All posts by jamaicaninchina

"Once upon a time, there was a Jamaican civil engineer living in New York City who hated his job. He followed his passion, started a sideline business publishing his own books, quit his job, escaped the rat race, ran off to a tropical island in the Pacific, and started a tourism business so he could give tours of the island to pretty girls every day! He now lives a nomadpreneur's dream life, while helping others do the same!" This is his story: Read more at : https://www.jamaicanonsaipan.com/
2021, Popular

What’s it like being Jamaican on Saipan?

WATCH NOW! What’s it Like Being Jamaican in Saipan?”
Leave a comment on Youtube, ask a question! If you’re Chamorro or Carolinian, let me know if I got anything wrong!

BACK STORY:
Way back around 1996, before many of us even heard about the internet, Jamaican native and techie, Xavier Murphy, got a head start and was able to secure the JAMAICANS.COM domain name in anticipation of ‘big tings to come!’ His prescience proved correct, and over the years, this wildly popular website has served as a repository of all things Jamaican for Jamaicans and the people who love them!

As Youtube, Facebook and other online media platforms gained in popularity, Jamaicans.com was there as well! Xavier’s popular Youtube video series, “What’s it Like Being [probably the only] Jamaican in ___________?” has provided a way to connect Jamaicans around the world and showcase our presence and impact abroad! Korea? Ireland? Norway? Zambia? Kuwait? Bali? Russia? Malawi? Yep, we deh deh! (Translation: We are there!)

A few weeks ago, I sat on a beach on Saipan while Xavier–about 8 thousand miles away–asked me that very question: “What’s it like being Jamaican on the small, remote, Pacific island of Saipan???” We had fun as I shared facts and trivia about my new island home, talked nomadpreneuring and escaping the rat race, and during the course of the conversation, discovered that Xavier knows one of my long lost primary school classmates and has helped me re-connect with him!

The interview is FINALLY viewable:

The Youtube version of the video has a lively discussion to join in

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=431285311574616

 

OUTTAKE
Here I am prepping the day before the interview:

Want to learn more about Saipan? Here’s a tour/documentary filmed by LaMancha Media featuring a guest tour guide you might recognize :

 

UPDATE (12 days later)

Narcisism alert! Yes, as a former civil engineer, these sorts of things
keep me awake at night. Ever since the release of the Jamaicans.com
interview video (“What’s it Like Being a Jamaican in Saipan?”), I’ve
been tracking the daily views on Xavier’s Youtube channel and Facebook page.

Here’s what my analysis revealed:

• The Youtube version had a total 599 views in the first 3 hours; and jumped to 766 in the 1 hour while I watched it

• The version of the video on the Jamaicans.com Facebook page already had an astounding 15,000 views by the time I first checked it out 3 days after upload; it now has 19,000+ views 12 days
after release.

• Here are the daily stats for the Youtube edition
Aug 30, 2021 3:00am 0 2,253/day         39 comments
Aug 31, 2021 3:00am 2,253 1,861/day     55 comments
Sep 1, 2021 9:00am 4,600 1,652/day      90 comments
Sep 2, 2021 9:00am 6,252 1,854/day      98 comments
Sep 3, 2021 9:00am 8,106 2,107/day        113 comments
Sep 4, 2021 9:00am 10,213 1,326/day         117 comments
Sep 5, 2021 9:09am 11,539 1,327/day        135 comments
Sep 6, 2021 9:01am 12,866 1,609/day       139 comments
Sep 7, 2021 9:00am 14,475 909/day           160 comments
Sep 8, 2021 9:00am 15,384 1,055/day      168 comments
Sep 9, 2021 9:00am 16,439 563/day         166 comments
Sep 10, 2021 9:01am 17,002 355/day      168 comments
Sep 11, 2021 9:00am 17,357 285/day      170 comments
Sep 12, 2021 9:00am 17,642                          170 comments

I discovered that my Canva.com account that I use for creating Youtube thumbnails, also has a graph feature. So, with nothing else to do on a Sunday morning at 6:00am:

Xavier has 25.2 thousand subscribers to his Youtube channel and this video generated an average of 1,500 views per day. If you have your own Youtube channel, this is definitely the sort of daily view activity you want to aspire to!

ANOTHER UPDATE:

26 days to get to 20,000 views! (Plus, there are an additional 21,000 views on the Facebook upload with its own set of comments.

2021

S.W.E.A.T. Lifestyle Shorts: SUNLIGHT on the rocks!

In case you’re wondering,  being”Jamaican in China….and Beyond” is just one of my alter egos.  I’m also the “Ageless Adept,” a vegan, minimalist, self-health, natural living fanatic who promotes the SWEAT philosophy of rejuvenation and maintaining youth (SWEAT = Sunlight, Water, Earth, Air & Time). Here’s one way I fulfill the sunlight portion of that lifestyle:

After watching this video, a good friend asked, “What if something were to happen to you? It looks pretty steep and desolate there with no one around in case you needed a little help.”

To which I replied, “Well, in all likelihood, I probably wouldn’t lie there for more than 24 hours. There’s a path below the cliff that fishermen occasionally take to get to a particular fishing spot, so the carcass wouldn’t go unnoticed for too long. Now, if I happen to be on the TOP of the mountain, then I’d have to wait for someone to notice the vultures or the smell….Oh, and thanks for asking!”

2021

Jamaican Air Macau Pilot flies me to Vietnam!

This pilot episode is literally a pilot episode! (and inspired the “Say Hello to My Little Friends” series) It’s pretty cool being flown on an international flight to Vietnam for the first time, aboard an Airbus 321 jet airliner, knowing that my best buddy–Ron McFarlane–is the captain in charge, and “dread at the controls!” It makes it a unique personal experience imagining my friend in the cockpit doing what he’s always wanted to do since he was five years old. Here’s a video recap of the whole experience featuring an in-flight interview with the captain himself with some words of advice for aspiring pilots and anyone pursuing a dream!

 

 

2021

Reload My 6-Month China Adventure!

A few years ago, I embarked on a unique adventure and spent 6 months doing the nomad thing from Saipan, several cities throughout China, as well as in Laos and Singapore! I had a great time, met a lot of great people, and chronicled it through email updates to my mailing list of followers! With travel restrictions now in effect, I’ve created a weekly email to give YOU a chance to re-live the adventure just as if you were there! Simply sign up to the Jamaican in China “Reloaded” email, then sit back and enjoy the ride in your email inbox every three or so days!

CLICK HERE to re-live the adventure in your email inbox!

CLICK HERE to re-live the adventure in your email inbox!

and/or download the entire Guess Who’s Coming to Dim Sum PDF

2021

When you think no one is watching

Just completed filming a comparison of my NEW Ancestry.com results with the previous 23andMe results. I trailed off my narrative, got lost in reviewing the results and forgot that the camera was still recording! So as a preview & test of the sound and video quality of the soon-to-be-released video, here’s an EXCITING 3 minute outtake of me silently staring at my laptop screen, touching my face and rubbing my nose, until I finally realized the camera was still rolling!

 

2021

Why China? Vietnam? Asia-Pacific? An answer in allegory!

I came across this short allegory online and immediately thought it was the best answer to why I had to leave New York City and why I’ve found my bliss in China, Vietnam and the Asia-Pacific region. The story was credited to Joshua Crouch, though I’m not sure if he’s the original author. (I’ve changed the speaker’s child from “daughter” to “son.”)

• WHY I ESCAPED FROM MAINLAND AMERICA·

A father said to his son “You have graduated with honors, here is a car I bought many years ago. It is pretty old now. But before I give it to you, take it to the used car lot downtown and tell them I want to sell it and see how much they offer you for it.”

The son went to the used car lot, returned to his father and said, “They offered me $1,000 because they said it looks pretty worn out.”

The father said, now “Take it to the pawn shop.” The son went to the pawn shop, returned to his father and said,”The pawn shop offered only $100 because it is an old car.”

The father asked his son to go to a car club now and show them the car. The son then took the car to the club, returned and told his father,” Some people in the club offered $100,000 for it because “it’s an iconic car and sought by many collectors.”

Now the father said this to his son “The right place values you the right way,” If you are not valued, do not be angry, it simply means you are in the wrong place. Those who know your value are those who appreciate you……Never stay in a place where no one sees your value.

2021

Vietnamese cutie picks me up in Saigon

 

People often ask me how different is dating and meeting people in Asia. Here’s a typical occurence:

 

Saigon, Vietnam. I’m sitting in the park at 6am this morning filming an intro for my next “Jamaican in China and Beyond” blog video. A cute girl comes up and peers into my camera, says she likes my white outfit, invites me to follow her to another side of the park. I’m a little suspicious at first about the long walk, but turns out she just wanted to be closer to her friends who do Qigong/dancing in the morning. 

We end up chatting and walking around town. She’s cute, just the face/eyes/body type I like, but seems she hadn’t really pampered herself in a while, so after buying her breakfast, I take her to a spa to have them do her nails and feet.

I was even going to do the Pretty Woman/Set if Off thing where I buy her a dress (remember the scene in Set it Off where Blair Underwood buys Jada Pinkett an evening dress for a dinner party?). Since neither her English nor my Vietnamese were up to par, we communicated by Google Voice Translate for the whole morning, and she says it’s the nicest anyone has ever treated her.

In any event, here’s the actual video of us meeting for the first time and her picking me up (turns out I’m pretty easy), and a clip from inside the nail salon We hang out some more until 12:30, but I had to leave to go get my passport from the Thai Consulate at 1pm, so we part, but agree to hang out later that day.

There’s more to the story, but you’ll have to follow my channel if you want to learn more!

2021

Taiji by the Sea with Shifu 师父 Catherine and me

My Tai Chi instructor (师父),  Catherine Rosario Perry, posted a teaser clip from our “Taiji by the Sea” Performance Day here on Saipan  on her Facebook page.

Thanks to Catherine, fellow student, Mr. Jang, and I met every Monday morning at 6am for the past several weeks and  learned Wudang 8 (武當8) style.  With that crossed off my bucket list, I can now confidently join the morning exercises in the parks next time I’m in Beijing or any other city in China! Here are a few still shots, but of course, video is best, so check out her clip, and if you’re on Saipan, sign up for the course!  (If the video is “unavailable” below, watch it direcly here https://www.facebook.com/CatherinePerryHealingHome/videos/950142122474387

Here is a version with a unique soundtrack featuring Quist

 

Here is the full original 5 min performance:

 

 

 

2020

Setting up my youtube studio

As part of the Pandemicpreneur™ series, I’ll be creating video “courses” with information, inspiration and instruction about survival strategies in the age of Corona: Subscribe (and see the other channels) here: https://www.waltgoodridge.com/youtube-courses

1. Here’s the high-speed video of me actually setting up the in-home studio (Fans of Benny Hill may get a kick out of it!)

2. To prepare for the launch and re-branding,  here are the 5-second animated intro videos for each of my channels*:  https://www.waltgoodridge.com/youtube-courses

W

*I used www.introbrand.com to create them. You can create as many as you like for yourself free of charge! (I paid for the high-resolution 720p version without the watermark, for $19.99)