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I had no idea asking questions can be a talent. Not until I met Susan; my domestic manager. She is a nice young girl, still trying to understand life; in so many dimensions. It is for this reason, I presume, that she asks so many and mostly mundane on the edge of irritating questions. When is the next census, she should be an interviewer.

I had planned to spend my Sunday afternoon lazing around the house. To celebrate the emergence of Miniboo’s third tooth by taking the afternoon nap with him and we dream of biting apples, chewing maize and tips of biro pens!!  Great!!

Susan was on a high with her talent: questioning. We had traveled to my grandmother’s place with her the previous weekend. Little did I know she was gathering questions along the way. Remember how teachers would make us ask questions during school trips the national park so that we can use those answers to come up with a composition when we got back to school? She must have been a keen student.  Most of the questions however, were unrelated to the trip. I think they had been gathered over time since she got to the city. I must have acted too unavailable to answer any of them. Today was the opportune time. 

“Which is that river we crossed on our way to cucu’s” (grandma) this was the curtain raiser. I have used that route for more than 40 times I bet but I, solemnly swear that I have never bothered to know the name of that river, worse still, it always passed for a dam in my head. I ask for water, the question dissolves.  The stage has however been set. “Between DSTV and Go TV, which one is more expensive?” She must me trying to measure my financial muscle so that she can ask for a pay rise. I refuse to answer that and ask her to warm the water she had just brought me, “I wanted warm you know?” 

As I sipped my warm water and hoped that we were done with QA or rather Q and divert session, she popped the next. “Why is the government introducing mother tongue lessons into the curricular? Which ethnic language will kids in small towns with various ethnic groups learn? Isn’t that tribal? This may actually be a valid argument but for Christ sake, it’s the government, it makes absurd decisions and it’s a lazy Sunday afternoon, we do not question absurd decisions. 

Lil man is crying, maybe he needs a diaper change, or he does not want to imagine he may to take Chinese lessons, if he ends up in the same school with our Luhya neighbor’s Chinese boy. I live along Thika road this should answer you. Before the diaper session, am asked if I know that human beings blik (she means blink) more than 10,000 times in a year. Well, I dint know.

At this point, I am really trying to take a nap; Susan asks why a learned good looking man would choose to be polygamous. This raised my antenna. “ Who is?” “Diamond the Tanzanian rapper. He has four wives.” Cool. That is good for economic growth, its called distribution of resources. I mean, the guy is rich and can support all the four wives. Opposite to my expectation, this does not close the session………..”Kamba men are so short, why is that?” Okay, does she prefer kisses to diamonds? Is she interested in rich Tanzanian men or in short Kamba men? Am lost.

I lose myself to a good lazy Sunday afternoon nap.