After a long day at work, I got stuck in traffic and like everyone else, hoped it would snake faster. I channel surfed my radio but did not find anything pleasing to hear. What happened to all the good music stations? Somehow they were either on commercial breaks or were just playing music I didn’t want to listen to. I started testing my little CSI skills. … I wanted to see if I could remember at least three license plates of cars in front of me after two minutes. With this game, I somehow ignored how slow the traffic was.

After an hour’s drive (normally takes me 15 minutes), I was happy to park in front of my apartment. I quickly climbed the stairs and opened the door. I normally feel the cool breeze that is blown by my fan but no…no.. no.. not yesterday. The house was so stuffy and humid. It reminded me of Mombasa. I walked over to the vents and waved my hands to feel the breeze but all that met my palms were hot air. I walked over to the thermostat to see if I’d set it wrong but it looked fine. I thought maybe am just not ok. Quickly kicked of my shoes, became shirtless, took a leak, bottomed up a glass of water and rechecked the vent and thermostat again.

By now I was fuming mad!!!!. I pay my rent on time and it hasn’t been late in over 5 years and now my a/c is out? I perused through some paperwork to look for the complex’s number but could not find it. By now, streaks of sweat were slowly trickling down my bald head. My sleeveless shirt was getting drenched in sweat and I hadn’t even finished 10 minutes in the apartment.

I decided I had had enough and it was time I did something about it. I slowly walked to the office and waited until a client ahead of me was done paying rent. I wanted to go off on the leasing agent but somehow I realized it was not her fault that my ac was not working. So calmly, I explained that my ac wasn’t working and I needed it fixed. She asked me if I’d set the thermostat on high and I said no. She asked me more questions and this made me more mad. Nonchalantly, she said she’d send maintenance to my apartment to check it out.

On my way back, I decided to take a long route to my apartment by walking all around the apartment complex. In the process of walking, I realized that I’ve become so adapted to the American life that I don’t know if I’d adapt being in Kenya.

It also made me appreciate the finer things in life that we normally take for granted and complain yet some else always has it worse than you. I remembered so many people in the USA, who live near the Mississippi River that have lost their homes, they have no ac and will go back to rebuilding their lives. I remembered the earthquake that killed thousands in China, so many people lost their only child, others lost their whole livelihoods, and am only griping about ac? I remembered the IDP’s (internally displaced people) sleeping in the showground, in open tents that cannot keep the heat out and the cold rainy days they have to endure. The more and more I put myself in their shoes, I realized that I should not gripe over small things but appreciate every little thing.