The Blogosphere as I used to know

I first started blogging in 2006. That seems like a very long time ago now. My first blog was on what used to be known as msn spaces and as I discovered BlogSpot, I moved my blog here.

Looking back at those early days, I started my blog because I’m one of those people who just loves to talk! Matter of fact, I love talking so much that I often have to restrain myself from talking

Back in those early days, the blogosphere was a different place. I made friends with other bloggers from across the globe. I followed their posts religiously. Some really good bloggers came and went and I eventually ended up meeting up with one or two bloggers in London, Dubai and Nigeria. The likes of 30+, pink gloves and a whole host of others!

Blogging has really moved on or perhaps I’m the one who has not managed to stay in tune with the ever changing blogosphere

Ajebutter wannabe, Lagos Living

I've been in Lagos now for over a week. The plan was to spend the holidays with family and friends. This holiday has quickly morphed into me performing all manner of errands - house ghel type of work.

 My sister has sold her car which I usually cruise around with. This means all these errands are being done by taxis - Igbese thingz if you know how much the red cab will cost you including overpriced pangolo cabs that are like living skeletons. 

Having reviewed my taxi spendings and almost having a fit, I decided to vex and carry go with a danfo bus - Yes, why not! I ended up paying 100 Naira for a journey that would have cost me 2000 Naira with a regular taxi. I even enjoyed free A/C on third mainland bridge along with all other passengers - Shior. No ajebutter when your ATM card refuse to work in Lagos. This led me to visit my bank at Marina branch only to find that their system was down. After waiting forever and a hot minute, they decided to keep the forms, give me some  money and let me go. I tire for Naija banks

All in all, today has been great, long, tiring and filled with me trawling through Lagos on public transport. It was quite an interesting experience

My Amazing Story of God's Healing

Written on Wednesday 5^th February 2013

In the September of 2012 while canoeing on the River Wye with some of my friends, I was involved in a minor accident whereby the canoe I was in capsized (click for story). I was fasting during this period and coincidentally, this was the last day of my fast. Of all 3 of us involved, I was the only person who sustained an injury – a dislocated left shoulder.  I thank God for his grace that things were not worse.  The paramedics came out and examined my arm, I hadn’t sustained any broken bones to God’s glory but I had to immobilize my hand for a while.  As the healing process began, things just didn’t feel quite right with my hand, I would hear clicks while swimming or exerting myself but I would always ignore these until one eventful morning on 11^th January 2013 (this was just 5 days before my birthday) It was one of those mornings when the bin men were picking up the bins on a different day to the usual. I rushed out of bed in a sleepy haze to hurriedly get my bin out after 2 weeks of stockpiling waste. In my hurriedness, I missed a step and just as I was about the steady myself with my left hand, I twisted my shoulder all over again. The pain was sharp and it was like a frozen towel hit me in the face. I have been in so much pain in my left hand since then. Things had gotten to the point where I wake up almost every morning with my pinky and ring fingers completely numb. I also get terrible pains in my wrist and shoulder blades.  

Where is all this going you may ask? Well, a little more patience my friends. On Tuesday 5^th February 2013 I attended my 4^th Alpha course session titled “Why and How Should I pray” this is one of the things I struggle with in my Christian life. Trying to get it right has always been an obsession as well as knowing truly when God is speaking to me. The session touched a chord with me and during the discussion sessions, the presenter talked about the first prayer he prayed and God answered. He asked for a bible and a few minutes later, his father called him over and gave him a bible.  For me, this was a reminder of God’s promise to his children “Ask and it shall be given”

At the end of the session as always, Pastor asked if anyone wanted special prayers for anything. I was tempted to be quiet and have the session end so we could all go home but something within me spoke out and I made a special request for God to heal my left shoulder.  This was not the first time I had prayed for healing in my left shoulder, but this time, it was different. I had made a conscious decision prior to keep a prayer journal so I could list my prayers and then check the answered ones so I can have a constant reminder of all that God has done for me.  As pastor’s wife touched my left shoulder to pray for me, I just felt this really cool sensation in the inside of my arm right from my neck to my finger tips. I knew in my heart that something amazing was happening and I just tuned myself in to that sensation.  Driving home that night, my left arm felt different.  I went to sleep with a feeling that my left arm was healed but still at the back of my mind, I knew I had to wake up the following morning to see if I would have numb fingers. To God’s glory I work up and my left arm felt as normal as my right arm.

People, God healed my left arm! As I type this up on Wednesday 6^th February, I have joy in my heart and I am grateful for God’s glory. I know in my heart that God is true, loving and kind and all we need to do is believe in him and he will answer all the needs of our hearts. I would like to encourage you all to not be afraid to ask God. I truly believe that my story this morning would have been different if I hadn’t taken that step of faith and placed my troubled limb in God’s hands.  

ALUU4, MOBI45, Boko Haram, corruption in Nigeria and its effects on my generation

From a very young age, I always sensed that human life in Nigeria had very little value.  I am not very good with memory but I do have some surprising gruesome memories of horrifying events.

That first time, I must have been about 6 years old. I was home when I heard shouts of “thief” “thief” in the neighborhood. I rushed to the upper balcony of my home to find a naked young man running for his life. In hot pursuit were about two men. One threw a huge chunk of metal at the running man and immediately, a huge gash of flesh was taken off the running man’s leg. He stood no chance as he fell to the ground. My mother shouted for me to get back into the house. I do not know what happened to that young man. Most likely, he was taken to the local police station. I hope

The second time, I was about the age of 10. It was between the road passing through FESTAC and the Alajika area of Lagos. I had just gotten off a bus with our house help. I had been complaining about being pressed for the toilet when the house help told me to go into a nearby bush to “ease” myself. As I took a few cautious steps into the bush, right before my eyes only just a few meters from the main road was a corpse with a tyre around its neck. I was horrified. I started shaking and ran back to the road. I never till this day spoke about what I saw in that bush.

The third horrifying experience I had was only just a few years ago, perhaps 5 years maybe? I had returned to Nigeria on holiday after a number of years living in the UK.  As I was driving around with my companion on some road in Lagos, not too far from Ikeja, I was shocked and horrified to see a corpse just lying there on the roadside. I was shocked beyond words. This was right there in broad daylight on a very busy road in Lagos and the corpse was just sitting there. The following day we drove past the same spot and guess what? That corpse was still right there by the road side. My companion, a resident of Lagos was not so shocked. She told me about other corpses she had seen sitting on the roadside in lagos for days before being removed. I remember being surprised at her tone but I accepted this as it was Nigeria after all?

Finally, there was Llyod, Ugonna, Tekena and Chidiaka. These four boys were beaten mercilessly and then set ablaze while still alive. I did not see the video, I don’t think I could bring myself to see it but I saw some photos. In one of them, a young boy clearly distressed and bloodied from beatings and sitting in the midst of motionless bodies of his friends, a crowd was gathered around and of course, there was the camera taking the time to record these dastardly acts of murder in broad day light. I still feel the bile turning in my stomach

I am only 27 years old and in that time I have seen gradually how the humanity of Nigerians has degraded. Our police and army carry out indiscriminate killings no questions asked, no actions taken. Our leaders watch us suffer indiscriminately, no questions asked, no actions taken. Over the years, we have been gradually robbed of our humanity through poverty, strife and the daily quest for survival.  We do not even see suffering anymore. Suffering has become the norm and due to the inadequacy of our government and security forces, vigilante groups have thrived. The rule of law is nonexistent and all of these have lead to the murder of innocents  

 Corrupt leadership, compromised security, extreme poverty, struggle for survival, failed healthcare system, failed educational system, high rates of illiteracy and a desensitized people all lead to the deaths of the ALUU4, the MOBI45, that innocent man shot by police officers, those innocent civilians shot by the army, those innocent Christians killed in the north, those innocent Muslims killed in the South. 

Finally, I’ll leave you with a story I read about only just a few weeks ago.

A man returning from work had just gotten off a bus along a major highway in Lagos when he heard a number of people on his side of the road pointing and shouting (no doubt some would have had their phone cameras on standby). On looking at the direction of the commotion, he saw the body of a young woman in the middle of the road. She had just been hit by a car. He rushed over to move her body away from the path of oncoming vehicles. She was still alive but gasping for breath. I think by now, another man had come over to assist. No cars stopped to assist them but “Luckily” there was a parked mobile police car just a few meters away so, both men hurried over with the body of the young lady and asked the policemen for assistance.  The response of the police office was shocking. He responded that he would not take the woman to the hospital in his car; after all, the woman was responsible for her own misfortune because there was a pedestrian crossing bridge just further down the road. She didn’t use it! The police man did however assist them with getting a taxi.

Upon getting to the hospital and in the midst of the hospital staff requesting down payment and all sorts, the young woman died.

Such stories and even more horrifying ones happen every hour, minute and every second in Nigeria. I do not have hope in this government as they are only interested in lining their own pockets at the peril of innocent lives.

When will the blood of the innocents stop spilling across the country and when will Nigerians start to feel human again?

Kate Middleton Topless - Who Cares??

I am a big fan of Kate Middleton. I like the girl very much. In fact, I like her oracle more. Her oracle snagged Kate a real life prince. You gotta admire good work and give credit where it is due.

 Overall, I am sure she is a very nice girl married to what at the time was the most eligible young man in the world. Our dear William may not be the best looking but when you are loaded, it is amazing how money can turn King Kong into prince charming. 

Now, my gripe at the minute is the shamelessness with which newspapers the world over are displaying by posting half naked pictures of Kate Middleton. To make matters worse, these pictures were obtained by a peeping Tom who took the photos with telephoto long range lenses while the Duchess was on a private property in France.

I have seen these photos and being an African woman, I dont find them remarkable at all. I just want to stuff food into the girl so that she can add more flesh to places where it will really matter. All I saw was a very skinny girl indulging in top less sun bathing which I have never understood for the life of me. I mean, who cares if your boobs are tanned or not? its not like you are walking the streets with your boobs exposed for all to admire.. presence of boobs or not.

What is most annoying now is that Kate Middleton and her half naked photos are allover the news, cant watch CNN without hearing about them, cant watch BBC news or even listen to BBC radio without hearing about Kate's boobs. 

Dear God, please help the world's media move on from Kate Middleton's (lack of) boobs

Ajala goes Canoeing

Come and help me sing hallelujah!!

This is proper thanksgiving mate and add praise and worship to that. Yours truly (which is me in this case) was involved in a canoe capsize.

Canoe-cap-kini I hear you say. Well, you heard it right. A canoe capsize.

A few of my workmates and I (scratch that, one babe like that for work) organized a canoe trip on the River Wye (one very dirty river like that in Gloucestershire). This was supposed to be an adventure with two persons in each canoe paddling down a 6 mile stretch of the River Wye. I was all for it. I am usually a very adventurous person and I do know how to swim reasonably. So, this was gonna be a piece of cake

The whole trip was marked for misadventure the minute I was paired. I just knew that my paddling partner was going to get me into trouble. Throughout the whole trip, our canoe kept zigzagging down the river. The tour guide said I was paddling too hard while my partner was not paddling strong enough (dilemma!) How the heck is that my fault. All the eba I ate in Nigeria buffed me up

The trip went generally well and it was a lovely day to be out on the River. But just as we were rounding a bend in the river, our canoe was bumped by another canoe from behind onto a massive bush right in the middle of the river and we pushed onto the bushes and stuck right on top (imagine a boat running aground). At this point with the strong currents pushing us against the river, we could not free our boat. That was when the tour guide (aka Voltron Defender of the Universe) decided to come and free us.  As we were being rescued, the canoe overturned.

 My life did flash before my eyes as the brown, dirty, cold water of the River Wye slapped me squarely in the face.

My first thought was “OMG! I’m drowning!” I heard the tour guide yelling at me to put my feet on the ground and that was when I realized that the river was quite shallow, so I did as instructed. By this time, our Voltron had taken hold of the canoe and brought it back and gave me a firm instruction to jump in. I could tell he was pissed off. He had lost some of his kit in the river and I guess for the 19 pounds per person for the trip, we were not worth the trouble.

It wasn’t until I tried to start padding back (all drenched in murky waters) did I realize I could not make use of my left hand. As I lifted the paddle, I experienced such intense pain that I started to shiver. So here we were, sitting in the middle of this bloody river and I could not paddle. Lucky for us, other members of our group who could not find us returned to the scene of the incident and towed our boat to the end point.

By this time, I was shivering, in intense pain and had tears streaming down my face (and I wasn’t even crying!) I could not move my left shoulder and at this point, I could tell everyone was worried. I guess I was in shock by now

At this point someone called an ambulance. What we got were two ambulances, two fire engines and a police car. Boy did I fell very special!

 Ehhh.. I was well impressed. I was so thankful that I didn’t fall into Ogunpa River in Nigeria. Not even nearby fishermen will come for me!

After a few blasts of what we call “Air and Gas” – some really good gaseous pain killer which makes you feel no pain.. I was as high as a kite (laughing and giggling).  The medics determined that I hadn’t broken anything but had dislocated my shoulder. This was popped back in and I was put in a sling and off to the A&E for X-Rays. No broken bones. But I tell you, the pain was incomprehensible

In the midst of all the humor, pain and disorientation, I was still able to appreciate that this could have been worse. People have been known to drown in waters that people consider Mundane and so for walking away with a dislocated shoulder and a sling I am extremely grateful

The shoulder still hurts a bit but with gentle Physio excersies, I am getting berra.

Lots of love

PS: Sorry I had to "purple" out peoples faces here

Tolantino. 

The Good That Humans Do

Growing up, I've been fortunate to witness both my parents offer help and assistance to a number of people ranging from family to friends and in some cases strangers. Also, I have been fortunate enough to grow up within a stable family environment with a lot of discipline. This has taught me to be disciplined and very much aware of my actions and the greater impacts. I have learnt that my actions are more than me.

 We as humans leave a legacy wherever we go and in whatever we do. This is why I try to do good. I often do this not because I want to be thanked or praised. I actually detest praises. I am often embarrassed by it. If I were on the receiving end of a god deed, it would mean much more to me if I knew the person did not have to be good to me.

This is why it hurts when people try to take advantage of good doers. I recently had a very nasty experience with a person whom I thought was a friend. You know the type of experience where you feel violated as a human being.  Yea, that kind of nasty experience. I really thought at that moment that this was it! I was totally done with people, their problem will no longer be mine and to each his/her own.

For the first couple of days, it did hurt, true. But after this, my experience started to be a distant dull memory. I started to not think about the experience as much and then, the most amazing thing started to happen...I was grateful for all of the experience. Believe it or not, I was grateful that I went through this experience and I learnt a lot about myself as a person and what we as humans should expect as a minimum from other humans - Nothing. The best thing is to expect little from other humans because that way, you can rarely be disappointed. If they then go on to do great things, you'll be pleasantly surprised!

Finally, I have not lost my sense of humanity. I recently had the chance to assist a person to give them a better experience and I rose up to this challenge. I am happy that this one nasty experience did not subconsciously have a negative impact on my outlook in life.. When a challenge came up, I rose up to it and I overcame!

I hope someone can learn something good from this experience.

Stay bless y'all

Tolantino

One thing I'm most grateful for is that this experience has not changed my approach to life and my general philosophy