Visit from Leader of Govt Business and Storm Watch

By Scott:

This evening the Leader of Government Business, the honorable Kurt Tibbetts, the Caymanian version of the Prime Minister, was a guest lecturer in our Business Management course. After two cancellations we were beginning to think he was not ever going to come but this evening we got confirmation around 7 p.m. that he would be at the college for the 7:50 class. He arrived driving his own vehicle and it was a stark reminder that on an Island with only 40,000 people even the highest elected government official is accessible.

I was already in a suit from a presentation earlier in the day to Kiwanis so there was no need to run home and get more formal clothes. Interestingly the Leader was in a short sleeve polo style shirt as was the instructor Joey Ebanks who is the manager of the huge turtle farm and very well connected politically (hence his ability to get the LOGB out as a guest lecturer). I still struggle with the dress code here. I want to show respect but at the same time when you are the only person in a suit you stick out like a sore thumb. The lesson of tonight is ask ahead of time and if the speaker is in short sleeves then I come in a sport coat and shirt with no tie, formal enough to show respect but not so formal as to stick out. The lecture and a question and answer session which followed lasted over two hours and went well. I had a chance to talk with the LOGB after the session and thank him for coming to ICCI and speaking with our students. We are hopeful that this is one of many new positive events happening to increase ICCI's profile and stature over the course of the next several weeks.

The other big news here is the changing path of Tropical Storm soon to be Hurricane Dean. The storm now looks like it will enter the Western Caribbean late next week as a category three or even category four hurricane and pass somewhere south of Cayman. That in and of itself will cause problems and the closer to Grand Cayman it is, the worse things will be. Tomorrow Katie and I are going to the store and buying several days worth of canned goods to fill out our hurricane kit. Hurricane fever hasn't quite hit yet but it will by the weekend if the forecast shows it is headed this way and we want to stock up before the shelves get emptied out.

Not looking forward to nailing up the wood over windows and riding out a storm but if that is to be then it is to be. Everyone tells us you really cant know what to expect until you actually go through it. Hopefully we wont have to learn.