Heri ya mwaka mpya

Happy New Year.

I have mastered this Swahili greeting today, said as it was dozens of times in the office.

It was a gentle start to the working year, by recent standards. I don’t suppose the sense of tranquillity will last but we can but hope.

I’m also on the trail of a phantom texter, who messaged in Swahili at the weekend with a threatening remark, translated as something like ‘stop talking about other people’s work.’ When I checked with Dennis he confirmed it was written in an offensive manner. The relaxed (rarely encountered) version of me is writing it off as a wrong number. The stressed out standard version assumes it’s a disgruntled staff member hellbent on conducting a campaign of terror. They called, and I called back, culminating in more text messages, in which the phantom messager then said he/she was a driver and perhaps I could make use of their services. Not sure it had been the best build-up to such an offer. Anyway, they went away after that.

A new couple has appeared in the room next door to where I stay, replacing the South Sudanese chap who has not re-emerged since Christmas. I detected a distinct English twang in Omar who then revealed he has spent a lot of time in Reading. Not somewhere I’ve had the pleasure of visiting myself, except via the station platform.