increasingly pessimistic estimates by e-mail about the recovery time of the drives. He said he would look into an extension across the board, which was exactly what I was hoping for. I am working on Saturday, though, which means I have to find a way to finish the essay and not miss out on the end-of-term fun.

I got a pair of Sennheiser CX300 headphones from Amazon. In a logic-defying move I actually paid more to get them in snazzy “ecological” packaging, if only to get them quicker and with free postage. Really, I don’t understand why packaging that must be cheaper to create must cost more, especially when no self-respecting company can any longer afford to ignore “green issues”. What is inherently more expensive in cardboard cut-outs compared to “traditional” packaging? And, should their price be justified by scale, i.e. smaller production numbers of the ecological packaging, why should they have two types of packaging at all?

The ecology of importing headphones in cardboard packages wrapped in taped-up plastic from China could of course be a point of discussion in itself.

I’ve only listened to a few songs on them so far. Being my first pair of in-ear headphones, they do take some getting used to – my ears hurt! Thankfully they come with varying sizes of “ear-fit rings” though now that I’ve switched to the smaller ones it oddly feels like the sound is tinnier. It’s like the ones that fill your ear to the brim produce a warmer, more enveloping sound. All a matter of getting used to, probably. I’m glad I don’t have the elephant-like ears required for the bigger rings, though!

The nice thing about these headphones is that there’s practically no bleedout of noise, meaning I can blast away in the library without inflicting my terrible taste on other people. Other than the air-drumming and stuff, that is.

Out of the blue I get an email in my school mailbox, according to which due to them not having received any fee payments for this academic year, my library rights have been withdrawn and, should I not pay the outstanding £1900 in the next few days, I will be de-registered and kicked out of the school. I was under the impression that the Student Loans Company had arranged payment of my tuition fees for this year and hadn’t even looked at my fees status until now. I was able to pull up a letter they had sent me sometime in November, and I’m taking that to the Fees Office to ask them what’s up. Not being able to check out books would suck, considering I have several thousand words to write.

I’ll keep all two of you posted.

Update: As usual, a royal fuckup by the Student Loans Company is the culprit. Apparently, they sent out loan payment notifications out late, meaning the LSE didn’t actually apply them to student records or something. I’ve been given a few days to look at my statements (and if necessary contact the SLC) and confirm I should be paid. What I don’t understand is why I have to be the one doing the legwork when it’s an issue between the policies of two public institutions.

March 12 Update: My LSE For You account now shows that they have billed the Student Loans Company. I assume that means I can concentrate on stressing out about essays only for the remainder of the week. Thanks for your comments, everyone.