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Showing posts from September, 2025

Ni mbayaa!

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                 It was one of those days, there I was chilling after some hectic shughuli, just trying to catch my breath, nangoja mat ijae itoke stage nifike mtaa. I spot this girl amekaa kando yangu holding a water bottle, and it was like ¾ full. I was feeling a little thirsty, ok, maybe more than a little.  I say hi to her, Namsho design jua imenikaranga kama mimi ni kitunguu, na venye naskia ulimi imekauka, wacha tu. Si mnaelewa hii joto imekuwa recently? I go ahead and ask her if she would mind giving me a sip of her water?  It seems to me like she doesn't mind my request, because she passes her water bottle over to me. I'm like, I can finally quench my thirst. I take one big sip, and immediately regret it… aiyo!  My tongue is like sandpaper. Naenda kutema, naona kanjo ndio huyo, ananingoja niteme tu hivi, ashuke, na ashine na mimi proper! Inabidi tu nimemeza shingo upande. Ikiteremka naskia ni kama my throat is hosting ...

Thoughts on (The Catcher in the Rye)

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                         It's a classic but with a heavy dose of notoriety within American culture considering the period it was published. You can Google or ChatGPT the controversies around it.  I had my own share of its intrigue when I first came across it, way back on campus. I still remember that encounter quite vividly like it was yesterday. There were the three of us around a table having some drinks after a difficult CAT. Sharing the table was my room mate, best friend. I will call him Y. To complete the table was X, a mutual lady friend whom I perceived to be a deep thinker.  Lying on the table was a collection of three books Y had just acquired to dilute the stress of academic reading. The first book was The Fountainhead. That's the first time I knew Ayn Rand was a lady and not a man. I can't seem to recall the second book but the top one was definitely, The Catcher in the Rye. Y was more into philosop...

Odd hours.

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             It started subtly but lately, I have been finding myself being suddenly awake at strange hours. Sometimes it may be 1:17 am, 2:43 a.m, 3:11 a.m, or even 3:57 a.m, nothing consistent.   Not because of bad dreams or the usual midnight thirst, sometimes ni ile kuamka kuenda washroom to relieve yourself, ama venye msee huturn ndio akuwe more comfortable, na feel niko observed na presence of something or someone, ilikuwa ina feel something ancient and patient had been watching me.    At first, it was innocent. I had woken up to go pee, then I felt it. Then came the second, third, and fourth night, unajipata you are awake, funny thing hata hauamki to go pee. Uko hapo kwa kitanda staring at darkness, unashangaa rada ni gani, mbona usingizi imepotea impromptu, then you feel that same presence wrap itself around the air like fog, invisible, but undeniable.    Unajaribu kufukuza uwoga, but after sometime inabidi umewasha lig...