DORITY: THEN & NOW
Do you remember how we kept in touch with classmates before WhatsApp and smartphones?
How did you arrange to meet after school?
Tell us your graduating set and how you did it.
We called on actual roller dial phones and met up. We also kept in touch via email. We went to computer centers.
Dr Ujuka Iloabuchi, Class of 2002.
We paid for time to use the Internet in computer centers. You really had to have a clear agenda what you wanted to do on the computer. Time Na Money literally. #goodoldays☺️
Bella Anne Ndubuisi, Class of 2002
Then in school, we would always share food and we were always happy to share it. But now everybody dey fear everybody. Warn your children never to share or collect.
Chiamaka Omenwa, Class of 2002
Back then, we had landline phones, but they were unreliable. Besides, you might call a classmate and their parent or sibling would pick up the phone.
If I needed to see a classmate, perhaps to borrow a textbook or discuss an assignment, we would simply agree after school on a time and place to meet. I’d say, “I’ll come to your house at 5 p.m.,” and that was it.
Some classmates lived close to my house, so visiting them was easy. Others lived farther away, and I would usually reserve those visits for weekends.
Basically, we relied on face-to-face conversations and physical visits. We made verbal arrangements after school and showed up at the agreed time.
Ikenna Brian Ohiaeri, Class of 1997
I’m still wondering how we survived those days. 🤔
There was no “Nigerian time”. We could decide to meet up at Aba Sports Club at 3pm. And everyone will show up. No calls, no WhatsApp, nothing. Even the landlines were regulated by our parents because the bills were expensive.
Nitel and Nipost were functioning very well.
Okey Onye, Class of 1997
Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen….my classmates were very friendly, social and fun to be with, but l was a very shy boy….on one occasion two of my female classmates came visiting unexpectedly….l almost jumped out of the balcony of the 2 Storey building were we used to live 😂😂😂….back then life was good because everyone cared for one another.
Clifford Okoye, Class of 1998
I remember we had a rotary phone that one could use to call the other. My dad would get so mad as we ran up the phone bill that he put a padlock on the rotary side. I then figured out how to use the 2 prongs that the handset sat on to dial the phone by almost “Morse code” tapping on them to complete a call. My dad would get mad at the phone company since he couldn’t figure out how we could make a call from a locked phone 😂😂😂. Ikenna (Bishop) is also right. We all lived on the same street so meeting up with my guys was easy.
Chimdi Ifeakanwa Class of 1997