Fox:
How did you find NY?
Jayenek: I was searching for people who went
to AFSS on Facebook and found Fox. He had naijaYouth on his profile
so I clicked on the link and joined.
Fox: Where did you live in Naija?
Jayenek: I grew up in
Lagos, Ikeja to be precise. I spent about 12 years there.
Fox: Where do you live now?
Jayenek: Franklin, Tennessee.
Fox: How long have you lived
there?
Jayenek: I've been here for a year and before
that I lived in Nashville.
Fox: Which school are you in and what
are you studying?
Jayenek: I'm a junior at Middle Tennessee
State University studying Chemistry and focusing on Pre Pharmacy
Fox: Tell us about your school, are
there a lot of Nigerians there?
Jayenek: It's a white school with tons of
white people. It's about 80% white with not a lot of naija people.
I can count about 30.
Fox: Why did you pick your major?
Jayenek: My future ambitions have changed
ever since I was in Primary 5. First I wanted to be a lawyer then
geologist but someone said it'd be dangerous so I said no. Then
I thought becoming a Pharmacist would be cool. In secondary school
you had to pick what want to study so I went to Science. In SS 2
I decided to be an economist but my momsy asked why I want to be
an economist in the US so I switched to Pharmacy again.
Fox: Where do you see yourself 10
years from now?
Jayenek: 10 years from now I'll be almost
30. I should be married, have my Lexus, I want to buy my first car
with my first paycheck and it should be a nice car like Lexus. I
should have one kid by then, just one child because I want to space
them. The second one will come about 2 years after that.
Fox: Are you going to stay in the
US or go back to naija after you finish school?
Jayenek: This has been on my mind for a while.
I have pharmacy school loans to worry about and don't know how long
it will take to pay them off. I plan to go back to naija from time
to time though. I plan to open my own pharmacy store but haven't
decided if it will be here or in naija. I want to see if I can stay
in naija for 3 months at a time.
Fox: What do you miss most about Nigeria?
Jayenek: I miss my family, friends, food,
places I used to go on Okada like Ikeja market and AirForce base.
That used to be my hangout, I have to go back. The weather gets
too hot but I still miss it.
Fox: What do you think about raising
kids here or in naija?
Jayenek: It really doesn't matter to me. Parents
are worried that America will spoil their children and they will
be influenced by a lot of negative stuff. I think that parents should
have more impact on their kids' lives. The parents should play a
bigger role in their lives. I'm thinking about sending my kids to
naija for secondary school but the system has changed so I don't
know how it goes, I'll have to see when I get there. At the end
of the day the society will play a role in molding the kids, they
will meet friends in school who will influence them but I'm not
totally opposed to raising them here.
Fox: What was your first culture shock
when you left naija?
Jayenek: When I got to the airport in Amsterdam
it was freezing. I saw white people wearing shorts and tees and
thought why? Even in school white people wear flip flops in winter
while black folks wear jackets. It made me believe that black people
are suited to tropical weather while white folks are used to the
cold.
Fox: Who would you like to see as
the next nigerian president?
Jayenek: I'm not tuned too closely to the
politicians contesting so I don't really know their hidden agendas
but if I could pick from people who have passed away I would say
Nnamdi Azikiwe. He was all about unity and deep inside wanted to
put the country together but he's dead and I don't know anyone alive
who I can pick now.
Fox: Who from naijaYouth would you
pick to be naija's next president?
Jayenek: Bobo or khumfaya. Bobo is always
in the politics section so he's definitely interested in naija politics.
He is also intellectually inclined and sounds like someone who if
you give a chance to run he'd take it. Khoom is pretty much the
same but also playful however he knows when to be serious and has
the balance. I'll vote for him.
Fox: How long before we see a female
president?
Jayenek: I dunno. I have a sister who wants
to run but I don't know if she'll be the first. I don't really know
any woman now who will do the job. We need to unify the country
. The first female president could do it but probably not in my
lifetime but if it is then it will be in maybe 25 years.
Fox: You just celebrated your birthday,
walk us through how you spent the day.
Jayenek: I went to class and after that went
to my room, slept then woke up for another class. I didn't really
celebrate because I'm broke.
Fox: Did you get any gifts?
Jayenek: I got one gift, a purse.
Fox: What advice will you give to
a young naija student who just arrived here?
Jayenek: First of all
calm down, don't have gra gra. Find your way around and always study.
Fox: Who would you like to meet on
nY?
Jayenek: Fox.
Fox: What do you like most about nY?
Jayenek: I think the people here are really
hilarious and smart. I don't like stupid people, you can't play
all the time. You have to be able to speak sense.
Fox: If you were the admin for a day
who would you ban?
Jayenek: (laughs) I will ban Crazy Don. He's
okay but sometimes he's too sarcastic for my liking. I always want
to ask him why are you so angry?
Fox: m & m or go-go?
Jayenek: m & m. Go go is too small for
N5. It's not enough. It's the same kind of candy but it's just too
small compared to m & ms. I don't like the wrapper too. The
blue and white is kinda creepy. It's a non definable blue, not like
AFSS blue.
I want to thank Jayenek for taking time out
to do this interview. We had to schedule and reschedule about 3
times before we could get this interview going and baby girl was
warm, gracious and eager to do so each time. I wish you many returns
of your birthday and hope you keep that bright light you have shining
because you have a successful future ahead.
Next up is The Head Diva of Moderation rhea9914!
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