Well the start of another day. So what, that it happens to be the last day of 2008. It’s been an awful year anyway! Economic disaster on almost every front, major corporations closing their doors, families loosing their homes right and left, and worst of all NO CHRISTMAS BONUS!!!! Check that…. I guess worst of all would be the attempted genocide in Africa and the wars going on all over the world. I’ll be praying for all of my friends still fighting and putting themselves in harms way for other people’s freedom.
I’m looking forward to the fireworks here in Kingston tonight. All the roads in the downtown area water front are closed in preparation for the festivities. The Port Authority is scheduled to close today at 13:00 hrs (That’s 1:00pm for you non military minded). But as for my program on the port we are a 12 – 15 hr a day operation so… we will have to wait until our shifts are done. I have decided not to go downtown tonight to watch the fireworks, however; I have a great view of the ocean and water front from my Balcony. I’m going to watch from there, that way I can be online with my family at midnight. Isn’t technology grand? Of coarse they are an hour behind me because they are in the central time zone and we here in Jamaica are currently on east coast time.
I hope you all have a Blessed Year in 2009. I wish you all the best and pray that the store houses of heaven are open to you this year. My desire is for you all to have every thing you need, and a good portion of what you want. I pray that you all are in good health and that all of your households are filled with Love, Peace and Joy. Happy New Year!
God Bless You All,
Shawn
About Me
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Monday, December 29, 2008
From Drudgery to Jubilation
I spent the entire day playing catch up. The mountain of paperwork on my desk when I returned to the office after my break in Montego Bay was almost overwhelming. I managed to sift through the mess and prioritize things so that it was all completed by 2:00pm this afternoon. Then I was onto the port for my regular checks.
After satisfying myself that my two supervisors (bless their souls) are very much on the ball and handled everything nicely in my absence, I went back to my office and finished selecting new personnel that will be trained in the coming weeks to work in my program.
After 3 weeks of interviews and 2000 applications I managed to fill 12 positions with what appear to be quality applicants. There were times in the last few weeks that I thought it was much easier, when I was in the Army finding raw recruits to join up than it has been to find 12 qualified people for this program. In retrospect though, believe me when I say that, the job as an ARMY Recruiter is the toughest, most stressful job I have ever had. (Shudder)!!!!
After all this, I was on my way home this evening and at a stop light in the down town area, I passed a man who appeared to be homeless. He was dirty, and had the most disheartened look on his face that I think I have ever seen.
Now, after being here for 5 years, I think I have seen most every scam that the street people use to get money there is, and normally I just ignor them. This time, there was something different here, I turned around the block and pulled up to him again. Now remember this is a third world country, where people generally ignor traffic laws, so... (when in Rome.....) I stopped right next to him in traffic, and as traffic passed around me on the right, I spoke with him. I asked him if he was OK, and he said he was hungry and needed help. So I opened the door and let him in. He smelled really bad, but somehow I didn't seem to mind. We drove to the Burger King up the street, and miraculously there was a parking spot right in front. I thought, this is a good sign, and we parked.
He didn't say much but responded to my questions. Daniel, as I found out, has been without a home since one of the last hurricanes. He lost everything in the storm, including his family. He had a Wife and son, both of which were killed in the landslide as his house slid down a hill. The utter depression he was in was almost unbearable, I'm a grown man and I felt like crying.
As I took him into the BK, the security guard at the door stopped him and said he couldn't come in. I informed him that Daniel was my guest, and that I would be paying for his meal. I asked if he could use the rest room first to wash his face and hands. Begrudgingly the security guard allowed him to enter. While he was in the rest room, (with the security guard, who wouldn't let him go anywhere alone), I ordered his meal. we sat in a corner in the back so as not to disturb the other customers, who couldn't seem to take their eyes off of us.
Now trust me when I say, I Can Eat, but never in my whole life have I ever seen anyone demolish a bouble whopper so fast. I thought the man was going to choke. He finished every last french fry, and the piece of pie, then drank the fruit juice he asked for instead of soda. Between mouthfuls of fries, he openly shared his trials and tribulations. I just listened and nodded.
When he finished, we left the BK and in the parking lot, he told me he had been thinking that his life was over. He told me I had given him something he had not had in a long time. I asked what that was and he said Hope! I almost bawled. He asked me for my name, shook my hand, told me that he thinks that I'm an angel sent by God, and then without hesitation he hugged me. I was shocked and a little embarrassed, but I hugged him back and told him that I wasn't an angle but that God Does Love Him and was watching out for him. Now for a Jamaican Man to hug another man (especially a white man) in public is extremely rare, as this nation is VERY homophobic. Trust me when I say, it was absolutely spontaneous and from his heart.
He told me he felt better and I could see it was true. I did something I don't ever do, I offered him what little cash I had. He tried to turn it down but I told him that it would be OK and that he could use it to buy something to eat tomorrow. He put it in his pocket and waved at me as I left. I looked in the mirror as I left but I couldn't see where he had gone. I will look for him in the coming days and hopefully be able to keep him fed and get him to a church close by for some assistance.
I felt great. I still do. I feel like I was there at just the right time and place to help and listen to him. Today will go into the list of days to remember for the rest of my life.
Lickle More!! (This means... Later Mon!)
After satisfying myself that my two supervisors (bless their souls) are very much on the ball and handled everything nicely in my absence, I went back to my office and finished selecting new personnel that will be trained in the coming weeks to work in my program.
After 3 weeks of interviews and 2000 applications I managed to fill 12 positions with what appear to be quality applicants. There were times in the last few weeks that I thought it was much easier, when I was in the Army finding raw recruits to join up than it has been to find 12 qualified people for this program. In retrospect though, believe me when I say that, the job as an ARMY Recruiter is the toughest, most stressful job I have ever had. (Shudder)!!!!
After all this, I was on my way home this evening and at a stop light in the down town area, I passed a man who appeared to be homeless. He was dirty, and had the most disheartened look on his face that I think I have ever seen.
Now, after being here for 5 years, I think I have seen most every scam that the street people use to get money there is, and normally I just ignor them. This time, there was something different here, I turned around the block and pulled up to him again. Now remember this is a third world country, where people generally ignor traffic laws, so... (when in Rome.....) I stopped right next to him in traffic, and as traffic passed around me on the right, I spoke with him. I asked him if he was OK, and he said he was hungry and needed help. So I opened the door and let him in. He smelled really bad, but somehow I didn't seem to mind. We drove to the Burger King up the street, and miraculously there was a parking spot right in front. I thought, this is a good sign, and we parked.
He didn't say much but responded to my questions. Daniel, as I found out, has been without a home since one of the last hurricanes. He lost everything in the storm, including his family. He had a Wife and son, both of which were killed in the landslide as his house slid down a hill. The utter depression he was in was almost unbearable, I'm a grown man and I felt like crying.
As I took him into the BK, the security guard at the door stopped him and said he couldn't come in. I informed him that Daniel was my guest, and that I would be paying for his meal. I asked if he could use the rest room first to wash his face and hands. Begrudgingly the security guard allowed him to enter. While he was in the rest room, (with the security guard, who wouldn't let him go anywhere alone), I ordered his meal. we sat in a corner in the back so as not to disturb the other customers, who couldn't seem to take their eyes off of us.
Now trust me when I say, I Can Eat, but never in my whole life have I ever seen anyone demolish a bouble whopper so fast. I thought the man was going to choke. He finished every last french fry, and the piece of pie, then drank the fruit juice he asked for instead of soda. Between mouthfuls of fries, he openly shared his trials and tribulations. I just listened and nodded.
When he finished, we left the BK and in the parking lot, he told me he had been thinking that his life was over. He told me I had given him something he had not had in a long time. I asked what that was and he said Hope! I almost bawled. He asked me for my name, shook my hand, told me that he thinks that I'm an angel sent by God, and then without hesitation he hugged me. I was shocked and a little embarrassed, but I hugged him back and told him that I wasn't an angle but that God Does Love Him and was watching out for him. Now for a Jamaican Man to hug another man (especially a white man) in public is extremely rare, as this nation is VERY homophobic. Trust me when I say, it was absolutely spontaneous and from his heart.
He told me he felt better and I could see it was true. I did something I don't ever do, I offered him what little cash I had. He tried to turn it down but I told him that it would be OK and that he could use it to buy something to eat tomorrow. He put it in his pocket and waved at me as I left. I looked in the mirror as I left but I couldn't see where he had gone. I will look for him in the coming days and hopefully be able to keep him fed and get him to a church close by for some assistance.
I felt great. I still do. I feel like I was there at just the right time and place to help and listen to him. Today will go into the list of days to remember for the rest of my life.
Lickle More!! (This means... Later Mon!)
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Christmas in Montego Bay
I was able to get out of Kingston for Christmas and Boxing Day and spent the holidays in Montego Bay with my dear friends Mario and Tami. We have known each other for about 18 years, and become as close as family. We have been through the ups and downs that this type of relationship sees. We have had the joys and pains of watching each others kids grow up. We have seen their kids, become adults with their own kids, and as for Shani and I, well we started our family late. We had been married for 10 years before we decided to have our own children. Our son is now 15,(my heavens where has the time gone?), and our daughter is 13. So we still have a few years before our kids are on their own.Mario and Tami and I all went to Sunset Beach Resort and Spa here in Montego Bay yesterday. It is approximately 400 feet up the road from where Mario lives now, it's in the same complex my wife Shani, the kids and I used to live in (I took the picture of the pool and flowers off of his balcony this morning). Mario, like me, has also become an expatriated American here without his family. Tami is a school teacher (very honorable profession) and is here for a visit during the holidays. It was nice to be together with them again during Christmas.
The Trip to Sunset Beach Resort was very relaxing and very nice. It's good to visit "The Tourist Jamaica" occasionally so I don't forget that I live in an island paradise. Living in Kingston is almost like living in any other big city anywhere in the world. It's dirty, the traffic is heavy, it's noisy, and worst of all (for an avid scuba diver like me), the waters around Kingston are badly polluted. I hope and pray that the Jamaican people will come to the realization that if they continue to pollute their water it will destroy their nation. I just hope they realize this sooner rather than later.
I look forward to the times I'm able to get away from Kingston, I get reminded of how beautiful this country is and how the people are friendly and willing to talk to anyone that shows any interest in what they are doing. For the most part, the people of Jamaica are friendly, hard working people, and are very proud of who they are as a nation. Once I learned to speak some patois (the local language), my adventures got even more interesting. It surprises them when I speak their language, albeit with a foreigner's accent, but it's a good ice breaker. I think I will save some examples of this for another blog posting.
Until then.....No Problems Mon!
Friday, December 26, 2008
New Blog for the New Year
Howdy,
I figured I would try this blog thing out as a way to journal my daily activities here in Jamaica. This place is quite unique and holds a lot for those interested in getting to know the real Jamaica! The Post Card Jamaica is great, but the real Jamaica is very much a "Different Picture". I will endeavor to post frequently with pictures of friends and scenery from here that you won't see normally. I work for the Port Authority of Jamaica, and though I can not openly write about what I do, I will try to give you a feel for what a Tourist Driven Economy, and a struggling Maritime Industry goes through on a semi daily basis. Until my next post. Lattah Mon!!!
I figured I would try this blog thing out as a way to journal my daily activities here in Jamaica. This place is quite unique and holds a lot for those interested in getting to know the real Jamaica! The Post Card Jamaica is great, but the real Jamaica is very much a "Different Picture". I will endeavor to post frequently with pictures of friends and scenery from here that you won't see normally. I work for the Port Authority of Jamaica, and though I can not openly write about what I do, I will try to give you a feel for what a Tourist Driven Economy, and a struggling Maritime Industry goes through on a semi daily basis. Until my next post. Lattah Mon!!!
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