TNN 41

Hello Folks, sorry about de little late TNN over de pas’ two weeks, but dat was due to technical problems beyond we control…de cyberspace t’ing nah……. but (deep voice)… this is TNN….. Brudder, it eh no me an’ you…all ah we is callaloo….. jam it till yuh black an’ blue… all ah we is callaloo (background music)….

BUT I DOES LIVE HERE... AH T'INK.....

Tell meh what yuh go do if yuh  gone on ah holiday, come back home and yuh family tell yuh yuh doh live dey no more?   

Well dat is exactly wha’ happen tuh we  po’-me-one leader of de NAR…ole Nizam….  Niz get de shock of he life, dey fire de man an’ he eh know?  Niz geh stupid.. he say he eh know nothin’ ‘bout dat (dis time de press already know, eh…), den he say dey cyah do dat (t’ink again!), den finally when he see de door slam in he face (dey done appoint Interim leader), he say dem is ah pack ah fools, an’ dey  eh know ‘bout politricks, an’  so on an’ so fort (and fifths…cyah!cyah! J  )…

Like he know sour grapes doh make good wine…but at de same time I ah l’il suspicious of NAR now… see de head ah pushin’ now…?   If yuh cyah sid dong and tell ah fella he playin’ de fool, or come tuh some kinna agreement , but jus’ throw de fella out, lock stock an’ barrel, you go want tuh lead dat  party…?  

Look, if dey could do it once dey could do it twice…. next t’ing yuh know yuh feelin’ ah back pain an’ when yuh check, is steel blade in yuh spine?  Unless meh head could spin roun’ like ah douen, me eh takin’ dat leadership…. not me boy… ah have tuh know dat ah could trus’ meh people…an’ on top ah dat it make de NAR look bad…because if  your communication so poor an’ t’ings could reach such ah stage dat yuh fire ah leader an’ eh tell him nuthin’…how yuh go run ah country when  one of de major  acts is  communication or “conflict resolution”? 

 Talk  tuh meh, man….ah eh makin’ sense?  But look carefully yuh know… sometimes where have cattle does still have goat… ah hear ol’ Niz was frennin’ with Bas and eh tellin’ dem odder fellas nuthin’ (he say dat eh dey business…you meetin’ wit’ de Political Leader of the rulin’ party an’ dat eh dey business…? Ha, Lord…) ..so doh be too surprised if Niz pop up somewhere else nex’ election… remember ah rabbit house always have two doors……!   But doh say I say….

NORTH STAND STANDS....

Well, as if tuh give de Cobra more tuh talk about dis week, dey decide dat dey eh go take dong de Nort’ Stan’ till after  Carnival nex’ year… so all de Nort’ Stan’ Posse happy like pappy… 

De Minister call ah meetin’ sudden so, an’ say because of public pressure dey decide tuh leave it up for at least nex' year…   On again, off again, stop an’ go… yuh have tuh wear seat belt in dis country… de ride real bumpy.. is either yuh doin’ somethin’ or yuh not doin’ it… maybe if yuh did call ah public debate in City Hall or someplace so an’ discuss dis issue yuh wouldna be in dis monkey pants right now…

But the Bandleaders, Steelband leaders and calypso reps meet and decide dat dey go change de Carnival wit’out invitin’ de nex’ 400,000 people for ah say in de matter.. yuh see why everythin’ does turn ole mas….but tuh save face dey say de go be enforcin’ some strict rules concernin’ safety an’ crowd numbers….yeah, aha.. when ah see dat ah go believe it, nuh.  

Dey  talkin’ about how all de new plans go bring in more revenue, an’ it go have more order an’ t’ing…  Well okay, de artistes an’ dem people so have tuh live, ah agree, an’ if you have too much disorder it go have chaos, but ah hope dey remember dat what make we Carnival so good is dat people does get ah chance tuh free up, an’ while revenue nice, de purpose of Carnival is not revenue, is tuh release we history, culture an’  people so dey could be deyself if only for ah two days, when we forget all dem outside influence an’ become “we” again…..not so.  

So no matter what yuh do, remember we festival is de “People t’ing”, dey start it , dey carry it on an’ dey own it, an’ once we loose dat we loose everyt’ing, not so?

WELL BOWLED....!

Yeah boy, sad but true…. Malcolm Marshall, de cricket coach of de West Indies Cricket team leave we dis week…. de fella was only 41 yuh know… ah cancer t’ing…. 

Da one hit meh hard, man.; dat fella was ah terror in he day..; dat was fas’ bowler for yuh money….  he did take de mos’ wickets in Test Cricket (until “Warrior” Walsh pass he total dis year)   An’ de man wasn’t fraid  tuh try he han’ wit ah bat too, yuh know, always makin’ he little contribution to de total…

Yuh remember he strange run up to de wicket.. he back ben’, but he head up, holdin’ de ball under he stomach until he reach de crease an’ he deliver dat red ball wit’ some West Indian fire...  Boy, hear nah, yuh know how much man get third degree burn….? 

An’ de ting is de man nearly eh make it on de side yuh know, but he had he min’ fix, he had to go come hell, high water or both..!  An’ like de man never get injury, dread…. even when he break he finger de man went an’ bat with one hand, an’ bowl too!  Dat is cricketer, eh?  

An’ yuh believe even though de man was ah top class bowler, he wanted tuh bat too…. no limits, no limits…. under de team captain, he use tuh be de field Marshall in de cricketin’ war, an’ like dem opposing batsmen used to be under Marshall law… he wasn’t givin’ dem ah inch, no liberty.. once yuh slip, yuh slide….  yuh does only get chance when yuh playin' raffle, an' dis was cricket.  

Finally dey bring him back tuh coach de present WI Team… it mus’ be hurt him tuh see wha’  happenin’ now…. sick as he was, he come back like de old war horse for he las’ battle…. if only dey would take ah page from he book, in fact is bes’ dey take ah whole chapter….!  

De nex’ time WI go out tuh play, ah sure he go be dey, givin’ dem ah few tips…..ATTENNNNN  SHUN!   There is an officer in de area…Salute de Field Marshall….. HOWZAT! 

LIGHT UP YUH LIFE....

De TNN staff want  tuh wish everybody ah Happy Divali (Sun. comin’)… de las’ one of de century…. We does be seein’ some dark times sometimes, but is de Festival ah Lights now….   House clean, yard clean, cookin’ goin’ on, everybody invited in…. nice, man, nice…. 

David Rudder did sing in Dedication, “Out of ah muddy pond, ten thousan’ flowers bloom”,  jus like de lotus flower yuh does see so often growing in dem dark and dirty water… it have somet’ing dey tuh provide ah t’ing ah beauty (ah soundin’ poetic, eh?).. yuh jus’ have tuh know what tuh take an’ what tuh leave…ent?  

So matter what happenin’ in yuh live, light ah candle (or deya) radder dan havin’ ah cuss out wit de darkness…. Da little light might help ah lotta people fin’ de way….. so HAPPY DIVALI… an’ leh we light up de place!

Dat’s all for dis week folks, de Cobra go good enjoy  he long weekend, an’ ah go be back nex’ week…. ah gone….