Category: Argomenti vari

Déjà vu

I am reading a book written by the chief of the UN military operation in Rwanda and I have the uncomfortable feeling of looking at something that could happen here.

The rigidity of the factions, the ?international community? elusiveness, the amount of time spent on trivial and meaningless matters, the difference between public stands and internal agendas are quite similar.

As well as the sense of impotence and frustration.

The wizard?s apprentice has created several monsters and now it?s difficult to keep them quiet.

Is there someone to help?

Other chickens


There is not a real reason to publish this drawing today.

But I noticed that the blog is nicer when there are some images, and this is one I like.

I often draw chickens. I mean, I drew three or four chicken-based images in my life.

However, as I cannot determine what to draw, four is quite a good number.

Another subject that came out often from my tracing lines on white paper was a middle-age knight. He inspired also some brief lyrics.

These are chickens. Elegant, vibrant, multicoloured, but chickens.

At home

First, I got a cold. Then, exchange of messages, greetings, stories. During this time friends got married, changed job, someone began the genuine adventure of having a baby.
Nothing is really different, neither am I. I wonder if this is good or not.

Back home

The ‘mother-driven’ evacuation process worked well, and I am now back to Barcelona (preferring to meet at the airport mr Zapatero rather then the new Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs).

Ivory Coast is now on the edge of a disaster. Wish a slow, unclear and imperfect but peaceful solution.

Waiting for the plane

Here we are, then. Checking the e-mail, watching the incredible Ivorian TV and waiting to be rescued. The Embassy informed us about a ‘plan zed’ to collect the people from their houses and transport them to the airport. We cross everything we can and explore alternative escape ways.
Situation is calm, sometimes, with sun going down, some shots.
I start thinking about capuccino, mozzarella and churros.

Variété patriotique

The collateral effect of war is the full immersion in an immense bathe of rhetoric. The Ivorian TV is working hard in this way, with a nonstop show of politicians and dignitaries disseminating their stories with no embarrassment. The interminable catalogue is interrupted only by the ‘variété patriotique’, an ensemble of dubious singers and dancers chanting the country and the government. The UN radio represents the other interference, with its improbable appeals to “not panic” and its absence of information. To have a rest we watched “the good girl” and “le voleur de vies” with Angelina Jolie and Ethan Hawke. PS the mechanician sent an SMS to give his support. Nice thought.

Evacuation

This is the word for today.

Some friends has been evacuated, some other is too far to be reachable.

It remembers about the difficulties in evacuation for people with a lazy ‘digestive machinery’.

And remembers about moving of ancient populations.

And about the MedEvac, ghost of any difficult mission.

For the moment however, here we stay.

Mister Bonaventura

Mr. Bonaventura was a character of Italian cartoons at the beginning of 1900. The stories ended usually with the protagonist getting a one million cheque for same reason (later on, with inflation, it became a one billion cheque).
Bonaventura best friend was a mule, called la Checca who’s main feature was an irresistible impulse to kick anything at reach.
I had a book with some of those stories and I read it many times.
And this is my version of Mr. Bonaventura.

PS I realise now that I was confusing Mister Bonaventura with another character, ‘Fortunello’. He was the friend of the mule, but my sketch is rather inspired to Mr. Bonaventura, the ‘millionaire’.

‘Les pagnes’

At the market most of the women still wear the colourful pagnes, contributing to an extraordinary human patchwork.
Nevertheless, also here the local manufacture of cotton fabric is endangered by the cheap productions from Asia, often under the administration and property of European companies.
Faso Fani the legendary factory of Thomas Sankara’s land of incorruptibles has been closed under the pressure of the stabilisation policies enforced by the international economic institutions.
Consequently, Africa loose not only one of the rare opportunity for industrial production (and jobs) but also an important instrument for the construction of national identity.
Togo, Malawi and many other countries do not produce any cotton fabric yet.
Abidjan market’s retailers react with surprise when asked for local materials, and only Woodin, an upper market production destined to a wealthy public, has got some reputation.
You may see some exemple below.