I have just published my first note on Substack Notes, and would love for you to join me there!
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10160463342563323&set=a.430530803322
I have a second home on Durban Beach, South Africa. There are eleven windows facing the Indian Ocean. Three doubles and three singles had to be replaced, as well as plastering repairs and decoration. Tuffy does the windows for our building. He prepared the new frames and turned up on Thursday 2nd May with a team of four including himself. In addition two men later made good the plasterwork. It took two and half days to do the main job, leaving Saturday midday to Monday morning for the plaster to dry, when the full inside frontage will be repainted in a day.
Tuffy told me it would take a week, but he will complete the job in half that time. They cleaned the place immaculately every evening and I could still write at home while they worked. Its quality is very high, the care taken to protect the flat and its furnishings was exceptional, and the speed amazing.
My praise for their teamwork was fulsome, as you can imagine. Tuffy replied that they were glad to have a big job where they could show their skill and organization. Normally, such a team would be led by a white man with an Indian foreman, while Africans did the bulk of the unskilled work. These six Africans worked interchangeably and in loud good humour. Tuffy himself mucked in at key points and did the cleaning every day.
You may notice the wall picture overlooking them. It is of Kwame Nkrumah, first president of Ghana, the first independent African country. Its headline is AFRICA MUST UNITE. Under his face is written in italics, "Africa is marching forward to FREEDOM and nothing on earth can halt HER now!" It was produced in the 1950s by the All-African People's Revolutionary Party.
The last seven decades have not been kind to Africans. Only now is it apparent that Africa's population explosion will be the dominant feature of the coming century. In 2100 half the world's children 18 and under will be African. I am so proud of Tuffy's team. Africa is rising, so watch out! The cost to me was £2,000.
Notes is a new space on Substack for us to share links, short posts, quotes, photos, and more. I plan to use it for things that don’t fit in the newsletter, like work-in-progress or quick questions.
How to join
Head to substack.com/notes or find the “Notes” tab in the Substack app. As a subscriber to A better world somewhere, you’ll automatically see my notes. Feel free to like, reply, or share them around!
You can also share notes of your own. I hope this becomes a space where every reader of A better world somewhere can share thoughts, ideas, and interesting quotes from the things we're reading on Substack and beyond.
Why Substack Notes
Fellow writers and readers are spending time in Notes for a variety of reasons.
Ted Gioia sees Notes as a forum for dialogue.
The idea behind Notes is simple. Millions of people now participate in Substack as writers and readers—but much of this is built on long articles and essays. We now have a forum for dialoguing and sharing shorter posts.
Chris Ryan is drawn to Substack as an alternative for legacy social media.
One of my main reasons for joining Substack was to wean myself off exploitative social media platforms. I’m hoping this is going to help move us along on that journey!
Sherman Alexie wants to create a kind and creative new space in Notes.
I’m going to focus on being positive, with my own thoughts and photos and by linking to songs, stories, poems from around the web and from other Substacks.
If you encounter any issues, you can always refer to the Notes FAQ for assistance. Looking forward to seeing you there!