back to essentials

(january 15, 2008)

there are more rallies scheduled for nairobi tomorrow. since the two sides can still not come to a power sharing agreement. i am not sure how i feel about the rallies. i support the democratic right of the opposition to hold peaceful demonstrations but the government and police pretty much enforce a police state every time they announce they are having one. on the other hand, if people are going to be injured and there will be more displaced people, then why hold a rally? what goal will it accomplish? and i think kenyans are tired of all of this and even those opposition supporters don’t seem as interested in public demonstrations. but they could prove me wrong and hold a sizeable protest.

which is why our offices are going back to only essential staff again. and in my new role as emergency operations extraordinaire, i am still essential. but that means a quiet office for me to make a dent in my To Do list. i have been thinking that my office needs a tidy and a reorg. i need some organisational devices but because of our ridiculous procurement system, i can only spend so much money per month and it has to come off a project. is the private sector this ridiculous too? or are projectised systems more lenient in that world?

the illness seems to be clearing with a small dose of antibiotics and antihistimines, which are making my nose run at the moment. the good old doctor did not disappoint in his prescription for antibiotics and steam inhalations. i think he would prescribe inhalations for people with sprained ankles.

i became a grown up this past weekend when i purchased my first Piece of Art by a kenyan artist. it is pretty fantastic but i am not sure how much you pay for art. i guess it all comes down to what you think it is worth. and yet, i will argue with any taxi driver that tries charge me even $1 more than i want to pay. i will even call my old stand by drivers and will wait until they can arrive rather than pay a dollar more. but my Piece of Art is fantastic and i love it so i guess that is how you decide whether or not art (or anything) is worth it. sadly, it does not have a name and i believe all art should be named so i will have to brainstorm on this one. i also baked bread this weekend too. but i am afraid i did not knead it enough. i have nothing to base this on besides my fatigued arms and the texture of the bread. but i made bread. and bought art. ergo, i am an adult.