Plumbo-Jet

Shrek is catastrophic in many ways and last night was a brilliant example of how brilliantly catastrophic he can be.

Shrek had the idea of unclogging the bathroom sink with a sniffy little gadget called 'Plumbo-Jet' acheté à la Pharmacie. He proceeded to do that at one am. I am not sure that the early hour made his eyes bleary and he misread the instructions or he mistook what he was supposed to do with the darn Plumbo-Jet altogether. We had NaOH which is the chemical representation of Sodium Hydroxide, a basic compound projected onto the walls and everything in our bathroom. I came in for a brief two seconds, breathed in NaOH and that was enough to ignite a spluttering of coughs. My eyes were irritated and I had fear of blindness... It was not pretty. Shrek spent the next hour or so cleaning up the spectacular mess left by the NaOH volatile projectiles. He had to wash the whole bathroom down and threw everything within into the laundry hamper which meant joy for me because all I need is to do more laundry.

He told me today that he realises where he went wrong and that next time he would know EXACTLY what to do, i.e. press the wretched 'Plumbo-Jet' down into the sink plug, maintain it firmly there and turning on the tap full blast til the sink slowly becomes unclogged. I do not want to test how well Shrek has managed to comprehend the instructions and carry it out without inducing another disastrous episode. I simply do not want to see Plumbo-Jet get wasted again in my household.

Papa Nöel

I have been especially good this year. As they say in French 'J'ai eté une fille bien sage toute l'année. Alors tu m'apporteras quelque chose extra de la veille de Noël Papa ventre rond ???'

To sustain the myth of Santa Claus is not so bad because the world is already filled with cynicism and the innocence of children gets stripped bare so easily. Children have plenty of time to be cynical so for the first few years it would be fine to feed them the mythical images and start them on a good note. They will discover soon after that the world is full of paradoxes and disagreements and pain and suffering. To be a child and maintain innocence despite all that this world has to throw at you is truly a magnificent feat but unfortunately reality bites you in the backside and swirls you back to the pit of unending soucis*.


*soucis mean worries in French.
**There is a suburb aptly(or not) named Sans Souci in Sydney. How I wish I could live there and be worry free. Blarggggggh wishful thinking got me again!

From politics to ABC

During my university days I was quite a prolific and active left-wing idealist. It went so far as a vocal me engaging in protest at the G8 summit held in Melbourne in 2000. I was tireless in my political activities and it pained me to see so much injustice in the world.
I held leftist convictions which have been tamed somewhat and slowly digressed more and more towards the centre of the political spectrum the older I became and the more expanded the size of my family.

I still hold leftist convictions but have realised that neither extremes of the spectrum are practiceable alternatives. One cannot have pure capitalism nor communism because humans are flawed and theories are just that good in theory but by no means can be carried out by flawed humans to reflect its original pure intent. Marxism or capitalism both have reason and to deny the other by leaning to one end of the spectrum is unreasonable.

I believe that the powerful and developed nations owe it to the underdeveloped and developing third world their wealth and thus have to aid these in attaining a more equitable and sustainable economy without installing puppet governments.

I now have progressed to the ever so enlightening phase of singing ABC and other nursery rhymes to my adorable kids. I am a mum and that is a paramount responsibility not to be taken lightly.
The regeneration is important in this ever increasingly uncertain and insecure world. One knows not how the mechanics of world politics will spin and when the heavy armor will be deployed but I prefer to weigh my priorities by what is the most immediate in my sphere and invest in the future of my kids. World politics has to come second to educational aids such as ABC song and childrens books or even more pathetic the Wiggles merchandising. I will grudgingly admit while I am at it that the Wiggles are marketing geniuses. The bastards are draining parents hip-pockets whilst making a fortune for themselves. I digress...I am beginning to have the attention span of a 5 year old

The weather

Shall I say that the weather in Geneva does nothing but dampen my mood...

Disorder reigns

I was greeted with a nasty surprise which I had expected before arriving home that it would be the case. The house was in a state of disorder that I had trouble concentrating on anything else but the mess.

That's what happens when you have a reversal of roles and papa du jour (househusband) for a few days. I cannot imagine how it will be if that was to be a saga of weeks or months...

He did however accompany me the maximum of time whilst I was in the maternity and brought sporadically a few homemade dishes (that he cooked) which we shared and I highly appreciated that.

Frustrations of a stay at home mum

I have been blessed with the arrival of a newborn. The miracle of life never ceases to amaze. He is a beautiful creature that I never tire of admiring.

Yet I am confronting a dark and sombre period. Winter is here and that in itself brings about a sombre mood.

I seethe with rage everytime a stranger ask 'So what do you do for a living?' quizzically. I struggle with my response. The simple response being that I am a stay at home mum and that has all sorts of negative connotations embedded in it.

I am educated yet I am a particularly young mum with two toddlers and a newborn in tow. This is unusual if not to say a march against the tide and trend of today. It is unheard of that women who have fought so long to gain equality in the workforce with men can now relinquish what they have battled for and regress into the age of women who are nothing more than domesticated cattle who as a matter of course stay at home occupying housework and the raising of children.

I love the luxury of being able to watch my children grow everyday and realise that not many women are as lucky as I. Another part of me long to be able to do something more productive and valued in the ordinary sense, that is use my faculties to affect change and earn my keep at the same time.

I tread on this thin line of being exhilarated and down in the deeps of a self-evaluated worthlessness.

What I dread most is being Mrs ... without any rights to be my own person or woman entitled to being evaluated as a valued employee or credited with a job well done or having a capable intellect. What _I want is to be considered more than a simple minded housewife and uninteresting stay at home mum.
I do miss having a circle of supportive network here in Geneva. I have yet to establish links with the natives that go beyond mere acquaintances or convenient friends. I have found however a few friends whom I can sympathise/empathise and discuss my frustrations with. However I do not have a pillar of strength which is paramount to staying positive during this emotionally charged and tumultous (hormonally speaking) time. My husband throughout the three pregnancies have not been a tower of strength. I felt that he either spoke for me as if I needed a spokesperson before, during and post-partum. I can say that I've had the episiotomy stitches, childbirth pain and post-partum uterus contractions à travers the three pregnancies. I think it is not intentional on his part but he is ultimately a man and cannot empathise with what is uniquely a feminine experience that is different for every woman and different still with each new pregnancy. The husband made jokes which at the moment of excruciating pain did not seem all that funny to me. Maybe my sense of humour failed to see the light in the tunnel of pain but needless to say that his way of trying to lighten the mood did not go down well with me agonising.
What I really dislike is the post-partum question: So how are you ? Was it very painful? to which my husband answers with a decisive 'Oh it went fine, a birth punctuated with nothing out of the ordinary'. I would like to be able to tell it from my perspective so people do not mistake that the birth was all dandy indeed without any hitches. The end result though overrides all that pain and perhaps I do forget that it was hell when I was experiencing childbirth pain that stretched my pelvic floor however elastic it might be.

The lack of mental stimulation I experience while interacting with the kids is refreshing for its intense freshness and disarming innocence and yet tests my own limits of patience at the same time.

I resent the routine that staying at home entails mountains of laundry, cleaning after the kids endlessly, cooking and more cleaning...

I've been greeted with the baby blues...
I think I need to uplift my mood and am afraid that no amount of chocolate or other comfort food eating will do.

What is a desperate mum to do ?
This post has rather been highly therapeutic and that somehow eases my tristesse and gives me hope that I will overcome this with perhaps the help of a more tactful hubby who after having read this post will hopefully be more supportive and more understanding.

Seasons

Winter blues
Grey hues
Harsh winds render impossible the sprouting of buds

Orientation of the yellow fireball
pivoting towards lumiere

Blossoming buds
Chlorophyll tainted foliage

A new coat of paint
Song of birds praising nature's renewal

Intensifying canicule
Blinding light that imparts difficult rest and repose
Unending scintillation stretching the length of day


Changing colours
Pretty yellow hues and crimson foliage

The circle loops
Life begins anew in the cycle of seasonal change

WII

Too much exposure to Wii in the past two days have made me slightly nauseous and hoarse from all the screaming and cheering I did to support Donkey.

Shrek has created two uncontrollable monsters having introduced the Wii console into our household.

HELP!!!

Hibernation

The cold weather has really brought about a hivernale feel aka winter is here!!! It is awfully hard to get out of bed in the morning and unless one has got to be somewhere like work or school, one would infinitely prefer to stay in bed.

Hibernation is what animals do when the chills arrive and we as humans are no different. We are animals even if we would like to think of ourselves as some sort of superior being because we have the faculties and capacity to think.

I am finding it difficult to compose, create or be motivated. I am affected by the weather darnit. I am a summer person or at the very least spring. Autumn and winter just makes me want to hibernate and wake up when spring is here once again.

Other than the long winded essay on hibernation I have not got a lot to post about.

Back to the nice warm bed with the doona 'tis.

This post was just a post for post's sake

Shrek has saved pancakes

In the long running saga that is Shrek's attempt to make pancakes, Fiona has to concede that Shrek has made good his pancakes. They are still not the traditional or conventional pancakes that one would be used to but they are not half bad.

Shrek uses levure de boulangerie sec. (dry yeast)

Shrek has celebrated this by ritually making Sundays 'Pancake day'