Kenya!

Today am really loving my country even with all its crazy and wild challenges. Yesterday a lap top tender that has been causing a raucous because it was awarded to an Indian Company that does not even manufacture laptops was cancelled! This was another "It is Our Turn To Eat" fiasco. Michela should come and write part two of this book as it looks like this nation of ours has everyone grappling for whatever piece of the cake they can not caring where they are going to stuff seeing as their pockets and undergarments are already busting at the seams! The sights of the overseers should now be set on the Standard Gauge Railway Line which is set to increase our foreign debt while putting on average 350m ksh into the Its Our Turn To Eat account! Even if you are going to be corrupt is there no modesty in it.... where the highest paid civil servant is paid 120 times more than the lowest paid, we are already one of the most unequal govts in the world. Instead of focusing on sealing the corruption funnels that are in government, they are busy telling us that they will cut their salaries by 20 fucking %. How does that aid kenya? a measly 43m a year? All this while your cabinet secretaries cruise around in vehicles over 3000cc ( which was supposedly outlawed) with chase cars to boot....add the Governors, and other senior officials and now do you see why our government is bleeding money? And you tell me, a loyal tax payer that you are going to cut your salary by 20%!!!! How does that affect the price of bread and milk do tell? Kenyans have really had enough and we are going to fire a whole lot of those in the public service who are being of no service to the public... there is already a petition to get rid of the Nairobi Governor who is so busy slapping women and laughing at public functions to be of service. He also has the gall to abitrarily raise rates across the board with no improvement in services or service delivery. Heads have begun to roll and one arrogant Governor in central kenya has already lost his seat, no more chase cars for him. He of the haughty arrogance to the point that his entire bottom lip is upturned in a gesture of arrogance and defiance to the world! Well who is laughing now? We are waiting patiently to see who is next...another Governor from Kiambu is having demonstrations held for his benefit. Kenyans really are tired if you are not going to perform your duties as outlined in your mandate the wenye nchi are going to fire you! So here is to loving our country and calling on those in leadership to account not only for their actions but for their decisions as well. We hold the future of this country in our hands let us not allow our leaders to put that future in Jeopardy.

Tantrum Quagmire

Anyone with a two year old has been here! The point where you as a mother can do absolutely nothing right! Everything you do or say illicit's loud protests of No!No!No!( not sure if maybe they think you have not heard the first time that they have to repeat it two more times?)or a screaming episode that seems to take precedence of any negotiation especially when it is 00:05am and you are at your wits end. By that time, your helpful nanny is asleep, big brother is sleeping soundly and your "helpful" husband is snoring on the couch. As you try and calm this kicking and screaming baby, your phone beeps with a text from the neighbor telling you to kindly keep it down. Keep it down?!!! Keep it down!!! does it sound like am having a party so I could bloody keep it down? It is not like you could tape baby's mouth shut. She really just has to calm down. You cajole, threaten, offer drinking chocolate, which is thrown back at you, till you are at your wits end and simply put off the lights and cover your head with a pillow. All the kicks and screams notwithstanding, you refuse to respond. It worked last night and am prepared for tonight. It is only nine pm now, three hours to go. Still working on my Lupita Nyongo arms, this is week three and am loving it..

Addiction

Am beginning to really love blogging! I did not think it was possible for me to blog continuosly for three days let alone five.. am thinking this is a milestone for me and Twitter has become my friend! What was I doing before I begun doing this new trend in my life? Nairobi is celebrating today! The courts have overturned Govenor Kidero's directive on parking levies... singing the Hallelujah Chorus! No wonder Nairobi is now ranked the most expensive city in Africa! We the citizens are being fleeced left, right, centre and even sideways. We just cannot catch a break. The cost of living is through the roof and basic services are given intermittently if at all. These by the way are services we pay for through our noses to the county government but which are never performed. The city estates especially are in a state of disrepair, the roads have craters that disappear when it rains and you only realize it is there when your car either stalls in it, or you break something! The street lights are off at night and blazing in some parts of the city throughout the day! People are sleeping on the job! The parking lots just outside the County offices are packed with high end cars and you know which job they are experts at! As a citizen I would have no problems paying rates, if I can see the services rendered. If I have constant water supply, good roads, garbage collection, pruned trees, unclogged drainage, working street lights, efficient transportation systems and street lights that are properly coordinated.....the list is endless, then you can raise your parking rates, increase our land rates and charge us more for business licences. But with the current state of affairs you are charging us princely sums to fuel your guzzler and silly chase cars and to feed your self importance. You, Mr. Governor need to know that we the citizens of Nairobi County are your employers and we can FIRE you! Take a trip to Machakos and see what you friend is doing, get off your Ass, get off twitter and get your twiddly fingers to do the job we put you there to do! Off to work on my Lupita Nyongo arms, later peeps.

Compassion

http://www.nation.co.ke/lifestyle/Living/Would-you-have-done-what-he-did/-/1218/2231346/-/bxohg1z/-/index.html The story in the above link is the backbone of this post. You know in Nairobi you are sometimes inclined to take a newspaper break because of all the bad and discouraging news that abounds. Today I decided to give the online paper a browse and other than the Cabinet Ministers sinking tax payers money into the black hole that is their retreat, there was a glimmer of hope and my faith in mankind was restored. A man has shown such great compassion and educated five children, against all odds and three of them to university level. This, achieved by a man who hardly has two coins to rub together, let alone spare. I am humbled and I have asked myself today, what am I doing? Who am I aiding, when I go have my beers at the weekend, can't I spare three of four and educate a child? You, what are you doing? The most poignant thing for me about this story was the fact that this man, actually went against the grain and took in children from a different community he was chided for it but he soldiered on with fortitude. This worthy gentleman and his kin need our help to clear the fees balances for his three daughters to enable them graduate and get their certificates. This man has brought them from tattered clothes and empty bellies to the halls of academic excellence. He has brought them this far. Let us help him take them further and be part of this blessing!

#NairobiLife

So this grey morning, we woke up to a Matatu Strike! Only in Nairobi do people who have decided not to go to work themselves decide that no one else will get to their DESTINATION! So our dictators of the morning decided to block all major roads leading to the CBD, do what you will you ain't going NOWHERE, you are NOW HERE to stay! Meanwhile where are the anti riot police who appear like Roaches out of the woodwork the minute students at our main campus go on strike? They took their time but order was finally restored. I meanwhile remained home to watch the drama unfold as I thankfully never leave early, am too busy working on my Lupita Nyongo arms to be involved in inane and insane traffic in the am... I also work from a virtual office, all I need is my phone and laptop. So I am watching guys walking on screen and on twitter and I come across this lady tottering in her heels and heading to town, does anyone know if she got there with shoes on? Ama there were some guys selling pata pata aka slippers on the roadside who came to her rescue? In my head am thinking who does that, even though you wanna look good dear, that ain't the way to do it and anyway you are in good company no one who walked this morning to their office arrived looking spiffy! Those who never open their windows have them open today and am sure there was a line outside the office toilets to clean up, woe unto those whose offices have no water!!!!! He he have a reflective day peeps.....

Sponge Bob!

Yeah, am having the kind of day that Squidward normally does! Don't get me wrong, I do not like Sponge Bob in fact I do not get it! Just that it is playing right now and I feel the poor fellow, he is having a rough day and it don't look like it is the only one he has ever had. Seems to be an every day occurence. Had to come home early today and can hardly get any work done, it was a slow day at the office and I guess I felt like I needed a change of scenery to trigger some sort of paradigm shift! Big mistake! I have ended up eating four slices of bread with peanut butter ( which would never have happened had I been in the office! I would have had an apple and four cups of hot water!) am having a cup of hot water now to make up for it. Now am suffering from a carb overload and can't concentrate. To make it worse my two year old daughter is throwing a fully fledged tantrum for something none of us can understand and now there is absolutely NO PEACE so I can forget any work! I will have to take her out for a walk and burn some calories in the process. I am still on track to getting those Lupita Nyongo arms... watch this space...

So today, it is all about one Lupita Nyongo! What a stunningly beautiful woman! I admire her, I am in absolute awe of her and her great craftsmanship of words! To look at her oscar and say that no matter where you are from, YOU'RE DREAMS ARE VALID!!!! Preach on sister, you are trully the best. When she worn, I cried, I did the happy dance and when I listened to her speech, the tears flowed freely. Am sure Steve McQueen's eyes brimmed as did Chiwetel, she always has something wonderful to say of others. She is not simply beautiful on the outside, her heart is just as precious. Now onto the need to get myself a #Nairobiblue top or skirt or anything for that matter just so long as it potrays exactly how the sky in Nairobi looks today :-). I have spent a happy day today. This have been a little rough with my beloved but I am determined to make things better. He is who I am with and we chose each other, now we have the task of choosing each other everyday and making this relationship work in the best way we know how, and that is by loving each other and remembering why we choose each other in the first place. I am going to sit down tonight and write down the reasons I love my husband. Let me count the ways. I also realize that since grass always seems greener on the other side, why not just water my side so that it is green throughout the year!

Cycle Groove!!!

Whoever said that exercise is an elixir was telling an eternal truth! There is nothing like dragging yourself out of your warm bed and going for a ride. The expending of energy in the AM can do amazing things to you! I love this committment I have made to myself to get my body back to the epitome of health! By the time I got back home, my entire body was tingling! I love this feeling :-). That feeling gives you power, you feel like everything and anything is possible and that is why it is the best way to start the day. I have another mission, to get Lupita Nyongo arms, been lifting my 4kg dumb bells five times a week, nothing yet but am sure I will begin to see some definition in another month!So, green tea and a fruit breakfast down, am off to contend with the traffic madness that is Nairobi City?! When will we ever be able to get anywhere in time in this City? How does one take 3.5hours to traverse 10km? and it is not like there has been an earthquake that has destroyed the road, it is simply lack of management, when are we going to get the system right? One thing is for sure as much as we abhor traffic cops and their corrupt tendancies, we need them to coordinate traffic in our town. Lovely day folks.

wow! Just reviewed myself and realized that the last time I sat down to blog was in Dec 2011! My word, is this what Marriage does to people or is that just my excuse! I am feeling like a lost person lately, completely lost. I think I must have left myself at the door some years back and I am struggling to find myself again. In the process of all this, I find myself dreaming of when I was alone and free and willing myself to go back there. There is only one thing that brings me right back to my reality and that is my two wonderful kids who their father dotes on! Is this one of the reasons why countless women just remain in relationships for the sake of peace and their children? Why doesn't everyone just advocate for the so called "open relationship" where you can all be with people that make you happy and still have and maintain a relatively happy home? Is this fantasy or are their possibilities that it can be done? Am I really asking this question and will anyone ever give me a real answer? I don't know! What I know for sure is that I am going to work on getting Kavs back! not this humdrum woman I am these days and I have begun with getting me lots of exercise!!!! I still have some jeans from College and they are what I am aspiring to fit in again! See you all tomorrow!