Moving Back to Jamaica

Video Interview - Jamaican Productivity and Migration

2011-01-10T08:09:00.000-08:00

Here is a link to the video interview based on the article "Why Jamaicans Have to Migrate to Become Productive."

Why Jamaicans Have to Migrate to Become Productive

2010-12-06T05:25:00.001-08:00

I recently wrote an article in the Gleaner: Why Jamaicans Have to Migrate to Become Productive. You can access it here: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20101205/business/business3.html

P.S. A recent editorial in the Observer expressed a somewhat similar sentiment: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/editorial/Two-faced-Jamaicans--Why-are-we-better-when-overseas_8107572

Why Gmail Priority Inbox Won't Work

2010-09-01T18:54:00.000-07:00

Why Gmail Priority Inbox Won't Work

A Short Survey For Your Input

2010-07-20T11:15:00.000-07:00

One of the big things to get used to here in Jamaica is the fact that everyone has a cell phone.

I have not met a single adult who does not a cell-phone, and the 116% penetration rate means that many people have more than one phone. (By contrast, the penetration rate in the US is 89%.)

This means that Jamaica is a fine place to predict what will happen in other countries, especially in their workplaces.

I have been observing smartphone habits here in Jamaica, and in the US, and have decided to do a survey to look at Smartphone Use and Abuse.

It's a short survey of of only 9 questions focusing on smartphone habits, and you actually don't need to have one to add respond (in fact, I am hoping to get a mix of users and non-users.)

Click here to complete the survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/smartphone-survey2

What A Drama!

2010-07-01T10:48:00.001-07:00

The last couple of months have been difficult to say the least, perhaps the hardest that I have seen since moving back to Jamaica.

The current state of emergency and the Dudus extradition have only helped deepen the recession currently underway, as all commercial activity crawled to a halt on days when the violence deepened or curfews were enforced.

I have also noted that quite a few friends of mine are making sounds about migrating.

I thought that this article by Douglas Orane was particularly good, and begins to point a way forward for the average Jamaican:
http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20100701/news/news52.html

US Extradition Request Strains Relationship with Jamaica

2010-04-26T17:13:00.000-07:00

This article from the New York Times outlines a growing issue in which we Jamaicans are all losers, and Coke is the only apparent "winner."

A similar story was also carried in the Washington Post.

Jamaica's Snap Election

2010-04-09T10:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Jamaica entered a crucial election period that has nothing to do with either of our major political parties.

Instead, the battle has begun between the PNM and UNC/COP over who will rule Trinidad and Tobago, courtesy of a snap election called by Prime Minister Patrick Manning yesterday.

Last night, this fact was ignored in our television newscasts. This morning, only a single newspaper bothered to mention it in a report lifted verbatim from the news-wires.

Why should Jamaicans care?

Well, we need to remember that the person being elected is also the de facto CEO of some of our most important companies.

And, more importantly, that it appears that the person at the top is likely to change (according to the polls.)

Before getting into who that person might be, let's look at the stake that the Trinidadian government has in Jamaica's economy.

First of all, the Trinidadian government owns Lascelles de Mercado, the second or third largest Jamaican company (depending on how it's measured.) This gives it control over subsidiaries such as J Wray & Nephew, AJAS, Lascelles Division, Federated Pharmaceuticals and Globe Insurance. With this recent acquisition comes ownership of brands such as Magnum, Appleton and Sangster's Rum Cream.

Secondly, it also owns more than 40% of JMMB, our third largest financial institution.

It's influence over these entities may have happened quietly, but its role as the absentee master of Air Jamaica's future has been loudly debated both here in Jamaica and in Trinidad.

Well, to be more accurate, it's hardly been a debate. The governments of both countries have promoted the marriage, while Trinidadians and Jamaicans have fought it tooth and nail.

Now that elections are upon us all, what's the deeply unpopular Patrick Manning likely to do?

Will he defend the equally unpopular Air Jamaica deal as he fights for his political life? Or will he abandon his aspirations to rule the airways of the region, leaving the Government of Jamaica with empty hands?

How much does he value the deal? How much does he care that the IMF is quite likely to hold Jamaica to its promise to get rid of the airline by a certain, non-negotiable date?

Is he willing to take a stand for the Air Jamaica acquisition on a point of principle, and fulfill his part of the bargain?

Trinidadians will tell you, with a laugh, that they know the answer to that question.

Even if he does stick to his guns to fulfill his vision for the barely profitable Caribbean Airlines, what is the opposition likely to do during this election period? Will the leader of the UNC/COP, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, ignore this particular issue that Trinidadians feel so strongly about, and pledge to go ahead with the expansion of Caribbean Airlines?

Or is she more likely to exploit the unpopularity of the deal, and promise to kill it once she gets a chance to become Prime Minister?

Once again, most Trinidadians I know would laugh, and make a joke that they hope that she has the common sense they expect of their leaders... and "kill it dead."

What are we to make of this as Jamaicans?

At the very least, we need to pay attention to the rest of the Caribbean region, so that we can start to learn how to do business with countries that know much more about us, than we know of them.

When we don't pay attention and can't see a big picture that includes what's happening south of Kingston, we end up with rude surprises, such as an IMF-led austerity programme. We also might discover that the charges of corruption in Trinidad being leveled against leaders of the PNM government have some substance to them.

I doubt that the IMF cares who is in power in Trinidad, and whether or not they are corrupt, but... (Hello!!) we MUST.

New Contributor

2010-03-30T12:22:00.001-07:00

As you may have noticed, we have a new and very talented contributor to the blog: Tracy McFarlane.

Here is her bio.

Tracy A. McFarlane

Residence: Kingston, Jamaica (but a country girl at heart)

As the last of five children, born to Jamaican parents who lived in England, the US and Bermuda (together and separately) across the course of their lives, I see movement across geographical space as a very normal part of life. By training, I am a researcher who has interests in social identities & categories, such as race, gender, class, nationality, ethnicity. I like to think, talk and write about how these intersect and influence our behaviours within and across social contexts, like where we live, go to school, work, and take care of our health. For me, where we are matters just as much as who we are, and the two are inextricably interwoven.

Half Yu Life Gone!

2010-03-24T09:51:00.000-07:00

We’ve all had someone declare, “You have not lived until you’ve . . .” and the sentence is completed with their idea of a life changing experience. So, they might continue, “ . . . been in love”, “ . . . had fondue”, “ . . . had a child”, or “ . . . watched the sun set from Ricks Café”.

There is an array of enriching experiences with which some persons, having had them, now consider their life complete. These are all debatable, of course, but we don’t need to engage here in a debate about the essential features of a life well lived. What we will do, however, is consider how similar ideas are expressed in Jamaican: “Half yu live gone if yu neva love nobody” or, “If yu neva watch di sun set in Negril, half yu life gone!” In essence, you are as good as dead.

Now, this subject of how we speak in Jamaica is itself, rife with debate. For example, do we speak a dialect, a patois, or a language? Embedded in this question are thorny issues of correct spelling, punctuation, sentence structure, among others.

There are Jamaicans with expertise in this area (and I am not one of them) who have addressed these and other questions at length. In fact, I will invite my friend, Dr. Carolyn Cooper, who is an expert in matters of language and culture AND is also someone who moved back to Jamaica, to give her comments on this piece when it is posted. Nevertheless, we can all agree, when Jamaicans have something to express about which they feel deeply, there is no other thing to do than cut some patois!

If you are a Jamaican living in (or who has lived in) some foreign country and reading this right now, you are probably recalling the last time you got really angry, or encountered some intense pleasure, or (heaven forbid!) remembered a joke – and the target of your communication was not Jamaican. In such situations, by the time you have translated or code switched to make yourself understood, the emotion you felt is flattened. Nuh true?

Saying it in Jamaican, for a Jamaican, is usually more expressive: we repeat words for emphasis (true, true!), engage freely in hyperbole (half yu life gone!), use double negatives (neva love nobody) and have license to truncate words if it will get us to our point more quickly.

This last one has many examples: In a heated moment, who has time to take a breath to pronounce the letter h? Or to put the tongue between the teeth for th? Why bother with the other letters in “even” if you can say e’n and convey the same meaning? On the other hand, it is not always about haste or thrift, there are some situations when, if you simply say “in”, you are robbing the listener of an important nuance; that is when we slather on an extra syllable, and only “een” or “inna” will do.

Let’s not get started on those time when words are not enough, or would be too much, and we draw for a cut eye or hiss teeth.

Ok, alright, one more example: have you ever erupted with a good belly laugh with another Jamaican – I’m talking about the type of laugh that has you bent over and leaves you gasping for air. Then when both of you are spent with laughter, and heading into recovery mode, you retrieve your upper body from over your knees and both give out, “Woi!” Of course, you both lose composure and go straight back into laughter. This time, it’s the laughter of recognition and shared meaning – WHO else does that?

Finally (this is the last, last one), my all-time favourite is a combo: We invoke deity and swear words with equal fervour, sometimes in the same sentence – and we do this whether we are very angry or we are very happy. When a non-Jamaican witnesses two Jamaicans greeting each other enthusiastically, they sometimes get nervous ; taken out of context, it is impossible to distinguish from the hand gestures, body language, words expressed, or volume of the exchange if this is a happy moment or the prelude to a buss -ass!

These are just a few of the special features of Jamaican communication, and I’m sure you can think of others.

There are regional and social class variations in how we communicate, as well. You have probably had arguments with other Jamaicans about how you speak patois. For example, consider the following variations: “When she when a go a Kingston”; “When she’d a go a Kingston”; “When she was a go Kingston”; “When she when de go Kingston”; “When she ben de go a Kingston” . . . I’m not finished, but I’ll stop here. You get the point – all convey the same message, but as a Jamaican living outside of Jamaica, you know that no-one likes to argue about how something should be done correctly in the Jamaican way, as another Jamaican living overseas. Nevertheless, whether or not you agree on how it should be said, a Jamaican understands you are saying, “When she was going to Kingston” and is eager for you to get to the rest of the labrish.

Regardless of the strata of Jamaican life that your background represents, there are some situations that simply pull out the patois in you. If you are not among Jamaicans when that happens, then you can’t express it AND be understood. These are the moments when you think, I really need to move back to Jamaica: Half mi life gone.

Tracy McFarlane

Filling Out the US Census

2010-03-16T08:29:00.000-07:00

There are some powerful reasons to fill out the US census by including your Caribbean ancestry, and I won't go into them here.

But here's a useful image of how the form can be completed:

Podcast Comparing Jamaica's Education with Barbados'

2010-03-16T07:43:00.001-07:00

This is a powerful 25 minute podcast that compares the Jamaican educational system with that of Barbados', based in part on the differences in GDP per capita.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2010/03/podcast_why_gdp_matters_for_ki.html

Our Debt to Haiti

2010-03-12T12:24:00.000-08:00

I was sent an interesting article by a reader of this blog to share an article that she wrote: "It's time to repay our debt to Haiti."

It's pretty interesting, and goes back in time to show the contribution that Haiti made in breaking the bonds of slavery for all Africans.

Here is the article: It's time to repay our debt to Haiti.

A New Jamaican Blog that I Love

2010-03-05T05:18:00.000-08:00

I just bumped into a new blog called "Things Jamaicans Love."

The one or two articles I have read so far have had me in stitches -- they are so well written, and so very true in a funny, off-beat kind of way.

It gets my strongest recommendation, and I have been reading it slowly -- one post per day -- so that I can get a little laugh each day.

Things Jamaicans Love -- click here.

Launching A New Time Management Product

2010-02-06T18:06:00.000-08:00

In prior posts I wrote about the spurt of creativity that came when I moved back here to Jamaica.

Well, some of what's happened came from my decision to do this blog. If you go back to early posts, you can see where I started to write about time management.

That was 4 years ago.

Fast forward to early 2010, and I am in the process of selling a unique time management product online -- not to a Caribbean audience but to one that's worldwide.

For details see http://mytimedesign.com. Check out the video I created to help explain why a Jamaican has such an interest in this particular topic!

It's a bit tricky hard to explain how much the 5 year change in environment has been a challenge, but also a stimulus for me in so many ways.

On Mondays I am now co-hosting a radio programme on Bess FM - a small station that's very new that also broadcasts to an international audience.

Both of these events are things that simply never would have happened if I hadn't returned home.

Jamaican Children Struggling in the US

2009-12-18T14:29:00.000-08:00

An article appeared today in the Washington Post describing the struggles that Jamaican children have when migrating to the US.

I left Jamaica to live in the US when I was 18, after completing my A' Levels. I arrived a few days before classes started at Cornell and ran into West Indians who had left home to live in the U.S. In come cases, they had been in the high school system for only a year.

All I can say is that those of us who graduated high school in Jamaica were very different. It wasn't until later that I came to understand a little about attending high school in the US, and how difficult it was for those who had to ensure that rite of passage.

The article can be found by clicking here: Far from their island, Jamaican children struggle new expectations. The most telling line in the article comes at the end:

"Ferguson said more programs are needed to help Jamaican migrant children adjust to the U.S. school system, including the possibility of post- and pre-migration counseling."

Wow -- exactly what I have been thinking, and saying, when I give my two cents' worth of advice to Jamaicans here who are thinking about migrating. I haven't yet met a family that appreciates the challenge... most seem to see migration as a way to release the frustration that they feel at everyday life in Jamaica.

Repats to India

2009-11-28T13:29:00.000-08:00

I found this great article from the New York Times about Indians who have a tough time returning home to India.

As you might imagine, there are lots of parallels between Jamaica and India! This is an excellent indicator of what Jamaicans go through when they return.

It's also the first time I ever heard the title "repats" for those who repatriate to their ancestral countries.

Some Indians Find It Tough to Go Home Again

Dale's Podcast on Moving to Jamaica

2009-11-10T08:59:00.000-08:00

My wife Dale was recently interviewed by a blogger at Jamaicans.com in a 60 minute interview that, I think makes for some good listening!

She's been back in Jamaica for four years, and has a business helping expats to make the move for themselves.

Here is the link to the podcast: Dale Pilgrim-Wade's Wisdom on Returning to Jamaica.

The article that it's taken from can be accessed here.

Her website is http://transitionsunshine.info

A Video on Jamaica's Track and Field Success

2009-10-10T11:20:00.000-07:00

This is a beautifully done video that made me choke up a bit.

It's a MUST see... Click here or on the video below:

Are You a REAL Jamaican?

2009-10-02T14:14:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been on the receiving end of the pronouncement, “You’re not a real Jamaican!”?

Well, regardless of who is making the statement – a non-Jamaican or a Jamaican – (s)he is making some comment about how you are seen, relative to other Jamaicans.

You either fall short in some way, relative to the group, or you are in some way “better than” the group. They’re making a comment about how Jamaicans are identified and how you measure up to that identity. Depending on how you feel about being Jamaican, you may or may not be pleased with the implication: you’re not like other Jamaicans, but it really doesn’t matter to the observer – it’s how (s)he sees you. If you’re offended, you might find yourself saying, You’re wrong -- I am a real Jamaican!

Really? How do you know? And if you’re right, then why does at least one person disagree?

Now, what about when you, a Jamaican, assess some aspect of something that is supposed to be Jamaican – music, food, politics, social practices, etc, -- and it doesn’t measure up? That can’t be a Jamaican, not eating with the knife and fork in a restaurant. Jamaicans don’t join lines. Jamaicans eat rice and peas on Sundays. Jamaicans love reggae.

Really? How do you know? Is there any Jamaican that would disagree with you? How do they know?

Here’s another one that causes much trouble for Jamaicans living overseas who pay a visit to the island, and are surprised to find things have changed. They no longer know exactly how to do things.

Back in their land of exile, they dreamt of the vacation where they would spend a Sunday just as they did when they were growing up: eat a big breakfast, maybe head to church by 11:00am, stop by some relative or friend for home-cooked Sunday dinner (which would be ready at around 2:00pm), watch Sunday matinee . . . If you haven’t caught the joke yet , then you definitely don’t live in Jamaica.

The “big breakfast” is no longer guaranteed; persons who go to church on Sundays can go at 7:00 am (or earlier) for the first of two or three services; stopping by someone’s house without an invitation or prior arrangement is no longer always acceptable; the home-cooked Sunday dinner has been severely compromised, as is evidenced by the long lines at KFC or other fast-food establishments on Sundays; and, as for the Sunday matinee – that doesn’t only indicate you’ve been away from Jamaica but you left a long time ago and probably took your clothes in a “dulcimena”!

Although we would like to think that there is a clear way to identify what being Jamaican is, there really isn’t. Not in an absolute sense.

We have traditions, and things that mean “Jamaican” for many persons. However, this is a subject of many debates because even the longtime ways of doing things are not the same for everyone.

For example, many Jamaicans know of some hard squares made of coconut, sugar and ginger, wrapped in greaseproof paper and sold as “sweeties” or sweets. What do they call them – busta, stagger back, dosie . . . ? If you knew these sweeties by one name or the other, are you more or less Jamaican? And, if your mother never allowed you to eat these, for fear you broke your teeth, is it that you’re not Jamaican? If you never heard of them . . . you get the picture. Or should we just simply say, half yu life gone!

With advances in technology that bring the world to Jamaica in various ways and with unprecedented speeds, many things have changed. In addition, Jamaicans leave home a lot; and just as many people from other countries come to Jamaica, many of whom stay to make Jamaica their home.

This movement of people and ideas across our shores is influencing a cultural hibridity in many aspects of Jamaican lives. To be sure, some things will change, and some things will remain the same. We have some old ideas and practices that are deeply rooted in Jamaican life. We have some new ones that we have developed that suit how we live today, and these are gaining acceptance. And then we are getting some that fall in between – a mix of old and new, that over time, will be just as Jamaican as anything that was here from olden days.

All of this is arguably “good, bad, and indifferent” as the old timers would say.

So, the next time someone declares you like or unlike Jamaicans, you’d better ask – which ones?

This article was written by Tracy McFarlane.

2 Interesting Blogs

2009-08-12T15:05:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine just referred me to a couple of interesting blogs.

One has to do with Olint, Cash Plus and the other investment "opportunities" that were popular until they all crashed or ceased operations last year, without exception.

See Real Investments for Life.

The other site is one that she started, and it only carries Jamaican Proverbs. Her sources are impeccable, and she found them while researching 100 year old documents, so you can imagine that they are quite authentic.

Visit Cherryl Hanson-Simpson's blog of Jamaican proverbs here.

Dead Yard -- Just Starting the Book!

2009-07-15T12:32:00.000-07:00

I have just started a fascinating book -- The Dead Yard -- that can be found on Amazon's UK website, but still isn't available in Jamaica.

It's written as a travelogue by an English writer, and at this point in the book he just interviewed a woman who failed in her return to Jamaica and had to return to London. He also interviewed a couple who returned to Jamaica and stayed, but remained separated from any of the local Jamaicans.

He quotes the woman who returned as saying that the country you leave is not the country you return to.

I found this profound, and oh so true.

For Jamaicans who return, it's absolutely futile to try to return to the country of one's youth. It simply does not exist, except in the mind's eye.

The returnee who expects Jamaica to match the mental image conjured up by history is a recipe for failure, which means that one is better off coming home with a flexible, open mind that is willing to enter into an entirely new experience.

A new issue of FirstCuts

2009-07-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

FirstCuts31 is now available, and it addresses one aspect of the Caribbean workplace that we cannot seem to surpass - our shared history of enslavement and indentureship.

The latest issue is entitled Accepting the Plantation and can be accessed by clicking on this link.

If you are not a current subscriber, you can become on within a few minutes by sending email to firstcuts@aweber.com

Opportunities in Jamaica

2009-06-28T12:39:00.000-07:00

This is an interesting view from someone who recently moved back home.

I agree entirely! The link is from Expat Exchange:

Hi

I was born in the UK and moved to Jamaica 2 years ago leaving all my family and friends behind. I miss them terribly but I really wanted a better quality of life and wanted to be in a country where no one tells me I cant do this or that!

First and most importtant thing is dont come to Jamaica if you are going to constantly compare it to UK. If you are looking for opportunities there are plenty. However, you need to just find a different way of doing things.

I recently completed my Real Estate course and am about to obtain my license all because I was fed up of hearing about the bad experiences returnees faced upon returning to Jamaica. So for me that is an opportunity I have carved out for myself because I am constantly being asked for help in that area and much more.

I am glad to see that you are researching before making the trip I would also suggest coming over to live for between 4-6 months if possible and get a real feel for living here. You do have to take into account where in Jamaica you want to live, what are the amenities in your chosen area, transport etc.

I would like to conclude by saying Jamaica is a great place to live if it was not the rich Jamaicans would have left and the Spanish would not be coming in droves.

Conned When Buying Property in Jamaica

2009-06-20T12:13:00.000-07:00

The following link is to a post written by someone who bought property here in Jamaica and apparently has fallen out so badly with the others owners in her complex that she is persona-non-grata, but continues to pay their combined water bills.

It's a story that's not finished by any means.

Let the Apartment Buyer Be Aware in Jamaica

Facts About Sending Money to Jamaica

2009-06-14T14:35:00.000-07:00

I found this interesting post on the amount of money being sent to Jamaica via remittances, and the percentage of our populations that benefits.

Apparently, our numbers are uniquely high.

Facts About Sending Money to Jamaica

Sun, Sand and Savagery

2009-05-11T07:07:00.000-07:00

The following article is based on many facts that must be considered in returning to Jamaica, but the angle is quite a "colonial" one.

Sun, sand and savagery: Whatever happened to Jamaica, paradise island?

Tax Torture in Jamaica

2009-04-22T20:07:00.000-07:00

This is an interesting article on the bureaucracy of the Jamaican tax system that makes it difficult for individual and companies to adhere to the written laws:

Tax Torture: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20090122T220000-0500_145183_OBS_TAX_TORTURE.asp

Departing Jamaica and Choking Up

2009-04-15T17:08:00.000-07:00

When I lived in the US I found it it difficult for me to care too much about local "anything."

I'd get calls from the local firefighters, policemen, Cornell (my alma mater,) people wanting my vote plus all sorts of others who wanted me to get involved by giving my time or money for
worthy causes.

What I realized over time was that I'd weigh every appeal against what I knew was happening at home.

For example, I have never given money to Cornell, because very appeal for funds would only lead me to think of what Wolmers (my old high school) would do with a fraction of the financial
resources that Cornell raised from its alumni and had in its endowment.

I guess the truth was that I always felt like a visitor in someone else's country. I never once made a decision to become "Francis the Black American" and I remained forever "Francis the
Jamaican."

Looking back, I think this decision was made when I arrived in the US, intent on returning to Jamaica. The question I always kept in mind was "when" -- there were few moments when it became a matter of "if."

I do recall one such moment, however, when I started to tell myself over a period of months that I could live in New Jersey for the rest of my life. It came at a point when I had
just about everything - a family, a career, a four bedroom colonial, 2 cars... the American dream.

I also remember not having travelled to Jamaica for some time.

I took a 10 day journey home to end this unplanned hiatus and when I got on the plane to fly back to Newark and it started to taxi, I got "a feeling."

I know that many Jamaicans who live abroad know exactly what I am talking about. As the plane takes off and you look out the window to catch a last glance at the mountains, the sea and the sun, and you leave your loved ones behind, you start to choke up.

Gone is the beauty of Jamaica, the pan-chicken you love, friends who know you, family who are a part of your life, the bright sunshine every day, the breeze coming down in the morning with
the rains in the afternoon.

Ahead (in my case) was the state that many call "the arm-pit of America," life as a stranger, the status of a minority, the strange smell driving from Newark airport on the Turnpike, the
everyday lack of connection between people, Burger King, not knowing your neighbour's names, and more.

On the flight that day, I had a serious case of the that particular feeling... a deep homesickness that felt like an ache somewhere just below my heart.

And, like most of us do, and I had done many times before, I swallowed hard and brushed it off.

That worked.

Until I got home, and walked through the door, said goodbye to the friend that picked me up from the airport, and laid my suitcases on the floor.

And then it cam. Ah bawl, ah bawl, ah bawl.

Crying like a baby.

Out it came, and I was shocked but because I was alone, I allowed it to come.

After about a half an hour, I had the presence of mind to call a few friends, and a very wise one suggested that perhaps I had given up on something important to me.

That made sense to me, and from that moment on I knew that I was bound to return, and that life as a stranger in a foreign landwas coming to a close.

That episode changed everything, but in a way it didn't change anything -- it just made things clearer.

I now understood why I had never developed an American accent, and why as soon as I returned to Jamaica my Trini-American wife started to complain that I had become harder to understand. Back with my own people, it seems as if my accent relaxed back into its natural fast clip, filled with more patois than I had used in the past 20 years.

Not to say that returning home to Jamaica is for every Jamaican -- it definitely isn't.

But if you find yourself resisting becoming an African American, unable to speak with an American accent consistently and crying after trips to Jamaica, make sure that what is keeping you away from your rightful place at home is damned important.

P.S. Digicel recently placed a tremendous advertisement in Norman Manley airport. It takes the form of a mural and it's located is just before the boarding gates. I think it's about 50 yards long, and about 2 stories high, from floor to ceiling.

It has a Digicel logo down in the corner, but the ad itself is a collage of pictures from around Jamaica, divided into sections. It has a section with people, another with sports, and I think
the others are all scenic shots of the island's beauty spots.

It is breathtaking -- and when I first saw it for the first time as I was leaving on a business trip I felt that choking feel again, and I had to smile.

Passing for White in England (Not)

2009-03-26T19:02:00.000-07:00

This is an interesting article that describes a Jamaican man's experience as an immigrant to London in the 1940's. He was a light skinned Black man, who probably left a Jamaica of privilege to arrive in London to learn that a lot of what he believed was very, very wrong.

He overcame tremendous odds as you'll see in this two part series. When I hear stories like this I always wonder why Jamaicans believe that they can't survive a move back to Jamaica.

I think a move to live in the US, Canada or the UK is a tough one, and that anyone who can make it in these countries after living in Jamaica, can surely survive a move back home, and even do well because of the skills they had to learn.

Click here to read Part 1

Click here to read Part 2

Banks Rinsing Funds

2009-03-14T16:34:00.000-07:00

One of the facts of financial life that I have had to become accustomed to here in Jamaica is the length of time it takes to deposit an overseas check.

At first I thought that the six weeks that it can take for a check to clear had something to do with how long it takes to clear an international check.

But then, I wrote a check from a U.S. account I own to a Jamaican account, and noticed that the check was withdrawn immediately, but it still took the same 4-6 time period.

What can explain the delay?

I can only imagine that whatever the reason, banks are happy to keep the status quo because they are able to make some money of their own on the cash that is being moved from one account to another.

I could be wrong here, and maybe a banker could set me straight, but I know that a Jamaican who returns is likely to find this annoying, if not downright unethical. The net effect, of course, is that it's easier to keep funds in a foreign account which operates at international standards than it is to transfer money here to Jamaica where it could be put to good use by local banks.

Like many things involving finance, it's just easier to do business elsewhere.

There must be a better way - one that benefits the greater good of all involved.

Comparing Jamaica and Barbados

2009-03-04T10:17:00.000-08:00

I have been doing a great deal of travelling recently to Barbados, and it's interesting to note how much progress has been made in that country, versus what has happened in Jamaica in the same period of time.

Clearly, they are doing something right, and we have the distinction of doing several things all wrong (economically.)

Here are a couple of articles that are worth reading:

Click here to reference the article on Barbados' economic freedom.

Click here to access the report comparing the two paths that our countries have taken since independence.

NewHabits Programme on Feb 13th

2009-01-15T20:12:00.000-08:00

One of the benefits I have gained from coming home to Jamaica is that the entire process of adjusting has been a tremendous learning experience.

One of the areas that I often share here on the blog is the discoveries I made that led to the creation of a new time management approach.

I am leading a course in Jamaica on that very same topic on February 13th -- Click here for more details: NewHabits Jamaica - http://fwcon sulting.com/newhabits

An Almost Jamaican Christmas Story

2008-12-03T10:07:00.000-08:00

While doing some rigorous window shopping over the weekend with the family, we all decided to take a break and grab some Mexican food. We walked into a cute little Mexican restaurant that we had noticed while on our visual shopping spree.

While everybody was deciding on Burritos or Tacos, my eyes caught a delicious looking red beverage bubbling away in the shiny juice machine sitting beside the cash register. Something about this drink looked so familiar to me. I knew right away that it was not just your average generic fruit punch. Its texture was too glossy and robust looking. I turned to my honey and said excitedly “That looks just like Sorrel!”

I questioned the lady behind the counter about what the juice was, and she proceeded to tell me proudly in her heavy Spanish accent that it was from a plant that only grows in Mexico. She poured me a little sample while explaining that it was good for your blood. I sipped the tart and very unmistakable flavor of Sorrel, and told her that the beverage was a traditional Christmas drink in my country and that my people called it Sorrel.

She frowned at me in disbelief and argued with me that the drink was strictly Mexican. Not convinced, I asked the lady what they called the beverage in Mexico. I burst out laughing as she condescendingly pronounced and spelled out the name slowly to my poor ignorant ears.

“HA-MY-KA…J-A-M-A-I-C-A.

Susan Andrea Warmington

Taking a Break from Blogging

2008-12-03T05:08:00.000-08:00

I have decided to take a bit of a break from my regular blogging, mostly due to the fact that I am working on a very demanding project this is scheduled to run through the end of December.

Stay tuned for a planned return nearer to Christmas, which I plan to spend at home in Jamaica.

I have already seen the signs, with decorations going up in the plazas and traffic increasing near the shopping areas. There's even a little Christmas music here and there...

A Clearer Vision

2008-11-08T18:34:00.000-08:00

I am encouraged today. America has a talented young visionary as President elect, and these are exciting times with the whole world looking forward to a fresh start. Here, in the United States, I already feel as if white Americans are really seeing me for the first time. It’s as if suddenly I have become visible. And to watch the reactions of other people of color since election night, I can see that they feel the same way.

In the past few weeks leading up to the election, my time has been busy with various job obligations along with the usual day to day ripping and running. In these hard economic times, it is necessary for me to juggle a community project here, teach a Special Ed class there, and do a corporate Voiceover over yonder, all to help keep bread on the table. It is specifically now that I have to be careful that my dreams of returning to Jamaica do not slip and get buried under an avalanche of activities and stress. My hope to go back home has been waylaid before exactly in this manner, so I continue to beef up my determination by reacquainting myself with old friends from Jamaica, and seeking out other natives who are also planning to go home.

I am not just dealing with my own distractions. My Sweetheart is swamped with work and school obligations himself, and has now taken a shine to watching videos of Turks and Caicos and St Lucia on YouTube. Now, those islands are lovely with wonderful people, but I am really trying to get back to Jamaica. I have a feeling though that in the near future I will have to write out a convincing pros and cons list showing Kingston’s advantages over Providenciales.

As the world stands now, it is my opinion that wherever you choose to live there will be serious challenges. There is no land of Utopia. I don’t believe there ever was. It is really up to the individual to match their strengths and weaknesses with the land where they wish to put down roots.

It was so moving to hear so many of my African American brothers and sisters speak of their feelings, that for the first time in their lives they felt like they belonged in America, like they were citizens for the first time after the Obama win. How horrible to feel that way when you are born and grown here, and your family has lived here for generations! Much less poor mi gyal! As an Immigrant I have always felt out of place. My weakness is that I dislike feeling like an Immigrant. I never knew, and was never prepared to know that I would feel like this for all the time I have lived in America. I tried my hardest to fit in. I made American friends. Did traditional American things. Yet, much to my heartache, I have always felt a little bit like an unwelcome guest here.

My strength lies in Jamaica with my extended Jamaican family and friends. They are like a tonic to me. It is easier to bolster up one’s self during hard times when your fellow Jamaicans extend a helping hand, and you know you can count on the genuineness of the offer. The physical terrain of Jamaica, the seaside, the smell of ocean air is like medicine to me. A drink of fresh coconut water blended with the smile of the gentleman who just chopped the shell open for me is like a healing elixir. I realize that I am not quite whole without these things.

I know that the whole world is a busier, rougher, more polluted, more hostile place, and that Jamaica is no exception. There is no place on the globe that one can escape to and run away from it all, no matter how attractive a travel guide makes a place look. So I am convinced that it is only when you look at your choices with your heart that your vision becomes clear enough to guide you home. And for me, home is where the heart is.

Susan Andrea Warmington

Missing America

2008-11-05T03:28:00.000-08:00

For perhaps the first time since coming back to Jamaica, I have a strong feeling of missing being in America.

As the results came in for Obama's victory -- a landslide in electoral terms -- the hope that I can dimly remember associating with the world's foremost democracy started to seep back in, after what seems like an eternity of dark gloom.

The Bush years made me glad to be living back home in Jamaica, away from the ugliness, wars and fear that started for me in 2000 with the Bush election "victory."

Now, it seems, America is back... simply by demonstrating that so much is possible for a Black man, and by extension, for every person in the world who has ever been told that that "they can't."

Whether or not Obama turns out to be a great president or not, at this point in time humanity has won an important victory of possibility over cynicism, resignation and despair. That this is happening in America is not historically surprising.

That it comes after the awful Bush years IS shocking to me, and the repudiation of that awful brand of leadership, politics, partisanship and anti-intellectualism comes as a giant leap away from an abyss.

I miss living in America, where this kind of transformation is what life is all about, and what makes that country the single most coveted physical and emotional destination for anyone seeking a better life.

Hilarious Video on Letting McCain Win

2008-10-23T03:38:00.000-07:00

I got the following video from MoveOn.org that demonstrated for me the results of not voting for Obama:

http://urlcut.com/wadevote

It is hilarious!

Beating Kids -- Trinidadian Style

2008-10-22T17:10:00.000-07:00

After a few trips to Trinidad I have learned the local lingo for beating someone else -- "cut-ass" and "licks."

They are words that we don't use in Jamaica, but we readily understand the sentiment.

Over at the Alien in the Caribbean blog the author has written a thoughtful post on corporal punishment directed towards children. For all intents and purposes, she could be talking about any Caribbean territory as the one thing we all have in common is our history of enslaved people. The tradition has continued since then, and while the situation for women has much improved, children are still often the victims of home and school-based violence.

Click here to read: The Results of Consecutive Cut-Ass Generations.

Latest in the Series: Illegal Alien

2008-10-20T09:29:00.000-07:00

Here is the latest (#39) in the series -- Illegal Alien -- from Jamaicans.com. Once again, it makes for compelling reading!

http://www.jamaicans.com/culture/illegal/illegalalien39.shtml

Why You Need Your Own Time Management System

2008-10-17T05:34:00.000-07:00

An article I wrote on the reasons entrepreneurs need to develop their own time management systems was recently carried on one of my favorite sites: Entrepreneur's Journey.

The work I have been doing in this area was inspired by my move to Jamaica, in which I discovered that the time management system I was using in the U.S. would not work here in Jamaica. I had to make some changes fast, in order to keep my head above water!

I think that this is just one of the changes that someone moving to Jamaica must make, as life here is VERY different in terms of how hectic it is, and how much time one must make to get things done (hint: a LOT more!)

In the article mentioned here, I focus on time management systems for entrepreneurs. Yaro Starak, the owner of the blog, offers a course I took some time ago called "Blog Mastermind" in which I learned how to take my love of writing, and turn it into financially sustainable.

To tell you the truth, many other Jamaican bloggers have fallen off the radar and closed their blogs after they ran out of interest. This new dimension has given me a reason to keep going, even if it's only because it's so intriguing.

Blog Mastermind was a real eye-opener, and if you're interested in learning more about the program, there is a tremendous free e-book called BlogProfits Blueprint that is available at Yaro's website.

Guineps

2008-10-11T11:19:00.000-07:00

My mind is on Guineps. How good they are. How I have not tasted one in a long time. How they seem a little dangerous because of the large seed.

Picking and eating this exquisite fruit is one of my great childhood memories.

My favorite Guinep tree lived in the backyard of my Grand Aunt’s property. Ga’Ma, as we fondly called my Grandmother’s beloved sister, would bring out an old cane neatly tied with a hook from a clothes hanger made specifically for Guinep season. She would poke and grasp at the branches shaking them gently until the delicious green baubles came tumbling into my outstretched skirt. Then the long session of eating. Do you remember how that Guinep sounds when you bite into it? The delicious crack that it makes as the crisp skin gives way under your teeth?

That flavor cannot truly be compared to any other taste that I know…Heaven.

And speaking of Heaven…now I’m longing for a piece of Breadfruit.

What taste from home do you pine for?

Susan Andrea Warmington

And to think -- I left Jamaica for this!

2008-10-07T14:32:00.000-07:00

Dear Reader,

I live in Houston, Texas, the fourth largest city in America. It is a cosmopolitan and wealthy city and is famous for its energy resources. This is a little blog about what happens when the energy dies.

It is a few minutes before midnight on the 12th of September, 2008 and it is my birthday.

However, there has been no time for cake and other celebratory delights. My family and I have been busy readying ourselves for Hurricane Ike to come roaring into to town since the day before. We huddle close together as trees begin to snap under the force of the first round of howling winds.

This scenario is all too familiar to me as 20 years ago on September 12th, 1988 in my hometown Kingston, a similar giant named Gilbert waylaid the island with a ferocity that stays imprinted on my mind forever. I am still waiting for those birthday presents too.

It is now the morning of the 13th of September and Ike has tired of Texas and gone on to bully Kentucky. We have no light and no water. We walk around with our neighbors stepping gingerly over broken branches and other debris, all of us looking a little disoriented from very little sleep and a whole lot of fright. I hear quiet conversations revealing that some believe that Ike sounded like a plane flying way too close to the ground. I think that Ike sounded like a train pulling up way too fast in a New York subway.

Alright, so we can live without water and light for a day. The news we hear on our little portable radio is scanty. The authorities say there is a curfew until 3 pm but no news of across the board damage as of yet.

It is now the 15th of September and we are running out of food. There are 3 million people without electricity and announcements have been made that power cannot be guaranteed until October 6th.

Tensions are running high and there are 145 looting incidents with many arrests over the course of the 2 days after the hurricane. A curfew has been placed on the city demanding that all citizens be inside their homes at 8 pm. Thank goodness our water has returned so we are semi glad to bathe in cold water.

We drive up the street cautiously as not one traffic light is functioning. The streets have already begun to stink with backed up sewage. We are hoping to find a supermarket open and we are relieved to see that one is letting in customers. We join the long line where a security guard is letting in 10 people every 10 minutes or so. I stand up beside a large sign that says NO MEAT, NO ICE, NO PERISHABLES. I overhear someone say that they have no water and no way to bathe their young baby. Thousands still have no water and I count my blessings for the cold shower that I just took.

FEMA trucks are beginning to arrive with ice and food. These are no help to us as the trucks are way out on the edge of the city and we cannot risk running out of gas as most gas stations are closed or have a very short supply. Price gouging is also increasing gas prices so it is clear the city is in big trouble.

We have a blessing in the radio DJs in this city. They are the ones that have been keeping the city informed of where a fast food place is, or where a Supermarket may be open. They invite folks to call in with helpful information. A caller might tell you that a Supermarket that was just re- opened yesterday is not open today due to a generator malfunction so don’t waste your gas going there. Or someone might call in with a number where you might get an emergency supply of oxygen.

Thank the Lord that my family and I are suffering no health crisis. The ones that are sick are catching hell.

It is now the 19th of September and still no light. Schools have been shut for a week and children are going stir crazy. Many people have not been able to return to work and are wondering how they will manage.

God is always merciful and has sent us a silver lining. There has been a cold front from the North that has eased up the scorching Houston weather and has saved many of us from certain death. Saying that Texas is hot is an understatement. I sit outside and enjoy a tepid breeze stroke my already perspiring face.

I think about Gilbert and his effect on Jamaica, and the spirit of camaraderie that was present during his aftermath. The helping hands that reached out to my Mother and I as we reached out our helping hands to someone else, with no thoughts of compensation. There is an aloneness here in America that is palpable, even in a time of disaster one feels that it is every man for himself. There is a suspicion that someone will make an opportunity out of your crisis.

I say to myself that I am a tough third world mama. I can handle a little darkness…right? Yet without family, friends, and the sweetness of your fellow Jamaicans surrounding you, darkness is very hard to bear. Should ah gone ‘ome from long time.

NB: As of today October 7th, 2008 there are hundreds left without electricity and water in and around the Houston area. Over 400 people are missing from Galveston which is about an hour away from where I live in Houston.

Susan Andrea Warmington

More on Skin Bleaching

2008-09-25T08:15:00.000-07:00

No comment needed -- the video speaks volumes for itself on the topic of skin bleaching here in Jamaica. In this case the entire family bleaches.

Taxi 1 vs Taxi 2

2008-09-16T04:05:00.000-07:00

I just read an excellent article about 2 taxi-drivers in Uganda that applies perfectly to us here in Jamaica.

Here is a link to original article: http://appfrica.net/blog/archives/480 which actually has to do with "free-economics" or freeconomics, the act of giving away something for free in order to built trust and gain future business.

In essence he says that a poor business-man gives nothing away for free now because he believes that he will gain nothing for himself in the future. It truly applies to the Jamaican situation.

An excerpt from the article: Can Freeconomics Work in African Markets?[Part 1] by Jonathan Gosier

A Tale of Two Taxis

Many businesses chase immediate cash instead of things like customer loyalty and dependancy. they seem to operate to operate under the impression that their actions won’t catch up to them, and they probably won’t…until there’s a competitor.

I’ve heard a number of stories about how one mobile phone provider here in Uganda (they recently changed their name) would abuse their customers to no end. Then one day they realized their users were leaving in mass numbers for a few newer competitors that were cheaper, more reliable and more attentive to their needs. Now the first company has rebranded itself in an effort to improve it’s reputation with the public and win back that business.

The important thing here is not what’s going on but why. Companies here are often ‘reactive’ instead of proactive, waiting until they’ve chased people away before they attempt to improve. All too common among the entrepreneurs here is the eagerness to chase a few quick dollars instead of looking at the ‘bigger picture’. I’ll give you a simple example…

Taxi 1

Taxi 2

Taxi 1 is young and ambitious. I can tell he wants to make money. He’s punctual, he’s a safe driver and somewhere along the line and he gets me to where I need to go quickly. His english is great, his car is reliable and he knows the city well.

Taxi 2 is a little bit older buts also ambitious. His stage is farther away so I know it will always take him longer than Taxi 1 who’s staged just down the street from my house. He’s also relatively punctual and a safe driver. He’s not the best with his english, which often leads to misunderstandings, but he’s polite and offers great service.

Now, initially I used Taxi 1 a lot for the apparent advantages he had over the other guy but I began to notice that his pricing was irregular. Sometimes the same trip would be 10,000UGX to get to a place but 15,000UGX to get back. He’d quote me high on trips that I took everyday with other drivers, so I knew the going rate was cheaper. Even after weeks of hiring him to drive us, he still pulls the same tricks to get more money. If I protest he’ll come down a bit but he still makes the first offer high, something usually reserved for the taxis you haven’t built a relationship with. He seems to forget the fact that he’s not the only game in town.

Taxi 2 has his disadvantages but he never over quotes me anything. In fact, he seems to price by an internal meter or rule book. He simply goes for what’s fair instead of what will get him the most money in the moment. There’s no foreigner-tax, it’s just good business.

Taxi 1 may not know it but he’s doing himself a huge disservice. If he didn’t go ‘high’ with is prices, I wouldn’t feel like he’s ripping me of and he’d get much more of my business. Instead, he’s reacting for the moment because he knows I probably have more cash than his normal clientele. But I can’t trust him. Instead of doing the smart thing in order to keep my business, he tends to just go for the quick pay off. It’s short sighted.

Needless to say Taxi 2 has won all of my business as a result and Taxi 1 will never get a call from me again. It’s simple economics. I will spend my money where I feel I’m being respected and I’ll look out for a business that looks out for me. I think that understanding generally transcends cultural barriers.

That story illustrates the mentality that undermines ‘Free’ as a business model in Africa. Delayed gratification seems to be a foreign concept to Taxi 1. Taxi 2, however, understands that although he could continue to fend for himself by attempting to get the most out of every single passenger, it might also be in his best interest to keep the clients who do pay well coming back for more. Taxi 1 wants as many customers as he can possibly get to pay as much as he can possibly get out of them. Taxi 2 charges everyone the same, does a good job and people like me latch on. Now he’s building up loyal clients. In the long run he’s probably making more than the other guy, too.

At the same time, to be fair to Taxi 1, bidding is generally part of the culture here. And it’s that part of the culture that can work against simple business practices. When given the choice between money now or more money later, smany people here are blinded by the short term. But it’s important for me to point out that this comes out of the necessity to meet basic needs. To eliminate this mentality, the overall economic conditions of these markets must improve.

Should a gone 'ome from long time

2008-09-11T05:46:00.000-07:00

As I continue to mentally prepare myself to go home to Jamaica, my thoughts are bombarded with all the reasons why I stayed in the United States for so long.

Apart from the real and very serious problems of crime and economic struggles that Jamaica faces, these were not the true reasons why I overstayed my time in America. I may have convinced myself that they were, but they really were not.

One rationale as to why I made myself stay here was because other people told me that that was the right thing to do. I fed off of their fears and motivations and they would feed off of mine. So in collective moments of insecurity we would persuade each other that not going home was best. As Immigrants, we constantly exchange a communal panic with our fellow Jamaicans in the foreign places that we live in and with the Jamaicans back home. That dread of the happenings in the old country keeps us striving in our new one.

As Immigrants we are always busily striving for something. We strive for a house, a bigger house, a car, a more expensive car. We strive for acceptance, belonging, college loans. I think all this working for and towards prevented me from pondering what I could have achieved at home if I had applied the same creative force there.

Most Immigrants fuel their incentive to stay here with the acquirement of material things. I am no exception. In America there is a ton of niceties to be bought. And you can buy them at all hours. I can get new bar stools at 3 AM in the morning. I had to assure myself recently that although that is convenient it is really not necessary. My family in Jamaica does not have such conveniences and survive just fine. They also have the time and social life to use their bar stools. Mine look nice, but remain empty props. Everybody is too busy striving here to come over for a visit.

One of my favorite reasons that I hear Jamaicans say they must achieve before leaving America is winning Lotto. Do you know how hard it is to win the bloody Lottery? Yet some of us believe that is a legitimate reason to hang on. I am glad to say I did not get caught up in that particular one although I do on occasion take a gamble. After all, if you don’t buy a ticket you don’t have a chance…or something like that. Chances are however that while you wait unhappily for that to happen you could have been eating a nice fried Festival at Hellshire.

This desperate need for something big to happen is a genuine threat to a Jamaican’s return home. Perhaps it comes from the need to justify why we left in the first place. We came here to achieve something great, and look, here it is…in your face! We have convinced ourselves that if we have not achieved astounding wealth or celebrity status then you cannot possibly face the folks back on the Island. Lucky for me I am a household name…in my own household.

This frantic desire for attractive attainments, which may even be a reflection of others wants and not necessarily your own, is where the bigging up of oneself starts. As an Immigrant you may not have as much as people back home automatically assume that you have, so you struggle on to prove to yourself and others that you are indeed living the glamorous life, or so at least the place can look stush when your relatives come to visit. The relatives then can go home and brag about how well you are doing in Foreign. And the myth perpetuates itself. Never mind that you ran up some serious credit card debt, or returned half the things after they left.

For me personally, bigging up myself is futile. As a working Artist, I have resigned myself to having money sometimes and just getting by at other times. I will share with anyone in a heartbeat that the Immigrant life is not all that it is cracked up to be.

Yet, I remained here so long. Why?

I realized after sorting through the multitude of incentives of why I stayed way past happiness and wasted 24 hour shopping, that one cause stood out glaringly from the rest.

I was waiting on people to tell me it was OK to come home!

Wait! …not me!…Susan Warmington who has always been strong enough to do exactly what she wants…waiting for family approval, friend approval… something in the news approval, …somebody’s approval for me to go back to my own country?…no way!

But there was the grounds in all its dirty glory.

As this new awareness has hit me squarely in the face, I am determined to remain stalwart and not be unduly or subconsciously influenced by what others are saying or not saying about my plans to return home.

And when I start to feel a little nervous about living in Jamaica again, I sit down on my bar stool and drink a Red Stripe.

Susan Andrea Warmington

Musings on Getting Ready to Go Home to Jamaica

2008-09-05T16:49:00.000-07:00

Please give a very warm welcome a new guest author on Moving Back to Jamaica: Susan Andrea Warmington.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have lived as an Immigrant in the United States for close to two decades, and my heart yearns for my native Jamaica.

Very recently I made a concrete decision to return home despite fears for my future, and the future of my little island. This is not my first attempt to return home. In the past I made a feeble effort to go back, and was swayed by the discouragement of those who felt that Jamaica was too difficult a place to live in. The daily struggle of life in America quickly swept aside my hopes of relocating home, and it seemed easier at the time to just continue chasing the American dream. After all, I was already living here in the States.

In hindsight, I now realize that my first attempt to go home began imperfectly. Back then, I had jumped into job searching and apartment hunting without firmly wrapping my brain around why I personally needed to return home. I did not have as yet the answers in my own heart that could combat the unrelenting negative media about Jamaica, or continual warnings made by well meaning family and friends.

However, this time around I decided to analyze my life in America solely on my own terms. I asked myself why I wanted to go home apart from the obvious reason of missing Jamaica. When one is deluged by the insistent material hopes of America, simply missing home does not seem enough to warrant going back.

I looked closely at my achievements in America which are quite plentiful and look good on paper. I had graduated college and made a family here. I had successfully performed in regional theatre in Atlanta, taught theatrical arts in New York City, sang for the Mayor of Chicago along with a bunch of other diverse achievements. I have even been cited in a book or two for my musical accomplishments.

Yet, I did not have to probe too deeply within myself to get in touch with the feelings of loneliness, isolation, and sadness that is so commonplace in the life of an Immigrant. The separation from my family and culture is something that affects me deeply, and the accomplishments that I have achieved here are not enough to keep me from feeling that I am very much a foreigner in a foreign land.

Whenever I move house here, I always find myself taking a long time to unpack boxes, or put pictures on the walls, as if I am not staying. There is always a feeling of being unsettled. I would jump at the chance to relocate to new cities or States thinking that that might quell the peculiar feeling that something was lacking. But it has never helped. This uncomfortable transient feeling is more than enough reason for me to make my way home.

Yet, there is something weightier that pushes me forward than this consistent transitory sensation that shadows my life.

The clincher that has convinced me that there is no turning back on my decision is simply that I do not wish to get old in America.

And as my middle years hasten me to join them with the promise of experience, wisdom, and strength of character; I am depending on them to guide me home.

My cause now is to continue mentally preparing myself and my family before we start the actual physical activities of the move. I find myself becoming more cognitive all the time of reasons why I need to go home, and I find myself becoming more comfortable with my decision every day.

Now when someone questions my choice to leave The United States, I simply answer, “Because I miss home.”

Gustav Deals Us a Blow

2008-08-29T20:38:00.000-07:00

Hot on the heels of our Olympic success, and in the midst of our celebrations, Gustav has come along to deal us a good and proper "mash up."

Rainfall started at about 2:00pm on Thursday and only started to relent at around 9:00pm tonight. Not that it's stopped entirely, as it continues to come and go. My place has sprung some interesting leaks from the windows and doors, as the "sideways rain" has crept in and found all the imperfect seals facing the outside.

This one was a surprise, to say the least.

On Wednesday night it was passing us by, and on Thursday morning it had made a radical change of direction, going south for maybe 100 miles before continuing along the length of the island of Jamaica.

It's enough to give someone who wants to return to live in Jamaica pause for thought, unless they are living in Florida, Texas or Louisiana, because that's where Gustav appear to be headed next.

One thing that someone who returns must be ready to deal with is the uncertainty and chaos and makes like confusing, and yet sweet at the same time. This blog is a product of my return, and before coming home I really did very little writing of any kind.

The jarring nature of the differences that someone returning to Jamaica can lead to both good and bad, and I can imagine that others would turn to music, art, drama or dance to find a way to express the transformation they are undergoing. In my case, my writing has been my canvas.

P.S. In my professional life, the move back has led me to create a new method of developing custom time management systems -- see http://2time-sys.com

The New Networking is Still Available

2008-08-26T14:39:00.001-07:00

A note from Francis

I want to remind you that my e-book "The New Networking: Caribbean Professionals 2008" is still available for download for free.

Simply visit the following page and you can claim your own electronic copy within a few minutes. You'll be joining over 200 other Caribbean professionals who have requested the e-book.

Click here to claim a copy

If you have other friends who would benefit from owning this 37 page text, you can notify them of the page to visit by visiting the following page and entering their email addresses. An email will be sent to them with the link:

Send this link to 2 friends

Thanks for being a part of my network!

Francis

P.S If you act quickly, you might be able to take advantage of a free offer I am making to take my 12-week online time-management programme valued at over US$50. The offer expires at the end of September, and will be sent to you 3-4 days after you receive the e-book. I am limiting the number, so act quickly if you have an interest.

Attack on Father HoLung

2008-08-20T15:28:00.000-07:00

The mackdiva, a frequent reader of the bog, made a comment on the reaction that this Father HoLung video garnered on a Catholic website.

The fellow who posted the video said "This video depicts a Caribbean-style version of the Our Father favoured by Catholic trendies. It is not a spoof. Honestly.

Hat tip to a fantastic American blog, Christus Vincit, devoted to exposing bad liturgical music. It's run by three Catholic parish musicians who don't mince their words.

Referring to the Our Father, chief blogger Brian Michael Page writes that the composer is apparently a very holy priest. "OK, so why is he writing such garbage as this?" he asks.

Good question. I don't mind if consenting adults sing this stuff privately, gathered around the Tablet Table, but there's no place for it in church."

I was amazed, until I read the comments... and then I was appalled.

When you see the video, read the comments below it.

Click to see the link tothe post, the video and the comments here.

Then come back and tell us what you thought.

Thinking About Living in Jamaica

2008-08-15T19:16:00.000-07:00

This is one of those times that people turn their attention to Jamaica, and thoughts come to mind about what it would like to live here and experience the weather, the beauty, the music, the culture, the sports, the people, etc. While most who come do so as tourists, there are many I hear from that would live to move here for a year or more, to experience the real Jamaica that exists beyond the beaches and all-inclusive hotels.

However, most I hear from have an idea that they also need to pay attention to the reports of crime and poverty, and before they buy the ticket that brings them to Jamaica, they need to take the whole reality of Jamaican into account.

Many come to this blog looking for assistance, and I haven't been able to help until now.

I am in the process of writing a book for those who are thinking about moving to Jamaica that's called "You're My Jamaica." It's not finished just yet, but anyone who is interested can click here for more information on the e-book.

Visit the following link for information on "You're My Jamaica."

P.S. How about Usain Bolt's run in the 100m sprint at the Beijing Olympic Games? There is talk that he might run the 4x400m relay also, and go for four golds.

Jamaican Sprinters

2008-08-15T11:30:00.000-07:00

If it's one thing that we Jamaicans can be counted on, it's to enjoy the fact that we have the world's greatest sprint factory.

What many don't know is that a major factor in our success is the intense rivalry that exists among our high schools, that starts at age 11 and continues for a lifetime.

I remember vividly sitting at a lunch-table in my college dorm in the U.S. as a teenager, listening to my American friends from around the continent talk about how much they hated high school. I was amazed, for as far as I was concerned, my days at Wolmers Boys School in Kingston from 1977-1984 were the bet part of my life up to that point.

That I followed my father and grandmother in attending the school was incidental. (Grandma attended Wolmers Girls School next door.)

What was more important was the sense of pride I felt at belonging to a fine institution with a 250+ year history. Wearing a uniform meant that I represented the school on any given school day, to the Jamaican public. Wearing the badges the showed the student offices I held only upped the obligation to be the best example I could be to those who had the "misfortune" to attend other schools.

Back then, as today, that pride translates into a rivalry with all other high schools that produces world-leading performance in track and field, and the occasional angry confrontation, and even fights.

A Jamaican child who reaches the age of 11 is quite conscious of which high school they would like to attend, and the privilege of getting their choice. At that age, all students in the public school system sit an exam to enter the high school system. They make a list of their preferences in rank order and the result is quite simple -- the best performers receive their first choices while the worst performers receive no further education.

The stakes are therefore quite high. The results are made public, and the pride that one feels in getting into a good school begins the lifelong association with the high school they attend.

This all helps to make our high school athletes run faster.

The rivalry comes to a head when each high school in Jamaica competes in Boys and Girls Championships, a four day track and field-only event held in Kingston each year. The competition showcases the best of the island's talent, filling a stadium of 30,000 with people of all ages, most of whom are sporting the colours of the high school of their choice.

For a handful, a top performance at "Champs" will lead to scholarships and opportunities. For others it will mean popularity, local success, and the admiration of thousands. For all, it's a chance to do their best in a competition that is unlike anything else of its kind in the world.

Asafa, Usain, Veronica and the rest are all products of this system, which produces far more quality athletes per capita than any other comparable program in the world.

As we take the track this week, I expect people to be wondering how a small country with very limited resources can be so successful in producing quality athletes. It's not in the yam, as some would suggest, it's in our high schools.

Update: Usain, Asafa and Michael Frater just qualified for the semi-finals.

Controversy in the Jamaican Team at the Olympic Village

2008-08-15T07:11:00.000-07:00

A 200 kilo shipment of suspected Performance Enhancing Drugs (PED) addressed to the Jamaican track team at the Olympic Village was siezed by authorites at the Wong Hung Lo docks in Beijing early this morning. Coming on the heels of the disclosure that a member of the JA team has tested positive for a banned substance, the news has rocked the JAAA and cast an even greater pall over the team's preparations for the Games.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior customs inspector told Reuters that suspicions were aroused by the bulky and lumpy shipment which was wrapped in rough, dirty burlap. Stenciled in bold letters on the bag was the address of the Jamaican team at the Village and also the words:

DELIVER TO ASAFA, USAIN, VERONICA and KERRON ... DEM CYAAN RUN GOOD WITHOUT IT.

Upon opening the package, dozens and dozens of a dirty, tubular product was discovered and immediately sent to the WADA lab in Beijing for testing. Chinese customs are certain that they have intercepted a shipment of pure, unprocessed steroids and have put the IAAF and the JAAA on notice that severe action will be taken as soon as WADA confirms their findings.

The picture below is of one of the mystery 'products' from the shipment and was taken at the lab just before testing commenced. We will update this story as soon as there is more to report as indeed the entire world of track and field anxiously awaits WADA's report.

Jamaican Yellow Yam

Trinidadian DoublesMan

2008-08-11T09:51:00.000-07:00

In Trinidad, the Jamaican patty is still a rare item.

Their equivalent is a roti, but they also have a breakfast snack called "doubles," which looks something like a mini-roti without meat.

If a visitor's stomach can handle pepper and curry first thing in the morning, then this is a nice surprise for the palate, and a great way to start the day.

Returning Home, Giving up the American Dream

2008-08-11T04:30:00.000-07:00

The following comment was made by mackdiva, an anonymous reader of this blog.

Jamaicans everywhere need to engage in much more dialogue with each other to sort out exactly what it means to migrate to another country. There are facts, but there is a lot of fiction...

Thanks to mackdiva for sharing
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well my friend...the grass seems greener when all you see is the hype that is America. There is much muchness here. Stores galore, big shiny hospitals with art on the walls, and nightlife and museums and baseball games and the list goes on.
But you need plenty of money to buy into all the muchness...pretty much like any other country. If you lived in Australia, or Gabon, or Thailand I would imagine that you would need a lot of money to live large there too. Just as if you were not so well off or struggling in those places the grass might seem greener somewhere else. I rarely hear of wealthy people leaving JA because I imagine they feel they have enough.
Now I was fooled by the hype of America. I grew up watching Sunday matinee movies on JBC where everybody in America sang and danced and all were happy. I visited America and was dazzled by all the shiny stuff...but thats all it is... stuff.

America is not that much different to anywhere else in the world right now. Never really was. It's not particularly safe, it has it's economic struggles, food is expensive. Many jobs do not offer insurance. Public schooling is weak unless you live in a very wealthy area. And I don't mean ordinary wealthy by living in a nice brownstone in Brooklyn wealthy. I mean living on Park Avenue overlooking Central Park wealthy, to have your child in a good public school that has the calibre teaching of say Fay Simpson Prep in JA.

Here in the States you have to put up with a value system in Education, and morals, and just a bunch of other things across the board that do not match the way we Jamaicans are raised. My daughter has to put up with children constantly talking and misbehaving in the classroon because her classmates do not value Education as Jamaicans do. The Teacher's hands are tied because even daring to discipline a child here is considered a crime...so classrooms are out of control.

I had to take my child to the hospital after a child stabbed her with a pencil at school. A beautiful hospital with smiling nurses and glistening floors. My husband and I took her through Emergency and the Doctor prodded her wound as my daughter and I winced. The Doctor declared her a non medical emergency and refused to clean it or put a little salve on it....unless we had $280. My husband and I do not have insurance at our jobs as we happen to be 2 of the millions of residents and citizens of America who do not have insurance so our hands were tied. So I asked for an excuse for school...and the Doctor said sure with a lovely smile...if we had $280. So off we went to lovely shiny Walgreens...which I can assure you has no cure for being treated like a second class citizen.

Everything(emphasis on the word thing)is here in the USA. When I lived in New York City I was surrounded by Theatre(I love the theatre)...a decent seat is at least a hundred dollars so to take you and your family is at least 300dollars.How often can you do that? I can't afford that! Plus you work so much here you often don't have the time or are too exhausted to do all the entertainments they have here. Add Winter to that and you really do not want to go anywhere. Plus, what is the use of a thousand baseball games when all you want to see is a Cricket Match?

I do not blame anybody for thinking America is so glamorous. America's attractiveness is based in illusion, Hollywood, popular culture, celebrity, glitz in bulk...mesmerizing. Yet, all you have to do is look at the latest episode of some celebrity show or glossy magazine to see how unhappy people are here, and these are Americans born and grown here with a pile of money. There is something wrong with that picture.

I met a young lady recently who although born here in the States believes there is a lack of compassion and care about people here that makes her uncomfortable and unhappy. She is looking to Europe for relocation. Her parents who gave up all they had in India to live here think that she's mad. So maybe the grass will always seem greener, but I have seen first hand that it is not, and I am glad that I have discovered this while I am still fairly young and have the strength to move back home and work towards my goals and dreams, same as I would in America. So with all the material stuff that is here... jackmandora...mi nuh choose none...I'm coming home.

Wall Street Journal article on Jamaican Sprinters

2008-08-09T07:38:00.001-07:00

The following article was beautifully written by Colin Channer, and author whose work I love.

He talks about the success our sprinters are having, and why we produce so very many sprinters given our limitations. Here is how the article begins:

'Cool Runnings' Are Heating Up

In Jamaica, time moves slowly, but runners move fast. Why the laid-back island may dominate Olympic sprinting

By COLIN CHANNER
August 9, 2008; Page W4

Sports Illustrated/Getty Images

Usain Bolt

Call me "licky licky." A few years ago, 26 to be precise, I thought I'd leave Jamaica and move to New York to write. Now I have a U.S. passport, two American publishers, and a writing residency at a small New England college where one of my favorite writers -- a Mr. Nabokov -- used to teach. I owe this country a lot. Some would say everything. But now that the Olympics are here, there's a good chance that my loyalties will change.

So call me licky licky -- "flaky" in Jamaican English. But it's hard not to get caught up in the island's Olympic dreams. In Beijing, where 28 sports will be contested, Jamaica stands a serious chance of winning the bulk of the men's and women's sprints -- the 100 meters, the 200 meters and the 4x100-meter relays.

Follow the link by clicking here.

Skin Bleaching

2008-08-08T04:18:00.000-07:00

Every single Jamaican who is thinking about returning should be perplexed.

What does the current rage -- skin bleaching -- tell us about our identity?

There are parts of Africa, South America and the Pacific in which men and women apply scars, tattoos and piercings to their faces in an attempt to increase their beauty. These are not accidental or individual incidents, but entire societies where the norms are simply very different from that of the rest of the world.

Apparently, in Jamaica, we have some that firmly believe that bleached skin is also a sign of beauty.

It's not too hard to pick out someone who has applied these chemicals to their skin. The colour of the epidermis takes on a reddish, purplish tinge and often it has a different tone from skin on the neck, hands and chest. The process must be continued to keep the true colour from coming back.

Meanwhile, there are millions of tourists coming to Jamaica each year in order to obtain a darker skin tone -- one they proudly show as proof that they had a great time in Jamaica - "see."

Both groups suffer from the threat of skin cancer, as it turns out, all in order to achieve a certain ideal of beauty.

As someone who recently returned to live in Jamaica, I find the contrast baffling.

Here is an interesting video on the bleaching industry in the U.K., including some of the negative side effects.

Link to the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1911 - "Negroes"

2008-08-08T03:13:00.001-07:00

I don't think I need to add too much to this one.

The link is: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12627a.htm

NEGROES

Religion

The negro has a religious nature. His docile, cheerful, and emotional disposition is much influenced by his immediate environment, whether those surroundings be good or evil. Catholic faith and discipline are known to have a wholesome effect on the race. Observing men and judges of courts have remarked on the law-abiding spirit existing in Catholic coloured communities. Some elements of the white man's civilization do not always tend to elevate the morality of the negro. The negro is naturally gregarious, and the dissipations and conditions of city life in many instances corrupt the native simplicity of the younger generation to the sorrow of their more conservative elders. (For a view of religion in these later times among the blacks in the native African home of the race, see AFRICA.) Contrary to a prevalent opinion, the negro, when well grounded in the Catholic faith, is tenacious of it.

In the United States the negroes and their descendants naturally adopted more or less the religion of their masters or former owners. Thus it comes that, outside of Maryland and the Gulf Coast, in a large section of the South comprising former slave states and colonized by English Protestants, the negroes who claim affiliation to any Church are for the most part Baptists and Methodists.
-------------------------------------------------------
This link is from the 1911 Encyclopedia, regarding the inhabitants of Jamaica.

http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Jamaica,_West_Indies

The population of the island was estimated in 1905 at 806,690. Jamaica is rich in traces of its former Arawak inhabitants. Aboriginal petaloid celts and other implements, flattened skulls and vessels are common, and images are sometimes found in the large limestone caverns of the island. The present inhabitants, of whom only 2% are white, include Maroons, the descendants of the slaves of the Spaniards who fled into the interior when the island was captured by the British; descendants of imported African slaves; mixed race of British and African blood; coolies from India; a few Chinese, and the British officials and white settlers. The Maroons live by themselves and are few in number, while the half-castes enter into trade and sometimes into the professions. The number of white inhabitants other than British is very small. A negro peasant population is encouraged, with a view to its being a support to the industries of the island; but, in many cases a field negro will not work for his employer more than four days a week. He may till his own plot of ground on one of the other days or not, as the spirit moves him, but four days' work a week will keep him easily. He has little or no care for the future. He has probably squatted on someone's land, and has no rent to pay. Clothes he need hardly buy, fuel he needs only for cooking, and food is ready to his hand for the picking. Unfortunately a widespread indulgence in predial larceny is a great hindrance to agriculture as well as to moral progress. But that habits of thrift are being inculcated is shown by the steady increase in the accounts in the government savings banks. That gross superstition is still preva] ent is shown by the cases of obeah or witchcraft that come before the courts from time to time. Another indication of the status of the negro may be found in the fact that more than 60% of the births are illegitimate, a percentage that shows an unfortunate tendency to increase rather than diminish.

Connecting with My Roots

2008-08-06T02:22:00.001-07:00

I am writing this from my late grandfather's place in Oracabessa, in the parish of St. Mary.

It's early in the morning, and my wife and I just spent the night of Good Friday. I am wondering why we didn't see Bow Bow last night.

"Bow Bow" is a local madman who happens to have taken up residence in the backyard, just beyond the point where the bushes start. He doesn't always allow himself to be seen, but we know he's been around from what he leaves behind (remnants of meals, discarded bottles and human faeces.)

We recently had to grill-in the porch, because he was taking a joke too far and sleeping in the small alcove at nights, leaving the above mess behind.

The question on everyone's mind is --- what do we do about Bow Bow?

Do we call the police? To do what? Do we speak with him in a sane moment? These are apparently few and far between.

Should a local ruffian be employed to threaten him, as some do?

Is there someone else to call?

Apparently he is quite harmless, apart from the time when he kept disconnecting the water supply to the house… but that should be more accurate described as annoying than anything else.

My sense is that the Jamaican response is to "suck it up" at times like this, and not try to change anything, working instead to accept the situation as a given.

-------------------------------------

On yesterday's trip to Oracabessa, my wife and I decided to travel away from the coast for the first time into the Jack's River area.

We took a road I have never taken before, back towards the Sun Plantation, where we drove in and met the owners. They show us around the property a bit, and told us much of the history and story behind Jamaican fruits – they were not just knowledgeable, but passionate about their farm.

As I usually do, I shared that my grandfather (who passed away when I was 20) used to live in Oracabessa, and of course they knew him well, and had actually been to his funeral and seen my family there. A call to my mother revealed that she and Lorna grew up together in town.

Further down the road, we stopped to buy pan chicken from a lady barbecuing from a converted gas cylinder. We had a pleasant conversation while waiting for the last piece of chicken to cook, watched carefully by her dog, cat and 2 sons.

Once again, I shared my grandfather's connection, and she proclaimed that he made the best patties she ever had, and that she used to work across the road from his store, in the garment factory near to the bank.

She also insisted that she was not just saying it because we were there, and that it was true.

While there is better tasting pan chicken to be had in Kingston (due to more competition I suppose) there is not sweeter conversation.

Part of why I moved back home was for these reasons – to give up the rootless and drifting feeling of not belonging that I always felt in America. I discovered that getting a "safe" job and buying a home in New Jersey didn't cure it… not when I barely knew my neighbours names.

I disliked that big-country feeling of not knowing people, and people not knowing you, and no-one caring one way or another.

Here in Oracabessa I am able to piece together parts of my grandfather's memory from others. It connects me to him, and to them, in a way that I find edifying – as if this is the way that things are supposed to be, rather than rarely are.

Certainly, when a Jamaican migrates, all this if forsaken even when the parents are also taken along permanently.

I know in my mind that one reason that I wanted to return to live in Jamaica was to be with, and take care of my parents as the years advance. I didn't realize that I also wanted to take care of my grandfather's memory, and his connection to me through the house, land and personal memories that he left behind.

My 'Fascinating Evolution"

2008-08-05T13:33:00.000-07:00

I stumbled across this reference to my blog that was a little startling in some ways.

It's entitled "The Fascinating Evolution of a Formerly Homophobic Jamaican"

http://news.lavenderliberal.com/2008/07/16/the-fascinating-evolution-of-a-formerly-homophobic-jamaican/

Jamaicans are Happier

2008-08-04T03:12:00.001-07:00

Another poll shows that Jamaicans are happier now than they were 2 years ago...

Fewer Jamaicans Want to Migrate?

2008-08-03T02:09:00.001-07:00

This was an interesting result of a poll published in the Jamaica Gleaner back in February. Apparently, the number of Jamaicans wanting to migrate has dropped by 6 percent in the last 2 years.

Perhaps a "President Obama" might cause this to change?

A New Discussion Forum for Returnees to Jamaica

2008-07-31T10:22:00.000-07:00

After lots of requests, I am happy to announce that I am creating a discussion forum for every Jamaican with an interest in Moving Back to Jamaica.

I continue to receive lots of email from readers with specific questions, and I enjoy getting them. At the same time, I know that some questions have easy answers, and the forum would be the place to ask for help from the community of readers of this blog.

The forum is divided into four sections:

1) Jamaicans Moving Back to Jamaica

2) Anyone interested in moving to Jamaica to live

3) Expats who are in the process of moving to Jamaica to live permanently

4) Those who recently moved to Jamaica and would like to share experiences and information

I welcome your participation -- it's free -- and I plan to place information in the forums that I don't really want to put in my blog, such as some of my more personal observations that are really intended for those who are truly interested in Jamaican living from many different perspectives.

Logging in easy -- if you have any trouble, just ask by leaving me a comment here. You can login as a Guest, but won't be able to actually make any posts.

Click here to be taken to the Transition Jamaica Forum. Or type in http://urlcut.com/transja

Here is what the screen looks like -- clicking on the images below will also take you to the forums.

A Letter from a Jamaican Thinking About Returning

2008-07-30T04:31:00.001-07:00

I have spent the last 17 years of my life working towards the American dream. By society's standards, both here and there, many would say that my husband and I have achieved it. The high profile careers with six figures coming in, the large single-family house, the cars, all tied in a bow for the family of 5 (3 children). Having now slumbered my way into dreamland, I find that I have awoken to the American nightmare many of us who took the same path that I did have come to know. I left Jamaica shortly after graduating high school. Not "in search" of anything, but because my father is American and I was moving on to higher educational opportunities which at the time (1991) were more abundant off island. I didn't know enough about "trying to make it" in Jamaica to dream of anything that would better facilitate that.

It was quite easy being lulled into the sweet sleep of corporate American culture and the daily frantic gyrations of American life. But what started out as climbing the corporate ladder soon became no time with the kids and even less with my husband. There may be those who say that American life does not have to be like that, but with expensive childcare, no helpers or limited access to anything of that nature, long commutes to and from work as well as family and friends… soon, routine takes over and quality of life goes down the drain… that is of course, if you ever had any.
Although I have the conveniences of a 24-hour Wal-Mart, the ever current Target. The massive malls with endless shopping opportunities and the wide highways with no potholes – a grand quality of life is still wishful thinking.

On my visit to Jamaica last year, as I eagerly debated living in Jamaica vs. living in US with some friends, one of them commented that Jamaica was "on the cusp of greatness". I'll never forget those words, because I strongly agreed with them then and still do now. The individual who made the comment was later shot by a thief who was attempting to rob his sister. Thankfully, he was not killed, however it brings me to my next point, which is the paralyzing effect that crime is having on the Jamaican dream. In effect, crime is the demon that has invaded the sweet sleep that was once Jamaica. And those who are feeling the poverty that hard life on this island inflicts find other outlets to meet their thirsty lips, hands, pockets… dream deprived sleep.

Despite the madness lurking on all corners, hillsides and gullies, I still believe that my Jamaican dream is yet to be realized. Maybe it's just the naivety of having not lived here for 17 years. Many Jamaicans who I have shared with that I am considering a move home have asked… "are you crazy?", "why now?"; the most positive reviews I have received seem to come from those who either have wealth enough to enjoy the higher points of life in Jamaica, or those who have placed their security in a higher power other than King Alarm.

And what is my Jamaican dream… well all the things that you spoke of in your article - better quality of life for my family, a challenging career, my own business, house in town and one on the coast… and much more. But to put it even more simply… give me a cool breeze rolling off a waterfall, a lush garden, sunrise on a beach and a nice water jelly from the man on the corner. I'll take that over a 24 hour Wal-Mart any day! I am a Jamaican at heart and that's where most great dreams begin. So let's start dreaming!

Jamaican Greetings

2008-07-28T02:15:00.001-07:00

In spite of the aggressiveness and sometimes harsh nature of life in Jamaica, one of the sweet contradictions lies in how Jamaicans greet each other.

"Blessed" has become a popular greeting that I have never heard in another country. I suspect that its origin lies in the Rastafarian faith.

"Respect" is another greeting that has been around for longer, and is just a typically Jamaican way of sending a clear affirmative signal to another person.

"Yes" or "Yes, Yes" accompanied with a nod of the head are also popular ways of merely affirming that you are recognizing another. Older similar forms include "Easy" and "Cool nuh."

These are warm greetings of well-wishes passed between strangers who are sending positive signals or vibes between each other. They are uttered over the unspoken and unquestioned assumption that we are in each other's lives forever.

Where to take "Moving Back to Jamaica"

2008-07-25T02:11:00.001-07:00

I have been giving some thought to the future of this blog, Moving Back to Jamaica, after the positive response I received to the idea of turning some of what I have written here into a book.

It makes me think that I should have some kind of "strategy."

Not that I got to this point with any kind of strategy in mind -- it was much more a case of buck-up than anything else. I started writing, and just have not been able to stop in the past three years about this major life-changing event I undertook without really knowing what I was doing.

One fact that I have to consider is that my wife (with my encouragement) has started a transition business to help expats make the move to Jamaica successfully. While this blog is mostly read by Jamaicans (I believe,) from a slightly different angle it can also be useful to expats who are moving here. As far as I can tell, it is the only blog of its kind in the region.

However, I did run across an Indian fellow who chronicled his return to Bombay, and I am looking forward to listening to his book!

But what purpose will this blog serve once I have completed my own transition? I imagine that I could have a post that simply states "move back completed" and some kind of "gone fishing" sign hanging up on the last post.

From now until then, I am loving the idea of getting the book done, and making it available in every little West Indian store in the US, Canada and the U.K. It would help to fulfill my original purpose, which was to provide for others the kind of help I looked for when I was planning my move in 2003 but could not find.

I also imagine using it a resource for expats moving to Jamaica, which leads me to the reason for planning to put up my first advertisement. It might be a sidebar ad that links to my wife's blog for expats who are looking for assistance in moving to Jamaica.

It won't actually be what I would call "monetizing" the site, but it might be a first step in that direction.

Also, I plan a long overdue move from blogspot to Wordpress, hosted on my own hosted service, complete with a domain name -- maybe "movebacktoja.jm" or something of the sort. It's becoming easier to move a blog from blogger to Wordpress, so I will definitely be making the transition.

I also have toyed with the idea of proposing a column in the Jamaica Overseas Gleaner. When I lived in the U.S., I would have LOVED to be able to read anything about moving back to Jamaica, if I could only have found it. I have a feeling that there are many who don't have computer access, but feel the way I used to feel.

What I can't imagine doing at the moment is a full range of information products -- including podcasts, e-learning and the like. I might be wrong, but I don't think there is an interest in these kinds of things, as they might be too "techie" for my average reader -- a Jamaican professional living abroad.

This is what consitutes my "strategy" at the moment and we'll see if this changes much anytime soon.

Missing Home and Living in the US

2008-07-23T03:09:00.001-07:00

The following comment was made by an anonymous poster and I thought it was interesting enough to be posted on its own.

I was born in America of Jamaican parents but I also feel that there is the other side to Jamaicans living in the U.S. - "living the American Nightmare".

My grandmother came to the U.S. from Jamaica leaving her children behind > came to clean homes - promise of an American dream > left a good life in Jamaica > now in her late 80s with early Alzheimers and phasing in and out of memories of wanting to go back or at least regretting not having a home back in Jamaica that she could have returned to...and so instead sits in a horrible NY nursing home with no home/island foods to satisfy her appetite(she starves refusing the canned foods they prepare), etc - nothing but fading memories of what she could have done.

How many Jamaicans actually come to the U.S. and obtain college educations and beyond or even save enough to be able to return to their homeland?

There is not much in the U.S. for those who feel they need to emigrate from the islands to chase the so called American dream - unless done with success like those who have gotten Masters degrees, business degrees, etc and have create self sustaining businesses to be able to return. Heck there is not much here for the average African-American.
I cannot say that I understand what is going on in Jamaica hands-on, but the number of complaints I see from even those who are here from Liberia and other African countries is enough to make me wonder where the better life truly is.

Being Connected

2008-07-21T12:01:00.000-07:00

Mark Twain said: "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many people need it solely on those accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views cannot be acquired by vegetating in one corner of the earth all one's lifetime."

As I type this words on a plane back to Kingston, I am struck by how true these words are, and how easily they are forgotten.

This is my first trip outside of the Caribbean in a year, which makes this the longest span of time I have spent outside North America since I was 18 years old.

It wasn't planned -- elections, a hurricane and generally poor business conditions in Jamaica have conspired to keep me grounded for some time.

So, coming back to America for the past three days has been an eye-opener.

What struck me most of all coming off the plane into Miami airport was how a reminder of why the thought of living permanently in the U.S. only once crossed my mind in 20 years of living there.

As I walked from Terminal E up to the post office and Bank of America branch on the 4th floor, I was amazed at the people I walked past, and how dis-connected they were from each other. It brought back vivid memories of my first few months in America, as a college student, when I quickly learned that this was not what I was used to.

The difference in culture is difficult to explain in words, but there is something that happens when a few million people live on an island separated from other countries by an expensive airfare. There is an unspoken and very powerful assumption that exists between people in Jamaica -- that we belong in each other's lives.
Also, we take this belonging very seriously.

My wife complains that she cannot go anywhere in Jamaica wearing anything that she want without being noticed, recognized and silently and deliberately scrutinized. Also, it is now impossible for her to run for an hour without seeing people she knows, or who know her. Strangers have commented on the fact that they haven't seen her in a while... while she cannot recall ever seeing their faces.

I have mentioned the silent eye-contact and survey that takes place at a Jamaican traffic-light... the quick search for who I know, who else is here, how everyone is doing.

Part of it all has to do with sheer size. A place like Miami airport has thousands of people passing through it each day. It's simply impossible to try to make eye-contact with more than a few people in the typical day with so many people coming and going.

I remember learning not to try to hold on to people after moving to the U.S. After all, the chances were good that I would never see them again.

In Jamaica, the opposite is true. Even a casual encounter has the very opposite assumption. Behind every meeting there is a very different assumption: "This is just the beginning."

And that's part of why living in America felt so "foreign" to me.

I never ever intended to stay more than 5 years, and left Jamaica knowing I'd be back. Apart from one very short period of time, I never contemplated staying and living in that country permanently.

I always knew there was someplace better, but not in terms that people typically measure, such as the absence of crime, or the presence of material wealth.

Instead, I knew there was somewhere I belonged, and around me all I could see were people who didn't belong to each other, and that this was a fundamental way of being.

In the news this past week there was the story of a Jamaican woman living in New York died after lying on the floor unattended for over an hour. People walked by, and in true New York style, they kept to themselves, allowing her to pass away quietly in the corner of a waiting room.

Those of us who have lived in the U.S. can understand how this could happen, and even empathize with the need to follow on of the early lessons that everyone learns upon migrating... to "stay out of trouble."

There is a reasons we Jamaicans call America "farrin" and it's not in terms of day-to-day danger from criminals. It's just that our background tells us that there is a very different way to relate
to people that is so rich, warm and expansive that tourists and expats who fall in love with Jamaica talk about it all the time... "the people...!"

I simply found that even after 20 years I could not make the necessary transition to "become Yankee" the way others from Jamaica were able to. I kept my accent, with some adjustments in order to be understood, kept on thinking about moving home and kept telling anyone who would listen that I was moving home to live
at some point.

Jamaica remained the focus of my attention, and I just could not lose myself in American culture the way a good immigrant should.

The other day a Jamaican living in the U.S. asked me why I came home after 20 years away, and all I could tell them was "I never really left."

-------------------------------
P.S. On a side note, some say that our high crime rate comes from our tendency to be connected to each other, and from our propensity to take everything personally and seriously... interesting.

Just an Average Day in a Casket in Jamaica

2008-07-20T17:28:00.000-07:00

On the way to the airport the other day, I happened to be driving in a taxi that was a time, riding behind a glass casket.

The dearly departed could be clearly seen bouncing her way to the eastern side of the island, and to a rather ostentatious end.

Perhaps this is something that every Jamaican who lives abroad should aspire to return home to accomplish... a fashionable and public exit.

P.S. Yes, that dark patch is the hair on a corpse being hauled through our city's streets. Given how bumpy our streets are, the overall effect can be quite dramatic.

The Store is Re-opening for "My Move to Jamaica" Part I

2008-07-15T18:32:00.000-07:00

I haven't been online to update my blog in a while, mostly because I have been spending a great deal of time in airports.

But my wife and I have been thinking that we should offer the MyMovetoJamaica Part I product again in time for those who are moving to Jamaica in August, just time to send their kids to school in September.

Over at her blog (http://transitionsunshine.info) she has been getting a great deal of interest from those who are about to move to Jamaica.

When her store was open a few months ago we had a great response, especially given how new hew blog was at the time. It's still new, but the information remains the most up-to-date source of specific information for those who have already decided to come to Jamaica.

One of the key things we learned is that the same information that we developed in the products included in Part I are not just useful to expats -- we found Jamaicans buying them also. I felt a bit of regret -- and a feeling that we should have addressed more of the concerns and questions that returning Jamaicans have.

Nevertheless, I believe that average Jamaicans who have lived abroad for more than 10 years, or who left Jamaica before they were 25 will find that the information is quite valuable, and will answer some questions that they probably aren't asking.

Stay tuned, the store will re-open on August 1st -- Emancipation Day.

Jamaica All Over

2008-07-03T02:43:00.000-07:00

This past week or two was an interesting one in the New York Times.

There were three separate stories about Jamaica that highlighted completely different aspects of the island. The prominent placement of the stories, showed how this small island of 2.6 millions people exerts an influence on the world that is vastly out of proportion to its size.

The first story was about multi-million dollar real estate that is currently on sale in an exclusive community on the north coast. Apparently, the crime rate is not stopping big investors from moving to Jamaica.

Click here for the real estate article.

The second had to do with the Jamaican Olympic trials, pitting the two fastest men in the world (and of all time), and many of the fastest women. It got second billing in American reports to the US trials, but the underlying sub-text was that Jamaica has faster runners in all the sprint events. These are the events that happen to get the lion's-share of attention in the entire Olympic Games.

Click here for the Olympic trials report.

The third was a report of Jamaicans and other Jamaica-philes cooking jerk chicken on the streets of New York.

Click here for the article on Jerk.

Jamaica, even with all its challenges, remains a country of great interest to the world at large, and brings smiles to people worldwide when they think of the "brand."

I remember my Turkish dorm-mate (back in 1985) singing Bob Marley songs to me, and the fact that some of them were in his own language made me smile, and first made me realize that Jamaica's image around the world is multi-faceted, distinct and powerful.

Easier to Network? A free e-book

2008-06-25T14:42:00.001-07:00

Is it easier or harder to network here in Jamaica than other places?

I'm not sure I know the answer, but I do know that it's quite different.

To help sort out my thoughts on the issue, I started writing about the difference, then gave a few presentations and speeches on the topic. I wanted to put a "full stop" to my work on the subject and decided to write an e-book.

At first, I wanted to have someone else write it, but when I couldn't figure out how, I got someone to design it for me. That someone is Tavia Tomlinson, and she convinced me that I needed to write it myself... that was sometime in September, and the e-book is finally available for download, for free. She designed the entire e-book, which includes a 37 page combination of text, audio and video.

It's called "The New Networking: Caribbean 2008" and it can be claimed by visiting http://fwconsulting.com/newnetworking

Still Alive and Kicking

2008-06-23T11:01:00.000-07:00

Sorry for any confusion.

My prior post was only indicating that my product for expats -- MyMovetoJamaica Part I -- is no longer available. However, the blog will very much be alive and kicking!

Once again, apologies for not being clear.

After June 19th MyMovetoJamaica will be no longer available

2008-06-17T15:04:00.001-07:00

This is just a reminder that MyMovetoJamaica Part I -- my guide for expats -- won't be available after tomorrow for purchase and download.

The response has been good, and those using it seem to be getting great value.

I don't know if it will be offered again, (or at what price) as my wife and I have some ideas about new content we'd like to include.

So, if you're interested, find out more at http://mymovetojamaica.com

Making the Decision

2008-06-16T07:38:00.000-07:00

All of my writing in this blog up until now has focused on what has happened in my move to Jamaica AFTER I made the decision to come home.

However, I am slowly realizing that it might be helpful to share some of what I haven't shared, about the process of deciding to come home.

There actually was a moment when I had resigned myself to living in New Jersey... a deep, dark time that I thought about staying in what some called "the arm-pit of America."

I think many Jamaicans are living in the middle of a decision of whether to come home to live or not. There is an ongoing mental argument that includes the pros and cons, with the decision probably finally coming down to "the money."

Or maybe not?

I'd love to hear from the readers of this blog, either privately or publicly, anonymously or not...

Are you thinking about moving back to Jamaica? What are some of the things that you think about? What are some of the pros and cons? What is the percentage chance of you returning to live before retirement?

In this case, my decision process was not typical, for various reasons I'll discuss soon, and I think we'll all benefit from hearing from a few people other than me!

Why a Skills Bank Wouldn't Work

2008-06-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

In an email a few months ago, a reader brought up an idea that many professionals have had, which is to establish a skills bank of Jamaican abroad that businesses and government agencies in Jamaica could use.

The idea is repeated in an article by Ricky Singh in today's Sunday Observer in which he says:

SKILLS BANK
Strengthening the dialogue with Community nationals of the Diaspora located across the USA, especially in major centres like New York and Washington, undoubtedly holds promise for mutual benefits, particularly, it is felt, if pursued within the context of clearly defined policies and programmes. This may require having some basic data on the size, talents and resources of the Diaspora community.

Question is, for all the "ole talk" by Caricom government leaders ... there is an absence of evidence that any concrete initiative has been undertaken to establish what is recognised to be a valuable tool - skills data bank.

The argument by advocates of a skills data bank to include valuable human resource located among nationals of the Caribbean Diaspora in North America and the UK, is that it is essential to better mobilise much-needed skills in, for example, the health and education sectors in the member states of our 15-member Community.

On the surface, it seems to be a good idea.

In my reply to the reader who repeated the idea, I had an insight -- the reasons why a skills bank does not work can be overcome by technology that has only recently been invented, and is being widely used -- Facebook.

The reason why a list of people and their skills doesn't work is that no-one actually does business by calling professionals from a list, unless they are desperate. Here in the Caribbean, as in most countries, the first place that people look to find expertise is among a current network of contacts -- family, friends and colleagues.

It's just a better idea to find the person you want by asking around the people you know, to find out who they might know. A personal referral trumps a name on a list any day.

If, instead of having to make ten phone calls, you had a way to search all your friends' network to find out who they know and trust, and you could do this search efficiently, while they are sleeping, you would use it often.

Facebook happens to be an excellent tool for just that purpose.

The difference between a raw list of names and skills, and a social networking site is the network of people and their connections that brings a name on a page into relief.

I suggested to the reader that she join Facebook and she said that she's not really into that kind of thing. Many professionals aren't, but it's a guarantee that those who are reluctant to use networking tools will never become more than a name on a page.

The fact is, Facebook is already becoming the only skills bank of its kind -- there is no need to reinvent the wheel. The typical arguments that people have against joining -- not having enough time or wanting privacy -- are the very same reasons a "skills bank" won't work.

Store Now Open

2008-06-09T03:06:00.000-07:00

My first full package of products for expats moving to Jamaica is now available for order at MyMovetoJamaica.com.

While it's not for a Jamaican who has been away for a short time, and is returning home, it can be put to good use by everyone else who is planning a move to Jamaica.

The store will be open thru June 19th, and the introductory price will be in effect until then.

Provocative Take on Organized Religion

2008-06-05T07:03:00.000-07:00

The chances are good that when someone moves back to Jamaica, they are coming to a country that is extremely religious, and also extremely violent.

It's no accident that most of the religions practiced claim to be correct, denounce others that they see as incorrect and speak in a way that induces fear in the minds of those who aren't "members" in order to get them to convert.

Unfortunately, this is not only a matter of atheists vs. "the rest of us believers", but it also includes:

my religion vs. the other religions
my denomination vs. the others
my church vs. the others in the denomination
the time of my service vs. the others in my church
people in the church who share my beliefs vs. the rest

I know people who will argue that baptism is not enough, but that it must also involve the right amount of water, at the right age, with the right words and in the right direction (backwards, forwards, etc.)

In other words, a returnee to Jamaica is likely to notice that here in Jamaica there are a lot of people being right about a lot of things, and spending a lot of energy making other people wrong. (Of course, this extends to politics as well.)

Against that back-drop, I read a post by Steve Pavlina this morning that is not for the faint of heart, or anyone who is not willing to think or is prone to react based on emotions only. His post is entitled "Ten Reasons You Should Never Have a Religion" and it reminded me of the dilemma I had when I left Jamaica at 18 only to discover that the kind of Baptist I happened to be, did not exist in the U.S.

In other words, a "Jamaica Baptist Union" kind of Baptist was not white, black, mixed, Southern or anything like the churches I found in the U.S. It was what it was, and its beliefs were just... local and specific to one sect in Jamaica.

I liked to think at one point that all Jamaican Christians were the same, only to realize that there were many who had already condemned me to hell because I wasn't baptized the right way, for example. I was amazed when a Christian friend of mine advised me of my peril, as a way to get me to come over to his church.

As I said, his post is provocative as it's MUCH easier to see where other religious people are making the errors in judgment he describes.

MUCH easier.

We however, are lucky, because we happen to be right, and we know that we are right. Right?

Being right and making others wrong does have a certain violent quality to it, even when its done "for their benefit."

Here is the link to the post. http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2008/05/10-reasons-you-should-never-have-a-religion/

The Two Fastest Men in the World, and Fastest Woman

2008-06-01T03:15:00.000-07:00

Jamaica awakens this morning to the news that Usain Bolt has broken the world record for the 100 m dash.

That is, he has broken Asafa Powell of Jamaica's world record with one of his own. On the same night, Veronica Campbell ran the fastest 100m by a woman this year. (Click here for a report of both races in the New York Times.)

How is Jamaica able to produce such amazing results from an island of a mere 2.6 millions people?

It's simple... the annual high school rivalry in athletics, that we Jamaicans call "Champs" is simply the best event of its kind in the world, and the results are evidence of the passion that we bring to the sport and also our alma
maters.

Here is a report I wrote from 2006 Champs, trying to explain this unique phenomena.

I vividly recall sitting around the dinner table with my fellow students at Cornell, talking about high school, and hearing them share how much they hated it. Here in Jamaica, that is a feeling that is rarely expressed, as our predominant feeling with respect to our own high school is one of instant pride that lasts a lifetime. Is is expected, and accepted, and understood to be true.

Representing one's high school in a sporting event like Champs, and winning awards for the school at seen as some of the highest accomplishments, whether it be on the debating team, the football field or on School's Challenge.

It matters not -- high accomplishment stems from school pride, which in turn translates to national pride.

All this when our crime rate (and food prices) have risen alarmingly. How to convert the success in one area of national life to less murders in the other is a question that we might be asking as we celebrate.

A Jamaican Returns From Canada

2008-05-29T13:22:00.000-07:00

The story below was sent to my wife over at transitionsunshine.info and I thought that it was a good one to share... for reasons that will become clear.

If you have a story to share, happy or sad, or something else, about moving back to Jamaica, please let me know!

I stood in the kitchen, one dark snowy Canadian morning, watching my toddler and my 5 year old fighting and screaming over some toy or the other, my head pounding, Tylenol in hand as I tried to combat my third cold virus for that season. Sick or not, the kids had to be taken care of. There was no Grandma and no helper here. Mama was the primary caregiver and oftentimes the only one…rain or shine!

Canada

, land of immigrants. More like…land of solitude. Isolation. Here they call it hibernation. In winter, one could go days without so much as seeing a neighbor. Thank goodness for the grocery store. My mother- in- law says the grocery store had become my social life.

I left Jamaica eight years ago with my spouse for greener pastures. We had gotten tired of looking behind us to make sure no one was following, and combing the papers to see if anyone we knew had become the next murder victim. He had a good job with an IT company and I was a commercial lawyer with one of the more prestigious law firms in Jamaica. So we set sail for Canada. Things went well. We started a family and I became a “stay- at –home” mom. I enjoyed being a mom. My sister- in- law would teasingly say I had gone from being Miss Ann Taylor to being Miss Dollar Store. I did re-qualify as a lawyer and even started working. However, the stress of being a lawyer and a mother was perhaps more than I wanted to embrace at the time and so I decided I would put my career on hold.

However, as the years of mom-hood went by, I started to miss the “me” from my former life. The persona “dolled up” in the tailored skirts and high heeled pumps with laptop on shoulder as if it were an extension of myself. The jeans and sweats that I lived in were okay too but my blazers and fitted shirts seemed to wave at me every time I sojourned through my closet; a reminder of days gone by.

So as I stood in the kitchen that day, I made a decision. I was going to challenge my spouse to “cum mek wi guh home.” Of course I was met with amazement and disbelief. Chutzpah! However, over the weeks and months that followed, we managed to reach a compromise. I would go for a year with the children on a trial basis. My spouse didn’t want to give up his “good” job and have us sell our “nice” home, only for me to whimsically change my mind and desiring a return to Canada. “Dat did soun reasonable to me.”

So we went off to Jamaica. Had an associate lawyer position waiting in the wings. Had a new wardrobe to accompany me. Thoughts of bliss filled my head on that plane ride back to “yaad.” A nanny to help take care of the kids. Someone to wash the clothes and clean the house. A real social life. Tea at Terra Nova and brunch at the Grog Shoppe. And real friends. Not friends because they were the moms of my kid’s friends. Friends that I had chosen and who had soul in them and who knew “bout” party.

I had to convince my son though, that we were only going for Grade 1. Dad flew out in the middle of the night the following week. And the magnitude of what I had done hit me. I sobbed and sobbed. But I didn’t have time for much sobbing either. Hurricane Dean. What’s that? Hurricane? “Mi neva memba bout dem tings.” Quick. “Purchase a membaship at Price Smart. Buy Igloo. Buy tin milk. Plenty tin milk. KoolAid. Flashlight. Bun and tin cheese.”

We survived that. But then the mosquitoes started to bite….and bite…and bite. “Raise up bump”. Scratch. Blood. Dirty nails. Infection. Scab. Blood on the sheets again. I just changed the sheets…and it’s not my wash day. And it’s raining anyway…rain, rain , rain. It rained for the four months we were there. Beach. “Chu. Yuh crazy!”

That helper was a nice young lady. And she did have sense. But the foreign pickney of mine did “wan fi know,” “Mama, how come everybody here is wearing a black skin?” So in their little minds, first I was leaving them with a “black” person. And second, I was leaving them. This stay- at- home mom who was always there for every runny nose and every cut that needed a band-aid…was walking out of the house and leaving her precious children…and going to where…work??? “Man, it was trial and tribulation whenever I dropped them home from school.”

Ok, let’s talk about the traffic. Because “dat is jus a way of life in Jamdown.” I lived in the Waterloo area. I worked in New Kingston. And the kids went to school off Lady Musgrave. Thought I could pick the children up at school and get back to work within a half hour. Round trip… at least an hour and a half. Sometimes two, if it was raining, And it usually was. So I went back to work at 3:30pm to “practice law” for an hour and a half before I had to go home and relieve the helper. Intelligent Miss. But that meant she was pursuing higher education. So I had to relieve her to go to classes. I had dismissed her once, only to hire a new miss who was really a practical nurse who couldn’t find a job as a nurse. She “fool mi” in her pretty white dress. The uniform was brimming with intelligence, but the head was not. Once I asked her to spray the bin with Lysol and she used the toilet bowl cleaner. That was the first and last time she did that. She lasted a week. So I had to call up the other nice young lady and kiss her ass a bit.

Ok so sorting out the domestic scene, the children decided early that they just plain missed their dad. And Canada. And snow. And the millions of parks everywhere (even though they couldn’t be visited for 6 months of the year anyway). And what’s more they hated the heat. And the humidity. They were forever sweating buckets. They didn’t want to eat…ever. Only to drink. And things like Grace sausage, corned beef and plantain would not pass their lips. All of a sudden, mom became the bad guy…the evil one. Sigh…I missed Dad too. I guess I underestimated the power of a dad! And the power of the known. I tried to enroll my First Grader in soccer. He loved soccer in Canada playing only with kids his age and size. In Jamaica, everyone who played soccer in the school comprised the two teams, so it didn’t matter what your age or size. My little 40 pounder was at one time face to face on the soccer field with easily the largest lad in the school. The ride to the soccer field consisted of piling into a mini-van…the entire two teams; and in order to make everyone fit, they had to put the back seat down and everyone clamored on top of the back seat. And they were off…. Seat belt…what’s that? Speed limit…what’s that? This would be soccer mom headed off at top speed and full tilt, high tailing that getaway minivan. Cause it just wasn’t getting away from me or out of my sight. Needless to say, it was my decision to end that particular extra-curricular. He has ridden in a “van- back” in Jamaica since then…and quite enjoyed the experience, to my horror. In Canada, we would have immediately been arrested.

Now to Dad. We had an understanding that he would look for that dream job in Jamaica while I was there. The one that was created by the brain drain in Jamaica. Not! Salaries in Jamaica are not on par with salaries in North America. Not in IT anyway. And the cost of living is a good deal higher. No wonder there is a brain drain. And as “dem sey”…is who you know! This trailing spouse decided then and there that he wasn’t trailing after all. Or if he did, and we couldn’t buy food, then it would be on “fimi” head. What to do? Give up my dream? Sell my car? Resign my job? Look like a fool????

And that’s what I did. For family. Tis always the woman that gives. God just made us that way. To sacrifice. To persevere. And to stand tall in it all. So now, although I miss my homeland, I will stay away for a little while longer. But one day I will take my children back. And show them where I came from. And why it is better than any home away from home.

License to Hate

2008-05-23T03:14:00.000-07:00

I woke up with his words ringing in my ears.... "Not in My Cabinet."

My Prime Minister has just communicated to the world that he is a bigot, and that he hates gay people, and that he is prepared to deny someone who is gay a position they deserve simply because they are homosexual.

Let's see what this means. A gay man, a lesbian woman, a bisexual person.... they all would find the door closed regardless of their accomplishments.

Presumably, someone in his current Cabinet who is in the closet, and decides to tell the truth would be fired on the spot. I imagine that if one of his children were to do the same they'd suffer some severe fate. Anyone in government who is gay had better keep it under wraps as well, because their management has now received a reason to get rid of them, and an open license to hate.

With his words and example he is making it clear. It is fine in Jamaica for a manager to use sexual orientation as a reason to exclude people from jobs, careers and professions. Once they are found out, they can be fired.

It's obvious by the tone of his words that they are the kind of people who need to be excluded from the best that Jamaica has to offer, and if there is no reversal of his public attitude, they are bound to continue to suffer in our country.

The consequences are already being felt around the world, as Jamaica tells the world the lengths we are willing to go, in order to exclude gay people. Of course, the world just happens to be moving in the opposite direction, with full force. We, however, have the willingness and the fortitude to stick it out alone, apparently, and to be the only country in the world, if we have to be, that openly discriminates against gays at the highest level.

All this while wanting to remain a top tourist destination.

It looks to me as if we'll have to feel the tangible consequences of our collective bigotry before anything changes, because now, things are likely to become much,much worse for us.

I wonder if the Prime Minister knows how much he has damaged our country?

Preparing for the World's Backlash

2008-05-21T09:34:00.000-07:00

Bruce Golding's interview, aired yesterday on BBC, brought out some of the best and worst of Jamaica, in the eyes of the world.

One the one hand we are a feisty bunch of people, who are unwilling to be be dictated to, or humbled by outside forces.

On the other hand we have an astronomic murder rate and there exists a widespread, open hatred of homosexuals that goes well past mere homophobia.

Last night Golding, who I admire in many ways, candidly responded that he would not have a gay person in his cabinet. His distaste and contempt seemed palpable to me.

He implied that the reason for this decision was to enable them to execute their duties "without favour, fear or intimidation."

I imagined Jamaicans looking on with pride, as the comments on the YouTube video of the interview reflected: http://youtube.com/watch?v=9cQx-zmHgg8

I imagined most of the world looking on in horror.

At that moment I felt what it would like to be on the receiving end of the world's lobbying efforts, with my country, Jamaica, arguing that it did not need to heed the calls from the rest of the world for human rights for an oppressed minority. We join China, Zimbabwe, Cuba, Myanmar/Burma and others in arguing that we should be left alone to determine our own future free of outside interference from the test of the world.

Our complaint should not be new as we heard it loud and clear when white South Africa made the same plea in defense of their Apartheid system

We have a bigger problem, however. Tourism makes up a significant part of our earnings (the second largest source of foreign exchange.)

Golding's words certainly won't help us attract more visitors.

It will probably attract more of the kind of attention these repressive regimes shared, as we implement our own Apartheid.

We continue to try to have our cake and eat it too. This point seems to have been lost on Golding yesterday, as he made what most around the world would agree were unusually divisive and bigoted comments. The undertone of his words was clear -- gays are just not.... enough to be in his cabinet. They are too.... to serve in that capacity.

He sounded like any Jamaican speaking here in Kingston, just a lot milder in his comments than the average man in the street. In Jamaica, it's said that he couldn't say his real feelings, because the world couldn't handle them.

However, in the rest of the world, I imagine, his spoken words on the BBC HardTalk programme are enough to provoke outrage, boycotts, demonstrations and calls for Jamaica to join the company of civilized nations.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=9cQx-zmHgg8 -- Click here

A Change of Mind on Dual Citizenship

2008-05-18T13:10:00.000-07:00

I have been carefully reading the comments made to my "Bad Mind?" post and in a conversation with Kim-Marie Spence who heads up CAPRI - the Caribbean Policy Research Institute -- a light-bulb went off.

She gave me a realistic example that stopped me in my tracks.

"What would Daryl Vaz do if he had to visit Cuba on state business?"

"Oh-Oh, I said. That would be a problem."

By serving Jamaica's best interests he could be forced to choose between breaking US law, and doing what's right for us, Jamaicans.

Oh dear.

He actually could face arrest if he visited the USA as a private citizen.

Also, right at this moment, he could get a call from the US about his taxes, and the IRS could decide to launch an audit of his finances at any time.

Hmmm... while the odds of him being called up to fight in Iraq are slim to nothing, IRS audits and other government organizations are been used to harass Americans who the government have found to be
out of favour.

Also, what would happen if took up the charge to champion Cuba-Jamaican relationships, only to receive a nice call one day from the U.S. Ambassador asking to meet with him. She might have nothing in mind other than a courtesy call, but he might attend the meeting with the thought that the recent letter from the IRS might be a response to his Cuban activities, and that she is here to "help make the point."

Poor Daryl. Or more to the point, poor Jamaica.

Some think that a compromise is in order, and that dual citizens should not be in cabinet, and can serve as MP's. (Why the Governor General is exempt from these requirements is beyond me... the post of Director of Elections certainly seems to be one that would actually benefit from having someone who is a foreigner, but that's another matter.)

I do stand by my belief that Jamaica would benefit greatly from those who have a foreign perspective, but in today's geo-politicalworld, they just cannot effectively occupy the pivotal, decision-making roles. Instead, they can serve in other positions, and this should be made clear to all Jamaicans in the diaspora.

"No," you cannot be Prime Minister, MP, Senator, etc. without renouncing other citizenship, but "Yes," you can be any of the following positions.... <>

The upcoming Diaspora Conference in June is sure to address some of these issue, for those who are interested.

Expat First-Hand Accounts in Jamaica

2008-05-16T08:32:00.001-07:00

There is a lot on this message board that is useful to anyone looking to move back to Jamaica. Although the writers are expats, there is a great deal of overlap between their experience,and that of Jamaicans who return.

Visit http://talesmag.com, and register as a user. Click over to the Real Port Reports -- there are over ten stories submitted about Jamaica.

I am sure to include a feature like this on this blog at some point, but first I need to migrate to Wordpress!

Bad Mind?

2008-05-14T01:59:00.001-07:00

The argument being made by many Jamaicans that "we don't want no foreigner making laws for us" is an interesting one.

While the law is outdated and flawed in the light of 2008 realities, I have been surprised that the underlying sentiment remains quite strong.

In the abstract, it has a certain logic to it -- after all, who wants the heads of their government to have divided loyalties? However, in the specific, it is unrealistic.

At the outset, it's important to realize that this is a situation where there must be some kind of compromise. There is no simple solution that will fit our needs perfectly. Instead, at some point we must appeal to a dose of common-sense and practicality.

while it's fine to want politicians without divided loyalties, I cannot imagine that we actually have any in reality. Does anyone actually believe that we have a single MP who does not love Jamaica more than any other country? Does anyone actually believe that they would put another country's interest above our own?

Common-sense tells us that the few who aspire to political office while at the same time having a foreign citizenship are giving up something valuable (an easier life abroad) in order to make a contribution in a much more difficult environment. Should they be penalized?

There is nothing wrong with wanting politicians who will put Jamaica first. I argue that our political process, and economic reality already ensures that those who become viable candidates for office are already putting Jamaica first by choosing to run in the first place. In other words, it's a joke to think that we are somehow in danger of "spies" from another country who intend to promote some other country's interests.

Political office is not something that one simply falls into, by the way... we Jamaicans make damn sure of that by putting them through a baptism of fire in the nomination and election processes.

Given that we are in no danger, where is the fuel for the argument coming from?

We Jamaicans are a proud people, and like to think that we can handle our own business. Furthermore, we like our sovereignty, and anything that seems to threaten it is something we believe we must defend against.

However, this is a case in which we our pride may take us to a place that makes no sense for us to be. Do we really want to get to the point where we:
-- continue to take rights away from Jamaicans who live overseas, even as we encourage their remittances?
(The hypocrisy of this would seem to be unbearable.)
-- encourage them to return, while telling them they have lost some of their rights?
-- promote the idea of them becoming US citizens, the better to serve Jamaica, while at the same time penalizing their choice?

We simply cannot have our cake and eat it too. While the high-minded goal of having leaders with undivided loyalty is fine, our attempts to ensure that desire through the laws of citizenship are outdated, and reflect very old thinking.

The truth is, who we really want in office are world citizens who have travelled widely, attended schools all over the world, and worked in a variety of countries. And yes, we want them to have citizenships from all over the globe because in the end, we benefit as a people.

When George Bush was elected, he was one of the least travelled Presidents in the world. His ignorance has helped to produce a stalemate in Iraq, and has served to deplete any good-will that America was granted after 9/11.

A bunch of Jamaicans leading our country who have never left Jamaica for more than a shopping trip or vacation is not a prescription for success. It would rob us of the cosmopolitan thinking that we now need more than ever to survive in an increasingly flattened world.

As for the argument that says that politicians must be made to suffer for their decisions by being forced to live in Jamaica... well, this just strikes me as a case of "bad-mind." There is nothing stopping a politician from migrating to another country the day after they leave office, and to try to restrain them in order to somehow punish them seems harsh.

We would go further if we trusted what we know... no-one comes back to Jamaica to run for office who intends to sell us out to a foreign country. We are not in danger of that happening.

However, we can quite easily discourage Jamaicans abroad from participating in Jamaican life, and in fact have already done so, as far as they are concerned. We need to trust our common sense, and change the laws to reflect what's most important to us.

Moving to Jamaica -- Assisting Expats

2008-05-13T07:25:00.000-07:00

In a recent post I asked for help in doing some research my wife and I are doing for an e-book that we have decided to write for expats moving to Jamaica.

We have been asking around and getting lots of ideas from expats on what information they have been looking for, and it looks like we are going to offer a variety of information products. Some of it will be free, and the rest will be for purchase. It will probably be presented in the form of 2 e-books, but we are looking at other ways of providing helpful information in the form of podcasts, a message board, etc.

The need is great...

Although we moved back three years ago, she in particular has experienced the challenge of moving to Jamaica as an outsider, with its ups and downs, and twists and turns. She has been tentatively writing about her experience at her blog, in addition to providing some useful information - http://transitionsunshine.info

What I find most compelling of all are the first-hand stories that she has been documenting, from expats who have moved to Jamaica. She has been surveying them for the past few weeks, and putting their stories together.

It makes me think that I should do the same for those who have moved back to Jamaica!

In fact, there is a lot in what she's doing that should be useful to Jamaicans who have been away for more than ten years or so.

Join the mailing list at her site for updates on her progress. There should be some kind of output produced in the next few weeks or so.

Danville Walker -- our most famous returnee

2008-05-12T01:38:00.001-07:00

Danville Walker is perhaps the finest example of someone who has moved back to Jamaica.

As the former Director of Elections, he was appointed during the PNP administration, enjoyed the confidence of the JLP, and brought a level of excellence to our electoral process that has resulted in it becoming a model for other countries.

I can share from personal experience from voting in the U.S. and Jamaica that our system on the island is a much more thorough one. This is far cry from the days when voting in some constituencies exceeded 100%, and the bogus voting I witnessed as a CAFFE observer in the late 1990's.

He and his colleagues at the EOJ have simply engineered a miracle.

It is a fine example of what most Jamaicans abroad aspire to do "someday":

1. develop a critical skill abroad
2. bring it home
3. use it to make a contribution
4. be acknowledged

The remittances currently that prop up the Jamaican economy are merely a proxy for this kind of substantial contribution.

Hats off to the man, and the way that he came home to work on behalf of his countrymen. Most agree that we want more men and women like him in political office.

Danville Walker -- the Latest Casualty of the US Citizenship Issue

2008-05-10T01:04:00.000-07:00

Losing Daryl Vaz from Parliament until a by-election is conducted is one thing. Losing Danville Walker from the post of Director of Election is quite another.

Now, we all have lost out, as Danville Walker, a giant of integrity in modern Jamaican history, resigned his position because of one of the archaic laws that remains in our constitution.

In the past week, we are learning that Marcus Garvey, our first National Hero, had applied for US Citizenship, only to be turned down. Apparently, if he ad been accepted, it would have made him unfit to hold political office in Jamaica.

Also, Alexander Bustamante, our first Prime Minster, pledged allegiance to Spain at one point, and it appears that he should also have been disqualified. The same applies to several parliamentarians and government ministers throughout the years, because they gained dual citizenship in countries that our constitution deems to be unsuitable.

However, those who pledged allegiance to Fiji, India, New Zealand or Guyana could have done so at any point
and still be eligible, simply because they are Commonwealth countries.

That it is an old law is hard to dispute. It penalizes the majority of Jamaicans who have migrated to countries that we care about, while giving a "bligh" to those we don't care about.

This isn't to say that Danville didn't do the right thing. He certainly did, and he did so in a way that honours our outdated document.

We in the Caribbean don't have much history of politicians resigning, even after major scandals, as they too trust that that wheels of justice grind slowly, with a huge backlog to boot. Trinidad had a similar situation to ours in which they had a tied parliament, and one party resorted to pulling the "citizenship card" to try to get elected seats overturned. Our politicians are merely following their lead. Their carnival-like elections however, don't cause blood to be shed in the streets.

This all does not augur well for those Jamaicans working overseas, who are now realizing that the government's ongoing encouragement to gain US citizenship came with a serious catch. After building a life in the U.S., they are forced to give up access to that life in order to run for political office.

We Jamaicans living at home who depend on remittances from overseas Jamaicans to keep our economy afloat now suffer from a strange situation in which a US citizen who gains Jamaican citizenship, may run for office in both countries (except the office of President.) However, a Jamaican citizen who subsequently gains US citizenship loses the right to run for office in Jamaica.

The constitution simply must be brought into line with modern day realities. Daryl Vaz never lived in the US for more than a year to attend school. It's too much to ask the Danville Walkers of the world to give up their citizenship in order to serve, as if they somehow cannot be trusted unless they do so.

The Four Kinds of Information Available in Jamaica

2008-05-06T01:12:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has lived in Jamaica for more than a few weeks knows what I am talking about.

There are at least four kinds of information, or in other words, four kinds of answers to an innocent question posed to a company or government entity. Those who move to Jamaica as either expats or returnees are the last to appreciate this fact, and get themselves in all sorts of trouble when they think that their should be only one.

For example, the answer to a simple question such as "How do get a driver's license if I already possess one from an overseas jurisdiction?" seems easy enough. However, the complexity offered by different answers makes it rough going for someone who is not used to "the runnings."

The Internet Answer
Only someone living far away would find, let alone believe, this first answer. Everyone in Jamaica knows that the project to put the organization's information on the "world-wide-web" was launched to further a politician's career, and once the lights were turned off the whole thing was abandoned due to either mismanagement or lack of funds.

The Written Answer
Once the overseas explorer has determined that the information they are reading online was useful for perhaps only a week or two back in 1999, they start looking for printed information. They might send a friend or relative to ask for information at the organization in question, and ask for it to be "sent up" to them.

Once the information arrives six weeks later they devour it, until they reach the last page where they read the fine print - "Copyright 1998." It turns out that their trusty agent either picked up stale information, which was all that was left, or didn't bother to ask whether or not there was more recent information printed.

The Spoken Answer
By now, some important deadline is looming, so the search turns to making phone calls in the hope of finding someone who can help. At first, no-one seems to work at the companies numbers, and it's curious to find that there are sometimes 10 numbers listed, or more. They all just ring and ring and ring.

The game is on to find a number that actually will be picked up. Time and money are wasted waiting and waiting until the caller learns that lunch-time, child-pick-up-time, work-soon-done time, too-early-in-the-morning-time and too-close-to-lunch-time are all bad times to call. This leaves a 15 minute gap between 9:30 am and 9:45 am when someone will actually pick up the phone, but of course the gap caries between companies.

Once someone is reached, it's important to know that the person who answers is unlikely to be someone who actually knows anything. Their job is to answer the phone. Don't bother them trying to hold them to account for having accurate information. That's the exclusive province of those who don't ever answer the phones.

They will have some information to give. Just don't believe for a minute that it's accurate or complete. It's not to be believed, but at least it's based in part on the training they received back in 2005, so you know you are getting warmer.

The Only Answer that Counts
The deadline is now upon you and you are starting to get desperate. You spend your hundreds (or thousands) of US$ to fly Jamaica with all your feelings of frustration and your knowledge of "how things work so well in Toronto." You visit the offending office in person. As you walk in, your dress, hairstyle and accent give you away as a foreigner.

Behind the counter, the defensive forces start marshaling their tactics.

They know that you are not getting through in time for your flight, whenever that is, and they are not about the change the sacred process to fit your need to catch AJ015. This is bureaucracy at its finest.

You quickly learn that all the information that you gathered before is outdated. Acts of Parliament, new laws and new owners all combine to render your facts obsolete. You inevitably don't have the right documents with you. You need to visit another office to get a copy of your water bill in order to open a new business. You must come back tomorrow.

If you are loud and obnoxious, the way life in North America has taught you to be, you are in for several trips to the office, each designed to exact a penalty for your failure to "have some manners." Prepare for the long haul, by bringing something to eat, drink and read.

A nice German man called Kafka wrote some insightful books about being trapped in situations of never-ending torment. One book focuses on a man who woke up as a cockroach. Another is about a man who is forced to answer un-known charges made against him that are never ever shared with him, until he is mysteriously exonerated. You can more than identify as you start to deleriously believe that your tormentors are targeting you by name.

You complain to anyone who will listen. After all while, your audience seems to be getting tired of you.

After delaying your flight home and missing some days of work, you are talking with your friend/distant cousin / high-school classmate who out of the blue remembers that their good friend heads up a department at the office you have been visiting.

You wonder why they are now just remembering this important fact...

They tell you not to worry, and half an hour later they call back with mysterious instructions. Give them your information and all will be taken care of by that evening. So said, so done.

You have escaped from your purgatory and have no idea what you did to deserve it.

On the flight back home you realize that the only information that matters in Jamaica is the information given by someone who actually makes decisions, and all the information gathered before was really just window-dressing, and didn't really count. What counted was who you knew, or who you knew that knew the right person.

If you are still complaining that this is all not fair, that it is exclusionary, biased against foreigners with your last name, etc. is to engage in the irrelevant. Don't waste your time.

Instead, learn to fit your tactics into the "runnings" as that's the only way to be effective.

Busy Like an American

2008-05-05T19:31:00.000-07:00

I have been feeling very busy nowadays, and quite cognizant of how important it was to appear to be busy when I lived in the U.S.

I remember using this fact as a form of greeting:

"Bob, how are you?"

"Keeping Busy!"

Even today my wife (who was raised in the U.S.) will ask me at the end of any given day whether "I got a lot done?"

I used to answer that in the affirmative when I was living abroad, but here in Jamaica we just kind of laugh together... who cares how much got done... really?

A better qeustion that fits our current circumstances might be "Had a joyful day?"

(Incidentally, I met a young woman yesterday whose first name is "HavaJoy.")

So, I have been keeping busy, without knowing what that means, and apparently getting a lot done as a result.

I am in the process of launching three different offerings to internet audiences, becoming a real internet marketer for the first time. It's a learning curve that is steep, but quite rewarding, as I sold some US$1000 worth in the month of April ... all online.

The next few months should be interesting, as I "keep busy" while undertaking these first-time efforts. Stay tuned.

A Certain Vehement Pride

2008-04-28T05:58:00.000-07:00

This entire episode regarding Parliamentarians and their dual citizenship has driven up a certain kind of Jamaican pride that I am ambivalent about.

The sentiment is a typically forthright Jamaican one.

"Anyone who run tings a yard must be Jamaican."

To this all Jamaicans would undoubtedly agree.

However, things get murky when we add on other stipulations regarding which other citizenships they are allowed to hold to still be allowed to run for office.

For example, here is what it seems to current law tells us about the eligibility of Jamaicans with overseas immigration privileges.

Those who CAN run for office:
-- a Jamaican who has lived all their life in the U.S. or Canada but never bothered to get their new citizenship
-- a British/Indian/Barbadian citizen whose grandparent was Jamaican, and has just claimed their Jamaican citizenship last week

Those who CANNOT run for office:
-- a born Jamaican whose parent took out US citizenship for them when they were children (as is the case of Daryl Vaz) and who might never have left the country for a day
-- a US citizen who has become a naturalized Jamaican or claimed citizenship through a parent/grandparent, but has not explicitly renounced their US citizenship

The situation is quite unclear, and in some cases it can be argued that it's unfair.

But the reaction of some Jamaicans has been a proud, reactive one -- no-one should be running the country who is not Jamaican. It's just that the definition of "Jamaican" has become murky indeed.

Before independence 1962, there was not such thing as a Jamaican, as everyone born on the island was British (without all the rights of a British subject.) Jamaican citizenship is a relatively new invention.

The recent court challenge has shown that the original 1962 definitions are inadequate for the complex, interconnected world we live in. When our own laws disqualify people like billionaire Michael Lee-Chin from ever becoming a parliamentarian, it must give us pause for thought.

Who exactly are we, in our pride, trying to exclude?

Obviously, we don't want, for example, a Cuban who has only spent two weeks in Jamaica to be able to run for office.

Also, we DO want to wholeheartedly encourage all Jamaicans to be eligible.

It's just that we need a 2008 definition of the word "Jamaican" in our constitution to match the world we live in.

Those Jamaicans who want to return should involve themselves in this debate, and in the Constitutional changes that are likely to come. As major stakeholders and providers of remittances that exceed earnings from tourism and bauxite combined, their future is woven into the future of Jamaicans living back at home. They are the umbilical cord that has kept the economy afloat.

I wonder if, in our vehement pride, we might alienate them, discourage them from coming home with their expertise, turn them off from sending their remittances and lead them to conclude that Jamaica is turning its back on them?

If so, that would be tragic, and we would all be worse off.

Dual Citizenship and the Jamaican Diaspora

2008-04-26T05:42:00.000-07:00

This article asks why Jamaicans abroad don't care more about the ruling that Daryl Vaz cannot serve in Parliament while being a dual citizen.

Click here to be taken to the article in the Jamaica Observer.

An Interesting Poem

2008-04-25T03:45:00.001-07:00

I read the following poem emailed from a friend and I thought that it captured the essence of how small our country is, and how much of of a blessing that it is, in many ways. (It's alos something else, but that's a topic for another post.)

A mouse looked through the crack
in the wall to see the farmer and
his wife open a package.

What food might this contain?"
The mouse wondered - - -
he was devastated to discover it
was a mousetrap.

Retreating to the farmyard,

the mouse proclaimed the warning :

There is a mousetrap in the house!
There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The chicken clucked and scratched,

raised her head and said,

"Mr.Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern
to you, but it is of no consequence
to me. I cannot be bothered by it."

The mouse turned to
the pig and told him,

"There is a mousetrap in the house!

There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The pig sympathized, but said, I am
so very sorry, Mr.Mouse, but there
is nothing I can do about it but pray.
Be assured you are in my prayers."

The mouse turned to
the cow and said

"There is a mousetrap in the house!

There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse.
I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin
off my nose."

So, the mouse returned to the
house, head down and dejected,
to face the farmer's mousetrap . . .
alone.

That very night a sound was heard throughout

the house -- like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey.

The farmer's wife rushed to see
what was caught. In the darkness,
she did not see it was a venomous
snake whose tail the trap had caught.

The snake bit the farmer's wife.

The farmer rushed her to the hospital,

and she returned home with a fever.

Everyone knows you treat a fever
with fresh chicken soup, so the
farmer took his hatchet to the
farmyard for the soup's main
ingredient.

But his wife's sickness continued,
so friends and neighbors came to
sit with her around the clock.

To feed them, the farmer
butchered the pig.

The farmer's wife did not get well;

she died.

So many people came for her funeral,
the farmer had the cow slaughtered to
provide enough meat for all of them.

The mouse looked upon it all from
his crack in the wall with great sadness.

So, the next time you hear someone
is facing a problem and think it
doesn't concern you,

remember ----

when one of us is threatened,
we are all at risk.

We are all involved in this journey called life.

We must keep an eye out
for one another and make an extra
effort to encourage one another.

SEND THIS TO EVERYONE WHO
HAS EVER HELPED YOU OUT AND
LET THEM KNOW HOW IMPORTANT THEY ARE.

REMEMBER. . . . .

EACH OF US IS A VITAL THREAD

IN ANOTHER PERSON'S TAPESTRY;

OUR LIVES ARE WOVEN TOGETHER FOR A REASON.

One of the best things to hold
onto in this world is a FRIEND ! ! !

Pets and Moving Back

2008-04-24T18:22:00.001-07:00

One of the practical questions that seems to be often asked is whether or not pets are allowed to be brought into Jamaica.

Apparently, our research is showing that only cats and dogs from the U.K. are allowed to be brought in, without undergoing a 6 month quarantine. They only need to undergo a 14 day quarantine.

This not good news to those who want to move to Jamaica with pets, from parts of the world outside the U.K. For some, it's a deal breaker, as these rules will prevent them from coming to Jamaica in the short term, as they are unwilling to leave their pets behind.

I spoke to a friend of mine who is a veterinarian here in Jamaica to verify the above facts. Here is a link from Expat Exchange to view a discussion on the topic: http://www.expatexchange.com/expat/index.cfm?frmid=233&forumid=0&dbname=ee&tpcid=3334162&shared=N

The Disadvantage of Jamaicans as Dual Citizens

2008-04-23T16:57:00.000-07:00

To Jamaicans everywhere, the news that Daryl Vaz was declared ineligible to be an M.P. should come as good news.

And I say this speaking as a dual citizen, born in Falmouth, Massachusetts, but a child of Jamaican parents. (I was granted both citizenships without having a say.)

The first is that we have clearly demonstrated that the rule of law is paramount. Regardless of our opinion about the value of this particular law, it does demonstrate that we can be governed by what is constitutionally ordained. This brings us well into the company of civilized countries.

It also has allowed our country to breathe a collective sigh of relief as our new chief justice shows her mettle, courage and wisdom in this very public way.

A this benefit is that it forces us to confront our constitution, and its growing weakness as it increasingly departs from present-day practice and common-sense. We have all meant to reform it, and now we simply must do so.

It is crazy that we have more stringent requirements for political office than the US, Canada and the UK. We are tremendously talent-challenged, over 2 million Jamaicans live outside the country and we are hardly likely to go to war with another country anytime soon.

It's a time to put practicality over pride.

Technical Issues and a Free e-book

2008-04-21T16:45:00.000-07:00

I have been battling a series of technical issues related to moving my company website, while launching a new time management product... so Moving Back to Jamaica has received little or no attention lately.

The good news is that the readers of Moving Back to Jamaica will receive a benefit, in the release of an e-book that is the first of its kind.

My wife and I have been focusing our efforts on an e-book of resources that are useful to those who are thinking about moving to Jamaica. We have written it for everyone -- for expats moving to Jamaica for the first time to work, Jamaicans returning to live at home and for those who just want to come and explore for several months, while living as a local.

To be sure, the content is directed towards those who have never lived in Jamaica before, so it may not be for those who have been away for a short time. We are hoping it has broad appeal, however, and fills a gaping need for information.

This free e-book will be available for download in the next few weeks, so stay tuned to this space.

First Magazine

2008-04-14T03:47:00.001-07:00

This excellent little photo-magazine is difficult to subscribe, but the quality of the photography is top-notch.

I have only been able to ever see two or three issues, out of the five that have been made. It makes me, and probably a whole lot of others, want to grab up a camera and do something artistic!

See First magazine at: http://first-magazine.net

Coming Home with a Bomb in His Luggage

2008-04-11T03:26:00.001-07:00

I thought the story of the Jamaican returning home with a bomb in his luggage a joke at first.

But as I read more details in the upcoming days, I felt very sad for this ex-US soldier, who was now being referred to as a "Jamaican national" rather than an ex-Gi. That is, an ex-GI who had been driven insane by a combination (and coincidence) of his war experience and his mother being violently killed.

I felt quite sad, because it's clear that this particular has not achieved the American dream, and may even have felt guilty that he left his mother vulnerable while he was in Iraq "fighting terrorism." Of course, I am speculating here...

But it all seemed to very, very sad. Will he be thrown in jail, or will he be let off off by pleading diminished capacity, or insanity?

In either case, his friends and relatives have been reported here in the press saying that this was not the Kevin Brown that they knew.

I bet it wasn't.

I imagine that he might feel betrayed by both his home and adopted countries, and without his mother, more than a little lost in this world.

Manifesto for a New Time Management

2008-04-10T01:35:00.001-07:00

I have sometimes made the point that my coming back to Jamaica has brought with it a spark of creativity that has infused all aspects of my work (and life for that matter.)

One tangible result is a manifesto that was published yesterday at ChangeThis.com, that I authored. This was the end-result of two years of hard work on the topic of time management, inspired by the challenge of moving back to Jamaica. While I have had a passing interest in the topic, I never imagined that I would get this far until recently, when I realized that the thinking I was doing was not just specific to life here in Jamaica, but in fact had a universal application.

I had started out just trying to invent a system that would work for me in my new environment.

The 21 page pdf is entitled "The New Time Management: Simply Focus on the Fundamentals, and Toss Away the Tips."

Claim a copy by clicking on the graphic above, or by visiting the following link: http://changethis.com/45.04.NewTime

Think Before Migrating

2008-04-09T03:38:00.001-07:00

The following letter appeared in the Gleaner:

Think before migrating
published: Friday | March 28, 2008

The Editor, Sir:

I am not a teacher, but I'm a professional living abroad for over seven years and I still grieve about the loss of job satisfaction and acceptance. Monetary gain may be realised, but peace of mind is not here. There is this overwhelming feeling of uncertainty about your job and your effort cannot be recognised.

Every output is measured against the almighty dollar. If I am not careful I will return worse off financially than how I came with my mental faculties irreparably damaged. Any teacher or nurse should consult all family members before embarking upon this risky transition.

Weigh all the pros and cons and think deeply about what one writer said: What good does it make to gain the Yankee dollars and sacrifice a family?

I am, etc.,

ANTIONETTE DENNIS

Via Go-Jamaica

Tantie Talks on "dis internet busines"

2008-04-07T04:27:00.001-07:00

The word 'Tantie" in Trinidad means "Auntie" and this recent article from the writer of this excellent weekly had me in stitches.

It's not Jamaican patois, but I think the sentiment comes through nonetheless.

Francis

:+:+:+:+:+:+:+::+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:+:

TANTIE TALK:

Allyuh know how dis Internet business does confuffle mih head sometimes,
and ah does have to ask de gran-chirren to explain ah lot ah tings to me
sometimes.

Is like it have some new ting everyday and de old ting does get cast out
like yuh trowing corn fuh de fowl in de yard. Doh mind dat dem old
ting was only tree months old, it seem dat dis Internet is ah set ah
short-lived fads.

Well yuh know ah was reading in de Gazette dat how de Government say dat
dey giving laptop to all dem Parlimentarian to use in dey wuk. Dey say
dat dey could use it for research and to have more connections wid de
electorate like you and me.

I say dat is a good idea in trute, I could email mih Councillor and get
him to send de dustcart to collect dat barrell dat mih neighbour cousin
sen from Brooklyn wid de ham last Christmas. Yuh know dat BWIA leff de
ting in de airport and like it begin to live again, fuss it rotten. So
dem wutless people jes trow it in de road and it dey since Christmas.
Like dey feel de rainy season go wash it away.

Anyway back to de 'tory. Mih granddaughter say dat is not Councillors
who getting laptop but dem big pappy Parlimentarians. So is not small
problems dat dey go respond to, is fuh big policy decision like wha
kinda jet to buy for Patos and how much fuh a short drop in de water
maxi-taxi when it reach.

But de chile tell me to mash brakes and doh get to excited about how
tings go be better, because it always have some kinda confusion when we
people get involve in a ting.

She tell me dat she was on some kinda Hotface chat someting, I forget de
name, but it does let yuh put up yuh life story on de Internet and let
all yuh pardnahs and dem write dey comments and ting too. It seem dat de
young people does use dis ting to arrange which fete dey going on de
weekend.

Well if yuh hear Tantana, it seem dat de chile login to she Mybook
account and it had some new teenager talking up she self on de girl
GooBlog. No-one know how she get de access but it seem dat yuh does
collect Friends and mih grand daughter have like eight tousand friends
in dis business. Doh mind she never meet one ah dem and she cyar tell me
what dey Parent's name is and eef dey grow up in Belmont and which
school dey went and eef dey use to be in de Presbyterian Church. But dem
is she frens.

Anyway dis yute start to say dat how she fadder is one ah dem Government
Ministers and dat how he does use de computer to help de people dat vote
he in. He say dat is a new day dawning once de people could contact dey
MP by email.

He say dat he ent voting no party line no more, once it have a debate he
go vote what de majority of de people on de BlogBook say to do.

When is Budget time, allyuh have to do is go on de TeeTeEbay chatline
and say how much tax yuh willing to pay and he doing dat jes like how
yuh want.

Eeef yuh find dat de Civil Servants giving yuh horrors jes send ah email
and yuh done know dat dey going for Training de nex day.

Like is a whole new way ah government, no more ah dem Minister sleeping
in dey chair in de Parliament, we go have it live and direct!

Dis way he did say we could do away wid de whole idea of adversarial
politrics, because we doh need dem Opposition Boys to jes oppose fuh de
sake of opposing, it go have 41 Representatives in de House who hook up
to de ressa away by de e-vote.

We ent go need no Speaker and all de bachannal dat going on wid dat. In
fact is de present Speaker who jes cyar see de value, he feel dat laptop
is jes for porn and chatrooms. Not at all! We stepping forward to true
2020, de Government run by de people, and only de People dat voting.

Well chile I real feel dis idea could wuk. And all it does corst is 41
laptops! In fact wid de advances in email, dem boys doh even have to be
in de Red House, dey could all cool dey herbs by Pigeon Point wid ah
wireless hookup. Pa Pa Yo!

Suddenly we go transform de Nation from a load of dunderheads in de
House who only want to play games wid we heads, to a setta fellas who
wukking for de people, drawing on de Voice of de People, and following
up on all de tings dat dey does say dey want. Because eef dem
politrickians only miss ah beat we voting dem out tomorrow and rolling
in a nex one, we could have Elections every Friday afternoon!

Sign me up now! I all fuh dis in trute.

It only have one small problem, mih grandaughter ent kow which Minister
it is so I ent know who to contact to give mih support. All she could
tell me was de screen name of de daughter...she does call she-self Avril
Premiere....

.....crick, crack