I got nothing

H&D are moving to Texas, so the house will be a little empty. PoPo will be here, though. She is Esther's mother (Chinese and 82 or so). She is very lively and has great stories about her life in Jamaica and in China while the Japanese were invading. She will stay here a while until it is warm enough to visit another daughter in Canada. She still cooks and it is amazing!

We have a dumpster out front this week, one of the big ones. Over the last few days we have nearly finished filling it. There is such a bunch of crap from our garage, bedroom, basement, etc. that it is a little amazing. We'll need to finish it up with some old rugs, then maybe some yard crap. We may get this abode on the market this year after all.

Like I said, I got nothing. I need to go back to Jamaica. Rum, music, dancing, nightlife! Well, I may move up to Buffalo for a while for the current project. That should be great???

We need something new and different... Let's get the hell out of here___

Happy Bday to Me!

We took a family trip (PoPo, E, H, and I) up to see Dad this weekend. We got there late, because I had to do some work in the afternoon. But on the way, that "forced" us to stop at Bingham's Family Restaurant in Lenox, PA. This is a family restaurant serving kind of old-fashioned food (soup and sandwiches, hot open-faced roast beef, pot roast, and so on. It is quite good and can be augmented by anything in the pie case. There are tons of fruit pies, fruit breads, pastries, and more from which to choose.

On Saturday we went to the Glenn Curtis Aviation Museum in Hammondsport, NY. This is a record of Mr. Curtis's early years working on bicycles, motorcycles, airplanes, boats, photography, and more. He was a mechanical genius who developed powered flight right along with the Wright brothers. Like them he started with bicycles and small motorcycles.

The progress during this time (early 1900s) was amazing. Within a period of 5 years the sophistication of motorcycles, cars, and airplanes rose at an astounding rate. While the triumphs (no pun intended) were many, they were accompanied by a good deal of whimsy.

In the end, though, the rather clumsy early attempts became mechanically beautiful.

Then they became mechanically very inventive, predicting the future of rotary engines decades in advance of Mazda.

Then they became very powerful. This V-8 engine drove the bike to 135 miles an hours, at the time a world speed record for anything motor-driven.

The climb in sophistication in aircraft came just as quickly, going from this early airframe,

to this early flying boat (looking more like an airplane),

and on to this within 10-20 years.

Engines underwent the same increase in sophistication, changing from this kind of rudimentary looking engine

to this complicated rotary engine during the same time

We had lunch in Watkins Glen on the way back, then stopped at Hector Falls, on Route 414.

Sunday morning, after a breakfast of birthday waffles and a nice conversation with my family, we all returned to New Jersey. D had made a very nice dinner, accompanied by a good bottle of merlot.

Thanks for the happy 58th!

Note to self - live in or near a big city

Now back from wallowing in self-pity and New Jersey angst, yours truly. Well, we have never been to the Easter Parade in New York before. So, in the interest of keeping a life despite living in suburban New Jersey, we went today. It is a stitch! Go, just go next year, please. What a boatload of fun! The pictures and album will be self-explanatory.

We ended the day by having a very late lunch at Mesa Grill (Bobby Flay's west side restaurant). Lunch was great. It kind of made up for his in your face personality.

Anyway, take a look. Here are a few teasers. The focus was hats.

And characters.

And men in hats.


And a bunch of transvestites (not sure what they were doing, except selling tickets to something and offering chocolates from the Emperor's Club - yep, the same one :-)

And real women, too, in spectacular HATS, HATS, HATS.

So what is it about NJ?

It started when I visited New Jersey to to see some cousins. I grew up in the boondocks of New York, where life was simpler and a lot less pressured. As I met people from the greater New York City area I noticed that they acted very differently from the people I knew. There was an energy and a straightforwardness that was missing from upstate people. On the other hand, there was a rudeness and lack of the courtesy that I expected people to show. In New Jersey people seemed more worldly and a bit obnoxious to me. At the same time they were far more wealthy than people I knew (or at least they were in the place I was visiting). Being in New Jersey felt strange and unnatural.

Later on, while I was life-guarding to earn money for college, I met a girl from the bedroom communities outside Philadelphia. When I went to visit her I noticed the (to me) unnatural way in which communities were arranged, and the complete lack of mature trees in new communities. She was hot, so I visited a lot, hugging saplings for a tree fix while I was there. I swore at the time that I would never live in New Jersey.

As we left graduate school, E got the first job, and it was in New Jersey. I found myself living amongst the people that were strange to me and in the place that was unnatural to me. As I found my way professionally, I began to notice the blame society surrounding me. People seemed obsessed with results (perhaps righteously), rather than with the processes that bring results. It was as if they thought the process of getting results was automatic and always successful. I was a firm believer in process, developed scientifically and backed by experimentation. That did not play well in either work or day to day living. I began to call New Jersey the "me first" state. I am told that maybe my observations of greater NYC are not accurate. I believe what I see now:

• Incapable people running companies without a clue how they should work
• Drivers insisting on their position in the left lane and unsafely changing lanes to get ahead
• Greed driving financial markets to unsupportable bubbles,spreading chaos through the US
• Inability and unwillingness to face risk in a sane way
• Expectations that government must "take care of us"
• Pushiness, obnoxiousness, unreasonable expectations
• Incredibly high taxes
• Corruption in government

Make no mistake, I know that good people live here. I just think the general tenor and direction of life is not right. Why should you give a shit? Well, you probably will not. In spite of that, there is leadership and direction that flows from centers of power and money to other less powerful places. The quality of life that originates here seems to flow unnaturally toward places that I love, and maybe to places you love, too.

So, now that E and I are retired, I will be leaving as quickly as I can arrange it. We'll sell out, kiss corruption and high taxes goodbye, and haul ass for someplace sane. I think some of the others I know have the same idea. There are some less spoiled places left! Jamaica is one. The people and the lifestyle are terrific. We could do much worse.

Reconnecting - signs of life in NJ

It is actually a little disconcerting to be back here in New Jersey. I miss our time in Jamaica quite a bit. I am starting to get more involved in my part-time project, and wondering why. I am a bit torn and disappointed to have given up our night life and ties to family over there. On the other hand, reconnecting with the project has given me the opportunity to visit with my own family a bit.

Today our nieces from Jamaica came over to see their PoPo (their Chinese grandma came back with us from Jamaica.) One of the girls is going to Mt. Holyoke (on a scholarship for squash). The other is coaching in a health club here in New Jersey. Both girls are very athletic, good players. They are also very pretty. They have not been over to our house before. It was nice to see them. I think they will come again while PoPo is here.

Tonight we reconnected with Yann and Rebekah and their son, Evan. I worked with Yann and Rebekah earlier in my career (and theirs).  They live over in western New Jersey, near the Delaware River. We tried a small Mexican restaurant in Frenchtown. The food was good, as was the company. One of Reb's friends accompanied them, along with her young boy. He and Evan, both around 3 years old, wiggled like kids all night long while everybody gabbed. The waitresses dodged the kids pretty skillfully while carrying several plates of dinner to their patrons. The little guys made new friends and investigated everything in the restaurant.

We were there around 6. The place really started getting full somewhere around 7:30 or so. For me, the setting was difficult. It was noisy and it was hard to hear enough to maintain a conversation. Despite this I did my best to tease Yann with my recent retirement. He took it with good grace, though. I think he is really hitting his stride at work and enjoying it! He will return to his native France soon with Evan for a visit.

It was a good day. I should maybe loosen up a little and try to enjoy here, too?!? Yeah, next time I will take my camera. It's not just dancing girls that people want to see...

Buffalo

I have been there and come back. There is still snow and ice there. The project is languishing, though the latest stuff seems headed in the right direction. The people are good, the project is good, and I hope it gets finished.

But did I mention my heart is back in Jamaica?

Sad but true

We are back in New Jersey now. We were greeted by late flights on the day of return, then by intense rain and wind the next day or two. This is not a good omen. Already I miss Kingston! I miss the sun, warmth, music, family and friends, food, ocean, and mountains (not necessarily in that order).

One nice thing is the reunion with our own family. Pickle came over for a nice birthday restaurant dinner at Fusion. This is a Malaysian-style restaurant which is quite good. Amazing how Flemington has some decent restaurants now. It is also nice to get back together with Heather and Dan. Heather reminded me to get one of our handmade cheeses from the cave this next weekend.

Going back to work is a bit of an ordeal. I will spend Monday working, then travel on Tuesday to Buffalo. Wednesday through most of Friday I will be working in Buffalo. This project is not going smoothly. The resources are not available enough of the time to ensure success. Again I am tempted to bail. I do not like associating with this kind of misery. I do feel some duty to help out; I think the time I am spending is helping. It may not be enough, however. One good thing to come out of it is visits to my Dad on the way up and the way back.

I have projects to jump into back in Kingston. The "Bamboo Jungle" needs to be opened. Apartments need to be built. There needs to be an office for Tif to work from. There is the filming of a music video to watch. There is live music to which to listen. People to meet, lots to learn, and new things to see and do. Where is my heart? Back over there, really. I just need to persuade E to come with me.

Rock and Roll at the Village Cafe

Wow! Just Wow! Last night was an amazing night at the Village Cafe. This show was completely devoted to rock and roll. There were several acts, but the focus was on Crimson Heart Replica. This is a young band, with lead singer Katherine Williams enjoying her birthday (23 years) last night. Once again I am astounded at the depth of talent this island enjoys. This young woman really commanded the stage while playing guitar and singing. More in a bit.

This was the first night I had taken pictures. There are always a fair number of independent photographers in the audience, but I had not brought a camera until last night. This was our last Tuesday in Kingston for a while and I wanted to capture some of the excitement. Apologies for the photo quality. My built-in flash is not up to this kind of work.

The night started off kind of strangely with a slim, attractive young white woman playing alternative rock and techno on the sound system. This is not the kind of music we usually hear here. One of the groups she played was Peaches. That and the others I did not know, but really enjoyed. This was hard driving music, heavy on the bass and ready for dancing.

The first act of the night was a women singing and accompanying herself on the guitar. Saffron covered a few songs and sang some of her own. She was pitchy, to say the least, and her guitar kept misbehaving. Either that or she kept missing chords. You have to start somewhere. The crowd gave her a good bit of support, though.


Then came Jason Worton, singing his own work. This guy is a bit of a musical prodigy! He plays guitar, harmonica, and the flute. He coaches other singers and musicians. Later on in the show he played lead guitar for two acts. His songs are pretty meaningful, but his singing voice is not always strong.


He's a good looking guy, though, and the fans were enjoying him.


At this point there was a bit of confusion over who would go next. Finally a young woman in tight pants and minimal top came out. She sang very strongly, but the crowd's focus was on her hotness. Her style was kind of rappish, but she was not backed by a band. I think her name was Kali.


Not sure why, but she came off the stage after only one song. She told Danny later that she "couldn't afford more." At any rate, she lit up a doob and enjoyed the rest of the night from the audience.

Next came Random Chaos. This was an act dominated by a tall, blonde young woman (Dominique) with an incredible voice. She brought the house down. She sang, she got rowdy, she growled like Janis Joplin, she played the guitar. Everything she did was right on the money. Again I was amazed at the direction music is going in Jamaica.


I happened to be sitting next to Tessanne Chin's mom at that point in the evening. Tessanne and her sister are local phenomena. Tessanne was sitting right next to her mother. The sisters are very strong here in Jamaica. I was talking to her Mom about our experience with jazz, blues, rock and roll, and other music right there in Village Cafe. I asked her where she thought this was coming from. She thought it was coming back into Jamaica from the US and Europe.

Next came the headliner, Crimson Heart Replica. This group was absolutely dominated by the young woman singer and guitar player, Kathy Williams. At just 23 she had the audience completely in her hands. It seemed effortless to her.

As you can see, she is a bit alternative in her appearance. She sang about her brown skin, tattoos, and piercings. If I am not mistaken there was a definite feeling of alternate lifestyle in the air. At one point I heard one woman say to another "Why are you here with a man?" You never know, but could this be something new for Jamaica?


(Strangely, I learned later on that Katherine went to school with our niece Tif.)

One of the other things I have remarked on in earlier postings is the support that musicians give each other. Wayne McGregor (lead guitar and singer for Black Zebra) came onstage for a song.


While that was going on our young singer was playing the drums very credibly.


A bit later Tessanne Chin came on. She has a remarkable voice. It is strong, clear, perfect in pitch, and capable of being raucous as well. Tessanne and Kathy sang a duet about the need for women.


The crowd really enjoyed themselves. There was a little dancing, many excited faces, and a lot of clapping and whistling going on.


I could not keep myself from going up to the performers and telling them how good they were. They are so gracious! Kathy said a simple "Thank you, sir" and shook my hand. Sir? I'm trying to tell her she is the best thing since sliced bread and she is still polite enough to Sir me. Amazing!

(Our niece told us that it is the Immaculate Conception training at work; politeness was a requirement there. Today I read a little on Katherine's MySpace site. She wrote about her loneliness and isolation, and her feeling of difference among other things. I just wanted to tell her "You rock! Hardly anybody else does. Your work is amazing. Let yourself enjoy it, knowing that others love it!" I'm not "sir", I'm a fan.)

A couple of other people helped make the evening memorable, Cherie Doucile (spelling?), the announcer for the acts. We just met her a day or two ago in another role as video producer.


Tracey has been our bartender the whole time we have been here. She is friendly and very helpful. She also has a beautiful smile.

Last night in Kingston

Last night I went down to the Molynes road site with Paul. Along the way we picked up Quarry Bastfield, a video director from Brooklyn. Quarry is an easy to talk to type of guy. His dad came from Jamaica so he has ties and has spent a good bit of time here. He came down to do a socially conscious/political short movie about violence. He has a plot that will play elsewhere, but is really a Jamaican story at heart. It sounds like it will be interesting and heart-wrenching. He'll try it out at film festivals and see if he can secure funding for bigger projects.

Quarry came out of the NYU film department. He has some of the same background as the Lap brothers, particularly James Lap. Quarry also worked on Fat Joe's early videos.

He is a contender for director for a music video of Tanice's first single release since she has known Paul. Quarry has a producer named (spelling) Cherie Doucile. I chatted her up while Paul and Quarry looked at another location for the video. It turns out she calls the acts at the Village Cafe, where we spend Tuesday nights listening to live music. She knows the people in the band Black Zebra personally. They are the group we saw and enjoyed on a previous Tuesday night

Quarry, Paul, Tanice and I went up to the rooftop "venue" while we were at Molynes Road. Quarry thought it was really a good spot. It would probably be a difficult place to shoot, though, with no elevator. It is on the third floor and the equipment is heavy. Quarry observed that there are no quiet music/bar spots in Kingston. It's hard to have a conversation anywhere with the music going. Christopher's comes as close as anything, but it isn't really a "date" spot, and it is not really quiet, either.

Paul was encouraged. He thinks I could work with Danny to move this place closer to opening. I do not really know anything about night clubs or the bar business or the music business but I can help get organized. I am willing to learn and provide process. That is kind of the same sort of thing I have done every day for years, but in a new direction. I REALLY need a new direction. The lab system consulting business provides good money, but watching the same misery happen over and over again because of bad resource allocation really stinks.

Dinner at MarketPlace with Auntie Donna

We went over to the MarketPlace on Constant Spring last night. Auntie Donna treated us all to a dinner out, thank you very much! This is an interesting place. Five restaurants and a deli surround an open air courtyard. Each restaurant is independent with its own seating. But if you sit in the courtyard you can get service from several at once. Our party split between Chinese and Indian. Continental, Japanese, and Latin are also available.

It was a really pleasant evening, passing dishes back and forth. It has been cool and rainy for a couple of days in Kingston. The temperature was perfect. The food was very good.

It was remarkable that the setting could have been anywhere. It really did not feel like Jamaica. This could have been a little slice of the US or Europe, except you do not see restaurants so close together except in food courts.

The family knew a lot of people going by, so there was a lot of greeting going on. Maylene (whom we met at Donna's mom's house) was there with her family. There were lots of others as well.

After dinner, as we got to the parking lot, we had a group hug for Auntie Donna. She is a sweetie!

Mas Camp and Quad in one night - ouch

Mas' Camp again last night. This was a big night with a Bajan Soca singer - Alison Hinds. We started the night in the Carnival booth, arranging for Tif to have a costume for the carnival march. Danny did the business with Jodie "Jinx" Stewart (right side of photo). She is Sean Paul's girlfriend and is very good looking. Later on in the evening Danny introduced me to her.

We think the costume is this peach one. It is one of many being built for this year's march. Kind of skimpy???


The schedule of events is here. The road march is on 30-March, my birthday. Shame we will not be here to see it.


Danny and I got some drinks and circulated a little. Along the way I met these ladies. Ann, the lady on the right, is a practical nurse. She told me I must not worry about the violence in Jamaica. Her friend, Maryann, is looking for a husband, so let me know if you are single and interested.


This thing is really well sponsored. Of course Appleton is here.


They host little bars here and there on the grounds. This one is in the Carnival booth.


Elsewhere they offer all the rum you can drink for a few dollars. It is served up by the Appleton girls. Sometimes they get up on the table to dance and pour. They do not wear much, but they do not seem to get cold, either! They have lots of different kinds of juice with which to mix rum.


The sound for this event is really big. You can imagine the speakers (they are racked up 15 feet high). The booth is fairly complex, as you can see.


The night started off with the Coca Cola dancers. They did the dutty (dirty) wine (wind) with a lot of vigor.


It was a remarkable athletic display. They can even do the wine upside down!


Kingston beer is another sponsor. Bless their hearts, they cannot make beer for sh*t. But their dancing girls are very friendly. They are wearing kind of a Mas Camp uniform: short short shorts and a small top.


There are a lot of pretty girls around. Everybody is happy to have their picture taken.


This really seemed to be the way things were last night: the girls were very happy, the guys were skeptical to disapproving.


Except, of course, for Komar. He is one of the singers that backed Tanice at the Jazz Festival. He is always cheerful!


Eventually the stage show started up with Alison Hinds. It was a really good show, with lots of effects (confetti, steam, etc.) The crowd really went wild! You cannot imagine the looks of joy. Soca is really happy (and rude) music.


Flags and bandannas are a big part of the enjoyment. Some of the songs had the audience waving their bandannas back and forth.


Here is a girl happily dancing 'pon' her guy. She and her buddies were passing through the crowd while the singing was going on. She was jumping up and down and dancing on her guy, who kept looking at her skeptically. One of the guys in the crowd had a big grin on his face, just enjoying it as it happened. I smiled, too, then turned my back to go get drinks with Danny. Just as I turned away the girl gave me a couple of bumps on my rear, then disappeared into the crowd.


We left as the place closed, around 2AM or so. Then we went to Quad. I had never been to the other floors there. Danny and I went up, looking for a girl Danny had met at Mas Camp. We never found her. The floors are huge and the sound systems loud. Floor two has a "disco" sort of place with a huge crowd. A lot of the Mas Camp people come here afterwards to continue dancing. We also looked at the third floor, which was pretty deserted (and also very loud). Around 3:30AM we gave it up and went home. Thankfully the Mas Camp rum had worn off by then.

Update

We got in at 4AM. I woke up by 8:30, then slept from noon to 6:30PM. Refreshed now, but damaged!

Sean is hopeless - well, maybe just different

I spent a wasted 1/2 hour yesterday trying to persuade Sean that his music sucked and mine was superior. I played a lot of old stuff for him, pointing out the actual melodies, people that sang different notes instead of moaning the same one over and over while singing about how sucky their lives are, real drums playing rather than drum machine crap. I pointed out the wealth of styles and differences that brought some excitement to the music when I was young.

He balked. End of story. Poor Sean, trapped in the present! Or, maybe I should be more open-minded. Nope!

Well, maybe. After continuing the discussion today, Sean and I realized that our points of view for music are much different. I view the lyrics as almost inconsequential, as a mere means of using a human voice as counterpoint to the instrumental music. I treasure the instrumental! Sean values the lyrics as a means of enabling transitions in mood, skillfully applied regardless of the underlying music. I do not think these points of view can be reconciled.

I really do not value the observations of others on their miseries, the attempt to share their emotional problems. My feeling is that everyone has misery in his/her life, and that the misery is (or should be) private. Perhaps this is because of the quiet, taciturn manner in which I was raised. I am not sure. At any rate, my belief is that music played skillfully has (all by itself) the ability to alter one's mood (in any direction). If you doubt it, just listen to the Cuban band Yerba Buena and tell me how you feel afterwards.

Sean appreciates the artistry that is displayed when someone can describe their problems in a way that touches another person. To my mind that is poetry, not really music. I am guessing that his point of view is that the music itself is very much secondary to the communication of mood and experience. Perhaps it is a vehicle to deliver the poetry.

I have a strong appreciation for well written prose - always have. I have read constantly since I learned how. Rudyard Kipling is one of my favorites. The man could tell a story! I never have had too much patience for poetry. Occasionally it catches me out, but only occasionally. Some of the music that captures both poetry and musical creativity for me are things like the Doors' People are Strange, Santana's Black Magic Woman, some of Paul Simon's songs in The Capeman, and parts of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera. At any rate, for me, first rate music comes first.

Pepper's last night

After the play we went over to Pepper's for karaoke. It was a light crowd, but that didn't stop people from singing. Some of them were really good! I am again amazed at the quantity and quality of musicians in Jamaica.

The highlight of the evening was Tanice Morrison singing Young Hearts Run Free. She is so good it is a little shocking to hear her after the others. The crowd reacted instantly, really being appreciative and showing it. Also, EB and I pounded with Billy Boy Boy, another singer who Uncle Danny seems to know. He is really good. He sings country/western mostly, and comes dressed with a cowboy hat usually. Last night he was in his day job persona - a school teacher with a shirt and tie. That is the other thing that amazes me, the tug for people with "normal" jobs to perform. We saw it a couple of weeks ago with Black Zebra at Village Cafe. The lead singer and guitarist is a lawyer. His partner manages a newspaper.

Another highlight was "Smiley", the best bartender in Jamaica (at least arguably). He is wonderfully organized (tabs kept all in the same place and sorted, bar surface kept clean of any debris, drinks freshened continuously, etc.) Last night we asked for rum and ginger ale. After he gave us the drinks he set up a small bottle of rum, a bottle of ginger ale, a bowl of ice, and a cup for a scoop. That way he didn't have to do a lot of service and we could drink at our own pace. He kept a lookout and brought us new mixers when we were out.

This is a good place for people watching, as I mentioned before. Add to that the music and rum and it works pretty well. Another late night in Kingston.

River Bottom

We went to see River Bottom last night (with Oliver Samuels). This was a typical, wonderful Jamaican play that left us in stitches. The story line goes as follows:

• Corrupt preacher Cappo in River Bottom promises the world to his congregation while using their donations to build a 2 story house and buy a car
• Preacher admonishes congregation member to bring her daughter, Pearl, to church (so he can begin to work on her for marriage - or worse)
• Young man Quatty returns (educated) to the village and searches out his old friend Pearl
• Flashbacks to time spent with her while they were young and best friends
• Quatty and Pearl start to shyly show interest in each other
• Cappo observes and worries about his own chances, then begins to scheme and speak out against Quatty
• Hurricane shows up and Quatty starts to rally the village to leave
• Cappo talks up against him, says the hurricane will not come, and gets the villagers to stay
• The hurricane arrives and Cappo tells Quatty that his drunken father is down in the high water
• Quatty goes into the water to find his Dad (who then shows up in the village drunk after a nap)
• The village thinks Quatty has died and Cappo tries to get a marriage going with Pearl
• Quatty returns and ends up married to Pearl

The highlights:

• Cappo twitching as "message coming in" from God that the hurricane will not arrive
• Quatty in the water (beautiful scene behind a blue screen with Quatty appearing just as if he were swimming - he is quite a dancer)
• Quatty and Pearl discussing marriage while the village encourages them
• The musical numbers - work by Jon Williams - he is amazingly talented!
  
• Oliver
• Oliver
• Oliver
• Glen Campbell
• Glen Campbell

The part before intermission was a little difficult for me. The patois was pretty thick and the sound system did not really reach the balcony where we were sitting. After the intermission voices projected better and the patois was a little more understandable.

One of the things I love about theater in Kingston is that the audience participates. They laugh and clap and shout out their favorite punch lines before the actors get there. Everybody really has a great time! As always, anything with Oliver in it is a success. He connects with everyone.

Village Cafe again

Last night's performance was a bit of a disappointment. It started quite late and there were no live musicians for the groups. That seems a bit of a break with past Tuesday nights. The crowd was a lot more sparse, too.

The early people, Champani and Jah Vision were kind of raucous reggae guys who were not musical. Neither one of them could carry a tune.

In the middle there came a couple of guys who were better singers. They were both singing stuff that the crowd knew well. There is a lot of hooting in the crowd background when somebody hits a line that touches people. Not sure what that means exactly but it is good.

The two ending acts were really the highlights of the night. To Isis is an all male group with a couple of twins who can really sing. It is really strange to listen, because one will take the lead with the other one harmonizing, then the other one takes the lead. When they change it almost doesn't register because their voices are the same. They are really good, as was the rest of the group. It is really nice to hear harmony come into play. Their hottest song was Ghetto Pain, from 2006. At times they sing a capello in harmony. That's the best. Here is a link to something they did for Juici Patties. It will give you a taste of what they do with harmony.

After To Isis came Amique. His voice is really good and he sings his own songs from the heart. But he looks like a frog. He seems to sing a lot about his recently passed mother. To Isis joined him onstage to back him up for his final song.

This is the second time we have seen To Isis and Amique. They sang at an earlier Village Cafe Tuesday backed by musicians. For me that was better. You have to see the joy that the musicians exude while playing to understand. I think it brings a lot to the performance.

Auntie Lily

We met Auntie Lily at the Mobay Jazz/Blues Festival earlier this year. She is a tiny Chinese woman, but has a big spirit. She works at a travel agency here in Kingston.

The story goes that Lily and her daughter were traveling by car in Kingston when a guy came up to the car door and pointed a gun at Lily. He said to her "Weh di money?" She replied "I don't have any money." The guys pointed the gun at her daugher and repeated "Weh di money?" Her daughter then gave him Aunti Lily's money.

Well, a few months later Aunti Lily came to a stop sign in the area and the same guy pointed a gun at her again. Her reply to him was "Wha - is yu again?" That takes panache!

Tonight we heard about Lily again. She heard the phone ring and came out into her living room. A tall man was standing there. She said "Hi" and missed answering the phone. Then she went back to bed. Later on the phone rang again. Lily came out into the living room and looked around for the tall guy, but he wasn't there. However, the front door, the grill, and the garage were all open. Nothing was stolen and the theory was that Lily shocked him so much by saying "Hi" that he left without taking anything. The phone call was her neighbor trying to tell her she was being robbed.

Sean gets appendicitis

Sean has been feeling poorly for a few days. Yesterday the misery came to a head with a diagnosis of appendicitis. I was impressed with how fast things got resolved and taken care of. Tiff took him to the hospital during the day - after school. By 9:30PM he had his appendix removed and was recovering, somewhat groggily, in his room. The hospital was much nicer than the one I remembered from years ago. The nurses were efficient and helpful. The anesthetist (or anesthesiologist - I cannot remember) stopped by before the operation to inquire of any problems or issues with Sean's health. We went home to fetch PJs, and by the time we got back he was done in the operating room.

Today he is at home, gimping around and wrapping himself around a Junior Whopper. He got no supper last night and was starving. He seems OK, but kind of bent over when he walks.

Musing on Jamaica

I have always felt this place was magical. It has always been such a contrast with places I have lived before. I know that some evil stuff goes on; you cannot miss it in the newspapers and in casual conversations. But it is balanced by so much good that it almost disappears in the noise.

As Anthony Bourdain said during his recent visit here: "We all know there are magnificent beaches and resorts here." The real story is in the people. This is somewhat patronizing. It is absolutely possible that my life, distorted by good fortune, cannot allow me to see the truth. Bear with me, though.

The people here are a joy. They are clever. They are polite. They are musical. They are friendly. Despite the hot and beautiful surroundings they are industrious. Things get done, albeit at a slower pace than in the US. If you spend a little time with earlier posts you will get a sense of the people.

People struggle here, though. If one does not belong to the business class, day to day existence is difficult. There is a constant struggle with the issues of housing, food, clothing, spouses, and children. Despite that people generally face each day cheerfully and with grace. They do not seem, in general, to visit their troubles on each other.

In spite of the struggle there is a rising middle class in Jamaica. It seems to be based largely in Kingston, but it is seen in other towns as well. The middle class drives cars, eats out, buys apartments and houses. They live at a lower level perhaps than in the US, but they are an emerging power in the economy. You can tell it is happening when you see the traffic, the new bus station (really beautiful), and the new highways around the island. You can see it in the shops and in the evening entertainment. Many of the hotspots have covers of J$500, equivalent to roughly US$7. Add drinks and a snack to that and you have an expensive evening. Despite that, entertainment places are thronged.

I come here for a number of reasons:

• To enjoy my in-laws
• To enjoy the sun, sand, and mountains
• To enjoy the music
• To meet new people

These are things of value to me and I would like to spend more time here than I currently can. Real estate is quite expensive here, though. Living in Kingston is just as expensive as living in any other city. But this is the place where things happen; music, learning, industry, theater, and food culture all come together here. So here in Kingston is the place to be.

Roti Festival

This festival is an annual event celebrating Indian culture in Jamaica. There are plenty of Indians here in Jamaica, many of whom are second and third generations. This event celebrates their food, dance, and music. There are a lot of sponsors connected with the event, so it is fairly good-sized and organized well. It was held on Lady Musgrave Road, at the Indian Club. That is, the place where Indian people gather, not one of those bowling pin exercise devices.

For me this turned out to be a day with a lot of different things to focus on.

The Venue

We got there fairly early and caught this guy climbing a tent putting up the Maggi sign. It looked good when it finally got up there, but we were kind of in despair as we watched the guy fiddle with things.

The venue was all tents, food, drink, trinkets and souvenirs, and some kids games. It looked pretty good. All day it looked like rain, but it didn't. At times the sun broke out.


The People

This was also a true "outameni one people" day. All flavors were represented well. I was a little surprised that the support was so widespread.





The Hair

Another focus was hair. There was a lot and it was all different. I am sometimes amazed at the variety. It's probably just that I am bald and jealous!





The Cultural Stuff

There was a bit of culture, too. Much of it was food, but there was music and dance, too.


This girl in pink danced more like a Middle East belly dancer. She also came out and danced with a Trinidadian percussion band that was fantastic.

Sean found himself able to partake of the roti and curry.

There were several sets of lessons on how to cook roti as well. This lesson was about dal poori roti. You enclose a few spoons of dal in the middle, seal it, roll it out carefully, then cook it on the griddle.



This one came nice and brown and puffy!


The Kids

As usual, the kids were beautiful. There were a lot, and they were definitely outameni one people. This girl's braids had lots of ornaments.

This little girl with her bhindi was spectacular. She'll break hearts.