Times are a Changin'

Because I’m going through a transition time in my life, I’ve decided to discontinue this blog.  I hope to start blogging again soon but possibly on a different platform that will allow me to express who I am more easily! Keep you posted. Thanks for everything guys!

“I am not crazy, I am unique”

There is this show on Netflix called “Orange is the New Black” which I'm sure some of you reading this have already taken the time to binge watch. I was watching this series but... my mother found out, and well, that was the end of that! If you’ve seen the show then you know that it is highly explicit and the themes are  inappropriate and the characters are quite crazy “unique” but that is all part of what makes the show pure genius, right?!

You know how some shows require that you to sit through the first few boring episodes in order to truly start enjoying it? Well, “Orange is the New Black” is NOT one of these shows. I knew it was going to be good within the first five minutes, when a jail inmate named Taystee says to another inmate named Piper, “Gurl, you got those TV titties!

The whole show is about women (one of my favorite themes) – REAL women, of all types. Smart, dumb, pretty, ugly, lesbian, strait, old, young, CRAZY, unique, confident, shy, vulnerable, and strong. I think it's the first show I have ever watched where women are depicted in their five dimensional glory. These women have depth! And I almost forgot to mention that these women are all inmates - in a jail (the title orange comes form their orange jump suits) - but doesn’t that fact make the show all the more interesting!?

This week "Orange is the New Black" took home 3 Emmy wins having had 12 nominations.

My favorite character from the show (from which the quote “I am not crazy, I am unique” comes from) is this wacky, large eyed, rough, yet vulnerable inmate named Suzanne ‘Crazy Eyes’. ‘Crazy Eyes’ is played by an up and coming actress named Uzo Aduba who took home the Emmy for "Outstanding Best Actress in a Comedy Series" for her performance in this role.

Uzo Aduba

To my pleasant surprise Aduba, like me, is an America-born Nigerian actress (I knewww I liked her!). Being a fellow Najia Girl in the African Diaspora I am a true fan! I now follow Aduba on Instagram and Facebook.
 

In an interview with NPR she talks about the struggle of growing up as the only Nigerian in her town, she also tells the story of the time when she asked her mom if she could be called Zoe; her mom "without skipping a beat, said, 'If they can learn to say Tchaikovsky, and Michelangelo and Dostoyevsky, then they can learn to say Uzoamaka.' "

Listen to the amazingly captivating interview here: http://n.pr/1p9TRtW

…and remember you are unique…

Uzo Aduba as Crazy Eyes in “Orange is the New Black"

 Photos courtesy of: tv.msnbc.com & Tumblr

The Loss of a Phenomenal Woman

On May 28th 2014 the world lost a beautiful and phenomenal woman. 

With the strength of her words and the depth of her voice Maya Angelou changed the world. 

I feel as if I have lost a mother; her work spoke to me like no other author had. I read her book "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings" in 8th grade. I recited "I Know Why The Bird Caged Sings" (the poem)  and placed the text on the last page of my middle school scrap book. In my freshman year of high school I recited "Still I Rise" for a local celebration of black history. I still know all the words today...

"You may shoot me with your words,

You may cut me with your eyes,

You may kill me with your hatefulness,

But still, like air, I'll rise." 

~ my favorite line from "Still I Rise" 

When I became a self proclaimed activist for the feminist movement, who was there at the door with her words... 

"I'm a woman

Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman,

That's me."

~ From poem "Phenomenal Woman"

Today I am listening to an old interview Maya Angelou had with Terry Gross. Her resonant voice reverberates through me. At the moment I feel sad, but I also feel sense of contentment as I feel energy and love from her even though she is gone.

"Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope."

Maya Angelou: A remarkable individual, a phenomenal woman, a spirited writer. She is a light in my heart and a voice in my mind. She will always be remembered.

Americanah

 I am currently reading the novel Americanah by the amazing author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I am late with this post considering all the hype about it happened over the summer, but I figured its never to late for a good read!

Americanah is about my parents. Well, not specifically my parents but about the story of their generation; the groups of young middle class  Nigerians who migrated to the U.S and England years ago. This description sounds like some historical novel about the struggle to reach the American dream - boring! But I assure you Americanah is NOT that kind of novel.

This book is based upon the two determined, impatient, hilarious characters Ifemelu and Obinze. They  fall in love, are ripped apart by the distance of the Atlantic Ocean and have to learn to navigate in their new lives in the complex American  culture.

When reading book, I find myself  ringing with laughter and blinking back tears because I can related to so many of the the issues that are discussed throughout the novel. Such as one of the main points - being "Non-American Black" in America. For some of my white friends at at this point your saying "What?

If you don't know what it is to be Non-American Black then you NEED to read this book, it will enlighten you! Because yes, there is an actual difference between being Black (African America) and being Black (someone that is African living in America, like my parents). In fact there is a 3rd degree of "blackness" which I fall under and that is made up of  kids that are Black but with Non-American Black parents...CONFUSED YET?!?! Well,  this novel really gets into the grits, grind, politics, culture, and diplomacy, of this phenomenon.

To get an idea of how amazing this novel is here is a hilarious excerpt from Americanah, I about died from laughter when I read this:

“Dear Non-American Black, when you make the choice to come to America, you become black. Stop arguing. Stop saying I'm Jamaican or I'm Ghanaian. America doesn't care…So you’re black, baby. And here is the deal with becoming black: You must show that you are offended when such words as “watermelon” or “tar baby” are used in jokes, even if you don’t know what the hell is being talked about…You must nod back when a black person nods at you in a heavily white area. It is called the black nod…If you are a woman, please don’t speak your mind as you are use to doing in your country. Because in America, strong-minded black woman are SCARY. And if you are a man, be hyper-mellow, never get to excited or someone will worry that you’re about to pull a gun. ” ― Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Americanah

READ THIS BOOK.Write the title and authors name down right now, now, now. I grantee you, that after reading this you will see the world in a new way… you may even understand where I’m coming form a little bit better!