TAGGED

Due to public demand (read K.I.P.U.S.A. and Jadekitten), I've finally been caught up by the tag. It kinda reminds me of that 'monitor' thing that guys used to be branded with for speaking any other language other than the Queen's english or Swahili sanifu. Should I feel good that the blogsphere feminine species recognizes my existence, or bad that I have to expose MORE stuff about me?

The Rules are:
1. We have to post these rules before we give you the facts.
2. Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
4. At the end of your blog post, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Here we go:

1. The guy who sits in the next desk to mine at work was my room mate in 2nd year campus. Surprisingly, this is the second year since we cleared campus, same class. We however went to rival high schools (Bush vs Mangu) so have this love/hate thing for the last mingi years!

2. I'm a sucker for nice perfume, and will complement any lady (except strangers - don't want to be known as a psycho) for the scent. I keep tabs on what perfumes the chics in my life wear, and they are pleasantly surprised that I do that.

3. My ringtone is called "My phone is alive". You can listen to it (and download it) here. It's to die for, especially in a serious meeting.

4. I've been seriously under stress coz of job. Yaani, too many things to learn and do, but no enough time. And after reading several articles about quiting work to start a business, this is at the front of my mind as of now.

5. Many people have been asking about when I'm getting married. I keep telling them that I'm single and happy, which they (and me sometimes) think is a big joke. Turns out most folks are of the opinion that once you have a stable (is there anything like that) job, next thing is a wedding.

6. I finally have the guts to shuka short locks. The hair is still short, so we are keeping it until Dec. I figure that being a techie nowadays, (nobody cares about a techie's looks), that it's my last chance to do something crazy with my hair (after matuta and corn rows earlier in life).

7. One of my biggest failings is mood swings. Maybe it's coz I have two elder sisters and no brothers, plus my mom is by far more influential in my personal life than my pops. Somedays, I just don't feel like talking to most people and prefer to be alone. Other times, I go through pains when I'm alone. (KIPUSA, that's 7 so you can stop reading now).

8. I'm a nice guy deep inside, even though I cover it with a bad boy attitude. It started in high school, when I realized that being nice can't get you any girl's attention, so had to cover it up to get noticed. It actually works.

Enough said. I can't tag eight guys, so I'll settle for three:
Odegle
Hwambuig
Majonzi

The Earthquake Journals

Juzi 5.00 pm
I'm at the IT Help area sorting out a virus issue on my laptop. The chair starts shaking, then the walls. I look around and everyone is agitated. While no one dives under chairs, guys are a bit tense and when it ends, we all look outside, make phone calls and vibe. Turns out most guys in the other wing left the building in a hurry once the tremors ensued.



Jana 6.15 am
I'm woken up by a text message from a good pal. She states that someone has sent her a text saying that CNN has announced that a major earthquake will hit Nairobi in the next hour. I continue sleeping.

Jana 6.30 am
A neighbour (one of the estate committee members) knocks on our door. He says that he's been contacted by a pal that there's gonna be an earthquake within the hour. He wants us to warn our upstairs neighbours. I'm not moved but my sis being the kind neighbour insists that we promised the jamaa. It's not the best sight seeing your neighbours in their sleep clothes, but we do the necessary. Hard questions such as "What is the Govt doing about this?" and "You've seen it on CNN?" are asked and ambitious guesses given in return.

Jana 7.30 am
Leave for work. Have scrolled through BBC, CNN, SKY, Euronews and Al Jazeera. Nothing on earthquake, rather aircrash in Sau Paulo. Many neighbours (still in night gear) are still outside the apartment blocks, WAITING!!!!

Since then:
1. Numerous emails and forwards on quakes.
2. Neighbourhood committee pastes on eastate walls disaster guide on quakes
3. All conversations eventually have something to do with quakes
4. First 15 minutes of news is all about quakes

CONCLUSION:
1. It seems I'm not so afraid of dying at the moment.
2. Many people are.

Am I getting younger?

Once again it's that time of the year when that hard question arises: should the title of this blog continue to be YOUNG Kenyan Man's Story? That's right folks, it's my birthday today. How old? Let's just say that I'll still be in my 20's for a few more years (very few to be exact).

Make sure you leave some for the rest!!!

The day, nothing to write home about. Apart from the many texts & chat messages, and couple of phone calls (which are much appreciated) from family and friends, a pizza (Terrific Tuesday) lunch plot backfired as colleagues were either out of office or held up in meetings! Presents? LOL! Haven't seen any in a bit. Treated myself to chicken for lunch as compensation.

Obviously the turn of events the last couple of weeks means I have a lot to be thankful for. Following the successful completion of the 19 month management trainee thing (the technical training was the last bit), I've been posted to work as a quality analyst for data services. Dream job? I can't tell but so far prospects look good. Plus, it comes with a nice payhike, of which most of it should see more frequent visits to the stock broker.

Half year financials: offloaded Rea Vipingo & Eveready, increased Scangroup and added KCB and ICDC to my portfolio, which includes Mumias. Targets for 2nd half will obviously involve taking advantage of the IPOs. Also, I plan to get a new stream of income, by registering and starting a small business venture I've identified (details on success) as viable. Also, the x-campus chama has kicked off and we open the account this week. This could also translate to big things in the future.

Thank you Lord for life, help me make it worth Your investment.

Vioja Ujerumani

After 4 weeks of European adventure (read technical training) I'm back on home soil. 1 month bila ugali na chapati was bearable considering that it was a first time trip, so sampling sights and sounds of majuu was definately worth it.



After Brussels came 2 weeks in Munich, Germany. While the sight weren't as picturesque as Brussels and Paris, the infrastructure and the cars were something else. Seems that German engineering is all that and more. We used the train system and it is absolutely reliable. The roads are partitioned for pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles, and alot of times, we were found on the cyclist lane, quite embarrassing!! The beer glasses were humongous, and also I found the closest picture of home i.e. Hakuna Matata pub. Cost of living is slightly lower than Brussels, and there are good prices for electronic equipment. I came into JKIA lugging a whole CPU, and went straight to customs just as formality, since computer equipment is tax free.




Interestingly, this was one place where the small world theory was proven kabisa. First I had the opportunity to hook up with several Kenyan chiles who went there under the banner of ‘Language Students’ i.e. Aupairs. It was interesting hearing their vibe on their mboch lives, and the search of a hook up that will get them papers (they call them Makara - short for makaratasi). The bottom line is that Aupair is just an entry point and the marriage (or kid) is the passport to full status change. So sad, coz these chics say they don't have any job opportunities back home so this is the only way for them to make a life and care for the folks and siblings.

The other thing is the 'solidarity' thing that black Africans (not from North Africa and Nigeria – they have their own mingi crew) have, that you acknowledge one another on the streets. Guess when you are few in number, seeing 'one of your own' makes you feel at least welcome. There's no open discrimination, but the atmosphere just isn't welcoming, and especially when you don't know the language.

East or West, Home is best. Isn't it?