Photo Wednesday 091014 : West Indian Parade 2014 Edition

I was in the parade which feels like many more than ten days ago. Not in the parade in the teen aged sense of the days when I'd hope the barricade and join the mostly other non participant paraders, but in a more age mature stroll with my niece and nephew down the parkway lanes, enjoy the people watching and food scents.

From my point of view, having walked back and forth from Franklin to Nostrand and back, as well as taking the train out to Utica Av, (with the exception of a lack of information dolled out to the rank and file officers on where crowds could permissibly cross streets) the parade was a grand success.

I have lots of pics (Senator Chuck Schumer was hilarious with the bullhorn in my opinion) and I'll put up a gallery soon, but I've settled on this shot from high above Franklin Av and Eastern Parkway.

Photo Wednesday 01/13/10 : Can the earthquake disaster in Haiti cause a substantial rally round their flag?

By now you've probably heard that a massive earthquake struck the capital city of the nation Haiti. My best wishes for rescue and repair go out to the Haitian people and to my friends many of whom have roots in and around the capital Port-Au-Prince.

(above Haitian flags and pride fly in Brooklyn during the 2009 West Indian Day Parade)

If you'd like to offer support to the earthquake relief effort in Haiti, here's two suggestions:
The Red Cross and Mercy Corps

The photos from Haiti show hundreds if not thousands of structures including the Parliament Building were gravely damaged. Here in Brooklyn, where many of the over 200,000 Haitians living abroad call home, there is an understandable thirst for the lastest information on the devastation. I imagine there's an increasingly pent up desire to be active and helpful in the aftermath. And that's what came to my mind after glimpsing the destruction in Haiti.

Before yesterday Haiti was arguable the poorest of nations in the Western Hemisphere with a host of additional problems to boot. Yet consensus on how improve conditions in Haiti have been as varied as they are to act on. Haiti has suffered for decades.

My question is to the world community in general and the Haitian community abroad, especially those who've found better financial situations. Will this disaster fuel the moment when Haiti, clearly damaged in an apolitical way, and undeniably deserving of rescue is rebuilt better than before? Or will this be the final strike that allows Haiti to completely and totally disintegrate?

Pah-tee dun? Pah-tee dun!

and so went my summer of 08 on the parkway in brooklyn proudly two fisted flag waving next to a see of caribbean pride and serenaded by Wyclef and crew...
um..? i just got back and i'm sticky with goat gravy, barbecue and dance sweat, so later the fuller writing on the Carnival that is the West Indian Day Parade,for now, the tidbits:


today the sky was beautiful, a blue of metallic sheen reflecting a spectacular illusion of endlessness....(i am an illustrator after all)

but starting with last night,
I came back from the Michael Jackson vs Prince party, ran into family
got back to BK at 4am and wandered into the parkway which looked like this....




next morn, headed over to grannie in crown heights and wandered threw this....

and then after visiting feisty grannie, I wandered back with a sense of perfection except for my lack of flag waving experiences,

but then, to the rescue, came the unstoppable force-wave of Haitian Pride...
(there's Wyclef flag waving on the truck)


this truck had my favorite chant of the day, if you missed it, it went
"mighty..." "mighty..." "mighty..." "mighty..."
"mighty..." "mighty..." "mighty..." "mighty..."
"o-bah-mah" "o-bah-mah" "o-bah-mah" "o-bah-mah"
"o-bah-mah" "o-bah-mah" "o-bah-mah" "o-bah-mah"
(*2&4th verses gets the oomph)

Which in light of recent events, summer ending, labor day, school starting, politics, weather...make me think
pah-tee dun? pah-tee dun!
pah-tee dun? pah-tee dun!
(*both times oomph!)