Solid as a rock

Jamaican dancehall/reggae artiste, Sizzla Kolange has a song "Solid as a Rock"


You can't keep a good man down
Always keep a smile when they want me to frown
Keep the vibes and stood my ground
They will never, ever take my crown
Who Jah bless I say no man curse
Things getting better when they thought it would be worse...
...I'm so solid as a rock
They just cant stop me now
Even when they set their traps...
...They just can't hold me down.


I must play that on my show tomorrow evening. That reminds me, I need to arrange a ride to the radio station. But that is an aside.

My first package arrived at my cousin in Harlem a short while ago. It makes me happy. Many more to come.

It has made me think about how resilient I am by nature, and how blessed I am, in spite of people's efforts to kill my spirit.

I am going to make my stay in this place work for my own good. This is the end of my PR days, but it is the beginning of my new life as a working artist. A photographer, writer and moving picture director. I am single-handedly equipping my production company with photo gear, video gear and Mac upgrades.

By the time I am through here, I can manage to have a very menial job doing something I love for short hours for consistent income (perhaps teaching or a radio programme) and have the rest of my time free for professional engagements.

I am also thinking about offshore re-registration to avoid the 33% corporate taxes in Jamaica, but I don't even know when I will re-settle back home. I am setting up my business to be mobile. All my equipment are purchased to that end.

Having been here, I have had lots of time to contemplate what direction I want my company to go in. No more doing all things because I can, I will be doing what I love. Gibran says "Work is love made visible." I used to live by that mantra until I became an in-house public relations practitioner.

When I was growing up, I was told, "Do what you love and the money will follow." I am not certain if money always follows a work life filled with love and passion, but joy does (at least until you get bitter about not being able to make ends meet).

I love meeting new people and hearing their stories and finding out the good things about human nature. I do not like to be around people long enough for me to see just how evil they really are. That fucks up my interpretation of this world and the nature of humanity. Some people always seem to get jealous of me, not because I am haughty-because I am not- but because I do not apologise for my presence. News flash: I never will.