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20 10 20
There is a man at the end of Burna Boy’s ’20 10 20′ track, at the 3:18 mark, who in the midst of the gunshots, the running, the chaos, shouts ‘End SARS!’. I think about that man a lot. Last month, something happened. I remember it felt like we had all been simultaneously plugged into a system of consciousness. Unplanned, protests were springing up all over the country. All of a sudden, there were people organizing action in Kaduna, in Ogbomosho, in Port Harcourt. Despite the odds, people were donating money, food, offering free medical service and legal services. Nigerians from varying economic classes, Nigerians at home and abroad came…
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After the Reggae
…play the blues… Let me first mention that the title of this post is in no way related to the content of the blog post, but it looks good as a heading, don’t you think? It’s been a hot minute guys. In the last post I talked about putting a pause on the writing challenge because of all the revolutionary things that were happening, or seemed to be happening, in my country. I did not, however, foresee the unprecedented trauma that we would collectively experience as a generation. It is the type I know will stay with me. Though I am still reeling from the events of last month, life must go…
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The Revolution Will Not Be Televised
Hi guys. Sorry for my unexplained absence for the past couple of days. Thank you so much to everyone who has reached out to check if I was doing okay. I am so grateful. I’m taking a break from the writing challenge to contribute to the current conversation going on right row. In these past few days, I have experienced a roller-coaster of emotions, from feelings of overwhelming pride to intense sadness to burning passion. I know it’s easy to stand back and look away from all that’s going on because nothing ever works in this country. But it appears that unplanned and unintended, the match has been lit, and…
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Venus in Lucozade
Day 18: Your zodiac/horoscope and if it fits While I’m not deep into horoscopes and interpreting planet positions, I enjoy reading about zodiac signs and associated personality traits. Astrology appeals to the human obsession with understanding ourselves. What’s better than reading (mostly) good things about yourself? And the memes? Make Lucozade jokes all you want, you have to admit some of these astrology descriptions can be oddly specific and accurate. My birthday is February 10, so friends, they say that makes me an Aquarius woman. Aquarians are born between January 21st and February 19th, they belong to the air element, and ruled by the planet Uranus (associated with disruption, the…
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On Missing
Day 17: Something you miss. I’d like to talk about how I miss simpler days, my childhood and allathat, but I’ll always have that to rant about. Instead, I’ll talk about what I miss due to the present apocalyptic situation we find ourselves in. I miss going out at night, as going out during the day is for the birds. I am all about that night life. One time my girlfriends and I went to see Hustlers late at night and when we were done and ready to leave, we couldn’t because… the mall was locked. It was raining heavily and we had to search around in the rain for…
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Sweet Fifteen
Day 15: Bullet point your whole day. We’re halfway into the challenge and I am equally pleased and surprised that I have been writing here for fifteen days. Here’s how my day went (because I am not a gangster, I rounded up most of the time to the nearest hour): 6 am: I woke to the sound of my alarm, the voice of Train singing Drops of Jupiter. I stared at my screen angrily for a few seconds, before I quickly turned off the alarm so no one else would wake up, and I could sneak in a few more minutes of sleep.
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The One About Movies
Day 14: Movies you never get tired of watching. I’m so excited about this one, can you tell? You know those people who say ‘Oh my God, that’s my favorite movie!’ to about fifty movies? I am regrettably one of those people. Keeping this list short was not very easy. We have all kinds of favorite films: there’s the category of movies that are brilliant but are too long or enthralling to watch every day. Then there’s another category of movies that are enjoyable, and can be watched over and over, yet never get old.
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Hashtag Blessed
Day 13: Five things you’re grateful for. Hi guys! Sorry I skipped writing a post yesterday. I went to the outdoors and in the midst of all the enjoyment I ate some uncertified food and came down with a case of food poisoning. Digital representation of me after retching my intestines out for the fourth time yesterday. Don’t buy snacks in strange places kids! Some months ago, I wrote here about how the Rona had breezed in and upset all my plans for 2020. Come to think of it, I made an actual physical vision board for this year so you know I was serious! Today, I randomly thought again of how…
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Once Is Chance
It is allegedly my country’s Independence Day tomorrow and in commemoration of that, I will be sharing a list of people who escaped the shores of this country and went on to do great things in the world. 1. Sade Adu Helen Folasade Adu was born in Ibadan, and escaped the shores of this country when moved to Essex. Recognized as one of the most successful British female artists in history. I believe the inspiration for Smooth Operator would not have come so easily over the noise of her neighbor’s generator.
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Thirty Days Hath September
“That you are here -that life exists and identityThat the powerful play goes on,And you may contribute a verse”-O Me, O Life by Walt Whitman. During these surreal pandemic times, there are bound to be those chaotic and uncertain blue mornings, some riddled with anxiety, others colored by existential angst. On such bleary mornings, I clutch these words to my chest. I am a flag-waving reader and advocate of poetry, as it has brought me out of dark places and it keeps bringing me out. Physical spaces in my life are riddled with poetry quotes, from a bedside note to my computer screen.
