"Trinis could dig horrors, eh?" Yes, only in Trinidad and Tobago can one dig horrors. In general, people find very unique ways to express their feelings. Trinis, on the other hand, put words together that sometimes make one wonder what in heaven's name was going through the mind of the person who coined the phrase (a Trini idiom). Ah digging horrors is one of those phrases that will leave you wondering... What is really going on here?
To be honest, 'yuh have to be ah Trini to quickly grasp this one. In the end, you will realize that when "yuh dig horrors', Trini style, it makes you feel the Caribbean flavor that makes one yearn to return to the homeland not 'to dig horrors' but to soak up some of this very special culture that paints these 'Trini idioms' in our hearts and minds forever.
To dig for something connotes a search for something, like to dig for yam or plow the land to plant ("yuh dig-up de ground" to ensure that the soil is turned, and growth is possible in loose soil). Hmm, that sounds like a plan, right? Oh, hell no, you are so wrong! When someone, especially a Trini, is 'digging horrors,' then something is very wrong—life is not the same, and we are very upset about something.
Trinis dig horrors when they are vexed or simply confused and stressed. Consider the scenario involving a young man who develops feelings for a particular young lady but discovers that she is "creeping" with his best friend. As you may have guessed, this Trini descends into a tabanka pit and starts unearthing painful memories—a bad case of the blues, or, as we say, real tabanka—and that, my friend, is not something that you want to experience.
Another case is that of another young man who just got paid, but because he thinks he is smarter than the hustler on the block, he starts to gamble playing brag or knock rummy (terms confusing?) and loses his paycheck. This 'is pain' as 'they say' [and they are always saying (as in complaining) in Trini Land] lately, and the family definitely will be "diggin' horrors" because someone else was smarter than Mr. Chupidee—time to start "diggin' horrors."
There you have it. "Ah, diggin' horrors" is simply a case of severe stress, pain, and frustration that does not seem to have a feasible ending. The situation is one of distress, fraught with anger and disappointment. After that, we can listen to RemBunction's remake of the legendary "Ah Digging Horrors" by Mighty Sparrow, which features cameo appearances from Roy Cape and the bard himself, Slinger Francisco, aka Mighty Sparrow, the calypso king of the world. Who's diggin' horrors now?
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Production Notes/Music Credits:
Song Title: Ah Digging Horrors
Artists/Performed by: RemBunction/Mighty Sparrow
Origin: Trinidad and Tobago
Genre: Calypso
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Here is the original song by the Mighty Sparrow.
