the advantages of Documentary

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(wink wink)

eating 'the towel' with the president

from Mbuyi's phone

Mbuyi Ndolvu [MN], completed his 3rd year last year and he has been keeping in contact with me on 'whatsapp'. Mbuyi is currently working for "Roads and Safety', photographing accident scenes etc.  MN comes from Eshowe, the place where I was born and where I went to school... so we have a kinship_ we are 'brother' and 'sister' despite our skin tones (wink wink). He loves to tease me about eating 'the towel'_ and he loves to eat. See our conversation below, dated 2/26/2012.

 19:49: P3Mbuyi: Unjani ke sisi wami ?

 20:11: ME : Ngiyaphila_ wena? I have had a wonderful weekend_ how was urs?

 20:13: P3Mbuyi: I also had a wonderful weekend I was at home eating the Towel

 20:13: ME: What's a towel? Is it that thing u take to the beach?

 20:19: P3Mbuyi: Ha ha ha ha ha the Towel is the inside of the cow nje they clean it nicely and boil it

So in true Google style I have found an image for those people like me who still need to learn about 'the towel' ...439000 results in 19 sec!

The reason I have blogged this conversation is that I 'love' how Mbuyi has made time to follow his passion in Documentary Photography and I am 'excited' by how his previous undertakings in Photography have lead him to have 'lunch' (wink wink) with President Zuma. How much is 'true' and 'photoshopped' (wink wink)_ only Mbuyi (who ... by the way...loves to streeeeetch the truth) will know. 

This is what Mbuyi said: "Hey Liza I was at home for a weekend so on sunday I decided to go and shoot my documentary since its been a while, which was my specialist @tech. I went to nkandla, 50 km from my  Eshowe home and 237km from Durban.  So the bodyguards of the President knew me from shooting doccie in government events  and they invited me for lunch with the president. He wished me luck for my career and we had lunch, which was tripe, dombolo and Nhloko (which is the head of the cow) and I asked to shoot with him."

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And then... my random brain started to think about actually (wink wink)  trying 'the towel'  and how this would certainly be a new experience for me_ one where culturally I dabble... 

©liza • Qwahumbe • Feb 20102

And then my random brain thought of Wenger (2000:233), the 'Community of Practice' 'guru' (wink wink)... the guy I read about for my Masters. He says (<3):   “there is something disquieting, humbling at times, yet exciting and attractive about such close encounters with the unknown, with the mystery of otherness: a chance to explore the edge of your competence, learn something new, revisit your little truths and perhaps expand your horizon.” 

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(dazed)