COBES.

In Moi University College of Health Sciences` offices COBES is an acronym for Community Based Education and Services.However in the hostels,COBES means something entirely different;it refers to the communal sharing of items among  neighbours.Nearly every guy knows and has participated in COBES(hostel version) at least once.I don`t know about the ladies.

The following are the most COBESed items:

                                                                 1.Utensils.
When a neighbour comes at midnight and asks ``mko na sufuria safi?",the standard response is to point towards the dish rack and the needy fella calmly shops for a clean sufuria.You are not troubled because sooner or later it will be your turn to visit and shop and you are sure you will execute it with unrelenting vengeance .

                                                                2.Food.
When caught devouring some rare meal by a neighbour or a  friend,you pray hard that the guy has  already eaten.Unfortunately in most cases the guy is usually hungrier than a Kenyan MCA and there is usually no happy ending to his visit.

 ``Hii nyama inakaa tamu.''...*Scoop*...``Na mbona umekatakata ugali hadi ikakaa exercise book ya hesabu?"...*Mother of all scoops*...And before you can scream `Kanyari',50%+1 of your food is gone.

             

                            
                                                         3.Sugar.
During the exams period,the amount of caffeine intake in most rooms is capable of killing a small mammal .Consequently the half life of a kilo of sugar in this period is around 24 hours.

When you go sugar shopping and your sugarless neighbours get wikileaks of it,hehe,you are so screwed!On your return you will find a crowd of excited neighbours at your door with large mugs.Of course you will try to act smart and give them a `health talk'  on how `sugar' causes `diabetes'  but your efforts will be as useless as letter `T' in the word tsetse.

                                                           4.Miscellaneous items.
When in need of a random item like shoe polish,shoe brush or even slippers(COBESing of slippers has reached alarming levels),you just get them from the nearest room.Therefore don`t get shocked if you pass by and hear somebody tell his neighbor something like ``buda niko na brush hapa ,uko na kiwi?"

Acceptable degree of COBES ain't that bad after all.I have witnessed COBES save lives especially when there is delayed disbursement of reading allowance(read HELB).Let he who has not benefited at all from COBES cast the first stone.

Have a COBES-free day.