We all want to be famous, or at least that's what I've gotten from
people over the years. The question should be: what do you want to be
famous for, and with what audience. And, of course, what will be the
means to that end?
In Estonia, there's a big campaign to publicize the Sciences and
to motivate more young people to participate in them, to take them up
and study them. The vice dean of the Faculty of Science and
Technology at the University of Tartu, Mart Noorma, is of the opinion
that the sciences are the key to Estonia's future. He sees a future
where the world is powered by Estonian inventions and programs and I
agree with him, in most respects and I certainly would like to see a
future with inventions I made or helped make.
Let's have a look at how this small northern country is going
about this campaign. For one, there are very many magazines, which
deal with the sciences and they're all good quality publications,
which have articles from all sorts of interesting sources. In terms
of reading material, there's enough to go round.
A very powerful tool for this cause is the science centre,
"AHHAA", which is simply a BIG building filled with all
sorts of interesting sciency and techy things that kids can mess
around with. It's practically fun for the whole family! Just go there
with the kids, unleash them on the centre ,let them learn, explore,
invent and discover! And at the end of the day, the kids had fun and
actually learned something!
Another very powerful and interesting thing that has been tried is
a television game show, "Rakett 69", in which I have had
the honour and pleasure of taking part. The idea is to get around 15
undergraduates and high school students, who have a passion for the
sciences together and have a game show on the subject. In the end of
each episode, one contestant gets kicked out until there's only one
left. The winner gets a 10,000 euro prize and other cool stuff. This
should show kids and teenagers how fun the sciences can be and, in
some ways, it succeeds. Unfortunately, the outcomes are not exactly
what the organisers would like, but it's a very good attempt, in my
opinion.
And lastly, the country declared 2012 as the Year of Science and
declared the university town of Tartu as Europe's Science Capital (or
they're in the process of doing so, it's a little confusing). The
idea is to have all sorts of people coming to Tartu to show their
awesome inventions, thoughts, ideas... and to have the Estonian
people learn from them. Kinda in collaboration with this is the BIG
IPhO Physics Olympiad, that has young people from all over the world
for 10 days or so in Estonia. These are VERY powerful motions these
Estonians are putting in motion!
Now, I'm not only Estonian, but also Kenyan, as I try to tell some
people (and what some people keep reminding me, in turn). In Kenya,
unfortunately, there isn't a big campaign on the sciences or any
field of knowledge, for that matter. So, I asked myself a quick
question: What's important to a Kenyan? The answer, in my opinion,
should be taking care of the family. Part and parcel of taking care
of family is having a job, to put food on the table. And what's
necessary, for a job to be successful? Clients! And the best way to
get clients? Publicity in the form of advertisements!
So, how do these go in Kenya? We have billboards, radio,
television (yes, dear first-world people, Kenya does have TV!), even
cell phones are used for advertising things! Now, I chose to pick a
company, that's relatively new, that's trying to strike it big in the
IT field. I'll not give their name here (that would be mean) bu I'll
have a look at how they're going about their publicity. They have
been on television multiple times explaining their ideas and thoughts
in an attempt to get people to understand the importance of their
product (just as businesses do). I feel that they're forgetting a
fundamental thing. Who are their targeted audience and does that
audience pay attention to the medium of communication they're using?
I find that the company in question is intently (oh, so very
intently) shooting in the wrong direction! The TV times they get are
less than ideal, because at that time, nobody who'd be interested in
them is paying any attention! A waste of energy and time. They've
also been trying to attract a user base in Facebook and Twitter. Now,
Facebook might be an "OK" place to attract customers, but
Twitter? No. I find that Twitter, for one, is a waste of time (I'm
not going to deal with social networks right now, but expect a post
on them soon!) and certainly not a place to try and promote a new
brand. When it comes to social networks, there's a certain way of
doing it and it depends on the network in question. Twitter is, in my
opinion, more of a place to simply keep fans and followers
entertained with witty sentences that make very little, if any,
sense. Facebook works for a brand only as a base for viral ads.
Facebook and a good viral campaign is like a forest fire in the dry
season. The company in question doesn't have a very good viral
campaign, but once it gets one, I'm sure it would be VERY effective.
But, why am I writing all this? I have very many thoughts and
ideas and I need a place to put them. I hope someone gets an idea or
two from reading this stuff!
Feel free to post a comment or ask a question! You may also
criticize, should you see the need to do so.
31 May, 2012
29 May, 2012
I don't know. *The ravings of moi.*
I watched Dreamgirls.
I generally have a list of movies that leave me in a contemplative state of mind. And it's usually also very pessimistic. I thought I'd take the time to share. To show a sliver of a darker side... my darker side. The side that I try to keep locked well away, because it leaves me with a sorry feeling inside. Dreamgirls is one of the three movies that breaks the chains and demolishes the doors that hold the darker side back.
It's interesting how a complete stranger, who knows what he's doing can change the lives of so mane people for the worse. A man who was unknown to everyone just came in all of a sudden and in a matter of days was already calling the shots in a big singer's life and had three talented singers under his foot. An interesting quote: "Michelle, he can quit, but you can't."
It led me to think of all the big changes brought about by new faces. Are they really in the interests of the subjects? What happens to the people who don't want to go with the flow? There's a quote from a source I have forgotten, that goes like this: "Do not doubt that a small group of individuals can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that has." Now, let's bring one more aspect into it: in a small group of individuals, there is usually one person with the potential to have the rest of the group following his or her lead. Now, put two and two together and you get that one very powerful individual with a small group of influential followers (or henchmen) has the power to change the world. That is a very scary thought.
Immediately after watching the movie, I checked out Facebook. My old, once prestigious school has a group on Facebook, where the alumni and some students discuss issues regarding the school. If you haven't read my post on St. Mary's School, now's a very good time to do so. Here's the link. An old schoolmate of mine posted an interesting message. The thing is, the school is losing what we call the Saints Spirit, a very powerful tool in the life of any Saint. Now I'm sure that even someone who knows nothing of this spirit can understand the problem: the source of the Spirit, the institution that spreads the Spirit seems to be fresh out of it. Which means that the school isn't producing any more Saints. That's a problem that most alumni, who know of the problem, are trying to fix. And in my pessimistic state of mind, I looked at the situation with the eyes of a sceptic. If around 80% of the school population doesn't know what the Saints Spirit is and the 20% who DO know what the spirit is are in their last years of school, then, quite frankly, I have lost my hope. The Saints Spirit is gone. Getting it back will be unbelievably difficult.
This post has no real topic, I apologise. I'm hoping from one thing to another, simply speaking my mind. Dreamgirls is a very good movie and I strongly suggest you, my readers, watch it if you haven't. If you have, watch it again. You'll be surprised, what you missed the first time. One thing I got this time that I seem to have missed before was the determination of people. Someone who has been beaten to the ground, betrayed by the people most important and loved can keep going. I always believe that if there's a will, there's always a way, but if I were in a similar situation, I'd lose my will. It made me think: what's most important in my life? And, to tell the truth, I don't know. I really don't know. I have a lot of respect for my mother and she has this line that really annoys me sometimes: "If you don't know, then who does?" Right now I don't even have the answer to that question. I realised I'm lost at sea, with no hint of a direction and I can certainly say this: swimming in a sea with no direction can get VERY tiring.
In the movie, Effie White (Jenifer Hudson) was left alone at a time when she needed her fiends the most. The only thing that kept her and her newborn daughter safe was her love for singing. If I were to put myself in her shoes, I'm not sure what would happen. I have very many hobbies, but I also lose interest in them very fast. The only interests that have stayed with me for any measurable period of time are computers and physics. And physics has started to fade away. If I were in a situation where I was out of options, I don't know what I'd do, and that's a very scary thought.
I think that's enough rambling and raving for one post. You may notice that I didn't publicize this post. It was mostly to find out how many people actually have an interest in what I write. Feel free to comment down below on anything you feel like (so long that it is in some kind of context... any will do :D )
I generally have a list of movies that leave me in a contemplative state of mind. And it's usually also very pessimistic. I thought I'd take the time to share. To show a sliver of a darker side... my darker side. The side that I try to keep locked well away, because it leaves me with a sorry feeling inside. Dreamgirls is one of the three movies that breaks the chains and demolishes the doors that hold the darker side back.
It's interesting how a complete stranger, who knows what he's doing can change the lives of so mane people for the worse. A man who was unknown to everyone just came in all of a sudden and in a matter of days was already calling the shots in a big singer's life and had three talented singers under his foot. An interesting quote: "Michelle, he can quit, but you can't."
It led me to think of all the big changes brought about by new faces. Are they really in the interests of the subjects? What happens to the people who don't want to go with the flow? There's a quote from a source I have forgotten, that goes like this: "Do not doubt that a small group of individuals can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that has." Now, let's bring one more aspect into it: in a small group of individuals, there is usually one person with the potential to have the rest of the group following his or her lead. Now, put two and two together and you get that one very powerful individual with a small group of influential followers (or henchmen) has the power to change the world. That is a very scary thought.
Immediately after watching the movie, I checked out Facebook. My old, once prestigious school has a group on Facebook, where the alumni and some students discuss issues regarding the school. If you haven't read my post on St. Mary's School, now's a very good time to do so. Here's the link. An old schoolmate of mine posted an interesting message. The thing is, the school is losing what we call the Saints Spirit, a very powerful tool in the life of any Saint. Now I'm sure that even someone who knows nothing of this spirit can understand the problem: the source of the Spirit, the institution that spreads the Spirit seems to be fresh out of it. Which means that the school isn't producing any more Saints. That's a problem that most alumni, who know of the problem, are trying to fix. And in my pessimistic state of mind, I looked at the situation with the eyes of a sceptic. If around 80% of the school population doesn't know what the Saints Spirit is and the 20% who DO know what the spirit is are in their last years of school, then, quite frankly, I have lost my hope. The Saints Spirit is gone. Getting it back will be unbelievably difficult.
This post has no real topic, I apologise. I'm hoping from one thing to another, simply speaking my mind. Dreamgirls is a very good movie and I strongly suggest you, my readers, watch it if you haven't. If you have, watch it again. You'll be surprised, what you missed the first time. One thing I got this time that I seem to have missed before was the determination of people. Someone who has been beaten to the ground, betrayed by the people most important and loved can keep going. I always believe that if there's a will, there's always a way, but if I were in a similar situation, I'd lose my will. It made me think: what's most important in my life? And, to tell the truth, I don't know. I really don't know. I have a lot of respect for my mother and she has this line that really annoys me sometimes: "If you don't know, then who does?" Right now I don't even have the answer to that question. I realised I'm lost at sea, with no hint of a direction and I can certainly say this: swimming in a sea with no direction can get VERY tiring.
In the movie, Effie White (Jenifer Hudson) was left alone at a time when she needed her fiends the most. The only thing that kept her and her newborn daughter safe was her love for singing. If I were to put myself in her shoes, I'm not sure what would happen. I have very many hobbies, but I also lose interest in them very fast. The only interests that have stayed with me for any measurable period of time are computers and physics. And physics has started to fade away. If I were in a situation where I was out of options, I don't know what I'd do, and that's a very scary thought.
I think that's enough rambling and raving for one post. You may notice that I didn't publicize this post. It was mostly to find out how many people actually have an interest in what I write. Feel free to comment down below on anything you feel like (so long that it is in some kind of context... any will do :D )
28 May, 2012
The Tartu Bike Rally and stuff learnt from it.
So, I went for the Tartu Bike Rally (it's a road race thingy that
takes place once a year and attracts quite a few thousand
participants, including some on the biking champions of the world.
The first thing I told my granddad after the race was: "Remind
me never to try that again!" Don't get me wrong, it was an
awesome experience and was wonderfully organized (comments on that
later on), I just didn't like it. I had gone for a Bike Marathon
(cross country this time), organized by the same guys in Autumn and I
must say that I liked that one more.
So, what did I dislike about this one? Well, for one, I believe I placed third last (at least I wasn't the last one...). Everyone has an excuse for everything, so here are my excuses:
The bike was NOT IDEAL. But, given my options at the time, it was the best I could pick, so I'll not complain (especially because the owner of the bike is going to reading this :P ).
And the last of my reasons: I, the idiot that I am, picked the longer route. I had a choice between 137km and 74km. And I chose the 137, because I could. Why not? I died very many times during the rally. My back side is hating me (and dishing out some serious payback) and my legs are planing a mutiny. We'll see, if I can get up tomorrow (I'm not expecting to).
Besides my own stupidity, there was actually another reason as to why I didn't like the rally: people's lack of respect for the environment. At the starting line, I saw that the more serious cyclists had some interesting shirts or bags into which they had stuffed all sorts of edible stuff (at least I think the weird tubes and cigar sized things were edible...). They had also screwed, taped and fixated many other things onto their bikes, like tubes, pumps, lotsa water and other unknown stuff. They were pretty well stocked, I must say! Two minutes into the start, I rode past a pump lying in the middle of the road. It had been ridden over multiple times and was broken. Similarly, once in a while, I'd find a bicycle chain lying on the road and lastly, practically everywhere along the road was the debris of gluttonous eating. Abandoned water bottles, half empty stuff-tubes and sachets of other stuff lay along the entire route. I never got lost because all I had to do was follow the trash trail. It led me to think: so, we're x km from the start. You have carried the full packet all this time. Now that you've emptied it, it's much lighter and takes up less space in your bag/pocket... WHY CAN'T YOU PUT IT INTO THAT SAME POCKET IT CAME FROM??? As much as I know it's the organizers' responsibility to clean up after us, it's much easier for them if we DIDN'T actively throw stuff away.
There's another way of looking at this: why are we in the rally? If your answer is "to train", then you're an idiot. You don't have to be in a rally with an entrance fee of 70+ EUR to train. If it's for the prizes, then I'd say that you're chances of getting any prizes are incredibly slim, if you have so much heavy stuff holding you down. The only reason I found as to why to be in the rally was: to enjoy a competitive ride around a beautiful country. In which case, the sight of abandoned bottles, sachets and tubes (I even saw a pair of socks...) doesn't enhance the view.
Another thing that I failed to understand. One other reason as to why I was among the last was because quite a few people chose to chicken out during the rally. I overheard two people at a water point talking of leaving because things weren't looking good for them. My opinion: Life isn't meant to be easy and things don't always have to look the best for you! I'm sure I'd really want to have a straight, downhill road for 137km. But that would simply not be challenging at all. Where's the fun in that? And once again: people paid quite a bit of money to participate. What's the point of chickening out and letting that money go to waste? So you're not among the leaders. Big deal. With that attitude, you don't deserve to be among the leaders and I'm not sure you deserve to participate at all.
Right, then! I've complained and cursed myself for my stupidity, it's time I had a look at the awesome bits. The first of which: DAMN those organizers were serious! They had police cars patrolling and stuff to keep idiotic motorists at bay and had the entire city ambulance service driving around making sure everyone was alright. AND, they had a firm, that dealt with bikes also on patrol to fix broken down bikes and stuff. I award top marks for that! Next: the water points were the only things that kept me going. I have no idea why I'm calling them water points, because water was not the only thing you got there. There were rehydration drinks, free bottles (full of rehydration drinks with the firm logo on them), rye bread, raisins, bananas, raisin bread, cheese bread, salt... And most of them also had a bike mechanic, who'd fix your bike, should you see the need. One word: AWESOME!
And the ting that just made my day was not by the organizers (though I'm not sure about that...). After the second last food point, someone had spray painted onto the road: "PÄIKE JA RÕÕM!". Translation: "Sunshine and happiness!" and later on, at the top of a hill: "JÕUDU!" trans: "Strength". That someone had taken the time to try and make people happier as they went by was just touching. That was great.
So, to conclude on what I learned:
So, what did I dislike about this one? Well, for one, I believe I placed third last (at least I wasn't the last one...). Everyone has an excuse for everything, so here are my excuses:
- I didn't train
- I had a bad bike
- I chose the longer, harder route
The bike was NOT IDEAL. But, given my options at the time, it was the best I could pick, so I'll not complain (especially because the owner of the bike is going to reading this :P ).
And the last of my reasons: I, the idiot that I am, picked the longer route. I had a choice between 137km and 74km. And I chose the 137, because I could. Why not? I died very many times during the rally. My back side is hating me (and dishing out some serious payback) and my legs are planing a mutiny. We'll see, if I can get up tomorrow (I'm not expecting to).
Besides my own stupidity, there was actually another reason as to why I didn't like the rally: people's lack of respect for the environment. At the starting line, I saw that the more serious cyclists had some interesting shirts or bags into which they had stuffed all sorts of edible stuff (at least I think the weird tubes and cigar sized things were edible...). They had also screwed, taped and fixated many other things onto their bikes, like tubes, pumps, lotsa water and other unknown stuff. They were pretty well stocked, I must say! Two minutes into the start, I rode past a pump lying in the middle of the road. It had been ridden over multiple times and was broken. Similarly, once in a while, I'd find a bicycle chain lying on the road and lastly, practically everywhere along the road was the debris of gluttonous eating. Abandoned water bottles, half empty stuff-tubes and sachets of other stuff lay along the entire route. I never got lost because all I had to do was follow the trash trail. It led me to think: so, we're x km from the start. You have carried the full packet all this time. Now that you've emptied it, it's much lighter and takes up less space in your bag/pocket... WHY CAN'T YOU PUT IT INTO THAT SAME POCKET IT CAME FROM??? As much as I know it's the organizers' responsibility to clean up after us, it's much easier for them if we DIDN'T actively throw stuff away.
There's another way of looking at this: why are we in the rally? If your answer is "to train", then you're an idiot. You don't have to be in a rally with an entrance fee of 70+ EUR to train. If it's for the prizes, then I'd say that you're chances of getting any prizes are incredibly slim, if you have so much heavy stuff holding you down. The only reason I found as to why to be in the rally was: to enjoy a competitive ride around a beautiful country. In which case, the sight of abandoned bottles, sachets and tubes (I even saw a pair of socks...) doesn't enhance the view.
Another thing that I failed to understand. One other reason as to why I was among the last was because quite a few people chose to chicken out during the rally. I overheard two people at a water point talking of leaving because things weren't looking good for them. My opinion: Life isn't meant to be easy and things don't always have to look the best for you! I'm sure I'd really want to have a straight, downhill road for 137km. But that would simply not be challenging at all. Where's the fun in that? And once again: people paid quite a bit of money to participate. What's the point of chickening out and letting that money go to waste? So you're not among the leaders. Big deal. With that attitude, you don't deserve to be among the leaders and I'm not sure you deserve to participate at all.
Right, then! I've complained and cursed myself for my stupidity, it's time I had a look at the awesome bits. The first of which: DAMN those organizers were serious! They had police cars patrolling and stuff to keep idiotic motorists at bay and had the entire city ambulance service driving around making sure everyone was alright. AND, they had a firm, that dealt with bikes also on patrol to fix broken down bikes and stuff. I award top marks for that! Next: the water points were the only things that kept me going. I have no idea why I'm calling them water points, because water was not the only thing you got there. There were rehydration drinks, free bottles (full of rehydration drinks with the firm logo on them), rye bread, raisins, bananas, raisin bread, cheese bread, salt... And most of them also had a bike mechanic, who'd fix your bike, should you see the need. One word: AWESOME!
And the ting that just made my day was not by the organizers (though I'm not sure about that...). After the second last food point, someone had spray painted onto the road: "PÄIKE JA RÕÕM!". Translation: "Sunshine and happiness!" and later on, at the top of a hill: "JÕUDU!" trans: "Strength". That someone had taken the time to try and make people happier as they went by was just touching. That was great.
So, to conclude on what I learned:
- I am a crazy idiot.
- People have little regard for the environment.
- Organizers should take a leaf or two from these guys' book
- There are actually people in Estonia, who try to make people
happy (a precious few, but they are there...).
23 May, 2012
St. Mary's School
We stand for God and for His glory,
The Lord supreme and God of all,
Against His foes, we raise His standard,
Around the cross, we hear His call,
Strengthen our faith, redemer,
Guide us, when danger is nigh,
To Thee, we pledge our lives and service,
For God we live, for God we die,
To Thee, we pledge our lives and service,
For God we live, for God we die!!!!
I am ashamed to say I had a small problem with writing the first verse or our school song. The problem being, I had forgotten what came after the sixth line.
It has been about two years, since I finished high school in Kenya, at the top of my class. Within that time, I have finished high school a second time, had a handful of interviews on national TV, two interviews on a regional radio station, been a small TV star and enrolled in the university I wanted to study in since I was a child.
Within the same amount of time, my old school, the once great St. Mary's, has lost more teachers than I realise, lost more students than I can count and lost more credibility than I'd like to expound on.
During the course of my last 2 years in the institution I love, many changes (most of which were for the worse) were being made and even then many teachers and students left. Now all that's left are a handful of teachers and a old compound, with very many memories. I'd hate to think of what older Alumni see in what now holds the name of our school. It's painful to watch, read and hear, how the school has changed. The facilities are covered in filth and need serious maintenance, the quality of education is going down and even the Saints Spirit, that lurks about the halls and compound, that should keep us together is no more. All that's left of the Spirit is in the Alumni, who quietly, each day, pass on a small portion of the Spirit to other people in their day to day lives.
It is time the Alumni came back to their old school and restored it to its former glory. Steps have been made, associations and groups formed, long conversations and meetings, petitions, arguments, the list is almost endless. But aside from the removal of part of an ineffective administration, nothing has been achieved and the school is in a very bad state. In any case, the poor administration was replaced with an equally poor, of not worse admin, so I'd say it was a step back. "Better the demon you know, then the angel you don't."
I feel that this is because the wrong steps were made. Rather than trying to remove the administration that we feel is wrong, we can try to change it. It is only wrong because it has no sense of the Saints Spirit. We, who have the Spirit should come together and, with our actions in restoring the school (at least in restoring the physical facilities that we have the power to do), we can pass on the Spirit to those who don't have it. We already do it every day to our business partners and contacts. Why not bring our torches back and recindle the fire that should mould our children to be Saints?
The Saints will march in and restore the great institution and oh, Lord, I really do want to be among the number, when the Saints go marching in.
It can be done. It should be done. And if we chose to take the time and the effort, it SHALL be done.
We all know this line: "Once a Saint, always a Saint!". I feel that the same applies to the institution that makes Saints.
"Once the Institution, always the Institution!"
Nationality
It has been about one and a half years since I left the country I have lived in for my whole life to go back to the country of my birth. I thought it would be fun and interesting and, in a sense, it is. But there are a few things I grow tired of. One of them is this question: "Do you feel more Estonian or Kenyan?" This abominable and annoying question is one that my new countrymen feel important to ask no matter where I go, be it school, family or even among strangers. I found the best answer to the question a few weeks ago. and it goes like this: Let's shine two light sources at the same spot on a white wall. One source gives out red light and the other gives out blue. Now, look at the wall and tell me: is the colour of the spot red or blue. Is it more red than blue?
Growing up in Kenya, nobody ever was interested in my nationality. and why should they? Kenya has so many tribes, nationalities, families and countless other social divisions, that there's no point of trying to find it out. In any case, knowing about it didn't make much of a difference. It's not like knowing someone's nationality changes the person. In fact the thing that's going to change with that information is the asker's perception and paradigm of the person. All those who people in Kenya, who asked me where I was from, didn't ask me wbout my sense of identity. It wasn't important. They wanted to know what the place was like and how fun it is to be in. After all, that's all they saw as important (I agree with that perspective). Being more Kenyan or Estonian never crossed their mind. I was Andreas and I was the way I was. Full-stop.
Estonia is, needless to say, different. People here have this weird need to find the sources of everything. The fact that I'm part Kenyan is very important to them and I fail to see the reason why. I see us all as people and I really don't like the fact that they don't. I don't study social psychology or sociology (that would by my mother and a few other friends) but I have come up with my own understanding of why this is so: Estonia is a small country, in very many ways. Not only does it have a small area, but the population of the entire nation is less than the population of Nairobi (the capital of Kenya, for you ignorant readers), something close to 1,2 million. This country actially has a real possibility of going extinct. Their history is also full of all sorts of invasions and other unpleasant things and that has left in them a sense of identity that I don't understand. They want to keep their culture pure and maintain their family ties. And so they look at outsiders differently. They are either potential threats (they can be in terms of physical attacks, or even threats in that they dilute the culture) or they are interesting spices to add to the already conc brew. In my case, I'd be an interesting spice, but only if I feel more Estonian in nature. If not, I'd be more likely to dilute the culture. I'm rambling, probably... Don't take me too seriously, eh?
Now, here's where I'd probably say I'm more Kenyan, but I should perhaps point out that I just spent an entire morning listening to Eric Wainaina (one of Kenya's best musicians, for the ignorant people) and, frankly, there's nobody who can listen to Wainaina and NOT feel a little more patriotic to the country under the equator. In any case, it helped me realise what I don't like about Estonia and what I love about Kenya: in Kenya, I can do whatever I feel like doing, so long as I have the necessary resources and I don't inconvenience a fellow Kenyan, without worrying about people judging me. I grow tired of having to watch my every move (especially the movements of my tongue and my fingers on the keyboard) because someone is going to get insulted (that seems to happen a lot). I, for one ave grown weary of people chosing their words carefully around me, because they think I'll get insulted and angry.
This long post has tired me, so I'll end with this: I like politically and socially correct Estonia, but miss carefree Kenya.
Growing up in Kenya, nobody ever was interested in my nationality. and why should they? Kenya has so many tribes, nationalities, families and countless other social divisions, that there's no point of trying to find it out. In any case, knowing about it didn't make much of a difference. It's not like knowing someone's nationality changes the person. In fact the thing that's going to change with that information is the asker's perception and paradigm of the person. All those who people in Kenya, who asked me where I was from, didn't ask me wbout my sense of identity. It wasn't important. They wanted to know what the place was like and how fun it is to be in. After all, that's all they saw as important (I agree with that perspective). Being more Kenyan or Estonian never crossed their mind. I was Andreas and I was the way I was. Full-stop.
Estonia is, needless to say, different. People here have this weird need to find the sources of everything. The fact that I'm part Kenyan is very important to them and I fail to see the reason why. I see us all as people and I really don't like the fact that they don't. I don't study social psychology or sociology (that would by my mother and a few other friends) but I have come up with my own understanding of why this is so: Estonia is a small country, in very many ways. Not only does it have a small area, but the population of the entire nation is less than the population of Nairobi (the capital of Kenya, for you ignorant readers), something close to 1,2 million. This country actially has a real possibility of going extinct. Their history is also full of all sorts of invasions and other unpleasant things and that has left in them a sense of identity that I don't understand. They want to keep their culture pure and maintain their family ties. And so they look at outsiders differently. They are either potential threats (they can be in terms of physical attacks, or even threats in that they dilute the culture) or they are interesting spices to add to the already conc brew. In my case, I'd be an interesting spice, but only if I feel more Estonian in nature. If not, I'd be more likely to dilute the culture. I'm rambling, probably... Don't take me too seriously, eh?
Now, here's where I'd probably say I'm more Kenyan, but I should perhaps point out that I just spent an entire morning listening to Eric Wainaina (one of Kenya's best musicians, for the ignorant people) and, frankly, there's nobody who can listen to Wainaina and NOT feel a little more patriotic to the country under the equator. In any case, it helped me realise what I don't like about Estonia and what I love about Kenya: in Kenya, I can do whatever I feel like doing, so long as I have the necessary resources and I don't inconvenience a fellow Kenyan, without worrying about people judging me. I grow tired of having to watch my every move (especially the movements of my tongue and my fingers on the keyboard) because someone is going to get insulted (that seems to happen a lot). I, for one ave grown weary of people chosing their words carefully around me, because they think I'll get insulted and angry.
This long post has tired me, so I'll end with this: I like politically and socially correct Estonia, but miss carefree Kenya.
Take Two
Heya, people.
I remember about a year or so ago I tried having a blog, but because I didn't have a reason at the time, it died out and I chose to discontinue it. I deleted it.
Now here's take two. I have a reason to speak my mind and so I shall.
Unlike my old blog, where I simply wrote what came to mind, this time I'll write what I really want to write about. The things that I feel are most important for me to tell you: the nice, lovery people, who have taken your time to read the ravings of a crazy idiot like myself.
I hope you guys will be as entertained and informed by me as I am. And should you want to, feel free to leave a comment or two.
I remember about a year or so ago I tried having a blog, but because I didn't have a reason at the time, it died out and I chose to discontinue it. I deleted it.
Now here's take two. I have a reason to speak my mind and so I shall.
Unlike my old blog, where I simply wrote what came to mind, this time I'll write what I really want to write about. The things that I feel are most important for me to tell you: the nice, lovery people, who have taken your time to read the ravings of a crazy idiot like myself.
I hope you guys will be as entertained and informed by me as I am. And should you want to, feel free to leave a comment or two.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)