We are really a colourful people ….. and getting more colourful by the day!!!

Since earlier this year ……. when I stumbled upon a piece in the Business Express …….. about the life of a Chinese worker in Trini ….. I’ve been wonderin where meh real trini people gorn .….. cuz it seems like everywhere yuh turn …… is ah foreign accent …. or ah foreign nationality ….. is …… Venezuelans on Ariapita Avenue …..... Africans in de Gas Station …… Guyanese on de TV6 news …….. Grenadians and Vincentians vendin all over town ……… Colombians in South ...... Canadians heading large (allegedly corrupt) companies ...... and of course ….. de latest bunch ..... said Chinese workers ….. constructing everyting ….…. everywhere …… from skyscrapers in POS ……. tuh smelters in La Brea …… tuh de embattled hospital in Tobago!!! 

I learnt that the Chinese workers range between the ages 20 – 60?! …… work from 7 – 5 ….. live 7 to a room???!!!! ….. in a 40-man per building home ……. they cook their own food …… which normally consists of ….. rice, meat (pork, beef, fish), noodles and bread …… they do their laundry via washing machines provided to them (no dey eh have no 'chinese laundry'!) …… they don’t get much time off …... but the little they do get ….. include public holidays in China …... they enjoy listening to music in their spare time ……. and their rate of pay ….. is moderate!

Now I know that the Chinese workers (de thousands of them!) have been here for a couple years ….. but I never really thought about the implications ……. of having so many of them in Trini ….. until today ..... when I read a story in de Newsday ..... about T&T further strengthening relations with China  ...... cuz yuh see ..... as ah quarter chinee myself ….. ah 'black chinee' as I'm often called ..... it dawned on me ….. that one day ….. I’ll probably see a lot more people who look like me ...... cuz do you realize …… dat since women outnumber men in trini (ah tink ah see or read dat somewhere!) ..…. those Chinese men ..... can and probably will ..... fill de gap (other than in de construction industry!) …… cuz check it ...... is plenty ah dem ...... dey here fuh years at ah time  ….... dey cyah speak no English ….. dey real far from home …. and family ….. and friends ….. and dey wife or dey woman ...... so is only natural ..... dat dey go get entice ..... tuh taste ah lil trini 'spice' ……. cuz HELLO ..... man cyah live by bread alone ..... or rather chinese food!!! ...... especially when yuh study too ...... dat dey only recreation ..... when dey done wok ...... is tuh listen tuh music ...... in ah room with 6 odda man!!!! 

So anyway ..... after dat extensive analysis ...... in conclusion ..... I concluded ..... that our 'black chinee' population is in fact about to grow ...... but is no scene ..... is jus ah lil more flavour tuh de pot ..... and if we lucky …… dey go come out nice like me!  

But seriously …... where our 'Trinis' at ….. why are we being run, served and serviced …… by so many foreigners?