What to do?

The anesthesiologist was sick this morning....so all operations were put on hold at work...and I was sent home really early. I worked for a total of 2 hours:-) so I guess it sucks to be the rest of you stuck at work innit? lol.

As always, I can not wait for friday. I may go to 'the beatles revival' in D.C. tomorrow night, but not really sure of the details though it sounds like fun! I get the sudden urge to dress in my '60's best and do an afro or something:-)

Any hooo, it turns out Edwards and Rudy have bowed out gracefully. Considering the circumstances, I think they have made the right choice. Rudy coz...welll he wasn't going anywhere and like I said from the start he should have let his legacy rest tied to 9/11/01. As for Edwards... as I said from the start, dude should have been home taking care of his dying wife.

The democrats are no longer a 'may-the-best-man-win' competition. It's now heavily centered on race and sex, which is just unfortunate! I wish people would move away from selecting people using such trivial factors as race and sex when the real question is: can the person do the job or not. period.

My predictions--

• If the dems send Hellary forward as their prez- Then Reps. will certainly win.
• If the dems send Obama...it might go either way. Only problem is-- will he make it to the White house or follow in the footsteps of JFK? 'specially now that he's been given the Kennedy's seal of approval... aren't they supposed to be the cursed royal family? Dude if I were Obama I would be purchasing some holy water and having a church revival at my house after this!!!!
• If the dems keep pulling scabs off each other... the reps will win.

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Moving on:- in the world of soccer- Zambia drew Egypt yesterday 1-1...which is super cool since Egypt had beaten Cameroon 4-2...which is weird since Cameroon beat Zed 5-1. On a funny note-- every team in group C beat Sudan 3-0...that's quite hillarious! It almost sounds like a rigged game:-P....!

Kenyans are back to their usual kill the bugger tricks... and the laughable African Union is in discussion as to how to progress in this matter. Well... the A.U. couldn't contain Sudanese militia, has failed in Congo, Chad...etc and couldn't even get Mugabe's old ass to retire.... what will they do for Kenya??!! aahhhhh.... the issues of sovereignty revisited...

I think to sort out the problems in Africa, you need a real dictator running the whole damned continent! Gaddafi has offered as much and has been rejected. His crazy ass even says he'll only deal with Europe and the middle east if Africa rejects him again! lolol... and that's supposed to scare someone? who's he kidding!

I am off to try to read... shalenipo bwino (stay well: Bemba)

State of the Union Address tonight

I will be watching my favorite comedian G.Dabya addressing the nation tonight and I look forward to it.
I was invited to play a state of the union drinking game and I look forward to it too:-)
The rules are on http://www.drinkinggame.us if anyone cares to join me, example of the rules are:
If president Dabya uses the words iran,iraq, troops, terror, freedom,...etc you drink one shot of something.
If he mentions his own unemployment= 2 shots of something
border security= shot of tequila...I don't have any, so i'll eat guacamole instead!

I hope I'll be able to wake up tomorrow:-)....lol...shhh don't tell the boss:-)
I doubt anything dabya says tonight will be of interest to me... but i like watching and listening to him make up words...and his priceless facial expressions...ahhhh

At the moment I am carrying the burdens of several people including my neighbor who needed 911 again... please pray that he's okay.

Ola!

Okay, now that I'm more settled...tee hee hee:-) Let me tell you how the rest of the week went.
As predicted I was late for the Chopteeth concert If you care to know who they are www.chopteeth.com I think it is. They are like an afropop/ salsa-ish type of group. I first heard them in b'more a few years ago when they had a male lead singer at artscape. So when i found out they were playing free in D.C. I figured that I might as well go listen!
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side bar: lololololol, Life is soooo interesting! If there's a probability something can happen...it usually happens to me!...so why did that punk...lolol...it's okay I am laughing too hard to complete my sentence... lets move on!
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I ended up not going to Step Afrika! though because I wasn't really in the mood. I have had too much mental stimulation this week I feel mentally and emotionally exhausted if that's possible. Oh and thanks to C$, I got to bed after 3am last night....I am not complaining:-) lol.

Zambia as you all know from the fact that i'm not singing lost to Cameroon Saturday and I watched the game...and it was MISERABLE I tell you. I mean I know the team kinda sucks...but I think their morale was low because 'someone' is trying to trick them out of the money promised to them for winning games! I actually stopped watching at 4-0... but was somewhat consoled that the result was 5-1.

Oh and because I'm such a great employee...my evaluation was 28/30 which is quite high I must say...and I got an on the spot award for excellence on Friday:-) what joy!!! I am seriously just that good:-)

The sanctity of marriage...

So today I woke up thinking I have serious problems and of course mad at God for the problems and the fact that he doesn't answer my prayers on time or at all. Then this evening I get several calls and discover, I actually don't have real problems. I really have no right to complain about anything and I feel guilty that I even dared. God showed me today that my bitchy ass self just needs to calm the hell down and appreciate what little I have!!!

Resolved: Everyone needs someone to love.
Don't get me wrong. I believe in the Theory/ principle of marriage because it's a great idea. But, I disagree with the practical observation of marriage because it's only possible for saints, dreamers and mighty hard workers!

My message to women out there is that Marriage is only a label. Do not see it as more than that. Today the label reads 'yours' tomorrow it reads 'other woman's!' always make sure you have a plan B. I am really serious.

I know that the church tells you that you are joined for better or worse and that you're now 'one' ...but that's bull crap because men wrote those vows and you and your husband are not siamese twins. Men are only human just like you and me with no special powers and they can leave any time they pick and choose. Screw the damned vows! Prepare yourself. Listen to what he says, but at the end of the day, trust your own heart and your intuition. The decision you make may cause some issues in the house, but trust me...go with it. This is even more important when children are involved in the equation.

Men are generally fickle headed when it comes to the fairer sex and they will leave you in a heart beat for what they think is hotter than you. Just like winter comes before spring.

It doesn't matter if you look good, make his favorite food the best, hand wash his damned skid marks off his underwear, get the best breast augmentation, be the most polite, squeeze his zits, bear his ten heirs, be highly educated, make a lot of money, maintain your figure, take care of his dying parents well... it all doesn't matter. Prepare yourself for the "it's not you it's me" speech. Duh! If i've been the best that I can be for you based on whatever crappy feedback you've been giving me... then it's really "not me" it's bloody you mate!!!

If you logically evaluate everything, there really aren't any real benefits to marriage. Not even guaranteed sex with the same partner!
The supporters will give you the usual cockamamie...oh the children grow up more mentally stable... (ummm Menendez brothers anyone?), it's economically sound (well yes, and so is getting a room mate/ tenant and a better paying job), it's healthy (haha! for the wife or for hubby?), procreation (do I hear sperm bank?)

The key?
1)Separate bank accounts! Always have your own money. If he makes a fuss, open a secret account and don't have any statements sent home, or send them to a family member or close friend.
2)Marry his lame ass for the camaraderie which you need, but keep one leg in the marriage and the other in reality!
3)If it don't feel right: it aint right. Period.
4)Words are just words. He can say all he wants, but prepare for the fact that he may be lying through his teeth. Take it with a pinch of salt.

Most of the people that write about the benefits of marriage are like totally clueless and just spit out what "experts" say. "Expert" write according to the groups they represent (whoever pays their salary).I personally I'm not married, but I speak from experience.

My experience was gained working for the YWCA (Young Womens Christian Association) where I met various physically and emotionally abused women. For some examples, picture your life as a mother of 5 kids, left destitute with your five kids by a husband who has fallen for a 21 year old with perky boobs and size 2 jeans in a country where the law wont hold him accountable for paying child support or alimony. Then see yourself as a mother of three told for years by your husband that you are too stupid to understand anything even though he's sleeping with your sister and misusing your pension! Then finally picture yourself as the woman beaten within a breath of her life in front of her children by the husband she has been supporting financially.

Should these women stay in their marriages because of the "benefits" of marriage? What lesson are they giving their children if they stay in these shams of a marriage?

Someone asked me today where the Zambian "shipikisha" (literally meaning hang in there no matter what) motto went to. I laughed because I believe that marriages in the olden days lasted longer because the women had less rights and less opportunity to make money and just had to grin and bear whatever crap they were fed by hubby and because society said they had to stay. These days women have few more choices and need not necessarily "shipikisha". Well even if you want to, he can still leave you by your lonesome.

You can not trust anyone with your whole life and expect guarantees. It's just not possible. If you learn anything from me let it be :-
a) separate bank accounts!!!!
b) do not sign any divorce papers till the finances are in order including the money he hid on the cayman islands!
c) cohabit if you're keen on it.
d) If he's gone. He's gone. Stalking him and harrasing his love interest du jour wont bring him back-- it could have you arrested though.

Tshotsholosa- shosholoza

It has been a rather interesting week...and should be getting even better:-)
I went to See Ladysmith Black Mambazo...and yes... I did finallly find a date for the show!!! thank you date for going with me...I had a GREAT time!

I thought The tickets I had were like some bad seats in the balcony upstairs or something... then we got there and the ushers are like keep going straight down... I was like hmmm... then we get to out seats and we are like 2 rows from the stage!!!!! I was like soooooo over the moon!!! But we weren't allowed to take pictures which I though was soooooo gay!!!

Several things happened which led me to believe that they knew I was in the crowd and were putting on a show just for Queen M (a.k.a me:)...well one would be the seats coz i sho' aint bought the real expensive ones that we sat in!

Then they started with Unomantheba....oh man!!! I was in semi heaven!!!

Then they moved on to a few other songs, then hit...homeless-- I wanted to stand and dance!
They did their cotoza mfana (tip toe) dance... we were all ululating...so much fun I tell you! They are also quite the comedians because they had us all in stitches and also taught us a song... I can not remember the words nor the tune:-)

I know I am acting like I have never seen them in concert before, but i have seen them many times:-)
Tomorrow-
'Chopteeth' will be playing at the kennedy Center...I have a feeling I will be running on African time again, so I probably wont make it there on time! Then on Saturday or Sunday, I may see Step Afrika! at the Kennedy Center as well... not sure which day I want to go.

here are 2 Zulu words for anyone interested out there:-)
Sisesiqhingini (Everything is So Stupid)
ngiyabonga! (thank you)

Zambia 3- Sudan 0

Ba Zambia...nalelo ba wina chipolopolo! Ba Zambia, nalelo ba wina chipolopolo... ba Zambia iye... ba Zambia Chipolopolo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! weeyu weeyu weeyu...

Now that's what I'm talking about!!!!!!!

We have shown the Sudanese how it's done.... now lets show those tall Cameroonians the power of maheu and boom detergent paste!!!! scraba scraba fya kale!!!!! who's with me?
C'mmon cheerleaders! lets get some boostele up in here....

Lelo nachilota, gumbo waye, lelo nachilota gumbo waye, Zambia yawina ichikombe, gumbo waye. Lola a lola lola lola lola lola ...fwiku fwiku!!!

Arrival mwana wabene arrival oooo, arival mwana wa bene arival oo
Tipu topu tarino, mbekete yakatanta morale.... baibe... chola munuma, chimbi mumala, naiwe wemwine...mano ya chabe.... weeyu weeyu weeyu!!!!!

Uyu mwana si amvela, apepa dobo, si amvela, monga chiluba, si amvela....

Martin Luther King et. al

This is to show my appreciation to all who sacrificed their lives and dignity that I may stand on their shoulders gaining more opportunities than they ever had and to see more than they ever could.

They say that the living close the eyes of the dead, yet the dead open the eyes of the living. May we keep our eyes open and be enlightened.

I thank all freedom fighters, womens rights activists, racial equality activists...etc

shukran, grazie, dankie, dzikomo, na totela, bedankt, gmadlobt, efharisto, dalu, grazzie, domo, gratias, weebale, zukria, obrigado obrigada, ndatenda, ngiyabonga, asante sana, shukria, merci, twalumba...etc

Zedonomics

I am sure I have written about this ad nauseum, but I just have to blog about it again.

I of course make several calls to Zambia a week, and i am baffled by some on the changes that the people and the government are allowing to take place!

The loan system has had major issues in the western world as we can see at the moment. The western world has more resources and a better financial system...i.e people get paid on time! Yet loans are proving slightly problematic in the west.

In Zambia, some people don't get paid for months. You do a job this week and get paid months later! There is also no job security. You can be fired for any number of reasons without repercussion to your employer. So how can you be given a loan if you do not know when your money will come next???

Also I think it's wrong that houses can be $100 000 in a society that has majority of the population making less than a dollar a day??? I find it criminal that property should be that over inflated!!!!

If the illiteracy rate is 80% in the country, do the people really understand what the loans stipulate? what about loan insurance? do they have any and can they afford to get it? I have heard of people getting car notes!!!! Jezzusss!!!! Car notes in Zambia??? How often do the cars get repossessed? can people afford to lose their money that easily?

Does it then surprise the masses that the theft if escalating, or that there are more street kids??? Is it really surprising that the Zambian people are no longer as hospitable as they used to be and lots of households offer you nothing to eat or drink when you visit? Is it really a shock that the difference between the bourgeoisie and the proletarian societies are that vast?

To me this new society we are creating resembles the days of apartheid... move out all the poor and keep all good things for the rich. Difference is, they are not forced to live in shanty compounds with sjamboks. Over price everything so the general masses can't afford anything leaving more room for the rich to build unnecessarily huge houses and park their 5 luxury cars in the garage.

I hear the words 'progress' and 'globalization' being thrown around often in relation to Zambia. Please do not misunderstand me... I am not against progress or globalization. I am against the 'copy cat' syndrome that we are manifesting.

Globalization does not mean becoming carbon copies of the west. Neither does progress. Zambia is a society on it's own with a lot of issues that are different from the west. For this purpose, the way we do things must be Zambia friendly so to speak.

You do not have to be an economist to see the accident laying in wait for the future as far as financial crises go if this 'loan' system is allowed to progress. As usual the poor and the "middle class' (if Zambia has such a thing) will be the ones to suffer.

Just in case you think I'm speaking gibberish take time to visit the Jesuit Center for Theological Reflection http://www.jctr.org.zm/ . See how difficult times are getting for most people. After that look up how much people get paid in the country and compare you figures.

Vox populi, vox dei...that's not really so no?

I would also like to take a moment and write a little bit about the flooding in Zambia. In case some of you out there are ignorant of the issues that come from floods, I can tell you that food is scarce in those areas, most of the houses in shanty compounds and villages are built with mud and hence melt away during this period. Ablution areas flood too which means drinking water gets polluted and we can anticipate water borne diseases spreading at a fast rate. Mosquitoes thrive in these conditions, so malaria is a big issue at the moment. Take into consideration that pathogenic issues are sometimes difficult to isolate.

In addition, even though the Red cross is assisting in these issues and giving tents. The tents do not help much because the rain comes in and winds blow the tents away and the rain gets into the tents. A lot of schools are being used as shelters which of course puts a hold on education.

So to those of you that are religious, remember the folks affected by the flooding in prayer. The rest of you I suppose can send money to the Red Cross... if you care.

Saturday

Yesterday I spent most of the day with my aunt. I am not sure why, but I awoke with the need to cook... so i laboriously slaved over some chicken and yams and took the food over to my aunts house. After we ate we headed off to the mall...there are MASSIVE sales at the moment!!!
When we were done at the mall, we had a rough time picking out a movie and what theater to go to. I really love Independent theaters and movies, so i was all for landmark theaters. The movies we were debating on were 'the kite runner', 'Cassandra's dream', 'No country for old men', (my aunt was really keen on seeing 'the great debaters' or 'juno', both of which I have already seen).
We disqualified Cassandra's dream based on the fact that since Woody Allen slept with his adoptive daughter.... i lost love for his sick liittle mind. Not to discourage the rest of you, the story does look enticing, but i'll wait till Mr Tyrone hooks me up with the DVD :-)
Kite runner lost out because of the controversy surrounding the little boy... I wasn't in the mood to depress my self...seriously who wants to do that on a Saturday night?
We ended up watching http://http//www.landmarktheatres.com/Films/films_frameset.asp?id=61211 No country for old men at our usual Georgetown theater. OMG!!! I should have paid attention to what the movie was about before we went in!

The main evil guy is the husband from the series Medium I think. I will never look at him the same again! He is Demented! I am not sure how many times I had to hide my face in my scarf and semi scream!!!! The two things i didn't get were a) why didn't the dude that stole the 2million dollars as soon as he found out they were on to him not leave for ...oh i don't know...Malaysia? maybe Conakry? and why in the world was he living in cheap ass motels over and over? dang! The dude didn't even enjoy the money he made from his little quick theft...! Then he died. Oh I'm sorry did I just ruin it for you? haha!

b) WTF???? hombre was dreaming????? evil dude wasn't dying! shoot!!!

Needless to say, I was a little shaken every time I heard trucks go by or saw some shadows! I was expecting shugaa to be in my house!

I had a fun drive home because my buddy in Canada kept me company on the phone all the way till I got to my house! Do you know women can TALK?? sometimes i get off the phone after chatting for several hours and I can not recall what we just talked about because a lot came up. That's not to say it's important info... sometimes it's just mindless chatter that we do, and other times we discover who Jane or Mary's baby daddy is:-)

Manena

My beautiful name gets butchered all the time by many people! I still do not understand why certain people fine my name difficult... I find it so easy myself:-)
I get meena, maneya, manana, manyana, mini, Mandela...and my all time favorite: Banana!!!
My extended and immediate family endearingly call me:- Manex (long before we heard of Amex!), Mamputu, Mwampuli, Manenekela, Bahdeidah...etc

So let me tell you how it is pronounced, then I will go into explaining why my name is unique and beautiful. Complimenting my personality and great looks;)

Manena is pronounced:- Mah- Neh- Nah and I will forgive strangers if they say Mah nee nah, Or Nena (neh nah) or Nena (nee nah)...but I will not accept anything else!
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(excuse me for a minute i need to sing---- "to the rescue... here i am... I'm a rainbow too" sing it Bob Marley!) I needed a moment to shake my tush!
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What Manena means:
My mother's uncle named me Manena. It basically means something that was said that has come to be, or that someone was right about a statement earlier made. Direct translation would be 'you have spoken the truth', a little similar to a prophesy-ish.
If I don't have you convinced of the beauty of my name, let the other languages tell it for themselves. By the way, all this information is googleable (Nice!)

in Swahili:-- groin (very important to have one no?)
in Kiribati:-- Valuable, of worth, precious, important
in Chamoru:-- Darling, dear
in Oraha:-- That person
in Hindu teaching:-- Respect

Nena means
in Igbo:- Nne (mother) Nna (father)- Nnenna means Paternal mother (you know how precious a mother's father is!
in Spanish:- little girl/ girl
in Swahili:- Speak
in Miwok:- Male lineage or ancestral home of male lineage
in Hebrew and Greek:- Nena short for a variation of Magdalena
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Another interlude... "When the whole world lets you down and there's no where for you to turn and all of your best friends have let you down...." sing it Bobs!
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Now how many of you out there have one name meaning so many great things???? Why is this post important?
Well to start with, I LOVE my name...can I just tell you that?
Secondly, I know 5 pregnant women right now... not that I'm twisting any one's arm, but it's very important to give names with great character to children. I mean ask Roundilox... she chooses to be called Neena even though that's not her name, but she caught on fast enough that aunty Manena is the best aunt in the world:-)

In addition, I mean, just look at me. You have proof right here that Manena's are genuinely nice people with the intelligence and wit of the best orator! We are passionate people who are not afraid to speak our minds. We're strong independent people. We are loving, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, self controlled (often) people. Fruit of the spirit anyone?

So think about that as you plan names for your babies. You do want what's best for them right? By virtue of my perfect name- they will have great lives!

Fuel

I know what I said I would post today... but this was more important!
Enjoy:-
They were digging a new foundation in manhattan and they discovered a slave cemetery there may their souls rest easy now that lynching is frowned upon and we've moved on to the electric chair
and i wonder who's gonna be president
tweedle dumb or tweedle dumber?
and who's gonna have the big
blockbuster box office
this summer
how 'bout we put up a wall
between the houses and the highway
and then you can go your way
and i can go my way

except all the radios agree with all the t.v.'s
and the magazines agree with all the radios
and i keep hearing that same damn song
everywhere i go
maybe i should put a bucket over my head
and a marshmallow in each ear
and stumble around for another dumb numb week
for another hum drum hit song to appear

people used to make records
as in a record of an event
the event of people
playing music in a room
now everything is cross-marketing
it's about sunglasses and shoes
or guns or drugs
you choose

we got it rehashed
we got it half-assed
we're digging up all the graves
and we're spitting on the past
and we can choose between the colors
of the lipstick on the whores
'cuz we know the difference
between the font of twenty percent more
and the font of teriyaki
you tell me
how does it make you feel?
you tell me what's real
they say that alcoholics are always alcoholics
even when they're as dry as my lips for years
even when they're stranded on a small desert island
with no place in two thousand miles to buy beer
and i wonder is he different
is he different
has he changed
what he's about
or is he just a liar
with nothing to lie about
am i headed for the same brick wall
is there anything i can do
about anything at all

except go back to that corner in manhattan
and dig deeper
dig deeper this time
down beneath the impossible pain of our history
beneath unknown bones
beneath the bedrock of the mystery
beneath the sewage system and the path train
beneath the cobblestones and the water main
beneath the traffic of friendships and street deals
beneath the screeching of kamikaze cab wheels
beneath everything i can think of to think about
beneath it all
beneath all get out
beneath the good and the kind and the stupid and the cruel
there's a fire that's just waiting for fuel

© 1999 ani difranco / righteous babe music

Juno

I had an AWESOME day today and i would be an ungrateful sod to complain about anything!!!
I had to get something done to my car and I thought the line would be crazy and found i was second in line.... traffic was great and I discovered an international store selling everything but my brother!!!
Then I went to get my hurr did... I feel soooo pretty:-) made myself a great lunch found some great designer clothing on sale and went out to see Juno.

I think the movie was really nice. if you haven't seen it yet.... this is your chance to stop reading and walk away because I am about to have a discussion.
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Okay it was a nice movie... but i do not think it should have been PG-13. I thinks it's more suitable for an older audience:-)
Juno is the story of a pregnant 15/16 year old who is still in high school and living with her parents.
Several things came up for me in the movie which i probably would have to break into separate blog entries.
For one thing, I am happy that she chooses to have the baby and give it up for adoption, but I am not happy that they make it seem so simple. Her parents are very accepting of the matter, and she quickly finds adoptive parents for her unborn child. My problem with that is that kids are watching this movie, and they might get the impression that it's just --that easy!
I mean this story coupled with Britney spear's little pregnant 16 year old sister who has managed to keep her job and has even better rating than before she was pregnant might pass on the message that it's all gravy!
Any way Will expand on the abortion/ keeping the child issue and also on marriage tomorrow:-)
I am sleepy...and guess wat??? for the last year I have had 3 CD's sitting on my shelf still wrapped up and I finally opened one-- James Blunt:- Back to Bedlam... I am sooooooo in love with him it;s not funny!
"good-bye my lover...good-bye my friend, you have been the one for me"...ahhh!!! it's wonderful I tell you!!!!

à demain...

Way I see it...

This weekend I may have several posts....I feel like I have plenty to say, and well I may bored:-)
I have plans to see Juno today or probably a play 'Joe turner's come and gone'
They both start at about the same time so it shouldn't really be a problem.

Okay:- I can not believe they are debating whether to require Id's when voting or how stiff measures should be when one goes to vote. The law of this country (USA) as with most, allows only CITIZENS to vote. That is simple and straight forward. How are they supposed to know if you're legally allowed to vote if you don't take the necessary paperwork in with you? Apparently some states let you vote so long as you sign an affidavit saying you're a citizen...WHAT??? doesn't that leave room for someone to pay off Amadu and Jose to pretend they are citizens and vote?
They also say that some poor people can't get their Id's (cost and all). Elections are not a surprise in this country. It's not like other countries which tell you..."oh it looks like we'll have elections on the 4th of march, or maybe the 10th of November three years from now." There are no surprises. If you were really keen to vote, you should have been prepared innit?
When looking for a job, or receiving government funding aren't you required to have some form of identity? So why shouldn't you have it when you vote?

To avoid some complications, I would suggest that more ad's should be running now to encourage people to vote. Also there should be more ad's and people coming out to poor communities telling people what they NEED in order to vote and helping them prepare for election day.

Secondly:-
Last week I was listening to NPR and they were discussing something to do with drugs. The main speaker was I think a former police man and he was just saying he believes that if drugs are legalised, their value will drop, hence most of the problems that come with drugs will be reduced.
As a tax payer, I agree with some of what he had to say. For one thing, he says a syringe costs about $0.09 cents.... why aren't they given to drug abusers for free to help curb some blood borne diseases that come with sharing syringes? Well the response by some would be, that it would be sending the wrong message that it's okay to use drugs.
From a financial perspective, 9 cents a week roughly amounts to $4 a year and some change per person right?
well lack of that $4, leads to several abusers sharing one syringe and spreading...oh I don't know...say HIV?, How much will it cost the tax payer to purchase Arv's and other goodies for that one drug abuser we could have saved had we just given him the syringes?

Don't get me wrong... drugs are a bad habit and those that are addicted need to be helped.

I can not even pretend to understand drug addiction, because the strongest pain medication I have ever taken is Advil..a.k.a Ibuprofen. I am too chicken to try new medication because I react strangely to little meds like benadryl or sudafed... so I have no interest in finding out what something stronger would do.

Oh man! I am running late as usual.... I need to go out for a bit and buy stuff to make my secret humus recipe:-)

Comrades...live free or die

Fox news had a story today about how many high profile blacks are not supporting/ funding the Obama race... now seriously. How is that important in 2008???? Will Obama be the president of black people only or of the UNITED States of America? If the high profile blacks do not like him is it a big deal??? That is their choice and they shouldn't be forced to like him just because he's black and oprah says he's aiiight...!!!
When will people get that you judge a person based not on their COLOR or SEX, but on what a person believes in or how they behave??? I am really tired of ignorance and unfortunately there are too many dummy's out there! Look at the story below...
http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/blog/golf_experts/post/Golf-Channel-anchor-says-young-golfers-should-l?urn=golf,60618
This dumb ass white anchor apparently said Tiger Woods should be LYNCHED by the new golfers... now I'm sure she didn't mean it like that... you know blonde's...like reaalllyyy...

Also, what was up with Hellary's ...oops... Hillary's fake tears??? first of all lady, if I was voting, that would have been enough for me to say "Oh hell no!!!", I do not want a president that's going to break down and cry when China says they can't trade...or Pakistan calls her a dumb ass! I mean c'mmon!
Okay as usual I am nervous about the results for tonight. Well with all the time McCain spent in NH... he had better win:-) I am happy for McCain.
My little friend Ron Paul did well too I think... for as little press/ air time he gets... 8-9% is kind of good. He beat Thompson...:-)
As for The dems... ahh... I like how confident Edwards sounds even though he's 3rd place:-)
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Look at the crazy story below
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=4102781&page=1
These crazy Muslims get more amazing by the day! This dude killed his daughters in Texas as part of an "honor" killing! What??? The world amazes me!!!
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Offline:- I like to listen to listen to the candidates give their speeches... it makes me proud to be an American...lolololol!!!!!!!!!

Endita M'kwai...

Absolutely busy week:-)
You know my brother is always going on about how badly my spellings are on this site and I have been trying to explain to him that half the time when I type, I am either on the phone, watching T.V, or doing something else...I really never concentrate which is why I oft appear to have ADHD coz I keep losing track of what I was trying to say...so I really don't have ADHD or ADD or whatever...I just have a silly habit of doing several things at one time.

Besides if you all read my declaration when I first got started you will clearly see that English is of course my second language, so I don't care too much to speak it correctly. I still haven't a clue what my first language is... but I will be sure to let you know when I figure that out.

So feel free to edit what I write in your heads, because I certainly don't have time to look for typo's and wrong words on my blog before I post them and I haven't the patience for spell check. I am not a writer by profession...I am a lover...lololol!

At the same time, I have little respect for native English speakers that speak and write worse than I do...E.G. confusing there & their, whether & weather... peeves me out!

Any way: the week was quite eventful. I went to see 3 of my mums Thursday... and most of the guests have flown back to their respective countries.


Then Friday I worked and then went for sushi, then had people over at my house for wine because I have a lot of bottles left over from the holidays.
Then Saturday, I went to Cheswa's house for lunch. She did a major presentation of Nshima, beans, okra, and 2 types of chicken for Vicky and I.


I had a great time playing with the kids...I haven't seen Gabriella since she was 3 months old. I fancied myself a mum for a few minutes while holding her, then she burped on me...and that was enough birth control incentive..lol


and miss Khanyisile a.k.a lexie doodles can not stop smiling:-) She's too adorable


I had my hair all up in Vicky's face because I am selfish with pictures:-)


Later in the evening...I was of course running on African time and was late for Melisa's party:-) The girl's weren't too amused coz they had to wait for me. I ate too much at Cheswa's lunch because I assumed the party was only going to have cheesy finger food like pizza, turkey and ham sandwiches... you know the usual white people food...:-) So I was shocked when I ascended the stairs and found table after table, of absolutely delicious food! They had shrimp wrapped in bacon, quiches, salmon, tuna, chicken varieties, spring rolls, empanadas, several types of dip, some potato pierogi like things...brownies, pumpkin something wheels, eclairs, muffins and other things I don't know... all this stuff was home made...from scratch! I was like daaang mama! It was very impressive. They also had a football game going on... and I thought I was sooo Jessica Simpson when it comes to the game but Wagner is sooo much worse that I am! I had to explain to her who Peyton and Eli Manning were and some other "how did you know that Manena?" trivia.
I however concluded that Melisa's husband needs to be cloned...while we're at at we can clone Annalisa's husband too. Melissa's husband went all out for her 30Th birthday, and he in addition will be flying her and a few friends to Las Vegas!! He also has a limo ready and all sorts of stuff. Oh did I mention he's a bar tender and the drinks were over flowing?

Much ado about Kenya

No. I was not ignoring the pandemonium in Kenya or pretending it wasn't happening. I was merely watching on the side lines to see how it played out!
At first I thought it was an exaggeration...like when they said there was chaos in Zambia after the last elections and that there was violence... which turned out to be just a few people beating each other up and burning some tires in one of the slums! Big frigging deal!!! It turned out Kenya was the real deal!

There have been countless numbers of articles on Kenya in the past week ranging from Obama being half Kenyan to the direct relationship between consumption and development...and of course the bloodshed.

There is a very interesting article In the economist http://www.economist.com/daily/news/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10422157 describing the ethnic cleansing and reasoning behind it. In contrast Josh Ruxtin in the New York times:http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/04/kenya-isnt-rwanda/index.html" attempts to point out the differences between what has taken place in Kenya and the massacre in Rwanda. I quite liked his article because it differed from most of what I have been reading. I personally find it brilliant except for a few historical flaws which I too as a non Kenyan would have probably made.

I understand that the definition if genocide varies depending on who is interpreting the situation and analysing what kind of assistance to give. I personally go by the legal definition of genocide http://www.preventgenocide.org/genocide/officialtext.htm and for that reason I really don't care whether the Luo and the Kalenjins are attacking Kikuyu's for political reasons...or whatever. What they are doing is genocidal.
***The weird thing about the word genocide if you want to be controversial is that when the attacked group retaliates... they are also committing acts of genocide. So if we take down al qaeda...that is genocide right? But I digress.*** That was my Jessica Simpson moment:-)

I like that the media is making a big deal out of it because approx.300 people have died. 300 people that probably wouldn't have benefited either way from the elections. 300 people that had families to take care of. 300 people who could turn into the thousand skulls counted in Rwanda, Bosnia or the Sudan if the rest of the world closes their eyes for a minute. 300 people. For once I am happy at the medias tendency to exaggerate. 300 died, yet who knows whether Odinga is that much different from Kibaki? It's in the eyes of the beholder I guess.

This is how easy it is for countries to fall in Africa. Overnight. One day it's hailed as a stable albeit corrupt country with great opportunity for investment with a pretty good stock exchange and the next day it's code red.

I can not even begin to imagine how much this has set Kenya back financially.

I believe in Newton's third law "every action has an equal and opposite reaction". He may have been talking physics... but it sure applies to human nature too!
Poverty breeds a lot of tension and destruction. Any economist will tell you that money talks and bullshit walks.

These are some of the problems they didn't envision during the scramble for Africa.
Its very easy to incite violence in poor communities.

Any way while on the topic of cause and effect, I will end here with a quote from Jomo Kenyatta a famous Kikuyu: "When the Missionaries arrived, the Africans had the Land and the Missionaries had the Bible. They taught how to pray with our eyes closed. When we opened them, they had the land and we had the Bible."

No real surprise in Iowa

Team Obama-Huckabee made it to numero uno....
I guess America IS ready for CHANGE...:-)
will write more on the morrow... tired and sleepy:-)

Iowa Caucus

I am soooo nervous about Iowa as if I have stakes in the elections:-)
I guess the suspence is killing me...who wins? who goes home a loser? what happens next?
I was just watching Huckabee on Jay Leno's show (i know right? how bored I'm I?), I waited up for him because I figured I haven't really given him a chance. I listened to Ron Paul and after that I shut everyone else out of my mind. So I stayed up tonight especially to listen to Huckabee.
The things I took home from what he's saying:
** love his policy on taxes and how he's going to make sure "the man" doesn't keep us down by changing tax brackets to make it easier for those of us that aren't wealthy to get along smoothly. I liked that he mentioned that the system encourages us to be lazy because when we work hard we get punished for it with high taxes!!!

** #2....OMG!!! Did he just endorse Obama???? This is getting soooo interesting!!! He said they are alike...etc. I am not sure what to think. a) he could just be a nice guy.... b) he could be saying it so that Obama wins now, so huckabee can take him out easily later...when it's just the two of them!!! lol

Okay no seriously I thought that was really sweet of him to promote a fellow contender on a show that was supposed to be promoting him:-)

So Kudo's to Huckabee... he is finally "one of us" in my eyes.

p/s... should Jay Leno be eating all that steak?

Karibu 2008

First of all... thank Jehovah that mine eyes have seen 2008...my body is intact as is my mind...well sorta:-)

Any way...my plans changed last night about 6 times!!!! You know how I like to act like a pregnant woman-- uku sabaila (not sure of English equivalent- sorry)
My designated driver (DD) messed up big time! She changed her mind almost last minute, something to do with a wardrobe malfunction...and at first I was going to take a cab to the party at the 'rich people's home' lol... but than I changed my mind about that because I was only going to know one other person there, which killed it for me because I was in a major celebratory mood.

So then I got invitations to go to New York, Washington DC, or some local party here in B'more. The B'more party sounded more like my cup of tea because I was totally against driving! So I bought a few wines for the party...got started on some cinzano at home...and was SLOSHED before midnight.
I tried to call Jimmy to take me to the party, but the phones were acting up, so i settled on my little Jewish friend Ira. He's so cute...:-) (i'm only saying that coz he paid me), It turned out that he was free too, so he came over immediately, which was great coz we brought in the new year together and then headed off to one of the local parties...which sucked big time! So we left after like ten minutes and went to see fireworks... then came back to my place and acted like fools!


I knew the situation was out of hand when we started shooting music videos of ourselves... booooyyyy we were TIDDLY!!! I shalln't disclose how much we consumed because that is improper:-) I am so lucky I rarely get hangovers. (I drink plenty of water before and after) The "party" went on till like 4am when little Ira went home. I was waiting on the neighbors to knock on my door about the noise or something, but they didn't which was perfect because I would have probably cussed them out for telling me I'm noisy on new years day:-) lol. We did bubbles, champers and photo ops:)

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Update:- I just got off the phone and heard some not-so-good news. Please pray for my mother's cousin if you can. She has cardiomegaly...not sure why. She had no money and didn't have the resourses for the right treatment. She is currently with my mum and I will hopefully speak with her tomorrow. On a brighter note: her ex-husband (who she's been divorced from for over 20 years) says he will pay for her to go to England for treatment, or assist in any other way. Bless his heart!!! Just when I had established that men are complete losers...he proved me wrong!

My mum's cousin aunt Rose is a retired nurse, and she took care of my father when he was sick...and was with him when he breathed his last. So I really feel I owe her and wish I could do more to help.

Any way... let me cook something i am starved and have some phone calls to make.