A Mzungu who loves Kenya

• Juggling Money

  Posted: November 29, 2008, 3:03 pm by Dad Mzungu

  Although I am based for 9 to 10 months of the year in the UK (more's the pity), I still have "living expenses" in Kenya, not least of which is the rent for a little house on the coast, where I stay when in the area, and where my significant other half and her children live.

  The rent is not excessive, but it means sending money from the UK to Kenya every month. I have found myself recently watching the UK pound against the Kenyan shilling on a daily basis to get a good rate. When I took on the rent at the beginning of the year, the rate was about 130 bob to the pound. Now I am lucky to get 115. So my rent has gone up £10 a month

  It is quite something when the Kenyan economy is doing better than that of the UK!

• Two nations separated by a common language ...

  Posted: November 20, 2008, 1:12 pm by Dad Mzungu

  No, not the United States and Britain, but, the United States and Kenya.

  Whilst Amy (see The colour of my skin, below) was staying in Kisii, she gathered some of our kids together and sang an alphabet song to them. Some of them knew it and joined in.

  But when she came to the letter Z, she pronounced it "Zee" whereas the kids pronounced it as "Zed", as in British English. This surprised her and also spoiled the song as she was expecting to have to rhyme with Zee.

  She mentioned this in an open letter to us. I didn't have the heart to tell her that Kenyans speak English, not American.

• The worth of Stale Bread

  Posted: November 17, 2008, 7:13 pm by Dad Mzungu

  Not too far from my house in South Africa, there was a play park with swings, roundabouts, and a stream that ran through it, feeding a duck pond.

  I used to take the foster kids there at the weekend to let off steam and during the week, I collected stale bread for the smaller ones to feed the ducks.

  So, one Saturday, I trotted down the the park with a 7 year-old. He looked at the ducks and swans with interest. I threw a piece of stale bread amongst them and the little boy laughed like a drain as the birds scrabbled about for it.

  "Good," I thought and handed the boy the bag of stale bread.

  He promptly sat on the bank and ate it.
  

• The Colour of my Skin

  Posted: November 16, 2008, 7:27 pm by Dad Mzungu

  I am white English, hence the name that I was given in Kenya, Baba Mzungu, which is "White Dad" in Swahili.

  But when I was in Kenya last March, one little boy tried to change all this.

  After his morning wash-down, I applied Vaseline to his skin. It makes him look good, and it keeps his skin from drying out.

  After I had finished, he took the Vaseline pot and started to grease my bald pate, stating that he was greasing me to make me the same colour as him!

  -oOo-

  During the Summer, the home had a visitor from the USA, an American student volunteer called Amy.

  Benta, one of our little girls, asked Amy what colour she was, to which Amy replied that she was white.

  Benta tutted and shook her head. Later, as the Sunday dinner chicken was being plucked, Benta pointed to the chicken and then to Amy's arm. She was telling Amy that she was not white, but the colour of a plucked chicken!

• My cousin ...

  Posted: November 7, 2008, 1:19 pm by Dad Mzungu

  
  Courtesy of The Standard on-line

• Fears Unfounded

  Posted: November 5, 2008, 7:58 am by Dad Mzungu

  So, the US has just voted in Barak Obama as their 44th President.

  What a country, where the son of a Kenyan goat breeder can become the most powerful man in the world, and for now, it is really the land of opportunity.

  And Kenya is rejoicing; Kenya is celebrating. Kenya has declared a public holiday on Thursday!

  The thing that strikes me is that Barak won over the black vote. It was not a forgone conclusion. He is not like most black Americans. His ancestry did not come out of slavery. He is a first generation American from Africa. The black voters were wary of him, but he won.

• US 08

  Posted: November 5, 2008, 2:37 am by Dad Mzungu

  Kenya is suffering election fever again, especially around Kisumu.

  I so hope that Barak Obama wins the election tonight.

  I don't think Kenya could stand another spate of post-election violence ...

• Leisimane - a bit more is added

  Posted: November 2, 2008, 1:53 am by Dad Mzungu

  Little by little, just for the one or two who are following the story of a 12 year-old Sotho boy, Bafana and his escapades, I have just published a couple more chapters.

  The link to the beginning is HERE

Blah blah blah

Fish cakes

Alas a fish cake.

Yet more fish cakes

Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.

The end of the fish cakes