tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post1787652118873657189..comments2024-03-28T14:45:34.423-04:00Comments on 37 Paddington: The one about Jamaicans…37paddingtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-17780245160342604882021-09-21T08:43:55.170-04:002021-09-21T08:43:55.170-04:00am, how wonderful that you listened. She is a spec...am, how wonderful that you listened. She is a special soul, my cousin. And thank you for having your library order my niece's book! I am so grateful for your kindness and support.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-4971608375307562902021-09-21T08:41:58.180-04:002021-09-21T08:41:58.180-04:00am, writing is a joy for me in the sense that it h...am, writing is a joy for me in the sense that it helps keep me sane. I know many people think that is overstatement, but it is really not. Even so, it is a hard job, especially when you are trying to capture the voice and meet desires of other people. It might be why I write about writing so much here, to process the stress and uncertainty, to stay sane.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-79215860020883874512021-09-21T08:39:02.630-04:002021-09-21T08:39:02.630-04:00e, thank you! It's the angst of the freelancer...e, thank you! It's the angst of the freelancer! You never know when, where, of from whom the next job will appear. I have been lucky, and I don't take it for granted.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-76179377382113837082021-09-20T18:45:33.721-04:002021-09-20T18:45:33.721-04:00Enjoyed listening to the interview with your cousi...Enjoyed listening to the interview with your cousin that I found on the website for the publishing house:<br /><br />https://www.wgts919.com/sites/default/files/breakawaypodcastkarenwalkingeagle.mp3amhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09212213177713917828noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-80027023237458538862021-09-19T19:09:51.414-04:002021-09-19T19:09:51.414-04:00Writing is clearly one of the joys in your life an...Writing is clearly one of the joys in your life and so many benefit from what you write and edit. Suddenly I see your life as a writer as a beautiful dance, turning this way and that with grace, caught up in the challenging intricacies of editing and writing while being fully engaged with your family and friends near and far. I've asked our public library to purchase a copy of The Land of Look Behind and look forward to reading it. <br /><br />I do believe, as it says on the cover of your niece's book, that anything lost can be found.amhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09212213177713917828noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-164837374702105942021-09-19T18:11:55.091-04:002021-09-19T18:11:55.091-04:00Both my daughters have made good in their vocation...Both my daughters have made good in their vocations, in spite of chauvinist male piggishness. What I see you as having is an amazing skill that you can use to get at least some of the valuation you are due. My girls are white Canadians and so have had a much easier path than you and yours. But none of us has reached this shelf of life unscathed. MARY Ghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13178370815712313585noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-6802795987040279442021-09-19T13:52:13.698-04:002021-09-19T13:52:13.698-04:00Congratulations and why is it you fear not having ...Congratulations and why is it you fear not having enough work??? Catch your breath now and then!ehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11376645220662546020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-63886086499393177342021-09-19T13:41:41.347-04:002021-09-19T13:41:41.347-04:00Steve, bingo! That's exactly where the joke or...Steve, bingo! That's exactly where the joke originated, and Jamaicans took it to heart, made it a point of pride, and spun further jokes from that original characterization. I was going to link a skit from In Living Color to explain the source of the joke, but didn't go searching for it in the end. I too wonder how their comedy would play now. 37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-43483969855605284372021-09-19T12:00:18.841-04:002021-09-19T12:00:18.841-04:00Did you ever watch the TV show "In Living Col...Did you ever watch the TV show "In Living Color" back in the early '90s? They did a (possibly recurring?) skit about a West Indian family and everyone had multiple jobs. I loved that show at the time, but I wonder how the humor would play these days! Anyway, I think it's amazing how you keep yourself organized with all that exciting stuff going on. :)Steve Reedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11684120060438252945noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-59952886664775864602021-09-19T11:48:36.324-04:002021-09-19T11:48:36.324-04:00LL Cool Joe, you would love my cousin. Everyone lo...LL Cool Joe, you would love my cousin. Everyone loves her, they can't help it. She is such a pure soul. As are you, I feel. Thank you for appreciating her.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-30994114749006074162021-09-19T11:47:37.142-04:002021-09-19T11:47:37.142-04:00Alison, thank you; writing on the blog is a kind o...Alison, thank you; writing on the blog is a kind of freedom, as I don't have to please anyone here. I think of it as a chance to check in with my friends, as well as to set down a record of sorts. It's also good practice, a habit that helps banish writer's block in my work. 37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-72000680401648974362021-09-19T11:41:44.324-04:002021-09-19T11:41:44.324-04:00robin, thank you for that kindness, but you know, ...robin, thank you for that kindness, but you know, if I lived in a place where nature frolicked all day as it does where you are, I would probably spend more time exploring it too. 37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-14750599248198512052021-09-19T11:39:54.507-04:002021-09-19T11:39:54.507-04:00Kristin, I think your son's children, and mayb...Kristin, I think your son's children, and maybe your son too! would enjoy the book. It's a simple story about a strategy that is somehow quite effective.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-90386833287337868132021-09-19T11:38:25.623-04:002021-09-19T11:38:25.623-04:00Pixie, I do think you are right. Another cousin of...Pixie, I do think you are right. Another cousin of mine is a political science professor who has done research on immigrants. She says not only does it take a certain kind of resolve to pick oneself up and move to an entirely new land, but once there, the immigrant needs to make a success of things in order to justify the uprooting. She says immigrants (obviously not just Jamaican ones) are a powerfully motivated group. Makes sense to me. And thank you sooooo much for ordering my niece's book! She will be thrilled!37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-65440430715893938362021-09-19T11:37:17.891-04:002021-09-19T11:37:17.891-04:00Sabine, it is hard work, I mostly love it when I&#...Sabine, it is hard work, I mostly love it when I'm done. As for breath, the pandemic has given me leave to take many deep breaths, as I am in a part of the country that takes it seriously. Life has slowed down a lot. Some days, I like that. Some days, I climb the walls.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-35629882482081653602021-09-19T11:35:26.752-04:002021-09-19T11:35:26.752-04:00Mary, I take your point fully to heart, it is inde...Mary, I take your point fully to heart, it is indeed true that women through time have been obliged to multitask. I do hope our daughters will have more choices, though it's hard to know given the state of the world. A single engrossing vocation, in some way I have that, though I do it on more fronts that one, so perhaps I am a lucky one. I do feel I have been lucky in this life. I also avoid adding up the times when said luck didn't hold, and that helps haha.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-48315097462339776822021-09-19T11:26:27.792-04:002021-09-19T11:26:27.792-04:00jenny_o, having written other people's memoirs...jenny_o, having written other people's memoirs, I no longer feel any particular drive to write my own. I feel rather boring to myself, though a memoir about extended family members does still intrigue me. There are so many stories within large families.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-82442527072647243212021-09-19T11:22:03.670-04:002021-09-19T11:22:03.670-04:00Linda Sue, Covid has gifted us all a lot of time a...Linda Sue, Covid has gifted us all a lot of time at home. There are only so many distractions. I've begun to miss the world at large, even though, to be honest, there are still many days when I open my eyes and am secretly grateful that because of the pandemic, I can be forgiven for making no plans.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-63614442635832936612021-09-19T11:19:08.814-04:002021-09-19T11:19:08.814-04:00Ms. Moon, I love when we meet in dreams! It worrie...Ms. Moon, I love when we meet in dreams! It worries me that I often work because I don't know what else to do with myself.37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-3401032297141604342021-09-19T07:08:55.117-04:002021-09-19T07:08:55.117-04:00Your cousin sounds like the kind of lady I'd l...Your cousin sounds like the kind of lady I'd love to know. I am a born again kind of Christian. :DLL Cool Joehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13916666100971008775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-12373087105325579052021-09-18T20:52:53.569-04:002021-09-18T20:52:53.569-04:00You do have a prodigious output of work. That was...You do have a prodigious output of work. That was a beautifully written post. The words and thoughts just flow.Allisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02475433199308666648noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-40453632402561701412021-09-18T17:16:10.058-04:002021-09-18T17:16:10.058-04:00I want to read every book you've described her...I want to read every book you've described here. I want to read the poetry. I am taken aback by the amount of work you get done, all the deep editorial reading. I feel like I've accomplished something if I get a blog post up once or twice a week, and maybe go for a nice long walk. You are an inspiration.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-66547201597918510682021-09-18T16:49:10.336-04:002021-09-18T16:49:10.336-04:00I should really get this book for my 39 year old s...I should really get this book for my 39 year old son as he is still always loosing things. Mabye I'll do it by getting it for his son or daughter.Kristinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06413795611563683135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-29574211833323116992021-09-18T16:14:09.415-04:002021-09-18T16:14:09.415-04:00What a lot of involvement and hard but wonderful w...What a lot of involvement and hard but wonderful work. Remember to take a breath now and then.Sabinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09015827501648296977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9107151958453669111.post-33791930283995401142021-09-18T15:59:50.126-04:002021-09-18T15:59:50.126-04:00It seems to me that the multiple task description ...It seems to me that the multiple task description is apt for many women, not just Jamaican ones. Or at least in my generation. My daughters and their friends are more likely to have a single, engrossing vocation. Which is to say that things have opened up for women somewhat since the 1960's. For some women. Um, better quit this before I get bitter.<br />I really enjoy the way you write here. Excellent and engaging.<br />MARY Ghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13178370815712313585noreply@blogger.com