dailyprompt

What change, big or small, would you like your blog to make in the world?

Unfortunately I know that my blog will only reach a small number of people. Those that it does reach are those that share my values and will in most cases agree with what I say. So preaching to the converted.

Past blogs on Chatter have dealt with many issues most pertaining to the place that I live in. The biggest response with over 1000 views was an open letter to a young man who was advocating violence on a local radio station. I’d like to think that it did make him think and I have noted that he had indeed realised that violence is not the way.

I’ve written about the attitude to the LBGT community as a grandmother with a gay grandchild. Live and let live being the message.

Sadly there are too many blogs nowadays and it’s almost impossible to make an impression among those who have lots of followers.

Feeling impotent about making any great changes I find myself writing less and less but if it changes just one mind I’ll take that as a win.

This platform has awakened the want to write but as the title suggests I’m not naive and I know it’s hard to change views, as people are afraid of change, happy to go along with the status quo.

Describe one habit that brings you joy.

I never used to like walking, until Covid struck and that was one of the few ways I had to get away from the day to day tedium of staying indoors.

Luckily I live near sea, countryside and mountains. I also live in a beautiful place called Northern Ireland.

We ( husband and I ) started walking every day in 2020 and I started taking photos. I would come home every day and write my diary on Facebook and put the photos on Twitter.

Roll on five years and I still walk every day, still take photos and still write my diary on Facebook and now have a dedicated bunch of followers who read it every night.

It’s a habit I hope I can carry on as long as physically possible, as it gives me a lot of pleasure both from the walking and the fact that friends can share the walks with me through my photos.

How would you describe yourself to someone who can’t see you?

5 foot 2, eyes of blue

Silver hair ( not grey)

On the chubby side.

Friendly face with a welcoming smile.

Approachable

No tattoos or piercings.

Fresh faced with good skin.

Cuddly.

Good set of teeth but not all my own lol

Quite deaf when I’m not wearing hearing aids

What traditions have you not kept that your parents had?

There are quite a few traditions that I no longer keep, bearing in mind that I was brought up in the Catholic religion, wherein most traditions emerged during the early part of the 20th century.

The first tradition in my family was not eating meat on a Friday. We were only allowed to eat fish or a potato and vegetables. No big hardship but I couldn’t see the logic behind it so I abandoned that one when left home at aged 16.

Wimpy came to Belfast in the sixties and their burgers on a Friday evening after work were a treat.

Every night we were called into the living room, the rosary beads were produced and we got down on our knees to say the rosary. One of my brothers and I got behind the sofa and giggled and made funny faces until my dad dismissed us. Again that tradition went out the window when I moved up to the big smoke in Belfast.

It was also the tradition that on Easter Sunday we all got a new outfit to wear to church. That was one I’m embraced enthusiastically. Unfortunately due to my falling out with the church and religion I and my family no longer attend any church.

Another tradition I embraced was Christmas night, once I was allowed to to go to midnight mass and once I knew the secret about Santa.

You can watch it here

We do now have our own traditions but nothing to do with religion or the past

How would you describe yourself to someone?

We are all of course unique, unless you are an identical twin and even then there are probably qualities unique to each twin.

So besides my uniqueness I am an outgoing, liberal, woke lady of 75, married, with two children and four grandchildren.

I don’t indulge fools gladly and there are a lot about.

I’m outgoing and kind, interested in everything going on around me, both locally and globally. I interact on Twitter and write a diary on Facebook every day.

I’ve married across the religious divide in Northern Ireland during the troubles and written about it both here on Chatter and in a video blog on YouTube. So I’m not a shrinking violet.

I’m a good and faithful friend and will be there if you are having a tough time.

I’m obviously not very modest or I wouldn’t be saying so many nice things about my self.

Physically I’m overweight despite walking at least 2 miles a day but I’m reasonably healthy and accepting that I’m never going to be slim again.

I’m very much consumed with American politics and follow it closely. So an anti- trumper and can’t believe some Americans would actually entertain voting for him.

So that’s me in a nutshell!

What’s the story behind your nickname?

Don’t have one, never had one, unlikely I’ll ever have one.

What strategies do you use to maintain your health and well-being?

Stratagise : To devise a strategy or course of action.

I really don’t have any strategies about my health and well-being. I just go on instinct and the numerous tablets I take every day and so far I’m not doing too badly.

I don’t drink alcohol, not because I disapprove but because I can’t stand the taste. To me it’s like drinking medicine straight from the bottle. I also hate the taste of coffee so I stick to tea.

I know I should drink more water and I do when I remember.

I have grandchildren ranging from 16 to 24 and they keep me young mentally, which in my opinion helps with my physical condition.

I walk at least 2 miles a day and recently completed 100k walk during the month of June for Dementia UK and raised over £1000 pounds.

I go to bed late and stay in bed late doing most of my homework and gardening in the afternoon, then watch tv in the evenings.

So no strategies just playing it by ear and using common sense.

What are your future travel plans?

I have no future travel plans.

I haven’t had a holiday in over 20 years and that is due to choice.

I traveled when I was younger but holidays usually ended up a disaster. I couldn’t wait to get home again and get into my own cosy bed, in my safe place, home.

I look at travellers now, caught up in queues at airports, cancellation of flights, extreme weather conditions and I think to myself, I’m lucky to be here at home, no hassle and able to go outdoors in moderate temperatures. Ok bloody cold !

I watch my children and grandchildren jet off to Bali and Greece and other far flung places and I worry that they will be safe.

So no I have no future travel plans other than to the great beyond but hope that I don’t need to pack my case just yet.

What would you change about modern society?

For every generation since the 1600’s I’m pretty sure they thought they lived in a modern society. From that point on things began to change, new discoveries were made, great advances in science, discovery of new continents and of course, the printing press which was a game changer.

I’ve lived in both the mid twentieth century and we are now a quarter of the way into the 21st Century.

So I’ve lived in a time back in the fifties where many of the things we now take for granted were only science fiction and not science facts.

If I had know then what I know now I would have been very wary of the World Wide Web.

I feel it has been the cause of many of today’s problems. Rumours spread around the world quickly, disinformation is rife and governments are infiltrated by those out to wreck the world order. Face to face friendships have been replaced by texts, FaceTime and emails. No wonder there are people in our modern world who feel lonely and isolated and Mental health is taking its toll.

So if I could change anything, even knowing that there are huge benefits, the internet would be one of the things I would change. I feel the danger of the internet and our increasing reliance on AI outweighs the benefits.

What’s your favorite game (card, board, video, etc.)? Why?

While I’ve enjoyed playing whist in the past, no one plays it anymore. Whist is a strategy card game where it is important to remember the cards already played. Similar to Bridge.

Whist drives used to be very popular community events in the local church hall when I was younger but the older people who knew how to play the game passed on and the younger people became engrossed in video games.

So I joined the online games and for the last 13 years I’ve played ‘Word with Friends’ with friends from all over the world. Keeps my mind sharp and I even discover words that I haven’t come across before. For those who haven’t heard of it, think of Scrabble but slightly different rules.

Opponents come and go so it’s always a challenge to win as many games as possible.

As long as gaming and games don’t take over your life they are great way of keeping the brain active especially at my age.