THE HISTORY OF CARNIVAL
To give you an idea of my connection to Carnival and what I would prefer L.A. or any other place to experience, let me begin with the fact that when I began playing mass, "Invaders" steel band did not even yet exist; and when the band eventually came on the scene, they were known, initially, as "Oval Boys". You may therefore assume, and correctly so, that I grew up in Wood brook.
Music of the steel bands - in addition to other LIVE music played by LIVE musicians on conventional instruments - used to be the backbone, the catalytic driving force in our Carnival. It was a creative, artistic pursuit; and pan was synonymous with our Carnival.
To play mass used to mean, literally, to portray a character. To tell a story. It was our own expressionistic, local theatricality. Theatre of the street. Or as the late Trinidadian auteur, Dr. Errol Gaston Hill, termed it: a "Mandate For A National Theatre". Playing mass used to involve research. Who or whatever you played, you made a point of learning, studying and practicing for the portrayal of that entity. But most of all, it required some amount of talent and imagination and a certain desire to "entertain" the spectators.
But in the early 1970s a "cultural sell-out" of "The World's Most Spectacular Festival" (as our Carnival used to officially be called) began to prevail - for monetary gain - and the integrity of our Carnival has since then been progressively and shamefully compromised.
No longer do we face the challenge of fending off the threats of "Midnight Robbers", or witnessing the hypnotic realism of a family of "Bats", or enjoying - which has always been my personal choice to play - the fanciful movements and dancing of a "Fancy Sailor" band (Michael Jackson's source of his "Moonwalk") depicting the various sections of a ship; or having to avoid "Lucifer" and his Entourage From Hell, to name just a few . . . All of whom were to be found not just in a few isolated places on Carnival day, but in almost every district in the island.
These traditional portrayals are now shunted, for the most part, and replaced by nondescript fluff and semi-nudity. Our Carnival has fallen so low, in my humble, traditionalistic opinion, that it no longer surpasses Brazil's but more resembles it, having fallen almost to the level of Las Vegas "Schmaltz". Traditional has become almost a dirty word. A word to be ridiculed by a new generation of players showing no interest in embracing the history of their culture. Instead, they have been satisfied to emulate and imitate "outsiders", either ignoring or not realizing the fact that it is their own "culture", the very same, which has been taken, exploited, dumped down, recycled and sold back to them. And they have bought it.
As for the music - and I use the term advisedly - first of all, FASTER and LOUDER is not necessarily better. Especially with that sort of (synthesized) music that doesn't "breathe"!! . . I never thought I would see the day when pan would lose its place in our Carnival and we would be subjected to the American Square Dance fashion of "crowd control"- - When some guy, some person of no consequence whatsoever, and most likely from another island, would be telling me when to "Lay down on the ground' and wine". Or, to "Hold on to the big truck." or to wave my hand in the air! Such utter nonsense. This is by no means the Carnival atmosphere that I have known and loved. Or as a journalist from "The Trinidadian Guardian" succinctly summed it up a couple of years ago, "Rhythmic rhetoric for dictation dancing."
About The Author:
Roger King has been involved with the Carnival for several years, and has been videotaping the bands and colorful costumes. Visit the official Web site http://www.los-angeles-carnival.com to see the celebration.
Re-Discover the Fun in Your RC Model Airplane
It's unbelievable how quickly we can lose sight of the face-splitting fun in our favourite model airplane hobby! You're either trying too hard or too confused by all the choices. And what do you do next? Sailplanes? Warbirds? Combat? Control-line? Racing? Perhaps you should re-discover what this great model airplane hobby is all about and try some fun flying.
Whether you need friendly advice, tips on flying your model airplane or have questions about different model airplanes or equipment, Fun Flying groups feature fellow enthusiasts who are willing to help the novice. They are not concerned with the size, shape, or scale of your model airplane. Instead, they focus on the joy of flying, on learning new techniques, and on how to reap the most benefit from each model airplane.
Typically, fun fly groups gather to compete in a series of missions or tasks. The idea is that through practicing new maneuvers, the novice will become a master. Tasks are divided into two categories: unlimited and fun fly. The unlimited category places no limit on the design or equipment of your model airplane, apart from meeting the Academy of Model Aeronautics' (AMA) safety code for radio-controlled fliers.
Tasks in this category are timed from the point of intentional movement to the end of the maneuver and point that the wheels touch the ground. The fun fly category may place limits, like minimum wing loading or radio features, or may remain unlimited. These tasks are usually mission oriented, but can be timed as well. Participants enter a category in either the masters class, (top level), or the sportsman class, (entry level).
The tasks involve aerobatic precision with such stunts as loops, rolls, touchdown and take-off with your model airplane, and limbo passes in which a ribbon is stretched between two poles that are fifty feet apart and five feet high. Fun fliers compete in several of these tasks; all are timed. Missions include tasks like learning to taxi accurately on the runway, to climb in altitude and glide, to fly for exactly three minutes, to perform a spot landing, or to complete a bomb drop.
The National Competition Fun Fly Association (NCFFA), http://www.ncffafunfly.org/, is the approved Special Interest Group for fun flying by the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA). The group features standard tasks and model airplane missions, as well as a general layout of fun flying.
In keeping with the spirit of fun, however, the association suggests that groups create safe, new tasks and missions for fun fly events. New tasks and missions keep the fun growing for old-timers and offer more choices for newcomers. People have done things like landing with a dead engine, or playing musical airplanes, (last one down when the music stops is out).
So what might one of these fun fly events look like? Picture a model airplane warbird, sailplane, and combat model plane all racing one another. Next, a taped-together foam plane performs aerobatics, followed by a scratch built balsa model airplane, fresh paint glistening in the sun. The greatest advantage of these events is the learning factor: where else can you be exposed to so many different planes and styles of flying?
Your next step? Take what you've learned here and get back to some fun. Remember, all RC model airplanes are created equal in the eyes of fun.
__________________________________
Bruce Bird makes it easy for the beginner to quickly get a grasp of the broad
range of exciting activities that make up airplane modeling. To receive his free
5 part mini-series visit Model Airplane Secrets
How Golfers Can Cope With Back Pain
Many golfers experience back pain. The golf swing is an unnatural motion that can cause some unusual stresses. In some cases, golf does not necessarily cause the pain, but a golf swing can aggravate old injuries and escalate stiffness into painful spasms.
I have rarely made it through a season without experiencing at least one bout of back pain from golf. There have been times it has been so severe that I thought I may have to give up the sport. But over time, I have found a few things that help me golf pain free and, if I do experience some pain, speed recovery. Of course these tips are meant for people experiencing pain from the normal stresses and strains that come from participation in sport and are not meant for people who have injuries or are recovering from chronic conditions.
1. Exercise
A couple of years ago I ran across a regimen developed by Dr. Chico Caldwell, a professor at the University of Iowa. This series of exercises was not developed for golf specifically, but is an overall strength and flexibility program. Even so, I have found it to be extremely beneficial for avoiding back pain by keeping abdomen and back muscles toned. The whole series of exercises takes about an hour. Twice a week seems to be enough frequency to maintain muscle tone. No equipment is necessary.
2. Pre-game Warm-up
I personally don't believe stretching cold muscles does much good. It is necessary to get cold muscles warmed up and the only way to do this is movement. Take a club and swing it like a baseball bat back and forth until you are puffing a bit, then take some easy practice swings, then go through your stretching routine.
3. Take It Easy on the Driving Range
I is always tempting to reach for the driver because you know that that all important drive on the first tee is coming up in a few minutes. But you will like do better if you warm up by hitting some easy shots with your six iron.
4. Walk
It may seem counter intuitive, but I have fewer problems with my back when I am walking the course than when I am using a cart. If you must use a cart, because of course or tournament rules, make sure you stretch when you get out and walk around as much as possible.
5. Rest
Very often I will not notice any pain during a game but will experience it the next day when I am riding my bike or working in the garden. Taking it easy between games will decrease onset of back pain. If you must do some lifting, use additional caution after a round of golf.
By paying attention to these things, you should be able to play without gulping handfuls of ibuprofen. But of course, this is just some common sense advice from one player to another and is not a substitute for professional help. If you do experience ongoing pain, consult a professional.
Ron Strand is a college instructor, consultant and avid golfer.
Music of the steel bands - in addition to other LIVE music played by LIVE musicians on conventional instruments - used to be the backbone, the catalytic driving force in our Carnival. It was a creative, artistic pursuit; and pan was synonymous with our Carnival.
To play mass used to mean, literally, to portray a character. To tell a story. It was our own expressionistic, local theatricality. Theatre of the street. Or as the late Trinidadian auteur, Dr. Errol Gaston Hill, termed it: a "Mandate For A National Theatre". Playing mass used to involve research. Who or whatever you played, you made a point of learning, studying and practicing for the portrayal of that entity. But most of all, it required some amount of talent and imagination and a certain desire to "entertain" the spectators.
But in the early 1970s a "cultural sell-out" of "The World's Most Spectacular Festival" (as our Carnival used to officially be called) began to prevail - for monetary gain - and the integrity of our Carnival has since then been progressively and shamefully compromised.
No longer do we face the challenge of fending off the threats of "Midnight Robbers", or witnessing the hypnotic realism of a family of "Bats", or enjoying - which has always been my personal choice to play - the fanciful movements and dancing of a "Fancy Sailor" band (Michael Jackson's source of his "Moonwalk") depicting the various sections of a ship; or having to avoid "Lucifer" and his Entourage From Hell, to name just a few . . . All of whom were to be found not just in a few isolated places on Carnival day, but in almost every district in the island.
These traditional portrayals are now shunted, for the most part, and replaced by nondescript fluff and semi-nudity. Our Carnival has fallen so low, in my humble, traditionalistic opinion, that it no longer surpasses Brazil's but more resembles it, having fallen almost to the level of Las Vegas "Schmaltz". Traditional has become almost a dirty word. A word to be ridiculed by a new generation of players showing no interest in embracing the history of their culture. Instead, they have been satisfied to emulate and imitate "outsiders", either ignoring or not realizing the fact that it is their own "culture", the very same, which has been taken, exploited, dumped down, recycled and sold back to them. And they have bought it.
As for the music - and I use the term advisedly - first of all, FASTER and LOUDER is not necessarily better. Especially with that sort of (synthesized) music that doesn't "breathe"!! . . I never thought I would see the day when pan would lose its place in our Carnival and we would be subjected to the American Square Dance fashion of "crowd control"- - When some guy, some person of no consequence whatsoever, and most likely from another island, would be telling me when to "Lay down on the ground' and wine". Or, to "Hold on to the big truck." or to wave my hand in the air! Such utter nonsense. This is by no means the Carnival atmosphere that I have known and loved. Or as a journalist from "The Trinidadian Guardian" succinctly summed it up a couple of years ago, "Rhythmic rhetoric for dictation dancing."
About The Author:
Roger King has been involved with the Carnival for several years, and has been videotaping the bands and colorful costumes. Visit the official Web site http://www.los-angeles-carnival.com to see the celebration.
Re-Discover the Fun in Your RC Model Airplane
It's unbelievable how quickly we can lose sight of the face-splitting fun in our favourite model airplane hobby! You're either trying too hard or too confused by all the choices. And what do you do next? Sailplanes? Warbirds? Combat? Control-line? Racing? Perhaps you should re-discover what this great model airplane hobby is all about and try some fun flying.
Whether you need friendly advice, tips on flying your model airplane or have questions about different model airplanes or equipment, Fun Flying groups feature fellow enthusiasts who are willing to help the novice. They are not concerned with the size, shape, or scale of your model airplane. Instead, they focus on the joy of flying, on learning new techniques, and on how to reap the most benefit from each model airplane.
Typically, fun fly groups gather to compete in a series of missions or tasks. The idea is that through practicing new maneuvers, the novice will become a master. Tasks are divided into two categories: unlimited and fun fly. The unlimited category places no limit on the design or equipment of your model airplane, apart from meeting the Academy of Model Aeronautics' (AMA) safety code for radio-controlled fliers.
Tasks in this category are timed from the point of intentional movement to the end of the maneuver and point that the wheels touch the ground. The fun fly category may place limits, like minimum wing loading or radio features, or may remain unlimited. These tasks are usually mission oriented, but can be timed as well. Participants enter a category in either the masters class, (top level), or the sportsman class, (entry level).
The tasks involve aerobatic precision with such stunts as loops, rolls, touchdown and take-off with your model airplane, and limbo passes in which a ribbon is stretched between two poles that are fifty feet apart and five feet high. Fun fliers compete in several of these tasks; all are timed. Missions include tasks like learning to taxi accurately on the runway, to climb in altitude and glide, to fly for exactly three minutes, to perform a spot landing, or to complete a bomb drop.
The National Competition Fun Fly Association (NCFFA), http://www.ncffafunfly.org/, is the approved Special Interest Group for fun flying by the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA). The group features standard tasks and model airplane missions, as well as a general layout of fun flying.
In keeping with the spirit of fun, however, the association suggests that groups create safe, new tasks and missions for fun fly events. New tasks and missions keep the fun growing for old-timers and offer more choices for newcomers. People have done things like landing with a dead engine, or playing musical airplanes, (last one down when the music stops is out).
So what might one of these fun fly events look like? Picture a model airplane warbird, sailplane, and combat model plane all racing one another. Next, a taped-together foam plane performs aerobatics, followed by a scratch built balsa model airplane, fresh paint glistening in the sun. The greatest advantage of these events is the learning factor: where else can you be exposed to so many different planes and styles of flying?
Your next step? Take what you've learned here and get back to some fun. Remember, all RC model airplanes are created equal in the eyes of fun.
__________________________________
Bruce Bird makes it easy for the beginner to quickly get a grasp of the broad
range of exciting activities that make up airplane modeling. To receive his free
5 part mini-series visit Model Airplane Secrets
How Golfers Can Cope With Back Pain
Many golfers experience back pain. The golf swing is an unnatural motion that can cause some unusual stresses. In some cases, golf does not necessarily cause the pain, but a golf swing can aggravate old injuries and escalate stiffness into painful spasms.
I have rarely made it through a season without experiencing at least one bout of back pain from golf. There have been times it has been so severe that I thought I may have to give up the sport. But over time, I have found a few things that help me golf pain free and, if I do experience some pain, speed recovery. Of course these tips are meant for people experiencing pain from the normal stresses and strains that come from participation in sport and are not meant for people who have injuries or are recovering from chronic conditions.
1. Exercise
A couple of years ago I ran across a regimen developed by Dr. Chico Caldwell, a professor at the University of Iowa. This series of exercises was not developed for golf specifically, but is an overall strength and flexibility program. Even so, I have found it to be extremely beneficial for avoiding back pain by keeping abdomen and back muscles toned. The whole series of exercises takes about an hour. Twice a week seems to be enough frequency to maintain muscle tone. No equipment is necessary.
2. Pre-game Warm-up
I personally don't believe stretching cold muscles does much good. It is necessary to get cold muscles warmed up and the only way to do this is movement. Take a club and swing it like a baseball bat back and forth until you are puffing a bit, then take some easy practice swings, then go through your stretching routine.
3. Take It Easy on the Driving Range
I is always tempting to reach for the driver because you know that that all important drive on the first tee is coming up in a few minutes. But you will like do better if you warm up by hitting some easy shots with your six iron.
4. Walk
It may seem counter intuitive, but I have fewer problems with my back when I am walking the course than when I am using a cart. If you must use a cart, because of course or tournament rules, make sure you stretch when you get out and walk around as much as possible.
5. Rest
Very often I will not notice any pain during a game but will experience it the next day when I am riding my bike or working in the garden. Taking it easy between games will decrease onset of back pain. If you must do some lifting, use additional caution after a round of golf.
By paying attention to these things, you should be able to play without gulping handfuls of ibuprofen. But of course, this is just some common sense advice from one player to another and is not a substitute for professional help. If you do experience ongoing pain, consult a professional.
Ron Strand is a college instructor, consultant and avid golfer.