Nice Linus

CASHLESS POLICY: NEW MONEY SAGA (part1)

Sometimes I envy trees; living for so long with no worries.

Heavy is the heart that muses and grave are the circumstances. According to “The Wanderer”, 'man is fleeting , maid is fleeting'. Please, let's also add that 'government is fleeting' and 'naira is fleeting'. So it seems to me because when something does not serve the purpose for which it exists or was created, it becomes useless, as though it is non-existent.

Ours is a nation where out of the blues our sun can decide to rise from the West and set in the east. One thing begets another and we discover that things are falling apart. Surely, we won't cry at the remembrance of the 'happy new year' we chanted on the 1st of January and the next few days that followed, neither will we bemoan the gate of the chickens whose lives went for it because it doesn't matter now. What of the 'wishing you a prosperous new year' we received and said to people? We'll keep them for better days ahead.

We love to live in the moment, it's just that over here, one moment, things could be fine and in the next, the situation gets wesser. if you are not prepared in the least for the change, you could lose your balance.

Towards the end of 2022, it was fuel scarcity. Motorcycles, tricycles and cars lined the roads waiting for their turns to get fuel. Fights erupted many times. Perhaps it was so frequent that many filling stations had to get soldiers to help them coordinate the sale of fuel. For many people the only way the issue of fuel scarcity came to be of concern to them was because of the resultant hike in cost of transportation and subsequently, inflation. Yet, all of it was still bearable.

#NigeriaDecides2023 #NewNairaNote #WeCantContinueLikeThis #Nice_Linus

CASHLESS POLICY: NEW MONEY SAGA (Part 2)

The new naira notes minted by the CBN were supposed to be in circulation by December 2022. However, in a cosmopolitan city like Ibadan, ATMs didn't stop dispensing old naira notes until about seven days to the deadline, January 31st.

Usually, people would have been waiting at ATM stands as early as 6am. By the time the average person comes around, the queue would be so long that one could collapse while standing and waiting for their turn. Many times, ATMs run out of cash as well. I can recall that there was a whole weekend when no ATM in my environment was dispensing cash. They were either out of service, temporarily unable to dispense cash or something else.

Naturally, people turned to the POS operators in relief. Just as in wartimes, however, these business men and women wouldn't render their services for peanuts. As the tension increased, so did their charges. At a time, they charged one hundred naira on the new design of one thousand naira note. Later on, right after the deadline was extended when both old notes and new notes became scarce, people didn't mind paying two hundred naira to get the old design of the one thousand note.

The rate at which the pressure rose was alarming. Every new dawn broke out with a different level of uncertainty. Without doubt, many passed their days in weariness, the kind that weighs heavily on the soul. Banks were always crowded and their gates were usually locked. People would stand outside these gates under the scorching sun for hours. Network service was terrible and customer care agents are always busy. Not only was withdrawing money a problem, transfers often went wrong. In this case, the party transferring money could be debited though the transfer was unsuccessful.

People soon began to protest and riot. Both public and private properties were vandalized. Banks were set on fire. Roads were blocked and this affected both transportation and trading.

Lives of people have been put at risk. We've faced starvation, insecurity, penury, backwardness, depression, emotional and psychological turmoil. Individuals were stranded. Families were stranded. Businesses have suffered regression. We've spent money to get back our money. We had fought back in anger, desperation and frustration. I have one word for us all.

Fight. Keep fighting. Only fight in the way that's legally acceptable and morally right. In this struggle for peace, we'll all have to be brave and strong. It might take time but we will win against corruption. One day, our dream of having a better nation will come to pass. God bless Nigeria!

#NigeriaDecides2023 #NewNairaNotes #GodBlessNigeria #Nice_Linus

WHERE MAD MEN ROAM THE STREETS

Change is constant. It may come in different variations, yet, this phenomenon is without doubt, a constant, just like time. Days, weeks and months come with varying weather conditions and seasons.

Atmospheric conditions differ from one environment to the other. The sky may be blue in one place and black in another. Even in that community where the sky is bright and blue, it could be fogy from someone else's sight. Here, the day after Sunday is Monday. In some other place, it could be Tuesday, Friday or no day at all!

There is the cosmos. In the cosmos, different worlds also exist. On a normal day, these different worlds should be interdependent and coexistent. However, where nuts go lose and no one is found to tighten them up in their right places, they eventually rot.

One good luck that comes with lunacy is blindness to reality. Mad men live in a world of their own. Mad men never know they are mad. In fact, they regard the sane person as the abnormal one. They could casually discard things they used to cherish. They could also forget people they loved. Similarly, things that used to matter would not matter anymore.

Mad men know no promise. Mad men do not understand the sanctity behind oaths, neither are they bound by them. Mad men do not understand development. Only what is right in that world in their head feels right to them.

Mad men have a different definition for many things. Justice could mean 'just us'. Freedom could mean doom. Stability could mean oppression. Violence could mean peace to them. They could mistake the oppressor for the oppressed.

Insanity can come in varying degrees. It could be partial or total. It affects various classes of people, both the rich and the poor, the ruler and the ruled, proletariat and bourgeois. Yet, insanity is insanity. It is characterized by blindness to reason.

In a world where mad people are allowed to roam the streets in their numbers, you could end up trying to differentiate between the sane man and the insane man. Worse would be the case when people who claim to be sane make people who turn out to be insane their leaders.

The good news is that insanity could be treated. In this case, the treatment would start from the mind. One's mindset should be positive and objective. Sentiments and prejudices should be sieved when making decisions.

#NigeriaDecides2023

CASHLESS POLICY: NEW MONEY SAGA (part1)

Sometimes I envy trees; living for so long with no worries.

Heavy is the heart that muses and grave are the circumstances. According to”The Wanderer”, 'man is fleeting , maid s fleeting'. Please, let's also add that 'government is fleeting' and 'naira is fleeting'. So it seems to me because when something does not serve the purpose for which it exists or was created, it becomes useless, as though it is non-existent.

Ours is a nation where out of the blues our sun can decide to rise from the West and set in the east. One thing begets another and we discover that things are falling apart. Surely, we won't cry at the remembrance of the 'happy new year' we chanted on the 1st of January and the next few days that followed, neither will we bemoan the gate of the chickens whose lives went for it because I doesn't matter now. What of the 'wishing you a prosperous new year' we received and said to people? We'll keep them for better days ahead.

We love to live in the moment, it's just that over here, one moment, things could be fine and in the next, the situation gets wesser. if you are not prepared in the least for the change, you could lose your balance.

Towards the end of 2022, it was fuel scarcity. Motorcycles, tricycles and cars lined the roads waiting for their turns to get fuel. Fights erupted many times. Perhaps it was so frequent that many filling stations had to get soldiers to help them coordinate the sale of fuel. For many people the only way the issue of fuel scarcity came to be of concern to them was because of the resultant hike in cost of transportation and subsequently, inflation. Yet, all of it was still bearable.

#NigeriaDecides2023 #WeCantContinueLikeThis #NewNairaNotes

THE TIDES OF YULE

Nature's full breeze Sweeps the chill in with ease As the birds raise that tune Which to despondence is immune.

I perceive, from the pier, A finger shooting out from the rear Alas! It's my true love I see With a patridge in a pear tree!

Waves of the blue Travel back and forth As the sky assume its hue Since merry quiescence is due!

Tides of yule have sprung out With all its foam and fuss Roaring and roving in bliss Through our heart.

Boom! Bang! Bang! Smiles. It's a banger, Not a bomb!

The eerie whoosh of the wind Breeze away our balloons Up to the lift and down again Before the... Boom!

We'll wine and dine With no wistful thinking, We'll dress pretty and dance, We'll pray and play.

Merry Christmas fellas♥️✨.

#Christmas #yuletide

Why Do I Feel Caged?

Sometimes in recent past,

My heart often belts out,

Rich, booming and vibrant,

The song of freedom and certainty.

I want to happen to life

But along the way,

Life makes my hay

And we happen to each other.

When he takes my peace to tangle

And does my strength wangle,

I hope my grit mangles

My gentled self from his mess.

And now I ask myself,

What's up with the face?

Why do I feel caged

Seeing that the clouds of trial loom?

#IHappenToLife

#BePositive

#Grit

THAT LITTLE GIRL FROM EIGHT YEARS AGO(part 1) Rose couldn't stomach it. The young girl before her was right, yet she looked petite, like a four year old. Her hair was cut so low that they were barely noticeable and the frontline was so acutely shaped that it accentuated the roundness of her face. The kind of confidence she exuded was one which Rose dared not call childish. Her fairly big and round eyes shone with expectation as she gestured to a big pair of red Tiger batteries. “We don't use big batteries,” Rose replied in her mother's place. Her lips, dried and broken as a result of the harmattan, curved into a warm smile. Her teeth were distortedly arranged but Rose thought her smile was cute. “What of this?” She touched the small Tiger batteries. Rose's mother laughed. “I already bought Festos biscuits from your mother. So you want me to buy batteries from you as well?” The girl smiled again. It was the pure tender smile of a child. For a few seconds, she stayed put. “Mum, I need new batteries for my torch. I want to read this night,” Rose whined. “Okay. We'll buy one pack,” her mother concluded. Afterwards, Rose helped place the tray of batteries on the girl's head. Day in, day out, Rose kept seeing the girl plod through the street in which her mother's shop was situated. Often, she would stop by and exchange pleasantries with Rose. They would share small talks and laughs. It would all end with a goodbye wave.

#thegirlchild

DARE TO BE YOU! The eagle stands out by simply being himself. Don't try to copy what's trending or what's in vogue. Don't let your motivation revolve around 'feeling among'. No, you don't have to 'feel among' to really be among. Whether you like it or not, you're among already. You're in that environment amongst those people! Don't feel inferior.

Imagine the room is dark and you have a torch. Will you switch it on or panic in the darkness? Don't let inferiority complex and peer pressure be the darkness that overpowers your light. You are born different. So dare to do things differently. Dare to stand out. Dare to be you!

#daretobeyou #NiceLinus

Just when different kinds of thoughts grope for my attention, I remember that I have to cater for my mental health. I think a lot. Yeah, who doesn't think anyway?

I'm in my own world and right here, I rule. Absentmindedness is a skill I've learnt to hone overtime. I call it a skill because you need to learn when its application is necessary and to what extent it is required. You spread negativity in the air, I enter my protective shell. You say hurtful words to me, I dust the lethal stains off. Yes, you're right; the poisonous arrows only scratched my shiny armour😄. You try to force your opinion on me, I jump out of the window like a burgglar😂. I mean, I literally switch off.

Trust me, my mind (and yours too) is like a computer. I can wipe, save, highlight (take note of), delete anything/any memory. Forgetfulness is golden. You don't have to remember everything. The biblical instruction to forgive and forget is very sensibly, profitable and practical. Forgiveness and forgetfulness helps you and your mental health.

So I'll go ahead and be like those traditional women whose mindset has been shaped by society to believe that fulfillment is found in the number of children you have. They'll have nine, twelve, fourteen kids even after their first experience of birth pangs because of forgetfulness, courage and strength combined. The same way, I'll give chance upon chance, keep relationships regardless of human imperfections and difference in perceptions. I'll throw the memory of the things you said and did that were way below my expectations in the trashcan of my mind provided your motive was not to break down but to build.

Love yourself today. Build the right relationships. Be positive. Take care of your mental health and remain patient.

#mentalhealth #positivity #buildingrelationships #NiceLinus

TRIBUTE TO GREAT TEACHERS

Which one is the best? Everyone is unique, Each with different virtues, Imparting knowledge to students, Indirectly contributing to the nation's economy.

I know of one who is willing to Lend a helping hand to others always, Who possesses an irresistible tongue, Thus becoming a role model Another is as gentle as a dove, Exercising patience towards the Academically weak and correcting the lazy Rome was not built in a day.

Another has great potential, Skillfully influencing others for the better He's not aggressive Action speaks louder than voice Everyone has weaknesses But a forest is made up of different trees.

Oh dearest teacher I hail You put in your best lest I fail! Here and there you strive For knowledge to impart Now and then, I resolve to reflect your impact To you, all dearest teachers I hail.

Happy teachers day.