Copypowerblog Has Nominated Me For The Mystery Blogger Award

After busy three weeks with my holidays up to the north of Wales and England sandwiched in between lots of over time to cover holidays for colleagues and help my landlady with extras…I am at last able to put my feet up and rest AND RECOVER!

I am heading out with friends for a day out in the fresh air. We are going walking and I am sure we will find the best locations to stop for a cuppa along the way. Well, that was the plan, before I caught this stinking cold. You actually find me wrapped up under the covers sipping hot lemon and ginger and popping decongestants. 😦

In the meantime I leave you a post I have enjoyed working on in response to a nomination for the Mystery Blogger Award which came from  copypowerblog, the creator of copypower as you can see fromt he post below:

Mystery Blogger Award Nomination!!!

What is the Mystery Award?

“Mystery Blogger Award” is an award for amazing bloggers with ingenious posts. Their blog not only captivates; it inspires and motivates. They are one of the best out there, and they deserve every recognition they get. This award is also for bloggers who find fun and inspiration in blogging; and they do it with so much love and passion. – Okoto Enigma

Rather ostentatious award!

Rules

1. Put the award logo/image on your blog
2. List the rules
3. Thank whoever nominated you and provide a link to their blog – THANK YOU COPERPOWERBLOG!
4. Answer the questions from the blogger who nominated you
5. Mention the creator of the award and provide a link as well
6. Tell your readers 3 things about yourself
7. You have to nominate 10 – 20 people
8. Notify your nominees by commenting on their blog
9. Ask your nominees any 5 questions of your choice; with one weird or funny question (specify)
10. Share a link to your best post(s)

Three Things About Me

• I went to night school to learn British Sign Language for a couple of years and went onto interpret for many who were deaf up in the North West of England.
• I did one of those TEFL courses (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) and ended up teaching English to students and others who wanted help with their English. At the same time, I learnt quite a few expressions from their own languages, including Chinese Mandarin, Gujarati, Polish and Romanian.
• I once made a profiterole pyramid for a friend’s wedding with just less than 400 profiteroles (although we made extras just in case). I have had many requests to do it again, but it was a huge logistical enterprise, I don’t think I will ever agree to it again.

Questions From Copypowerblog

1. Which life virtue do you value the most?

Kindness!

My parents trained us to think, speak and act kindly towards others.

• “If you don’t have anything kind to say, best not to say anything at all.”
• “If you are not sure which way is best, always choose the kind way.”
• “People don’t really care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”

2. What is that one thing you want to do to cut down your stress due to workload at your job place?

I already did it six months ago. I left!!! I worked for another company. I enjoyed the job, although it could be very demanding. I did lots and lots of kind extras for a long time. But it was the persistent laziness of other staff that made me think it was time for me to me to escape and allow them to learn to do their job properly. Nothing was going to change otherwise. Win-win! Good for me and good for them! That was kind of me was it not!

Since August I have been working for a business which is just a short walk away from where I live. I work less hours than before. I like the job. The clientele is completely different to where I worked before. My workmates are very hard working and diligent. Everyone is helpful and friendly. That was the best decision I made last year.

3. How will you/do you contribute towards gender equality, racism, domestic violence?

There are a lot of people who need to be re-educated. That will happen in the future. They will have to learn.

In the meantime, I speak, dress, act in a way than naturally wins respect from others rather than having to force it or demand it. If I do come across someone who is completely degraded in their thinking …well, it depends on the setting, if it’s at work – well that is what my manager or the HR department are there for – dealing with the challenging behaviour of individuals who have not been trained to treat others appropriately.

With regards to gender equality, I do realize there are some lands in which women have very little freedom and hardly any legal rights. This often makes them subject to all manners of abuse and violation of basic human rights. That is distressing. I have worked as a volunteer in lands with women who were almost shocked at the confidence and security those of us from western lands had around men. To us it was completely natural to feel at ease with expressing our opinions and making most of own decisions. Some women from other lands have found this alien to the culture they are so used to. I can understand the enormous frustration of women who have virtually no recognition as a human with value, with a contribution to make and a right to access both information and to be able to reason and make choices.

But here in England, I am sometimes not sure what people are asking for. Women are not the same as men. Everyone should receive respect, dignity, kindness. But I am not shy of celebrating the many ways I am different from a man. I am a woman. I do not want to be treated like a man. Equal? Well equal is not always fair, and fair is not always equal. I was paid the same rate as a man I used to work with. He was lazy to be frank. Should I rejoice that we had equal pay? I however, was far more respected and liked and appreciated by clients and colleagues alike and had a much more rewarding time at work.

Should I be pleased that young men will take the seats on the bus even putting their dirty boots on the seat opposite rather than standing up and offering the seat to a woman?

I just observe there are some who naturally dignify and honour others. And there are those who do not. That counts for both men and women. I think a lack of respect and consideration for others is a great shame. There is a huge reward in thinking of the interests of others and going the extra mile. Many have no idea how satisfying it is to manifest respect towards other people. When I see someone showing honour to other people, I am incredibly drawn to them.

When I am working on a construction site, should I be expected to lift the same loads as a man? To be able to last as long digging footings and trenches for groundworks as a man? To be able to operate machinery like a jack-hammer? I am grateful I am not expected to have the same physical strength and stamina as a man. Does it bother me that at lunch time many of the men I work with will gulp down their lunch and run back to the canteen to have seconds? Am I glad to admit I am tired and achy than my male co-workers and I would be happy to change assignments for an hour and make drinks for everyone instead of wielding a pick-axe or a shovel? Things are so much easier as a volunteer because nobody gets paid, and everyone is valued and appreciated. There are supervisors, but they are there for good reason, there is no sense of hierarchy. I have rarely felt any concerns over being treated unfairly – and never because I was a woman.

I am thankful that I have been reared in such wonderful ways by my parents. I follow their example in treating others the same way I would like to be treated.

In the meantime there are some agencies and organisations who are working hard to support those who are victim to mistreatment and crimes. Whether that is the police or another agency, they provide a degree of relief to victims.

4. Who is/are the best person/people in your life till date?

My family are pretty amazing.

But there are so many friends I have made whilst volunteering who have become very special to me, a true inspiration and absolute delight to work with. Even Jack has been a huge inspiration to me despite the hurt he has caused me.

Goldfinch of course has brought me a wondrous happiness and has made my smiles deepen throughout the course of last year. I am sad that he is now on the opposite side of the planet…but I am very grateful to have had him in my life. I just want to be sure he is happy. If he is happy, I am happy. If he is not happy, I am going to push myself to take risks with my health and my little nest here in London and go to him in Australia to see if I can make a difference to his happiness. I only let him go because I am convinced he has a lot of happiness ahead of him there. If I am wrong about that, I would climb mountains and trek over deserts to be there for him.

Let’s hear it for Goldfinch! Who made me feel alright with men.

Have I mentioned lately that I love this man?

5. Your New Year resolution.

I don’t have one…other than the essential staying alive!

I don’t make resolutions because of the ticking of the calendar or the movement of the stars. My parents taught me as a little one to make wise decisions and live a balanced life. They encouraged healthy habits in us. I don’t engage in practices that would ruin my health.

I have made goals and worked towards them at times, but I did so when it felt right. For example I built up from a casual jogger to a long distance runner by setting small goals along the way. But since I had my head injuries my goals have become more about staying out of hospital!

But my long term goal is to go back to my home, my world, my career – where my heart is, the center of my universe. It may take a while though. I just need to keep my end goal in mind and each day take whatever little steps needed to reach my end destination.

One Of My Best Posts

• We Are The Champions!

My Questions For My Nominees

1. I AM FROM LIVERPOOL WHERE THE BEATLES GREW UP – DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE BEATLES TRACK?
2. WERE THERE ANY TEACHERS AT YOUR SCHOOL WHO REALLY INSPIRED YOU AND MADE YOU WANT TO DO WELL?
3. DID YOU EVER GET IN TROUBLE AT SCHOOL? WHAT FOR?
4. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN A VICTIM OF BULLYING? EITHER AS A CHILD OR AS AN ADULT?
5. IF SOMETHING KNOCKS YOUR CONFIDENCE HOW DO YOU BUILD YOURSELF BACK UP AGAIN? WHERE DO YOU GO OR WHO DO YOU TURN TO FOR ENCOURAGEMENT?

My Nominees

 Ponnz – The Swan Song

 YariGarciaWrites

 Laundry and Dishes

 echoedition

 astijake John – Willing Yourself To Win

 janine bonifacio – HUED SPIRIT

 MrsT – Life With Mrs T

tabbie2012 – Naturally South Australia

 lmkling – leeannemarieblog

 learningtolovewinterblog