Somebody recently told me that "alcohol" & coffee cause inflamation, which, in turn, aggravates arthritis....just a thought...
Somebody recently told me that "alcohol" & coffee cause inflamation, which, in turn, aggravates arthritis....just a thought...
have had very little coffee and very little alcohol. But if ganja happens to cure it, I should be ready to work at Ricks as one of the divers any moment .....
get drinking and smoking mon!Quote:
Originally Posted by gerryg123
Cool Runnings, Marko
" But if ganja happens to cure it, I should be ready to work at Ricks as one of the divers any moment ...."
LMAO, boy I'm glad I wasn't taking a drink when I read that! That was hilarious.
Gerry,
Just an old guy's opinion...slow down and unwind
Regards
Cap
Good stuff
Yay! Sounds like you're having a great time in Negril! I'm looking forward to reading more! - Did you grant Brasi his sit down interview yet? ;)
I do hope you feel better soon though, It's probably all the sun, drinking, partying and fast scooter drivin'
A little bit of R & R and I know you'll be back on your feet.:)
Gerry, the sea is good for aches and pains--I recommend swimming in the sea and chilling out. And I have to second negriljail on getting some tuna (the plant not the fish!) I had a really bad fall a couple of trips back on wet slippery tiles--was bruised up something fierce. A local friend brought me a couple of pitchers of tuna and water mixture--really slimy stuff. He made me drink both pitchers and I kid you not, the next day, the bruises had nearly disappeared and the pain was gone. I had also gone to the clinic in Negril, but all they did was confirm that I hadn't broken anything. Get some tuna, man, and drink it up.
OK, i experienced a little action last night ....
Like I said, I was not feeling well because of my inflammed joints, so I went to sleep early at Sunset on the Cliffs, and the meds finally starting working, so I was feeling a lot better.
I woke up, and it was still dark outside, so I thought it was 5 a.m. or something, but then i scrambled for my watch, and it was only 2:30 a.m.
I went outside on my porch, listening to the gentle call of the waves softly brushing against the Cliffs in front of me. It was nearly a full moon, and the stars were shining brightly. I rolled a nice one, sat out there and smoked a good portion of it, and I was feeling pretty happy because i knew I was feeling better, especially my knees and joints, and not worse -- cause if it worse, I was not sure what my next move was going to be, probably see Dr. Grant (Chris from Seastar Inn vouched for her).
So I had cotton mouth and was a bit hungry, so I figured why not take a moonlight drive on the motorbike to Mi Yard. I had a craving for festival bread.
Anyway, i start up the bike, motor down, and I guess I was not paying good enough attention because it was dark, of course, and I missed Mi Yard completely.
That's OK. I kept motoring along, having fun. I hit the roundabout, where I know all the jerk-barrel guys always hang out, but not much happening there, so I kept going. I saw winner's circle, where they have those wild parties on the roof until the wee hours, but it was pretty quiet, too.
Where was everyone? At this time of night, there aren't too many choices, so it had to be Scrub A Dub.
I was not feeling as red-blooded as usual, so I was in a look-but-no-touch mood as I climbed the hill towards Scrub a Dub, which for the uninformed its a wild, wild club that's sort of a dance club and strip club all in one.
Anyway, it appeared there was something big going on cause as I neared the club of ill-repute, there were TONS of cars and tons of locals milling about, and 10 to 15 jerk stands, etc. Turns out, it was a huge local party with a live band playing there, a special event.
The event was actually just ending as I pulled up, so just everyone was leaving and streaming out in the street, mostly youngsters and NO tourists at all.
I figured I would peak in, see if my fav dancer from last time, Rochella, was there, but like I said, I was not into anything private or anything like that, and I only pulled like 25 dollars from my little pouch, left the rest in the scooter compartment.
Turns out, there were no dancers at all, as like I said everyone was leaving, lot of drunk folks enjoying their Friday night. These were regular peeps, not hustlers, and no one was grabbing me or soliciting me or anything like that, not even saying hi to me really.
I had a quick red bull, and put the change in my back pocket of cargo shorts, one of seven pockets including one shirt pocket on my button-down shirt.
Here's where it gets crazy .....
These young kids, maybe 19 or 20 years old, they come up and say hi to me -- the usual drunk, red-eyed fist bump, ya mon, how ya doin, where you from man-type of greeting. The kid was wearing a sideways Boston Red Sox hat, I remember that much.
So a few moments later, as I am making my way out there door, the kid kind of brushes against me, kind of invades my personal space, and I feel him reaching for my back pocket where my 21 dollars is.
I am like WTF, and I call him out on it, and he is really apologetic: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
I did NOT want to fight, though I am a tough guy and there was a 50-50 urge -- at least -- to punch this fool in the face, and I nearly lost my cool and did just that. Instead, I mad-dogged him hard, just glared into his eyes and did not flinch, and he was scared, or so it seemed, cause I am like 6-1, 250, and he is like 5-9, 140, but I just did not want to see myself in a scenario of a 47-year-old tourist fighting a teen-ager (and maybe his friends? who knows) at 4 a.m. after a Friday night at a crowded club, know what I mean. (no security in sight, BTW, and they did not even charge me to get in.)
I reached back, felt my pocket, and the money was still there, so I figured, whatever, it's all good. So I am like, 'Get the Frick Out, Mo Fo', and he does. Still, lesson learned.
I hop on the scooter, feeling pretty violated -- how do you think this kid would feel if he had traveled 3,000 miles on a vacation and found himself with 500 whites and one of them tried to pick his pocket? -- so I motored back down the hill, then made a left back towards the roundabout.
hanging on the edge of my seat......more...more
So I get to Mi Yard, because I knew my friend, John, from South Dakota, would be there -- he always is in the early morning. So I am telling him the story, and I casually reach to grab the money in my pocket just to make sure it's all still there, and I will be darned -- a $20 bill is MISSING. So he DID pick my pocket, just got the 20 and not the 100j, that little SOB .... Mind you, nothing like this has EVER happened to me before, even in California, where through the years I've partied with everyone from millionaire rock stars all the way down to crack ho's and real street gangstas.
So now I am amped up. My friend John says the same thing happened to him once in Negril, and they got 60 dollars from his little waist bag -- "I knew it was happening as he did it, three 20s," John explained -- so I was quite disappointed. Not upset, not mad, but truly disappointed to think someone would actually do this to me. Call me a fool, but the whole thing kind of put a chink in my faith in humanity.
Anyway, there was a big part of me that was actually relieved, because 99 percent of the time I am carrying hundreds of dollars. Very rare for me to leave money behind in the compartment of my scooter, but for some weird reason, this time I only was carrying a little bit of money, maybe a subconscious reaction cause I was so outnumbered in this place.
I jumped on the motor bike, scooted up the hill. I passed Sunset on the Cliffs. I passed Sea Star. I passed Rick's Cafe. It was black at night, only the stars lighting the sky, and I kept going. I went all the way to Westender Inn. Kevin, the worker, was there, and Jermaine too a few moments later, and Kevin rolled one up for me, and we walked together to the shore, smoking and then chilling on the loungers near the shore.
I told him what happened. He says the guy probably got the 20 first, then was going for a second score when I caught him.
I sat for about a half hour by myself, kind of mad but also kind of laughing about the whole thing because what can I do about now? Plus, like I said, it was only a little bit of money and could have been a LOT, and then I would have been really depressed.
So we say our goodbyes. It's a bit past 5 a.m., still pitch dark, and I start motoring bike. BTW, someone fixed ALL the potholes on the road and nearly all of them on the main west end road, too, so that's really nice. You don't have to worry about pot holes anymore, which sounds silly but it was pain on past visits cause it's REALLY dark at night up there.
Anyway, I am cruising back, near Banton's, and I hear the strumming guitar and the lovely singing of someone playing an acoustic version of "Touch of Gray" by Grateful Dead. Surprise, surprise, it's Rastagirl777, who used to tour around with Grateful Dead ...... Ha ha, just kidding. I just wanted to see if you'all were still reading -- there was NO rastagirl777 sighting!
So, back to reality, I am hungry after all, and I've calmed down some, so I go back to Mi Yard and have a fish critter (so good, but with a little spicy kick to it that I was not expecting) and some festival bread. Only like 2 dollars, Mi Yard is a great place for a late snack. I sat and chatted with John for awhile. He was so impressed that I still tipped 100j, I guess he thought I would be mad, he said, but what you gonna do? Stay mad at the world. You can't un-ring a bell or uncook an egg, it happened, and it's over.
Now that I am writing it down, I am pretty much over it, though I am sure I will share the story with like 10 peeps today. Also, I am just happy I am feeling better. Plus, when I put on a new pair of shorts and after taking a little nap in my room, I discovered some money in the pocket that I had forgotten about, so I am all even, right????
I want to go somewhere fun today.
I'm pleasantly surprised when people behave well.
But faith in humanity (regardless of location) is a luxury I can't afford.
Don't mean to get all serious but wasn't Pol Pot a human(killed millions of his fellow Cambodians - 21% of the country)?
Here is Mark Twain take on faith in humanity (heed the closing phrase):
"I have no race prejudices, and I think I have no color prejudices or caste prejudices nor creed prejudices. Indeed I know it. I can stand any society. All that I care to know is that a man is a human being--that is enough for me; he can't be any worse."
I guess I'm trying to say don't let it throw you.
Alright Gerry..Count your blessings your only out $20.00(people have lost a helluva lot more than that) and the fact you didn't start a fight is also blessing..You could have wound up at Sav hospital or a whole lot worse-..No matter how familiar you are with the area and how many locals you know-got to remember your still a walking dollar sign to most and also an outsider (esp on turf like Scrub-a-dub)...I know you know this Gerry....Tread lightly ....
Ok..except for that bump in da road-glad your having a "goodtime"-keep the adventure rolling..I'm waiting to read more...:)
A fabulous lesson learned " and for us all to learn by" Thank Gerry, glad your feeling better ,
Let your adventure continue ..and glad you didnt have to throw a punch ~
Rum ~ We are from a law enforcement background also and it trains you to trust no one to a extent especially with what you are not familiar with And not necessarily even what you see ,
As a woman we have it worse than men most times ~ Be careful~ Hey! dont forget your assignment in the cave..:D
...and you are in Jamaica.....giving details on how much money yu have, carry with you and where you visit. Be careful.....information get around ....
Well, after last night’s not-as-bad-as-it-could-have-been fiasco, today is turning into a nice day.
My cabbie, Shayne, picked me up, and we went to Rhodes Resort. It’s a really nice place, very calm beach and just a nice way to enjoy the ocean in relative privacy.
It’s Saturday, so there’s a big party at Seastar Inn of course. Technically, I won’t be checking in until Sunday, but I have been hangin out a lot, eating countless plates of spaghetti and today a nice lobster plate to deliver me from down in the dumps – it was so good, too, a nice big tail with melted garlic butter, potato a nice cup of soup, too. For $22, cooked perfectly, you can’t beat that deal when you throw in the ambiance of being at Seastar.
I guess there’s a wedding today here – I am assuming before the big show – so there’s lots of hustle and bustle as Chris, Francine and several of the workers are putting things together.
Hey Gerry - so cool to hear you made it out to Westender to hang out and chill. Glad you are enjoying yourself.
I can also vouch for Dr. Grant - she is great. Went to her for a sinus infection and got great care. office visit $14US, meds (4 different things - decongestant, nasal spray, antibiotics, et.) $20US total. Exact care I would get in US and much cheaper. She will fix you up mon. Journey on brother...............
I did in fact see Dr. Grant, and she did a nice job. A shot in the tush, and then I start a prescription tomorrow. She says I will be in tip top shape!
It sucks to be pick-pocketed. That has happened to me twice. Once in NYC subway and once at a concert in Florida. Both times it bothered me for a good number of hours until I got over it and moved on. Luckily it was a small amount that was stolen.
Besides that incident, it sounds like you're having a great time.
Hope we see you at the Seastar webcast tonight! You better wave!:)
Looking forward to your next update!
It's been interesting limping around. Instead of being offered ganja, then a girl, then an 8 ball, they see me and ask about pain killers, lol!
BTW i have a great photo of the Doc getting ready to hit me her best SHOT ....So far, that shot of cortizone has been one of the best moments of the trip .....
LMAO Gerry - Dr. Grant is full of grace but looks like she don't play so I bet that photo is hard core.
Glad its helping....take it easy (a least a bit). Just talked to Kevin and he said my name came up and you said kind things (thanks for that).
......ROCK on brother (but be safe).
Don't feel no way man...same thing happened to me when I went to Western Consciousness one year...moved my money from my backpack to my front pocket and as I stood in line some guy bumped me and I knew EXACTLY what was going on...but it was too late. I think I had a good 80 bucks on me so you were lucky... it does piss you off for a while but so it goes. Glad you are feeling better! Looking forward to more....
Well, the jerk-chicken rivalries are heating up on the Strip.
Step Aside received a huge boost when Conde magazine did a huge glossy spread about him a short time. But I think some of you might remember Winston, who has a cook stand near Grand Pineapple. He's the one in my past report that was holding up the Crab for a photo on negril.com -- by the way, he says a million peeps have come up to him and have said they love that photo (negril.com is very popular out here) -- and Winston says the Conde story was unfair because Winston has been around longer, and has been doing it longer.
"Everyone who comes, they taste this guy's jerk sauce, then that guy's jerk sauce, and they always say I am the best," Winston proclaimed late last night after I skidded to stop when I saw by the roadside.
You've also got to throw Smokey Joe into the mix -- Winston says that guy can hang with just about anyone -- and a few others.
What are names of the other top guys on the seven mile?
The guy outside of Hidden Paradise...my friend said he was pretty good too. I dont eat chicken but she liked it a lot.
Enjoying your play by play report Gerry.
Couple of years ago hubby almost go pickpocketed. Coming out of the Jungle and we were holding hands walking around the massive crowds right behind the vendors. I seen a group of 3 coming...1 girl 2 guys and they made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. We were pretty much trapped with the mass amount of people right there and couldn't move so told hubby ...watch ur pockets right now...those 3...watch them. Sure enough..they were a tag team. The girl tried to break apart hubby and I by pushing thru our hand holding hard and pushing again..I gave her a sharp elbow to the ribs told her to back off *itch. Hubby feels the guy trying to reach into his pocket(which by the way was zipped and buttoned) and slammed his bottle down on the guys and said not me azzhole adn we kept walking. Freaked the hell outta me to be honest as I've never had anything like that happen. Just reinforced the need to watch ur back especially in a large crowd
ya, this fool with the Boston Red Sox hat was with a friend, too, and the friend was engaging me as all this happened. Do you think they might have been working together? That's pretty low. .... Now that I think about it, it's Scrub A Dub's fault. Had the club not hosted an event -- Popcorn and Tommy Lee, I think was the name -- and instead just had girls dancing, I would have been more focused. There were no hips swaying, and that threw me off, LOL LOL LOL .....
:D
Gerry,
I completely agree,,,,,,you were completely unfocused,,,,,,It's all Scrub A Dubs fault,,,,lol
there should of been some scantily clad strippers and some bone humping music going on, a little bump and grind,,, and you would not have lost your train of thought,,,,lol
As the most interesting man in the world would say " Stay focused my friend"
So backtracking just a bit, Saturday night was a really fun night. The anti-inflammatory shot kicked in nicely, so I was nearly back to normal speed -- read not very fast -- and the only bad thing was no head buzz, otherwise a great shot.
The Seastar drummers came out to blur of motion and tribal beats, including Francine (lady is a bundle of energy, I will say that), and the crowd was swelling. Center was the wedding party, including the groom who was smoking spliffs during most of the revelry, along with my friend from South Dakota, coincidentally, who served as Best Man.
I met Negril Bill, great guy. He was taking pro photos of the event, and he says he is an ocassional poster on here but more so a VERY dedicated lurker ..... Also, I guess he knows Jodie from way back from when she was a bartender, says she is good people, but of course I already know. She is just so kind and incredibly respectful to everyone she meets. And she always sparks up a friendly conversation with any and all locals and workers.
Anyway, I also met the owner of Xtabi, who was at the bar and in a great mood. I guess he and Chris are good friends, sure seemed that way. I told the Xtabi owner that I loved his establishment, and Chris chimed right in: "Watch out, he is going to ask you for something!"
Frankly, I would have liked some information about why Donovan is no longer there since he's been an Xtabi fixture for like 18 years. But it was all good, a party, and I did not want to ask in case there was some embarassment on someone's part. I guess peeps come and go, ain't my business, but Donovan was a special bartender IMO.
Anyway, I was kind of back and forth from up and down the hill because I also wanted to catch a little Yellowman at Roots, so that's probably why I did not bump into Brasi. But I did hang for a bit with Rob, who warned me NEVER to carry cash in my back pocket -- some Negril advice I promise to take seriously!!!
BTW, I do work in the music industry back home, and I have to say Steven West's talent is off the charts -- especially the backup singers particularly the keyboard player who was smokin' and playin' at the same time.
Also, Robin Banks has an amazing voice -- can't that lyric out of 'I can't stop loving you, I can't stop wanting you" out of mind. Reminds my of Cheap Trick.
Glad you are feeling better and having a great time, Gerry!
I am having a good time. I woke up Sunday and knew I had an action-packed day ahead.
First, I had a nice breakfast at Sunset on the Cliffs -- Jamaica theme again -- before checking out, as today I was ready to check in officially to Seastar Inn.
So I took the motorbike to Seastar, just to make sure we were all good (of course we were), then decided to pick up Jodie up the road, as I had not seen her in a couple days while recovering from my inflammed joints. BTW, I am perfect now, feel just fine, so that is good.
So I told Jodie let's spend the day together, though I have some little errands to run, so you get on the back of the scooter, and we would be good to go. So my beautiful Negril girlfriend hops on, and first I need to back up a bit, cause I had actually picked her up first and brought her to Sunset on the Cliffs to check out -- in more ways than one, as we got exceptionally stoned smoking spliffs on the balcony while enjoying the ocean.
Anyway, I knew I had to get my luggage to Seastar before checking in later cause I had a snorkel appointment at noon with Famous Vincent. So we flagged down a red-plate taxi and I paid him 500j to tote my luggage to Seastar Inn, as I followed behind in the scooter.
It was nice to take a hot shower, I had been missing that at Sunset at the Cliffs, which had two temperatures for the shower -- cold and VERY coldThen we went to vis. it the fishermen near the river, and I got a big ol' bag of little fish to fry at Booby Cay as part of the snorkel trip that was coming up soon. I could not find Patrick, the fisherman who last time gave me a great deal on a big string of fish n lobster, but this time for only seven dollars I got a lot of fish, like 16 of them!
So the plan was the meet my friend Anthony at Whistling Bird; he is a great guy, an expat who runs the hotel and has been in Negril for like 20 years .... he has some great stories about the old days when schools of hundreds of rays used to darken the shore on the beach.
Oh yes, I cleared up the issue of who owns Whistling Bird, an issue that was disputed in my last report six months ago. Anthony has indeed inherited the hotel from his parents. He says he wants to be in my trip report again, too.
We ate jerk chicken at Whistling Bird -- spicy, good but still not quite as good as the road-side jerk stands -- then Roger, Vincent's first mate, called and said he was having issues and was sending another boat to pick me up. All good. We were greeted with a new boat and crew a short time later, joining three other couples of mix-n-match Canadians n Negril locals, and we stopped for a snorkel on the way to Booby Cay. It was a bit choppy but still fun!
At Booby Cay, I met 'Homie,' an older gentleman who is always cooking on the island with a couple of others. He says he wants to be in this report.
We had the fish, which he cooked for us, plus I bought two big lobsters for $30, plus $10 to cook everything, it was all good.
A baby moray eel was near the shore, swimming around, but no rays this time.
We smoked and ate a big plate each, then with the sun shining nicely compared to overcast on the way there, we returned to Whistling Bird, where we hopped on the motor bike and officially checked in at Seastar Inn.
Glad your having a good time Jerry, wheres the pic?