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22:27
From: Kikuyumoja's realm
Read This Entry & More At Kikuyumoja's realm
…by (the benchmarking tool) HD Tune, telling me that almost all of my USB flash memory sticks aren’t bootabooool.
Well, apparently they are indeed able to supply any recent computer with a fresh copy of e.g. gOS - a new OS based on Ubuntu 7.10 + featuring lots of Google web apps.
Just plug it in and start your computer with the latest release of [put your favourite OS here] - for inspirations, check out pendrivelinux.com
Reasons for bragging about it this way is that I am still amazed at this tiny 2GB microSD card inside the USB reader (see yellow arrow) and that it actually provides my machine with a very sexy-looking OS within a maximum of 20seconds boot-up time. And all of this at the size of a fingernail! (<== no, not those nails that have at one time been very popular with guys from Nyeri…)
Again, the provision of WinXP rescue kits, portable apps or even complete OS on a USB flash memors stick may just be the right extra income for IT students. Given that not everyone has his own machine, a USB flash drive may just substitute that need for virtual desktops.
Maybe one day we’ll only see ppl using terminal-like stations where all private data is stored on a USB flash stick if not remote on a central server?
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19:01
From: Words Much Like Poetry
Read This Entry & More At Words Much Like Poetry
i've often been told that my eyes speak volumes
and all the thoughts and emotions that wander, at times aimlessly,
through the dimly lit corridors of my spirit self
are written plainly within for those with the ability to translate them
from whatever ancient language is spoken by the soul.
i fear those sensitives, those empaths who are privy
to that which i, by no willing intention, telegraph.
i've a monstrous part of me that sleeps in the deepest recesses
of the den that is my heart,
a snarling, rabid beast,
epic in proportion,
that creeps forward from its iniquitous home
when my baser and more wrathful passions burn brightest,
and it is no small task to keep caged within me
this vengeful incarnation, this worshiper of malevolence.
at day's end, i lay upon the lonely stretch of my bed
sweat soaked, heaving, teeth clenched against the banshee like screams
that fill my chords to the brim,
and my eyes, o curtain less panes of tempered glass that they are,
are shut,
i dare not risk that by some mischance
a sensitive might look upon them.
no, to peer into my eyes,
in the nighttime hours when the struggle within me is at its fiercest,
is to lose that which has perpetuated humanity,
faith would be lost to the sensitive,
for no reader of the nature of man,
could hold onto hope once the malignant spawn that festers inside of me
was revealed to them,
and they would fall un-hesitantly into the bleak waters
of the river despair.
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12:56
From: The Displaced African
Read This Entry & More At The Displaced African
Ladies and gentlemen, here I am yet again with my two cents on an issue that we as Africans run into when we are in foreign countries A LOT. I have realized that my writing style is a very disjointed incomplete one and so forgive me but I will say this often, I know that this article doesn’t capture the whole complexity of the situation, but hopefully it will stir your thought in the right direction.
Have you ever heard or known someone who has heard the following: (more…)
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12:50
From: For Love and Money
Read This Entry & More At For Love and Money
 Sometime early last year, Chipotle Mexican grill opened up a branch close to my place of work. I like Mexican food, so I've been there more than a couple of times with friends from work and others who work in the vicinity. The fast food chain that is famous for free food on it's first day of business, when they open a new branch, offered us free lunch today. As is their intention, the free lunch offer created a buzz at my place of work this week. Between 100 and 200 colleagues made their way to the eatery which I understand was jam packed. I couldn't make it as I had a lunch time meeting where food was also provided. For the colleagues who made their way to Chipotle, they found out that TANSTAAFL (There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch). The Burritos were free but not the soft drinks. For $1.40 they could add a drink to their meal. Chicken Burrito Bowl, $0Ice cold Coca-Cola, $1.40Mexican bubble bath, pricele$$ There are some things money can't buy, for everything else there's MasterCard.
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12:01
From: Kenyanentrepreneur.com
Read This Entry & More At Kenyanentrepreneur.com
The French refer to it as L’Addiction d’Afrique (The Addiction of Africa) - it’s the draw and addiction that foreigners develop for Africa inspite of all of it’s problems. An addiction they cannot seem to rationally explain.
I was thinking about this phrase as I read {once again} this blog piece written by an American journalist [...]
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11:00
From: Kenyan Pundit
Read This Entry & More At Kenyan Pundit
…vote for Ushahidi at Netsquared website. Last day to vote is Friday 21st March 5:00 pm Pacific US Time
For those of you who have already voted, please note that this is different from the number of stars that we have already picked up (thanks y’all).
Hash, has a very detailed explanation of the process. [...]SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "One more time, pretty please…", url: "http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/03/20/one-more-time-pretty-please/" });
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5:33
From: bankelele
Read This Entry & More At bankelele
Kenya’s National Social Security Fund finally released their year end results in the newspapers today after many years of pressure by governance experts and regulators. The scheme hopes to convert into a pension fund and states that it plans to hold an AGM soon While the statements show improved performance over the last four years (NSSF-K was abused in the 1990’s and forced into bad property investments and lost billions in collapsed banks), how does it compare with NSSF Uganda who released their results last week? approximate conversion to US$ Buildings/property/landNSSFK $434 million (35%) NSSFU $76 million (13%) Government SecuritiesNSSFK $115 million (9%) NSSFU $289 million (51%) EquitiesUganda list their holdings. – as Uganda Clays , Baroda, Nsimbe, DFCU, Stanbic, Serena, HFCU, Victoria properties. Kenyan one does not list but would include Unilever Tea, Nation media group, HFCK (11%) KCB (8%) British American Tobacco (20%) East African Breweries (8%), EAP cement (27%), and National Bank (48%) NSSFK $618 million NSSFU $54 million Current assetsNSSFK $50 million NSSFU $350 million Current LiabilitiesNSSFK $20 million NSSFU $11 million Members FundsNSSFK $1,240 million NSSFU $548 million Totals assetsNSSFK $1,240 million NSSFU $564 million Income: NSSFK $61 million NSSFU $38 million however the Kenyan one include changes in market value of shares in last year, adding another $80m to bring total income to $141mCostsNSSFK $41 million NSSFU $7 million Net Gain/ProfitNSSFK $147 million NSSFU $31 million Earlier: - Under its current format, the ultimate payout will be low from NSSF(K) and the benefits at retirement will not be enough to sustain a majority of retirees - Comparison between Stanbic Kenya and Stanbic Uganda.
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4:55
From: You Missed This
Read This Entry & More At You Missed This
How vulnerable is Prime Minister Odinga?It beats me when people say one thing while in essence they mean something totally different: they say 'red' when they mean 'black'. This kind of vacillation is very evident especially in matters concerning the weather. When it's cold, they want it hot; when it's hot, they want it freezing! (Blue blistering b…!) The poem below, which I wrote on 5th of May 1997, was occasioned by this human response to the capricious quality of weather. God's CountryThe sun rises with renewed anger, With rage, it 'serves' its heat, To the life below; People cower, Plants shrink and droop – Heat by day, cold by night, Days turn to months. Plants, angered by this routine, Refuse to bear fruit, Making futile the efforts of man, To till, level and sow, On dry ground, Famine envelops the countryLeaves turn brown and crispy, Shed they are, wanted no more, Plants wither and zap! disappear, People grow thin And, a ‘sun tan's’ a must. After months on end, Clouds sparsely gather, Becoming a big, black mass, They growl, declaring war on sun, Then they spit to the ground, Their hard-earned spittle. Plants less with anger, And full of bloom, sprout, Giving the country a green, Expanse of leafy mass, That promises fruit, To hungry beings. People gain weight, Eating the fruits of their labour; But then: Mud spoils their shoes, Colds cost their pay, The weather spoils their day, Is all thanks they have to God. P.S.:- I love good poetry. I also love to write poems, in addition to other forms of writing. PKW, I love your poem, The Road in Flamingo. Hilarious, it is. The imagery it encapsulates is overly fascinating. Other Articles That Have Caught Kumekucha's Attention Horror from African Safari: Gory scene not fit for TV as lions fail to find their usual prey Food can kill you: Conclusive evidence shows that this famous rich man ate himself to death
Husband cuts off wife’s two arms up to the elbow for failing to give birth to a boy
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3:09
From: You Missed This
Read This Entry & More At You Missed This
There are some Kenyans who insist that politics in Kenya is now going to be pretty boring with a grand coalition and no opposition in parliament. Of course these naïve Kenyans have no idea what they are talking about.
Already the people’s hero, Raila Odinga is sitting on what will shape up to be one of the hottest political seats ever created in these shores. As usual most Kenyans have failed to read the small print and would prefer to wait for a Tsunami before they scrutinize that all important section.
One of the things that is bound to influence politics considerably and make any prime minister vulnerable is the fact that parliament needs only a simple majority to send the premier home. And don't forget that unlike a vote of no confidence on the president, it does not send the MPs back to the polls. In fact it can be done one lazy afternoon with 60 or so legislators in the house. And even with a full house, there are a lot of people in PNU who would vote with the Kalenjin community to remove the PM, yesterday. Yep. It is pretty easy to pass a vote of no confidence on the prime minister, meaning that poor Agwambo will feel the heat from day one. Still his supporters will tell you that the man is fireproof.
Now let us take a purely hypothetical situation. Say the Kalenjin community in parliament for some reason are not happy with their arap Mibei, the PM. We all know that thanks to former president Moi’s wily ways, the Rift Valley has numerous MPs and most of them are from the sparsely populated Kalenjin community. What this means is that they would need to team up with a small party within PNU like Narc and they would be able to garner enough numbers to send the Prime Minister home. By the way Narc is also pretty jittery about the grand coalition and one man called Danston Mungatana keeps on making all sorts of noises at press conferences against it.
Anyway, this little political reality about the PM is what will make the cabinet list of the grand calition the most interesting and titillating read for Kenyans since David Mailu’s After 4:30 novelette released in the 70s to feverish sales. Or since Robert Ludlum’s last edge-of-the-seat suspense thriller (you take your pick).
A section of Kalenjin MPs have already said that the fairest thing would be for the ODM side of the grand coalition cabinet to have at least half the MPs from their community. And with good reason. Not only does this group have numerical power in parliament, but no other community contributed more and sacrificed more to partly reverse the stolen election of last December. In fact the contribution of the Kalenjin cannot be compared to that of all other communities put together. They are the reason why we now have a grand coalition government.
So the first thing to look out for in the list (that could even be released today) is if their request has been fulfilled by Arap Mibei. If it has then it is only fair to expect the community to be the most powerful block in the 10th parliament.
If the request hasn’t been met, then you can expect some fireworks within ODM.
However knowledgeable experts say that it will be impossible for arap Mibei to fulfill this particular request and what will most probably happen is that the cabinet will have a substantial representation from the Kalenjin community and Arap Mibei will then cut other deals with the community to appease them. The truth is that whatever ODM supporters say, the survival of the premier heavily depends on his treating the Kalenjin well.
Which brings us to another thorny issue. What do you think the Prime Minister would do if he were to find a Kalenjin member of the cabinet involved in corruption. My dear readers I leave that question with you. P.S. Apparently my post of yesterday depicting the burning of Kenyans in Naivasha did not reveal my position clearly concerning George Saitoti’s planned prosecution of poll violence perpetrators. Let me make my stand and that of many Kenyans clear in one sentence. Prosecute everybody or prosecute nobody. And by everybody I mean Martha Karua, Kivuitu and cronies, Kabando wa Kabando, George Saitoti etc.
Incidentally a poll carried out by KTN last night showed that 39% of Kenyans are for amnesty to all post election violence perpetrators. I am sure these are the Kenyans who understand that justice is always extremely selective in Kenya. Other Articles That Have Caught Kumekucha's Attention Horror from African Safari: Gory scene not fit for TV as lions fail to find their usual prey Food can kill you: Conclusive evidence shows that this famous rich man ate himself to death
Husband cuts off wife’s two arms up to the elbow for failing to give birth to a boy
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2:09
From: What An African Woman Thinks
Read This Entry & More At What An African Woman Thinks
No, I haven't rolled over and died. I keep meaning to come back here and say something, but then I find that I have nothing to say. Or, perhaps, I don't know how to say what I really want to say. I'm trying to go back to the blogger I was before the "Sixty Days in Kenya" happened, but I find that I can't. Not yet, anyway. True, the dark cloud that was hanging ominously over my head is gone and the tight knot in my stomach has loosened somewhat. I'm getting a decent amount of sleep at night. Well, ok, it may not be decent but at least it's not undecent. Oh the things we take for granted. I cannot tell it all. For the most part I'm pleased at the efforts being made by both Raila and Kibaki. I'm privileged and proud to be a part of a proactive church community. And at least I have the hope of a Kenyan identity to cling to again. So things are unbad. But every time I'm tempted to rest on my laurels, I hear something that reminds me that there's still much to be done. What about the internally displaced people? What about the relatively high level of tension in certain parts of the country? What about the land issue? What about the new constitution? I can whatabout myself into a state on any day of the week and three days in between. I know I really ought to let go of all of it and quit fretting. What, after all, can this one african woman do? Still, I fret. I will not be comforted. But, I will be distracted. I came out of my two-month long daze to find that life had been hurtling along at its usual breakneck speed. I'm still trying to catch up and I'm breathless for the effort. Until I do, I will not be in these parts very often. So I suppose you could say this blog is on hiatus. Although, as before, I reserve the right to change my mind. Tomorrow. Or the day after. Or the day after that. Keep well. And thanks for coming by.It's my window, but I don't own the view.
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