The time has come for me to join the ranks of those who own refillable pens! For my birthday last week my sister gave me a black Parker Jotter pen, a classy looking little instrument. And what might seem like a simple gift really means a lot to me. I've always admired the way some people just have one pen that they rely on, the metallic glint in a man's shirt pocket or the casual, 'It's okay, I've got one' of a woman fishing through her purse. Up until now, to me, pens were just things that fall apart and get lost. But now that I have my own little refillable(and one as classic and sturdy as the Parker Jotter), I have a newfound respect for these little pieces of metal and plastic. The ability to write will always be cherished by some, no matter how far into the age of technology we go, and to those, a good writing tool is priceless. So thanks sis!
Two days later and I'm now writing about the concert... Remember that big rant post about tickets being sold out last year... turns out that was for VVIP (Very Very Ignorant People) tickets. So on Thursday, my birthday by the way, we got three general admission tickets to see the final concert of Beyonce's I Am Yours Tour right here in the Queen's Park Savannah!! This was actually my first concert ever.
Beyonce was amazing of course... she really knows how to put on a show.
At least that's what I could tell from the screen I was looking at. You see there were a few issues with this concert:
1. Ticket Prices - for around $80 USD, you'd expect more, even for general admission. And if you wanted to see her properly then get ready to pay around $170 USD for VIP or $270 for VVIP. Now tell me guys... where else in the world is there such a thing as VIP or VVIP tickets for a concert?...those IDIOTS
2. Viewing - Do you know how I saw Beyonce? On a screen... Why? Because we were too far away to see anything... and there was a barrier preventing us from getting any closer. Not only was that an issue but the two micro screens with which we were provided to view the concert remained on the ground for half of the show, despite the unanimous protests from the patrons shouting, "Raise d' screen!!!" Also, the general admissions area was lower than those in front of us so we could see little more than the elevated drum kits. And the massive scaffolding structure setup for the spotlights in the middle of the VIP section before us didn't really help much either.
3. Service - This doesn't really apply to us folk who were in general admissions because apparently $80US means nothing these days. But even the people who were in VIP and VVIP were complaining (serves them right for paying that much). All that extra money was for food and comfort. Apparently food and comfort means corn soup, doubles, beef sandwiches and gyros all of which finished before everyone had eaten and standing up in heels on uneven dusty ground.
I think the only thing preventing patrons for demanding a refund was Beyonce's great performance. Well into the concert, people forgot the obvious problems and contented themselves with listening and dancing.
Oh and Beyonce did the palance and sang Check On It to a soca beat!!
It's Carnival season! You know what that means! Wild parties, lots of drinking, half naked women (or the occasional half naked man :P) dancing through the streets and sex.
Fun huh?
Carnival's not really my thing... at all. It's a bit too crazy and it's nothing like it originally was (before my time). Apparently there used to be this funny little thing involved in Carnival, a long time ago. It's called...hmm... ah yes... CULTURE. Buy hey, who am I to complain right? I mean Carnival it what puts Trinidad and Tobago n the map! Plane-loads of insane foreigners eager for the wildness. What happens in Trinidad, stays in Trinidad after all.
Components of Carnival:
- Parade costumes (no not the fun cute marching band parades) - As prices go up materials go down, to the point where you're paying thousands of dollars to dance in the streets wearing nothing but a sparkly version of a bra and panties or a pair of shorts for the guys. These are usually picked up by the vagrants around the capital who seem to have their own parade going on after Carnival. Don't ask me how those get on the streets - you'd think with that little clothing you'd at least try to keep it on :P
-Music - The traditional Calypso music has in recent times ben replaced by the fast paced, jumbled nonsense called Soca. I mean why would you listen to social commentary in the form of song when you can listen to the nonsensical ramblings of 'singers' who seem to have nothing in their vocabulary except - bumper, whine, flag, wave, jump and 'hand in de' air!'
But we can't forget the Chutney Music. Don't ask me what the indian community was thinking when they invented this - probably about rum, seeing as it's the main focus of most of the songs. And there is almost always a subtextual meaning to the songs. Here is one that is not about rum but definitely has a subtextual meaning.
So my plan for this Carnival is to hide away in Freeport with some relatives. We'll just hang out and tell jokes etc. We always have a good time...
Okay guys so I've been wondering... how many kids learn Advanced Subsidiary Maths at 14? In Trinidad a lot of us do it as an Add Maths course - actually no... most of the people starting it are 15. But a few of us skipped... and landed in mathematic hell.
Okay so it's not that bad but ask a 14 year old from somewhere else to find the area under a curve and then the volume when rotated 360 degrees or to find the stationary points of a curve using differentiation. And we haven't even done Iteration or ln yet, but we've done logs... I don't know, but it doesn't seem to me that this is the normal sort of work a 14 year old is subjected to.
Take a look at this paper if you want to see (and this one is pretty easy)... GCE Core Mathematics C2 AS
Maybe it's just because I was at AS Maths lessons today but the thought just crossed my mind.
So tell me can most people my age do this??
Now it's okay if you don't like her style of music, but you must respect Beyonce and that amazing powerhouse of a voice. No one can deny that she is a brilliant singer with stunning vocal skills and best of all... it's not only when she's in the studio.
She is also one of the few artists who I've heard perform almost perfectly each time on stage. I'm not saying her concerts are the best as a lot more makes a concert than the singing itself (these days at least) but who needs all the frills when you can reproduce each note flawlessly. Note also that she does this all while on her knees, swinging her head around dirty dancing on the floor. A lot of live performances where a lot of dancing was involved, I notice that the singing is never that great. But I've seen Beyonce drag herself all over the stage and then still manage to impress with vocals.
It' true that she can be a bit scream-ish sometimes but still... her voice is made up of pure awesomeness!!
