JENNIE IFEATU

What comes to your mind when you hear about individualism and communal? Probably something related to an individual or a community. You are not far away from the truth. You are in fact sitting on the truth. But spare me a few minutes, I will take you somewhere. I don't bite, so you won't be harmed. I am taking you to Lagos. In this sphere, the moment you board a commercial bus. You share everything, your phone and privacy (there is always a nosy co-passenger snooping to see why you are giving your phone attention), seating space in case you have a 'big co-passenger (on days, like that I low-key wish I was bigger) - Getting squeezed by another human is intimidating honestly. But like you may have heard. This is Lagos. Once the bus conductor yells, "Yes, your money?" The guy next to you stretches his neck and strains his eyes to peep if you have 'change' in your wallet. On those days, even the meanest looking guy next to you will turn with a smil...

One of the most thrilling things about movies and television series is the emergence of love interests among the characters. Fans of these movies and tv series automatically turn the duo into a headline. They are often talked about on every space and suddenly everyone turns to some kind of sailor with a chant of "Ship them" falling in very angle.  Relationships are beautiful to watch as they blossom. While some of us like to raise our's like flag and some like to keep it on the low.  The good thing remains that you are living, loving and laughing.  One relationship that is not often talked about remains the one existying between your brand and colours.  Most people have a general idea of the effect colours can have on you.  You might have heard that a kitchen should never have too much blue decor because blue ruins your appetite. You have probably also heard that red can raise your heart pressure. In all actuality, there is truth behind these ...

Lagos. Have you ever had to drive in the early hours of the morning through Lagos? Behind the facade of the skyscraper buildings in Lagos Island and the fancy restaurants in Lekki and Victoria Island, there are real people with real blood flowing through their veins that yawn and stretch at dawn then creep out of abandoned cars or even under bridges. One of the unseen parts of this tale is that cities with more homeless people practise open defecation the most. This is why you can walk on the porch of the Lagos State University Campus, Ojo and stumble on faeces tied in cellophane nylon. Today, I am disturbed as I spot a man pulling up his trousers and creeping out of a nearby bush. It was not the first time I will see such a sight. Perhaps, It was the number of people who have complained about diarrhoea and food poisoning recently that has made me apprehensive. I plug in my earphones and allow the music filtering in diffuse into my soul. This is a ritual I am committed to da...

I wish I could tell you that I love the title of this article but I honestly can't. I wear a size 43 and I am a lady. I practically go on a world tour when I am shopping for a shoe.  The sound of the word, bigfoot makes me cringe but I have to do what I got to do.  Stories. I love stories. I remember a myth about how a tiny woman who had gone to steal from a giant's hut could not outrun the giant after one of her stealing escapades because each stride of the giant was five times her's.  Hilarious, I know.  Sometimes you need big feet to keep you five times ahead of your competition. Business and career are pedals we keep kicking till we are frail. So, it's important to always be the bigfoot in the game.  How do you stay ahead and make this happen? Don't keep your eyes on the present The present is an illusion. The future is brighter than you can ever imagine or have ever been told. There is always room for expansion. So while you make your deci...

One of the places that you should never judge people by the way they look is in Lagos and Onitsha. In the former, a stray looking guy might be a military officer and in the latter, a guy looking like a pauper might just be your unknown landlord. Fridays are my happiest. I just let myself get lost in my daydreaming and indulge myself in the luxury of waiting for the long-expected weekend. Today, the road is free. We ride in calmness except for the sound from the engine that depicts acceleration in our pace. A man dressed in Ankara is seated by my right and a lady holding her umbrella and looking lost is seated by my left. We approach Costain and just as the bus tends to swerve a careless bike rider attempts a rough overtaking. Our infuriated driver is yelling at him as well as the passengers. In Nigeria, some questions don't pose as questions. "Are you mad? Are you crazy?" Our driver is hurling at the indeed crazy biker. The bike rider is obviously the obstin...

Over the week, I had a conversation with a friend who was being skeptical about demanding her worth from a gig because a senior colleague in the same industry tried to talk her out of it. When asked about my opinion.  I had two questions for her.  "What have you done to get you to where you are? (I wasn't concerned about if she had movement pace so far had been an inch) How bad do you want to get what you deserve? She looked at me with intent eyes and told me about the efforts, time and discomfort she had invested to get her where she was. As for how much she wanted what she deserved, she wanted it just as much as a drowning man will need a lifeguard.  Sometimes, in life, business, career, relationships or even pursuing an education, we are going to be talked out of reaching out to what we truly deserve. These suggestions and lame excuses often come with whispers of " You are not good enough," You need more experience," or  Wait a ...

What's that one street lingo that you grew up hearing about Lagos? "Shine your eyes" resonates in my head like the large bell from the catholic church that was located few poles from my home as a teenager. As hilarious as that may sound, not all who look, see. Shine your eyes in Lagos is a street lingo to remind you to be ever vigilant about your immediate surrounding but some people just never play by the rules. Mondays are crazy. Infact, I have been feeling crazy for a while. Being an adult is enough to make you go crazy, there are always responsibilities; at home, at work, circle of friends, social groups; but what can a woman born of a man do? Nothing! You signed up for this voluntarily or involuntarily when you stuck out your pink head from that contracting fetal path screaming out your lungs out to a group of nurses urging your mother to 'push.' Today, I am standing at the bus stop waiting for a bus heading to Victoria Island. There are many ot...