My Naija People

I hate to do this, but I'm going to do it anyway. Based on my observation over the years & testimonies from several other people, an average Nigerian can be summarised as extremely rude & aggressive. Don't get me wrong, I'm proudly Nigerian & not trying to 'diss' my own people, but if you deal with the Nigerian public & you want to be honest, then you will likely understand where I'm coming from. This is particularly more so, if you've experienced the demography of people of a different nationality. I lived in England for a short period of time, enough time to get myself familiar with their system, lifestyle & behaviour & I can tell you (like you too must have observed) that the average English person is quite polite & courteous. Like hubby would say, you need some 'strong head' to fit into the Nigerian system. Living in Nigeria (especially Lagos) comes with a lot of hassles o: Public Tranport wahala, Traffic palaver, Okada nuisance & worst of all, shopping (especially if u're like me and shop @ Balogun market because you want some serious bargains). Shopping in lagos is one herculean task; First, u figure out where the item is being sold, then you contend with the issue of quality which BTW, mostly comes as inferior and if u dare go for a better quality in some high profile overrated stores, be sure you will pay their rentals for that year ( how else would you describe selling to me a Primark Top for Kids that comes @ 1.50pounds from its origin at N5000 & u expect me to buy it? Shior). Now, if u choose to go shop at the local market (e.g Balogun) be sure u're not lily livered (u must have the confidence to walk into a stall, check out the goods & leave without buying a thing; they will insult every member of your household).
Before I bore you for too long, I had one of these experiences today ( only that I've been toughened & I know how to handle them better). Went to Balogun market yesterday to get some shoes for my kids. As usual, most of the shoes were of poor quality. Just when I was about giving up, saw this big store (bigger than others around it) and was impressed by the quality of their products. So I went for it, though customer service was zero as expected. Now, I had an issue with the size, and I asked the Owner (an Isale Eko Alhaja, I'm sure u can picture it) if I could return it if it wasn't the right size and she said yes, I could exchange it (in a very unpleasant manner). Unfortunately, I got home & one of them ( I bought 2) was a wrong size.
 So this morning, on my way to work, decided to pop there fast & change it, and this conversation happened:

realworld: E karo ma (greetings in local dialect), Pls I came to exchange one of the shoes.
  Alhaja: O s'aro (too early), come back (this was like 9:45am o)
  realworld: Pls ma, I might not have the chance to pop out of the office again, I'm on my way to work.
  Alhaja: (raising her voice) Ehn to ba fe, o le lo da'nu (if u like throw them away) I'm not changing anything right now. (BTW, I bought those shoes for N5000, that's about 20pounds, which is a major chunk of my humble salary & Alhaja can open mouth talk to me like that?)
Another Alhaja beside her intervenes & tells me to probably come back shortly afterward. I go buy some other thing I really don't need & came back 30mins later. One of the shop girls changes it for me & I go back to the Alhaja. I gave her a piece of my mind. I told her she needs customer service tutorials & it was quite rude of her to talk to me the way she did. She didn't expect it & she went on blabbing.
Enough of my story. I just ask why are Nigerians so rude & discourteous? Is it our environment? Is it illiteracy? ( I noticed that the Elites & most literate Nigerians don't behave that way)......aaargh, I rest my case.

Gbese!!!

It's a National 'urgency' 
It's a National crisis
It calls for National solution.

It's our National Mummy.
....Mummy 'Payshiens'.

Here are her Top 10 hits (...and still counting):

1. My Husband and Sambo is a good people.  (True talk)

2. The President was once a Child and the Senators were once a Children. (Gbosa)

3. My Fellow Widows (Bawo?)

4. A Good Mother takes care of his Children (Hmm...)

5. The people sitting before you here were once a Children

6. Yes we are all happy for the effort, it is not easy to carry second in an international competition like this one - Addressing Press men after Female Under 19 FIFA World Cup

7. The Bombers who born them? Wasn't it not a woman? They were once a Children now a adult now they are bombing women and children making some children a widow

8. My Heart feels sorry for these Children who have become Widows by losing their Parents for one reason or another

9. We should have love for our fellow Nigerians irrespective of their NATIONALITY(Yeh!)

10. UMBLERRA

What can I say? It is well....

His Undying Love

 Someone sent this to my box & I thought I'll share it. You might have stumbled on it before, you could read it again. Enjoy.

Every Sunday afternoon, after the morning service at the church, the Pastor and his eleven year old son would go out into their town and hand out Gospel Tracts.

This particular Sunday afternoon, as it came time for the Pastor and his son to go to the streets with their tracts, it was very cold outside, as well as pouring rain.


The boy bundled up in his warmest and driest clothes and said, 'OK, dad, I'm ready.'

His Pastor dad asked, 'Ready for what?'

'Dad, it's time we gather our tracts together and go out.'

Dad responds, 'Son, it's very cold outside and it's pouring rain.'

The boy gives his dad a surprised look, asking, 'But Dad, aren't people still going to Hell, even though it's raining?'

Dad answers, 'Son, I am not going out in this weather.'

Despondently, the boy asks, 'Dad, can I go? Please?'

His father hesitated for a moment then said, 'Son, you can go. Here are the tracts, be careful son.'

'Thanks Dad!'

And with that, he was off and out into the rain. This eleven year old boy walked the streets of the town going door to door and handing everybody he met in the street a Gospel Tract .

After two hours of walking in the rain, he was soaking, bone-chilled wet and down to his VERY LAST TRACT. He stopped on a corner and looked for someone to hand a tract to, but the streets were totally deserted.

Then he turned toward the first home he saw and started up the sidewalk to the front door and rang the door bell. He rang the bell, but nobody answered.

He rang it again and again, but still no one answered. He waited but still no answer.

Finally, this eleven year old trooper turned to leave, but something stopped him.

Again, he turned to the door and rang the bell and knocked loudly on the door with his fist. He waited, something holding him there on the front porch!

He rang again and this time the door slowly opened.

Standing in the doorway was a very sad-looking elderly lady. She softly asked, 'What can I do for you, son?' With radiant eyes and a smile that lit up her world, this little boy said, 'Ma'am, I'm sorry if I disturbed you, but I just want to tell you that * JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU * and I came to give you my very last Gospel Tract which will tell you all about JESUS and His great LOVE.'

With that, he handed her his last tract and turned to leave.

She called to him as he departed. 'Thank you, son! And God Bless You!'

Well, the following Sunday morning in church Pastor Dad was in the pulpit.  As the service began, he asked, 'Does anybody have testimony or want to say anything?'

Slowly, in the back row of the church, an elderly lady stood to her feet.

As she began to speak, a look of glorious radiance came from her face, 'No one in this church knows me. I've never been here before.  You see, before last Sunday I was not a Christian. My husband passed on some time ago, leaving me totally alone in this world. Last Sunday, being a particularly cold and rainy day, it was even more so in my heart that I came to the end of the line where I no longer had any hope or will to live.

So I took a rope and a chair and ascended the stairway into the attic of my home. I fastened the rope securely to a rafter in the roof, then stood on the chair and fastened the other end of the rope around my neck. Standing on that chair, so lonely and broken-hearted I was about to leap off, when suddenly the loud ringing of my doorbell downstairs startled me. I thought, 'I'll wait a minute, and whoever it is will go away.'

I waited and waited, but the ringing doorbell seemed to get louder and more insistent, and then the person ringing also started knocking loudly...

I thought to myself again, 'Who on earth could this be? Nobody ever rings my bell or comes to see me.' I loosened the rope from my neck and started for the front door, all the while the bell rang louder and louder.

When I opened the door and looked I could hardly believe my eyes, for there on my front porch was the most radiant and angelic little boy I had ever seen in my life. His SMILE, oh, I could never describe it to you!

The words that came from his mouth caused my heart that had long been dead, TO LEAP TO LIFE as he exclaimed with a cherub-like voice, 'Ma'am, I just came to tell you that JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU.' Then he gave me this Gospel Tract that I now hold in my hand.

As the little angel disappeared back out into the cold and rain, I closed my door and read slowly every word of this Gospel Tract. Then I went up to my attic to get my rope and chair. I wouldn't be needing them any more.

You see-- I am now a Happy Child of the KING. Since the address of your church was on the back of this Gospel Tract, I have come here to personally say THANK YOU to God's little angel who came just in the nick of time and by so doing, spared my soul from an eternity in hell.'

There was not a dry eye in the church. And as shouts of praise and honour to THE KING resounded off the very rafters of the building, Pastor Dad descended from the pulpit to the front pew where the little angel was seated..


He took his son in his arms and sobbed uncontrollably.

Probably no church has had a more glorious moment, and probably this universe has never seen a Papa that was more filled with love & honour for his son... Except for One.

Blessed are your eyes for reading this message.

Don't let this message die, read it again and pass it to others. Heaven is for His people!
Remember, God's message CAN make the difference in the life of someone close to you.
Please share this wonderful message...

If you love JESUS, please forward this message. Spread His word, and share His goodness and faithfulness.

Matthew 10:32 says:
'Whoever acknowledges Me before men, I will acknowledge him before My Father in heaven. But whoever disowns Me before men, I will disown him before My Father in heaven' 

Life Is Beautiful

Thought I'll share these pictures for your viewing pleasure.
http://www.beautifulworldphotos.com/p524989771/slideshow
http://speckyboy.com/2009/07/09/50-beautiful-hdr-images-from-50-world-cities/

Isn't life really beautiful? Moreso, the author & giver of life (Jesus Christ) must be a beauty to behold.
Peradventure you're going through some challenges presently, look up and see life. It's NEVER as bad as you think, and trust me everybody has some kind of battle they're fighting. Why don't you throw it all up for God, He's got the bosom to contain all.

Love u.

Hurray!!! My first Oscars......

....and the Oscars goes to 'therealworld'.... Yippee!
So I was awarded the 'One Lovely Blog Award' by the ever so sweet Vyvyka. Oh, that's so refreshingly encouraging darling, thanks a zillion.
The rules thus are:

1. Link back to the blogger who gave you the award (Done)
2. I have to tell you seven facts about me you don't know (Coming up)

3. Pass the awards along to as many as fifteen blogs I have found recently (will do)

4. Notify the bloggers of their awards.

Now to the 7 facts you might not know about me:

1. I love good (sexy) shoes. Get me a pair & you've won my heart.

2. Though I've got quite a collection, I stick to wearing these miserable flat pumps to work almost everyday (can't help it, they're too comfy).

3. I'm mostly on braids & dreads (Hate hair weaves)

4. Spent quite some bucks right from my high sch. days wanting to have this smooth, flawless looking skin I see on models in magazines (Ebony et al), only it took me some time to realise the trick......photoshop! I still want a flawless skin though (anyone with ideas?).

5. My kids make my day (before nko?)

6. I hate my job. ( I know u'll say leave it, but sweetheart, this is Nigeria & dream jobs are hard to come by. Still keeping hope alive sha).

7. I'm quite sensitive & oh so romantic.

.....and now the Oscars goes to: 

1. http://amazingthots.blogspot.com/

2.http://kilonsparkles.blogspot.com/

3.http://ladyngo.blogspot.com/

4.http://mariaah-ali.blogspot.com/

Off to notify the winners.

Love is?

I'm a fan of Classic FM 97.3. U  know, classic music & beautiful topics. They talked about love today & asked people to define love. Some were silly, some funny & some interesting. One of my favourite was " Love is accepting someone for who they are & forgiving their wrongs without any reason." Hmmm, lovely innit? Because really, it's not easy to forgive some wrongs o. BTW, does forgiveness equate forgetting? ( a topic 4 another day).
One said, "love is abstract, u know it when u feel it" Nice! I concur.

I would say love is God & God is love. Love is what makes u happy. Love is peaceful.

What would u say?