This weeks episode is our 10th and final episode for the season.  I am excited and thankful about the conversations we have started, the connections we made and the relationships we’ve built as a result of my story as a Nigerian Immigrant. The reach and plays is something I did not see coming, 10 countries and over 200 plays. Today I would like to share my thoughts on grief and lose. This episode resonates with me so much today for reasons you will discover as this episode unravels. But I’m sure it will resonate with you too because we have all lost someone or felt lost ourselves. To keep up to date with Season 2 of The Nigerian Immigrant, follow me on Instagram @thenigerianimmigrant.  Make sure to follow, like and share this podcast if you have enjoyed it. See you on the other side. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

The Nigerian Immigrant is a social and cultural podcast featuring Blossom Anyimba-Cooley (aka life of the party, aka sunshine in a rainy day) a proudly Nigerian Immigrant talking about growing up in Nigeria, migrating to Australia, finding love, motherhood, applying for credit and all things banking, access to Governments services, mental health and so much more. The Nigerian Immigrant is about Blossoms interests, experiences and passions. About Blossom.  Blossom Anyimba-Cooley is a Journalist, former banker and account manager. She is a mother of one and resides in the blue mountains.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

Today I'm going to talk about racism.  Living in a time like this makes, the importance of the human connection cannot be understated.  I have some questions of my own. Do you think we are becoming better humans through this experience?  Are you becoming a better person, are you the same or are you worse off?  This is an episode of self reflection. As I too reflect on one of the hardest experiences I’ve ever had to deal with as a Nigerian immigrant…racism.  I’d like to first note that there is the ignorance that comes with not knowing about other cultures and that’s okay. There are over 7.5 billion people on the planet, 195 countries and 6500 languages. We cannot know of one another. As an immigrant, questions about different cultural practices are welcome and encouraged. This is not racism.  Racism is when you look down at others because you believe your race is better than their race. This ideology fuelled the Nazi’s mission for world domination and subjugation. The idea that that their skin made them superior and every other race was subhuman.  I hope also that we learn to not be what I can racial apologists, people who make excuses for other people’s racism. That we educate when we can and not make excuses. In 2011 I wrote about my experience as a black person in Australia. Over 2500 read my article, the most traffic I’d ever gotten. I’ve had my fair share of racism. I remember being asked once by a white man if my vagina looked the same as possibly his wife’s. The looks!!! Oh the looks! Things are getting better everyday… People are being called out everyday for racist behaviours and ideologies. I think and hope that the message is getting through. Nearly 10 years after I published that blog and I can tell you that I do not care what a person thinks of me. I think you are doing yourself a huge disservice if you write me off without getting to know me. Recently I worked in the most toxic workplace I have ever worked in so I know racism is alive and thriving in Australian work places. But it is up to us to continue to educate (when we can) in whatever fashion we deem fit. In this work place a white Australian colleague said Indigenous Australians ought to get over themselves that the stolen generation happened 60 years ago. I reported her to the manager and told them to let her know if was from me. Indigenous Australians have gone through and are still going through so much inequality and inequity. So to answer the question, is Australia racist?  Yes, Institutional or systematic racism which encourages disparities in employment, the criminal justice system, housing, heath care, income and so much more.  Are there racist Australians? Some are , in my opinion 1 in 10. To read the full article check out my blog thenigerianimmigrant.blogspot Please feel free to share your experiences with me I’d like to know. We have listeners from 10 countries so please represent. You can send me a DM on Instagram @thenigerianimmigrant . --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

This episode is about COVID 19 and how it affects you, me, Africa and the developing nations. What a year we've had!  Jumping into a new year, the new year resolutions some of us had involved getting a gym membership, going out more,  finding love, getting a job. All of which has been made hard or impossible. I didn't have a lot of plans but I had some, I had an established gym routine, we were going to see my family in London and booked a trip to Greece , Scotland and  Italy this month. If there's anything I've learnt throughout this experience, it's the fragility of life, a reminder that we are  interconnected in a way that we may never had considered. Simply sharing a lift, a train or a car with someone else can  put our lives at risk in away we may never had considered before. What an incredibly humbling experience this has all been for us. Throughout this experience I hope that you've been well. And if you've lost your job or you feel like your life has  been put on Pause due to COVID remember that you're not alone. And that when there's life there is hope. For me; I've been  lucky to have a job that's considered essential and have been working from home. But that dosen't make me immune to  the fears of a potential job loss and the consequences of that. We also have a mortgage and tenant. The constant fear  about how that person's job loss impacts you is unreal. Our tenant decided they were going to move out just recently. It is  quite scary to worry about the loss in income there and how quickly we can get a new tenant in this environment. Different  governments policies and response to COVID-19 is important mostly because it provides support so that people can  survive this. Democracies are an important form of governance that puts the welfare of the people first. You see that with  Australia where the government introduced a package for employers to continue to pay their staff, a package for job  seekers, businesses and even commercial tenants. Parents who are still working don't need to pay for childcare for 3  months and some people can access their superannuation early if they need to. There are clear rules on community  access and fines in place when those rules are flaunted. Knowing what some African countries are like, my worry from the  beginning has always been about how we were going to impose strict lockdown on 200 million people without making any provisions for them with respect to adequate electricity supply, water, income support, healthcare and concessions to  keep businesses afloat. How are you helping your community? Please share with me @thenigerianimmigrant on instagram.  Please like, follow, share and subscribe.  I appreciate your support.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

Welcome to a new episode of my podcast the Nigerian immigrant. Today I am going to be playing the 10 Questions Game with my sister Vivien Anyimba. You can check her out on her instagram handle @vivy_uche. This is a go to conversation starter.  Have a go with the people you're in lock down with and tag me @thenigerianimmigrant on instagram.  Glossary: Village:Every Christmas, Nigerians go back to the village of their mothers or fathers to celebrate the holidays. This typically runs into the new year. Children get new outfits and a new hair do for the celebration. Keke na pep: Tuk Tuk (Auto Rickshaw) Knockout: Mini Fire work  Keep in touch by following @thenigerianimmigrant on Instagram or thenigerianimmigrant.blogspot Don't forget to share, follow and subscribe. See you next time... --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

Welcome to a new episode of my podcast the Nigerian immigrant. Today I'm going to be sharing my labour and delivery story with you. Feel free to pass on if this isn't for you, but stories like this helped me through my journey to getting mentally prepared for the day. In fact, I wish I listened to stories like this earlier than when I started.  For me, the biggest burden of being a woman, outside of the obvious problems with gender inequality is child birth. You hear terrible stories about child birth and you're traumatised. So many questions run through your mind, will you die, will your body survive it, will your relationship still thrive after the showcase of such raw animal instinct? In relationships you might be able to be manage to be cute when doing poos and farts. But you can't be cute when there's a human head coming out of your vagina. There's nothing cute about that! It is an extremely humbling experience.  Our bodies are so incredible. It's powers unparalleled. What a miracle child birth is and it happens every few minutes around the world. It's sad when a woman hates her body after this experience and it's sad when your significant other thinks less of your bodies changes because of this. If anything I see myself and my body in an amazing light, my confidence in myself and my abilities has doubled ever since and I have a new appreciation for the gift of life, motherhood and a supportive partner. Keep in touch by following @thenigerianimmigrant on Instagram or thenigerianimmigrant.blogspot Don't forget to share, follow and subscribe. See you next time... --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

On today's episode, I would like to share with you the story of our Gap Year in Nigeria! I knew that I needed to pack up and go live somewhere else. It was a goal that was always at the back of my mind. So in 2017, a few months after our wedding we packed up, sold everything and moved to Lagos Nigeria. It made more sense to move to Nigeria, Declan was keen, I was getting very home sick but most importantly we wanted to see what opportunities were out there for us. Unfortunately we had no clear plan or goals. If I had my time again I would do things differently. I applied for jobs before we left and we had secured interviews with one of those popular media houses in Lagos so at the time that seemed like a good solid plan. That interview did not amount to much; I am more of a radio journalist than a newspaper journalist. Declan is a newspaper journalist, however, the salary that was offered to him for long hours was not worth his time. So we had to figure out how to make some money. We rented an apartment, furnished it, met new people, Nigerians, expats and returnees like myself.  We met amazing people who we still talk to till this day. People I consider family. And of course I reconnected with my friends from my childhood. Declan started freelance writing and wrote so many incredible stories about some of the issues at the time. One of his published stories was about some kids who were arrested by the police in what they alleged to have been a gay hotel. This was at a time when the Nigerian Government passed a law against same sex relationships in Nigeria. If you were caught showing intimacy or in an amorous relationship the jail term was and currently is 14 years. The richer guys at that hotel had paid off the police, the kids who were caught were poor kids who couldn't afford the less than $20 bail they needed to pay. We got involved with the case; we got involved with human rights organisations and attended their court cases which dragged on and on. Some of the boys in the story got some money from an overseas philanthropist. We did what we could. While all of that was going on I started a microfinance business that provided solar panels to very small businesses. They purchased solar panels through me with a small deposit and then I let them pay the rest back  instalmentally over 12 months. It was very risky however our customers were vetted. I had late payments from the only residential customer that I had. My small business customers were very good. We did door to door marketing around Lagos. I had 3 staff members, I trained them and paid them monthly salaries and then commission on sales. They also had paid lunches on the job and lifts sometimes to make it easier for them to travel around the axis. Having a business was pretty challenging, from the process of getting registered to trade and getting your own space. It was a daily fight for recognition. Research suggests that solar panels will help us reduce our carbon foot print globally.  By next year I'd like to kick off a charity to provide food trucks and grants to Nigerians so get in touch if you'll like to know how you can help. Keep in touch by following @thenigerianimmigrant on Instagram or thenigerianimmigrant.blogspot Don't forget to share, follow and subscribe. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

Love is the most beautiful emotion that anyone can feel. The love a parent has for their child, or vice versa, the love among siblings, extended family members, the love good loyal friends have for one another.  There are different types of love and different places love can be found.  This week I will be talking about the kind of love you find with a stranger, the kind of love that make people want to build a life together for as long as they can. This to me is the greatest fluke of all.  How unbelievable is it that you find someone who will break down all your barriers, fears and insecurities. Someone that accepts you into their tribe and makes you the queen or king of their heart.  It’s the scariest, most freeing feeling in the world. This person knows you more than anyone in the world. This person is the holder of the keys to your deepest darkest secrets; they are your guardian, your best friend, your life partner. A person that will protect you when you are unable to protect yourself. Someone that will make that very hard life or death decisions with you and for you. I think this feeling is one that we all should aspire to no matter the part of the world we live in or what our race or sexual preferences are. However, most importantly, we are capable of loving in so many different ways so please do not limit yourself.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

Today, I'm going to be answering some of your questions around credit. In case you've forgotten or don't know I worked in the banking industry for 6 years, my last role being a mortgage lender so I am qualified to answer these questions. Here are some of your credit and cash questions: Do I need to apply for credit if I have cash?  How do you get yourself out of a bad debt situation? How can i boost my credit worthiness? This segment is on unsecured loans, that is personal loans and credit cards. Secured loans, that is mortgages, are pretty similar in that you still have to present to be credit worthy. But it's a whole new ball game and a topic for another segment. Finance is an often boring topic I find but absolutely necessary. If I get interest I'll be happy to do a secured loan episode, let me know.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support

When we migrated to Australia in 2007 as a 17 year old, I was asked to go back to high school to finalise my final year high school education. Because I had finished high school in Nigeria nearly 2 years prior I was not keen. Instead I chose to complete a 1 year College degree that was a bridging course to uni. This turned out to be a good decision. I met friends who I will hold in my heart forever and learned so much about my new home. However one word that kept getting thrown about with every lecturer i had was how tolerating Australia was. I was almost always uncomfortable with the word tolerance until I realised why. Some definitions: To tolerate according to the Oxford dictionary is to “allow the existence, occurrence, or practice of (something that one dislikes or disagrees with) without interference.” And: to “be capable of continued subjection to (a drug, toxin, or environmental condition) without adverse reaction. In order words to put up with or to endure someone or something inspite of one's feelings. Like tolerating a crying child on an airplane or  tolerating your parents nagging you about being single while all your friends are married. It's always seemed so finite. That things could bubble over one day and there'll be a Cronulla riot or a similar event. That even though I was here I wasn't  quiet accepted and I was well... simply being tolerated. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics  "the 2016 Census shows that two thirds (67 per cent) of the Australian population were born in Australia. Nearly half (49 per cent) of Australians had either been born overseas or one or both parents had been born overseas. A large proportion of these people are white, from English speaking countries but that also includes people like me from Africa and Asia. This is a large proportion of people to simply tolerate. Rather than tolerate I'm suggesting inclusion or inclusivity depending on how you wish to use it in a sentence...acceptance or my favourite...RESPECT. RESPECT because... RESPECT according to the dictionary means 1. a feeling of deep admiration for someone or something elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achievements. 2. due regard for the feelings, wishes, or rights of others. There's no duplicity or hypocrisy about it, it's genuine. RESPECT because migrants and refugees offer. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thenigerianimmigrant/support