My friend Tam posted 31 random facts about herself and asked if I would do the same. It sounded like fun, so here they are!
1. I am Dutch but have lived in the UK for over 10 years now
2. I speak only Dutch to my kids. It is challenging as I haven’t used my Dutch much these past 10 years, but I’m pleased to be doing it as I think it’s valuable for them to grow up bilingual.
3. I love raspberries, they are my favourite food
4. My mum passed away when I was 15. She was 50 and had MS. For a very long time her death defined my life and how I saw myself. I’m slowly working on changing that.
5. I’m a city girl. I love the countryside but I could only live in a city, preferably very centrally in a big one
6. So following on from that point it pleases me a lot to live in Central London.
7. I’m an introvert and fairly shy/quiet around people I don’t know. However, around my friends I can be very chatty, loud and silly.
8. I am a huge Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan. So much so I wrote my dissertation for my bachelor’s degree on the subject.
9. I love cats. I always wanted a cat when I was growing up but never had one. In 2009 after Andrew and I got married and got our own place I finally got a cat. She’s called Tikka, she’s a Bengal and she’s pretty crazy.
10. Unexpectedly, having kids has given me a sense of fulfillment that I hadn’t experienced before. I always felt I was searching for something before, and now I feel more at peace at being in the moment (and ironically that actually makes it easier to achieve things).
11. My father is Sri Lankan. I never knew him growing up, but my mum took me to meet him in Sri Lanka when I was 6. (Which is actually kind of weird looking back on it now as an adult)
12. I’ve been seeing a therapist for a bit over a year now. It’s something I feel I shouldn’t feel shame or embarrassment about (nor should anyone), however I still do. Seeing a therapist is like breathing a sigh of relief for me, like after all these years someone is finally listening.
13. I am a complete and total art supply addict. I get a big kick out of buying new stuff and even just after buying new supplies I’m already looking at other things I ‘need’. Somebody help me…
14. My nickname for Andrew when we were dating was ‘Pookie’, which he didn’t like much. However, over time it became special to us and our weddings rings have ‘Pookie & Pookielina’ inscribed in them.
15. I wore glasses for most of my life. In 2010 I had laser eye surgery to correct my vision.
16. I prefer savoury over sweet food.
17. I have a tattoo of an iris on my shoulder. I got it when I was 18.
18. When I was little I lived in Indonesia with my mum several times for a few months because of her work (when I was 1, then when I was 4 and a few weeks while I was 5). I went to a Dutch school there and have really good memories of it.
19. I taught myself HTML and CSS through building my own websites when I was a teenager (remember expage anyone?). I actually had a job as a web coder for a while after university but it was something I just fell into because I happened to have acquired the skill and needed to earn money, it wasn’t something I particularly enjoyed.
20. I love carrying my kids in a sling. With my second son Zephyr we have hardly use a buggy at all. I love the closeness it brings. I sometimes carry Jupiter as well (in a sling on my back) although he’s getting heavy now he’s almost 3.
21. I am usually cold and I always have cold feet. The ambient temperature needs to be about 25C (77F) for me to stop having cold feet, this doesn’t happen often in the UK.
22. I hated being pregnant, both times.
23. I like the colour pink, especially dark/hot pink. Turquoise/teal is also a favourite.
24. I have no siblings. I used to wish I had a twin sister.
25. I love the US and wish we could travel there more often.
27. I used to be into horses in a major way. I rode for years and had my own horse for a little while.
28. I love sweets. I especially like ones like strawberry laces, Haribo pasta frutta, smurfs, bananas & frogs (none of those Haribo are sold in the UK unfortunately).
29. True to my Dutch heritage, I love Dutch licorice. It’s something I miss a lot and always stock up on when I go back.
30. I drink one cup of Earl Grey tea every day with my lunch.
31. I always name my electronic devices. This started with my laptop Susy (RIP). Since then we’ve had Goliath (desktop PC, RIP), Slither (MacBookPro), Midnight (iPhone) and Codex (Kindle).
