5 random thoughts about Wanlov, the Kubolor…

I was at a bazaar on Saturday with a friend. I saw this ‘obroni-ish’ dreadlocked man standing there barefooted. I surreptitiously scanned the whole area to see if I could see a pair of sandals (flip flops or afro moses, anyone) lying around. Nothing. Then my friend remarked, “Oh, that’s Wanlov.” I found out 5 interesting things about him that have occupied all my “floating thoughts” all weekend long…

Would he walk to town everyday if he lived at Prampram, Kasoa or Oyibi and not Arirport (or is it Dzorwulu)?

Does he walk on the (mirage inducing) scalding sidewalks at midday barefooted too?

What if his loincloth hooks on a nail and snags? Would we see a (maybe toned) pale behind?

Does he not feel too much air passing around his… um…private regions when he walks around without briefs?

Are his T shirts made in Ghana too?

I wonder…

Disney Controversy?

This weekend I chanced upon a certain controversy that had been brewing over the last two years that I was totally unaware of. Disney was making a darker skinned girl their princess in their upcoming animation- The princess and the frog. She’s from New Orleans and is to be called Princess Tiana. It’s a beautiful idea if you ask me, as it will give the self image of little black girls a boost. God knows we’ve waited for this long enough. I was even one of those little girls who had to imagine myself ‘white’ before a knight in shining amour could come to my rescue, whisk me away and live happily ever after.

Okay, back to the point. Originally Princess Tiana was to have been called Princess Maddy, but pressure groups didn’t like the name because it was to plain. Really? What did they want LaShauna, Shaquinta, Levondia? Then we come the princess’ role, she was to have been a chamber maid, fall in love with the frog, kiss him, frog turns into a prince, they marry she becomes a princess and they live happily ever after. Nice? No, according to the pressure group, well, depicting a black girl as a chamber maid is so stereotypical. So with that, they made Princess Tiana a real princess from New Orleans. Do we have royalty in New Orleans? Don’t Americans abhor royalty? I thought Cinderella was a cinder maid. What about giving people the hope that they can become ‘something’ someday?

Aren’t we taking all this to a whole different level? Is there a fine line between affirmative action and ridiculous? Please educate me because I think it’s a little ridiculous.