Could this be the end?

[theatokos]

Of my sickness and the five questions meme?


1. What is the most exciting new thing that Bennett has learned recently?
Ooh, exciting? Hitting. Me, specifically. He doesn't hit other kids or adults, but he loves to smack me. In the face. It's very exciting. But also his dancing is getting more and more expressive. He just added a head move. CUTEST. THING. EVER.

2. What is the most exciting new thing that YOU have learned recently?
I don't identify as a Christian anymore. That's pretty huge. I haven't been doing much work for the last 3 weeks - let me rephrase. I've done no school work for three weeks, so I've learned nothing about my topic recently.

3. What have you found to be the most salient cultural difference between Wales and America?
Health care is free. Birth is midwife driven and homebirth is not discouraged. In fact, some towns have a 10% homebirth rate! The health service is aiming to raise that to 20%. Whereas in the US, it is illegal in some states, and the rate is about 1%, in a thriving homebirth area! Regular pediatric check ups are home visits. And it's all FREE. This is blowing my mind.

Is that cultural? I don't know. But I think it might be. Here, things just move more slowly. I feel like it's far more humane here.

4. How goes the graduate work?
Stalled out. Been sick constantly for three weeks. I tried a while ago to go sit and study in my office, but climbing the four flights of stair to it knocked me out and all I wanted to do was nap once I got up there.

5. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I'd like to be done with my PhD, possibly with two more kidlets, definitely one more, and still in Wales. Wales isn't sexy or glamorous, it's quiet, and I don't think it's easy to get rich here, but it's so humane and raising kids here would be ideal. The only reason I will ever move back to the US is for friends and family. I knew I'd enjoy living here, but I had no idea that I'd feel this way. I think about the US and there are things I miss and love - but I look forward to visiting them.... and then coming back here. We've only been here 10 weeks, so perhaps it's still the honeymoon period.

Comments

[bloodfever.livejournal.com]

It never ceases to amaze me that there are people in the developed world who don't have access to things like free health care.

[ewigweibliche.livejournal.com]

I always knew it was a good idea in theory, but now that I've experienced it in practice... holy crap, I don't want to leave!

[bloodfever.livejournal.com]

That's the other thing that boggles, the fact that more than a few Americans (not just politicians, either) seem to think it's a *bad thing*. WTF?

[ewigweibliche.livejournal.com]

I know. I don't really understand it. I think it has to do with ideas that socialism = communism, that (other) people should pay their own way, and no one wants to pay more in taxes.

[bloodfever.livejournal.com]

It *seems* like the personal tax rates as a proportion of income for the UK, US, and Australia are roughly equivalent (when both federal and state taxes are considered) - and somehow the UK and AU manage to pay for free health care...tax however is a complicated thing and it's not easy to compare across countries so perhaps there is something more to the story.

[ewigweibliche.livejournal.com]

I wonder if it's economies of scale? The US has 304 million, the UK has 61 million, and Australia has 21 million. Our university fees are also astronomical in comparison to the UK and Australia. I think our infrastructure (roads etc) and our military costs eat up a lot of our taxes.

[bloodfever.livejournal.com]

There may be something in the scale thing, although it feels like it should be irrelevant since the proportion of the population paying tax should (may?) be roughly the same so a country with 15 times as many people also has a tax revenue 15 times higher. *shrug* Maybe that's not how it works, I don't know much about economics...

[erinya.livejournal.com]

I want to see video of the dancing! The hitting sounds less fun though. :-P

I'm glad you love Wales so much and that it feels even more right than you expected. It makes me a little sad that you probably won't be living near me again, but you definitely sound happier and more inspired since the move, and that makes me happy.

[ewigweibliche.livejournal.com]

When we're rich.... I want to spend 6 weeks in Juneau during the summer and then make a 2 week trip to SF in Feb for Pantheacon, food and friends.

But Adam has no plan to live here permanently, so we may not be so far away forever.