♾️ LETS GOOOOOO

— @outpost51

I added a bunch of stuff to my general rock playlist and my first shuffle song was Take It Easy by the Eagles.

I was like, maybe this challenge will help me get going on my Camp NaNo words for Nicea. Instead I wrote more Avis and Sorian, so here you and @vacantgodling go.

━━━━━━━━ ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ━━━━━━━━

She didn’t want to drink alone, but her options were limited. Sid would be too busy living his life again to even be home, and he probably wouldn’t shut up about Horatio anyway. Leon and Edith were probably fun drunks, but with the same problem of having too much to say about their son, and the added danger of propositioning her. Celia and her two-timer weren’t her speed—and Celia didn’t drink, anyway. She tried to think of literally anyone else on the island she knew well enough to take a shot with, and came up with only one. Maybe she should have just gone to a bar. With a sigh, she packed the bottle of whiskey into her backpack and set out from the dock.

The walk up to the outskirts of the university was mostly paved, but almost always empty, especially at this time of day when the only light was from the streetlamps flanking the sidewalk. This was kind of pathetic. Despite the fact that Sorian was usually a goofy drunk, she didn’t really want to be having a drink with him. He was just the only one around to share her extremely choice liquor. Honestly, who the hell just had a brand new bottle of Salmon Leap in the cabinet? She believed Sid that Horatio hadn’t bought it in advance, but still. It was good shit, and she wasn’t convinced she should have accepted it. Not least because now she was standing on Sorian’s doorstep, banging on the unpainted wood of his door.

Maybe he knew it was her, because he wasn’t wearing sweatpants when he opened the door this time.

“You want a drink?” she asked.

“Ah, I was planning on staying in tonight.”

That was enough of a yes. She pushed past him into his boring little house and put her bag up on the counter at the back before she slipped off her shoes. He just closed the door and drifted over to her. Extracting the flat, rectangular bottle from her bag, she sat it on the counter and tossed her otherwise empty backpack over onto her shoes.

“Wait, is that…?” Sorian asked, taking the bottle in his hands while she looked through his cabinets for glasses. Before she could even answer, he said, “Oh, wow, I’ve been wanting to try this since Leon got Horatio some. He still hasn’t…never mind.” He put the bottle back down and went straight to the next cabinet on her docket to pull out two actual snifter glasses.

“So you’re pretentious about whiskey now?”

“It’s not pretentious. It actually makes it better.” Even with the glasses on the countertop he seemed to be waiting for her to open the bottle. As she went back to it, he added, “But you can have yours in a mug with half a berry slushy if you want.”

Of course he remembered that. She smiled a little despite herself as she tipped the bottle toward the first glass, then paused. “Since your fancy way is so much better, do you wanna pour it?”

“I think you can pour it just fine,” he said, but still took it from her when she offered it to him. He poured it in what looked like a completely normal fashion, then put the cork back in the bottle. Leaning back against the counter, he lifted one glass to his nose. Avis imitated him, not bothering to keep the skepticism off her face. But he was giving the other side of the kitchen a thousand-yard stare.

“Fuck,” he said softly. “Smells like home.”

She’d forgotten that she was actually supposed to be sniffing the stuff. He was right though—the fumes had a clear note of jojum blossom, like the air on Imni during the subtle change from spring to summer. For a second, it felt cozy. Then she was done with this sniff and sip bullshit. She was here to be intoxicated, not to think. While Sorian took a sip, she drank down however much he’d given her. It was enough to get the flavor of it, and enough that everything should stop feeling so serious in a few minutes.

He raised an eyebrow at her as she poured herself the same again.

She waved him away. “Shut up with your eyebrows. I’ll drink this one slower.”

He grinned and took another sip.

Taking stock of his living room, she found that nothing had changed since the last time she was there, which meant his bar stools were absent and there was nowhere to sit that didn’t look gross or busted. “Don’t you have anywhere nice to sit?”

“My truck, I guess.”

She gestured for him to lead her there. He put down his glass to slip on his shoes by the back door, and she did the same. Then he brought her out to the dimly lit silhouette of his shortbed university pickup truck. When he reached for the driver’s side door, he almost immediately turned back toward his house.

“Forgot my keys,” he said.

As he passed her, she unlatched the tailgate, then eased it down and hopped up onto it, letting her legs dangle off the end. “This is fine.”

He looked unconvinced but came to join her, still keeping that careful distance between them. “How is the tailgate of my work truck less dirty than my indoor sofa?”

“Trust me, your sofa wishes it was only as dirty as actual dirt.”

Sorian laughed his soft laugh and she felt like the warm ease of the whiskey was spreading through her faster. Sipping from her glass, she leaned back and drank in the mostly-familiar sky with its white-tinted moon. Even without the smell of jojum blossoms in this sticky Summer Band night, even sitting next to the man she used to call her husband, she had the inexplicable sense that she was already home.

Bajan Newscap 4/17/2017

Good Morning #realdreamchasers! Here is your daily news cap for Monday 17th 2017. Remember you can read full articles via Barbados Today (BT), or by purchasing a Sunday Sun Nation Newspaper (SS).

SUGAR CONCERN –This year’s sugar crop is expected to surpass last year’s yield, but the same might not be true of 2018 unless farmers get some rain soon. Chairman of the Barbados Agricultural Management Corporation (BAMC), Dr Atlee Brathwaite, said a lack of rain, more so than fires, would impact next year’s sugar season. At the start of the year, those in the industry had projected that this year’s crop would yield 12 000 tonnes of sugar from 126 909 tonnes of cane, up from 2016’s 7 000 tonnes of sugar from a disappointing 85 000 tonnes of cane. Brathwaite, who admitted he did not have the figures to hand over the long Easter weekend, said indications, however, were that yields would surpass last year’s output. (DN)

BARBADOS SLIPS IN TOURISM RANKING – Barbados has lost some of its travel and tourism competitiveness. However, it remains the highest ranked destination in the English-speaking Caribbean. That’s based on the 2017 edition of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) The Travel Tourism Competitiveness Report. In the report’s last edition – 2015 – the island had been ranked 46 out of 141 countries. This time, however, it slipped to 58 out of 136 locations, with its overall competitiveness score reduced from 4.1 to 3.9 per cent. The global ranking was topped by Spain for the second time, followed by France, Germany, Japan, United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Italy, Canada and Switzerland. (DN)

ONLINE BUZZ – More Barbadians are turning to the Internet to beat the high cost of shopping in Barbados. And assorted duties and taxes are not deterring them. This has been revealed by managing director of Cargo Solutions International Barbados, Kevyn Yearwood, who said he had seen his customer base expand in the past few months. One reason for the growth was a recent promotion which offered a customer the chance to win a Caribbean cruise for two. The company styles itself as one which represents freight forwarders and wholesale suppliers located in the major United States shopping hubs like Miami and New York. (DN)

BAJANS EAT OUT FOR EASTER – Many Barbadians spent their Easter Sunday wining and dining at hotels and restaurants. The Radisson Aquatica Resort in Aquatic Gap, St Michael, was packed to capacity. General manager Gerry Lewis told the DAILY NATION the hotel was once again focusing on making the Easter Sunday lunch a family affair. As patrons got their selection of food from the well-stocked buffet, Lewis said this year the resort introduced an Easter egg hunt with the Easter bunny, face painting and an Easter bonnet parade for the children. At Savannah Hotel in Hastings, Christ Church, general manager Tricia Greaves said their Easter buffet was extended to add more seasonal delicacies. Going through the list of foods on offer, she said different flavours had been incorporated into the menu and to top it off, there was entertainment from Mylon Clarke and The Project. The turnout for lunch had been good from both locals and guests at the hotel, she said. Further along the South Coast at Accra Beach Hotel, executive chef Abunasar Siddiquiwas also in highspirits as he said thehotel did something special with the menu in combining Caribbean, Mediterranean and European flavours. Siddiqui added that Accra’s Easter Sunday lunch had drawn a good response from both international and local patrons who told him this year’s event was even better than 2016’s. (BT)

THE COLOURS OF EASTER – Easter was on show yesterday as the Oistins Fish Festival continued. Students from St Christopher’s Primary wore their Sunday finest as they paraded on stage at Oistins Bay Garden. Teacher and organiser Tamara Moseley told the DAILY NATION that the Christ Church primary school had hosted its own Easter bonnet parade during the last week last term. She said the 25 participants represented about double the number of those in the 2016 parade. She added there were six categories this year, including the Festivals Of Barbados, Traditional Bajan Easter and Real Sportsmanship. Moseley said a few of the children were given the opportunity to parade in their colourful outfits. She made special mention of the Three Dollar Store in Oistins for helping with the parade. (DN)

POLICE STILL PROBING CRIMES – Lawmen are on the hunt for perpetrators of unsolved crimes committed in recent weeks. Police public relations officer, Acting Inspector Roland Cobbler, said the force was still investigating the stabbing of sno-cone vendor Shamar Maynard on Sunday, April 9. Maynard was on Browne’s Beach plying his trade when he was approached by a group of men and a verbal altercation ensued. According to police, the men subsequently attacked him. He received a stab wound to the upper back and a cut to the hand. He was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital where he was treated and discharged. Investigations are also continuing into the death of a four-month-old baby who, according to police reports, was mistakenly left at home by the parents during the morning of April 3.  (DN)

FIRE OF DEATH –Valiant efforts by one man failed to save the life of a 56-year-old epileptic but may have helped to prevent further disaster in a St Michael neighbourhood yesterday morning. Cedric McCarthy died when flames engulfed his wood and wall house at Clarkes Road, Free Hill, Black Rock. That fire also razed another wood and wall house and damaged two others. It was neighbour Omar Goodman who leapt out of his bed and rushed to the McCarthy home. He said he was alerted to the flames and smoke around 9:30 a.m. and initially thought it was another house that was ablaze. (DN)

MAIN KEEPS BURSTING – Veneta Caddle wants to know why a water main opposite her home is constantly rupturing. Caddle, who lives in The Risk, St Lucy, said the main had burst several times over the past three years and on each occasion, it was difficult for her to get in or out of her house without being sprayed by water. Added to this, the Barbados Water Authority (BWA) usually took several days to repair the main. The latest incident happened this past week and for Caddle that was enough, and that was why she contacted the DAILY NATION. (DN)

HEAT AT THE GARRISON TODAY – The temperature at the Garrison Savannah today will be blistering hot when double Gold Cup winner Dorsett, Marcus Antonius and Sirius Black clash. Be warned. It will be sweltering in the racefor the 67th running of the grade I – 1 570 metres Barbados Guineas, the first jewel of the Barbados Triple Crown. Enthusiasts are in for another breathtaking climax, similar to that of last year when the photo finish camera was called upon to separate Steven Allan and Stolen. This time it should feature hot favourite Fleurette, Oberoi, D’Girlz Dem Sugar and Black Rock. (DN)

GOLD COMES ON THE SECOND DAY – Aaron Worrell and Rasheeme Griffith captured Barbados’ only gold medals so far at the 46th Flow CARIFTA Games at the Ergilio Hato Stadium here Sunday night. At that stage, Barbados had nine medals, two gold, four silver and three bronze. The lion-hearted 19-year-old Worrell covered himself in glory in the grueling eight-event Octathlon, amassing 5461 while Griffith repeated as Under-18 Boys’ 400-metre hurdles champion, clocking 51.64 seconds. Worrell started the day in the lead, but was overtaken by Wikenson Fenelon of Turks and Caicos. However, Worrell produced personal best performances in the last two events – the javelin and 1500 metres. He got an invaluable 458 points when he threw 34.61 metres in the javelin but more importantly finished second in the 1500 with a time of 4:59.58 to collect 562 points, ensuring he edged Fenelon (5460) by a solitary point for the gold. Worrell had earlier clocked 15.03 seconds in the 110-metre hurdles for 846 points and leapt 1.96 metres in the high jump, earning 767 points. Griffith overcame a slow start to claim his second gold medal in consecutive years. Nathan Ferguson, who captured a silver medal last year, came fourth this time in 53.04 seconds, behind Jamaicans Rovane Williams (52.69) and Dashinelle Dyer (53.02). Jonathan Miller also shrugged off nervousness in his maiden CARIFTA, to snatch a silver medal behind Jamaica’s Safin Wills (15.11 metres) in the Under-18 Boys’ triple jump with his best hop, skip and jump, measured at 14.85 metres. Rivaldo Leacock signed off his last CARIFTA with a bronze in the Under-20 Boys’ 400-metre hurdles, clocking 52.44 seconds. He had the silver in his sights when he cleared the final hurdle in second place but was passed by the fast-finishing Jamaican Timor Barett (52.32). Ronaldo Griffiths of Jamaica won gold in 52.01 seconds. Fresh from a silver in the 400 metres, Tiana Bowen (1:02.80) added a bronze in the Under-20 Girls’ 400-metre hurdles, finishing behind Jamaicans Nicolee Foster (58.84) and Shiann Salmon (59.59).    Shonita Brome (1:01.30) also narrowly missed a medal in the Under-18 Girls’ 400-metre when she was pipped on the line by Bahamian Gabrielle Gibson (1:01.29). Jamaica swept the first two places in this race as Sanique Walker established a new record of 58.95 seconds to take the gold and compatriot Taffara Rose (60.95) gained silver. There were also no medals for Brome and Akayla Morris in the Under-18 Girls' long jump, which was won by Guyanese Chantoba Bright with a leap of 5.91 metres. Brome was fourth with her best effort of 5.57 coming on her opening jump while Morris finished fifth after leaping 5.52 in her final jump. Newcomer Enrique Babb put the shot 16.08 metres for fifth place among the Under-18 boys in an event where Jamaican Daniel Cope set a new record of 18.17 metres. Trinidad and Tobago’s Tyra Gittens won the Girls’ Heptathlon with 4854 points while Guyana’s Claudrice McKoy (10:39.03 minutes) overtook Jamaican Britnie Dixon (10:44.63) in the last 80 metres to win the Open Girls’ 3000. Jamaicans Renardo Johnson (9:30.61) and Tarees Rhoden (9:30.69) got gold and silver in the Under-18 Boys’ 3000. Trinidadian Tyriq Horsford predictably won the Under-18 Boys’ javelin for a third consecutive year, with a new record distance of 76.50 metres. Perennial champions and runaway leaders Jamaica swept all four 4x100-metre among the Under-18 and Under-20 boys and girls. Barbados only entered a quartet of Griffith, Matthew Clarke, Fergusson and Darian Clarke, on anchor in the Under-18 Boys’ race and finished fourth in 41.34 seconds as Jamaica won in a new record time of 39.97 seconds. Host country Curacao had plenty to celebrate as one of their own Glenn Kunst broke the pole vault record a number of times to grab gold after clearing a height of 4.60 metres. (DN)

CLEVELAND EASTER MURDER - On April 16, 2017, 74-year-old Robert Godwin, Sr. was shot and killed while walking on a sidewalk in Cleveland, Ohio. The suspect was identified as 37-year-old Steve Stephens, who posted video of the shooting on his Facebook account. Stephens is wanted on a warrant for aggravated murder. The shooting happened at around 2 p.m. EDT on April 16, 2017 in the area of 635 East 93rd Street in Cleveland's Glenville neighborhood. The shooter uploaded a video of the event, in which he proclaims "Found me somebody I'm about to kill." before exiting his car and accosting Godwin. He orders Godwin to say <name> - the name of Stephens' ex-girlfriend - then announces "She's the reason this [is] about to happen to you." Stephens then shoots Godwin in the head, returns to his car and drives off as screams are heard in the background. Facebook said the video was uploaded to the website, not livestreamed as initially reported. In other Facebook posts, Stephens claimed responsibility for 13 murders, but police said they were not aware of any other victims. A search for Stephens began soon after the shooting, prompting lockdowns at a number of locations, including Cleveland State University. The manhunt expanded to other states on the morning of April 17. Residents in Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana and Michigan were asked to be on alert. An arrest warrant was issued on a charge of aggravated murder. Stephens worked at Beech Brook, a behavioral health agency for children and families. He was wearing his work ID badge and repeatedly mentioned Beech Brook in videos on the day of the murder.

NORTH KOREA ATTEMPTS TO LAUNCH MISSILE BUT FAILS - North Korea attempted to fire a missile it introduced at a massive military parade – but it was an embarrassing failure when the weapon blew up four or five seconds after being launched. It is thought to be one of the country’s new ‘game-changer’ intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) which was revealed to the world in a display of military might yesterday. The South Korean defence ministry said it had detected a failed launch from Sinpo – where North Korea’s biggest submarine base is located. According to a military official, the weapon is ‘presumed to be a new ICBM’ as it is longer than the existing KN-08 or KN-14 missiles. US defence secretary James Mattis said Donald Trump is ‘aware’ of the launch and has no further comment. The South Korean defence ministry said in a statement: ‘North Korea attempted to test an unidentified type of missile from Sinpo area in the South Hamkyong Province this morning, but we suspect the launch has failed.’ (BT)

JAMAICAN IS OLDEST WOMAN ALIVE – A Jamaican woman, Violet Mosse Brown, has made history as the oldest person in the world following the death of Italian Emma Morano, on Saturday. Morano was born on November 29, 1899. Mosse Brown, also known as Aunt V, who lives in the northern parish of Trelawny, is 117 years old, having been born on March 10, 1900. The Jamaica Observer reports that her eldest child, Harold Fairweather, at age 96, is said to be the world’s oldest living person with a parent also alive. The US-based Gerontology Research Group (GRG) says in 1900, when Mosse Brown was born, Jamaica was part of the British West Indies, so her records are from the British government, in Queen Victoria’s time. “Unless a surprise candidate comes out of the trees, she is the oldest living Victorian,” Robert Young, director of the Los Angeles-based GRG’s Supercentenarian Research and Database Division told AFP. The previous oldest living person, Morano, died at her home in Verbania, northern Italy as the last survivor of the 19th century. The world longevity record, Young noted, remained with French woman Jeanne Calment, who died at 122 in 1997, having outlived both her daughter and grandson. A supercentenarian is someone who has lived to or passed their 110th birthday. There are estimated to be 300–450 living supercentenarians in the world, though only 50 verified cases are known. (BT)

FOGGING SCHEDULE 18TH -21TH - The Vector Control Unit of the Ministry of Health continues its efforts to eradicate the Aedes aegypti mosquito this week when its fogging programme moves into several parishes.

On Tuesday, April 18, areas to be fogged in St Michael are Lodge Hill, Harbour View Road, Rock Dundo Heights, Well Gap with Avenues, Hinds Hill, Castries Road, Cave Hill, White Hill, Rock Dundo Park, the Bridgetown Port and environs.

On Wednesday, April 19, the team will be in Christ Church, fogging Newton Terrace with Avenues, Newton, King’s Court, Ashby Land, Lodge Road, Durants Development, Evergreen Road, Windy Ridge, Church Hill, Providence, Pilgrim Road, Coverley, Coverley Terrace and surrounding areas.

On Thursday, April 20, spraying takes place in St Philip in Crane, Union Development, Apple Drive, Tangerine Street, Pine Avenue, Seaview, Long Bay, Ruby, Ruby Park, Ruby Tenantry, Work Hall, Jessamy Lane, Union Hall, Union Park and neighbouring districts.

On Friday, April 21, the exercise continues in St George and St Philip in Watts Village, Campaign Castle, Ebenezer, Brereton, Bentley Tenantry, Breezy Hill Development, Chapel Land, Cottage Vale, Cox Hill, Dodds Tenantry, Webb Hill, Cliff Den and environs. 

Householders are reminded to open their doors and windows to allow the spray to enter. The fogging exercise runs from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. each day. (BT)

That’s all for today folks. There are 258 days left in the year Shalom! #thechasefiles #dailynewscaps Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram for your daily news. #bajannewscaps #newscapsbystephaniefchase