I was sitting on a high stool in the lounge area of a local bar. My side-line hearing could hear the topic of discussion from all sides. The classic club conversations: a little bit of hellos, laughing, some Obama stuff, & some do you have a light?
Then a girl wearing a bernos ‘I Heart Africa‘ t-shirt shows up and joins the congregation of six.
I love bernos I was going to buy a tee but everything on their website was soldout!“
I was curiously listening since they had no idea who I was. It’s interesting listening to people talking about your work without them realizing who you are…des siil.
Checking the bernos email; we get the same topic questions everyday, except this time it started out differently. The guy mentioned the number of emails we must get.
I’m sure I am one of thousands of emails you are getting about your products being out of stock. However, is there any way of knowing when you will have your shirts back in stock…”Continue reading ‘What's up w/ bernos?’
Our first TV interview ever. On Medill News Washington came when we had our monthly meeting and interviewed us. Watch video below
Three young immigrants make a fashion statement
by Alysia Patterson – Jul 17, 2008
WASHINGTON — In the world of African affairs, Ethiopia and Eritrea are historically unfriendly neighbors. But in the fashion world style transcends geopolitical tussles. Continue reading ‘Bernos On TV’
I am not a slut!‘ Things woman say to rationalize certain actions.
Yes, there are double standards. Males can sleep around and boost their machismo while woman who do the same thing are considered to be degrading their femininity.
I love sex, why can’t I enjoy it freely?”
She said to me, while trying to explain away her discretion this past weekend.
She knows that she could tell me, she knows that she could say the truth without a slay sentence coming unto her.
Rationalize away! I don’t mind. I don’t mind if you want to sleep around. Playing the field is also ok by me. Continue reading ‘I am not a slut!’
Wow, just wow. The number of bernos blog readers is growing by the month, averaging 700 unique visitors per day.
That means more than a few hundred people, consisting of mostly Ethiopians in North America, seriously follow the bernos crew around.
I met lots of people, mostly those that just read about us, and so they came up to me in droves at least ten or more times per day while present at the ESFNA soccer tournament seven days doing my thing with the bernos crew.
Meron is working on a full recap for the events and project we participated in as well as the near future plans of bernos as we are going through major structural changes due to finish by October 08.
Back to the readers, one guy came up to me to give me a hug, I am like dude I don’t hug guys but he was unjustly excited because he just wrote a major article on a popular magazine which he showed me, about Ethiopian Jazz. He is currently a freelance writer with a small local magazine in South Dakota. No more details here because this post is not about him. He claimed he used the bernos blog for references on Ethiopian Jazz.
I met a few people that I knew through email and had no idea what they looked like. One girl although I knew her very well drew blank when she told me who she was. You see I had never expected some of these people I know to be email people to be real people. Continue reading ‘Hi My Name is…’
I luh me a rich platter of cultures and perspectives
…some pocky, kenke, some spicy pad thai, kitfo with coal toasted KoCHo and gomen be ayib, some falafel, tegabino shirro, butiCHa topped off with bubble tea or a mojito…
I get intrigued that a certain arrangement of patterns, colors, monuments or objects tell stories, harbor history and hold meaning.
Seemingly nonsensical (to me!) rites and rituals, stomping and romping are the abodes for meaning about belief systems and ways of life for identities across time and space. Continue reading ‘here & everywhere’
