Outsider


I grew up in Northern Ireland and have been a teacher and lived in England, Ghana, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Malawi, Mexico, Colombia, The United Arab Emirates, Australia, Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia.

These are my memoirs which are arranged chronologically by year. Much is social commentary.

Aside from narrative recount, the style is often anecdotal, aphoristic and ironical. I try to soften the heavy social commentary with humour. Some friends have said I tend to 'rant' at times. I don't deny it! Perhaps it is the Irish in me. I apologise in advance then, if that is your impression too.

I do not intend to stereotype various nationalities but inevitably I will generalise for dramatic effect.

In a globalised multicultural world there is an urgent need to identify and face up to our national idiosyncracies and shortcomings. Nationalism has always seemed to me to be a bogus substitute for a genuine sense of connectedness and community. It is a highly dangerous concept when manipulated by politicians to get citizens to do things that are unpalatable to them-like going to war for instance.

If we don't begin to see ourselves as others perceive us - and not as we would like to see ourselves, then catastrophe looms.

I contend we can be comfortable with our heritage and still be able to criticize and even laugh at ourselves at the same time.


The two are not mutually exclusive.

Outsiders are in a unique position to show us our shortcomings because we simply cannot see them ourselves.

I believe that no culture has found the ideal 'solutions' to the challenges of life. Every culture I have lived in has both positive and disturbing characteristics.

In which cultures do people appear happiest? (notwithstanding natural and man-made disasters such as war and famine)

What question can be more profound than that?

The results may be surprising. In my experience, the happiest cultures were Ghana, Malawi, Mexico and Colombia. At the bottom of the list would be England, Ireland and Australia.

I think we need to learn from each other-not try to 'teach' each other...there is a big difference.

Please send me an E-mail if you would like to comment on anything.


Outsider


Outsider1952@gmail.com









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Thursday, July 16, 2009

Harassment by receptionists in Adelaide

Harrassment by officious petty bureaucrats.

What is it with receptionists at the Medical Centre?.

Is it that when they hear my accent -they think -'Oh, he's a foreigner I can patronize him!" (paranoia setting in?)

Or is it that they speak to everyone in the same way?

I call the doctor to make an appointment and I get the usual 'bossy' tone of the Aussie receptionists.

They speak to me like they are talking to  a dog.

Eventually, as if she were doing me a favour, she gives me an appointment -but it has to be a week in advance because there are no doctors left in government service: they have all become private doctors creaming it in fixing adolescent girl's teeth..

Then the vampire says this......"There is a note here that you owe us 5 dollars for the re-issue of a prescription."

What sort of bullshit is this?

Is there anywhere in the world where receptionists are so petty?

I certainly haven't seen them them for sure.

This is the third time I have had to explain that my doctor (not myself) made a mistake with my dosage necessitating a re-issue of a prescription.

Don't these vampires speak to each other in between phone calls?

Why can't we have some migrant male receptionists in Adelaide?

They might just be more efficient and certainly more polite.
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