VIRTUAL BOOK LAUNCH (THE SUMMARY)

 I know how everyone has been asking me how did the virtual book launch. The energy that I will use to write on various platforms, lemme kuku use it to write everything here. 

So, because of network issues all the time in the house, I already told Ufuoma that I’d be using her house and God bless that girl for me, she agreed. 

I could not even sleep on Friday night. I wasn’t scared, no. But I guess over anticipation was doing me too. Plus, I was also talking with Feyikemi (who was going to be the anchor) about any final changes here and there for the programme list.

I checked and “plenty-checked” my bag to be sure I did not forget anything. 

I finally slept around past four after prayubg and praying and reading like four pages of a novel I’m currently reading. 

Guess when I woke up? Past six in the morning. Talk about sleeping!

After praying, I got ready. I left my house just past eight thirty. I didn’t get to Ufuoma’s house until to ten. Typical Lagos, abi? 

I didn’t have breakfast at home so I was more than grateful that Foma (Her name is Ufuoma, but I call ‘Foma’. You get abi?) and her elder sister were already preparing breakfast. And they added ‘my mouth’ inside. 💃💃💃

We ate home-made akara and pap (all those pap that has milk and sugar flowing in it. The pap that comes from abroad😂😂😂). Very sweet. I was charged up. 

I checked to be sure that the laptop and everything was working. Check. 

What did you think I would be doing? Getting ready for the online stuff, abi? I didn’t do that ooo. I was doing aproko with Ufuoma, her sister, Jite and Jite’s friend, Grace.

Until around 11.30 when Foma asked, “Tope, you nor go do your makeup now, abi?”

Ahhh!

We started makeup ooo. 

Earlier, the clothes Foma and I had chosen that I would wear got changed immediately. So, the one you’d see in pictures below is the new outfit. (Everybody in the house favoured this new outfit.)

It’s almost to one. We still dey do makeup. Foma is really taking her time on it ooo. 

I told Feyikemi we would talk so we can check the laptop if it would work wella. Makeup not let me see road. 

Ohh! I forgot to add. It started raining heavily. Noo😭😭 Rain, why naaa?

It’s now minutes past one. The makeup was done. I had opened the link on Google Meet. Some close persons were already in. Foma was adding gel to my hair. Then she used scarf to tie it (You’ll see the picture below).

I began asking, “Can you hear me? Can you see me?”

It seems the rain felp everywhere because the network was craaaaazy! It was logging most people off and on, myself included.

It finally became calm sha. Thank God.

We had started ooo and Foma was still fixing my nails. She sat beside me and was saying, “Tope, see the way I dey take care of you sef. Like say you give me juju”😂😂😂

My microphone was mute so I was laughing. The way she said it was very funny, biko.

Everyone in the house was just saying how amazing I looked and really, I looked it. You’d see for yourself below. Foma really went the extra mile on my face and I am so grateful to her for it. 

Feyikemi was an amazing anchor. Everyone was participating and it was veeeeeeery interesting. 

Hossana and Isy both got free copies of BLOOD ON HER for the questions they answered. 

Isy and Akinfolayan got slots on my podcast to talk for 30 minutes on any topic they loved. 

When people were asked to talk about something they knew/loved about me, I got emotional. The things they said touched me to my innermost parts ooo. Chai! 

I will also sing for some persons (Isy, Rosemary and Fola) their fave songs because they won too. 

You can only imagine the fun we had, network notwithstanding.

I gave a speech about how the book came about; how it started, challenges I faced when going about it and the success so far etc. 

The sweetest part of everything was that, my mum and younger sister was part of it. As innnnn….

Tolu (my younger sister) and I had been working on using Google Meet but it was sha doing anyhow and I was getting frustrated. Really frustrated! 

“Las las, dem dey nor join,” was what I was already thinking. 

But when I saw them, I was sooooo happy💃💃💃💃😍😍😍😍

We finally finished around past two or so. Thank God.

Then my mum and Isy’s mum started talking on the platform. “See these women ooo. If I nor connect una, shay you will nor use your phones to call each other ni?”

(Isy and I were born and grew up in the same compound. Did almost everything together. Na only school nai we not go the same place. We were like 5 and 6 then that year😀)

Time for pictures. Ahh! You thought I’d allow the makeup waste? No way! 

I took pictures nor be small. I too fine, Abeg. You’ll see some of them below. 

I also danced to Simi’s DUDUKE. If you see my waist, chai! You go fall in love😂😂😂

I was changing my clothes and arranging my stuff when Foma brought a plate of yam peppersoup with goatmeat for me😭

Like! This geh looooooove me! The thing even spilled on my clothes but I didn’t care jare. 

Let me tell you. If you have a friend who is always supporting you, wants you to always look good, and feeds you wella, forgerrrrrrrrit! You are blessed. Hold that friend tight oooo!

I still sat to do more aproko with Foma. While gisting, we chose the ones I will use to post on Instagram and we did that immediately. 

As we were picking the pictures, I didn’t know I was smiling widely until Foma said, “See as you dey smile for your pictures.”😂😂

Yeah, I crush on myself. It’s one of my strengths. 😍

We sha did more aproko before I left. 

Thanks to Foma and her family, I was so hyper throughout. God bless you Foma, Jite, Grace, Rukky and OY (our wife) I looooooooove you all.

Ovoke could not attend but the support she was giving ehhhh…..my darling, I love you.💖

I have written enough. Get ready to be dazzled by my awesomeness. I added the screenshots of the meeting too, okay?