I noticed the following on failblog:

Apart from other thoughts, this also made me think about the strange subtle differences between American and British English. Do you say “Scott Kelly has got a small dick” or “Scott Kelly has a small dick”? Have you got any opinion, or do you have any opinion? The first way (with the “got”) just sounds odd to me, although I probably hear many times every day and do not notice it. But it feels clumsy in my mouth. I wonder how the Americans feel about the second way. They must use it from time to time, so…

I have acquired myself another luxury (over and above the smartphone). About two weeks ago, a Xhosa lady knocked on my front door and told me that she needed a day. By which I understood she was looking for someone to clean for once a week. I have never been comfortable with having a maid, or a char, but I’m just not disciplined enough to keep my place spotless. The tedium of cleaning *everything* once a week is overwhelming. Dishes and washing is one thing, but windows and floors and all the other hidden accumulation of dirt…  So I agreed with Sindizwa (her name) that she would clean for me once a week. I hope I’m paying her well (I took a small sample and rounded up) and she can come and clean as much or as little as she wants. She is also free to help herself to however much food she can eat, so I don’t think it’s a bad deal. Except that after the first week I had to increase a pay because my house was SPOTLESS. Except perhaps for the windows outside, but admittedly it has been raining and I forbade her to go outside in the cold. Except today she did sneak out to clean my kitchen windows.

Today she also brought along her young child, Siyamthanda. He is about five years old but very clever for his age. We had to communicate with my broken Xhosa (and I suspect that he is not a fluent speaker yet, either). Sindizwa comes from the southern Northern Cape. I’m not sure what dialect she spoke there (but you can hear that she has a faint accent), but in the Cape the Xhosa is a bit of a mix with English. I shall have to sharpen up my Xhosa skills.