Its All Just Fun*di and Games

Everyone in Tanzania has a "Fundi". Actually, everyone has 3 or 4 Fundi's depending on what they are trying to get accomplished.

As best as I can tell, the Webster's Swahili Edition definition of "Fundi" is: A guy who can get any task you need accomplished completed. Note, a Fundi is always male

So for example, if you need your pool filters cleaned and you ask your landlord to arrange it, his response would be, "Oh, I've got a Fundi for that."

Or, if your air shipment arrived but your work permit hasn't been issued yet so you can't pick it up, your director of human resources might tell you on the sly, "I've got a great Fundi who can grease the wheels of the Ministry of Labour if you give him 100,000 Tsh to pass around."

But even if you need someone to pick up some bananas for breakfast, or show the spider in your living room to the door, you need a Fundi.

As it turns out anyone who can get a task done, no matter how important or menial is a Fundi. I found that quite confusing at first, but people here seem to get it and I guess that soon I will, too.

But now I'm wondering, what did I do without a Fundi all these years?

Oh Raymond, could you please be a Fundi and pick me up some bananas for tomorrow morning????