kai's lounge

… I’m really Stolid? Seriously.  What if I’m some Multiple Personality Disorder  sufferer like the fella in Fight Club? And Stolid is my bad ass alter identity? You know saying the things I want to say, cussing the people I want to cuss … shit like that. There are times I read his blog and I say damn, this motherfucker says the things I wish I had the cojones to say, things I’ve thought about. You know, specific things, not things that everyone think about such as Imran is a social media whore. Maybe Charmaine’s claim wasn’t that zany after all (pregnant silence ensues; whatever the fuck that is).  Seriously though, there are times I go into these fugue states and come to about an hour later. Right. That must be it.

I have a very low tolerance level for trending news which is probably ironic. While my heart goes out to the people suffering in Haiti I have truly heard and seen enough. I don’t know if that makes me cold but it’s the truth. As a result I’m hardly on Twitter, just scanning the newspapers and definitely not looking at television. Ok, I never look at television. But do I really have to be broken up every time I see or hear the word Haiti? I was feeling sorry for Haiti before the quake and that hasn’t changed. As some people are opining, the quake may have been the best thing that happened to the country. They were going nowhere very fast. Something I’ve always believed and voiced is that disasters are some of the biggest unifiers. Just like how some leaders were saying the global financial crisis was opportune for correcting the world financial system, the same way this catastrophe presents an opening for the world to start fixing Haiti. Of course, all of this has been said already.

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, it’s a new year. 2010. Year of the Tiger. Sounds like my kinda year. Remember, I’m a fucking Bengal. Though I do feel a bit de-energised. A friend said it’s an ebb and flow. Be patient. Yeah well … this mofo better start gushing soon. But this is definitely gonna be a banner year for me. New biz to build, marriage, money to make, yep … looks like it’s gonna be one to remember. The last year ended with an education in relations, more like a reminder; angels do not walk this fucking mudheap. Write that down. But we live and we learn. Last year was seriously unremarkable. I remember 1989 a lot clearer than 2009. The only other thing of note was my departure from the media. A ballsy move that but one I do not regret despite the naysayers.

As I sit and type here I can hear the sounds of a couple arguing on the road. The darnedest things happen in front my gap. Yesterday I saw a schoolboy rob another with a broken bottle. Last night a woman jumped out a minibus and right into a slap from her man who wanted to know where she was coming from at that hour. Real sad. And to make it worse the little fucker next door, Orlando, is a thief. Stole a bicycle from the fella who lives downstairs and divvied up the parts with his friends. Police got involved and shit. Anyway, enough of that crap. Just throwing something up here. Happy new year and all that good shit.

I’m out.

Christmas finds me in familiar company; a bar, vodka and cranberry juice, friends more intent on the womenfolk about, even the three with the matching gold hair pieces and gold teeth. But this is not about the ghetto fabulous crew across the bar. Rather, this little note is about my penchant for the gloomy while others are making merry. I suspect this will be the last Christmas I’ll be doing this given the impending nuptials.

I find it hard to be excited about Christmas, actually, I find it impossible. Last night the love of my life said she was going to change that about me. She’s a brave woman. I find no joy in spending my goddamn hard earned money on stuff just because other folks are doing it, especially now that I’m self-employed. My mom always said Christmas was for children and I guess she was right but as a kid I was never enamored with the season. Then again, I was a very odd child.

Anyway, this seems to be running on. It’s not my intention to get all maudlin on this most joyous of days. A merry Christmas and all that good shit to you and yours.

I’m out.

Granny: chile you cant fool me, i been in this world before.
Orlando: why yuh come back?

That’s the name of our new venture which should hopefully be out of the blocks by mid-December. Ambitious, yes, but there’s nothing like a try and I’m not getting into this on a lark. There is a market for the services Janus will be offering and we are capable of competing with and outperforming those individuals who offer a modicum of these services albeit in an ad hoc manner. Who knows, in ten years time we may be as big as Guinness in the Caribbean.

So take a peep at Janus

A former prostitute whose memoirs were turned into the TV series Secret Diary of a Call Girl, starring Billie Piper, has revealed her true identity.

Dr Brooke Magnanti wrote under the pen name Belle de Jour to describe the encounters she had as a high-class call girl while earning money for her PhD.

via BBC NEWS | UK | Belle de Jour drops her anonymity.

In exactly two weeks I’ll be unemployed, or rather, self-employed. I submitted my resignation a couple weeks ago to pursue a dream a friend and I have been nurturing for several years; opening our own editorial consultancy/media company. It’s the first time since leaving high school that I won’t be part of a structured working environment with a guaranteed salary at the end of the month no matter how much time I waste on FB or Twitter. I’m terrified. Will I be able to pay my recurring bills; internet, rent, phone? How will it impact on my family life? There’s no guarantee that I will be able to even match the money I make now in a given month.

I’m excited. It’s not going to be easy but I know we’ll get out of it exactly what we put into it. This is where the real paper chase begins; eat what you kill. I’ve been a bag bay attendant, data entry clerk, cashier, telemarketer, reserve officer cadet and journalist. Hopefully, I’ll be able to add entrepreneur to that list in the not too distant future. I have long resisted numerous entreaties to go after money proactively, having no inclination to be in that race, but this is an opportunity to make money doing something I’m good at and which could be fun; finally putting my brain to use.

I have no illusions about this venture being easy. I’m sure there will be times I’ll regret abandoning the structured work environment and the security it provides, but like the man said “nothing ventured, nothing gained.” I’ll be doing something I want to do, pursuing a dream of being an “ideas man.” This post shall serve as a reminder to why I am doing it when those difficult times surface.

I’m out.

Havana, Cuba CNN — A Cuban woman known for writing critical blogs about life in the communist nation said she was briefly detained by agents Friday in the capital.Yoani Sanchez told CNN in a telephone interview that she and fellow blogger, Orlando Luis Pardo, were forced into a black Chinese-made car and assaulted by three state security agents on her way to a march against violence Friday evening.

via Blogger says Cuban agents beat her – CNN.com.