Wednesday 20 July 2011

Where am I from

I read this post on The Girl behind blog and pinched the idea, shamelessly

I'm from Scotland, the Mother Country, the most patriotic and biggest small nation in the world, but before that, from Ireland before my ancestors moved west

I'm from Glasgow, much mocked by others much loved by us

I'm from the shipbuilders on the Clyde, when Clyde built was the highest accolade

I'm from the dignity of the working man

I'm from where self deprecation is a virtue and blowing your own trumpet the worst sin

I'm from growing up with my grandparents and being out of step for not living with my parents. I'm from the devastation and loss that my grandpa's death caused when I was 9

I'm from alcohol and debt, divorce and despair

I'm from living in a council house but going to a private school because my mum wanted the best education she could for me

I'm from growing up in the 1970's when we did what the grown ups wanted to do and if I enjoyed it, it was a bonus

I'm from the children should be seen and not heard generation

I'm from Twinkle and then Jackie

I'm from when children's TV was 1 hour after school and playing out and reading on rainy days

I'm from Mr Benn and Mary, Mungo and Midge

I'm from Enid Blyton Mallory Towers and St Clare school stories and The Chalet School series by Elinor M Brent-Dyer

I'm from Gregory's Girl and chip shops after school discos

I'm from CND and torchlight parades, demonstrations at Faslane and crying full of teenage angst about the world

I'm from Thatcher's era, reviled over the poll tax but she allowed my mum to buy her council house and become a home owner

I'm from recycling decades before it was fashionable

I'm from The Stranglers and The Sex Pistols and Siouxsie and the Banshees and the dichotomy of being a good girl and a punk

14 comments:

Nota Bene said...

That's very splendid and a jolly interesting read...know you a little better now...

Trish said...

Jackie, Malory Towers and Mr Benn - I'm smiling at those memories because they are mine too.
Fascinating to know about your background - beaufifully crafted post!

Andy said...

And every single one of those places has sculpted you into the fantastic person that you are now, all are evident in the way you move through this world. The beauty is that the sculpting never stops.

This post is absolutely my favourite.

The Girl Behind said...

This is lovely - so pleased that you did it (and we have lots of history in common that I'd forgotten about until I read this!).

Autumn Mist said...

This is really good. I read Malory Towers over and over again, and still have a soft spot for Mary, Mungo and Midge (especially Midge!)

AGuidingLife said...

wow, a mash of finding out about you and memories of me. What a lovely read x

Ayak said...

Great post! A few similarities with me there x

libby said...

Such a good idea.....and a few shared memories too.

Looking for Blue Sky said...

I really enjoyed reading this post, and it brings back memories for me too,, but now I want to know more :) Especially about life in Glasgow xx

Looking for Blue Sky said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Love it. Might have to be cheeky and copy you....

Curry Queen said...

That brought back many memories - especially the TV shows!

auntiegwen said...

NB - oh dear, that's a worry for your mum

Trish - gotta love a school story

Andy - definitely a product of my environment, I have the hips that ate a million chips

TGB - oh the retro 70's how I love them

AM - I did too, hardly anyone remembers them but I loved it

S - thank you, it's nice to see how similar lives are all over the country

Ayak - that's good, always nice to read and think ooh me too!

Libs - yep, we made good, thee and me

LFBS - oh I loved Glasgow, still miss it with a visceral ache

Mud - steal away, what's mine is yours

CQ - I think the telly I had is so much better than my kids, even though they have so much more, I think mine was grand

Michelle said...

A great post, and a fellow Chalet School reader x x