Story: The Utility man

     

       So on Friday of this previous week, I was out with a couple of friends, we decided to go have a little sit out and listen to good music. While we were out, we met different people with different mentalities carrying on with their different lives but generally having fun.  But one particular character caught my eye in the crowd. He was a little below average in height, a rough beard, in his 30's and was really under-dressed for this particular joint. I mean, you know how you look around in a joint and you see people dressed with their different choices of clothes, gowns, dresses, hoodies, lumber jack shirts, cooperate shoes and shirts, sneakers, moccasins,timberland boots, high heels and many more. You get the gist...Just generally well dressed regardless of their fashion sense of personal choice for the evening. Or even if someone wasn't dressed good, it wasn't due to lack of trying. Well this particular man stood out of the crowd in his shirt that had an image of 2pac, the shirt was faded and you could tell that it was between 5 to 15 years old or more old and had seen better days. His three-quarter shorts weren't any better, it was bought a different color that I couldn't make out at the time but through the years had turned into a deep brown and was seriously stained with grease. Moving lower to his choice of footwear, his leather sandals had the buckle of the left foot missing, that left it unfastened and it slapped against his ankle with each step he took but he looked like he didn't care.


 The moment this fellow walked into the joint, gazing eyes turned to look at him but quickly turned back. I guess he came for something else or was a utility man taking care of one equipment in the facility or another, most likely the generator seeing that this particular area the joint is located is known for hardly having light. So you can imagine the surprise on everybody's face when he tore the pure water sachet he walked in with with his teeth, quickly washed his face and hands with the water, took a seat and ordered for a bottle of Hero lager beer. Well, if every other person was uncomfortable with his presence he wasn't bothered at all. He simply sat down and nursed the green bottle that was in front of him and kept glancing around at the people around him.

It was a funny sight really I must tell you and I kept glancing over at his table trying to make out why he was right there with us and not over at some local loud joint where the drinks were cheaper and there were more “loose broads” that were equally loud. This possibly couldn't be his scene, this place was too organized for someone like him I thought to myself. But my thoughts were only mine and he was evidently enjoying himself regardless of anything I or any other person for that matter chose to think.

Hours passed by and my mind had been diverted to a number of  other things. We were deep in our discussion at my own table, so I wasn't paying attention to the man very much. At a point I had to settle part of the bill we had accumulated and realized that I left my wallet in the car. So I went outside and noticed the utility man heading outside also but he was ahead of me. I walked behind him and he made a left turn at the gate, stopped in front of a "Keke Napep", brought out a set of keys and started the little vehicle. As I walked towards my own car I heard a young lady shout "Keke you dey go?!. She walked towards his vehicle then got in and he zoomed off.

I had retrieved my wallet by then and as they faded into the darkness of street, they only reappeared at the junction where the only working street light was located, I thought to myself how nice it was that he gave the lady a lift and regardless of the fact that he was a utility man, he didn't object when he was called 'Keke'. I also thought of how nice it was that a simple generator mechanic was able to buy a vehicle to move around with. To me even if he did charge the girl, it was allowed because I noticed the vehicle was registered and of cos a 'brother' could always use a little extra cash.

Getting back to my table I called one of the waitresses to pay up my part of the bill, then asked her about the Utility man and who he really was. That was when she revealed to me that he wasn't actually a utility man and that he was actually a Keke Napep Driver. She said he visits the join every once in a while to relax then picks customers when he is done. Apparently the man prefers that particular joint to the loud ones and buys just a single bottle the few times he gets to visit. According to the waitress said, he would rather drink a single bottle out there and be alone with his thoughts, enjoy looking at other people and keep dreaming of the life he wants to live than to go and join others in the cheaper joints and drink till he passes out. He says the place is calm and he gets to meet interesting people each time.


You see, this man, this utility man or Keke Napep Driver. Regardless of where he is in life right now, he still strives everyday and keeps on dreaming. He knows what to cut out and what he needs to move forward in his life. I am not judging the other people out there in the other joints, everyone has a choice and I personally visit those kind of joints when I feel like it. I am just saying that this particular man knows what he can and cannot handle, he knows what would help him move forward, so he isn't afraid to go for it. He doesn't care if he stands out in his choice of crowd and doesn't care if it's just a single bottle he has to take, he simply knows what his mind needs at that point to be able to relax before he heads back out into the madness of the world. He knows that he'd rather drink a single bottle that is worth N400 (four hundred naira) than to drink 5 bottles at N200. Not because of the price but simply because it is the way he wants it. He knows that he would enjoy staying at that bar and spending the amount needed as long as he ends up. He isn't hurting anyone by what he is doing, he is simply doing what needs to be done.

Sometimes you just have to know how to keep yourself happy. Sometimes you have to forget about thinking and calculating certain things too much and just go out of your way to treat yourself to something good. Enjoy your life once in a while, be happy. Stay focused and do what you have to do in this life. It is all about balance, work hard, but make out time for the good times. Don't kill yourself and your joy over calculating and ending up depressed just because you are starving yourself of certain joys. As much as our needs are important, I believe we should make out time and chance to indulge our wants on few occasions. It is one way to keep your sanity in this our crazy and beautiful world.

You have only one life, don't spend it frustrated...

Feel free to comment with any extra lessons you might have learnt from this or any other comment or contribution you wish to make.