Evolution of …

Dear diary, Lately, I’ve began to wonder if I am “living green”, not by choice, although that is what it should be, but that I am slowly being forced into being conscious of my surroundings, nature etc. The things I have taken for granted for so long. Ahh, how we change and change and change. Life is truly a constant evolution.

A few months ago, I would not have turned off the main switches on the walls for my appliances, with the fridge still being an exception, but now I do. Why? Well, not only have I come to understand that it still consumes power, which I knew, but did not care, but, when you buy pre-paid electricity, and or use a generator, and have to deal with the dumsonomics of this place, you see the numbers and you learn fast.

A few months ago, when I take showers, lord knows I spent so much time in there using so much water. Now, I use a bucket, not because I don’t get enough or I could not use much more or use the shower, but because I see people who do not even get the water to drink, let alone bath, I know how much electricity the kettle consumes, I pay for the water to be delivered into my water tank, so when I use it, I am careful. I have an idea of how much water we use as a family in two weeks, hence a month, so I can budget for it. Am I becoming weird?, no, I don’t think so, I think it’s because I am paying closer attention to things, and realizing how blessed I am on a daily basis. Don’t get me wrong, I can afford the life I am used to, but the question becomes why waste?

I take a shopping bag to the market, and avoid as much plastic as I can because I hate seeing all those black bags around me at home, and also I see them loitered around the streets and they drive me nuts, then I see the cleaners that do their best on a daily basis, but their best is not enough to keep the city clean, and then we turn around and make fun of them. There are so many of the plastic bags in our soils that it is sad to see.

I wear flats quite a lot now. That was a no no for me a few months past. Now I do, try jumping in a tro-tro with six inch heels on, crossing the street or walking in the market with heels on. I have the option of not going to the market, and just go to the malls, but why would I want that? Well, the market is where the fun is, where the drama is. Where you can hold a conversation with the seller about nothing. Where customer service = rudeness. Lol! It is the molding ground, tradition, culture, the people, the locals. It is the mingling place. It is the place to be! It is where a plantain is 8 pieces for 5 cedis, but she will not sell 4 pieces to you for 2.50 cedis. Lol! It is the place where the wakye seller speaks Hausa, Ewe, Ga, Twi, and a bit of English all at the same time, one customer after another. Lol! That is the place to be.

Am learning so much that I am scared of the person I am becoming. The evolution of … Not scare in a bad way, just scared. I feel like clay in the potter’s hand. Constantly changing, and just when I think am ready to go into the oven, he changes his mind and starts over with a new idea.

AAAAHHHHHHHHH!! OMG! OMG! OMG!

AAAAHHHHHHHHH!! OMG, OMG, OMG! Dear diary. I am so pissed at everything and everyone. What a way to start my day. Only in Ghana will this happen. Ok, I take that back. I have not been to too many places to know this and hence not a good comparison. What am I rumbling on about? Here goes. I start the car and the gas or petrol light comes on. Am not surprised, I knew the light was going to come on, sometime today. Just that I was not hoping for first thing in the morning.

So I start my prayer, please God, let this car take me to the nearest total petrol station. With the amount of traffic I have to go through to make it to the petrol station, it will take a miracle. So I pray really hard for my miracle because it was a need. Speed speed speed, bypass some cars, bad driving. I make it to the petrol station, yeah! Well not yet. The filling station guy goes “madam, there is not light.” Heck, he has to be kidding me. I hate Electricity Corporation of Ghana (ECG) and its dumso dumso issues. What on earth is this? Then I ask, do you not have a generator, and he goes “it is spoilt”. Omg, am finished. I am going to be the lady in six inch wedge shoes, stuck by the side of the road with no petrol, and not cash to take a taxi or buy petrol at another filling station. Lol!

Ok, no need to yell at him, so off I go again, hoping to find another total filling station on my way, but no such luck. Then I see an ATM machine. I get a little hope, hoping to get some cash for petrol at any other station other than Total. Well, that doesn’t happen also, because, the **** machine does not work. At this point, am calling my husband and yelling and of course he doesn’t pick up, I look like a mad woman just yelling on the phone at no one. Lol!

Off I go again, hoping to find another ATM that works. I see a sign that says Ecobank ATM, but I was not able to find it. Now I could have missed it because I was frustrated or its one of those that just never exists but this is Africa TIA! These are the times I question my decision to move back. Why? What was I thinking?

On I go, and am on the high way this time, so a speed like no one’s business. I make it to a Goil filling station and the car stops. Petrol is out. Now what? The station guys are nice enough to push the car to a safe spot for me, I explain my dilemma, and they act like its normal. Well, they called a taxi for me, taxi takes me to a working ATM machine and brings me back to the filling station. Ha! There is a God!

Filling station guy is smiling seeing how relieved I was. They push the car again, I get some petrol in my tank and all is well. But hey, TIA! This is the point where I thank God for nice people in this part of the world that always jump to your aid when you need help. How could I forget that?   Am ok, am ok. All is well in my world again.

In a place where systems, processes and procedures do not work, making your life a living hell, when it should not be, I thank God for good people. If this place doesn’t break you, it builds you and makes you stronger mentally. I have a love hate relationship going on with this place, but don’t forget, I got my MIRACLE. Prayer answered.

Feeling Adventurous

Dear diary, feeling adventurous! The last few days have been hectic, stressful etc. etc. etc.

It is not the work itself that is stressful, but the travel time to work and back and all that occurs during the journey to and from work is the causative agent.

Haha, last time I saw a strand of gray hair. OMG! I am way too young to start graying. Wow! The things this place will do to you. Now I get why all the young people I know have grayed. They laughed when I spoke about my strand of gray. Welcome home sweetie, is all I got. No sympathy from these people. It’s like a boot camp here. You take the heat or you get out.

So back to my “adventure” story. Unfortunately for me, my mother noticed that my road worthy sticker on my car had expired two days after the expiration. Heck, you would think I would notice that but…

So everyone goes, “the police are going to stress you out”. Well they were right. The worse side to my story is that there is a toll booth about three minutes’ drive before my house and that is where the police set barrier. I have come to make friends with a few of them, but mostly the night crew.

That toll booth has taken a lot of cash from my husband and I driving both ways back and forth. GHC 0.50p in and out and trucks pay more. I wonder what that money is being used for because if you see the number of pot holes, the size of swimming pools, right in front of the toll booth, make you angry.

So day one, I got stopped by the police, had to pay my way out to get to work so GHC 10.00, returning home my night shift police friend is there so, I get away with it. Day two, another GHC 10.00, returning home got away free. Day three, I figured, this cannot continue until I renew the sticker, so, I took a back road, to bypass the police. Heck, what can possibly go wrong right?

Well, long story short, I survived, but the pot holes/manholes/swimming pools I had to drive slowly through was the issue. I thought to myself, I should just have paid the GHC 10.00 and used the not so bad road. Now I will end up paying for shock absorbers, which are much much more. But foolish me, I do it again on the way back home that night, and this time took a wrong turn and got completely lost, in some back roads, no street lights, the gutters are uncovered so if not careful one will end up in. People looking at you funny, like who are you and what are you doing here.

You have this feeling that they know you are lost and should not be here. Fear creeps and mounts up. You look around for a nice lady or gentleman, silent prayers become vocal prayers. You ask God to send an angel to get you out of this and you will get the sticker fixed. Because the darker it gets the worse your situation. Then I see a lady, I stopped and asked for directions and she was glad to help. OMG, there is a God and he watches over people like me. I get home safe on the directions of the lady, say thank you to God, and have I fixed the sticker issue? No. Will I fix it? Yes, eventually. Lol!

Now I know the back roads, and those police men, will never see me until my car is legal again.

Tweaa! TIG!

 

 

 

 

 

Patience is a Virtue.

  Patience is a virtue. That saying takes me back to St. Mary’s secondary school. Merries as known by all students in the country. Today, as I drive in front of the Accra mall, wondering why on earth anyone in their right mind, will approve for a mall to be located at this part of the capital, with the taxi’s and tro-tros constantly honking, and trying to cut across me, as if I have nowhere to go at 7pm on a Friday evening, my two year olds fast asleep in the back, I see the Merries school cloth, its blue color and the school logo, with “Patience is a Virtue” in my mind’s eye.

Wow, the things that go through my head and the times they do amazes me. Why not just the saying, why the school cloth? Well, I wish I knew. Lol! As I honk as well, join the masses, yell, roll my windows down and use bad language words at the other drivers breaking the law, I thank God that my children are fast asleep. Mommy used bad bad words and I could not have explained myself out of that one.

This place brings the other person out of you. The lady in me vanished at that moment. The ten to fifteen minutes ordeal at that spot increased my blood pressure to God knows whatever level, and it should not have. No wonder young people are dying so much in this country and we have no idea why. I will tell you why! It is the stress, the pressure, the noise, the dust, the pollution from cars that should not be there, the food, saturated with oil and all the bad bad bad things. Ha! I say all these and I still love this place, it’s like an addiction. You know it’s bad for you, and it just might kill you but …

All the sayings I grew up with make sense in this place, for instance “make hay while the sun shines” in Ghana means, iron your cloths use your washer while ECG power is on, because when it’s out, you are sol! “An early bird catches the worm” in Ghana means wake up early, in order to beat the traffic or catch that tro-tro in order to make it to work on time. “Patience is a Virtue” means be patience with everything and everyone, in all things be patience, to avoid medical complication due to stress. Lol!

Yes, Patience is a Virtue! I am loving this, heck, what is there not to love. TIA /TIG!.