10 Totally Awesome Trini Bloggers

04 Jul 10 Totally Awesome Trini Bloggers

Some people are addicted to Maco… er… Facebook. Some can’t live without Twitter. And some swear by MSN Messenger and instant messaging. Skype is essential to some. While I admit to partaking of almost all of these, there is one part of the Internet world that I can’t do without – blogs.

I am the type of girl who discovers a good blog and reads ALL the archives. And since I am Trini to the bone, the Trini blogs now are right up there with those from foreign when I am reading. Whether it’s about sighing over Buju’s recent sentencing, how to cook a good oil-down or just simply making you nod your head, and say, “Dat is Trini fuh yuh”, many blogs are just as good as any, and offer a good read on any random day.

Here, in my humble opinion, are ten totally awesome Trini blogs (in no particular order):

1. Wuzdescene – wuzdescene.com

Eef yuh is ah person who believe dat de only good writing is in “good English”, dis blog is not fuh yuh. However, if you want a kick-a$ blog about the Trini experience that is written in pure dialect, and doubles as a gorgeous photography blog, Wuzdescene is a definite ‘must read’. The post alone detailing the blogger’s adventures with Immigration and the Legal Affairs Ministry is hilarious. In fact, this chick accustomed to all kinda adventures – roughing it at the Red Earth Festival, taking off to lime on Tyrico Beach at 12.30 a.m., and even makes taking a routine mammogram seem like an adventure. Just hold on tight!

2. Simply Trini Cooking – simplytrinicooking.com

I am a woman who knows how to do more than boil water, but I have not quite attained the highly coveted title of boss cook (not to be confused with master chef). Imagine my joy when I found a secret weapon in Felix Padilla’s “Simply Trini Cooking” blog. With easy-to-follow recipes and pics to show you what the end product must look like, when you have finished reading (and cooking thanks to) this blog, you will feel to seriously lash dat! What makes this blog even more special is the addition of sections on places to visit in T&T and topics like folklore. Hell, there is even a Trini dictionary. This more than just a good cooking site. It makes you to come back to eat more and more!

3. Afrobella – afrobella.com

I always love it when big things happen for Trinis in foreign, and Afrobella is definitely no exception. Patrice Elizabeth Grell Yursik’s award-winning beauty blog is just getting better… and better. From a recent interview with Jill Scott to helping to create an actual MAC Cosmetics lipglass (yes that’s what they call it, not lip gloss) called “All of My Purple Life”, Patrice continues to achieve new highs and namedrop that she’s from Trinidad.

She’s also been able to make a living from blogging, leaving her job in 2009, and making connections that have landed her writing gigs with AOL Voices, Essence, and Italian Vogue. She’s also been featured in Ebony Magazine, Essence, and Fast Company (oh and Outlish). And if you thought, well where’s the Trini in this, in between all of her beauty posts and interviews, she finds the time to highlight Trini culture to her readers, from articles about our music, and stories of growing up in T&T, to interviews with the late, former president, Sir Ellis Clarke. Patrice has not only created a blog that helps to make you appreciate your beauty, but also a brand that makes Trinis proud.

4. Rishi Sankar: Ah Trini Travelogue – rishiray.com

You could find a Trini anywhere in the world, and Rishi Sankar’s blog proves that fact. Having travelled to 60 of the 192 countries of the world gives Rishi a lot to say about travel and the travelling lifestyle. He does it in detail, with great pictures and lots of description – even the entries about Trinidad are entertaining. This blog is definitely the prescription for a serious case of wanderlust.  I want some money and a plane ticket now!

5. Chookooloonks – chookooloonks.com

A stunningly beautiful, professional and award-winning photography blog written by a Trini? Karen Walrond’s  Chookooloonks fits the bill exactly. Karen uses her skills as a writer, digital desktop publisher and photographer to create a blog that is not only visually stunning but a piece of activism for what is beautiful in the world. Her bestselling book, The Beauty of Different is strives to show “the concept that what makes us different makes us beautiful – and may even be the source of our superpowers.” Her book inspired BlogHer’s Own Your Beauty Initiative, for which she is also the lead blogger. Only one word can describe this blog best. Gorgeous.

6. Trini Like Salt – trinilikesalt.tumblr.com

Tumblr is not to be forgotten and one of the best out there is “Trini Like Salt”. With a tagline that reads, “Because us Trinis like salt – We in Eeeeeverything”, you know that it is going to be good. The Outlish- proclaimed “Tumblr King”, Gary Ottley muses with humour and wit about life, his two cute daughters, family, sports, travel, education, photography – basically this Trini really in eeeeeeeverythhing! You can check out this list of top Trini, Tumblrs. http://www.outlish.com/10-must-follow-trini-tumblrs-and-a-tumblr-king/

7. Bit Depth – lyndersaydigital.com

Outlish’s resident photographer, Mark Lyndersay is well know for his Trinidad Guardian column and blog, “Bit Depth”, which is the Trini go-to for technology. What makes BitDepth even cooler is that it is a tech blog that is accessible to anyone. His tech product reviews, tributes to luminaries like Allyson Hennessy, coverage of the local telecommunications industry and writing about every other thing techie will make you not only want to be a tech nerd – you will see technology as integral to life.

8. Tattoo – andrebagoo.blogspot.com

In his blog, “Tattoo”, Newsday writer Andre Bagoo writes the news, but with his unvarnished opinion. His blog delivers a sucker punch. His post “TT Parliament sucks, big time” should be nailed on the front door of the chambers for MP’s to absorb before entering into the hallowed halls.  With his pungent analysis of local and international news, the only thing I can say wrong with this blog is that I want more.

9. Guanaguanare (pronounced wanna-wannare) – guanaguanaresingsat.blogspot.com

There are definitely good, Trini, culture blogs out there but the one that definitely captures the Trini imagination – “Guanaguanare” (pronounced  wanna-wannare). This beautifully nationalistic blog captures what is good about Trini culture, from the elegance of kaiso, to speaking about the importance of the Amerindian people, to having the (possibly) longest list of Trini bloggers and websites EVER. What tops it off for me, though, is the direct link to place to find Trini music online and the heart-breaking link to another blog that is a chronology of missing persons http://missingtrinbagonians.wordpress.com/the-missing/. Guanaguanare oozes love for Trinidad and her people from its pores.

10. Trinidad Carnival Diary – trinidadcarnivaldiary.com

Published by a young, Trini lady known only as Saucy Diva, this is arguably the most popular Trini blog, because everyone and their granny scours the Internet looking for information about T&T’s Carnival and mas, which is exactly what she constantly blogs about, giving us the scoop on gossip, the latest news on bands, tips for Carnival Monday and Tuesday, and upcoming events. Having started the blog in 2006, she’s still blogging about Carnival every week, without fail. Talk about dedication!

11. BCRaw.com – bcraw.com

Yes, I know I said I was going to cover ten blogs, but I had to include this one. If you ever became addicted to the lovely snark delivered by veteran columnist, BC Pires, in the daily newspapers – then this blog is definitely the place to get your permanent fix of all things BC. The site is a smorgasbord of his writing, including the beloved “Thank God’s It’s Friday” column, my new favorite Trini to the Bone as well as Cre Ole, The BC DVD ABC and BC’s BS. If ever there was a blog that make an ole ting ah new ting, this one is it.

So there you have it folks, 11 Trini bloggers I consider to be totally awesome. There were equally excellent bloggers who I couldn’t include because of space (Wish there was room for a top 15 or 20). So feel free to tell us about other Trini blogs that you love, in the comments section, as we discover Trinis who are repping in the blogosphere big time.