I Woke Up in Another Country

 
 

Screen clipping taken: 10/20/2010, 7:36 PM

 
 

Credit: myjoyonline.com

 
 

I keep asking myself: is this

happening in Ghana?

 
 

 
 

Screen clipping taken: 10/20/2010, 7:43 PM

 
 

Credit: ghanaweb.com

 
 

And this?

1000 Reasons not to Pay in the City of Accra

It will suck your brains out of your ears to know what efforts some Accraians make to avoid paying money for services they use. It could be as comical as eating food and refusing to pay because they saw a mite on the side plate. Or it could be car replacement part used for months and rejected as fake after 6. People have devised part payment as part laxative to the payment constipation. So, there might be a wedding whose cake is half-paid-for. From the honeymoon, the bride calls the baker to declare that she did not like hue of purple used, and the newlyweds will not pay the remainder. If you investigate, they’ve also not paid the wedding planner they could ill-afford. I’ve seen pretentious parents engage children’s party services, make the half-payment and pretend to find reasons of poor delivery not to pay the rest. I’ve seen it in legal services, real estate, car hire purchase. Does anybody have any experiences?

An Angel without a Face

A little thought before a media report winnows the wheat from the chaff. I woke up to the gladsome news that Miss Ama Nettey was Miss Malaika 2010. What was missing from the tale was the angel’s snapshot. How do you herald the winner of a beauty pageant without her photograph?

My 10 Little Sins

Plinky asked me to list 10 things that made me happy. It took so long (and was so hard) to go beyond 3. I must have a sad life. Can you get 10? Here are mine below.

Lil Girl
Because she's good for me and understands me more than anybody else.

Writing
Because it is my conduit to my soul.

Being a Lawyer
Because it's made me come to know how society really works (and I can even break some of the rules safely).

Marion
Because she gets me around easily and, let's face it, she is sooooo fine!

Blogging
Because it's practice for writing and has brought me so many friends.

Court Rooms
Because of the witty battles and the permitted aggression.

Cuerpo de Mujer
Well Pablo Neruda said it all:



Body of woman, white hills, white thighs,

you look yourself like a world in your attitude of surrender.

My rough peasant's body digs in you

and makes the son leap from the depths of the earth.

Poetry
Because when you understand it, you understand life.

Swimming
Well, swimming, dance and sex are 3 manifestations of the same passion! (And wherever there's a pool, there's always a flirt!)

Chocolate
It releases that thing with that big scientific name that makes us light in the head and feel good about ourselves.

Prostitutes Don’t Have Friends

At wooded Cantonments in the City of Accra, near the landmark post office, I coasted round her wide-curve hips and on my friendless homeward route. I could not stop to enjoy her because she sold her time and curves. Social rules lie that she cannot be my friend.

The Hausa Koko Seller

On a cold, wet, Adenta night, the Hausa Koko seller!

'Land Guards' in the City of Accra

They fight on the land. They fight for the land. They maim on the land. They maim for the land. They kill on the land. They fight encroachers. They fight claimants. They fight the police. They fight the law. They fight (or snub) the courts. They are the law. They have the guns. They have the support in high places. They have the invisibility. They have the alibi. They have the anonymity. They have the land. They have the drugs. They have the greed. They have the back of the person with the money.