Take Your Best Shot!

How hard can this be? Go online and search ... you will be surprised!

Take a very close look at the building and venture an answer regarding the location of the building. The thing is I know the area where this building was once located. The ‘look’ of the area for that period was amazing (from the photo). Give it your best shot! Leave your answers in the Comment section.

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Leave Trouble Alone!

Recently I posted an article entitled, "What Kinda Coffee is Dat?". Now as I was reviewing the note before posting it to the the blog I remembered a situation that is relevant to those who like to tease for no good reason. Yes I know I tease a lot in the WACK shout box but what most persons don't know is that it is done "with blessings" and most times done to start a discussion. However sometimes I just can't get over some folks ignorance and I do some solo runs - I have decided to stop this practice. Now back to the reason for this post and back to a time when I used to work in the Ministry of Works in Arima.

My first assignment was in the bridges section and that meant we were always out in the field.  Working in  the Highways and Bridges section  meant the work areas were not close to pipe born water most of the time. As a result women were hired as "Water Carriers" to provide drinking water to the workers on site. These water carriers, were mature women and if you know mature West Indian women they don't tolerate much nonsense from the men who always have something to say to the women for obvious reasons. They believed they had a right to say whatever they wanted to the women and  some of the guys in the gangs/workforces would sometimes tease the women for fun.  For those who don't know please take note that one should  never ever tease dem Trini Red Oman (De Pyol ones).

The women were hired and rotated on a five day basis. This woman who fetched the water and took it to the men working on the bridge was teased for the five days she worked on the site. Nothing foreman Reid said helped her cause - man those guys had fun teasing her. I felt bad for her but I was the new guy on the site and wanted to remain as neutral as possible. She was there for five days but I had to be there for the duration of the project. Well here is the deal at the end of her fifth day she declared: "Allyuh mother &#%#@&#  every bucket ah water allyuh drink from ah spit in it. F#@k all ah allyuh". I do apologize because this is not the type of story that will bring a smile to your face but pause for a moment and don't get too upset thinking about how unsanitary her deed was at that time. When you think about it some people deserve what they get in life but in this situation some innocent people also paid the price for the childish behavior of a few silly men who could not express their feelings differently. Maybe it is a lesson for all of us and one not to practice but to be aware that it is not good to hurt another person's feelings - gosh I need to take my own advice!

OMG, yuh had to be there to see the faces of the men who eventually 'cussed' the hell out of that woman.  She simply laughed and walked away with a dominant swagger that said, "I got you suckers". She was the topic of conversation at the 'water hole' (i.e. bar/rum shop) later in the evening since it was Friday and that meant it was time for Carib and Stag beers. Do you think that this experience stopped the men from teasing the water carriers who followed this insanely brave woman?  Leave a comment...

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Only in Trinidad Folks

Only in Trinidad and Tobago can you 'back back or reverse back ah car'! Hold on now so you never reversed back a car yet?  Tell me how will you ever explain these statements other that it is a cultural phenomenon and can only be termed 'Triniglish' (now this word was coined right here in Trinizagada eh).

Here is the situation that I have created for you to think about and explain. Now I know you clearly understand the statements as a born Trini but now you have to explain it all to a foreigner. In your presence is a tourist or some naive person who asks you to explain the meaning of 'reverse back' in the context of moving a car (literally) or as used by Explainer (calypsonian) when he said in song, "so ah drive in and reverse back, drive in and reverse back" (yuh know in and out). I am taking it for granted that you know the calypso in question. This is the one where he was such a gentleman and helped the young lady park her car in the garage (Park it). Yes he drove in (ahem, the car) and reverse back eh (lol- good luck!).  What would be your explanations? Please share your thoughts by using the comment option beneath instead of the shout box.

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"What Kinda Coffee is Dat?"

Coffee with a bite!

Many moons ago (please don’t ask, smile) I was employed with the Ministry of Works in Arima. The main office was located in a small building opposite the Arima Municipal stadium (“The Velodrome”). My first assignment was on the Blanchieusse road where one of the bridges collapsed. Not long after that assignment I was sent to work on the construction of the Bridge across the Arima River located on the Arima Old Road. This Bridge leads to the Arima Senior Comprehensive School and was an important link for the buses to get to the school. Ok so I was the “checker/costing clerk” who kept the records at the site; our foreman’s name was Mr. Julian Reid – a wonderful man. This is where I learned the ins and outs of Babash.

Harrilal Singh, a resident of Central Trinidad would bring the “coffee” as we called it because the guys working in the river area needed “something to warm up the insides”. We had this triangular piece of half inch steel that Clyde, our in house steel bender, designed that would act as our cow bell to call the guys in. More times that ever it was used to let the guys know that they could leave the water area and come up for some “coffee”. My first reaction to the "coffee" on initiation was, "what kinda coffee is dat?"- everyone broke out in  laughter! The only thing is that this “coffee”, if poured on a piece of lumbar and lighted would easily behave like gasoline – and it felt like fire rushing down your throat not because of heat but because of the alcohol content. Yes that was literally fire water. The concoction also had a unique scent that is typical of this home brew. Those were the good ole days and say whatever you want but that is how I feel about it - an indelible record that always brings about feel good moments in retrospect.

These memories and the need for a new name led me to select Babash as the new name for the previously named site Trini2DMarrow.vox.com. No silly remarks ok, that is not a “drunkard” site and we will continue with the discourse in the same manner. Babash now has a regal name to it as the local brew has been given the midas touch by Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy in association with Trinidad Distillers Limited and is being sold in the International community under the name 10 Cane Rum. This legal brew is only available at the duty free section at Piarco Airport but is easily available in the United States. The product is procuced in St. Madeline in South Trinidad and is made from the first press of the sugar cane and not brewed from molasses. What a "ting" indeed. Bush Rum that is, Babash has grown up and it took a French Company to see the light. Indeed the drink has a kick and lit up many lives back in the day. Now it has a regal price of US $31.00 (price I saw at a Manhattan liquor store). However, having said that please note that it is a little different from the original local brew. So when you think of Babash the drink or Babash the Blog think about the regal nature of 10 Cane 'Rum' - all the stars will be aligned just right. Oh and yes you can visit the Babash Blog too - http://babash.vox.com/. This may provide an incentive to do some posting there.

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Bring Back De Ole Time Days

Wow, indeed times have changed and it is a natural progression as people mature and technology pushes us to the limits making the World a village instead of a distant transatlantic journey. Nowadays we can quickly get up to date with the events as they happen as reported by the media of the World.  The savvy internet surfers can browse to any page with information about any country and come to the lime loaded with information as if they lived in that part of the World.

When I reminisce about the good ole days I recall having to watch TTT at nights (7:00pm to be exact) to know what happened.  Now CNN is available via satellite and cable channels on the island and easily accessed via the World Wide Web.  I used to walk to the corner shop early in the morning to buy the Guardian and Mirror (later on the Express) to get up to date with the news. Now I can read the Express, Guardian and Mirror newspapers online edition and but just as up to date as everyone at home. We listened to Radio Trinidad (Jim Sutherland and Rennie Bishop were must listen shows) and 610 Radio (Phil 'The Thrill' from Laventille) and later on 100FM. Technology has now afforded us the ability to listen to WACK radio 901 fm and many others streaming on the internet from the homeland even thought we reside in a foreign land. 'Back in the day' life was quiet and very relaxed.We awakened on mornings, got something to eat and headed out to the nearby liming spot where ‘the boys’ would gather to talk about just every thing imaginable.

We were at peace with the World and ourselves and we were only concerned about who had the bat and ball – it was cricket or raisin’ (soccer). We also liked playing checkers (draughs) and this would go on for hours interspersed with a mango chow session or someone getting rowdy and a mini fight to solve the problem. Fast forward to the climate today where kidnapping and shooting are the norm. Today d'lime is dead... No one is at the corners or gather simply to have a good time on the block. A gathering of guys any place could lead the police to believe that something else was taking place – times have changed indeed. People are also being ‘cut down’ by passing cars with gun toting assassins inside. One can be killed for simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time, this never happened during my youth.

I can recall going to the forest to get cocorite and to bathe in the river. We went in a group that had a good time and disturbed the forest with our jovial noises. I loved those days now that I see what has happened to the land because of progress. Progress you say, well this progress has teachers in fear of students and adults looking over their shoulders in fear of getting robbed. Can I write about all the good times that I experienced? Of course I could but those would be my experiences for the period that I was fortunate to be a part of. Somebody from this generation would counter with their experiences for this period. Of course they would write glowingly about how good these times were to them and depending on the circumstances of the day ask to 'bring back their ole time days'.

Here is just a short reminder of some of the things we did as kids:

Do you recall riding box cart and pelting mangos and using sling shots? Oh and one must not forget ‘stinking toe’ with donkey eye seeds, Chinee tamarind, Kite flying with the younger kids flying ‘chicky chungs’ and the teenagers flying ducking kites and playing zwill. Of course the mad bulls were in the hands of the adults because those kites could not be help by a young person – the pull was too much. Then there was ‘stick-em-up’ (Bonanza and Lone Ranger influences), liming on de corner, making and eating black ting (milo with powdered Klim and sugar), black poop (condense milk with Milo and sugar). Of course everyone wanted to play wind ball cricket or raising (football) on the street. I enjoyed going to the forest to get cocorite (the pink one was my favorite), balata and to bathe in the river. Everyone played card games but the adventurous kids played for bokey and that meant swollen fingers when you lost. One chore every kid hated was sweeping the mango leaves from the yard with cocoyea brooms – "fuss ah hated to do dat".

I can only reflect, watch what is happening today and conclude on account of my experiences, that my “ole time days” were so much better to have been a part of than the experiences of this highly technological society.  So sit back, relax and put on Nappy’s Ole Time Days and reflect on how wonderful our youthful experiences were – our youth is gone but surely we can continue to dream and remain young at heart.

Nappy Myers: Ole Time Days

Levi Myaz: Ole Time Days

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"Fruits of Trinidad and Tobago"

I have a list of fruits that we ate as children growing up in Trinidad. Some of the fruits may result with a “what is dat, me eh know dat” or “damn I remember dat”. I may not get them all but if you think I missed something please leave a comment to the post and I will update the list. I have also included a photo chart of fruits of Trinidad and Tobago. 

Some of the fruits found in Trinidad and Tobago:

Arrowroot -

Balata – Gosh so sweet... thumbs up for Balata.

Bananas including Mataboro – sweet especially if the birds start to eat them.

Bananas (Green) - Good for soups and for boiling and eating with salt fish (yummy).

Barbadine aka Granadilla - The taste of this drink always reminds me of Soursop

Breadfruit - Come on ah good 'oil down' or roasted... not considered poor people food anymore.



Black Sapote - Help needed with this one

Cacao (Cocoa) Pods - The pulp that surrounds the cocoa bean tastes good... Just try it (ripe ones please)

Cachima -

Caimite aka Caimito or Star Apple – I am drooling now – I love this fruit.

Carailli - Gosh bitter like hell but I liked (or should I say tolerated) eating it as I matured!

Cashew & cashew nut – Cashew was good for tying yuh tongue but the good ones were the ones the birds picked at, other than that the jam was really good. Cashew nuts, well now we could talk – loved roasting them and shelling and eating it right off the galvanize tray we roasted them on.

Chenette – a kids delight - too much work to enjoy this fruit if you ask me and most of the time they are not sweet!

Christophene -

Coconut - Especially the Chinese coconut variety that is really delicious (the green and yellow ones).

Coconut (Dry) - ideal for many recipes including sugar cake and the milk for callaloo etc.

Cherries – was not a lover of the cherries (yellow and red in color).

Cocorite – l loved going in the ‘forest’ to get cocorite. The one with the white pulp was nice but the jewel was the one with the pink flesh inside – yummy.

Custard Apple - This fruit is creamy inside with a very delightful taste.

Douns (Doung) – I ate it but can’t remember the taste. I believe it is also known as crabapple (not sure).Oh and they also call it 'coolie plum'.

Fat Pork – This fruit is also known as 'Coco Plum' I ate it but don’t know what people loved about this fruit.

Five Fingers (Star fruit or Carambola) – I was not a lover of this fruit.

Governor Plum (Flacourtia indica) - Dark purple when ripe

Garnicia - Help needed with this one

Grapefruits - When ripe these fruits are a treat! There is also the pink variety that for some reason we called 'shaddock'(I don't have a clue about the name but that is what I remember call it. My grandfather had a tree in his back yard next to an old latrine (man that tree produced so much sweet fruit). I guess the latrine helped – lol.

Gru Gru Bef (grugru bef) aka Banga fruit – Hard shell with a sticky delight inside.

Guava – Yes, as a youth I loved making guava jelly, guava jam and guava cheese eh... I had to boil the fruit outside in the yard on stones.

Hog Plum – Gosh yuh had to have ‘real belly to eat that’ – talk about sour!

Lime - a little lime juice to 'cut the freshness' from meat is a must!

Lemon - The smell and skin of this fruit always peeked my curisity - lemon juice is ok!

Mamisiporte - I don't recall eating this fruit but I heard so many people raving about the taste!

Mango – Now we talking, that was tea, breakfast and dinner. Curry mango, masala mango.

Mango (green) - ideal for curry

Oranges – Loved going to the country estate in Biche that was a treat eating the fruit picked from the trees.

Passion fruit – Had enough of this growing on our fence – delicious juice when served very cold.

Paw Paw (Papaya) – It was an acquired taste for me but now I just love eating it.

Portugals aka Potigal is a favorite fruit similar to mandarins

Peewah and Kerikel - I wasn't a lover of these/to each his own.This fruit is a member of the palm tree family and is also related to the gru gru that kids love so much.

Pineapple – Who doesn’t love pineapple?

Plums - I am talking about the regular plums that you find in the back yards of Trini homes. The green ones are great as a kid's desert with salt and 'bird peppers'. The ripe ones are yellow and are loved by the birds.

Pois Doux- This is a very unusual fruit but has a good taste to it... I doubt that it will be one that you would have a craving for though.

Pommecythre – If you don’t like pommecythre then something is really wrong with you. When they are ripe they are a delight and when pickled in salt water and pepper … exotic. Also known as June Plum and Golden Apple.

Pomegranate -

Pommerac – This fruit is known elsewhere as the Otaheite Apple (Maple Apple). They had to be really ripe to be enjoyed; some people craved it. I simply ate it if it was available but I was not a love of this fruit.


Primrose - The name is familiar but I can't recall the fruit

Sapodilla (Naseberry) – OMG so delicious.The outer color is brown and when ripe is so delicious.







Series (Ceres) – This is indeed a strange fruit. Purple in color when ripe; we used to roll them between our palms until soft then suck the content out - yes the good 'ole' days!

Shaddock - Better known as Pink Grapefruit

Stinking Toe – One of my favorite but not easy to pick from the tree.

Soursop (Guanabana) – The drinks were simply delicious served cold (with ice) on a hot day.

Sugar Apple – I can't recall eating this fruit; it is also known as Sweet Sop.

Sugar cane – Goes without saying – we love it!

Sorrel - Come on, christmas is not the same without sorrel.This fruit is also known as Roselle or Rosella fruit.

Tamarind (tambran) Chiney Tambran – Yummy - "Tambran sauce & Tramban balls". The 'Chiney tambran' is round and soft.

Tangerine - We like to call this fruit 'Potigal' (Portugal)

Tonka fruit,(Tanka) Bean – “Doh eat it or else you will get short breath” – yea right, I love eating tonka beans!

Tipitambo (Topi Tambo) - Is this a fruit? I thought you had to did it out of the ground? Hey but it is nice to eat!

Watermelon – But of course we love it.

Zaboca (Avocado) - I like the round ones that are like butter inside/put it in bread with a lil salt...now we talking.




If I missed any fruit or misrepresented any fruit here please leave a comment and I will adjust the posting. It was done to help us all recall the fruits we loved or did not like eating as children 'back in the day'!

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