* * * New Years Eve * * * 1

"This is going to be a weird night." I thought to myself as I looked around me. Children of ages ranging 12-16 were standing and chattering about, wearing next to nothing on a very cold monday night. Temperature was as low as 4 degrees and most of the girls had only bikini tops and bottoms on, the boys, shorts and tanks. I was fully clothed with a jacket on and my becky was still freezing. I shook my head and walked into the building.

"Julie, there you are." My friend Rebecca called out as she walked towards me with arms open for a hug. I plastered a huge smile on my face and hugged her while scanning the room with my enthusiasm dropping further, "this is definitely not good." I thought to myself. Rebecca and I have been friends since college and this whole shindig was her idea for spending new year’s eve. She had called a week back informing me that we were going to be traveling out of state to this great new year’s eve party with Jeff, her boyfriend and some of their friends, and had assured me that there would be loads of Michael Ealy's around. That was the convincing point for me.

As a single 27 year old, my parents were already stylishly asking  the dreadful question. They'd say things like "We are so proud of  you and your accomplishments. Your degree, your job and how well you've settled yourself" and at this point, I already knew what was to follow.."All that is left is a good husband that deserves you and would love you. We've asked God to send that man, FAST!" My response is always the same.."Amen oooo, na God hand e dey!"..{shaking my head}. So yes, I jumped at the opportunity of making myself available to the Ealy's of this world on the off chance that I get found.

But there I was, feeling like a chaperone at a prom party with the theme 'Be naked'. I pulled out of Becca's hug, held her at arm’s length and looked her over. "Giiirrrl, you look amazing" I said and grinned at her. Becca is beautiful and she definitely knows how to wear her clothes. "So do you love." she responded and hugged me again. "Come, let me introduce you to everyone." she said as she dragged me towards the group I then noticed at the corner of the waiting room.

That was when I saw him. 





Photo courtesy google.com

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Song 7: Come Away With Me

This is one of those music that just makes me love love.

As we've come into a new year, one word resounds in my mind, heart, spirit, being.

LOVE!!

It is one of those songs that I can lie down on a rainy day and listen to while snuggling under my comforter, picturing me and my would be lover in each scene as described.

Standing together on a mountain top,looking in each others eyes {even though i dont know how that'd be possible as i'm dooper scared of heights but oh well} and sharing a sweet kiss.

Kai, love sweet shaaaaaa...

Anyway Enjoy!!!!

Norah Jones - Come Away with me

Come away with me in the night
Come away with me
And I will write you a song

Come away with me on a bus
Come away where they can't tempt us
With their lies

And I want to walk with you
On a cloudy day
In fields where the yellow grass grows knee-high
So won't you try to come?

Come away with me and we'll kiss
On a mountaintop
Come away with me
And I'll never stop loving you

And I want to wake up with the rain
Falling on a tin roof
While I'm safe there in your arms
So all I ask is for you
To come away with me in the night
Come away with me

Come Away With Me - Norah Jones

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My condition good o!

That was the first thing that came to my mind when I discovered the seat assigned to me was a business class seat. This phrase is used by a good friend of mine when she thinks things are going well for her or anybody for that matter in which case she'll say 'you sef, your condition good o'. All through my 3 weeks holiday with her, there's not a day she didn't use this phrase and if per chance things don't go as planned, {I'm sure if you are guessing, you've prolly guessed right} she'll say 'your condition no good o'. Anyway, thats me digressing. As I was saying, as I entered the plane and found my seat was in business class, na so I proclaim for my mind 'my condition good o'.

It all started when I got to the airport and started to check in for my flight back to Chicago. After checking in at one of the kiosk provided, I proceeded to bag check and handed my boarding pass to the rep. She scanned my passport, lifted the telephone and started talking with someone on the other end, spelling my surname in all those bravo, delta, oscarship way, after which she informed me I had an important message. 'hia' I thought to myself, 'which one is important message again?' I was asked to wait as an airline rep would come to talk to me. As a very paranoid naija babe and with the bad image my country already has internationally, my mind had started thinking up stuff about deportation. I know jare, very silly thought abi? That's how a friend invited me to his house a day before my departure, as he wanted to see me before I left. I was not very keen on the visit and the fact he kept trying to persuade me to visit him, bribing me with jollof rice, only increased my suspicion of foul play. What didn't I think he was up to {use your imagination}? I even had to text my friend his contact info just incase dem begin find me {this was after I decided to see him and met up with him}. Note, I said this person is my friend o. That's how paranoid I can get....smh...

Anyway back to my story. That's how I stood at the bag check area o, conjuring up different scenarios of my questioning till the airline rep came. She spoke with the service rep initially attending to me and the next thing she replies to something the rep said to her, saying 'yes i know of this one!' 'ehn?! Know of this one meaning wetin na? Which Kain wahala be this one again?' I thought. Ok, let me confess. The reason for my paranoia was because someone gave me panadol and peppermint to send to her mum in New York and the night before, I had scrutinized the items thoroughly incase dem make mistake package another thing gimme in the guise of panadol. I know, I know, my paranoia no get part two. Deal with it jor!

I was struggling not to look nervous when she asked me if I wanted to take a direct flight back to Chicago rather than transiting through New Jersey as initially scheduled. My reply was 'sure, why not', while I'm thinking 'aah, is that it?' I followed her to another check in area where she handed me to a guy who was to process the change. My condition just started to improve at this point. I was to arrive Chicago over an hour earlier than the initial schedule even though I had to wait 3hrs before the new flight took off {tallied with the time I woulda spent at the transiting airport, so I didn't mind}. After processing the change, he offered me a £5 voucher for the inconvenience of waiting. I was to use this to get breakfast. I just smiled and said thank you {hmmmm, my condition is really improving}. I got my breakfast and proceeded to the new departure terminal for check in. Happened that the flight was a BA flight and I thought 'hmmmm biiiigggggzzz geh!' I went ahead to check in with the self service machine and the thing printed on screen, 'sorry, there are no available seats for you on this flight'. I screamed in my head, 'what?, abeg if na joke make una stop am o. Make I just jejeje go fly my normal flight Biko. Which one is no seat?' I spoke with a rep about it, who then assisted me with the check in, assigned me a seat and gave me my boarding pass though saying I couldn't check in my bags as it was still too early to do so. I said no problem and proceeded to wait. When it was time to check in the bags, I walked to another rep, handed my documents to him, weighed my bags while he typed into his system. Next thing he says 'your seat has been upgraded' and goes ahead to destroy the previous boarding pass. As a paco babe, what he meant by 'upgraded' didn't really register as I thought they just moved my seat 9 rows forward giving me a window seat rather than the aisle initially assigned. I replied, 'really? Thanks!'

As I entered the plane and walked down the aisle to look for my seat walking through first class, I thought to myself ' Kai, this first class and business class people de really enjoy o, their condition good o.' not knowing I was going to be one of them. As I entered the business class cabin and got to the last row, only to discover it was my row and my seat was by the window. I just smiled like Garfield after im don belle full and muttered 'biiigggz girl, me sef my condition good o!'

The perfect end woulda been if 'Oga Right' occupied the seat beside me as I've been
dreaming for ages....o well, nothing spoil. After all, Rome was not built in one day :D. First class, here I come.

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