Here We Go Again!
Hey, you! You came back! You came back! Welcome. Happy New Blog year! I know you are expecting me to tell you what I did during my time off in September- about my somber reflection, my cyber-muteness and how I've obtained inner strength for the next blogging year. So I will tell you.
~pause~
I played a lot of PS4, ate too much and crashed our friends' honeymoon and did everything else in between; still I got to reflect and get many things in perspective.
I missed being here, missed you guys. PGI turned one last month, I couldn't have pulled that off without you. Thank you for reading and for all your support.
I think this new year I might bring a little more playfulness to the blog. Just a little more. Think we could fit some more in? Pressed-down-shaken-together rascality. Lol. I know, just when you thought there wasn't anymore space! Looking forward to it! I also hope you like the new look. PGI is constantly trying to make this platform easy to use and easy for you to poke around.
By the way, Happy Independence Day, Nigeria. 5&6 is a really big deal.
A few more things I did in September: umm...oh, yeah, I high-fived the coolest homeless guy and I quit the gym.
Then I un-quit the gym.
How have you been? Glad to be back? What was September like? Did you crash anyone's honeymoon? 'Cause you really should.
The Gist in our 237th Blog Post
Hurry, what's the gist?
Pages by Ike will be One next month! Weee! One whole year! And so... we will be taking the month of September off! Not-Wee. I know.
I encourage my friends who are small-business owners to take holidays and I see them hesitate and struggle with making that decision. I never really understood the hesitation and drama; now that I have to do it, it feels like I'm leaving my child at a boarding school, in a remote wilderness with tumbleweed and desert vermin as company.
Why do we have to go on holiday? *pout*
One word. Evaluation. I'm in that step-back-and-evaluate-those-goals-girl phase of things. During my time away, one of the most important things I will be reviewing as a writer, blogger, individual, wife, friend is my vision. It's crucial to have the right vision. It's not just OK to have "a vision", but actually having "the right" vision, is the key.
I will be stepping back and evaluating the execution of my goals in a systemic manner. I realize I sound a little intense but I have to be, to ensure the best quality of service to you and my community and my Ed!
When will PGI be back? *breath held*
We will be back on the first day of October.
Are you trying to stop blogging? *skeptical glance*
No, I'm not trying to stop blogging. I have come to see that I am unable to stop, in fact. Many nights I wake up at 2AM, my phone in hand and my blog app open. Suddenly I freak out like, O no! I think I've published an incomplete post with 'fghhhhhhhhhjjhh" typed in. Lol. Falling asleep while blogging is too much fun to give up. Don't you think?
Don't worry one month will swish by fast, it'll be like we never stopped...only that we did for a while and...went on holiday...but never did...but we did...you get my point.
So, what do we do now that PGI is on holiday? *crickets*
Catch up! If you are new, welcome! 10-posts-a-day and you'll be up to date. Fun!
Also, while we are on this short break, you could check out other blogs, yum! www.allthingsbeingamal.com;
[If you write a blog, please comment below! We would love to check your space out during our holiday].
I will miss you guys severely, but we'll be back soon! Thank you for swinging by all the time; for hanging with me, over the last year, 300+ days and 200+ blog posts!
We aren't quite done yet though. The holiday doesn't start until the end of August, so keep swinging! New blog post up soon!
It's surreal but this is our 237th blog post! Weeee! Thank you for being here and there for PGI all the way. Also please thank the Holy Spirit who helps me out like his life depends on it. He works so hard! My star-guy! Muah!
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Make This Week 100% Spicier With These...
I know the week is over, practically, but that's not a valid reason not to have a magnificent Thursday and Friday, huh? These guys below have helped me along this busy, blessed week. Here they are my spice-factors:
I. Spice up your soul with Mali Music
I discovered Mali Music in 2009 with his song "Yahweh". Recently, my speakers have been rocking songs like Digital and Ready Aim but I didn't know he was the artist behind them! His transformation and growth have been whao-ish! If you love hip-hop and God, you'll love this guy's music! The song below is the ultimate "you-can't-shoot-me-down" song with very powerful lyrics*goosebumps*. Check out his other songs: Digital, Beautiful, Fight for you! The guy is just super!
II. Spice up your mind by wondering how Oscarine became like this (lol)
If you don't know Oscarine, prepare to join me in wondering how she became this way. I have many questions for her. Actually, I'd like to have her over for dinner. First, does she live by herself? Do people walk in on her when she does these skits? How does she crack us up with a straight face?! She's just hilarious.
III. Spice up your taste buds with a watermelon cooler or make one, virgin or non-virgin
Watermelon coolers were made for parched throats, ok, they were made for all throats...no throat gets left behind on this one. All you need are some watermelons(naturally), ice, sugar, lime juice and mint leaves (optional)
IV. Spice up your dreams with this Nigerian guy we all love!
Credit: Getty Images
Most people know Oduduru Divine for creating the famous "I never esperredit" and "Die on the line" slangs in 2014. Great job, man! Divine was second at the Olympics during the Heat 9 race at the 2016 Olympics in Rio, and guess who was first? Usain Bolt. His dream was to compete with Mr. Usain and that dream came true! He bit me with the inspiration bug!
V. Spice up your weird Imagination
Am I weird for hoping Divine Oduduru and Simone Biles fall in love?
What are your thoughts? Would these help your week? Don't you just love the idea of sipping an ice-cold watermelon cooler while laughing at Oscarine-memes and hoping that Divine and Simone meet...Mali music blasting from your headphones! Bom-bom-kqish.
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Lazy Fashionista: 5 Summer Pieces I Killed...Dead
This post is about 5 pieces of clothes I killed! When I say "killed", I mean literally killed, not the urban dictionary meaning which denotes the accomplishment of "slaying" or successfully "executing a plan" or in this case executing an outfit. No, I killed these articles of fashion, some of them are on life-support and others need CPR but that's Ok, they have a year to make a comeback...that is, if they haven't formed a committee, stolen some shoe laces and escaped from my closet through my window.
My Five Summer Items:
1) Bangles
I bought these ethnic patterned babies from the Front General Store in Brookyln at the start of summer. They were made for me. I'm not kidding. Other customers were drawn to the bowl in which these bangles lustfully lay, just as I was, and they kept trying them on but they wouldn't fit. I believe I've worn them on most days this summer. They just seem to go with everything! I have killed them, in fact one seems to have unraveled but unfortunately, I have no retirement plans for them, anytime soon, so get back to work, bangles!
2) Shorts
I. Killed. Shorts. I did. You know when your mum tells you not to wear something because it's too short or clingy, and then you stumble on one of her photographs from ages ago and she's wearing the exact same thing? No doubt this will happen to me if I have a daughter but you know what? I don't care, because it was like the sun moved in next door to my home this summer. I wore shorts almost everyday, except on Sundays and that's only because church has air-conditioning.
3) Crops
A-ha I didn't rock these so much but I did try my best to wear them a few times-with the Ankara skirt and a pair of shorts because I had promised last year to try them on. They were supposed to be a motivation for a great summer bod. Then again, sucking your gut for hours is not so bad either. Presto, summer bod! Don't listen to me, visit the gym. No, no sucking.
4) Necklace
It's a summer piece because I don't wear necklaces in winters. If it's winter and you aren't a scarf, please get off my neck! This necklace is a favorite piece of mine. I bought it at the Brookyln Flea market! It fit right in with most of my outfits. I can't wait for next summer to kil' it again. Muhaha.
5) These well-broken-in Orange Aldo flats
Lol! I love these shoes. I had searched high and low for them and I couldn't find my size anywhere. Then one day I asked an attendant helping me at the Oxford Street Aldo about them and he found me a pair! It's just plain sentimental attachment and they are so comfortable. Itunu, my sister-in-law, also has one, so the sentimental attachment is pretty high up there!
Is this the end of our superhero flats?
What is your most "rocked and killed" piece ever? Are your daughters going to give you the side-eye too? Hmm, I also had my natural hair out most of the time! What style do you have on?
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Double Num: Breakfast and a Book
Earlier in the week, I got lost in the library, intentionally. It's one of the places I go when my day gets a little "grey". Right, I know most people go to bars but someone doesn't handle her alcohol well *shrug* and usually needs to eat a plate of Eba before indulging in any form of drinking (thank me later, for the Eba hack). It was definitely too early for Eba or a drink.
Anyway, I went home that day with two books. One of which is this book, Malaria Dreams by Stuart Stevens published in 1989. Yup, 1989, that book was being published while I was making gooey paste with my Farley's rusks (baby finger-food), somewhere behind our champagne colored settee and breaking into fits of toothless smiles at the mess*grin*.
The title of the book was the first thing that caught my attention and then the font colors, which are very similar to PagesbyIke's theme colors *blush*.
Malaria Dreams had me laughing from page one. I had to take it home because I couldn't keep laughing at the library and keep disturbing the guy watching mute music videos on the library computers. Don't ask. Cool dude, though.
Malaria Dreams is about this supposedly wide-eyed American who goes on a journey to Central African Republic (CAR) in the 1980's to pick up his friend's jeep and drive it to Paris, as a favor. He thought it would be fun. Lol! His friend, also seems to be wanted by the CAR government. Stevens gets it all- the stress, the heat, the bureaucracy, the alley-mugs, and of course, malaria!
Of course, if ever you read this book, there are tons of opportunities to cringe, if you are African. It's really disturbing to think we've had the same issues since back then; corruption and the lack of accountability. Same thing, since the 80's! Nigeria, of course, was mentioned. Hey, boo! I don't want to talk about it though. Lol.
I appreciate Steven's honesty and his wicked humor. I hope it ends well for everyone. He clearly survives malaria, because he just tweeted a few hours ago. As for Africa, it will end well, the rest is still unwritten. Unwritten but predestined, by God.
Have a great Sunday!
[Oh, yeah breakfast was 2 eggs (sunny side up, not runny!), a toasted bagel, strawberry jam and Teavana's kiwi berry colada tea]
Have you read this book? What are you reading these days? What's the one word that comes to mind that would solve the problems in Africa? Do you have your eggs runny? Consider yourself special, apparently, people who eat their eggs runny, build long-lasting friendships. Who knew?
3 Fun Things I Realized Playing Pokémon GO
I downloaded Pokémon Go, the day after it was released. I really only downloaded it as a tribute to the fun stickers I had as a child and because I like Pikachu (because it's yellow). The game is visually engaging and at the start, allows you to choose an avatar who helps a researcher on a creature-capturing project. I think. I never read the preamble before games. Ike, does this also mean you don't read terms and conditions?
*crickets* What's your point?
Anyway, your quest is to capture the creatures. The fun part- the game gains access to your smartphone camera (with your consent) and finds creatures around you, using your camera! It usually appears like you are about to take a photo of the outlandish creature which just made its way to your pillow.
Pillow talk with this angry bird
Once you've captured the creature, you collect them in a Pokéball. You then have to walk around physically to get more creatures and Pokéballs. I love that the game gets me to move and encourages me to get active in my real life. Great fitness incentive.
3 Things I realized playing Pokémon Go:
1. Canals aren't that deep (not when you are chasing this cute, yellow tubby creature, at least)
Worth splashing for.
I found one of my creatures in a canal. How delightful, I thought, this game is really putting things in virtually-realistic places. The cute creature splashed around in the canal as I was on my way to grab some tea at a local coffee shop, soon I found myself inching closer to the banister, which I believed was installed to prevent people from falling in. Next thing, I found my hand over the railing. It was then I realized...I had become a Pokémon Go zombie; my eyes riveted on my screen and completely unaware of my environment. You could have taken my shoes and my glasses and I wouldn't have minded one bit. That cute yellow thingy just needed to fit into my catcher! I leaned over...just.an.inch.moooore...
2. I can't be tricked to exercise
Nice try, Pokémon. This girl can't be tricked to exercise with virtual offerings and incentives. However, set me, please on a glorious high street lined with shops with show glasses exhibits of books and handbags. All the eye-tingling offerings. I would gladly walk 10 miles. Ask my Fitbit. It knows.
3. Pokémon can't work in Nigeria
Lol! To any African, you know how we really aren't about bats. Even worse bats that appear in our rooms at night. There I was getting ready for bed and I checked my phone for a Pokémon. Behold it was a silly black bat floating around in the dark area of my dully lit room. I'm like nah-ahn.
I don't do bats. Cute and yellow things. Yes. Black bats, no.
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I eventually gave up on the game when the creatures became even more difficult to catch. Apparently, if you go up a level, the creatures become more difficult to catch and for me, that would mean- me, in a canal.
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Do you have the Pokemon Go game installed? What's your highest level yet? Any misadventures like the players below? Lol
Funny stories about Pokemon GO players:
Man goes hunting for Pokemon creature at 3am, gets rounded up in a "drug deal"
This could very easily have been me, if I was hunting handbags.
Man falls into Manhole playing Pokemon Go, claims Candy crush was a safer bet
Aww, I miss Candy crush.
Fugitive caught in his pajamas as he walks to the police Station to catch a Pokemon
Is that guy kidding me right now?! Lol. Move to Brazil, man! Play Pokemon there! *Thinks Zika* Move to Alaska, man!
Woman plays Pokemon and walks right past Beyoncé as she performs. Beehive, not glad
Ok, that one cracked me up! Lol! The Beehive doesn't take kindly to anyone ignoring Bey.
Cover photo: D.H Bragdon
New blog: Flavor, Spice and All That, Guys!
When my friend, Eki, told me her sister, Amal was starting a blog, a sudden smile lit up my face. It's the same smile reserved for anyone who chooses to get in on some creative madness (which by the way, is not reserved for a special lot and you should get nuts with us).
Allthingsbeingamal.com is a "lifestyle blog with a unique twist following the adventures of Amal Vasi; majoring in travel, food and beauty & style". She started off, rightly, with a post about visiting Ibiza, then a misadventure with Cataplana in Portugal, followed by a post about Lagos! Please visit and give her a cheer! She's all flavor and élan.
Best wishes, dearest Amal! Kill it! I dare say, she shall! *someone make me stop reading these Victorian books*
Muah!
There she is, Amal Belo-Osagie!
Discovered any new blogs recently? Please share! If you are a blogger please leave your url in the comments below! Thanks!
My Tunic of Many Colors by Ed-John
Since the start of this summer, I've walked into my closet and the first top I'd reach for, has been this brightly-colored "Hey-there-Joseph" tunic! Always! I can't help myself.
It, actually, used to belong to Ed. He outgrew it right about the time I realized my clothes were mostly body-cons and felt like cling-film; and you know how sometimes your body just needs that "whoosa" moment. Exhale! So, I obtained 2 of his other shirts and his jog pants too! Grin. Benefit of being married, everything becomes double including your wardrobe selection! What do you think about my tunic? Ok, I hear you, what you think about our tunic? The family tunic lol!
Want one?
Tunic by Ed-John Apparels
Phone: +2348030927373
I promise, I'm wearing shorts!
