We come from the land of the ice and snow
Dr. O’C is the latest member of A Free Man’s household to crack the job market. After what will be nearly a year in the purgatory of stay-at-home motherhood (she would quite possibly use a different word), Dr. O’C will re-join the ranks of the gainfully employed next month. This is the latest in a string of successes in our new Antipodean home and reflects one of the reasons that we came down here. And looking at things as a whole, and knocking exuberantly on wood, things are going pretty good in our new home.
A fellow American in Adelaide who stumbled onto my site wrote a post the other day that got me thinking about immigration. Her point is that most expats (and other people for that matter) relish and toss around the word ‘expatriate’ but ‘cringe’ at the word immigrant. ‘Expatriate’ carries with it images of glamour, worldliness, champagne on the Seine and first class round the world flights. ’Immigrant’ conjures images of huddled masses in steerage, midnight dashes over the Rio Grande and closed doors.
I prefer the word ‘expatriate’ myself but the Australian government, probably rightly, would use the word ’immigrant’ to describe me. Maybe it’s time I started to use that word as well. Both Dr. O’C and I come from a long line of immigrants and maybe it was natural that we followed in their footsteps. Dr. O’C’s family emigrated from Ireland to Australia when she and her sister were quite young in the hopes of making a better life for their family. My great-grandparents emigrated from Europe to Canada in the early part of the 20th century to escape a continent that seemed to be in a state of endless war. My parents moved from Canada to the U.S. in the late 60’s to ride the tail end of the post-war boom. And I emigrated from the U.S. through Europe to Australia in the early part of the 21st century in search of a life that I didn’t think was available to me in the U.S.
I suspect that all of the immigrants in our bloodlines had the same goal when they picked up and left their home - a better life for our families. All of them achieved that goal - they succeeded beyond what they thought possible in the Old Country. Now, with the unemployment rate in the Free Man household reaching 0%* we’re well on the way to that better life that brought us Down Under.
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* We’re going to give Baby Z a few years before including him in employment statistics. 12 or 13 maybe?
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[…] Original post by admin […]
22 Jul 2008 at 10:25 am
Congratulations! I’d just like to know what line of work Timmins has chosen.
I’ve never thought of you as an immigrant. You’re more of a drifter. And a crazy-eyed drifter, at that.
Nicholes last blog post..Dark of Knight
22 Jul 2008 at 10:47 am
Thanks for that, Nichole.
22 Jul 2008 at 11:23 am
Woo hoo I got a job and a bloody good one too!
Sad about sending Zach to kid jail every day though.
22 Jul 2008 at 11:48 am
Congratulations from Baltimore.
I think when you’re an expatriate you feel like you’re on an extended vacation, because an idea of a Real Home is always there to make you feel safe. Immigration seems more like a final thing, like a real new beginning, where the only possibility is further migration. Taking aside the political use of the word immigration to create an Us vs. Them, we all prefer to imagine our migrations as beneficial and with as little risk as possible, which explains why we prefer to see ourselves as expatriates. It took me years to find out I actually left Israel for good.
People in the Suns last blog post..Kosher Leftovers
22 Jul 2008 at 1:45 pm
Dr. OC,
It’s a little hard to go back to work, you get used to being with them everyday but if you like what you do(sounds like it) it is so nice to be around peers again specifically and adults in general.
And as far as daycare goes, a recent study found a link between early social contact(like daycare) and lowered risk for childhood leukemia so that’s good right?
FormerlyFuns last blog post..I’m Wai-ting
22 Jul 2008 at 3:30 pm
congrats on the job DrO’C!
also Mr freeman what’s TMI?
ahahah beaner! can I call you all the immigrant names you used to call poor old hombre in the lab?
SSGs last blog post..Update again
22 Jul 2008 at 6:44 pm
SSG - TMI is, by definition, any conversation that involves Bonnie Prince Billy and your deflowering. Frickin’ wetback.
A Free Mans last blog post..We come from the land of the ice and snow
22 Jul 2008 at 7:44 pm
Yay! Dr. O’C on your jobby job!
I suppose when I get a permanent visa I can consider myself an immigrant. But for now expat will do.
Hezamaries last blog post..three years in Germany, ready for more
22 Jul 2008 at 9:15 pm
Congrats, Dr. O’C!!
“Immigrant” feels so final when I say it. It feels more permanent. I guess maybe it does apply to you now! You seem very settled and happy, and I’m thinking you might be where you’re going to spend the rest of your life.
It is very hard to put your child in kiddy jail everyday and wonder if he or she is being treated well, if you’re missing out on any “firsts”. For the longest time my job was so demanding I felt like someone else was raising my daughter, and in a way, they were. I was a single parent with no help at home.
But now that I’m a stay at home mom, sometimes I feel the itch to be out in the workforce blazing my way like before. The added income would certainly be a bonus, as well!
Sometimes it feels like a no-win situation, but the positive thing here is that you’re both great parents who share a partnership! That always makes the difference.
22 Jul 2008 at 9:40 pm
Yay, Dr. O’C! Good for you! I love that pic of you, too. I’m sure that wherever you send Z will be wonderful and not a kiddy jail at all. The bad thing about being a mom is that there is always guilt involved, no matter what you choose. You worry over sending him to daycare; I worry that mine are overly sheltered. In the end, all that matters is the quality of the time you spend with him.
Jessica Ks last blog post..Lawn Wars
22 Jul 2008 at 11:08 pm
Those are indeed sensational photos of the two of you! Congratulations to the power of 100000000000000000. I will say I did have a good feeling about this one; the BA and I have been giving thanks since we heard the news!
As for immigrants…..I prefer the word ‘trans-national’.
arizaphales last blog post..Give It Me Baby…ah huh huh…
23 Jul 2008 at 7:00 am
Congrats to all in the Free Man household! Although, if you were true immigrants, Lil’ Z would be working as a chimney sweep. He’d be great at getting into those tight spaces.
And Arizaphale, “trans-national” is awfully close to “Transamerica”…not sure if that’s the association that you’d want.
24 Jul 2008 at 3:38 am
I was thinking of putting him to work as a jockey, Nathan. I’ve been having him practice on the dog. He can just about stay on.
24 Jul 2008 at 8:10 am