Acceptance and awareness

Over the last few years, I've noticed certain situations recurring.

And I've noticed that my response has changed.

Sometimes it's good to fight what's happening, to raise hell, to stand up for one's values. Other times it's better to just observe and see how the whole story plays out, almost like a movie.

What is bizarre is that 'observing' and just being aware seems almost counter-intuitive, but every time I've done so, the results are never what I thought they would be.

We often have such a knee-jerk reaction to so many things, that to sit and do nothing, sometimes in the face of discomfort is the most absurd, irrational idea but it works.

Here's how I've changed my life:

- On a daily basis, whenever someone gives me a 'bad drive' here in Trinidad (which you know happens here alot), I just let them go ahead of me, pull back and drive slower. Two things happen - I avoid an accident and I feel at peace, I even say a prayer for the dangerous driver to be careful. And guess what? My day is not ruined. I feel fine. Sometimes I get a little irritated but I'm not screaming and shouting obscenities at the top of my lungs.

- Redefining stress - read an article a few weeks ago that if we accept stress as a part of life and try our best to deal with it that we will actually live longer, healthier lives. So now, stress is my friend and we talk and laugh about our relationship all the time. We meet for coffee once a week and discuss where we can improve.

- Wait and see - rather than fly off the handle in any situation, or letting my feelings get the better of me, I wait to see what is the best response before I answer. Sometimes it's better to not say anything at all. For the sake of peace at least.

- Picong and Fatigue (Caribbean teasing and banter) - I've come to realize that when my students give me talk, it's for me to ignore it, unless they're being rude, kids like to test adults (took me a while to learn that one). And I've noticed that my football friends give a lot of 'fatigue' talk during a match, it's really a technique done to ruin the opponents' game, instead to getting angry, now I join in whenever necessary, it's relieves stress (my new best friend).

- Whenever I find myself spiralling down into a well of worry, I try to think how to objectively get things done, and tell the Lord that I don't know where I'm going, but lead the way. That usually works.

- And last, I'm looking at any difficult situation as a process where I can learn to be a better 'me' at the end of it. Because nothing, no situation lasts forever.

So far, so good in this new way of thinking.

I think the key to a well-balanced mind is acceptance of all that's around us, and being aware of what impacts on our life and what exactly we will to allow have an impact on us.

Change what we can, accept what we can't and know the difference.

Seems simple enough, but really hard to do.

The adventure of a lifetime

I'm on a bus...stuck in traffic.

Heading to Portland, Oregon to play a show tonight at Mississippi studios with the band Kobo Town. 

It all started back in June.  I came up to Toronto to stay by a friend for the summer.  Reason being - Kobo Town was going on tour. Where? Everywhere.  Europe.  Canada and America. 

It's hard to believe that the tour is nearly on it's last leg. We've had many mishaps.  Yet, most of the shows have been good. Out of 25 shows so far we've only had two where we were disappointed. So that's not too bad of a ratio.

It's funny.  

People on the outside will look at this and say 'wow! How exciting! All this touring'

On one hand it is. One the other hand no one knows the stress that goes into planning a tour. Nor the stress of when things go wrong on the road.

Talk about damage control and brain storming on the spot.

It has been a crazy ride.  Maybe the average person might not think it so exciting if they experienced it first hand.

But one thing is for sure. It's an experience I'll never forget.  The summer of 2013 and all the touring we did. 

We saw the world from the window of a bus, a plane, a van and a boat.

This is the year of unexpected decisions

I was busy minding my own business in January of this year when I got a call from my guitar guru - Graham Newling, who advised me of an opening for guitar lecturer at the University of the West Indies (Faculty of Creative and Festive Arts).

Long and short of it, I applied and got through and taught the Spring semester there, it was one of the best experiences of my teaching career. I hope I get called back for September. The downside was I had to re-arrange my private teaching schedule and unfortunately some students had to be dropped. They all understood though and were happy for me to get such an opportunity.

Now again in May, just this week actually, I got a call from Drew Gonsalves, leader of Kobo Town, asking me when I come up to start touring with the band, our second album - 'Jumbie in the Jukebox' has been released and there's a massive tour happening all across Europe, the US and Canada, starting in early June.

And so, I'll be looking into flights this week and re-arranging my teaching schedule, because inasmuch as this wasn't planned, it is one heck of an opportunity.

I remember reading somewhere that 'Life is what happens when you're making plans'

Most of my plans have gone out the window this year, and I've decided to go with the flow.

Interesting year indeed.

To my body: I'll never take anything for granted again with you

A friend of mine has MS. He's my age and lives in England. A really nice guy, a lawyer by profession.

Every year he comes to Trinidad to be with his family for a bit. Because of his condition he must be in England for treatment. I'm not too sure how much family he has in England, and having friends and family around does make things easier.

I guess that's one saving grace of living here, having a network of people that can help support you in any given situation.

But here in Trinidad I don't know if we have the right sort of treatment for MS, and it is a sad, crippling disease, one that robs a person of everything.

My friend now gets around in a wheelchair.

There was a show in Shakers on the Ave last night here in Trinidad, and he came to be with all of us and hear another mutual friend of ours play in the band Buzzrock. He wanted to go inside, he wheeled himself up to the stairs and we helped him up the five steps.

It was humbling to see.

Everyone offered to help and get out of his way, folks offered chairs. It was a wonderful display of human kindness.

He sat right in front of the stage and took it all in.

But it was also very sobering to see how this wretched disease takes away the one thing we so take for granted - the ability to walk, to move our hands, legs, our entire body any way we like.

If there was ever one wish I could be granted is this - that all human suffering (physical, mental and spiritual) will someday soon, eventually cease. That everyone will be cured of every affliction.

Sterling, I hope and pray that someday you will be completely cured of your condition.

Calypso is all but dead in Trinidad

Sometime ago, I got my hands on this CD - 'Calypso Awakening' from the Emery Cook Collection. I strongly suggest everyone get a copy of this. If you would like to hear real, authentic Calypso, then this is a must have in your CD collection.

Here's a link to the album.

http://www.folkways.si.edu/calypso-awakening-from-the-emory-cook-collection/caribbean/music/album/smithsonian

When you (my fellow Trini), hear the songs on this recording, you will hear for yourself what I am talking about.

The level of skill, wit, talent, banter on each of these songs delivered by The Mighty Sparrow, Lord Melody, Small Island Pride, Commander, Wrangler, King Fighter and the John Buddy Williams Band are beyond contest.

It's absolutely brilliant.

The lyrical content has you thinking, the melody and harmony lines have you singing and the beat will have you chipping and bouncing in your seat. The song arrangements are timeless and precise.

It's a great record.

What's so special about this recording? Well, for one, many of the performances are 'Live'. And the studio-recorded songs have a thick, fat feel to them. They sound alive and true. You can tell that every instrument is really being played. It's not a 'sample'.

Contrast that to now where all songs from Trinidad - the ruling art-form of Soca (son of Calypso) and the dying form of Calypso use an electronic drum pad to make 'a beat'. Where a keyboard plays the 'horn lines' and in some cases the bass lines as well. There's no real instrumentation, cept maybe a thin guitar line or two. No real hornsmen. Nothing. Where ALL 'singers' use the cursed Autotune software to create an effect for their voice, when the truth is that most of these 'Soca singers' cannot hold their keys live. And no matter how much each of these modern recordings are 'mixed and mastered' they still sound flat. They have no depth, no dynamics.

The fact is, modern day music of Trinidad has no soul.

Contrast the raw brilliance of this great period in time (the early 1900's to roughly around the 1970's) for our music, for our 'Kaiso', to what we have now - a time where nobody knows what are the Calypso songs for a Carnival season, only the 'Soca Hits'.

Contrast the healthy, competitive duel that used to go on between Calypsonians to what happens now between 'Soca Artistes'. In some Soca camps it's almost war. There's that much hatred and back-biting going on inside this great 'Soca Fraternity' when really, it's a Soca Mafia.

In the meantime, Calypso lays bleeding to death.

Look at this year's Calypso Monarch (2013) how poorly attended it was as compared to the growing popularity of Soca Monarch competitions - which have everything from fireworks to flying Soca singers to you name it - it's a blasted circus show.

After hearing the winner of this year's Calypso Monarch, I had come to the sad conclusion that Calypso is dead. There is no Calypsonian who can save our music. The older heads are getting older and are dying, and the younger ones cannot sing without the help of Autotune. The younger Calypsonians have no idea of lyrical content nor melody structure. It is terrible song-writing, if that is even a word to call this material - a song.

Well, don't even talk about Soca Artistes, they're not writing songs, they're selling noise-making hits that market this year's gimmick, whatever the hell it is for the year.

If no one has realized the fact that Calypso is dead, then I ask you this?

- When last did you go to a Calypso show? A tent?
- What new Calypsonians you like? Are they able to carry the torch forward to the next generation?
- Is Calypso making it to the world stage? Will it ever?
- What did you think of this year's Calypsos? (Not Soca tunes)
- Are the Calypso songs of this year able to stand up to the all the timeless classics we all love?
- What Calypso albums do you have?

I rest my case.

I mourn for Calypso. But when I turn on my radio, all I hear is a bunch of Autotuned 'Artistes' singing about jumping, waving, and doing some damn gimmick move.

It's like we've all become jackasses and we're so amused and impressed by our own stupidity.

The real funny thing is that Calypso nor Soca are going anywhere on the world stage.

But yet, we continue to fool ourselves in this little bubble of ours.

I hope you will weep for Calypso as I do.

Pictures make a plain wall come to life

I've decided that all the walls in my place must have a picture or two hanging up on them.

It's strange, a wall is just a wall, nothing but bricks, concrete and paint, but when I hang a picture on the same wall, all of a sudden the perspective of the room changes.

The room has angles now, dynamics, light and shadow. Some pictures even reflect an image onto the wall, now the walls have a different hue at night and day.

Before, when the walls were plain, the place was serene and quiet, dull and lonely.

Now, my place is alive. The pictures are the scenery inside my home.

Outside, I have the garden and trees.

All around me is imagery.

Pictures do speak a thousand words, and they also display a thousand colours and images.

Colin Hay - I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You

 Dedicated to someone.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5J-DtKldpE