Friday, September 15, 2017
arts books theatre film fashion music food gardening lifestyle
Weekend
RIHANNA ROCKS NYC Pages 14&15
Magical memories Growing up on Ragged Island Interview, pages 4&5 double data forever across all plans
from September 1, our plans are better than ever switch now and get double data forever bealiv.com
02 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, September 15, 2017
life through a lens
Irma unleashed the mother of invention
A
s Hurricane Irma streaked across the Atlantic on its way to making landfall, residents in the path of the monster storm scrambled to make preparations flocking to stores to buy food supplies, water and gas ahead of her unwanted arrival. And while many people had hurricane shutters or plywood at the ready to batten down the hatches, necessity was indeed the mother of invention for many others - who grabbed whatever materials were at hand to try secure their property as best they could. Their efforts were not in vain, Irma was the most intense Atlantic hurricane to strike the United States since Katrina in 2005, and the first major hurricane to make landfall in the state of Florida since Wilma in 2005. The ninth named storm, fourth hurricane, and second major hurricane of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season, Irma caused widespread and catastrophic damage throughout its long lifetime, particularly in parts of the northeastern Caribbean including Barbuda, Saint BarthÊlemy, Saint Martin, Anguilla and the Virgin Islands and the Florida Keys. As of September 14 the hurricane has caused at least 81 deaths including 43 in the Caribbean and 38 in the United States. While most of the Bahamas was spared the full burnt of the storm, the southern islands particularly Ragged Island were very hard hit. Here are a few examples shared on social media which shows just creative some people were in preparing for Irma’s arrival.
Have you taken a selection of photographs that might make a Life through a lens feature page? If so please submit it to weekend@ tribunemedia.net for consideration
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Friday, September 15, 2017
Inside Weekend Interview 4-5 Ragged Island memories
Art 7 Inside the world of artist Celeste Harding
Food 8-9 Let’s say it with - fruit
Lifestyle 10 A vision of life for young women
Theatre 11
Behind the scenes with the new Blue River Production Company
Fashion 12-15 Hit footwear from down Rio way, hits and misses at Toronto Film Festival and Rihanna rocks New York Fashion Week
Music 16 It’s back and heading our way - Unplugged 2
Books 17
My perfect Bahamian weekend Shayvonne Smith Online Boutique Owner Q. Saturday Brunch or Sunday Lunch? I would have to say Saturday Breakfast because I have insomnia so I look forward to an early breakfast. Q. Beach or Sofa? Beach because I can go there to relax Q. Rum, wine, cocktail or Kalick? I enjoy a glass of wine because it is light. Q. What is one thing that you cannot live without? I can’t live without my two Beta Fish. They are about two years old and they swim and help me sleep at night.” Q. Weekend away where would you go? “New York... I love Brunch at 11am and magic of the Big Apple”
Reviews of the latest releases
Things 2 Do this weekend
Lifestyle 18
Friday
Weekend’s own Jeffarah Gibson gets creative with pottery and paint
Gardening 19 Jack Hardy talks cucumbers and the perfect sandwich
Film 20-21 American Assassin - a new hero comes to the screen
Literary Lives 22-24 Jack Hardy, American diarist and his African adventures
Forgotten Facts 25
• Fusion Friday Time: 8pm Palm Cay Venue: Palm Cay Try a glass of your favourite: Belvedere Cocktail/ Veuve Clicquot Rich with entertainment by the XTRA Band • Summer Madness Time: 8pm Venue: The Dundas Centre for the Performing Arts Join James Catalyn and friends for a satirical take of things happening around the Bahamas Tickets $25
Hidden secrets of our street names
Saturday
Puzzles 26
• Farm to Table Pop Up Market Venue: Chickcharney Farms Looking for local produce, summer fruit, pastries and more, then visit the market. They will also serve their refreshing passion fruit Lemonade.
Take time out with the best brainteasers
Animals 27 Bahamas Humane Society comes of age, Pet of the Week
• Vita Malt presents: It’s Back to School Again Time: 11am-4pm Venue: Royal Bahamas Police Force Headquarters, East Street Take the kids to this free event which includes school supplies, hair cuts for boys, hair braiding for girls, bouncing castle, water slides, cotton candy, popcorn, hot dogs and Vita Malt
• Virgo: White and Black Time: 9pm-2pm Venue: Celebrity Status East Bay Street Virgo season is here. The Biggest black and white birthday party of the season is back and for the special Zodiac it’s free.
• Mexican Independence Day Time: 8pm Venue: Senor Frogs Restaurant Come and enjoy a real Mexican Fiesta all you can eat for $24.99. Margaritas are $5 and Macho Cuervo shots are two for the price of one.
• Summer Madness Time: 8pm Venue: The Dundas Centre for the Performing Arts Join James Catalyn and Friends for a satirical take of things happening around the Bahamas Tickets $25 • Super NFL Sundays Time: 1pm-11pm Venue: Jimmy Buffet Margaritaville Margaritaville is The spot for he NFL season Watch the game on a huge 14ft screen Beer & Margarita specials galore Delicious Appetizers
• Summer Madness Time: 8pm Venue: The Dundas Centre for the Performing Arts Join the cast for a satirical take of things happening around the Bahamas Tickets are $25
Sunday
04 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, September 15, 2017
interview As residents of Ragged Island struggle to accept the devastation Hurricane Irma caused to their tiny home, Edkeira Curling the granddaughter of one of the island’s oldest residents tells Cara Hunt just why the island of her ancestors is so special and why she launched a gofundme page to help with its rebirth.
Edkeira Curling
T
o many people Ragged Island may be just one of the small islands mentioned when talking about the Southern Islands of the
Bahamas. But to the residents who call it home and their descendants, the tiny dot on the map is really the jewel of the Bahamas island chain. Last week the island was decimated when Hurricane Irma slammed through it packing category 5 winds which left the island unliveable. All of its residents (under 100 in total) were asked to evacuate ahead of the monster storm and the handful who remained have now also been asked to leave until the government can formulate a plan to rebuild the vital infrastructure and homes to make it safe for them to return. Seeing the destruction and hearing about the stench of the dead animals left behind during the storm has been a hard blow for most people to swallow, especially persons like Edkeira Curling whose connection with the island is centuries deep. “I am the daughter of James Edgar ‘Tycoon’ and Bevvie Curling, granddaughter of the late Ricardo and Louise Curling,” Edkeira told Tribune Weekend. “My father was born and raised on Ragged Island along with his 12 siblings, two of whom are deceased. My grandmother has lived in Ragged Island for 92 years and in a month, it will be 93 years. She would leave the island for a week or two at a time, but you better believe she would complain and complain until she’s back at her home, sitting on her porch in Ragged Island with some relatives, plaiting straws
“A home is not a place we run from when there’s a problem, instead we come together and find a way to fix it.” referred to as top strings, not to forget the cool breeze while overlooking the ocean and salt pond. Her plaits made from top strings were handpicked by her children, where they had to go and pull from one of the nearby cays. Our grandmother is such a phenomenal woman in that she was and still is able to tell which Cay the strings are pulled from, either Racoon Cay, Maycock Cay, Nurse Cay, and/or anyone of the other cays.” As a child growing up in Nassau, Edkeira was left enchanted by stories of island life and her father’s childhood, so different from her own.”As a baby, my parents took me to Ragged Island to visit my grandmother, which I don’t have many memories of, but growing up my siblings and I would always hear the stories of my dad and what he went through as a child growing up there. It was a constant reminder of how fortunate we were by living in the city, Nassau. Not to forget the feeding of the goats, where one had to get food in the bush before attending school and after school.
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Friday, September 15, 2017
“Daily, they had to retrieve water from the well, bring it home to bathe, do the dishes, wash clothes...etc, in which the well wasn’t close at all. There wasn’t cable television nor internet nor cell phones, so it was either you learn to cook, clean or work by going in the boat to catch fish, conch, and/or crawfish, clean them, and properly store to be sent to Nassau to be sold to make a living for the family. Since my dad was so stern with the rules he had to follow growing up, it was only right for him to pass it on to us. “Years later, I now reside in the US but I want the same thing for my children. I want them to know the struggle and fight their grandparents went through to get us to where we are today. Life isn’t about handouts, rather it’s learning to fend for yourself. My daughter is only 18 months, therefore her recent experience was mainly bonding with my grandmother and my family in Ragged Island by spending time there, but in the future I do hope for her visits to be learning experiences of how to get things done with only the items on the island instead of always having everything she needs and wants at her fingertips.” It is that very work ethic and discipline that she feels will help residents rebuild, something she is hopeful will happen as soon as possible. And she says that she does not support the view of many, that perhaps the island - given it’s location in an active hurricane pathway and small population - should not be rebuilt. “The thought of relocation doesn’t exist to my family that lives in Ragged Island. It doesn’t exist to the children and grandchildren of my family that was born and raised there. Outsiders would never understand unless they have been there or encountered an experience with someone that is from Ragged Island. A home is not a place we run from when there’s a problem, instead we come together and find a way to fix it.” Edkeira passionately explained to Tribune Weekend just how special the island is. “Ragged Islanders may be small in number but for sure we don’t fall short in talent,” she said. “Ragged island has produced some of the best doctors, lawyers, captains, nurses, fisherman, businessmen, accountants, teachers, pilots and dentists, just to name a few. Parents did everything they can to give their children a better opportunity than they had growing up. Therefore the population
doesn’t matter, but the quality of people derived from there does. Aside from the people, Ragged Island is unique for its salt industry where a person could walk up to the salt pond and get a bag of natural salt right there on the spot. “The people of Ragged Island are natural born go-getters as they learned from a young age how to be creators and survivors. Some of the life experiences our parents had to go through made a life, we, their children will forever be grateful and thankful for. What is so interesting is that we are each unique in our own ways. You can almost always tell a person from Ragged Island, not only because our last names either end in Curling, Lockhart, Moxey, Wallace, Munroe or Wilson but because we are very humble people. Each of our ancestors had very humble beginnings, teaching their children right from wrong, teaching girls how to be ladies and boys how to be men. And of course I can’t forget, we Ragged Islanders know how to have a good time.” All of this has inspired Edkeira to create her Go Fund Me Page which up to yesterday had raised almost $5,000 in just two days. “After seeing all the pictures and videos of the
lost and damaged homes and buildings, I just wanted to jump on something quick to help my family,” she said. “While the pictures and videos were making it around the world, people would have an opportunity to help by clicking the link attached to them. Naturally people are quick to respond positively and quickly to nationwide disasters if they are given an option to, which is what I wanted to provide them with. The response I received from everyone has been outstanding and much heartfelt. It only takes one person to start, and everyone to follow through. I realize that nothing will happen overnight, but over time, I do see my Go Fund ME page as the start to something great. “Fortunately, my family is a group of God-fearing and determined individuals. While some did take the opportunity to evacuate the island before the storm hit, there were some who stayed back for personal reasons. Of course we are all emotional about the devastation that has occurred but there is no lost hope. We are all in high spirits, our faith has grown stronger, and we are all geared up to start the clean up and rebuilding process of Ragged Island.”
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Friday, September 15, 2017
section
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Friday, September 15, 2017
art
Mixing materials blows your mind By JEFFARAH GIBSON Tribune Features Writer jgibson@tribunemedia.net
F
or up-and-coming visual artist Celeste Harding, creating art has evolved into a process far beyond choosing what colors to use on canvas. Since she has been developing her collection of mix-media art items such as glass, marble, tissue paper and shells are used heavily in her work. When growing up on Long Island resources at Celeste’s high school were limited, so she was only exposed to basic art practices including graphite, acrylic paint, oils and colouring pencil, all of which are two dimensional. When she moved to Nassau in December 2011 to begin spring semester at The College of The Bahamas, now (University of the Bahamas) to pursue an Associates of Arts Degree she became exposed to three dimensional art, ceramics and sculpting which she has grown to love.
“The ability to manipulate actual objects into whatever I want to is absolutely amazing, it blew my mind when I was first learning and still does to this day. You start off with a ball of clay and can mold it into whatever you want; cups, plates, an unknown shape, whatever you wish; it is somewhat magical. Sculpture with mixed material can allow you to take a material and manipulate it to represent anything. For example, take eggshells and combine them to create the shape of an anvil and it suddenly seems durable,” she told Tribune Weekend. Most of Celeste’s art is aquatic based and influenced from her time growing up on Long Island. While there she accompanied her father who is a fisherman on his trips out to sea. It has had a large influence on her art. “The sea is just astounding to me, it has so much animal life,” she said. “Most people only focus on the large animals we see often like turtle, dolphin, fish and crab. I prefer to focus on the animals that can only be seen if you bother to really look at a reef; the coral. Vibrant, living coral. Coral play
a major role in our ecosystem being a feeding ground for most of the larger animals and coral reefs are major in assisting to break up storms and protecting our coasts. Underwater tends to capture me, like a whole other world just with water as their atmosphere. It is so interesting,” she said. Celeste is currently a pottery attendant at Atlantis and helps to influence what art practices take place at the Earth & Fire Pottery Studio. “I absolutely love my job. I either paint or I teach others how to paint, it is an amazing job. Lately I have been able to really show off my art skills and even shock myself a little. Our department also runs the store “Atlantis Pals,” which is our version of ‘build a bear’ and it needed a little ‘pickmeup’ so I voiced the idea to paint an underwater mural on the wall and they agreed. This mural was my very first one so I was a bit nervous but also excited to attack a new road.” Atlantis recently had it’s employees participate in a mural competition about the islands of The Bahamas. Celeste and her team were tasked with
creating a mural of Rum Cay one of the smallest islands that make up the archipelago. “Rum Cay is so small no one was really sure what to include in this mural but they made me art marshall so I did my research and accumulated some awesome facts about the island. We thought long and hard about what other aspect of art we can bring other than painting and we decided to add glass to show off our crystal clear waters. In the end we went home the winners of the competition. My second mural ever in life and we won. This was a major personal accomplishment for me as an up and coming Bahamian artist,” she said. “I always believe no matter what art you do, for yourself or for your job, never stop pushing the limits, never stop learning. “My goal is to never stop creating and constantly push myself. I want to make my art known worldwide but never forget where I started. Keeping culture in my art is very important to me, whether I boldly use it or use the aura of it, it will feel Bahamian.”
08 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, September 15, 2017
food
Say it with - fruit!
By CARA HUNT cbrennen@tribunemedia.net
W
hen Christina Kemp started her fruit basket gift business she was more interested in bringing people a bit of happiness than in the bottom line. “Never start a business to make money, start a business to make a difference,” the owner of Fruit Haven told Tribune Weekend. The business was started in June last year just for the “fun of it” and with a very simple premise. “Fruit Haven started from a desire to make a difference and a love of the culinary arts. Through the years, I had looked at floral arrangements and I always thought that something more could be done. Flowers die and fruit baskets are boring yet practical,” she said. Christina said that she wanted to take the basic concept of fruit baskets and make it more personalised and creative. “I had seen other fruit basket arrangements, but customers were not
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Friday, September 15, 2017
given the option to include the things that they like,” she explained. “We started doing fruit arrangements for my co-workers just for the fun of it. I was getting so many rave reviews that I started thinking maybe I can make sending fruits the new flowers. “June 2016 was my first trial run when we started a Father’s Day promotion which was very successful.” Since then Christina says the business has grown by leaps and bounds - so much so that it is now a full-time operation. “It’s a home based business and our arrangements can be ordered for birthdays, anniversaries, church functions or as a thank you gift for males or females. “Our most successful arrangement has been the tropical fruit display for
weddings, parties and in hotels. The Tropical Island display is used instead of or in addition to a candy table for a healthy alternative,” she explained. “I have also experimented with the conch shell and we would also like to do more conch shell arrangements. “We require one to two days notice depending on the size of the arrangement,” she added. Currently, Fruit Haven can also provide services to Abaco as well. Christina’s sister Monalisa Rutherford handles orders on that island. Moving forward, she said that she and her sister “are looking forward to expanding Food Haven into Freeport, Grand Bahama and other major Bahama Islands and across the world.” “I pray every day for vision, insight ideas and divine connection, the sky is the limit,” she says.
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Friday, September 15, 2017
charity
Sapphire shines with a vision for life “We want these young ladies to understand the importance of writing their God ordained vision.”
By ALESHA CADET Tribune Features Writer acadet@tribunemedia.net
U
NDER THE theme “Powered By Vision” the Sapphire International Girls Club is gearing up to host its second annual
conference. The event was initially scheduled to have taken place last Friday but was postponed due to Hurricane Irma. The festivities will now kick off on Saturday, November 4 at the Holy Cross Anglican Church Hall, Soldier Road. Doors are set to open at 2.30pm with food and drinks on sale. Rather than seeing the delay as a setback Sapphire International Girls Club Founder Cheryl Knowles said the postponement has given the team an opportunity to add a few more exciting and empowering features to the event. She says the aim of this year’s girls conference is to have all attendees leave with an understanding that having a vision for their lives will determine their destiny. “We want these young ladies to understand the importance of writing their God ordained vision. By this we not only included some dynamic speakers but we’re giving attendees hands-on training to pursue their vision. We have so many young ladies and men who are walking the streets daily without a clue of what their vision in life is. We at the Sapphire International Girls Club are obedient to the voice of God and aim to impart this year’s theme into the lives of young people during this crucial time in our country,” said Ms Knowles. Highlights of the event will include performances and appearances by The Virtuous Dance group, DJ Godson, Avalanchee, Peter Runks and speakers Brunay Clarke, Sherika Brown and Ghandi Thompson. “We open this event to young ladies of all ages because the importance of having a purpose, vision, character, and living Holy are things that are needed in our society today. These topics contribute to the betterment of the family and community at large, and our prayer is that each individual who attend our conferences leave with
Cheryl Knowles and The Sapphire Girls Club
something that will change their life in a positive way. This conference is also geared towards assisting young ladies who have experienced abuse of any kind. We are here to help cultivate them, build their self-esteem and love,” said Ms Knowles. Apart from the upcoming conference, the Sapphire International Girls Club have kept busy with the organisation’s etiquette, public speaking and liturgical dance training classes. Recently celebrating three years in existence, the team hosted a Royal Tea Party where club member Madison Gibson was awarded most outstanding student for the 2016/2017 term. This summer, members took on and enjoyed their first mission trip as a group to Great Harbour Cay in the Berry Islands where they all participated in the annual Youth Summer Fest. The Club is scheduled to also host numerous events throughout this month including a Mother-Daughter Fitness Challenge and a Sapphire Moms Day-Away. “Throughout the years we’ve received heartfelt responses from parents, supporters and club members. As simple as it may seem, to teach a young lady how to position herself with confidence at a dinner table, speaks volumes of her character. This is the type of response we receive throughout our sessions,” said Ms Knowles.
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Friday, September 15, 2017
theatre
Taking heartbreak and hope to the stage By ALESHA CADET Tribune Features Writer acadet@tribunemedia.net
T
HE BAHAMAS theatre world is about to raise the curtain on the debut production by a brand new company and first-time playwright. Blue Rivers Production company takes to the stage next month with their very first play entitled “All of Me” written by Bahamian woman Michaella Forbes. The action will commence at the Dundas Theatre, Mackey Street, on Friday October 27 - Saturday October 28, beginning 8pm. Michaella tells Tribune Weekend the emotional drama centers around a young woman, who at a young age openly gives her heart to her best friend with the hope they would be married and live happily ever after. Unfortunately and all too soon, her heart is broken and her dreams are crushed. “She tries to put the pieces of her life back together and attempts to start a new relationship, but it proves to be a struggle. She is torn between what her heart wants, what she thinks is the right thing to do, and what others want her to do. Eventually, she has to face some things from her past in order to completely discover who she really is and embrace a positive future,” said Michaella. Inspired by a combination of Michaella’s real life stories and the personal experiences of other women around her, the writer expressed that many persons are known to experience heartbreak in one form or another - but the beauty is the strength discovered in the midst of the pain. A seasoned actress in the country, Michaella took part and performed in shows such as: “For Colored Girls” and “A Woman’s Lot” by Ringplay Productions and “It Takes Two” and “Til Death Do Us Part” for Real Laugh Network along with numerous church productions. With Blue Rivers Production she is dedicated to creating unique, quality productions with a vision that extends beyond the performing arts stage - to film and television.
Michaella Forbes
Michaella describes the whole experience of developing “All of Me” as surreal. Recalling the night she decided to put pen to paper, Michaella said the characters in her head would not let her sleep. “Even though I am new to most aspects of producing and directing a play, I have faith that it will all come together because I love the world of fine arts. The overall goal for the stage play is to show how God can turn your
mess, such as like a broken heart or relationship, into a message. It can help you become who He wants you to be. This play also touches on issues such as jealousy, anger, heartbreak, redemption and forgiveness,” said Michaella. The nine cast members who make up “All of Me” are: Taniqua Fowler, Gayle Barrows, Nicole Musgrove, April Penn, D’eangelo Brown, Rashad Ferguson, Kadesh Collie, Ricardo Saunders and Michaella playing a sup-
porting acting role as the mother of the lead character. “ It’s a good mix between seasoned and first-time actors. The cast describes the experience as being a beautiful and enjoyable one, and they hope to do their characters justice,” said Michaella. Tickets at a cost of $25 are available online at Eventbrite.com or via phone contact 376-6900.
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Friday, September 15, 2017
fashion
Earth friendly foot wear touches down in the Bahamas Step into Brazilian beach style
S
amba Sol, the eco-friendly Brazilian-based flip flops, debuted in The Bahamas stopping shoppers in their tracks at a pop-up event in Sabrina’s upscale boutique nestled within the Lyford Cay Shopping Centre. Inspired by the sun and the beach, Samba Sol flip flops are made with 100 percent recycled, biodegradable Brazilian rubber called Bio Rubber, which decomposes in five years, compared with the 700 years it takes synthetic rubber to give back to the earth. “Samba-Sol is a perfect fit for The Bahamas,” said company spokesperson Beau Beasley, who splits his time between Nassau and Miami. “Biodegradable consumer products produce far less pollution. They aren’t clogging up landfill sites. So it’s a way for The Bahamas to do its part in the global effort to recycle and reuse material. Samba Sol is helping Mother Earth one fashionable step at a time.” He added: “It’s an easy, breezy lifestyle brand which ties effortlessly into that laid-back island way of life we all love.” Sabrina Lightbourn owner of the eponymous boutique expressed similar sentiments. “These flip flops are perfect for our island lifestyle and I love when fashion, comfort and consumer responsibility combine into one.” Local resorts have been eyeing Samba Sol flip flops as a natural fit for their trendy souvenir stores and hotel swag bags, that is, complimentary gifts to their elite guests. In fact, Mr Beasley had just filled an order for one major resort on the Cable Beach strip and was in “productive discussions” with several others.
Beau Beasley
“Hotels and our corporate clients love Samba Sol because it is customisable, we’re able to place their name or logo on the product, and it’s a genuinely thoughtful way to show appreciation,” he said. “Our quality flip flops are so comfortable and durable they become a
wardrobe staple so it’s the perfect way to stay on your client’s mind with every step they take.” A unique way for the brand to engage with existing clients and potential customers, Mr Beasley expects to produce more pop-up experiences for the public to enjoy at upscale
boutiques around New Providence, Abaco and Harbour Island, both for Samba Sol and for the resort wear clothing line Ramona LaRue by Arianne. “The feedback so far has been tremendous in generating a lot of buzz,” said Mr Beasley.
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Friday, September 15, 2017
fashion The Weekend Fashion Report Toronto International Film Festival
With Cara Hunt and Farah Gibson
HIT
SPLIT
HIT
FAIL
Kate Winslet
Caitlin Carver
Mckenna Grace
Rachel McAdams
Cara says - “I am always a fan of simple, elegant black and white and this dress is no exception. It is perfect for Kate and she looks fantastic. I love the simple but effective beading at the waist and neckline.” Farah says - “Kate played it safe, maybe too safe with this white and black A-line dress. Nevertheless she does look refreshing.”
Cara says - “So this dress also has that same lingerie affect as Rachel’s in a similar light and airy pastel fabric. But I have to say I like this one. The sleeves are not that bad, Farah. I am also loving her sleek pony tail. Farah says - “What. The. Hell!! Why did she make this selection? From the neck up Caitlin looks fabulous but once your eyes move pass her decolletage everything beyond that point becomes confusing. The sleeves on the dress are the most hideous things I have ever seen. Some trends just need to remain where they were and that’s history.”
Cara says - “McKenna is a cutie. This dress is interesting even if the print reminds me of old curtains. And look at the little Victorian collar. Over all it’s sweet dress. What I love the most about this look are her adorable little shoes.” Farah says - “This has to be one of the most age appropriate looks I have ever seen on the Red Carpet. I love the floral pattern, it plays up Mckenna’s youth and girlishness. And even though she is wearing a bit of make-up, it did not mature her too much. She’s definitely classy and sassy. No wonder her last name is Grace - she wears it and this
Cara says - “The shade of this dress is lovely, but I just get that nightwear vibe when I look at it. It lacks structure and has to much lace and too many cutouts. I like the lingerie look as much as the next fashionista, but this is a no for me.” Farah says - “I don’t hate this dress and I don’t love it. It reminds look of those dresses usually worn on baby dolls, not so sure that is a good thing. The colour of the dress is beautiful though.”
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Friday, September 15, 2017
music
Charisa
Dyson Knight
Lexx
M Deez
Patrice Murrell
Puzzle
Wendi
Sammi Star
Sanjardo B
Rik Carey
Twin Dem
Sketch
Unplugged 2 - back in action in memory of lost founder By ALESHA CADET Tribune Features Writer acadet@tribunemedia.net
A
HYPE compilation of Bahamian artists are set to come together at the National Beach Soccer Stadium on Friday, October 13t to present what promoters are calling “ Unplugged 2” - the ultimate best of the best musical showcase in the country. Now for those Bahamians who travel to Miami Florida for the city’s annual Memorial Day Best of The Best Reggae and Dancehall concert, these readers would have a clear idea of the entertaining lineup and highlights that come along with the festival. There are artists hitting the stage moments after each other; there is dancing, a representation of caribbean flags waved in the air, food, and drinks all night long. While Unplugged 2 will
be no different, this event is also near and dear to organisers as it will be held in memory of the late Clarence Nataniel Williams, a Sound and Recording Engineer. On October 5, 2010 nine men died when a Cessna aircraft, headed for San Salvador for the Discovery Day weekend festival, crashed into waters at Lake Killarney. Within this group of persons was “ Nat Williams”, a music visionary whose goal was to promote Bahamian music to the world. His work with Bahamian artists such as Visage, Fred Ferguson, Shaback, Fam Records and many more left a mark on the local music industry that many believe should not be forgotten. “The year before he died, we worked together to produce the first Unplugged Concert Series, which was monumental for artists of the time. Now almost ten years later we seek to revive the concert series and use all the funds to build a scholarship fund in his honour for young Bahamians who
will be attending University to study music and film production,” said an Unplugged coordinator. Backed by a live band, the Unplugged 2 lineup will include names like: Wendi, Mdeez, Keeya, D Mac, Dyson Knight, Rik Carey, Fred Ferguson, Sammi Star, Charisa, Patrice Murrell, Willis Knowles, Puzzle, Sleepy Lexx, Twindem, and Sanjardo B. Tickets are now on sale at a cost of $10 and $5 for College students with identification. Showtime is set to kick off at 8:30 pm. “We are just a couple friends who were all like brothers to Nat and we just want to honour him and show that we are not letting the dream die. We want people to always remember him and what he was about. It was always planned to do one every year but after he died it fell off. It was initially his idea and we want to make sure Bahamian artists have a stage to perform on because a lot of times big artists come to the country and they set up big
stages and concerts for them but when it’s a Bahamian concert you can see the difference in the quality. The whole purpose of this show is to give them a chance to perform their music on a big stage of quality,” said the coordinator. The team urged readers not to be afraid to patronize or doubt the quality of the show, as it will be no different than attending a show with international headliners. “We are going all out there to make this show comfortable and classy as possible. I think we have one of the best locations possible in the country right now. I would encourage persons to come out in their sandals and flip flops because it is going to be that kind of relaxed vibe. One of our partners are the Movi Group so they are going to be working along with us with sound and lighting. It is going to be pretty and just an entirely beautiful and spectacular show, something you don’t want to miss,” said the coordinator.
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Friday, September 15, 2017
books
review
Rushdie crafts a new modern masterpiece “THE GOLDEN HOUSE” Random House Salman Rushdie
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F you read a lot of fiction, you know that every once in a while you stumble upon a book that transports you, telling a story full of wonder and leaving you marveling at how it ever came out of the author’s head. “The Golden House’ is one of those books. The title refers to the lower Manhattan residence of the Golden family. It’s the home of Nero and his three sons, Apu, Petya and D. The narrator is a neighbor named Rene, an aspiring filmmaker who realizes the Goldens have a story to tell. And what a story. With a patriarch named Nero, it’s a tale borne of tragedy doomed to end with even more, but Salman Rushdie grounds it in realism, setting it against contemporary politics and
Bittersweet farewell to Bette Davis “MISS D & ME: LIFE WITH THE INVINCIBLE BETTE DAVIS” Hachette Books Kathryn Sermak with Danelle Morton
BETTE Davis battled studio bosses, husbands and rivals during her long acting career, establishing a tough persona in real life to match her enduring Hollywood image. She would need all that strength when she faced illness in her final years, knowing that she could achieve a dark victory by meeting death on her terms. Her personal assistant during much
of that time, Kathryn Sermak, depicts a lioness in winter in her memoir, “Miss D & Me: Life With the Invincible Bette Davis.” The actress, in her 70s, still showed some bite in dealing with family feuds and the demands of stardom even as she suffered from cancer and a stroke. Davis (1908-89) found solace in activity, especially acting. “People will leave you,” she told Sermak more than once, “but your work will always stand by you.” She wrote another book and, amazingly, appeared on camera a few more times, most notably for “The Whales of August” in 1987. Sermak had come into Davis’ life in 1979, a 22-year-old ingenue hired for the summer who was to learn how an aging movie star lived — this particular movie star, anyway. Davis accommodated her celebrity by pleasing fans and shrugging off criticism. When a tabloid featured an unflattering photo-
culture. The year is current, but instead of Donald Trump, Americans elect “The Joker” — “his hair green and luminous with triumph.” There are plots that center around the Bombay mafia, terrorism and gender identity, and enough film references to stump even the most ardent cinephile. Rushdie plays with narrative forms throughout as well — from Rene’s first-person account to character monologues to entire scenes imagined as a screenplay, complete with stage directions. If that sounds like a recipe for a jumbled mess, it’s not. The narrator is never gone for long and his voice is so original and the story so propulsive that all the references and storytelling forms feel organic, not forced. “I rued the day when I allowed myself ... to be drawn into the orbit of the Golden house ...” writes Rushdie as Rene, “After Hubris comes Nemesis: Adrasteia, the inescapable. ... To be untrue to thyself, youth!, that is the highest treason. Even the strongest fortresses can be taken by a siege. And the sky that we look upon may tumble and fall, and a mountain may crumble to the sea.” Each turn of the page adds another piece to the unfolding puzzle. Slowly, Rushdie relates the backstory of Nero and reveals the fates of his sons, all the while ensnaring his narrator in the story. The final image, of a spinning camera circling the survivors, is dizzying, a fitting end to a novel that tackles more than a handful of universal truths while feeling wholly original. ROB MERRILL Associated Press graph with the headline “Bette Davis doesn’t give a damn how she looks!” the two-time Oscar winner advised her assistant, “Remember that it is always the best food that the birds pick at.” Davis had her way of doing things. In a hotel room she would re-arrange the furniture and add personal photos to the decor. She spent hours trimming shrubbery around a rented house to make it just so. The mercurial Miss D also decided to play Pygmalion, grooming Sermak to become a young lady with the poise and discretion befitting her position. That meant learning how to dress appropriately, project her voice, choose the right fork at meals and even change the spelling of her first name to make it more distinctive. Miss D’s criticism hurt at times, yet Sermak realized that graduating from the Bette Davis finishing school had its advantages for
a woman of her generation. She also learned a lot about the movie business. Life on Davis’ terms included her trademark cigarettes; it’s hard to imagine her without a curl of smoke in the air. During a fire drill at a hotel she sent Sermak back to their room for her cigarettes. They were bound to kill her one way or another. Davis continued smoking after her cancer surgery and stroke — and after she suffered second-degree burns from a smoldering mattress. Poignant with touches of humor, “Miss D & Me” is a fitting fade-out for an actress who made it look easy to stay tough. Davis chose the epitaph for her tomb at Forest Lawn Hollywood: “She did it the hard way.” Yet Sermak’s book brings to mind a different Davis reflection that her fans will find more perceptive with each passing year: “Old age ain’t no place for sissies.”
The Tribune | Weekend | 19
Friday, September 15, 2017
gardening PHOTO/JAMES PETTS
The perfect bite
Major Cucurbits Jack Hardy in praise of the perfect cucumber sandwich and other cucurbits
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ucumbers, squashes, pumpkins, gourds, melons and christophenes are collectively referred to as Cucurbits. They all share the habit of vinous growth, quick production, and an early death. Treat your Cucurbits well because they will not be around for long. The quintessential Cucurbit is the cucumber, a gourmet delight since Roman times. A cucumber sandwich is wonderful when done right. The bread must be white and light and heavily buttered. Add a layer of unseasoned, unsalted razor-thin cucumber slices. Trim off the bread crusts and cut the
sandwich into triangles. Simple but sensational. In other applications the humble cucumber relishes the addition of vinegars and Nordic herbs – especially dill. Invariably used uncooked, cucumber imparts a stronger taste than one might expect. I do not recommend the addition of cucumber to conch salad but some people enjoy it. I find the cucumber taste dominates the whole dish. Cucumbers can be quick-pickled for an hour or so and be both crunchy and tasty on your burger bun or as a side addition to hundreds of healthy meals. Cucumbers need lots of space to roam in the garden unless you use Patio type seeds that produce short vines. The size of the cucumber is the same as long vines. All Cucurbits – and especially cucumbers – need good drainage. Prepare a circular area in your garden about 18” in diameter and mix compost or cured animal manure with the soil. When you have finished mixing you will have a slightly raised ‘hill’ perfect for cucumber production. Plant three seeds in an equilateral triangle about 8” apart. Water the area well until seedlings appear and then spray with Miracle-Gro. Sprinkle the hill with 6-6-6 granular when the vines are established. Cucurbits produce both male and female flowers and both are necessary
for successful fruiting. If you only grow one or two hills you may find that when a female flowers appears there are no open male flowers around to provide pollination, even though there plenty the day before. That’s what we gardeners call frustration. If both male and female flowers are present but bees are absent you must do the bees’ job of assisting pollination. Dab a Q-Tip on the centre of the male flower and then on the centre of the female flower. If all goes well the small fruit at the base of the female flower will swell and quickly become a recognisable cucumber. Within a week the fruit will be ready to pick. Do not let cucumbers get too big because flavour suffers and the seeds turn large and hard. When the spines on the cucumber skin can be brushed off with a light sweep of the fingertips, the cuke is ready to pick and use. Summer squashes, including zucchini, are also grown in hills but should have only one plant per hill. Sow three seeds, however, and remove the silver and bronze. As for cucumbers, remove the squash fruits early before large seeds have developed. Winter squashes have much thicker skins than summer squashes and drier flesh. This allows them to be stored for much longer and hence their name. By far the best producer of all the winter
squashes is Butternut. When it comes to native dishes it is pumpkin that dominates the Cucurbits. The ideal pumpkin for savoury soups is the Cuban Calabaza. Buy a half or quarter slice of Calabaza from the store after checking that the seeds are large and plump. Allow the seeds to dry for a week or so and then plant them in an area that is fairly fertile and has room for the massive vines to wander. Not every garden can accommodate a Calabaza pumpkin. The seeds should be sown singly at least 8’ apart. Unlike cucumbers and squashes, pumpkins require full maturity for full flavour. Watermelons have completely different cultivation requirements from other melons so we discuss them later in the season. The other melons – Cantaloupe, Rock, Musk, Honeydew – can be grown in large containers (5 gallon or more) if you are short of garden space. They are not tropical fruits so you need to choose their sowing time wisely, late winter and springtime being the best option. A Christophene, called Chayote or Mirliton outside of the Caribbean, looks like a cross between avocado and squash. The fruits grow on rampant vines that need considerable support, a chain link fence being ideal. The problem is getting the initial mature seed, which is very large. Any Christophenes in the food store will be somewhat immature and the seed will likely not be viable. Christophenes can be eaten raw or cooked and is much used in authentic Mexican cuisine. Whatever Cucurbits you grow there will be an inevitable process of events. The seedlings and early growth have beautiful leaves and make your veggie garden look pretty and productive. It is about the time when flowers are produced that the foliage begins to show stress. Yeasts, funguses and mildew all attack the vine leaves and our climatic conditions are very conducive to their growth. What to do? I use Daconil as a preventative spray but I am not always happy with the results. Some experienced gardeners swear by spraying the leaves with milk, using powdered milk as the base. Probably it is best to accept that Cucurbits grow quickly and die quickly. Sow the vines you need every month so that when one set begins to die off the next is at the beginning of the production stage. • For questions and comments e-mail j.hardy@coralwave.com
20 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, September 15, 2017
film
review
‘American Assassin’ - a new action hero AMERICAN ASSASSIN RUNNING TIME: 111 MINS
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itch Rapp is an action hero in the vein of Jack This image released by Lionsgate shows, from left, Shiva Negar, Michael Keaton, Neg Adamson and Dylan O’Brien in Ryan or John McClane: a scene from, “American Assassin.” an impossibly tough CHRISTIAN BLACK/LIONSGATE VIA AP and determined everyday guy out to save the world. Dylan O’Brien brings a youthful freshness to that archetype in “American Assassin ,” his first leading-man role and the first big-screen adaptation of Vince Flynn’s series of Rapp novels. The character is scrappy and outspoken, rebellious and single-minded, and a skilled wielder of all manner of weapons. But Rapp is first seen onscreen as a starry-eyed lover in Ibiza about to propose to his girlfriend. Their idyllic moment is ruined when terrorists storm the beach and Rapp’s fiancée ends up among the dead. Flash forward 18 months and Rapp is a bearded recluse in Rhode Island, where he’s been studying Arabic, mastering firearms and practicing martial arts. He plans to take out the terror kingpin responsible for the Ibiza film’s end that shows just how crazy his attack. But his clandestine training character is. catches the eye of a CIA recruiter As often happens with these interna(Sanaa Lathan), who brings Rapp in as tional thrillers, plot holes are compena counterterrorism operative. sated for with action and spectacular From there, the story jumps around settings. “American Assassin” takes multiple international destinations viewers to Italy, Romania, Poland, as Rapp undergoes advanced trainLibya and Turkey, along with various ing with the humorless Stan Hurley locations in the U.S. (Michael Keaton) and on to a mission But Rapp is an interesting guy, and should be used. perfectly tousled hair. He brings a to recover a heap of stolen plutonium. “American Assassin” is his origin Further complicating the story are sensitivity to Rapp that balances his Iranian forces intend to make a nuclear story. Unfortunately, in setting up for the various double-agents involved and brutality, making him easy to root for, weapon to attack Israel. But an Amera sequel, the film’s ending goes too far, an apparently complex yet unexplained even if he doesn’t always follow the ican mercenary and former student essentially trading Rapp’s newly estabhistory between Ghost and Hurley. rules. of Hurley’s known as Ghost (Taylor lished gravitas for superhero shtick. But no matter: O’Brien is wonderful Keaton’s Hurley is practically forgetKitsch) is also involved, and he has his SANDY COHEN own ideas about how the plutonium to watch, a convincing action star with table until a staggering scene near the Associated Press
The Tribune | Weekend | 21
Friday, September 15, 2017
film
review
Great casting, but Reese and Candice can’t save this gooey miss. HOME AGAIN RUNNING TIME: 97 MINS
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t’s a crime to waste Reese Witherspoon. You know what’s worse? To waste Reese Witherspoon AND Candice Bergen. That lovely bit of casting alone — Witherspoon and Bergen as daughter and mom — should have been enough to lift “Home Again,” a debut from writer-director Hallie Meyers-Shyer, into at least the ranks of fairly entertaining, harmless guilty-pleasure rom-coms. Instead, one is left marveling at how disappointingly inept it feels, from plot developments so obvious you see them coming 40 minutes ahead, to the gooey, lingering close-ups of characters laughing happily. What are they laughing about? Maybe there were lots of great private jokes flying around the set, because there aren’t a lot of great ones in the script — save a few choice barbs from Bergen, and a very well-timed “Hamilton” joke. Witherspoon is Alice, a recently separated mother of two who’s returned to Los Angeles from New York, escaping a difficult marriage to a scruffily charming music mogul (Michael Sheen.) Luckily, she can move right into her childhood home — her huge, beautiful childhood home, with linens so soft they’re a topic of conversation, and a sizable guest house. Which is where the three guys come in. That would be Harry (Pico Alexander), his brother Teddy (Nat
This image released by Open Road Films shows a scene from “Home Again.” KAREN BALLARD/OPEN ROAD FILMS VIA AP
Wolff) and friend George (Jon Rudnitsky). They’re budding 20-something filmmakers trying to get their movie produced, and they’re a bit down on their luck. Of course, this movie’s version of being down on one’s luck is a little different than in the rest of the world. It’s not just that these guys somehow waltz into high-level meetings with agents and producers. It’s that everyone here looks like they’ve grown up in a Ralph Lauren catalog. Now, plenty of movies have been made about well-off people without real-world problems. It’s not a crime. But takeout from Nobu? That may be pushing it. Anyway, we digress. Alice, we learn, is the daughter of a late, well-known filmmaker. Mom Lilian (Bergen) was an actress. Dad didn’t always treat her well, but Lilian has a great explanation for why she’s not fussed: “He’s gone now, so I won.” Would that Alice had her mother’s
sang-froid. We begin on her 40th birthday, and she’s weeping into the mirror. Then she goes out and celebrates at a bar, where she and her tipsy friends meet Harry, Teddy and George. Drinking leads to dancing, to more drinks at Alice’s home, to an aborted sexual encounter between Alice and Harry — aborted because Harry’s throwing up. You’d think Alice would wake up, do the laundry (which she does), and realize Harry isn’t much of a catch. But soon all three guys have moved into the guest bungalow — their own Ralph Lauren frat house. And Alice starts sleeping with Harry — once he fixes her kitchen cabinet. “We shouldn’t do this,” she says, as they kiss. “But I fixed your cabinet,” he says. Guys at home: that line may not always work for you. The problem isn’t even the unlikeliness that Harry would even know his way around a toolbox. It’s that Harry is just so boring. We all want Alice to have fun; it’s not his age that grates. It’s his emptiness.
And then ex-husband Austen shows up. That’s Austen-with-an-E, not Austin-with-an-I. And he says, “Let’s fix this” (the marriage, not the cabinet). Alice has to make a decision. Meanwhile, there’s a very important school play. And this is what we mean by obvious developments, because in any rom-com with a school play, you can bet that someone isn’t going to make it in time, and there are going to be shots of empty seats and anxious young faces. And yes, this is what happens. We won’t tell you how it turns out. We CAN divulge that there will be more lingering close-ups of people laughing. Again, what are they laughing about? If you can figure it out, let us know. “Home Again,” an Open Road release, is rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America “for some thematic and sexual material.”
Jocelyn Noveck Associated Press
22 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, September 15, 2017
literary lives john hopkins
‘Dear Diary’ reveals a lost world Sir Christopher Ondaatje accidentally discovers the American writer who was a member of the Anglo/ American literary crowd of the 1960s and 1970s and lived in Tangier, Morocco for many years.
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eing a writer is like having a mistress who is eternally young. This seductress is capable of fulfilling all your fantasies. She brings forth your power ... The experience can be so intense that you leave your desk with a post-creative sensitivity... She’s unpredictable, and just when you’re in the mood for love, she’ll contrive to
Yves St Laurent in Tangiers when Hopkins was writing his diaries. make you feel depressed, frustrated, imply, but instead the name the author contacts, and want to see the country, suicidal, an utter failure. Your hectic John Hopkins had given to his motordo some shooting, exploring, mountain relationship derives from her complete cycle, and which book was a travelogue climbing, etc., and need a base that mastery over you and your life. She’s of an adventure that Hopkins and his wouldn’t use up their spare cash! a sadist who cunningly contemplates friend, Joe McPhillips, took riding the As a Princeton and Ivy ‘40, I thought your masochistic tendencies. Like any white R50 BMW machine across North I would let charity begin at home, and mistress confident of her charms, she Africa to Kenya. They painted the drop you a line, and say that I would be demands constant attention and uses name The White Nile on the motorcydelighted to have anyone from the Vine up all your time cle’s fuel tank in honour of the route make this their headquarters and stay John Hopkins they planned to take. as long as they like. What a discovery! And what This is a 46,000-acre cattle ranch – elegant descriptive prose. In answer low veldt – on the equator right beside The Tangier Diaries to this letter written in 1961 by an the snows of Mount Kenya, 16,000 In 1998 I had the good luck to have ex-Princeton graduate they set off on feet high, with the Northern Frontier written a journal of discovery Journey their motorcycle adventure: District and then Abyssinia on the East to the Source of the Nile which was and the North. There is lots of game published to some acclaim by Harper – elephant – rhino – lion – leopard – Collins in North America. Because of Impala Farm hippo – cheetah – giraffe – eland – oryx the success of this book I have always PO Box 32, Nanyuki and all the lesser buck and very good gathered any other book or article that Kenya Colony bird shooting. Mt. Kenya is interesting would give me more information on the British West Africa to climb and the game parks in N.F.D. unsettling sources of the Nile. Thus it January 1961 are excellent. was that I came across The White Nile Sir, The native situation is still in hand Diaries, written by John Hopkins, and The American Consulate out here here except for constant cattle raiding, published in 2014. Imagine my surprise has asked all resident Americans to ral- and this district is as safe as any place when I discovered that it was not at ly around, and do something about the in Africa, at the moment, but scarcely all an account of a journey following university students from the States who carte blanche. We are all footed up, the Nile to its origin, as the title might arrive here on their holidays with no and armed, and ready to ride out the
The Tribune | Weekend | 23
Friday, September 15, 2017
Camel riders in the African desert coming storm. Not trying to scare anyone off but it’s no country to go bicycling or hitch-hiking. If anyone is interested and coming out, get them to contact me, and I’d be delighted to do what I could. I’m sure the Club is flourishing as always.Yours sincerely, Sam Small ‘40 p.s. There are quite a few temp. ranch jobs open at this time of year – not necessarily on horseback and not very comfortable if anyone would want that. S.S. John Livingstone Hopkins, Jr. (who was born in Orange, New Jersey on 5 August 1938) vividly describes their journey through deadly salt deserts and fig-laden oases. They encounter armed vigilantes in the Tunisian desert and outrun Libyan border patrols, barely escaping with their lives. They climb the pyramids of Giza at dawn and ride the “Desert Express” across the wastelands of the Nubian Desert and travel by paddlewheel steamer through the Sudd - a massive swamp much larger in size than Great Britain. However, the end of their six thousand mile adventure as guests of the alcoholic and paranoid Sam Small and his idyllic Im-
pala Farm at the foot of Mount Kenya, turns out to be the most poisoned and surreal encounter of them all. EN-GBHaving read The White Nile Diaries, I found that Hopkins had written two other diaries: The South African Diaries, published in 2007, about an earlier trip he had taken with Joe McPhillips to Peru in search of an impossible coffee plantation dream; and The Tangier Diaries, published even earlier in 1995, about Hopkins’s eventful arrival in Tangier (with McPhillips) in 1962 where he stayed, on and off, for seventeen years pursuing with gathering success his literary ambitions. More than the other two diaries I found The Tangier Diaries an absorbing masterpiece about life in Tangier. Only later did I discover the book has become a cult classic describing the cheap, exotic, permissive existence in Morocco in the early 1960s. July 12 1962: Arrived last night via the Monte Calpe ferry from Gibraltar. We sat at the Café Central in the Zoco Chico until 4 a.m., drinking Fundador and reminiscing about Princeton. The urchins wouldn’t let us alone. Do these diminutive hustlers ever sleep? Do they have parents who wonder where they are? The Zoco Chico, apparently is the square that inspired Tennessee
Williams to write Camino Real. Hopkins and McPhillips stumbled eventually on teaching jobs at an American school in Tangier but it is his colourful descriptive powers that bring to life a city which became such a haven for writers and artists and American millionaires. Today his musings seem almost mystic – an American Bloomsbury in the North of Africa. Somehow Hopkins manages to present a vivid picture of the years which followed World War II in the relaxed atmosphere of a desert town where everything was for sale – bodies, palaces, drugs and experience – and where death hovered perilously close either by accident or overdose. Hopkins makes friends and is accepted by the entire sometimes transient literary set which included Paul and Jane Bowles, William Burroughs, Tennessee Williams and Brion Gysin – all American expatriates. 17 July 1962: Frank Wisner (later U.S. Ambassador to Morocco) took us to visit Paul Bowles in his apartment behind the American Consulate. We sat respectfully on the floor while the man of letters made tea. Bowles was dressed conservatively in coat and tie, like a university professor ... Jane
Bowles hobbled in. She radiated a kind of twisted, broken beauty. He also provides priceless vignettes of other louche expats and celebrities including Malcolm Forbes, Barbara Hutton, Josephine Baker, Paul Getty, Cecil Beaton, Yves St. Laurent, Rudolph Nureyev, and the Beatles – “flat on their backs” at a wild party. 12 September 1962: This evening I was having a beer at the Café de Paris when a line of camels, ridden by lean, hawklike men in black turbans and blue robes, ambled by. “Vamos ala Kasbah!” they called in sibilant desert voices ... they had been invited (paid) to form part of the decor for Barbara Hutton’s annual blast in the Kasbah. Tangier Diaries transports the reader to a unique time, and the book’s pages are crammed with the gliterazia who once made up Tangier society. Gossip, intrigue, and the extremes of native wealth and poverty are recorded with unerring skill. It is subtly disturbing – but filled with the mysteries of humanity – their sanity, their excesses, and their constant fight to hold on to what they believe – an endless search for another experience in the North African sun. 15 February 1963: We have tried majoun with Paul Bowles. It took a long time to have effect, we begged for seconds ...
Continued on page 24
24 | The Tribune | Weekend
Continued from page 23 1 April 1963: Dinner with the Bowleses in Jane’s apartment. The spontaneous affection and sense of fun they share made them seem more like brother and sister than man and wife. Their intimacy is more fraternal than sexual. 8 February 1964: Finished William Burrough’s The Naked Lunch, the wildest, funniest book I’ve ever read. 8 November 1964: Last night Paul and Talitha Getty came to dinner in the Oasis. Paul had brought along an enormous stash of kif, which he proceeded to sprinkle over the food. He got so high that when it came time to leave, he drive his car into a ditch. Hopkins uses a graceful, laconic style in his diaries, although he is not a natural diarist. Sometimes weeks and months pass before there is an entry. But it doesn’t matter. One keeps reading and becoming increasingly absorbed. He writes equally powerfully
Friday, September 15, 2017
“Hopkins and McPhillips stumbled eventually on teaching jobs at an American school in Tangier but it is his colourful descriptive powers that bring to life a city which became such a haven for writers and artists and American millionaires.” about people and places – the steamy bustle of the Medina market, and the awesome mystery of the Sahara. 13 March 1974: I lie on a rug before a candle stuck in the sand. Outside, a few feet away, a fire blazes, men talk, a pot bubbles and the stars shine down on a perfectly still Saharan night. Last night we ate the sheep’s intestines and internal organs; tonight it’s the head and shins. Even the bones are cracked between the teeth and sucked clean of
marrow. One of the most moving entries in the diary is on 7 April 1975 when Hopkins and McPhillips make a journey to Spain to find Jane Bowles’ grave. La Clinica de Reposa, where she died in 1973, did not answer the telephone. Finally the sister at the clinic informed them she was buried at San Rafael – in the ground ... and not in a wall, where the Spanish are generally entombed. Moreover, her grave (Jane Bowles who was Jewish converted to
Catholicism the year before her death) was marked only by a provisional wooden cross. They eventually found the cemetery by following a long line of women dressed in black who were filing through the streets. It took us a long time to find Jane’s grave ... It was lower than the others because there were no tiles; there wasn’t even a cross. Only a stick with a number on it. 453-F. We stood around and stared at it for a while, clutching our flowers. The brief moment of satisfaction at having found it was quickly swept away by the realisation of what we were looking at: Jane Bowles’ unmarked grave. It had become the dump of broken flower pots and bottles and dead stalks cast aside by the assiduous ladies in black. During the diary’s seventeen years Hopkins realises his ambition to write and completed his first two novels. He also has two serious romances – which he describes with steamy revelations. Finally, in 1979, he makes the difficult decision to leave Tangier and move to England with his new pregnant wife. It would be cold and damp and cloudy but they would be close to the English-speaking publishing world. Hopkins and his wife decide on England being the happy medium between Tangier and the U.S. They now live in Oxfordshire, with their three sons in a National Trust house reserved only for an American writer. Hopkins states in the Epilogue to his extraordinary and confessional diary: I used to think I had stayed too long in Morocco; that I had spent too much time travelling and not enough hours at my desk. Now I have come to look back upon those years as the most intensely creative period of my life. Tangier in the 1960s and 1970s was a paradise for a young writer. Polyglot and cosmopolitan, it teemed with colourful characters of every nationality; yet the city was small enough that I soon came into contact with the unique concentration of artists and writers who lived there. Tangier’s golden years are long gone. But in the pages of Hopkins’ emotional diary we can revel in the decadence and flamboyance of a unique time and place in modern literary history. •Sir Christopher Ondaatje is an adventurer and writer resident in the Bahamas. A Sri Lankan-born Canadian-Englishman, he is the author of several books, including “The Last Colonial”.
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Friday, September 15, 2017
history
Incorrect street signs Forgotten facts Paul C Aranha
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gratifying number of readers contacted me after reading my August 24th article about Rugby Avenue, in Westward Villas. One 50-year resident of Boyd Subdivision sent me a picture of a street sign on ROLAND AVENUE, but the sign says ‘Ronald Avenue’. I was shown the Conveyance for the family’s lot on ROLAND AVENUE, including a plan showing ROLAND AVENUE. The deeds were signed by the developer of Boyd Subdivision Roland Symonette. One must assume that the street was very deliberately named after Sir Roland Symonette, our first Premier. In the 1950s, Dr. Ricardo de Gregory bought and subdivided Windsor Estate, on Bernard Road, that had been the home of Leon Walton Young. I bought two of the lots and my conveyances included the usual plan of the subdivision. The layout of the roads resembled the letter ‘P’. The straight main road was called Ricardo Drive and the curved part of the ‘P’ was Seaview Circle. Today, the street sign on RICARDO DRIVE reads Windsor Road. One wonders why? On the corner of East Street and Wulff Road is a playing field called WINDSOR PARK, in honour of the Duke of Windsor. The sign on the street on the south side of WINDSOR PARK reads Winsor Lane. When our present airport was built, and given the name Windsor Field, a new road to Clifton was built, and given the name WINDSOR ROAD. The airport is no longer called Windsor Field, but we now have a sign that says Windsor Field Road. Why? McCULLOUGH CORNER is incorrectly signed ‘McCollough Corner’ and nearby HONEYCOMBE STREET also has an incorrect sign Honey Combe Street. The old-time residents of these two streets might wonder at a possible lack of neighbourhood pride, on the part of those responsible for these widespread mistakes. Coral Harbour Road and the Coral
Harbour Roundabout were products of the 1950s. Before the roundabout was built, there was no break in the ADELAIDE ROAD, which runs from the Corker Hill Road, at Carmichael Village, as far as the turnoff into Adelaide Settlement. Roundabout or not, Carmichael Road still runs from Carmichael all the way to Adelaide. The correct name of the road between Carmichael and the Coral Harbour roundabout is Adelaide Road. The same applies to the road running west from the roundabout to Adelaide. That, too, is the Adelaide Road. This means that Bacardi Park is on the Adelaide Road. Corker Hill Road is signposted ‘Lazaretto Road’, even though the Leper hospital that used to be called the Lazaretto is no longer there. There are so many more similar situations. Too many for the space I’m allowed, but I can tell you that the incorrect spelling of Sandford Drive, in the picture below, has been corrected • E-mail comments and responses to islandairman@gmail.com
26 | The Tribune | Weekend
Best described as a number crossword, the task in Kakuro is to fill all of the empty squares, using numbers 1 to 9, so the sum of each horizontal block equals the number to its left, and the sum of each vertical block equals the number on its top. No number may be used in the same block more than once. The difficulty level of the Conceptis Kakuro increases from Monday to Sunday.
i D T F E E TarGeT THe aLPH
Friday’s solution: eMBed (across) PUMPs (down)
section
322you 5607 0901 322 5601 0901 Chambers have to c Halve your Target Time!
Both today’s words in a moment
21st 15, 2017grid too! Use Friday, September
letters and bl Century company’s *Calls cost 75p plus your telephone below the grid network accessDictionary charge.
(1999 edition)
Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so the each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Conceptis Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday
B i A i D T F E E
HOW many words of four letters or more can you make from the letters shown here? in making a word, each letter may be used CAN you crack the The Target only. Each must contain Alphabeater? Each the grid uses once centre letter and there must be at number represents a letter words in least one nine-letter NoAs in – or black word. square. plurals or verb forms ending in “s”. the main
Alphapuzzle, every letter of
body of the alphabet is used. But Today’s TarGeT Chambers yougood have24; to excellent complete the Good 16; very too! Use the given 21st 32 (or more).grid solution tomorrow. letters and black squares Century saTUrday’s soLUTion below the grid to start. The Dictionary aGiTaTiongrid agitato anti attain is ‘rotationally (1999gait giant gnat goat gotta ingot symmetrical’ – in other into iota taiga taint tangthe tanga edition) words, it looks same if tango tigon ting tint titan toga letters tong toting you turn the page upside
HOW many words of four down. solution tomorrow. or more can you make from the letters shown here? in making a saturday’s solution Yesterday’s Yesterday’s Black squares: 4, 5, 6, word, each letter may be used Call 0907 181 2585 for 26, Sudoku Answer Kakuro 11, 16, 18, Answer 20, 22, 24, once only. Each must contain the today’s28, Target solution 32, 33, 38. centre letter and there must be at *Calls cost 80p per minute across: Video, Nasty, plus your telephone company’s least one nine-letter word. No network access charge. Flush, Opportune, Zip, plurals or verb forms ending in “s”.
CRYPTIC PUZZLE Across 1 Main part of a book taken by travellers (3,7) 6 Firm difficult to please (4) 10 English invader who could be obtuse (5) 11 This means the end of one’s best suit (4,5) 12 It makes pears lie against the wall, for example (8) 13 I sell out of this thread (5) 15 Crude oil thus refined (7) 17 To snub a girl may be wounding (7) 19 Looks for key-cutters (7) 21 Its root may be made into a stew (7) 22 A smart kind of accent (5) 24 Compellingly kind (8) 27 Imperturbable admission of inertia (9) 28 It may be smoked out of its den (5) 29 Indicate a suitable target (4) 30 Contracts produce mere confusion in agents (10)
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Down 1 Circus performer to make an impression (4) 2 A bitter draught for assembled Argonauts (9) 3 Boxing ring takes an age to put up (5) 4 Regardless of others (7) 5 Involving one’s stomach in following a strict diet (7) 7 A torn stub joins at the sides (5) 8 Blues associated with the early 1930s (10) 9 They make the most effort on the track and the least (8) 14 Copy-writing? (10) 16 In line for a pay rise (8) 18 Head a command (9) 20 Sorting out and putting away (7) 21 Release lever, perhaps, that is put in (7) 23 Such a cut may be seen in a ring (5) 25 Newly-wed given key to chamber? (5) 26 They can’t fly me up to the land of the free (4)
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Yesterday’s Easy Solution Across: 1 Prosper, 5 Paste, 8 Overshoot, 9 Aid, 10 Flag, 12 Reindeer, 14 Apathy, 15 Ice age, 17 Untimely, 18 Star, 21 Too, 22 Ownership, 24 Cheek, 25 Honeyed. Down: 1 Proof, 2 One, 3 Pose, 4 Rooted, 5 Put on ice, 6 Spare part, 7 Endorse, 11 At a stroke, 13 Shamrock, 14 Aquatic, 16 Flinch, 19 Rapid, 20 Grin, 23 Hay.
Yesterday’s Cryptic Solution Across: 1 Rebound, 5 Gapes, 8 Unbridled, 9 Roc, 10 Down, 12 Chaperon, 14 Swathe, 15 Remiss, 17 Restored, 18 Isis, 21 Too, 22 Ignorance, 24 Hosts, 25 Dustpan. Down: 1 Round, 2 Bib, 3 Unit, 4 Delphi, 5 Godspeed, 6 Portraits, 7 Seconds, 11 Weak spots, 13 Theories, 14 Stretch, 16 Reined, 19 Stern, 20 Kris, 23 Nip.
EASY PUZZLE
Across 1 Emphatic demand (10) 6 A speech defect (4) 10 Warm jacket with hood (5) 11 Step by step (9) 12 Close-quarters aerial combat (8) 13 Circumference (5) 15 Left out (7) 17 Panacea (4-3) 19 Member of an army (7) 21 Intense desire (7) 22 Charlatan (5) 24 An explosive (8) 27 Absolve from blame (9) 28 Absolute (5) 29 Orderly (4) 30 Kind and helpful (10)
Down 1 Zulu fighting formation (4) 2 Of tailoring (9) 3 Commander’s assisting officers (5) 4 Betrothed (7) 5 Disorganised (7) 7 Lazy person (5) 8 Study of human behaviour (10) 9 East European country (8) 14 Resultant (10) 16 Stocky in build (8) 18 Ancient Greek philosopher (9) 20 To diffuse (7) 21 Acknowledge as true (7) 23 Refrain from doing (5) 25 Maxim (5) 26 Oversupply (4)
grid is ‘rotatio symmetrical’ words, it look you turn the p down. solutio
saturday’s Black A 18,squa 11, 16, 35 20 B 32, 33, 28, across: Vid C 1 Oppo Flush, Straw, D Debt Jammy, Ac Smash, E 8 Icin down: Vulp F Exhort Sty, Explanation G 1 Why Muesli, Fuchsia. H
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J 0907 18
K 29 L Full s M 39 18 0907 *Calls cost 8 N plus your telep Onetwork 6 ac P Straw, Debt, Huff, Jammy,0333 Act,202 Turquoise, Q 5 M *SP: Spoke – Helpline 3390 PLay Today’s TarGeT Smash, Icing, Viola. R Good 16; very good 24; excellent down: Vulpine, Quick, 32 (or more). solution tomorrow. S 25 Sty, Exhort, Judge, Explanation, Angry, T saTUrday’s soLUTion Muesli, Why, Stink, 12 U aGiTaTion agitato anti attain Fuchsia. V gait giant gnat goat gotta ingot into iota taiga taint tang tanga Extra letter clues W 33 tango tigon ting tint titan toga 0907 181 2560 X tong toting Y 11 (Deduct three minutes for each extra clue letter heard) Z Call 0907 181 2585 for today’s Target solution *Calls cost 80p per minute plus your telephone company’s network access charge.
*SP: Spoke – Helpline 0333 202 3390
Full solution
0907 181 2558
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1
*Calls cost 80p per minute 21 plus your telephone company’s network access charge.
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The Tribune | Weekend | 27
Friday, September 15, 2017
animals Animal matters Kim Aranha
In the face of the storm BHS came of age. and generous people help by paying for part of the transportation, food and medical care, what is frequently forgotten is that, if these horses do not find suitable adoptions, we at the BHS are left with the very expensive duty to feed and care for them for life. Horses are not cheap and they live for a long time when cared for properly. However, we have and do continue to meet our obligations. We provide help to social services when they wish to place an individual at the shelter to care for the animals in a volunteer position for the curative nature of working with God’s creatures. We respond to thousands of cruelty complaints and concerns of the general public, frequently having to travel to the islands to do so, often at our own
expense. We have a lively and informative educational programme in the schools, spearheaded by none other than Mr. Percy Grant. This educational programme extends to the out-islands as well. When there is a cruelty complaint we contact the schools in the area and try to combine the two missions in one trip. We believe we are noticing a definite swing in the attitude of younger adult Bahamians, those with young families; these are the very people that 10 -15 years ago were sitting in a classroom learning about how to care for, love and respect animals. We believe the general attitude towards animals has improved greatly recently. We credit our educational programmes and summer camps for this improve-
PET OF THE WEEK
Royal potcake, Roxy By The Bahamas Humane Society
G
ood morning! My name is Roxy and I’m a Royal Bahamian Potcake. I am one year old. I was surrendered to the Bahamas Humane Society for being too friendly. If you’re looking for a friendly dog, I’m your best choice! I’m very outgoing and love to meet new people. I’m sure I’d love the beach and long walks with you. Do you have a spot in your heart and home for me? If so, come in to the BHS to meet me, or
PATRICIA VAZQUEZ
I
think it is safe to say that in light of the amazing work done by the Bahamas Humane Society in the past few days, with the enormous hurricane preparations and precautions taken, that we have shown the Bahamas we’ve grown up enormously from the quaint “Mom & Pop Store” operation we used to be. The man-hours, in advice and preparations that go into being ready for the worst while hoping for the best, is mammoth. The BHS Shelter set up facilities to receive close to 100 additional dogs during Hurricane Irma. Extra staff and volunteers needed to be rostered in order to have sufficient hands on hand to feed and clean all these furry evacuees. There needed to be people close by to reassure those animals who were afraid. The humans who were there to care for the animals needed bedding, food and some form of entertainment. All of these requirements were met under the calm and very capable leadership of general manager and chief inspector Mr. Percy Grant. Over the past ten years the BHS has morphed into an entirely different entity than it was in the early 2000s. Perhaps the most significant transition has been that we are now a no-kill shelter. This means healthy animals, who are not dangerous to society, are not put to sleep simply because they have been in the shelter too long and cannot find a suitable home. We have had shelter “residents” who have waited more than a year at times before meeting the right family. As the years have progressed the BHS has become more and more involved with just about every animal issue in this country. We have made numerous horse rescues, not just limited to New Providence but also the out-islands. These rescues are astronomically expensive. Even though some kind
ment. Kindness cannot be taught, but understanding animals, and why they behave as they do, can open up an entire new mindset. The Bahamas Humane Society sits on many significant boards. Representatives of the BHS are invited to attend numerous government meetings, and conferences, for our input. Our opinion is now respected, our council is sought and we have the professionals to step up to the plate at all times. The BHS is part of NEMA and attends all the hurricane preparedness meetings. Our input is valued and acted upon. We fly into the disaster torn areas with provisions, vet supplies and care. Many of the services we provide this nation are services humans benefit from. Through helping animals, we are helping the people involved. We are there for the farmer, the tour operator and the pet owner alike. We have the contacts all over the world to facilitate phone conferences with various university and organizations as we did during the distemper epidemic, something we were actively involved in stamping out thanks to the tireless work of our three veterinarians and their technicians. Yes Sir, I think we can say the Bahamas Humane Society is all grown up now. It is time people took note of what we do and how well we do it. With this in mind I ask you to be proud of your Bahamas Humane Society and support its work by becoming a member.
call 323-5138 for more information. Adoption hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. • The BHS Annual General Meeting will be held Wednesday, September 27th at 6 p.m. at the
shelter in Chippingham. All are invited to attend, but only current members will be eligible to vote. The next Thrift Shop Jewellery Sale will be held Saturday, October 14th, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Thrift Shop patio. Come and check it out!
28 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, September 15, 2017
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