‘Ke December boss’ is a phrase I have been hearing a lot these past few days and I have noticed that it is always said in an upbeat and excited tone, to show that a time that so many have been waiting for is finally here.
I want you to take note of the difference in tone when this phrase is uttered in December and January because it really does take a dramatic change.
I recently came across a very funny but true Facebook status update from someone who was very angry at the excitement going about not only the social media scope but also around the country and the world at large as the festive season rapidly approaches, or is it already here? I really have no idea when it starts but I sure do know when it ends.
The thing that seemed to anger this person so much was all these events she was getting invited to and how every single person wanted to know where they will be going this festive season and every time she told them nowhere because she was broke. They would be shocked and the response that always follows is “but ke December boss you must find a way to have fun”.
Yes, it’s December and it’s the festive season but it does not come with a surprise stash of extra money that you have no use for and can just blow within the two weeks that are the festive season.
Sure some might have been saving up during the year and some had their metshelo but even that money had been budgeted for months ago and the festive fever was a small part of that budget.
Ever notice how every December it seems every single person seems to have money? Whether they are working or not, they somehow always find the money to blow and live la vida loca for just a while.
The festive season is the one time in the year when you don’t hear anybody complaining about their finances and it is also the one time in the year when people waste money on things they don’t need while they do not even seem to be aware of it.
The excitement of the season comes with bad financial judgements that make January a very unpleasant month.
January, for as long as I can remember, has always been a depressing month and everybody just waits for it to end so they can get paid and go back to their normal lives. It’s that month when you will find in a typical Motswana’s fridge an Oros bottle filled with drinking water doing a very sad dance with half a tomato and half an onion. The month when mayonnaise and tomato source are not only a luxury, but also almost every person’s best friend because they add some sort of flavour to otherwise very dull food.
Yes, that’s when you will say, ‘ke December boss’ and not be excited by it.
This is the month when the tone of saying ‘ke December boss’ changes from being an excited one to a super depressed one. Instead of being said with a smile and a dance, it is usually accompanied by scratching and shaking of the head and, if you listen closely enough and look carefully, there is a tremble of the voice and eyes start to well up with tears.
Why does this happen?
Because ‘ke December boss’ and it will teach you a good lesson on how tough life can be if you don’t budget well and spend your money like a sensible person.
January does not have to live under the shadow of December and be the younger boring sibling to the festive month just because we decide to be careless as to how we spend our money.
Plan well so that you can toast in the New Year with the same level of excitement you bade farewell to the year that was ending.
January, for many of us, is a time of new beginnings, where we set new goals for ourselves, grow a year older and get ready to experience new challenges.
It should be ushered in with a lot of excitement as we wait to see what good things, and some not so good things, it has in store for us.
Ke December boss, don’t lose your head to it because it will be over in less than 20 days and you will need to use your head after that.
