coming home to roost

No money = no wife.

A. has three sons, all in their mid- to late-20s, all with university or poly degrees. One has a job with Customs and Immigration, another's been working at the Blair Research Station near Marondera as he completes his Masters, the third is waiting for his poly results (a paper he wrote has mysteriously disappeared, meaning he might have to sit -- and pay for -- it again). There are no fiancees or wives, not even a girlfriend. How can there be, when prospective in-laws expect lobola (bride price), lots of it and payable in foreign currency?

The sons are home again this weekend. Unaccompanied, of course.

"Other people complain about an empty nest," she says. "In my case, they're coming home to roost."