WTF ????

I've lost it. Opened my blog to find it totally screwed up. The sidebars were down under all the posts. WTF...? So i changed templates. Lost all the additions I made. Links to utterkhaos, ana, my cool blogs. WTF ...?? Thinking of saving my posts, deleting the blog, and starting another Trinimuse. It will have to wait till I have some time though. WTF...? All who thinks my cousin did it raise your hands ?!?!?!?! WTF ... ?

Breaking News

4 Million TT Dollars worth of cocaine was seized at Crown Point Airport in Tobago at 5:30 yesterday afternoon. A Dutch woman was held and the cocaine found in her hand luggage while she was waiting to board a flight to Amsterdam.

More news later...

In country:
Senator Gillian Lucky and Dr. Fuad Khan becomes Independent UNC senators. Mr Yetming supports. A lesson in comparative morality. Pay attention, you will be tested...

Monday, April 11, 2005

Fire on Frederick Street

Fire gutted the People's (read Drag) Mall downtown Port of Spain on Saturday, with firefighters battling the blaze for 6 hours. Water problems, leaking hoses and faulty equipment all plagued the firefighters' ability to control the fire. Queensway fabric shop, and the flagship Pizza Boys restaurant among others were all burned to the ground. Value lost: TT 35 million and counting. What a waste, although some might see it as a blessing in disguise.

Above pic: Getting the 120 y.o. fittings to work on new hoses?

Below pics: Pictures from the blaze, Trinidad Guardian, Sunday 12th April 2005.
I'll post my thoughts later...

Child Prostitution

A 9 year old girl was accompanied by a teacher to the Couva Police Station last Friday, where she told officers that she was having sex with men in the village for a fee of five TT dollars each. This happened in Couva according to newspaper reports. The nine-year-old girl hid the dark secret from everyone in the village and it is estimated that she was "raped" by as many as 28 men before her rescue by police .

The resulting medical examination found that the girl was sexually active and HIV positive. Investigators believe the child was born with the virus. The mother is an HIV positive ex bar waitress and has 15 children. The state took away 14 of them leaving the girl child with her. The child said she was having sex with her mother's drug addict friends, brought to her by her mother. To support her addiction.

Eight men who were allegedly found waiting in line to have sex with the child have been questioned. A 71-year-old man who was caught in the act, was in police custody up to last night, and is expected to be charged with having sex with a minor. A woman appeared before Couva Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar yesterday to answer charges of failing to report incidents of sexual abuse against a minor. She was not called upon to plead as the charges were laid indictably. The woman was remanded in custody and is to reappear in court next Tuesday.

On the radio this morning, an announcer was wondering how this could happen in a residential area with nobody seeing or reporting. In this country, drug crime is as deadly as anywhere else. If you know there is a drug hole in your area, you see, hear, say or smell nothing for fear of your own safety. A caller was wondering how could this happen here? In our beautiful Trinidad?

It happens everywhere. I've been lucky enough to give guidance chats with various youth groups for some years now. I've seen it before. I've also seen the victims unwilling to change because of their misconceived "comfort" zone. I've seen the abuse people endure by trying to change. I've also seen the wonderful social support from our government.

I'm not shocked at the news report. I'm shocked at the naivety of the Trinidad people. Drive by Curepe, Independence Square, Harris Promenade, Mucurapo St, Marabella Main road, Arima, and you will see them. Open your eyes. There are children sleeping on the street. They have an aggressive exterior, street smart, ready to scam you for food.

Yet we do nothing about the ones we do see. How many more are there that we don't?

The Children of the Night faq says, "Generally speaking, if a child is 10 years of age or younger and involved in prostitution, the parents are usually involved in the sexual exploitation of the child."

Maybe for real action, it will take another senseless, avoidable death...still, we do nothing.

Warriors vs Costa Rica vs Jack Warner

T&T Warriors Fan. T&T vs Costa Rica.
Pic from REUTERS/Howard Yanes

Went to the game on Wednesday vs Costa Rica. It was better. Much better. We actually had a midfield. Now if they would only support Carlos Edwards on the right. The boy has loads of skill, but if one has no support, one is going to make the wrong decisions. Having said that, our defence looked stronger, like they knew what they were doing. Dennis Lawrence and Atiba Charles did yeoman's service. No more soft goals, at least not on Wednesday last. Dwight Yorke and Silvio Spann impressed me. Much. Terrific workrate, dey was all over the field, clinical passing. All we need now is a dedicated, goal hungry striker, someone who is not afraid to run at the opposing defense. Around the 17th minute, we strung together about 17-18 passes, almost brought tears to my eyes.

To recap:

T&T looked lifeless in a 2-1 loss at home in February against the US.

Next up came a demoralising 5-1 washout on the road vs Guatemala on 26 March. Though a win away from home was always going to be a tough ask for the side, their haphazard defending seemed to indicate a lack of grit and determination necessary to compete at the top level.

T&T's Silvio Spann (r) clashing with Costa Rica's Walter Cedeno.
Pic from REUTERS/Howard Yanes.

Finally they got a little closer to the mark in their Wednesday 30th March draw with Costa Rica. With a level of fighting spirit conspicuously missing from the Guatemala game, they ground out a 0-0 draw with Costa Rica at home to avoid the ignominy of going into the two-month halt in qualifying with zero points from three matches. Six points off leaders Mexico and one behind closest side Panama, all is not lost for T&T, though the outlook seems a little bleak for a finish in the top four.

The new coach is going to be *fanfare of soca music* Leo Beenhakker. This appears to be a very encouraging and positive move but credentials is one thing, the ability to work successfully in our cultural context is another. Small ting. I say that the only context that one has to relate to is the CULTURE of football. Its a good move in my mind, I think Bertille has done what he can, we need to move the team to the next level.

"Jack" Warner is loved, hated and criticised, but he is the best person for the job. No nonsense, critical, decisive and aggressive management is what is needed here; Mr. Warner provides it in spades. Jack has worked hard to do all in his power to raise the level of football in the region. Good move.

T&T's Nigel Pierre (number 18) leaving out Costa Rica's Carlos Hernandez.
Pic from REUTERS/Howard Yanes.

I going to de next game on June 4th 2005, we playing Panama in de Stadium.

Bits and Pieces

Today is not a holiday. Tomorrow is. :-)

Isn't Shouter Baptist Liberation Trinidad wonderful?

My secretary just called to tell me that it was her husband's birthday yesterday and she has a hangover so she can't come to work. How do you handle that without going postal?

I wonder how much people called in sick today or applied for the day off to take advantage of the Holy Thursday to Shouter Baptist Wednesday holiday week? It's truly amazing that we get anything done. Someone should do a survey, government offices first.

Ninja Gaiden took most of my attention yesterday, but made some progress. The breakfast shed is still there, serving lunch as usual, traffic was unholy on the highway, beef pies for breakfast... all is well with the world.

There were six murders, four road fatalities this weekend. Easter Holy weekend. *geez* And the weekend isn't finished yet.

Went to my mother's for lunch on Sunday and got conned into doing the dishes. All of them. Thirty-something y.o. Seems like everytime I'm in front of the kitchen sink there, someone decides to clean the fridge.

Came across a book every girl should have: The Straight Girls Guide to Sex with Women. I'll have some copies at home for those interested, for rental only though. *just kidding*

Since we're on giggle topics, Guatemala beat Trinidad and Tobago 5-1 in Saturday's WCQ in Guatemala. I'm glad none of the local stations carried the game. I'd be looking for a new TV today. Tomorrow we play Costa Rica, at home, at the Hasely Crawford Stadium. I wonder why they didn't use the Oval? Probably because of the non existing West Indies cricket. Maybe its because of the US ju-ju/santeria/obeah the US wuk on we when dey beat we 2-1 in the first WCQ at the Oval. Any bets on the WCQ vs Costa Rica outcome?

I'm debating whether to go to the game or cut my toenails.

Long weekend

Well here it is again, another long weekend. In Trinidad, we have Good Friday and Easter Monday off. Wednesday is a holiday too because of Shouter Baptist Liberation Day. I dont exactly know what that is so clk on the link if you want to find out. Another Shouter Baptist Article.

Sorry for not updating as often as I used too but you know how it goes. Lots of things has happened here so I'll probably do some posting this weekend. Enjoy the long weekend and be safe!

Up to my ears!

Sorry guys...I've been so busy this week that I really haven't had time to post. My portfolio requires both technical and management skills and I'm currently forced to remember the latter. When I can breathe, I'll tell you more...stay tuned..!

BitsMix~1

I went to the Registrar's office again today armed with my camera, but wasn't allowed to take a picture. So here's the sign in its entirety.

"Warning!...All trolley drivers should stay within the speed limit (a stroll in the park) or they will be charged accordingly." I will get a pic...*dammit*

Well there's one for ya..!!! I couldn't stop laughing!


I would have watched more if they looked like this...!

Gaiden Update

Here is where I am. Exactly. Just wanted you all to know.

Registrar of Companies

I just saw this pasted to a door at the Registrar of Companies office, South Quay, Port of Spain.

not verbatim: "All trolley operators are required to be under the speed limit, (a stroll in the park), or suffer the maximum penalty".

I will return tomorrow and provide the full text of the notice, this I promise.

This being a glass door the only sign I could see behind the notice from my vantage point, 9th in line to a conspicously vacant counter, was: "Marriage Licences: Orisha, Muslim, Hindu". This is on the second floor, in an office filled with people, desks, filing cabinets.

To add to wishlist: be trolley operator at the Registrar of Companies for one (1) day.

Breakfast Shed Update

I couldn't make it to get the pictures I promised you all on Saturday but the "Shed" is alive and well and doing better than ever before. Our Prime Minister visited with three tenants and pledged government support in finding them a suitable location to sustain and expand their businesses. The PSA willed their support and called for UDECOTT to pay the women of the Breakfast Shed TT 200,000.00 each.

Keep you updated. Maybe I should have crab and callaloo for lunch today.

Oh, and happy belated International Women's Day.

Firefox, the browser

I switched to Firefox, the Mozilla browser around November 2004 or thereabouts, because I was tired of the crappy Internet Explorer. It seemed like every time I opened IE, there would be spyware on my pc. My laptop btw is still suffering from the after effects of IE. Firefox is wonderful and I've convinced about 20 more people to switch.

Browser showdown

My second favorite feature is the tabbed browsing. You wont believe the ease of it till u've tried it. The best feature is that it closes more vulnerabilities than IE. If firefox gets more market share though, more spyware will popup to attack it. Bring on Open Source. Firefox is free. That means the code too. 20 Million people debugging for spyware against a few hundred spyware makers seems like excellent odds to me.

Microsoft is now in Netscape's place. It has had a dominant market share for so long that it appeared to simply throw up its hand and declare "its finished -- we don't need to make any more changes." Firefox has really come along and showed users they don't need to stick with Microsoft's crappy browser for everday web browsing. Try Firefox, you might like it.

Download the newest version here.

San Fernando Licensing Office

I got a duplicate Drivers Permit yesterday. It took me 6 hours. In this age of wireless internet, satellite technology and freenet, the licensing office is pounding out drivers licenses on stone.

Procedure:

1. Get the form from Licensing office. Its the same form for a new DP. 1 hrs.
2. Go make a police statement and get the police stamp. .5 hrs.
3. Swear to the JP that your made up story is true and correct. 1 hr.
4. Go back to the Licensing office to find your signature in a notebook. Heaven help the person that can't remember their dp# or date of issue. 1 hrs.
5. Wait for the clerk to get your copy from the vault. 1 hr.
6. Go in line to pay 40 TT dollars. .5 hrs.
7. Wait in line to take your picture. 1 hr.

They also close for lunch from 12 thru 1.

I'm going to bid to digitise all their documentation, but my government won't do that cause it will expose all the corruption happening there.

I'm going to chain my dp to my belly button.

Trinidad, an outside perspective.

While searching for nonexistent pictures of the Breakfast Shed on de net, I found an interesting article. Here is an excerpt on Trinidad Carnival.

"It’s easy to get weepy or exalted when talking about Carnival. But it is a kind of master-work, an assemblage of many parts that like a gothic cathedral with its thousands of separate artisans rises up as a single expression. There are people who will never miss a Carnival here. Every year they drop everything to come. Why? It’s not the loucheness, the bacchanalia, but the beauty that gets them - Carnival is not just an orgy, but an aesthetic orgy, an orgy of loveliness, human, musical, sartorial, whatever. Like some great novel, it is full of details any one of which possesses its own story, its own world, yet each of which is also instinct with the meaning of the whole."

If foreigners feel this way about Trinidad, why don't we? Read the article here, it is really good.

Trinidad's Breakfast Shed

Urban development is great once its managed properly. In Trinidad, one can only hope.

UdeCott is going to demolish the Breakfast Shed for room to build the POS waterfront expansion project. The Breakfast shed stall tenants were offered TT 93,000.00 in lieu of relocation. A lawyer was hired and they are now asking for TT 1.4M each. Rumours are flying that demolition is due to start tomorrow. (This is Trinidad , after all.) The radio stations have gotten involved and its true Trini bacchanal at Wrightson Road.

The first mention I know of is back in primary school, we learnt that for Audrey Jeffers and the Coterie of Social Workers, May 26, 1926 was a particularly unfortunate year, for the group embarked on its plan to provide hungry school children with a mid-day meal. The first venue for this venture was constructed at Warner Street, New Town, a short distance away from the Jeffers' home. For some reason the building was called a 'breakfast shed' despite the fact that it was to provide lunch.

This 'breakfast shed' immediately became popular with the school children of the surrounding New Town and Woodbrook districts. Not long afterwards came the main Breakfast Centre on Edward Street which supplied other venues. Nevertheless, it became a popular sport for the children of the city who flocked there for perhaps their major meal of the day. In this time of abject poverty, when many of the nation's school children went without the benefit of a mid-day meal, the school kids of Port of Spain were not so deprived. Our internationally known Breakfast Shed is derived from or commemorates these beginnings.

A nurse once mentioned that the meals there are "the highest-cholesterol, highest-sodium, most delicious food you can get."

More than providing indirect income for about 200 Trinidadians, the Breakfast Shed is a cultural institution worthy of respect. If you want local cuisine, that's the place to go to. I hope UdeCott does the right ting. I want to drive up there tomorrow and take some pictures. Keep you posted.

Gaiden is HARD..!

I'm stuck. Level 2. A huge horseman samooorai wipes the floor with my a$. Ninja mages that disappear and reappear to kick my butt.

The storyline held within the game is fairly simple, but not without intrigue: Ryu Hyabusa's clan was murdered and the ancient Dark Dragon Blade that his clan had been protecting for centuries has been stolen. (I wonder if there are any new ideas out there?) Ryu is out to recapture the stolen evil mystical sword of untold power and avenge the death of his clan.

All you need is a virtual Uma Thurman in a track suit to play Ninja Gaiden 27 - Kill Bill Kubed. If someone makes a patch please credit the idea to me. Just kidding.

Ryu has the ability to effortlessly run across the wall (an ability that is shared with Ubisoft's Prince of Persia), jump to an adjacent wall, leap from the wall into the air, throw 4 deadly shuriken (ninja throwing stars) at an opponent, then deliver a series of lethal attacks before his feet touch the ground; a feat that must be seen to fully grasp its high cool index.

Not only does he have his physical weapons, but also supernatural. Ryu will learn along the way the secrets of ninja magic and be able to cast "special attacks" on his enemies to even the odds when things get a little too overwhelming. These too are upgradable.

The environments are astonishingly detailed and complex. The water, lighting, and gore effects are extremely well-done. They're not gratuitous. They're just really well-done. Even when Ryu is turning 180 degrees out of a forward sprint, he plants his foot, pivots his body, shifts his weight, and takes a few steps backwards as his momentum dissipates. It's very realistic-looking.



And I'm still stuck.

Ninja Gaiden

cute ...i wonder if she will kick my ass?

I'm talking about Ninja Gaiden. I prefer to purchase my games in the US because its $50.00 max there and 6 freakin' hundred dollars here. Merchants are thieves I tell you. In this case some very nice friends shipped it to me. Cool! Haven't started it yet but I'll tell you about it.

Do you remember the Ninja Gaiden for Nintendo back in 1989? Yeah ... waaaayyy back when you were 15? I had days of fun playing that and I hear this version is no different. Its hard they say, but fun.

if only we could...really ...
...my mother would have ran the walls behind me...

So if I'm not blogging, I'm hogging the TV with moss growing over me.

Digicel Cup, 3rd place

I wonder how its going to turn out tonight. Of course, I'll let you guys know. TT vs Barbados, for third place. *geez* !!! Ah walkin' wid mih toilet paper and rotten tomatoes and breadfruit an' t'ing! Leh dem boys an dem play chupidness...it go be like Skinner Park!

I'll be out of commission for the weekend, see you guys on Monday or so...! Gone Fishing....!!