A mum and a wife and sometimes just me


Tuesday 25 January 2011

Jamaicans are cool man!


So of course as soon as I get wind of this I had to post it. My Uncle wants to know why we are not number one?!?! Hubby wants to know where the Italians are?!?! I just love the bit at the end where it says....

Not so cool: High murder rate and widespread homophobia.
It gets you thinking though...What are the impressions other people have about where you come from? It was not that long ago that people thought Jamaicans lived in huts and swung from tree to tree like Tarzan. I still get people that don't believe I am Jamaican simply because I am white!  Our national motto by the way is " "Out of Many One People". If you look at pictures of my family it is distinctly for want of a better word 'colourful'....


 When you say Jamaica they say 'Bob Marley man!'. Even though the guys that wrote the article are fans of Jimmy Cliff just like me...an excuse to post a song break.........


Once at work one of the young people I supported asked if I smoked weed. It's illegal in Jamaica by the way just in case you are wondering! Yes the weather is lovely but no I did not go to the beach every day actually. Actually living in Kingston it was a good 40 minutes to get to the nearest beach. Mind you I did enjoy a lot of childhood holidays in the sunshine at the beach with my parents. The downside being that you are far away from the rest of the world so travelling abroad never happened a lot unless we were visiting family in the UK. Whereas when I met my Italian hubby he had already seen all of Europe.

Whatever your image of Jamaica is I won't argue though....Jamaicans are cool man!

Monday 17 January 2011

Sweet Jamaica

Just a quick follow up to the post I did a while back Tourism?. It kind of makes me sad.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Another-controversy-hits-Falmouth-Port

What is happening to my sweet Jamaica, land of wood and water....

Information overload

Well I have learnt so many new things since I have been pregnant that it's amazing. I really wasn't expecting it to be like this...so much to learn...I mean come on women have been doing this since the beginning of time. My mother finds it fascinating all the resources I am able to tap into cause 'they never had that in my day!'. As we have developed and learnt we have also become risk averse and have to watch our step through every week of pregnancy. Every little niggle I find myself trawling the internet and it's fascinating to find that usually someone has some sort of answer out there for the same question whether they be a professional or not. I stop myself for a minute then and realise that I only trust those who give me an answer that relieves my nerves rather than makes me anxious...what's the point in that!!!

My dad gave me some advice at the beginning...hubby is supposed to buy me a book and read it and then tell me what I need to do when the baby arrives...interesting! He also advised me to buy some body lotion and get hubby to rub my belly every night...I liked that idea better. I have looked though at the different books that are available...where does one begin and where does one end?!?! Everyone has got a bit of advice and sometimes (or most times) its conflicting. 

I never knew before that you could have a Gina Ford baby? I thought I was having a Montagnoli baby!

Sunday 16 January 2011

Body Image

How self conscious are you about what you look like? Have you ever gone topless at the beach while on holiday or maybe gone all out and taken your whole kit off? How much are we still really influenced by images of models and celebrities in the media? Do you really fancy being a size zero and think that it's a good image? 

There is a communal changing room at my gym. What no separate cubicle to get changed in? Yes ladies it has been deemed that we all have the same bits so we shouldn't be bothered about getting dressed together. Some ladies head straight for the toilets where they can have some privacy...though I doubt it's a very comfortable space to get dressed. Then there are those women who have mastered the trick of changing into your gym clothes with showing very minimal amounts of skin. They are fascinating to watch which is a bit bad on my part because they have obviously mastered this art because they feel the other women are staring at them. Then there are those who don't mind if you see them in their underwear but they go no further. Then of course you get those who just get on with it...get the kit off...get changed and get to the gym. Yes that's me by the way...I'm just not bothered.

We communicate through what we decide to wear and how we express ourselves using our bodies. If you go out in the community and show too much skin then certain assumptions about your character are "allowed " to be made. I'll admit that sometimes I make them. It's freezing cold outside for goodness sake...go put some clothes on! It's not just about showing skin but also how you carry yourself for the occasion. The British are supposed to be reserved but they are also very good at binge drinking and there seems to be nothing more a British woman likes to do when she has had lots to drink than 'getting her tits out'. In the UK you get the popularity of programmes such as 'How to look good naked', though the idea of a man who wears trousers half hanging off telling me what to wear is depressing. There is a difference between style and fashion ladies! Or you get to watch reality programmes of people who are significantly over weight doing everything to loose the weight....enjoy watching 'The Biggest Loser' anyone?


I guess that how comfortable we women are in our bodies will always haunt us. 

Friday 14 January 2011

The Friday song choice

Ok so the postman did not arrive with a CD today but I think I have decided that every Friday I will post a song just because well.....TGIF........down memory lane for me with this one.........

Thursday 13 January 2011

Becoming an International Driver

It has been a bit surreal for us to think about it but next time we go to Italy all our close circle of friends will be mummies and daddies. The amazing thing is that we are all having boys as well! How great would it be that 3 daddies have 3 boys that may become close as friend as well! With these thoughts the conversation took the pleasant turn of holidays we can possibly do together, hoping that the boys will enjoy getting to know each other. It's not long though before the conversation takes a rather interesting turn. You see the daddies are drinking partners. Hubby thinks its a good idea that I get comfortable driving in Italy...I guess that means the mummies are the designated drivers then. But you see Italians tend generally to have their own way of doing things.



Driving in Italy........

Yet driving in Italy is not just about being able to drive on the right hand side of the road. They have a completely different attitude to the way people drive in the UK. It's not even the fact that they are fast and dangerous drivers. Jamaicans probably beat them to the post to that one and I guess I have managed that though it's been a long time! Italian drivers are just plain mean! The first time you realise this is when you try to cross the road in Italy at a pedestrian crossing and realise that drivers won't automatically stop for you. The second time is when you have to join the motorway...Italians will not automatically give you way...you actually sometimes have to stop before being able to join a fast paced motorway. The third time is in busy periods with lots of traffic...they don't let drivers from the side roads merge into the traffic...you could actually be stuck there all day. It's funny to watch hubby bitch when he is subjected to such foul play but then automatically does the same when he is in the position with the upper hand. By the way these are the nice Italian drivers.

What makes it worse is that public transport in Italy kind of sucks especially in the evenings and even if you are willing to dish out and pay for a taxi they are few and far between.
 
Hubby explains that I don't have to worry...it will be in the evening when its quieter anyway... and its not like I have to drive in Naples or anything...thanks for the reassurance I say.

Wednesday 12 January 2011

In the home stretch...

I'm 32 weeks

I can't see my toes


I'm generally quite tired by 9ish...yet find myself unable to settle to bed until around 12ish...finally start drifting off to sleep and then comes that well known burning sensation...reach for the Gaviscon...a bit of relief...last time I looked at the clock it said 12.30...now it reads 3am as I get up desperate to pee. After that I wake everytime I need to turn over or I actually wake myself up from snoring and lets not forget the odd kick from the bean. Suddenly the clock is saying 7am...that can't be I don't feel like I've slept. 

The joys of the 3rd Trimester...it's good practice for the beans arrival in March when he will be the one keeping me awake. Did I mention he will be a picses...a dreamer...he hates routine...sleeps and eats when he wants.

I'll never truly be able to prepare myself but I'm funnily still nervously excited!

Monday 10 January 2011

Gym etiquette


So with lack of a car and considering the weather in Scotland these days hubby and I ended up back at the gym to get our exercise even though we do favour the good old outdoors usually. The main reason of course is the fresh air and the scenery that you don't get in the gym. In my local gym here in Glasgow I am afraid the scenery generally disappoints. When the testosterone levels in the gym are high I actually find it VERY ANNOYING!   At first I just wanted to comment on the annoying stares that I get because of my bump...I try my best to resist shouting at them that I am pregnant not ill.

I just go to the gym to get some exercise...why do these guys go?

1st.They tend to be regulars who know each other and spend half their time chatting than actually getting any exercise done...which also means they are sharing a weights machine which they hog for a good hour while I am there (unlike me who is happy doing 2 sets which takes me only a few minutes...honest).  I mean these guys obviously have all day.
2nd.I get it that certain people are into body building. Unfortunately the space in my gym is a bit limited for that but thankfully at the minute I am not too interested in free weights so can leave them to it. It's rather interesting to watch those boys who are trying to keep up with the 'real' men lifting these weights that are obviously too heavy for them, straining their backs. I would love to know what kind of aches and pains they wake up with the next morning.

So for us that just want to fit a good work out into a hour I think they should establish a charter which states the rules of proper gym etiquette. OR I will just keep avoiding the gym at busy times.

Sunday 2 January 2011

Here's to a busy 2011

So I guess it is kind of obligatory to bid goodbye to 2010 and say hello to 2011 on ones blog. I am afraid that as usual I won't be waxing too lyrical about it. I am also not one to make New Year resolutions so that possibly won't help too much either. 

2010 was an interesting year indeed. 



It actually started in New Zealand.  For the first time in a long time we actually went out and celebrated. Well if you have been following this blog you know how difficult I find it to talk about New Zealand.  You really have to experience the lifestyle there to understand why. We also managed to survive a year of marriage...maybe I should have reflected on that. The thing is that we had been living together so long before that nothing much really changed in our relationship except that we were wearing a ring and my mother was finally happy. Here is hoping to many many more happy years together ahead!



But before you know it we are spending our summer in Italy.  Of course the biggest surprise there was finding out that I was a whole 5 weeks pregnant. We had been working on it for a while so it maybe wasn't so much of a surprise as a great joy. I also got to spend an amazing week with my parents showing them around Verona for their first time.


Then it was back to Glasgow and the tense struggle to settle back into our life again. Who new flat hunting would be such hell competing with students as we tried to find something useful. There was added pressure as I needed to get settled so I could register with a GP, book an appointment at the hospital ect ect! As things happen though eventually things settle into place and by the 1st of September we found a new humble abode. I have had plenty of time to "enjoy" pregnancy and wonder at the life growing inside me. There was a short period of desperation trying to find a job but as the bean got bigger well that got a bit harder and I resigned myself to being unemployed for the next year. If I remember anything about social work when I start hunting again next year I will be surprised but I guess we just have to wait and see.

So that brings us to the point of welcoming 2011. It was a quiet one at home with hubby but I guess all in preparation for what promises to be a busy 2011. Most things revolve around the bean now and I guess they will for a long time to come...............
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