And then there are ‘posers’

Last week, I talked about how well dressed campus students operate. Now, you should see them when they have just bought a new outfit. They walk around campus like they are untouchable. A student will buy the shirt from Giporoso or Nyabugogo and without a thought, wear it the very next day. This is called buy and wear. Now, you must wonder – isn’t this how it is supposed to be? Sure – if you are shopping at Mr. Price or some fancy store in Union Trade Centre (UCT). These kids are allergic to such, so they hit second markets where they can bargain for a top for as low as Rwf200! If you have been to a second hand clothing market you know that it is not wise to just wear these clothes before washing them. But ‘campusers’ could care less. By some string of luck, they might wash it at night and pray it dries by morning but normally, there is no time for such – not for them at least. Now, the next morning, as soon as they are in the public’s eye, they walk while checking themselves out wherever a reflection pops. One lad even insisted on caressing the damn shirt every other minute. This, my dear friends, is called posing (also called showing off) – but completely inexcusable in this case. I have also noticed that when a guy at campus wears a new shirt, his ability to ‘ask where not understood’ goes up a notch – he will raise his hand in class and interrupt the lecturer every five seconds just to get kids to look at him. And after the lesson, he will hate on anyone who doesn’t compliment him. Friendship has very strong ties with compliments here. So to have friends, you need compliments in stock. Try having a conversation with them and it will go like, “Yesterday after I bought my new shirt, I went for a movie.” He will add, “I met Phillip who hugged me and left dirt on my new shirt.” Unless you want a premature death, do not criticize the new outfit. Strangely, you are not even supposed to mention that it came from Nyabugogo. And the few styled up individuals like myself are supposed to tolerate this nonsense? This is torture.