tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26597570826297839502024-02-20T10:17:57.467+02:00Mwana Ba AfrikaA cure for my Nervous Condition. An ode to my beloved African Continent and its People. Global pop culture. Sports. Movies. Fashion. Music. Gender. Race. Youth. Self and Communal Empowerment. Technology. Nonsense. Anything insightful or otherwise that I think you will enjoy ;}Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.comBlogger271125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-57639516459493026472017-11-03T09:30:00.000+02:002017-11-03T09:30:13.828+02:00Overcoming Fear to Lead and Grow<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Fear. It’s one of those emotions that will always rear its ugly head, and to be fair it can be a paradoxically encouraging impetus. It’s fight or flight. It’s an indication of a deep insecurity or about really caring about what you are doing. The important thing is to identify whether what you feeling is a positive or negative force, that the consequences of acting upon or ignoring the fear will move you forward, hold you back or worse destroy what you have built.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">This year I have come to realise that I have been fighting mostly external fears trying to exert pressure and influence. This has affected how long it has taken to get to this point and has quite frankly razed a lot of what I accomplished in the last 2 years with my first documentary <a href="https://www.facebook.com/e18hteam" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">e18hteam</a>, affected both my professional and personal relationships, battered my self-esteem and has made me question everything. The good thing is that going through the process has allowed me to identify a few things which really crystallised after I went to the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/bongohive" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">BongoHive</a> Talk <em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Leading the Creative Spirit</em>.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">The talk moderated by <a href="https://twitter.com/RachelNAdams" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Rachel Adams</a>, founder of <a href="http://narachileadership.com/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Narachi Leadership</a>, and featuring leadership insight from <a href="https://twitter.com/Joseph_Hundah" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Joseph Hundah</a>, CEO of <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/econet-media" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Econet Media</a>, made me admit to some of the pitfalls I have succumbed to as I fought to retain my voice, values, principles and integrity. I have excused some of them when really I could have done better to avoid them. The experience, advice, lessons learnt and the leadership qualities, mechanisms and process imparted with the theory behind to further illuminate the ideas being shared, really helped reinforce things I have already been mindful of and am looking to and/or continue to improve. They also reinforced my belief that I do have something to offer, and this multimedia experiment reimaging African storytelling is my calling. I <span style="border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">can</span> be at the helm of the ship ZeDream Team and I are navigating through the stormy seas and we will find our treasure. And unlike pirates we’ll share with you because we care!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">These are the takeaways from this year of <a href="https://theaceproject.wordpress.com/2016/07/21/failing-is-ace/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">failure and perseverance</a>:</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">DON’T LET OTHER PEOPLE’S FEAR HOLD YOU BACK</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Don’t let other people’s fear thwart you. Many will tell you they know what you should do, give you unsolicited advice, try to sabotage your efforts, will poo poo your ideas and what you are doing to. They will do this hold you back, keep you under their thumb as they are scared it may affect what they are doing, that they are not needed or that they will be left behind and cast aside. Worse is some people may not realise their words and actions towards you are underhanded in this way. Do not let the fear of not adhering to their views and following their plans force you into submission if that is not the path you should be taking. The truth is there is no tried and true way to make the transition from success to the next thing. Especially when its your first creative project to your sophomore offering. Any success that then leads to the next thing is difficult to navigate. I am not trying to replicate e18hteam with A.C.E. What I am trying to do is move forward with the momentum the documentary created and challenging myself by believing I can do more and be more. Most importantly the project is a response to my interactions, experiences and the inspiration the <a href="https://theaceproject.wordpress.com/2016/07/27/zedreamteam/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">ZeDream Team</a> have given me long before we assembled. Each of them has great faith in my abilities and what I have already accomplished and have the potential to achieve. Each of them has given me great counsel. Each of them has been non-judgmental and accepting of our differences. Each of them has connected with me on profound and multiple levels.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">I AM A LEADER</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still accepting this fact. Even an<br />empowering photoshoot with <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Mafashio/">Mafashio</a><br />for my 35th birthday this year<br />hasn't quite had this fact sink in.<br />Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/fortressphotozambia/">Fortress Media</a></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">I know this seems rather silly to state but I have had a hard time coming to terms with that fact. When I do the things I do, create the things I create, become passionate about my passions, it always starts from an internal catalyst. Once I have worked through the feeling or inkling to give shape and form to the idea, I then work backwards using my education and experience in Communication to figure out if what I am thinking is viable and how to go about manifesting it in the right place and targeting the right audience. A.C.E. is a personal response to those who follow me on social media and those whom I have met on the journey e18hteam took me around Zambia and the world. It is a visceral reaction to the events that have unfolded in my country and the repercussions. It is an active way of processing the world around me, and sharing with other in order for us to grow together. I may not necessarily have sought to become a leader, but in doing this I am and I need to own it. I need to commit fully to what that entails. I need to believe that I can and am already. My purpose is to create environments and content for people to be able to share, freely express their goals and fears and for us to work together to find solutions and move forward. I am leading by starting conversations so that you can add your voice. I need to be A.C.E. so we can be A.C.E together.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">LEADERSHIP IS NOT STATIC BUT FLUID. WE ARE ALWAYS LEARNING, GROWING, EVOLVING</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Leadership is a journey made up of many journeys, not a finite destination. There are highlights, stops and milestones along the way, as well as multiple paths to be taken, but it is a never ending process. The moment you are stagnant and stop, that is the moment you stop leading. If you never realise that you are stuck, you can have a serious detrimental effect on the people around you who look to you for direction, guidance, support and purpose. Either you will have a revolt on your hands or if you are extremely charismatic, you will lead people who will follow you blindly into the depths from whence you cannot escape. It is important to constantly check in with yourself and those around you, provide a safe space to be able to get feedback, to brainstorm and troubleshoot both for yourself to reflect and for others to engage you.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">I am still in the process of learning how to lead effectively and consistently. This mad scientist luckily has guinea pigs who don’t seem to be that affected by the fact that things have fallen apart far worse than they did for Okonkwo. Luckily unlike the protagonist in Chinua Achebe’s famous tome, I have not let the universe continue to conspire against me, but have found a way to turn things around meteorically. Things are getting back on track smoothly. I have been inspired by the challenges to overcome, not to fold and admit defeat. Leadership is a commitment – if you take up the mantle, you’ve got to do the work to deserve the elevated seat bestowed upon you. You have to use your voice wisely as it will be amplified. You must use your influence strategically and not succumb to the way of the despot, becoming drunk with power. You need to respect your potency and those who acknowledge and respond accordingly. For a while I was closed off, seriously and artificially limiting my interaction with the world out of fear of things getting so bad that I would never regain control or worse, that I would have irreparably lost the relationships and access to resources that are important to my well-being and growth as a storyteller. If all that turned out to be true, A.C.E would be buried under all of that. I would have to abort before the project could be given life. Luckily things were not as desperate as they seemed once perspective was found.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">ACCEPT YOU WILL BE VULNERABLE, YOU WILL MAKE MISTAKES AND YOU WILL BE SCARED.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">I have never been afraid of my vulnerability and revel in my humanity. Some of my biggest mistakes have led to the biggest opportunities, and the fears I have felt have spurred me on to create, succeed, to chart new paths and venture out and experience the best (and the worst) of life. However, people like their leaders to be invincible, to lay down the law, to sniff out weakness and to snuff it out. Zambians and Africans in particular have grown up with with that rigid form of leadership whether it is at home with their parents, or their leaders deciding that they will remain in a position of power from beyond the grave. Expressing and owning your vulnerabilities is not always welcome as people aren’t used to it and are afraid of what it means: sharing that your are struggling and the process of finding your way back to the surface when you are drowning. Admitting that you don’t know something. Saying that your feelings are hurt and that actions towards you have had a negative effect. These are considered hammering nails into your coffin. I however have no desire to be impervious and unflappable or to seem so. It is ultimately not a productive way to go about life. You end up spending time upholding the illusion of your power rather than exercising the power you actually have despite your deficiencies.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Though I am not scared about my second project and the inevitable comparison that will follow, I was scared of not forgiving myself for not handling the situations, feelings and people who have come my way in the last 2 years better. As everything starts within myself, I knew this would have a negative effect on how A.C.E. took shape. My fears were realised, but they have also taught me that these things happen. Things do go spectacularly wrong. I always say you can’t please everyone, but I really learnt what that meant recently. I am finally finding peace with where I am from the lessons learnt. I am rekindling my passions, become comfortable once more with uncertainty and I’m ready to lead a sojourn into the unknown. I can’t wait to find out what we will find through A.C.E. together!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">For more information about BongoHive, Lusaka’s Innovation and Technology Hub and the talks and programs they offer, visit their <a href="http://bongohive.co.zm/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">website</a> and like them on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/bongohive/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Facebook</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">A.C.E. will officially be launching early October so keep checking in for posts and follow our journey on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/aceprojectzed/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Instagram</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Want to chat more about this and anything else on the blog, about A.C.E. or anything else you can find me on <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Twitter</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: lime; font-family: inherit;">For more about the A.C.E. Project, follow the <a href="http://www.theaceprojectzed.com/">blog</a>, where this article was originally posted, and follow ZeDream Team on <a href="http://instagram.com/aceprojectzed">Instagram</a>.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-15385088276160211872017-10-30T12:00:00.000+02:002017-10-30T12:00:12.755+02:00Laughter is not always the best medicine<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">This is the REAL reason people are getting fatter... RT if you think I'm right <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/butyoudoKNOWiamright?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#butyoudoKNOWiamright</a> <a href="https://t.co/FWa7oT4qVZ">pic.twitter.com/FWa7oT4qVZ</a></span></div>
<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">— What's Up Africa (@WhatsUpAfrica) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhatsUpAfrica/status/916626611612602369?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 7, 2017</a></span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">When I saw this I didn't laugh. One, because the joke was not that funny - it was really predictable and has been told by many an African before this comedian. More importantly, it was a poor use of satire, one of my favourite tools we as humans have to communicate really serious issues in a disarming, more accessible way. I don't think when people watched this they thought goodness, I think that Africa is facing another huge preventable health problem, I think they thought this is so true - it's actually our mothers, grandmothers and matriarchs who have always been the problem. The argument was not strong enough and was poorly presented. It was dangerously dismissive of how this profound change in the way we eat can truly affect us. Worse, <a href="http://www.who.int/nutrition/topics/obesity/en/">globally</a> we have been idly seeing the effects for decades, so we here in Africa are literally following suit with our eyes wide open!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Recently there has been a huge explosion of malls and global fast food restaurants have scrambled to have outlets in them. The thing is, because we have heard about the strict standards these brands tend to have, we feel like we have hit a milestone in our development. In the late 90s and early 2000s only South African chains were opening up in Zambia. We now are worthy of such establishments and we find it cool to go eat and be seen there. I wonder how we will react when Micky D's finally comes to town as they are arguably the pickiest when it comes to granting franchise licences as they are finicky about brand consistency, standards and quality control. We now have these companies sponsoring cool events, bringing more to do in Lusaka and making them ever more appealing. Worse part is they organise giveaways in the compounds (shanty towns) which I personally think is irresponsible - you are creating the perfect storm for brand loyalty from the most vulnerable in our society to seek out food that is cheap and addictive, not that nutritious and that could potential lead to health issues they will likely be unable to deal with. We are so focused on the appearance and financial gains of development without really stopping to think about the </span><a href="https://qz.com/1094112/obesity-diabetes-rises-africa-thanks-to-fast-food/">consequences</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The growing middle class are excited about their new spending power and they are flocking to buy all the processed products found in the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/oct/03/supermarkets-creating-obesity-crisis-african-countries-experts-warn-middle-class-malnutrition">supermarkets</a> in the malls that have flooded our neighbourhoods. I have 3 strip malls between 1 to 5 minutes away from me! It's ridiculous. In the same way we turn our nose up at our traditional grain based flour to make our staple food nshima for the trendier, less nutrious maize because it is white (and prettier than the shades of brown millet, sorghum etc produce), more fashionable and less village, we are doing the same with our food purchases. Why go to the market or grow your own food when you can be spotted at the mall with a trolley full of groceries in plastic bags? We love to be decadent and to show off even if it is to our detriment. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">We already have been unable to deal with HIV, malaria, TB, cancer and now we are going to further strain our resources by adding obesity and related diseases such as Type 2 diabetes to the list ?! The conversations I have had with doctors and medical professionals over the years scare me. Despite all the campaigns backed by government and development agencies that keep telling us this time we shall conquer, it seems our issues aren't really getting any better and the majority of Zambians are still grosssly under-served by our health resources.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: white;">I know a lot of people talk about personal responsibility, common sense and how the overweight and obese should be able to control themselves and exercise, but there are so many studies out there that show that the road to gaining weight is a highly complicated one, and for many one fraught with so many pitfalls as they try to regain control with healthier lifestyles. This issue needs to be treated with compassion and where possible thwarted before it has a chance to embed itself into the culture of a place. Companies can still make money and be responsible about how they market and label their products. However I feel that here in Zambia in particular, it may already be too late and we are not equipped with the emotional intelligence coupled with the political will to tackle this next real challenge on our health system. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: white;">I had the most surreal experience with a lady I met through friends at a concert. As we were listening to the music, an obese person stood in front of us causing the lady to express with vitriol how disgusting the person was and how could they let themselves go like that and why was she out in public. I was so taken aback by the unabashed honestly and worse the fact that this lady thought that this wasn't cruel, and that she could freely speak to me like that. I replied that you have no idea why the person has put on that much weight, they are likely to be dealing with something physically, psychologically and/ or emotionally. Rather than judgement, that person has the right to dignified humanity from the world around them. I have heard people callously call children fat off the cuff. We would rather see the overweight as a sign of wealth and health - being HIV-. Sick and/ or poor people are skinny. I don't think we have the will as citizens to push for change. We unfortunately will not be seeing people lobbying for <a href="https://www.lusakatimes.com/2017/09/18/fire-trucks-scandal-minister-says-cabinet-no-role/">USD42 million</a> spent on gastric bypass operating equipment or doctor's training, the special ambulances and beds to handle the weight the morbidly obese, the medication... </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BINX7OKjtrb/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">#Zambia #foodie kudu with nshima made from masaka (sorghum) and tute (cassava) flour with kalembula (sweet potato leaves) and rape (kale). #proudlyzambian #foodporn #africa #traditional #healthy #food #nyama #gamemeat #yummyinmytummy #nomnomnom</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white;">A post shared by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2016-07-23T15:26:35+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Jul 23, 2016 at 8:26am PDT</time></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white;">I am a really healthy eater. I was brought up that way and naturally gravitate to homegrown and home cooked nutritious food. Even though I spent my first years in the UK, my mother befriended Zambia Airways air hostesses to bring her kapenta (dried sardines). Our protein historically came from lean animal and vegetable proteins. Fish could be caught fresh daily and dried to last months in the heat before we had refrigeration. It does not require large parties to be enjoyed without wastage. Apenta was one of my first words and to this day, one of my favourite fish dishes to eat. Mum also found a way to grow beans in the cold Northern English climate so we could have chinkamba (bean leaves) to cook authentic traditional <i>nshima</i> meals. We always had a garden wherever we lived and we grew things. I remember being proud of growing my own groundnuts (<i>mbalala</i>) and strawberries in my patch as a toddler. In Zambia and Kenya we only bought fruits that weren't growing in the garden. Since I moved back to Zambia in 2011 cashiers and/ or peopel in line behind me at supermarkets comment because I don't buy what the average Zambian purchases when they make the trip. I'm always told "you buy white people things" like broccoli, cauliflower, quinces, parsnips, pomegranate juice or assorted seeds like pumpkin and flaxseed. If you follow me on <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a> you will have seen how I love to post about food grown at the farm in my ancestral village, healthy food bought at stores and how I still eat well when I am travelling and eating out. I don't eat fast food often. When I do it's a guilt-free treat because I only indulge a couple of times a year. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white;">I'm really passionate about this issue. We are a young population in Zambia and across Africa who are destined to be crippled by so many things before we have a chance to bloom. So I say if we are going to use satire, let's use it wisely and effectively and regardless, we need to be less dismissive and more proactive about this pandemic which I would wager is likely to become the biggest health crisis across the continent in the next decade. Though I am the Queen of passion, I don't believe in sticking ones head in the sand or up ones ahem to maintain a sense of optimism in life. So even though I have painted rather a bleak future, even though collectively we are falling short, I believe if enough individuals stand up and fight, eventually as communties, we can change the way we as society deal with obesity. </span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-73866497278893742632017-10-27T10:00:00.000+02:002017-10-27T10:00:09.831+02:00Leadership Poker: Trumping with A.C.E. <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chipolopolo Fans a a game. They featured in establishing scenes about the<br />
importance of football to Zambia in my documentary e18hteam (eighteam)</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Over the past couple of months, I have had a series of conversations and experiences at events that have convinced me even more that A.C.E. is the right way to professionally deal with what is going on around me and in the world today, in my own small way.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">The first major instance was a <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Twitter</a> conversation I had with the talented and insightful Zambian songbird <a href="https://twitter.com/chembomusic" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Chembo</a> about representation at the first TEDx Eucalyptus Road in Lusaka. Her contention with the organisation of the event by <a href="https://twitter.com/bloomzed" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Bloom Management</a> was that there were non-black faces being streamed from abroad as part of the experience. I contested that the important thing was that there was a high representation of women, particularly in the on-site break out sessions to discuss the themes, which is still unusual for Zambian events. We agreed to disagree, as she feels strongly that black people/ Zambians should speak to their own people. I agree to some extent, foreign and mostly non-black faces and organisations are given far too much freedom to come and tell us how to be ourselves without consultation or understanding of who we are, what we need and what we need to do to get to where we want to go. I feel however, that sometimes issues like Black Lives Matter, an issue borne from a minority status and amplified worldwide due to the fact that Western Media dominates global media, can obscure reality. We also are prone to jump on the cause bandwagon, designing events round things like HeForShe to show we do care about women, but not to actually really do the work to give women and girls their rightful chance to find their place in society.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">We here in Zambia are in the majority, identifying as Black. When you go to events and hear speakers, the majority of them are usually black/ Zambian. The problem is they are almost always all men, and a lot of the time its the same recycled speakers unless it is dubbed a women’s event and even then there may not be a female majority. I think it is important to focus on what is salient here, not to bring issues from other places and erroneously conflate them out of solidarity, or issues brought from experiences elsewhere. I do think it is important for young Zambian women to see people who look like them doing more than myopic destiny expected of us. And I do believe both men and women need to give the female perspective chance and also realise sometimes it’s not about gender but about knowledge. Same with race. Does it matter the delivery vessel if the truth is being spoken?! I attended the TEDx event and had a transcendental experience in the breakout session with CEO of <a href="http://www.comesa.int/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">COMESA</a>‘s business council Sandra Uwera, who I need to follow up with about encouraging Africans to buy local and products made on the continent and how this ties to how we see ourselves. I enjoyed that fact that she was in a powerful position and from her questions and comments it was clear she was qualified for her job and was the right choice to moderate. If that had not been the case however, I would have written about how disappointed I was. She made me proud to be an African Woman in the world today trying to move things forward. She is #goals!</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">Earlier this month, I organised at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/modziarts/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Modzi Arts</a> thanks to Founder Julia Kaseka’s openess to the idea of showing my documentary <a href="https://www.facebook.com/e18hteam/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">e18hteam</a>, with a discussion afterwards about Zambian identity, the future of youth in the country, and the importance of art in public discourse. The day of, Zesco did not disappoint and was annoyingly and stereotypically inconveniencing, deciding to loadshed that area for the first time in Modzi Art history. Though we didn’t show film, Samba Yonga and Tangu Msimiko were great panelists with insightful contributions and Julia was an awesome moderator. During the talk, an audience member asked if I had chosen the panel to be all female on purpose. I have had many conversations about how to ensure better representation and I am not for putting a woman on the panel just to have one. I believe in equality and equity. If you select the requisite people to speak on the right things I think it will all balance out. If there are no qualified women, don’t force the issue and end up fulfilling another stereotype that women are given opportunities by affirmative action without qualification. However, I do believe at this time, if you have the choice with equally qualified people, I think one should tend to favour the ladies over the gentlemen, till diverse panels are the norm. In the case of my event, I picked Samba because her company Ku-Atenga Media is one of the reasons my documentary has been well recieved and successful and she knows the film and its journey inside out. I chose Tangu because she reached out to me about mentorship and is interested in creating discourse between creatives as well as in the mechanics of film distribution. We also happened to represent young Zambia being in our 20s and 30s. Giving women a platform to speak was a coincidental bonus.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">Modzi was able to screen the film the next day and I spoke with the audience after and the conversation focused on the fact that we as Zambians need to realise that the Chipolopolo’s story reflects who we are as a people. I have had interactions with young Zambians during and after the elections where they have expressed fear that the legacy of the Freedom Fighters and the current administration will be lack of agency for those of us who follow them. That they have no place in the country, and that efforts to belong are futile. I reminded the audience that just like the Zambian National Football Team, we have bounced back from other tragedies such as the deaths of two of our Presidents in the last 10 years, by coming together and persevering peacefully. I also noted that despite being blindsided continuously with things like loadshedding descending upon us without warning repeatedly ad infinitum, ad nauseum, we continue to innovate and find ways to carry on and succeed. We did not give in after the day before’s debacle, we rescheduled and made time to have the event properly. In our lives, we know we have it inside us to surmount the challenges thrown at us and eventually find the strength to keep moving. Unbeknownst to me, there was a young, Caucasian American lady moved by my impassioned oratory. She took the opportunity to express how my words gave her hope for the USA, as she wrapped her head round Donald Trump being President-Elect at the edict of her people. She was elevated to tears (I don’t believe crying is a reduction by default but can also be a expression of your strength to being open to expressing vulnerability unabashedly) as she spoke and apologised. I told her there was nothing to be contrite about, as we are all living through these trying times and it is important to reach out to one another however we can, wherever we are. I first went to America after September 11th and remember how people rallied together and was present during the first memorial commemorating the tragedy. I have no doubt America will recognise its greatness and make lemonade out of this this current batch of lemons and slay like Beyonce.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">This brings me back to my original sentiments that I expressed to Chembo. You can learn and be inspired by anyone. I think opportunities globally should be given to qualified people of all races, colours, creeds, gender, sexual orientation and identities, because as humans, our strength is in our diversity and we all have something to offer. I think it is important to distinguish between local and global issues surrounding misrepresentation and the flat out blocking of certain perspectives and voices so we intervene and rig for the good accordingly, not to just jump on some cause’s bandwagon for the wrong reasons. Sometimes we need to give voice to those that irk, confuse or have differing opinions or appearance, so long as the intent is to not to promote hate, intolerance and to divide to rule and profit selfishly. Even if the outcome is agreeing to disagree, I think there is much to learn from our differences and solutions to the worlds problems will continue to come from finding common ground. Tonight my film is showing at the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/baslerafrika/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Southern African Institute in Basel</a> and has been given the honour of being the Opening Night screening to officially start the Zambia in Motion Festival. The aim of the festival is to bring the curated history to life through indigenous voices, to a Swiss audience. The fact that a tiny country a quarter of the world away is preserving our history and is reaching out to better understand who we are is beautiful. It is the essence of what A.C.E. is all about: Cultural exchange. Building bridges. Learning from history. Making new paths. Learning and growing together.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">Leading is not only about taking care of your own, but its also about reaching out to the other side to gain understanding, to lend a helping hand and above all letting love guide us to conquer all. We need more of this in the world right now. How are you going to spread the feels and bring people together? What are you going to do to bring about understanding, empowerment and opportunity?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">For inspiration, watch e18hteam on video on demand anytime, anywhere online <a href="https://vimeo.com/ondemand/eighteam" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">here</a>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: inherit;">For more on the A.C.E project, bookmark the <a href="http://www.theaceprojectzed.com/">blog</a>, where this article first appeared, and follow it and ZeDream Team on <a href="http://instagram.com/aceprojectzed">Instagram</a>.</span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-12899158896272139882017-10-20T10:30:00.000+02:002017-10-20T10:30:16.364+02:00Introducing ZeDream Team<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">L-R Tukiya (Mafashio), Chosa, <br />Sekayi (Mafashio), Leelee<br />Me (Ngosa)<br />Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/fortressphotozambia/">Fortress Media</a><br />Styling: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Mafashio/">Mafashio</a></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">Though I posted last week that I have been <a href="https://theaceproject.wordpress.com/2016/07/21/failing-is-ace/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">failing</a> with aplomb, I have gotten a few things right. One such thing is the creation of the ZeDream Team. Serendipity may have brought each of these amazing people into my life, but their coming together for A.C.E. was by complete design. They were my first choice, and I am so grateful that they signed up to create with this mad scientist and are equally invested in my multimedia experiment.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">Some pick people to work with whom they know can’t challenge them, can’t do what they do, and would never usurp power and commandeer their operation. They want to stand out, be worshiped, and have no intent on truly collaborating and working together to create something that can only be realised because of amalgam of individuals brought together for the common cause. I have no desire to be the despot. I want to collaborate. This means bringing people in with different skill sets so that we can all enhance each other’s strengths and compensate for each other’s weaknesses. I want to learn and grow through this process and the only way to do that is to surround myself with people who can magnify the areas I need to work on and amplify my positive traits. I in turn hope to be able to do the same.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">Leadership is not necessarily about being the best, or about dictating to the people you are in charge of. Leadership to me is understanding group dynamics and ensuring that everyone is able to put their best self forward. To know how to create magic with the ingredients each person has to put in the pot. To know how to assign the right tasks to the right person. To know when to rally the troops and when to pull back. To know when to micromanage and when to leave people to autonomously go about their business. Sometimes it means stepping back and letting others lead.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">Chosa, Puthumile and the Ladies of Mafashio (Sekayi and Tukiya) all have something in common with me: a desire to create, to push the envelope, to question, and to make our world better a better place with content that engages, informs, entertains and explores new paths. More importantly they are crazy , weird and mysterious in their own unique ways. They have all pleasantly surprised me in some shape or form over the last couple of years. They have made me think about things from different perspectives. They have challenged my ideas and been catalysts to shifts in the way I do things, in the way I see myself and what I have to offer the world. They are the reason A.C.E. exists. I wanted to find a way to bottle all that they have to give and create, to then uncork it in an explosion of creative content across media.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">I know that though things are uncertain, and the journey we are taking is only just starting to map itself out, that I can count on these things from each of them:</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.chosamweemba.com/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Chosa</a> will always keep a cool head, and if he loses his temper it means that things are really bad and we need to get ourselves together. That I will always have a visual eye that gets what is needed to capture A.C.E. points of view in stills and/or video in innovative and singular ways. And when we are editing, we will sink into our easy dance until some sort of rendering, colour correcting or other irritating process will cause me to throw a tantrum as impatience gets the better of me, he will distract me till it is done.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;"><a href="http://twitter.com/leelabee" style="font-family: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Puthumile</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> will bring all the ideas the team has together and distill them into a beautiful river of words that will touch our souls. That she will step in when I cannot get to something, and that she will always be there for me to vent, parse ideas, and to </span>motivate<span style="font-family: inherit;"> me to keep at it when I am thwarted by my mind, or by things out of my control. She will remind me to keep my eye on the prize and see a new way ahead when I cannot. All the while pretending to be the Thing, made of rock. I won’t tell that she is really the Pillsbury Boy, all cookie dough, love, and rainbows.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">The ladies of <a href="http://www.mafashio.co.zm/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Mafashio</a> come as a pair but if their individual personalities and talents did not fit into A.C.E. I would have only asked the one that contributed positively to the dynamic. Luckily I didn’t have to because their brand is a 2 for 1 special. I always say that once you are Fundafunda-ed you can’t go back. They are part of a creative familial dynasty and if you ever have the privilege of encountering any of their cousins, be prepared for your life to change. These girls bring a youthful effervescence that counters the over 30 jaded outlook that the rest of us have. They also have a refreshing positivity; a lust for life and new experiences that spurs me on. They have a window into a world that is beyond me, and they are nice enough to bring me into it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">So long as Chosa, Puthumile and I are not left to our own devices, A.C.E. things happen. When we three meet, things descend swiftly into the silly, the debaucherous and the unfocused as our creative juices flow. We end up having conjured something we have absolutely no means to achieve and depression sets in. Luckily there is usually food to make us feel better.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">Soon we shall be officially launching with a taste of ZeDream Team’s talent and starting production on our first mini project. I will continue to document the A.C.E. journey on the blog at least once weekly so keep checking in to walk along side us as we re-imagine African storytelling. For a more visual experience follow us on <a href="http://instagram.com/aceprojectzed/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Instagram</a>. If you would like to chat about the project or just to get to know me better, please start a conversation on <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Twitter</a>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: lime;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">For more on the A.C.E. Project, bookmark the <a href="http://www.theaceprojectzed.com/">blog</a>, where this article first appeared, and follow it and the ZeDream Team on <a href="http://instagram.com/aceprojectzed">Instagram</a>.</span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-20980435023821425102017-10-13T09:30:00.000+02:002017-10-13T09:30:17.692+02:00Failing is A.C.E.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This photo was taken during our first A.C.E. shoot in 2016<br />Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/fortressphotozambia/">Fortress Media</a> Styling: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/mafashio/">Mafashio</a></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">I have been failing. Spectacularly. All throughout 2016. And I have been winning. Why? Because failure is the route to success. If you are truly creative and or/ entrepreneurial, you live in the certainty of stumbling, mumble fumbling and falling. A thick skin is required to keep picking yourself up, to keep, and carry on. In Zambia , it is the norm to pretend like everything is okay, as admitting fault, inadequacy or challenges is seen as weakness, not as an opportunity to innovate, learn and grow. The fear of losing out or giving up power is so ingrained, it stops people from actually realising their dreams because they are spending so much time looking over their shoulder.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Moving on to your sophomore project is always hard. My first production was a documentary about the Zambian National Football Team aka the Chipolopolo (Copper Bullets) called <a href="http://www.facebook.com/e18hteam" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">e18hteam</a> (eighteam). Last year it enjoyed much success after it premiered in October 2014. From the unprecedented <a href="http://ir.zambeefplc.com/profiles/investor/ResLibraryView.asp?ResLibraryID=78574&GoTopage=3&Category=1788&BzID=1988" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Zambeef</a> sponsorship of the archival footage rights, to travelling around Zambia and film festivals around the world, winning awards in Indonesia, Spain, the USA, Nigeria and Peru, as well as screening in Cannes, I should be on floating in the clouds, basking in the rays of achievement. That is past glory though and cannot and should not sustain me. The film continues to go to film festivals and is now used as a tool for motivational talks to motivate, inspire and/ or for cultural exchange, but it is time for a new challenge.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">An artist never stops creating and the best place to start is inspiration from the depths of one’s soul. That is where the African Cultural Exchange project, aka the ACE project, is borne from: a frustration so visceral, the only way to assuage it and turn that negative energy into the positive, is to work through it with my art. It has taken much to get to this point and I haven’t really started.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Luckily I have 4 amazing people to work with here in Lusaka: 3 Zambians and 1 Zimbabwean. I have dubbed them ZeDream Team, because in another life I was named Big Pun, and they were my first choice of crazy talent with beautiful spirits to work with. This blog will chronicle the entire process of this multimedia experiment aiming to re-imagine African storytelling, through creativity in all its forms, as I journey with this team down the rabbit hole.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">What I have learnt so far, as I have embarked on this sojourn into the unknown, is that I still have much to learn, and that is okay because I believe life is about growth. Leadership in this new capacity is much harder than I thought. Collaborating and expressing what is going on in my head to get everyone up to speed is overwhelming, because my brain is too quick and sees everything at the same time perfectly laid out and connected in my head space. It all makes sense to me, but parsing that out into the world in a way that makes sense is incredibly challenging. Focusing on what I want the project to address first has also taken a while to identify. But we have persevered and things are coming together.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">I am known as the Queen of Passion and thankfully this Ndhlovukhazi Storyteller has enough fuel in the tank to keep regenerating, adapting, and is not afraid to change her mind. I am reveling in the uncertainty and in the crazy because beauty is starting to shine through. I just have to trust the process. Keep tweaking. Keep researching. Keep bandying ideas around. Staying open and allowing myself to be mentored by the team and people in my life whom I love and trust, while looking for new sources of knowledge and inspiration.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">So as we count down to the official launch of the ACE project, to be announced on the blog in due time, please get to know ZeDream team through our <a href="https://www.instagram.com/aceprojectzed/" style="outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s linear;">Instagram</a> account</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">In the meantime I will continue to fail spectacularly in style because I know it will all come together in the end.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: inherit;">Here’s to failing spectacularly to success.</span></div>
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<span style="color: lime;">For more on the A.C.E. project, bookmark the <a href="http://www.theaceprojectzed.com/">blog</a>, where this post first appeared, and follow its progress and the ZeDream Team on <a href="http://instagram.com/aceprojectzed">Instagram</a>.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-68304222385281519572017-10-12T11:00:00.000+02:002017-10-12T11:00:33.966+02:00Ngosa. Alive. Thrive. <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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So the last <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2017/02/pellie-reign-reloaded.html">post</a> I wrote (eons ago) was all about how I was going to do better at how I put my life out here on social media. I did start off well reloading Pellie Reign, particularly on my new Facebook <a href="https://www.facebook.com/NdhlovukhaziStoryteller/">page</a>, as well as on <a href="https://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c">Twitter</a>. However, I am now currently still wading through the right old mess that I have found myself in for most of the year. As usual, my writing on MbA has been affected. Something that really has to change as writing in this open diary is therapeutic. I chose this photo to accompany this article because at the time I was visually portraying my life storytelling in a patriarchal society. The storytelling has never been hard. It's the patriarchy part that is really throwing a spanner in the works amongst other things...</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trying to write my way back to lady bossing, to being my best, bubbly self.<br />Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KwituPhotography/">Kwitu Group</a> Styling: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/mafashio/">Mafashio</a> Location: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KCVaghelaBrand/">KC Vaghela Brand Store</a></td></tr>
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Life is a constant tackling of the haphazard, and it can blindside you when you least expect it. Somehow you are supposed to fashion interwoven narratives to make heads or tails of it all. A deluge of personal and professional f-ery has inundated me in ways that I not only did not expect, and found I was not quite equipped to deal with. Trying to make sense of it has me battle weary. So much so that since my phone was stolen a few weeks ago, I have been rather listless. I am more overwhelmed than ever. Last thing I needed to happen to me really. It has messed with my story by cutting off easy access to global life lines and there is really no substitute for the function my phone has in that regard. So until my new phone arrives in a month, I'm likely to be not quite with it on another level.</div>
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I have started over so many times this year, only to have to scrap my course of action to jumpstart things and restart afresh, trying to find the passion I'm famous for. So I have decided to accept that life is a mess right now and that my fires need stoking before they are at full flame consistently. I'm going for (new) small victories to build up to a cohesive effort to make the big changes I had plans for, and the new ones I've discovered are required. So over for the foreseeable future on MbA, this is what I'm going to do:</div>
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Share the blogposts I wrote on my currently stalled next major creative undertaking, the African Cultural Exchange project: A.C.E. The first post was all about failure and how it can function as stageposting on the way to success. I am using my current inability to troubleshoot and jumpstart the project to reflect and share here on <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Soul%20Food%20Friday">Soulfood Friday</a>.</div>
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<a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Things%20on%20Thursday">Things on Thursday</a> will be, like this post, updating where I'm at in this process of metamorphosis, rediscovery, reclamation and change.</div>
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<a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Mama%20Monday">Mama Monday</a> will feature posts on things in Zambia that have me disturbed about the lack of empathy we have for each other and those beyond our borders, and how that is manifesting in really disturbing ways.</div>
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I will finish my Love. Marraige. Sex. Babies. series that I started on <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Woolgather%20Wednesday">Woolgather Wednesday</a>.</div>
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I will not be furnishing Twit Tuesday on the blog as Twitter is where I'm most active currently, so if you'd like a daily dose of MbA, find you way to my <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c">profile</a>.</div>
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So long as my name is Ngosa, and I am alive, I will always find a way to thrive he he ;} xo #NgosAliveThrive</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-82926472745807915192017-02-01T06:49:00.003+02:002017-02-01T06:49:39.608+02:00Pellie Reign Reloaded<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This photo was taken at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PRGirlMedia/">PR Girl Media</a>'s the Travel Series Zanzibar event in<br />December 2016 at Latitude 15. <br />Styled by <a href="http://instagram.com/mafashio_zambia">Mafashio</a> in <a href="http://instagram.com/my.perfect.stitch">My Perfect Stitch</a>. <br />Photo Credit <a href="http://instagram.com/vince_banda">Vince Banda</a></td></tr>
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I coined the term Pellie Reign (#PellieReign): Purple Elephant Reign to signify the way I intend to live life. This is the era of the Purple Tembo, my production company which derives its name from my favourite colour and my favourite animal - the elephant. I have no brand. There is no art to what I do. I basically find a way to incorporate what I love and what I am drawn to, into what I do. There is no line between my professional and personal, except what I choose to make public or not. I don't want to have to think about if this or that is on message. I just am. So sometimes its messy. Sometimes it's slick. That's life. That's authentic. Whether it is icky or not, it's true. </div>
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However, I have come to the conclusion that I do need to be a bit more serious about how I put myself out there on social media. So I have created a new Facebook page to facilitate this. In 4 days I will turn 35. Every year I create a theme. Last year was my annus horribilus, and my theme was 34: get off the floor and find that open door. It was that bad. I turned things around and wanted this milestone birthday to really celebrate the fact that I was able to find the strength to bounce back. I always pick a rhyming theme so I have come up with:</div>
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<span style="color: magenta;">35. Alive. Thrive.</span></div>
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I am sharing this openly for the first time on a public scale. My birthday is my new year, so I move forward on my own terms. I am very excited to share with you all the things in store, that I have lined up. I will be officially launching the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/NdhlovukhaziStoryteller/">page</a> on Monday the 6th of February. To find out what is just around the corner, please like on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/NdhlovukhaziStoryteller/">Facebook</a> so that you are in the know. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;">For previews and behind the scenes you can follow me on <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a>. Don't forget to like my <a href="http://www.facebook.com/NdhlovukhaziStoryteller/">page</a> on Facebook ;}!</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-6974264229592674932017-01-25T11:00:00.000+02:002017-10-02T21:18:25.640+02:00Content Single Girl Love Musings: Love. Sex. Marriage. Babies. Part I<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stanford Reunion in Soton with one of my little ones Ahmed</td></tr>
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So I start with <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Love">Love</a>. I believe that God: the energy that rules us all, what ultimately the universe is all about, and what creates (and destroys when at its most twisted), is Love. It is the ultimate ideal in life. I am a hopeless romantic. Which is why I am single. I refuse to settle and all the men out there should be happy because I do not have that most exalted of feminine qualities: a high tolerance for bullshit because you know, he loves me, I know it and that's all that matters of course; no matter how dastardly he is and how abominably he treats me. How people see things is of no import because, in the end, you don't know what really goes on in a relationship unless you are in it. Yes, I am being facetious. Seriously though, love is not suffering, though you will be tested repeatedly ad infinitum. Love is, at its core, at its most pure, and at its zenith, kind. So why is it set up to make women miserable by duping them into believing that the ultimate goal is to best express this most coveted of human virtues through marriage?! It then is extremely, and in many instances, unavoidably susceptible to metamorphosing into its opposite; the most detrimental of vices. That's how people get their hearts broken, lose their faith in people, in themselves, and in life. People devolve into vindictiveness, disillusionment, meaness and cray cray to misguidedly allay and assuage abysmally.</div>
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Recently, I read this <a href="http://time.com/money/4630251/the-modern-marriage-trap-and-what-to-do-about-it/">article</a> that talked about how married men and single women are the happiest with their situation. I believe it. Love and marriage are two very different things. You don't have to be in love to marry, or to make such a contract work. Many who are in love are miserable after they tie the knot and there are those who have spent a lifetime together adoring each other without needing paper to certify their union. Don't get me wrong, I think the idea of marriage, or without the label: spending a lifetime building, evolving and caring for someone, is beautiful. It's work though. Everyday. It's an infinite and limitless commitment. Love over a lifetime, whatever form it takes is hard. It's unglamarous. It's unconditional - which means compromise, empathy, humility, faith, tenacity, and evolution are key. You need grit to keep laying the road to continue the journey, wherever it leads. When romantic, it's not the wedding, which is a drop in the ocean of moments that you will live through. Neither is it the honeymoon, which is why they talk about the honeymoon period.<br />
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Like I eluded to a couple of thoughts ago, Love does not only lead to this contract either. It is multifaceted and can be expressed in so many ways platonically. It is unlimited in its iterations. There is also beauty in it being finite. Not every Love requires a lifetime to be expressed. Time is a social construct and a moment can have more meaning than years of perceived bliss. You can do and feel more in a love that has a beginning and an end that one that drags on forever. See?! Hopelessly romantic. And it is because of this fact that I am single and I'm sure why many look at me as too idealistic and if I just...but I will not settle. Life is far to short to waste time doing that. Why? Because I have and continue to experience infinitely better love, everyday, in the platonic sphere than I ever have in the romantic, to date. I will add this is not entirely my or my ex-boyfriends' fault. Those poor men were only acting in a way that was normal and expected. They followed the script and so did I. It took me a long time to figure out society sets women up to fail to get what they deserve, because they are led to believe they want certain things. Patriarchy is Love's anathema. I now have pretty informed ideas of what I want and need. I have an understanding of how a romantic relationship fits into the tapestry of love already extant in my life, just haven't gotten round to figuring out how to jumpstart that process because I am a workaholic and I have so many people to care for me. I am not susceptible to grabbing onto anything just so I can feel like I am adored once in a while. I thank the heavens for that.<br />
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I have blogged before about how my family and friends are my most treasured possession. I will above and beyond for them and vice versa. These are the people I can lean on when times are rough, who do not judge me (or if they do it's from a positive, constructive, loving place). Even if they disagree with facets of my life or my actions, they agree with me as a package by respecting my choices and allowing for the inherently flawed nature all we humans are burdened with. The male species I tend to attract try to surreptitiously trick me into becoming some sort of trophy. They try to attack the very core of who I am, the things I am most proud of about myself and what I have achieved, in order to create the idea of me they think I should be. (The more conservative of my family try that tack too. Without tact. Ehk! But I can easily deal with that nonsense.) There is nothing more painful than the realisation that this person, whom by the very nature of your relationship holds a special place in your social circle, turns out to be your number one enemy. Whether its not deliberate or insidiously by design, it is heartbreaking. Even though I can see how and why you have acted this way, I am not forgiving because you can choose to rise above it and act authentically lovingly. The long and short of it is that you actually really don't like me if you are trying so hard to break me and turn me into something else. Please go and find that person, as that person is clearly not me. And that is okay. Why are you trying to force me to be that person and suffer your cruelty even if it is not your intention?! This dynamic is beyond me but anyhoo...<br />
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I love me, what I do and how I do it. The people around the world who care for me already love all of that too. In knowing this I am pretty confident of this much: romantic Love will never be enough for me to give that all up. I am not going to be that special someone's everything and leave my friends, my career, my intelligence and my joie de vivre behind. And I don't want to be their everything either. That is an unnecessary and unrealistic set up. Humans are viscerally social. Confining them to being social with just one person is just a set up for disaster. This is when people act up. At the core of it, they are looking to fill the voids that their partner cannot. Whatever the configuration, monogamous or not, heterosexual or otherwise, (I do not judge, do what works for you OPENLY please), it is important to communicate what this Love is and what function it has in your life in relation to all the other Love from family and friends, as well as to the things you like to do and experience. There is so much in the world: so many people, places, activities, opportunities for growth, stimuli to create, innovate and enjoy in Love. Why we should aspire to reduce the only way to interact with these gifts and experiences through one relationship is ludicrous. It's creepy too as that is what leads people to do psycho and underhanded things under the banner of romance in the pursuit and name of Love!<br />
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I believe that the person you decide to spend a lifetime with should slot in to your network to fulfill a specific, indispensable purpose, not to take over everything and vice versa. And the reason that married men tend to be happier is they get everything they want, armed with societal norms and pressure, particularly emotionally. Too many have not been brought up well and callously disregard the other side in their relationships. Which is why they even get jealous of their own children taking up their wives' time<insert are="" focused="" here="" not="" on="" scenario="" them="" where="" whichever="" you="">. You are going to compete with a helpless baby and get your knickers in bunch, throw tantrums and hissy fits because you aren't always the centre of attention and I'm supposed to respect you?! What kind of Oedipal crazy are women duped into?! You partner ends up being your first child and you are supposed to sleep with him and leave him to head the household as men are more logical, and intelligent and unemotional. WTF?! Society has done a disservice to men by not allowing them to develop into human beings that understand themselves and others emotional needs and has led then to believe they act with logic when they don't. Society has done a disservice to women by saying that bearing the cross is the feminine ideal. That managing male stunted growth makes us martyrs. That love is suffering and being able to take and shovel poop is our lot in life. I refuse to subscribe to that. </insert><br />
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I'd rather enjoy the fact that I am well taken care of by those that I already love. Most recently that has manifested primarily in: the Beb Gails (baby girls in a Zambian accent) being rocks I can lean on so I can stand tall. Continuing to live with my mother so we can watch over each other and not let our workaholic ways get the better of us. Travelling to the UK to spend Christmas with my younger sister, the love of my life and my number one cheerleader. Working on self love and treating myself to good food, travel and new clothes. Workationing in Ghana and having an African Stanford reunions with everyone using their skills to build me back up as I do the same for them. I am about to go to Naija and do the same. I have been housed, fed, loved, pampered, spoilt silly while being challenged, admonished and checked before I wreck myself too. These people see the best in me and where, and when I can be and do better, they have let me know and are helping me get there. And they value what I do for them too. The reason I picked Ahmed to embody this visually is because he travelled for 5 hours from London to Southampton on Christmas Eve to see me for one hour. We hadn't seen each other in seven and a half years. He then squeezed in another hour by meeting me at Heathrow before my flight. This is typical of my friends, regardless of gender. If we are travelling and we can find a way to meet, we do, because we spend many years and even decades between meets and so we make the most of every second. I have never experienced that kind of dedication from a romantic partner consistently, over a long period of time, to work on and continually cultivate our relationship. Ever. I have been expected to bend over backwards and not get the same in return because I am the problem. They have never understood how my life works or how I operate and express love. I have been punished for having grown up on 3 continents and lived a great life. That is not Love. That's some twisted ish I do not want to know about.<br />
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So I am happy and content as a single girl, being a problem, around the world, with people who love me unconditionally. I am having a ball unapologetically! Like I, said I believe God is Love. So I think that it is important to have Love underpin anything and everything that you do in order to honour your faith. I even sleep lovingly and everyone knows how I love my slumber and naperoos. I don't have to wait for "the One" to do that. That is just one of the many ways available to humanity to express ourselves and the blessing of life. The possibility of being able to use that avenue excites me, and because I respect that union, I do not take bonding with someone in that way lightly no matter how fleeting or how long that Love is expressed. Though it troubles many in my life that there isn't a someone special like that in my life, I say to them: it will be when it will be. In the meantime, I continue to be open to the possibility for that person to join the party so as to manifest Love romantically in a way that I cannot in platonic relationships, while acing it with the amazing people: friends and family I am privileged to have in my life, and sharing love through the work that I do.<br />
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I wish you the all the permutations of Love you deserve and I hope that you honour life by sharing the caring everyday, however and whenever you can xo!<br />
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<i><span style="color: lime;">To keep up-to-date with this series follow the instructions <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2017/01/open-diary-ruminations-illuminations.html">here</a>. For mini insight-fests, positing and working through stuff, follow me on <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a>. You can continue this conversation or chat to me about anything and everything on <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c">Twitter</a>. To find out how I take action with love professionally, like my new <a href="http://www.facebook.com/NdhlovukhaziStoryteller">Facebook</a> page!</span></i></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-5605159641330758522017-01-19T11:00:00.000+02:002017-01-23T16:11:16.942+02:00Open Diary: NG-ma tales, NGangsta Moves<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="text-align: justify;">Last year I explained how my moods and well-being can be described on a spectrum based on the these two extremes: <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/11/ngansta-vs-ng-ma.html">NGangsta and NG-ma</a>. This year, I am determined to be NGansta and move forward with dedication because NG-ma will make sure I take care of myself. Part of that self care involves writing. I use my blog as an open diary, a way to vent, hash out things weighing on me, to find meaning in the chaos and beauty in life: from the crazy to the heavenly, the mundane to the extraordinary. As I expand my ken, change my views and adopt new ways, I hope to elucidate ideas for not only myself, but if I can, for others too. If my sojourns down the rabbit hole lead others to Wonderland, cool! I really do enjoy helping others while helping myself he he. </span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">I have been thinking a lot about African, global, societal norms, tradition and culture surrounding love, marriage and babies over the last year. There has been a surge in weddings and births in my social circles around the world. Many of them, particularly the women, have posted testimonials about their experiences. They have also shared interesting articles about these major life milestones too. I have been amazed, entertained, shocked, not surprised, disheartened and encouraged by the conversations that have percolated, over-boiled and simmered perfectly around these issues. I have found that for the educated, progressive, exposed and or well-travelled of female sex, navigating love, marriage and babies in the current milieu is a minefield. The current global trend of gender equality would have us believe that all is righted in the world. The reality is that things are only starting to shift. Even if your partner at home is understanding, earthlings in general are not. Many still think these "new" ways, ideas, interpretations and positions are alien. There are a lot of people on both ends freaking out, and the backlash and fighting is fierce. </span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Let me state clearly that gender equality and equity is ultimately about choice. Allowing for a spectrum. If you believe in traditional roles, good for you, work with that. I do not negate your views in choosing to want different, or for feeling that certain ways, beliefs and maxims are derogatory and subjugating. The point is to agree to disagree and to create space for individual decisions for our collective well-being as humanity. That means going beyond tolerance, but actively allowing expression through manifested understanding, catalysed by validating different ways to do, be and act. </span><span style="text-align: justify;">That being said, I have been traumatised by quite an ugly shift in local and global contexts, as patriarchy fights back in reaction to feminist movements gaining new fervour, backing and efficacy. I have also had very interesting conversations about gender, sexuality, identity, self expression, tradition, modernity and culture that I would like to ponder a little more. This has mostly happened on Twitter, so I would like to delve deeper into these issues in a way that 140 characters disallows. I need an unlimited canvas to use my paintbrush to paint more detailed portraits.</span><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr-SnHBBa_9514Bb8Ozb1nWeclytErAfZd5x8aACSvBxrJgkU9RlRlEdiKk2XYXTZ-tX_ukWOUscinGGNGijZjDfEFb5Xznjf7sbaa6LYaWQ0btMWIuto8UH0L4mVzuCKtP8tstn28sykc/s1600/20161231_025114.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr-SnHBBa_9514Bb8Ozb1nWeclytErAfZd5x8aACSvBxrJgkU9RlRlEdiKk2XYXTZ-tX_ukWOUscinGGNGijZjDfEFb5Xznjf7sbaa6LYaWQ0btMWIuto8UH0L4mVzuCKtP8tstn28sykc/s320/20161231_025114.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is a section of the walls inside<br />
a popular Accra Night club, from the<br />
high ceilings to the floor. So beautiful!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: orange;">I thought <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Things%20on%20Thursday">Things on Thursday</a> was a good place to launch, as these be no small tings now. So over the next few weeks and months I'm cutting through the black and white of societal norms and delving into the grey:</span></span><br />
<span style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Woolgather%20Wednesday"><br /></a></span>
<span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: red;"><a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Woolgather%20Wednesday">Woolgather Wednesday</a> will feature ruminations and illuminations through my Love. Sex. Marriage. Babies. series.</span></span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: red;"><a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Twit%20Tuesday">Twit Tuesday</a> will be a hodgepodge of profound nonsense that I have tweeted about that I would like to expound on.</span></span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">It's going to be awesome possum. I know I'm going to have oodles and poodles of fun doing this. So this Dorothy is taking that tornado out of Kansas and I can't wait to see what lies somewhere over the rainbow... </span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="color: lime;">For mini insight-fests, positing and working through stuff follow me on <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a> and <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c">Twitter</a>. To find out how I take action around these issues publicly, like my new <a href="http://www.facebook.com/NdhlovukhaziStoryteller">Facebook</a> page!</span></i></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-23588630932724079032017-01-12T15:07:00.001+02:002017-01-12T15:07:11.544+02:00Ndhlovukhazi Storyteller Reloaded<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiINeTpbLv6MkC2SyQ4DwqQ5FFyyj4O7uXVzkX7UIlwqzSKCMDB62YZNOxJ6DUwKlSa42W1CtgqAp_ay1CKJ9kjcMCrMDLHFXLUjB5Gn6l8vG9td5rqFmzqDR5My3eNrV_nspcDUOc_DHkO/s1600/Ngosa+Hand+in+Hair.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiINeTpbLv6MkC2SyQ4DwqQ5FFyyj4O7uXVzkX7UIlwqzSKCMDB62YZNOxJ6DUwKlSa42W1CtgqAp_ay1CKJ9kjcMCrMDLHFXLUjB5Gn6l8vG9td5rqFmzqDR5My3eNrV_nspcDUOc_DHkO/s400/Ngosa+Hand+in+Hair.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taken last year at our first <a href="http://theaceproject.wordpress.com/">the A.C.E. Project</a> shoot by Fortress Media.<br />Styled by <a href="http://mafashio.co.zm/">Mafashio</a></td></tr>
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No you have not taken the blue pill. I would highly advise sticking to red with this little one - you don't want to really know how deranged and confused I truly am. However, I am expanding my matrix online by shutting down my public profile on Facebook. It was originally created as an extension of this blog and a way to be able to connect with the Zambian and African media industry in a more accessible and organic way, that a page wouldn't have been able to do at the time, in my opinion. However, it is clear I have outgrown it, and the best platform is now a page to interact in a way that I am comfortable with, and makes sense with where I am now, and where I want to go. So I am in the process of shutting Mwana Ba Afrika down and I have launched the Ndhlovukha<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white; font-family: inherit;">z</span></span>i Storyteller <a href="https://www.facebook.com/NdhlovukhaziStoryteller/">page</a>, aiming to take things to the next level. I believe that this is the best way for me to appear publicly on this platform going forward. It is definitely the best way to better serve those of you interested in knowing about who I am and what I do in an easily accessible way. Thank you for your continued support, I really appreciate it xo. So, please like my new page, and I am looking forward to this new path to go on a journey together!</div>
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(To understand my decision better, you can read my <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2017/01/top-10-posts-of-2016.html">Top 10 Posts of 2016</a>, as they illustrate and expound on my growth and metamorphosis: thinking about leadership and finding a way to cope with public life better.)</div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><i>You can find more information about who I am, what I do and the things I am interested in, from a different angle, by liking my new Facebook Page <a href="https://www.facebook.com/NdhlovukhaziStoryteller/">Ndhlovukha<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">z</span></span>i Storyteller</a> ;}. </i></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-73721983833444768402017-01-09T14:32:00.001+02:002017-01-10T18:26:28.643+02:00Top 10 Posts of 2016<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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.....This is why I hate blogging using my phone! So I've had to start this bleeping post again due to the fact that some part of my uncoordinated extremities touched the screen and I lost all that I had written!</div>
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I had started off by saying technology and I have a rocky relationship. When things are good, they are awesome. When they are bad, they are <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2012/05/mobile-tales-part-1-blues.html">catastrophic</a>. We are in the latter phase once again, as my computer has decided to die at the most inopportune moment. </div>
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I hate blogging on my phone. I feel extremely detached from the process. Email, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook all feel natural through this device. Writing posts does not. This is incredible irksome. I cannot tell you how bereft I am right now as I am having such a great time on my West African workation (work + vacation). This spanner in the works could have thrown me for a loop for quite some time had I not read the Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. (For more about how this book and its impact on my life, follow me on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BO6xXxyhGCG/">Instagram</a>.) However, in order to start 2017 on the best possible writing foot, I am at least going to try bang out my usual round up of posts from the previous year. This annual tradition shall not be disrupted by the crazy in life. Whether I will post again before I rectify my computing situation is another matter though...</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgumiXBa3YM4t4x-03Y8ii7j0H9SyVEHXPldqJ1Xm3IGHS7i-sPkkAotzHIItX_QlSsMluz8BrQBOCXJzC7zJZGvyOSu3Y0rlMT7KMTino3_j1j2_4yEer3nrvkpH920cgvRCKHqmi8cXXn/s1600/IMG-20161211-WA0002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgumiXBa3YM4t4x-03Y8ii7j0H9SyVEHXPldqJ1Xm3IGHS7i-sPkkAotzHIItX_QlSsMluz8BrQBOCXJzC7zJZGvyOSu3Y0rlMT7KMTino3_j1j2_4yEer3nrvkpH920cgvRCKHqmi8cXXn/s320/IMG-20161211-WA0002.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was taken during Barefeet Theatre's 10 year <br />
anniversary celebrations. I was conducting a <br />
Social Media Workshop for the Barefeet <br />
Children's Council. I am way to comfortable<br />
with that stick ;}</td></tr>
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So I didn't even write 10 posts on MbA last year! Oh dear. Luckily I can cheat with posts from the 52 Bloggers project run by the <a href="http://wplusaka.wordpress.com/">Lusaka WordPress Meetup Group</a> and from my new project's <a href="http://theaceproject.wordpress.com/">blog</a>. This is once again a sign that I haven't quite sorted my life out yet. A blatant sign for the last coupla years it's beyond ridiculous now! Clearly still have some growing to do. Certain fundamentals need to be worked out. The writing poureth from the depths of my soul, in beautiful cascades, when I am truly at peace and content. Right now the best I can do is quite pitiful really. Till things improve, here is a hodgepodge of what I could muster across various blogs in 2016, or as I like to call it, the Devil's year worldwide or the Year of Legless: the snake:</div>
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These first 5 posts best encapsulate the rollercoaster of emotions, confusion, growth and clarity that I went through:</div>
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1. <a href="http://wp.me/p7JZf1-3R">Leadership </a><a href="http://wp.me/p7JZf1-3R">Poker</a><a href="http://wp.me/p7JZf1-3R">: </a><a href="http://wp.me/p7JZf1-3R">Trumping</a><a href="http://wp.me/p7JZf1-3R"> with A.C.E.</a></div>
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2. <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/10/dios-mio-gender-activism-zambia.html">Dios Mio - How my Deo Became My Salvation</a></div>
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3. <a href="http://wp.me/p6DT6U-hc">Proudly Zambian, Positively African: The Tail of the Ndhlovukhazi Storyteller</a> </div>
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4. <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/09/tikambe-natulande-sex-talk-part-2.html">Tikambe </a><a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/09/tikambe-natulande-sex-talk-part-2.html">Natulande</a><a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/09/tikambe-natulande-sex-talk-part-2.html"> Part II </a></div>
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5. <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/11/ngansta-vs-ng-ma.html">NGansta vs NG-ma</a></div>
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Funnily enough at this point a spare computer has appeared before me, but I have decided to struggle through with this post, because I'm already in the groove, and for no sane reason, I gotta prove I can do this. At least I know I can write more organically the rest of my time in Ghana. When I move on to Nigeria will have to come up with another solution...</div>
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I digress, as per usual he he. Here are the rest of my picks, which pretty much reflect the themes, ruminations, angst, discoveries and ultimate triumphs that dominated this year past:</div>
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6. A Reflection on Identity, Growth, Evolution and Freedom on Independence Day</div>
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7. <a href="http://wp.me/p7JZf1-4">Failing is A.C.E.</a></div>
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8. <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/09/lenshina-and-zambia-inauguration.html">Lenshina and the Inauguration</a> </div>
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9. <a href="http://wp.me/p7JZf1-1A">Overcoming Fear to Lead and Grow</a></div>
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10. <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/04/madness-and-tea.html">Madness and Tea</a></div>
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Veni. Vidi. Vici! Never again if I can help it though. The struggle was too real. Unnecessary and too real!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-56011200790431775302016-11-28T17:34:00.000+02:002017-01-10T18:33:20.173+02:00NGansta vs NG-ma<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I have two main moods. Of course I have found a punny and profoundly nonsensical way to express them: </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYrlJoflpo_O9WeFqk9KKGdvAsJ5mOEMIo9XZr2MmkI0SKriYhFqMJNXN0KU5JNuojknJ2E2OUcjMB1uO804dfI2iULIB3ZtdrTyqvHbTx5tT3WXHmxrEigp0fE2_Wz7DK-6vC2n-ou8lK/s1600/Ngangsta+KC+Launch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYrlJoflpo_O9WeFqk9KKGdvAsJ5mOEMIo9XZr2MmkI0SKriYhFqMJNXN0KU5JNuojknJ2E2OUcjMB1uO804dfI2iULIB3ZtdrTyqvHbTx5tT3WXHmxrEigp0fE2_Wz7DK-6vC2n-ou8lK/s200/Ngangsta+KC+Launch.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taken at<a href="https://www.facebook.com/KCVaghelaBrand/"> KC Vaghela Brand Store</a> Launch this year<br />
by <a href="http://instagram.com/vince_banda">Vince Banda</a><br />
This is clearly Ngansta lol</td></tr>
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<b>NG-ma <i>(n)</i></b> - play on Ngosa and grandmother (g-ma)</div>
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1. <i>introverted, stay at home in the comfort of sweats, hoodie, and fluffy slippers mode; </i></div>
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<i>2. motherl , loyal and caring side of me;</i></div>
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<i>3. inner voice that stops me from being too crazy, makes sure I take care of myself.</i></div>
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<b>NGangsta </b><i style="font-weight: bold;">(n) </i>- play on Ngosa and gangster (gansta/ G)</div>
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<i>1. vivavious, up for anything, spontaneous, open, crazy, outgoing side of me;</i></div>
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<i>2. boldy express myself through my appearance. Don't for anyone else though, but if you enjoy my look hey...</i></div>
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<i>3. leads me into trouble sometimes, forgets to check in and make sure I'm not overworking coz this is the side that fuels the hustler, the boss: the Ndhlovukhazi Storyteller and gets me out and about .</i></div>
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My professional life brought out the curmudgeonly side of NG-ma for most of the year. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_aDovqP91HbGI6ORYdm9dmkOhowKp4IW4zPLI1VroQmgDijFo26KGCAWMh7fnLy-XdMpAXqSo-0v9eGTHxBCnN9qYPAUihcQJFeupzcOqHEOyQnJLRUQqpAs4r1w-vN41T662wHte3gTU/s1600/NG-ma.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_aDovqP91HbGI6ORYdm9dmkOhowKp4IW4zPLI1VroQmgDijFo26KGCAWMh7fnLy-XdMpAXqSo-0v9eGTHxBCnN9qYPAUihcQJFeupzcOqHEOyQnJLRUQqpAs4r1w-vN41T662wHte3gTU/s640/NG-ma.jpg" width="360" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Connect with me on SnapChat @whoops.c </td></tr>
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At the last minute have bailed on things, or just have flat out hidden away for months at a time in order to recharge and reemerge better, stronger and Ngangsta lol. These past few months I have been able to actually been the kind of present and supportive friend, Ndhlovukhazi Storyteller, and member of my community that I have been wanting to evolve into for the past couple of years.</div>
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<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="7" style="background: #FFF; border-radius: 3px; border: 0; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: -webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width: 99.375%; width: calc(100% - 2px);">
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BNEf_N8B5pu/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">#mondaymotivation seek inspiration and to inspire others! As I work to get @aceprojectzed going, stoking my artistic fire by enjoying the Zed creative scene and beyond. Together we can build each other up. Do the same in your life. Reach out beyond your comfort zone. Explore new things. Expose yourself to alternatives. Continue to learn and grow! This was taken by D_TRONN on Twitter @chembomusic Love vs Reality listening party @modziarts. I really enjoyed my hat, scarf, Zebra print combo so posting it from a different angle 😂 #aceprojectzed #zambia #proudlyzambian #lusaka #creative #inspiration #ootn #wiw #lvrep #saturday #night #latergram</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2016-11-21T11:20:51+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Nov 21, 2016 at 3:20am PST</time></div>
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Also, just about finding the sweet spot to the balance between NG-ma and Ngansta: the ying and yang, the right ratio of indivudual and simultaneous expressions of these extremes in my personality as that is what fuels my creativity. My writing, in particular, suffers acutely when things are out of wack. My family also suffers as my cooking tends to taste like poison and not love when I'm not regulated. Repatriating has been really hard on me these last 5 years. The opportunity cost of not living in the West has had a huge effect on my support systems, my engagement with the world, how I process life, and how I express myself. I am finally able to be comfortable in my own skin and with the things I still need to work at. I am finding the joy in imperfection again, as life is best lived in the pursuit of happiness, success and growth despite our flaws, the challenges we face and the pitfalls ahead.</div>
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BNWbzpfjQEN/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">#mondaymotivation seek inspiration to get through the rest of the year. We decided to answer @bongohive challenge and ROARRR! Our creator @whoops.c also just needed an excuse to write on their board... What do you do to psych yourself up? Need inspiration? Have no fear we have a new post up (link in bio) to help you unleash your inner 🦁 and ace it 😉. #aceprojectzed #zedreamteam #bongohive #motivationmonday #lion #roar #blackboard #creative #inspiration</a></div>
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A photo posted by the A.C.E. project (@aceprojectzed) on <time datetime="2016-11-28T10:30:39+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Nov 28, 2016 at 2:30am PST</time></div>
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Wishing you a happy Monday and hope that you find the motivation in your own life to keep calm and carry on, and that you are at peace with yourself, even if things aren't quite where you would like them to be right now!</div>
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<span style="color: lime;">To keep up-to-date daily with the epic battle between NG-ma and Ngangsta follow me on <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a>, and <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c">Twitter</a>.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-48665476966923656222016-10-24T10:00:00.000+02:002016-10-24T10:00:13.716+02:00A Reflection on Identity, Growth, Evolution and Freedom on Independence Day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I have been exploring freedom in my life through another Instagram mini-project which ends today with this blog post.</div>
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BLBSr3IhIYf/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">Decided to start a new #ngosa34 #purplereign mini project over the next 24 days leading up to my country's Independence day. Freedom is a hot topic right now as youth in Zambia feel disenfranchised, disempowered and hopeless. Can we liberate ourselves in order to actualise the people we are champing at the bit to be? I choose to look around me for the inspiration, the hope and the tools to make a better future. I believe we have the will to achieve our goals. When I look up in my backyard this is what I see. How can my heart not be warmed, my spirit invigorated and the passionate fire that fuels my soul's purpose not be stoked? Wishing you all a restful and rejuvenating weekend filled with simple joys like this. #lusaka #zambia #suburbs #backyard #palmtrees #blue #sky #sunshine #happiness #love #life #selfcare</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2016-10-01T12:24:06+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 1, 2016 at 5:24am PDT</time></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I wanted my second project to have a Zambian<br />production team. These amazing people inspire<br />me, challenge me to be and do better and are ballers!<br />Thank you for being you the Ladies of <a href="http://twitter.com/Mafashio">Mafashio</a>,<br /><a href="http://twitter.com/ChosaMweemba">Chosa Mweemba</a> and <a href="http://twitter.com/leelabee">Leelee Ngwenya</a> xo</td></tr>
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This post's eye candy is of ZeDream Team, the amazing young Zambians who have accepted the challenge of collaborating with me on my next project: the African Cultural Exchange project, better known as <a href="http://theaceproject.wordpress.com/">the A.C.E. project</a>. A.C.E. is borne from the scary rise in the <a href="http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20160105-the-man-who-studies-the-spread-of-ignorance">proliferation of ignorance as fact</a> at home and abroad by the powers that be for their own profit, and not for the advancement for the people they are supposed to serve and protect, whom believe that they are fighting in their corner. It is a positively direct response to the feeling of youth disenfranchisement that people have shared with me here in Zambia. These intimate exchanges that I have been privileged to be a part of, due to the status <a href="http://www.facebook.com/e18hteam">e18hteam</a> has brought in my life as a bi product of its success at home and abroad, deserve a respectful reply with action. That response comes in the form of a multimedia project that aims to give voice to these issues in creative ways and hopes to be an organic and fluid conduit for people to use as a catalyst in their own lives for conversation, empowerment, growth and evolution.</div>
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While creating new culture and eventually traditions, it is important to acknowledge what has been: to understand the existing millieu and values to find a way to bridge the gap. There is a vacuum in the future to be filled with the new, but in the present we have to contest and grapple with the old, which is not all necessarily bad. There must be reconciliation to progress - I hope with this project I am able to find a way for generations to see eye to eye so that our elders pass on the best of what was, and help and make way for us to build a better tomorrow on the foundations they have laid. </div>
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At the moment I am going through a process of rediscovering Zambia's past and working my way through books to give me an idea of the present and the promise of tomorrow:</div>
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BFlgSVXI6-Z/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">#Zambia #book Currently reading The Africa House by Christina Lamb about Colonel Stewart Gore-Brown, the English aristocrat who decided to build a Manor House and estate in the middle of nowhere at Shiwa Ngandu: Lake of the Royal Crocodiles in Bembaland. Visited during my TV presenter days in 2013. Beautiful madness... #tbt #proudlyzambian#africa #shiwahouse #shiwangandu #shiwanganduestate #english #redbrick #manorhouse #booklove</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2016-05-19T10:47:14+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">May 19, 2016 at 3:47am PDT</time></div>
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Started reading again! Brushing up on my <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Zambia?src=hash">#Zambia</a> knowledge gearing up to rep next month. More on that soon...cc <a href="https://twitter.com/peternawa">@peternawa</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Zedrocka">@Zedrocka</a> <a href="https://t.co/8La92dlw8v">pic.twitter.com/8La92dlw8v</a></div>
— Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops_c) <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c/status/788353466150293504">October 18, 2016</a></blockquote>
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I cannot stress enough how eerily these books echo the famous adage <i>history repeats itself</i>. Just as Colonel Stewart Gore-Brown thought that he was a good White Man who was a great ally to black people/ Africans, today we see well meaning Westerners come and make a mess of things and exercise their White privilege without thought and acknowledgement. Worse they continue ignore the blatant racism that exists in the world today which leads to development bias and other perspective shortcomings that ultimately cripple and hinder efforts towards <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-halstead/dear-fellow-white-people-_b_11109842.html">black empowerment </a>and/ or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2016/sep/13/the-fascinating-world-of-unconscious-bias-and-development-policy">African progress</a>. The man used to beat the crap out of his indigenous workers and there was a haughty tone of superiority and need for his approval to deem Blacks/ Africans worthy of being the masters of their own fate that muddied his good intentions, which still exists today. Even though Kaunda was all for non violence during our Independence struggle and was all for universal enfranchisement, it is clear with that situation in Zambia today is a sad legacy of the unfulfilled dream that began to be realised officially 52 years ago. Our quest for democracy was in direct response to the failure of our freedom fighters to implement the dream and in the two and a half decades since, we have been running around like headless chickens because we have not fully processed our past, so the present is always tenuous and uncertain. Our future is fraught with problems to solve, unforeseen and clear pitfalls we inevitably get lost in and no clear path to salvation. And those in power and who aspire to power may start out with pure intentions, but seem to end up corrupted: taking advantage of our situation with broken promises, misinformation and constant looking out for themselves and not the people.</div>
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I have struggled this year to reclaim my identity and to find ways to grow and evolve from my experiences. Thankfully I have redisovered my liberty to express myself, which was encroached upon surreptitiously. I have found a way to break free and rise like a true Nkwazi (eagle and symbol of freedom on the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Zambia">Zambian flag</a>). I am inspired by the increasing crack down on freedom of speech and self-expression <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/10/dios-mio-gender-activism-zambia.html">to speak up</a>. I understand that when you live in such an environment, knowingly or unknowingly, people act in nefarious ways to survive in order to not be crippled by fear or conquered by the crazy themselves. So you just have to forgive but not forget, so you don't make the same mistakes and are on the look out to protect yourself in the future. I choose to be optimistic. I choose to be proactive. I choose to be the protagonist in my life. I choose to be a harbinger of good in the world. So I am now in the process of building on the foundations that seemed lost but still are where they have always lain, to move forward whole and unabashedly me both personally and professionally. Hopefully in a way that is of service and is useful in my own small way ;}. I choose to claim the past, warts and all to be able to figure out where I as an individual am now, and where we are as a people to move forward. I want to learn from our mistakes and crowd source information, experiences and ideas from other Zambians, Africans and global citizens to figure out how to create the future that I want. To be able to collaborate to manifest the tomorrow that we all believe in that is better, friendlier and equitable. This endeavour is unclear, and its fuzziness could be a deterrent but the life is a journey. You never really know when you have arrived till you are no more. So just go with it. And that is what I am doing. <span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: lime;">Below you can find my documentary about the Zambian National Football Team: the Chipolopolo's epic and inspirational story of tragedy and ultimate triumph on Video on Demand. For $3 you get 2 day access to the film. I now use e18hteam (eighteam) to give motivational, cultural exchange and customised conceptual talks. If you are interested in how I can help you put forward your idea using the film or if you want to know more about A.C.E. and/ or want to see how we can collaborate, <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c">please contact me</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><a href="https://vimeo.com/182309183">EIGHTEAM</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/omnicorpestudio">OMNICORP ESTUDIO</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-91964917244376325662016-10-04T10:00:00.000+02:002016-10-04T10:00:27.955+02:00Dios Mio! - How my Deo Became my Salvation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This tweet reminded me of an profoundly nonsensical incident that sent me into a tail spin a couple of months ago:</div>
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This is why I only know real men. Those that seek out the truth and aren't afraid to learn, grow and face tough issues. Yaaaaaaaasssss! <a href="https://t.co/bvPlYUR3eI">https://t.co/bvPlYUR3eI</a></div>
— Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops_c) <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c/status/782155975700647936">October 1, 2016</a></blockquote>
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So in August I started using the male version of my antiperspirant. Not by choice, but because my body is very finicky and this particular brand is the only one it doesn't react to. Problem is I'm also extremely sensitive to smell. When I put it on I had the most visceral and adverse reaction to it. The smell clobbered my senses and sent me into a man-hating stupor. Seriously! My sister found it hilarious, but at the time it was traumatic. I can only laugh at myself in retrospect. The smell is that typical alpha male scent that deodorants tend to have. That puerile odor that is supposed to capture the quintessentially male essence. The one teenagers spray all over their bodies like in that famous brand, that rhymes with fax and was formally known by the name of a type of cat, ads. I felt physically, emotionally and mentally assaulted. It was nuts! Yes my deodorant had me in conniptions and discombobulated smh...</div>
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Eventually the horrendous ordeal made me think about why I had had such a strong and unpleasant reaction to it. At this point the Zambian election was imminent. I was on a social media detox because I just couldn't take all the crazy - mostly discourse informed and led by initiatives, speeches and comments of male origin, conjured up to maintain power and oppress in every way, shape and form. I realised I am done with entertaining that in the slightest. I do not need that in my life, let alone emanating from my armpit! The scent was a trigger to direct me to something much larger. Paradoxically the oppression led to my salvation and enfranchisement.</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidUsgBfsEG0YU3t_RmNcfHZ8cvRJyUN1ot8PO2wlg22NcJUPkkg8AURFLshRNE2DznAKPnqo8Vn2LLBr6vloBOIRUDBVbFX-m3jaRFPLqvtZUh-p2fjs04cUM8P10C0FKplkp_MuslN3r6/s1600/Coffee+and+Jazz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidUsgBfsEG0YU3t_RmNcfHZ8cvRJyUN1ot8PO2wlg22NcJUPkkg8AURFLshRNE2DznAKPnqo8Vn2LLBr6vloBOIRUDBVbFX-m3jaRFPLqvtZUh-p2fjs04cUM8P10C0FKplkp_MuslN3r6/s320/Coffee+and+Jazz.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I choose me! For more visual empowerment<br />
follow me on<a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c"> Instagram</a>. I have been creating<br />
a serious of mini projects using images to grow,<br />
inspire and work through things.</td></tr>
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After realising that it was the deodorant but wasn't really about deodorant, I got to thinking about how I could change how I viewed the situation. Instead of man-bashing, I should continue to empower myself and find a new way of dealing with such assaults for my health. My new project <a href="http://theaceproject.wordpress.com/">A.C.E.</a> is all about that so instead of just working it, I needed to keep living it too. I cannot be baited into a less productive way of dealing with the current gender situation in my country and the world. For my project to be honest I need to continually and actively do things in my own life to empower myself, and to not let patriarchy and the asinine acts of men affect me so. I cannot allow myself to be sucked into hate because of my environment. Love must prevail! I must keep the peace and maintain well-being in my life too.</div>
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I had already started with things like this:</div>
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BHRqrFSj-A3/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">#JusticeForChiChi! @nukwasetembo posted her painting to illustrate her call for #Zambia to wake up and step up our feminist movement. We will not be brutalised! Sexual assault should not be watched and enjoyed by bystanders like sport. Nor should it be filmed and circulated for entertainment! Gender Based Violence is a serious infringement of human rights. I refuse to watch the video and hope that the Police use it as evidence in Nagaad's case. Stay woke people. Don't be distracted by Trump and Brexit while crazy is happening on your own doorstep. 🔫🔪❌❤❤❤✔🎨😍 #proudlyzambian #africa #woman #acrylic #painting #art #therapy #activism #staywoke #aceproject #JusticeForNagaad</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2016-06-30T10:55:59+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Jun 30, 2016 at 3:55am PDT</time></div>
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And plan to continue, as I did after I recovered from this trippy incident, with things like this:</div>
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BKQnD2qjBM4/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">😤😤😤 #mondaymotivation #zambia people it's hot. Stepped out today in shorts and relatives afraid of me being lynched. I only went to @BongoHive, not like I was prancing about town where I know regardless of what is rational I'd be stoned. One thing I do know is I am not asking for it and in no way carry myself so. I'm just regulating my temperature as our weather climbs the 30Cs. I refuse for small minds to cage me into overheating. Why should I have to be correcting for your backwardness and patriarchal oppression? I have said this would be a mission for years. It definitely is now. Started inadvertently last week and what are considered short and disrespectful wardrobe choices (any dress, skirt or shorts above the knee and/or tight) are going to be a mainstay this hot season. For more start following @aceprojectzed as we are about to launch our first mini project and start conversations about nuance, freedom of expression and respect. #proudlyzambian #africa #mafashio #fashionista #style #activism #thestruggleisreal #aceproject #purplereign #ngosa34 #melanin #thighsforjeaux</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2016-09-12T14:39:21+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Sep 12, 2016 at 7:39am PDT</time></div>
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I. JUST. CAN'T. ANYMORE! Life is too short to let other people's issues throw you off so. So I choose me. I choose my sanity. I choose self care. I choose to fight. I choose to have my frustration ignite a new passion for change. And together we will win. There is space enough for us to all to be, and do, with respect to one another. That tweet reminded me that even though the bloviated rhetoric of lesser men tends to be amplified, there are lots of beautiful men out there, and in my life, who prove that there is a way to equality, equity and equanimity without oppression.</div>
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<span style="color: lime;">To all the real men out there I salute you, and to all the women out there fighting for our right to be, I'm with you sisters xo! I forgive my deodorant, it's not its fault it smells like an idiot.<i> If you want to talk more about this or anything else, <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c">tweet</a> me! </i></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-40272074077588650932016-09-22T10:00:00.000+02:002016-09-22T10:00:20.930+02:00Tikambe Natulande Part 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I expressed in <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/04/tikambe-natulande-part-i.html">Part 1</a> what a mind*bleep* filming this episode of the vanguard television series produced by <a href="http://twitter.com/kuwaha">Samba Yonga</a> for BBC Media Action was. Even though this post is part of my Things on Thursday series, this is no small thing let me tell you. Are they ever with me ;)?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Youth Counsellor Nancy Mweene and I on set filming our<br />
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I think the most shocking part of the experience for me was the fact that a father felt that it was okay to stick his penis inside his daughter's vagina to teach her about how sex is not to be taken lightly and that she was too young to have intercourse. That he was able to get aroused in order to penetrate her. That despite her cries he still went on to rape her. The despicable act was in no way consensual on her part. That he then ejaculated into his hands so he could mix his sperm with traditional herbs in order to make some juju concoction to rub on her stomach, so if she did have sex, she would get stuck to the dastardly boy who was in cahoots with her, so they could catch them both in the act and reprimand them accordingly! You can't make this kind of crackpot crazy up! I. JUST. CAN'T. As far as I know, the girl did not contract an STD or worse ended up pregnant only to be come the mother/ sister to her brother-incest child! It is pure luck that her once innocent soul was not forced to suffer any more than it already has been burdened with.</div>
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I could not express myself quite that bluntly on camera, as Zambia is still in the dark ages. We couldn't even use scientific, technical terms in order to really depict just how heinous a situation this poor young girl was in and what trauma she faced. I am known to not have any brakes, but I was not going to jeopardise the initiative by not finding a way to get this important message out. Her story was more important than any agenda of mine. I was quite annoyed I couldn't quite articulate myself as clearly and as freely as censorship is a huge part of the problem. We need to talk openly about sex because clearly we are having it and it was revealed as the Tikambe Natulande season unfolded that children much younger than 10 are experimenting, because we aren't creating safe spaces to chat about this natural and important part of our lives. This is almost a year since I filmed the episode and I am still shaken, angry and disturbed that this is not a singular case, but there are thousands around the country being disciplined along this spectrum of sexual perversion in the name of tradition and good parenting. This is not who we are. We are so lost in Zambia that those with any sort of power abuse it in the most devious and evil ways. We have to do better. What future do we have if our youth are continuously blighted by the most unnecessary of traumas. Unadulterated, blunt, uncensored truth serum is required to not only be prescribed, but actually dispensed in bucketloads like Cod Liver Oil. Not teaspoons or tablespoons but bucketloads. It won't go down well, but it will be good for us. We just need to suck it up and get on with curing ourselves of this hush hush syndrome that is crippling us.</div>
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Here is the episode and you can watch the rest of the season on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo7WGJPhggpmhi8j3E1gSFg">Tikambe Natulande Channel</a>:</div>
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<span style="color: lime;">If you would like to talk more about this, <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c">tweet me</a> and for professional advice on sexual reproductive health issues and for resources near you in Zambia, contact the Tikambe team on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TikambeNatulande">Facebook</a> or <a href="https://twitter.com/tikambezambia">Twitter</a>.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-1048894588360983212016-09-13T10:00:00.000+02:002016-09-13T10:00:01.867+02:00Lenshina and the Inauguration<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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So this post really isn't about the Inauguration. Zambia decided and some of us may not have gotten what we wanted, but today incumbent President, His Excellency <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Lungu">Edgar Chagwa Lungu</a>, is being sworn in. What has come out of this election cycle is that Zambia is a flock of lost sheep who are so desperate for direction. For me the political arena really isn't the place to duke this out, as personally I do not see my principles and my ideals for Zambia even remotely represented by anyone who seeks to serve in that capacity. I have no idea what is going on in that ring, so this bull is using her horns to bust out and explore the great wide world out there for answers and to create my own solutions that hopefully have an impact in some way on a larger scale.</div>
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Social media reflecting what people I met around <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Lusaka?src=hash">#Lusaka</a> today feel: upset that <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ZambiaDecides?src=hash">#ZambiaDecides</a> legacy inflammatory, divisive, tribal. Smh 😢😤</div>
— Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops_c) <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c/status/767741534808764416">August 22, 2016</a></blockquote>
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This past weekend I went on an amazing artistic journey quite by accident. I have been in hibernation pretty much all year, trying to put myself back together after inadvertently finding myself the protagonist in what I realised was a <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2016/04/top-posts-2010-2015.html">Humpty Dumpty phase</a>. Thankfully all the King's horses and all the King's men were not required, but this Queen needed a whole lot of soul searching to reemerge. I may have ended up broken after last year's success, but I am on the mend and patched up enough to move forward. Part of that has been reconnecting with life in Lusaka and thankfully new hope has revealed itself. I have been inspired by our tenacity, and that artists in particular are finding ways to express themselves, even though this is a fearful time in Zambia - a time in which many of us youth are fearful of things regressing so far - that there will be no path for our future, only a way for the archaic, the disconnected, the greedy and the power-grabbers.</div>
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We need to be that Mandela quote and be courageous: not let the fear cripple us but be inspired to overcome <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Zambia?src=hash">#Zambia</a> <a href="https://t.co/3e9KC6wIpW">https://t.co/3e9KC6wIpW</a></div>
— Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops_c) <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c/status/769999621481459712">August 28, 2016</a></blockquote>
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On Friday I decided to go to a <a href="http://www.modziarts.com/">Modzi Arts</a> event about whether we do indeed have Zambian Literature. One of my girl crushes <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2012/11/zed-culture-part-iv-polychronic-vs.html">Mulenga Kapwepwe</a> was on the panel and she talked about how it is clear from the way we write today that we have no idea who we are. We defined only in the past tense, in writers long gone. We take on other people's voices, experiences, their landscapes without having visited and try to co-opt their lives unsuccessfully. We would rather write in broken English, live the life we watch on TV and adopt their truths and their pain, than actually tackle the specifics of our situation. There is nothing wrong with being inspired by others. There is everything wrong with living in someone else's skin with no real understanding of who they are and worse who you are. In order for Zambia to move forward, to create great works, we need to live in our dysfunction, channel that through what we do and manifest, in order to work through and come out the other side wiser, strong and defined. There is nothing wrong with declaring your truth, however untidy it may be. If you are discombobulated, say you are and be done with it. If you need to look back to figure out where you are to move forward, then do so. Take it from someone who has spent their life deranged and confused. I have blogged over and over about how I live in uncertainty - you can still find identity in the unknown...trust me ;)!</div>
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Looking back to move forward is exactly what happened the next day. I decided to watch <i>Lenshina</i>, a play about the <a href="http://www.zedcorner.com/the-life-of-alice-lenshina-mulenga-lenshina-myth-unveiled/">Lumpa Church Uprising after Independence</a>, as when I got home after the literary discussion, the Internet was lit with rave reviews. And I was not disappointed. Both the UNZA Drum Theatre Troupe skits that preceded the main event and Lenshina were amazingly Zambian and fresh. I laughed, sighed, cringed, "cried", was challenged, affirmed and above all was moved deeply. What I loved most was that none of the actors put on weird foreign accents which Zambians seem to think make them sound cooler, more intelligent, more attractive and unfortunately, not Zambian and therefore better when speaking English. This erroneous view, symptomatic of a deep self hatred and low esteem, a glaring manifestation of the colonised mind that we tend to ignore, brush over and worst of all reward, is disturbingly sad to witness and usually detracts from what is being communicated. I no longer listen to radio because I just can't with most DJs, the most blatant form of rewarding this behaviour. You are enough <i>mwebantu</i>! Just speak with whatever accent you have: it's your truth, it is the audio map of your life, be proud of your journey please! I equally was tickled by the fact that vernacular was used: mostly Bemba and in <i>Lenshina</i>, Nyanja and Tonga were also featured. Also, so chuffed I understood pretty much everything, so could get all the jokes as the scripts deftly interwove English with our mother tongues which is the way we quintessentially communicate. I am so glad that the art respected that. Every Zambian I believe is at least bilingual. One Zambia One Nation would not be able to exist in some shape or form without at least understanding your people and the diversity in the vicinity. At this point may I apologise if you were in at the Playhouse with me on Saturday: in true African style, I cackled, hooted and hollered, gasped and talked back so loud I couldn't help myself. I blame the raucous company I keep. And no it wasn't the wine I drank, it was only one glass he he he. It's how we do on the continent, and it's one of my favourite things about the way we immerse ourselves when suspension of reality is required at the theatre or the cinema. We engage so viscerally and profoundly with art, something that is largely lost in the West. There is theatre etiquette and a separate, more stringent set of rules for the cinema. Ehk! I have been on the receiving end of many a side-eye and tut when I forget where I am when far from home enjoying myself. Okay maybe I'm not that sorry because clearly I have no control...</div>
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What made me proud to be Zambian after the performance was the fact that the youth who put together Lenshina, took on a very controversial subject in a time when people are retreating to their corners and are afraid to speak. They were able to comment on today using the past. And they did it in a refreshingly modern way, not limited by the comfort Zambians feel in the familiar. We tend to produce content that is stale, repetitive and tired. Our complacency, which has led to the disquiet and dissatisfaction that has manifested itself in cadre violence, political clamp downs and the loss of our peace and friendliness, has in turn revealed itself in art that proves that imitation is not always the best form of flattery. We may have found comfort in knowing what is coming but it keeps us stagnant. It has stopped us from growing. And knowing that forces wanting to "help" will come and bail us out has put us in a position of begging. And this was reflected in some reactions to the play, asking for more of the story as they felt they enjoyed it so much it should have included everything about the Uprising to make it longer, which completely misses the point.</div>
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The play took a particular stand. Unbiased yet strongly pointed. Was Lenshina in the wrong or was Kaunda? The rapier delivery of dialogue built on short sentences and each scene ending with the protagonists accusing each other of having "blood on their hands", perfectly articulated the struggle of defining self and moving forward after colonisation - that One Zambia One Nation was something that needed to be worked at even then. Lives were lost in the struggle and it is up to each of us to come to our own conclusions and most importantly I feel, be inspired by our history not to fall into the same pitfalls our Founding Fathers did. Not to be afraid of different points of view. To allow for nuance. To respect our differences and work harder to find common ground to ensure peace beyond tolerance. I will discuss this much going forward as I launch my new endeavour <a href="http://theaceproject.wordpress.com/">the ACE Project</a>. The play was timely, evident in the fact that religion played a huge part in the confusion and lies were disseminated on both sides to advance each others causes. Both sides I feel were honourable and authentic in their point of view, but their truths were subjective to their experience and goals which blinded them. That ultimately led to clashes rather than compromise for a better future. To miss those parallels because you weren't given the full story is short-sighted. To not understand that true art fills your soul yet sparks your spirit to want more is an oversight we cannot avoid. If you feel a different presentation was required, create your own chance, write your own play, give us another view. Art is never complete, it is supposed to add to the conversation and facilitate the creation of more. Art is meant to "comfort the uncomfortable and discomfort the comfortable". It is not meant to necessarily answer your questions, but it can give you peace knowing that the questions are out there and that the answers are being searched for, the solutions and being worked on. </div>
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This play used that past to give us the language today to communicate what we are feeling, to know that this is not anything new, but also to warn us that just because it has happened before, doesn't mean it should happen again. Repeating history is not an excuse, evidence to be justified in defeat. Instead of <a href="https://www.lusakatimes.com/2016/07/25/president-lungu-leads-zambians-in-prayers/">praying</a> from a place of hopelessness and not hope, let's help ourselves as deliverance comes to those who demand it through their actions. Ultimately the play was able to contribute to the conversations we are having and inspire us to respond in turn. Despite the rickety theatre, the lack of resources, the cast and crew persevered. Their situation is a metaphor for and the reality of Zambia right now. They were able to find and communicate a painful beauty despite the shadows trying to overcast and obscure. They illuminated their desire to succeed in the most thoughtful and entertaining way. They achieved what great art does, they were able to inspire. Hence this blog post ;}!</div>
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BKLq_kPDAgF/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">Wine o'clock before #Lenshina #Zambia story across the road at the Playhouse with @andi.ngwenya @lonahshawa. #wine #love #pelliefun #ngosa34 #proudlyzambian #supportlocal #lenshina #mafashio</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2016-09-10T16:37:31+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Sep 10, 2016 at 9:37am PDT</time></div>
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So excited! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Lenshina?src=hash">#Lenshina</a> about to start! <a href="https://t.co/XNEkcluGO5">pic.twitter.com/XNEkcluGO5</a></div>
— Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops_c) <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c/status/774656704277602304">September 10, 2016</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Lenshina?src=hash">#Lenshina</a> was amazing! Processing now but feel so invigorated by the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/proudlyzambian?src=hash">#proudlyzambian</a> art I witnessed today... <a href="https://t.co/ivgmIXMtVv">pic.twitter.com/ivgmIXMtVv</a></div>
— Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops_c) <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c/status/774685621721899009">September 10, 2016</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/peternawa">@peternawa</a> great art inspires more art. Glad to see that despite the crazy, we persevere. Expression so important, especially now...</div>
— Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops_c) <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c/status/774688468052180992">September 10, 2016</a></blockquote>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-60690100808758314042016-04-19T11:00:00.000+02:002016-04-19T11:00:14.408+02:00Madness and Tea <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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One of the beauties of the internet, is I continue to get tangled in webs woven by beautiful Black (and African) women around the world. Twitter is the best place for that. I have met ladies whom I feel I know like the lines on my palms, and yet we have never occupied the same space physically.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">As I have no picture with Malaka, <br />I have substituted her with some <br />sistren eye candy and my latest pic <br />repping the hooded clan.<br /> Photo taken by Vince Banda </td></tr>
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One such dame is one of my favourite girl crushes <a href="https://mindofmalaka.com/">Malaka</a>. I first came across her when trying to find a transcript of the famous <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2012/10/zed-culture-part-iii-call-to-arms.html">Intellectual Scum</a> conversation by Field Ruwe, but did not really get to know her till we both featured in a <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2014/03/things-on-thursday-tamba-love.html">Google hangout</a> about African women, sex and love. This lead to the epic Twitter love affair of the hooded sistren. The profound nonsense that we spout out in abundance is so much fun. I get to Big Pun and she shines in her irreverently unabashed, insightful, crazy and intelligent way. She is the sage and I am the jester. And vice versa - I Yoda to her Jar Jar Binks. I look forward to finding nuggets on my TL to jump-off from and flex my witty muscles. I can't wait for us to go on our train excursion. She thinks I'll forget. I have proof-o. Don't make me juju...</div>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c">@whoops_c</a> 😱😱😱 Stop playing. Me + you + 🍗 +🚊???</div>
— Malaka. (@AbenaGyekye) <a href="https://twitter.com/AbenaGyekye/status/716614288715157504">April 3, 2016</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c">@whoops_c</a> Hooded clan session in effect! This is great! I can't wait. Let's hope they don't kick us off for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LaughingWhileBlack?src=hash">#LaughingWhileBlack</a></div>
— Malaka. (@AbenaGyekye) <a href="https://twitter.com/AbenaGyekye/status/716615532393406464">April 3, 2016</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c">@whoops_c</a> LMAO!!! You know! Let me go and find my white cloth.</div>
— Malaka. (@AbenaGyekye) <a href="https://twitter.com/AbenaGyekye/status/716618463079448577">April 3, 2016</a></blockquote>
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So really, she is already aware of my powers so she best not try me. Once she returns to the motherland, we are planning! Yes, it's by force as we say here in Zed.</div>
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Anyhoo, back to the point of this post. So Malaka, posted this "<a href="https://xokigbo.com/2016/04/14/life-is-not-short-this-life-as-haiku/">old man rant</a>" about how Africans in the West end up pandering to the stereotype of waxing lyrically about the Africa of <i>Heart of Darkness</i> and National Geographic photographs, not the perfectly imperfect blend of tradition and modernity, light and darkness, poverty and wealth, aet cetera, ad infinitum, and everything in between that actually currently exists on the continent. Right now I'm obsessed with nuance: adding more viewpoints to the debates that are going on locally and globally. The article made me think about how we in Zambia are completely suckered into this form of presentation to get the approval of some NGO, to get some accolade, to lure foreign direct investment or a new aid program, to get our names out there. We crave foreign validation to feel worthy. It's sad. We are enough! Just put yourself out there honestly and D'Arcy will like you just as you are Bridget Jones ;}.</div>
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This led me to have the exchange with her, storified below. I hope it makes you think about the way we represent ourselves, and about how if we don't allow for nuance, we who are the made the "Other" will remain stagnant. If you are part of the "Us" group, who dictate what rhythms the Other has to dance to, think about your part in perpetuating this nonsense. There should only be one we, a diverse group called the human race, trying to make it the best way they can and accepting of the way others are. </div>
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="no" height="750" src="//storify.com/whoops_c/madness-and-tea/embed" width="100%"></iframe><script src="//storify.com/whoops_c/madness-and-tea.js"></script><noscript>[<a href="//storify.com/whoops_c/madness-and-tea" target="_blank">View the story "Madness and Tea" on Storify</a>]</noscript></div>
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<span style="color: yellow;">Like this post? You can find more in <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/search/label/Twit%20Tuesday">Twit Tuesday</a>..</span></div>
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<i style="background-color: black; color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px; text-align: justify;">For more information about my journey this year and to keep up-to-date with the world of MbA, follow me on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/MwanaBaAfrika" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Instagram</a>.</i></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-10589516622895633212016-04-13T11:00:00.000+02:002016-04-13T11:00:01.943+02:00Tikambe Natulande Part I<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">If you follow me on social media, you will know that I am one of the 10 celebrity (ehk, that word, but that is what they have referred to all of us as, and everyone else rightly deserves it, soooo) guest presenters on the newly created, groundbreaking show <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23tikambetv">Tikambe</a>, part of a youth-led initiative <a href="https://web.facebook.com/TikambeNatulande/">Tikambe Natulande</a> (Let's Talk in Nyanja and Bemba) that started off as a radio show with social media platforms.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Selfie with crew after the show. I was styled by <a href="http://www.instagram.com/mafashio_zambia">Mafashio</a><br />in <a href="http://www.instagram.com/kamangawear">Kamanga Wear</a> from their Zambia Fashion Week 2015<br />Collection. </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This Restless Development and BBC Media Action programme, which is also funded by the Swedish Government, is produced by Samba Yonga, whom if you have kept up with the blog, is a dear friend and a media force to be reckoned with here in Zambia. My episode has already aired, and the series is currently showing on Fridays at 21:30 on ZNBC TV1. If you missed out, then here is some insight into my episode and the trailers to get you joining the conversation online, and tuning in from now on:</span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: black; line-height: 16.08px;">Tonight's guest on my </span><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://web.facebook.com/hashtag/tikambetv?source=feed_text&story_id=977588222278072" style="background-color: black; cursor: pointer; line-height: 16.08px; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl">#</span><span class="_58cm">TikambeTV</span></a><span style="background-color: black; line-height: 16.08px;"> </span><span style="background-color: black; line-height: 16.08px;">show is filmmaker</span><span style="background-color: black; line-height: 16.08px;"> </span><a class="profileLink" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100002513566852" href="https://web.facebook.com/MwanaBaAfrika" style="background-color: black; cursor: pointer; line-height: 16.08px; text-decoration: none;">Ngosa Chungu</a><span style="background-color: black; line-height: 16.08px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 16.08px;"><span style="background-color: black;">and we had a nice little chat about how we got to this episode:</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: red; font-family: inherit;">Me: Can you talk about landi<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">ng the role on this show and a bit about the interview process?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 16.08px;">Ngosa:</span><span style="line-height: 16.08px;"> </span><a class="profileLink" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=628716049" href="https://twitter.com/kuwaha" style="cursor: pointer; line-height: 16.08px; text-decoration: none;">Samba Yonga</a><span style="line-height: 16.08px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 16.08px;">(Tikambe TV show producer) is a close friend and we were having our usual monthly lunch and catch up when she told me about this new project she was working on: turning</span><span style="line-height: 16.08px;"> </span><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://web.facebook.com/hashtag/tikambe?source=feed_text&story_id=977588222278072" style="cursor: pointer; line-height: 16.08px; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl">#</span><span class="_58cm">Tikambe</span></a><span style="line-height: 16.08px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 16.08px;">the radio show into a TV show. She asked me if I had listened to it before and I had randomly stumbled upon it on the radio while driving a couple of times.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: orange;">She then told me some of the guests and the format and I thought it was great and wished her all the best. She then asked if I would be one of the presenters and I was like are you sure, I don't think I am a celebrity! Who knows me and why would they listen to what I have to say?!</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;">Me: Why do you think you were perfect for the show?</span></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Ngosa: When Samba told me that the reason she would like me to contribute was because I am not afraid to speak my mind, and that is needed desperately right now when it comes to youth and sexual reproductive health issues, I couldn't say no.</span></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">If there are people who are able to talk about sensitive issues because they see me do so without any qualms, that is a good thing. I also like a challenge and I'm committed to continuing to grow personally and within the communities I can affect, so I asked for a really tough subject to really make the most of this opportunity and be of assistance.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red;">Me: Can you share one secret about behind-the-scenes when filming the episode?</span></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Ngosa: I was so emotional that I was in tears pretty much the whole episode. I really did not want anyone to see me cry, or to ruin everything by being unintelligible. All I wanted to do was stomp around and throw things in anger because I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and I felt so much for the brave youth telling her story. I was a mess, an absolute wreck! I held the chair a lot I think to steady myself.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red;">Me: What are your thoughts on the topic on tonight's episode?</span></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Ngosa: Children do not ask to be born. They end up in this world because men and women carelessly, or thoughtfully, come together and create life. Regardless, it is up to all of us to ensure that once they get here, they are protected until they can fend for themselves. Anyone who takes advantage of a child is the most despicable of the human race. There is no excuse for it and it is a glaring consequence of our collective failure as society. It means something is broken and if we do not take care to check such individuals and prevent further trauma, we are all accountable. It is NEVER the child's fault. It is those in power who are allowed to act in such ways because we do nothing to deter them.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red;">Me: Did this spark any personal ambitions yet unattained?</span></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Ngosa: It reminded me that I have a fire inside that can be used to do more. I am very passionate about my work and the people I love. I have now been opened up to doing things of impact in a more public fashion that mean something. I plan to be more and more engaged and this has actually influenced my next project which will be revealed soon. I am less afraid of being out there I guess, but only for the right reasons naturally.</span></div>
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<script>(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_GB/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));</script><div class="fb-video" data-allowfullscreen="1" data-href="/TikambeNatulande/videos/vb.651188731584691/972599909443570/?type=3">
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<blockquote cite="https://www.facebook.com/TikambeNatulande/videos/972599909443570/">
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/TikambeNatulande/videos/972599909443570/">TIKAMBE SHOW TV OFFICIAL TRAILER</a>The #TikambeTV show has officially been launched. See the trailer below... Watch the first episode tomorrow on ZNBC TV1 at 20:30hrs and#LetsTalk #Tikambe<br />
Posted by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TikambeNatulande/">Tikambe Natulande</a> on Thursday, 10 March 2016</blockquote>
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<i style="background-color: black; color: lime; line-height: 20.8px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">To keep up-to-date with Tikambe, as well my other projects in Zambia and globally, follow me on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/MwanaBaAfrika" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Instagram</a>.</span></i></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-57872569058585986132016-04-12T11:00:00.000+02:002016-04-12T11:00:08.919+02:00Women's Month Recap<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes I am appreciating designer <a href="https://twitter.com/KCVaghela">Ms KC's</a> posterior. It was an<br />
eventful women's month what can I say ;}</td></tr>
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During Women's Month I was interviewed by Leelee, a <a href="https://twitter.com/leelabee">twit</a> whom I have come to love dearly. In saying that I'm probably going to be subject to more crazy and pretence that she is not all cookie dough inside, with some sort of hard exterior comment or a deluge of pseudo-vitriol once she sees this. We know your secret, you love me too lol. The proof is in the pudding (don't get me started on what a weird saying that is...):</div>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/leelabee">@leelabee</a> clearly are no rules. Transpecies transformation is completely up to you. That's a lot Indian, Brazilian hair & dye in your future</div>
— Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops_c) <a href="https://twitter.com/whoops_c/status/716305810188607488">April 2, 2016</a></blockquote>
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The conversation started before these tweets was silly, and ended cray cray. Yaaaah...he he he he...</div>
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Back to some semblance of normalcy and to the actual point of this post. I enjoyed a recent article of hers and here is an excerpt featuring my answers to her insightful questions:</div>
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<span class="im" style="background-color: black; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: red; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Q:</strong> If you could put on a parade for International Women’s Day, which woman would you put on the main float?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A:</strong> I’d put my mother. When I grow up I want to be as graceful, worldly, loving and effective as she is. Despite the constraints of Zambia’s conservatism, she has managed to beat the odds and pursue her dreams.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: orange; font-family: inherit;">She raised 3 girls to be strong women and to value education and self-fulfillment, not to just believe that the only role in society females have is to be wives, mothers and children. She showed you can be that and more by being an entrepreneur and recently successfully campaigning to represent Lufwanyama constituency at Parliament. So many people told her she couldn’t do both those things but that didn’t stop her. She’s amazing!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: red; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Q:</strong> How can young women empower themselves?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A:</strong> People may dare to keep you in a box but once you realise the only person who truly puts limits on what you do is you, you have won the battle. If you listen to naysayers you will do nothing. If you look inside yourself to find your potential and the strength to fulfill your dreams, you are empowered and nothing can stop you.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: red; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Q:</strong> What advice would you give your teenage self?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A:</strong> Forget the plan. Life is not about that, it’s about adapting and evolving. If you are rigid, you cannot take the hard knocks and the crazy that will come your way. If you can only succeed when things go your way, you will ultimately fail. If you can’t see beyond what you think you want, you will miss out on great opportunities and will not be exposed to new things and find out that maybe you should go in a different direction. There are many ways to get to what you believe will make life worth living.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: red; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Q:</strong> How do you define success?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A:</strong> Inner peace: No regrets, love from family and friends, passion for life and work that feels like play, contributing positively to the communities you are privileged to be a part of.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: red; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Q: </strong>What is the best advice a female family member has given you?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><strong style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A:</strong> You are enough. My younger sister tells me that all the time. She is the love of my life and is my number one cheerleader. She takes me just as I am, as silly, deranged and confused as I may be due to having a creative soul and being a little too cerebral at times.</span></div>
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<span style="color: yellow;">You can find the whole article with different questions posed to fabulous proudly Zambian women on Leelee's <a href="https://lsksocial.wordpress.com/">blog</a>.</span></div>
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<i style="background-color: black; color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px;">To keep up-to-date with everything going on with moi and my projects in Zambia and globally, follow me on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/MwanaBaAfrika" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c" style="color: #ff2400; text-decoration: none;">Instagram</a>.</i></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-61089801541680294962016-04-06T11:00:00.000+02:002016-04-06T11:00:27.913+02:00Top posts 2010-2015<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I'm a mess. Deranged and confused incarnate. So what's new this Woolgather Wednesday, as I pop my cherry for another year of awesome possum profound nonsense, hopefully with oodles and poodles of posts? Nothing clearly lol ;}.</div>
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Over the past 5 years I have written less and less, particularly after I started working on my first film project. The blog is meant to be an open diary of sorts. A place for me to parse information, to sort through issues that have come to my attention that I believe are worth sharing with a larger audience. Always the medicine to assuage my nervous condition which has flared up in the most spectacularly and newly nefarious manner in the last year, because I didn't realise I needed to adapt and evolve how to take care of me. This Ndhlovukhazi Storyteller saw her craft take her all around the world, but her soul was left behind and it took a whole load of crazy in my life, and inadvertent and direly consequential deterioration of my most prized possessions, the many gifts of friendship being affected, for me to wake up from my stupor and right my ship. I continue to apologise to my peeps. You are my everything. I need you in my life. So I will be more careful with myself, as sometimes there is such a thing are being too open. I had to learn that. I used to be too closed off, which led to me learning to be more out there over the last couple of years, which has now I think balanced out :). </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9bXPN8kaxMJl-chf11gsNMxean3ijUzHBUL2E4GrtBg23nD13-ZiM2ZtYU8QvtiAjrqyTRHZIbpAFbkBVhvRJZZBdYJBbnXE-Qg-uyLXFrXNmkI8lW91AMl6NPZLuctFWPTSGCh3tiHir/s1600/_IAH0643.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9bXPN8kaxMJl-chf11gsNMxean3ijUzHBUL2E4GrtBg23nD13-ZiM2ZtYU8QvtiAjrqyTRHZIbpAFbkBVhvRJZZBdYJBbnXE-Qg-uyLXFrXNmkI8lW91AMl6NPZLuctFWPTSGCh3tiHir/s400/_IAH0643.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I chose this image as it is one I have used on the blog before and I think<br />encapsulates my last five years of storytelling online.<br />Photo Credit: <a href="http://chosamweemba.com/">Chosa Mweemba</a></td></tr>
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So this top 10 is the most pathetic ever, yet genius he he. I am heartily ashamed of myself. I really do need to be more disciplined. I had 8 posts to choose from. Writing really helps the rest of my storytelling. As I embark on my sophomore documentary project, I vow to implement the lessons from my first foray into filmmaking. Without compromising my writing, I pledge to learn and grow in a less destructive way with this new and exciting stab at proudly Zambian and positively African audiovisual storytelling. My journey continues to inform my creativity so I can't be mad at that really, I suppose...</div>
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On that note I give you a combination of my favourite posts from 2015 as well as to commemorate the blog turning 5 in May, which I didn't have the time and energy to acknowledge as I was gearing up to launch e18hteam's <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/zambiaatcannes">#ZambiaAtCannes</a> campaign, with my favourite posts of all time with a little insight as to why. See I told you, genius he he:</div>
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1. <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2015/10/zed-love.html">Zed Love</a> 2015</div>
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I just reread this and realised that this post encapsulates my creative process. I am always ahead of myself, I then find myself exploring other possibilities, ways of thinking and ideas and then circle back to something I have already noted down or recorded in some way for future reference. To my surprise this post is my next project epitomised in blog form lol. More details on this in about a month or so...</div>
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2. <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2015/10/kamanga-wear-love-affair-proudly.html">Kamanga Wear Love Affair</a> 2015</div>
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My love for this proudly Zambian fashion brand is all over my social media and the blog. Last year I officially became a Brand Ambassador after purchasing the most extensive collection of their clothing since 2012. </div>
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3. <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2015/10/proudly-zambian-instastoryteller.html">Proudly Zambian InstaStoryteller</a> 2015</div>
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I never join a new social media platform unless I can justify my presence there, as there are just too many to jump onto every bandwagon. I gave up on Google+ as it just doesn't fit with the way I communicate online. Same with LinkedIn. Instagram has taken my quest to be a master multimedia communicator as the Ndhlovukhazi Storyteller to a new level and looking at pictures from around the world has really helped with creative inspiration. I really enjoyed documenting Zambeef's e18hteam national tour. I finally can say I have visited all 10 provinces in Zambia now, adding Western and Luapula which eluded me when I went around with Today with Zamtel in 2013. You can find all the photos I posted through #ZambeefInYourTown and/ or the name of the towns we visited: #Kabwe #Chingola #Kitwe #Kaoma #Mongu #Choma #Livingstone #Chipata #Mansa and #Lusaka on my Instagram. (You can find links to all these hashtags in the post above ;))</div>
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4. <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2015/10/coming-to-america-dream-of-africa.html">Coming to America, Dream of Africa</a> 2015</div>
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This post is a great example of my commitment to allowing myself to be comfortable in discomfort. This is also is extended to uncertainty, ambiguity, the unknown. The esteem that comes with knowing that I can be rocked but will find my way back to who I am, what I believe, and the people and things that matter is priceless. Continuing to test it, fortifies this truth I have come to realise. </div>
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5. <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2014/04/woolgather-wednesday-kindness-ate-quail.html">Kindness Ate the Quail</a> 2014</div>
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Though I had a conversation about this with my mother at the time in 2014, I got burned in 2015 and <i>uluse lwalile inkwale</i>: kindness ate this quail. Will I stop being kind to the best of my ability, be giving of myself and open to the world? No. Will I be more mindful about whom I let into my life in any capacity in the future and what opportunities I commit to? Absolutely. Learnt a lot. No regrets. Just got to keep growing. My intuition has evolved and my radar is now stronger, so will guide me better going forward. </div>
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6. <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2013/10/twit-tuesday-debut-justin-timberlake.html">Twit Tuesday Debut</a> 2013</div>
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This reminds me that though I tend to be pretty stubborn and fixed in my ways, that opening up myself to new experiences and challenging myself to rethink how I feel about things, can lead to awesome possumness. Still think Twitter is for twits, but enjoy the silly banter it affords with the people I talk to regularly online.</div>
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7. <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2012/05/mobile-tales-part-1-blues.html">Mobile Tales Part I</a> 2012</div>
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This post at the time was a light post that epitomised me and my profound nonsense. In retrospect it is one of the strongest symbols of my journey returning to Zambia and sacrificing everything to be a filmmaker. I started on e18hteam in 2012. I did not spend any money on new technology till I finally bought myself a Samsung S5 in March 2015, after suffering through multiple instances of my phone dying in the fashion described. All my money went to the success of the film. I would not spend if I could work around it. Ask my hair lol. Craziness! That's me though. I thank my mother for continually taking pity on me. I am very loved thankfully.</div>
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8. <a href="https://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2011/02/innocent-mugabe.html">Innocent Mugabe</a> 2011</div>
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A perfect example of awesome possum profound nonsense. Nuff said!</div>
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9. <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2010/12/why-it-sucks-to-be-young-educated.html">Why it Sucks to be a Young Educated African Woman Today and So On...</a> 2010</div>
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This post has hit home as Zambia struggles to deal with local socio-economic setbacks coupled with the global fervour powering feminist, as well as gender equality and parity movements. We are not adapting well AT ALL. I have never felt fear manifesting in such a violent way on a regular basis before. I see women cowering and pandering and men huffing and puffing and trying to snuff out our lights. More on this soon he he he ;}</div>
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10. There isn't one. Got here and decided not to force it and leave it at 9. This is a celebration of my writing over the last 5 years with a healthy cross-section of posts. Hope you enjoyed it xo.</div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px;">To sample more, check out the Top 10s from previous years curated on pages listed in the top right hand corner of the blog. For alternate storytelling from this mwana ba afrika, please check out my social media: </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/MwanaBaAfrika" style="background-color: black; color: #ff2400; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px; text-decoration: none;">Facebook</a><span style="background-color: black; color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px;">, </span><a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c" style="background-color: black; color: #ff2400; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px; text-decoration: none;">Twitter </a><span style="background-color: black; color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px;">and </span><a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c" style="background-color: black; color: #ff2400; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px; text-decoration: none;">Instagram</a><span style="background-color: black; color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20.8px;">.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-76686621464450877222015-11-04T22:56:00.000+02:002015-11-04T22:56:00.550+02:00Proudly Zambian Fashion More than Just Style Part II<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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In Part I, I focused on <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2015/10/kamanga-wear-love-affair-proudly.html">Kamanga Wear</a>, my favourite designers, whom I now represent officially.</div>
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Recently, through my partnership with <a href="http://www.mafashio.co.zm/">Mafashio</a>, I have also been introduced to other proudly Zambian designers. My work wardrobe now fully showcases what the country has to offer creatively to fashion. Such an easy yet interesting way to keep the proudly Zambian theme I would like to permeate all that do.</div>
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<span style="color: red;">Here are looks I have rocked in the last year:</span></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">ChizO Designs velvet and African embrodiery crop top with velvet trimmed stretch skirt, Chitenge Life Clutch and G by Mangishi chitenge and suede shoes</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXQhGdZ9JwhNAAAL1-X90FY-XHJbiV9JO2coSXqf2JCOo5amu_KtL5IGqJ0-WdSwHoUEBVn1TgdNODlr6nVae5G8Re48k7R7YyXTD5avKgEcOod_-JK_3NM-ryw9RGyo-A9N2YM-QKmijO/s400/11887563_752923538186301_8761510866070554990_o.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PR-girl-1629249804020344/">PR Girl</a></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXQhGdZ9JwhNAAAL1-X90FY-XHJbiV9JO2coSXqf2JCOo5amu_KtL5IGqJ0-WdSwHoUEBVn1TgdNODlr6nVae5G8Re48k7R7YyXTD5avKgEcOod_-JK_3NM-ryw9RGyo-A9N2YM-QKmijO/s1600/11887563_752923538186301_8761510866070554990_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: orange;"></span></a><br /></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Kamanga Wear crop top and cigarette geometric print trousers I bought during film festival trip to Germany earlier in the year</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9tKOpbFPdvM5-CtOpc_JZP56M5ppsi3Q7echan-5n5CE-QGkRDhwb4yoXEG7BI5gmBltaV-zSd6X8HqkapKBHuPiwzvuxg1e1JAri68NVC2AY0rZ3OZZdXyCfvGS2mJJBuG0eudAbblow/s1600/12010753_769798189832169_5144013436602576803_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9tKOpbFPdvM5-CtOpc_JZP56M5ppsi3Q7echan-5n5CE-QGkRDhwb4yoXEG7BI5gmBltaV-zSd6X8HqkapKBHuPiwzvuxg1e1JAri68NVC2AY0rZ3OZZdXyCfvGS2mJJBuG0eudAbblow/s400/12010753_769798189832169_5144013436602576803_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PR-girl-1629249804020344/">PR Girl</a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: orange;">Poleka Pemplum strapless LBD, Ted Baker clutch and Michael Kors heels</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR4Qo4eMxL8YGzjhDWXxM1a80W2wSVjaoze4rLZznsowBQBpXY1DTwPAu66fg8M0ubww9KuLxIYNflgmDl_mHOJvKohpTdODnbhfMLBuJm5SFpiMAPHBKEpkCPTljpobvfyJ9dLxPFfavC/s1600/20151016_201129.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR4Qo4eMxL8YGzjhDWXxM1a80W2wSVjaoze4rLZznsowBQBpXY1DTwPAu66fg8M0ubww9KuLxIYNflgmDl_mHOJvKohpTdODnbhfMLBuJm5SFpiMAPHBKEpkCPTljpobvfyJ9dLxPFfavC/s640/20151016_201129.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Dress by Desigual that I bought during film festival trip to Spain, with Chitenge Life Clutch</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvCq4ttc1g-ni8hM0S97HlUkvOb93zOafK1dO1a4pEdgnIVXDBIgzkg-n0KHrPJUUF3y2Tm9cJSSeXR94VZTuIwKKAV6Y7xytDOyYnfMAu2prIQvKdzUFg2EGmOkva7EEHztUpSwa12HD/s1600/20151017_160358.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvCq4ttc1g-ni8hM0S97HlUkvOb93zOafK1dO1a4pEdgnIVXDBIgzkg-n0KHrPJUUF3y2Tm9cJSSeXR94VZTuIwKKAV6Y7xytDOyYnfMAu2prIQvKdzUFg2EGmOkva7EEHztUpSwa12HD/s640/20151017_160358.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: lime;">For more pictures and information about Zambian designers, please check out my social media: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/MwanaBaAfrika">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c">Twitter </a>and <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a>.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-66102599579204061612015-11-03T12:00:00.000+02:002015-11-03T12:00:04.020+02:00Zarty Farty Global Arty<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I love art. I yearn for the visceral, transcendent, intellectual and emotional ways in which it invokes the stirring of your spirit and soul, in ways that you cannot fathom or anticipate. </div>
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Here are some of the pieces I have posted on social media from Zambia and around the world that have touched me to the very core of my being. I wish you inspiration, comfort, joy and thought from looking at these:</div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/9RgkavI6yL/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Mind blown today. #pelliefun #stanfordreunion #arttherapy. Deep Field Fancy by Mark Fox nee 1963. #artmuseum #proudlyzambian #zambia #africa #travelnoire #traveller #travel #california</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-10-25T20:13:45+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 25, 2015 at 1:13pm PDT</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/9IVY0MI6zj/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">#nofilters #latergram #sanfransisco #graffiti #creative #inspiration on 24th St by Mission Bart Station #pelliefun #travelnoire #proudlyzambian #zambia #africa #travel #traveller #carefreeblackgirl #california #tripping #colourful #color #spraypaint #sprayart #haunting #instaart</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-10-22T06:42:53+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 21, 2015 at 11:42pm PDT</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/8OQz1yo609/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">#pelliefun #sanfrancisco #graffiti on the wall... #proudlyzambian #zambia #africa #travelnoire #traveller #travel #carefreeblackgirl #california #tripping #colourful #life #scene #brick #wallart #cityscape #walk</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-09-29T17:26:55+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Sep 29, 2015 at 10:26am PDT</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/5zYvS3o68-/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">#pelliefun #soulfood #friday This beautiful #ProudlyZambian painting by @nukwasetembo is called "The Fall of Man", but there is something beautifully spiritually uplifting about it. To me it conveys beware of nefarious forces that may creep up on you and despite the trials and tribulations you face, find a way to thrive and your hard work will bear fruit: find the strength to rise and grow if you fall; don't descend into the depths of depravity and despair but find the beauty in an imperfect life. I see the Genesis inspiration as well, but I feel this painting has many profound interpretations. What do you see and feel? #Zambia #Zambian #art #artwork #oil #canvas #painting #Africa #African #africanart #oilcanvas #oilpainting #soulfoodfriday #genesis #bible #treeoflife #tree #forbiddenfruit #fruit #nature #natural #spiritual #religious #inspiration</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-07-31T13:53:56+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Jul 31, 2015 at 6:53am PDT</time></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-10280886518894768432015-10-30T11:00:00.000+02:002015-10-30T11:00:01.434+02:00e18hteam at the Lusaka International Film and Music Festival<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Barefeet Theatre Film Night at 2015 Festival hosted at <br />
FreshView Cinemas Manda Hill.</td></tr>
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Fresh off e18hteam's win at SVAFF, it is coming back to Lusaka! If you have missed it now is your chance.<br />
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The last time it showed was at Barefeet Theatre's Film Night. The film was so highly anticipated, it was over subscribed in the end and kids sat on the floor to accommodate the demand. I love how much support we are getting from the capital city. Thank you for your support</div>
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Get your tickets within the next week, if you haven't gotten to see it on the big screen yet, from Fresh View Cinema.</div>
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<span style="color: yellow;">Friday 6th November</span></div>
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<span style="color: yellow;">17:00</span></div>
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<span style="color: yellow;">e18hteam</span></div>
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<span style="color: yellow;">K100</span></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Heads up, you will have to leave work early to beat traffic so plan accordingly. You are welcome for the week headstart to figure that out.</span></div>
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So glad people are still excited to go see it. Honoured to have it as part of closing night line up. Thank you to Charity Maruta for including the film this year. She has been such a supporter since it premiered last year. Wish LIFMF every success as it continues to grow in its second year and beyond.</div>
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& just like that I have me two tickets 4 the screening of <a e18hteam="" href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=" quot="" twitter.com="">@e18hteam</a>https://twitter.com/e18hteam">@e18hteam</div>
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> whoop whoop <a elebratezambian="" hashtag="" href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=" src="hash"" twitter.com="">#CelebrateZambian</a>https://twitter.com/hashtag/CelebrateZambian?src=hash">#CelebrateZambian> <a hashtag="" href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=" maboutthatlife="" src="hash"" twitter.com="">#AmAboutThatLife</a>https://twitter.com/hashtag/AmAboutThatLife?src=hash">#AmAboutThatLife> ❤ <a b898lo0rzd="" href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=" quot="" t.co="">pic.twitter.com/b898LO0rzd</a>&mdash">https://t.co/b898LO0rzd">pic.twitter.com/b898LO0rzd&mdash; That African Girl ❤ (@ThaAfricanGirl) <a haafricangirl="" href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=" quot="" status="" twitter.com="">October">https://twitter.com/ThaAfricanGirl/status/657518800611446784">October</a> 23, 2015<br />
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script><br />
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<span style="color: lime;">For more information about all the local, African and global films showing, visit </span><a href="http://lifmf.com/"><span style="color: lime;">LIFMF</span></a><span style="color: lime;"> website.</span><br />
<span style="color: lime;"></span><br />
<span style="color: lime;">To keep up to date with e18hteam, check the film out on </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/e18hteam"><span style="color: lime;">Facebook</span></a><span style="color: lime;">, </span><a href="http://twitter.com/e18hteam"><span style="color: lime;">Twitter</span></a><span style="color: lime;"> and </span><a href="http://instagram.com/e18hteamovie"><span style="color: lime;">Instagram</span></a><span style="color: lime;">.</span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-27849068324921422742015-10-29T13:00:00.000+02:002015-10-29T13:00:02.340+02:00Zed Love<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I am currently sitting in the Emirates Business Class Lounge at Dubai International Airport, en route from San Francisco to Lusaka. Five years ago I was at in this very airport returning home from LA after my masters, excited by what was to come as <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2010/07/transtitioning-from-young-and-eager-to.html">I transitioned back to living on African soil</a>. Is it coincidence that there are so many parallels to my journey when I started this blog? Methinks not. Methinks the universe is trying to tell me something. I would be foolish not to listen. So thought I would ruminate over a coupla things on Thursday ;}.</div>
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I have clearly missed writing, and I am glad I have found my waxing lyrical mojo once more. I am so excited to go back home. I am so at peace with myself, and I am not worried about losing this feeling once I land. When I left Ghana in 2014 I wanted to stay on, as I felt I would not be able to bottle that spirit I found in me there and dose myself every time I needed a pick me up.</div>
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What I want to say in this post is, a year on from Zambia's 50th, despite the recent woes with Zesco's crippling, schizophrenic <a href="https://zambia.co.zm/zol_articles/2015/07/23/62940/">loadshedding,</a> the Kwacha <a href="http://www.times.co.zm/?p=66476">plummeting</a> - further adding to the debilitating situation caused by our energy crisis, and tradition/ religion being twisted to be used as a scapegoat to continue bad practices, to excuse unethical behavior/ decisions, <a href="http://zambianeye.com/archives/38645">as well as to quell the masses</a> by passing the buck of responsibility on to a higher power/ dogma, I see a bright future. There are still people out there finding a way to be and to do regardless of the situation. I still firmly believe that the way to<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Being un-CEOrious during <br />
#ZambeefInYourTown <br />
e18hteam national tour, photobombing <br />
a picture with Zambeef Manager <br />
and audience members in Lusaka.<br />
Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PR-girl-1629249804020344/">PR Girl</a></td></tr>
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survive and thrive is to not base your dreams, goals and route to success on who is in power, whom you have to accept as the people have chosen and respect their decision and just get on with it. And if they haven't, well it is what it is, isn't it, so unless you can do something about it, once again you just have to find a way to live with that too. The same goes for waiting on the perfect conditions arising, or any other fixed parameters that people can use and abuse for their own ends. If all is just right great. More often than not it isn't, so you just have to find way to work with the cards you have been dealt. Zambia is far from stable enough to bank on things being just right and so I continue to adhere to the school of thought of just get it done. Be aware of the current environment, the possibilities and the pitfalls present and the potential for either in the near and distant future. Ultimately work with what you have and innovate perpetually, as being flexible and adaptable, is what is required. If you are in constant evolution, you can ride whatever wave you encounter as you navigate the treacherous sea that is development, the state in which Zambia and much of the world is still in. Even places in the developed world are no longer predictable, stable or giving, even when you do everything right.</div>
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Life is not meant to be easy, or there would be no point in living it as the highs and lows, the extremes and all that lies in between, is what makes it a great ride. Zambia provides that in spades. I like the challenge of it. I now have found a way to thrive in it. I am no longer there <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2011/06/video-musings-of-afropolitan-woman_29.html">to prove a point</a>, that I am meant to be there. I am now there because I choose to be, because it is the only place that affords the life that I cannot escape from, nor do I want to anymore. I was able to reflect on this at the most beautiful sanctuary while at my 10 year Stanford Reunion on Independence Day. I am truly blessed to be able to save to travel to my global family now because I live and work in Zambia, where I do not have to spend much to live a great life. I don't know how I would have survived being away from the majority of the people who make my life worth living without the internet. However, the nuances of communication are largely lost and so in the end, it becomes necessary to see people in the flesh and to feel physical places and reconnect with environments and certain milieus singular to places and congregations of specific people. I have found the beauty, the humour, the work hard play hard balance and the company to make Zambia my permanent base to interact with the world. Here are some more pictures from instagram that illustrate this:</div>
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<span style="color: red;">The humour</span></div>
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<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="5" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px currentColor; box-shadow: 0px 0px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5), 0px 1px 10px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);">
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/7K5VU_o6yO/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">#tbt #workhardplayhard Important to have a sense of humour in my line of work. #Chipata #ngoni #man came up on stage to tell me even if I don't know him, he knows me lol! Nikuziba - I know you... Styled in consultation with @mafashio_zambia. Photo credit @chishi #ZambeefInYourTown #e18hteam #dibili #fun #zambia #zambian #africa #african #rural #life #lol #proudlyzambian #travel #roadtrip #travelnoire #traveller #carefreeblackgirl #fake #selfie #throwbackthursday</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-09-03T13:32:40+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Sep 3, 2015 at 6:32am PDT</time></div>
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<span style="color: red;">Work hard play hard</span></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/7-yhfGI6-o/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">#aboutlastnight this #afropolitan was "berry #cosmopolitan" and need to get my mitts on another one as a little tipple makes everythang better lol 😉. Getting ready to fly to the US rather stressful. Too much to do... #proudlyzambian #zambia #africa #fashion #zedfashion #mafashio #fashionista #kamangawearday #kamangawear #chitenge #kitenge #ankara #africanprint #pink #croptop #workhardplayhard #e18hteam #zedtonaija #zedtocali #pelliefun #lusaka #type4hair #naturalhair #liciouscollections #baller #onfleek #likeaboss</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-09-23T17:13:40+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Sep 23, 2015 at 10:13am PDT</time></div>
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<span style="color: red;">Great company</span></div>
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<div style="background: rgb(248, 248, 248); line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 50% 0px; text-align: center; width: 100%;">
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/7fEo-Po6zN/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">#NoSV #PellieFun with #zedcreatives strong, articulate, vocal #Zambia women. Proud to know the majority of these beautiful ladies who enrich my life by sharing who they are as friends and/ or impact Zambia through their passions and views with their work. I was styled by @mafashio_zambia. Photo credit #PRGirl #lusaka #swedishembassy #baller #onfleek #trill #africa #proudlyafrican #women #carefreeblackgirl #mafashio #zedfashion #africanfashion #fashionista #type4hair #zediannaturals #afro #hair #kamangawear #workhardplayhard #friends</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-09-11T09:36:17+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Sep 11, 2015 at 2:36am PDT</time></div>
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Can't wait to land in a coupla hours. Hope the heat won't kill me though, it's scorching out there and the temperature differential is over 20C!<br />
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<i style="color: lime; text-align: justify;">For more information about my journey this year and to keep up-to-date with everything going on with the film as well my other projects in Zambia and globally, follow me on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/MwanaBaAfrika">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a>.</i></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999975598314428644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2659757082629783950.post-64473377978098592212015-10-28T11:30:00.000+02:002015-10-28T23:05:08.054+02:00Kamanga Wear Love Affair: Proudly Zambian Fashion More Than Just Style Part I<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kabungo Mumbi- Habeenzu<br />
in signature Kamanga Wear<br />
dress that you can Kamanga <br />
(tie) in many different ways.<br />
That jumpsuit ended up being <br />
my <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2012/11/zed-culture-part-iv-polychronic-vs.html">first ever purchase</a>!</td></tr>
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It is well documented on this blog that I love <a href="http://www.facebook.com/kamangawearclothing">Kamanga Wear</a>. My obsession with them started in 2012 out of desperation. I had to help out my Aunt, <a href="http://www.mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2011/07/inaugural-muntu-kabungo-precious-mumbi.html">Miss Zambia 2005</a>, for a Japanese Reality TV show starring her friend Miss Universe 1st Princess 2006. They were convenient and coincidentally, after I introduced myself and what I needed, designers Christina and Donna informed me their Ready-to-Wear brand is very popular with Japanese tourists and residents in Zambia! Kabungo was pregnant and their signature dress was easily able to accommodate her bump, as it can be tied 8 different ways and is a billowy dress that can be cinched in, or not, depending on how you choose to style it. A great last minute solution, as I had been given no time to deliver what was required. We then took the crew and her friend to shop there after touring Lusaka as part of the shoot. I was Olivia Pope media world style, before she even existed lol.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7NGFpkswJ24bMvbDNqZIcu5kHhgIDi1m3HJp2_Zkivuf8vHoYk5JsSpwsKXlDsatD3-yThS5flzIqotUYaSX8GgozMbXW8CbAsWbQw-4spbmPf2Iemns4AeJavXP7F8igvjBos2294Wc4/s1600/182769_300862680007515_376608059_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7NGFpkswJ24bMvbDNqZIcu5kHhgIDi1m3HJp2_Zkivuf8vHoYk5JsSpwsKXlDsatD3-yThS5flzIqotUYaSX8GgozMbXW8CbAsWbQw-4spbmPf2Iemns4AeJavXP7F8igvjBos2294Wc4/s200/182769_300862680007515_376608059_n.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kurara Chibana trying on her<br />
gift from Kabungo after a day's<br />
work for Japanese Reality TV</td></tr>
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After that, I had to come to my own aid, as I wanted to wear chitenge (aka ankara, kitenge, African print) and proudly Zambian designs when I got my gig as a TV presenter late 2012. Their clothes fit my body type well, and required little or no alteration, so it was easy to pop in every 2 weeks or so to pick up new pieces and to be fitted to satisfy my wardrobe requirements, working around my crazy shooting schedule around the country. Their clothes are such versatile, ready-to-wear items that can reflect the whimsical, playful side of me, as well as the serious, baller too. Thus began our love affair that continues on.</div>
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I have the most extensive collection of their clothing according to Donna and Christina. The only person who can rival me is <a href="http://twitter.com/mwanabibi">Mwanabibi Sikamo</a>, Uprooting the Pumpkin blogger and ZedHair co-founder. We literally have to check in to see if we are planning to wear the same outfit when we know our paths will cross! Recently we coordinated when we were both appearing on TV together as guests on ZNBC's Press Club Live with Chilufya Mwelwa. We both rocked Kamanga but luckily there was no who wore it better, Sex in the City II Miley-Samantha moment ...</div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/64XaEPI68i/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">#tbt #BuyQualityZambian #ProudlyZambian rocking @kamangawear and #naturalhair with @mwanabibi @zedhairdotcom for Press Club Live appearance on ZNBC last week. This awesome lady reminds me that there are like minded Zambians who don't let the frustrations that come with that hold them back, but use that fire to fuel them to make a difference. My hair was on point thanks to @lisciouscollections Chocolicious and Butterlicious products and a 3 strand twist out swept to the side. Styled in consultation with @mafashio_zambia. #pelliefun #kamangawearday #kamangawear #zambia #africa #fashion #zedfashion #mafashio #ankara #chitenge #kitenge #africanprint #print #afrohair #type4hair #zedhair #liciouscollections #baller #onfleek #trill #carefreeblackgirl #fake #selfie #throwbackthursday</a></div>
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-08-27T08:49:53+00:00">Aug 27, 2015 at 1:49am PDT</time></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">I also own the peplum top Mwanabibi is wearing but in a different print as Kamanga does not use the same print over and over for the same design and within sizes, so each piece is almost unique as they spread material across their collections. You see why we have to check in! I was styled by <a href="http://www.mafashio.co.zm/">Mafashio</a> for this TV appearance.</span></div>
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Since last October I have been officially Brand Ambassador for them. I am so honoured to represent such a quality, affordable, quirky, stylish, edgy, iconoclastic yet classic brand, that uses primarily chitenge, but now also other African and global fabrics, in innovative, vanguard and creative ways. </div>
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I have travelled to Europe and America with the film this year, and of course, Kamanga has come with me. I have dressed for success professionally and have been complimented wherever I go when I have worn something of theirs. Whether I work hard or play hard, any day can be a <a href="http://instagram.com/explore/tags/kamangawearday/">#KamangaWearDay</a> and that is why I I love them!</div>
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What started off as a way to reconnect with my roots in a way that reflects my global sensibilities, ended up being a way to proudly fly the Zambian flag as a lifelong peripatetic. Thank you for all your comments on social media about my style of dress. I am honoured to have inadvertently filled you with pride as I represent worldwide. Happy to continue to show just how cool and creative we are, that we too have much to offer in many spheres such as fashion. Time people got educated. Yes Africans wear clothes and they are stylish too he he he...</div>
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<span style="color: red;">Here are some of the looks I have rocked this year. Whether I am representing the film, making a public appearance, or just living life, Kamanga Wear has the ab fab garb to accommodate my lifestyle. </span><span style="color: red;">Styling is in chronological order. At this point I am styling myself exclusively.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Custom cigarette tuxedo trousers in African brocade<br />
L-R: <a href="http://instagram.com/chosamweemba">Chosa Mweemba</a>, me, e18hteam co-producer <a href="http://omnicorpestudio.wix.com/omnicorpestudio">Juan Rodriguez-Briso</a><br />
Photo Credit <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lupmqr/">George Mutale</a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: orange;">This was my outfit for the premiere of e18hteam at Fresh View Cinemas, October 2014. My copper jewelry is from Free Zambia, kente bow tie from Ghana (though purchased in Zambia) and my clutch is by Ted Baker.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This photo is an outtake from the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/extraordinaryzambia">Extraordinary Project</a><br />
Photo Credit <a href="http://instagram.com/garethbentley/">Gareth Bentley</a><br />
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<span style="color: orange;">This photo was created by projecting e18hteam and smoke to create a rainbow effect in the bush in Chongwe, Zambia at night. The peacock effect is with a palm frond I brought with me from my garden, as I was told to bring something to add to my diminutive frame, so I didn't look like a midget and subsequently not have a strong presence in the photo!</span></td></tr>
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<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="5" style="background: #FFF; border-radius: 3px; border: 0; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: -webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width: 99.375%; width: calc(100% - 2px);">
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A photo posted by Ngosa Whoopi Chungu (@whoops.c) on <time datetime="2015-03-15T17:21:41+00:00">Mar 15, 2015 at 10:21am PDT</time></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">I layered with a black long sleeved stretch cotton shirt, as it was not quite Spring in Spain. Versatility to wear styles in different ways is important so things look fresh. I am taking a leaf out of The Duchess of Cambridge's book - have much less money than she has so definitely have to repeat, mix and match my wardrobe pieces. That way, when I make public appearances, I am always sporting a new look.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">L-R Chitundu Chanda Zambeef Brand Marketing Manager, <br />
Zambeef Board Chairman Dr. Jacob Mwanza, me Zambeef Brand Ambassador, <br />
Zambeef Joint Chief Executive Officer Dr. Carl Irwin, <br />
French Ambassador to Zambia H.E. Emmanuel Cohet</td></tr>
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<span style="color: orange;">This dress showcases Kamanga's timeless style. They are great at making classic dresses that are interesting in an edgy, whimsical and/ or quirky way due to their careful selection of prints to reflect these qualities. This was at the press conference announcing the <a href="http://www.times.co.zm/?p=56273">unprecedented sponsorship</a> Zambeef provided to cover e18hteam's archival footage rights and my travel to film festivals.</span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"> I have been working with the wonderful stylists, sisters <a href="http://twitter.com/TheHungryBard">Kii</a> and <a href="http://twitter.com/ShahzadiKahyi">Sekayi</a> Fundafunda, of <a href="http://instagram.com/mafashio_zambia/">Mafashio</a> since May 2015. All looks have either been put together by these lovely ladies, or I have consulted with them after picking out my outfit.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNEiRgTF2ifXO0qVGe29GgnsJ4askxpGftDT1YcU03ZRgRD34Ou7XrMb3Jqe-UJG4qRrmc_TRDv3reIJlZWBJxSwKcY563Ic6luvBrH6XuviL8rqKjdiRiW7oHFysNsezcFmfNDhwm02vn/s1600/11233801_692452537566735_5522857014364132758_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNEiRgTF2ifXO0qVGe29GgnsJ4askxpGftDT1YcU03ZRgRD34Ou7XrMb3Jqe-UJG4qRrmc_TRDv3reIJlZWBJxSwKcY563Ic6luvBrH6XuviL8rqKjdiRiW7oHFysNsezcFmfNDhwm02vn/s640/11233801_692452537566735_5522857014364132758_n.jpg" width="360" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Custom variation of Kamanga Wear dress made strapless and out of<br />
raw silk paired with a clutch from Chitenge Life and <br />
shoes from Mangishi Love.<br />
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<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="5" style="background: #FFF; border-radius: 3px; border: 0; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: -webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width: 99.375%; width: calc(100% - 2px);">
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/7wsVetiXEj/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Are you watching Morning Live on ZNBC TV? #e18hteam co-producer Ngosa Chungu is about to share her thoughts on the role of women in Zambian film industry. #CurrentSituation #ProudlyZambian #ZedToNaija #ZedToCali</a></div>
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A photo posted by eighteam (@e18hteamovie) on <time datetime="2015-09-18T05:50:14+00:00">Sep 17, 2015 at 10:50pm PDT</time></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Kamanga have recently added jackets to their range and I am taking advantage. I have a lot of basic</span></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">monocoloured items that I can mix and match. I can instantly up the ante with my go-to style, my uniform if you will: leggings/ jeggings and a bodycon top can instantly be more interesting by throwing on a print layer.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRZUSwm0Fuic6FEplYlAZXrwFDCf7xk2m14S5fBBl34P4NQMrD03X7iadve_vY6tjkiJAC_QzckiMC6Pe7XpYnjjJWMfI3YxylmS5RxtinqDomsf3XwLAKKRvA5rN3yXzI6w0-9GfZCvzt/s1600/12034379_1631881847090473_8044133152892637272_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRZUSwm0Fuic6FEplYlAZXrwFDCf7xk2m14S5fBBl34P4NQMrD03X7iadve_vY6tjkiJAC_QzckiMC6Pe7XpYnjjJWMfI3YxylmS5RxtinqDomsf3XwLAKKRvA5rN3yXzI6w0-9GfZCvzt/s400/12034379_1631881847090473_8044133152892637272_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">L-R me, Namwali Serpell 2015 Caine Prize winner at Audience with<br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/snamwali">Namwali Serpell</a> event at Foxdale Court hosted by Lusaka Book Club.<br />
Photo Credit <a href="http://www.facebook.com/PR-girl-1629249804020344/">PR Girl</a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: orange;">I love colour and bold prints. Went all out with high waisted maxi skirt and picked up orange and yellow from the chitenge with my top and leather bag purchased during my trip to <a href="http://mwanabaafrika.blogspot.com/2014/03/mama-monday-ghanaian-food-and-drink.html">Ghana</a> for New Years in 2014.</span></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/9AQquUPl7z/" style="-ms-word-wrap: break-word; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Zambia #svaff2015 #ClosingNight #svaff</a></div>
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A photo posted by SVAFF 2015 (@svaff2015) on <time datetime="2015-10-19T03:27:42+00:00">Oct 18, 2015 at 8:27pm PDT</time></div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Both the dress and the necklace are from Kamanga Wear.</span></div>
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<i style="color: lime; text-align: justify;">For even more fashion, information about my journey this year and to keep up-to-date with everything going on with the film as well my other projects in Zambia and globally, follow me on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/MwanaBaAfrika">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/whoops_c">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://instagram.com/whoops.c">Instagram</a>.</i></div>
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