photo source

The smell of yerga chaffe fills my nose and I am taken by the rich seductiveness of its scent. It takes me to Lake Tana, to the buna farmers, and back again to where I am now. Where am I? I am sitting in my boyfriend’s family’s house after dinner and witnessing the famous coffee ceremony. I am amazed as the incense swirls into the air, as the roasted coffee smell wafts into the apartment’s atmosphere, and the beauty of it all.

If only life was as simple as sipping a small porcelain cup of coffee…

I am a woman. I am a feminist. I am an American and more specifically…Black American. My mother has Southern roots in South Carolina and Georgia and my father is a racial “mut” (as he likes to call himself). Being Black American and entering the habesha world has been interesting and sometimes frustrating.

Since a young girl, I was introduced to many of the different cultures within Ethiopia and Eritrea through my father who had a love affair with the continent of Africa before my conception. He, being a man of philosophy and theology, was interested in Ethiopia as one of the birthplaces of ancient Christianity. I learned about the different peoples of Africa and fell in love with a handful of countries. Ethiopia and Eritrea have always been in my top five. My father explained how the people of Ethiopia and Eritrea were compassionate and good people. And they are.

However, I was not prepared for the tightly knit nature of the habesha culture. When I met and fell in love with a habesha man, I was not ready for the frustration that would ensue. I was not ready for the remarks from habesha women that were along the lines “why did I take a good one?” because my boyfriend had a great paying job. I was not ready for the disgusted stares that would come from the habesha community as we walked down the U street corridor.

I would come home at night and ponder how some members of the habesha community could be so against one brown person loving another brown person. I wasn’t angry, but frustrated. I knew about the pride of the people. I knew they were never colonized and I knew they thought they were the most beautiful people in the world. I wasn’t against their views, matter of fact, I was attracted to my boyfriend because he was beautiful inside and out. The attitudes persisted…

However, the stares and the comments did not prepare me for what was brewing at home between us. Culture is our very own eyeglasses – our lens – that we don’t take off. We use them to see the world and it is always the right prescription because it is ours. It is what we know – it is our tape that replays every second in our lives. As me and my boyfriend looked at each other with our own lens, we discovered our own shortcomings and our cultural definitions which were hard to exchange or challenge.

I was a feminist and I had problems accepting the perceptions and roles of some women in Ethiopia and Eritrea. He had concerns with the American woman and the individualistic nature of most Americans. Although he didn’t believe the stereotypes of Black Americans, I am sure it was in his subconscious mind. I would call him African – he would say “I am habesha.”

I would tell him that those countries were in Africa and he would say “we were told that we were different, but I know that we are in Africa.” I told him that racism abounds although Obama was elected. He didn’t believe me. He thought that Washington DC was a mirror for the rest of this great land called the United States. These minor cultural misunderstandings would continue into our relationship and force us to go deeper and challenge us to think broader and in a more real sense. However, it came to a head one chilly day in 2009.

My boyfriend walked outside of a grocery store and it happened. What Black Americans know and never forget….that it lives…and it rears its head in the nastiest of ways sometimes. My habesha boyfriend walked out of the grocery store and mistakenly walked behind a car that was trying to pull out of a parking spot. The enraged driver said “Nigger!!!!” He came home and told me the story and said “but I wanted to tell her that I wasn’t a nigger, I’m habesha.” I shook my head and let it drop into my hands in pure frustration.

What he didn’t understand at the time was the complexity of color, class, and race. He didn’t understand that in the eyes of the “other,” he was now one of us. He had become Black American and he didn’t understand. He didn’t understand how he could be confused with Black American.

He didn’t understand that in America, it wasn’t if you were Amhara, Gurage, or Tigre – it was if you were black, white, brown, or yellow.  He couldn’t understand that in Washington DC where the habesha community was strong, people would know he was from Ethiopia or Eritrea, but the farther south he would go; the more he would morph into a Black person and what that would mean.

He no longer was habesha, he was a Black person that would be stared at in expensive restaurants, pondered over because of his expensive clothes, and would be discriminated against like us (Black Americans, that is). He had no idea that his skin color that could do so much good in his own country would challenge him in another.

Two years later, we are still pondering these same issues and thinking about marriage. We wonder what our children will face. What will the children of a black woman and a habesha man face? As they try to learn Amharic and English – hand dancing and Eskista, among it all – we hope they will realize that they are just people. We are all one in the same.

Elle B.

At a New York tribute for the late great Miriam Makeba, I was lucky enough to be sitting in close proximity to my personal old man crush, Mr. Harry Belafonte (he may be old but he’s still hot) when this new artist hit the stage and performed one of my favorite Makeba hits, “Soweto Blues” and for some reason I wanted to see the reaction on Mr. Belafonte’s face as he heard this young beautiful woman’s tribute to Makeba’s Soweto Blues.

Would he be offended and feel like she didn’t do it justice? Or would he see in her what he saw in Miriam when he first heard her sing in London? Would he hear that rawness and beauty in her African voice?

Who knows, as unfortunately, I didn’t overhear him say anything but if the gleaming smile on his face were any indication, I would have to say that he was proud and enamored as he intently listened to Loide bellow out “Soweto Blues”. Her voice was breathtaking, and that we could all agree on!

So who is Loide (pronounced “Loy-deh”)? She is a 04’ Miss Africa International pageant runner up of Bissau/Mozambiqueian linage with a voice that is captivating and raw. Though born in France and raised in California it’s clear to see that she has a deep-rooted connection with Mama Africa both the legend and the continent. As her debut LP “LOIDE, Live at Bohemian Caverns”, which will be available on October 25,2009 is a clear reflection of her Lusophone ancestry.

“LOIDE, Live at the Bohemian Caverns” is a 12 track LP that takes you on a musical and cultural journey that can be enjoyed by everyone, it’s jazzy, it’s raw, and she reflects this new era of the “Afropolitian” representing for those of us that embrace the complexities of our cultures.  Loide finds a way to intertwine the contemporary jazz ranges of Nancy Wilson with the soul of Cesaria Evora, as she eases back and forth from English to her native tongue, Portuguese offering with each track a unique sound and perspective.

Of the 11 tracks, there is a song for everyone but for me there are three (3) favorites “Thank Heaven for You”, as a newlywed who is constantly thankful that I found an African man who adores me, as much as I adore him.  This spiritual love song speaks directly to my soul and my relationship.

Then there is “Don’t Forget” a tribute to Loide’s deceased father about their love and the wisdoms he passed on to his baby girl, forward to another track “Fallin” where she speaks to the hearts of “fast lovers”, singing “my heart fell in love on a Sunday, daydreaming on Monday, by Tuesday cant for wait for the next day”…

Falling

Her vocals are backed by some of the greatest African musicians, such as Mongezi Ntaka, the original guitarist of the late South African Reggae vocalist, Lucky Dube.

Ntaka who also co-wrote this project with Loide gives her interpretation of Dube’s  “Daddy Remember Me” an air of authenticity.  Other notable mentions are her interpretations of Sade’s “Love is Stronger than Pride” and “Sodade” which is sung entirely in Portuguese-Creole.

This album and her music serves as my ammunition for my next musical debate with my father who is constantly challenging me find music that is comparable to the music of his era. So the next time he asks “what are you listening too?” I will say to him Loide, this is my music.
Article by: Nana Eyeson-Akiwowo
Daddy Remember Me

The 25th of the Ethiopian soccer tournament in DC was well organized and well executed. Now it is on to the windy city of Chicago, and ESFNA has been steadily improving as an organization. The vendors are becoming more noteworthy and offering better products for our niche market. The facilities have noticeably improved, since the venues of high schools and community colleges and so has commercial and monetary aspects of the tournament. People often complained about ESFNA and their inadequacies. However, we must disagree because they have come a long way, and love going.

What if any problems do you have with ESFNA?

AND what are you looking forward to in Chicago?

This year bernos is looking forward to topping the fashion show we had at LOVE, DC’s biggest nightclub, with a live photo shoot in one of Chicago’s hottest nightclubs.

We’ve decided to put a twist on our event this year. We will have Model’s and a photographer in one of Chicago’s state of the art Avila nightclub.

What is a Fashionista?

You. We believe that everyone has their own style and sets their own trends. We don’t believe in following a trend, we believe in making a statement. We’re working with Bernos’ own Beshou and her Rendez-Vous crew to pull off Thursday night, July 2nd, at Avila Night club.

The bernos booth

We are going to live for 7 days in Chicago, full time, full crew, stocked and ready to meet new Midwestern folks.  Come by the bernos booth to get your tees (including a limited edition of the original Addis Ababa Classic). Take a picture and get to know us.

Bernos values natural aesthetic when it comes to our shirts. Thus we use provocative photography to show the Bernos t-shirts concepts. We use American Apparel, which is known to produce the most comfortable clothing in the world.

In this album you can see evocative images captured by Beshou, from the latest release of the Bernos Tees which are currently on sale online at www.bernos.org. Our designs have a strong sense of purpose as well as beauty and with a few clicks you can buy your own bernos t-shirts and receive it at your doorstep within days.

Bernos products are only available online & we appreciate you in advance for supporting our endeavor to present the Abesha community with quality products exhibited professionally.

Finally, get noticed for what you’re wearing, rather than what you’re not…

And Ethiopian Millennium Fever, the clock is ticking but so is the quantity…

Get the Bernos Milli Tee while it lasts, few clicks away its on sale for only 19.95$. The gallery is still up!

In January, we decided that we wanted to produce a Bernos T-shirt commemorating the celebration of the Ethiopian Millennium. We knew we had to be unique and progressive since others will follow, eventually. We also knew we would sell out quickly seeing as when the concept was introduced there was high demand for the shirt, even before we showed the design. As always the last thing we wanted was to mass produce a thousand shirts. We wanted to push the envelope with the quality.

Therefore, with this t-shirt we wanted to limit the quantity.  We wanted to think about every detail of the design concept; the colors, the words, the tshirt itself, the placement, the meaning, the aesthetics of it.

We learned a lot from our past concepts; as always we knew we wanted to get the best t-shirts to start with. We aimed do better than our past t-shirts, we got samples sent from European and Canadian manufacturers. We found that nothing beat our first choice which is and will always be American Apparel.

Before we chose a color for the tshirt we started with the design. We wanted to push the envelope with the serigraphy process with this design. We wanted to see if the design could be bigger on the t-shirt and wanted a grungy sand blasted look. We found that our previous screen-printer had few technical limitations, like size and color correction issues. We had to spend more to get the best.

The 'Bernos Ethiopian Millennium Tshirt' had to of course say Ethiopian Millennium, there was a consensus. Then there was a huge debate, regarding incorporating of Geez feedels in the design, whether to say 2000 in Geez or in English. Finally, we went with Geez but couldn’t find a Geez font that could fit the grandeur of the grunge design concept we had in mind. All the components had to be intricate yet simple, interlaced yet readable.

The components include the background two colors, which included the focal point (1) and the background for the main text (2). Then there is the florid design element which encompasses the whole design and reinforces the focal point.(3). The Geez numbered font says 2000, after much research we were able find the right way to spell it out in Geez.(4) The rest of the text says 'Ethiopian' and 'Millennium,' respectively.

We spent a lot of time choosing the font; we wanted to give the fonts special meaning and wanted to use the same font used on the 13 months of sunshine poster. We bought it and tried it; however, it was incompatible to the look we were trying to achieve. So we ended up illustrating a bold grungy font instead. At last, we arrived at the design.

Screen printing process

Once the design was completed, we submitted the vector art work for pre-production to our screen-printer along with the tshirts that was delivered from American Apparel factory in Los Angeles

1. The design is broken into separate colors and printed on transparencies. At this stage we are sent proof of how the Tshirt will look. We made a few modifications and resubmitting the art work.
2. These transparencies are then passed on to the screen room for the screen burning process; followed by burning of screens from transparency.
3. Screenpressing; this time our vendor had the choice both an automatic and manual presses we asked that this process be automated. Our previous designed were printed on manual press. We found that although the final product is almost the same the automatic press produced less inconsistency. We ended up paying a little more for the better press.
4. Drying & Completion – At this stage, the screen printed tshirts are run through 350° dryer so the ink will cure and thus preventing it from fading or washing out in the laundry.

Are you ready?

At any rate, the Bernos Ethio-Milli T-shirts coming really soon! I am going to throw in some marketing phrases just as a formality, even though we don’t need it to sell 100 Limited Editions top quality Bernos tshirts. Get it fast, while it lasts. Bernos Ethio-Milli attempted but never duplicated.

Why only 100?

Because we couldn’t produce 1000 with the elevated quality goal we set for this project. The closest to millennium was 100. We know that the demand will be higher than the supply, and that’s ok. We enjoy the process of producing and presenting quality products even if it’s just one.

Those special 100 people will be pleased; the rest will just have to wait till the next millennium!

It might seem like we have been quite the last four weeks or so, but it hasn’t been quite. We had the launch of the Bernos Press on January 17th. It was a huge success more so than anyone expected.

We quadrupled the number of page loads per day for the Bernos domain; to about an average of 10,000 per weekday. We as a group, member of the ‘BP,’ term coined by Bernos Press user; have molded what the Bernos Press really is.

It’s an exclusive platform for members that seem to be consistence with the Bernos theme; remembering Ethiopia. It is private for various reasons; we limit the number of readers and increase the amount of participation.

To join the BP, users have to apply for membership by answering one question, which is 'why they want to join the BP.' Based on the answer and prior participation on Bernos blog members of BP either approve or decline membership.

This might seem complicated but it’s really simple, BP is a place where Bernoswoch communicate on a wide range of topics. The platform is not a discussion forum, it’s so much less, it’s not a blog, its much less. It is interactive and very simple and 100% user generated. Mostly we are having fun.

With the BP out of the way, we are designing one new concept, which is Ethiopian Millennium. The next set of Bernos T-shirts is actually going to be one concept. We are going the extra mile to make sure this is perfect. We are as always limiting the quantity, and concentrating quality. 

One hundred represents the century mark. Thus we are printing one hundred Bernos Ethiopian Millennium T-shirts. We are very close to printing; we have been going back and forth on the concept to try to make it as good as it needs to be.

As you probably will see in the coming month, the Bernos Ethiopian Millennium T-shirt will be imitated, but never duplicated. People will demand that we reprint it, but we won't replicate it. March will bring you, the chance to own one of the one hundred Bernos Ethiopian Millennium T-shirts. 

Yes, We've announced it, We've talked about it, and now its here?

If you don’t know what we are talking about, you are fara! What is fara? You are fara!

Fara people ask themselves stupid questions like why is it so special? why should I use it?minamin minamin; well, don’t use it! We don’t want fara people!

But are bernoswoch special? Good question! No we are not special, but it’s just that we are not fara like you, who asks stupid questions!

We will tell you one thing though, we are exclusive and we love censorship!

• Exclusive: Registration for the Bernos Press is open for till January 31 2:30pm Eastern time. After, that you are going to apply to get in to Bernos Press .
• Censorship: Yes we censor you, if we do not like what you have to say we delete it. If its not personal we don’t like it. If you are unhappy we kick you out.

If you like what we had to say try it , if you didn’t like it, don’t try it! We don’t care! You are Fara anyways!

Instructions 

1. Go here and click on “Apply for membership.”
2. Fill out the form and read the “Term of Service” and click “I agree” and “Proceed.”
3. Once you’ve completed registration, an email will be sent to you.
4. Open the email and click the link in order to activate your account. You need to do this or your account will remain inactive.
5. That’s it!

Join Now and Press it! or Stay Fara!

Prizes 

For top Bernos Press users by the end of by January 31 2:30pm eastern time.

1. Top Fifteen users will receive Free Blen Art Show Catalog seen here in PDF! (courtesy from Ephrem from Blengrafix)
2. Top five users will receive free Sold in Merkato Tshirt of their choice, in addition prize number 1!
3. The number one user receive 2 Bernos Tshirts of their choice, in addition prize number 1 and 2!

So ya, if still don't know, you are fara!

Last but not least Everything on the Bernos Press is in Beta- testing phase – a lot of customizations will be coming! 

Due to an overwhelming response we have turned a feature to apply to join the Bernos Press! Basically we will accept almost everyone with an email address but we will be more cautious after Jan 31.

It is with great pleasure we announce our new collection of three new T-shirts on Bernos. A lot of work went on the making; from design to production to presentation.

The three new designs are Ethiopian-Alien on gold American Apparel T-shirt, I Dream In Amarigna on baby blue American Apparel T-shirt & Sold In Merkato on olive American Apparel T-shirt. We couldn't be happier about the new T-shirts as we were able to push the envelope and get creative on design, concept as well as production.  

Concurently we are putting the entire previous collection of T-shirts on sale. We are now selling Desta Keremela at $13.99, Abebe Bikila and Addis Ababa Classic at $14.99. Remember, we only have limited quantities left in respect to sizes. This is the best deal we can offer selling them at about cost since we need the stock space. 

In the past month we have seen Bernos grow. In due to the Bernos customers who have gone out of their way to trust and support us by purchasing online. The Bernos Blog contributors, who have and are using their limited time to contribute and produce real content that matters,while are keeping it consistent with the Bernos theme that is

…to create high-quality, priced-to-sell, eye-catching T-shirts featuring Ethiopian themes. We supply the world with standout T-shirts featuring Ethiopian icons, inspired by our childhood memories.”

Most of all, Bernos is only possible because it has a supporting cast. Friends who are investing their time to help us grow. People like Beshou, Meron, Dawit, Robel, Mike & Ephrem. A real detailed “thank you” will be written on the Bernos blog soon.

Last but not least, Bernos will be running a raffle between now and till midnight December 31. Those who have and will purchase any of the Bernos T-shirts will automatically be entered to win a $100 American Express Gift Card! That’s right we didn’t stutter; $100 American Express Gift Card, which is as good as cash anywhere that takes American Express Credit Card. The winner will be announced January 5th 2007!

We are still working on a good shipping solution for those that reside outside North America. We still haven’t found a permanent solution that is cost effective but we’ve had more than a few customers that have purchased Bernos T-shirts in Eastern Europe including the UK, Sweden, Italy and Germany. We were able to ship through USPS with no problems. For the time being, for those who are interested can purchase and enter in the American Express giveaway; Bernos will ship to any country in Europe at a cost of $4.99 or $6.99 depending on quantity. Bernos will pay for the extra costs. We hope to find a permanent shipping solution by January.

For those not familiar with American Apparel LLC, they produce the best T-shirts in the world:

it is a clothing company based out of Los Angeles, California. It has over 155 stores in 11 countries. Its claim to fame is sweatshop-free clothing made in Downtown Los Angeles…. It is one of the fastest growing companies in the world at a rate of 525% growth rate in the past three-years…. It produces the best, most comfortable stylish and sexiest T-shirts in the world."

Hey if you don’t believe us read more here.

Bernos LLC, is committed to strike free customer service. We have shipped and fulfilled over 110 orders with less than 1% error. We believe in quality of product and service over quantity as you can see from our customer testimonials.

So those of us at Bernos would like to thank every one of our customers, becuase you make everything possible. If you have any questions, please e-mail us at info @ bernos.org. We will make every effort to accommodate your need or at least give it a shot.

Remember we are only here as long as you support us.

Thank you.

The Bernos Photo Shoot part deux is scheduled for Saturday December 9th in Washington DC.

Bernos’own Beshou will be taking the photos, and she has graciously volunteered to lead coordinating the details. She has decided to make use of her creative skills by choosing to make the shoot more grunge, urban à la graffiti!

Don’t know the particulars but the first shoot was so much fun. We went to a children’s playground changed into our Bernos T-shirts and then just let loose. I’m sure that you will agree the Photos came out nice, as seen on the front pages of Bernos.

By making the shoot on the 9th, we will have enough time to have the new T-shirts; {i.e Sold in Merkato, Ethio-Alien and one more… they look greeeeeeeeeeeattt.. n we are exccciiiieeeeeted! } available pre-Christmas with enough time to ship even to china; we are hoping the 12th of December.

When we first started Bernos and asked a few people to participate on the shoot, people were not wiling to pose for us. Some didn’t believe that this could actually work, and others didn’t want to their pictures online. I think that we have come a long way since then. A photographer emailed to ask us if he could do the shoot for us in exchange advertisement. We declined; we believe in our photographers.
 
Beshou and Nole T did an excellent job taking the photos last time, that if they asked me to take a shot in bathroom, I will do it.  Anyways, we might need a few more individuals who would interested in posing for the second set of shirts.

No requirements as far as models are concerned. We do not discriminate against your 65-year-old grandma, or your 5-year-old cousin. However, we do have a certain number of people we can accommodate, so email us at info{@}bernos.org!

Now let’s hear your suggestions, thoughts, ideas or whatever cracks you got!

In support of the National Breast Cancer Awareness month, We are going Pink for October!

Sales Pitch, Elevator Pitch, Corporate Pitch, Quick Pitch etc. At the end they are all the same.

What is it?

A "pitch" is a quick way to communicate who you are, what you're trying to do, and why you do it better. In Twenty five words or less, in thirty seconds, in one elevator ride, you have to sale your self.

Marketing guru’s say:

If you cannot describe what makes you different and excellent in twenty-five words or less, don’t fix your copy. Fix your company.

Everything is a sale. How much you get paid at your job depends on how you sold and keep selling yourself? If the product is good even better, but a good product or service without a decent sales pitch, marketing, packaging & etc, is not a enough. An Ipod is great not because it is different from anyother mp3 players that existed prior to, but because it was packaged marvelously and marketed brilliantly.

Some people can and will sale you dirt for five hundred bucks. One Thousand Paintings numbered one through a thousand selling at an average price of over five hundred dollars. He has sold over five hundred nineteen of them. Just genius!

Here at Bernos, we haven’t done a good job pitching our product. We do sell thanks to a top of the line product made by American Apparel, which btw sales the blank shirts for 15$ at it's retail stores. But our sales numbers should have been a lot better, thus proving our failure in pitching.

Remember, we are not just selling t-shirts, we are selling memories.

We are lacking in a few areas, we have identified them and we are working on fixing them. If you want to help, please mention as to why you haven’t bought what we are selling! Thank you for all your support!

We got the new Aster Aweke 's album. Aster is classic, she never goes out of style. The album is titles Asters Tezetawoch and is distributed through Afrec. We are podcasting the first song of the Album called Fikir Yezognal. The download feature so that people do not share it. Enjoy it and give input.

Nevertheless the timing couldnt be anymore right. ESFNA has annouced that Aster is the performer at the closing ceremony of the soccer festival in Los Angeles. Hopefully we will hear the new songs live.

Download

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Shipping has become a fulltime job, Bernos shipping center (which happens to be someone’s apartment) is learning how to optimize the orders it receives. So we have been busy. Picking, packaging, labeling and dropping at the local UPS store.  Don’t worry we are not rich yet.  For example,

We received a couple of emails from a guy in New York, claiming that he would like to buy all three of shirts but doesn’t have a credit card. Don’t worry send as a check as we will mail you the shirts. No, I’ll be leaving to Ethiopia in a couple of days so I was hoping you would ship overnight so I could rock it in Addis. Don’t worry I’ll mail check right away. Ok we will even cover the extra costs for the overnight shipping.

So it was shipped to him; but we didn’t receive the check 2 weeks and counting.

In the mean time the Bernos Bulletin has been neglected, but in the next four weeks we will have a comprehensive article about Abebe Bikila. Till then we are going to have a competition.

Free Abebe Bikila T-shirt for the first 2 people who will write a comprehensive article on what Abebe Bikila means to themselves in four hundred words or more. Both articles will be posted on the Bernos bulletin. Sumbit your article by sending us an email at info@bernos.org.

Disclaimer: If you are located in Canada & or Europe we will ask for the shipping cost. If you are located in the US we will cover the shipping cost. If you are located in Ethiopia, we have not figured out a shipping method yet so we will ship it to your cousin who happens to live in Washington DC and let them figure out how to get the T-shirt to you.