23 BiTS of Caribbean Wisdom
1.) Do it slow. Take your time. Things done slowly and carefully last longer. Take time to execute your plans. There is no hurry.
2.) Don’t let the rain stop you from playing (baseball/cricket/hoops/Chess) outside.
3.) Never forget: EVERYTHING is negotiable.
4.) The machete is a versatile tool… Yet, the cyber-pen extends further.
5.) Learning to climb a coconut palm may be the most entertaining thing you ever do.
6.) Rice and beans is a nutritious staple, which most budgets can cover. Think about it.
7.) You don’t have to go to the gym IF you really walk a lot. Physical work is rewarding. Try walking a mile to the grocery store and only buy what you can carry home.
8.) Everyone: from maid to C.E.O. can make a difference by intending to lighten the load for others.
9.) Nature, just outside the door, and even in a park, the garden… a moment of silence is worth more than gold. Invest in silence. Protect it.
10.) Criminals pick mousey targets… try and develop the “TiGER STRUTT,” that works to say, “Don’t F… with my in any lingo.”
11.) Make time to eat. Noon is the best time for a big home cooked meal. Try it.
12.) Take a nap. Daily. Fifteen minutes around happy hour goes a long way… toward keeping you feeling like a sexy silk wearing geisha.
13.) Olive oil is great on anything (don’t forget your skin) edible. This is true for anyone that has Latino/Spanish roots. Think TAPAS! Yum.
14.) Nothing beats having cognac, on a sidewalk, in a plastic cup, with your domino buddies/compañeros.
15.) Stand straight, walk quick, and avoid getting into the nets laid by expert fishermen to catch sweet jail bait LIKE you.
16.) Dance, today, because NO THING could be more significant. Dance is urgent! Get to it. Now! You don’t need a degree to shake your body. Yet, movement makes leaders leap to applaud the dancer that catches the EYE, nets the most clicks, and becomes a queen/dream prince of the universe.
17.) Pick a target and focus. By shooting for bull’s EYES you always win, because your failures are closer to the target. No matter where you come from or where you are now in life you can become a game changer, a winner in the unending ever-expanding game of loving and living, by deciding to learn what you must, study what you don’t know, and give more than you expect to get.
18.) Painting: takes a different track in every corner of the planet. Yet in the Caribbean visual art is a part of every home from shack to palace. The Caribbean, for all its slowness is a creative hot-bed for the world. The poor collect images of saints, to serve as patrons in the other/spirit world. The well-off-enough might have a blend of maudlin landscapes, cheesy still-lives, and a handsome portrait of a Aryan Jesus, in a light blue robe, with a radiant fire-heart at his bosom… The wealthy… who knows… they might collect contemporary Dominican art… maybe, even hit Miami Basel for a hoot… I don’t know. Yet, everybody, takes pride in decorating whatever little hovel or massive spread they are allotted by the cruel (ancient Italian… yet universal) goddess Fortuna.
19.) Paradise is not a prison, until you want to leave and can’t… the mighty expanse of the Atlantic ocean holds in many that would love to live in another place… yet, the language(s)… our accent(s)… our roots…keep us part of the Caribbean no matter how faraway we go, we feel the pull of fertile land and dream of a garden place where we can just relax and allow others to serve us. Ah! Paradise is a tricky and slippery place where you can fall into the abyss of corruption which bubbles just under the surface of the cheerful, good-looking, whores, that saddle up to strangers and offer unspeakable services for laughable sums.
20.) Keeping a cheerful, cosmetically correct exterior is a worthwhile pursuit. Yet, it will not stop you from biting the dust when the time comes. Keep perspective on what really is worth the effort and find meaning in life by listening to the underlying silence which is familiar to all readers of spiritual books and those willing to stand up to big television sets in hotel lobbies are ask for them to be turned, “OFF!” immediately.
21.) Exercise your right to say, “¡Buenos Dias!” to everyday and face life with a romantic’s delight in the waves and winds that will rock your boat.
22.) Don’t forget that whatever keeps you feeling buoyant, up beat, excited is good. LOVE is good. Happiness. Laughter. All these goods are worth cultivating because they give the most lasting and nourishing fruit.
23.) When you walk through, “The Valley of Death,” don’t forget to take pictures and don’t forget you are never alone. You have a connection to every living thing on this planet, including your food. LOVE IT and LIVE IT UP!
Happy Holidays
Sincerely Yours,
Frau Kolb
Well I guess I don’t have to spend the weekend firnigug this one out!