America Wonder -The Beginning Part 5

This is a series into how life in America could turn out.....How it turned out for the Narrator....Oh,America Wonder And The Different Types Of People you find there!!  Here are links to parts 1 2 3 4

My uncle and wife were not born monsters. Remember that in my first visit to them, they were very nice to me during my one week stay. They even begged me to stay back. I couldn't because I had a good job. If your visit is short, people would be nicer to you.

Most people in America don't want you to stay long in their houses. There are some related to you who wouldn't be comfortable sharing bills with you, but will keep complaining of increased bills. Others don't like you to outshine them. 

Others want their space. The best they can do is to frustrate you out. I understand. The people I don't understand are those who don't want you to stay long in America. Is America your property? Stop that nonsense. Even if you were born in America, it does not give you the right to claim sole ownership. The reason why most Blacks are comfortable in America is because of the sacrifices of people like Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks.



There is the funny set of people whose spouses brought them to America. Not having found their feet yet, they would say, if not for their spouses, they would have preferred Nigeria. If these same spouses talked about relocating to Nigeria, they wouldn't agree. Who are you fooling?

There are others who discourage you once they know you have no papers. They forget they were once like you. My former customer, a Nigerian, told me to go back home to stay with my husband, because I came to this world to admire my husband's face. 

This man's wife was in Benin. He didn't give himself this same advice. Anyway, advice is sweeter when you are giving it to another person. I asked him for flight ticket and I never saw him again. You want me to go but you won't give me ticket, na wa o.

If you were not born in America but you have papers, it is either your employers filled for you like Bro Uche, or you married a person who has. Children who are filled for fall under this category. Most people come on a visit or for study, then they start their legalization process. It will be wrong for you to discourage another person when you fall under the last category. Why do you think someone else doesn't have what it takes to survive? Don't worry, Rochas Okorostatue will soon make you the Commissioner for Threshold of Pain.

I also met people who would want to take advantage of you because of your situation. In this case, no gender is free. Men suffer the same fate as women. I still owe you Sam's gist. Duro. Nwe ndidi. Personally, I have met people who assumed I was a single mom. They see me with a baby but assume she is manna( fell from the sky). Others want s§x even if you tell them you are married. S§x is cheaper than food in America.

Useless man: you are married. I am married. What's the difference?

Me: I have conscience. You don't.

Useless man: We are in the same class. Let's not bother about those in Nigeria. Do you even know what they are doing?

Me: I know what I am doing. That's all I need to know.

I have met people whom America has not changed. Most people who have helped me were total strangers and non-Nigerian. From my last cashier job, I have met Police officers, Immigration lawyers and good men and women. Two guys have offered to give me papers free of charge. With that, you have to be careful. If you are carried away, it may be a Greek gift.

In America, I have met Akata hustlers.

Akata: Hey beautiful. Nice hair. You look fly. ( maybe housefly or tsetsefly).

Me: thanks.

From the accent, he knows I am not Akata.

Akata: You need papers? I am a laid back guy. No drama.

My girlfriend talked with one and he said he charged $8000.

There are those from Nigeria who come to visit. They have no plans to stay. To go back big, they want to work, so they can make enough money to go back with. They don't really need papers to work. We take them to factories or blue apron jobs. Here, people use fake papers. No be Blacks dey print the papers o, na Oyibo Oluwole.At blue apron, you work in very cold temperatures. The cold will reset your brain. It's a standing job too. Twelve hours standing. There are short breaks in between.

I have seen two actresses, OAPs, better working class Nigerians, old men and women who do these jobs. Don't be envious of them when they say they spent three months in America. It was not easy. Some, cold entered their intestines.

When my friends ask me my opinion towards relocation, I tell those who have good jobs to come on vacation first. From there, you will do feasibility studies and find the answers you need. It's not wise to sell your car, house, kidney, quit a good job or hand over a good business to a potential crook just because you want to relocate. For those with infants, I advise them to drop the baby with trusted family members. If the baby is American citizen, s/he can always come back. If not, settle down first, then send for them.

Finally, if you are coming, drop your African mentality at the airport. It won't profit you anything.

Let me give you instances

At work, age is just a number. It doesn't get the job done. Most supervisors and line managers are very young.

"Do you know who I am" does not work here. Sit down. Be humble.

As long as you are doing a legal job, you are respected. One lady who visited lost her husband. She was not proud because he was a mechanic. She looked at him as the road-side mechanic in Nigeria, not knowing that mechanics here are in money.

If you have a spouse back home, always tell them of your moves. Mine knows everyone from Ababio to the one I will meet tomorrow. I also tell my girlfriends who are married to do same. You never can tell who knows you from Nigeria. It is also good to avoid misplaced emotions and lack of trust.