My Sphere of Influence

Saturday, January 1, 2011

New Year

I am thankful that I had a wonderful 2010. I accomplished everything I wrote in my little book and much more. (yes, I am one of those people who write things they wanna do for the year in little books).

Although before 2010 was over, there were incidences of bombings that occurred in that once peaceful town of Jos and in Abuja. When I heard the news, my face was hot. The horror was real and these people died because our security operatives are either incompetent or uninformed...or both. I was too unhappy to be filled with rage and I hate saying stuff like'it could have been me or someone I know'. It was someone's child, father, mother, sister, brother, friend, neighbour...that had to go through this horror. I sympathize with those who lost people or someone to the dastardly act of violence.

I would not go into any debate as to what steps could have been taken to avoid this and I do not need to reiterate the fact that I don't think GEJ has a clue as to how to govern us or at least be proactive. I was particularly saddened that some people from my age group were clamouring for a coup. I think not...we cannot afford to go backward in order to move forward.

My coffee is getting cold and its almost 3 a.m., I need to sleep and my face still feels hot, but the tears would not come streaming down my face. I must face the year like I planned to. (No, I wont tell you how I planned to face it...except you take a peek at my little black book...no, this year its a purple book).

Friday, December 17, 2010

Call a Spade a Spade

It amuses me to no end when people try to sugar coat something or try to be ‘politically correct’. I sincerely believe the world would be a better place if we all learned to say the truth in a deferential manner.

Recently, I saw a friend I haven’t seen in a long time and of course she had changed drastically, she was now fat. Yes, I said the f word. Not large/big boned, not PHAT (pretty, hot and tempting) but purely and simply fat. She got upset and said I had no right to call her fat. I proceeded to explain to her that being fat wasn’t necessarily a bad thing and calling fat another name didnt’t take away the fact that she was fat.

I find it highly ridiculous when people try to use politically correct terms…please call a spade a spade and NOT a digging tool. I think it stems from the fact that naturally, human beings like to deceive themselves about their current situation. I honestly think people should be fat and proud if they want to be. If you are not proud of it, then do something sensible and reasonable about it.

For example, I am short and proud and take no offense when I am called short. Seriously? I should be angry because you call me short? Am I not short? You would find it ridiculous if I told you ‘I am not short, I am just vertically challenged’. I can see you rolling on the floor and gasping for breath, it is ridiculous.

I am not promoting unhealthy eating and the like, I am fully aware that some people’s weight is hereditary; some have slow metabolism rates, etcetera. Nevertheless, my point is be comfortable in your own skin and do not let other people determine the way you feel about yourself. (I have been constantly called a short, thin bully and frankly, I believe my scorners are entitled to their opinions however flawed…although, if you call me that to my face, you would run into my fist 5 times).

Sunday, December 5, 2010

My Birthday wishlist

It is that time of the year again, only this time it is different: I am going to be a year older. My birthday is on the 23^rd of December (the fourth Thursday in December) and please find below my wish list in alphabetic order:

1. 1 terabyte hard disk

2. 500 gig external hard drive

3. A 2011 diary

4. A masculine wristwatch (NOT leather strap please)

5. Any book written by Tom Peters

6. Anything from Victoria’s Secret

7. Chic by Carolina Herera (for men)

8. Dvd or Blue Ray of ‘The phantom of the opera’

9. Euphoria Men by Calvin Klein

10. Formal dresses (black, grey and brown) (size 6)

11. Full payment of my LLM tuition (I start my masters in June)

12. Hair Accessories

13. Handbags

14. Hard copy of the Lord of the Rings (books 1-4)

15. Iphone

16. Jewellery

17. Monopoly

18. Netbook (Sony preferably)/ an Ipad

19. New pair of glasses (-2.00) or a box of contacts

20. Nike Gear

21. Nikon D7000

22. Scrabble

23. Shoes/ sandals/ slippers (size 38)

Thank you in advance.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

A matter of National Importance

This is a very important issue that we have treated with great levity, a situation so critical it calls for immediate action. I really cannot fully express the urgency of this situation. Oh well, I would go straight to the point. It is the issue of our First Lady’s verbal communication ability.

Words cannot describe the way I felt the first time I heard her speak. I thought there was something wrong with my ears. The first thing that came to my mind was the fact that this woman had been a deputy governor’s wife, a governor’s wife, a vice-president’s wife and now the president’s wife…surely she had all the time in the world to perfect her communication skills.

Recently, I attended a dinner she hosted at the State House and boy, was I dumb founded. She had very intelligent things to say but I didn’t get over the fact that she couldn’t express herself coherently. What struck me the most was the fact that she had a speech in front of her! Now, my critiques would be quick to say ‘after all English is not our mother tongue’…that argument is a silly one in my opinion. English is the Lingua Franca of Nigeria and every Secondary School Graduate is expected to speak the Language in a manner that would be understood by a listener. You can argue that standards have fallen but the First Lady is supposed to be a role model to some and she ought to take steps to address her image (Dora Akunyili can give her tips about image rebranding)

Another critique said maybe it was her accent that made it difficult for me to decipher what she was saying. Again, I debunk that theory. I can mention names of highly placed Nigerians who have their local accents but speak good English. Effective communication can be made regardless of the speaker’s accent.

One of my friends even suggested that she should speak in her local dialect and have an interpreter communicate her words effectively to us. She could use the ruse that she is promoting indigenous languages in Nigeria and none of us would bat an eyelid.

Most of all, I am not amused that no one in her inner circle had the courtesy to suggest that she engages the services of a linguist, speech therapist, language instructor or whatever. It is pure wickedness to let this issue run its course. I mean, her husband could have subtly insinuated that she did something about it.

Do not misunderstand me, my intention is not to insult anyone but to state the obvious as it seems a lot of people are fearful to do so. I am merely suggesting we do something about this fast. The mother of all horrors would be if she is to have a debate with Michelle Obama…

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a holiday celebrated in the United States and Canada as a way of expressing gratitude for life, family and more. Thanksgiving was made an official national holiday on the 3^rd of October 1863 by the United States president Abraham Lincoln.

If you want to read about the history of thanksgiving, I suggest you go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving as it highlights the history of thanksgiving both in Canada and the USA.

The essence of thanksgiving is the fact that we are alive despite the many things we have gone through. We should be thankful for family despite the fact that they make us want to hit our heads on the wall sometimes. If it seems like you can’t find anything to be thankful about, consider the air you breathe. Start from the seemingly little things like the fact you awaken every morning, the fact that you can read this post, the fact you have access to the internet…anything seemingly mundane.

Have you lost a loved one? Be thankful for the fact that he/she is in a better place and if you do not believe in the afterlife, be thankful for the strength you have every day to bear the loss. Has your business crumbled over the last couple of years? Be thankful for the ingenuity and courage you had to create a business and indeed start one that failed. You would learn from your mistakes and create a bigger and better business.

I absolutely hate what I call comparative thanksgiving e.g. thank God for the food I have to eat because many poor children have nothing. That is absolute crap. Why compare yourself with others when you can be fully satisfied independent of other people’s status? Yes, some have more or less than we have but that gives us no reason to base our thankfulness on that.

I am thankful for so many things and they include (in no preferential order)

1. I am alive and have the will to go on living.

2. I have a job I absolutely enjoy.

3. I have access to the internet (where I meet a lot of interesting people and can post write-ups on my blog).

4. I have a loving family.

5. I have crazy friends who would do anything for me and vice versa.

6. I have the zeal and yearning to achieve my goals.

7. I have time.

8. I have good health (well, seemingly so since I haven’t gone for a check-up in a while and I haven’t died yet)

9. My country hasn’t gone into another Civil war despite the various issues we have.

I could go on and on but won’t bore you with my long list of things I am thankful for. Please feel free to comment and let me know the things you are thankful for…trust me, you would go on and on.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Book Review: Living Life in the Zone

Living life in the zone is a 40 day daily devotional for men written by Kyle Rote Jr. and Dr. Joe Pettigrew.

The authors call it a 40 day spiritual game plan for men (I guess this is because it is written in a sports format that appeals to most men).

I took my time studying this book as the authors intended and found it to be a very reflective and inspirational daily devotional.

The authors acknowledge the fact that forty days is considered by God as a spiritually significant period of time in which he accomplishes his purposes. The authors further prove their point by giving us eleven instances where God used 40 days to change to change lives and situations.

The book covers a wide range of topics and is divided into 6 sections that cover every facet of a man’s life. Each week there is a different theme that makes you stop and ponder about your relationship with God, your wife, children, friends, co-workers and your future plans.

It sports oriented as it seeks to relate to the active/sporty side of men. As a woman, I was not bored with the book, I actually found it fascinating and I can imagine how much more interested the men would be.

This is a book I would recommend as a gift for a male figure dear to any woman. It boosts the morale and serves as a Spiritual guide. Although biblical passages were sparsely referred to, the authors tried as much as possible to make you dig deeper by giving daily assignments.

Check http://www.amazon.com/Living-Life-Zone-Spiritual-Gameplan/dp/0849946522 to buy the book.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Photography (2)

Hello everybody, welcome to by first photography exhibition. Okay, not really an exhibition but a post of a few of my pictures. I love photography ( I am an amateur) and my Nikon goes wherever I go. The pictures I am bold enough to post today are pictures I took in June 2010. It was a TG1stFriday event at Silverbird Abuja. I wonder why they stopped hosting the event. Oh well.

What I really love most about the few pictures here is the way I captured the fountain in different lights. Please enjoy and feel free to criticize.

This picture was taken with a focal length of 105.0mm, and an ISO of 800. I love the green background and the fact that the people were oblivious to my camera.