Disaster Hair!

I went to the hairdressers yesterday for a new look. I'm currently transitioning (growing out my relaxed hair) and I wanted a natural hairstyle to compliment my new growth. I saw on a website that I could get kinky twists, corn rows and much more natural hairstyles from this particular hair salon in Wembley, London. I thought, okay, seeing as I got the info from an all natural website, and because everyone on the website had beautiful hair, surely I must be able to get a wicked hair style right? WRONG!

From the moment I made the phone call to the salon I should have known that something fishy was up! First of all the hairdresser wasn't in even at about 12pm. As soon as I laid my eyes on the said hairdresser I was taken aback. She was everything 'unnatural' and why I thought she would turn me into an afro queen is beyond me. She had bleached her skin so bad, that she had funny bumps on her face, she also had on a tacky blonde weave on that was no wear near neat, she also had fake extra long nails on her hands and her feet (not really the issue cos I've used 'wicked' hairdressers with long nails in the past). At that point I thought okay, breath in breath out, she might be a good hairdresser, and I had already taken off my fake ass weave because I was tired of looking fake; so my hair just had to be done. Also at that point it was already 1.30 pm and I had to be done in time to pick up my daughters from nursery. She washed my hair and then it came time to do my twists. LORD HAVE MERCY! I asked for some funky corn rows in front and she gave me an excuse of "If I canerow patterns it gon look too giappy giappy" I thought oh Jesus other people have patterns on their hair and they look fine with no gaps, shoot I braid my daughters' hair very beautifully (I've been braiding hair since I was 11 and why I didn't study hairdressing is beyond me, but that's another story). Anyway it took her 6.5 hrs to complete the disaster on my head (I'm used to 3.5 for the style she did), she tried to charge me more because she was too slow, but I bluntly refused, plus my mother had to travel 12 miles to pick up my daughters from nursery because I was too late (thanks mum, Love ya)!

You live and learn! I will never let her touch my head again. In case anyone is thinking of going there for natural hairstyles, DON'T! I cannot speak about her other relaxed styles cos I've never used her for that purpose. It's in Wembley and the initials are CE (first word cutting, you guess the rest). June, you are a nice lady, but messed up my hair you did!

Please feast your eyes on the monstrousity she created on my head below.

Go Christina!

Yay Christina has won for team GB!
Yes Christina Ohuruogu has won gold in the 400m race! Yippee!
I'm not really a sports fan and I just happened to be watching the telly at the time of the race. She didn't know what to say and she was in shock at her win, but her smile was never ending, she was obviously elated.
To be honest, as long as she was a sistah, I would have been happy with the results. I am especially happy because she is of Nigerian descent, just like me.

A Prayer to God

Help me Lord
Help me get through this day
Give me the strength
The courage to overcome, come what may
Too many struggles
Too many perils
Too many worries
Too many flurries
Okay just added flurries cos it rhymes
But really I'm justified to
Cos sometimes I feel there's a gust of wind all around me
Rapid bustling commotions
That sometimes mess with my emotions
Leaves me feeling:
'Lord not today
I need some healing
Need to end this today
Or I may combust, explode, ERUPT'

Calm descends and I try to think rationally
Start to meditate on my homily
You are there for me
You will not give me what I can't take
It's okay
May not be so today
But will be very soon
Soon and very soon
There will be no more doom
That light I see at the end of the tunnel
Is not so far, just a finger tip away
Help me Lord
Help me get through this day
Give me the strength
The courage to overcome, come what may
Thank You Lord,
Amen

I need a new job....FOR REAL!

I am fed up of my job. I work as an Accounts Assistant in a pharmaceutical company and at first I loved it. I was happy to have a full time job (why the heck I don't know. I thought I was missing out on something by not having a job - I had and still have a man who took good care of us). I was happy in my job until a new Management Accountant was employed. He was a young intelligent dude, and we got on like a house on fire. That was until the authority given to him got to his head!

He made certain errors on the accounting system and tried to blame both myself and my other colleague. He would tell our Finance Director that he had told me to do certain things, which I had left undone, but the problem with that is that he never gave me any instructions - he may have forgotten to but instead of admitting his mistake and moving on he decided to blame me for it. Once he sent me a rather rude email asking me why I had posted some transactions into a particular account even after he had told me not to. The idiot cc'd the Finance Director and my other colleague. I was like 'hold up dude, say what?' I could not believe that firstly he could tell me this via email - the dude sits RIGHT NEXT TO ME - and secondly why he had to cc. the Finance Director. I was incensed! I replied him via email and cc'd the relevant parties and told him at no point had he ever given me those instructions, but his point had been taken for future postings.
Soon after that happened, I came into work late for the second time in four months, and when I mean late I mean I was late by four minutes. The Managing Director told my FD to reprimand me for coming in late and made a big hoohah over nothing in my opinion. That happened about three months ago, and since then it seems like 'they' (all of the above) are constantly finding faults with my work! They try and find faults with everything - I went on an approved holiday two weeks ago and I came back to hear that the MD had a word with the FD and wanted to know why I had gone on holiday without informing members of my team. WHAT ON EARTH IS THAT ALL ABOUT...??! The FD had signed my holiday form two months prior to the date and I had informed several people in the company that I was taking my beautiful kids to Disneyland Paris.
When I know I'm right, I always try to get the last word. A lot of the time with those people at work I get my point across and prove that I was right in the first place, but why should I have to do that?
I have come to the realisation (yes I know, silly me, finally) that I need to put my family first. Don't get me wrong, I always do that, but my putting up with a lot of rubbish from some people for a bit of change, and spending very little time with my young children has got to change! I am searching for a new part time job now because my children are growing up rapidly it seems, and I need to spend quality time with them. A lot of things in my life are suffering and it's not worth it!

Oh yeah, the dude hates the 'establishment' now. Why? He asked for a pay rise but was denied. He does a lot of work but FD takes all the credit. Who's side is he on now? LOL

RIP Bernie Mac - 1957 - 2008

I cannot believe it and words cannot express how sad I am at the passing away of Bernie Mac. He was a great comedian whom I loved and I always commented on how great he looked for his age. Sadly I can comment no more on this because he is gone. Even my husband was quite shaken and upset at the passing away of a great black brother.
Bernie Mac began his career as a stand up comedian and was famous to us in the UK for his series The Bernie Mac Show. He was also well known for his collaboration with Cedric the entertainer, D. J. Hughley, and Steve Harvey as the Original Kings of Comedy. That stand up had me in stitches and told me almost all I needed to know about his sister's kids. Bernie Mac appeared in several movies including Friday, Mr 3000, Ocean's Eleven and the sequels, Charlie's angels : full throttle, and many more.
Bernie Mac was nominated for and won several NAACP awards for 'Outstanding Actor in a comedy series'.
There's not much to say other than he will be greatly missed and there are not many like him. I'm sure those who were close to him will have a lot more to say. My heart goes out to his wife Rhonda, daughter Je'Niece, her husband and daughter, who I'm sure will miss him terribly. Rest in peace Bernie Mac.

Thomas Sankara - The Upright Man (1949 - 1987)

What can I say about this once President of the former Upper Volta Region now known as Burkina Faso? I watched a documentary last night and all I can say is I was moved, disgusted, proud and angry all at the same time!

Captain Thomas Isidore Noel Sankara was the president of Burkina Faso from 1983 to 1987. He became leader through a coup d'etat masterminded by his good friend Blaise Compaore. Prior to this he led several posts in the former military government. Once as Secretary of state for Information (1981 - 1982) from which he resigned declaring "Misfortune to those who gag the people", and again in January 1983 as Prime Minister under the power of Major-Doctor Jean Baptiste Ouedraogo. He was dismissed from this post and placed under house arrest after a visit by the French president's son and African affairs adviser Jean Cristophe Mitterand.

After the said coup d'etat there were a lot of changes in Burkina Faso. Sankara saw himself as a revolutionary, and promoted the Democratic and Popular Revolution. This revolution was defined by Sankara as anti-imperialist. His policies included to fight against corruption, promote reforestation, avert famine, and make education and health real priorities. Under Sankara, priviledges given to local chiefs such as their right to receive tribute payment and obligatory labour, were abolished. Ridiculous priviledges given to government officials were scraped and everyone of them had to revert from Mercedes cars to the Renault 5 as their means of transportation. In Ougadougou, Sankara converted the army's store, into a state owned supermarket open to all.

He was the first and dare I say ONLY African president to truly acknowledge women and enlighten them to their God given equal rights. His government included a large number of women, banned female genital cutting, condemmed polygamy, and promoted contraception. His government was the first to recognise that AIDS is a major threat to Africa.

On October 15, 1987 Sankara was killed with twelve othe officials in yet another coup d'etat organised by his former colleague Compaore, rumoured to be on the order of the French. Deterioration in relations with neighbouring countries was one of the reasons given by Compaore for his action. Shamefully, Sankara was buried in a hurry, in an unmarked grave. A week prior to his death Sankara addresses people and said that "while revolutionaries as individuals can be murdered, you cannot kill ideas."

I was horrified to watch that. I don't know when Africans will stop being so selfish as to want to enrich themselves alone whilst excluding the rest of their people, especially when they have taken a position of power. Here was a man who was all for the enrichment and self sustainance of Africa, but his so called friend who I believe because of greed and jealousy, danced to the tune of the colonialists and betrayed his people. I don't believe the Burkinabe government under Sankara was perfect, but it was a move in the right direction. I watched as little children took pride in marches and parades; as women stayed at home on Womens' Day, whilst their men did the grocery shopping. I watched his speeches promoting African self reliance and the need for African countries to stop taking loans from the 'Developed' World, thus eliminating the need for Africa to dance to the tune of the West. Yes, he was strict and people were either for his government or against his government, with no in betweens, but if the system worked for the betterment of his people was that such a bad idea? I don't think so!
Africans are sell outs to their distant brothers, sisters and children and it's a pity. They are greedy and selfish. That is why they agreed to sell their people into slavery. And for what? Covetous, Evil Scoundrels, with whatever promises we are yet to see. Their rewards await them in their next life. I could go on and on about this dear subject which means a lot to me because I am an African woman (Nigerian to be precise), who is angry, sad, and silently grieving over the demise of Mother Africa. Lord knows I don't want to talk about what I feel about Nigerian leaders and their greed, corruption, and theft from their citizens. At least not in this instance.
I really hope God can overlook whatever wrongs this great man called Thomas Sankara may have committed in his life, or at least rewarded in death for the great things he achieved in his short life. May his soul rest in peace.

PS. God bless all those who have ever fought and are fighting against the injustices of the world, whatever their race.

Disneyland Paris, France and Black people!

I just came back from a week away in Disneyland Paris! It was a holiday for my children more than anything, but it was fun. It was good to get away from work and the pressures of a 9 to 5! Yes I said it, "pressures of a 9 to 5"! I have three beautiful young kids aged between 7 and 2 yrs old, and I don't spend time with them. I just work, work, work, get them ready for school and nursery the next day, and then work some more! I'm glad I took some time off to treat my kids. When it came time for me to go back to work, ie Sunday night, I stayed up till about 12 midnight, I don't know maybe I was trying to extend my last day of freedom, just that little bit more!
One thing I noticed (and have noticed on my previous trip to Paris) is that there are LOT of black people in relationships with white people! Not a big deal for many people, but I was quite shocked to see this. I thought, and still do to a certain extent, that France along with the rest of Europe is a racist country! I have heard terrible stories about Germany, Spain, Italy, and Russia, in terms of their treatment of black folk. A lot of the white people in those countries are very angry when they see successful black people driving fancy cars. In fact I 'suffered' first hand from a Spanish woman whilst on holiday. It was quite funny, and both my friends and I laughed in the bitch's face. She was in a PUBLIC jacuzzi in our hotel, and there was quite a bit of space in it, so being the carefree, bubbly, friendly black girls that we are, we dipped ourselves in the jacuzzi and didn't wait for it to be empty before doing so. The bitch didn't even let our skin touch the water for 1 second. She jumped out and gave us filthy ass looks. What did we care, we were bubbling up nicely! We were having fun with the Dutch white man, his Sri Lankan wife, and their two daughters who were already in the tub. We left the jacuzzi and she didn't let us leave for 30 seconds, and jumped right back in. What was soooooo funny was that almost immediately two black girls went in just after she did and the ugly cow jumped right out again. I call her an ugly cow because she was screwing her face so badly, she had turned whatever beauty she may have had into an ugly look! That was blatant racism, which is quite stupid really because we had already washed our bodies in the water, so whatever she was running away from must have rubbed off on her!
On the whole, the holiday was nice, not everyone was as small minded as the bitch and like I mentioned previously, there were a lot of inter-racial couples. Maybe it's just in Paris, and other villages may not be as integrated as that, but for now, I love Paris!

Beautiful Britney

Did any one see pictures of Britney Spears at the charity bash hosted by Jim Carrey? She looked amazing. She looked very healthy and not a strand of hair was out of place.

According to quotes, her recovery is down to her father Jamie, who cut her ties with her troublesome pals and also cut her boozing and binges. Her 'manager' has been served with a restraining order, and she is only allowed supervised visits with her British boyfriend Adnan Ghalib.



I am truly happy for Britney because i had thought we would have seen another tragic celebrity case here.

The charity bash was held a few days after her amicable custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline, which gives her more access to her two sons Sean Preston, and Jayden James.



I wish her all the best!





Photo from abcnews.go.com

Which Blog name?

The amount of time it took me to find a name for my blog is ridiculous! I've changed it and changed it again for three days now, it's unbelievable! I wanted a name that would reflect me but I didn't want one too childish, or over the top! I went from Afro-natural, because I wanted to talk about afro hair, to Afro-Tresses, for the same reason. I considered Afro-Kinky, but decided against it because it's not original enough, then decided to call it Afro-Sheen! OMG how cheesy (no offence intended). Not only is it cheesy, but it is also a name of an afro hair care product, so for sure, I had to drop that name quick sharp (that and my younger brother laughed at my choice of name :( ) In fact he suggested Afro-Dyte, which I converted to Afro-Dytee (extra e) simply because it rhymes with me; hence 'Just Me, Afro-Dytee' was born! It also allows me to express my feelings about EVERYTHING not just afro hair!

I'm sure this has been an interesting read for you (or maybe not, lol), but I thought I'd share!

Dylan Mills AKA Dizzee Rascal

Is it me or Dizzee Rascal just blowing up? I was a secret fan of Dizzee when he first burst in the scene with his grimy garage tunes. I was a fan of I Luv U, and Fix up, look sharp had a particularly catchy tune that I couldn't get out of my head. Over the years Dizzee has consistently dropped catchy tunes that get the crowd moving. My secret slowly started to come out when I heard Dream, the inspirational number, talking about his dreams of fame and "if you don't have a dream, how you gonna have a dream come true". Wise words I think for our generation of children turning to crime. If they have dreams, and work hard, surely they will achieve their goals. It's not going to be easy and they may not achieve the original goals they set out to achieve, but they will surely get something positive out of working hard for themselves and not expecting things to be dropped on their plate. I loved his video and the tune 'Flex', and do I even need to tell you about 'Dance Wiv Me'? That tune is wicked and very captivating. It's funky and fresh, and very UK! Oh and it makes u wanna dance! UK artists do not need to conform to the way US artists rap or sing, because variety is the spice of life! Our artists should be proud of their music and keep striving to get better at their game, just as Dizzee Rascal does I'm sure.

Before I digress too much, let me just say that in my opinion, Dizzee is a poet and maybe because UK music does not have as much promotion as US music, a lot of us don't take time to really listen to the words. Take the time to listen to Dance Wiv Me, Dizzee's latest single. featuring Calvin Harris and Chrome. The song mixes the usual Grime MC style of Dizzee Rascal with dance from Calvin Harris and RnB from Chrome. You can also watch the video on YouTube.

Now people I haven't quite got the hang of adding a YouTube video, but you can view his video by visiting this link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GibLntdLiJA. Happy viewing!

Afro kinky Guinea Pig!

I am transitioning people! For eight years I have been 'lyeing' to my hair by putting chemicals to it and straightening it. I used to have long, thick natural hair, and I also for a while had long, thick, relaxed, straight hair. But years of not looking after my hair and giving it the necessary treatments left me with dry, brittle hair!

For months I have contemplated growing my relaxed hair out, and setting my curls free. But I procrastinated, and kept relaxing my hair. Not so much because I wanted to conform, but because it was just so much easier to maintain, or so I thought. I have been browsing the Internet lately and I've seen that natural black hair needs moisture - opposite of what I was doing. I used to oil my scalp with petroleum based products and blow dry my hair on the dryer's hottest setting. I have seen that moisturising hair with good natural products, will nourish the hair and scalp, thus helping it grow to it's maximum capacity. I say i have seen, because I am yet to try out moisturising products. My hair is braided at the moment and because I am transitioning I guess I may keep it in braids for a while, that is until I find the best way to show off my hair without looking unkept. Can you imagine, bushy roots and straight tips? I don't think so!

Seriously though, I am willing to try any hair products, from home made concoctions, to rich, luxurious hair products; you know, the ones that make you go ooooo! lol If you need me to review any of your products, just send me an email to afrodytee@ymail.com. If you've got any advice on how I can take care of my natural hair, and make myself look gorgeous, send me an email. If you are a hairdresser in the UK (I live in North West London) who specializes in natural tresses, go on, send me an email, and maybe we can arrange it so you can 'fix up' my hair and make me look and feel good. Peace!

To sew or not to sew.....

Hey people! I am so new to this blog thing and I hope I don't bore you but here goes...

I was meant to start a dressmaking course today and I was looking forward to it. I woke up in a very good mood today by about 8.30 am and thought to myself  "in about an hour and a half, I'll be learning something about dressmaking and I'll be one step closer to creating my beautiful designs a la Gucci, Fendi et Prada". Okay maybe not to the extent of G, F et P, but you catch my drift. Did I get to go and learn how to use my new basic sewing machine which has been sitting in my garage for two months? NO! My darling husband decides to give me some much needed advice that I didn't want to hear at that time. He told me to wait till I have more spare time on my hands, because with three children aged seven, three and two, and a full time job, I may not get time to finish the classes, or even practice what I've been taught. I was FUMING!!! I thought 'why wait till an hour before the class to drop this on me?' Anyway I didn't go in the end. I was upset, but I realised that my life right now is a roller coaster and I need some decent spare time before I can begin to enjoy my sewing and dressmaking! 

If you are going through the same 'struggles' as I am, leave me your comments, so I know I am not the only one juggling a family and work, and who doesn't have time to do anything else!