The blind date

[BlackVelvet]

Tuushi those "and worse" people are not Somali lakin


LamaG looking forward to it adeer (and the royalties inshaAllah )

[Lamagoodle]

Mulki and Madaxeey checked in the hotel Radisson.

Two separate rooms.

Madaxeey wanted to foot the bill but she objected. Money is like opium to early bird love nests. She was an independent woman and could not be lured by a few dollars.

In her mind, Mulki realised that she was trapped. Madaxeey was everything but the cyber character she flirted with. He was shabby, half-bald and came across as a player. He was not the sophisticated guy who she met in the chatrooms.

But, still there was something in the air. He was earthly, traditional and appeared to be a listener. It was apparent that he got the message and that all he wanted to do was to please her.

There was also something about his eyes which portrayed sincerity and longing. Mulki could not directly look into his eyes. When she did, there was this urge to kiss him. She felt horny; sweated and shivered. She was capable of controlling her feelings but this was something new.

Madaxeey’s strategy was simple. The night will decide. He will portray himself as a responsible guy who will not go for the hit and run. Even if – after the dinner- she suggested they share a bed, he will say NO.

He has heard of somali proverbs; naag beena waa lagu soo xero geliyaa runna waa lagu dhaqaa.

If she insists after many Nos, then that is another story.

Walaal, let us meet in the lobby in 15 minutes. I suggest that we take a taxi/bus to the city centre. We could go to a theatre, a movie or Legoland, he suggested.

15 minutes? She asked

Yes, 15 minutes? Is that too much?

No. I am a woman, you know she said with a smile

Ok. I get it. 30 minute. I will be in the bar, there, he said pointing at the bar in the lobby.

As she was taking the lifts, again Mulki is overcome by regrets.

What the hell am I doing in this place? she asked herself

A strange country, a strange man , she found herself saying.

As the lift was nearing the floor of her room Mulki decided to think positively.

Waa wiil soomaali ah oo edeb leh, she embrassingly found herself saying loudly.

Maybe this is calaf.

As she walked towards her room, she was realising that her feelings towards to him were growing.

She attempted to surpress her feelings but they will not diminish




To be continued

[Lamagoodle]

Mulki left her room in less than 5 minutes. In the normal circumstances, it would have taken her at least an hour to dress and put on makeup. She was after all a woman.

She will never venture out without trying a number of dresses, blouses etc before she settled for one. This time, however, she quickly placed her luggage in the room and rushed to catch the lift to go downstairs.

What if he is a murder? What if he is a rapist? It was time to abort this undertaking or at least inform someone in case things turn out differently. Whom should she call? What should she tell them?

Calling her relatives back home is out of the question. That will make them worry. Calling friends is also not an option. The rumour mills back in London will be ubiquitous and everyone in the hood will talk about her naivety. Others will address her as the horny girl of the block. She will be a pariah at best and a harlot at worst. Either ways, her reputation will be damaged to the extent that her family and friends will disown her.

“I am trapped” she shouted instinctively.

Meanwhile, two floors up, Madaxeey was also overcome with unease. What on earth did he do? Travel to another country to meet a stranger? She did not turn out the way he envisaged. She was not the hot chick she portrayed herself to be; she was not hip. She did not have the “thing” i.e. the “come to bed” eyes, the “kiss me” smile or the typical somali “ suuro” which is the seductive formulae for a woman who wants but cannot admit .

She was the typical Carfoon, Sucaad, Batuula in town. The kind of woman you will meet anywhere in the diaspora. The kind that was “calaf doon” who did not meet prince charming; the kind that after a few years of marriage will spend much of their time on the phones gossiping, going to late night weddings and become thirsty for expensive jewellery etc.
Looking prince charming? He found himself asking.

She is probably the kind of woman who is looking for a man of her calibre. A man that will cherish her; a man that will love her. A man that makes a living working. Not the kind of men she met in London and elsewhere; losers. Maybe she thought, the grass is greener elsewhere. Perhaps she was charmed by his internet character.

There was something different about her. She might not have the look, the body or the suuro but there was something special about her. She did not look like any other somali woman he met. Deep beneath her eyes, he sensed that she was different.

He decided to act as a gentleman tonight. Make her feel comfortable. A good dinner. A good conversation (maybe discuss some of the cyber characters) and back to their respective rooms. Tomorrow, he will give her the presents he bought her and bid her farewell. He will ever promise her that he will visit her in London.

At the lobby, Mulki asked the receptionist the hotel’s password for the Wi-Fi.

Use your surname and your room number and you are in, replied the receptionist.

She looked at her contacts on the phone. There were relatives, work colleagues and friends. Toloow, who should I call? She asked herself.


She decided to contact two of her cyber friends; Jasmine and Tuushi. She had met both of them. She will message them and see how they respond.

Jasmine is a 25-year-old spinster in London who might be termed as an idea machine. She is creative, an optimist who looks at everything in life as an opportunity. She is very creative and find unique ways to be provocative. She is not only smart but also quizzical. She questions everything including social cultural norms which makers her a strategic thinker.

Born into a middle class family in Xamar, Jasmine is a devout somali who sees optimism in the geopolitical situation in her home country. Her parents Salaad and Nasteexo met in Mogadishu. They ran an export-import business and were part of the socialite elite of Xamar.

After the civil war in the early 1990s, the family moved to Nairobi and then London. Her parents prioritized the education of their kids; Jasmine and her older brother, Guhaad attended the best schools in London.

Jasmine was admitted to the London school of Economics where is pursuing a degree in the social sciences. It was here at the LSE where her political opinions were formed. She embraced feminism an ideology which in theory is about defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, cultural opportunity for women. However, she is not a utopist with radical and socialist idea. Although she is not Simone de Beauvoir, her analyses of human interactions always had the notion of power as a key point of departure.

In the chatrooms, Jasmine will always take the side of women in everything. It is a question of subjugation; it is a question of power she will always proclaim when issues of relationships are discussed.

Tuushi is a 28 year spinister who lived in Toronto. She is not only beautiful but also appealing. She is such a gorgeous woman that her perfection is admired by both men and women. The men dream about dating her for her beauty while the women dream about looking like her to be desired.

Born in Saakow on the Jubba River into an agrarian family, Tuushi is a converative women. The kind of woman whose choice of men is about appeasing the wishes of her family. She is aware people call beauty, qalanjo etc. She is interested in philosophy and read several books on the notion of hubris. She vowed never to be a victim of hubris. Humble woman.

Mulki composed the following message;

“Dear Tuushi/Jasmine. You can’t blv this, but I am in Denmark to meet a guy I met in the chatrooms. I am overcome with regrets. I think this is the worst thing I have done. He has not attacked me yet, he has not raped me yet. But, I still think I made a horrible decision. I have not informed anyone about this encounter and I want you to keep it our little secret. We have checked into a hotel. But, I am experiencing doubts. What shall I do?”

Within a few minutes, she receives the following messages:

From Tuushi “ woow. You are very brave. You are corned girl! Same hotel implies that people are comfortable together.I am not sure i wanna be that comfortable with someone i met online mere 8 months ago. I suggest you check into another hotel and meet in another location tomorrow.”

From Jasmine “ WtF! This sounds like a walk on the wild side so to speak. Clearly you are two, grown, consenting adults, it's just peculiar in a Somali context where this is viewed ceeb of the highest degree. Having said that it is odd. What this shows is that you are a brave girl. My advice is be on your guard. Be a strong woman. Let him not use you. Do not sound too desperate for a relationship. Pay your bills and show him that you are independent woman. P.s. Is he handsome?"

To be continued...

[BlackVelvet]

Hooga ba'aye!

Spinters aa?! We are bachelorottes adeer

ps lmao@ ps is he handsome, I probably would ask

Haye Tuushi your take?

[YummyMummy]

Very nicely written once again Jaalle, I must say I felt the awkwardness of the situation myself which shows how skilled you are. Carry on walal

[Vivacious]

From Jasmine “ WtF! This sounds like a walk on the wild side so to speak. Clearly you are two, grown, consenting adults, it's just peculiar in a Somali context where this is viewed ceeb of the highest degree. Having said that it is odd. What this shows is that you are a brave girl. My advice is be on your guard. Be a strong woman. Let him not use you. Do not sound too desperate for a relationship. Pay your bills and show him that you are independent woman. P.s. Is he handsome?"

You got that right. That's definitely something Jasmine would do.

[Lamagoodle]

YummyM, I am not that talented.. I try to be but that is difficult.

Jasmine, Adeer, is my description totally wrong? Tuushi is probably in a celebratory mood. She is described as gorgeous and dazzling. It is Friday night, she is probably at the proms

Deeqoy, you will be featuring in the next episode. How do you want me to describe you?

[Vivacious]

Deeqoy, you will be featuring in the next episode. How do you want me to describe you?

Qeybta aan ka qaadan doono lama filaan iiga dhig fadlan

[Tuushi]

Hooga ba'aye!

Spinters aa?! We are bachelorottes adeer

ps lmao@ ps is he handsome, I probably would ask

Haye Tuushi your take?

I am mad for getting called a 28 year old spinster.

[BlackVelvet]

That just overshadows all the other positive points innit

[Tuushi]

It does.

[Vivacious]

@ Tuushi

[Tuushi]

Deeqa.Wiilka hoosta ayuu noo galiyey.Wuxuu iska digey nin ana honours na siinayo.

[Vivacious]

Ma ila aragtay

Let's wait and see how he will describe me in the next episode

[Lamagoodle]

Deeqow, I will see what I can do.

Tuushi and Jasmine; Selective reading. Ma arkin miyaa Brain and beauty? The word spinster was used in good faith. I am an old fashioned grumpy old man; 18+ never married woman=spinster. No bad faith.

The etymology of the word "female spinner of thread," from M.E. spinnen (see spin) + -stere, feminine suffix. Spinning commonly done by unmarried women, hence the word came to denote "an unmarried woman" in legal documents from 1600s to early 1900s, and by 1719 was being used generically for "woman still unmarried and beyond the usual age for it."

Anyway, xaal qaata.