From the beginning I told my brother, who was visiting his month old nephew, that I was not going to plonk my children down in front of the television when I needed a babysitter. I was determined not to hand my offspring over to something I could not interact with. For some reason I thought I could come to America, marry a Texan and undo what was a many generational tradition of 24 hour television in the living room. I succeeded! We have a television in the living room but it is rarely given the chance to expose itself to us.
In England our family home had a television but it was restricted by the programming gurus. We had four main channels for years, even when America was boasting 24 hour programming and tens of choices. As I was growing up broadcasts were only made during the early evening and night until about 1030 or 11 o’clock when we would sit and watch the screen gradually go completely black. At that point all good Englishmen knew it was time to go to bed! While our American cousins could watch a film when they woke up in the middle of the night, Englishmen had to read a book, or toss and turn until sleep reclaimed them again.
My brother said, “Good luck,” without taking his eyes off the screen, which he had been watching since his arrival 48 hours ago. Morning and daytime television was a novelty he had heard of in England and needed to experience fully before his return to that backwoods country across the pond, and experience it he did.
Well hello there! My name is Vivienne McNeny.
I am an empty nester exploring life as a Boomer…you could say I'm happily Boomering along!
As a homeschooling Mum I have finally quit the job of role model and mentor to my four children. I do what I want to do, eat when I feel like it, enjoy life with my blue eyed cowboy and clean my house once a month or so whether it needs it or not!
In true English form I write about the emergence of my true identity now that I can no longer hide behind my children as their Mum.
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