When lass you tek a whine? (the wait to winkup)

Can you hear me now? please don’t judge me it’s been a minute. I know some of you have been waiting with bated breath for my next article, but life got busy, and death had me broken so forgive me if it’s taken this long to get back to my people. In other news, how is everyone doing on year 2 of COVID the Remix? I honestly thought that 2021 would have been simpler…Ahhh …Negative! fooling my damn self! instead, January opened up like Groundhog day and needless to say, we have started all over again.

I imagine this has been just as hard on others as it has been on me, for those of us like myself who enjoy “catching flights”, this entire pandemic has probably cost some of us the most tragic meltdowns of all time, I will not tell a lie I’ve had a few, even though I did fly in the heart of COVID last year (that bad boy was not stopping me). Additionally, the carnival/soca warriors must be on a hospital drip considering it’s been two whole years since we have all attended a soca fete!

There I was gearing up to attend “D’ Breakfast Fete” with my friends in 2020, couldn’t wait to station myself at the doubles and hot cereal station, those were the highlights of my 2019 attendance I’ll have to say, the cream of wheat min nice! Since we skipped the original Breakfast fete in 2019 we were ready to hit the grass after a one-year absence, we had it all planned, Blue Jeans, Red Eye, Panorama, Duck Work, D’ Breakfast Fete, Breakfast Fete, Jouvert, we were ready! Once I had soca’d my life away I had planned to recoup and relax in beautiful Cabos San Lucas, Mexico with my bestie on our regular yearly girls trip, and then came COVID, Party Dun!

D’ Breakfast Fete

So This leads to the most important question; “When lass you tek a whine?”.

As we realized that Covid was here to stay, and we miserably accepted that there would be no carnival, no fetes, and no mas, some of the DJ’s took to social media to cheer us (as well as themselves) up by hosting live streams of music in every genre at night, in a brave attempt to take our minds away to another place and to make us feel like we were feting.

Truth be told, as much as I applauded their efforts I probably checked out two streams, and I was done. It wasn’t the same, the ambiance wasn’t there, I couldn’t dress up, my face hadn’t seen makeup in months (Fenty makeup haffu dry by now), my friends were MIA and I had zero prosecco in my refrigerator. Seriously, who wants to whine up in front of their mirror in their living room huffing and puffing, no one to crack jokes with, and sweating like a Hebrew slave only to realize not even bread shop you can go after because you under curfew and can’t leave your house till 6 am.

I gotta tell you I do miss planning my outfits and selecting my makeup and accessories for my favorite fetes! As the time drew nearer for carnival last year, I often reminisced on memories from different events, from entering Blue Jeans to the hot pulsating sounds of various DJ’s and guest artists on stage to the amazing food and drink stations at D’ Breakfast fete (I honestly think I’m sitting at the doubles station next year) to the sweet ole time Calypso music wafting through the pasture as you enter the original Breakfast fete, and let’s not forget the stream of soca artistes who show up on stage making us whine, sweat and get on like our parents didn’t teach us a shred of decent behavior.

Blue Jeans

Then there would be no RED EYE (I know those who know me understand my dilemma here). My die-hard K.E.S. junkie/attaché Sacha and I were doomed! We were not going to get to “mean mug” or push anyone from our spot at the front of the stage, there was no bribing the waiters to come to us because we wanted to be so close to KES that we could see his sweat droplets, it was a disaster of an awakening.

Red Eye

I miss seeing some of the usual fashion statement suspects who make the events even more fun and jovial, I can’t wait to see what some of you will rise from the ashes, in 2022. Let’s not forget the Panorama experience with the beautiful sounds of the steel pan competition, and the relaxed atmosphere of just being with friends, having drinks, and socializing into the deep hours of 2 am.

Breakfast Fete

Then I reminisced on Jouver’t morning in 2020, for the first time in over eight years I made a return to Jouver’t due to much persuasion by friends who shall remain nameless (you know who you are), I have to admit it was the best time I had had at Jouver’t in a long time, waking up at 3:00 am to get ready to go into town and dance and whine in the streets felt exhilarating! and even though my crew and I did not participate with any set band we sure did join as many as we could and had a blast. P.S. I still think it’s the dirtiest event of the carnival season..

Jouve’rt / Panorama

When Carnival Monday and Tuesday arrived, my sister and I idly took a mas route to drive around the streets of St. John’s listening to soca music and memorizing at exactly what point we would be at in the band had mas been played, it was quite a painful experience, to say the least…. no mas, no music, no wink up.

I’m sure I am not the only one who feels this way, which leads me to wonder when and what type of new normal will be put in place when we do get to attend our beloved fetes and gatherings again?

I mean are we going to have to wash our hands before entering a fete? will we still have to wear masks? because let me tell you ain’t no way in hell am I getting my face beat to wear a mask.

Will we have to have our vaccination cards on us before entering a fete? will there be temperature checks? will they distribute hand sanitizers upon entry? will they give us cold sanitized towelettes instead of cold towels? will we be encased in small numbers inside of small pods 6 feet apart in the fete? will we be sprayed with some marvelous sanitized spray when we start to jump and wave? enquiring minds really wanna know!

One thing I do know is that many of us can’t wait to get back to normal, if it’s anything that this pandemic has taught us is that time is everything, and we really cannot take time, experiences, or people for granted in this life. So when the streets finally do open back up fully, and we hear the fetes being advertised, the carnival dates scheduled, the weekend gatherings back on stream, there will be dancing, there will be feting.

And on god, there will be some fool beggin us for a Whine!

“The Level Up” – Reflections of the Past, Embracing The Future!

Hey Everyone, thought I fell off the grid huh? Nope! Well, I kind of did for a month, but that’s what vacation does to you. You travel, spend time with your family, totally overdose on Starbucks and any other caffeine related beverage within 2 blocks of your US residence, run the streets with your sisters, and suddenly return to the 268 become inundated with work and life priorities, and suddenly realize “god damn” I haven’t blogged for over a month. But that’s life right? sometimes we become so engrossed we forget the little things that make us happy.

This post reflects 2018, not only for myself but I’m sure for many of you. This is the time where we all sit back and try to rehash the year from start to finish (with any luck if we still have our brain cells left), we try to remember all the good and the bad, where we “effed up” and where we were stellar in the upward movement in our lives. We remember what we lost and what we gained, and try to figure out how we can become better individuals and do well in our lives for 2019.

For me 2018 was a year of more growth and somewhat of a learning curve, one in the sense that allowed me to push myself beyond boundaries where I didn’t think I could handle at age 41. I went back to school, (Grad School) where I juggled both a hectic job and late night assignments and presentations for literally eight months. At one point I felt like WTF did I get myself into??? like seriously did I really think my brain still worked the way it did in my twenties at University?

I plowed through months of paperwork, inter-library book loans, asking my professors a million questions (thinking I must be a dweeb for not understanding things), late nights, coffee, and falling asleep with my computer on my lap (luckily escaping being Antigua’s next burn victim). I finally made it and received my Grad Certificate in Strategic Communications Management from Purdue University at the end of September 2018. I am proud of myself because this is something I have deliberated for years and never thought I’d have enough willpower to do, but sometimes you have to suck life up and act like NIKE; “Just Do It”.

To celebrate this achievement and one of my girl’s 40th Birthday we planned a girls trip to Las Vegas, I figured I worked like a Hebrew slave half the year the least I could do was finally get myself to Sin City and let my hair down. Our trip was awesome and I will definitely go back again.

During all of this time, sometimes your year doesn’t always have happy endings, for me I lost two very special people, One whom I loved very much and who always made me feel like her own (even though I am through blood), every time I visited the family Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving won’t be the same, but our family remains connected and I have my Aunt Thelma to thank for that.

The other, my closest girlfriend’s mother was literally like a mother to us all growing up, her untimely departure really took a toll on me for weeks, and it really made me realize how much we need to appreciate those in our lives, yet still encouraging us to live our lives the way we see fit, and to not allow those on the outside regardless of their beliefs or opinions to influence our personal journey in life.

For me I don’t learn any one lesson in just a particular year, I am a learner of things gradually through time, some of these learning experiences focus on people who walk in and out of your life, I have learned every year how to asses these individuals, the ones who are genuine, fake, pretentious, bi-polar, self absorbed, attention seekers, power hungry, humble, liars, etc.

The one great thing about evolving as an adult is that you learn how to classify these people, you learn that not every comment deserves a response; you learn to observe and say nothing and handle them on your own terms; you learn how to avoid gossip and allow them to ruin their own character; you learn how to not make people feel they are more important than you when they think they are, last but not least you learn to play the game of life. All these lessons I continuously learn and carry them over into a new year wiser.

So now I am 42!( I say with great enthusiasm) moving into 2019 there has been a lot of self reflection as I am sure the rest of you have done so. There were a lot of eye openers for me towards the end of 2018 and for that I am eternally grateful, it allowed me to think about what I want more for my future, spending time and seeing my siblings and other family members blissfully happy was one of these moments and I think to myself there are still good devoted people in this world, you have to open yourself up to new beginnings and change your present aura. You cannot be afraid of the future and expect to have it if you still hold on to the past.

Throughout 2018 I learned that it’s ok to put myself first and love me more, I learned that I have some of the most supportive friends and family in my life who are always there for me even when I crash burn, and for that I am eternally grateful. As I battled with a myriad of decisions, I decided that I would do things differently in 2019.

The thing about life is that nothing is ever promised to us, and so I have lived my life exactly how I think I should live it without caring about anyone’s expectations of me or judgement. With that being said, dance like no one is watching you, let go of the things that no longer serve or bring you happiness, embrace new beginnings, pursue more dreams and turn them into reality, never seek validation from anyone but yourself, work hard but play harder, 2019 just may be our year.

Let’s Get em in The 2019 Guys!!

Love E!

#YEAR42

Carnival Iz Back!

It’s now 2022! and man have we been through a turbulent two years! The last time I wrote, we were having a serious Carnival tabanca, so here we are, we finally all got let out the pen and were able to celebrate our first carnival in two years (thanks to Covid). I don’t know about some of you, but covid really taught me to enjoy my own company and solitude, so for the past two years socializing and going out have not really been big on my agenda. I was busy with life and school and got used to enjoying my own peace and space. Nevertheless, as the time drew near for Antigua’s greatest summer festival I began to feel a small twinge of excitement, and really looked forward to hanging out with my friends and family who were arriving from New Jersey and DC.

I had no plans to attend more than two fetes, however, the infamous “Duck Work” seemed to appeal to me this year and so at the last minute, I decided to go. The first fete we attended was the D’All Inclusive Breakfast Fete, which my friends and I attended back in 2019 and had an amazing time. We looked forward to it in 2020 but we all know what happened there.

So let me just go on record to say that I only attend this fete for one reason, “Cream of Wheat”…you heard me. They have an amazing cereal station and the best cream of wheat everrrr! I dunno man the cream of wheat is just really good, so this year my girl Nicole and I had two servings before we started to put down any alcohol, that way if we lost our faculties by midday cream of wheat was gonna save the day. We then moved on to the breakfast station which I have to say is also great, you have a choice of amazing local breakfast and a waffle and omelet station which I will definitely try next year, but I opted for local because I knew I was about to ingest many mimosas and other spirits.

Once breakfast was over the party heated up, various artists performed such as Antigua’s very own Claudette Peters, Tian Winter, Drastic, Three Cylinder, Shal Marshal out of Trinidad, and various DJs such as Supa Diamond and a few I don’t remember, you see how this is fading fast? That’s because by now I have visited the Mimosa bar at least six (6) times (bartender dem musta been sick a me) and they have turned on the mist sprinklers to cool us down because Satan was clearly in de fete an all!!!! The new venue I have to say was very nice as it allowed for more space due to Covid protocols, and the fact that the fete is becoming bigger in numbers, but we gonna need an a/c tent next year where people can go to avoid heat stroke because Satan and his whole crew were at the event.

A little later in the afternoon, I heard the Doubles Man straight out of TNT calling my name and proceeded to approach the doubles stand for my well-awaited deliciousness with all the various toppings in tow. If you never had the doubles at this fete, you simply must try them when you do make it. I am, however, upset with myself because I had plans to visit the snow cone stand as well as the hot dog station, but clearly, the doubles took over and I had no more space for anything. In all the fete was amazing as always, the bathroom team is always a plus for me they kept it in tip-top shape spic, and span! And I will definitely be back god spare life in 2023.

Moving on to “Duck Work”, lemme show alyuh how god is good to me….so I was really planning to duck work half an hour early “Legally” nobody go tell my employers how I was going duck work cause they knew I was leaving, me know how alyuh dangerous! But as fate would have it we got to leave work early anyhoo! So as my road sister and I prepared to hit the streets on that lovely Friday afternoon with four free days ahead, we jaunted to our destination. Now, this was our first time at the event, and needless to say when we got there the vibe done look and sounded NICE! As we entered people who were already there since possibly 10/11 am were already bouncing off the walls with happiness.

I met up with my cousins and other family and friends and man I have to say, I think that it was possibly the best fete I attended all year, not that the others were not great, but this had a more intimate feel and everyone knew one another it was more camaraderie than anything else, just a great set of people who enjoyed having a good time together, not to mention it is an older crowd so not too many youngins made it more bearable. We had such a great time that we literally closed down the fete till the DJ told us we don’t have to go home but we gotta get the hell up outta there. I had a wonderful time, and it is definitely a must again.

And now, the long-awaited De Breakfast Fete, drawing thousands from near and far every year to experience the excitement of Carnival before Mas. So this year my road sister and I along with my cousins decided that for once we were going to be early so that we can actually have breakfast! Let me just say that I have not had breakfast at breakfast fete in about five years, mainly because by the time I arrived at 9 am the lines were just too long, and I didn’t have the energy or the god-given patience. So arriving at 7:45 am was truly going to be a big deal for me.

We arrived at approximately 7:45am, where a plethora of police officers guided us to our parking spaces, I have to admit the vehicle security was not playing on that day, everyone had to straighten up and fly right. As we approached the entrance and walked in we realized that this year’s fete had a theme de “Safari” Breakfast Fete! The decor was very nice, they had a safari backdrop you could take your professional photos, and also a video photo station where they would email your moving photo to you right away.

We also noticed little safari teepees all around that people could sit under and relax. As we approached the breakfast section I noticed it was very well organized and we got our breakfast pretty quickly despite the crowd. Shout out to Krave Kitchen for the amazing omelet breakfast.

As we proceeded throughout the day many Aperol Spritzes and Sangrias later, we positioned ourselves under the entertainment tent which had a strong breeze flowing through it which really helped with the heat, because if y’all thought Satan went to the last breakfast fete, well he walked with his entire family to this one! If you didn’t believe in global warming before, you damn sure were gonna believe in it at De Breakfast Fete.

I cannot begin to explain the kind of heat that came out to play. Still, we pushed through and enjoyed the various acts on stage, with intermissions of DJs however, I will say that I am not a big calypso fan and so that part of it always bores me to death, and I did find that the segments were longer. My advice to the organizers (if they will listen) would be to give everyone time slots ..(I’m guessing maybe they do) and people just get carried away, but still time slots are essential so as to not bore those of us who are not big Calypso fanatics.

I’d like to see maybe a time slot or a few hours for the DJ since there are some of us who prefer the DJ vibe. One other addition I’d like to see again I repeat, is an a/c cooldown tent, folks I swear myself and others were on borderline heat stroke by 3:00 pm, not to mention I am now officially two shades darker than I had planned to be. In all, the fete was a success and we all really did enjoy ourselves, including my cousin who was 14 drinks down and near hallucination from the heat.

I’m just gonna move on past J’ouvert morning because my closest friends know how much I ABSOLUTELY hate J’ouvert!!! I think it is actually the most disgusting and grossest time of Carnival, you never know who had a bath at 4 am and by the time the early morning heat hits everyone looks like oil, sweat, grease, dirt, paint, and mud combined in a sweatshop. I don’t mind watching from a safe and far distance, but when I do I curse myself and say why do you do this to yourself? I actually retired from J’ouvert for ten years, until someone dragged me in 2019, which wasn’t so bad. However, due to covid this year everyone and their grandma came out to play and left much to be desired for me.

So by now, it’s almost a wrap and we are all sunburnt, exhausted, J’ouvert morning traumatized, and just ready to take it easy and watch the bands make their final lap in the streets, due to covid awareness and restrictions we did not have a lot of bands participating in actual mas as normal but the ones who did looked amazing.

Insane was really the only band I saw, and their costumes were gorgeous, my band Myst Carnival did not participate in full mas this year, however, seems like they have great plans for their Sweet 16th next year, so who knows maybe a girl will come out of retirement for one last lap if she can get herself together. We ended up at the Side of the Road crew for a few hours enjoying the revelers and music until it was time to finally go home. Well, Carnival is back, hopefully, there will be better things ahead in 2023, be it we are here for it, or we decide to travel. I do know one thing though,… I am NOT doing J’ouvert!

This post is dedicated to an amazing person and friend, whom we lost recently, Shevone Everette Galloway, who was an amazing friend with a heart of gold. She is not here with us in body, but she is always here in spirit. Carnival time was her favorite time of the year, and had she been with us still, she would have been in these photos.

Ev, I miss and love you dearly!! SIP hunny.

In Loving Memory of Shevone Galloway.

December 20th, 1979 – July 10th, 2022.

2020: You Learned 2021: Apply

Where do we even begin? Well, let’s begin somewhere. If someone had to tell me that an entire Pandemic would have stopped the earth on its axis for an entire year, and maybe even more, I would have called them bluff! If someone had told me that my father would have been dead by the end of 2020 I would have never entertained it, I would have never believed. If someone had told me that people I thought I knew turned out to be strangers, I would have told them never! But, this is life, and this is our reality like it or not, and here we are yet again, at the end of another year, not even realizing that it has come and gone with so much tragedy and despair.. However, hoping for a better outcome.

So who would have thought that our entire year would be focused on a global pandemic! (COVID) the worst name uttered for 2020. At the turn of midnight on Jan 1st, 2020, I and probably just about every other human being had amazing plans for this astronomical new year. Turns out, COVID had its own agenda for us all. By late March COVID was upon us, and though some of us took it quite seriously, others thought it would have slid off the grid in a matter of weeks, ( I was one of those people). It didn’t take very long for the rest of the world to start shutting borders and hoarding toilet paper, it also didn’t take any of us too long to realize that we were going NOWHERE for 2020.

So here we were forced into a world of wearing masks, 6-hour curfews, excruciating supermarket lines in the blazing heat, barely any Lysol spray or wipes insight, washing our hands at least 20 times a day, working from home, (some of us with children forcing us to drive over devil’s bridge), extra weight gain, more amazon prime orders than we needed, higher grocery bills, I mean I could go on and on but y’all know the struggle…this year was a real shit show…between COVID, George Floyd, Riots, Trump and his rants, no damn vacations on the agenda, late pension, loss of jobs, we may as well have put a “CLOSED FOR BUSINESS” sign on earth.

I know I had a lot of great plans for 2020 likewise I’m sure a lot of you did, but they always say God has a way of unplanning. What I will say about 2020, is that it taught me how to appreciate time when I had it, and how to appreciate the necessities that we take for granted. When I was working I always complained about not having enough time to get things done, and when covid showed up, I had nothing but time! I had time to work out, time to spend with my dog, time to write (although I was too depressed to do that), time to get household chores done, time to pay bills, time to spend with my dad, suddenly I had all the time in the world. At this point, I thought to myself you can’t be ungrateful however, there’s never really pleasing us, humans.

By mid-summer just when we were getting comfortable with living in Covid’s world, my world was about to get much more complicated. July 14th, 2020, will forever be etched in my living memory as the day my world began to stop, not because of covid but because this was the beginning of my father’s transition to a downward spiral of health. I could cope with covid, but what I was about to face was way more terrifying than the virus, I was about to watch my father die for almost five months. Early-onset Parkinson’s Disease was something he battled for about four years, but he did it with dignity and he tried his very best to not let it hamper his normal activities until he did realize that there were certain things he could no longer do.

July through to October seems somewhat of a blur to me now, my life changed drastically and so did my sister’s we both went through days where we didn’t know what was next or what was coming, but what we did know is that we had to do everything in our power to make sure our father had everything he needed, which included our love. It’s amazing how adrenaline and instinct kick in for a loved one, for all the covid in the world which could have been in the hospital never even crossed our minds. I was never fearful of myself at all, the only person I cared about was my dad.

As months went by, so did our lives, We put our lives on pause to take care of him and see to it that he got the best care possible. Trips planned were pushed back at least four or five times, no time ever really seemed to be the right time. What I am grateful for is that if it wasn’t for covid, I would not have been able to spend as much time as I did with him, hard as it was watching him slip into less and less of the man we knew him to be, I am truly grateful for the amount of time I had to say everything that I had to say to him.

I don’t know what is worse, losing someone you love dearly suddenly, or watching them die over some time, I only know the latter. What I do know is that it is the most excruciating pain anyone can ever tolerate, and I am grateful that God has made me as strong I was, even when I felt completely broken to be able to withstand watching him suffer to the very end. Those who know, know how much I loved my dad, we had our good and bad days, he wasn’t perfect but shit none of us are, I’m not, but he was amazing…to me. He was my hero and my first love. and while I sat and wrote his Eulogy which I could not bare to read myself, I realized for the first time in my life just how amazing he was.

My first love is now gone, and none of you will ever understand what my pain is, we all suffer death differently. What I will say is this year has truly taught me how important it is to say things to people that need to be said, to spend the time that needs to be spent, to take risks even when you’re scared, to never think you know those closest to you because you never really do. This year has been a year of evolution in every way for me, and I’m sure it has been for others. COVID showed up to slow us down, to probably make us stand and smell the roses a little longer while we are alive because truthfully none of us know what our expiration date is in this life.

Going forward, and I’m not going to make not even 1 resolution, because I feel like I need to see previews of 2021 before I start running my mouth. What I will say is that we are not promised tomorrow and I intend to live as beautiful a life as God will permit me, and I suggest that everyone else do the same. Wishing everyone a Blessed New Year.

Dedicated to My Father: Everett F. Lake

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Nola and I

Ok, before anyone starts! I know, I know it really has been a long time so I come with humble apologies. 2019 has been much of a Hamster wheel for me and I have been busy beyond belief, with life, work and everything that it has thrown at me however, I felt like it was definitely time to get back into the saddle and regroup, and figure out where this road to 2020 will take me.

Hey NOLA

So this year has been interesting, and as it stands I run away often to regain my sanity, so my best friend and I have sort of agreed to try to do a girl’s trip every year before summer says goodbye. Last year it was Vegas and this year we hummed and hawed over the next best destination. After much deliberation, (pretty much two weeks before my arrival, talk about procrastination) we settled on “NOLA, NAWLINS, New Orleans, The Big Easy”.

At first I was sketchy about NOLA cause I always viewed it as dirty and grimy (which it is) don’t even think you can do the 3 second pick something up off the ground or floor routine over there, whatever hits the ground, let it stay right there! But after hearing all the stories and fun adventures I heard about NOLA and the main determinant of my appearance…”Shrimp and Grits”, I was down for a little extra pollution. So we booked our tickets, and off we went, with much hand sanitizer in tow.

Now this was the first time we flew on a new carrier, yeah we rolled up on the big yellow bird Spirit! And as much as you guys be cussing the hell out of that bird, we had a great experience! Shout out to the Spirit Big Easy Crew, I actually could move all my body parts in my seat and had lots of leg room, more than I can say for an airline (Whom shall remain anonymous). And as we landed, the crew said their famous line; “Welcome to The Big Easy”! It was on like Donkey Kong.

Our Uber driver was a knowledgeable local who gave us a wealth of information and food spots to try. We got to our hotel fairly early and freshened up and hit the streets. We had the entire afternoon into the evening so we were rearing to get started. We walked about 12 minutes down to canal street and as we walked, I looked around and couldn’t help but think “damn this place stinks” but there was also a lot of historical culture to it.

As we stopped at a stoplight I hear a very familiar accent behind me, “IM Say IM a go ARD on ER lata” (thought to myself well there go a Jamaican) in the heart of Louisiana, we just everywhere us West Indians, huh?. As we got nearer, we saw the famous street cars and immediately fell in love and became obsessed with getting onto one… mission #2 ride those streetcars! As we approached, the much-expected Bourbon St. we could hear loud jazz music coming from inside the street, a large group of young boys were playing their heart and soul out and I thought to myself this is so amazing.

Canal St.

Bourbon St.

Now if you have ever visited NOLA, you know that Bourbon St.in the French Quarter is where it all goes down, and it surely does. If you’re lucky, you may catch a street parade, differently, it is where all the life and madness happens in NOLA. Our first mission was to get some good ole soul food, so we hit up the “Gumbo Shop” first and believe me when I say that the wait line stretched out into the street around the corner!

Boudain

Crab Gumbo

My bestie kept going on about this Boudain she had on her last trip to Nola, so it destined me to try it out. Now if you ever get to New Orleans, you must do The Gumbo Shop, it is the quaintest, noisiest, tightest little dig in restaurant in the French Quarter but the food is absolutely “Amazing”! We sat in a corner literally damn near in the kitchen, that’s how tight space was, but when that Boudain and Crab gumbo came out, the waiters could have hit me five times in the back I was happy.  

After dinner we experienced Bourbon St. in its finest, now since this was a girl’s trip we figured we better do like the movie and find some “Grenades. A word to the wise, you only need two before your eyes cross. We eventually ended up in some club watching women act crazy on stage to the sounds of raggaeton and other r&b hits, the site was something, but it is Bourbon St.  At about midnight we called it a night and then discovered the streetcar life, yes we took one of the streetcars back to our hotel and let me tell you when the conductor told us $3 for an entire day, we were ready for the next day to appear. Streetcars are life! Uber what????

Streetcar Life

The next day we headed out early because we needed to soak up our second to last day in Nola. We jumped onto the #49 street car which stopped right outside our hotel and headed straight for French Quarter again, this time we were hunting for Shrimp and Grits from the recommended spot Café Fleur de lis. Now this spot is like the Gumbo Shop but let me tell you about the get up and slap ya mama in the face breakfast variety at this place!!!!!! I stuck that spoon of shrimp and grits in my mouth and I swore I heard Jesus and his angels singing on their way down for me. Amazing…and their peach Bellinis are to die for, definitely a must do if you go.

Shrimp and Grits

After breakfast we toured the Garden District, which is basically an on foot tour of all the ancient and colonial mansions of new Orleans, this tour incorporated the Lafayette Cemetary however, we didn’t get to go inside as they were under construction. The weather was nice, so we were fine walking the beautiful colonial styled streets of the Garden District, our guide showed us famous homes belonging to Sandra Bullock and John Goodman, while giving us historic information on the houses and what it costs to keep them in the shape they are still in. For me the most fascinating thing was that the “Horse Posts” were still there (this is where back in the 1800s) they would tie the horses outside of their homes, it was amazing to see that every one of them were still there.

Next up was a little shopping and the infamous Café Du Monde, now people….if you do not go to Café Du Monde for Beignets and hot chocolate while in Nola, I’m just going to consider that you didn’t go a damn place, because this is signature! So please remember, that Beignets are a must! In the lower half of the French Quarter, we finally made it to Beignet heaven, and can I just say that the when we arrived it was like Antigua Recreation Grounds on Carnival Monday inside there, not to mention we sat for literally 15 minutes waiting. But I said to myself E, you’ve come too far to back out now, it will be worth it. Our little hospitable Philippine waiter came over to take our order and in about another 15 minutes, here it was that powdered soft heaven that everyone raves about in Nola with a cup of hot chocolate! Did I want to cuss every soul in that place for the wait time? YES, was the wait worth it though? ABSOLUTELY.

Self explanatory

After walking around French Quarter and making our way to a psychic literally at the end of the street, yeah we went to a psychic, don’t judge and don’t ask either! like who goes to the Mecca of Voo Voo land and not see a psychic? It was amazing! After dinner at a quaint little spot called Deanies that night, and more grenades and a 7 ounce fish bowl of liquor which I had to leave on the side of the street, (me and my dumb ass), and watching a real cat lie in the middle of Bourbon St. in his cat bed taking tourists dollars (this was truly the highlight of my entire trip), we called it a night.

The next morning we wanted to have just one last taste of the Nola goodness before our flight and hit up Mr. Ed’s Seafood and Oyster Bar, another highly recommended spot. There we met AJ a wonderfully gay black waiter with Jamaican roots, who was nothing but superb! he made it so worth it, from the red beans and rice to the cornbread that melted in your mouth to the yes, I had it again, shrimp and grits! and this time it was even bigger! I sure hope the next time we go back we will see him he was everything and then some.

Mr. Ed’s

As we took our last ride on the #49 streetcar which we grew to love so much we couldn’t help but feel a little sad, it really was an adventure for us and New Orleans was fantastic, everyone was so hospitable and friendly and welcoming. Sometimes you just need to get away and experience something different to regroup. There was one spot we were a little disappointed that we did not get to experience eating at and that was Morrows, as fate would have it I recommended it a month later to some friends who went and they sent me videos of their experience there and were so thankful to me for recommending it, so I guess we will most definitely be going back to beautiful New Orleans, NAWLINS, The Big Easy!

Bestie and I.
#2020wheelsup

FRO FEST Antigua 2018

Approximately eight years ago, I made a life changing decision, I said good-bye to “creamy crack” otherwise known as hair relaxer, and opt for my natural curls. Now I didn’t come up with this decision by just waking up and deciding to cut my hair off, this took months of research, soul-searching, Pinterest, earring and hair accessory hunting, and taking thousands of photos with my long hair in remembrance of what was, vs what would be.

So, imagine my excitement when I discovered that on October 27th there was going to be a Beauty Festival here in Antigua, called “Fro Fest”. But this wasn’t just going to be about what the name exclaimed, it was about everything that encompassed beauty on a whole which made me even more curious to attend this fabulous event. It also allowed me to wear my curls like a lunatic and no one would care. As usual, I dragged one of my “chargies” aka (one of my homegirls) with me to see what all this hype was about. (Fro Fest was already consuming my Instagram page).

The event started promptly at 11a.m. and was scheduled to end at 7p.m. at the Environmental Division Headquarters on factory road. I figured I had more than enough time to get my natural ensemble together, and give my hair ample time to do what I tell it to do, way before we arrived. We got there early in the afternoon, in what I swear to god must have been a heat wave, because the sun was BRUTAL!

I have never felt heat like that other than being 50 shades drunk inside Myst Mas band on Sir Viv Richards Street. I thought to myself, well it’s hot as hell out here but Fro Fest got the perfect weather for such an event.

As we approached the gate I immediately felt like the event was going to be good, everyone was so Afro-centric. I guess I wasn’t the only one excited because from the number of cars parked; it seemed like we were not the only ones excited to be there. As we walked in, there was a photo backdrop with Fro Fest in flowers at the entrance, I absolutely loved the concept! But you wanna know how they got 10 points from me? Straight ahead of us was the Kennedy’s Club booth, serving a lovely selection of wines and “Prosecco”!

We had a win-win situation right here, because I was about to have a heat stroke and reach to Mount Saint John’s before I saw the rest of the festival, so imagine my squeals of delight when I saw this blessed heaven before my eyes. My friend J and I quickly purchased and shared a bottle of Prosecco, (we are lushes don’t judge us). After the cool taste of heaven trickled down our throats, it was time to explore this party.

The layout was exactly how I thought it would be, there were beautifully decorated tents with vendors everywhere, displaying different ranges of beauty products, along with DJ Quest spinning familiar tunes in the background.

The first vendor who caught our eye was called “ Yonissence” established on October 17th 2017, what piqued my curiosity was that they offered vaginal steaming blends, (don’t look at this paragraph and wince ladies), we all want a healthy va-jay-jay! And, since their aim is to help women be more aware of vaginal health, and I am big on hygiene, (I mean real big) I sauntered over to hear about the pros of this interesting service being offered. After hearing about the wonderful benefits of the products and steaming the va-jay-jay, I most definitely will contact them in future.

As I scanned the venue, I realized that there wasn’t a particular age range attending this event, it was a mixture of both young middle-aged and older women and men. I have to say the ladies were not playing with their attire; I saw motherland fabric roll out into some spectacular designs, girls who normally wore protective styles and weaves (like myself) had their hair out in fros, curls, funky do’s, everyone wanted to showcase their natural side and display their natural style which was refreshing compared to the normal heavy beauty production you see at regular events.

As we moved on throughout the afternoon, we visited various product vendors and retailers such as; Bique’s Designs, SHA’S Expressions, Glambox Antigua, Lucid Beauty products out of New York, Paige Purses Antigua owned by Ms. Petra Miller, who might I add displayed a range of lovely hand made purses and bags made from tribal, animal and African print fabric, left up to me I would have bought one of each they were so tempting to the eye.

Ms. Caren Tonge, owner of Aglaia Style was also on site showcasing her hand-made jewelry along with her much expected line of Independence madras accessories. If Independence was a whole week, I would have probably finished her stash so let’s thank god we only get one day. (Ladies please check her Independence scarves out next year)

There were a variety of food and sweet treat stations, along with well-known beverage stars such as ICED and Blendz Smoothie Bar on The Go. Fairly new on the scene was Kombucha Karibbean, now I recently started drinking Kombucha which is supposed to be fantastic for you, so I was pleasantly surprised to know we had a local distributor here in Antigua.

For those of you who don’t know, Kombucha is a fermented probiotic beverage which comprises of green or black tea, the result makes it taste almost like alcohol with a fizz but it’s really tea and there are loads of wonderful flavours offered by Kombucha Karibbean, it also promotes energy and a stronger immune system. So for the health junkies (kinda like myself) you must check it out.

After having a huge cup of Kombucha which was delicious, (here lies another excuse for me to drink). We listened to special appearances performed by local musicians and a panel comprising of familiar faces such as; The Honorable Michael S. Browne Minister of Education, Empress Kai Davis, IFBB Amateur Athlete Kimberley Ephraim, and others who graced the stage in a healthy discussion, informing Fro Fest patrons about their thoughts on beauty and what the perception of it means to them.

As the afternoon gradually winded down, with the panel discussion ending, and our bottle of Prosecco finally dead, DJ Quest stirred up the party, which I have to admit made me shake a tail feather since I missed playing Mas for carnival this year! Fro Fest had finally ended it was time for us to go.

So, 4 glasses of Prosecco and one huge cup of Kombucha later I could still soberly sum up this lovely afternoon I had just experienced. I honestly think Fro Fest was a well attended, well-organized event for its first appearance. However, what I would like to see more of next year is more familiar hair and beauty care products on display.

My expectations were to see a lot more hair products showcased, based on everything I know of on the market. I also think next year’s festival should encompass a hair station with a few natural hair stylists who will be on site to show different natural hairstyles, and educating us about natural hair care and hair care product lines for those of us who are transitioning, and who have already made the journey.

I anxiously await next year’s event which I think will have a lot more in store for us. One more thing, don’t loose the Prosecco!

 

Battle of the Cleanse! (my 7 day journey)

So here lies the truth about “green smoothies”; they can either be your best friend or your worst nightmare! After my vacation mid summer, as any foodie would understand, I returned home with possibly 7lbs of crab legs inside my body (don’t judge me). I was on vacation for crying out loud!

One day, a colleague of mine sent me a flyer via WhatsApp for a 10-day cleanse she was about to partake in. At first, I thought it was a good idea (then I thought awwww hell naw….no food for 10 days? I can’t subscribe to this foolishness). Eventually, I made a visit to the smoothie shop in my neighbourhood to enquire about this cleanse, where I met the very knowledgeable and professional owner, Nadia of Blendz Smoothie Bar.

 After having a conversation with her I decided “Yes, I’m gonna do this”. Shortly after our conversation she launched the 7-day cleanse and I jumped on it. I was absolutely ready to wrangle with seven days of the smoothie beast (playin my damn self!).

I actually chose the smoothie and salad option, because “trust” if I only had smoothies, I would not be alive to tell this tale. So everyday, for the next seven days, I along with others in a chat group would be at the mercy of Nadia to nourish or starve our bodies! I excitedly went out shopping and purchased all my raw snacks. I quickly bolted with tunnel vision for the cashier in Epicurean, before hearing the cookies and currant roles voices over in the pastry section (I swear they do talk to me).

 Day 1 arrived and I was ready!!! Let’s do this. Our little bag consisted each day of a gallon bottle of green smoothie, a bag of pink Himalayan salt (for your salt water flush every morning), 1 green tea bag, a bottle of water and….(wait, you guys were waiting for something else?) Yeah so was I.

I drank my salt water flush with a dash of lemon juice to cut the taste ( let me get on record to say that this tastes absolutely horrible, but works like clockwork). Excitedly I grabbed my bag full of prepared snacks; a boiled egg, apple slices, almond butter and watermelon, anxious to achieve my new goal. To be honest, the day went great the smoothie was, well, green and snacking wasn’t too bad. I just didn’t have any real food to eat which really played on my emotions. However, I was determined, and I needed to loose this weight and feel better.

Day 2 remained pretty much the same as day 1, I wasn’t feeling as hungry as I thought I would, but the smoothie tasted worse. I really wanted to shove a banana with cinnamon in there and re-blend it but too late, no rectifying the situation. I pushed through day 2 with a pang of extreme hunger. In the evening, a boiled egg and can of tuna in water (raw) became my new BFF’s.

 

Day 3, however, I took a turn for the worse. It was a SATURDAY! I thought to myself, “Who does this to themselves on a weekend?” (this was worse than animal cruelty). I was irritable, hangry, (hungry as hell) and really wanted to shoot someone as I wasn’t allowed to have coffee at all. I went to work hoping to take my mind off of the Garden Grill’s mac and cheese plate I preferred to be eating. Additionally, I abandoned the salt water flush on day 3 and opted for the dieter’s tea, I was tired of swallowing the ocean.

So we finally approached Day 4 and, needless to say, I felt pretty good. I started seeing results and felt much lighter than I did before. My clothes were also fitting better, I managed to get into a pair of size 6 slacks that had been a little too close for comfort for a minute, and felt quite “chuffed” (that means excited in London slang).

Now I couldn’t wait to get to Day 5 because FOLKS! Let me tell you, this was my worse day EVER!!!! I woke up feeling as if any minute I would reach for the phone to dial 911, (while praying I’d still be alive to even speak). I mean, I literally felt like my body was shutting down. I was sweating profusely, my stomach felt hollow as though I had not eaten for decades, I was terribly weak, my heart was racing, while getting dressed I had to lay on my bed three times to catch my breath. I felt like something was terribly wrong, only to find out from Nadia that this was my “low day”. Apparently, a low day is quite normal, and yours may not be on day 5 like mine, it could be day 3, 4, whatever day it chooses. But guys, when that low day comes, believe a sista, be afraid, be very afraid!

 On day 6 I was convinced that Emily Rose had taken over my body and that I was demon possessed the day before, because why on earth am I so damn happy and chirpy? As if this horrible phenomenon didn’t just happen to me 24 hours ago? I felt great, I was even less hungry than before, and had no after effects of the feeling I had on day 5. My smoothie tasted delicious on this day, and the salad’s condiments were ramped up! I was finally near the finish line, and I could see my doubles from Trinidad in the freezer slowly getting naked for me, then I thought to myself; do I even still want them? I’ve come this far. Time will tell.

“Well would ya look at God”. we finally made it to day 7! I felt almost nostalgic when it arrived. I couldn’t believe the journey was now over, and it was back to reality and promising myself to finally stay on the wagon again. I was sad but happy at the same time, because now it meant that I had to really buckle down on my diet and nutrition choices again. Time to reject the talking cookies in Epicurean, looking the other way when at The Larder’s desert section, and telling my favourite Oreo cookies that we need some space in our relationship.

I was even more happy when my weigh in came that morning to discover that I lost a total of 7lbs! I have actually reached my goal weight now, so imagine if I did the 10-day cleanse. Would I do it again? Most definitely! Maybe next time around I’ll brave the 10-day storm and see what happens, till then I have to make it through Pumpkin Spice and Ham and Turkey season, stay tuned guys!

 

If you are interested in doing the green smoothie cleanse, please contact:
Nadia Peters (772-9705) FB Page: Blendz IG Page: blendz_on_the_go

 

 

 

 

Sip and Savour 2018!

Sip and Savour 2018!

So here we are you know who you are, my Generation X peeps!

It’s almost end of year, but didn’t 2018 just begin? Like seriously. I haven’t even begun to change the world and now over 40, I’m considered a “middle adult, who knew that was a thing? I’m only now getting the hang of vaping (if you don’t know what that is, check a Generation Z’ers blog) since my last vacation and the year is almost over.

Summer is done and that means Carnival and its bump and grind festivities have left us either in serious tabanca mode or sheer misery until 2019. So, I have been faced with this dilemma for quite some time, since entering my forties. Wow, that was so scary to type just now and I’m sure a lot of you have too, what in god’s name is there to do now?

Fete season is over…so where does that leave us the grown and sexy folk who still want to party and mingle on this island? I personally have had enough of the palancing and jamming once Carnival is over, (for the love of God done wid da soca!!). My metabolism isn’t what it used to be anymore and I can only take so much DJ screams, push back and “6:30” stances in my peripheral vision.

Last year I was invited to a relatively new event called Sip and Savor, held at the Wadadli Animal Park in Lyon’s Estate; I immediately licked my lips when I was informed this was a wine tasting event, (for me this translated to GROWN AND SEXY AFFAIR). Y’all know I don’t pass up an opportunity to clink my glass with some good wine. I was excited, but much to my dismay I was travelling and missed out.

 
So this year I decided that I was going hell or high water, and I was dragging my girlfriend with me, who might I add doesn’t get out much but neither do I. So we agreed that we were gonna do this, I could forefeit Netflix and my Firestick for one Sunday (couldn’t I?) YES!! I could, besides I didn’t cook and food was covered in my ticket and it meant that I could dress up and beat my face..lets go!

 
We arrived at the park around 4:30 pm, the event started promptly at 3 pm but who wants to open the gates? I like being fashionably late…needless to say that I am a shameless Antiguan as I had absolutely no idea where this venue was! I was however, pleasantly surprised when we arrived to see a large number of vehicles parked in a sloped field, I thought, “Dear God this may actually not be a waste of my Netflix time”.

 
As we got out of our vehicle my girlfriend is fussing over what shoes she should change into, meanwhile, I just wanna get my wine on! So we’re tagged and taxied up the massive hill (And thank goodness for that, Cause I’m not really about that life.  Upon entering the event, we were greeted by the soft serene stylings of Lacu Samuel’s steelpan. I thought, “This event has potential, definitely my kind of thing.

 
To set the scene, there were myriad tents throughout the area, each hosting different wine vendors and finger foods, (did I mention there was Sushi?…(Well will ya look at God!). The venue was already a nature park so the serene relaxing feel to it wasn’t that hard to achieve, park benches with patrons eating and relaxing had already been filled, and the draped coloured décor and stringed lights gave a soft ambiance to the day.

 
Paintings of various birds adorned the trees as we walked in, (again I’m shameless, so not sure if these were always there, or only for the event, but they were cute). We were like new kids on the block trying to feel our way around not really knowing where to start, this was our first time. I felt as if our parents dropped us off to daycare and now we were forced to survive until pickup time, but we got this!

 

Our first stop was the Saki Bar, hosted by Quin Farara, I knew once Quin and Lisa Farara were there this was going to be epic! And sure enough, when we got to the bar they had three different types of Saki and a Saki Sangria (Jesus sang to me.) We didn’t need to make a choice Saki Sangria it was and boy was it delicious! After we wolfed down the Saki Sangria we met a few acquaintances along the way, engaged in some much needed “catch up conversation” before realizing that everyone seemed to have a plate of food except us.

 
We began our line up at one of the tents for some delicious nibbles, much to our disappointment though we didn’t get as much as we anticipated. I’m thinking maybe we were a little too late and the nibbles at that tent ran out early, but that didn’t kill our spirit we were determined to find more food. We showed up at the desert station which had a variety of delicious sweet treats, they got me with the apple pie bites and caramel flan so I was already sold! (in the back of my mind I thought, it’s a good thing I’m going on a 7 day cleanse this week). “Damn these calories”

 
We later ventured off to the other side of the park where we saw other people lining up, and then the MC (Kenny Nibbs) introduced a young violinist from Barbados by the name of Wesley Morris on stage. I remembered seeing him on the flyer prior to and thinking (dear god please don’t let that violinist put us all to sleep). I had to literally eat my words, this 21 year old violinist was absolutely fantastic! People just couldn’t stop watching him, in no time everyone was at the front of the stage, his talent was simply amazing. I mean he played from Ed Sheeran to Machel Montana and many other artists, making us forget that we were hungry.

 
We realized that he was going to be playing for a while so we took a break and lined up again at a different tent that served heartier food, which was what we needed after more Saki and wine, “Ooh and we found more Sangria at another location as well” Once we ate our yummy pasta and seafood rice, we were back in front of the stage letting Wesley Morris soak into our veins.

I noticed that this was the type of event a lot of people our age (the Generation X folks) and Baby Boomers yearned for, everyone looked so happy to be out on a Sunday afternoon all dressed up, relaxing and soaking up the atmosphere. There was no loud DJ screaming, no Millenials with their hands on the ground, no one under the age of 30! We had finally found our calling! Sip and Savour gave everyone what they were looking for; serenity, relaxation, food, wine, conversation, entertainment, and most of all good clean fun.

As Morris played his very last set, while hunting for the last drop of Saki at Quin’s stall and swindling a glass of Moscato from a bartender, it was finally time to go! WHAT? Sigh…this cannot be; the day is over? For us it was, my girlfriend had to get home to her family and me, well, I just had to get home before I drank more wine than necessary!

 
Sip and Savour definitely met my expectations as a fairly new event. And I think that next year it will be even better, there are however, some areas that could use a bit of tweaking. Board menus on the outside of the tents so patrons can be aware of what’s available before lining up, more glasses, I also think that some more local entertainment should end the night, possibly some Asher Otto to end on a sultry party vibe. Antiguan’s party weird, I have been saying this for years, we just stand around and look at each other rather than get on with the show, sweat is good for the body, dancing doesn’t hurt and neither does a little Sip!

I know this was a little long, (but that’s how I do sometimes). I’m doing the most, let me do it!