Want to meet the creative team behind DIY Home & Garden? Our new “Meet Our Team Mondays” series will highlight a different regular contributor each Monday. I sent each of the ladies the same questionnaire form. So far, the results are intriguing. In fact, I’d like you to meet Peculiar Erhis this week and learn more about this smart, funny, and talented young blogger.
RELATED POST: Meet Our Team Mondays: Caroline Kahingo
Because Peculiar Erhis was our first regular contributor, I decided to feature her first in this series. Her first blog post was 5 Hacks to Grow Gorgeous Roses . It published on April 15, 2017. This blog post was one of the first to receive measurable traffic on DIY Home & Garden, as we were still in the very early days. She quickly became my go-to-girl as the blog began to gain readers thanks to her keen observations and humorous writing style.
I invite you to sit back with a hot cup of coffee and learn more about Peculiar Erhis. I’m confident you’ll enjoy learning more about this sweet and quirky young lady.
And, thank you, Peculiar, for opening up your life to the blogosphere! Oh, and I didn’t remember to tell you that you were going first.
Meet Our Writers: 10 Fun Facts About Peculiar Erhis
What’s the best job you’ve ever had (other than writing for DIY Home & Garden)?
This is going to sound weird, but I once wrote for a DIY plumbing blog and it was the best writing job I had in a long time. All I had to do was explain in simple and clear steps how to install and repair toilet and bathroom fixtures and accessories, especially to homeowners who had no idea what a flush valve was. It was so much fun. I learnt lots of plumbing stuff (which I probably would never need in this lifetime), and yeah, the pay was good too!
What is your favorite childhood memory?
I was 12 years old or thereabouts, it was a glorious Saturday afternoon, and my mom had sent my uncle to pick me up from my friend’s place. We were to meet her at a wedding reception of a colleague of hers. My uncle zoomed into the compound on his power bike, said his hellos to my friend and her family, handed me a helmet, and asked me to get on. I was scared and excited at the same time and held onto him as tightly as I could throughout the entire ride. It was the most terrifying and exhilarating 10 minutes ride of my life till date, and the experience remains a treasured childhood memory.
If you could imagine a dream vacation, what would it be?
Me, alone in a big house with a fully stocked kitchen and fridge, so I can eat whenever I want, whatever I want, and in whichever room I want! Top that off with a big flat screen TV, a solid sound system, a collection of the latest fantasy and action movies, and a library full of fictional books from all genres, and you have my definition of heaven on earth…
Which is your favorite color, and why?
Black is my favorite color simply because I can never go wrong with it. I don’t have a great fashion sense, so to save myself from embarrassment, a large portion of my clothes, shoes and other accessories are in varying shades of black. And no, don’t get me wrong, I don’t go out all in black like I’m mourning or something. I usually tone down vibrant colors with black, and it always works! But on days I wake up weird and 99% of my attire is black, I get surprisingly sincere compliments on how good I look. Simply put, black makes me look good without any effort on my part!
What is your favorite splurge of a meal?
Shawarma! When I feel like splurging on food, shawarma with all the important fillings; chicken or beef, hot dog, ketchup, cabbage, onions, tomatoes, lettuce, carrots, pepper, and a heavy dollop of mayonnaise and/or salad cream, remains my number one option. A can of malt or a bottle of soy milk serves as the perfect accompaniment.
How about your childhood best friend?
Her name was Sarah. She was my ‘bestest’ friend as a child. We both loved dolls and make-believe stories. We even acted out some of these stories, persuading and at times coercing our siblings into featuring in these plays. Sadly, in my early preteen years, my family moved out of that neighborhood and we lost contact. I do hope that one day I would get to meet her again and renew our friendship.
Have you ever had a super-embarrassing moment, and what was it?
I’ve had lots of super-embarrassing moments. So, I’m going to stick with the most recent one. A couple of months ago, on a Friday afternoon, I got an urgent call from a close friend. The long and short of the call was that I had to get to the bank before they closed for the week. I quickly threw on my jeans and a button-down shirt and hurriedly left the house.
While on the road, I noticed I was getting lingering stares from everyone I passed. I thought nothing of it and felt maybe I looked extra pretty. Silly me! Just before I got into the bank, a young man stopped me and politely pointed out to me that I had buttoned my shirt wrongly. I looked down and noticed he was right! One side of the shirt was way longer than the other. I croaked out my thanks and ran into a nearby clothes shop to fix my fashion miss.
How do you unwind at the end of a long day?
I take a long hot shower, eat dinner, curl up on my bed with a good fictional novel, and then read till my eyelids begin to droop. Reading always relaxes me. Maybe because I get to focus on someone else’s problems and challenges and by so doing, forget about everything happening in my life!
What’s the best thing about your hometown?
The best thing about my hometown is its quiet, sedentary lifestyle. I live and work in one of the busiest cities in my country: Lagos, Nigeria. So, retiring to my hometown for a couple of days or weeks helps me relax and get much-needed rest. It is very peaceful and thank God, very boring. There is virtually no traffic, no rush hours, and no pressure.
Is there any other quirky information that you can share?
I have two major pet peeves. Side-talking or making calls in the cinema hall while a movie is going on! And sleeping during a movie…Seriously, who does that?
Finally, if you haven’t guessed it by now, I love movies. And I’m also a big Marvel fan. Go Avengers!
She has a B.S.Ed. in Secondary Education/English and a Spanish Minor. In addition, she holds a Certificate in Natural Health from a fully-accredited program and is a Certified Herbologist. She pursued these natural wellness certifications due to her love for herb gardening.
Despite freelancing to make a living, her love is "all things home."
Deborah grew up in a family that grew a large vegetable garden and a fruit orchard, helping her parents pull weeds and can home-grown foods as part of her childhood. In fact, she had no idea that she could purchase veggies and fruits in pre-packed steel cans until she went to college and made a food run.
Today, she lives in Bertie County, North Carolina, an agricultural rural area with more chickens than people. She lives with her husband and two rescue pets a sweet toy fox terrier and a cat who showed up one day and moved into the house. Together, they enjoy DIY projects, furniture refinishing, gardening, and canning.
