Champions Not: Blame it on The Rain

Now that European Leagues are back in action, am going to find myself out much more than I have been since May. Actually since the finals of the champions league, I haven’t been out much. Champions League champions league! The last night!

I left the office that Wednesday in high spirits. I was headed to Embakasi’s Nyayo Estate to see this mamaa. With the traffic on Mombasa road that day, I got there at around 7. Had a nice dinner and a number of glasses of Famous. Mamaa has no love for football and there was no way I was going to miss the Man Utd vs Barca game. That meant I wasn’t going to watch the there and had to leave at around 9. By my estimation, 30 minutes was enough for me to get home just in time for the game. Took me down stairs with an umbrella as it was raining heavily, started the engine and I was good to go.

On reaching some place on North Airport Road, the Lancer went dead! Tried to crank it once, twice, thrice, dead! I opened the hood checked the battery and noticed one of the terminals had gotten loose. Searched for a spanner size ten which I always carry with me when driving and tightened the damn thing. By then, I was seriously wet! The rain was not sparing a brother not to mention that section has no street lights except for the lighting provided by the neighboring buildings. By the time I was done fixing it, I could hear people cheering from a bar afar and could tell the game was on. Got into the car kicked once, twice, thrice, dead! Battery was too low. No one was in sight therefore no one to help kick start the damn car!

I walked to the bar where the cheers were emanating from. The rain hitting my hide sets madly. By the time I got to the door, I was dripping wet! Not to mention I had no jacket, just a plain shirt, a vest with the tie left in the car. I could feel my socks were wet too! That’s how heavy it was! When I walked in into the bar, I looked like those two reds guys in the Guinness commercial who walk into a blues territory, only that after the game I wasn’t going to be ‘hi fiving’. Most of the seats had been taken and had to have my beer standing for the first half of the game. By half time, and a goal down, some disgruntled fans walked out. I was happy that I was going to have a tall stool for myself but mad at the unpatriotic mafans. A true devil never goes down! That’s how it has been since the epic win of the 98/99 season.

Second half came and Man Utd couldn’t crack the gallant Barca midfield. The second goal got in, and some more fans walked out. Game came to an end, my team had lost, I was wet and cold though I feel it was much colder but the alcohol gave a little sense of warmth. The ‘mahaters’ almost drowned us with their celebrations. I don’t think the Spanish League has such a following and I concluded these were disgruntled Gunner fans who had lost big time to Man Utd in the semis, and had lost a fan to suicide after the thrashing right here in Embakasi! Liverfools who had relinquished the EPL, Chelseans who were on the verge on coming out of the season trophyless, and others who just didn’t like Christiano.

After the game, I convinced some three guys to help me out and they obliged. They could have done me a lot of injustice if they didn’t help after I had thrown them some rounds. It was my game plan on a night when Fergie didn’t seem to have much of it. We went to the car and we tried to start it without success. I opened the bonnet and we checked the distributor. Wet wet wet! When I was fixing the battery the damn thing got wet from the rain hence the little sparks couldn’t ignite the fuel. We pushed the car to a nearby shade as the rain got even heavier! Got a dry cloth from the boot and opened the distributor and wiped it dry. One of the mboyz who knew a thing or two about cars got into the driver’s seat and we tried to kick start it again. The thing came on and I got a warm feeling inside! I was going to get home finally or so I thought! The thing went off! WHAT NOW! I screamed! We attempted again and again and it couldn’t start again! SHIT! I cursed! Cold and wet, expected at work at 8.00 in the morning, and here I was on a Wednesday night about 40-45kms away from home, clock reading waaaay past sleep time! 2am!

Then an angel, unexpected at that hour called! “Why are you still awake at this hour?” I asked. “You didn’t call or text or say you got home well, are you ok? You sound shaken, is it because of the game? Did you loose?” She couldn’t believe I was 5-8km away and hadn’t told her of my predicaments much earlier. She sent her cab over to come for me. Meanwhile, we downed another round with the mboyz who told me that that was their local. A guard offered to look after my junk for the night for hundred bob till morning and off I went back to Nyayo.

Morning came, 5.30, just before the night guard had left. Looked at the thing and there seemed to be no hope for it to start. Took a matatu to town and took another home. Shower, change and off to work. The banter at work for loosing the game was just too much. But they didn’t know what had cut during the same night. I had ignored my workmate’s phone calls during the game. I couldn’t reply to their texts, the fingers too frozen.

I sneaked out of work in the afternoon with a mechanic and off to Embakasi to check on the Lancer. Kumbe the guy who had offered to start the car the previous night ‘kanyangiad’ too much fuel leading to an over flow, the plugs got wet and that why the car couldn’t start! Trouble with carburetors! We got some new plugs and the thing came to life!

The 09/10 season? I don’t have much hope with my team. This year I see Chelsea and Inter Milan doing well. Any surprise, may be Real Madrid. I however hope to be home on the night of the finals in May 2010.

Playlist

Kirk Whalum – All I do