M.A.G. blog, signed by Lydia

Lydia's Weekly Lifestyle blog is for today's African girl, so no subject is taboo. My purpose is to share things that may interest today's African girl.

This week's contributors: Lydia, Pépé Pépinière, Titi. This week's subjects: The Accra Office Girl’s Style Survival Guide, How to get rid of our colonial legacy and what's in a name, Simple happiness, Women stronger than man, and How to peel an egg

The Accra Office Girl’s Style Survival Guide. Let’s be honest—office fashion in Accra isn’t just about looking good. It’s about strategy. Between the blazing sun, surprise downpours, and the icy blast of office AC, your outfit has to work overtime. Thursday: Tradition Meets Trend: Thursday is the perfect day to sprinkle in some cultural pride. Whether it’s a sleek kaba and slit, a short kaftan dress, or even a kente-trimmed blouse, blend tradition with office elegance. Colour crush: Mustard, deep green, or burgundy—those tones eat under natural light. Accessories: Gold hoops, a beaded bracelet, or leather mules. That’s the Ghanaian soft life energy we love. Friday: Casual, Cute & Ready for Chops. Friday is the runway between work and vibes. You’re professional till 4:59 PM, and at 5:00 you’re brunch-ready. Ladies, pull out high-waisted jeans or wide-legged trousers with a tucked-in chiffon blouse. Gents can keep it crisp in chinos and a linen shirt (because we know the guys are reading this too). Style note: Clean sneakers or loafers are totally fair game. Pro move: A signature fragrance completes the look—think fresh, floral, or woody. Survive the Accra Weather (and Still Look Like a 10/10) Carry a shawl or blazer—you’ll need it for that icy office AC. Say no to polyester — it’s basically a sauna in fabric form. Light colours = less sweat, more glow. Always pack a hand fan—yes, the fancy foldable ones count as an accessory now. Corporate life in Accra doesn’t mean dull suits and dark colours. Mix prints, play with fabric, and never be afraid to show a little personality. The key is balance—stay professional, but make it fashion. Because dear office girl, when you look good, you work good—and you’re way too stylish to be melting in polyester.

How to get rid of our colonial legacy and what's in a name. Many of us feel “we can do it if only were given the chance”. I feel one may be able to do it if at least one has confidence in oneself. But in Africa we don’t trust ourselves. We want to be white like a white and bleach. We want to have straight hair like a white and either wig or straighten (despite that everyone now knows that straightening uses cancer causing chemicals). We want to wear white man's clothing and only use our own on special occasions. Our religion is foreign and imposed on us (both Christianity and Islam). Some of our elders say that if on Sunday morning on your way to church to meet God you meet a white man you need not go to church again on that day because you already met Him. Our official language is foreign (English) and our laws are written in the language of our formal colonial masters. And are based on our former master's laws. Whilst our judges wear white wigs (and I think looks absolutely ridiculous) and only one third of our people fully speaks and understands English. And to top it all we take foreign names. The most beautiful ones. Prescillia, Scholistica, Petrolina. What's wrong with our own names? Nkandobi means “I have seen it all”, Dufie means “the oldest women in a family”. Mansa is “the third girl”. Kofi means “Friday born”, Obrempong means “a person of importance”. I think that is more fun than the names taken from the bible or from the British Royal house. Let's do our own. The King is dead, exit His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, long live the King, enter His Excellency Kpema So Dramani Mahama.

Simple happiness. I recently wrote that some feel that time with family, time without phone, walking in nature and things like that gives them more happiness than owning luxury items or eating in expensive restaurants. In Africa we often live in crowded conditions, private space comes at a premium that not everyone can afford. I want to mention one additional luxury here. Owning your own toilet and bathroom. Starting the day in a relaxed manner, stooling without having to hurry because others are banging on the door. Sheer luxury.

Women stronger than man. Maybe not, but doctors think so, and at the emergency wards of hospitals and clinics men with exactly the same problem as women get taken in first, and men are prescribed painkillers more often than women with the same ailments. That is what a French study has shown. And there is more: Europeans get priority over Africans. So don't get sick when you visit Europe.....

How to peel an egg. This sounds silly but I am serious. And I am an egg freak, both for chicken eggs and quail eggs. At 70 GHS a crate of eggs you are paying about 2 GHS 35 pesewas for 6-7 grams of protein and there is about the same amount of fat as well, about half of it the “good” fat, whilst beef fat contains more of the “bad” fat. Anyway, that's not the only reason why I love eggs, I love the complicated taste of yolk and soft egg white from fresh eggs and I can experiment an entire weekend to get the right fluffiness for scrambled eggs, or to make a French omelet just rightly cooked. Now for the peeling. If you like boiled eggs you'll have to take the shell off after boiling and often pieces of egg will stick to the shell, especially with fresh eggs. So some suggest you add vinegar to the cooking water, some add oil, some dump the eggs straight into ice cold water after boiling. I've tried all and the only thing which works to my satisfaction is to peel the hot eggs straight after boiling, under running tap water. Though the egg is still hot the cold tap water allows you to peel without burning your fingers. I put a sieve under it to catch the shells so my sink doesn’t get blocked. Try, thank me later.

# Lydia...

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