Abdulkareem Baba Aminu

thumb Abdulkareem Baba Aminu (born Kaduna, 7 July 1977) is a Nigerian journalist, cartoonist, comicbook artist and retailer, painter, writer, poet and culture critic. Quotes I had my 2020 – professional and private – perfectly mapped out. Timelines for important projects at work, ‘warboards’ at home to underscore the importance of the earlier-mentioned timelines, and a journal detailing scores of personal targets to be hit. My friends and co-workers know I don’t make to-do lists; instead I map out meticulously crafted ‘must-do’ lists and follow them through to the letter. Trips around Nigeria, as well as Africa and other parts of the world were all planned out, dates fixed, and tickets booked. My year was, as they say, set. But along came Covid-19, and everything went crashing down, leaving a void that will be a struggle to fill as the world struggles to recover. I’m almost done writing my first novel, a speculative fiction one which I began last year after my car was broken into and my laptop was stolen, along with three complete manuscripts. I thought penning a new novel would be impossible, or at least daunting, but a story that stayed at the back of my mind took a life of its own and I began to pour it out, page after page. It progressed well, and I would work on it late at night then early in the morning before heading to work, or on weekends. I had a system, I thought. All I needed to finish the book was more time, I imagined. I was wrong. I’ve always loved to cook, and I enjoy receiving rave reviews from people with picky palates. So while I’ve been doing more of that, now it’s mostly for myself, no thanks to the need for social distancing. I’ve also resumed nightly exercising, alternating between brisk walks and jogs which total five kilometres, sometimes more. I also read more, which is a bit of an overkill, as I have always been a bookworm of sorts. It’s telling that I now consider tearing through my ample-sized reading pile as ‘self-care’. Yes, worry about others, but make sure you look after yourself. Otherwise, you won’t be able to look after others. I’ve always been a fan of post-apocalyptic fiction. And as any fan of The Walking Dead knows, it pays to be well-stocked. Water, food, meds, fuel, etc. And most of it is because, really, who knows exactly how bad things will get? And if not for me, they may turn nasty for family, and friends. Neighbours, even. Probably fuelled by a strong, innate dislike for not being prepared, I engaged in what’s popularly called ‘panic-buying’. External links Category:Living people Category:1977 births Category:Poets from Nigeria