We were doing the walk-thru at the Arubiana-Caribiana department of the library on Bachstraat #5 yesterday, discussing sound, light and ceremony for the upcoming launch of my first book, it’s a hint, there might be others, on March 15th.
The book was compiled and edited by my girlfriend Karin Swiers from articles I wrote for The News, the English paper, between 1992 and 2002, imagine, that’s 25 years ago.
Padu Lampe will be getting the first copy, because I wrote about him frequently.
At the time, print-executive Fernando Schouten, Oranjestad printing, suggested I could/should write for the newspaper, The News, his sister Sonia Wever-Schouten was running from the next door set of offices on Italienstraat.
True to the adage that “when the student is ready the teacher appears,” I went home and knocked out a column.
It wasn’t so easy. I labored over every word. Every nuance. It took a long time to complete and polish every piece. It felt like I was threading beads, bead after bead, word after word to make a pretty necklace. I still feel like that about writing: I just put words together, pearl after pearl, to string my thoughts together.
The columns compiled in the book talk about Aruba and its people. At the time I was blindly in love with the island, and the columns served as love notes. Sonia Wever-Schouten proof-read the text, Eric Boeldak took pictures to accompany it, and Mauro Jones laid it out for the presses.
Another talented crew delivered the book to print in 2017: Karin Swiers did the difficult job of editing, Kyrenia Jonkhout-Delgado designed the graphics and layout and Debbie Kunder proofread the endless text. Kenny Theysen shot the cover photo.
So now you know about the book, it will be available for sale at various outlets, after the 15th, Bruna book store, Plaza Book store, T.H. Palm & Company, The Bazaar at Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino, The Marketplace at the Marriott Surf Club, Coconuts beachside at Barcelo Resort and the De Witt Stores at the Airport.
So yesterday, in the garden of the Arubiana-Caribiana department of the library, Karin gave me a valuable piece of advice. You need TeleAruba to cover your launch book, she said, so lay off them, please. Don’t you have books to sell, she added.
If you are a regular reader you would know that a few days ago I picked a bone with TeleAruba. Then I remembered that the new director of the TV station is a member of the Schouten clan, Andree, he has always been very supportive of my writing, and must be a guest of honor at the book launch.
That’s such a typical island story, we’re all related, we all have intertwined histories.
So, here goes a compliment for TeleAruba: I think you were right to recently air the interview with the prisoner on leave. If he earned the privilege, and if the law stipulates it, then what’s the fuss?? Furthermore, the release of the furlough papers was indeed politically motivated, designed to get the MinJust in trouble.
Telearuba decided to give airtime to a news item. What’s the fuss?
If they only aired politically-correct, propaganda materials, we would be upset as well.
News is news, neither good nor bad!
Please continue to feed us items from across the board, we don’t want our national TV plant to only air biased stories, promoting just one point of view.