Cancer Survivor, writing about Health and Fitness as you age

Driving in a 3rd world country On my last trip to Trinidad, I was finally able to articulate why I am so reluctant to drive there. When I first moved to the U.S I did drive in Trinidad whenever I went back, but after a few years, I would always go back during the summer school vacation and my brother, who is a school teacher, would graciously drive us around. This time, school was in session, and while I could have borrowed the car, I declined, choosing instead to ground my sons and I.  In a hot house. Why? Ahhh.. De Reflexes an' de Roads Long story short - I feel I no longer have the reflexes required to function safely and successfully on the Trinidad roads.  Yes, my reflexes have been dulled by the well-behaved Austin drivers, smooth roads and relatively well-organized transportation system. Also, you drive on the left in Trinidad. So now I move into a little Trini to capture the essence of my adventures. Picture it. Yuh drivin' along, an' yuh busy try...

The boys sleeping under a mosquito net, Trinidad, July 2016. This is just a short post about an epiphany I had coming back from my recent trip to Trinidad. Prior to going to Trinidad with my sons, and in planning the trip and the schedule, I'd been concerned about the length of time we would stay and how the boys would adapt. The longest they'd ever been there was 10 days. This trip was considerably longer. I felt I could adapt, after all, I grew up there, but them? How would the boys handle the heat? (There was no central air conditioning where we would be staying, only air-conditioning in the bedrooms.) What would they be able to eat? (Food was typically spicy and rich, full of fat, salt and sugar and unfamiliar in general.) What about the schedule? Irregular bedtimes, wakeup and activities. The constant rotation of visitors and visiting. Would they sleep comfortably? The mosquitoes! And Zika! And Chikungunya! And on and on. 2 weeks of disruption I felt they ...

Teatime! I enjoy teas. I grew up going with my mom to various bazaars in Trinidad where one attraction was always a tent with afternoon tea for the ladies, although men could drink tea too!  In Trinidad a bazaar is usually an open air event with games, concession stands, and... tea. I get a feeling of warmth, camaraderie and friendship when I have tea and it is a throwback to times I've spent with friends and family back in Trinidad. Late last year I decided to spend my last pay cheque on a proper tea set and then kicked off a series of teas with my friends. This is a picture from March tea. I hope the afternoons of friendship, laughter have filled you with warmth and joy, as they have me.

Steelband - T&T Toursim website Carnival -  T&T Tourism website I get asked this almost every time I meet someone new. The answer, like the question, is not as straightforward as it seems. When I get asked this question, the person is usually asking more than where I am from. They usually want to know about my ethnicity and heritage, in addition to where I was born. Why I speak the way I do, and in some cases, am I American/am I here legally? For my friends, old and new who only have part of the answer,  I'll try to answer the questions implicit in "Where are you from?" more completely.  I've included a few photos from the T&T Tourism board website to give you a flavour of where I am from. Cricket - T&T Tourism website Pigeon Point, Tobago - T&T Tourism website Where were you born? I was born in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in the West Indies (specifically Trinidad) and lived there until I was an adult,...

Yes, well, that really is a message to me. I've been back from my trip to Trinidad for almost two weeks now. We made it to and from, safe and sound. And what have I been doing since I've been back? As little as possible - and you would know that was pretty much the situation even before I left! Ok, so my report from my trip. First let's start with food. I was pleasantly surprised that my constitution held up the whole time, despite having "doubles" with pepper almost every day after not eating it in 6 years. I ate mango amchar (more pepper), curried duck and goat while avoiding "bellywuk", aka diarrhoea. Baby Liam did me proud by chowing down on some dhaal (split peas), rice and curried goat - my son! I also gave him some doubles (without pepper) from a roadside vendor which he tried like a trooper! Ooops, maybe Gunnar didn't know that.. I was not able to get Gunnar, Lucas or Liam to like coconut water though, so I'll just have to keep on ...

Yes, so I said "Crap!" out loud and Lucas, my 7-year old asked me who that was...so I had to explain that I used that term as an expression of frustration. My innocent Lucas. But it reminds me that I need to be careful about what I say in front of my baby parrot, Liam. I will be undertaking, the highly inadvisable, stress-inducing, international-flight-with-lap-child come the end of the month, and I expect that I will be inclined to use much stronger terms as I hustle through 2 airplane changes, customs and immigration. It will be 6 years since I was last in Trinidad and while I am excited to be back home, I cannot help but feel some degree of trepidation about the visit. Don't get me wrong, if it was just me, no problem, but I have a vague sense of unease about exposing my very American-sounding and American-looking children to a third world country in this present climate. It is very difficult to explain to anyone who has not been outside the United States how much...