08182023 WEEKEND

Stitching perfection

By ALESHA CADET | Tribune Features Writer | acadet@tribunemedia.net

When she was six years old, Camryn Brewington’s grandmother taught her and her sister how to crochet.

Little did she know that those lessons would one day lead to her to starting her own brand of custom-made crocheted clothing and accessories.

“I would make baby blankets for my classmates and teachers. As I got older, my talent expanded and I decided to experiment with other pieces. I eventually got recognised by my friends, who became my first business supporters,” she told Tribune Weekend.

Now at age 23, Camryn is celebrating the success of her Stitchery brand. And even all these years later, she still includes her sister in her work.

“Seeing my grandmother work countless hours and sometimes taking down a garment that’s halfway in to start over, even for the slightest imperfection, was an inspiration. Her dedication has always been an inspira tion to me,” said Camryn.

From bikinis to beach hats, baby blankets and full outfits, Stitchery strives to be a one-stop shop for crochet clothing and accessories. During the current Summer season, Camryn said her most requested items are two-piece swimsuits and coverups.

“Although I do make sweaters and Winter wear, I would say Summer wear is always in a higher demand. Each of our customers keeps us on our toes by bringing us the idea of what they would like and it’s our job to bring it to life,” she said.

“I created an outfit for a lady that attended a very popular Summer event and she was awarded ‘Best Dressed’ out of a crowd of over 200 people. It was definitely a proud moment for me.”

Stitchery has also had two very suc cessful fashion shows.

Moving forward, Camryn hopes to have some of her crochet work displayed at The Current Art Gallery at Baha Mar. She also wants to focus on doing more photo shoots and collabo rations, and of course coming up with new designs.

CROCHET fashions by Stitchery

Lessons learned– Author and fitness instructor offers a guide to a full, impactful life

By CARA HUNT | Tribune Features Writer | cbrennen@tribunemedia.net

Well-known fitness instructor Donovan “Jay” Rolle, Sr explores some of the many life lessons he has learned over course of his life in his new book, “45 Lessons from a Middle Aged Man”.

“Some of the lessons are original and some are things that I got from people I met along the way,” he told Tribune Weekend.

The book is also a birthday present to himself to celebrate his 45th birthday.

Jay said he wanted to provide his readers with some insight into how to live a full, healthy, impactful and spiritual life.

“I share these ideas to help us find greater peace and understanding by providing 45 practical and spiritual lessons that propel us towards a path of greater self-awareness as we impact those in our sphere of influence,” he said.

This is Jay’s third book, following “Diverse” and “The Heart of a Spartan”.

In addition to being an author, he is also a husband and father, an accomplished fitness instructor and a behaviour change specialist.

“Anyone who writes, knows it’s a process,” he said. “But if you add time spent on it actually writing, it took about three months to write, picking up and putting it down, but the entire process from beginning to end I would say took about a year. I also wanted to give myself enough time to get it written, edited and published because I wanted it to be released on my birthday,” he explained.

Jay started the process by selecting the lessons he wanted to impart.

“The ideas just came to me and I would write them down; I just allowed myself to trust the process,” he said.

Jay said he also wanted to include lessons that he knew people would be able to relate to, and “not to be

cliché, I allowed God to speak to me.”

Some of the lessons included in the book include how to “distance yourself from anything or anyone who threatens your peace; your body will thank you for it”.

He touches on the now popular saying “Life be lifin’” – “That’s just the way I am justifying negative behaviour…it’s unacceptable; be an adult.”

Jay also tells his readers that “being miserable is a choice” and “bey, no one has it together all the time.”

Of all the lessons included the book, the one he wishes his younger self could’ve learned sooner is this: “If a man completely transforms into what a woman wants him to be, then that woman would want the man that he once was.”

“Ultimately, a healthy relationship should provide mutual support and respect where both partners are allowed room for growth and selfexpression without having to give up essential parts of their identities. No one should ever have to sacrifice their values to make another person happy,” he said.

For every life lesson, Jay includes a page or two of commentary and advice alongside a scripture verse.

“That was actually the hardest part, trying to decide what scripture would be most appropriate,” he said.

Jay hopes readers will apply some of the lessons from the book to their own lives.

“We all go through peaks and valleys, and we need to be prepared to go through them,” he said.

“45 Lessons From a Middle Aged Man” is available in Kindle format from Amazon, locally at the Chapter One Book Store and the All-Seasons Book and Gift Center.

A launch party for the book was recently held at the Balmoral Club.

DONOVAN “Jay” Rolle, Sr at his recent book launch party at the Balmoral Club

Gladstone Adderley

Meet the man who was instrumental in bringing the Bahamas’ national anthem to life more than half a century ago. While he missed out on singing it on July 10, 1973, he tells Cara Hunt how his career in opera and musicals took him around the world to perform with some of the greats.

Alittle over 50 years ago, Gladstone Adderley was working in the Ministry of Education when his boss, the late E Clement Bethel, asked him for his help.

He and a colleague, Timothy Gibson, were working on a new song and needed Gladstone to sing it for them to help them figure out what key they wanted it to be in.

“And so, I started singing the first few lines which were the words ‘Lift up your head to the rising sun, Bahamaland.’ I had no clue that the song (‘March On, Bahamaland’) would become the national anthem of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas,” he told Tribune Weekend. “I was just doing what was asked of me.”

The three worked on the song for quite a bit, trying to figure out the perfect key it should be sung in.

At the time, Gladstone was a young man in his early 20s. He had been trained in classical music and was a tenor-baritone. This made his voice the perfect choice to help finalise the song.

“They called me in the room and Clement was at the piano and Timothy was standing up, and they handed me this sheet music and the lyrics and they asked me to sing it,” he said.

“Any national anthem has to be in a key that all and sundry can sing; it can’t be pitched too high or too low, and so getting that key just right was what they needed my help with. I was reading the notes and the words and started singing, ‘Lift up your head.’ Originally, my first attempt was too high and so they had to change the key. We ended up testing every note within a half-step range before they came up with the perfect key.”

While he may not have known that this was the song that would come to symbolise the birth of a new sovereign nation, Gladstone did know that he was taking part in a significant moment in history.

“The country was preparing for Independence, and of course there were mixed feelings. Abaco wanted to secede from the rest of the country, and many people thought that we would be better off if we remained under British rule, but many people were excited,” he recalled.

In the lead-up to July 10, 1973, many preparations were underway, including designs and ideas for a new coat of arms, a flag and a motto. And in addition to the need for a new national anthem, there was also the possibility of a national song, and so once again Gladstone and his musical talent were called upon to help create an important moment in Bahamian history.

“I was at work one afternoon when Clement again came to me and said he needed my help, and we went to ZNS and he had me record a song,” he said.

“That song just happened to be a song written by Rev Philip Rahming, with the first lines being ‘God bless our sunny clime’.”

The song would, of course later, be designated the national song of the the Bahamas.

It had some difficult runs, Gladstone explained, and so once again he was called to be the voice to help Clement Bethel and Timothy Gibson rescore the music to go with the song.

“So you can imagine what that was like for me; to be the voice that helped create both the national anthem and the national song,” he said.

As fate would have it, although he was originally slated to sing the new national anthem at the Clifford Park Independence celebrations on that historic night in 1973, it was not to be.

In his absence, he suggested “a mass choir be formed with Kayla Lockhart-Edwards and Patricia Bazard as co-directors. They would assist Clement, who was the music facilitator for the Independence celebrations.”

“ ‘March On, Bahamaland’ was sung publicly for the first time in the Bahamas as an integral part of the official ceremony on Clifford Park when the Union Jack was lowered and our new aquamarine, black and gold flag was hoisted, signalling freedom from Mother England. It was a grandiose yet sobering occasion,” he said.

It was an also an occasion he missed, as Gladstone was not in the country for the Independence. Instead, he left the Bahamas for England that January to prepare for a role he had accepted in a musical, a satirical revue called “GB” which examined the relationship between English and Caribbean people, and which opened in London in March of 1973.

The late Dame Doris Johnson had been instrumental in getting him the role as she had taken him with her to a conference with European leaders the year

this weekend in history

April 18

before. During that conference, Gladstone had sung to represent the Bahamian delegation and attracted the attention of an English couple who later invited him to be involved in their production.

He returned to Nassau the morning after the Clifford Park celebrations; just in time to see the excitement of the newly independent Bahamian people, but too late to have had his own personal moment in the spotlight.

“It is something that to this day I regret,” he said of not performing the national anthem at Clifford Park, “especially this year when I saw all the excitement surrounding the 50th anniversary.”

However, he noted that as a young performer, he was encouraged to take full advantage of the international exposure that performing in England would bring. He also had the opportunity to sing “God Save the Queen” when the “GB” revue opened and to perform for the new Bahamian prime minister, Lynden Pindling, when he was visiting the UK.

“(Sir Lynden) made a point to come and see me in the show,” he said.

His performance in London set a stage for the singer to have a long and interesting career. Over the years, Gladstone performed in many operatic and musical productions around the world, including with famed opera singers Luciano Pavarotti and Dame Joan Sutherland in the opera “Lucia di Lammermoor” when he joined the Chicago production of the compelling drama by Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti.

Today, he only wants to share the story of the role he played in Bahamian Independence.

“I just wanted to share my experience about my moment in history this 50th year because so many of the people who played instrumental roles in our Independence have passed,” he said.

PORTRAYAL of Genghis Khan from 1278

Award-winning celebrity makeup artist is on hand to help open Nassau’s newest beauty store

By ALESHA CADET | Tribune Features Writer | acadet@tribunemedia.net

Emmy-nominated celebrity makeup artist Ashunta Sheriff Kendricks was on hand last weekend to help open Nassau’s newest beauty and cosmetics store, Omorphia.

The shop’s manager, Torkel Dawkins, told Tribune Weekend Omorphia aims to be Nassau’s version of the famous multinational retailer Sephora.

So it was only fitting that Ashunta, whose celebrity clients include Zendaya, Taraji P Henson, Rihanna, Janelle Monae, Nia Long and Alicia Keys, was on hand for the grand opening last Saturday at the Top of The Hill, Mackey Street Plaza.

The celebrity makeup artist’s own cosmetics line, called Ashunta Sheriff Beauty, is featured in the shop alongside well-known brands such as Pat McGrath Labs, Mix-o-logie, Juvia’s Place and Morphe, among others.

“Omorphia is a similar model to Sephora and Ulta Beauty, which houses a variety of cosmetic, skin and hair care and scents under one roof,” explained manager Torkel.

“It comes with a twist as we have added aesthetic services to teach our patrons that in order to have a flawless face, they need to have a great skincare routine as well.”

Torkel envisions Omorphia as a place where everyone is welcome to uncover their own personal style of beauty.

“It is a judgment-free zone to express your creativity and quench your thirst for the most current, ontrend beauty products,” she said.

She believes there has been a lack of cosmetics stores in Nassau that offer a variety of popular beauty brands all under the same roof. It was also important for the team, she added, to offer luxury cosmetics for all skin tones and genders.

“Omorphia sought to close the gap by working to bring brands that are on-trend, affordable and made for

people of all colours. We not only wanted our cosmetic boutique to cater to women, but men also, as we have a wide range of men’s skincare products, as well as grooming products,” she said.

And what makes the store even more unique, in her opinion, are the aesthetician services offered, which include waxing, individual lash application and professional makeup services in two private suites.

“We are just as passionate about skin care as we are about makeup as they go hand-in-hand,” said Torkel. She said Omorphia has several exciting events planned for the remainder of the year. One of those will be ano upcoming master and beginner makeup class for makeup artists and enthusiasts.

“We will also be adding several new brands throughout the year that will be available in the Bahamas for

the very first time. Our aim and goal is to open a branch of Omorphia in Freeport, Abaco and Exuma,” said Torkel.

CELEBRITY makeup artist Ashunta Sheriff Kendricks (centre) with Omorphia staff

Summertime maintenance

Good day, gardeners. How does your garden grow?

As I was making my way around New Providence this week, I’m quite amazed at how green and lush many plants and trees are, mostly due to the good amount of rain that we’ve been having lately.

The nitrogen boost has greened things up, and with ample ground water there is a lots of new growth on things. This is particularly noticeable to me on many large trees.

As mentioned a few weeks ago, tree pruning is very important, not only for the strength of the tree, but also as a way to reduce liability in the case of breakage to buildings and assets.

With so much new growth and foliage, the weight of trees is substantial, and with that weight comes a larger risk of breakage in storms.

Please, if you’ve got trees around, consider thinning them out in the middle, and remove any branches with bad angles to increase the survivability in the case of a major storm.

It’s always best to consult a professional at the least, especially when it comes to larger trees.

An amateur will increase your liability, and often do more harm than good. Correct tree pruning is not to be taken lightly, and pruning big trees can go very wrong if done incorrectly.

I’m finding many potted plants are in need of a nutrient boost at this time, mostly because the rain leaches nutrients out of the pot, and it is a great time of year to apply a nutrient boost to fruit trees and potted plants. The leaves of most fruit trees ought to not be showing prominent veins and ought to have a nice even green tone to the leaf. Any yellowing is signaling nutrient deficiency.

I also highly recommend consulting a professional in regard to fertilizer programmes. I am always available for consultation in this regard.

Any application of fertilizers done now or in the next month ought to get the plant through to the new year, provided that a quality fertilizer is used. With fertilizers, you get exactly what you pay for.

More expensive products, typically, when purchased from a reputable reseller, will simply be far superior to a low cost product. That in turn means less applications needed to meet the same results, quicker and longer lasting results, and more cost efficiency in the medium to long run. Whether it’s labelled organic or not, a nutrient is a nutrient, regardless of the source.

While many nutrients are available in many forms, lower cost fertilizers tend to be not much more than kitty litter that the nutrients are bound to, the nutrients are released into the ground at the first watering, and they can very easily burn plants as they’re quite “hot”, or in other words, low

cost and available in one shot, as compared to quality fertilizers that have sustained release properties and “feed” plants at consistent rates over time.

Traditional synthetic fertilizers are perfectly fine to use. Unless one is dealing with hundreds of acres, it really makes no difference to anything to use synthetically derived fertilizers. Sometimes the organic fringe will jump around and cry foul, but in a home garden or small farm, it’s really much

more efficient to apply a commercially available, synthetically derived fertilizer than an organic homemade remedy that contains negligible amounts of the needed macro and micro nutrients that are required by plants for healthy growth.

If treating pests, I always stand behind organic remedies compared to synthetic chemicals, mostly due to toxicity factors. I often use the name Spinosad. It’s been a boon for me since I’ve started using it, and it’s labeled for use in organic gardening. Really though, it’s always best to consult with a professional in regard to pesticides. Targeted applications are the best practice, compared to indiscriminate applications of toxic chemicals that kill everything in its path. The typical go-to solutions that one may be familiar with, often can be replaced by much gentler solutions that target pests more specifically and do less damage to those insects that are beneficial.

Is it necessary to fertilize lawn grass? Most often the answer is no, with the exception being if the grass is showing visible signs of distress and severe deficiency.

Just let it be if it’s not showing obvious signs of deficiency. If you don’t know if it’s deficient or healthy, then it’s most likely perfectly fine. Again, consult with a professional!

Many resellers are only trying to increase their bottom line and will push to sell their product, and many times that product is not needed. Honest professionals will advise the same, and not attempt to sell something that isn’t needed. Lawn grass very rarely needs to be fertilized. If it’s green, and growing, and forming a matted lawn, it’s fine. More important is to mow at the correct height for the grass in place. Caveat emptor. As always, I wish you happy gardening!

Keeping rake n’ scrape music alive New compilation album to drop soon

By JEFFARAH GIBSON | Tribune Features Writer | jgibson@tribunemedia.net

Top entertainers and new emerging acts from throughout the Bahama Islands will be featured on a new compilation album that highlights some of the best songs around right now.

The “Keep The Vibe Alive Vol 4” album, is being touted as a “vibrant celebration of Bahamian musical excellence.”

The Keep The Vibe Alive Music Group are the producers of this album, which marks the continuation of the beloved series. Producers promise the record will “deliver an electrifying collection of rake n’ scrape hits.”

With a history of producing chart-topping rake n’ scrape hits, the “Keep The Vibe Alive” compilation albums have become a cornerstone of the local music landscape.

“This fourth installment proudly continues the tradition, boasting an impressive lineup of talented artists who have played pivotal roles in shaping the nation’s musical landscape,” said Ray Armbrister of Keep The Vibe Alive Music Group.

The album features an array of artists, including rake n’ scrape legends like KB, Elon Moxey, and The Falcons.

Other artists offering up new singles are Avvy, Shine242, The New Breed Band, and Mama D, among others.

Mr Armbrister said this album “doesn’t just deliver music; it encapsulates an experience.”

“With a carefully curated selection of 14 songs, the album promises to take listeners on a soul-stirring journey through the melodies, rhythms and stories that define Bahamian musical culture at its finest,” he said.

“The Bahamas has a rich musical heritage that spans generations, and ‘Keep The Vibe Alive Vol 4’ is a testament to our commitment to preserving and celebrating that heritage.”

This album, he said, is a collaborative effort that pays homage to the past while while solidifying the musical legacy of the artists and country.

Listeners can enjoy “Keep The Vibe Alive Vol 4” on popular digital streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music. The album’s availability across various online music services ensures that fans from around the world can easily access and savour its unique sounds.

As the album’s official release date approaches, anticipation continues to build within the Bahamian music community and beyond.

“Keep The Vibe Alive Vol 4” is not just an album, said the produces, “it’s a celebration of the harmonious tapestry of sounds that define the Bahamas, and it promises to resonate with audiences far and wide.”

The album’s release date will be announced at a later time.

For more information, visit www.ktavmusic.com.

KB

AVVY

ELON Moxey

literary lives

A perfect murder mystery

“’Dial M For Murder’ (1954) offers the prolific Alfred Hitchcock little more than an opportunity to carpenter a net piece of filmed theatre – an opportunity which perhaps satisfied the master a little more than it does us … The characters are fitted to their situations, and hardly exist in themselves (nor are they enlivened by the rather drab performances of Ray Milland, Grace Kelly and Robert Cummings); only John Williams’ dry, sardonic police inspector has a touch of individuality.”

– The Monthly Film Bulletin (1954)

A Perfect Murder is a 1998 American crime thriller directed by Andrew Davis and starring Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Viggo Mortensen.

It is a remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 film Dial M for Murder, although the characters’ names have been changed and the plot rearranged and rewritten from its original forms.

The film is loosely based on the screenplay and the successful stage play by Frederic Knott which premiered on London’s West End in June 1952, and then in New York’s Broadway the following October.

The screenplay for A Perfect Murder was written by Patrick Smith Kelly. Originally intended to be shown in dual-strip polarised 3-D (which didn’t seem to work), Dial M for Murder was shown in ordinary 2-D in most theatres and earned an estimated $2.7 million in 1954 North American box office sales.

Nevertheless, the film was a technical triumph for Hitchcock who, as Richard Coe of The Washington Post, wrote:

“Hitchcock has a field day with his camera angles, darting our eyes now here, now there, doing tingling tricks with shadows and long longshots in quick contrast to fuzzed close-ups. It’s the work of a master enjoying his script.”

The film is still regarded as an American classic, and is listed by the American Film Institute in 2001 and 2008 as being in AFI’s 10 Top 10 Mysteries.

Contrary to the 1954 Hitchcock film – because that is what it came to be called – the remake in 1998 is a slick, colourful, entertaining thriller with twists and surprises that will leave you gasping for breath.

It remains faithful to its title: A Perfect Murder.

Steven Taylor, played by Michael Douglas, is a Wall Street financier

married to a much younger, beautiful and wealthy wife (Gwyneth Paltrow). When his personal investments go sour, he attempts to access her fortune of over $100 million to

Sir Christopher Ondaatje discusses one of the best murder mystery films of the last 25 years.

THE POSTER for the 1954 Hitchcock film

MICHAEL Douglas and Gwyneth Paltrow in ‘A Perfect Murder’

prop up his losses. She however is having an affair with an artist and painter, David Shaw, played by Viggo Mortensen, and is considering leaving her husband.

Taylor visits the artist’s studio the next day and tells him that he is aware of his wife’s affair. He also reveals that he knows about the real identity of the artist as Winston Lagrange, an ex-convict who has a reputation for tricking rich women out of their money. Taylor then persuades the artist to murder Emily, his wife, for $500,000.

Taylor arranges to hide Emily’s key to their lavish Manhattan apartment outside the service entrance to the apartment and instructs the artist to use the key, kill her, and make it look like a separate robbery.

But things go unexpectedly wrong. Emily is attacked by a masked assailant in her kitchen, and after a scuffle stabs the assailant in his neck with a meat thermometer.

Taylor returns to the flat expecting Emily to be dead, but finds the assailant’s body instead. He takes a key from the body and returns it to Emily’s keychain.

only to find that it is not that of the artist David Shaw.

Things go from bad to worse and get even more complicated. Steven continues to lose money, and receives a telephone call from the

and accomplice who relays an audio tape of their discussion and plan to kill Emily. At a meeting the artist demands full payment of the $500,000 or he will reveal their plan to the police.

Nothing in the film is going to happen the way you think it is going to happen. There are many twists

and turns, and many surprises. It is a hugely entertaining film as well as having a surprise ending. Both the original Dial M for Murder and A Perfect Murder make use of the fact that no key was found on the dead man when he was killed by both the Grace Kelly and Gwyneth Paltrow characters, as both their husbands had removed them, hoping to pin the crime on their wives. There are not many other similarities.

A Perfect Murder grossed $16,615,704 during its first weekend, and ended up with a total worldwide gross of $128,038,368.

“’A Perfect Murder’ works like a nasty little machine to keep us involved and disturbed; my attention never strayed.”

– Roger Ebert Film critic

Perhaps the answer to the riddle of A Perfect Murder was in the hands of the Arab-American detective Mohammed Karaman, played compellingly by the superb British actor David Suchet who, although only being a minor player in the story, commits the film’s only believable crime. He steals the show whole show.

Curiously, the original play on which Dial M for Murder was based, written by the English playwright Frederick Knott in 1952, was adapted in the Soviet Union in 1981 under the tile Tony Wendice’s Mistake, and partially inspired a Hindi-language version in 1985, released as Aitbaar.

A Tamil-language adaptation titled Saavi was released the same year; and it also inspired a Malayanlanguage adaptation as New Year in 1989. Another Bollywood film Humraaz (2002) was later inspired by A Perfect Murder.

A Perfect Murder is available on Netflix. It is well worth watching. I am certain there will be many more remakes of the film, and many more changes and twists of Frederick Knott’s original screen play. It is a perfect vehicle for a creative director.

by Detective Mohmmed Karaman (played by David Suchet). They unmask the body of the assailant

FREDERICK KNOTT, playwright and screenwriter known for complex crime-related plots

GWYNETH Paltrow and Viggo Mortensen in a scene from ‘A Perfect Murder’

When cholera came to town

Because a visiting friend was asking about Nassau’s cholera epidemic, I have been re-reading A Talbot Bethell’s book “The Early Settlers”, which contains a section on the cholera in New Providence.

Bethell says that among the monuments in graveyards, there may be seen rows of black headstones marking the graves of those who died of from that most dreadful scourge of cholera, a plague that was brought to Nassau from St Augustine, Florida, by Samuel Evas in October of 1852. (It is believed cholera claimed more than 150,000 victims in the United States during the two pandemics between 1832 and 1849.)

On learning about the first fatal case, the inhabitants became terrorstricken and fled by the hundreds to other islands, hoping to escape the disease.

By December, cholera had become an epidemic, continuing through 1853. It wreaked havoc amongst the poorer classes, who were easy victims of the disease. But before the disease subsided, many of the rich had also been carried off by the socalled “blue death”.

It is said that dread of cholera drove parents from their children and wives from their husbands, and that people, upon seeing a hearse carrying the dead approaching, ran off the road into the nearest yard until it had passed.

Friends would avoid each other in the street, and nobody shook hands. Anybody who dressed like they might be in mourning was shunned by all.

Hundreds of people, who could procure no attendance, died without even one human being nearby to provide them with a glass of water.

A man and his wife in comfortable circumstances were found lying dead in bed and between them was their infant child, sucking its mother’s breast. In many cases, an entire family would be carried off within a few hours.

Nassau was a spectacle of mournful gloom.

“Dead carts” rumbled along deserted streets; the driver shouting “Bring out your dead!”

The doors of many fully furnished homes were left open, their owners having fled.

Generally speaking, the clergy showed great self-sacrifice and devotion, many of them dying on the streets trying to carry the Blessed Sacrament to the sick. Doctors risked their lives, too, tending to patients.

Garlic, tobacco-smoking, vinegar (sprinkled throughout the house) and camphor bags (tied around one’s neck) were “remedies”, as was drinking lots of water.

More men than women died of cholera; as did more middle-age and robust people than the old and infirm. When cholera disappeared, it

was found that seven-eighths of the deaths were among the poor.

Almost a century later, my friends and were told not to play near the cholera graves in the Eastern Cemetery. Of course, we took delight in standing on one of the black stones, then seeing how far we could jump, proceeded to jump from stone-tostone (see photo).

Today, cholera is recognised as a bacterial infection that causes severe diarrhea. It is caused by infection of the intestine with Vibrio cholerae bacteria.

When I was a pilot in West Berlin, Germany, there was a cholera outbreak in Tunisia and all aircrews had to get vaccinated against cholera and stay aboard the plane while on the ground there.

There have since been numerous outbreaks and seven global pandemics of cholera. According to the World Health Organisation, each year, cholera infects 1.3 to 4 million people around the world, killing 21,000 to 143,000 people.

PAUL C ARANHA FORGOTTEN FACTS

Animal matters

Kim Aranha

The amazing life of worms

Worms! When was the last time you ever thought about worms? I can’t tell you why, but driving around town yesterday running some errands, I started to think about worms.

There are so many bizarre worms in the world – worms that live in the water, worms that live in and on land, and worms that live inside other living creatures.

What is a worm? The Encyclopedia Britannica tells us that: “A worm is any of various unrelated invertebrate animals that typically have soft, slender, elongated bodies. Worms usually lack appendages.

“From the worm on land to the worm in the sea, these creatures vary from microscopic to up to 190 feet long (the marine nemertean worm) in size.”

Does a worm have a heart? This one will surprise you; it certainly surprised me. Worms do have a heart! Worms have a simple, tube-like heart that pumps blood in one direction. The earthworm actually has five hearts, they are in fact aortic arches, functioning much the same as the human heart. Scientists cannot tell us why worms have five hearts.

Most of the animals we are familiar with living on land breathe through their mouth or nose, not our friend the worm, they breathe through their skin, because of this feature they have to be kept moist at all times, if they dry out, they die from suffocation.

What about worms who live in “host” bodies like the dangerous heartworm that kills so many dogs in the Bahamas?

The dog is a natural host for heartworms, which means that heartworms

PET OF THE WEEK

Spirited Scrappy

By The Bahamas Humane Society

Terrier/potcake mix

Scrappy loves going on the dog walks from the Bahamas Humane Society. This young man is about three years old.

Scrappy gets along well with other dogs, not so much with cats, though. He’d love a home where walks continue to be a regular part of his lifestyle. If you think you’d be a great match for Scrappy, come into the BHS to meet him or

call 325-6742 for more information. Scrappy looks forward to meeting you!

• The BHS Thrift Shop is open and ready to sell you all kinds of wonderful things! Books, clothing, housewares, giftware, art, and much more! Open Wednesday/Thursday/Friday from 11am to 3pm and Saturday 10am to 2pm. Bring your bag!

that live inside the dog mature into adults, mate and produce offspring. But how do they survive and live inside another animals? They are initially are introduced by a mosquito biting the dog and introducing microscopic larvae. These grow and thrive inside the host animal. Taking up residence inside the animal’s heart and growing and multiplying until the host animal dies.

Do worms have eyes? No, but they are equipped with special receptors that enable the worm to know if it is light or dark, therefore allowing them to know if they are above or below ground.

Do they have a mouth? Yes, but no teeth. They are very muscular mouths. They enjoy a varied diet that includes decaying vegetation, soil, dead animals and even some living organisms.

Do have a brain? It is not a complex brain but nevertheless it is a brain. It sits beside all the other organs that the worm has. The fact that it is not complex denotes that there is not much thinking going on in a worm’s life, but it connects the nerves to the worm’s skin and muscles controlling what a worm feels, and how it moves.

Worms actually play a very important role in the big picture of the environment. Charles Darwin referred to worms as the ploughs of nature; the incessant network of tunnels they create below ground is most important to keep our soil healthy.

Darwin also said: “It may be doubted whether there are many other animals which have played so important a part in the history of the world.”

Recently CNN reported that some worms had been revived that had been

frozen 46,000 years ago. These worms dated back to the time when woolly mammoths and saber-toothed tigers roamed the planet. Their organisms were able to survive in a catatonic state and have been revived successfully. Though to be honest, I am not totally sure what that means for us, or for the world. But it is a pretty amazing feat to bring anything back to life after 46,000 years.

Every now and then I see a small worm making its way from one side of the terrace to the other in that awkward gate they have of balling themselves up and stretching out again, and I stop and watch and wonder where they are going and why? We now know that they do indeed have a brain, be it a simple brain, so something motivates Mr Worm to go from point A to point B.

We also know that he is a very popular meal for birds, and I presume that the countless ibis flocks that we have all over the island who appear to spend all day foraging for food with those elegant curved beaks must be looking for a worm to fill their tummies or take back to their babies.

The amazing thing that results from all of this information is the realization that all creatures on this earth have a purpose, and that we must allow the “circle of life” to continue unhindered because if we interfere or eradicate just one link the master plan will fall apart with devastating consequences.

The next time you see a worm, it is worth stopping for a minute and watching this amazing little creature go on his way.

( PHOTO BY PATRICIA VAZQUEZ )

entertainment

— A new “Peanut’s” special on Apple TV+ puts Marcie, the introverted, studious bestie of Peppermint Patty and the gang, in the spotlight with her first special. In “Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie,” the character has lots of ideas to make her friend’s lives easier, but when those problem-solving abilities get her elected class president, the attention makes Marcie uncomfortable, and she becomes overwhelmed.

What to stream this week: ‘The Monkey King,’ Stand Up to Cancer, new Madden game

ByTheAssociatedPress

NEW MOVIES TO STREAM

— Parents looking for fresh animated offerings should rejoice that Netflix has a new film from Stephen Chow, the actor and producer known for “Kung Fu Hustle” and “Shaolin Soccer,” in “The Monkey King” streaming today.

Jimmy O Yang of “Silicon Valley” and “Crazy Rich Asians” voices said Monkey King, born from a stone with magical powers and a big ego and who is on a quest for immortality.

A young human girl (Jolie HoangRappaport) teams up with him to defeat dragons and demons. It’s loosely based on the 16th century, Wu Cheng’en Ming dynasty novel “Journey to the West”, which also inspired the famous “Dragon Ball” manga and anime franchise.

– Netflix also has “Depp v Heard,” a new doc about the widely watched libel trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, from director Emma Cooper (“The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes”).

— “Cocaine Bear” is now to Prime Video on Amazon. Very loosely based on a true story (and taken to wild heights), the non-stop action comedy from Elizabeth Banks stars Keri Russell, Isiah Whitlock Jr, Margo Martindale, Kristofer Hivju, O’Shea Jackson Jr, Alden Ehrenreich and the late Ray Liotta.

— Or if you want to settle in with a raunchy comedy, the Jennifer Lawrence vehicle “No Hard Feelings” is on video-on-demand Lawrence plays a woman who answers a Craigslist ad posted by some concerned parents who want someone to “date” their awkward teenage son Percy (Andrew Barth Feldman) before he heads to college.

— AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr

NEW MUSIC TO STREAM

— Irish singer-songwriter Hozier’s third studio album, “Unreal Unearth,” comes out today. The 16-track collection is loosely based on Dante’s “Nine Circles of Hell” and features the slinky “De Selby (Part 2),” “Unknown/Nth,” “All Things End,” “Eat Your Young” and “Francesca,” which builds to a thrilling, Phil Spector Wall of Sound-like climax. “I’m proud of this record and enjoyed watching it come to life over the past year,” Hozier wrote to fans.

— If oldies are more your style, look no further than “Reinventing Elvis: The ’68 Comeback,” a new feature-length documentary about the making of the television special that revitalised Elvis Presley’s career. When it aired on the night of December 3, 1968, nearly half of the entire TV-watching audience tuned in to see Presley, clad in an iconic black leather suit, deliver some of the greatest performances of his life. The special is available on Paramount+.

— Take centre stage with Broadway icon Idina Menzel, whose “Drama Queen” shows off her big, rich vocals. “I want everyone to move and sing with me and embrace their inner ‘Drama Queen,’” the Tony Award-winner told fans.

AP Entertainment Writer Mark Kennedy

— Best-selling author Harlan Coben has had many of his books adapted for TV, but his latest offering, “Harlan Coben’s Shelter” for Prime Video, centers on a younger protagonist. Jaden Michael (“Colin in Black & White”) stars as Mickey Bolitar — the teen nephew of famed Coben character Myron Bolitar. (Mickey has been the subject of YA books by Coben.)

— The star-studded TV fundraiser for cancer research co-founded by Katie Couric called “Stand Up to Cancer” returns this Saturday. Celebs taking part include Elizabeth Banks, Jessica Biel, Don Cheadle, Danai Gurira and Justin Timberlake. It will also feature skits and musical performances from past specials. It will simulcast across 50 media platforms in both the US and Canada, including on the four major US broadcast networks.

— Alicia Rancilio

NEW VIDEO GAMES TO PLAY

— The nights are getting longer. School supplies are on sale. But you truly know summer’s ending when the latest edition of Madden comes out. What’s new in Madden NFL 24? Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is the cover model. Superstar mode, in which you guide one player’s career from draft pick to All-Pro, is back. Franchise mode has been revamped with upgraded training camp, trading and commissioner tools. And, as always, EA Sports is promising tighter control over throwing, catching, running and tackling, delivered with ever-more-realistic graphics.

— Lou Kesten