Stet » literature

Dr Z

Ria — Wed, 22 Mar 2006 04:16:02 +0000

I imagine many people have a mental list of books they would like to read but never get around to doing so. Top of my list was Pasternak’s Dr Zhivago. Somehow, each time I entered a book store or started browsing on Amazon, my mind would go blank and I would quickly be distracted by any

Continue reading Dr Z

King Merc meets higglers uptown

Ria — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 19:13:56 +0000

Shopping from the comfort of your car in uptown Kingston.

Although the resolution is too low to read here, I’ve changed the licence plate to [BUSHA 2].

For an explanation of the title Busha, read the following extract from Anthony C. Winkler’s hilarious novel, The Lunatic.

The Busha was the richest man in the parish. His land splashed over

Continue reading King Merc meets higglers uptown

Exercise in stylee

Ria — Sun, 29 Jan 2006 05:33:24 +0000

There is an ongoing debate in Jamaica concerning the validity and usefulness of patois, the local dialect. On one side, some argue that it is an authentic language of communication used by the majority of Jamaicans and should therefore have its place in the school curriculum; on the other side, critics argue that promoting patois will

Continue reading Exercise in stylee

A is for Ackee

Ria — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 04:58:49 +0000

After most of the children’s books drowned in the hotel flood, we bought some new ones in a local bookshop. One of the books was an alphabet colouring book. The first page had a blob outline and the text, A is for ackee. We had no idea what it was, nor what colour it should be.

Soon

Continue reading A is for Ackee

Bad timing

Ria — Wed, 06 Apr 2005 18:01:00 +0000

I can imagine the frustration among the editors of tabloid magazines such as Chi and Gente (read Hello! and People): the Pope, Prince Rainier of Monaco and Saul Bellow all dead the same week.

Look out for the full-page blurry photo op of the Nobel laureate in next week’s issue.

Email this to a friend? Tweet This! Share this on

Continue reading Bad timing

An unfortunate juxtaposition

Ria — Tue, 05 Apr 2005 18:23:00 +0000

On the way to work yesterday, I picked up one of the free “newspapers” that are the main source of written information for most commuters. The paper, Leggo, was once recommended to me as being the most newsworthy of the freebies.

Here’s the breakdown of yesterday’s paper: ten of the 24 pages are ads; four pages are

Continue reading An unfortunate juxtaposition

10 000 prostitutes

Ria — Mon, 10 Jan 2005 22:59:49 +0000

Have to take the movies back to the co-op, Monsieur Hire and Dogville. Didn’t watch either of them. I can’t seem to get engaged by films these days. Once the kids are in bed and we’ve cleaned up, I prefer either to do something creative, like make music or twiddle on the computer, or just unwind

Continue reading 10 000 prostitutes

Another winner

Ria — Wed, 05 Jan 2005 05:55:11 +0000

The inspirational Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest plunges new heights with a superb opening line from Dave Zobel: She resolved to end the love affair with Ramon tonight . . . summarily, like Martha Stewart ripping the sand vein out of a shrimp’s tail . . . though the term “love affair” now struck her as a ridiculous euphemism

Continue reading Another winner