Hello everyone,4 quite a while now(like almost all my life) I've had opinions on virtually everything I ever heard about;thoughts on everything ranging from d price of gas 2 whether euthanasia and abortion should be legalized,nd recently I decided 2 start writing em down, den I decided 2 start this thread because I realized dat thoughts are no good if U can't air dem.So if U have opinions on anything,ANYTHING at all,I'd like U 2 express'em here.U don't have 2 be a good writer(as I'm not),just let'em be heartfelt.Let d scribbling begin:

The Thoughts of a Reformed Reprobate: On our attitude 2 life



Years ago,when I was still very young and very foolish(as opposed 2 now that I'm very old and not-so-foolish),I thought I was born to be favoured by life, I actually thought I was dis very special guy.I would look at everyone else and pity them,thinking how unlucky they were not 2 be me.This state of mind lasted till I was 10,when I got into secondary school n discovered I wasn't special;there were hundreds of other special guys in my skool alone,n some were even more special dan me.Being d modern day person I am I soon overcame the shock of this knowledge,adapted,nd decided on another course of action: If I couldn't be the only special person,at least I could impress the hell out of the other special people.So I proceeded to gather as much knowledge as I could about as many things as I could;I read lots and lots of books,saw lots and lots of movies,listened 2 any form of music which came my way.
My aim in life was simple:To read every book in the world,know everything dere was 2 know in d world,so I could impress everybody in d world(of course I also wanted to woo every fine lady in the world,but that's a story for another day).Around SS1 I realized dis was not possible also(I hadn't discovered Wikipedia),and on realizing this I was devastated.I forsook the pursuit of knowledge,turned my back on it and generally moved around very pissed at life.I felt life wasn't being fair to me,afterall I was a special guy;my father should have been as rich as Bill Gates,I should have been the best in my class without having to read,I should have found a girl I wanted and who wanted me back, lots of 'should haves'.
It wasn't until d age of 16 that I had an epiphany,came to one of the most profound realizations I'v had in my life:Life is unfair and does not owe U anything,U can't sit around thinking it should give U anything because it won't.Of course a few crumbs might fall ur way if U wait long enough,but they won't be enough 2 sate that innate hunger for fulfillment which exists within us all, U have 2 fight for the big meals.
D reason I wrote about my personal journey to this realization (apart from the fact that I really like talking about myself) is because I feel a lot of people can relate to it,maybe not everything but at least a part of it.U probably once felt u were special (and we all are special,really) and that life owed U favors,but by now U should know better.If u're still hoping for the special treatment then U've got another thing coming;It's d smart work U do,d opportunities U see and make use of,the will to keep on keeping on when all hope seems to be lost,d strength of purpose 2 focus on your goal and never lose sight of it, n if u're lucky d unmerited favor bestowed on you by that spiritual entity some of us call God,these are the things that get us what we want,not sitting around crying about how life's not fair.So the next time you feel lyk complaining about ur life,remember:U are what U chose 2 be,someone else might have put U in that ditch,but U have an obligation to get out.Think about it.

Nice. I wish it was longer - ended too soon. If you were a writer, I would like to read your book .

Nice!!! I'll be back to write mine. . . when I think of one

@ maedan; Thanks,U think it's 2 short? It was actually far longer but I thought it was 2 long,so dis is d abridged version.If I ever get 2 writing a book,I'll definitely come looking 4 u.


@ Chiogo: Thanks 2,think,think. . . I'd like 2 read ur thoughts.Wat re U doin so far from d rap/games section?

LOL I don't be on the rap section anymore. I'm getting ready to move in 2 weeks.

My thoughts might be too personal. Naw, they're mostly high school experiences.

i don't be on? see has hrap has corruphted hah brain
ghetto fab

LOL, Ethanol:See has HYoruba haccent have corrhupt ur hown Engilisi too.



@ Chiogo:Moving in 2 weeks? Big girl,entering d big bad world.LOL Write down ur thoughts anyway,I remember i had some funny thoughts back in Kindergarten, maybe i'll write dem down also.

C2H5OH:

i don't be on? see has hrap has corruphted hah brain
ghetto fab

LOL see this loser. I wrote it on purpose for people like you and you fell into the trap.
It's nairaland duh. who am I trying to impress? lmfao.

@Raven, iight. . .I'll do that later. LOL @ big bad world.

smh  TNG is doomed to fail

if i konk you your teeth will fall

LOL abeg share your thoughts.

Okk, lemme share mine. It's similar to yours, Raven. lol

- Edited.

Damn!! maybe I'm a geek, I wrote an essay ^^ 
I painted the good side of me, the bad side is on the way. . . .

what a little Puke. when did you start writing

Lovd ur 'essay' Chi.So U were valedictorian huh? NAIJA GURL REPRESENTING! Startd reading very young 2,remember I read 'The Firm' at d age of 9. . .n I uzd 2 blackmail my classm8s b4 teachin'em. I'm nt really in2 Dean Koontz,d guy's 2 supernatural 4 my lyking.Currently reading 'The Lonely Guy',pretty good read.I'm awaiting further thoughts.

ravenzord:

Lovd ur 'essay' Chi.So U were valedictorian huh? NAIJA GURL REPRESENTING! Startd reading very young 2,remember I read 'The Firm' at d age of 9. . .n I uzd 2 blackmail my classm8s b4 teachin'em. I'm nt really in2 Dean Koontz,d guy's 2 supernatural 4 my lyking.Currently reading 'The Lonely Guy',pretty good read.I'm awaiting further thoughts.

Thanks for loving my 'essay'.
Haha, this is his first book I'm reading, heard about him a lot though. who's the author of The lonely guy?

@ poster
very nice write up, we all have more in common then we think

@ Chi: Don't mind me O,d guy's pretty good O,just not a fan of his. The Lonely guy's very old,1984 or so,written by Bruce Jay Friedman,it's a satire on how 2 be d perfect lonely guy.Hope I don't turn out like dat.



@ Aslan:Guess most of us went thru d 'special' stage huh?



Now d next of my thoughts I'm about 2 write down should actually be titled my feelings,cos it's more of how I feel.Wrote it on Sunday,in church if U can imagine.I think I'm goin thru a religious crisis right now,my pastor tells me d world is black n white;Us and dem,but I see a lot of grey in between. . .wonder if I'm alone on dis.



The Thoughts of A Reformed Reprobate: How I feel



Tried to kick a gospel verse 2day but it fell flat
And if u'd asked me aforehand I'da predicted that
Cos from the abundance of my heart does my mouth speak
I can't preach salvation when of sin my soul reeks
When I don't have peace how can I be giving it
Can't be professing d God-life since I ain't living it
Atimes I'v wondered if dis salvation truly exists
Cos I'v taken it's drugs but still these symptoms persist;
The sin-loving,the mean mugging,the God-wronging
I'm in church but for d world I'm still longing
Sometimes I cry for forgiveness,sometimes I don't want it
Wrote a prayer of repentance,changed my mind and burnt it
But now I'm back here,down on my knees once again
Tryna see God's light thru d darkness and d d pain
A sick man in need of some spiritual therapy;
A heavenly compass 2 show me just where I be,


Sorry,4got 2 add dat it's not in prose form.Hope y'all still get d gist sha .

I tot I was the only one that read precociously (tells you about most of us feeling more special than we ought to eh? ) I am still a voracious reader but can't really compare to those heady days when I was a purveyor of novels, JHC with the boys and M&B with the girls. Hmmm, nice memories.

My thoughts on Euthanasia, If someone wants to die, allow them please. Let the doctors help them do it peacefully. If abortion is by choice (which I support by the way) I see no reason why others should be discriminated against and criminalised. And before you yell, charity begins at home. I don sign my own living will, DNR - Do not rescusitate me if I am quarter to go. I don dey save monet sef to go Switzerland when I ready to go meet God. And yes, I am going to heaven. Gba gbe.

@Raven, I got the gist oo. Me sef, I'm going through a religious or should I call it a spiritual crisis.

Myne White:

I tot I was the only one that read precociously (tells you about most of us feeling more special than we ought to eh? ) I am still a voracious reader but can't really compare to those heady days when I was a purveyor of novels, JHC with the boys and M&B with the girls. Hmmm, nice memories.

My thoughts on Euthanasia, If someone wants to die, allow them please. Let the doctors help them do it peacefully. If abortion is by choice (which I support by the way) I see no reason why others should be discriminated against and criminalised. And before you yell, charity begins at home. I don sign my own living will, DNR - Do not rescusitate me if I am quarter to go. I don dey save monet sef to go Switzerland when I ready to go meet God. And yes, I am going to heaven. Gba gbe.

LOL you speak your mind. But ehn charity begins at home. 

Which reminds me of my argument with an 'ignoramus' here on nairaland. These are my thoughts on poverty/lack of a privileged life vs opulence in Nigeria:

  I feel that many poor people especially Nigerians tend to resent the rich, even those who acquired theirs in a legal manner. Granted, one should be frustrated with the financial state of things in Nigeria. This state can be mostly attributed to the corrupt government. Kidnapping seems to be the status quo now. Like I'll always say, "show me one affluent Nigerian and I'll show you a thousand poor relatives of that person". Is it now fair for hard workers such as lawyers, doctors, engineers, pilots, etc to be victims of kidnap and extortion due to the fact that they were fortunate?". Fine. many people work hard but not everyone is lucky enough to make it in Nigeria. Take the Pete Edochie kidnap case into consideration. Yes, he paid them #10m but that still doesn't solve the problem. That money cannot save all the under-privileged in Nigeria.
   Before the less fortunate are quick to castigate the rich as 'selfish and greedy', also remember that the rich also have poor family members. It's not rocket science. And yes, charity does begin at home. If you're going to kidnap, do focus on the politicians especially the ones extorting the country's economy. It might sound funny that I'm encouraging kidnapping but limiting it to politicians. Yes, since the world we live in leaves us with very few choices, you might as well carry out necessary actions with the actual perpetrators in mind not just any well-to-do person. Pheww, I can't put this in a more concise manner for folks to understand. It really bothers me because I do have family back in Nigeria and anybody who knows my family history would know how hard my family has worked from the beginning of time. Now, I do have wealthy family back home who literally worked their butt off to get to the stage they're currently in, should my little cousins now be kidnapped because their father is wealthy? I don't think so. That leaves people with no option other than to move their families abroad and contrary to popular belief, life abroad is not the best. In a twinkling of an eye, Nigeria would constitute of foreigners rather than its indigenous people. I want to be a hero for my country but I'm nothing but a teenager. Time would tell.

@ Myne White: LOL,I'm digging u on dt one,dere's lotsa debate on dose 2 topics.I support d issue of euthanasia in dt I rily think if I was gon' die painfully of cancer in a month's time I'd prefer 2 die less painfully frm a sleeping pill OD 2day,n it's also unfair 2 let s'mun exist on a life support machine for years,neither alive or dead,jst existing in between,especially if d family members don't hav d finances 2 sustain it.However one would hav 2 consider d ethics involved,lyk should a human be allowed 2 dictate whether another human lives or dies,n how are we sure d medical personnel involved dn't hav sumfin 2 gain from d death of deir patients(e.g:MJ's doctor,remember Sidney Sheldon's 'Nothing Lasts Forever),2 other things we hav 2 take in2 consideration are d human factors of hope n faith,we keep hoping dt sumfin might happen;maybe if we prayed harder d cancer might disappear,maybe if we waited till 2moro d patient on LS might wake up, d never dying human optimism. As 4 abortion,I could write a whole 'essay' on dt,so I'l kip it 4 anoda day.Some books lyk John Irving's 'The Cider House Rules'(has anyun read it?) rily got me seeing d abortion issue in a different light from how my Xtian faith would have me see it sha,if U ven't read I'l recommend it. Wat happens in Switzerland? Is Euthanasia legal dere?

@ Chiogo:So we'r on d same 'spiritual crisis' boat, hmm. 4 a runaway Naija girl u speak prity gud almost-pidgin,LIMM.So ur uncle is rich,abeg gimme him address mke I go kidnap am small,I no go ask 4 2 much ransom,jst enuff 2 survive on.I'm loving d thoughts,kip bringing'em on.

@ Everyone: Wat's ur opinion on evolution? D'u think d earth resulted from some atomic explosion and we all evolved from some one-celled piece of slime? Air ur thoughts,I'd lov 2 see em.

LOL you're not serious, he's not even in naija now so too bad. what does LIMM stand for?

I thought this thread was dead 'cause nobody was sharing. I'll be back with more thoughts.

Hehe, Evolution. . .Well, I do believe in the whole fossil thing in Gibraltar but I'm also very religious, sometimes I don't think things just came into place outta absolutely nowhere. umm, kinda doesn't make sense so yeah, I don't believe the big bang theory.

@ Chi: Dn't mynd me,I'v been very busy of late.I'm d oldest at home ryt now so after goin 2 d library 2 read I stil cme bk home 2 take care of my siblings,cookin n stuff(my sister even got me 2 bake a cake. . .eww) LIMM means Laughing In My Mind,friend of mine coined it n I'm spreading it,so be sure 2 use it next time. I'm with U on dt evolution thang,I believe in some of it,but d big bang theory?. . .nah.Hw's ur packing up 4 leaving home goin? Dn't 4get 2 pack sumfin 4 ur 'deviant' tendencies,LIMM.

P.S: Why ur uncle come run? Na wa 4 d man O,him no wan drop sumfin 4 'boys'.

ravenzord:

@ Chi: Dn't mynd me,I'v been very busy of late.I'm d oldest at home ryt now so after goin 2 d library 2 read I stil cme bk home 2 take care of my siblings,cookin n stuff(my sister even got me 2 bake a cake. . .eww)

Aww, how cute!!!  I wish my brother would bake me a cake. LIMM.

ravenzord:

Hw's your packing up 4 leaving home goin? Dn't 4get 2 pack sumfin 4 your 'deviant' tendencies,LIMM.

P.S: Why your uncle come run? Na wa 4 d man O,him no wan drop sumfin 4 'boys'.

The packing is going good, I guess. Could be confusing too, not knowing what you really need. I feel like taking everything I have at home with me. haha.
deviant tendencies? I dunno about that 

Cute? Believe me dere's nuffin cute bout how my arm's feeling ryt nw,next tym she wants 2 bake she'l just ve 2 buy a mixer.
U might as well pack evrytin. . .as long as u hav d space in which 2 kip'em,n d strength with which 2 carry'em,dn't mind me on d deviant tendencies st8ment,jst makin a joke off one of our earlier conversations.
BTW,dis means dere's no gap year 4 U ryt? Hmm. . .

what's a gap year? forgive my ignorance.

Gap year: D year most folks spend at home after leavin high skool n b4 gettin in2 d uni. But I rmember U sayin sumn bout Prom abt 2 months ago,so dt means dere's no gap year 4 U,dig?

Oh yeah, definitely no gap year. I need to get medicine over and done with as soon as possible and do other things. lol

And I don't know how the prom thing goes in naija but over here, it's done before graduation for the most part. Mine was in May.

So, what do you guys think about teenage drinking and parents talking to their kids about it?

Teenage drinking? Well as a young person I'm nt averse 2 teenage drinking,I personally took my 1st beer at d age of 11 n slept thru dt day n d next.Most teens start drinking nt cos dey rily like it but cos dey dn't wanna be seen as being uncool,no thanks 2 all d pressure we get frm TV.D only problem with it is dat most tyms dey get carried away with d drinkin n don't stop til dey get wasted,n it's situations lyk dese dt make parents freak out.As a Dad I wouldn't lyk 2 see my son or daughter plasterd out on d floor,puke next 2 his head,nd 2 forestall dis I'd ban'em frm drinkin at all. I think it's all a question of trust in ur kid's self control sha. Wasap,U n ur parents havin shakking restriction prblms?

Haha, it's just this thing with most naija parents. They think they know EVERYTHING about their kids even the ones who don't spend much time around the supposed kids. And they assume that their kids don't drink or engage in similar stuff. Hence, most of them feel there's no need to talk about it with their children because their 'children don't drink'. It's the same thing with sex education.

I think that's ignorant. Your child may be 'conservative' yadi yada but issues like these should still be discussed between parents and children. I personally am not intrigued by alcohol, definitely not my thing. But I would feel weird if my parents felt that there was no need to discuss it before going to college(my college is known as a 'party school' too), it's sort of belittling to assume that I don't think of it because drinking is part of life, right? haha, I sound crazy now. No, the funny thing is that some of these parents actually drink themselves(wine, etc) or maybe naija people have a different definition to 'drinking'. Or aren't people supposed to learn from their parents?

First beer at 11, na wa for you.

Ur college's known as a party school? Hmm. . .nice,what's d name? I took my 1st beer at 11 cos I went 2 a federal skool,was a boarder,n had dis really bad guy as a schoolfather,so it's really nt my fault. I'm nt dt big a fan of alcohol either,but I'v bin known 2 go on drinkin binges 2 celebr8 stuff,my bad.I'l be back very soon with sum of my thoughts,lemme see if I can marshal'em first.

Ur college's known as a party school? Hmm. . .nice,what's d name? I took my 1st beer at 11 cos I went 2 a federal skool,was a boarder,n had dis really bad guy as a schoolfather,so it's really nt my fault. I'm nt dt big a fan of alcohol either,but I'v bin known 2 go on drinkin binges 2 celebr8 stuff,my bad.I'l be back very soon with sum of my thoughts,lemme see if I can marshal'em first.

LOL say no to spamming.

Umm, it's a state school(University of Massachusetts, amherst) dunno if you're familiar with it. But do you know what binging does to you?? I'm so serious, ya better quit it. I do drink wine - sparkling cider mostly, bailey's (yummy) to celebrate stuff too. My mom even let me drink some nasty red wine on my graduation. eww. I forgot the name lol.