As the years roll by, I have become more and more depressed by thoughts of my country, Trinidad & Tobago. The place itself, as swampy, hot, flood-prone and congested as it can be, has its everlasting charms.

But the people, the Trinbagonians? Lord have mercy; they are quite maddening. 

I often feel the entire nation and its inhabitants need something drastic, catastrophic even, to unexpectedly occur and turn the country on its ear. Something like a Hurricane Katrina-grade natural disaster to completely level the playing field between the haves, the want-to-haves, and the have-nots.

Or perhaps, a permanent embargo on liquor of all sorts should do the trick? Truly, the country is in desperate need of some sobering up.

Between the braggadocio national attitude, malicious party politics, trumped-up racial allegations, slipshod governance and the general 'do what yuh want' mentality, it shouldn't be too difficult to understand why I would write such drastic things. Especially since the average man seems to care more about having a good time than short-circuiting the sociocultural degradation occurring across the twin-island state.

Long story short?

There aren't many things that can get me truly excited about Trinidad & Tobago these days; each time I return home, read the news on local websites or talk to old friends, I hear more things to make me shake my head in despair. 

That is, until I watched the video for 3Canal's latest tune, Mix Up. 

With its typical 3Canal sing-song refrain, it implores Trinbagonians to forget their divisive mentality in favour of mixing-up with one another. Yes, it's a supremely catchy and somewhat corny, 'let's unify de nation and come together' kind of jam. 

But perhaps that's exactly what we all need?

A little bit of a sing-along and three flying Rapso dudes to remind us that the country's wellbeing or decline is our collective responsibility?

PS, Walt Lovelace did a damn good job on this video...

NB Images and Video Courtesy 3Canal/Walt Lovelace/BeachHouse

Since responding to questions about my hair sometime ago, I've been asked by some of you to share exactly how I care for my dreads. So here goes - brace yourself for a longish post, folks!

There are obvious perks to having a headful of thick dreadlocs. One doesn't have to literally 'comb' the hair everyday; longer locs serve as a handy earmuff-cum-scarf in the winter; they're fairly easy to style...

But for all the benefits, there's one massive drawback to having dreads - dealing with the ordeal of washing and drying the hair. 

When I lived in Trinidad, this meant simply heading to the beach on a Sunday for some saltwater wave action (which is fantastic for taking out any residual hair goo, by the way) then heading back home for a cleanse and rinse with the most basic shampoo I could find on Charlotte Street. 

Then I'd simply go about my business for the rest of the day, and by evening the sheer heat of the atmosphere would have my hair bone-dry from root to tip. 

Now that I live in this temperate zone, far away from the pleasures of Maracas beach and daily hot sun, haircare is a more intricate process that often takes no less than two days to complete...

It starts with the fast-absorbing pure Coconut Oil in that glass jar, above; my favourite comes from Nature's Way. A dollop of that all-purpose oil is all the conditioner I need; applied lightly to dry locs and wrapped under a plastic bonnet for a few hours, it leaves my hair soft and shining with a most heavenly glow. 

Next, I lather up liberally with the US drugstore version of basic Charlotte Street shampoo, the Neutrogena Anti-Residue formula. I love this stuff - it actually does clean each and every bit of my hair whilst gently cleansing the scalp. Some people can't stand the scent, but the slightly medicinal touch is oddly comforting and wears off rather quickly.

One proper round of shampooing is usually all it takes for my locs to be squeaky clean without stripping away the oils, but taking a second go at it isn't uncommon for some folks.

And then it's the stage I dread the most - the drying. 

Once I get an early start on the hair washing bit, the drying can go well into the night for me; my thick locs seem to think it's a sponge and water just sits in each strand, stubbornly refusing to be squeezed out. Thus, I have to separate my hair into four sections and take turns at wringing, toweling and blow drying each part until my arms feel like dead weights.

By the time my hair is thoroughly dry, it's too late to do anything but apply another Charlotte St. essential to my scalp before tying up the locs with a silk scarf and turing into bed. See that wildly coloured box and the bottle marked Castroline? 

By God, that Castor Oil and lavender mix is the best scalp treatment I've ever used.

While it's not very costly or fancy-pants - the bottle will cost you the TTD equivalent of $3.99 USD - it's bloody hard to find in Trinidad, and certainly in the US. Whenever I take a trip back home, I make sure and hunt down at least four bottles of this stuff. Used in moderation, it keeps away dry scalp, stimulates new growth and smells delicious.

The following day (I told you this process was long) is generally dedicated to neatening up the locs with that horrid-looking tub of black gel. Now, some folks swear by their fancy loc-butters and beeswax, but since my hair is of the wiry variety that doesn't loc easily, Ampro is the only thing that holds each loc in place without leaving behind dreaded, dust-attracting residue. 

And what's the lightly fragrant Santa Maria Novella rose water for?

Consider that alcohol-free and antiseptic splash a 'quick-wash' solution. With fresh cotton balls, I clean my scalp with a few drops and spritz a bit on my locs for a fast sheen and moisture during the week.

Trust me, it's an extremely indulgent and refreshing way to get around having to repeat the wash-and-dry sequence every other day...

NB Images Copyright © 2012 Au Courant Studio, LLC, All Rights Reserved

 I despise the cold weather with a passion.

It is true. I am one of those curious people who turn into a glorified hobo once the temperature begins to decline; anything past 70°F is too cold, in my Caribbean-informed opinion. Cold weather makes me gravitate towards my oldest, rattiest, grayest articles of clothing, to be worn in the following fashion:

• A long sleeve tee shirt, covered by a wooly hooded sweater, covered by a zip-up fleece jacket.
• Thigh-high socks, followed by a pair of tube socks, followed by fur-lined inside booties.
• Cotton tights, under a men's long-john's style pants, under a track pants.

Sometimes, I even add those hobo-grade fingerless gloves to the entire ensemble...

The overall effect is not lost upon those who happen to spot me during these periods; last weekend I took out the trash dressed in my usual cold-weather getup, and the neighbors across the street shot a most horrified look in my direction. As if to say, 'how did this bum wander into our area?'

Thus, I am trying to eschew the homeless look for the rest of the season by at least throwing a proper jacket over my layers when I head out for the occasional fall walk. 

Don't I look rather presentable - from the back, at least?

Wearing: Jimmy Aboud head wrap; Bennetton winter coat; H&M maternity jeans; GH Bass leather loafers; Au Courant slouched leather purse.

NB Images Copyright © 2012 Au Courant Studio, LLC, All Rights Reserved