Uncertainties Place Me In an Unsual Place...

There is no doubt I am an optimist.

I always see the glass as half full. No matter what happens, I always manage to find the good in whatever situation I find myself in.

The above has been sorely tested in the last one week.

A decision has still not been taken on extension of my work permit and my current one has expired. Which means I cant legally work until the decision is taken. Trust me... being jobless is a bad thing.

Been jobless and broke is even worse!

After clearing debts and hoping to start afresh this month, I have had to borrow money from my sister in the UK (Thank you Toyin!) to cover this months bills (rent, utility etc...) I have an immigration expert lawyer who is supposed to be 'advising' me on the best way to negotiate the quite lengthy process of the 'immigration river'. I thought this was a good thing a few months ago. I am not so sure of that now as I have gained absolutely no value from his services. Or at least seemingly not.

To complicate matters further, I got a phone-call from a debt collection agency late last week. Apparently, the Auckland District Health Board has forwarded my details to them and I have 2 weeks to come up with 21,000 dollars. Obviously not going to happen. I had been in correspondence with the hospital previously explaining that I couldnt afford a 2000-dollar-a-month-over-12-months-payment-plan. Rather I have been paying 400 dollars a month since Feb. I had asked for more time citing my offer of a more permanent offer from Fonterra as a basis but they have obviously not bought into it.

So... while I have to wait for the slow but sure wheels of beaurecracy to churn out my extended permit, my credit rating will officially be shot to shit in a couple of weeks when I dont pay up my 21K debt (It used to be 24K!)
I didnt plan on falling sick. But I did.
I could be dead. But I am not.
Needless to say, I am going through a very delicate period now. I wish Tope were here. Now I know what Mr Oyegbola meant when he said some experiences are meant to be shared. But then... I always knew that!
__________________________________________________________________

On a brighter note... the induction camp for new AIESEC members I attended was loads of fun. I faced a crowd of young, eager passionate faces again. And although it was only for a few minutes... it reminded me all over again why I love public speaking so much!

It felt good to be the 'expert' on AIESEC Dances again. A lot of the dances I knew are still kicking ass and I turned out to know more than most people there.

AND

The English Premier League has kicked off and some unsurprising, cheerful, galling and equally shocking things have been revealed!

Unsurprising - We beat Birmingham 3 goals to 2.
Gleeful - Manure drew nil-nil with Reading at Old Trafford
Galling - Steven 'f%*#king Gerrard scored a winning goal for Liverpool against Aston Villa
Shocking - I actually felt sorry for Arsenal when they went 1 goal down against Fulham and felt some cheer when they grabbed a winning goal in the dying meetings of the game! Whats up with that?

Connecting with my Inner Teenager

I had two options on what to do this weekend.

I had an invitation from a couple who were going to drive up to the countryside and take in a few sights of the lush and varied vegetation that this wonderful country New Zealand, seems to have in abundance.

And then there was also the email invitation from the local AIESEC chapter here in Auckland to their induction camp. This is a 2 day camp that seeks to induct new members just recently recruited into the organization.

I picked the AIESEC one.

If I ever write an auto-biography, AIESEC the organization is going to take up quite a few chapters in the book. I joined as a 17 year old freshman in university and over the next 7-8 years, I found myself, lived my dreams, pushed my boundaries, and met some extraordinary individuals. And not necessarily in that order. Some of my greatest triumphs and bitterest disappointments are related to my experiences in and around AIESEC.

Now, due to my working hours and to be quite honest a conscious effort on my part, I have not been as active as some would have expected me to be in the activities of the local AIESEC chapter here. I was invited to come and speak at the orientation seminar for the newbies last week but seeing as I got a 24 hour notice... I couldnt make it due to prior engagements. So now I have decided to go and join AIESEC in Auckland at this 2 day camp this weekend.

I have very clear memories of my teenage years. I learned some very important lessons and my experiences then will always resonate in my actions as an adult now. For all the clarity I have from those years, it might as well have been a lifetime ago! (it was ONLY 7 years ago I was still a teenager for chrissakes!) I say this because of how I relate to the present day AIESECers. The average age among them is about 18 years old. I have found it very hard going to connect with most of them. The jokes, sense of humour and general outlook on life seems to me... childish at times!

My God What is happening to me?

ME? The original immature, mischevious prankster! Think of it... I did it as a kid! I KNOW I still have it in me... or is it that I am more comfortable playing the fool among people who know the serious part of me already? Am I afraid to seem childish to these (aaaaarrgghhhh!!!) kids? Is it because that was a label that ALMOST got stuck on me permanently as a teenager? Childish? Immature? But that was the beauty of AIESEC the organization. You could still act your inner child (teenager) at breakfast, talk about saving the world at lunch AND actually get round to it by dinnertime!

So... this weekend is going to be a test for me. Have I lost that adorable and mischevious imp or is he just waiting in the wings waiting to be unleashed again? Well... where better to find out than in at an AIESEC induction camp!

My Life and the Beautiful Game

"...Some People believe football is a matter of life and death. I am very disappointed with that kind of attitude. I can assure you that it is much, much more important than that!"
BILL SHANKLY
FORMER LIVERPOOL MANAGER

The title of this post is not original. It is the title of a 1977 autobiography of the legendary football superstar, Edson Arantes Do Nascimento. Otherwise known as Pele!

Football. I love it. I live it. I watch it.

I USED to play it as well in high school, not so much in University and by the special grace of God I will play it again in a special tourney involving my company Fonterra and MAERSK Shipping Line. Although truth to tell I am more active on the watching side.

And I love nothing better than to watch the best club in the world CHELSEA FOOTBALL CLUB!

When I moved into my apartment here in Auckland last year, I managed to convince the girls (my flatmates) to get SKY TV primarily so I could catch the most exciting Football league in the world! The English Premier League!

The Community Shield was played last weekend and we lost to those farty Aristocrats Manure United. But it was a meaningless game, nothing at stake and even though we had a lot of injuries (again) we still drew the game and they only won on penalties.

Not that I am making any excuses.

I however look forward to the next 9 months, staying up late here in Auckland to catch all the games (almost all!) of the Premiership.

And then there is the Champions League, FA Cup and Carling Cup! In a land full of Rugby fans and lots of sheep... Sky Sport 2 and ESPN shall become my most watched channels on cable.

Bring it on!!!

To Have At Your Back

When I was researching for my speech as the Best Man at my brother's recent wedding, I came across a lot of material detailing the supposed origins of the role.

Apparently, back then marriage was more than an issue of true love. It was very serious business as marrying the right person added to your sphere of influence in the form of additional lands and titles. Marriages served to cement military alliances and were used as favors to be asked for at a later date.

In Anglo-Saxon England, the Best Man would act as a bodyguard for both the groom and the bride. During Anglo-Saxon England weddings the bride would stand to the left of her groom so that his sword arm was free. The Best Man would keep his hand on his sword ready to fend off trouble and protect the couple. Often during these times, the best swordsman in the area was chosen as the Best Man

In Nordic and Gaulish tribes, the practice was even taken to another level. Wives had to be taken by force from another tribe when the number of eligible young women dropped in your own tribe. A man had to organize a raid to 'capture' his wife and often had to fight his way through the woman's relatives. Of course the intended groom took along the best swordsman who would watch his back during the raid.

But why do I mention this at all?

No it is not because I felt like decapacitating members of my sister-in-law's family. (although come to think of it... ;-) No. My quite vivid imagination just transported me to those times. If I had lived in that period, and I needed to fight a whole village in order to reach my one true love... who would I call to watch my back?

Knowing me, I wouldnt hedge my bets in the least and would probably go with a FULL raiding party. And countless names spring to mind on who would make the cut... one name in particular would DEFINITELY be on that list:

Isaac Okanlawon (otherwise known as "Ba'Jebu")

Ba Jebu Fine Boy?, originally uploaded by Ladajay.

I have known Isaac for the last 8 years now. I met him in AIESEC. And I clearly remember my first impressions of him back then. Intense, anxious to please, brimming with curiousity and oh! so very naive! One clear memory I have is of us both being disgusted at the level of hypocrisy that existed in AIESEC in Nigeria at that time. But while I jumped on the table and screamed to the high heavens about it, Isaac sat there and grimaced. I took it to mean at the time that he wouldnt stand up for what he believed in. I was so very wrong about this.

It was a slight shock when Isaac sought my opinion on running for the position of National President of AIESEC in Nigeria. He had already been a very successful President of his local AIESEC chapter and was halfway through a term as National Director. I had to make a very bemused re-evaluation of this individual who had once paid me the ultimate compliment by expressing his desire to work on a team of which I would be National President.

The roles were completely reversed now as I was also seeking a role on the next leadership team of which he had aspirations to lead. I came to the very quick conclusion that Isaac would make a very good National President indeed. I was however still honest enough to admit to myself that there was still some way for him to go to earn my total respect! And you know what...

...He did earn it. Completely.

I dont know if I ever told him this, but while we served on the National Committee of AIESEC in Nigeria, Isaac constantly inspired me. While I was brash, arrogant and confident in my abilities., Isaac had a gentility that commanded respect among everyone while I had to demand (and got) that respect. People willingly gave their loyalty to Isaac. I would enagage LCPs in shouting matches over their unpaid dues, Isaac would appear on the scene and they readily promised to send the cheque in the post the next day.

Isaac the indecisive boy had grown up to become this purposeful leader who while still preferring diplomacy to confrontation, was not in the least bit shy about banging you over the head with the facts! (and my head got banged a few times!) There were 2 other people on our team, Kenoma and Tobi. And Isaac wasnt just THE leader, he was seen as the leader.

Apart from our professional relationship, Isaac is also something else to me. He is a true Friend. He and I had some enagaging discussions on all sorts of topics. We grew to respect and know each other's strengths and weaknesses and I like to think we could predict what the other would do or say.

One thing Isaac never seemed to lose though was his sense of naivety. He comes from a strict Christian upbringing and he always seemed to express childlike wonder at stuff that a jaded old fox like me would not even blink at. His sometimes childlike questions about girls, sex and worldly pleasures would have me rolling on the floor with laughter. Although after living in Hungary and currently residing in the Netherlands, I can bet Isaac can answer some of those questions better than I ever could now! hehe

Even now, Isaac never takes people for granted. He is not afraid to ask questions in an effort to better understand something. He is generous, cares about those closest to him and has an annoying habit of trying to leave every and anything he comes into contact with, better than he met it.

I have seen Isaac develop as an individual, he has become one of my closest friends but all through the years, Isaac hasnt changed essentially from what he was all those many years ago I first met him.

A decent human being.

So if this was the 10th century and I had to fight my way through a rampaging horde of relatives who were intent on keeping me from the love of my life, This individual would definitely be on my right side.

ISOYIN JOO!

Isaac and I at IPM in the Netherlands, originally uploaded by Ladajay.

Testing Testing Upload Pics...

IMG_0019.JPG, originally uploaded by Ladajay.

AIESEC in Sverige!
e helt endar barra
We know how to party and stay up allnight

The feeling, the magic.. la lal ala la la

I am posting from my Flickr account and just chose this picture at random to see how it would work.

I am having trouble uploading pics to my blog posts in recent days and I am looking for an alternative method.

The pic above has Emma Gavert, Aron Lindberg and myself during our opening plenary roll call at IPM 2006

If Its not One thing...

First I had a Pulmonary Embolism, then I had to work two jobs to afford paying for the attendant hospital bill AND attend my dear brother's wedding.

Now I am back and facing that ogre that invariably affects we nomads that have moved to another country and culture. I am talking about Immigration Issues.

I have an application with immigration New Zealand to extend my work permit with a view to becoming a permanent employee of Fonterra! It's supposed to be routine and shouldnt take more than 20 days. However because of said Pulmonary Embolism above, immigration wanted me to have another full medical. Which I have.

And now I might not get an answer for another 3 weeks. I am crossing my fingers; knocking on wood; holding my thumbs; praying to Almighty God that it comes before that! My current permit expires well before then.

You never get used to this. Moving to any other country will involve a huge amount of paper work whatever nationality you are but for some of us... it's guilty until proven innocent!

Oh Lord... why send me all these character building episodes? I hope it is because you have a greater use for me on a par with leading a whole nation out of bondage and through a parted Red Sea to boot!

A Source of Comfort...

U Rock my World
U are the twinkle in my eye
U make my heart skip a beat
U are the one I've always wished for
U are charming
U are my crush
U are my everything
U bring joy to my life
U make me laugh
U are the one for me
U inspire me
U motivate me
U are my treasure
U mean the world to me
U are my dream come true
&
I'm thankful for U
I'm passionate about U
I value U
I respect U
I love being around U
I yearn for U
& most of all
I LOVE YOU!
{My 1st & Only True Love}
Take me, I'm all Urs...
'cos U had me from HELLO!

No Greater Honor...

My Little Indian has paid me tribute for inducting him into the world of Harry Potter on his blog. Well... he did on the comments page so I am reproducing his words here...

...and just in case anyone was wondering... If Hogwarts was a real place, Amit would definitely be a Ravenclaw! Heck! He would go on to become Head of Ravenclaw house! Even if he screamed and begged the Sorting hat to put him in Gryffindor... it still wouldnt happen!

Accept it dude... You are high on brains, but brawn isnt your scene. Haha!


Amit Desai said...
I am eternally grateful to Oladi popo Adebola who in June 2005 introduced me to Harry's world. I felt exactly like Voldemort - Harry connection both having this significant link ; Voldemort being ofcourse Ladi :)

Thou shall always be thanked for this!

In Search of a Good Conversation

I miss Isaac Okanlawon.

And He’s not the only one I miss.

I miss Ejiro Otiotio, Emma Gavert, Bros Solay, Maria Johansson and Tobi Odunowo. I miss Osibo Imhoitsike, Segun Sangowawa, Amit Desai and Oh. My. God. I MISS Labake Quadri. Of course I miss a WHOLE lot more people than these ones above. (I miss Tope so much its almost a physical pain sometimes!) And I miss them all for various different reasons! But the people above, all have two things in common.

1) – they all live in the northern hemisphere
2) – I had some bloody good conversations with each and every one of them!!!

Topics were as varied as the individuals themselves:

- I spoke about Love, Life and what a Swedish girl REALLY wants in a man with Maria
- Issues of politics, philosophy and what it takes to develop a nation like Nigeria with Isaac
- I was driven almost to the point of insanity by Kene with discussions on religion and belief systems
- Emma Gavert challenged my views on homosexuality and its taboo status in African culture versus its acceptance in Western civilization
- I counselled and shared Segun’s pain on relationship issues
- Osibo and I tried to prove to one another why our respective English Premiership sides were the best in the world
- I debated and regularly almost came to blows with Bros Solay on the state of the Nigerian nation and who was really to blame for the rot there.
- Almost any discussion and/or situation with Labake Quadri turned into a heated argument on pros and cons
- Amit and I went through the finer details of the Harry Potter series trying to decide if Harry was or was not a Hocrux…

…and so on and so forth

The closest thing I have to a good conversationist (sic) is my darling flatmate Mialy, who is from Madagascar and has very strong views on the death penalty and its abject failure in curbing serious crime.
And of course there is Sean my best friend here in New Zealand who I went to high school with in Nigeria. It's always interesting to hear his views on 'proper' behaviour for young girls and I know he is ALWAYS there for me to 'shoot the breeze' with.

So from being surrounded by all these damn good debaters and logical thinkers who are passionate about one thing or the other. I have been left with a couple of shining stars in Mialy and Sean.

Of course I never realized how much I cherished and enjoyed these conversations until I got here to New Zealand . Now don’t get me wrong when I say this. NZ is full of some pretty smart dudes and dudettes. The kiwis I have met and interacted with are hardy, friendly outgoing people. You are much more likely to get an invitation for a drink (or “piss-up” as it is more colourfully known) here in Auckland , after work than you would in Stockholm . But being so far away from EVERYWHERE seems to have its pros and cons.

Pros – You don’t have to worry about some rogue terrorist group targeting strategic locations in Auckland or Wellington . Its just too far away from the action.
Cons – Your distance from everything and everyone else makes you get into a “What’s-happening-in-the-world-not-that-I-really-care“ mode.

There is a serious dearth of good conversations in Auckland . At least available to me.

Anyone who knows me will know that I thrive in front of an audience. Of one or one hundred, it really doesn’t matter. I am so people-oriented that magical experiences that I go through alone hold no special meaning for me. There needs to be at least one other person there to laugh with and share the memories with. I was barely 20 years old when I decided that even girls that shared my bed, in addition to being physically alluring had to be intellectually stimulating. I have had some amazing “pillow talk” in my time I can tell you!

Now I am able to admit that a lot of those conversations fed my enormous ego and left me feeling that I could hold my own with some of the smartest people I have had the pleasure of meeting. (Kenechukwu Umeasiegbu as a case in point). But I ALWAYS increased my knowledge and answers gained led to even more stimulating questions.

Thank goodness for email, phone, skype and all the other inventions by man that has turned the world into a Global Village. The last time I spoke to Isaac on the phone was last week from his base in Amsterdam. We spoke for 35 minutes. And he was just calling to say a quick hi!

So this is what I have concluded. I have to go out more. Expand my social circle and meet some more interesting people in Auckland. Perhaps I should try and start a conversation with those I know already, a conversation that goes beyond Rugby and what the weather will look like today in Auckland. J

I will admit, being a sucker for a pretty face (among other assets) has distracted me in the past from recognising a good candidate for a good conversation. But that distraction is no longer there (or has being effectively muted) by Tope. So the next time I go to that nice Italian wine bar on High Street, I will have my priorities straight.

Providence send me more kindred spirits who recognises the importance of a bottle (or two or three) some cheese, and a never ending list of topics to get passionate about!

And so ends an epic!

The time is 01.05am NZT. (14.05 GMT)

I am very very impressed with the seventh Harry Potter book.

Considering all the hype and marketing blitz that preceeded the book, it had huge and massive expectations on its head!

And it delivered on every single one.

I laughed, I cried, I got goosebumps, I squealed in delight, I read the book in just over seven hours. 4 hours straight at first and then I had to attend an obligatory birthday party where I moped by myself in a corner and drank a whole bottle of wine. All the while with a clear sense of expectation and impatience to get back to my book.

Now it's done. The story has ended in a very typical and traditional sense. No unexpected and bold twist to the end, although there are plenty of twists and turns to delight the conspiracy theorists. But Oh my Goodness!!! The ride to that end was a roller coaster!

I am obviously trying not to give away anything of importance here, for those of you who havent gotten a hand on a copy and intend to. I will stop here before I do.

And so ends Harry Potter. Or is it a beginning? Kids will ALWAYS be turning eight years old. You can be sure that in the same way Charles Dickens, C.S Lewis, Roald Dahl etc are still being read many many years after their deaths. The bank account (and then her estate -damn her lucky kids!) of Joanne Rowling will be receiving a cheque in the mail for a very LOOOOOOONG time.

Let me see what the world is saying about the book... I think I'll start by reading that New York Times review...

Beginning of the End...

I left home at 11.20am NZT. (00.20GMT)

I joined the queue in the bookstore at 11.28am NZT.

I was on the queue for 12 minutes

I had the book in my hands at 11.40am NZT

I got home at 12noon NZT. (3 mins ago)

I will not be available for the next few hours!

Off to see what happens to Harry...

Cheerio!

Much Ado about a beard

Rugby is the national sport of New Zealand.

As well it should be. They seem to be the damn best at it. It happens to be about the only sport in which they regularly spank the Wallabies (thats the Australian Rugby Union team for the uninitiated) and for a "little brother" nation constantly in the shadow of their bigger regional brother... well lets just say you dont want to be seen in a yellow and green jersey when the All Blacks lose to the Wallabies! As was the case a couple of weeks ago!

To be honest, not a lot of countries (compared to say Football) have Rugby as their national sport. The traditional power houses of Rugby are:

- New Zealand "All Blacks"

- Australian "Wallabies"

- South African "Springboks"

And then we have France, England, Ireland, Wales etc... and obviously, Rugby Union is not the number one national sport in these countries.

And therein lies the rub!

New Zealand have not won the Rugby world cup since 1987. The All Blacks won the inaugural edition in 1987 and have not won it since. England and France have won once and Australia has won twice!!! In between world-cups the All blacks dominate and beat every one silly (literally and figuratively) but somehow have not managed to repeat the success of that first World Cup.

You can imagine this fact grates on the collective psyche of a nation that DOES have Rugby as their NUMERO UNO National Sport!

Which brings us to the issue of Carl Hayman's beard. Carl Hayman plays the prop position in the All Blacks and along with a trio of other players forms the main fulcrum of the team. He had a shaggy appearance (pic above) sometime ago and the All Blacks co-incidentally (or not?) had one of their most convincing runs in a long time. They vanquished all in their path.

Now the next Rugby World Cup is coming up in Sept/Oct and the All Blacks like in previous editions have been really dominating leading up to the competition.

So a group has sprung up here totally determined to get Carl to go back to his shaggy man persona and ensure the All Blacks triumph at the World Cup hosted by France!

The group is SO serious that they are asking all "...Kiwis everywhere throw down their razors and present a united, hairy front to the world..." And according to a radio report I heard this morning, they are asking not only the men - but also the WOMEN - who can grow beards to join in as well.

Stranger things have been seen in the world of sport!

Apparently I am a Good Dancer

Of course it was never in any doubt!

I mean... it wasnt for nothing that I won the "best dance move" award at the Fonterra Xmas Party last year was it?

But on that occassion, I was reliving the moves and trickery of the one-time "King of Pop" to the adoration of the mostly kiwi dominated Fonterra staff audience.

The setting was slightly different here.

It was the celebration of the Colombian National Day and the venue was the classy Ellersille Center a few klicks from central city Auckland. There was some 800 people... latin people... there. The hall was grandly decorated and needless to say, I didnt notice any of the decorations because of the drop dead gorgeous Latin women all over the place. Dark haired, smouldering eyes, laviscious curves and almost every single one of them had a wedding band on her finger!

Since the promise of so much latin beauty on display had lured me to the event in the first place, I contented myself with just admiring glances and started mental exercises to determine how the gorgeous women managed to remain in such great shape after 2 or 3 kids. Perhaps having to balance one of said kids on her hip whilst dragging the other one by the hand 6 days a week ha something to do with. The fact that their beauty paled in comparison to Tope's own also helped quite a lot!

After a very varied and wonderful display of different folk dances by different age groups, and gouging myself on the Chili Kankani(sic) and rice and drinking a couple of glasses of very good red wine... I was certainly in the mood for some gyrations on the dance floor.

The main stage had transformed into one huge dance floor and I had 'cliqued' up with some ex-AIESECers and some colleagues from work. At first we danced in that annoying way which is popular in parties in Europe. That of standing around in a circle and not having a specific partner. But hey! This was a latin party in full swing and THAT didnt last long at all.

There was a live band there which was actually very good and from the crowd's responses, churning out popular hits! I danced Salsa first with a Mexican colleague and she exclaimed, "Oh Ladi... you dance so good!" And here I was just moving to the beat of the song and trying to keep up!

And then there was Karen!

Karen is English, an accountant by day and teacher of dance by night... 5 nights a week at the local salsa dance club. Karen and I first danced to a particularly provocative song which required lots of hips touching, pinpoint accurate sway to the beat of the music and grand flourishes and twirls! Again, I managed to barely keep up and truth to tell, Karen was leading 80% of the time!

But damn, she made me look much better than I really am!

I havent sweated, laughed and danced that much since my brother's wedding! Amy, Ana, Robert, Mauricio, Gerrado, all praised my dancing skills and I just smiled and shrugged as if it was nothing. Like I did it all the time. Yeah Right!

But I guess when it comes right down to it... dance is not about counting your steps and following the rules. It's about being in tandem with the rythmns of the song and letting your body give expression to that rythmn.

Its Friday evening in Auckland now... and I will pop round to the Mexican Cafe a bit later and see if my body cant give expression to some rhythmns!
_____________________________________________________________

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows out tomorrow! I am dead-broke from paying off the last of my travel debts but not so broke I wont be forking out the NZ$23.00 balance for the book at 11am 2moro! I already pre-booked some 5 months ago with NZ$10.00

There's already a review of the book in the NY times. I havent read it. At least not until I finish the book. Jo Rowling railed at the whole lot of them trying to spoil it for us faithful readers and I dont want to partake of any curse she might have placed on those websites.
She's very powerful you know! (whichever way you look at it!)

I Have Done a Terrible Thing...

...Thoughtless, Selfish and Yes it is as bad as you think!

May God forgive me!

How DOES She Do it?!

- July 21, 2007

- Forbes 100 Richest Celebrities on E! Channel

- What I spent my Sunday evening doing

How are the three things above connected?

Well... the picture on the left is a dead give away. They all have to do with the boy wizard who has taken the world (Muggle and non-Muggle worlds alike) by storm!

More importantly, they have to do with the creator of Harry Potter. Madame Rowling. First off, regardless of whatever theory I postulate below, I think she is a real witch. And a powerful one to boot! And who has bewitched us all into buying into a story that is in all likelihood true!

Is it very obvious I am a fan of Harry Potter?

On July 21, 2007 the seventh and final book in the series will be released world-wide and I hear it's already broken all kinds of records already. It will be the culmination of a journey (at least for readers) that started some 10-odd years ago.

Yesterday, I watched the run down of the 100 richest celebrities on the E! Entertainment channel. More than Madonna; more than Martha Stewart; more than Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Anniston AND Angelina Joline put together and surpassed only by God (otherwise known as Oprah) J.K Rowling is worth US$1 billion, give or take a few million. That is not a lot of money...

...THAT IS AN INSANE AMOUNT OF MONEY!

And all from writing six books? But much more than the money here... how and why have her books captured the imagination so much? According to wikipedia, the books themselves have sold about 325 million copies. Five of the seven books have been turned into blockbuster movies and the attendant merchandising doesnt hurt in the slightest.

I spent my Sunday evening watching the lastest installment of the movie franchise. Like the previous 4 films before it, it only gets a 4/10 from me. Not because it wasnt good but because they left so many cool parts out. A bit harsh but there you go!

Again moving away from the financial aspect of things (its not easy) what would make a children's book so special and compelling as to have adults and children scrambling to get their hands on it? Now this is a fundamental question for me as I hope to someday create a story that will someday be on the shelves of Borders Bookshops. (A million copies is all I ask for)

I think Ms Rowling has taken a highly implausible world and made it shockingly simple to relate to. A world residing behind the normal world we know and employing fantastic means (Magic!!!) to everyday stuff. We know magic doesnt really exist but Oh. My. God. If it did, it would probably be exactly as Jo has described it.

Stupefy, Expecto Patronus, Experlliamus, spells to make you fall in love, transform yourself into some kind of animal, wash the dishes, clean your room, magical creatures at your beck and call, other ones that would sooner swat you aside... and you need to go to this centuries old castle to learn how to control all that magic. Amazing!

I was a (serious) fan of only one other fantasy book series. The Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan. He also employs similar tricks used by J.K Rowling. Leaving clues in book 2, the significance of which you wouldnt realize until Book 6. Crafting together scenes and narrative action that make you actually see yourself performing these feats. The main characters have developed a life of their own that makes it impossible for you NOT to care what happens to them!

Fair warning though if you want to look for Robert Jordan... the Wheel of Time stretches across 11 novels and 1 pre-quel and it is STILL NOT done! If you ask me, Jordan has lost the plot! But the first 3... 4... 5 books were so damned good that Jordan decided to make as much money off of us and extend the run until he tied himself into knots. And contracted a rare life-threatening disease on the way! He has promised to complete the story in Book 12 even if it means 2000 pages!

I have also fallen for another series now. The Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher. It is very similar to the Wheel of Time, employing characters that wield enormous magical power through the elements and characters imbued with so much life and reality, they move the story along all by themselves. Jim Butcher goes a step further by constantly making you re-evaluate the intentions and leanings of each character viz-a-viz "which side are you on?'. Someone you would have labelled 'evil' turns out to be good or a 'good' character turns out to have an ugly side to him. Fascinating stuff.

He also promised a trilogy at the beginning but now we are waiting for Book 4!

Anyway... I have pre-ordered my copy of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" and like Pierre, I will also be unavailable right after I pick up my copy. I should be done by Saturday evening. And if you are a fan... dont read the next line... Hermione dies in the seventh book.

Go on then... hate me!

Mulling over Mortality...

A friend of mine died on Sunday.

The finality of the above statement makes goosebumps break out all over my body. Mary Fatima Abu nee Taidi was a friend, big sister, sometime boss and travel companion, lovable personality and now she is gone. Just like that.

I met Mary eight years ago in the ancient city of Kano in northern Nigeria, where she was the President of the local AIESEC chapter. We were there for a conference and we, who hadnt met her had heard stories of the 'Iron Lady' of Kano. The reality turned out to be much more pleasant.

Smart, beautiful, warm and out-going just begin to describe her. She had a sharp tongue and a sharper wit that could be deployed to leave her listeners in gales of laughter or reduce a deliberately obtuse individual to wondering why his/her clothes AND skin were not in tatters on the floor! She never suffered fools gladly but did not deliberately set out to hurt anyone.

The irony is that she was the first to reply to a wedding announcement by a mutual friend on an email list I belong to. This was on Friday. On Sunday she was dead! Expecting her first child; having gotten married last year, I dont want to imagine the pain and grief her husband is going through right now!

A friend wrote this in a tribute to her, "Like every one of us, Mary was in her prime, building a career and a family for herself. Her hopes, aspirations and ambitions could not have been much different from ours, individually and collectively"

The only difference now is that her aspirations have been cut short. It could have been anyone one of us. It could have been me. More than my own near miss incident in December last year, in a way I cannot fully explain, Mary's death has made me more aware of my mortality. It has made me realize that we REALLY NEED to live life to the fullest and do those things that really matter.

From the deluge of memorials, tributes and moving eulogies that Mary's death has invoked literally from all around the world, Mary obviously lived her tragically cut-short life to the fullest!

O Death, Where is Thy Sting? (here in our wrenching hearts, DAMN YOU!)

Sleep Well Mary Fatima Taidi-Abu!

Presenting the New Couple in all their Glory...

Okay Okay Okay... I hope this is not a case of over-kill here.

But I DID travel 30,000 miles for the principal reason of attending this wedding and it was such a wonderful and successful one... can any of you really blame me. Besides this is an opportunity for me to share a bit of my culture with you all.

Presenting the lovely couple... Mr & Mrs Segun and Dupe AJAYI....

With this Ring I Thee Wed... Part II

Where were we now?

Ah yes... the bride's family was receiving the official letter of intent from the groom's family. I have understandably simplified the whole process here. There are countless songs, ceremony and specific forms that go back and forth between the families.

These can be called the preliminaries and depending on how long-winded the family representatives are... can last anywhere between an hour and a half and 3 hours!

Anyway... once intent has been signalled and received, it's time to get the potential suitor himself. All through the prelim activities, the groom is stationed outside and is not allowed in until this point. SO when the bride's family rep calls out, "So where is the young man seeking our daughter's hand in marriage?" (or something to that effect) the drummers, praise singers and young women of his family go and collect him.

Now it is not just a matter of leading him in by the nose, the whole event is taking place in a hall that has a long entrance hall. The bride's family has "sentries" and "toll-collectors" lined all along the route of the entrance hall. And the groom is expected to pay his 'dues' to all the vampires along the route here. This is sometimes in the form of gifts but more usually cash!

Which is why the groom usually assembles a posse behind him for this crucial aspect of the ceremony......now while every "groom's posse" that I have witnessed at wedding ceremonies has tried to intimidate the "toll-collectors and try to get away without paying too much, none of them has been very successful! My brother's wasnt either. We paid through the nose I can tell you!

And it wasnt restricted to the entrance hallway either. When we got to the front where the action was taking place. We found the bride's family representative feigning sleep. And we were informed that only a huge gift would be able to wake her up. Seeing as she was the only one able to introduce the groom to the bride's family, we had to again dispense with cash gifts! The rep tries to draw this out as long as possible in order to get the groom and his posse to drop as much as possible.
When it seemed we had dropped enough to buy a brand new car and she still wasnt 'waking up' one of my brother's friends whispered in my ear that perhaps if one of us delivered a well-placed smack to her face, that would do the trick!!!

Eventually she did 'wake up' and she made the very flowery introductions of the young man who had come seeking the hand of the beautiful damsel. And then we (my brother and his 'posse') were required to greet the elders of the bride's family in the traditional manner. In Yoruba culture, young men greet a much older person by prostrating on the floor... that is...lying on the floor and touching your head to the ground. Age is venerated in Yoruba culture and old age usually equates wisdom. Or at least is supposed to. Women kneel down on both knees.

So we were required to do this three times. Dont ask me why. I just know we had to do it three times...

Here we are preparing to go to ground!

And here we are giving homage to the elders of the bride's family in true Yoruba fashion!

Eventually my brother is left all alone on the floor as he is the principal 'plaintiff'! He is asked a series of trick questions which are all designed to ensure that he is made of the right stuff and will treat his bride with love, honor and respect! As you can see from the pic below, my brother doesnt mind all the questions in the least or even his proximity to the floor. He's going home with a beautiful bride at the end of it afterall!

Eventually the bride's family elders pronounce themselves satisfied and the groom is asked to pose with both sets of parents.

And now it's half-time in the proceedings!

No... No... a break is not given although drinks, refreshments and food will have been flowing all through the assembled guests, family members and friends.

The most important person in all these proceedings is now introduced into the fray. Once the groom has safely gotten approval and gotten all the trick questions correct. The bride's family representative calls out for the young lady in question. And who all the fuss is made about!

The bride is now ushered in as well with the expected fanfare. Drumming, dancing and singing. But with one added twist... she comes in veiled.

Now I am told that if things were being done strictly according to the book (which it wasnt in this case), the bride would come out with a group of other girls all similarly veiled and the prospective groom would have to pick out his sweetheart from among the veiled maidens!

Luckily for my brother, he was spared this particular test. And besides I am reliably informed that most brides dont want to share this moment with a whole bunch of wide-eyed maidens and risk her heart-throb pick the wrong woman!!!

SO my new sister-in-law danced in surrounded by her friends all singing and proclaiming her virtues and beauty for the whole world to hear. The veil shrouding her in mystery...

At this point, emotions run over and there are plenty of tears to go around. Especially as realization sets in that their daughter is actually going to start a brand new life with her husband.

The Groom's parents have the honor of unveiling the bride (or is it the groom?) and there are countless songs and dances that are performed at this stage!

Eventually, the bride's family rep performs the tying together ceremony which is kind of similar to what the priests in church do.

By this time, the guests are getting restless and invariably well-fed and just want to get on to the most interesting part of the whole day. At least according to some of them. The dancing part. After the forms have been met and the ceremony is done, there now comes much dancing and dancing and even more dancing and then some more dancing...

This dancing is the perfect culmination to the day as both sides having sat apart the whole day now come together and if the couple have chosen their colors properly, the whole venue is a wash of color and elegant outfits! Not to mention scintillating dance moves!

With this Ring I Thee Wed... Part I

Of course if you have lived in or being influenced by Western Culture, the title of this post should be very familiar to you.

It is the culmination of a process wherein

- boy meets girl,

- girl likes boy,

- boy runs scared that girl might actually like him enough to want to spend the rest of her life with him,

- girl convinces him this is not such a bad thing and

- boy suddenly finds he cannot live without girl,

- he puts a diamond ring on her finger to let other boys know she is no longer available and

- if parents, friends or a drop-dead gorgeous man-killer of a woman do not interfere,

- he eventually puts a wedding band on her finger in front of man, God and the church uttering the words above at some point...

Of course a lot of couples are dispensing with the last three steps above and just jumping straight to the next step of having children together and sharing everything from their bank accounts to the gym membership at the local spa.

But I digress...

Being from the Yoruba ethnic group of South western Nigeria and having being baptized as a Christian AND being influenced a whole lot by Western culture (all those American movies), deciding to spend the rest of your life with someone is a little bit more complicated than the process enumerated above!

At some point when you start meeting and dating members of the opposite sex, your parents start hinting that although a marriage is majorly about the two individuals, its also a lot about bringing two families together! Now since Nigeria is made up of at least 19 distinct different ethnic groups, with different languages, culture and history, you begin to read between the lines and get an idea of what your parents are alluding to!

Of course the younger generation (my generation) are a bit more cosmopolitan and global-minded and it doesnt raise eyebrows as much these days if as a Yoruba girl you marry an Ibo boy! Not too many eyebrows... well... a bit silly... but there you go!

Anyway... my big brother obviously took all those hints from my dad to heart and his bride is a nice Yoruba girl, who is also a Lawyer to boot! And since they are both Yoruba, we would be having an explosion of Yoruba culture and an excuse to party until we dropped!

First off... the wedding ideally takes place over 2-3 days. Like I said, since we are Christian, there was a fusion of the Western and the traditional. There are Yorubas who are muslim but no matter what religion, you are obliged to have the Engagement/Traditional ceremony.

The traditonal ceremony is a formal all day event that involves members of the groom's family coming with a huge delegation to ask for the hand of the girl in marriage. The bride's family of course is the 'host' and ideally should be seated when the groom's family arrives.

And when the groom's family arrives, it is no mere matter of strolling into the place. They are met by singers, drummers and praise singers. When we say that this is a day of joy and merriment, we mean it is a day of partying!
Now each family has a representative that handles all the 'negotiations' and ensures that all the forms are kept. The roles are usually taken by women and one could call them the custodians of tradition who ensure that everything is done according to laid down customs.

The picture on the left shows my parents at the far left (in green). The lady in the middle dressed in brown is the "Alaga-iduro" or groom's family rep.

Another interesting part of the whole thing are the outfits worn by each family. There is a color scheme, which in this case was Gold for the groom's family and Blue for the bride's family. Friends, family and associates of each family dress in head-ties and outfits that reflect the color.

There are smiles aplenty... afterall its not everyday you go to ask for the hand of a lovely damsel for your first son and heir!

And the charge is led by the parents of the groom who have place of honor at the head of the procession that will include friends, family members and loved ones.

There is an official letter written by the groom's family that is read by a young lady from the bride's family. The letter is on expensive paper and should be poetic as it is clear and direct. The damsel who reads the letter is usually the younger sister/cousin of the bride and she should read the letter in a clear, melodious and articulate tone.

The letter is wrapped in fancy paper and ribbons. Here you see my parents presenting it to the reps! (or "Alaga")

TO BE CONTINUED...

An acute case of Jet Lag...

And boy was it bad or what?

Wikipedia tells me that travelling west to east is supposedly worse and that you need one day of good rest for every time zone crossed.

Well I crossed 10 timezones (and lost a day to boot!) so I will be recovering for the next fortnight or so...

Why does New Zealand have to be so far...?

_____________________________________________________

And on an unrelated issue...

HOW YOUR MOUSE ARROW WORKS


This is true….
Very informative. Don't be put off by the Japanese writing, just wait for the picture to load.

Have you ever wondered how the small arrow on your PC monitor works when you move the mouse?
Through the aid of a magnifying lens the mechanism becomes easily understood. Click on the link below and when the image appears, slowly move your mouse over the light grey circle to see how mouse/cursor technology works.

http://www.1-click.jp/

According to Plan...

I will let the pictures do most of the talking here...


Traveling from New Zealand to Nigeria for 5 weeks to attend my brother's wedding; see Temitope; reunite with members of my family after an absence of two years was ALWAYS going to be a major project. Especially if you factor in my financial situation, health and peculiar circumstances.


Like any other project, it involved planning, forecasting, implementation, and review. Meticulous planning, robust and enthusiastic implementation and finally a nostalgic review has seen the project get a pronouncement of:



RESOUNDING SUCCESS!



An absolute fantastic, colorful, fun-filled and successful wedding ceremony




Being at my big brother's right hand (literally and figuratively) before, during and after the ceremony

Looking really 'fly' and debonair doing it too...

Possibly resolving one of the single most important decisions I might have to take as an individual. EVER! (more on this later...)

Spending time with Family... immediate and extended

...And with friends



...I absolutely loved the hanging out with friends part!

But here I am back in my room in my cosy little apartment in Auckland. Thousands and thousands of miles traveled halfway across the world, (and then back) loved ones seen again, good food, nostalgia, decisions made and confirmed... and I am very thankful!

Watch out for the narrative(s) and loads and loads more pictures from the trip...

Still here...

This is a very very quick post!

It is 4am and I am browsing on my brother's laptop in his ultra-cool apartment which is on the outskirts of the bustling metropolis (mega-polis?) that is Lagos.

I have had the most wonderful time in the last three and a half weeks and I will do a proper round-up in due course. I just wanted to share the picture above of my siblings and I during my brother's wedding.

More importantly, I have spent almost all my waking moments with my jewel of inestimable value, Tope. My long suffering, sweetheart has endured a lot since I started my sojourn abroad and I will be the first to admit that the last two and half years has not been the easiest. Which is why I am savouring every single one with her now. She has agreed in principle to move to New Zealand. But since as Nigerians, its not a cut and dried case we now have to start the logistics. Ah Well!

Loads and loads more pictures to come of course!!!

So Finally I get to "do" Dubai properly

If there was any doubt that I work for a first-rate company, it was dispelled by some excellent news I got last week.

I will be visiting the Fonterra Sales Office in Dubai in order to meet the Sales team which sells product to customers all across the Middle East and Africa. Account Managers and Executives.

It's a great opportunity to see things in 'the field' for myself and it will be a pleasure to finally meet all the people I have been talking to over the phone and email for the last ten months.

To be honest, it wasnt really on the cards, but my flight home to Nigeria is booked on Emirates and I will be stopping over in Dubai twice. So I suggested to my boss that why dont I use the opportunity to visit the office? i wouldnt have been surprised if she had said, 'Nice try Ladi' but she didnt. She thought it was a great idea, spoke to the Dubai office who also thought it was a great idea!

No, they will not be paying for my flight back home to Nigeria but I am booked to stay in the classy Le Royal Meridien Hotel with meals and transport thrown in! Yes it would have been nice if my ticket could have been fully covered but lets not get ahead of ourselves!

The picture above of the 'Seven Star Hotel' I got off the internet. In 6 weeks, I will post a picture of the hotel taken from MY camera!

I LEAVE FOR LAGOS TOMORROW!!!!!

(and I still havent packed! Heck! I havent finished my shopping!)

Its being a soul enhancing experience... but I am glad it is over!

For the last 4 months, I have worked two jobs.

From 1300, I am a Customer Service Executive moving and ensuring that tons and tons of dairy produce reaches my designated list of customers with as little fuss as possible. I am in the center of an elaborate yet startling simple process that takes the milk from the Cow and delivers it to the customers all around the world!

I do this from 1300 to 2200.

And for 4 nights a week, I stroll some 60 meters to The Quadrant Hotel where I am a concierge. The first point of contact for guests arriving to the hotel. A warm smile, a helping hand with the luggage and ensuring the first impression of the hotel is one of warmth and professionalism. I am also on hand for their every request and try my best to ensure it is granted. This I do from 2230 till 0630 the next morning.

It's been fun while it lasted... no thats not true... it hasnt been fun. It has been extremely hard! I have hated the fact that I stay up those nights and I'm invariably tired after sleeping only 5 hours a day 4 days in a row! I hate the fact that in the last 4 months I have not been giving the 110% that I want to give to Fonterra. But it WAS necessary. Paying off my hospital bill AND being able to afford my trip to Nigeria for my brother's wedding wasnt going to happen with me sitting on my ass.

Has it been worth it?

You bet it has! I went shopping this morning Monday before I resumed at work and I have a slight indication of how this activity could actually be a panacea for certain individuals who do it so compulsively. There is an euphoria of acquiring new stuff and it is made doubly so for me that I am able to acquire these things from MY hard-earned money. ("hard-earned" takes on a whole new meaning for me) I have been able to afford my not-so-inexpensive ticket (return) to Lagos, I have been able to get small token gifts for my friends and loved ones and I have some spending money to take with me to Lagos.

There was a time I thought I wouldnt make it but now I have. I did this for four short months. There are people who do this kind of stuff with no end in sight. And they do it for 'nobler' reasons than mine. Single mothers all over the world. Low income families... 'Nuff respect to them!

I am standing behind the desk now in the hotel lobby now, writing this post. It is my absolute last night here. At least as a member of staff. There is funky music playing on the lobby speakers, the street outside is deserted as it is 02:40am. The phone hasnt rang in the last hour and I am thinking, "Would I do this all over again?"

An academic exercise perhaps... but I HAVE done it. It adds a richness and scope to my personal book of life.

But I am glad it is over.

Lagos here I come in 6 days!

Savouring the Moment...

Talk about ending the season on a high!

To neutrals it might have been a forgettable game but thank you very much... by winning the sixth trophy for Chelsea, Jose Mourinho has made a clean sweep of all domestic trophies on offer in England! And history can be very kind to winners I can tell you.

After the heartbreak of the Champions League semi-final to Liverlesspool ( I will NEVER forgive them!) and lending out the Premiership title to Manchester United, the sweetness and euphoria of winning the oldest football cup competition in the world was the perfect panacea to the events of the last month.


And apart from the cagey cautious game played by both teams, one other sight that warmed my heart was the impressive showing of the talented young Nigerian in the Chelsea midlfield. John Mikel Obi. The young giant saw so much of the ball and completely outclassed Carrick in the battle of the midfield. This portends well for my other football love, the under-achieving Super Eagles of Nigeria. I can only hope that our German coach Berti Vogts was watching the game.

And Mikel was the one that supplied the pass to Drogba who played a one-two with Frank Lampard (who played it back on the first touch to Drogba; a lesser striker would have let the goalkeeper get to the ball first. A poke at the ball, and the ball was in the net! Very fitting that Drogba be the one to score the winning goal to take the FA cup. His 33rd goal of the season too!

I just bought two Football jerseys from a colleague in the office (who happens to be a Liverlesspool fan...yes its true) and one of them is a medium sized Long sleeved shirt with "Drogba" and Number 11 printed on the back. Needless to say I will be wearing the jersey for every subsequent Chelsea game! The other one is a short sleeved medium sized one with "Lampard" on the back and is going to one of my best friends as a gift.

But now the football season is over (at least for the moment) in England. I can prepare to watch Milan show a thing or two to Liverlesspool in a couple of days in the final of the Champions League. And the title race is yet to be decided in La Liga in Spain and is indeed still winnable by four different teams. And this is just with three games to go!

I had the most interesting weekend this last weekend. Visited a Maori home, went shopping, celebrated my flatmate's birthday, attended a tenth year wedding anniversary and met the most beautiful woman called Penny! And then I did even more shopping! Guess where I will be next weekend?

To Change The World...

I was surprised to learn that a couple of people who I had always thought were open-minded and liberal minded individuals held intensely deep prejudices and dare I say it... outright bigoted views!

And how did I come to know this? For one of them, it was an innocuous statement that left me slack-jawed and staring in disbelief. I managed to recover in time and this person didnt realize how much they had shocked me. I initiated another conversation a few days later and sadly managed to confirm my worst fears. To this person, a certain group of people were automatically tagged with a certain label and other groups with other labels.

Twas very similar for the other person as well. A seemingly innocent statement was made and there was an obvious preconception and a snap judgement was made. For the second person, I was able to confront them a bit more directly and say, "What the hell do you think you mean by that?" I was unable to make them understand why I felt so strongly about preconceived notions that categorized people. Categorized them in the worst possible way.

The worst part of the whole situation is that these individuals did not see ANYTHING wrong or unfair in their views. I realized quite quickly that it would be banging my head against a brick wall to attempt to change their minds or attitudes. Which brings me to the story of the man who wanted to change the world. He tried so hard all his life and on his death bed he realized that he should have started with changing himself.

This disturbing experience has made me realize that one has to continually question oneself and strive to improve everyday. And hope that by doing this, you set an example to others around you and MAYBE get them to reflect some of the values you hold very dear to you heart.

I apologize for the lack of details, the post was deliberately written that way for obvious reasons.

I leave for Nigeria in 8 days by the way and get there in 9! I absolutely cannot wait! Final round of shopping this weekend. I hope! And next week Saturday, Las Gidi (Lagos) Here I Come!

Well What Do You Know...Auckland IS a Big City!

Well... at least it seems to have the attributes of one if not quite the population! (1 million is a decent number though)

So I had been bandying around the suggestion with my flatmates that while I was away for 5 weeks in Nigeria, I would rent out my room. The fact that I would still have to pay the rent even though I wasnt living there wasnt making my wallet or bank account very happy.

But I was very sceptical about actually finding someone who would want to stay for only 5 weeks. What sort of circumstances would prompt someone to rent a place for only 5 weeks. I mean... this isnt London or Stockholm where there is a 3 year waiting list to rent an apartment right?

Anyway... yesterday on my night shift at the Quadrant Hotel. I decided to post an advert for fun on TradeMe. This is just the kiwi equivalent of E-bay. I posted the ad at about 10:30pm and lo and behold by the time I checked again at 5am in the morning, there were 5 messages waiting for me asking if it was still available!!!

Holy Crap! I just might be on to something here, I thought to myself. By the time I was preparing to go to work in Fonterra at 1pm on Wednesday afternoon, I had in excess of 25 messages in my email box and 12 text messages. My phone didnt stop ringing or beeping with the sound of arriving text messages ALL day!

So even in Auckland, there are such circumstances that will make people want to rent a room for just 5 weeks! Amazing!

Some samples of the messages I got: (I hope this is not illegal?)

"...hi! I just saw your ad and it sounds perfect for me. I'm staying in Auckland and working at Brotown til roughly the end of June (I'm flexible). 5 weeks is about exactly how long I'll be here.. if you're still looking for someone give me a txt..."

"...hello, I'm a 23 years old french student and I will come to auckland from the 27of may to the 20 august....I like met straign people, travel,sport and fiesta. If it's good for you or if you have some question you can answer me..."

"...Hi - I am interested in this, I am a female working professional and I am looking for temporary accomodation over this period, in Auckland close to where I work in Symmonds Street - .....I am friendly, tidy and work long hours..."

Amazing aint it? I hope it works out. Since I have left it so late... Its going to be a bitch to make sure I find someone suitable that my flatmates are comfortable with. Mialy and Cris are such darlings to agree to this. They could have very easily said no. Thanks guys!

What could be better than "Friends"?

And obviously I am not referring to the 'friends' that make you realize exactly how lucky you are!

No. I am refering to that eccentric group of six individuals who for 10 years made us laugh and model our apartment sharing behaviour on them.

What could be better than the Friends TV Show?

A compilation of their numerous mistakes while filming the TV series of course. I havent laughed this hard in a long time! Above is a brief one. You can get all the rest on Youtube. Just search for "Friends Bloopers"

Tell Everbody I am on my way... Home!

Yes yes yes! I am on my way home to my country of birth and nationality. After 2 years.

I was underestimating how long 2 years is, to be away from the ones you love and cherish. And while there can be no doubt that I have had the most amazing of experiences in this 2 year period, it really (as in REALLY) feels good to be going to Lagos again!

To be honest, I dont so much miss the hustle and bustle... ok... I take that back... not the hustle and bustle... the MADNESS that is Lagos! After living in Stockholm and now Auckland I would be a stress junkie (or clinically insane) to miss the chaos and never-ending-madness that is the city of Lagos. But I am however looking forward with intense excitement to the experience of living there again for a whole month! Does that make sense? I dont miss it but I am looking forward to it?

And I am going for a wedding. And not just any wedding but for my big brother's wedding. Now, weddings are a BIG deal in Nigeria especially the part of it that I come from. My morning suit is ready and waiting for me, ticket is booked and exactly 12 days from now, I will board an Auckland-Dubai-Lagos plane. And to prove to you that I really do live at the (nice) end of the world, I wont get there for another day! It's going to be a 27 hour flight. Bugger!

One thing I have found is that the more money you have, the more you enjoy shopping! Here I always thought I didnt enjoy shopping. But who would if all you did was simply look at the stuff and force yourself to walk out of the store before you spend next month's rent!!! Oh yes... as my disposable income increases, I could certainly enjoy this shopping phenomenom of a thing!

As a big Disney song lover, I would like to share the Phil Collins song from "Brother Bear" title of which is also the title of this post...

Tell everybody i'm on my way
New friends and new places to see
With blue skies ahead, yes i'm on my way
And theres no where else i'd rather be

Tell everybody i'm on my way
And i'm loving every step i take
With the sun beating down, yes i'm on my way
And i can't keep this smile off my face

Cause theres nothing like, seeing each other again
No matter what the distance between
And the stories we tell, will make you smile
Or really lifts my heart

So tell'em i'm on my way
New friends and new places to see
And to sleep under the stars and could ask for more
With the moon keeping watch over me

Not the snow nor the rain, can change my mind
The sun will come out, wait and see
And the feeling of the wind
In your face can lift your heart

Oh... theres no where i'd rather be
Cause i'm on my way now Well and true
I'm my way thereI'm on my way now(x3)

Tell everybody i'm on my way
I just can't wait to be there
With blue skies ahead, yes I'm on my way
And nothing but good times to share

So tell everybody I'm on my way
And I just can't wait to be home
With the sun beating down yes I'm on my way
And nothing but good times to show

I'm on my way
Yes, I'm on my way

Guilty until proven innocent

I have lived in Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. My current country of residence is New Zealand. I have visited, traveled through and transited through about 30 different countries in Africa, Europe and Asia. And for the first time ever, I have been refused a visa!

I think it was Tom Gara who commented on one of the posts on the nomadlife home page that Nigerians must have it the worst when it comes to passport and visa issues. Boy, dont I know it! Although having never been refused a visa up till now, I have had to endure lengthy question and answer sessions at immigration checkpoints around the world. Even with a valid visa.

One that jumps straight to mind was on my way back to Sweden from India in the summer of 2005. I was traveling with three Swedes and we were flying on Austrian Air. My three traveling companions breezed through immigration in Vienna, going through the "EU citizens" gate. I went to "other" gate, got stamped through but then was stopped by another official. He flipped through my passport at least 50 times over and over again without saying a word. I asked him if there was a problem and he said 'No'. And then he flipped through another fifty times. He must have been trying to figure out how a Nigerian passport held a Swedish work and residence permit! He eventually handed me my passport and asked me to have a nice day. Although the expression on his face wished me anything but!

But which embassy has seen fit to deny me a request for a visa? Ladies and Gentlemen, please give it up to the country that has broken this nomad's record... AUSTRALIA!!! Ozzie Ozzie Ozzie!!! And it wasnt even an entry visa... I was denied a TRANSIT VISA!

According to the refusal letter... "My bonafides didnt match up". Whatever the hell that means. I guessed it meant that I couldnt prove that I had gainful employment in NZ to return to and might decide to slip into Australia and claim assylum. The interesting thing is that the letter acknowledged that, "... you have been granted a single entry transit visa by our London office... and you have numerous European visas...". It probably looked like I had been keeping one step ahead of the law in all those countries and was planning to get lost finally in Melbourne or Sydney after my first attempt to do so was unsuccessful.

I eventually had to re-send the application with a copy of my contract with Fonterra and lo and behold... my manager actually got a call from them asking if I really worked there and how long I had been working/would be working! It seems they assume the worst and you then need to disprove the assumptions.

I am still expecting my passport back now. I guess there is still a chance they might think I gave a set of fake numbers and hired people to answer the phone. All in a bid to fight my way across the immigration checkpoint in Melbourne, having wasted money buying a round-trip ticket to Nigeria from Auckland!

Caro from Switzerland is on a round-the-world trip right now. New York, Indonesia and Colombia have welcomed her so far. I daydreamed for a fraction of a second of doing the same some day but quickly abandoned that train of thought when I reminded myself of the potential visa stress! I mean, to go to Thailand from Auckland, I have to travel to the Thai embassy in London IN PERSON to apply for the visa! I could go on and on...

Dont I just love being a Nigerian?

Take a United Bow!

Edwin Van De Sar keeping out the possibility of an extension to Chelsea's grip on the title challenge

And what Deserving Champions They Are Too!

It would have taken a really special performance by a really special team managed by a really special manager to wrest the title from Chelsea FC.
Manchester United, the most successful English club in the last two decades has proved what it takes to be champions this season. Week in, week out…
They have proved it with classy attacking style of play, a never-say-die attitude and more than a hint of class.

The deserving team has ALWAYS been crowned Premiership Champions. And although there is very little between Manure and Chelsea, at the end of the day the Red Devils have more points than we do. Fergie's team has upped it's play and performance (the only team to do so) and not only match Chelsea but do enough to pip the title from us. Well done!

Chelsea FC have no cause to be ashamed of our performance and can take pride in the fact that we pushed the Red Devils as hard as we did. Despite Everything.
Ryan Giggs, Edwin Van der Sa, Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, Gary Neville and the rest of the team, Well Done and Congratulations.
Sir Alex Ferguson. Form is temporary, style and class are eternal. Guess which ones you have?

Now we can wait for the humiliation of Liverlesspool on the biggest stage of all! A stage Liverlesspool has absolutely no business being on! hyuk hyuk!!

PS
I sincerely hope Manure does not expect us to roll over and play dead on Wednesday?! And there is still the FA Cup to play for on the 19th!

My Brother... My Friend

I have a lot of brothers. From all around the world. Individuals who only need to call (on Skype, MSN or the more conventional phone) and I will do all in my power to answer their call. Brothers I have shared experiences with, gotten in trouble with and chased women with. (apologies)

However, I have only the ONE brother who was actually an occupant of my biological mother's womb. As a matter of fact, he was the immediate past occupant of said womb.

There is a saying I once heard, 'There is no feud more bitter than a feud between blood kin..". And I have met a lot of siblings who - to put it delicately - dont get along at all.

Happily, this is NOT the case between my brother Oluwasegun Bankole Ajayi and I. And you can call him Segs. (sounds like 'sex' with a lisp doesnt it?) If you are Nigerian, you will probably call him "Segun" (pronounced "SHAY-gun)

Segun and I are quite different people

- We look nothing alike (as you can see from the picture above).
- He belonged to the equivalent of the "Phi Beta Kappa" society/sorority in University and always thought I was wasting my time with AIESEC;
- he has always had impeccable taste for fashion, I generally wear it if its clean;
he was a car freak and knew what the latest innovations were. I couldnt be bothered
- We were never interested in the same type of girls (although we both are charmers)

Compared to my older siblings (I have three including Segun) I came along quite late and Segun was already a bustling over-pampered four year old who thought he was going to be the 'baby' of the house forever. I knocked him off that perch.

Our first major altercation was when I was a few months old, my mum walked in on him holding me upside down in my cot. He claimed he was looking for the batteries that made me cry and move.

In those early years, we had a love-hate relationship. Many a time would Segun would sock me a really good whallop and I would run crying to my mum. Of course 5 mins after she made me sit with her, I would be itching to go hang out with my big bro again!

There were times when I really thought I hated him but these were only the times he wouldnt let me tag along with him on his numerous adventures (or so it seemed at the time) and I wished desprately I was older than I was because his favorite excuse was, "you're not old enough..." As a matter of fact

In University, although I had no interest in the "party clubs" he was a member of (I made a straight bee-line for the AIESEC office), it was ALWAYS with a sense of pride when someone refered to me as, "Segun Ajayi's brother...". I was quite happy with that title and indeed often introduced myself as such. (Hi, my name is Ladi, Segun's brother)

For almost 3 decades, my brother has been the epitome of cool for me. He made me laugh, makes me laugh and will continue to crack me up. He is the ONE person I can tell any joke to. He ALWAYS gets it. In his own way, he has looked out for me and made sure I made the right decisions for myself. Even though I like to pretend otherwise, getting the stamp of approval from my brother on ANYTHING I put my hand to is very important... (Happy was the day when he announced, "AIESEC has been good to you"

He is one of two individuals who have taught me the art of genorosity through their actions. He gives of himself and his possessions with total abandon and a genuine desire to help. However once he says no, its pretty hard to dissuade him. Extremely hard I should say. He is one of those who say they dont care what other people are saying and doing AND actually MEAN IT.

And now Segun is getting married. And I am the best man!

The sense of pride and deep emotion I felt when Segun asked me to be his best man cannot be expressed in words. To be honest, I wouldnt have been offended or slighted if he had chosen one of his close friends. But he didnt. He asked me. And what I said, about answering the call at the beginning... it certainly applies here. I am flying literally half-way across the world, paying thru the nose and even risking another blood clot issue (ok maybe not...doctor has cleared me) to be at my brother's wedding... it couldnt be any other way.

SO, 20 days from now, i will be taking a 27 hour flight to stand with pride (and a steadying hand) beside my big bruvver on potentially one of the happiest days of his life. For all the happy times, the tickling sessions as a kid, even the pummelings which sent me screaming to mum; the numerous times he has come to my aid with no questions asked; the listening ear and tough love he has shown me over the years...

Here is to a big brother who without effort lives up to the name of friend, brother, confidante, charm school instructor and sometime stand-up comedian. Your bride-to-be has absolutely no idea how lucky she is... Or maybe she does...

When I Grow Up I want to be Just Like Jose Mourinho

Liverpool broke my heart yesterday and I dont think I can ever forgive them!

Leading with a single goal from the first leg at Stamford Bridge and having dominated Liverpool FC completely. I was 100% sure we would be playing in our first Champions League Final ever.

It was not meant to be.

A well taken free-kick, an incisve shot on goal and Liverpool were tied on aggregate. They then proceeded to stifle the game. Playing our 60th game of the season against such tactics, it showed it WAS our 60th game. As one of my colleagues put it, we didnt show up for the game. But who can blame the players. There is so much the human body can take.

But within all this heartbreak... I would NEVER ever swap our positions for anybody's! Chasing four trophies this season, Chelsea FC has had a remarkable season. We dared to dream and acted on that dream. League Cup success is not going to be followed by Champions League success. Not this season at least.

Still an FA cup final to play. Oldest football competition in the world. To be played in the new Wembley stadium against the most successful club in England in the last 2 decades. At least we know what the grand finale will be for this season. As has been reported, Manchester United and Chelsea will field their strongest 11 for the FA cup having lost their places in the final of the CL

A bit of a consolation there that Man U lost as well. Having opened up a five point lead last week, it would have been galling for them to go on to Athens to the final. A bit mean of me but there you go! And as it is... I am now a fan of AC Milan IN EUROPE until May 20! Go Kaka!!!

And Tribute must go to the "Special One"! Jose Mourinho has already cemented his place in legends of yore. I just hope that crazy Russian at the top keeps him. I hate the speculation going around concerning Mourinho's job.

No one is that stupid!

I shall be supporting a Manchester based club as well this Saturday. United landed at 3:30am on Thursday and play City on Saturday. If they lose and we win at the Emirates Stadium, Title race is blown wide open again!!! This is what you call... down to the wire!!!

COME ON BLUES!!!