tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40252830885182270532024-03-13T07:58:02.286-07:00Trinidad and To-BLOG-oI have just graduated from college and I am now going down to Trinidad and Tobago to play steel pan for 6 weeks. This is a blog to tell the story of my experience. I will hopefully write a little bit each day.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-53617710493797926562010-02-24T17:00:00.001-08:002010-02-24T17:00:47.054-08:00Thursday last week...Thursday I actually got up early a little before 930. I came out of my room and I had Potato pies, grapefruit and coffee waiting for me. It was all great. Then I showered and we went out. First I went out to their car dealership so they could make an appointment to get it fixed. After that, Marylin and Jerome took me to a nice souvenir shop where I finally got something for myself to show I have actually been here. I got myself three shirts, my favorite one says “I love my Trini Heritage” haha. The women at the store didn’t show me that one for a while because Im not trini but I eventually saw it and figured it would be funny. Well we eventually left and went back to their house so I can pack up to leave on the ferry. After packing I walked down to a real great roti restaurant. It was the best roti I have ever had. It was amazing and the pepper was nice and hot. It was actually kind of funny because the server actually asked everyone in front of me if they wanted pepper but then didn’t ask me. I had to stop her and ask for it haha. Anyway I walked back and waited for Seion. He came and took me to port and I got on the Ferry. It was a nice ride back to Tobago. I finally watched the video of my recital. I hate watching myself perform most of the time. My recital was about a year ago and it took me this long to watch the whole thing. Haha. I then got off the ferry and Lemon, Georgina and Omari picked me up. Omari looked really happy to see me haha. He said “we have to go to rehearsal” in his American accent as soon as I got in the car haha. I got back and just hung out and relaxed, ate and went to bed. I was still getting back sleep from Carnival.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-62748672605996157952010-02-21T08:50:00.000-08:002010-02-21T08:53:22.403-08:00Last few days...Well, I lost part of my power cord on the ferry over so I havent been able to blog much. And i am trying to cram tons of things in my last few days here. i will do a review of the last days when i get my computer up but i didnt want anyone to worry about me. I am doing very well and They are sort of sending me off on a party for the last few days so i have not had much free time or much sleep at that. I will be home soon.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-26641801429239444662010-02-17T23:53:00.000-08:002010-02-17T23:54:51.248-08:00Ash Wednesday....<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:relyonvml/> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"><link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> 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mso-ascii-font-family:Rockwell; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Rockwell; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">This morning I got up, had breakfast, showered and off we went to the mall/bank. First to the bank where I turned in my travelers checks so I could pay them for my stay. Then it was off to the mall where I did almost all of my souvenir shopping. Don’t be offend if you didn’t get something, I am only one man and remember, I am currently unemployed. In fact, the first person who finds me a job gets a souvenir!….. no that will never work. Anyway, after that, Jerome and Marylin dropped me off at the Port so I can buy my ferry ticket for Tobago.<span style=""> </span>Then I would find a taxi back to the house. I got in a long line to buy tickets. It was taking forever. I started talking to the man in front of my about half way into the line. I tell him that I just need to buy a ticket for Thursday. He then informed me that I cant buy advanced tickets at the port, I had to find a travel agency. Weird. But went to the Information desk and got a list of all the agents that sell those tickets. Then I had to get there so I stood outside right where I have previously been mobbed by taxi drivers after getting off the boat the last two times. No one was there. The boat wasn’t coming in for two hours. Usually I could get a cab before I even step outside. But nothin. Then I asked a security guard and he told me where to stand so I walked a little over a block down and just waited. This is my I first time doing this by myself. In Chicago its easy because all the cabs say :Taxi: on them. Here ANYONE can be “taxi driver.” So I stand on the corner. After awhile still nothing. Then I try to stand like I have to go somewhere but its too far too walk…..<span style=""> </span>Beep beep. It worked!!! I told him where I need to go. And he said sure and I got in. Sidenot: the cars in Trinidad and Tobago have the freindlest horns. Most just say “wahm?” or “where d scene?” or translated, “Hey whats up my friend?” or sometimes they say “hey need a lift?” You do get the occational “HEY! Why the heck did you stop in the middle of the road?!” (the PG rated version) but most of the time it’s the first two. The driver also picked up three other people on the way. He dropped me off first and I asked how much and he said 5 and that was it. Not so bad. Im alive. In fact im going to do it again tomorrow and go to the mall. Well I got back and called Seion. He said he was on his way to pick me up because he was dropping off the two St. Vincent boys at the airport. So he picked me up and we ended up driving to mall where Seion took us to dinner. We went to a nice Chinese buffet place. It wasn’t bad. The other two had never eaten at a Chinese buffet so Seion and I taught them the tricks of the trade.<span style=""> </span>I think they were impressed both by our eating ability, knowledge and the fact that I can use chop sticks well. It was a great dinner because we bonded a lot and I got to know them better as well as Seion. I actually might go down to St. Vincent’s Panorama and play. I told Big P that it was his turn to teach me the notes. We got a good laugh at that. So we went to the airport, traded emails and such and dropped them off. Good guys. I will definitely keep in touch. Then it was back to the house to rest. I had some more nice conversation with Marylin and Jerome when I got back and then I headed to my room to blog and chat. Now I have to get to bed. I have get up at 9 tomorrow. Marylin said she would knock so I HAVE to get up. It was so nice today she did my laundry and laid it on my bed while I was gone. Anyways off to bed. Long day tomorrow.</p> TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-2885523016843028882010-02-17T23:52:00.001-08:002010-02-17T23:53:00.055-08:00Carnival Tuesday;;;Well I got up a bit late (I’m sure you’re all surprised) and got showered quick, ate lunch and went out to watch Mas with Marylin and Jerome. We walked down toward all the sounds and watched some of the bands go by. The music was so loud, I could feel my intestines moving. It literally took my breath away. Of course I wore my ear plugs. I’m soo glad I brought them. Anyway, we walked down toward the closest park as we watched. The dresses and head pieces and floats were all amazing again. It just seemed like more people were playing Mas and more people had on their costumes. And it all started at 7 this morning. I was actually supposed to go with Marylin and Jerome that morning but I slept through all my alarms and apparently half of Mas. I’m glad they went with out me. I needed sleep. Next Carnival I come to (and yes I said the next one because there will be a next) I will know how to plan out my sleep schedule. I was still recovering from sleep from Wednesday of last week. So we finally arrived at the park. Around noon. It is here that most of the big bands take a break and have food before they go back out on the road. This is where I decided that the next time I come back, I am playing Mas. Thousands of people of all shapes sizes and colors dressed in costumes. So many beautiful women from all over the world dressed in “BUHkinis” as Jerome would say. My neck was a little sore when we got back probably from this stop. (not really just a little joke). But really did enjoying seeing all the different people I didn’t matter ifyou were big, small, young, old, black, white, or purple, everyone was here for the same reason and having a great time. Marylin told me that probably around 100,000 people play Mas. That’s insane. I was part of the rest of them who watch on the side or watch at home on TV. It’s an amazing sight to see and I can’t to see more of it the second time around. Around this time we stopped, I actually realized I was right in front of a fire station. It took me a little while to divert my attention. Actually it took a Engine pulling right in front of me pulling into the station. Haha and im serious. So I got as many pictures of that as I could for my dad. I did find it funny that on the side of the engine it said “Do Not Use Fireworks/Fire Crackers Indoors” in huge print. Maybe that’s just me but it was kind of funny. By the way, I got a ton of pictures and movies during the day but I don’t have much time to put them up but I might eventually make an online photo album for your viewing pleasure later, probably when I get back. So we eventually walked back to the house and relaxed for a little while. I got into some good conversation with Marylin and Jerome about many different subjects. I really enjoyed staying that their place. It was nice. It kind of felt like I was hanging out with grandma and grandpa. (which of course makes me miss home) Especially because Jerome couldn’t hear all the time or would forget things and Marylin would remind him or relay the message similar to my grandparents haha. But luckily, I will be home to see them soon. After they had went to bed. I actually went out to check out the scene down the street and get a late night snack. The streets were almost empty. There were just people taking down their stands and a large amount of people cleaning up the streets. I wanted again to get something new to eat. I passed the gyros, the fried chicken and even the chicken foot soup, and got some corn soup. I have heard it is great. And it was. It was like a chowder and spicy. A great combo. So I walked back just observing the people cleaning and tearing down shop and eventually arrived back at the house. I did some of my email replying and went on to bed. I had to get up early the next day to go to the mall and bank with Marylin and Jerome.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-17102144636619911222010-02-16T00:10:00.000-08:002010-02-16T00:12:55.445-08:00Chicken Foot Soup for the SoulWell heres another short adventure. So after I blogged I went on a mission to get some food. It was around 11 or 12 ish and I hadn’t eaten since about 6 so I was hungry. So I went don’t the main road, Ariapita ave, to check out some vendors. Of course there were a bunch of people in the street drinking and partying. I on the other hand was still recovering and was lookin for food. I had passed vendors I ad recently gone by. There were the Gyro vendors where and I said hello to my friends who sold me some great bake and shark, but I want some thing different. I am trying to experience everything I can before I leave. I also passed by some places that sold fried chicken and hamburgers but have had enough of that so I kept walking. I had gone about 6 or 7 blocks and I saw vendor with some huge pots. It looked like they might have chicken soups or souse (I really don’t know what it is but I know of it.) I walked up and there was a man eating something that smelled really good. I said Ill have what hes having. Then I looked down at the sign. I was right about the chicken soup. But off a little bit. You could say I was off by a few feet. (yea cheesy pun, I couldn’t pass it up) It was chicken foot soup. And of course what did I say. Suuure. Its exactly what it sounds like. Its like chowder. Its creamier and has dumplings, potatoes and carrots in it. There are also chicken feet pointing at you. But hey, when in Rome… It was actually delicious. I just simply ignored the fact that I was sucking the meat off of a chicken foot. As a walked back eating my soup without any hesitation I realized how much this trip has changed me. Two months ago if you said, “Hey Tom, want some chicken foot soup?” I would have said “Thanks but I’ll pass.” This trip has also made me appreciate and realize so many different things. How amazing a nice warm shower is. (or even just having running water). So many things that I take for granted, like wireless internet, fast food restaurants, a vehicle, 3G, a bed and the list goes on. However, I think the most important thing I attained from this trip was the ability to experience another culture to its fullest. It has humbled me to the greatest extent. I feel that US Americans can be so ignorant and just unaware of other cultures. I have learned so much from just meeting people from other cultures and talking to them about their experiences. It has encouraged me to travel much more often and learn about other cultures as best I can. I have always been interested in sociology and I am very curious to find out what the “Social norm” is in other cultures. I feel like most Americans have no clue how everyone else things or what they believe in. I have definitely caught the travel bug and would like to experience other cultures. I feel like the last six weeks have helped me grow wiser and helped me because a better person in many different aspects. I also feel like the ultimate goal in life is and should be to attain as much wisdom as possible and attempted to pass it on to others. And I believe you gain wisdom through experiences, you encounter of course both good and bad and schooling is only a very small part of that. I believe it ultimately the social interactions and situation that you gain most of this wisdom from. I feel that this trip, I have gained priceless wisdom and yes I realized this staring down at Styrofoam cup with chicken feet pointing back. I have never traveled alone and I feel there are great benefits from doing so. I feel like this was the perfect thing for me. I have had so much time to just reflect on the last chunk of my life which have been going by at a stress-fully feverish pace and I haven’t stopped to realized what I gained from that until now. This trip also came at a perfect time in my life. I have just graduated, I just moved back home, I am about to (hopefully) officially begin my lifelong career, and I just got out of a serious 2 ½ year relationship. This is probably the biggest transition point of my life. I guess the transition into “the real world.” Not like MTV’s real world where you watch college aged meat heads get drunk and fight and have intimate relations on television but the reeeaaal world. With bills, rent, car payments, taxes, etc. I know it sounds romantic and I got a bit preachy but I do want to encourage everyone to travel more and record your travels so you can relive them and possibly regain forgotten wisdom. I believe that these types of trips can take you away from the monotony of the ‘real world’ and help you realize what you taking for granted and what you should be thankful for. The thing this trip has most made me realize how important family and friends are and how much most people take them for granted to focus on their occupation, getting through the real world. But I would rather live poor and close with my family and friends than rich and alone any day. (both close with the family and rich would pretty awesome though). <br /><br />Well anyways, this was supposed to be a very short, funny post but turned philosophical faster than two shakes of a chicken foot (maybe that phrase will catch on). I think it has become my favorite post of the whole trip. I am particularly proud of the title. Seems fitting. Haha. Well thanks for reading/ putting up with my inner monologue-esk babbling but it was bound to happen at some point. I just didn’t know that it would be triggered by chicken foot soup. Oh well. Off to bed for Mas early tomorrow.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-21834684342460657942010-02-15T19:08:00.000-08:002010-02-15T19:44:52.035-08:00J'ouvert....
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mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Well Sunday I relaxed most of the day Seion said he was going to call me around 5 or so. I think he forgot and I knew J’ouvert was in the morning so I was probably doing that. I hung around the place and took a few naps. I went up and got some bake and shark again from a food vendor. The place I am staying is right by where all the bands and mas passes by. I ended up taking a nap and Seion called me at around 330am, yes 330 in the morning. He said hes comin to pick me up, wear crappy clothes, bye. So I did just that. I put on a white T shirt and some gym shorts. I only brought my phone and a little bit of cash. He picked me up, we parked and then started walking. It was Seion, Big P, Demitri, Akua and Kyshon. When we got out of the car, Seion handed me a bottle of Johnny walker and Kyshon had a bottle of Black and White. I still really didn’t know what I was in store for. I knew there would be drinking (obviously) I knew there would be dancing, and also some paint was involved. We finally ended up by the Savannah where there was a huge flatbed 18 wheel truck full of speakers playing extremely loud soca music. The speakers are stacked about 10 ft high and are on all sides of the truck with a DJ in the middle. There was a huge mob of people around it just dancing and hanging out. Behind that truck was smaller truck with a bunch of people handing out Bottles of paint. Yellow paint because the band (group) we were with were called the Yellow Devils. Makes sense. There was just a huge tub and people in the truck would take old 20 oz bottles, f<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHC9MB-WnFTClwfwQ3vqaYy2KBZv-nRyCkmaeF0kOL1DSg8UORLJX-f-0nbWLxw-bWq-msr53kDQpDtSzjiYBSNGs1ArB5WsnhdgmuUPz0oCBSxoLs42EwBsn0NHyINYT8ov1R1IZzOag/s1600-h/Picture+278.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHC9MB-WnFTClwfwQ3vqaYy2KBZv-nRyCkmaeF0kOL1DSg8UORLJX-f-0nbWLxw-bWq-msr53kDQpDtSzjiYBSNGs1ArB5WsnhdgmuUPz0oCBSxoLs42EwBsn0NHyINYT8ov1R1IZzOag/s320/Picture+278.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438676855751302850" border="0" /></a>ill them up and hand them out.<span style=""> </span>Oh and behind that truck was the alcohol truck there were about 6 people just handing out beer and alcohol for free. I then realized that a lot of people pay to be a Yellow Devil and you get a wrist band and a T shirt. You also get free drinks and breakfast in the morning. I just looked online right now and its 70 TTD for all that which isn’t bad at all. I wish I would have paid but at the same time I got pretty much the same experience for free. Just no t shirt anyways so what happens is hundreds of people follow this truck dancing and throwing paint and drinking all night. And there a ton of different bands of people so there have to be thousands and thousands of people following the different trucks through the streets. It was interesting to see the different trucks and mobs navigate around each other when the crossed paths just because there were just soooo many bodies, all dancing. Haha. What is also funny is that when the two bands cross people get covered in other bands paint so you when you look at yourself in the mirror in the morning youre like, “how did I get blue paint on my chin?” or “Is that blood?!?! Oh yea…. We passed the Red Devilz.” Oh I forgot to mention that when we parked, Akua gave me this ridiculous safari lookin’ hat. He said it was for the sun but I think it might have mostly been so that can keep in eye on me.<span style=""> </span>Just a guess though. There were long periods of time where I did get separated from my Seion and the small group but as long as I stayed with the mob and the truck I knew I would be fine. I knew we were ending at Mangos, where I ate the first day. I actually ran into other pan players from Trinidad who played in the Buccooneers too. So we did this all through the night even as the sun came up. People still dancing the whole time. I think with all this dancing and pan playing I have lost a bit of weight. I don’t see how I couldn’t have. So its around 9 am and we ended up at Mangos and Seion and all the paying Yellow Devilz went and had breakfast and I walked back to where I am staying. Jerome and Marylin met me outside and we talked about how the night went and how much fun it was. They have been great because before I went out they warned me not to drink too much and not to take to much money because of pick pockets. They really look out for me. So I went in and took a nice shower, and Marylin made me breakfast. It was great I forget what it was <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilRd2xrCbg7auDh6OWQa86K4534ZY-tE28Sot0AojkhZlRFEalXJHOqPhvAT2rGM5n9Z7zFtJqCxTAVWLDjVvo9_IpWoGGgdL5zrVsIxP0rxSiYdahst1x7JBHYHCFzq6G_SaW4HJpH4A/s1600-h/Picture+298.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilRd2xrCbg7auDh6OWQa86K4534ZY-tE28Sot0AojkhZlRFEalXJHOqPhvAT2rGM5n9Z7zFtJqCxTAVWLDjVvo9_IpWoGGgdL5zrVsIxP0rxSiYdahst1x7JBHYHCFzq6G_SaW4HJpH4A/s320/Picture+298.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438679853139331666" border="0" /></a>called but it is usually eat around Christmas time. It was like a patty of meet and other things in a corn casing. There was ham and fresh papaya as well. Oh and I had some Sorrel as well. Delicious. Then I went into my bedroom and passed out. I wanted to get up around 1 for lunch. That never happened. I ended up sleeping until 5. I think I surprised Jerome and Marylin how much I slept. I wasn’t surprised and I probably could have slept a few m<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHd7RrS4xNoJ2kwSAO2calFvWmeXupNPI1sR4JIzsnel-wQQsEfRcsBZJg3382X5FGvzRP2h6auTGvfOpJcKARF1fbekYh0QU2XLYX23nyL4Qztmck-kakO9ieRLOHUN1dkmqnS8eUXp0/s1600-h/Picture+291.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHd7RrS4xNoJ2kwSAO2calFvWmeXupNPI1sR4JIzsnel-wQQsEfRcsBZJg3382X5FGvzRP2h6auTGvfOpJcKARF1fbekYh0QU2XLYX23nyL4Qztmck-kakO9ieRLOHUN1dkmqnS8eUXp0/s320/Picture+291.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438678600753474482" border="0" /></a>ore hours. Haha. I got up and hung out for a while. Then I went down to get some food and watch Mas bands pass down the street. Tomorrow is when Mas is at full force but today it was a lot of people dancing behind those huge DJ trucks and some are dressed in the Mas gear. Some of that stuff is crazy what they carry or cart around. Some are as wide as the whole street. I eventually walked back and have been hanging out around the house relax and blogging. Now its time to see what is happening tonight. I know tomorrow is supposed to be along day so I might just get my rest. Anyways, more tomorrow. </p> TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-52460407277400545952010-02-14T13:35:00.000-08:002010-02-14T14:01:39.707-08:00Finals and Such...I again slept on the balcony and woke up to water dripping from the air conditioner above us on my arm. It wasn’t that uncomfortable. I mean it wasn’t a bed but it was way better than the floor. After breakfast I went back to bed for a while until we had to start getting ready. They had told us the maxi was leaving at 11 so I was going to take a shower but I let all the other guys go first, being the kind gentleman I am. This was at around 945ish. Little did I know that people would take 20 minute showers! Ahh. So I was walking around getting my uniform ready and I ran into Lemon. He offered to let me use is shower. Awesome! So I ran down stairs and back upstairs took a 2 minute shower and went back and got ready to leave (with time to spare) I found out my uniform sleeves were literally about 6 inches too long so one of the band moms cut and sowed them. I was down waiting for the maxi. 2 hours later the maxi came. NOT kidding. 2 hours. In the mean time I was able to go up stairs and hang in the room until it did come. Then it took a long while to get to the savannah. Crazy traffic, that’s why the Maxi was late too. Anyway so we started practicing and things were feeling ok. I wasn’t playing my best at first because I still hadn’t gotten used to the pans but by the last 2 run-through I was there. Before I knew it, it was time to change in to our uniform and start pushing the pans. I had found a huge rock to chock my wheel this time because in the Semis I was all over the place. I actually tied my rack to the neighboring racks with rope and my leather belt. Worked like a charm. The performance was a blast! I don’t think the energy was as high over all with whole band compared to semis but it was still a great rush and I felt like we played well. I did notice a camera on me a lot during the middle of the song but I heard that the live feed was down. I want sincerely thank all those who attempted to watch or listen. It is indescribable how good it feels to have all this support from home. Thank you.<br /> So, after we perform we pushed our pans straight back to the school where the trucks were. On my way out I actually so a friend Jennifer Butler who played in NIU Steel before me and she had come down for Carnival. She had found me on Facebook and we have been talking for the last few weeks. We literally only said “Hi!” and I had to go push pans. So we pushed pans back and loaded them on the trucks while eating a bit. Then my and the Vincent boys went back to the Savannah to hear some bands. We were there for a while and saw a lot of good bands. I saw Desperados, Silver Stars, Skiffle Bunch and Phase II. I actually introduced myself to Robert Greenidge as he was walking along the track. I didn’t say much because they were on their way to the stage. I didn’t want to get in the way haha. I the last two bands I saw were Phase II and Silverstars and they Silverstars won last year. Both of there arrangements were really good. I also really like The Despers music as well. Silverstars and Phase II are a lot more flashy and Despers are more about the music I feel. All good in my book.<br /><br />Anyway, I had been exhausted since we got off the stage and I never knew my feet could hurt this bad. My and Big P hung around until after the results so Seion could give us a ride back to the hotel. We actually missed the reading of the results but we came in 6th place. A really bummer. I really don’t think that it reflects what happened well but that’s the nature of the competition. Its what the judges like. Two Tobagonian bands were higher than us but we had beaten them with different judges 4 days earlier in Tobago. Eh Oh well. The good news is while we were waiting, I had Bake and Shark for the first time. It is pretty much the best thing I have every eaten. Its fried shark in bake which is a great bread, with lettuce, ketchup garlic sauce and hot pepper sauce. So we went back to the hotel and I made my bed on the balcony again and passed out at about 430. The rest of the band was leaving at about 6 so I woke up and took the extra bed after they left and said goodbye. The St Vincent boys are going back home on Wednesday and I am going back to Tobago, on Thursday. We all slept until Seion called my phone at 11. He said he was going to be there in a few minutes so the three of us pack our stuff as fast as we could and then relaxed. He actually didn’t come for another hour and half so we had passed out again haha. It was kind of funny because we didn’t hear him calling our phones again so he had to come up to the room and knock. Still exhausted, we got into Seions van (which is what they call pick-up trucks apparently). He was dropping me off at where I am staying. Apparently Cliff has set me up with these people. Its right in the middle of town. An older couple Jerome and Marilyn. They are friends of Cliff and Jerome said he used to teach Cliff pan back in the day. It’s a very nice place and I have my own room and private bathroom! Yes I know its amazing. And I believe its only going to cost 60 US dollars a night. Definitely very nice. I got in and took a shower. It was the best shower I have taken in 5 weeks. Amazing. Then I got dressed and went down the street to get some food. Because it was around 130. I went to a restaurant named Mangos on the Avenue and had some fish and potatoes. Very tasty, a bit expensive but worth it. I actually met a US American couple from San Deigo and where probably in their 50s or 60s. We talked a while about their travels and where they have lived in the US. It wasn’t their first time in Trinidad for Carnival so they talked about that as well. Then we went our separate ways and I headed back to the place to relax and blog. more later. Feel free to ask questions. I probably left somethings out. haha<br /><br />The pictures below are of the room I am staying in. and just for a size reference the bed is right next to the closet.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vxE4QefcMphVg9prD6Xq68BOdPHv2ny-sPmbItFK5L9GwbGox2_a1IQyH4aTwcT7HTqtK75cDOmkRSIMPStX0hiOPOKBXySBLLIqlM-LNBq_2eOmJsaeFmjuyIyqGx3hajwmCm1msLU/s1600-h/Picture+274.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vxE4QefcMphVg9prD6Xq68BOdPHv2ny-sPmbItFK5L9GwbGox2_a1IQyH4aTwcT7HTqtK75cDOmkRSIMPStX0hiOPOKBXySBLLIqlM-LNBq_2eOmJsaeFmjuyIyqGx3hajwmCm1msLU/s320/Picture+274.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438218008132140306" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNBO76Fb8HUFYcshidBtmDhVBzUDLHJZYhM3yeIouDdrBJKJZxPwbjtUfNvaymMdgjt8oLEgeJ_9VipHnHEIazBzpVQua-MSU-1l-Ru9qP0tab-3j_WUGTN6sXTso2MymO9tV26MCrthY/s1600-h/Picture+275.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNBO76Fb8HUFYcshidBtmDhVBzUDLHJZYhM3yeIouDdrBJKJZxPwbjtUfNvaymMdgjt8oLEgeJ_9VipHnHEIazBzpVQua-MSU-1l-Ru9qP0tab-3j_WUGTN6sXTso2MymO9tV26MCrthY/s320/Picture+275.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5438221894863037842" border="0" /></a>TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-57219275734684096622010-02-14T13:14:00.000-08:002010-02-14T13:16:56.662-08:00The day before finals...Well… much to talk about. Lets start where I left off. After I blogged me and Big P (I originally thought it was Big B but I think I may have been mistaken, I still am not certain) went down to the supermarket to get some drinks and stuff. It was about a mile walk not too bad. There ended up being a mall there so we hung out for a while. I actually got some sunglasses. The supermarket was pretty crazy because the lines were so long. They had to have 20 people in them and only 5 of 20 registers were open. However, we actually got lucky because a parent of one of the Buccooneers was paying and she waved us over so we jumped the line. We only had 2 waters and a Gatorade so I didn’t feel too bad. Then went back to the hotel and I napped. We went to the panyard later that night to rehearse the last time before finals. We ended up doing a lot of work. We changed ending a little bit more to clean it up. Seion forgot my pans again. He actually left during rehearsal and got them which was great I was a little nervous because these pans were different. They were rotated a bit and the rack was different as well so I just wanted to get used to them. After a while Seion had to go to his other band the Merrytones because they performed in the small band category. He suggested that the band come and support them. Looking back I don’t know if it was great idea because people ended up getting mad that others left and rehearsal went pretty late when we got back. It was nice to see his other band play though. I was exhausted and hungry along and a group of us hitched a ride back to the school. Practice went on for a while and then we had to move pans to the Savannah at around 3 in the morning. Luckily I had a Lucozade which is a glucose energy drink. Taste really good and is probably horrible for you but oh well, It did the trick. We ended up getting back to the hotel at around 4 after setting up the racks twice on the drag. We were the 2nd band to perform so we set up really close to the stage. So we woke the next morning for breakfast.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-59854962032170655092010-02-12T10:49:00.000-08:002010-02-12T10:50:01.283-08:00Rehearsal in Trinidad... Finals two days away (NOW ONE)I have internet. Yay! Well yesterday morning I made it to the maxi (because I didn’t go to sleep) and got on the boat. I took a nice nap on the boat. I actually bought some breakfast on the boat (because my brother would kill me if I didn’t at least once) It wasn’t too bad. We got to Trinidad and headed to the hotel. As we get there we find out that there is no water. Yes again, NO Water. It was actually on the news because some construction working busted the pipe and it’s a huge hotel and they have only had water I think 3 days of the last 20 or so (That’s what I heard)Eh oh well. I just wanted to sleep. So I got to the room and passed out. I am in a room with the two St. Vincent guys again, a man named Smokey who plays the big drum, and the guy who plays “tok tok” (Jam block) Tok tok is what it sounds like, “tok…tok…tok…tok…tok…tok” through the whole song. Both are referred to as “Rasta men.” Smokey is named that I believe because he is a smoker. (of probably multiple things) and has a deep very raspy “smoker voice.” All very nice guys. So caught up for sleep breaking for lunch and dinner. After dinner we went to practice at 8. By the way, still no water. We rehearsed a looong time. Seion was supposed to bring my pans but he forgot so I had to share, which was fine. Seion actually changed the ending of the tune to make it more dramatic. I really like it. I recognize it though. It has parts from March Slave and another Calypso he has written before. NIU folks will definitely recognize it. Very nice and a really nice cello part. It was tough because there was a huge fete (party) going on down the block with live music and Seion had to teach parts over that. At about 3:30 in the morning there was a bunch of drama about people being too tired to rehearse and such. I know its 3:30 BUUUT Seion, Ben and Lemon aaaalll warned us to rest during the day because “We will be going very late on Thursday night” I know I did but I’m sure a lot of people that are complaining did not. It was a bit frustrating for me because I was ready to rehearse for another hour and Finals were only TWO DAYS AWAY ahhhh! But we did end rehearsal. It was the first time I’ve ever seen Seion vexed (mad). There was also a lot of drama about Trinis vs Tobagonians whos doing more work whatever. I think its just stupid that we are wasting so much time wining and arguing but I am the new guy and a bit of a minority in this situation. All I know is that I am doing all I can to help and its all I can do. Anyways, so we head back to the hotel and there is finally water yay! But I am too tired to bathe so fall asleep. I actually slept out on the deck in a chair for a long while 5 people in a room and 2 beds. You do the math. And two guys pasted out diagonally on the beds and I didn’t want to wake them. No big deal I got some really good sleep this morning after breakfast. Oh and I finally got to take a shower. (just before all the water was gone again.) I relaxed around the hotel after lunch and now and blogging. We have to go to our final rehearsal at 3 which is in about 15 minutes. SO I had better get going. I will hopefully blog later tonight because I probably wont on Saturday night. I hope you can all find the link for the Live broadcast. If you are confused, email me at trucker101355@gmail.comTomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-87819755465669524732010-02-10T23:30:00.000-08:002010-02-10T23:31:57.183-08:00THA (Finals in Tobago)So last night at THA, get to the practice yard from the maxi and wait around for a while because the racks are there but most of the pans are not. Most of us went to get something to eat. I went to a place called Royal Castle and got some BBQ chicken and macaroni pie. Then the pans got there and we set up and played through some parts. The pans were set up as they would be in the performance and today I was in the front row because the person normally there couldn’t be there. So we were playing and people were coming straight up to my pan which did get me flustered a bit but better now than at the real thing. Then we had to push our pans down the road toward the stage. Luckily this time it was not far at all. I heard the band before us finish and it was time to go on. We set up quick and got rolling. As soon as we started, three cameras came right in front of my pan. The adrenaline was flowing as well as my dance moves (hopefully) I really didn’t care I just wanted to play and have fun. Everything was going fine but in the middle of the song something felt off for a moment. I was too busy concentrating on playing and dancing to worry about. The first rule of performing, you are going to mess up, but don’t let it look like you messed up. Anyways we finished and sweat has soaked through my shirt. I thought I got sweaty at NIU steel band concerts. But its 80 degrees and humid out here. Not to mention my dance moves have vastly improved since then. It’s a good workout though. We move our racks out the other side of the stage and it is right across the street from the port, How convenient. Its like they planned it that way. (they did) We had to leave for Trinidad the next night for finals. But there was a stir amongst the band about the mess up. I finally heard that someone got off in the rhythm section bad after a big break and apparently a lot of people in the band looked back while playing. We had a band pow wow and got yelled at pretty good. There had been a lot of bad attitudes within the band for a while during practices in the last week. A lot of people didn’t think we would do well at THA because of the politics and junk. And now because of the negative attitude we just gave it away. So we packed up our pans, most of us got on the maxi, and went back to Buccoo. Lemon asked me to take Omari home and to bed so I did while he stayed to get the results. Omari was running around the lot most of the time there but when hit the maxi, he passed out on some girls shoulder. Luckily the driver lives in Lemons neighborhood so it was a short sleepwalk back home. I think he really has ON/OFF switch. When hes ON, he as off the walls, but when hes OFF its like hes in a coma. Anyway so I got him to bed and started some laundry. I called Lemon to ask if he had anything to wash and he said no and that we had got FIRST PLACE!!!! YAY! So I hung up and did my laundry. Lemon called me when he got back and there was a big party at the Panyard until about 430 in the morning. Taking, dancing, drinking, good times had by all. I think people are really starting to understand the real me. I feel like ive finally come out of my shell and they understand my humor.<br /><br />So today I got up pretty late. However the last few hours weren’t that great because Omari thinks its hilarious to wake me up with loud music or other means. He didn’t go to school because the late night last night. I did eventually wake up and then got some food (saltfish, tasty) then went to the beach for a swim. I created a new exercise were I tread water with just my arms for like 10 minutes and the stick my legs straight out from my body (Pike position). Im actually feeling it in my upper body now and its nice and relaxing. Anyway, boring I know, I got done and went back for shower and get ready for a meeting at 6. I actually didn’t go until about 615. Oh no im late! Not. I ended up sitting around for an hour then I went to get some dinner and came back. Around 8 then the meeting started about 20 minutes later. We just got our uniform pants for the finals and found out the Maxi comes at 5 tomorrow morning. After that, the guys who go on the slow boat with the pans went to port as well as a handful of helpers (Me). What are we helping with you ask? Why I’ll tell you. We are helping push all the racks on the boat. Doesn’t sound hard right? They’re on wheels, no big deal. Until you have to push them up a wet, obstacle filled, 45 degree incline about a mile long. (not really a mile but had to be 100 meters). I had flashbacks of High School Football pushing the sleds up and down the field. Anyway, it wasn’t too bad. But I was soar from this “awesome new workout” I created. We got up to the top and we organized them. Then suddenly I was like “it smells like a sweaty farm up here?!” Then I turned around and there were about 20 goats caged in the back of a pickup truck just staring at me. Hateful eyes they had, hateful judging eyes. <br />I did seem like we were the most efficient pan moving crew of all the bands. Then we went back to the car and headed back to Buccoo, dropped some people off and finally got to Lemon’s. So now I am just about done packing. It has been tough because I am staying longer than everyone else. Finals are Saturday and everyone else is coming back Sunday. I am staying in Trinidad until either Wednesday or Thursday to hang with Seion and the gang for CARNIVAL! Exciting. I am packing my back pack to the brim. Hopefully I will have internet at the hotel. Otherwise there are going to be some really long blogs to come. <br /><br />JUST IN CASE I DON’T HAVE INTERENT. I will post the info for Finals:<br />My band is the NLCB Buccooneers and we are playing second. The competition starts at 6 Trini Time and we should play between 615 and 7 is my guess. That’s 415 to 5 CST . The link to watch it online is http://www.ctntworld.com/livestream/ heres the link to the band order http://pantrinbago.co.tt/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=318:panorama-grand-finals-order-of-appearance&catid=40:news-articles&Itemid=55 I am in the medium band category and they go first.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-86824176226195255532010-02-09T12:07:00.000-08:002010-02-09T12:08:10.252-08:00Feeling much better<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:relyonvml/> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><link 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mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Rockwell","serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Rockwell; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Rockwell; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Yesterday rehearsal went well. Seion and a bunch of the players from Trinidad were here<span style=""> </span>but rehearsal was actually pretty short. We had to move our pans down to Scarborough for the completion today. They call it THA which stands for Tobago House of Assembly. This is the Tobago steel pan final. All the Tobagonian steel bands that make it into the National Semifinals play here and compete against eachother. And there are only two categories.<span style=""> </span>Traditional (single pan or pan ‘round de neck) and conventional (like the Buccooneers). Each band is to have no more that 75 players playing for this competition so the large bands<span style=""> </span>have to cut a lot of people. We only have to cut a few. It is said to be very political but I feel we have a pretty good chance at winning. People seem to really like our band and enjoy Seions arranging style. But I really don’t know what will happen. We moved racks last night until 330. Phew! Exhausting but still fun. </p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style=""> </span>Today I was pretty lazing because of the late night last night. I hung out and got some food and just listen to music today. I also wanted to conserve my energy because the competition doesn’t start until 8 oclock and we play 5<sup>th</sup> in our category. Traditional is up first so we probably wont play until about midnight. A maxi is going to pick us up from the panyard at 5, Then we head over to the practice yard in Scarborough until we play. Should be a long night. Oh I forgot to mention. I got another new jersey (t-shirt) for the performance and at first they gave me another XL but I moved quick and found a Medium in the extras bag. Finally something that fits. Last competition I had a Large and that was still huge. Plus I think I am losing a little weight out here due to all the walking and such. I good kick start to my new years resolution (that’s a first)</p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">I am feeling much better today and I feel almost back to normal. Just in time for travelling to Trinidad on Thursday.</p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Just now as I was in the kitchen getting something to drink, Omari came running and it looked like he stubbed his toe and was crying a bit. A little background, Omari likes to pretend to be hurt with me a lot where he fake cries and fibs about being hurt and has fooled me the first couple of times. But after the first few I told him that he should lie and people wont believe him when the real thing happens, insert “the boy who cried wolf” etc. It seemed as though he had actually been hurt this time. So I quickly checked that there wasn’t a serious injury and made a mini ‘teachable moment’ out of it. I don’t know how much actually sank in but I hope a little. Don’t worry I did still console him but he was fine 5 minutes later. Anyways off to catch the maxi for THA. More soon.</p> TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-58421043156923029742010-02-09T00:06:00.000-08:002010-02-09T00:11:39.851-08:00Second Sunday School<div style="text-align: left;">Well yesterday I went to the beach but I didn’t really swim. The waves were humungous. I did hang out and went in up to my waste. While I was there a little boy came up to me and we formed an emidiate bond. His name was Dareem Adams (he spelled it for me in the sand. ha). He had to be about 6 years old but he reminded me of Omari a lot because he had an endless amount of energy. Running around making some sort of noise and just having fun. He liked to get pulled by the waves and he would grab onto my arm as if I was saving him. I don’t know why but kids seem to just love me. I didn’t even initiate anything. It was funny though. I also watched some surfers off in the distance. I definitely need to do that before I leave here. Afterwards I went back to Lemon’s and showered up and got ready for Sunday School. Saw had dropped by and we were just hanging out. I remembered that the Superbowl was on and I wanted to quickly catch the score. Saw said he didn’t really understand that game and thought it was boring. So I gave him a rather brief description of the game and he said its probably not as boring if you understand it. Anyway they left to go set up and I hung around for a while. When I went down I was starving. At Sunday School there are a bunch of different food vendors. I had previously asked Lemon which one was the best so I went to that one. I told her I knew Lemon and played with the Buccooneers and she said she would fix me up real nice. So she gave me this huge plate of food with chicken, macaroni pie, coleslaw, potato salad, pasta salad and I think that’s it. It was probably the best meal I bought on my whole trip. Then she told me the price. 80 TT. The most I have ever paid for a meal is about 45 dollars. Luckily this was worth 80 TT. Then it was off to watch the steel band more. The last one I promise I will get some video. My stomach wasn’t feeling so good all night so I went back to Lemons for a lot of the time. After my stomach felt better, I came and hung out with a lot of the guys in the band. They really take good care of me and seem to enjoy having me around. Some drinking, dancing and good times ensued. Its kinda funny because every Sunday School, I really feel like a tourist because there are a lot around and as much as I don’t want to look like a tourist, its inevitable. I ended up eventually walking back to where I am staying and passing out as soon as I hit the bed.<br /></div><br />Today, I woke up a little later and relaxed for a while. Lemon eventually called me to take me to the bank. I have needed to go for a while. He was nice enough to lend me 200 TT yesterday. The first think I did was pay him back with interest. I also stopped at the drug store and got some medicine for my stomach. I got back, had some Chinese food and hung out at the beach. Again I was going to go swimming but waves were even bigger. I did bring a body board the Lemon has but there were only 2 surfers and no swimmers. If there were more people I would have felt more comfortable. Plus, I could see the headline now. Local former lifeguard drowns at Sea, What an idiot. I will definitely get out there soon though. Afterwards, I walked back, showered and am currently just relaxing.<br /><br />I am definitely starting to miss home a bit. More because I just feel disconnected with all my friends and family back home. I still am very connected with the Internet, email and Facebook but its still not the same. Well, I have a pretty eventful few days coming up so there will definitely be more soon.<br /><br />The picture seen here is just a local shop I pass by everyday with a nice paint job. Also I nice older gentleman sitting on a bench outside.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNTPnFx6i392VVv9AvPdyU3oPm9Xu5CxVbF9-UsgCzz-V6aY2Cutk3-rZYQWwWGwE-5ViSkBYDjZG-URgIBETVwHZAHSHjG-XeZss0egqmyjNYBzwhEU7_Pg9UEYeDM1HgZUdrY1zpWI/s1600-h/Picture+233.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 394px; height: 294px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNTPnFx6i392VVv9AvPdyU3oPm9Xu5CxVbF9-UsgCzz-V6aY2Cutk3-rZYQWwWGwE-5ViSkBYDjZG-URgIBETVwHZAHSHjG-XeZss0egqmyjNYBzwhEU7_Pg9UEYeDM1HgZUdrY1zpWI/s320/Picture+233.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436152545545049218" border="0" /></a>TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-53036011778254198102010-02-07T11:51:00.002-08:002010-02-07T11:52:07.243-08:00Relaxing SaturdaySaturday I slept in til about noon and hung out for a while. I was still concerned about my stomach so I got some medicine down at the store that has everything. I took it and just relaxed and ate until practice. I was feeling better. Rehearsal was as usual until the end. We actually started learning a new, easy song, to play on the streets in at the finals. I don’t really know where, when or why we are playing it but I guess I will find out. But it was nice to see a smaller group learning and quickly being taught the new tune. After rehearsal, Lemon, Big B, Dmitri and I went out to the bars to lime. We actually went to a couple in neighboring towns. I was out of TT so Lemon said he would lend me the money for the night, which was nice. We drove by a couple clubs that had covers. We didn’t really want to spend that much money and plus you had to have long pants to get into them. Interesting. Those clubs or where more tourists go and people who want to dance. We actually ended up at a local bar in Scarborough. People played pool, danced, and there were actually a bunch of guys just sleeping. It wasn’t that crowded but the beers were cheap. I actually went into that back room to check it out and I found about 5 guys just passed out at a some tables and there was no one else in the room. So we hung out there for a while and then went on our way back to Buccoo. Its funny because all the bars in Buccoo are closed but they are open late on Sunday nights and are packed. Tonight should be a good time. This morning I was getting up slow and hung around Lemons. The medicine I took has helped and I am feeling better. I watched a movie earlier and I think I may actually go for a swim right now. More blogging, probably tomorrow.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-23860847845717167912010-02-07T11:51:00.001-08:002010-02-07T11:51:36.076-08:00My first Soca Party<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:relyonvml/> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"><link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> 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mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Rockwell","serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Rockwell; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Rockwell; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Wow. Sorry it has been so long since I have blogged. My usual blogging time has been pretty busy. Well, Friday was a pretty typical day I rested and relaxed. My stomach still wasn’t feeling better but I still haven’t missed a rehearsal or anything. I helped Big B with the last of the tune. It was fulfilling. I got that warm and fuzzy accomplished teacher feeling which I haven’t gotten since student teaching. That also reminds me, I have to look for a job when I get back. Ugh. Anyway so I relaxed back at Lemons until I had rehearsal. Rehearsal was as usual. Not too long and we hung out a little afterwards. Lemon and I actually left pretty quickly after because Georgina had gotten us tickets to a Soca party.<span style=""> </span>It was sponsored by Digicel, and she works there, hence the free tickets. Well, I had never been to a Soca party so I was curious to see what it was like. The party was called “Outrageous in White” meaning everyone has to or at least should wear white. Luckily lemon let me borrow a white jersey (T-shirt) and it fit pretty well. The party was in Canoe Bay and we started driving up and there a ton of cars parked along the street. Luckily the tickets we had were VIP tickets so we were able to drive all the way up next to where the party was. Most people had to walk a ways. Also I found out the tickets we had, people paid 250 TT for them. So So we checked in and got our VIP wrist band, Digicel handkerchief and drink tokens. The drink tokens where one inch square pieces of paper with, beer, premium drink or soda on them. 2 of each. I was lucky enough to find another packet on the ground at the bar so we didn’t pay for anything all night. When we got there, I saw a big stage, lots of people and a fence in the middle of the crowd dividing the VIP section and everyone else. We were right in front and we could go back stage freely. There were food stands and bars around the outside and very loud music. At the time we walked in, it was only a DJ playing because it was ‘early’….1 A.M. There also a handful of people on stilts dancing. Not like ‘oh you are a foot taller than me that funny’ more like. You are 20 feet in the air. I felt like they were Giraffes or something. We and Lemon were hanging out and had got our first and 2<sup>nd</sup> round of drinks. I was looking on stage to notice that there were keyboards, a drumset and a bass amp on stage. I was really looking forward to hearing what was coming. I haven’t heard or seen any live music other than pan since I’ve been here. The first two artists came out. They actually only saying with a backing track, which was fine still very entertaining. Lots of dancers, lights and such.<span style=""> </span>Lots of fun. Then they started setting up for the live band performance. Lemon and I went into general admission part because it was bigger to check it out. There actually was a rhythm section playing there. It included a bunch of guys playing the Iron. Similar to a break drum, a guy playing congas, a guy playing timbales and bongos and a man playing two large drums made of out steel drums. I found out that they are just barrels with the top cut off and the stretch plastic over the top and act as a bass drum.<span style=""> </span>It was pretty fun because they were just playing a groove and people were dancing by them and it was a nice little interlude inbetween artists. And they were playing in the back of the general admission section opposite the stage. After a while the first main artist came on, Alison Hines, Lemon and I headed back to the VIP section of course. The band started and the lights started back up, Giraff people were walking around and dancing, and all the sudden I look up and there are fireworks coming from behind the stage. A great show. Jah Cure came out and they sang a few songs together and then individually. From what I understand, Jah Cure known as a Reggae artist and for him to be singing Soca is a little bit shocking or at least new. Oh for all those not familiar with Soca, here is a music video of a very popular soca song right now.<span style=""> </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8XzxV8MCXA">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8XzxV8MCXA</a> Its called Palance which, from what I understand, means to just have a good time and enjoy yourself. Very High energy. The band was pretty cool because there was a bass player, drummer and about 5 keyboard players play all kinds of stuff. It sounded really good. I actually got to talk to the bass player for a little bit between sets. We had left shortly after that time because it was getting late. We left around 4 and the party was going to go until about 6 but Lemon and I were exhausted.<span style=""> </span>And I passed out as soon as I hit the pillow. </p> TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-39695947076785903412010-02-04T23:20:00.000-08:002010-02-04T23:28:49.643-08:00feeling better... maybe it was the antsWell today was a pretty lazy day I woke up pretty late and went to the panyard to teach Big B some more music. I must say no offense to him but I really do enjoy teaching children better than adults. A lot of times I find that adults feel that they can do think better their own way even more than young students. For example I told him to play it very very slow but in time and try to get as many notes as possible. But he still plays it really fast. It was a bit frustrating. I mean I really like that guy and if he doesn’t want my guidance that is fine and I will just feed him notes. However, I have studied music with some great teachers and this is what they have taught me and it works. I do recall a time when in a lesson with Robert Chappell where he was asking me to play it slow. It took me a short while to realize how well it works. Overall I feel I have got a great experience in both learning by wrote and teaching by rote. I like both ways but I feel that teaching by written music is just soo much more efficient. However I actually really enjoy learning by rote because its more of a physical way of learning. Well, enough of that. Afterwards, at around 5 I got back to Lemon’s and hung out for a while with Omari and went on the computer for a bit. I hung out until I had to go to practice. Rehearsal was short and we hung out afterwards. I actually started playing the congas. I showed them a “moose call” (a way of producing a sound from a drum by rubbing your finger across the top in a specific way to make a sustained sound.) They were all very amused. I tried to teach them how to do it but none of them really got it. It took me while. It was just really funny how amused they were, calling people over to listen and then watching them try to do it, haha. After a bit, I went back to Lemons and relaxed and watched TV.<br /><br />Today my stomach felt better. Still not 100% but getting there. Oh!!! By the way, I figured out how to change comment settings so that anyone can leave a comment. Hopefully it work. Comments are encouraged.<br /><br />My time here is flying by and looking at my schedule in the next couple of weeks I feel like it might even go faster. Off to bed now. More tomorrow. Ill add more pictures too. for now here is one of Omari building a kite.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8raiSSOuF8fPB55bB2vmU7wYElkS1fFV82ZSJhnzAPU3J73kR_rD1lO3ldUzBk7CM2MXn1EO7s1Z_fw32x7R7qiXeOyePUgArMMEpsWtvaoQyhSPFHw7RabRN5jOIx2oJoHgLo8M50so/s1600-h/Picture+216.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 325px; height: 431px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8raiSSOuF8fPB55bB2vmU7wYElkS1fFV82ZSJhnzAPU3J73kR_rD1lO3ldUzBk7CM2MXn1EO7s1Z_fw32x7R7qiXeOyePUgArMMEpsWtvaoQyhSPFHw7RabRN5jOIx2oJoHgLo8M50so/s320/Picture+216.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434657041169183634" border="0" /></a>TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-7934023610586316602010-02-03T22:45:00.000-08:002010-02-03T22:47:27.066-08:00Knot feelin so hot...Well today I wasn’t feelin so hot. I have had a knot in my stomach all day. I was supposed to help Big B learn some more of the music but I called him and canceled because I wanted to get better. After a few hours I ended up feeling a bit better so I went for a walk down to the Mt. Irving for a quick swim around 1 in the afternoon. I have a had a farmers tan since I got hear and it was time to even it out. I was only out there for about 45 minutes. I figured that would give me a little color. Not many people were at the beach. Maybe its because it’s the middle of the day on a Wednesday. There were two surfers to the far left side of the beach and a two other swimmers. The waves were pretty big today and the water was extremely clear. I put my stuff down and went in. One of the other swimmers was an older man. I didn’t get really close to talk or anything but I noticed that he had only one leg. He was swimming fine just floating comfortably. He had gotten to the shoreline and started scooting towards his towel. I offered help but he respectfully declined. And I went back to swimming. Some of the waves got to be pretty big where I could body surf them for probably over 25 yards. They were probably almost 6 foot waves, some even taller. It was amazing to just feel how powerful they were. I’m really getting used to swimming in the ocean. I did get thrown around a little. Almost lost my suit once. But there really wasn’t anyone there. Well the man with one leg probably got a glimps. But I eventually packed up and walked back. I showered, and headed down to the panyard to meet with Big B at 2. I called him and he said he couldn’t me so I got some food. I still had a knot in my stomach so I went back to Lemons and rested for a long while. Took nap and hung out until I had to go to rehearsal. Not too many people came out to rehearsal. I was pretty shocked. I would have thought people would want to practice because we are still only in 3rd place. Eh oh well. When it was done we hung out for a while got a bit of food and headed back. <br /> Right now I am hanging out in my room. This actually happened while I was blogging. I was a little hungry and I remember I had bought some cookies yesterday and I put them by my luggage. I reached over for one and I was about to put it in my mouth when I realized there were tiiiiiny ants all over it. I quickly threw them away and killed all the ants I could see on the floor and on my arm. Eeeew. And now I feel like there are a million ants crawling all over me (luckily there aren’t, I keep checking). I always thought it was weird why Lemon kept Cheese sticks (like Cheetos) and Twizzlers in the fridge. Now, I know. Eh I guess I’ve learned my lesson. I wont be doing that ever again. Anyway, time for bed.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-59904350737665698682010-02-02T23:47:00.000-08:002010-02-02T23:49:05.535-08:00still catching up on sleep....<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:relyonvml/> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"><link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> 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mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Rockwell","serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Rockwell; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Rockwell; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Well today was a bit of a lazy day recovering from my travels to Trinidad and back. I had agreed to help out my friend Big B from St. Vincent learn more of the tune. I got there on time of course, and no one was there so I went to get some Roti down the street, came back and called him. He came over and we worked pretty hard from 230 to almost 5. I really have gotten more rote <i style="">teaching</i> experience than I expected.<span style=""> </span>I definitely am not used to teaching that way and it took some getting used to. I was getting tired so I went back to hang at Lemons house for a while with Omari. I was skyping with my Dad and he got to see how Omari is when he isn’t nervous and talking to new people. A ball of energy. He did however ask me today when I am leaving and told me that I cant go. I told him I had to because I have to teach at home. He proceeded to tell me that I can teach here. Haha. </p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style=""> </span>Anyway I went down to the panyard to either teach Big B some more notes or help move racks. I ended up moving racks. Headed back when It was through and perused the internet for the last couple of hours. I must now get to bed because I am getting up to teach Big B some more and I want to have enough time to go to the beach and work on my tan. Another “hard day at work…” don’t worry mom, I will use sunscreen. </p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Oh also I have been thinking of thing(s) to get Kirth/Lemon as a present for his hospitality. I have a funny feeling he wont take any money. Does anyone have any ideas? Please email them to me at <a href="mailto:trucker101355@gmail.com">trucker101355@gmail.com</a> and also feel free to email any other questions or comments about the blog or anything really. I would enjoy some feedback. Thanks to those who have given me some. <span style=""> </span>I really never expected anyone to read this. I did it mostly because I was bored during a 7 hour layover in Trinidad. I am really glad that people are actually reading it. I didn’t really know until Seion asked me about it without me telling him. I’m really glad I am doing it and I will recommend it for anyone travelling. Well, off to bed. More tomorrow.</p> TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-63313349470955212572010-02-01T23:23:00.000-08:002010-02-01T23:49:22.401-08:00Semi Finals and suchWell, yesterday was Semifinals. A loooong but great day. We got up on the morning for breakfast around 8. I went back to sleep for a little bit before we had to shower a get ready. But guess what? Noooo water still. We had found out that there were two working bathrooms down stairs by the pool so we all were going to use that one at a time. This was around 10 o’clock and we had to leave for rehearsal at 11. It was taking forever (especially the women, is anyone surprised?) so we got word that there was a faucet in the back of the building that was working so a bunch of the guys just went over there and quickly showered. Yea crazy I know, water was a bit cold but it got the job done. So we went over to rehearsal. There we had some food to eat before rehearsal. We also said a prayer. We usually pray after rehearsal but this was different because of Semifinals. A lady actually said the prayer and there was some bible readings. Then we sang. But not like oh lets sing a little song together. The whole percussion section played a calypso beat in the background and there was clapping (on 2 and 4) and it was nice. I did get a chuckle because the other white person in the band was clapping on 1 and 3 haha. Anyways so we played a little bit for a warm up and all the sudden they were like “time to move the pans.” I was a rack leader because my pans are on a rack by themselves. We got in a sort of caravan of pans and pulled them down the street. We weren’t too far from the Savanna (where the competition is held) but its not as easy when you are pushing pans and dodging traffic. I really didn’t know what was going on (as usual) but I just did what I was told. I actually passed by Exodus as they were practicing but no time or free hands for pictures. Then we had come to a stop because there was another band set up in the street (that was closed off) and we started to setup our pans. This is what they call “the track” or “the strip.” There were a lot of vendors along the side walk and sets and tons of people. We setup our pans and played through our song at moderate pace. I was actually right on the end so people could actually come right up to my pan and rest on the railing. Kind of awkward at first, not to mention people are probably curious to see if I can play well. Played through a few things and then it was time to move again. Then I realized it was just like marching band only instead of marching, you push stuff. We set up and played a couple more times and each time the energy got a little higher because we were getting closer to the stage and time to play. Also there were more and more people the closer you got to the stage. The road wasn’t very even all the time either so there were a couple of times I almost rolled into the gutter while I was playing. We were on the last stretch of road where they have a competition before they reach the stage that is actually judged by Pantrinbago Judges. It was then that I realized that I needed to change into long pants for the completion. So of course I did in front of a bunch of people but oh well. I’m glad I waited because I would have been dead if I wore long Jeans all day long. If you are curious as to how I carried stuff around, I hooked my back pack to my pan rack. At this competition before the stage, we were asked to play it slower that it would be which was a nice warm up. People are pack all around you and the energy is really high. Lots of dancing and jumping and a ton of fun. I think people in the band were impressed that I moved and I actually created some of the dance moves everyone was doing. After we played there we started pushing our pans to the stage. Coming up to the stage on the right is a huge crowd of people and to the left, stadium VIP seating and the Judges. On each side of the stage is a huge ramp. On the judges side and the crowd side are a bunch of lights and speakers and such. We started setting up the pans as fast as we can in a predetermined arrangement and as soon as my pans were set a few seconds later we were about to play. There are two huge red timers on either side so the band can see because the time limit is 8 minutes with a 30 second buffer. Seion counted us of and we started playing. The energy was crazy, there were camera men around the outside of the band and the adrenaline was pumping. I actually later found out that you can watch it streaming live on the internet. I will give out the website when it gets closer to finals and when I have the approximate time we are playing. It was so hot up their I was sweating so much and I couldn’t hear anything but it was an amazing experience. My rack was actually moving around quite a bit but it didn’t affect me too much. I will definitely tie it to the rack next time me next time. I looked up and the timer said 8:17. Great time. We pushed our racks down the ramp on the opposite side we came in on and packed them into the boxes. We then walked the empty racks back to the school where we practice and had some food.<br /><br />Seion, Akua and Kyshon (another Trini player for the Buccooneers) were going to the Savannah to walk around and see a few big bands and invited me along. Even though I was exhausted, or course I still went. Now walking around with Seion is pretty funny because we can’t go 10 feet without someone stopping to say hello. He’s a celebrity. But we were able to see a bunch of bands playing on the track just as I did earlier. Keep in mind by this time it is almost midnight. Seion and I actually separated from the other to for a little bit to sit down. He took me in the VIP section right behind the judges as we watched a couple of big bands play. It was a pretty cool sight to see. Of course this one lap around the savannah did take us well over 3 hours because Seion saw so many people. I definitely didn’t mind though. I actually get stopped and talked to by a lot of people there too. Except they are either crazy or trying to sell m<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHuFgQJ7lAa8xm6kZTMQ4-vLpBcVAy1zJo5Q-DmML4rSHXua1OfmXSIVAHLdDSEyfijqt7FLLS4l-psnSn_V3qQVzlmZkUJy1K1L95a3jgt8dxZAexcu3dwcuWIaLNvSIw97mJwhQSCck/s1600-h/Picture+165.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 246px; height: 185px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHuFgQJ7lAa8xm6kZTMQ4-vLpBcVAy1zJo5Q-DmML4rSHXua1OfmXSIVAHLdDSEyfijqt7FLLS4l-psnSn_V3qQVzlmZkUJy1K1L95a3jgt8dxZAexcu3dwcuWIaLNvSIw97mJwhQSCck/s200/Picture+165.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433544882611211410" border="0" /></a>e something. I can get a cab in the blink of an eye. We ended up starting to leave right after the Desperados played. Robert Greenidge arranges for him and I walked right past him on stages. Pretty cool. So as we were leaving I got to see a lot of the big bands pans. I saw a 6 pan and a 12 bass (in the picture to the right) and some really funky looking setups.<br />We ended up heading back to the hotel where we hung out, limed, drank a little, and watched the rest of the big bands. I don’t think bands finished until after 2 or 230 am. Then the results came in. There was about 25 of us in one room silent listening to them read it off. There was a bit of hooting and hollering when we found that we had beaten the band who is playing the same song as we are (the arranger of the band actually helped compose the song). And then we got the news that we are in 3rd with 167 points and First place was another Tobagonian band Steel Explosion with 170 points. Everyone was really happy we were in the finals but still thought we should be in a higher position. We ended up going to bed just to get up again at 6 for the ferry back to Tobago. We got in at around noon, I ate some bake and fish and went to bed. I got up around 7 to move pans at 8. Got done around 1AM and I am exhausted. I know this was a long blog but it was a very eventful day. I hope I didn’t forget anything important. It’s time to go back to bed. More tomorrow.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi33qFVVT4E7UchS9VJMTmyLUFd6kKYC10SKOwodi1ugxBhKB4HuJ5c0oOkPxGuOJ-BfHICw4VNgyCGC0AjWNQuXWvlBPhCjaUhvdwyMROVKi_ALKY7DhdtQIuVfq_-Hj7k2FUXtFxgZy8/s1600-h/semi+finals+picture+from+Rich.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 424px; height: 221px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi33qFVVT4E7UchS9VJMTmyLUFd6kKYC10SKOwodi1ugxBhKB4HuJ5c0oOkPxGuOJ-BfHICw4VNgyCGC0AjWNQuXWvlBPhCjaUhvdwyMROVKi_ALKY7DhdtQIuVfq_-Hj7k2FUXtFxgZy8/s400/semi+finals+picture+from+Rich.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433545650637773010" border="0" /></a><br />(By the way, the picture above is a screen shot from the video taken during the competition sent to me by Rich Holly, my Dean from NIU. Thanks again!)TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-29448918279727489592010-01-30T20:54:00.000-08:002010-01-30T20:56:02.729-08:00day two in Trinidad....Well today we had to get up at 7 oclock for breakfast and a meeting. Just some scrambled eggs and bacon and toast. Simple, good and cost efficient (free). Then we had a meeting. There have been some not so awesome vibes in the band overall and the meeting was mostly a sort of wake up call to get focused. It actually reminded me about football back in high school, when the coach or coaches would give some constructive and inspirational speeches. We’ll have to see if it did the job. After the meeting, I of course went back to sleep for about an hour nap before I had to shower and get ready for rehearsal. At rehearsal we started with sectionals which was nice because we went over the hard runs and the whole tune. I needed that because I still had to get used to my new pans. At first I really didn’t like how they sounded or were arranged but after cleaning them well, the sound better and I have gotten used to the layout of the notes pretty well. Oh! And the Vibes were really good, so the talks must have worked. We rehearsed from about 1130 till around 7 or 8. Yea I know, long day but much needed and much accomplished. The only bad thing about where we are practicing there is no water or food near by. luckily Lemon supplied us with both. There was reeaaal good food brought in for our lunch break. At the end of practice we were all exhausted and ready to get home. I knew my feet were killing me. We got back to the hotel and were all ready to shower, lime and go to bed. However, one big problem. No water. Yes let me say that again, NO WATER. Yea I didn’t even ask any follow up questions. I have grown to expect the unexpected. Anyway, So we ate some food that was provided for us again and people hung out. I went over to the pharmacy to get something to drink and I was craving some chocolate. I was grabbed 3 candy bars that I had never seen or heard of before (Nuggle, X Bar, and Bonaza) and I an Arizona Iced Tea. I wanted to spend less than 20 TT. I figured the Iced tea would be cheap like in the states. NOPE. It was 15 TT when a pepsi is 5. I was pretty surprised so of course I went for the Pepsi. Now I am just sitting in my room watching TV and blogging before I go to bed. I should probably get to sleep. Tomorrow is a loooong day. Rehearsal starts at 11 along with a long day of moving pans over and over again. Tomorrow is Semi finals. We are the last band in our section. I am very excited. Goodnight for now. More tomorrow hopefully.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-11701272159919277742010-01-29T23:54:00.000-08:002010-01-29T23:57:30.858-08:00Long day and Trinidad<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:relyonvml/> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"><link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> 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I got up around 9 to help Big B at 10. I had put some laundry in the night before so I could hang it to dry in the morning. Unfortunately it was raining pretty hard so I just grabbed an umbrella and went down the panyard. It was raining on and off as we practiced. Then I got some chicken roti for lunch. At this time it wasn’t raining and the weather was looking very hopeful so I went back to Lemon’s to hang my laundry. Just as I finished Lemon pulled in to take me and the two players from St Vincent to the tailor to get measured for our Finals uniforms. This was all the way in Scarborough.<span style=""> </span>I met the tailor and I told him my name and he, like many other people, said “Tom, Tom the pipers son?” I usually tell them that, my father wasn’t a piper. As we left he told me to say hello to Jerry.<span style=""> </span>I had no idea what he meant or if he even said Jerry so I asked the guys in the car and they reminded me of Tom and Jerry to Cartoon. We started driving back and guess what? It started raining.<span style=""> </span>We got back and my clothes on the line were soaked of course but luckily Lemon drove me to a laundry mat to have them dried. Now this is actually more of a Dry cleaners because you leave your close there and come pick them up later instead of doing it yourself. Oh how I miss having a drier. It cost me 15 TT just for one load to dry. But I needed it because we were leaving in the morning. So I went back to the Panyard to help out Big B some more until I left to go get my dry clothes at 5. I actually found out that Lemon was just going to pick them up on his way home so I hung out with Omari for a while. He was pretty Bonkers today.<span style=""> </span>I blame it on the rain. He had soooo much energy. When the rain stopped I actually took him on a walk and we went over to Brandons place where Maggie and Kinga are as well. We actually mostly hung out with Kinga because she was home. Lemon later drove by and picked up Omari to take him to his mothers. And me and Kinga hung out some more. Just talked about a bunch of different subjects life, music, whatever. She is a very easy going person and easy to talk to. Anyway it was getting late and I had to get on in Maxi Taxi at 5 in the morning tomorrow to head to port. I went back to Kirths, showered, packed and he drove me to the panyard. A Maxi Taxi is a small bus that is a Taxi and Kirth had ordered two to take people to the port. We boarded and it was very nice inside and out. This is the biggest boat I have ever been on. <span style=""> </span>It had two levels with a food line on the bottom and a bar on the top. We found our seats and I passed out for the 2 ½ hour ride. I woke up to see us driving along the coast of Trinidad before we pulled in. We got off the boat and I was immediately mobbed by Taxi drives and one crazy man because of how Caucasian I am. Eeeeven though I was in a group of people all wearing Buccooneers Steel Orchestra Shirts. Eh oh well. I need to work on my tan. So we got on two Maxis and drove to the hotel. I am rooming with the two guys from St Vincent (Big B and Dmitri) and Kasel who is a bass pan player. The room isn’t too bad<span style=""> </span>I didn’t bring any shampoo or soap because we are only here for a couple of days and I could use hotel soap… Bad idea. All they had were three thin bars of soap. Ended up getting some body wash/shampoo at the Pharmacy next door.<span style=""> </span>I was starving so I asked if we were getting food together or not to a few people. I could really understand a clear answer but it seemed like they were saying that its on our own downstairs. Downstairs there were a few eating places like Dominos and Burger King to name a couple. I went and got a some BK because I wanted to compare how it was to that in the States. Everythings pretty much the same except there was like thousand island on my double cheese burger. Tasted good. So I went back upstairs to take a nap and just as I was laying down I find out that we were getting lunch supplied for us…… grrr. Anyway I went down and got a very small plate and a drink. I then went up to the room and passed out until we they gave us dinner. After we hung out, I went to the store, and skyped my brother Chris until we had to go to rehearsal. We rehearse at a near by school because it is safe for our pans. Seion came after we had started and brought MY pans. I set them up and started getting used to them. There rotated a bit different, sound a bit different and the rack itself is a bit different but I can definitely be comfortable with them by Sunday. We ended rehearsal, hopped in the Maxi and went back to the hotel. Luckily there is wireless internet.<span style=""> </span>Its time for bed though I have to get up early for a meeting tomorrow. night</p> TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-61906506255313553072010-01-28T00:06:00.001-08:002010-01-28T00:06:57.913-08:00Long day, long blog....Well, today I got up and dressed and met my Nanya so week can go on our walk to Turtle Beach. Oh and I completely miss heard her name when she said it and her name is Kinga. I know what you are thinking… “How could I have messed that up soo bad.” Well you would have too. In Polish, its not as far off as it looks….give me a break. So, we went on our way at around 11 o’clock. It was overcast for the first time since Ive been here and did rain on and off all day. But when it rains here, its not like Illinois where it rains sideways and hurts and is really cold and has lightning and thunder. It’s a shower. Its like you are running through a sprinkler because it is still very light out. And some times it was just a slight mist. So I offered to whip out the ol’ thumb and try my luck at hitchhiking up there because it is a long way but Kinga said she would like to walk. Sooo I didn’t want to look like a wimp so I walked too. Haha just kidding I really actually enjoy walking so I can see everything and exercise. It was a very good day for this walk. Last time the Sun was beating down on my and it was slightly cooler and the company made the walk even more pleasant. So it was a pretty long walk and of course we traded life stories talking about our occupations, to how she met Maggie and so on. We finally arrived at the beach and the waves were very rough which is unusual for Turtle beach but it was still very nice. There were a group of men pulling in a fishing net. Not like a dinky one. But a huge one that had to be hundreds of yards long. Apparently they had some tuna in there. As we were walking along the beach a man who wasn’t very right in the head started following and talking to us. He mumbled a lot and tended to be in my bubble. He walked and talked very close to me. Being the gentle man I am I made sure I stood in between Kinga and this Crazy. Then we tried to lose him but instead he just tried to sell us very small coconuts. He then proceeded to shake them very close to my head so I knew they was liquid inside. Other locals then started yelling at him which bought us time to get away. We started to head back after stopping to see a person who sold hand mad jewelry and a man who made leather sandals by hand. Pretty nice stuff. I didn’t get any but I might go back. So we headed back and stopped at Pizza Boys to eat and pick up a Pizza for Brandon and Maggie. The Pizza was ok, I’ve definitely had better but Im not too particular. This was nice because we got to sit down and talk even more. Trading life stories takes a while. Kinga’s English is very good but of course there were some slight communication difficulties. Around this time I got a call from Seion asking me to teach the new three cello player from St. Vincent the cello part. I have a feeling he wanted me to do it as soon as I could but I called the man and we worked out a meeting time at 6.Then we started heading back to Buccoo and we hung out at her place, relaxed and talked some more. Then I headed down to the panyard to meet with the player from St. Vincent, Big B. We worked out some parts for about 2 or 3 hours and I didn’t mind because I know how good it would have been if someone had done that for me. Plus I get too learn my part even better. For some reason we didn’t rehearse which I found very frustrating because that’s two days we wasted and didn’t rehearse. But, its not my place. It was raining on and off still and not everyone was there. But I didn’t really feeling like sitting around so I went back to Lemon’s house and got some food on the way back. That jokester guy that I was joking with on Monday actually saw me walking and gave me a ride down the road. I’m definitely feeling more myself now.<br /> After a little bit I got bored so I started walking back to the panyard because I had a feeling they were loading up pan racks to take to the port. Of course I was right and just on time. They had three trucks and they just strap these racks to the them and Drive them down to Scarborough which is about a 15 min drive without traffic. Now keep in mind its still raining out. For the first couple of trips I didn’t go with and I just help load the trucks when they were at the Panyard. But then I figured hey why not and got on the last load. Now these trucks were long pick ups kind of but the 3 sides of the back can fold down to make it a flat bed. So here I am in the middle of a bass pan rack, with pans in them, on the back of a truck while its raining out. Sorry Mom and Dad. Not to mention they are going down some roads at 100 kilometers per hour. Eh you only life once. It wasn’t really what I expected but hey, you only live once. I came here to get the full experience…..And I’m getting it. So, we get there and unload, which at this point its starts pouring. Then we get back in the truck, luckily I got to go in the Cab this time. Its probably equally safe because there is a total of 4 people in there its just a lot drier. Seat belts, haha. There first time I tried to put one of those on Omari laughed at me. I have still warn them at times but this time I couldn’t because there were 4 people in a 2 person cab. Anyways, we got back and I hung out for a while and then Lemon and I came back to his place and crashed. Tomorrow I must get up pretty early because I am helping Big B learn more music at 10 and I have to do laundry tomorrow because I leave for Trinidad Friday morning. Better get to bed. Night.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-47478361089554389412010-01-27T01:17:00.000-08:002010-01-27T01:18:43.607-08:00Tuesday....Today was a pretty short and simple day, I went out to get some food down at New Edition, where the other pan yard was, at around 5 oclock for “lunch?” so I got some fish, beans, rice and noodles, pretty good. Then I was walking back to Kirths house when I passed Brandons driveway. I decided to stop in and say hello. This is also where Maggie and Nanya are staying. Of course Brandon greets me very nicely and offers me a beer before I can even say Hi back. Maggie and Brandon were doing some work around there place so I sat and talked with Nanya again. She was happy because she finally got her luggage which was lost in the airports. She didnt have it for a week and shes only staying for two. Anyway we actually ended up talking and watching Friends. The strange thing is that she looks exactly like Courtney Cox. Spitting image, I am not kidding. She looks more like her than Johnny Russler looks like Sammy Hagar. She said she got that a lot and its actually one of her favorite shows. It got to be about 7ish and as we were watching, Maggie puts a plate in my lap. Fish noodles and salad. I ate as much as my body would let me. I didn’t want to insult. But it was very good as well. It came to 8 oclock, which is when rehearsal is supposed to start, so I went back to the house to get ready and go. Kirth was there with Omari and I waited around for awhile and then Kirth and I went to rehearsal. Off subject: Kirths nickname is Lemon. I don’t know why but it is. I asked him and he just said it was a pretty sweet name and smiled. I think its because he is such a relaxed guy, He is a very laid back, pleasant guy. I think its because he limes so hard, he lemons. But that’s just a theory. Anyway, back to the story. Rehearsal wasn’t a rehearsal at all. It was a meeting about how we are getting to Trinidad and back. So the management team of the band met and talked about that while everyone else sat around and talked for 3 hours. Everyone watched the video I had on my phone and we looked at the judges sheets from last night. We found out we are ranked 4th overall right now and 2nd in Tobago. The Judges sheets were weird because the scores were pretty good but there was barely any constructive feedback. So we all eventually went home and I Skyped my parents and blogged a bit. But now I should be getting to because I have to get up tomorrow. Maggie is leaving with Nanya next week for Poland so Nanya suggested we hang out tomorrow and let Maggie and Brandon hang out for while before she leaves. I think I have to get up at 9. Night.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-73514324813962654912010-01-26T12:19:00.000-08:002010-01-26T12:20:05.346-08:00Prelims and such...Monday I woke up pretty late because of how late last night was. But I got up about 130 and then I wanted to get out and get food before Omari came home. I didn’t have the energy for Omari. I know that sounds horrible but the kid is like the energizer bunny. Sometimes he just runs around for fun. Anyway, so I got showered and dressed quick and went over for some grillers and had some grilled lamb. Great as everything is. Then I went back to relax and hang out with Omari a little bit he was working on a new kite of course and wanted to show me how it sounds. Then I went down to the panyard for the early rehearsal a little after 4. It was supposed to start at 4 but they actually got yelled at because no one was ready to start until 530. Either way they eventually started playing. It actually isn’t bad not playing because I get a chance to just listen to the whole band. It’s a great sound and I really like what Seion wrote. I also took some really good video. Oh I forgot to mention that they gave out the band t shirt (they call t shirts jerseys). Its an XL, its like a dress. I think Seion gave them the size before I came up. I tried to exchange it but they only have XLs left or bigger. Eh oh well. If I tuck it in it doesn’t look too bad. I do kind of feel like I’m wearing MC Hammer pans as a shirt but its ok. So rehearsal got done and I went back to Kirths to change and relax before going back to the panyard. Kirth called me as I was leaving to grab a camera from his place. He wanted to Skype a friend from Canada why the band played. So grabbed it and went down to the panyard to install it. So I ended up having to set up the PC outside so he could use the camera. Then it was time to warm up for prelims. There was a crowd that started forming and they had put up a tent for the judges and a fence for the crowd. Great vibes in the air and then they played for the Judges. It was awesome. I cant wait to play. They sounded reeaaal good, there were flag girls and the crowd was huge. I had someone video record it with my Iphone from one side and I did the other with my camera. <br /> Then there was the after party after we put away all the pans and the crowd dispersed. Lots of dancing and drinking. I actually am starting to act more like my usual self around everyone. There was a man that is known to be a jokester and he kind of poked fun at me and we traded a little bit in front of anyone and I really earned his respect and made everyone laugh. Then I had my first experience with “wining.” Which is dancing for all those that are unfamiliar. I’m not going to hide it but the drinks had been flowing so I was slightly inebriated but I was talking to Seion and Akua and there was a girl dancing behind me. And of course, they told me to wine with this girl (Michelle who was one of the Trini players). And knowing me, of course I did and everyone started screamin because no one expected it haha. And when I say everyone I mean like almost the whole band and friends. Haha but it was really funny and I feel even more comfortable with everyone. I started dancing more later and I actually did some goofy thing and landed on my ankle wrong and sprained my ankle a bit haha. Don’t worry Mom, Im ok. After a while I went back to the trini’s guest house and hung out there for a while and then I went back to Kirths and slept. Now I am just taking it easy today, and am about to go get some food.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-62648903929387196712010-01-26T11:21:00.000-08:002010-01-26T11:22:36.111-08:00Sunday, Sunday, Sunday...<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:relyonvml/> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTom%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"><link rel="colorSchemeMapping" 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mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Rockwell","serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Rockwell; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Rockwell; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNoSpacing">Saturday night rehearsal was pretty long but Seion and a couple of the Trini players weren’t their because they had a prelim the next day I believe for the Merrytones and they had to finish their tune and then play the next day. Im really glad I didn’t go to this rehearsal on time because it was a mostly teaching people who didn’t know the part that Seion taught in the morning. Anyway so we got back at a pretty reasonable hour. Then I woke up and went down to the panyard for a cello sectional at 12 and we went through the tune. Luckily someone wasn’t there so I was able to play though the stuff. Now I finally have all the parts. And they are correct. Then we took a “5 minute break”… an hour later I realized we weren’t going to play anymore so I went to get food and went back to Kirths. I felt like going for a swim so I packed up my back pack and went to Mt. Irving for a little bit. Just relaxed in the water for a while and then I went to grab my towel and I saw something move right by my foot. It was a crab. And not like a “aww look at that cute little crab.” It was more like a “Holy crap! That thing is as big as my hand.” So I quickly averted the situation and did the next sensible thing I could do….reach for my phone to take a picture. Unfortunately, while I was doing that, the crab got away. Did I mention that he was the same color as the sand so that made avoiding him harder as well.<span style=""> </span>So I dried off, counted my toes, gathered my things (making sure there were no crabs in them) and walked back. I took a nap before night rehearsal.<span style=""> </span>I was on my way out to go to rehearsal and Kirth asked me if he wanted to go for a drive down to Scarborough to pick up Georgina and I said sure because I knew I wasn’t going to playing much because prelims were the next day. And Seion and the other players weren’t coming back to for a few hours. Seion still had to teaching us the introduction to the tune. Then I got back to rehearsal and we learned the new music. You can tell Seion was teaching all day because his voice was almost gone. The piece is finally done…..for now. He will most likely change it before Finals at least once. That rehearsal went until about 330 in the morning and I Kirth and I didn’t get back until almost 5. <span style=""> </span>I went with him to drop off Seion at his place and check on the Trini players at the house they are staying at.<span style=""> </span>I was exhausted so as soon as I got back a passed out.</p> TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4025283088518227053.post-15425297467013553212010-01-23T15:25:00.001-08:002010-01-23T15:25:54.192-08:00Few days blogged into one...Wow the last two days have been pretty busy. After I blogged last, I went to go get food at Chinese restaurant down the street and and I realized that Chinese food is pretty much the same wherever you go. After that I hung out for a while before practice Thursday. That was a normal practice, not too late but I still passed out before blogging. Friday, I woke up and went down the road and got some food. As I was eating, Kirth called me and said he was going to pick me up in 10 minutes to go to the grocery store and run some errands. I got in the shower quick and 45 min later he arrived to pick me up. I am slowly getting used to this life still but I don’t think I could live in it my whole life haha. So we went to the bank which took forever, not Kirths fault and then we went to get meet the players from Trinidad coming off the boat. He had to make sure they had transportation back to buccoo from Scarborough. That was nice to see because Scarborough is the capital city of Tobago and pretty busy especially right by the docks. There was a cruise ship in the bay and tons of shops and people. Then we went back and we didn’t have time to get to the grocery store. Then I went down to practice after a short nap. Seion wasn’t going to be there until today so we rehearsed a lot. We actually rehearsed until about 330 in the morning. Then fed us some food, fish boil, which was the same thing that Kirth made me my first night. It was great I didn’t get back to the room until 4 am and then I had to be up for a 10 am rehearsal. Well I thought I did, it turns out I didn’t understand what the 10 am rehearsal was for. Language barrier. It turns out it was for a small group, one or two from each section, who will learn the new part from Seion and then teach it to everyone else. I, of course, didn’t find this out until I had gotten there and everyone else got there which was around 1045. I figured I would stay and learn the piece. I have been getting very frustrated because the parts I didn’t learn from Seion I was getting taught by the other cello players. And there have been numerous accounts where they have taught me the wrong part so I have to unlearn and relearn. Kind of a pain in the butt. I figured I’ll stay so I can directly learn from Seion and KNOW I am correct. I ended up learning the parts faster than anyone else. I am really getting used to rote learning. Also, Seion taught us the ending and I could hear the chord progression he had written easily and people were impressed. Thanks Dr. Klonoski and Dr. Maki… haha. So that ended just around two and I got some food on the way back to Kirths. I also forgot to mention that I was not playing for Prelims on Friday I believe. I didn’t really think I was but I wanted to prepare like I was just in case. But the reason is because there are four 4 pan cellos and 5 players right now. They are making two more for next week and I am the 5 player who came. It makes perfect sense that I shouldn’t play. That came as kind of a relief just because I didn’t have to stress as much about the tune. But now I pretty much have the tune. Anyway, I took a MUCH needed nap and woke up to blog. Rehearsal actually started at 6 but Kirth said it was ok if I came a little later because I wouldn’t really have a pan and I want the 4 that are playing to get used to the pans they are playing on. Now I am going to get in the shower and get some food as I go down to rehearsal. Tonight should be another long night. More later or in the morning.TomRuckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08808046740030214702noreply@blogger.com0