My Lovely Endearing Alice

"Janje!(my childhood nickname) Early to rise.... you know how the rest goes,"she says as she enters my room. I grudgingly turn and squint my eyes to the light in my bedroom. As I drag myself out of bed, I wonder "how does she do this everyday?" In this modern times where life is so crazy and fast paced and for a woman to be outstanding, she needs to be super woman, dearest Alice always manages to pull it off. I am always in awe of how industrious my mother is and when others are saying "My role model is  Oprah Winfrey" I always maintain my mother is my role model. She and I have grown closer, more open with each other and I have become her confidant over the years. It is truly a special bond between a mother and child.

I am sure she might not know this but she is the fuel behind my thirst to succeed in life. Seeing how much she has given me growing up, not that she is a millionaire or anything, I just feel so motivated to work my behind off to spoil her rotten. I know that I don't owe her but deep down I feel that making her proud is the ultimate reward.

Alice is as loving as they come and I know coming from me it seems a bit biased but I am calling a spade, a spade. Dear Alice is so nice to everyone, she always has a kind gesture or a kind word in the least. She has somehow inculcated this in me and even though I know it's somewhat risky being "too nice" it is something I got from my mama. As I tweet away about my good features saying I got it from my mama. I am glad that those values related to doing good always is yet another thing I can proudly say.

Alice and I haven't always been close actually growing up I was the typical daddy's girl. But who could blame me at the time, Dad was mostly away on business and mum was the one always pinching me for mischief whereas each time I saw dad he always had a present up his sleeve.

Through the years Alice and I have had our fair share of fights but the most interesting bit is no matter how much she got on my last nerve, silent treatment never lasted for more than 15 minutes. I remember when she had to say no and how much I pouted and cried but she still stood her ground. I can now appreciate that being firm was not her forte but she had to do what she believed would contribute to raising me right.

My mom is the ultimate busy bee something else I have inherited from her. Honestly, to this day even when she is not watching, I can't watch TV for more than 3 hours straight. I still feel uncomfortable watching TV during the day especially morning hours but that's just how I was raised. I still carry on some habits I picked up from her growing up and well I think my kids (in future) will have "Alice" in them from me.

Alice is not perfect, that much we can agree on and well who are we kidding no one walking this earth's surface is. Honestly, if lecturing was a sport my mum would have been an Olympics medal holder. At times my dad and I tease her, that she loves talking a lot but recently whilst baby sitting my younger siblings I found myself lecturing just like mum does. Hehe! Deep down I know I will be just like her when I become a mother. Sincerely, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Another thing about Alice is her love for sarcasm, once she gets on your case there is no mercy but what I love most about it is how humorous she makes it. She is truly a funny lady who always has the most interesting phrases on earth. I remember this one time my second born sister (who is a potential Olympic gold medal contender in the whining sport once it is made legit) was throwing a tantrum as a result of some chore she had been assigned. My mum just said, "Ignore the insect." Hehe! Still makes me laugh to this day. Before y'all wonder too much about the phrase it was based on a story about how when she was in high school there was a moth flying in their class and being as mischievious as high school students get, the teacher's calls for "ignore the insect" fell on deaf ears as class came to a stand still.

Speaking of high school, my darling mother was quite the brainy lady, she actually got a scholarship from Mr Kenneth Matiba for her A levels as a result of performing well. While in her A levels, Alice was actually awarded for being "the most obedient". I used to feel odd in my earlier years in high school as I did my fair share of punishments back in the day. Currently, that gene is still in my blood, I am as goody-goody-two-shoes as they come. I recall last semester during a certain exam and some random classmate kept whispering my name for help. Hate on me all you want but I was appalled, I just gave him a stern looked that screamed,"leave me the heck alone." And that's me Alice's copyright!

I love making mother dear proud and once she gives her stamp of approval, no one can convince me otherwise. I have a close reminder of how much my mum values my opinion and that was in 2011 when she let me name our last born sister. I feel so proud of that moment, it always warms me up. My mom like all other mum's is always right, I recall her warning me about one of my exes telling me he wasn't right for me. Well she was damn right about this guy http://dailylifeofagirlyyouth.blogspot.com/2013/10/mylife-with-fraud-as-i-sit-and-type.html
and I have come to value her opinion.

Alice is quite conservative but not ignorant of the times. I know most of you are curious wondering do we talk about boyfriends? Actually, I am working on it, plan to introduce my current sometime soon though I know she knows he exists. She drops subtle hints and tips through magazine articles about how a lady should act in a relationship. Insisting I have to read them. Some time back she was joking telling me to have a new dating experience each year then in fourth year I evaluate and choose the best! It was at one of her cousins' wedding and you can imagine how surprised I was. She also made promise to tie the knot officially and shun "come we stay" arrangements.

That pretty much sums it up! My lovely endearing Alice, a gift from above. I truly want us to be together forever despite the harshness of reality. One day, I am going to be somebody and boy oh boy how I will spoil you rotten Alice, so help me God!

Now That I Have Opened My Heart I Might As Well...

"Honestly if you asked I would say we don't talk for the week." I know when you read this, you wonder who, what happened, why?  Wonder no more, all shall be revealed.  This was a Whats app message by my dear boyfriend.  It was after a weekend apart and an epic blunder on my side. So what could I have done to get it to this point?

It was a sunny Saturday morning, I woke up and to my horror I had overslept.  I panicked as I was heading for camp that weekend and we were to meet by 7.30am. In my defense the two days prior were so intensive borne with CATs and I had barely had any decent sleep. All the same I managed to convince my dear boyfriend to drop me.

 All was well till our team leader called to ask where I was. Ended up saying " On my way, my friend is dropping me." Well needless to say he was mad as hell. And when I think about it now I only said that to detach any blame for my tardiness towards him. Well I had hoped to make it right by introducing him to my team leader but didn't get the chance. So he left thinking I was ashamed of him. Nothing could be farther from the truth but there was no turning back the hands of time. 

Being a student and a leader while at it, I have a crazy schedule. I hoped to straighten things out after camp but time was not on my side. Worst part is I was under pressure due to a class presentation that didn't even happen!  So my dear boyfriend was hurt and mad and after trying to apologize enough times I have decided for once to let him be.

Being day one, it hadn't been easy. I could call him, sent a text got a non committal two word reply. It's painful and honestly been keeping busy just to avoid dwelling on it.
I miss him a lot and all the little things.  I really do. But well, not much I can do except go all 'dear diary'.

Today is day five as I finalize this post, I am happy to report all has been well. My dear boyfriend came around and the whole silent treatment was done by Day Two. I promise I am not exaggerating when I say it had been the longest and loneliest 24 hours ever. I kept missing him and thinking about him non stop fighting the urge to blow up his phone.

We have come a long way honestly and it feels good to finally have someone I actually feel like is the mystical  "the one". Now before the cynics roll their eyes and laugh away my naivety, I must say that it took a while to get to this point. Being the control freak I am, it was not easy to let go and just have someone take care of me for a change. My dear boyfriend has been my best friend honestly speaking. He knows me so well that I gave up lying 100% because he could always put two and two together.

I honestly must say that our getting to know each other was actually online and being a digital enthusiast I ain't afraid to share it. Sure, sure there are psychos out there on the world wide web but I am a big believer in fate. If it's meant to be, it's meant to be. We got together at a time I was least expecting love. The journey has been real, ups and downs, fights left right and center but I wouldn't have it any other way. We have grown in love together and the trust I have in him is unmeasurable. I actually recently concluded that I will take up his request to go Bungee jumping sometime in the future. He still doesn't know about it yet though.

I am quite a go getter and always very passionate about my causes and it feels so so good to finally find a man who isn't intimidated by me. One who actually supports me and is my biggest fan. He is the only one I ever let see me at my lowest, oh how I remember how I sobbed his chest wet when I failed the my first ever interview. He knew just what to say and kept me optimistic about the future.

I honestly can't picture life without him and thank God for everyday we are together. I know if I had to share our love story this post could end up being a novel because there is so much to say. I guess the whole point of this post is to let you know that if he or she is the one, you will always look forward to every new day.

True love does actually exist and one bad break up should not make you shut out any chances at finding love. Good men actually exist because truth be told my boyfriend treats me like a queen and I love him unconditionally!

Enough about me!

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That Giant Leap

Meet Chura Limited a tech start up that has been in operation for six months and currently incubated at the c4dlab-An incubation lab at the University Of Nairobi, Chiromo campus. For those of us who are not conversant with the Swahili language ‘chura’ is a Swahili name for frog. Why? Well Chura signifies the transition in leaping from one mobile network to another. This is because through their website Chura Limited is able to give mobile users access to all mobile networks.

The co-founders behind this riveting idea are alumni of the University of Nairobi namely; Samuel Njuguna, Stephanie Gaku, Njogu Kinyanjui, Jack Kinga and Byron Sitawa. This group of friends was able to realize that different telecommunication networks in Kenya had varied strengths and found a way to enjoy each of them. Their innovation is unique in enhancing network interoperability and the first of its kind in the country.

The idea was developed when they realized most Kenyan mobile subscribers use different networks for different purposes. An example is a subscriber that has one line for calls, another for texts and another for the internet. They thought it would be convenient to be able to serve all these lines from a single point in a fast and convenient way.
Chura offers four services:

1. Switch Airtime-Transfer airtime across networks.
2. Buy Airtime-Buy Airtime from any network using any mobile money service.
3. Airtime for Cash-Convert your airtime to mobile money.
4. Bulk Airtime- Send airtime to multiple phone numbers at the click of a button.

The airtime for cash service was created for users that had a lot of airtime, wanted to convert it to cash but had no avenue to do this. A good example is when radio listeners participate in the shows and win airtime in the process. Additionally, at the time users who bought airtime erroneously from their mobile money account could not reverse have the transaction reversed but Chura was able to help in that.

So how exactly does Chura work you might ask? The process is quite straight forward. A user makes a request online or through sms for the service they would like. He/she then sends airtime/ mobile money to Chura and Chura sends airtime/ mobile money to their desired number.

For every start up finances are always tricky. The traditional sources of finance are always very skeptical. These daring entrepreneurs funded Chura out of their own pockets. Yet another challenge is the culture of closing up technologies by network operators which presented technological and logistical challenges when developing the product. The team however has solved these problems through sacrifice and creativity. The company has received positive interest from investors but has decided to build the brand further before accepting any external finance.

Chura’s primary target is any mobile user that wants to maximize benefits from the different strengths offered by the different network operators. In short a user has access to the services of every network operator regardless of their home network.The services are accessible to anyone that has a mobile phone or access to the internet. They also have an SMS application as well as a web and mobile application. Chura is available anytime, anywhere in Kenya.

Just like any other business venture the bottom line counts. Chura it makes its profits from selling airtime and the service charges. This is at the heart of its business plan and the team is projecting exponential growth. They are working on a number of avenues that will enhance the product’s accessibility and user experience. They are also on track to launch some new products. Scalability is also in the team’s plans whereby they are currently developing a system to expand their capacity and replicate the services in other Multi-SIM markets in the region. At the moment the company does not have any employees but with their targeted they will be able to welcome more staff on-board.

Feedback for the service has been overwhelmingly positive. Most users are very happy about the convenience and efficiency that Chura provides. Chura Limited’s impact has seen improved quality of service from network operators to benefit their users. The team expects to see the liberalization of the mobile money platform and an opening up of technologies for use by developers in creating applications that will add value to the industry. They hope to promote a culture where people create relevant solutions to problems that Kenyans face.

The team of young entrepreneurs goes to show that innovation and having the discipline to follow through on creative ideas can have a positive impact on business and the country in general. Each of the co-founders has had to turn down attractive employment offers from huge corporations to pursue their entrepreneurial goals. Most of us know that it is quite tempting to go for safety and avoid risks but as one of the co-founders shared with me, “If you don’t take risks, you will end up working for someone who will.” So the real question for the rest of us is are we ready to take that giant leap and follow our entrepreneurial streak?

Chura is fully operational and any interested people can check out their website www.chura.co.ke as well as the social media page on Facebook for more interaction.

Also published on www.uonbr.com