Interview With a Vampire, plus some pan.

Not really though.  She isn't a Vampire, as far as I know.  But she is a witch, by the Church's standards.  And that is a whole 'nother post.

Anywaaaaaay, gratefully, Witchypoo herself has provided the fodder for today's post in the form of a questionnaire with things that she was just dying to know about me.  In my mind anyway.  Otherwise I would just post music.  Cuz I don' have nothing else to post.  My life is all of that and all.  (That shouldn't be read with sarcasm though.  My life is simple, quiet and predictable.  And I actually do like it like that right now.  It had been the opposite for a few years.  Cycles and all.)

Back to the 'view.  It started here and then Witchypoo did it here, and now I'm doing it here:

1.What's the top item on your bucket list? Why?

I don't actually have a bucket list. Does everyone?  I thought about it when I saw the movie, which was a highly original thought, I know, but couldn't actually decide on specific things that I MUST do before I die, other than the , again original, ''Visit India''.  I guess I'm a bit more of a go-with-the-flow kinda gal.  Besides, I never in a million years even thought about visiting Estonia, yet here I am 3 years, husband and child later.  Life will do with me what it will.  No complaints so far.  Although, if I could have a say in it, I would prefer my next home-country to be a lil warmer. Brrrr.

2. What is your fondest memory as a child?  

Sitting on the loo with the door wide open as my brother meandered dramatically up and down the hall shouting ''Ooohh noo.. the wind is blowing me... oohh nooo... the police are chasing meeee''. *giggle*

3. What would you most like to learn about

This changes.  But right now, child psychology.

4. If you had a do-over, what would it be?

My last 2 years at high school.  I would insist that I be allowed to do art.  Fuck ''what kind of job are you going to get with that''.  The stuff I did hasn't landed me a dream job either, and I've forgotten about 99% of it.

5. Besides blogging, what is your guilty pleasure?
A box of chocolate chip cookies every night... dunked in camomille tea.  I know, I know.

And that's it :)

Want to be part of it? Follow these instructions:
1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone
else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them
five questions.

Any takers?

Today's Carnival Groove: Pan in A Minor by The Grand Master Kitchener.  One of, if not the BEST Steelpan song ever.

Country roads, take me home.

I soooooo need to buy a hammock!

I also need to buy a beautiful country cottage with tall, shady trees all around so that I can hang my hammock and swing with the angel peacefully to that soothing, mellow hum of the woods.

The angel loved it. She just drifted off to sleep as we rocked. Completely at peace.

As kids, my Dad used to take us hiking almost every other weekend during the dry season. The beach was a regular weekend and often weekday activity too. And we had a lovely back yard with trees perfect for climbing and picking. So even though I didn't grow up in the country (Chaguanas may not be the city, but it ain't exactly Nature World either) we had our fair share of natural life.

Now I live in an apartment the middle of a city. There's a patch of grass outside with a couple trees, but that's where everybody ''walks'' their dogs. And its behind a gas station. Not exactly National Geographic.

There was something about being away from the cars, steel, and billboards that made me realize how noisy life in the city is. I had forgotten that. Not that country life is devoid of sound; au contraire; those birds and frogs were going at it non stop! But it wasn't noise. And the rigid structure of cold, dead concrete can't begin to touch the wild beauty of a forest.

I think my friend Kati will be seeing a lot more of me this summer!

Inert - lacking the ability or strength to move; chemically inactive.

Last night as hubby and I were watching an old (but new for us) episode of The Wire (which we are totally addicted to, in the way that downloading entire seasons which you can watch at your own leisure after the Angel goes to sleep, can foster) when I had an epiphany.

Actually my epiphany came when I had to go nurse her back to sleep cus she woke up... again. She does that every hour or so until I come to bed. But at least I get a few precious hours of hubby-and-me or just-me time in between.

So we had just seen a scene where Prez got some advice from a co-teacher at the inner-city school he just started working at. ''Give them lots of activities to do. Keeping them busy keeps them off-guard!''

And as I was lying next to the angel my mind wandered on over back to that.

How do you learn to bake a cake? Make and fly a kite? Ride a bike? It sure isn't by reading and memorizing the instructions, right? It was by dropping a few eggs on your mothers just mopped kitchen floor, getting glue stuck in your hair and skinning a few knees.

Or is that just me?

I know people have different learning styles. Rote memorization (is that redundant?) never really worked for me. I still have a hard time remembering multiplication tables, despite repeating them day after day after day after day after day in morning school traffic with my Dad.

When you think about the VAST quantity of info that is handed out during the 20 or so odd years of school, how much of it is retained?

Like Chemistry. The most abstract thing I ever studied at school. I just couldn't see it in real life. My teacher asked me if I never thought about where soap came from. Not really, no. I sensed some disappointment there. Biology, some geography, art, some physics, sure! Chemistry... negative. There was just no reaction in me with that info. I was completely inert in that environment.

Although I did learn what 'inert' meant. And it only took me 15 years to use it :)

So what's my point? I'm not really sure actually. Just felt like rambling a bit.

Adventures at the playground. #1

The angel had her first ''sand''-wich today at the playground.  I believe this is something that all babies do??  When she was born one friend advised that I let her eat it as often as she wanted... said it was good for her digestion.  I know I had my fair share at the beach back home as a baby.  Dad told me something about a KFC drumstick that spent more time in the sand than in my hand, but that I didn't seem to mind... indeed it probably added to the flavour :)  Don't worry, that was back in the days when KFC used real chicken.

She was so mesmerized by the sand, watching it trickle through her fingers, slipping away as she tried to grab more.  Complete concentration on her task.  ''Da de bah bah beh'' was the explanation of her discoveries as she held them out for me to see.  Oh to see the world through the eyes of a babe.

I also confused the heck out of a daddy-dude who was there with his 3.  I had to ask him to hold the angel for a few seconds while I tied my Mei Tai baby carrier.  He looked at me with total alarm.  ''Where you go?  When you come?  What?  What?''  Sigh.  I made hand signals to try to show that I wasn't going anywhere, and that I just needed to tie this thing on.  Relief swept his face.  ''OK, OK'' he smiled.  I would love to know what he originally thought I was doing.  

As he held her, his 3 came over to play with her.  ''What her name?'' he asked.  ''Zara'' I told him.  ''Estonian name?''   ''No, actually, its Hebrew.''   ''Aaah.. Hebrew.''  Slight eyebrow raise.  ''And her nationality?''  ''She's Estonian.''  The look of confusion that I am oh-so-familiar with made it's appearance.  My half-breed East Indian and Irish heritage combined with a distinctly Caribbean accent confuses a lot of people over here.  They just don't know what box to put me in.  And here I was with an Estonian baby, with a Hebrew name.  That explanation was going to take a loooot longer than I cared to be there for... and I didn't know the hand signals required.  ''Ok, thanks a lot!  Take care!''  and off I scooted... right into your friendly Mormon missionary.  Sigh.  They are a persistent bunch!  No offense meant to anyone.  But I managed to convince her that my religious needs, and those of hubby were covered.  

I wonder who we'll meet tomorrow!