Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Morenike Akinlawon in Rhode Island

Out Of Africa, Into Rhode Island

So here I am to introduce myself. How does one do that without sounding boastful or egotistical? What facts do you reveal? Do you lie a little to make the mundane seem extraordinary, or do you try to describe things as they are? My life has never been exciting, and the few times that I have had excitement in my life, one wouldn't hope or wish for. I'll settle for telling the truth and hope someone somewhere is interested or amused. My name is Monie. Well, actually, my name is Morenike, but you can call me Monie. I've lived in Rhode Island for the past eight years, and in West Africa -- Lagos Nigeria -- prior to that. I was born in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1978, to African parents who carted me back to Nigeria until I graduated high school. My parents sent me to the U.S. to attend college and "find myself" when I was 19. I have an older sister and recently found out that I have a six-year-old brother in Nigeria, fathered by my dad who, at 63 years old, felt the need to prove himself by having a male child. I have a five-year-old son, who, besides God, is the very light of my life. I have a fiancé who loves and accepts my son and me more than I thought possible, and a niece and nephew I adore. You could say I have a pretty normal family life.

I'm not an active person. I read, and when I'm not reading, I'm watching movies or writing online. I'm addicted to craigslist and have nine blogs on my favorites list. I scour the Web for news and know inconsequential, useless pieces of information that shouldn't matter to anyone. I watch Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Law & Order: SVU, which air on NBC and USA, but I boycott the episodes of Criminal Intent that don't feature Detectives Goren or Eames. My fiancé is a software engineer who brings his work home, so many a night we're both in the living room (he on his laptop and I on my PC) typing while we watch murder mysteries get solved on TV. Pretty boring, I assure you.

Sponsored
Sponsored

I discovered blogging last August, a month before I had surgery. In September, I had two rods and 14 screws fused to my curved spine to straighten out my scoliosis. I started blogging shortly before the surgery, because I wanted to document my journey, and I didn't know any other way. I've been hooked since. Because of work, I haven't had time to write as much as I'd like, but I constantly think of what I'd write about. On my way home from work, I sit in traffic and mentally note the events unfolding around me. Every chore or journey to the grocery store becomes an adventure to write about later. I find it relaxing and entertaining. Someday, before I get too old, I intend to write a book. What about? I have no clue. It's something I've wanted to do. I think it'd be pretty cool.

My best friend is Rondelle. I've known her since I arrived in the States in 1998. She is a year younger than me and is the only person -- besides my fiancé -- who "gets" me. She and I share a bond that has weathered fights, breakups, arguments, men, and births. She has three children who I've seen grow up through the years. My son calls Rondelle "Auntie" and does not have a memory of life without her and her family. She, like me, does not have a lot of family around, so we make do with each other.

This is my life. Well, most of it. It's not much, but it's good. I hope as I get older, it'll get better. It's uneventful, but I'll take uneventful and peaceful over exciting and chaotic any day. I'm grateful for who I am, what I have, and everything in between.

www.bentoutofshape.blogspot.com

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

SD Symphony singer tells what it’s like behind the scenes

Conductor Payare even looks like Mahler

Out Of Africa, Into Rhode Island

So here I am to introduce myself. How does one do that without sounding boastful or egotistical? What facts do you reveal? Do you lie a little to make the mundane seem extraordinary, or do you try to describe things as they are? My life has never been exciting, and the few times that I have had excitement in my life, one wouldn't hope or wish for. I'll settle for telling the truth and hope someone somewhere is interested or amused. My name is Monie. Well, actually, my name is Morenike, but you can call me Monie. I've lived in Rhode Island for the past eight years, and in West Africa -- Lagos Nigeria -- prior to that. I was born in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1978, to African parents who carted me back to Nigeria until I graduated high school. My parents sent me to the U.S. to attend college and "find myself" when I was 19. I have an older sister and recently found out that I have a six-year-old brother in Nigeria, fathered by my dad who, at 63 years old, felt the need to prove himself by having a male child. I have a five-year-old son, who, besides God, is the very light of my life. I have a fiancé who loves and accepts my son and me more than I thought possible, and a niece and nephew I adore. You could say I have a pretty normal family life.

I'm not an active person. I read, and when I'm not reading, I'm watching movies or writing online. I'm addicted to craigslist and have nine blogs on my favorites list. I scour the Web for news and know inconsequential, useless pieces of information that shouldn't matter to anyone. I watch Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Law & Order: SVU, which air on NBC and USA, but I boycott the episodes of Criminal Intent that don't feature Detectives Goren or Eames. My fiancé is a software engineer who brings his work home, so many a night we're both in the living room (he on his laptop and I on my PC) typing while we watch murder mysteries get solved on TV. Pretty boring, I assure you.

Sponsored
Sponsored

I discovered blogging last August, a month before I had surgery. In September, I had two rods and 14 screws fused to my curved spine to straighten out my scoliosis. I started blogging shortly before the surgery, because I wanted to document my journey, and I didn't know any other way. I've been hooked since. Because of work, I haven't had time to write as much as I'd like, but I constantly think of what I'd write about. On my way home from work, I sit in traffic and mentally note the events unfolding around me. Every chore or journey to the grocery store becomes an adventure to write about later. I find it relaxing and entertaining. Someday, before I get too old, I intend to write a book. What about? I have no clue. It's something I've wanted to do. I think it'd be pretty cool.

My best friend is Rondelle. I've known her since I arrived in the States in 1998. She is a year younger than me and is the only person -- besides my fiancé -- who "gets" me. She and I share a bond that has weathered fights, breakups, arguments, men, and births. She has three children who I've seen grow up through the years. My son calls Rondelle "Auntie" and does not have a memory of life without her and her family. She, like me, does not have a lot of family around, so we make do with each other.

This is my life. Well, most of it. It's not much, but it's good. I hope as I get older, it'll get better. It's uneventful, but I'll take uneventful and peaceful over exciting and chaotic any day. I'm grateful for who I am, what I have, and everything in between.

www.bentoutofshape.blogspot.com

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

O’side Tree Lighting & Gift Market, Holiday Lights at the Museum, The Elovaters and Little Stranger

Events December 5-December 6, 2024
Next Article

How to make a hit Christmas song

Feeling is key, but money helps too
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader