TURBINE | KAPOHAU

You want another beer? Me never reach London, you know. Me get to Norway and all them place there because me used to work on the cruise ship. That’s how me did earn enough money to buy this bar here. It nice, don’t? 

Still, we never really get too much tourist come out this way because them keep them trap up and lock up in the hotel on hill. Them even have minibus to take them to the beach, the tourist them never really have an experience with normal people. Everybody them see when them fly down for the two week escape from the cold smiling like jackass and have the foolish American style accent them feel them have to adopt before them talk to a white person. 

I don’t know what that must be like. To get on one plane and fly to one next country but never really see what it is like because me trapped inside one structure where them provide everything for you but you not allowed any freedom. 

But it good to see you out and about with the rest of we. Me did always like when we get a bit of time away from the cruise ship and you could walk around Bergen or Alesund. Or you just sailing between too steep hillside or coming across a beautiful bit of waterfall. You not really supposed to get too involved with the passengers but you can observe them from a distance. Is a different bunch of people on that Northern lights cruise to the people who come down here and stay at the all inclusive resorts. The people on the cruise a little older and them have a level of formality, them expect things a certain way. The people them at the hotel? Well, more often than not them not even wearing clothes much. Them a little bit loose. But them young. One day them going end up like the old people them, cruising round and searching for a last glimpse of things. 

Me did just get tired of living in a little cabin with somebody else for such a long time. All them months cooped up with somebody, you run out of things to say and you can’t even escape because you just trapped by cabin and boat and ocean. If you don’t get on with the person is war and even if you like them the ease wear off after a couple months and the only thing you want to do is go for a long walk well away from the people them that you seeing all the time. 

Lucky for me I never did spend out my money while we was sailing around all the different parts of the world. Yes me buy one and two things here. But mainly me save me money. Or me buy things and send back home. Somebody always need new shoes, or money for school books and fees, or clothes, even one time somebody ask me for a pair of shoes and when me ask what size him say nine, ten, eleven me wear all of them. And when me did done me come back here and buy a piece of land and build this bar and the restaurant. That way me have my little space here and nobody can’t come tell me what to do. 

Not like me friend Shelley. Shelley did reach Miami and get a good-good job working as a manager in one shop. Every month she get bonus and clothes sample and all sort of something. Shelley was living big life in Florida. Always flying to Mexico or cruising around the Caribbean. We did only know about all of this because Shelley did have a brother, Carlton, who used to come in here every Friday night and sit drinking white rum and milk until him start tell story about how Shelley don’t care about who left behind and how she never yet send anything for him or the rest of the family. How they could shrivel up and dead and she wouldn’t even know. 

Wasn’t my business, you understand, but Carlton would be well and under the influence of a quarter bottle of rum and he would even tell you the colour drawers him mother was wearing if you ask him. Every Friday was the same. Carlton drink and cuss, and cuss and drink until somebody have to pick him up from the table and point him in the direction of him house and we would see him staggering off, not to be seen until the next Friday. 

Then Carlton and Shelley mother go dead and Shelley come down for the funeral. And she did glamorous like anything. The clothes that she have screaming expensive and she carrying this handbag that look like it worth more than this building. But something never sit right with the way she was behaving, like she was better than all of we. I mean, she barely speak to nobody. Spend most of her time up at the hotel far from everybody she grow with. As if she never go river and catch janga with we, or hop fence and thief guava when we coming home from school, or mop her floor hot water and lime skin. She even start speak with one American accent, like she never born in the hospital over there. 

Funeral done and Shelley reach back to America quick as anything. Like she might catch something if she stays down here too long. Carlton him come back to the rum bar cussing how she don’t even bring him one t-shirt from foreign, how she forget how life hard down here, how him a live like hog while she up there a live one good life with Uncle Sam. And then him swallow the biggest gulp of rum I ever see and say, I going Obeah her rassclaat. I going to the Samfi man to deal with this. Is only science can deal with this problem. Only science. 

Everybody go sort of quiet then because is a serious thing him say. Science is a serious ting down here. And worse, him going to the Obeah man to deal with him sister. As to me, I just give him a free glass of rum because that seem to keep him quiet. Me never need that kind of problem in my place. 

Few months go by. Carlton still coming to drink, but him stop complaining about him sister. Stop talk about her completely, but rumours flying about the place that him gone up on the hill with two white fowl and a bag of candles to a man who do science up there. Still, this island full of story and you shouldn’t believe most of what people say to you. Carlton come, drink two rum, play the poker machine, talk loud and go about him business. Like nothing change. 

Then one bright Saturday morning I was sweeping out the front yard and I see Shelley walking down the road in a pair of roach crushers and some big sunglasses. She see me and put on the biggest, fakest smile I ever seen. 

Morning Sherenne, how you doing? That she say to me and continue with, Is long time me don’t see you, is how you keeping? I just going up town to buy some vegetables. You have a good day.  

Then she gone. She don’t even give me a chance to say how-dee-do, just marching down the road kicking dust up in every direction. That evening Carlton in the rum bar skinning teeth and knocking back rum like is sugar water. And telling everybody him family business. 

According to Carlton, Shelley job did good but not so good that she could come down and stay in one all inclusive hotel so easy. Shelley managing the shop she managing and cashing up every evening and all the money in the till not making it to the people them bank. Shelley living big life in foreign, with big apartment and Benz and going to the best restaurants to eat every night of the week. The people she work with start get suspicious and start to sussu-sussu behind her back. When the owner hear about this him set up video camera and Shelley get catch quick. And the man fire her and call immigration. Shelley gone before the end of the week. 

And as him tell this story Carlton don’t stop smile. Pure teeth through the whole conversation, like say is the sweetest thing him hear in all him days. Nobody not saying nothing, it don’t feel right to take joy in somebody else downfall, and anyway, it seem like a family matter, so people mostly keeping to themself. 

Shelley start fall apart in front of everybody. The spike heel shoes lose the spike, the fancy dress them develop hole, the handbag get thief one day in the market, the sunglasses fall off her face and a taxi run them over. Before long Shelley looking like everybody else, maybe a little worse, and all the foreign leave from her voice. The few years she spend in Miami come like them never really happen. 

But she must did hear about say is Carlton science her. 

One morning, out on the road, me hear one big piece of bangarang and when I look out the window I see Shelley and Carlton rolling on the ground thumping and kicking each other. And everybody just watching. Especially as it seem like Shelley might win the fight. I never hear so much noise in all my life. Some people all cheering from them verandah. Then Shelley pick up one hell rockstone and fling it down in Carlton head. 

I wish I could have stop it. I think a lot of people who did stand up at them window and who did watch from verandah or pass by without intervening feel the same. Shelley sit down there until the police come and scrape her up. Carlton never dead, but him was never the same after that. Spend most of him time inside the house now. Them lock up Shelley since then. Terrible really. 

But this is how things work out down here. Bad behaviour breed bad behaviour. You understand? Shelley should have do like me and send money back, look after her family, set them up. She also shouldn’t thief out the people them money. And Carlton should have never go science him own family member. 

Is so things go down here though. Life hard and people want to forget about the suffering them go through, or them want to pretend to be someone else when them reach a foreign country, or them feel grudgeful that somebody else doing good. Me love it here, but then, after me did go work abroad, me come back and live amongst everybody else. Is not everybody who have a spell abroad stay like that. And jealousy and envy can burn bright in people who don’t have much. You want another beer?