Anything related or poverty-coated is an absolute nay to the famous Instagram community, except for rare cases like a visit to the orphanages. Our lives are influenced by others’ to an extent that our real lifestyle is interfered with. In the end, what we adopt in our lives may not be what we need, but rather a want out pressures to fit in the ever dynamic society. Let me take you back to the my School of thoughts, where society is defined as man-made thoughts. In short, it is artificial, and conceived in the mind but not a physical entity like most of us perceive it to be. Therefore, the online community is so plastic to me. Now you know where we got the dubious phrases from.

First of all, who are you cutting off? What makes them fake? Why do you think you ain’t fake yourself? Let me get a little bit petty now, do you know that the word ‘fake’ is grammarticaly wrong when used to refer to human? Haha. Is it because they no longer react to your Instragram stories and WhatsApp statuses? Is it because they never post you during your birthdays? Come on guys!

Self motivation is good, and is encouraged. However, when you are too self confident you might end up loosing everything and everyone. Before you cut them off as you set on a new journey have these in your mind:

1. Not everyone is fake.

Not everyone is taking you for a ride. You might be the one who has developed an ego, treat everyone the best way you’d want to be treated and trust me you’ll receive more in return, or never expect anything in return. Just do you

2. You both developed different interests.

You ain’t talking anymore, right? And now you feel that he/she deserves to get out of your circle because of being fake. I have an answer for you. You both developed different interests and different tastes. It has nothing to do with what you are thinking about the other person. Personally, been in a situation where my high school best friends turned out to be strangers, once we got out of the school gate. That does not make me delete their contacts, we still check on each other once in a while and everything just run smoothly. Therefore, even though you don’t converse like before, they are still worth checking on. You never know what life has in store for you.

3. You might be the one on the wrong.

The greatest treasure is your brain. It facilitates everything that you do and yoy rely so much on it. At times you even forget that you are still human, prone to making bad decisions. The self belief that we are always right has taken toll of us. Sometimes we might wrong the same people we end up cutting off, oblivious that we are the cause of the drift. Self checking is worth before taking an action.

In a nutshell, humans are for humans and animals for animals. You cannot cut off a fellow to befriend a dog just because a dog is the man’s best friend, that’s a very cheap philosophy! Let’s all unite and embrace love, make more friends as possible and enjoy the fruits if our labour together. Embrace our different cultures and live true to our purpose. Nothing fascinates than helping a brother and sister achieve a dream, a mere gratitude can change your life forever. Let us all fight the bad culture of seclusion, society is what we perceive to be right, though ‘vitu kwa ground ni different sana.’

Instead of cutting off, take charge of the new year and set your resolutions and work hard to achieving them.
I wish you a Happy New Year.

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Who is Wambui Katee?

Wambui Katee is a resilient, honest and hardworking young lady. I take challenges as a driving force to achieve my goals and objectives within the music industry. I consider myself unstoppable and I strongly believe in hard work. Apart from that I am a pretty friendly and fun loving young lady.

When did your musical journey begin?

As far as I can remember, my musical journey began in Primary School; Kerugoya Good Shepherd. This was when I had finally gotten the courage to stand before a large mass of people and sing. Then, I could sing on the parade and other festivals organized in school. However, my mom used to tell me that when I was a child I used to sit on my ‘potty’ and sing while she went shopping and came back to find me still sited and singing!

That’s really awesome Katee. What has been your breakthrough moment ever since you began singing?

Suh different cover by Patoranking was definitely my breakthrough song. I still feel like I haven’t gotten the breakthrough as a Kenyan Original Artist but it’s a process, right?

Of course, it is a process. Which ones came first, covers or recorded songs?

My covers came first no lie! I needed to learn how to write my own music and I began that mainly by rewriting other songs. Currently, I am confident enough and ripe as an original song writer and singer.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?

My goals and dreams are beyond imaginable colors! I want the best for myself, my family and my future. The desire to be Great and Financially Free wakes me up every morning.

How has music changed your life in general?

Before my music picked up I was a barista (coffee maker, for those who may not know) in a certain bar in Karen. I loved and enjoyed my job. However, ever since I left the hotel industry and took music full time, I have learned so many things about myself, life, growth and most importantly I have grown a thick skin as a woman.

Has Patoranking reacted on ‘Suh different’ cover done by you, which of course attracted over 2M views on YouTube

To be honest, I have never spoken one on one with Patoranking, yet. But he positively responded to the cover while it was viral.

What else do you do other than singing?

Apart from being a singer, am an amazing actress and business woman.

Talk about your achievements.

First of all, I have achieved immense personal growth through this past year. If you follow me, you may have read about my depression and anxiety. My mental state has improved greatly and that’s one of my biggest achievements… Being happy. My original songs have also been a great achievement. I’d urge us to hold on that because more amazing original music is about to drop!

What are some of the challenges that you face as an artist?

My biggest challenge through my first year was having a management team. I did all the work alone for as long as I can remember. Finding a great team to believe in you and stand by you is definitely blessing from above! I have also had numerous challenges in regard to funding my music and being able to produce quality content both in video and audio. Music is quite costly, especially if you are doing it on your own.

What’s your opinion on the growth of Kenyan Music Industry?

I think 2020 has improved mainstream artists in one way or another. We have artists performing live band shows and showing us their true forms. That’s what it should have always been about, being true to our music and sharing it passionately with our audience. We are getting there.

What should your fans expectations be this year?

I have spent most of my time this year preparing; recording and shooting. I am really sorry for my fans who have missed me but I assure you that my silence has not been in vain. I have many songs that I have not released but towards the end of this year, everyone should expect new, different and amazing music. I am about to unveil a new chapter of my life.

That one thing that people don’t know about you.

One thing people don’t know about me is that, I am not as innocent as I look (laughs). I have an innocent face with a tough personality.

Your social media handles and YouTube link.

Here comes my favorite part! My socials, check me out on all the platforms as Wambui Katee. My Facebook Community goes by my AKA MALKIA.

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Who is Remy Lucious?

Remy Lucious is a futuristic, motivation-niched content creator who seeks to use my YouTube channel as a tool that inspires, motivates, helps people escalate their craft and also materialize their brilliance while shining their light on a volatile world. I seek to bring absolute productivity, performance and prosperity. My passion is to inspire every individual to achieve their dreams, ambitions and purpose in life.

What inspired you to start a Motivational YouTube channel?

The desire to create content that will act as a source of motivation to people who feel like giving up or doubting their potential in life.

Someone asked us to ask if you also do motivational speaking as a side hustle?

Yes, I do, mostly in high schools. Looking forward to future days when I will be giving motivational talks in seminars and conferences and inspire people to become the best version of themselves.

How do you choose your content?

Basically through situations I have been in the past or situations my friends have been in the past that needed some motivation to get through. I take such situations and create content that will inspire someone else who will find themselves in such a similar situation in life in the future.

Apart from YouTube, what else keeps you busy?

My job and my side hustles.

Which skills are you learning during this pandemic?

Learning how to use Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro software. During this pandemic I have also had lots of time to discover much about me that I had not done before.

Would you advice someone to quit his/her job and focus on his/her passion?

My answer would be a no and a yes. This is what I mean. You probably should not quit your job and pursue your passion full-time without a solid plan. However, what I recommend is trying to build up your business on the side (while working full-time at your job). Then with enough hard work, skill and luck- you can make your passion into your living.

What is the future of your YouTube Channel?

The future of my YouTube channel and RLM as a brand is an avenue where people would turn to when things feel hard and they feel like what they are facing in life has not been faced by other people in life.  A place where people will find stories they can relate to easily and get motivated. In future I will have talk shows where people share their stories and how they pulled through tough situations in order to motivate others who are undergoing similar situations in their lives.

Which is the worst feedback you’ve ever received from your fan?

Not worst but funny. On my YouTube channel I haven’t received any yet, but someone once told me to send them data in order for them to subscribe to my channel after sharing my channel’s link to a WhatsApp group (Laughs)

What’s the secret of growing subscribers on YouTube?

Create quality content that viewers will be glued to come back to your channel and watch more. Promote your channel to your maximum abilities. Share with your friends and on social media platforms and ask them to subscribe to your channel (if they are interested, don’t pester anyone). Above all, understand how YouTube features work since they will help a lot in growing and giving insights about your channel.

1. Do your parents support what you are doing?

Yes, they do, through encouraging me to follow my passion.

What’s the best advice you can give to someone who is thinking of starting a YouTube channel?

Choose a specific niche, don’t be everywhere. Start now, don’t hesitate. Create quality content. Be consistent.

Parting short

 I believe that what you do today will determine what your tomorrows will bring. You are molding your tomorrow based on what you do today. You can determine what your future holds based on how much time and energy you spend working on yourself now. Find out what it is you want, and go after it as if your life depends on it. Why? Because it does.

Social media links: YouTube- http://www.youtube.com/c/RemyLuciousMotivation

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It was now Monalisa and I, a crush who turned out to be a detective. My life had taken a drastic twist. I meet a girl, like her, tries to follow her, gets knocked by a car and that’s how she vanishes. She makes me visit the same street multiple times after my recovery with the hope of seeing her pass by, unfortunately she doesn’t. She is on my mind that I can’t comfortably exist without finding this wonder woman, in the process, I get conned and played by a male hiding under pseudo social media account. I meet her High school mate who bad mouths her. My long time ex-girlfriend resurfaces and this time is after ruining my life, she declares me a looser and good for nothing and that’s how my focus shifts to money making. I opt for the shortcut to make quick money and soon advances, it’s through this that a deal comes, it seems easy and can pay a lot, the heist backfires, I get caught and for another time Monalisa comes back into my life, as detective, shocked I am but still she got to do what she does. Things get more complicated; my gun is connected to her late boyfriend’s murder; she keeps it to herself though. I am declared insane and sent to a mental hospital, something that I strongly believe is a make-up. What a life?

She drove for the longest time as I could remember, I couldn’t stop thinking about what she’d do to me. However, I was pretty sure that she wasn’t up to no good. At one point I even thought that I’d never make it to the mental hospital because she’d kill me in revenge to Tyrone’s murder. She was smart and I was now convinced that she opted to drive me alone to finish me off. It was time to die, to die for the sins I didn’t commit, I cursed myself a lot and waited for the worse, which was so obvious.
She pulled over the car, then wrapped my head with an opaque material with the tiniest hole ever for aeration. She wasn’t that heartless after all, maybe she wanted me to die while breathing, or perhaps ‘breath my last’ literally. After which she led to what I assumed to be a building. I was instilled on a chair before the dark bag being removed over my head. “Welcome to MO-HUG mental hospital.” She broke the seconds silence that was slowly taking over as I familiarized with my new environment. I had been set up, it wasn’t a hospital, for once in a lifetime, my intuition was right, something had been fishy about all that since they declared me unfit for hearing.

She drew the curtains to let the natural light illuminate through, giving life into a well-furnished but dull room. “You are surprised I know, I am not going to hurt you, you once saved my life and I believe that it’s a payback time” she said as she dragged a chair next to mine. “I managed to have the psychiatrist report swapped what the judge had was Max’s, it wasn’t yours, you are of sound mind, he is a psycho, has this condition that affects his conscience, he finds himself in a fix after which he self-convicts himself, complicated stuff…you know, now you understand why the heist botched. Let’s not talk about him though.” She paused and reached out for a bowl of cereals. I felt like it was first time smoking weed and had hallucinations, I couldn’t believe all she was telling me.
Tyrone was an abusive boyfriend who would hit her up anytime he felt like. He was this type of a person your parent would warn you against. Monalisa was addicted to him just the way he was to coke. They were in this toxic relationship and she’d soon want to end it but Tyrone wasn’t taking that. On that fateful day, she had gone to his place to talk about their relationship, just like Tyrone had suggested but it turned out to be false. He tied her up and couldn’t let her leave, what followed was a bitter exchange between the two making him more violent, he reached for a gun to shoot him but just before he could pull the trigger an anonymous person shot him killing him instantly. She never saw the person who did that and after several hours she managed to escape. To cut the long story short, she believed that the anonymous person was me after linking the bullets to that logged on her ex-boyfriend’s skull.

She slightly recognized my face while arresting me, she saw me at the bank and was sure that I was following her. Furthermore, I surrendered making me harmless, she therefore opted to take me in. logged in everything in the evidence box but later picked the pistol after realizing that it had been used to kill Tyrone. She was shocked and at the same time felt that I knew more about her, meeting at the bank and possessing the gun was not a mere coincidence to her. She hatched a plan to save me, swiped the medical reports over the weekend, had a mental hospital under a proxy name MO-HUG (Monalisa Hughes).

“That’s it, and here is my home, now your home too…you spotted me, delivered me from the jaws of death and fought for me because you wanted to be with me. Fate has brought us together again, no court will do a follow up on how you are doing at the mental hospital, so you are safe.” She concluded. Emotions ran high and for a moment she was on my arms. She believed that I shot Tyrone and here was, holding me while shooting her shot. I wish she knew the truth. For me I had to live with a new title and secret too, a murderer, for my sake and freedom. Fate brought us together indeed.

“What would you want to have for lunch babe?” She asked
I hesitated for a while then answered, “…Maybe you”
Well, lunch was served as per the request.

THE END.

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“On 15th, June of the year 2020, the first accused person and others who are not before this court, attacked St. Jude’s ACK along Monrovia Street, with an aim of robbing the cash from a fundraiser held on the same material day.” She paused then continued, “the court was also informed that the first accused held the people hostages…” the prosecutor finished reading from what looked like a long written script then adjusted her glasses before staring at me directly then back to the judge. “As we all know, the above accusations are so gross under the laws of the land, my Lord, such characters are the notorious ones who are derailing our efforts in upholding national security, ” She paused before my lawyer could ‘object.’ That whole time Judge Nolan was busy scribbling his notes. Before long he’d make a ruling. The prosecutor was so firm and fearless, at first I alluded her toughness to being moody, after all it was on a Monday and I must have ruined her weekend, instead of spending time with her family and loved ones I bet she had a rough time compiling my profile, she had the right to get tough. Witnesses started streaming in one after another, Max was one of them.

I could clearly notice familiar people from where I was, not surprising that Monalisa was present since she was the detective in charge. She would soon be a heroine after my trial and sentencing, she’d earn an award on that, however, she’d live with a secret. Why would she do that though? Didn’t she love her boyfriend? I guess the best she could do for a loved one was to reopen the murder case but she opted not to. On my side I felt grate that she didn’t, maybe she had believed, maybe, just maybe. Moreover, I wasn’t Jesus to die for others’ sins, I wasn’t going to take someone’s else responsibility on what I didn’t do.

“Case file number 292, of the state against the accused, I have heard the accusations, which are absolutely right. However…” He paused for a while before reaching out for an envelope, then continued “according to the government Psychiatrist report, I find the accused be of unsound mind, he suffers from dementia, brain tumor among other sensitive health conditions that I can’t talk about in my court. The court therefore finds him unfit for hearing and recommends he be taken to a mental hospital immediately for medical attention and monitoring. On the same note, the police department has a period of 72 hours to bring others to book for trial and sentencing. This accused is acquitted. The court is dismissed. ”

Could you believe that? Being insane? How? I couldn’t believe it either. Someone had come to my rescue, who was this anonymous person who interfered with the report? Maybe the judge had confused my medical report to another person’s. As far as I was concerned, I was as healthy as the opposite of the medical report. Someone had an unfinished business with me. Who could that person be?

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I bet being a cop is the hardest of all careers. Not that I loathe them but I know myself. Imagine me as a police officer, I bet everyone in my neighborhood could have been behind the bars by now, for instance my neighbor Ian. He is an Arsenal FC fan, every time the new season kicks he tweets and retweets that “This is our season.” Me as a cop would be on him every season like, “You are under arrest, you have the right to remain silent for anything you say and tweet can and will never happen.” Just like that. It’s a profession that requires a lot of self-control, proper anger management and high level of tolerance.

Silence sometimes is the best answer, I hear so. I just remained silent and maintained that I needed an attorney, who in the real sense wasn’t a necessity at the moment. She was really trying to get answers, the fiercer she thought she was the more desperate I saw her. She looked broken and tired, definitely needed a shoulder to lean on. As a psychology student (I dropped out in my third year) I think I saw a lot. Her juniors were outside waiting for her to come out with the best results, they believed in her, while inside the grilling room she felt so fragile, that is the moment I wished we were on the same page but neither of us could cross so easily. She’d soon leave without a word, what followed was through dismantling of my jawbones and ankles, I was hit so hard that I had to let ‘masculinity toxic’ roll out as I wailed on top of my voice till they stopped. Therefore, I take back my words, silence isn’t the best answer.

After a week I underwent a polygraph test whose results remained disclosed for the whole period. It was just a matter of days before I was brought before Judge Nolan. The most loved and hated judge in equal measure in history. Unverified sources back in the remand had it that he only showed his teeth while brushing and never took complements even from colleagues. His posture and height alone were already intimidating, he naturally had a hoarse voice. He attended the army two years before joining the law school and was sent to a mission in Afghan where he lost his dearest friend. That was the judge that would handle my case. Before then, I went for the last check, the psychiatric examination. I just hope Monalisa didn’t include the gun in her investigations. Not that I was economical with my answers but I had nothing to say about it, it’s a gun that I had bought down town, I didn’t even see the face of the guy who sold it to me since he had mask and a black jacket. He or she didn’t see mine either. I saw the sense in the nature of that business.

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“You must be scared by seeing all the cameras and microchips in here, I am scared too (giggled).” She remarked in a sarcastic but tough tone. “The deal is so simple; you answer my questions diligently and we’ll definitely be friends.” She paused, pulled a file from her briefcase and sipped her drink. “You got lucky that Max pulled through, but still not that lucky, we realized he wasn’t one of the hostages, from the many witnesses that we questioned it was clear that it was a robbery gone wrong. Currently he is assisting us with the investigations to bring your other mates to books.” She informed me. The cross examination took longer than expected, however, something was clear, she was a different type in that badge, I bet her colleagues never approached her for small talks, it baffled me how she’d smiled back then when I first saw her.

She was learned and knew her thing, her beauty was a match with her brain; both were out of this world. All this time I didn’t bring up about us ever meeting before, after all I wasn’t so sure if she could recall, she was sleuth who met people of all walks, from drunkards to cannibals, I just happened to be one of them. I was informed of my charges and so many arrest warrants issued before, from a fraudster to a gangster, how could I miss to be on their radar? However how tough she proved to be I wasn’t going to let her take me down, not that easily.

“Why didn’t you take a shot whilst you had the chance to?” I finally asked, it sounded stupid nevertheless I asked it. For a moment she was shocked like she didn’t expect that, she slowly walked out and came back with an unlabeled brown envelope, after which she ordered for a stop in recording of the cross-examination process. I was curious. She was up to something, she emptied her cup and cautiously unveiled the envelope’s contents. It was a gun I clearly recognized, the one I used in the church heist.

“This was a part of the evidence though not recorded, a decision I can subvert any moment you misbehave with me. You know how much weight that can bring to your case, right?” She warned, pushing the unloaded gun gently to my side. With no cameras no recorders, she assured me that it was the safest moment to talk. “Where were you on the night before 27th December, 2019?” She asked, well I had no clue where I was at on that day, I mean who on their right mind can remember exactly where they were on such a date? Then she continued, “On that night, someone was shot dead at his house. I ran a check at the bullets used and found out that they had the same serial number as the ones you used recently. His case still remains unsolved and was a mystery until today when I discovered that it was you.” What followed was a moment of silence, I couldn’t believe it, me? Shot someone?

“I have seen you before, in the bank and along the streets following me, I recognized your face when I came to arrest you. And here before us is a gun that was used to kill Tyrone, my boyfriend. Tell me, for how long have you been following me, how did you know that Tyrone, the man you shot a night before 27th December, was my boyfriend? Who are you and why have you been following me?”

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I can’t say the ride was smooth, but technically, it was smooth because she was part of the ride, maybe that was our first and last ride together, who knows? We didn’t say much though, except for the formalities like “You have the right to remain silent (as if I wanted to make noise), anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law.” Soon we’d arrive at the station, and after several hours of seclusion I was finally driven off to a different remand prison, this time round Monalisa didn’t come with us. She came over the next day in the morning. In my mind I wondered if she could recognize me though and why had she stared at me like that before making an arrest.

One thing that I fondly recouple are the mates I met at the remand. At first it was so rough, but soon I had made friends with a few inmates. The detectives requested more time to dig deep into the matter and so I was locked for as long as I can remember. Ludwig, Tony and Mrazi were their names, they didn’t stay for long albeit. Each one had his story how they ended up on the wrong side of the law. On Ludwig’s case, he’d been alleged to have made home-made teargas canisters for students who were constantly at loggerheads with the law enforcers. Rumors had it that he was arrested after an abnormality of how students managed to beat the police in their own game, you know, in every deal there must be a snitch, so he was fished out. Tony was third year law student who not more than once has been reprimanded for viciously attacking politicians, he maintained that he was a revolutionist and a human activist who could not tolerate the mistreatment by politicians, his followers loved him for his enthusiasm and rich vocabulary. Lastly, Mrazi. I wasn’t sure if that was his real name, he was booked under an OB as Mrazi because of how he repeatedly mentioned the word Mrazi, thanks to the bhang. He had been arrested for using an illegal drug the previous night in a nearby bush. When asked his name, he’d blatantly reply that “Mi ni Mrazi lazima nichachishe, nyi masanse ni mableina tu.” His oversized jacket, brown boots ‘timberland’ and a singlet sold him out. Anyway, they were waiting for him to get sober first to rebook him under a different OB.

It was my time to be grilled, so I moved in, sat on the chair, and waited for Detective Monalisa to do what she was best at.

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St. Jude’s ACK was just a few meters away from the city’s CBD. In my last plan to find the imaginary love of my life I identified it as a major breakthrough, it had a public WIFI, it would serve me adequately in my quest. Just before signing up in Tinder I prayed to God to forgive me because I wasn’t going to use His house to glorify his name. Tinder was a legendary dating site that brought singles together, or probably our brothers and sisters who had it rough expressing themselves like other normal people. I signed in, chose the best picture for the profile.

It didn’t take long before I recognized a face like hers, at first I wanted to ignore because there was no way it would be that obvious but something else caught my attention, the picture seemed to be hers while the name was different. Vallary Meghan, read her profile. After convening a meeting between my inner soul and mind I made up a resolution that a two letter word “hi” wasn’t going to cost a lot after all, to my utter surprise, her reply came seconds later like those machine generated ones. I wasn’t believing it and treated it with uttermost contempt at first before thinking of another dry text to send back. Much wasn’t said on that day since she couldn’t recognize my round face, her recognition wasn’t an issue though.

Days and months passed, we had since developed a habit of late night chats of endless conversations about meeting up once the lockdown was lifted. She however didn’t like calls claiming that they made her nervous, especially around her younger siblings. From Monalissa to Vallary, an occurrence that she had an explanation for, she loved being incognito. Somebody’s daughter was making my days and nights that I’d always swear to my crew how online dating was working well for me.
I wish you could see my facial expression when the president lifted the lockdown, as everyone was thinking about rebuilding themselves, all my thoughts were on how she’d warm my bed sooner. For the next few days I worked extra hard to secure her transport fee and accommodation for a week. The level of happiness made me love everything that nature provided, at one point I found myself telling my dog not to bark when the beautiful one finally comes home and hoped that it didn’t.

I’ve never loved Sundays ever since I knew how to count days of the week, my guest was to arrive at 3 o’clock in the evening and I had set everything in place, I couldn’t hide away my happiness as fantasies of the two of us watching the moon that night took the better part of my mind. A quarter to 3 I was already in bus station ready to receive my guest, I had grabbed few snacks that would supplement our first face to face conversation. My eyes were glued on the direction from which she’d alight and any time I’d see a lady on a black high-waist trouser and low boots, my heart would skip a bit, we’d agreed on that dress code.

“Mteja wa nambari uliyopiga hapatikani kwa sasa.” that was a service provider urging me to wait no more for my guest because she wasn’t making it any soon. How though? I felt a pain pricked down my dry throat as I swallowed a lump of saliva, it was already 4 yet the sun was scorching angrily. I had been conned, that wasn’t my sweet Monalisa, later on realized that he was actually a male with lots of pseudo accounts with an aim of swindling money from innocent souls like me. I felt weak and beaten in my own game, indeed Sunday proved itself to my thoughts about it. I had been reduced to zero, at the stage I just stood not knowing what next step to take, a cold wind with a smell of the city’s latrines hit me that I grinned so hard not to believe that I had been played for two months. The dusk was creeping and I had to leave for my little crib back at the village.

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Cuscuta japonica, popularly known Japanese dodder, is a parasitic weed whose interrelation with the other plant species often lead to more complications leading to death and eventual diminishing of its host. Its origin is in Asia and was initially introduced in countries such as United States of America with a belief that it had a medicinal value for spleen, urinary tract, hepatic and psychiatric disorders. Even though no one knows how it got into the African continent, there have been several theories going round explaining how it got here, I will share with you a few stories from anonymous netizens on their thoughts about its entry in a jiff.

C.Japonica is classified under Kingdom Plantae, Subkingdom Tracheobionta and Class Magnoliopsida. It’s the new headache that every farmer across the country talk about every night as they count losses. As promised in the first paragraph, I want to shed light on some of the theories about its entry in the Kenyan Lake Basin. Sometime back, I approached one of the locals who disclosed that it was introduced as an invasive weed to choke the water hyacinth in L. Victoria, he however didn’t disclose much. It might be true or not, personally, I tend to think that he was right thanks to several attempts to completely eradicate the hyacinth from the lake. In the United States, it Japanese dodder was first introduced in research labs, then abolished before being reintroduced to serve the same purpose that it was intended at its first introduction. Has it served its purpose though? Your answer is not as different as mine.

From a far it looks so healthy that my brother from the other side can recommend it as a feed to its cattle oblivious of the colicky symptoms that come after they feed on it. Furthermore, research is underway, like always, to ‘discover’ more about its content, but then before they come up with their lab reports (which of course takes the longest time for approval), there are only two solutions to control it.

1.Spray home Vinegar on the vines
Depending on the source material, the chemical composition of the vinegar (acetic acid and trace chemicals) have a great impact in drying of the Japanese dodder leaves. Let me spare you the complicated chemistry and proceed to the final and most effective solution, which is;

2.Remove the whole dodder manually
Make sure that you leave not even a centimeter on the host plant, and it is most effective when the host plant is uprooted too and burnt together.

Make your fences beautiful again and more yields each planting season by the above methods, you got two options. I wish you had the third one but it seems that the it will be here in 2021. Cheers!

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