I Was Supposed to Buy a Phone

I am the most calculating person I know when it comes to big decisions. Especially decisions that involve money.

I took a year before I bought myself the laptop I currently have. I did such extensive research that by the time I had settled on one, my mind was 100% made up. I was linked to a very good electronics seller, and let’s just say I may have given him hectic time. I couldn’t be convinced at all to go for alternatives. My mind was made up. I had to wait for three months after our initial contact for the laptop I wanted to be available in the country. And I can say it is one of the best decisions I ever made.

I took years before committing my money to a master’s program. I once again did extensive research on various universities, their costs, their mode of teaching, and even the stories of students from those universities. When I finally made my decision, there was no going back.

It will be the same story with any other purchase you can think of. I take my time. I do it once, and not look back.

The only time I found myself looking back on something I owned was when I didn’t make the decision to own it.

See, this year, I was / am supposed to buy a new phone.

The first time I ever bought myself a phone, I did research for 3 months. By the time I was walking into the Samsung shop, I knew exactly what I wanted. The second time I bought a phone, I had my eyes set on one for half a year. I usually buy phones once every five years, just as a matter of choice. By five years, I’d have used the phone enough to upgrade. In five years, I’d have prepared myself mentally and financially to own another phone. I’d then gift the old phone to someone who may need it, but I never sell it. This year, I was to buy a new phone because the last time I bought a phone was in 2020. Unfortunately, I can’t buy a phone because the one I have is not yet five years old, and yet, I hate it.

I had alluded in one of my old posts that I will tell this story one day. What’s in a little digression really?

In 2022, during the elections period, while still with my former employer, one of the donors bought phones to help with the work being done. I had no idea there was such a thing happening until I was given a phone by our procurement officer. It was a good thing as it took away the strain of using my personal phone for work. Those who got the phones were then given a loan equipment form to sign (just something to show that we would return the phones once we left employment). I had no problem with that. I signed the form, and accepted that the phone was not mine to keep, because it wasn’t.

Little did I know!

I was rarely in the office, and one day heard a rumour that people were being charged for the phones. Now, see that made no sense given the forms we had signed and the fact that we didn’t exactly ask for the said phones. I do not like to dwell in rumours, I’d rather ask and get my facts right. And ask I did. Some confirmed to have gotten letters stating that they would have to pay for the phones. I didn’t get a letter on my email, so I assumed I was not to get one.

When I showed up for a meeting in the office, one of the HR assistants came to my desk and gave me an envelope. It had a letter that was dated and signed three weeks before. Three weeks. That letter said that I had engaged in a fraudulent purchase of a phone and as such money would be deducted from my salary monthly until the amount equivalent to that spent on the purchase is recovered. Imagine my shock! I was angry! I was mad! I was confused. I just didn’t know what to say. Of all the many phones that were bought, suddenly a few out of those were the only ones that were fraudulently bought? The phones were bought based on an approved budgetline from a donor! I went to my supervisor and asked what that meant. Those of us affected complained through our seniors, who were to intervene during a retreat. I decided to calm down and wait for the feedback from that. The feedback came in form of a message from the bank at the end of the month. The salary was deducted.

I was mad! I was hurt! And I felt so betrayed, used, and trapped.

We tried to give their phones back, and they refused. So for three months, they kept deducting almost a third of my salary to pay for a phone I never asked for, never wanted, and only took as it came to me as a loaned equipment. In short, someone sat down and decided an entire process that passed through all approval processes, only became fraudulent for a few of the phones bought. The same person drafted such demeaning letters to people who were not part of any of that process, proceeded to execute the salary deduction, and went home to sleep soundly.

Deeply breathes in………….and out………

I hate my phone, but I have digressed enough.

That was not the story.

I bought a car!

Let me start by saying, in my previous blog I would occasionally rant about my public transport issues. While it was humorous to talk about all the crazy, annoying, funny, and sometimes despicable experiences I had in public transportation, I always told myself that one day those stories would turn and be about my adventure in my own car. I even created a section on this blog for that, except I rarely wrote anything for that category.

When I moved to Nairobi, I had no choice but to use public transport. There were good days and bad days. Rainy days were the worst. It was consoling when I could get to extend my sleep on the way to and from work. It served its purpose, and I had no big issue with it. When I could afford it, I preferred Uber. I like being alone. In my space.

Prior to buying the car, I was set on buying a phone. Yes, I know I have just said before. But my mind works in certain ways. There’s a pattern to it, you see, a working pattern. Five years. And it was time. I even had a specific phone in mind. I have wanted that phone from the moment Samsung announced its release. I was so set on buying it, that it was meant to be a gift to myself.

The decision to not buy the phone was shelved when I found I couldn’t commit. However much I tried to, I just couldn’t commit to the purchase.

During that time, there was a week when I had five different events to attend. Some were on the same day in two different parts of the city, and others were on separate days. It was one of the most frustrating weeks I have endured. There were other times when I found I didn’t have the energy for a matatu, or even an uber. It suddenly hit me; I can’t commit to the phone I want because I needed something else. This is when I started thinking seriously about buying a car.

I realised it was time when I stopped thinking about owing a car as a luxury. When I realised it had become more of a need to me, as opposed to a status symbol. And then my work begun.

I have mentioned I don’t go into purchases blind. I started my research. For close to two months, I actively searched for different cars, and read everything there was to know about them. I compared prices, ratings, and even read different reviews. I even reached out to various people and mentioned what I was looking for in a car, and for a while, my messages were full of cars being sent my way. Some I dismissed, and some I placed under consideration. When I finally found the make and model that I wanted, I knew it was time to start shopping for it.

It also does help that I made this decision after knowing every corner of Nairobi. See, once I have been to a place, I don’t forget it. But I also go as far as examining the other routes in and out of that place. By the time I’m leaving, I will know how to get back, and not with one route. My brain just works like that. My family call me a human GPS.

Back on track. I know what it means to buy a car. The things that need to be looked at and all that. But I am not qualified to check on that. While I am a good driver and can at times diagnose that a car is not okay based on noises and the feel of the car, I am not a mechanic, or even an expert in cars. I needed help. I asked my dad to lend me his driver for a few days. Edwin is a great driver, who also happens to be an excellent mechanic. For the five years that he’s been with us, we have not stepped foot into any garage. He will fix everything, and those that he can’t, he will bring someone else to fix it within the home.

Once I had decided on the dates, Edwin came to help. I knew the amount of work it would take moving from one car yard to another, so I borrowed my cousin’s car. Oh bless his soul, that kid has come through for me in so many ways I can’t put into words.

I had set aside two days for the entire exercise.

On the first day, we started with Kiambu road. I must have gone to all the yards along that road. We had devised a system, Edwin and I. He would do his checks (engine, suspension, and other things that I don’t know), and once he was done and okayed the car, I would then go deeper into the aesthetics. If we both liked the car, it would be added on a list in my notepad. There were two yards that stood out for me along Kiambu road. In one, I did find something close to what I wanted, and in another, I found an interesting person. The man talked too much, said nothing, and really tried to push a car that I didn’t like. He even insisted on taking us on a test drive. I left Kiambu road.

I did mention that I had sent out fillers on what I was looking for. One of the people I had reached out to, called me and said they had found a car I’d like somewhere in Buruburu. But the thing that put me off with his choice was what he said, “Just come to Buruburu. Of all the cars that I checked; this is the one I have settled on. I have even negotiated the price already”. Ummm, excuse me? You have negotiated, for me? I didn’t like the car.

We then left Buruburu for Ngong Road and on the way, we saw someone had parked a car like the one I wanted. Edwin decided to go and ask him if he was willing to sell his car. He actually parked the car we had and went to talk to the man. He even had the man open his bonnet. Ten minutes he spent with the man, talking about his car. The audacity!

Anyway, on to Ngong Road. It was already past 3PM by the time we started that stretch. We checked out all the yards there, but only three stood out enough for me to write about.

The first one. We found a car. However, other than the fact that I wasn’t pleased enough with the aesthetic part, the car’s engine was ignited using a separate key from its own key. That for me was an immediate no. What do you mean the engine can be ignited with a key that does not belong to that car? This is Nairobi, and that is a big risk.

The second one. There were two cars, both the make and model that I wanted. Two problems. Car A had the colour I would prefer, but the aesthetics were off. Car B had the aesthetics but an ugly colour. And both cars had an engine leak. It was an immediate no.

The third one. This was the last yard we checked for the day. It was already 6PM by the time we arrived. We saw one that but I it was aesthetically not pleasing. Edwin also did not okay it. Just as we were done checking it out, the salesman mentioned that he has another one, a white one. We asked to see it. It was a beautiful pearl white car.

Guys, love at first sight is real.

Oh comme je suis tombé amoureux de la Perle

While I was still mesmerised by the look, Edwin was checking out the car in detail. He checked the engine, plugs, suspension, wiring. Everything. I only started a deep inspection of the car once he had given his okay. Of all the cars I had seen, I knew this was the one. I just knew it. Unfortunately, there was no time for a test drive. Nairobi jam was at its peak with people leaving work.

We went home.

Edwin was still determined to keep up the search the next day, but for me, my mind was made up.

It was the Pearl.

That night Edwin sent more photos of other cars and their location. (He had made a friend at the last yard. A tribemate who also claimed to had connections in the car scene). I decided to humour him and see the other ones. The next day we went to Uhuru gardens. One of the cars we were to see was not there. The story was the owner had used it to take his kids to school. I found that strange considering we were working on his suggested time. The guys decided to ask if we could go to Karen (galleria) and meet the man there. I said, why not.

Makosa!

For close to an hour, we were kept waiting. I was bored, hot, and frankly irritated. So I calmly asked Edwin to the side and told him, “I am usually a patient person, but this is a quarter of my day wasted. Kwa gari ya jana, uliona shida gani kubwa?”

“Gari ilikua sawa. Lakini unajua ni iyo test drive ndio hatukufanya”

“Basi twende test drive. If the car doesn’t pass that test, I will give you time to keep up this search. Otherwise, we conclude this process.”

Went back. The car was not there. The owner, now not the salesman, had taken it for cleaning and buffing. Edwin decided to go look for the said car wash. He found it and called me to say the car is actually in line to be washed and buffed, and we should wait.

I was getting irritated.

So I told him to speak to the owner and tell her I want a test drive first. If the car is up to our standards, it can go back to the car wash while we finalise the payment part. She agreed.

Everything went smoothly after that. The test. The negotiation. The transfer. The payment. Everything.

We drove out of Ngong Road at around 3PM; me driving my cousin’s car, and Edwin driving my new car.

Why didn’t I drive my new one you ask? I had not connected with it yet.

It took me three weeks after the purchase to finally accept that I actually own a car. I am still working on accepting that. But you know what, I am happy for me.

Now, about that phone that I still need… wink wink