'scandal bag'...Jamaican slang for the plastic (poly) grocery bag, because at inception they were so clear...all your purchase were on display for all to see.
In a country where social standing...is everything!.... you ARE what you purchase and eat.
The 'Scandal Bag' came into being just about the time we were going through a social and economic upheaval in the Jamaica of the late 70's.
The thing that defined you most was exactly what you purchased...the 'pariah' was to be seen buying as a meat.... Chicken Necks and Backs...which was imported in large, coated 50 to 75 lb cardboard boxes, and sawed when frozen into 5 and 10 lb. blocks...hard to disguise that in a 'scandal bag'.
OMG!...you business was out in the streets in a flash...literally...news flash...and people would be pointing...and snickering...no s***!
many lost face back then...times was hard...everything was magnified out of proportion.
In a country where social standing...is everything!.... you ARE what you purchase and eat.
The 'Scandal Bag' came into being just about the time we were going through a social and economic upheaval in the Jamaica of the late 70's.
The thing that defined you most was exactly what you purchased...the 'pariah' was to be seen buying as a meat.... Chicken Necks and Backs...which was imported in large, coated 50 to 75 lb cardboard boxes, and sawed when frozen into 5 and 10 lb. blocks...hard to disguise that in a 'scandal bag'.
OMG!...you business was out in the streets in a flash...literally...news flash...and people would be pointing...and snickering...no s***!
many lost face back then...times was hard...everything was magnified out of proportion.
1 comment:
We in the land of the plenty...don't even understand what it would even be like to worry about your social standing...Or worry about what you buy and have in a scandal bag....for all to see...Your story is a good reminder to all how blessed we all are in the US...and should count our blessings and quit complaning....be happy!! thanks for the humble reminder...
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