Learn and live.

I don't care who you are or think you may be, you will, for a stone cold fact, catch yourself at some time muttering, "ah well, live and learn." Thing is, we don't have to wait for a flashpoint to go there. Learning is constant, whether we admit it or not, and taking stock of its process is tantamount to consciousness.

Walk waking through this world.

Some orator/philosopher probably said that, if not I'll claim it.

Join me in regarding the past four seasons with critical eye, and in learning from the juxtaposition of observation and personal convictions. My focus will be firmly frontal. Pro-gressive.

And who'll dare to deny that "now" is a function of "then," and "future" will also be thus?

So when I reach back to speak of Mandela, of Marcus, or Marley, my intent is to honor these  propulsive, cultural energies.

Of course, if you've been paying attention, you'll know I'm just as likely to trip the light fantastic on Twerkers, Biebers, Royal Heirs or Jayonce Juniors. Doesn't make me crazy, does it?

Well, maybe, but it can't be said that they don't shuffle the deck over at Ackeelover Chronicles. I'm never too far away despite the recent inactivity on this homepage. Ye olde trusty laptop upped and died a couple months ago, but that has become less of a story than the nifty new one I'm learning to use.

There's that L-word again.

Between Twitter @actualApophis, Facebook newsfeeds and right here, you'll see there's no telling where some actors will go for attention. Sex-tape nah mek it again! - blog is da shizzz yo!

Prepare to test your tolerance threshold for hybrid patois and my app-ified selfies. Marvel too at the island-worldview I distill beneath my brand new illuminati NYE party hat.

Stand clear, Happy New Year!

New Year, 2013 Style.

"(If you) don't know your past, y'don't know your future, ..."

That light-but-heavy hook-line from Tomorrow People by The Melody Makers, along with New Year's Day, the soaring rock standard by U2, always feature high on my January playlist.

Time didn't stop last year. We're all still here, with apologies to Syria, Cote d'Ivoire and Sandy Hook. I'm home, with my customary Ackee and Saltfish, while America stares down a rapid-fire succession of fiscal cliffs, and Canada sees past, future and protest in Theresa Spence.

2012 turned out to be The Year of The Gangnam. A Psy tsunami soaked the planet in a smile, and Canada came good again; leave it to Bieber - and Mark Carney. It's a good thing predictions are speculative 'cos what comes next could be even sillier than my reggaefied Gangnam to di dollarstore, Party-Castanet Riddim.



Yes, I've seen the signs. An overdressed monkey roams Ikea in Toronto. Siri usurps social intercourse, and "Christianmingle" could become a recognized English verb, via tele-advertising.

Dictionary: "to Christianmingle" - the act, or sound, of religion and social-networks merging with the-urge-to-merge.

My parents met in New York at a New Year's Eve party in 1953. It could be said this represents my earliest genesis, and each year with a 3 since has proved prosperous, with Positive Vibration. Kismet. Numerology. Superstition. Obeah. Callitwhatchawill ...

 

Today, 2013 already has me feeling like a sweepstake-winner. 



... ackeelover, going forward in the now ...

... well, it's been a helluva year so far ... a couple weeks in and I've gone from snow and sub-freezing to sandcastles and sunshine ... from prolific blogging and twitter-tude to internet void (since rectified), and from Netflix-on-demand to no-TV-at-all ... but a couple of things have remained the same, the spinach-to-Popeye power in a meal of ackee and saltfish and the comfort of nature's beauty to the watchful eyes of this beholder ...

... the former is compromised by canned ingredients up north but redeemed by the fresh stuff down south ... and the latter? ... well, winter in Algonquin serves up its dashboard version of beauty (see Dec-16, 2011 post) and high-season in The Caribbean displays seaside charm through metal grillwork ... Ackeelover Chronicles continues to toggle between these two realities ...














... being back by the beach, observing neighbors and seafaring traffic through a long lens, reminds me of  "Someone's Looking At You," by The Boomtown Rats and Rockwell's whiny smash hit, "Somebody's Watching Me," - both songs provoke less of a voyeuristic creepy-cringe than an acknowledgement of shrinking personal space on this crowded planet ... or an allusion to Big Brother (Orwell, not the reality show) ...

... but more than that, comes the peace-of-mind required for scatological thought to flourish in my head ... this is when I think, write, photograph ... and express the thoughtstream which comprises these Chronicles ...

... thus far in 2012 the tendency has been to look to the future - better, I suppose, than looking at the past, but still decidedly short of Buddhist-type meditative ideals which stress practicing observation of the present, this moment of  "now" ... still, the past is a factor of "now," and "now" is a function of what the future will be, innit? ...

... exposing readers to my roving ramble is increasingly a compulsion, so this year you'll see more spontaneous "ting an' ting" on this site ... often with cool Canon pics from my "now" ...

... rest assured there'll always be music in these pages ... but with this being the Chinese Year of The Dragon, coupled with me being born in a Year of The Rooster (a.k.a. The Cock, where I come from), there's an impulsive temptation to get more "extra" - (delivered, of course, with Jamaican inflection to squeeze hyper-meaning out of the word) ...

... if all goes to plan, more "sexxyyy" too ... Happy New Year! ...

 JAMAICAN GLOSSARY 
"ting an' ting" - things, all kinds of everything

"extra" - over the top, "out there"

... out with the old, in with the new ...

... the limbo of this short week between the orgiastic peak of Chrishmash Day, when we ritualistically prepare to be drunk with occasion, and New Year, that digested evacuation of a calendar-year on its way out, must be what it feels like to be a perineum ... oh yes, I did say perineum, the DMZ between one's genitalia and anus (one and all have batty, so me naah tek back no chat!) ...

... obscure logic, but don't watch dat ... now that I have your attention, I can assure you I'm not at all concerned with where the sun don't shine, but instead, where it does ... it continues to shine on Jamaica and on Jamaicans trodding forward-ever, backward-never at home and abroad ... besides well-documented sporting prowess and musicianship, Jamaica produces and exports social dynamism to influence every realm and make for spellbinding discovery ...

... African America is listening-in now and flyin' down on-the-regular for the roots ... Toronto, Tokyo and Berlin are established outposts of the orbit and British youth have co-opted enough Yardie phraseology to spawn some of the world's hippest lingo ... examples abound but it's the weave of the binding fabric that interests me ... there's been enough time to work out a social blem (blend) which increasingly includes various non-Jamaican Caribbean energies and hybrids of every type, drawing impetus and swag from the Xaymaca wellspring ...

... enter the bloggers who, like me, seek to express thoughts in writing, within and without the selectively established peripheries of standard language and tradition ... Ackeelover Chronicles may have been better nominated in the "Personal" category than the "Overseas" one, but it doesn't really matter 'cos we can chat from whichever part we deh, and better yet, we can chat 'bout any-an'-ev'ryting under Jah sun ... these Jamaica Blog Awards recognize the scope of the field and honor all kinds of excellence but I imagine that's nothing compared to what might be inspired by this initiative ... bring on the New Year!

... and a Happy New Year ...

... final week of the year and it's all about TV re-runs, leftovers, hangovers, make-overs, do-overs ... we use the last few December days to look back on the events of the twelve-month western calendar period ... or to tilt determinedly at the the beckoning New Year ...

... me? ... well I do a whole 'eap a dat ... but it's also compulsory to feel some simple stuff ... a basic connection to the spiritual grandeur that is the wide world of creation ... allowing yourself the humility to just be a part of it ...

... this year ... as in every previous year ... a selection of top National Geographic photographs made the rounds ... you may have seen it ... for several decades these guys have been a source of edifying wonderment and mind blowing discovery ... the impossibly superb photography alone justifying the existence of the spearhead magazine ... a portal to other worlds and kingdoms in all their awesome, contradictory glories ...

... the periodical continues to gift me much ... and ... even though my boyhood subscription is long gone I usually flip through back-issues in waiting rooms or pre the pics when they come my way ...

... so here it was ... the predictable smorgasbord of variety, but this time I was struck by a few of the animal images and the human emotions they made me feel, merely by looking ... I collate them here for a New Year re-appraisal based on the fact that each of these photos from the animal kingdom amused my personal world-weariness ... may you be so blessed ...

... with me so far? .... the next one is very cute but not to worry ... I don't intend to kill you with cute ...

... that's the way to beat rush hour ... turtle show some respect! ...

... if turtleman didn't get to you I'd say yours is an impervious heart ... take time to smell the roses ... happiness and joy for the New Year ... 'cept for those who wanna rain on yo parade!