April Challenge: My Shower Buddy
My March challenge was great! It definitely helped my blogging experience tremendously! Well, even though April is almost out, i have another challenge lined up- it involves my phone. Sigh.
My phone and I do everything together. This began to bother me when last week, i put my phone in a ziplock bag and took it into the shower because i was talking on it to my friend. Tsk. I know.
The average smartphone user opens their eyes at 7.30am and right about 7.31am start to use their phones, earlier, for those who commute.
My phone and i wake up together at 5.30am, as it shrills “Stereo” Gymclass heros (ft Adam Levine). I get up and walk to it (this is the best way to avoid the snooze button, put it at last ten feet away. If your living space is less than 10 feet, tuck it in something before you go to bed; a pair of shoes, in a pile of clothes)
I hit the stop button with Adam mid-sentence. Then I take it back and sit (or lie) on my bed. I see a couple of messages and notifications. I go through them and reply as many as I can before falling asleep again (this is what happens when I don’t reply those messages on time, mum).
I wake up again and hit my bible app. I read the verse of the day and pretend to think about it as I tap the instagram widget. The morning-people are up and a-posting already! I love those people. Then I frown angrily and think, this phone is not in charge! It’s not the boss! I am! So I throw it somewhere (this is why I never see your calls when you call, Ronnie); I walk away and go and read my print version of the bible and start my day. My phone is rolling its eyes at me, somewhere in the sheets and knows i’d start looking for it soon. Why? Because I am a blogger and I type on it. Soon, i begin my search and I find it after a while. I begin to work-research, type, type, research, type, type, delete, delete, type, type, type, edit, post. It smiles, self-satisfied.
The same self-satisfied look it had when i took it into the shower. I don't like that look.
Sometime next week, I'm going to be spending a day without my phone. Lol. This is going. to. be. tricky.
I write on it, I navigate on it, I Instagram on it(yes, Instagram is a verb), I listen to my bible, stare at recipes I admire but might never cook, I everything on it. Let's see how it goes. 24 hours with out my shower-buddy! Let's do this!
Feed Me Back, Please!
Hey, hey, everyone!
It's the end of a third of 2016 (o wow, it's almost May!) and it's feedback season somewhere in the world and here on PagesbyIke! I'd like to ask you to please provide me with some feedback, so that visiting the blog can be a better experience for you. Let me know what your favorite posts were; what made you laugh, frown or pout. What topics did you enjoy reading the most? If you also have specific topics you'd like to see addressed, please drop a message below or send me a message here! You can get as specific as you want!
Here are the top 10 read posts of 2015! #EarlyThrowback. Enjoy!
1. Hello First Marital shock: Bank of Daddy to Bank of Bae
2. What happens in Vegas, does not stay in Vegas..not really
3. 5 strange things i do in an Airbnb! Haha! Most consistent habits of mine
4. How to avoid a "Bleep Better Have My Money" incident /This always makes me think of all the phantom people i owe money
5. Long Distance Relationships: You, Her and Jack ; On pilfering someone's girlfriend
6. Letters to my Great-grand Daughter: The Assassination of Mary (I love Marys, I do!)
7. Love, Angels and Grunts; How to be a good friend and not go crazy
8. Abi's story: Married to a Jerk
9. 9 Unusual but Effective Couple habits
10. 12 ways to hack culture shock! I still read this post, probably every other month!
Which was your favorite then and now?
Please remember to drop your comments! Thanks!
6 Ways to Get out of a Creative Rut
I wish creativity came in a box and all you had to do was add water and stir but it doesn't--not yet anyway. While we all hold our breaths and wait for Nestlé to come up with this fab beverage, we need to find ways to manage our creative lags/ruts.
This is a list of 6 things that I hope will be beneficial to you whenever you feel a little lethargic with your creative work. Here goes:
1. Rest
Your mind is a living, breathing thing that likes to laze around on sunny beaches and sip piña coladas, contrary to general perception. It deserves to relax, considering the fact that it gives you more than a hundred percent of performance everyday. Take time out to relax-an hour, a day, a week. Even God is an advocate for rest days. #NotEverytimeCreateBotanicalGarden
2. Change your routine
Same chair, same wall, same noises, same voices in your head. Sometimes it helps to shuffle things around in your living and creative space to create more creative urges and stimulants. Rearrange your desk or work area. Something as little as a newly hung piece of wall art or changing the position of your desk could kick start that creative process.
3. Do something else
PGI girl, Laju says whenever she is stuck in a creative process, she leaves it alone and does something else. If you are running around in circles, consider stopping what you are doing and going for a walk or playing a game or going hang-gliding. Shrug.
4. Open yourself up (not to everything, of course)
According to Alice Laplante, you need to keep your mind open to be able to create new things. If your mind is shut up, your creativity will be relatively stunted and who wants that? Of course, not all things are beneficial (think drugs), so have all your necessary guards up to the things that would be harmful to your well-being and spirit but also learn to appreciate new things and experiences.
5. Eat properly
Food helps creativity. However, a lot of creative people seem to "forget" to eat. Artists like MichaelAngelo and Van Gogh were also meal skippers because they were fixated on their tasks and meeting deadlines, I can't say I blame them. For the impressionists of the 1800s, absinthe and tobacco were their creative foods for some reason--those are not on the top 15 creativity-enhancing food list by the way. A good, consistent diet helps to enhance creativity as well as maintain good physical health.
6. Toss your work to God
It's a good idea to pray about your work. Commit your works unto the Lord and it will be established (Proverbs 16vs3). I love it when the bible gets explicit. Wink.
If you know anyone struggling with their creativity, this could help! Please share!
Hey! Did you read my short-story feature on Tope Owolabi's blog? Not yet? Read it here!
That Time Dad "Exceeded" my Gift Expectations
At the arrival section of the airport, I'd stand on tiptoes waiting for my dad to come out into the hall and when he did, I'd run and hug him. The delight of holding your dad after his exotic business trip to Hanoi or Kathmandu! He must have stories from his adventure, or even better, he must have something(s) in that bag for me *initiate x-ray vision*; some silk scarves, precious stones, Saris with elaborate embroidery. There had to be something, right? Ok, if he forgot, he'd have gotten something from Duty Free, a little Victor&Rolf fragrance or something from Ms. Coco. Bless you, Duty Free. Ok, if he skipped Duty Free, he definitely would have bought something on the plane. Straight face, no excuses.
Getting home, I wouldn't leave his side. I'd stalk him all over the house, stand by the bathroom door, follow him into the kitchen, living room, until he says, 'Ike, bring my carry-on. I have somethings for you.' Bam! Hallelujah! Plural, just the way I like it.
At the speed of light, I'd be back with the bag. I'd unzip it and wait patiently.
Dad would unpack all his stuff and then buried beneath his clothes in a very orderly pile, sometimes wrapped in a duty free bag would be papers. Yes, I mean newspapers.
'This is for you, baby!'
It would be all there; the Economist, Times, Newsweek, Bloomberg, NY times, Financial times, papers in German.
It couldn't be. Was it April? Was this a prank?
I failed to believe it. I think I must have passed out in my head. Lol. If it was April and was a prank, every trip he made since then has been followed by this prank and every month has been April. He has done this unfailingly every time since then. I didn't get it at first, why would he buy these papers for me? If he had to buy magazines, how did his fingers miss Glamour, Vogue and Cosmo? Um, where were the silk scarves and jewels?
'You should know what's going on in the world',He'd say.
He was right, i should know what was going on in the world; and yes, I should read these papers......... while wearing the pearls and scarves!
Anyway, i'd read these magazines and soon grew to love them and they became progressively easier to read (at first it took me a month to read 5 articles). Also in Business School, we were required to read the Economist and FT everyday, so that came easily to me. He planted an invaluable seed in me with all those magazines and business articles, he'll never even understand the impact of these "gifts" of his.
Of course, he also bought the silk scarves and Saris sometimes but those papers were pretty constant. I began to look forward to the magazines and less to the other gifts. On occasion, i'd wear his gift from Swarovski and wrap huge scarves around my neck while sitting on the floor surrounded by these words printed on glossy paper. Invaluable, i tell you. It's one of the best gifts you can give to a child, this habit of reading and acquiring knowledge until it becomes part of his or her daily habits. Reading is slowly becoming extinct, guys. Build good habits for your kids!
What's the best gift you could give a child (physical or non-physical)? Any habits learnt from parents? Please share below!
Letters to my Greatgrand-Daughter: The Rolex Effect
“Direction is so much more important than speed. Many are going nowhere, fast”
Dear Charly,
Instant coffee. Fast food. Attention spans of eight seconds. ATMs. Quickies. These are features of the world I currently live in.
Nevertheless, amidst this deep-seated dependency on speed and the power of 'instancy', Rolex Société Anonyme takes out one year to make one Rolex watch.
One watch. Twelve months. Two hundred and fifty working days of piecing together each element, to make a time piece so perfect and flawless.
A baby born at the same time the first piece of a Rolex is assembled, could very well be weaned and walking by the time the Rolex is to be on the market. It's not a mass production effort and it goes without saying that you’d value a Rolex over a Casio (no offense, Casio). Rolex watches have a reputation for excellence, finesse, precision; qualities which you can see wasn't devised based on this urgency factor.
Take a cue from Rolex and resist the instancy factor, Charly. Soak yourself in self-improvement exercises and don't jump on the market until you are 'fit for all weather'. Get off the haste wagon and breathe. Take your time (but not forever) with everything; decisions, relationships, marriage, even chewing!
With relationships, there's no rush there, I must tell you. With your occupation, remember to take care of yourself first. With people, be patient and listen to what they are really saying.
In this fast world I live in, I have learnt to take my sweet time. I stop and breathe while others are moving. I brew my tea (sometimes). I chew like a snail, i make well-thought-out decisions (most times). I listen a little longer, my gaze lingers by a second.
Don't let the crowd drag you along in its frazzled haste. Rest. Watch. Laugh. Listen. Most importantly, work on your character. Become the best version of yourself. It might not take a year like a Rolex or it might. Either way, it makes you a better person and from that emanates the Rolex-effect; the natural aura of luxury and perfection.
Love,
Greatgran x
Previously published on old space.
Note to Self: Breathe
The Truth About #TeamNatural
I have natural hair but i never talk about it. You see, my natural hair and I have a Samson-Samson hair relationship. It has a mind of its own and sometimes we fight (physically) and end up not speaking to each other. We find ourselves in that situation where I do not "LOC", comb or twist it and in turn, it does everything it can, to make me look crazy. Tit for Tat.
However, i enjoy watching other girls be proud of their advancements. I love the girls on YouTube, they are the only reason I cut my hair in the first place because I knew there was a huge resource of natural hair hacks and care routines to draw from.
They make it look so easy though. No one ever gives you the ‘A-hem, this thing is work’ talk. The same way mothers never tell their daughters about labour in detail. Lol.
I think about relaxing my hair every week. I do. Every single week. Then i remember my whole shelf of natural hair products, supplements and the $500 i must have spent on hairpins.
There are days that i want to shave my head bald with Ed's clippers, walk around town and air-bath my scalp. *grunt* All these laments, still, i've never regretted going natural. My hair does this thing where it shrinks to a fifth of its size and makes me look like a member of the Commodores but I love it still. It grows out unadulterated and untamed. It drives me nuts but then all I have to do is dig my fingers into my roots and I feel the deepest sense of pride for this dark thicket of crazy curls! My merry fuss.
I speak for everyone myself when I say, this hair thing is work! It's time consuming, the hair is like its own person and drinks products in gulps.
If you are planning to go natural, then, let me tell you; you are about to have really strong arms, long chats with your hair, a very patient, nurturing temperament, at least 8 bottles of essential oils and all the pride in the world!
Happy 1 year anniversary to my hair. Well, 1 year and 18 days. We haven't been talking for 18 days.
Are you natural? How far along are you? Do you have a perm? Would you ever try this crazy road?
Lessons from the Bosses of Spring Cleaning
Last weekend, I did some form of home spring cleaning, not because it's the beginning of spring and i adhere strictly to the spring cleaning calendar but because we can't find our TV remote! It has been missing for about 5 weeks now. Quite frankly, I don't know what to do, considering the fact that Game of Thrones is starting soon. Sigh. Anyway, this weekend, I plan to repeat the process. I'm planning on going into every cold, dark nook and cranny. I'm going to be so thorough even the founders of spring cleaning would be proud.
Spring cleaning is a practice that is believed to have originated with the Jews. These spring cleaning pioneers would clean their homes so intensely in anticipation of Passover, ensuring that their homes were rid of leaven bread or anything containing yeast. I always thought they just couldn't eat the leaven bread during that period, but actually, even pieces and crumbs of yeasty food couldn't be present. It had to be spanking cleaning! They even had a candlelight search of corners and spaces for these crumbs, much to the distress of mice. Now tell me if i look for my remote like this, wouldn't i have found it? I'm adopting these cleaning/searching practices immediately!
This weekend the plan is to spring clean; both the living areas and my virtual areas. My virtual areas are little more unruly than my living area. Here are a few areas i'm planning to systemically tidy, you could consider giving it a swab too!
1. Phone Apps: My phone looks like my App Store exploded. I need to arrange those accordingly. What does your home screen look like? Do you find yourself searching for an app?
2. Emails: I get about 40 emails a day. Mostly from people telling me to buy stuff; get 20% off this, 40% off this. No one ever says 80%! I politely turned down a cashier on Tuesday, when she asked for my email address.
No 80% off, no email. I'm kidding. It felt good turning it down though.
3. Communication and Affiliation: Toxic affiliations and influences need to be cut off. If every time you speak to a person, you feel awful after, it's probably a leaven-crumb situation. Sweep. That also goes for people who advice you without your best interest at heart. Sweep.
4. Mind: Out with the grudge specks and resentment crumbs. Sometimes, you can't stand a person and you think it's ok not to, until it morphs into hate. Let it go. Grudges and choosing not to forgive is so time-energy-health-and-life consuming. Why hold a grudge when you can eat sharwama after a spa day and dream about the day you'll finally get 80% off!
Please pray for me that I find my remote, I really don't want to buy another.
Something tells me that remote might be in the freezer....
What are you spring cleaning this season?
How to Comment Anonymously (PGI info)
I'm still not giving up on the Silentós. For the die-hard Silentós though, the like button is back! I have been asked to do a post on commenting anonymously, so here it is! Hope it helps!
#1
Type out your comment. Click 'Post comment'. You will be prompted to sign in. To sign in, tap/click the profile which I've circled below in pink.
You can also sign in with Facebook, google+, squarespace and twitter
#2
Type in whatever name you like. If you'd like your comment signed 'Anonymous', then type in 'Anonymous' as your name! Click 'login'. It's that easy.
Everything is all mysterious today! Read the mystery-themed post previously published here!
Have fun commenting! x