I thought I could continue reviewing 2008 from where I left but things just continue to happen and they need to be published at KSB. This is something which, if you have been in Stockholm, you may have encountered.
A Kenyan has two or even three mobile phones then you are gladly given all the numbers so that in case you cannot get him on one line, you can sure catch him on the other which could be dubbed “the hot line”. One could be a Nokia and the other one an Ericksson and just in case you think they were picked from the second hand portal, they are latest models. One day, you try reaching your pal on the “regular number” to check whether you could link up in town for one and discover that the regular line is not working so you try the “hot line” and that is when the problem begins.
The line you have called is the “Job line” which, the friend says, you should not call to avoid disturbing him. That is after you called it one day and the friend requested that he “call back” to prevent you from losing air time from your poor phone which, he suggested, could be Comviq, the type that expires after a few minutes of conversation before you even complete a sentence.
The main reason why he needs to call you back is because he wants to update you that it is the “job people” who pay for his air time, unlike you, a poor goat who gets worried about air time when you are on the phone. Sometimes, you ask the other end if he or she has a Comviq so that you can be sure you will be talking almost for free (you pay the opening charges and that’s all).
“You know my kind of job is such that you cannot just call anytime. Next time, send an SMS on my regular in case I don’t respond then I will call you back”, the friend warns in a moment of education about how his phone system works. You begin to wonder why you were told to phone “anytime”. You then begin to wonder why you were given both numbers in the first place and why last time, there was no problem when you called the “hot line”. May be, the guy wanted you to understand that both lines are active.
It is like “the Kenyan in us” not going away even after we have left the country and stayed abroad for more than one decade. In Kenya, don’t get surprised when you are accompanied by pals in a pub during those “back home moments” and after you settle down, your “guide” orders two extra glasses to hold both phones on the table as the swallowing begins.
The waiter is just happy to serve these special customers and as you begin to wonder, you are introduced. “This one lives in Sweden” (with hands pointing at you) is part of the introduction to the waiter so that there can be no mistake about the status of the table. Heads begin to turn at the neighboring table because the intro was done in high frequency.
The next example is a bit funny. There is someone who does not agree with you on what you are doing although he/she has never told you anything. Your close pals in Stockholm (or personal spies) report that nani an ku hate. You still don’t get it.
One day, the guy calls you when he is very drunk and begins what I can call verbal diarrhea. “And you Osewe, why do you write the blog? Do you know what a blog is?” You can notice the level of inebriation because his voice is dragging in typical drunken style but you take it easy and stay cool.
Just before that, the guy had said that he never reads the blog but now, there is something he came across at the blog and he was not happy. This type of exchange happened to me so it is not hypothetical.
The Guy Shown Dust From His Ex-Wife
“What is your problem with me writing the blog?”, I ventured politely. “You cannot write the blog and make money at the same time. You place adverts at the blog and people pay by clicking on them”, he roars. I then correct him to the effect that there is nothing fundamentally wrong with making money through adverts at the blog although I don’t do it because it has not been necessary. Then he jumps to another point.
“You cannot run a newsblog. According to the Swedish law, what you are doing is not correct blah blah blah”. Still on a very friendly note, I advice (although he is supposed to be a computer expert) about CNN, BBC and even our own Aftonbladet blogs which are all News based but still he doesn’t get it. He proceeds to say that I should write at my blog that he has threatened me. That is when I begin to understand that there must be something terribly wrong with his system.
“This is not a threat. It is an irritation”, I tell him. The saddest part is that this is a person I have had a lot of respect for. As the conversation deteriorates with him beginning a shouting match on the phone, I notice that he may have been drinking the whole day because he doesn’t sound like the real guy. I get a bit tougher and advice him to take his frustrations furthest.
“If you think that there is something illegal at KSB, make a police statement”, I tell him. I was on the verge of updating the blog and I din’t have a lot of time so I hung up.
The question which this sad experience exposes is how the system has crushed our people to an extent that even some of our best brains have broken down after opting for the bottle.
As usual, I take a break to do some research to find out whether there has been any dramatic development in the guy’s life of late in a way that could have pushed him to lose his senses completely after excessive inebriation. By ordinary standards, the guy should pass for an intellectual but now, his mind appears to have gone. That is when a can of worms opens up.
Bagarmossen
Bwaii! The guy had been shown dust by his ex and lost everything. He then tried reconstructing his life with different women and every time he made a move, something happened and he had to be dumped. He is currently in a huge economic crisis and when he called, it was like he was trying to dump his frustrations at KSB but I didn’t get it. I called one of KSB’s inspectors in the Department of Intelligence and after the briefing, I could begin to add one plus one to get a two because before, I was getting a three.
I could not bring myself to picture how a guy of this caliber could have sunk to an extent that he could make a useless phone call after he had been swallowing for two days in the name of New Year to begin to fumble.
Bob Marley said that “you think you are living in heaven” but you are actually in hell. Without going into details, I ended the conversation but later, had to sympathize with the guy as I wondered about the hostility of the system. The guy put up a court case to try his luck against the woman but he lost because the woman was smarter. If this guy could come down to this extent, I am afraid because I am not sure whether he is trying a slow suicide.
The big problem is that there is no one I can approach to talk to him because I don’t know some of his closest friends. I was advised through Intelligence that his best friends have also deserted him because they believe that he cannot be salvaged. May be, the only option is to approach the Bagarmossen Church to pray for him. I feel very saddened to say the least about this Kenyan.
I appeal to Pastor Muirani and others to try and remember this guy in prayer because last year, we had an attempted suicide by a Kenyan lady who was saved. Life could be difficult here but we need to get together during the worst personal moments and help. This year seem to have began up side down for some people.
Okoth Osewe
About the Author
Bargamossen is not a church, its a fellowship.
KSB: Thanks. It is also called “Outreach Ministries?”. How are you doing?
I think such a man needs prayers. Why would one turn his problems onto others through petty and unnecessary quarrels?
It is sad but I have also encountered other annoying and frustrated Kenyan men who can’t deal with their personal problems, therefore wait until they are completely drunk to call and talk garbage.
Osewe, this Kenyan man must be very stupid to unleash his anger on you, yet you are not the cause. Sounds as if his Christmas and New Year’s holidays were spent hitting Scotch and Cognac, until he lost control of his mental capabilities.
Unnecessary court battles with ex-wives have brought doom to many Kenyans in Sweden. The best way is to accept and move on, otherwise one loses financially and socially. The bottle has never offered one a solution to the psychological torture of divorce of a relationship breakup. It is therefore annoying that this man could use you to relieve his anger. Shame on him.
Osewe, that man should understand that blogs are used for different purposes. Just so that he understands, I have posted the meaning of the term BLOG:
A blog (a contraction of the term “Web log”) is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. “Blog” can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.
Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, Web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog
Some Kenyan men are real nuts to pick drunken moments to confront their imaginary enemies. Why would this guy pick on Osewe for frivolous reasons? Instead of kicking off the New Year on a good note with a fellow Kenyan, he decided to bring out his uncouth character.
From what Osewe has written, this guy is wasted. He doesn’t even understand the fundamentals of operating a blog, yet he is an intellectual.
His case reflects the downside of living in Sweden, whereby the ‘System’ sometimes boxes one in and apart from the robotic travel to work and home, life is basically empty for many. However, this is not an excuse because he should create a better pass time than drunkenness and avoid meaningless confrontations.
Such a bum should be named and shamed. Osewe must be very kind not to have included his name in this story, yet he confronted him without a reason.
With his name accompanying the story, this man might wake up from the drunken stupor and be more realistic. Prayers alone won’t be enough. Some Kenyans change only when they read at KSB what people think about them.
This man is a countryside bumpkin who thinks that displaying mobile phones on tables at low-rate Stockholm pubs reflects a higher social status. And why does he give people his work phone number if he doesn’t want to be called on it? It seems he can’t get rid of the Villager in him, despite living in Europe for many years.
Is this the same guy i met and we were talking about setting a political party called THE PARTY OF TAX PAYERS! The world is changing very fast. I think “Pastor Muirani and Samson” must give a hand in this situation.
Ahaa!!let the “games begin”…i mean codemnation is prejudice……cast the first stone if…..kama wewe pia uja blanda….paster Beatrice,brother mwirani…intercede haraka.By bringing this guys problems to light Osewe has somewhat defused a time bomb waithing to explode,he seemed to be suffering from acute frustration and amnesia…he should be salvaged before he infects wakenya.