The Diary Game | First Class Of The Semester, Cooking Wahala & Manchester United Pull Through - 27/04/2026

praizclassic01 (61)Member|Verifiedin Steem4Nigeria • 22 days ago

Hello hello my wonderful Steemit family!
It's your friend @praizclassic01 back again with another diary entry. Today was Monday — the first real lecture day of the semester for me and honestly, the day had enough packed into it to fill two diaries. Let's get into it!

I slept early last night so naturally I was up early. By some minutes past 5AM I was already awake, staring at the ceiling.

Morning workout was the plan but two things stopped me. First — the boots situation I mentioned in yesterday's diary, still haven't gotten them back. Second — I woke up with catarrh and a completely blocked nose. Going out into the morning breeze in that condition? Not the smartest idea.

So I just laid there, awake and thinking. And when I say thinking, I mean really thinking. Deep thoughts about a lot of things — plans, ideas, life. I actually had one or two ideas worth keeping, so I typed them straight into my phone notes before they could disappear. If you don't already have a habit of saving your thoughts the moment they come, I'd genuinely recommend it. Ideas don't wait.

By some minutes to 7AM I prayed, got up and started preparing for my 9AM class — the first I'd be attending this semester.

Brushed, polished my palm slippers, had my bath and then came the outfit decision.

I picked something out, put it on, looked in the mirror and... it just didn't feel right. I love to feel comfortable and confident in what I wear — if the outfit isn't giving me that, it has to go. So I changed. Both options were white senator wears but I clearly loved one more than the other and that feeling matters. Never underestimate how much your outfit affects your confidence for the day.

I was out of the hostel by 8:50AM. No breakfast — I usually skip it before morning classes. Eating before a lecture tends to slow me down and make me drowsy, and that is not the energy I needed for a first class.

Got to the lecture hall area but the venue hadn't been posted yet. First time this semester so there was a lot of catching up to do — greetings, pleasantries, "how was your holiday", the whole ritual. Wasn't long before the venue was posted and everyone filed into the hall.

First class of the semester — good to be back in the hall

It turned out to be a 2-in-1 session. Two lecturers, one hall.

The first lecturer came in, introduced himself, gave the course outline, threw some light on what to expect and was out in under 30 minutes. Quick, clean, straightforward.

Then the main class began. This particular course had actually started before I resumed so the lecturer did a brief recap of what was covered previously before moving into today's content. An hour and thirty minutes later, the class was done.

Two classes were scheduled for today — technically three, but one was an elective that wasn't mine, so I had one more to go. It was about 11:20AM and hunger was already making its presence known.

With about an hour before the next class, I did what any smart student does — I patronised my classmates who run small businesses. Got myself a zobo and potato chips. Not a meal, but enough to keep the stomach quiet and reduce the yawning for the next two hours.

The student survival combo — zobo and potato chips

Support your class entrepreneurs by the way. They're out here hustling and their products usually good and affordable.

The second lecture began and true to form, it didn't start with notes.

This lecturer is known for his speeches — motivational talks, advice, sometimes pointed comments on student performance and behavior. Today he opened with a review of last semester's results. There were commendations for those who did well and some hard truths for those who didn't. In all of it though, there were genuinely useful things to take away — that's always the case if you listen with the right ears.

After the talk, we got into the day's content — Social Services.

Now let me break this down simply for those who might not be familiar with the term in a sociological context:

Social services, in sociological terms, refer to the range of public and community-based support systems designed to promote the welfare and wellbeing of individuals and groups within a society. These include healthcare, education, housing support, social welfare programmes, childcare, and rehabilitation services. The core idea is that society has a collective responsibility to ensure that its members — especially the most vulnerable — have access to what they need to live with dignity and function well. Social services are essentially the practical expression of a society's values around care, equity and human development.

It was an interesting class and the discussion was engaging. I enjoyed it.

Photo of me in the second class of the day — engaged and present

After class, a few more greetings and I was on my way back to the hostel. By this point the zobo and chips had long expired in my system.

On the way back I stopped at the market to get ingredients. It had been almost a full week since I resumed and I had only cooked one proper meal — the beans and yam from a few days ago. Today I was going to fix that.

The plan? Vegetable sauce and white rice. A proper meal.

Quick stop at the market — getting ingredients for a real meal

I bought fresh tomatoes, pumpkin leaf (ugu), fresh pepper and a little meat. Simple but solid.

Got back to the hostel, changed up, and since I knew I wasn't going to be eating alone — I rarely do, whatever I cook gets shared — I had someone fetch water while I handled the cooking myself. That's how I like it. I cook alone.

The hotplate in my room was occupied so I went to a friend's room. Their hotplate was free but had a problem — a wire had cut and it wasn't conducting. I looked at it, assessed the situation and connected the wire back. Just like that, the cooker was heating up.

They were happy. Someone wanted to warm food first — of course I let them. The hotplate isn't mine, connecting a wire doesn't make me the landlord. But it did earn me a spot to cook before others in the room, which was fair enough.

Put my rice on to parboil, then went back to my room to prepare the sauce ingredients. And then — light went.

Came back. Light returned. Relief.

Then light went again.

I waited. Hoped. Prayed silently. Nothing. The wait stretched on and on until it became clear that NEPA light wasn't coming back anytime soon. I went downstairs, bought kerosene for the stove — only to discover the stove's ropes were bad and the fire wasn't burning properly.

Borrowed another stove, poured the remaining kerosene into it and finally had a working flame.

Rice on the working stove — the other one gave up on me

After I solved the stove problem, I;

Washed vegetables and pepper

Vegetables and pepper washed and ready

Tomatoes and onions cut and ready

Tomatoes and onions cut — sauce prep in progress

The rice had absorbed extra water during the power outage and was starting to burn at the bottom before drying properly. So I filtered it and put it back on the stove to dry out correctly. Eventually it was done.

Moved on to the meat — steamed it.

Steaming the meat

Now here's where hunger took over completely. Normally I would drain the steamed meat, heat oil, fry onions and tomatoes first before adding anything else — the proper way. But I was so hungry at this point that I just poured everything into the pot at once. Tomatoes, pepper, ugu, seasoning — all in together. Allowed it all to cook and boil together.

Was it the traditional method? No. Did it still come out good? Absolutely.

The final result — vegetable sauce and white rice. Worth every bit of the stress!

Dished mine immediately. Ate. It was everything I needed after a long day.

I also dished out for everyone who wanted some — but here's the thing, I gave no meat to anyone. Not because I'm stingy, but because I had a small amount and I wasn't going to give one or two people and leave others out. That creates unnecessary tension. So nobody got meat and nobody could say anything. Sometimes fairness means everyone gets the same thing — including nothing.

Finished eating, laid down and was asleep before I even realized it. After everything the day threw at me, my body simply collected what it was owed. Woke up later, had my bath, charged my phone and settled in for the evening.

To round off the day, I watched my team Manchester United take on Brentford in the Premier League tonight. And what a way to end the day.

United came out sharp and took the lead early — goal in the 11th minute to make it 1-0. They didn't stop there. Before halftime, they doubled the advantage with a second goal in the 43rd minute, going into the break 2-0 up and firmly in control.

Brentford — who actually had more of the ball on the night with 54% possession — kept pushing and pulled one back late in the 87th minute to make it 2-1 and set up a nervy finish. But United held on. Job done.

United had 5 shots on target and were clinical when it mattered. Brentford had their moments but couldn't find the equaliser despite the late pressure.

Full time — Manchester United 2-1 Brentford

Three points. That's all that matters. After the kind of day I had, watching the team win was the perfect ending.

What a Monday. First class of the semester, a cooking operation that involved wire connecting, kerosene, two stoves and a power outage, and United getting the win to close the night out properly.

I hope your Monday was smoother than mine — less NEPA drama, food that cooked without a fight, and a team that won if you follow football.

Rest well everyone. A new week is here and it's full of possibilities. Goodnight and God bless!

— @praizclassic01

_{Posted using SteemX}

#thediarygame #steemexclusive #betterlife #nigeria #studentlife #hostellife #football #diary