Name changes (again) and going dotty about dots

What you want to know this week

Goodbye East London

A number of name changes are on the cards for South Africa (again). The 2020 application to change East London to KuGompo was rejected, but it seems East London, Colchester and Aberdeen are now finally earmarked for new names.

There are currently 66 applications for name changes for several geographical features including towns, villages and settlements, townships, mountains, rivers, airports, roads and post offices.

The most notable name changes in the Eastern Cape in recent years include:

• Port Elizabeth to Gqeberha;
• Morgan’s Bay to Gxarha;
• Cradock to Nxuba;
• Uitenhage to Kariega;
• King William's Town to Qonce;
• Queenstown to Komani; and
• Grahamstown to Makhanda.

New trend: dog-friendly hotels and airlines

Did you know you can now book in your dog at Radisson RED hotels?

The Radisson at the V&A Waterfront, Cape Town, and the one in Rosebank, Johannesburg, project themelves as being at the forefront of a “proudly pooch-friendly revolution". 

And your dog can now lift its leg against the wheel of a Lift airliner – before being put in an approved‚ purpose-built soft-case dog carrier placed under the blocked window seat allocated to your booking. But this only goes for small dogs, and the dog-in-cabin request form must be submitted no later than seven days before your intended date of travel, as the air hostesses can only take so many pooches at a time.

Art alert

Yayoi Kusama is a Japanese artist sometimes called “the princess of polka dots". Although she makes many different types of art – paintings, sculptures, performances and installations – she has become known for the one thing they all have in common: DOTS!

Now her first permanent public artwork in the UK and her largest permanent public sculpture to date is greeting commuters and passers-by at Liverpool Street Station in London.

Seen on the socials 

Fashion is the planet’s third-most polluting industry after construction and food. Chile imports about 60,000 tonnes of used clothing a year, of which 39,000 tonnes are illegally dumped in the Atacama desert.

Watch this fashion show, created from a huge clothing dump in Chile, to get an idea of how much clothing humanity throws away.

Get rid of plastic

Start with plastic bottles – for the sake of the environment, but also for your health. Be aware of BPA (Bisphenol A). It is a chemical found in many plastic products and poses health hazards. It can also end up in your drinking water. Instead, use a glass jar for drinking water.

Throw out all your Tupperware from which the lids are gone. Slowly start switching to glass containers to store your leftovers. They can also be used in microwave ovens (or regular ovens) to heat food. Mr Price Home, Pep Home and Pick n Pay all have a large selection.

Ten classic Boomer moves

The way we use our tech is a surefire differentiator between generations. Boomers do the following:

#1 Text with one finger and hold their phone in one hand.
#2 Pay for parking with coins. Youngsters use Snapscan/card/app.
#3 Use Facebook. The younger generation is on TikTok (or maybe Instagram), but Gen Z considers Facebook cringeworthy.
#4 Print tickets/boarding passes for planes or theatre tickets (or, god forbid, road maps) rather than trusting their phone.
#5 Send thank-you notes. Youngsters express their gratitude at the time rather than afterwards.
#6 Refrain from obsessing about sunscreen.

#7 Use a paper diary instead of a digital calendar.
#8 End clauses with random ellipses …! Get the last word in with an OK, or illustrate every message with an emoji.
#9 Have phones that ring. You’ll never meet an under-30-year-old with a ringtone louder than a subtle vibration. Turning all notifications off on a phone, tablet or computer is the cool way.
#10 Avoid taking selfies (probably because they hate the way they look close-up).

Live healthily

Fomolista fitness challenge

Laureen firmly believes the season turns on August 8. It gets light just a little earlier and it's as if there are more birds chirping in the trees early in the morning.

It's time to get outside and move more every day.

Let's start with a minute of walking and alternate with a minute of jogging (or shuffling).

If you are unfit, start with 10 minutes every day until you know what you are capable of, then increase the time weekly by five minutes.

Remember to drink enough water —  4-8 glasses a day. Not more than eight and not fewer than four.

Any exercise should at least get your heart beating faster, otherwise you need to speed up your pace.

We kick off tomorrow! Happy walking.

♦ VWB ♦

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