How You Doin'?

     I'm supposed to be studying for a midterm I have in 3 days, but hey, I'd rather be doing this. So, on the 22nd of last month, we - and by we I mean me and the wonderfully hilarious voices in my head - commemorated the 20th anniversary of the greatest show television has ever, or will ever, produce. Yes, people, F.R.I.E.N.D.S! So, as my way of celebrating the awesomeness that is this iconic show, here's a rundown of WHY WE LOVE FRIENDS!!!!! (cue applause)         

     I'm just gonna do it BuzzFeed-ish style, because, honestly, I could write a ballad about this thing. Heads up, I may be just a wee bit fanatical about it, but there are worse things to obsess about. Oh, and this is gonna be a long post (with a few references only devoted fans such as myself will get), but likely the most interesting thing you read this year, so sit tight, maybe get a snack?

Chandler Bing

             

    I cannot begin to express the love I feel for this character! Although this happens practically with all of them, 90% of the things that come out of Chandler's mouth will most likely leave you tilting your head sideways, eyebrow raised, thinking,"Whaaa???" (what you kids like to call WTF moments). The sarcastic word vomit is his most prized trait, I would say. It's like, "I know I don't have to be sarcastic, but the world has given me so much material to work with, and I'm just not one to be wasteful." (By the way, he's given me so much material to work with, I don't know what gifs to pick; he's just so flingin'-flangin' funny!)

         


           

Sometimes he takes things too lightly...

            #Word

Let's not forget, the moves like CHANDLER






Give it up for the Chan-Chan-Man!


Phoebe Buffay
    My goal mission in life is to find a friend like Pheebs, although BuzzFeed seems to think that I'm most likely to be the Phoebe in my group of friends. Best compliment ever as far as I'm concerned. Alias Regina Phalange, (reasons best known to her), and briefly, Princess Consuela Banana Hammock (you can't make this stuff up), Phoebe's the quirky, eccentric, superstitious one of the group, and that's putting it mildly. Her aloofness just makes her all the more lovable.

She's street, kinky, 'Save the Planet' and brutally honest, all rolled into one blonde bombshell.

          

Oh yeah, and she sings. Her own compositions. Oh, boy...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34172ltXqw8

Since crazy recognize crazy, she ended up marrying this guy...



But basically,

 'Nuff said.


Joey Tribbiani
    Sometimes Ken Adams. I tend to think of him as the slutty, lovable oaf of the group. He's the ultimate ladies' man, and the mastermind behind the best ever pick-up line, that works like a charm every time,

          

                                          Barney Stinson ain't got nothing on him

Now, Tribbianis may not be great thinkers or world leaders, they may not read a lot or run very fast, but damn it, they can eat! Oh, and one thing you probably wanna remember...

There's only one thing he likes as much as food...

He also kind of scares easy...

It doesn't usually go well when he tries to sound smart. He tries, he really does...

 

He's sweet and goofy and I love him!

Ross Geller

    Ah, the Divorce-Force extraordinaire. Even Joey doesn't understand how he got three women to marry him. He sure knows how to pick 'em...

He's the nerdy guy with a weird dinosaur obsession.

         

He's ordinarily a sweet guy, til, you know, he sleeps with the xerox girl, but hey,

         

What else...well, basically, he's all about dinosaurs and divorces. That is, when he's not doing seriously weird stuff to his body...

And screwing up the English language...

What's not to love!

Monica Geller
    OCD poster-child right there.

Phoebe: Because, I'm just, I'm incredibly anal and an unbelievable control freak.

Monica: No, you're not.

Phoebe: I know I'm not, but you are, and I was trying to spare your feelings.

 She's the 'mom'/drill sergeant of the group; the insanely competitive, responsible, voice-of-reason type, whose idea of fun is ironing wrapping paper and cleaning the oven.



A little bit of a wet blanket, but she has her raunchy moments...

And her moments of pure insanity...



And, she's capable of being funny too!



Admittedly, she really is the glue that holds the group together.

Rachel Green
    I feel like I watched her grow up. She went from ditzy, spoilt and pampered to, well, ditzy, responsible and employed. And promptly learned, the struggle is real.



She is not a morning person...




Were they on a break?



 She has such a way with words



At least she and Ross make a good parenting team...





Mainly, they are so adored because they have the kind of friendship and love everyone wants. So even though they don't really have other friends,



they're always there for each other.
    Kinda sucks to not have new episodes anymore, but this is the one show I can watch over and over again and laugh just as hard every time. For those who haven't watched FRIENDS (because you live under a rock...?), fret not, all 10 seasons of it will be on Netflix in January!

   Well, this was fun!

    

Journey to the Free World

    I have been planning on this post since two weeks ago. Bear with me, I feel like I've been immersed in a whirlwind. So, yeah... I'm here! Where to start...
    The flight was smooth enough. Honestly I thought I'd be insanely terrified; I am acrophobic after all. The entire Achieng clan, and then some, took me to the airport. I'm pleased, and a little surprised,  to report that there were no tears! I was absolutely geared up to cry my little heart out. Anyway, I actually enjoyed flying. Sat next to a pleasant American headed to Maine, who was nice enough to bear with a clueless first-time traveler. Food was good, entertainment was on-point, crew was friendly... BA's got it right in my book. I definitely would've enjoyed it more if I didn't have such big-ass suitcases to haul around though, as predicted. So after 27 insanely long hours, 4 of which were spent sleeping, I landed in New York.

First glimpse of the US as seen at a crazy high altitude

    Of course, my journey would be incomplete if it didn't include weird encounters. The most memorable one was when I was checking in in Chicago. Some dude with a really long weird looking beard notices my beaded bracelet of the Kenyan flag and asks, "Are you from Africa?" So, first thought, he can recognize the beads, but not the country he saw them in. I just smiled and nodded, clarifying that I am indeed from Kenya. He goes on to inform me that he's been to Nairobi, where the villagers made him similar beads. Ok, this is me operating on four hours of sleep and already feeling the effects of crossing so many time zones, hence, forgive me for not thinking of a comeback, I let it slide. The other not-so-crazy one was with the customs officer who asked me where I'd learnt English because apparently it was pretty good. For a second I actually thought that might be a trick question. Almost asked even. But I guessed that he'd probably had prior experience with not-so-good English speakers.
    I'll admit I'm one of those people who had the notion that they'd find out of this world things in the US, like it's in a realm of its own. Well, if you're like me and you're reading this, prepare to have your bubble burst. It's all very normal; it's different, but the same, if that makes sense. Basically everything we have, but better. About the school... love it! It really is beautiful. People are friendly (for the most part), the food's not that bad (doesn't make up for chapati; nothing ever will!), and professors try their darndest to be funny. I'll admit it was...odd, and a little daunting, knowing that I'm now part of the minority, more so because I'm the only black person in our hall, but I forget that pretty quickly since no one really makes it a point to bring it to your attention.

I'm not alone...flags of countries represented at U of R

    Listen to this: I have an accent! Me! Not only that, they can't understand it. I mean, I don't pronounce the rrr like they do (you know, dancrrr, prrrfect...you get the picture) and I enunciate my t's. Oh, and my speech doesn't entirely consist of the word 'like'. That's about the extent of my so-called "accent". Oh, well. Needless to say, I repeat myself a lot.
    I think that's everything I have to report for now. Oh, I've lost 4 pounds since I got here! Take that, Freshman 15! Feeling a tad nostalgic already. Definitely miss the food, speaking Kiswahili whenever I want, even the psychotic matatus...oh, and sharing certain jokes with people (the number of times my math professor says the word fundamentals...I just can't). Gotta go. Ugh, I do homework now. And don't get me started on having to carry backpacks around again...

MAB out;)

Pretty Hurts

 Hey guys. As of this moment, I'm a size 12! You have no idea how immensely proud I am of myself. That said, sometimes I find myself having to be reminded of what I've accomplished. I'm 20 years old, but even at my age, jabs at my weight still strike a nerve. I could list a good number of reasons that strengthened my conviction to shed some pounds. One of them, and a strong one, is visitors or relatives always feeling the need to question when I decline some manner of food, or serve small portions, and someone offhandedly states that I must be trying to lose weight and/or am on a diet. To which I give a small smile, bow my head and promptly block out the conversation.

    Now, this doesn't seem like that big a deal, and there's probably no malice behind their saying so, but it tends to get under your skin after the umpteenth time you hear it. Since my weight loss journey, comments of this nature were blissfully absent and were replaced with observations of how baggy my clothes are, to my absolute delight. So imagine my utter deflation when at a seminar of sorts yesterday, it came up twice. Twice. First because I don't take sugar with my coffee. Then when I didn't take afternoon tea. I mean, how about, I'm just not a fan of tea! Honestly if someone were relating this to me, I'd have thought it was a joke. File it under #BigGirlProblems.

    My mood pretty much took a nosedive from there. I was angry at myself that I let their comments bug me as much as they did, and that because of it I began downplaying the progress I've made. I hit an all-time low when I actually zipped up my jacket. Lord knows I was beyond relieved when the day was over. My general mood was in the dumper. That is, up until this morning when I came across a Facebook post from 'Humans of New York' that had the photo of a plus size woman striking a pose in her underwear sporting a huge smile, the caption a tribute to different people who in some point in her life took a jab at her weight. She went on to say how OK she was with her stretch marks, which she's had since puberty. Of course, the comments that followed ranged from "You're beautiful!" to "You're a pig" (I kid you not).

    After reading this, I just smiled and decided to get over myself. It was one of those moments when you feel like you were meant to read something, and it genuinely speaks to you. I don't quite know how to best put what it felt like in words, only that I realized it was high time I reevaluated my self-perception and fell back in love with myself. This is why Beyonce's Pretty Hurts resonates so strongly with me. And with that, I leave you with these emphatic lyrics.

Pretty hurts

Shine the light on whatever's worse

Perfection is the disease of a nation

Pretty hurts

Shine the light on whatever's worst

Tryna fix something but you can't fix what you can't see

It's the soul that needs the surgery

Are you happy with yourself? 

Lovely week y'all :)

The Big Chop

    My head feels so much lighter now! No stress; I can dance in the rain, and have hurricane winds blow over my head without a care in the world. I'm not saying this stuff's on my bucket list, but I like having options :)

    Don't be fooled; a few months ago if you'd have proposed such a, then, 'preposterous' idea, I'd have most likely given you a healthy smack upside the head. It was honestly one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make. Only a woman would understand my hesitation. So, after weeks of changing my mind, then changing it back, I finally hauled my behind to the salon and sat stock-still as I watched my hair being shaved off.

    I couldn't tell you how momentous that 'occasion' was to me. I am the epitome of routine. Typically I'm not one to take risks whose outcome I can't predict, or control for that matter, especially when it comes to my hair. Yet there I was, sitting in a salon I'd never been in, trusting a guy I'd just met not to make me look like a crazy person, because honestly, at that point I was just praying the lights wouldn't go off or he wouldn't sneeze and make me bald or something.

    After getting my hair cut, I decided to kick it up another notch and get it dyed red. Don't get too excited, it's very subtle, but hey. Baby steps. I think I'll go a bit wilder next time. Look at me being all daring! All in all I'm really glad I'm back to natural. It's like being handed a blank canvas. Ah, the possibilities...

Loser Alert

    You should've seen me on Thursday coming out of the doctor's office, smiling like a goon. Why, you ask? I've lost 4kg bitches! (Sorry, I've recently learned the merits of cursing when excited). Heed my words, I may bitch and whine about the annoying laps I run, and the agonising mountain climbers & pushups (in my head, of course) but they're all worth it! I'm practically giddy with ill-concealed glee :) I'm not likely to prance around in a bikini anytime soon, or in this lifetime for that matter. Frankly, I can live with that. Comfortably. Hey, I was destined for curves *wiggles eyebrows,naughty wink*.
    Now I have 4 weeks of boot camp left. Can't say I'm all teared up about leaving soon. I'm almost on my goal weight so I'm positive I'll walk away from it with no regrets, and in all honesty I'm really proud of myself for having taken this step; it's been one of the best decisions I've made all year.
    Thanks for reading :-*

UR Insane

    I'm having one of those days when I'm not very sure of how I'm feeling or what I want to do with myself, but I want it to be something fun. I guess this is one of those times when the phrase ' je ne sais quoi ' applies. But to be perfectly honest, I've been in a state of perpetual excitement for a while, especially now that school is drawing near. I literally find myself spontaniously bursting into random dance. Of course if you lived at my house, you'd probably be like, ' What else is new'. But really, I almost did pirouettes yesterday! ( HAHAHA. Yeah right. I did have a little bit of a 'Chandelier' moment though).
  It's so typically me. Whenever I'm psyched up for something that's still a while away I start planning for it earlier than is probably necessary. Honestly if left to my own devices I'd most likely do my clothes shopping (which I had originally scheduled for, silly me, the end of July), get me some big-ass suitcases and pack. Today. I kid you not. Heck, I'm already formulating in my head what I'll wear for travel! ( I'm looking forward to this trip, in case you didn't catch that).
    In a way, though, it'll be a bit of a reprieve from all the planning once the time finally comes, cuz newsflash honey, nothing about this has been cheap. Yikes! From enrolment deposits, visa fees, medical tests, air tickets, not to mention the amount of shopping involved... Let's just say the one who'll be the most relieved to have this whole process done with will be dear ol' dad.
    I'm still waiting for the absolute terror to rear it's ugly head. It'll come eventually, I'm well aware, but till then I shall ride this euphoric high for all I'm worth!

Cheat Day

   Hey! So, I went for the Cake Festival yesterday... Stuffed my face with cake, as expected, and best believe I got my money's worth.
    Did you know that all there is to a cake festival is eating cake? *Shocking, right?* For real though, I thought there would be so much more to the day. But it wasn't all that bad; I caught up with some high school friends, and of course, the endless supply of cake samples didn't hurt one bit.
    All in all, I had my day of disregard for what I shoved in my mouth. I had so much sugar in my system I could've crapped gummy bears, pardon my french. It's safe to say I've sated my cake craving for a good long time. So now I'm back on track, baby! I have a little over a month left so I'll try to make the most of it & kick it up a notch. Trust me, the only reason I've been able to stick to my regimen is cos it's paying off. Let's see what July will bring, shall we?

    Happy new month! ♡♥