Long Post Alert!

I know there are a lot of blank spaces between my last post and this one, so I’ll try to fill up.

CAMP

I got posted to Abuja, thank God for His hand [and the ‘leg’ He used]. When I got to camp, I discovered that silly yours truly had forgotten her notification of result at home, and there was no way to go past the gate without it. I couldn’t go back home, that was way out of the question, because home is very far away. So I put on my best puppy face and begged the women at the gate. One of them was beginning to soften, but the other bad belle, a policewoman, said she shouldn’t listen to me, I should go back home and bring it. Long story short, I was allowed to enter, I called home, and got the notification the very next day.

Camp was a lot of things I neither expected nor prepared for. The mattresses assigned to us were so thin, they should have just handed us mats to use on the bunks instead. The toilets, let’s just say that I never could have imagined such filth-and I have a very vivid imagination. The food was not too bad, but seeing as there were better options in mammy market, I spent most of my money there. Then there was the early morning assembly. Seeing as it was difficult to sleep on those mats-on-iron, I didn’t have any difficulty waking up, but while others were taking their baths, I jejely brushed my teeth, washed my face, dressed up and went out for the assembly. My reason for not taking my bath was because of the afore-mentioned filth, and it was far safer to bathe immediately after the assembly, because the cleaners [whom we paid N20,000 to clean, btw] usually cleaned the bathrooms and toilets while we were out, between 5.00am-8.00am. After the “assembly” was time for breakfast and any other thing, till 10/11am, when we had to gather in the multipurpose hall for public lectures and the like. There was lunch afterwards, and by 3.30pm, we had to be gathered again, for those people that were marching to practice, and for the rest of us to lazy around. I opted to join the volleyball team, and for that my right hand paid dearly, but it was fun while it lasted sha. In the evenings, everybody generally went to mammy market to eat, charge phones, get drunk, dance [yes, there was a “club” in mammy market], play games, etc. I won’t bore anyone with further details, but looking past the thin mattresses, toilets [please don’t ask how I managed with Number 2 during camp], early rising, skin reactions et al, camp was a whole lot of fun. And I never got to see any two [or more] people “doing” anything in the bushes, like everyone always says. But then again, there wasn’t much bush in my camp.

When I got my posting letter after camp, I cried. Yes I did. I cried because while other people were getting posted to sensible places, NYSC posted me to a school in one village on the way to Nassarawa State, and at that point, I did not see any way out. I can’t begin to recount how many phone calls my parents and I made, or how many prayers we prayed, but two weeks after I got my first posting letter, I got an acceptance letter to a very sensible IT firm in a very sensible part of Abuja, I started work and in 1 week, NYSC gave me a reposting letter to that firm. God loves me too much, and I’m grateful to Him that after all the stress, I’m finally on my way to settling down. I say “on my way” because I still stay with my aunt, and while she’s a very nice person, that simply won’t be good for my sanity for 1 year.

WORK

Work is good, even though I spend most days doing absolutely nothing [apart from reading], work is still good. My direct boss is another sensible somebody [God just keeps blessing me with those], his command of English is on point, the other people in the office are very nice too and most of them have done their best to make sure I settle in properly.

On the other hand, there are a few things I do not like. First, I have to come to work even on my CDS day. Who does that? Having at least one free work day is one of the benefits of being a “corper shun” na, and my office wants to take that away from me. #notfair. Second, is my salary – I, like most people, would love an increase – and that’s all I’m going to say about that. It isn’t so bad, but then again…

TODAY’S POST

There are some things I prayed for this year, which I haven’t yet seen [I say ‘yet’ because we have some hours left in the year], but then I’d like to make a list of the things I’ve seen, things I’m thankful for this year

1. My convocation: I graduated this year, despite all the wahala I had to go through. My project supervisor for one thing, is a naturally difficult person, and he acted up about twice while the project thingy was going on, but I [and my group members] scaled through. I also had this irrelevant, compulsory course in my 4^th year, which I took, and by some error of omission or something, it appeared I failed it. I knew it was impossible for me to fail such a course, but having some other people in the same shoes made me feel better. Pursuing a correction of that error was a huge headache, because I continued to pursue it even into my 5^th year. Finally, some days before convocation, everything was resolved. I don’t even want to go into all the stress I went through, trying to look for a dress [I’m a size 4], shoes to match, and then the particular weave I wanted. All of that came and went, the convocation came and went successfully, and here I am today, an engineer. Only God could have done that, and I couldn’t be more grateful to Him.

2. My family: God has been so so good to us all, His provisions have been innumerable, His protection has been there, He has answered our prayers, and despite our unfaithfulness, He’s always remained faithful.

3. My boo. We’ve had our ups and downs, and this year has been too crazy, but then, God has kept us through the craziness. We’ve never had a problem that we couldn’t work out, and even though we’ve fought and tins, we’ve still somehow managed to make up every single time. For that, I truly am grateful.

4. My job: Getting the job was a miracle in itself, and even though I haven’t gone far [I’m just about 2 weeks old], I’m liking what I’m seeing so far.

5. My finances: Somehow, God made sure that throughout this year, especially these last few months, I never lacked money. I was broke a few times, but I never lasted more than a few days in that state before money came, somehow.

6. My friends: I’ve lost a few friends, I’ve made new ones, I’ve held on to some old ones, and I’m thankful for everyone in every category, because they’ve all had their roles to play, and some of them were actually nice shoulders to lean on when I needed to. I can only hope I played my own part well too.

So that's all i can remember for now, but i'm sure there's more though. Hope you all had a better year than I did. Happy New Year in Advance

Work and Money

I haven’t been able to blog in a while, not exactly because I’ve been busy, but because I’ve been downright lazy. I’ll just try to remember all the stuff I’ve been thinking of blogging about.

1. Work

Work has been good so far, my boss is basically a cool guy, he’s so friendly, I have to keep reminding myself that he’s a lot older than me, and he’s the boss – so I should mind my manner of speech. He likes to gist, and I like to listen to his gist because he’s a smart someborri, so we manage to have stimulating [yet funny] conversations. I must add this one too [since its increasingly rare these days, smh], his command of the English language is very much on point. I know it sounds like there’s a crush, but no, there isn’t, not at all. He’s just a sensible person jare, and who doesn’t love being around such?

There’s this guy in my office gan gan, he’s on IT, so we’re basically on the same level [I keep telling myself he’s on IT, but I’ve finished school, hence I’m an intern. Hehe], I think he’s much older too, but younger than the boss, I can’t be too sure [seeing as I have no intentions of asking him his age and whatnot]. This guy, I do not like, but somehow I don’t know why. He just irritates me mostly, and as much as I tried at the beginning not to judge a book by its cover and all, I can’t help but dislike his mannerisms. He comes to work late [which understandably irks my boss], and then the first thing he says when he sees me is “What’s happening?” I usually do not answer, but in my mind I’m like “and good morning to you too”. He asks the question a 2^nd time, and then I reply curtly, “nothing”. One day he told me I act bossy, I didn’t say anything, but I told my boss later, and he said this dude just said that because I unnerve him. He [the dude] says other stupid things like that to me too, i just try my best to ignore. I think I act like a headmistress [read: un-nice] to him, but *kanye shrug* I can’t help it oh jare, the guy annoys/irritates me in more ways than one, and I don’t just want to go into plenty plenty details. And he’s doing it right now, as I type. Mscheeeeewww. I refuse to get pissed, he ain’t related to me, abi?

So there’s another one [a guy too, of course], not in my department though…and this one just acts friendly and funny whenever we see. One day he came up behind me and tickled me, just like that. I just smiled, but inside me I didn’t find it funny, because me an’ am no be guys like that, so which time we start to dey relate on that level? To the average person, there may be nothing wrong with that, but different strokes oh, me I no like dat kain tin. There are certain boundaries for certain levels of friendship [or “acquaintance-ship”], and I don’t like people crossing lines before I have approved [I really am a headmistress, abi?]. He tickled me today again [and that’s why I’m blogging about it], abeg make una warn this bros oh. Other than that, he’s cool, and friendly.

2. Money

I need money asap! This is my own form of begging and soliciting funds from the general public. I have so many things coming up so soon, and I need money for all of them, and seeing as I’m still an unpaid intern, I really don’t have access to plenty of money just yet. I know my pops will still hand me a check, but seeing as my 2^nd name is Olivia Twist, I will want more [don’t we always?], for different things. I will tell you people the things [that I wouldn’t dare tell my dad] I need more money for. You see, le boyfriend’s birthday was last month, and I haven’t gotten him anything yet. Our relationship has been LDR for a while now, but all that is changing in less than 1 week, hence the urgent need for the money. I want to get him a really nice somtin, and such things cost money o jare. The 2^nd thing that is happening is NYSC. I want to get white sneakers, white tops, and the like – but my pops thinks I want to go there to be a gbogbo bigz girlz. He does not understand that I really do not want the stress of looking for someone to switch sneakers with, incase I don’t get my size, and neither do I want to wear that excuse they have for a pair of sneakers [snotty, aint I? lol]. The 3^rd thing is simply the fact that I want to have fun na, I’ve missed Lagos so mush, I want to move around, go to the movies, the beach, eat ribs and soy sauce, you know, all those things that simply can’t be gotten in my own city. I also have a wedding to attend, and I cannot show up looking less than hawt. Shae una understand, abeg help a sister out. Number 4 reason I need cheese is that I really, really need to go to Lagos market, cuz I need to shop for clothes, shoes [my last pair of flats just gave way], bags, and stuff for my new phase of life that is NYSC.

Anyway, I know my God shall supply all my need[s] according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus, Amen. If however, he chooses to use you as the bank teller/cashier, please do not hesitate, thanks :D

There’s so many other things to blog about, but I’ll leave those for next time, because I really need to hit the hay.

Sweet dreams……..

To Toby: This One’s For You

I attended 4 primary schools in all, and this post is about the last one, or the people in it. It was a medium sized school, and in my class, we were just 5 students, one of whom was the son of the proprietress, his name was Toby. You see, I’ve always had a bad mouth, but I think 2 of my classmates helped develop it tremendously. Those 2 classmates were Toby and another guy, Somto. They would tease me mercilessly about different things, and sometimes I would try to fight them – and of course they’d beat me. They were boys, after all. That was how/why I developed my bad mouth – to fight back. Each time they tried to tease me, I’d counter with a meaner statement, and they soon learned to leave me alone. After that period, we became friends, and in terms of academic work, Toby always came 1st, I came 2nd, and Somto always came 3rd. I tried my very best to beat Toby to 1st position, but most times, it just didn’t work – I think I came 1st only about 4 times, throughout my stay in that school. Anyway, Toby & I always got chosen to act all those primary school plays, or sing in the school choir, or represent the school – you know, stuff like that. Even for secondary school entrance exams, we would go together, and I think he beat me in all of them, because I was always just a few points behind. I remember his Common Entrance score was 538, while mine was 534. I never envied him though [but I envied his lunch sha, my mum used to give me cake and juice to take to school, his mum used to give him indomie and egg – you know, “the grass is always greener” syndrome], I was just being competitive, and we were good friends. I remember our primary school graduation ceremony, I came 1st and every, and then that was the time they chose not to give the prizes during the ceremony, they said we should come to school later and collect them. My mum was so pissed, she said the proprietress did that because she couldn’t stand the fact that her own son [Toby] didn’t come 1st. I on the other hand, was indifferent.

Sadly, after primary school, we lost touch [as there were no cell phones then, and even if there were, my folks would definitely not have gotten me one], and I didn’t see Toby again, until I was in my 200 level in uni. That day, I was rushing out of the bank, on my way to the airport because I was late for my flight and mumsy wanted me to be on that flight by all means. So Toby saw me, came up to the car, and was trying to say hello. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t recognize him after all those years, but frankly, I couldn’t even say a polite “hello, how have you been? I’m rushing for something, so I can’t chat now…..”. I really can’t remember what it is that I said, but I think it was just “hi”.

Two years ago, we moved house, and after we moved, I discovered that Somto lives very close to my house, on the street before mine. I met him one day, as I was going to get something. We chatted for a bit, and he filled me in on the past 9 years, he told me where all my classmates were, Toby was in UNN, studying Mechanical Engr. After that, Somto and I kept in touch on and off, on phone, but I didn’t see him again, until yesterday, when he came visiting. I was surprised, to say the least, because I didn’t think he knew my crib. Anyway, he greeted my mum, and [since she knew all my primary school classmates,] she asked after Toby. Somto’s face became crestfallen, and he said “he’s dead”. What da???? The proprietress’s husband died a short while after I left primary school, Toby was her only child, and now he too is dead? How? Somto said he just slumped and died – and that’s the exact same way his dad died. He was a doctor, about to operate on a patient, and he just slumped. When I heard Toby died, I remembered that day I was rushing for my flight, and how I couldn’t take time to talk to him. I couldn’t have known that would be the last time, but I could have at least…..talked to him, collected his phone number or something.

He died May 26th, 2010. I wonder what his mum would do now [I sincerely hope she doesn’t hate God for all of this], and I regret not talking to him. There’s a thanksgiving service in his honor tomorrow, I think I’ll attend.

People, I hate to sound clichéd, but life is short, take time to smell the flowers, keep in touch with your friends and loved ones, learn to slow down sometimes, forgive, you know every.

And just incase you were wondering, yeah I missed that flight.

R.I.P Toby Ezeanyagu, you’ll be sorely missed, even though the last time we had a real conversation was about 11 years ago.

Hope you guys have a lovely weekend.

I'm Back For Good

Ok, saying it’s been a long while since the last time I updated would be a gross understatement. Na laziness dey do me. In between then and now, a whole lot of changes have taken place, and I’ll try to list as much as I can remember.

THEN….

1. I was on IT, preparing for my final year of school

2. I hated my job, but loved my social life [lol]

3. My relationship was on the rocks, and there was this guy at work who wouldn’t let me rest [kept wanting to kiss me and tins, and he was in a relationship too oh], and another in my estate too [I think I used that 1 as my weekend driver for a while (lol)], and through it all, I refused to cheat. Looking back, I’m pretty sure I did all I could to make that relationship work and all the while, my best friend kept telling me I was flogging a dead horse, trying to bring it back to life. Oh well…

4. I had this laptop I nicknamed Old Faithful. He [yes, he] was a Dell, and he was my companion for about 2 ½ years until one day, when he couldn’t hold up much longer, he just up and died on me. I mean, there was nothing wrong, no problems whatsoever [as a matter of fact, I was watching a movie on him]. He was still charging and everything, but…All efforts to revive him proved abortive. My Old Faithful had fought the good fight and finally given up. Right now, he’s tucked away in 1 corner of my parents’ room, gathering dust [I couldn’t bring myself to bury him]. I do have fond memories of him and still miss him dearly. You know what they say, you never forget your first…..

5. I had some friends I thought would last for, well, maybe forever, but then, like the adage [whose origins I know not] says, 20 children don’t play together for 20 years. And while I mourned the loss of some of the friendships, I’ve come to realize that there’s a reason some people don’t make it to your future, and well, I’ve moved on.

6. My mum used to ask me about school and work, my spiritual life, etc.

NOW….

1. I graduated in July this year [for which I thank God, cuz 5 years in my school, ko easy rara]. I’ll do a post on that.

2. I kinda, sorta have a job in a major telecommunications company [which I love, by the way], and looking back, the job I hated didn’t suck as much as I thought it did. ‘twaz just the oga patapata that was tres difficile to please, but then, he was just demanding excellence. About my social life… well, ‘tis quite nonexistent right now.

3. I’m in a beautiful relationship with a wonderful human being, and that’s all I’m going to say [for now] about that. I promise there’ll be more gist in another post.

4. I now have a new lappy, and while he’s great [1 of the latest models, with everything the old 1 lacked and more – the whole 9 yards], well…. I still miss Old Faithful but with every passing day, I think of him a little less :(

5. I have met new, wonderful people, and while I treasure their place[s] in my life, I realize that one day, they too may have to move on, and I’ll have to let them go. So…. I guess I should learn not to expect anything much from people, that way I don’t get disappointed. Abi?

6. My mum still asks the same questions [except d school part], but now, she also asks if there’s any special “someone” in my life, and the M word comes up more often. In fact, she makes it a point to let me know everytime someone’s marriage or relationship is either working or not, so I’ll know which example[s] to follow. I think her one of her greatest fears is that I’ll marry someone who’ll beat me. Yeah right, I think I’ll kill d person first ;)

That’s about all I can remember now, and I promise [as long as my internet connection lasts] I'll be back

My Name Means....

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

You Are Influential and Skilled
You are balanced, orderly, and organized. You like your ducks in a row.You are powerful and competent, especially in the workplace.People can see you as stubborn and headstrong. You definitely have a dominant personality.You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection. You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive. You have the classic "Type A" personality.You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people.You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts.You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing.You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long.You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start.You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone.You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together.At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together.You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow.You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily.Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is.



Ok...I'm sure not evrything here is true, but most anyway.

Yesterday after work, I stopped by the shopping complex in my estate, to pick up some stuff.
Now, I am not usually a stupid person, but yesterday, I did the exact opposite of what I'd normally do. I redeemed myself in the end sha. Ok, here goes:
I come out of a cab, I'm walking into the complex, when all of a sudden, someone says:
Him: Excuse me
[I turn, cuz the voice sounds familiar]
Me: Yeah?
[At this point, I can see his face, and he looks old, like my uncle's age mate, so from the way he called, I assume he's my uncle's friend]
Him: I'm Larry....Lawrence
[At this point, alarm bells go off in my head, but he has already taken my hand, and like a zombie, i stand, transfixed, staring at him. Note that he luks very ugly, facially and body-wise]
Me: Ok, and??
Larry: I work in ......[1 big place in government sha], are you a corper?
Me: [I shake my head, suddenly mute]
Larry: So where do you work?
Me: .......[1 construction company sha]
Larry: Ok, let me get ur number [gives me his phone, which i must add, looks way less sophisticated than mine-and he's supposed to be a 'big man'.infact, the phone is the 3310 of today]...are you coming out soon?
Me: [already typing 080]no
Larry: Ok, still give me ur number, I'll wait for u in my car, so we can talk
[At this point, I start coming out of my trance, slowly, but surely]
Me: No, don't wait for me [giving him back the phone without my number], i dont give my number to strangers.
Larry: Abeg jo, shey you've already collected the phone, just put ur number
Me: No....I'll drop this phone on the floor if u dont collect it
Larry: You're going to lose me oh
Me: And so? who d hell do u thnk u are?
Larry: You'll lose my d**k
[ I'm beginnin to think he's drunk, so i try to see if i can perceive alcohol on his breath, and....i cant]
Me: Are you out of your mind?
Larry [like a lunatic]: You're going to lose my d**k
[Now, that's enough to bring me out of my trance, and this has me wishing i understood my language well enough to rain abuses and curses on d bastard]
Me: [I give him a very hot slap....yeah, i know its hot, cuz I have a reputation for having painful hands, I throw his phone far away, hoping it falls into the gutter, and I walk away] U must be very stupid.
I walk into the complex, guys & chics alike are hailing me, I'm too shocked at the fact that there are human beings like Larry on earth, who can misyarn terribly without being drunk.
Turns out the place I wanted to pick my stuff from is closed. Damn!!
Plus, it starts drizzling, but as I go home, I feel like the rain is washing off all the smelly nonsense from that bastard. And I feel very happy that i slapped him, cuz I'd have been very ashamed of myself if I didnt.
See y'all soon.
......Storm