Windows on the World of SipaKV

Google has taken over the internet… It’s now going after craigslist and ebay !
But look, you’re not a geek anymore if you haven’t come up with your own Google app! What are you waiting for…
Here’s a blog dedicated to Google apps. There’s even a project dedicated to mapping Jesus’ s life on a Google map.
My favorite is winerybound.com. You can now easily find the winery closest to you or the one furthest to you.
For those of you who live near Marseilles, check this one out, it may surprise you.

I came upon an interesting academic article about the phenomenon of the Jaombilo.
Yeah, Jaombilo as in the Mamy Gotso song and as in the David Jaomanoro short story.

You can find it here, “The Jaombilo of Tamatave, 1992-2004 : reflexions on youth and globalization”. It is written by an anthropologist, Jennifer Cole, and published in the Journal of Social History, Summer 2005.

There is a funny description of financement parallele in the text (remember the financial scandal during Zafy’s presidency?).

“A jaombilo is when the European supports the Malagasy girl. And the Malagasy girl then supports the Malagasy man. That is to say, there is a parallel finance system going on (financement parallele).”

I’ve never heard the financement parallele described that way!

But then, the Jaombilo himself has his own girlfriend(s). (Does the European man know he is supporting all these people?)
The Jaombilo is often handsome and dresses well, he also needs to have a “fo sportive”. Hell ya, to agree to such a situation, with all the Malagasy cultural background, he has to have more than a sporting heart.
Anyway, it seems the Jaombilo is part gigolo, part bodyguard, part pimp, even part housekeeper of these ladies.
The author argues that Jaombilo is a direct descendant of the “manarabady” or “Jaoloka”, i.e. emasculated man.

I agree that globalization and consumerism are at least partly to blame for the apparition of the Jaombilo …

“The values of consumerism–including the privileging of youth and beauty–enable a kind of labor that is uniquely based on self-production that draws on youth, good looks, fashion, and ways of living and embodying sex appeal that are drawn from global media.”

Go check it out…

Fall is here ! And if you’re wondering, the sky was definitely blue when I took this picture. Still working on my photo skills…

Fall is definitely coming

So you’ve told your new friend you are from Madagascar. Their eyes have lit up in wonder and they’ve served you the customary “I’ve never met a person from Madagascar!”. Then comes the question “So what is Madagascar like?”. With a little help from googlism, here are some answers :

madagascar is a country in need of our attention
madagascar is an island located in the indian ocean off the coast of east africa
madagascar is creating economic rifts
madagascar is the naturalist’s promised land?
madagascar is predominantly agricultural
madagascar is significantly underexplored but has proven hydrocarbon potential
madagascar is far more than lemurs
madagascar is to help its people to break out of poverty to become one
madagascar is located 250 miles off the eastern coast of africa
madagascar is one of the world’s highest conservation priorities because many of the animals and plants are in imminent danger of extinction
madagascar is one of the most exotic islands in the indian ocean
madagascar is the fourth biggest island in the world
madagascar is the world’s 4th largest island; situated 360 km east of mozambique
madagascar is home to one of the worldþs less widely known human cultures
madagascar is located in the indian ocean 250 miles off the eastern coast of africa across the mozambique channel
madagascar is a net energy importer
madagascar is legendary for its profusion of wildlife and flora
madagascar is an island off the southeast coast of africa about the size of texas
madagascar is hard to come by and subject to disruption
madagascar is a living laboratory of evolution—isolated from the rest of the world for over 60 million years
madagascar is provided for general reference only
madagascar is associated with a specific vegetation type where live a distinct set of plants and animals
madagascar is packed with every imaginable creature
madagascar is a full democratic republic country that was colonized by france in 1896 but it gained its freedom in 1958
madagascar is examined in the exhibition through a comprehensive collection of cloths
madagascar is a beautiful paradise home to many exotic species
madagascar is located in the indian ocean
madagascar is different
madagascar is one of the poorest and most environmentally challenged countries in the world
madagascar is cloriquin resistant
madagascar is an eden
madagascar is sandy and grassy in some areas like berivotra
madagascar is an island with beautiful landscape
madagascar is a strange place with strange animals
madagascar is also extremely pleased by the recent admission of the swiss confederation into the united nations
madagascar is a microcosm of this worldwide trend
madagascar is more widespread in rural areas; 75% of the rural population lives below the poverty line
madagascar is a desperately poor country that is the only home to an unmatched wildlife heritage
madagascar is loosing its natural resources fast
madagascar is quite distinct from east africa
madagascar is a stunningly beautiful african island country composed of one large island and many smaller islands which lies nearly 400 km southeast of the
madagascar is characterized by razor sharp limestones?
madagascar is now a multiparty republic
madagascar is a place for seasoned travelers
madagascar is located in the western part of the indian ocean
madagascar is an island in the indian ocean
madagascar is not a holiday or adventure tour
madagascar is gmt+3

Do you like a little controversy? I do.

I don’t drink coffee daily. Only when I’m too tired from doing the working slash blogging mother thing do I look for an uplift from the bottom of a cup. The last time I bought a Starbucks coffee was more than three months ago. I bought it from a drive through Starbucks store. Yeah, I’m that lazy. I stay put cozily in the car and shout my order through the window. It cost an insane $5 and it was a Venti White Mocha thing. Can’t remember really what it was but it was deliciously mood and energy boosting, and I drank it while driving. Maybe this explains why I did not see that Starbucks has taken to printing “controversial” quotes on its paper cups.

Apparently Starbucks has dared to print a gay quote on its papercups.

“My only regret about being gay is that I repressed it for so long. I
surrendered my youth to the people I feared when I could have been out there
loving someone. Don’t make that mistake yourself. Life’s too damn short.”

by Armistead Maupin.

This put conservatives and bigots up in arms.
“This is nothing to show one’s wife/children! No gay quote on my coffee!”, shrieked one shocked pick-up driving, arm carrying, Confederate flag waving, gay not loving dad.

One Baptist university even banned the cups from Starbucks located on its campuses !

Starbucks is now stirring up controversy again by utilizing a best-selling pastor’s quote on its cups.

It says

“You were made by God and for God, and until you understand that, life will
never make sense.”

Personally I prefer Maupin’s Stay True to Yourself quote, but I don’t mind the Christian quote myself. And let me sound like a true Yankee here, “What about Freedom of Speech?”. (Gee, really I’ve been in this country too long:-).

Anyway if it’s a ploy by Starbucks to attract more customers to their “Venti/Grande/Latte/Chai” stores with the “baristas”, it has succeeded, because I’m going there today at lunch to have a look at those quotes.

Yeah, I told you I’m a sucker for controversies. Plus I’ve heard wonders about the new Pumpkin Spice Latte flavor. What can I say, it’s Halloween ! (Hence the colors!).

De belles photos de l’expo Couleurs d’espoir chez madanight.com. Personnellement, j’aime beaucoup celui-ci.

Aza ny lohasaha mangina no jerena … Helix Nebula izany hono io e…
Ato koa feno sary mahavariana toa io.

I went to a lovely store last week. It is located in an upscale neighborhood where men aren’t ashamed of eating quiches in public. That’s to tell you how upscale it is. There’s also a Dog Bakery not far from the store I want to write about. Yes, a Bakery that caters only to dogs. How unabashedly rich do you have to be to go to such a store? They sell the pastries by the pound. The mouth watering brownies and peanut butter bars do not look like dog pastry to me. And as non-canine as you are, you’d be almost tempted to eat them yourself.

Anyway, the store is called “Ten Thousand Villages” and it sells lovely crafts from around the world. I had been in one a long time ago, but in a different, also quite upscale, neighborhood. The gentleman at the door told me they were a non-profit store and that they practice fair trade (I still cannot decide if “Fair Trade” is just the latest marketing ploy or if it really is quite sincere? See my other post. They’re also fairly trading Malagasy Chocolate.).

Ten Thousand Villages offers plenty of delights : Alpaca shawls from Bolivia, baskets from Cambodia, modernist sculptures from Southern Africa, bamboo chimes. I especially loved the vivid blue Peacock Kite from Indonesia. My son has outgrown mobiles but who’s to say mommy cannot enjoy herself too, eh? Plus I get to help the Indonesian man who made the kite. You can even see his picture on the Ten Thousand Villages website. How cool is that? Ten Thousand Villages makes it a point to know personally all their artisans and value long term relationships with them.

I was surprised not to see any Malagasy crafts in the store and so I investigated a little bit…
It turns out the store is a program of the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC). I did not know the Mennonites were so business savvy ! Somehow I always assimilated them to the Amish, which I now know is quite incorrect. Mea Culpa for my ignorance.

A bit of history here : The Mennonites separated from Luther when they thought Luther’s reforms did not go far enough. And the Amish separated from the Mennonites because they thought the Mennonites were not disciplined enough. The Amish value self-reliance above all: they do not use electricity or gas. They don’t get their water from Water Company Inc. They do not ride in cars but ride horse pulled bogeys. They wear outfits they sew themselves and whose pattern went out of style two centuries ago. They call everybody else “English” and they speak German even though they mainly live in the very American state of Pennsylvania. Harrison Ford fell in love with one in the movie “Witness“.

But obviously their Mennonite brothers have joined the XXI century. They are very present on the web. (Check out this very cool Mennonite blog http://mennoknight.blogspot.com). Their website says they are present in 60 countries. I wonder if they’re in Madagascar yet. They probably are. Now I am still wondering why they did not have Malagasy crafts in the store…