NATHANIEL BASSEY: "OLOWOGBOGBORO" BROKE AND STILL BREAKING RANKS

Have you ever wondered why it is so easy to promote evil or immorality, yet so difficult to share and promote morality and any good form of experiences or things, tangibles and intangibles?

For the past couple of weeks, I have been holding back not to write anything about the ‘’hallelujah challenge’’ by Nathaniel Bassey which trended so awesomely in a magical way all through the month of June.

Before you start getting it twisted, let me clear the air. First of all, I’m  not a member of Nathaniel Bassey’s family or a member  of his church  neither am  a personal friend of his or even a friend to his friend. It would also interest you to know that I didn’t even take part in the challenge until three days before it ended.

And guess what? I wish took part in it all through the month and not just for three days .

Nevertheless, I didn’t miss out on the blessings of the month neither did I miss out on the blessings of the midnight praise because I was involved in my own daily/nightly prayers and praise sessions as organized by my local church. Yes! I am a Christian. Just in case you didn’t know.

So the month of June was indeed a month of daily mighty praise of God from millions of people across the globe. Believe it or not, many testified and are still testifying about the wonders  that came out of all the praise challenge(s.)

Now with that out of the way, dear reader, let’s move on.

Every move of God normally moves people forward and I believe that just concluded hallelujah challenge and all other challenges of night praise, prayer and worship which no doubts were moves of God moved a lot of people, individuals, families and businesses forward.

And so it was disheartening to see posts and comments on the posts on social media from individuals including Christians who were condemning the hallelujah challenge by Nathaniel Bassey claiming it was just a strategic PR for his next album or song. Phew! How condescending can people get when they see good things. When a few of these negative posts and comments were attacked by those who saw it as “uncalled for” the posters and communicators of course quickly moved to try in defending themselves.

That’s by the way though, even though it was what gave rise to this write up.

After seeing such comments the one thing I could ‘deduce’ from all such comments was sheer “envy”.

Yes I say envy or else how can you  find it so easy to ‘okay ’ programs and reality shows that promote all kinds of immorality including sex and nudity but shout when people spend their data praising God for just one hour or more every night for just a month? Yet we complain about how decayed the society has now become; including  politicians stealing public funds on a daily basis while robbers, kidnappers and ritualists are carrying out their activities all around the place at their various levels unperturbed, not leaving out the rapists, perverts and peadophites whose victims are also getting on high by the day.

So it’s okay when 90% of men go online on a daily basis to watch pornography for hours on social media and data is used for all these.

Some “enjoyers” of the bad news are quick to Google on the latest couples who are breaking up, who is cheating on their spouses, how one person was disgraced or who was rich and now broke and many more.

People or should I resound that “man” is naturally wicked and that it takes a lot of discipline to push down and suppress the spirit of envy and thereafter wish good for others?

Alas! It’s not always so with many individuals as the quest for always wanting to remain ahead of a friend or next person, seeks for ways to continuously put down every one of perceived their “competitor”.

Why am I not surprised at the negative remarks from many especially the co-Christians?

Imagine a Pastor or Christian artist/minister who’s been in the ministry for a couple of “donkey” years and yet still struggling, only for this “small boy” or “rookie” Nathaniel Bassey to come from "nowhere" and take all the “shine” with a small idea as “Halleluyah Challenge”. Kai! What a “whipping”!! I can only imagine how many of the “bad belles” bit and are still biting their fingers with expressions and thoughts such as “if only I had thought of this strategy and acted upon it earlier”.

Well deal with it dear, move on, join the challenge next time, ask God for your own “one small idea” and be rest assured that without any grudges against those whose bread have been “buttered”, your own bread will also be “buttered”. Just be patient and think positive.

Enough said already and you may be wondering why I’m just writing about that “Halleluyah challenge” when it’s been many weeks over. Yes it’s because many are still talking about it and testimonies are still coming out.

When next any such praise challenges come up, I will take full part in it even as I know millions of participants from across the world are gearing up for the next challenge. Nathaniel Bassey broke ranks with his Halleluyah challenge and it was a good ‘rank breaking’ let others follow in his step perhaps it could become a leeway in sanitizing what we do on social media with our data.

Carry on Nathaniel Bassey and by the way ‘Olowogbogboro’ is really trending already and of course, Gods culture is on the verge of taking over ‘pop culture’.

Olowogbogboro is truly turning things around!

STELLA ENE-INYANG

SEX EDUCATOR -"USE VOCALIZATION TO TEACH YOUR PARTNER WHAT FEELS GOOD BUT DON’T FAKE IT"

I was going through a story that was recently updated online which was originally published on CNN.com in 2012 and I found it interesting so thought I should share with you my dear reader hoping that it makes a good read for you and others.

You rarely come across topics such as this on a daily basis but when you do see it on a page such as ‘yours sincerely’ trust that it would make a good read any day.

Given the topic of discussion, the article states that for many people, all you have to do is watch nearly any depiction of female orgasm on screen to get an idea of how a woman is "supposed" to react during sex.

From "When Harry Met Sally" to "Sex and the City" to your basic porn film, women in the throes of passion aren't just shouting their ecstasy from the rooftops, they're moaning with pleasure. Loudly.

But is this just cinematic license, or is there really something to noisy sex?

Experts wondered the same thing. In 2011, Gayle Brewer of the University of Central Lancashire and Colin Hendrie of the University of Leeds published their research on the topic -- technically known as "copulatory vocalization" -- in the Archives of Sexual Behavior. In the study, they asked 71 sexually active heterosexual women between ages 18 and 48 for more details about vocalization during sex.

The researchers found that many of the women did make noise but not necessarily while they were having an orgasm. Instead, 66% said that they moaned to speed up their partner's climax, and 87% stated that they vocalized during sex to boost his self-esteem.

"While female orgasms were most commonly experienced during foreplay, copulatory vocalizations were reported to be made most often before and simultaneously with male ejaculation," the researchers wrote. Women also reported making noise to relieve 

boredom, fatigue and pain/discomfort during sex.

So is female vocalization during sex just a performance for a guy's benefit? (After all, Meg Ryan's over-the-top moans were meant to prove a point to "Harry" that men are easily duped by a fake orgasm.)

"There isn't a lot of research in this area," said Kristen Mark, a sexuality researcher at Indiana University, "but we're bombarded with images through mainstream media that tell us moaning is associated with orgasm and sexual pleasure. So it would be a fairly wise faking strategy to moan since men already tend to associate moaning with orgasm."

Of course, there's nothing smart about faking it.

"If you're faking an orgasm, you are signaling to your partner that he is doing everything right, when in fact he isn't," sex educator and author Patty Brisben said. "Use moaning as a way of signaling that you are excited and things really are feeling good, not as a way to hide that they aren't."

Fake or not, women aren't the only primates who vocalize during sex. Research in the animal kingdom reveals that female baboons, for example, have a variety of copulation calls, which appear to relate to their fertility. The vocalizations tend to become more complex when the females are closer to ovulation and vary when a female is mating with a higher-ranked male baboon. Female macaque monkeys give a shout to help trigger their mates' orgasm, too.

Performances and primatologists aside, vocalizing during sex can actually be a great tool to help women get what they want in bed.

Brisben added that on the topic of talking about sex, it isn't always easy to translate sexual thought into action, so a little strategic moaning can definitely help get the point across.

"Women are learning to take responsibility for their own sexual needs and wants in the bedroom," Brisben explained. "We need to take this one step further and give ourselves permission to become teachers. Use vocalization to teach your partner what feels good. It can help you say, 'stop, go, yes, more please,' without sounding like a traffic cop."

And when it comes to noise, "partner benefit isn't the only piece of the puzzle," Mark said. "Perhaps making noise turns some women on and helps them experience pleasure."

Brisben concurred: "I think there are many women who need to be vocal to help themselves achieve orgasm. It helps move them and their orgasm along. There are certainly phases. As a woman gets into it, she may become extremely vocal and then move into a period of quiet as she is on the verge."

So do what feels right to you. Any other benefits are just a great bonus. And when it comes to "copulatory vocalization," perhaps men should take a lesson from the ladies.

"Women understand that moaning is a turn-on for guys, and many women ultimately enjoy it because they've made an effort to push a little beyond what comes naturally," said Logan Levkoff, a sex educator and author of a guide for men entitled "How To Get Your Wife to Have Sex With You."

"But sexual self-esteem is a two-way street, and, for their part during sex, guys should aim for more than a single grunt at the end. It's not about faking or doing something you don't want to, but more about being sexually present and in sync with each other."

So let's all make some noise.

A CASE OF BAD BUSINESS GONE WORSE, BEGGING THE QUESTION "IS NIGERIA THEIR GRAVEYARDS"?

Many people are aware that HIV/AIDS is still a deadly disease even with the availability of medications for suppressing and keeping it at bay in patients when detected early even though a few other people still play games or gamble with their lives when it comes to playing safe. Apart from those who by virtue of mistakes, not on their part but got infested from visiting places such as saloons where needles for hair are most times shared or by using unsterilised items during pampering such as pedicures and manicures as well as wrongfully transfusing untested blood to patients by some doctors and nurses in hospitals thereby creating more problems for the patient in the times ahead, there are still some others who have thrown caution to the winds while indulging in certain practices including illicit sex, drugs and the ilk’s.

I saw a report recently on BBC where Vanessa Roberts was having a chat with one Victoria Derbyshire who was said to have being diagnosed with HIV in 2014 after living with the virus unknowingly for more than 30 years which was after I had read on the same report that in the UK, people with HIV are being diagnosed late because hospitals and GP practices in England and Scotland are ignoring guidelines and failing to carry out HIV checks. I thought it was just an African practice!

I was still in total shock and amazement over the news of Victoria living with HIV unknowingly for 30 years when I stumbled on a report by the Nigerian Vanguard a while ago.

According to the report, James Turner, a 67-year-old Irish national based in Nigeria knowing he was HIV positive confessed to have slept with no fewer than six other ladies having being accused by his 31-year-old Nigerian girlfriend, a Benue state-born lady who stumbled on Turners’ anti-retroviral drugs which he had been taking secretly for a couple of months, of deliberately infecting her with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, HIV having dated him for about eight years.

One of the shocking twists to the story was that Turner also confessed that when his status was confirmed, in other not to infect his wife with the virus, sent his wife back to the Republic of Ireland. Talk about love for the innocent woman!

Shamefully, though not shocking, as it happens even with some supposedly responsible persons, it was gathered, during interrogation that among the girls the suspect had slept with was his girlfriend’s friend. The concerned ladies, it was gathered, were all commercial sex workers. Talk about a bad business, gone worse!

However, unconfirmed reports say he had slept with more than six ladies. His girlfriend, identified simply as Helen, reported Turner to the police last Friday, after the latter reneged on his promise to settle the former with N2.5 million. In these times? No wonder the guy reneged, because we all know that with the way the economy is at the moment, even the greatest form of acrobatics of sex in bed would not earn a hawker, one million naira, just like that.

According to the aggrieved prostitute and lover, she narrated that “When we got to Liester Hospital, Ikeja, they ran some tests on him because he was sweating and also running temperature. The doctor gave him drugs for malaria. “At that hospital, if one is sick and has such high temperature, they will run a HIV test on the person without his knowledge. After running the test on him, the doctor invited us to his office and asked if he could talk to him in my presence, he said no, that I should wait outside. The doctor thereafter, broke the news to him.

“When we got home, he was quiet. He did not tell me anything. I realised that he was taking a particular medication, which he hid from me. “There was a time I even drove to the hospital to pick a brown envelop, which was sealed, for him. It was his medication, but I did not open it. “When I discovered that he kept hiding his medication from me, I asked him what kind of medicine he was taking and he told me that it was for malaria and typhoid. I did not say anything because I thought that the prescription was for a long period of time”.

“He continued taking it for about three to four months. So, one day I opened the medication and wrote out the name of the drug. Thereafter, I googled the name on my phone to know what type of medication it was, to my shock I discovered it was an anti-retroviral for HIV.  I went to meet Jim in the living room and asked why he was taking medication meant for people living with HIV and also asked if he was HIV positive, but he said no. “He told me that the doctor gave him the medication for his legs, which has caused him sleepless nights.”

Helen’s worst fear was confirmed during a visit to the doctor, who disclosed that her lover was HIV positive. To ascertain her status, the doctor also ran a test on her, where she was discovered to have been infected with HIV. According to her, “since the visit to the doctor with Jim (her pet name for Turner) his love-making with me increased as if he was madly in love with me.”

Turner, who refused to speak with journalists, however, insisted that Helen infected him with the virus. But during interrogation by policemen at the Ikeja Division, he stated that he had to send his wife back to Ireland on discovering that he was HIV positive, in order not to infect her with the virus. He also said that he slept with other ladies after his status was confirmed, right in his apartment. He also insisted that Helen infected him with the virus, pointing out that she might have contacted the virus from Kaduna State, where she spent some months to sell a property in 2013, same year he was confirmed to be HIV positive.

But when asked why he hid the anti-retroviral drugs from Helen, he kept mum. He was released on bail over the weekend, to enable him get treatment for an injury he sustained on one of his elbows, from which he was bleeding. Police, however, assured that measures had been put in place to prevent further infection of other ladies by the suspect.

Finally, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Dolapo Badmus, who confirmed the arrest, said: “We are waiting for expert’s opinion to conclude the charge against the suspect.”

Hmmm! After reading the entire story, I was reminded again that this is just another ‘Patrick Sawyer’ who knew he was already infected by Ebola but decided to still come to Nigeria, thereby infecting others.

The begging question now is, “Is Nigeria their grave yards?