My days assignment took me to homeground (Machakos) where President Kibaki, in true Kenyan style was officially opening the Maruba Dam. Imagine i dint even know the dam existed until two months ago...apparently it has been there since the 1950s and the way masaku residents die of thirst...another example of poor governance...but i digress...
It was here that i noticed some things...actually i should have noted them by now but i guess today my eyes were opened.
On our way there..Kibaki stops in every town...whats wrong with that you ask..si the guy has to meet the people? yah, except when he does that...all road are closed until he moves to the next place he is going to...and i mean literally closed..all directions...if ur not part of that mercedes convoy...u aint going nowhere. Now for us kenyans who really dont give a damn where he goes or who he is meeting...it can get very annoying...think about that deal breaker you were meant to sign at 11am but ooops roads were closed...cant they find some other way to do this without inconviniencing Kenyans?
Again i digress...
So we naughty press people get into the convoy...its a different world once ur in that convoy...while the rest of the world stops...you are moving...at a very fast speed...and with no roadblocks...imagine a clear road from when you leave your house to when you get to your office or function..how much time ud save..what ud achieve...that is the life of his exellency...that guy probably cant relate when we tell him "mheshimiwa rais, tujengee barabara traffic jam ipungue" How would u when your never in one?
Two, theres a red carpet ready for him to step on wherever he goes...and the limo he travels in probably does not feel potholes and such...so when u talk of dust...he's like...eh??
Then he has like 20 security guards on his detail...always watching him....and i realized today that four others actually watch his car...yap...stationed at four corners of a car...watching it...their lives depend on it....the rest just shuffle around him giving the rest of us mean looks and even arrest us if we dared approached his exellency!! Im not really against the president being secured i know its necessary...but sometimes those security guys make it look like they are protecting Obama...excuse me...no one wants to suicide bomb our president, for what end?
Then came the party-stopper...the MPs singing his praises...asante rais kwa kutuletea maji, asante rais kwa kutujengea barabara...excuse me...it was my tax money that made that dam and constructed that road, not the president! Im sure he is not even taxed!! (by the way, in the new constitution, they all get taxed)
Mwisho, katika convoy..prezo huwanga on his own...as in..theres a buffer between him and the rest of the other convoys...what a life! everywhere he is..the area is cleared..
Now whats the point of all this babble...after all these observations i now realized why they all fight to be in the podium and some even dare to be president...i mean who wouldnt?
1. i get to ride in a limo that is dust free, pothole free..etc
2. i never get stuck in traffic
3. when im travelling im on my own..as in..me and my guards and no one else
4. even when its not me, im given credit for making lives of kenyans better
5. im called mtukufu, mheshimiwa,rais etc
Now, with all this going for me, you can now see why our leaders find it hard to quit or resign...
Which is why we need to change how we treat our leaders...go to other countrys and they are normal people like everyone else...hizi story ya chase cars mia, na traffic jams coz ur passing dont happen there.
I am praying for a new crop of leaders who will not be driven by all these things but to serve...we are here to serve...even in our small capacities...service above self...not the other way round..
Have a servant-like weekend!
Friday, June 18, 2010
Friday, June 11, 2010
SUPERWOMAN
Do you have one of those days when your just like.."i honestly cant do it anymore" ...you know...the wife..the mother..the working woman...the student..etc??
Sometimes i think..God did us in as women coz much as He created us to be partners with men...we often find ourselves doing all the work...i remember my sister telling me this..."wah, i feel like am loosing it...and i havent even started on dinner" then i would laugh about it coz im like who looses it just coz dinner is not set?
Well, that was until i found myself playing the role of mother and wife and hotshot reporter..."combination whatagwaaan" as some radio presenter would say...i mean, how do you wake up at 6am, prepare breakfast and iron the dudes clothes at the same time prepare for work..make sure the housegal has her orders about the baby..go to work...clock your 8-5 or 8-9 in the jobo...come back home ready to do the mother and wife thing at home? Seriously???
It is at this point that i give a thumbs up to all those in diaspora who have to do it all without a housegal..yes..they have the dishwasher and washing machine and vacuum cleaner but put a baby and the strange working attitude out there and you realize that we here in Kenya actually have it easy...
Back to me..so it was one of those days...scratch that...actually its kinda like its everyday now..when i just had it...everyone just had to jipanga...of course except baby coz she is innocent in all of this... i remember screaming...i have never done that...everyone in the house nyamazad! yap..i had reached my threshold.
That was when it occurred to me that contrary to Alicia's song...i ain't no superwoman...i cannot do it all...something's got to give...
Amazing what wonders that realization does to your well being...after the screaming incident i took a long hard look at the way i was living..it became apparent that it is not going to help anyone if i collapsed from stress so i needed to take it easy...
First was to have "the talk" with the man...be a little more strict with the maid...and actually follow blogmama's advice on some tactics to get baby to sleep longer during the night so i get some sleep in return...this one is tricky if you have a boss from hell but you also have to ask the boss to cut u some slack...or maybe just say no to overtime and favors for colleagues. Working smart has to be a rule of thumb.
Now this way of life is not limited to mama's...i think any woman has this day...make sure u take it slow...no point in adding to the stats of more younger people getting heart attacks.
Sometimes i think..God did us in as women coz much as He created us to be partners with men...we often find ourselves doing all the work...i remember my sister telling me this..."wah, i feel like am loosing it...and i havent even started on dinner" then i would laugh about it coz im like who looses it just coz dinner is not set?
Well, that was until i found myself playing the role of mother and wife and hotshot reporter..."combination whatagwaaan" as some radio presenter would say...i mean, how do you wake up at 6am, prepare breakfast and iron the dudes clothes at the same time prepare for work..make sure the housegal has her orders about the baby..go to work...clock your 8-5 or 8-9 in the jobo...come back home ready to do the mother and wife thing at home? Seriously???
It is at this point that i give a thumbs up to all those in diaspora who have to do it all without a housegal..yes..they have the dishwasher and washing machine and vacuum cleaner but put a baby and the strange working attitude out there and you realize that we here in Kenya actually have it easy...
Back to me..so it was one of those days...scratch that...actually its kinda like its everyday now..when i just had it...everyone just had to jipanga...of course except baby coz she is innocent in all of this... i remember screaming...i have never done that...everyone in the house nyamazad! yap..i had reached my threshold.
That was when it occurred to me that contrary to Alicia's song...i ain't no superwoman...i cannot do it all...something's got to give...
Amazing what wonders that realization does to your well being...after the screaming incident i took a long hard look at the way i was living..it became apparent that it is not going to help anyone if i collapsed from stress so i needed to take it easy...
First was to have "the talk" with the man...be a little more strict with the maid...and actually follow blogmama's advice on some tactics to get baby to sleep longer during the night so i get some sleep in return...this one is tricky if you have a boss from hell but you also have to ask the boss to cut u some slack...or maybe just say no to overtime and favors for colleagues. Working smart has to be a rule of thumb.
Now this way of life is not limited to mama's...i think any woman has this day...make sure u take it slow...no point in adding to the stats of more younger people getting heart attacks.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
LOVE OR IS IT??
During the weekend i stumbled...no..literally bumped into esther arunga and her man quincy...stuck to each other as usual...my...you wonder...do they ever let each other go?
Now if your new in Kenya you'd probably think awwwww when you see the two of them together...but if you know the story....ull probably be more of hmmmm...
So it got me thinking...love is such a strong emotion that people will do anything and go anywhere for it...or perhaps its blind as the saying goes...coz you look at the girl..she's smart right...law degree and all...and then the guy...that reputation...and before u give me the "opposites attract" vibe surely, are we all that desperate for love?
According to my pastor...yes!
When we were created, God intended us to have two main things...to love and to have purpose...this need to love and be loved is what makes us relate with each other and with Him. The flipside however is that in our quest for love we end up in all the wrong places and the result is hurt, bitterness and a quiet or loud desperation.
Any woman will tell you that rejection is a big NO-NO on her list...do whatever else..but reject her..that cuts really deep...so for most women the defense mechanism after being rejected is to two things...
1. find another man she can show off to her ex...as in...refer to beyonces song "irreplacable"
2. keep chasing after the same guy making him try to love her again.
The point is..she needs to be loved...
Ladies...either of the two is not the way to go...
What we need to do is first define what love is to us...the only way to do that is to go to the One who created love...(want to fix a problem..read the manual). The bible says God is love...find out, what was Gods intention when he gave us love? How was it to be used and felt? Until you get that euqation right...you cannot go to the next problem and solve it.
Next question is do you love you? coz if you do not love you...its difficult to expect others to love you. Take a good look in the mirror...what do you like...what do you hate? What attitudes do you need to change?
When you define love from God's perspective, your way of relating with people changes...its coz you realize that sometimes what you are looking for in a man or woman to fill that void...can only be filled by God.
So back to Esther and Quincy....they are not the only one with a warped relationship here...im sure if you look around there's someone you know and just wish would end that "looser boyfriend/girlfriend." Maybe it's you with the looser...is it time for change?
Now if your new in Kenya you'd probably think awwwww when you see the two of them together...but if you know the story....ull probably be more of hmmmm...
So it got me thinking...love is such a strong emotion that people will do anything and go anywhere for it...or perhaps its blind as the saying goes...coz you look at the girl..she's smart right...law degree and all...and then the guy...that reputation...and before u give me the "opposites attract" vibe surely, are we all that desperate for love?
According to my pastor...yes!
When we were created, God intended us to have two main things...to love and to have purpose...this need to love and be loved is what makes us relate with each other and with Him. The flipside however is that in our quest for love we end up in all the wrong places and the result is hurt, bitterness and a quiet or loud desperation.
Any woman will tell you that rejection is a big NO-NO on her list...do whatever else..but reject her..that cuts really deep...so for most women the defense mechanism after being rejected is to two things...
1. find another man she can show off to her ex...as in...refer to beyonces song "irreplacable"
2. keep chasing after the same guy making him try to love her again.
The point is..she needs to be loved...
Ladies...either of the two is not the way to go...
What we need to do is first define what love is to us...the only way to do that is to go to the One who created love...(want to fix a problem..read the manual). The bible says God is love...find out, what was Gods intention when he gave us love? How was it to be used and felt? Until you get that euqation right...you cannot go to the next problem and solve it.
Next question is do you love you? coz if you do not love you...its difficult to expect others to love you. Take a good look in the mirror...what do you like...what do you hate? What attitudes do you need to change?
When you define love from God's perspective, your way of relating with people changes...its coz you realize that sometimes what you are looking for in a man or woman to fill that void...can only be filled by God.
So back to Esther and Quincy....they are not the only one with a warped relationship here...im sure if you look around there's someone you know and just wish would end that "looser boyfriend/girlfriend." Maybe it's you with the looser...is it time for change?
Monday, June 7, 2010
STARTING OUT
I have been resisting this move for a long time now...ask any of my friends and they will tell you im usually the one asking how to upload photos on facebook lol...but im learning that everyone has something to share...something that will uplift someone else...something that will put a smile on ones face or make them really evaluate the way they live...and as a journalist and a young mother i get to learn something everyday...
So this is my opportunity to share..to teach...to learn..to rant...but most of all to be me...
Quote for today: courage is staring fear in the face.
So this is my opportunity to share..to teach...to learn..to rant...but most of all to be me...
Quote for today: courage is staring fear in the face.
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