Dancing minister
Between segments at Sunday’s Prince and Princess Pageant, the emcee asked several audience members
to dance on stage. To the crowd’s delight, Education and Culture Minister Andrew Fahie was among them. The minister danced to Showtime Band’s “Hula Hoop,” as he skillfully spun a hoop around his hands and neck. His short performance added humour to the show, and a Beaconite was impressed that Mr. Fahie clearly keeps up to date with some of the activities that interest young people.
One question only
A Beaconite covering the Biwater novation agreement signing last week was glad the Ministry of Communication and Works chose to hold a press conference, but he was disappointed that media representatives were restricted to one question each. While the Beaconite appreciates that the officials involved are busy, there certainly would have been time for additional questions from each reporter present if officials applied the same timesaving instincts to their own prepared remarks.
Knowing the difference
A Beaconite has used his 3-year-old son as an example in the Reporter’s Notebook on several occasions. Last Sunday the Beaconite and his family went to Coppermine National Park. The Beaconite noticed a large amount of debris at the park, and he wasn’t the only one who noticed the unsightly garbage. His son asked if he could throw a plastic cup into a nearby garbage can. “Sure,” his dad responded. Then the little boy found more garbage to dispose of. The Beaconite was impressed that a 3-year-old knew what do with garbage, but disappointed that, most likely, an adult who came there before him didn’t.
Celebrity wedding
Nick Lachey and Vanessa Minnillo married on Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island on Friday, according to online reports. The Beacon had also received tips about a month ago that Mr. Lachey was hanging around North Sound. Mr. Lachey, a member of the former boy band 98 Degrees, was formerly married to singer Jessica Simpson. He had been engaged to Ms. Minnillo, an American television personality, model and actress, since November. Wedding guests included about 35 close friends and family. In case you feel left out, the wedding will be televised on TLC at 9 p.m. on July 30.
Off duty
A off-duty Beaconite talked to an off-duty police officer this week and realised the two professions share many similarities: Neither is ever truly off-duty and may be called to “work” with no notice if something important happens. Both professions also often cause others to put up their guard immediately. Worst of all, the bad behaviour of a few in each profession — think of the News of the World phone hacking scandal or an overzealous traffic cop — tends to cause people to judge all members of each profession harshly. The reporter now has more sympathy and appreciation for the work of Virgin Islands police.
Got locks?
Government documents reveal the strangest things sometimes. A Beaconite was looking through a 1994 government audit report when he noticed the auditor’s displeasure about an outstanding issue. “At paragraph 119 of my previous report, mention was made of defects affecting the proper completion of the Theodolph Faulkner Building in Anegada. These defects, including the failure by the contractor to install lock sets on the two holding cells of the police facility, were not remedied at the time of writing,” the report stated. Anegada is a pretty peaceful place, and it’s doubtful that those cells ever get used that much. But the Beaconite hopes that the jail cells eventually received working locksets. It just seems like a good idea.