The Haunting

I woke up, it was dark outside, it was dark inside this shouldn't be I thought as my brain came to. Quickly I turned to my laptop, the blue light which indicated power was dark. No way! I shivered. I sprang up from the bed and ran out of my room, ''what is happening''! I screamed at the dark hallway. In a second a voice called, ''Nothing'' I reached for the light switch beside my door and flicked it, as the light flooded my room, my heart rate slowed and I smiled.
I am quite sure that NEPA will haunt me for the rest of my life. Living more than 20yrs in that kind of environment will do it to you too.

Nigerians and Grammar

Sometimes I wonder why Nigerians strive for the best in English grammar more so than even the English. People are always correcting you on what comma you didn't type or how you put a present past participle instead of a continuous present. We Love Grammar. 

I also realized that Nigerians tend to speak the best words when they are angry.  Of all the times!! 'What an impertinent arrogant fellow!, 'How preposterous! the audacity!' its really amazing.

Our politicians are not left out. every single time on the news headlines, when someone is quoted its never far from, ''Adeoti will soon meet his waterloo'' 

Debates have been going on back and forth, and honestly I can't see the point of it they just want to 'blow grammar' and its sad to think that Nigerians are going to vote for people who 'know grammar pass'. All the debates na just grammar to me, that's not what we need in Nigeria, the British already brought Grammar, bring Light.

When the Pharaoh Fell...

We had been following the uprising in Egypt for the past four days, because of the climax it had been heading to. Yesterday, we waited earnestly for the President's speech. It was, disappointing and while I'm not Egyptian, I felt hurt, and I heard some of those at the square say, they were ready to die for freedom. I honestly didn't want their suffering, sweat and blood to be in vain while I thought to myself, I couldn't even do that. I don't believe there's any true physical freedom except death but in the vein of what was happening, I thought, It's only a conviction that could make this people spend over two weeks without wavering for this cause. You don't see courage like this everyday.

Early this morning, I had a dream, that Mubarak was with a friend, in a place nice and sunny, playing golf, actually happy he was no longer president, I tweeted it. I also turned on the TV later and the news from the day before hadn't changed, the people at the square hadn't either. But then! some hours after, I just strolled into the sitting room, and even with my poor eyesight, I read on the telly, BREAKING NEWS: PRESIDENT STEPS DOWN, I screamed and my aunt nearly gave up the ghost. She was stunned, and asked why I screamed like that. I just laughed and gave a little victory jig. You'd have thought I was 'Egyptian'.

I can't describe the way I feel, I am ecstatic, I am overjoyed. I think this is a big step. and the day couldn't be any more profound, given that it's also the 21st anniversary of Mandela's freedom from prison. What saddens me though is the prevailing issues in Egypt, Racism for one and the Muslim/Christian divide. I hope that this demonstration will finally unite the country for good. I hope that they would see that we are all ONE peoples and that there is indeed Unity in diversity. I hope that on a larger scale, people will realize this also. I hope that people would once again look to Egypt as a source of life, new life flowing in our veins, giving us the strength to go out there and actualize change. I hope that the Nigeria mass will finally wake up.

A New Day, A New Life, I am glad.

Women in Nigerian History

I have been doing some reading and research on particular Nigerian culture. People now resident in 'Edo' state to be precise. And it has shown me some things I knew had to be there. I can't make a full post now because I don't have notes, I lost my library card and I can't get another till..bla blah. So far I have to make do it with what I got out of it and I've been trying to write a story.

Anyways the point of this particular post is the fact that most Africans, or let me narrow it down to Nigerians, don't know where they come from, they never bothered to look at the past which has begun to affect their present way of thinking. One day we were in the sitting room, having a laugh. Then one of my uncles asked me, if Jesus Christ was for culture or against culture. He was for culture, I replied, but apparently the missionaries got it all wrong. And then a discussion ensued, between my uncles in their 40s/50s and I. Everyone agreed that the Missionaries approach was wrong and they were then used as mules for Colonialism. But one of my Uncles argued that we didn't have a good way of life..really, so in the long run it was all good, women were oppressed and what not. This was were I had to interject sharply. From my research on the tribes in present-day Edo state, Women held positions of power, they were chiefs, they chose their own way of life. The penalties of raping a woman was exile e.t.c Women were held in high esteem, it was hard to witness the loss of one woman to another tribe (in marriage). My Uncle was stunned.

If people don't take the time to understand or learn about the past, how is the quality of our present or future life going to get better. We need to educate ourselves.

11111

Significant day for me, significant day for many. I turned in an important application, while people were being told to go and register to vote in Nigeria. Now this whole voting of a thing, across the social media, you see it. On twitter there is a hashtag #ifnaijavotes where people were just tweeting jokes..indeed, the whole thing is truly funny. There is also the  R.S.V.P (Register, Select, Vote, Protect Vote) thing. One that really got me started, even pissed for a bit was a tweet I saw. I can't even remember the origin but it was retweeted by someone I follow. The tweet mentioned something about it being our moral right to hold candidates accountable if we vote. What does that mean? Moral right?? This is the problem today in Nigeria, leaving things to chance, 'eh let's vote sha, then we can complain after' One of my uncles said that the philosophy in Nigeria today is 'If there is an issue, leave it alone, it will solve itself' sadly, No issue solves itself.  Countries are not run on Morals, they are run on Laws which people (candidates) have to be made accountable to. If the average Nigerian does not know what the laws of even his Local Govt. are, what is he voting about??.

Looking at the elections and campaigns encouraging people to go and vote, I can't help but shake my head, at the foolishness which plagues almost 90% of the Nigerian populace. How is the voting going to change anything I honestly ask? Does anyone understand the implication of what we are doing, the waste and the abuse of the system we are allowing. We want people to vote based on what? Morals? Sentiments? The political parties, you can hardly tell them apart.What does PDP stand for? ANPP? Zero.

I wrote on my facebook status, 'Voting in a lawless land = Waste of time' and ofcourse many came out to drop their opinions. Some argued that we need to vote the 'right' people, before there can be a change, right. But you see, the problem with that, is we are putting the 'cart before the horse' The process we need to participate in, now, is not voting. I ask again, what are you voting against or for?

The Number one problem in Nigeria, people are not educated. This is the first process we need to go through, EDUCATION. How do people even miss this. Without this, If there is a 'good' candidate, the 'bad' ones would give people money, now tell me how a hungry man is going to resist that. RSVP, they shout, oh so vague! Ofcourse I'm going to protect the vote someone paid me for. People need to know the Laws! Another issue with this is, we all have become comfortable in the lawlessness of Nigeria, we have become 'Used to it' This would indeed be a tough process but we need to go through it.

Number two, if we want real change, a proper revolution in Nigeria, everyone, atleast the majority have to back one leader they feel, according to laid down laws, will be the best for the country. Also, the candidate has to be an equal and opposite force to the 'hooligans' in the country. Its like we can't see how desperately the 'bad' people want the power, why can't a 'good' person want it that desperately, want to actually change things that badly with the means and influence to. All those screaming RSVP and what not are so lost it makes me hang my head in shame. If you can't back a candidate, don't throw people out to the wolves, Register and Vote, for whom??? Those who claim to be 'Knowledgeable' and educated, are JUST NOT doing it right, sad.

Nigeria is upside down, and this election process proves it. I would have expected the opposite if at all. A revolution where people are told NOT to vote until there's transparency in the government and the average man knows and understands the law of the land, or at-least have representatives who do. If I judge the situation from the way things have been going, I don't know if it will ever get right. I don't have much hope left but Nigerian I still am, Nigerian I will always be.

Reading Always helps

I woke up feeling all sorts of weird, my stomach...and when I don't feel alright in my body it tends to affect other parts of my life majorly, especially my thinking ability. But thankfully, if I can get to read I feel MUCH better. I may not be able to articulate thoughts properly..check the awkward 1hr conversation I had with a friend, ok..it was 50% Cool 50% Awkward. Anyways! I also learnt a couple of things from my uncle (EPA + DHA)omega-3, which I intend to put to good use in between him accusing me of suffering from rejection and that I shouldn't beg anyone...I can't say I'm devoid of emotions over the issue, I'm just disappointed and I'm angry with myself..ugh. I intended to blog about my research findings yesterday, but this condition..yah, I hope I feel way better when I wake up , much later today, I may even go outside for some fresh air.

So here I am, listening to a classical radio (Bach on now, quite somber) and clearing out my tabs! long story, but you get the picture, I need to have something organised!! my mind is a mess. I went a bit of blog hopping today, and decided to steal an idea from one of them blogs while i lamented the inability of mine to read or even bother about blogs which come in a black background and green text, throw in some purple flashing lights and red dots. Argh.

So anyhow, this is for you..

Links of the past present and future, enjoy.

Fela on Nigeria  -- http://t.co/SaCWtDl

An Introvert Stands Up for The Right to Stand Alone  -- http://t.co/SaCWtDl

Tosin Martins "Silent Night" -- http://t.co/SaCWtDl

Animated 8 Bit Video Game Themed, Promoting Safe Sex -- http://t.co/TOTXlHd

African Women in UK Silently Suffer Domestic Violence http://allafrica.com/c/-3yZ7u

Used to it

I AM USED TO IT, he said. I tasted bile. I wanted to slap his brains out, but the immediate realization that he probably didn’t have any brains to begin with, to have made such a comment left me feeling disgusted. My stomach churned.

I wanted to throw up, used to it? Used to mediocrity, used to living in the mire used to stolen choices, used to being a 10^th class citizen in your own country, which sane person can be used to Nigeria??!!!. 

My friend and I had been discussing , her past and current situation. We were on the particular topic of power and he goes to say something stupid like, He’s used to it?? I had a rush of emotions, I wanted to laugh, I wanted to cry as my mind came back to this article i had seen earlier. Nigerians are indeed cowards, I can clearly see where the problem lies and the writer stated it, the average Nigerian is used to the situations and likes to just manage things. For people who are used to a particular situation where is the zeal for change? Non-existent. 

I remember a chat with another friend, he said he loved the freedom in Nigeria, no stress on taxes, he could park anywhere on the road, he could drive as fast as he wanted anywhere , he could do almost anything in Nigeria and get away with it, sure I thought,  when a head of state can loot our treasury in broad daylight and get away with it, when the so-called guardians of the nation chop the cake everyday, what more do you expect from this chaotic mass. 

Cowards, yes, to be used to this situation, to put aside courage, cowards indeed. 

I am not used to it, never was, never will be. A nation owes its citizen these basic things, power, water, food, access to quality healthcare, education which if it fails to provide is a failed state. i just saw the pictures of a guy who committed suicide because of the rubbished state our educational systems are in..i still have tears in my eyes

Just when I thought this joke of a country couldn’t get any funnier they go ahead to provide 24hrs cctv in lagos, charge lower animals for crime, a goat for armed robbery, soon they would be arresting mosquitoes for murder. 

At this point I can say I have no loyalty to this failed country even though i love it, I am loyal to my tribe, we just happened to be passing through when we got hedged into this country...I kid.

I could go on and on but Nigerians know what the problem is, themselves! Their top priority is Make money, regardless, so who really cares whether Nepa takes light, abeg we are used to it, I have a borehole in my house, if nepa take their light, me I have gen,,

Some people say those who travel overseas are the cowards, thats plain nonsense, those who travel are rebelling IMO, which is a form of protest, protest against the nonsense that Nigeria is. I heard someone prophesied that there wont be constant power supply till 2017, that’s not too far, I will still be in my twenties, maybe I would come back to Nigeria then

For now…

with all the calm I could muster, I replied my friend

COWARD!

Bloody Vampires!

No!, not these ones...Aaliyah still managed to look pretty though.
I doubt most people, remember these...

(Courtesy: The Nigerian Nostalgia 1960-1980s project on Facebook)

They are posters from the Anti-Malaria campaign in Nigeria of 1962, Imagine that. An issue we are still fighting tooth and nail. I have been struck uncountable (I could probably count them, but..you get the picture) times by this disease, transmitted by the Queen specie and fought by several 'Quines.

Recently, I was involved in a discussion which was started by a friend, who wrote this

Dear Bill Gates,  

If you really care about eradicating malaria in Africa, why not select a small tropical African town and work very hard until malaria is completely eradicated from that town? That will bring us much closer to solving the problem than a thousand speeches about how much you care, or a million donations to professional non-profits who have never actually solved any problems.  

You're welcome. :-)

It triggered lots of opinions and solutions towards the issue. My stance has been mainly eradication of the the specie. Firstly by destroying breeding places. I think it is as simple as that. But knowing the kind of poverty people are knee deep in, and the consequent effect this has on the areas they live, I shake my head, this may be too much to ask. I was totally against some ideas, which were hinged on using computers to motivate people and what not, Someone who hasn't eaten where is he going to see computer??. Someone compared it to the weight issues abroad and how the internet helped people lose weight, C'mon!! Anyway as usual, my love for analogies didn't escape here. This is the way I see the Mosquito issue and what has been done so far about it.

This issue is like a house built on a very bad foundation in Lekki. The house begins to have cracks and the roof, holes. People are called in to patch the house and the owners are happy. After a while more patching of the roof and cementing over the cracks. One time a brand new roof is even fitted. The owners are enlightened that their house is on a bad foundation and could collapse any time. If there is any sign of rumble they should run out but in the meantime call people to help patch and cement if they see any faults. 

One day, the house collapses and kills the whole family because they were fast asleep.

Hopefully our case wouldn't get so dire. But the necessary things have to come first, a good environment to live in (for starters) is paramount.

The Nigerian Dream

It was 1992, the first time in Abuja. We went to spend Summer Holidays with our Dad. My mum, sisters and I boarded Nigerian Airways and made the 50mins journey to the capital city. It was an amazing experience. My dad had gone out of his way to make this holiday special for us. He came to pick us from the airport and drove us straight to Agura Hotel. We were all amazed at how smooth the roads were, and how new the buildings seemed. This is like London, my sister quipped several times. At the hotel, we had a FEAST in every sense of the word, all manners of food and drink, I really couldn't love my dad more at that point. But alas due to my stomach sensitivity I was visiting the toilet in no time. If we go by first impressions, Abuja was a pretty awesome place to be.

When we got settled into the house my Dad had been living in at the OAU Quarters, a nice cosy three bedroom apartment, my sisters and I wasted no time exploring within and without. We spent the mornings watching our favorite Christian musical and the afternoons exploring the nearby hills. Abuja was indeed something the whole of Nigeria could aspire to be like. Back in Lagos where we live, NEPA was the main hindrance to our fun, but here we could watch our movies all day with no fear of the power being cut, and when it did, in a minute we could cheekily call NEPA and have the power restored in seconds. Bliss!!

Night-time was equally splendid. After our usual cups of Nescao, we would get on our cosy bed. The weather was usually cool that time of the year, so we would pretend we were 'Abroad'. Tell ourselves stories and sleep off when we were exhausted. One of such nights, I had the dream. I remember the shades of blue duvet I had. It always made it seem my dreams were bathed in a light blue glow.

Waking up, I glanced around, and stretched while I sat there on my bed. My room was large and I was alone. The sun streamed in through large glass windows which the whole house was covered with. This seemed like straight out of the Jetsons. I got off my bed and pressed a button, my night wear was taken off and dumped into the bin which sends dirty cloths to the laundry. My dressing gown came on. Food! I thought, I went to the panel and pressed a button. An array of breakfast came sliding towards me, as I lay back on my 'La-z-boy' type chair and proceeded to dig into the food. All in my mind was, This is the Life!

So much to say...

Yesterday I actually had the inspiration to blog about Nigeria. But today the passion is gone. There's too much one can say about Nigeria and where we are at, at 50yrs of Independence from the British Empire (as if). Anyways, I need to channel the little energy I have into something else. There are a couple of things that make me happy I was born into the entity known as Nigeria. But that would be a post for another day.

About my hair, I think i worship it too much these days, maybe that's why I'm being led to cut it all off (LOL!) I dyed it and...oh well my hair turned out quite red, one packet of dye is now obviously not enough for my thick hair (Lesson learnt) So I have the front of my hair, a coppery gold and the back, stark raven black. I want to love it, but i wanted something better!! this (LOL) >>

Men and their issues, So glad to be finally done (He's done) with me, nothing like having a nut off your back, Lord have mercy! I don't know where I am headed in this new adventure, But God dey.

New Projects, New things. I've got a number of ideas flowing in and out, I'm an ideas person, but turning them into something other than ideas, thats where the major issues lie. Dang. Hopefully I have enough energy to carry me through. I really don't want to work a 9-5 but if it would help my projects, so be it.

Wheew.

Big Blind country

People don't know how much I love Fela Kuti's music.

But right now it's giving me some headache.

PLEASE SOMEBODY I NEED FELA'S BIG BLIND COUNTRY!!!!!

no where to even download it, my uncle is going crazy too.

Anyways, goodnight for now. :(

Finally Gone.

Our President, Umaru YarAdua, dead at 58. There wasn't much this man did for the country i firmly believe, but when it comes down to it, a president is still a man, a human being. It saddens me when i see young people die, when i see sickness consume a life.

 I believe this man had a good heart, but was saddled with the wrong people around him. This was someone that would probably have never ran for president. I feel sad, i never liked the jokes that were coined from his name and what not, i remember someone actually ejecting me off their friend list because i stood against stuff like that. Now, He is dead, He is dead.

I am happy he can finally rest now, i can't imagine the anguish he would have gone through. Even if he just died now or months back, there is no doubt he suffered extreme pain, both from his ailment and the burden of evil around him.

Now we move on, I am proudly Nigerian, and i want my country great. The next step is to give the reins to the right person. Somehow, i hope this goes well, but now in this moment, R.I.P YarAdua.

Mash it UP!

Between One dude in the Library asking to take a picture of my hair for a 'project' and another harassing me on the street about Biafra, i've met quite a number of crazy Geordie folk. I'm just looking forward to my holiday joo, I've got so much work but i need to sleep for atleast one week! hehe.

Also, got to watch the BBC drama Blood and Oil. I simply cannot take any movie serious that gets the Nigerian accent wrong! it kills me, i swear. The Drama wasnt bad but, as a Nigerian, you will find yourself shaking your head over some unnecessary over exaggerated scenes, and then the cringeworthy accent with zero pidgin!, Aaaargh! Gotta give them credit for some things that were on point sha.lol!

Its Frosties .. oops..err!

I just can't get over this LNGKM!!!

Little notes and Definitions

Uneme

Name of my tribe, I opened a blog trying to document the history (the-uneme.blogspot.com) and present, i opened a thread way back on Nairaland, exclaiming that my tribe was going extinct..well, from the statistics it looked so, but I am glad things are turning out different :)


Keiko

This is the Japanese name i picked for myself, means "Lovely child" lol
all you folks that wont stop bugging me when you can access your nearest google.lol
my close friend calls me Hime *redness*

Paper route

Band I just discovered through a friend, great music.

Calculus

Apparently my teeth can solve dy/dx...
ok
Problem with my gums, I'm booked for dental surgery on Friday

Corruption

Went to Immigration to retrieve my passport, and i had to "cooperate" if not "my file will lost"
when will the right thing ever be the right thing to do?

Storms Within

I'm getting more pissed with every passing heartbeat. Yet, one can only wonder, isn't every passing heartbeat another step towards death? Are we not in this world, only so we can die? Is the only reason of living, dying? What purpose do we have, to get up every morning, to a scarred body, work, and do it all over again? Are nothing but toys to a supposed god, moving around and doing everything he "commands"? Does this not mean that suicide is the easiest way out? People say that you shouldn't kill yourself because it's easy, well, isn't anyone who's ever cheated on anything taking the easy way out? So they really can't be saying nothing and still not be involved with hypocrisy. Do we live in a world of liars and hypocrites? Or do they just keep us alive for their own well-being, if they really loved you, they'd let you go to a place where you'd be in peace. This is were hatred comes from, too many people thinking about themselves and not letting others go, making them live a life they don't want to live anymore. Or maybe, the suicidal people are the selfish ones, only thinking about themselves and trying to escape to a better place. That, my friend, is what I want to know.

-----Ida Mehrnoush


I posted this note on my facebook page a few days ago. Only yesterday I saw a memorial page of a friend of some people I know. I looked at his pictures, he was what people would term a "fine" boy, then I decided to look through the wall posts to understand what happened.

I was shocked.

He had committed suicide, took a gun and shot himself.

One of the first thoughts that came to me was, in Nigeria????? I was seriously pained, I didn't know this guy, but my heart felt sore. He didn't seem like a dark person, alone..he seemed like so much fun, goofy and intelligent..someone I would have liked. Still, he must have been going through so much pain, so much anguish...to contemplate and actually commit suicide. Some of his friends said he had seemed normal sometime before the incident.

From what I read, he left a note which talked about a lecturer in school, who maybe had been holding him back from graduating, he had been in university for 8yrs already, for a 4yr course. I wondered if that was pain enough, maybe some people are just stronger than others..

I'm still so pained, but its made me want to be a better person with my friends and family. Though no other person can truly walk in another's shoes, we can hold them, love them and make the journey worthwhile, so that the storm within can gently give way to a soothing calm.