It follows that people are very idiosyncratic about what they consider essential things in their life; what’s essential to one could well be meaningless to another. So it follows that if you asked a person to name the list of the things he/she would want “always in the house”, the choices would tell you a great deal about the kind of individual he/she is. In that vein, therefore, here is a list of things I always want in my house, wherever I live.
My house would always have some tomatoes, some olive oil, some garlic and some kind of pasta. Sounds odd, but you could come home late, starving hungry, no dinner prepared, and with those few ingredients, in 15 minutes, you would have a very enjoyable meal. You cut up the tomatoes, sauté them in olive oil and garlic for about 10 minutes, have the pasta cooking in the meantime, and when the pasta’s done your Italian repast is ready…delicious, too. When there’s time for more leisurely cooking, I always need geera, some oregano, and some Cajun seasoning, and, of course, given whom I’m married to, some blazing hot pepper sauce. When I run short of the latter, my friend Carmen Abdool comes to the rescue – always.
Wherever I live, I always want to have a new book or two waiting to be read, and a handful of gems I’ve read before and keep going back to. One of those gems is The West Indies: Federal Negotiations by John Mordecai. It’s always on the same spot on the bookshelf. I can find it in the dark.
I’m a musician, yes, but I’m not a big liquor guy; I contradict the stereotype. However, I do relish a shot of XM 10-year-old over ice, every now and then, so a bottle of that must always be around. Now there could be the occasional situation where some of my more thirsty friends (particularly one guzzler from Subryanville) have combined in a visit to leave me minus that particular vintage, but those circumstances aside you can be sure it’s always in the casa. I also love the Jamaica Appleton 21-year-old and a Panamanian rum called Zacapa, both of which are very much like XM. So, one of that trio has to be around.
I’m a bit of a handyman, and that means I must always be able to find some emergency fixit material, such as the glue we use on today’s PVC pipe fittings; that’s a must. Believe me; if a pipe breaks in your house, late at night, when plumbers don’t answer their phones, and water is pouring everywhere like Amaila Falls (in the rainy season, that is), having that little bit of glue and a spare piece of pipe will be the best $1,000 you’ve spent all year.
Wherever I live there has to be least one acoustic guitar; the electric Fender Stratocaster is for when I’m playing out. At home I play only the acoustic (this is the same sound by the way that our German Shepherd loves), and to make sure I always have one handy, I have four of them. Virtually all of the songs I’ve written, in my various homes, have been written on those guitars, so you see why they’re on my “always” list. The exception is ‘Blade O’ Grass.’ I was on tour here when I wrote that, with no acoustic guitar, and I borrowed one from Bobby Hunter to do the job. Come to think of it, if Hunter still has that guitar, it would be worth a few dollars as memorabilia.
Musically, there are some important items. Mangal Patesar’s Calabesa CD is one of them, as is any CD by Baba Maal, any CD by Bela Fleck, and any CD by Solomon Burke. I come slow to technology, as I’ve told you before, but I also have now acquired an IPod with about 300 songs in an eclectic list including the material above and other favourites – Michael Buble, David Rudder, Tom Waitts, Seal, Andre Bocelli, 3Canal, etc. In my house, I always have some potions to treat accidents or emergencies. So I have some Neosporin for cuts and abrasions; some Andrew’s for upset stomach, and some casareep for burns; yes, casareep is an old Amerinidan remedy for burns; it works like magic if you put it on right away. I also have Immodium for diarrhoea, so between that and the Andrew’s I’ve got things covered whether you’re coming or going.
For the handyman in me, as well, there must always be a hacksaw with a good blade, (not one of the China variety), an electric drill, and a plane (hand or electric) plus three screwdrivers (one straight; one star; one square)
For everyday living, it’s great to have a step ladder to reach the high ceilings in the house (like when a bulb goes) and an extension ladder for outside emergencies and even some inside (like last week when a young bird flew into the house, got up in the high windows, and wouldn’t come down; actually it happened twice last week. If you don’t have long ladder in those situations you have to hope your neighbour has one; mine doesn’t.)
In other places I’ve lived it’s not critical, but in Guyana, blackout country, I always have at least one working flashlight, some candles, and (critical) some matches. More than once in a blackout, I have heard the wail, “Where the hell are the blasted matches?” Not in my house, mind you, but I’ve heard it, often accompanied by the sound of kneecap bumping into metal, and copious cussing. Also, for Guyana, have some high boots in your house. Not the fashionable wintry kind, of course, but the kind to wade through those seawaters they tell us aren’t rising.
In today’s techno world, two other “must have” items. One is paper for the electronic printer. Nothing more infuriating than using the last sheet of paper in the printer, and as it comes out you spot a serious error. The other one is small electric heating-pad to treat things like backache and shoulder sprain. Okay, I hear you: what use is the heating-pad in a blackout, but you can’t cover everything on the list. Besides, there’s nothing wrong with my shoulder.
