I've just about HAD IT!

Can you just imagine this lady has refused to give me a full refund of my deposit??? She claims I'm still liable to pay her for the portion of the one-month notice period I am not staying at the flat. In other words, she's taking half of my deposit!

She tells me I cannot move out of the flat because she's already posted an advert stating the room will be available from the middle of September. Like .. hello... can an advert not be modified??? So as a friend said, "she wants me out, but wants me to move only when she's ready". She claims the room will be unoccupied during that period which I know is a lie! For Pete's sake, she was telling the prospective tenants that the room will be available from 1 September in my presence. And I KNOW she will not give me my full refund even if the room is occupied from the 1st of the month. Meaning she benefits both ways. How greedy can one get??? Can you just imagine?! I am sooooo PISSED!!! Is it legal to do this???

I have checked the South African laws and there's no provision regarding this peculiar situation. And people, it's not about the money but the principle. I hate being cheated and people taking advantage of situations simply because they can. It appears extorting money from international students appears to be the in thing these days. I am aware this lady witheld money from the 2 previous tenants as well. I know this because she told me. The sad thing is she'll get away with it. That's what really irks me! To be honest, I cannot be bothered to seek legal representation on this. I mean, the law says I'm entitled to a written notice (which she didn't give me) and the interest accrued on the deposit (which I bet she won't give me).

But you know what? It's not worth the time, effort or money (though sometimes it may be worth it just for the principle). That and the fact that most times, we'd rather stay safe than fight for our rights. But I've always regarded money as a secondary issue, for my sanity and no matter what, I know I'll always get money because I pay my tithes religiously. So things always just work out for me.

Well people have asked me to leave it to God so I will. But I am out of here tomorrow by God's grace. After all, there's no reason to stay anymore. In fact, I cannot bear to be in this environment any longer. The sad thing is I've already paid for the new place, so I've lost a substantial sum of money, which right now could come very handy since the year has ended and I'm "very rich".

Thing about situations like these, money obtained through inappropriate means never lasts and like my mother says in literal translation from Yoruba, "you cannot buy a product that will make you smile from taking money that has made someone else cry". I know one thing for sure... my God is up there and He sure will look out for me like He always has!

I am very pained people. I am pained! But hey, what's a few rands right? Much MUCH more will come my way by God's grace when I become rich and famous! And t-h-e-n she can eat from the crumbs that fall from my plate! Amen!

Romans 8: 28

I'm not very good at quoting Bible verses. I usually remember the text but not the exact location. But there is one that ALWAYS comes to my mind when I'm either going through a challenge or something has just worked out through God's divine intervention:

Romans 8: 28 "All things work together for good to them that love Him and are called according to His purpose".

I know the italicised portion by heart but googled it to confirm its exact location in the Bible. A search for this verse brought me to this quote on The Jesus's Blog, a sort of mini-sermon on this passage:

"It is a powerful scripture. The power lies in the fact that this is a scripture that explains so much of what goes wrong in our lives. The loss of a job, a betrayal, a death, going bankrupt. It all seems so negative at the time. Nevertheless, God is working out an eternal purpose to bring His plans to pass."

How true this is. You all have read about my latest challenge in my last 2 posts. It is SIMPLY amazing how things have worked out and I thank God for it.

Ok where do I begin...

Househunt yes. Well after this episode, I decided it was time to get my own place. Apart from the costs, I'm not too keen on living alone. As my sister said "sometimes, living with someone gives a sense of security, even if the person is never there". SO I placed an ad looking for someone who is in the same position and who I could sign a lease with.

Well this South African guy responds and we start chatting about our situation and how we could hook up to see if we are compatible. During our conversation, it turns out he's been around quite a few Nigerians... and better still, knows one of my buddies back home!!! I was tooo tripped! I mean, what are the odds of meeting a total stranger, a South African who knows one of your personal peeps back home??? Turns out they met at a training in Paris.

Anywayz, by then I was like... "ok you have no choice, we DEFINITELY are moving in together". The only BUT here is that his lease expires in October... meaning he'll only require a new place in November. Oops! And I have to find a place by 1 September (though I have till 15th to move, I'd rather leave sooner than later). So anywayz, we agreed that I should perhaps find temporary accommodation till his lease expires.

Well I am pleased to say that I have discussed with the chic who owns the flat I said I found 2 days after I got the notice and she says it's ok for me to move in temporarily till I'm ready to move on, provided I give her one month's notice. Further, she's happy to extend the lease if I find that I like it at her place and has not only offered to help me move but said I could move in before the end of the month at no extra cost to me.

So people... all's well that ends well. At times like this, I am speechless at how things work out for me. One minute you feel like you're drowning, and before you know it, you realize that you're just taking a dip in fresh spring water simply because you're thirsty and you need a gulp of water. It's not because I'm too good but it is simply by His mercy and grace.

People! I have just TOO many testimonies, I don't even know where to begin. But one thing I know is no matter how bleak a situation may seem, there's ALWAYS light at the end of the tunnel. Trust me, I'm living proof of His grace!

Always think to yourself, "It is well. This is just for a short while..." Believe it and it will come to pass.

Enjoy your weekend all!

The Truth Revealed.....

PEOPLE!!!!! I had to RUN HOME to give you the latest gist on my accommodation situation. LOL!!!! My goodness... this is incredible!!!

I'm minding my business, browsing through gumtree for accommodation when I stumbled upon this ad obviously posted by my landlady:

"Furnished room in Sea Point apartment available for short term let from mid-September or 1st October.

Will suit mature person (male or female) who is clean, tidy and considerate. Must be animal lover - I have a dog and 2 cats, and must not be an anti smoking campaigner!

Rent includes electricity and maid.

The apartment is situated a stone's throw from the beach front promenade and has stunning sea and mountain views. Close to all amenities and transport."

Now after reading the 1st paragraph, I start to think.... "oh ok... she needs the room seeing she's looking for a short term let. But why didn't she just say so and give me enough notice instead of taking the route she took???"

These were my thoughts until I saw the 2nd paragraph about the "anti-smoking campaigner"... and I'm thinking "WHAT?!!!"

OK.. let's go back to when I first viewed the flat. YES she did tell me she was a smoker. YES I still moved in anyway. YES after the 1 month trial period, I said "Sure, I can live with the smoke" because she doesn't smoke that much anyway. Besides, the place is really airy and she burns candles to absorb the smell (which I thought was really cool.... and yes she told me this when I asked why she had so many candles around the house).

SO the cigarette smell doesn't really get into my room. The only time I really smell the smoke is when I come out into the hallway and when she smokes in her room which she rarely ever does anyway. For Pete's sake, I watch Project Runway with her when she's smoking and I have NEVER complained. Of course, like someone who has an allergy to smoke, I cough when I first smell it until my system adjusts. But then, I also cough when I spray insecticide, cook or when my throat is clogged from stress or cold.

SO I'm starting to think "why on earth would she think I'm an anti-smoking campaigner???"

And then suddenly it clicks! Hold up for JUST ONE SECOND! No no no.... SURELY she cannot be kicking me out because I spray air freshener all the time???!!!!!

OK people, anyone who knows me would tell you I'm addicted to lovely smells, hence my addiction to perfumes (designer perfumes by the way wink wink) and air fresheners. I love to smell nice. In fact, I told her about this when we went to Checkers once and I was looking for the "Glade Strawberries and Cream fragrance" for my wall.

If you look at my room people, I have air freshener EVERYWHERE!!! I love the fresh smell in my clothes... the so-called "janded smell" we all love so much back home. I have 3 in the cupboard I hang my clothes (2 hanging from the rail and 1 on the floor), 1 on every shelf in the wardrobe, 2 in my shoe cupboard, 1 hanging from the ceiling, 1 hanging from the door, 1 stuck on the wall, a can in the bathroom and a can in my room and extra cans and units just so I never run out.

AND I always spray the cans of air freshener. I spray after I finish cooking for the smell (since we don't open the windows in case Minky runs away again), I spray air freshener when I'm done in the loo in case it gets into the hallway, I spray in my room because I eat in my room and hate the smell of stale food, I spray when I take off my boots just in case there's an umpleasant smell (no my feet do not stink people), I spray my shoe cupboard even though I have the hanging units, I spray when the smell of her dog gets a bit strong, yes I spray when the smell of the smoke gets into my room, I spray after I have treated my bed with insecticide (which is usually at night since bed bugs are nocturnal creatures) and sometimes I spray just for the heck of it, usually when I think to myself... hey I can't smell any air freshener.

SO tell me... why on earth would she think I spray air freshner only because of her cigarettes?????? How different is it from having a plug-in unit that sprays automatically every 10 or 15 minutes?

You know what it is??? Paranoia. NOPE! I refuse to believe it's the air freshener. Surely there must be some other reason. ANd if she had a problem with it, why not just tell me? If she thinks it quite ridiculous, then she could make up some story about how the smell of air freshener mixed with cigarette smoke can be quite nauseating or some other story.... except she thinks, "Hey I can't caution someone for spraying air freshener all the time so I think the best way out of it is to throw her out!"

So see people... my phone calls were obviously not the problem. That was just an excuse which didn't really hold water anyway. The main issue was "freshening the air" with my air fresheners.

HOW LUDICROUS!

Sleeping with the Enemy...

PEOPLE! I need to write a best seller on my experiences here. You cannot believe I am house-hunting.... AGAIN!!!!! Really, I think I deserve a medal for this or what do you guys think??? I mean REALLY I thought the search was over. I was soooooo comfortable here and had already started buying little furniture and all...

UNTIL... my landlady comes home Thursday evening and tells me just out of the blue "I'm sorry but this just is not working" and gave me a month's notice. To say I was shocked was an understatement. I have NEVER had cause to think I had issues with the lady. I mean, of course there was the bedbug issue which I thought had been resolved.

Oh yes.... the bedbug issue.... lemme quickly gist you about that. But first, don't think I live in filth. Bedbugs are attracted to human blood not waste or filth.

Anywayz, when I moved in here I had issues sleeping at night because I always woke up with itchy insect bites - and I still have the scars to prove it. Really strange since I never even saw a cockroach in the flat I moved out of in February. I complained to her but she claimed she never had such problems... UNTIL... the bugs got into her room!

And the complaints began, accusing me of bringing bedbugs into her flat. Imagine that! Of course I felt bad so I coughed up 700 bucks to get the place fumigated. After 2 treatments, the bugs still didn't leave because the treatments obviously don't work on the eggs. But hey, they no longer disturbed me since I treated my bed every night with insecticide. In fact I slept soundly! But she kept on complaining that she couldn't live her life spraying insecticides all the time.

But the whining continued every morning till I just got fed up and called the guy who stayed here before I moved in. Imagine my relief when he told me that that was the reason he moved out! Meaning the problem was there BEFORE I moved in. Of course I told my landlady what the guy said and she denied it, claimed the guy only complained about mosquitoes. HA! The guy told me he thought the insects were fleas from the pets.

We never spoke about it again and she never complained about the bugs to me again and things went back to normal before I left... or so I thought. This episode obviously marked the beginning of the end of my stay here!

I got back from Lagos and noticed she was acting strange. I told my mum and my sister about it but they advised I just act normal that maybe she was going through some issues. But despite her attitude I still spoke to her (though not as much as before) and just last week I was telling my mother that things were back to normal... until that fateful Thursday!

I asked her why she was kicking me out and initially she said nothing. Then to my surprise, she said it was because I was always on the phone. WHAT?! BULLCRAP!!! Complaining about me being on MY CELL PHONE??? I mean this is a lady who's in front of the TV till like 12am and I'm always in my room. There is NO WAY she can hear me above the noise of the TV. In fact, I should be the one complaining about the noise from the TV. I told her surely this could not be the reason. She said, "well and lots of other things". I asked which other things but she couldn't give me an answer. I asked why she never told me about these "lots of other things", still silence.... and then "you have a month to find somewhere else". How cold!

BUT seeing that God loves me sooo much, I have found a place already!!!!!! In 2 days I found a place! I mean it's not my usual style but hey I am eager to get out of here! The chic seems nice but hey, after what I've been through in CPT, I'm pretty much prepared for anything now. Only problem is I have to buy furniture which I'm not too happy with, so I'm still searching. In fact I had promised myself I would not stay with the owner of a flat ever again but to be honest, I'm not keen on staying by myself either. Not in this society that has the "it's all about ME" mentality.

I really do not understand these people. It beats me how someone can be so old (yes she's 20 years older than I am) yet be so immature. How can you live with someone you have issues with and not discuss it with them. For Pete's sake, you sleep in the next room every night! I bet her office peeps convinced her that asking me to leave was the best way because I'm sure she would have discussed it with them, after all they were instrumental in her dealings with the previous tenant.

I pride myself on being the perfect tenant, and my ex estate agent can confirm this. I am extremely clean (and yes I do say so myself), I don't drink, don't smoke, don't have wild parties, respect other people's privacy and pay my rent on time, sometimes even before the due dates. I make an effort to talk to my flatmate, always concerned about them and always offering to help when I can. For Pete's sake, I tried to sell this lady's fur coats for her, placed ads on gumtree for her advertising her make-up skills, bought her pets food with MY money and lots of other things I don't need to tell you.

YET she stabs me in the back all the while smiling at me and speaking sweetly. For Pete's sake, just 2 weeks ago, she moved a large piece of furniture from my room without my asking her to and got the place ready for my reading table. So really I cannot fathom how such a sweet person (because she really is one... let me rephrase... seems like one) could do such a thing. I had praised her so much, my school wanted to put her on their list for future students. Goodness, what a strange person!

I tell you, right now, I CANNOT WAIT to be out of here... in fact no need to take up the full month's notice. I'll be out in 2 weeks by God's grace. I wish Tenades was still here. We viewed the place together. She will be stunned!

But hey people... what can I say, I feel like a nomad. Gosh the stress of packing, moving, settling down again... groan.... I am sooooo not looking forward to it! But I know God will continue to watch out for me as He has done in the past because He loves me!

Enjoy your weekend!

Errrrrrr..........

Could it be that I am back to my disgraceful ways??? Not updating my blog??? Come on! It's funny, I've come online to post an article enough times in the past week but for some strange reason, I just never posted the articles. They seemed too bland. They lacked a certain something. And of course, seeing I don't want to give you anything but my usual posts which y'all love (psyches), I decided to delete my post for today and post something else later.

SO

I haven't forgotten you guys. And I don't want you to think I'm lazy. SO... I'll leave you with my veryyyyy best wishes for a wonderful weekend! :-)