The housemaid might have the least glamorous job around, but it is the barmaid that gets to have the worst reputation, so bad that it is only ranked above that of the gossiping hairdressers in salons.
Where the housemaid frequently has to play the role of surrogate wife in the home — down to sexual duties — the barmaid plays that of surrogate girlfriend, mother, and comforter all rolled into one, to the overworked, underpaid men of Kenya.
It’s rough being a Kenyan man. All that unsavoury behaviour that Kenyan men sometimes find themselves expressing could, if enough shrinks put their heads to the issue, be found to be a cry for help. And when men are helpless, only women can help them.
Not just any woman — every man, cajoled gently, will confess to having one or two favourite barmaids out there.
The barmaid is the first to notice when a man has had a particularly bad day, and she instinctively knows not to ask too much about it, but will rather just pour a hefty glass of his favourite tipple, watch him guzzle it down, top up the glass and then venture a question.
Release stress
Top executives in the country will confess that on more than a few occasions, they have sought the opinion of the barmaid on one or other big deal, and many have followed the gentle lady’s suggestions.
The country could secretly be under the control of barmaids, such is their influence on politicians, businessmen, academics, diplomats, basically everyone male and important.
Perhaps this is no surprise, for the barmaid’s job is to attract as many patrons as possible — and keep them drinking until they are broke, then offer them some credit so they continue imbibing.
In providing the Kenyan man with an outlet for his drama and a pressure valve to release his stress, the barmaid is right up there with her sister the housemaid as one of the two most important workers in Kenya.
Raise a glass to her this evening!
