Last week was hectic. I barely had time to sit down and do the things that I like. Reads were put on hold, Ms Muse took a flight, few friends were regrettably stood up…
Anyway, like I said, Ms Muse took a flight, and so there’s nothing I can possibly write that would take away that precious 5 minutes from your busy life. So, what follows are diary like, personal bullshit which happened over that week.
1.) At the time of writing this, I’m listening to a Prodigy tribute program on some local radio’s hip hop show. Why, you ask? P is dead, man! His death struck a serious blow to some of us. Prodigy, Mobb Deep’s other half, was an OG, and (sorry Havoc) everyone thinks P’s verse in Shook Ones part II is the real thang’. I particularly love that part where P is like:
I’m only 19 but my mind is old
and when things get for real my warm
heart turns cold
another nigga deceased
another story gets told
it aint nothing really
His recent solo project is quite something, too, even though, in my opinion, it slightly deviates from what Mobb Deep doled out as gangsta rap back in the 90s. I don’t think a nigga would walk into a music store, check the hip hop section, and come out with an album titled The Hegelian Dialectic. I mean, Hegel? Yes, rap tends to be philosophical, but to that extent? That’s some smart, white people shit. Anyway, P, I’m gonna miss you. It’s times like this I pray hard that those life-after-death narratives are true. I still want to listen to something of The Infamous kind from you.
2.) Happy Fathers day! I texted my dad that Sunday. I don’t get why I did it, honestly. At first I thought I was being sarcastic, but I later got convinced that maybe, just maybe, I was being genuine. He’s my dad, and even though nothing good comes out of our father-son relationship, I still love him. In my own way, of course. It would have been nice, though, if upon receiving my unintentional flowery text, he replied with a “Thank you, son.” Or, for maximum effect, an MPESA alert.
3.) Last week was the final week of exams at the University of Nairobi. This one time I entered an exam room where the invigilator, bothered by my ugliness, demanded that I have my hat off. I almost got impulsive. Like, why the fuck should I look appealing to you? So, I couldn’t, partly because I was having a bad hair day. And, generally, because he was just trying so hard to be an asshole with me. I get it, there’s that “will to power” thing that Nietzsche kept yelling about, but you gotta know where, when and, by extension, whom to be all powerful to. I was threatened with some “violating exam rules” to which, half laughing, I said, “ni kofia tu nimevaa”. Left with nothing up his sleeves, he let me take a seat, my hat still on. Take-home point, maybe? Always stand up against that which is a threat to your autonomy.
4.) What’s so unfeminist about admitting that a body like Vera’s commands erotic desires? Does that qualify as objectifying a woman’s body? In my opinion, sexy isn’t sexist. And context always, always, matters. This is a discussion I had with a fellow feminist over some fat blunt my Ngara guy blessed us with. She was of the idea that any sexual reference to a woman’s body is inherently sexist. You know, like “hey ghel, yours is an hour glass body” is enough to have your membership in the feminist movement revoked. MEH!
5.) Been thinking about Jeremy Corbyn’s victory in becoming UK Labour Party’s leader. I mean, given the current political hegemony in the West — neoliberalism, that is — how is it possible that people would actually have someone who’s always exhibited strong leftist tendencies as the leader of a party that is every bit neoliberal? The answer to this question, apparently, is the Youth. I can’t help but link this with the finding that the youth, for the first time, are a generation far worse off than their parents’. It seems preaching to a 21 year old about hope when they’re weighed down by the ever piling student debt and a bleak prospect of finding a job is a bad move. Millennial are aware of the oppressive nature of the system and, thank goodness, they’re pitching up a fight. UK youth have Corbyn. Anyway, I hope he lives up to his leftist, egalitarian convictions.
6.) I’m like 5 episodes into Amazon’s American Gods — a TV adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s novel by the same title (Hey Cris!) Spoiler alert! Gods of the old times (yes, Odin is obviously present. So raise your horns!), in a bid to gain relevance again, find themselves in modern day America. These gods coming to America, by the way, sort of has a political dimension to it. You know, immigrants and the current political climate in the US. Wait, ah yeah, but there are new gods too (there’s a douche called Technical Boy; he looks like a dubstep DJ). So, a likely war between the gods brews. And, like your favorite, these gods involve mere mortals in their struggles. Obviously I’m watching it because Bryan Fuller, else I would have just stuck with the book. Any work by Bryan is like a tiny dose of some psychedelic, LSD kinda shit. Would I recommend it? YES! But you will likely find it a bother if you’re some dumb, Dawkins kind of atheist.
7.) No classmate of mine (economists, obviously) finds the Standard Gauge Railway project to be of any economic sense. I’m not sure if it’s David Ndii’s influence, but they seem to know what they’re talking about. A simple Cost Benefit Analysis makes you wonder why the fuck we are glorifying this project! Anyway, it seems people are finally coming to the realization that mega projects and flashy malls are not signifiers of economic growth. And that is impressive, to say the least.
8.) Broke up with a friend (once a love interest) for the obvious reasons of reciprocity (or lack thereof). If someone’s being nice to you (especially if they demand that you be) then the least you can do is meet them halfway. Relationships only work if the well-being of the other person becomes a priority. So, friend, if you’re reading this *mimics Beiber’s voice* I’m sorry. Oh, and fuck you too.
These were moments that, despite a bad week, were gladly captured. Woven together, they make up the highlight of my life for the better part of that week. Yes, I know. I’m that boring.
