Blogging in the Caribbean
I love the concept of blogging and I love the reality of blogging. I love reading blogs, sifting through different styles of writing, differing subject matter, differing points of view, sifting, stirring, shaking and crushing ice until you get that perfect mix of daily reading material. One of these good days I'll post up my RSS OPML file for any interested persons. I'm still adding to/deleting from it daily, but it's got some great feeds in it.
OK, to the point: Of particular interest to me are Caribbean bloggers, specifically Caribbean-based bloggers. We, as a people, have never been particularly into to self-exposure, particularly the type of public, open-to-all comments, wide-spread exposure that blogging is. Even if we aren't discussing our personal lives, we have a general reluctance to discuss our personal opinions, feelings, thoughts and sentiments. It's almost like a regional fright of having "outside" people all up in our business, of being shown up, being examined, poked, prodded, of being.. exposed.
So this is why, when I come across blogs written by West Indians (usually young and tech-savvy), I get so excited. Not all of the writing is Pulitzer-prize worthy (YY sure ain't!), some of the structure and syntax leaves a lot to be desired, and some of the blogs are just plain hard to read and difficult to enjoy. But the most important thing is that they are OUT THERE, that there are Caribbean people discussing their lives, communities, fetes, thoughts, feelings, angst, joys, their work, international affairs, the people next door, even poor, cursed LIAT (allyuh leave LIAT alone!).
Blogging is such a new concept in the Caribbean that - even though it's yesterday's news in the most of the world - there is still the opportunity for West Indian blogging pioneers! So........ to cut to the chase, ole YingityYangity is going to try to start up a lil informal-ish Caribbean webring, linking to blogs and bloggers from across the region. I'll be hunting down as many Cari-blogs as I can find, adding and trading links, and I'm hoping that any of you out there reading this will get on board with me (I know I only have about 2 readers to my blog and one of dem is mi hubby, but say what). Send me your link, share mine if you wish. Leh we see where dis social web-xperiment go go.
Posted by YingYang at 11:01 AM
8 Comments
hey! i agree .. it's nice to see/hear/read another West Indian's perspective. with regards to the grammar, i try to keep it as true to my regular speech as possible, . so the reader ( mostly my lame friends :-) ) get the essence of the story i'm tryin to tell, as if i were there speaking to them in person.. now i admit, the way we speak ( lots of regional slang, and even our own personal slang ) may be a bit daunting to some ( basically, all non-west indians ! LOL ) but for some purposes, it's better that way, to tell the story.. what always astounds me is when you ( the writer ) get visitors other that your regular circle of friends.. it is humbling, and goes to show that we do indeed live in a global village.
I like your slant as well ( and i LOVED gran anse..don't get me wrong.. even the tinfoil :- ) )
big up!
Check me out,Vincy blogger here.From my site you can meet plenty other Caribbean people
Wecome Jon! Grammar, spelings, dialect, typos, slang... that's what makes all ah we blogs fun to read so don't (ever) apologise. Who don't get it, won't get it, even if it was in sparkly perfect English.
Abeni, good to see you again.
I'm going to be adding links to your blogs on BlahBlohBlog; please send me other links when you come across them. Remember, I'm looking specifically for West Indian bloggers living IN the West Indies.
well I'm a bajan blogger in canada and I've found quite a few caribbean blogs although as a region on the whole I think we are lacking. I actually pondered your question specifically in regards to bajans in barbados because its only yesterday that i found my first blog from one of those.
Anyway I'll have to check your blog out regularly.
but wait ya got problems wid caribbean bloggers posting from outside de caribbean :-) i feeling real slighted ya kno!
Hey Jdid, good to see you again.
Naww... I don't have a problem with Caribbean bloggers living abroad. Don't get me wrong. It's just that Caribbean bloggers living in the Caribbean are hard to find. I would love to know where they are, see what they have to say, where their heads are at, what they write about, etc, etc. Caribloggers abroad are (obviously) more exposed to North American/European influences, lifestyles, what-have-you. Technology isn't new to them. Being online is a way of life. The internet is part of your psyche. It's not quite like that down here - technology is still a "new" thing.
That said, you are on my reading list so keep writing! Peace, bro.
hi yingyang I was just joking with that comment. I agree I'm a little disturbed by the lack of caribbean bloggers myself. in time hopefully there will be lots more though
http://www.yamfoot.com
Jamaican blogger living in the Caribbean....wherever the work takes I and I.
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