Today (June 16, 2022) is a holiday here in Grenada. As I was driving home from the office this evening, I saw my neighbour dressed up and about to leave home. She had some dishes in her hand. I imagined she and her spouse were going to a friend’s home, to be joined by other friends. I silently asked myself why had I been at work, when I no longer work in a hotel, but in the financial sector, which operates Monday to Friday from 8 to 4? It reminded me of a recent conversation which had got me seriously thinking.
A few Sundays ago, I was out to lunch with a friend from overseas and her friend who lives here. As it was a few years since I had seen her, we were catching up on what each other had been doing in the intervening years. Naturally, that included whether there were any developments in the romantic arena. “Nope….no boyfriend,” I reported. Why? Well, mostly because I have always been in work situations where I work many hours, even on weekend and holidays. My friend’s friend, after listening to my response asked “so what do you do for fun?” I couldn’t share anything exciting, apart from going to the beach.
**Yamfoot’s note** Ioriginally wrote this article in 2015 for a website, which then had some technical issues so it is no longer available there. I thought I should re-produce it on my blog.
At the end of the article, I will add some updated notes.
“How could you leave big big Jamaica and go and live in one of those small islands?” Grenada, the small island I chose, measures just 12 miles west to east and 21 miles north to south. In 1997, this Jamaican added to Grenada’s population of approximately one hundred or so thousand people at the time. Originally intending to spend two years then move on, 18 years later, Grenada is still captivating and feels like home.
Here are five reasons why living in Grenada is great.
As you get older, do your thoughts change about aging? Do you see visible signs that lets you know you are getting older? I used to have neutral thoughts about aging. Maybe it was because my parents and all their relatives seemed to look the same from year to year. Then when I turned 40, a wave of panic set in. I started to draw a mind map of my thoughts about aging, while on a plane somewhere over the Caribbean Sea.
The signs of aging were evident before that milestone. In my 30’s, on March 29, 2003 to be exact, my eye spotted a grey hair peeking out from my curly afro. I froze. Next came a battle between me and it. I finally succeeded with the help of my tweezers. The hair now rests on a page in one of my journals with the caption “My 1st grey hair!”
I was listening to a Lewis Howes You Tube video where he was interviewing someone about sleep and dreams came up. The expert said very few people dream. I am one of them, and apparently dreams are helpful to the brain. Here is one from 2008, which came up in my Facebook memories today.
I could do nothing as the steering wheel seemed to develop a mind of its own. We were careening down a winding road, with a precipice on the left side. As the road veered to the right, the steering wheel stayed to the left. Soon, the car inevitably jumped over the safety rail and plunged…..how deep we did not know.
I was the driver, and at first, when the car left the road I was terrified, but as the car began to seemingly float to safety below, a calm came over me. None of my passengers screamed. There was my father, aunt, sister and my niece plus me. It was the Volvo 840 – a very sturdy car. Maybe that is what made me feel relatively safe.
The car landed without much impact on a road several thousand feet below. I drove it to a halt, we got out, surveyed the damage and were relieved that no one or nothing was damaged. I made an attempt to start the car and lead it from its resting place through the dark night, to resume our planned journey. “Oh no”, my father said, and took the wheel. Soon, we were on our way merrily, as if nothing had happened.
In this Jamaica Observer article, Jamaica’s Minister for Health & Wellness Hon. Dr Christopher Tufton advocates for more focus to be placed on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).
Dr Tufton cited the most recent Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey (JHLS III) revealed that one in three Jamaicans has hypertension, one in two is overweight or obese, and one in eight has diabetes.”
This statistic is likely the same for some, and perhaps all, other Caribbean countries.
The article goes on to state that “”The minister contended that this points to an NCD crisis and asserted that “as a matter of urgency, we must drive the NCD agenda forward… we must challenge systems and approaches that do not yield results and be willing to think outside the box”.”
The economic problem is real. The burden placed on healthcare, as well as expenses patients face to treat these preventable (in most cases) diseases is real, and utilizes scarce resources.
What if more of the Ministry’s resources, plus some from the Education Ministry, were used to develop and institute a better education programme to tackle all areas of health and wellness? Education should also include food manufacturers. I heard one CEO of a baking company refer to one of their new products as “healthy.” The nutrition data would prove that to be incorrect, given the amount of sugar it contains.
I harp on education because of my own experience. About 2 decades ago, I was very obese and decided to do something about it. A rigorous exercise programme and modification to my diet, led to a 38 pound weight loss in 8 months. At the time, I was very pleased with that result, but having better educated myself since 2016 about food and its effect on hormones and physiology, I realize I could have lost twice the amount of weight. The mistake was thinking that the big bowl of fruit and low fat yogurt, or oats I was eating for breakfast back then, was healthy. I repeat what I said in the previous paragraph: the nutrition data would prove that to be incorrect, given the amount of sugar it contains.
Steel cut oats with ripe banana and walnuts
So Minister Tufton, let’s have a rethink about an education programme, with a strong nutrition component, to tackle NCDs and get Jamaicans off their medications. And be sure to include educating our doctors and nurses. When I hear stories if some doctors giving their diabetic patients more insulin, rather than directing them to remove from their diet, what causes their glucose levels to rise, then I know that they need education too.
Implementing a sugar tax on companies who manufacture and/or sell unhealthy foods, is for another post.
I just threw away 2 batches of cooked Steel Cut Oats which I had had in the freezer for about 2 years. A few years ago, I used to eat Oats often, especially in 2016 when I was working out like a beast with Caribbean champion body builder, Grenada’s Damion Daniel. See evidence below!
For many people, the events of the past 10 months have understandably brought certain financial questions to the fore, chief among them being: Is my emergency saving fund in good shape? Am I carrying too much bad debt? Does my budget realistically reflect my current reality? Is my financial portfolio adequately diversified? Do I have enough of a safety net by way of insurance?
— Read on www.jamaicaobserver.com/style/are-you-ready_212630
Listen to Phil Simmons on training day Saturday January 11, 2020 at the Grenada National Stadium. The West Indies plays Ireland in the 3rd and final ODI tomorrow.
I have deep thoughts in unusual places. Most often, it is while washing dishes. On Saturday March 16, 2019, it was as I was taking a shower. What was on my mind? Death. It was the same day of Tony Becca’s funeral and since he transitioned to the great unknown on February 28, and especially that day of his funeral I thought alot about the ‘D’ word. This article I read recently, also got my mind going.
Every opportunity I get, I remind people that, the fact that we will all knock on death’s door, dictates……compels us even…….to live the kind of life that we are not going to be disappointed with, when we go “knock, knock, knock,” or when the Grim Reaper comes for us.
As a Trainer, I have a platform and I try and capitalize on it by encouraging deep thought and introspection.
One time in a session with quarrelsome people, you know, people whose natural tendency was to find fault and just complain and quarrel about EVERYTHING.
As I started to prepare for bed after 11 p.m. last night, I yawned. Can’t remember yawning in a long time. Could it be that the exercise I did between 5 and 6 p.m. Tuesday, was going to help me fall asleep quickly?
Tuesday’s daytime activities
Ate breakfast while watching Wendy Williams (between 10 and 11 a.m.) then worked at home from about 11:45 a.m. to close to 5 p.m. Took mini breaks in between, of course. Ate a spoon of organic Almond Butter at about 2:30 p.m. I felt productive on Tuesday for sure. Yay for that. Would the good feeling last?
In the morning, I had set hourly reminders to drink water, after Googling the number of ounces in a gallon (128). I drink from a 20 ounce bottle and in my mind, I’d thought 4 was an achievement, then had my bubble burst when I realised I was 2 cups short. 😲 I fell behind. Water fills you up quite a bit!
