Romance Meets Life |
- 7 Daily Mood Boosters That Will Cost You Nothing
- Ese Walters and Benny Ark Celebrate Their Traditional Wedding
- Charles Novia Reviews The Africa Magic Viewer's Choice Awards
- Visionaries Hub Presents Social-networking - Hangout Session
- In My Dreams - Apology to Usain Bolt By BabaWilly
- Onyeka Onwenu Accused of Ordering the Assault by Illegal Tenant of CWD Premises
| 7 Daily Mood Boosters That Will Cost You Nothing Posted: 11 Mar 2014 09:52 AM PDT  By Eniola Ake In a community where things don't seem to be going fine or where everything seems to be going the negative way, mood boosters are beneficial for your emotional health. They help you overcome the chances of getting depressed because in an environment where pollution (noise, air) and stress are the order of the day, one often becomes tempted to participate in depressing routines. By boosting your mood, you are boosting your general health which leaves you feeling fresh more often. It is said that "the shape your mouth takes when you wake up defines the way your day will go" how then can one influence the way ones day goes? First of all, before I make known to you how to influence it, it is very important to unlearn some routines and determine to take a new turn of change. Personally, I have met people who follow through this routine almost every day and it works for them, you will notice it in the way they relate with others around them as well as the way they take care of their own body and self generally. However, have you ever noticed that what happens during the morning hours often sets the tone for the rest of the day? If you haven't noticed or do not agree to that, try and study your body for the next two weeks. Try and take an inventory of your daily behavior. Get a small notepad, write the days of the week (Sunday to Saturday) in a vertical order, the horizontally write at the top "1st week" and "2nd week". Below each week , write "morning" and "night". During the morning period, write how you feel, then at night after the day's work, put down how you feel. Do that for the next two weeks. At the end of it, check through what you have written down and take a close look and study the pattern. You will realize that if not all the time, most of the days, your morning mood decides your night mood. Here are some few tips that have been verified by experts that can help boost your mood on a daily basis: 1. Create a "spoil-me" task: when you wake up in the morning, think of something exciting that you can do for yourself. It could be to go to the movies after work, if you don't have access to a cinema, watch a movie you haven't seen on your laptop or try get some from your friends. Buy something for yourself-it could be a nice dress you have been waiting to get. Another way is to make yourself fresh food rather than fast food. Try something different that will elevate your mood. 2. Eat well: sometimes, because of our busy schedules and early morning wakefulness, you could be tempted to skip a meal or might not be able to eat till lunch-break or noon time. If you do not have time to make yourself a good meal in the morning, some of the quick-breakfast that you can have include: a cup of tea (Lipton or moderate amount of caffeine) and bread; oatmeal takes less than 5minutes to prepare. Include in your shopping list: custard, oatmeal, bread, milk, cocoa(milo or bournvita) and honey or sugar. This will save you from developing unnecessary stomach upset at work and would help set your day alive. 3. Inhale freshness: Mother Nature provides us with fresh air. Try some outdoor exercise it could be walking round your compound. Researchers found that people experienced an enhanced mood and higher self-esteem after just five minutes of various types of green exercise including walking. Try listening to recorded nature sounds such as running water and birds sound; open your window in the morning so you can hear Mother Nature's sound as you get ready for the day's work. Or use alarm sounds that soothe you and eases you to be awake check out alarm sounds on your phone. 4. Feel good, feel peace: decide to feel good when you wake up in the morning. Take a couple of deep breaths so even when you encounter any frustrations or surprises you will remember to breathe and be calm. Music can make you feel good, on your way out listen to mind-soothing songs. 5. Assess yourself: when you wake up in the morning, take time to assess your body and notice if you feel any stiffness. Stretch lightly and breathe deeply. You will find that you feel present and better equipped for the day. 6. Reflect and be grateful: think about a positive event in your life-such as how you got into school, how your got your job, when you bought your first car, when you graduated from school, when you started your business, or when you met your ideal partner and imagine what your life would be like if the event(s) hadn't happen, by envisioning the negative, that way your mood becomes elevated. 7. Smile: Smile has been given to everyone freely. It is something that can be done anytime or anywhere by anyone. You can boost your mood and influence the mood of those around you by smiling. How powerful that is. You can do all these everyday, or choose one as a task to do on each day of the week, but you can be assured your mood will be boosted at the end of it. All the best. ______________ Eniola Ake is a psychologist who is a writer of articles on relationship and emotional health care. She also does e-counseling and has a blog (www.supersoullifters.wordpress.com). |
| Ese Walters and Benny Ark Celebrate Their Traditional Wedding Posted: 11 Mar 2014 08:43 AM PDT  Ese Walters and Benny Ark had a civil ceremony to mark their marriage last month and a couple of days ago, the couple had their traditional wedding in Warri where Ese is from. RML wishes them all the best as they prepare for their church wedding and continue with their married life. More photos follow.      |
| Charles Novia Reviews The Africa Magic Viewer's Choice Awards Posted: 11 Mar 2014 07:53 AM PDT  It had been months of hype and media activities for the 2nd Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards. Expectations were high for this year's edition and many practically grovelled for the invitation cards! Who would miss an evening of this magnitude in Africa's entertainment calender? Did this year's Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards have the Crunch Factor, that 'ooomph' punch which leaves the guests and viewers speechless and mesmerised? Wait a minute! I am jumping the gun here! Let's start from the beginning as I witnessed it. I arrived a few minutes to the scheduled live broadcast of the show and as I walked past the Red Carpet section straight to the hall, I couldn't help noticing how glamourous (and perhaps amorous too!) many of the ladies and gentlemen looked. One thing to thank the AMVCAs for; the fashion and make-up industry would have rolled in some moolahs these past few days. I am not an experienced fashion buff, I would leave that to Nigeria's amorphous Fashion Police to determine who was the Best Dressed or Worst Dressed for the evening (er…Emmy Collins? That's your plate!) But I did see enough to appreciate that many people actually took time to look quite good for the night. And there were some few 'Ukwus' pushing out for cursory recognition and appreciation inside the dresses too! (Apologies to Timaya) One can safely say that it was a night of evening dresses, half-hidden cleavages and unpadded 'Ukwus' on the Red Carpet but let's leave that aspect to the fashion bloggers. The show opened with a nice performance by a dance troupe, supposedly the KAKADU musical ensemble. I was just taking my seat when their performance ended to appreciative applause from the audience. Kudos to the organisers for getting the stage ensemble on the show. It speaks volumes of an ancillary support of sorts for the thespian arts by that gesture. Being a theatre arts product myself, any support given to that sector by any means is most welcome. The Presenting Threesome (no pun intended) of IK Osakioduwa, Vimbai and Osas Ighodaro came on the podium to kick off the show proper. IK and Vimbai were quite at ease all through the night when they had their slots but Osas seemed to be trying to catch up with the other two. Throughout the night she put up a spirited performance but there were a few stumbles over some words as she followed the teleprompter and she seemed overtly mechanical most times. Perhaps, as she goes on over the years, she would find her rhythm. However, the Three Presenters had some impressive Costume Changes in the course of the night which looked good to me. Vimbai was spot on as a co-hostess and put up a confident performance. We all know the artistic prowess of IK and he didn't fail in flipping his Bic and writing his own lines when it mattered. Osas was just the last end of the Salami who could have done with a bit more greasing. The Hall gradually filled up as the show progressed. There was an improvement on last year's event when the commercial breaks came up during the show. The Organisers had a live orchestra playing some recitals most times for the live audience. Though what the orchestra played sounded like a drone most times but at least the audience was engaged and concentrated on the flow of the show. There was a Floor Manager who came up intermittently on stage to reel out names of the next set of scheduled Presenters of the awards and implored them to go backstage. I didn't know what to make of that but it was better than some other local award shows one has attended where the Floor Managers would either point a finger at the Presenters of the next awards or tap them on the arm in a disconcerting manner. It seemed like Kenya and East Africa had a good outing as "Nairobi Half Life" won some of the early categories. Charles Novia - 2014 AMVCA - March 2014 - BellaNaija However, when Shirley Frimpong-Manso and Herty Nwusu from Ghana came up on stage to receive the award for 'Best Writer', it seemed like there was a little friction between both ladies on the podium over who should pick the plaque and make a speech. It was subtle but noticeable. Bez performed on stage with a live band. The audience loved it, though there seemed to be a little self-restraint on his part to really let himself loose but maybe that's his 'mellow cool brother' image he has given us over the years. Something tells me his next album would show us his metamorphosis for the better. Flavour was on the bill too and started his performance with 'Ada' which got me thinking that for aesthetic purposes, perhaps an 'Ada' might have done well to be on stage with him to enhance his stagecraft. But Flavour held his own and took the crowd to another level with other hit songs, 'Kirikata' and 'Asewo'. However, despite a simultaneous synch by his live band and the programmed tracks, Flavour lost his flavour a couple of times in his performance by subtly missing the cue of his songs. A few ad libs made up for the technical sidestep. Flavour is a good cultural ambassador of the neo-Nigerian Highlife Music. He stands out on his own in his genre and really knows how to work a crowd. The sound in the hall was really a minus. For most of the live performances, the sound output was below average and I'm told there were microphone glitches too which those who watched the live broadcast tweeted about. The sound output was bad during Davido's performance. He came on stage and started with his hit song 'Skelewu' backed by a live band. To us in the hall, or perhaps to the trained ear for live sound, it sounded like a pride of lions devouring some killed game and one could barely differentiate the music from the din. His next track, despite the technical shortcomings, got most people in the crowd dancing though. 'Aye' seems to be another hit song from the OBO exponent. The biggest blooper of the night happened when John Okafor and Monalisa Chinda were up to present the award for 'Best Actress in a Yoruba movie' as announced by Okafor. Somehow, what flashed onscreen were the names of the nominees in the Hausa category, which got the audience mumbling in confusion. Maybe someone in the control booth misheard or 'mufu'-ed that segment? The Presenters announced the winner as Mercy Aigbe perhaps without noticing the mistake or not knowing what to do after a typical Naija live 'awkward moment'. John Okafor professionally switched to his 'Mr Ibu' alter-ego by saying 'Na Yoruba dem give us' which cracked up a lot of people. The correct visual was replayed and Mercy Aigbe, the announced winner came up to the stage for her prize. 'Oh my God! Oh my God!' She shrieked out in what sounded like an explicit moan which got many in the audience looking at one another. However, Mercy won the crowd over with her acceptance speech in which she acknowledged her husband and family. Osita Iheme won the 'Best Actor in a comedy' award and graciously acknowledged his other contestants. That was one of the best parts of the night. He gave a moving but stumbled speech on African unity and the Arts. Thereafter, Osita and his screen sidekick Chinedu Ikedieze presented the 'Best Actress in a comedy' award to Funke Akindele who seemed to be the obvious winner during the nomination reel having being nominated for two movies in the same category. As Funke left the stage for backstage, we all could hear her happy screams of 'Yes! Yes! Yes!' backstage during the commercial break as she gave out bellows of excitement. Congratulations, Funke. Bikiye Graham-Douglas won the 'Best Supporting Actress' award for her role in 'Flower Girl'. I did say earlier that I'm not much of a fashion buff but I couldn't help wondering what on earth she wore to the event while she was on stage! When Waje performed, I became totally convinced that she is the Best Female Vocalist presently in Nigeria. That lady sure can sing! Wow! And with the very talented Cobhams Asuquo backing her up on the keyboard, it was one of the best moments of the night for me and a memorable one too. Waje might be wishing she 'didn't have a heart' as her song goes but I bet there were many guys there wishing for her heart that night! Joseph Benjamin and Mercy Johnson presented the award for 'Best Comedy'. Mercy Johnson seemed nervous or perhaps shy on stage and intermittently clutched her frock, raising it off the floor nervously. But she did regain her composure a bit when presenting the award with a jibe at Elvis Chucks, the winner. I found it curious though that when Mercy came on stage, a lot of ladies in the audience were having hushed conversations about her dress or perhaps her tactless lifting of the dress onstage? Whatever it was with that, no one could fault the impression her 'Ukwu' made on the audience when she turned to leave the stage! Ramsey Nouah and Bimbo Akintola presented the award for 'Best Movie Drama'. Ramsey looked good in his kaftan and I would vote him as one of the best dressed for the night. Frank Rajah Arase's movie , 'The Price' won in that category and amid his acceptance speech he curiously said 'Yvonne Nelson, I give you all the glory!'. Huh? Some of us looked at ourselves, askance. Was Frank Rajah telling us that Yvonne Nelson is his 'saviour' or was that a nervous flow in his stream of speech? Frank, you get case to answer o! Hmmmm. You nor fear, you carry Jesus Glory go give woman! For this season of Lent! Issorait! Lol. Olu Jacobs and Joke Silva presented 'The Industry Merit Award' to veteran actor, Pete Edochie. There's something always cool as cucumber about Pete Edochie. His taped acceptance speech was played in which he ensured the whole world recognised that he's a titled Igbo Chief with the way he was dressed and the calm and collected manner he spoke. He ended his speech with an advice for aspiring actors; 'Don't run after the press, they will run after you when you are successful'. His award came with a brand new Hyundai SUV which was collected on his behalf by his representative. The award for 'Best Actress in a Drama' was won by Nse Ikpe-Etim. Deservedly so for a very intense actress! Congrats, Nse. Her award was received on her behalf by Ashionye Raccah. OC Ukeje and Genevieve Nnaji presented 'Best Actor in Drama' won by Tope Tedela. Many people expected Majid Machel to win but I guess Tope must have held his own somehow in the voting process. Besides, it is good to know that a new generation of actors are taking the reins in Africa. The show ended at about 21.33 CAT and the impressive KAKADU ensemble closed the show with a good performance as the guests left the hall. One must mention that one appreciates that a lot of time and energy goes into planning events such as this. Theorganisers must be commended for investing their resources in Africa's film industry by institutionalising an annual reward system for the burgeoning film sector. However, this year's AMVCA had a few flaws, though it is an improvement from last year's. While the entertainment value of the event this year was quite good, one couldn't help leaving the event with a nagging analogy that the much-hyped 'night of Africa Magic' had something akin to a magician who had an outstretched hat to perform a trick but the audience just didn't see the rabbit this time. *** First Published on charlesnoviadaily.com |
| Visionaries Hub Presents Social-networking - Hangout Session Posted: 11 Mar 2014 07:53 AM PDT  The Visionaries Hub Hangout, is a social youth-stakeholders forum designed to highlight and discuss youth and developmental issues of national interest with the goal of proffering feasible solutions, while also identifying the critical role of youths towards actualizing these solutions. The event theme is "Social-networking; A Tool for Youth Development and Nation Building" and is scheduled to hold on the 12th of April 2014, @ La Mango Ikeja. GRA, Lagos, Nigeria, The hangout session which will be streamed live to the internet will feature seasoned and passionate stakeholders across all endeavors including teenagers and elderly Nigerian citizens, while employing the power of the social media to drive large youth participation. Be a part of the change you seek and lend your voice on how we can create a conducive environment to harness and nurture our dreams and aspirations, by using the hashtag #vhubhangout #amplifiedvoices to help drive awareness. This year's event will kick-off on Friday 14th of March, 2014 with a 3weeks online contest; "My dream, My Quota to nation building" that will give seed funding of #50,000 naira to the winner (to participate visit www.visionarieshub.com ). The forum will discuss relevant nation building issues ranging from Leadership and citizenship, Youth and Government policies, Business and career development opportunities, Female gender inclusion, to Education. Notable participating speakers include; Ms Yemisi Ransome-Kuti (Founder, Nigerian Network of Non-Governmental Organization) Mr. Durotimi Adeboye (Project Director, Global Education Media and consultant to Lagos State Ministry of Education) Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin (President, Women Arise for Change Initiative) Ms Ore Somolu (Executive Director, Women in Technology) Mr Adedayo Thomas (Publisher/ Director of Outreach, Africanliberty.org) Mr. Ikeddy Isiguzo, (Chairman Editorial Board, Vanguard Nigeria) The Visionaries Hub (VHUB) hangout is the initiative of Visionary Impact Netwox, a youth consultancy and management social enterprise. VHUB supporting partners include AfricanLiberty.org, Women Arise Initiative, Global Education Media, BellaNaija.com, TalkROC' Inno., Dayo Ibitoye and others. As a youth network it is our belief that our youths need to take a united stand for their own future as key stakeholders in nation building, not through violent protests and rallies, but by taking responsibility to develop ourselves within our capacity and follow up by making educated demands from our leaders that we have the capacity to maintain – this we ultimately intend to achieve through the Visionaries Hub Hangout Initiative. Participation is open and free to all interested individuals and organizations, but live attendance at the venue will be based on reservation; to reserve a free seat at the event, register on www.visionarieshub.com . For partnership and sponsorship details, email visionaryimpact(at)gmail.com or call +2348130977877. Contributions, recommendations and inquiries as regards the event will be appreciated and should be forwarded to admin(at)visionarieshub.com _______ RML is a media partner for the VHub Hangout |
| In My Dreams - Apology to Usain Bolt By BabaWilly Posted: 11 Mar 2014 03:25 AM PDT  I know that the arrival of my letter may induce some degree of puzzlement or even hilarity but these things are what they are. Fate and circumstance have joined forces to bring me to this point. It was not too difficult to find your agent's address thanks to google, and here I am or perhaps I should say, here is my letter. Now, I will go straight to the point. A few hours ago, I had a dream. And no, it was not deeply rooted in the American dream. It was just one of those dreams, but this one was different. You see, I dreamt that I defeated you in the 100 meters Olympic final race in Brazil 2016. I then woke up, went in front of the bathroom mirror and slapped my face as punishment for the audacity to conceive such an improbable victory. 'What nonsense!' Even in dreams should one not know one's limitations?' I thought. On getting back to bed I found that my movements had woken the lady of the house. 'Why are you up?' she asked. 'Oh, nothing' I answered. 'You were kicking in your sleep' she said I became suspicious. Perhaps I had also spoken in my sleep I thought. I was now keen to go back to sleep, and to avoid a potentially long line of questioning, I opted for telling the truth. 'I dreamt I defeated Usain Bolt at the Olympic finals' I said. She began to laugh. 'In the 100 meters' I quickly added. She laughed harder. 'I was not expecting Ice Hockey. It had to be athletics' she said between fits of laughter. 'I suppose you were running for Nigeria' she said. 'No, it was actually Pakistan' I replied. You may not believe this but she laughed so much that she fell out of bed. I became concerned. You know how it is, falling out of bed at 2am. What will I tell my friends, family and in-laws if she gets injured falling out of bed? Soon the laughter adopted a wheezy quality and I switched on the lights. 'Darling, let's forget I mentioned anything. Let us just go back to bed' I said as I stood over her slim frame that convulsed in laughter on the floor'. 'Why yu no run for Naija nau?' 'Woman, I no sabi make we sleep. It is only a dream' I replied. 'So what did you do when you won?' 'I ran to the crowd, leaned to the side and pulled an imaginary arrow, standing with my legs wide apart. The crowd went wide' 'Nigerian or Pakistani crowd?' she asked and kept on laughing. 'I am not sure. They had green passports for faces. I then ran around waving a flag bare footed' 'You had no shoes?' she asked. 'I had no shoes' I replied. We didn't get to sleep till the one hour later. The next day she suggested that I write to you to apologise for the insult. Yes, she deemed the dream an insult to you and the good people of Jamaica, since I was nothing but a snail dressed up in a pair of Nike trainers. I refused initially but however had to concede (for peace sake). So here is my letter. Please accept this apology. Moving on, a lot of things have happened since that dream. I told it to my friends and most found it funny. Some however thought that the whole race could be a metaphor for some great feat I was due to perform. Others literarily told me to start training hard. They said I could beat you. Perhaps they have no listened attentively to your surname and the images it triggers. I would need a lot of steroids; both anabolic and barbaric, mixed with Banga soup to get my body in such a peak condition. Another philosophical friend of mine said that the dream was possible to realise. If I did not achieve it then my children would. Food for thought there. Did I mention that in my dream, not only did I beat you but I run a new world record of 9.3 seconds? You needed to have been there to see the crowd go wild my man. Sorry, you were there. In my dreams. I was running around the stadium with the Pakistani flag held aloft by my hands proudly held high. Anyway, I would end here. I need to write another letter of apology. You see, when I slept the second time last night, I meet Mike Tyson in the ring at his prime. I knocked him out in Round One. My regards to the family. Babawilly 11-1-2014 |
| Onyeka Onwenu Accused of Ordering the Assault by Illegal Tenant of CWD Premises Posted: 11 Mar 2014 05:47 PM PDT  Onyeka Onwenu has allegedly ordered the assault of a business woman Olajoke Adesope and also destroying her place of business. Olajoke Adesope petitioned the National Human Rights Commission, claiming she was forcefully evicted from her shop by the National Center for Women Development, Abuja under the orders of Onyeka Onwenu who was appointed executive director of the National Centre for Women Development in September 2013. According to reports, ...the business woman who sells textiles, revealed her tenancy would not end until December 2014. She also stated that she got a letter to evacuate the building in 3 days on January 28th 2014 with threats they will go to court. H/T Bellanaija |
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