In case you want to know how my day went.

Three days ago, I plugged my phone to power and the screen went blank. I could receive calls but I could not do any other thing with the gadget. I do most of my online activities with the phone. I post, comment, chat, trade, and basically live off this phone. I had bought the phone from my crypto earnings back in January when prices were stupendous. I have worked it on my crypto blogging enterprise since then. For it to go blind, was like a shock to me. So I took the phone to a service center in Benin and I was informed that a new phone screen would cost me twelve thousand naira. That is about 120 steem give or take. I had speculated that it would be about six thousand while I had just two thousand naira in my pocket but I was wrong. I left there, with a sad smile on my lips – what could I do?

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I have not seen my parents for three months now and they have been on my case for supposedly neglecting them, so I decided to do the noble thing and go pay them a visit. The road to my dad’s place is a maze – a tumbled, weed choked, potholed line of red sand. The buses that ply the road are junks patched together with strings and gums and every part is a potential stiletto. I bore it all to my dad’s place and met them having lunch. Within minutes, I was faced with questions about my lack of job, my lack of a girlfriend, my lack of friends, my melancholia, my darkened skin, my unshaven beard and the fact that I am going bald. I immediately realized why I have not seen them for three months.

They wanted me to go back to teaching as a means of sustenance until a better job comes but I explained to them that I could not teach again, especially within the private sector. Those school proprietors make teachers slaves and pay them peanuts. I am too old for that crap. Then my dad asked me if I was not interested in starting in a business? Where will I get the funds from? While we were still fumbling around with that piece of meat, my old man blindsided me with the girlfriend discussion. He did not stop there, he and his wife, my mother, went on to share with me their encounter with a girl they thought would be suitable for me. I could have laughed on a good day but today wasn’t a good day. My old parents now girlfriend hunting for me! What has this world turned into?

The clouds gathered and hung low in the sky. That was my cue to take my leave. So after a heavy lunch of garri and one Igbo soup like that, I departed as quickly as I had appeared. My father walked me to the bus stop while repeating all the elderly advice he had shared with me inside the house. I nodded and agreed with all that he said until I boarded a motorbike and we flew out of there. At the park, I boarded a bus driven by a seventeen years old boy. He drove fast, wove through the traffic on same dangerous speed, insulted men and women old enough to be his grannies and was basically a troll. I held on to my seat by the skin of my teeth and alighted with alacrity by the time we arrived at my stop. Don’t let me get into buses driven by little boys anymore. Thank you.

I got home just as the rain began to fall. Everywhere is in darkness, there is no electricity. I do not know if I have enough data to post this. An angel has been showing me kindness for two days now but I cannot continue to depend on her for internet service. I think I will have to close shop on the blockchain thingy until further notice. I will just power down so I can settle some pending bills. I also have to get a nine to five. My parents are afraid for me. I do not like it so maybe I might have to teach again. My journey has brought me here. It seems it is time to take another direction, another fork. Good night.

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warpedpoetic possibly signing out.