Maggie is our host this week and you can join in by clicking here
This week’s prompt is: Then and Now
- Were you more of an introvert or an extrovert?
- Did you have a boisterous or a more reserved personality?
- Were you more confident or did you tend to be insecure?
- Were you social or were you more of a loner?
- Were you a good listener or a good talker?
- Did you like school or dread it?
- Did you like the outdoors or did you prefer staying inside?
- Did you have deep thoughts about the world, the universe, etc., or did you only see as far as where you lived?
- What did you want to be when you grew up?
- Looking back, how did you fare as an adult? Are you still that same person or have you changed? If you changed, was it a dramatic shift or just slight changes? Did you end up in the profession you thought you would?
- Were you more of an introvert or an extrovert?
I think I was a rather quiet child, but I had my moments. - Did you have a boisterous or a more reserved personality?
I was a typical kid who liked to run and play outside. - Were you more confident or did you tend to be insecure?
I knew I was loved, had a few friends when I was a child but was always in my sister’s shadow, so never confident. - Were you social or were you more of a loner?
More of a loner, especially in my teens. - Were you a good listener or a good talker?
I was a good listener, though I tended to talk too much when I was nervous. - Did you like school or dread it?
I loved Junior school, but hated grammar school. - Did you like the outdoors or did you prefer staying inside?
I liked playing outside though I was never a sporty type, but inside was OK too, especially as I had my music. - Did you have deep thoughts about the world, the universe, etc., or did you only see as far as where you lived?
I don’t think I really thought about it, though I had a lot of penfriends around the world at one stage and we sent picture post cards to each other. - What did you want to be when you grew up?
I remember wanting to breed pirannean mountain dogs. These two were father and son and the pictures taken in September 2019. Both are show dogs but were allowed to play and get wet on the beach. Sadly the older one died last year.
- Looking back, how did you fare as an adult? Are you still that same person or have you changed? If you changed, was it a dramatic shift or just slight changes? Did you end up in the profession you thought you would?
I am not the person I was 35 years ago as I rebuilt my life in 1988 following a nervous breakdown. I like to think I still have the qualities people liked in me as a child though (I could make people smile and was a caring and happy child) and my school report in 1964 said I was well adjusted and conscientious.
I always loved maths at school, so I suppose it was no surprise that my working life revolved around numbers.
pensitivity101 
As I read the report from your teachers, I felt like it sounds much like you seem to me today. Those dogs are gorgeous beasts! Were the photos of the dogs some that you owned?
No, just a couple here who bred and showed them, so I asked if I could take some pictures. They are gentle giants and some soft to touch. Maya has met the ‘puppy’ and made a friend., but they haven’t been able to play on the beach together yet. I just seem to love the large dogs, but then I love them all really.
Great answers!!
Thanks Val
It’s hard to get out of the shadow of a domineering elder sibling.
My sister has always been a drama queen and wanting to be the centre of attention.
I know, you’ve mentioned it before too.
Were you more of an introvert or an extrovert? – I was shy until I got to know other kids.
Did you have a boisterous or a more reserved personality? – More reserved, I’d say.
Were you more confident or did you tend to be insecure? – A little of both.
Were you social or were you more of a loner? – I did have a number of friends and was often out with them.
Were you a good listener or a good talker? I was a better listener than talker.
Did you like school or dread it? – I didn’t like junior school but I enjoyed most of my Grammar school years.
Did you like the outdoors or did you prefer staying inside? – I prefered outside, mainly playing games and later, soccer.
Did you have deep thoughts about the world, the universe, etc., or did you only see as far as where you lived? – Climate change wasn’t a big thing back then, so there were no deep thoughts.
What did you want to be when you grew up? – I wanted to be a spaceman 🙂
Looking back, how did you fare as an adult? Are you still that same person or have you changed? If you changed, was it a dramatic shift or just slight changes? Did you end up in the profession you thought you would? – I don’t think I’ve changed that much, as I’m still a little shy. My disability didn’t help. There was a dramatic shift when I was diagnosed with severe Ankylosing Spondylitis at age 26. I did manage to hold down my job in the printing trade for 25 years though. I started at age 17.
Thanks for these. Did you link into Maggie’s original post?
I have a friend who has a Pyrenean Mountain Dog, as it happens…
I bet it’s a gentle giant and you loose your hand in its soft thick fur. They are beautiful dogs, but my favourite has always been the GSD..
My favorite, believe it or not, is the poodle. Sad they get a bad rap because of the way people clip them. They’re really intelligent and make great pets. My uncle had one and said she was a great farm dog.
Poodles are considered to be the smartest dog ahead of GSDs and collies now. I like all dogs, and the standard poodle
is quite different when not pom-pommed! The ones I’ve come across are loving and playful. We have lots of cock a poos
around here, and at class, one woman had a golden-doodle. It was huge, and at 5 months, almost as big as Maya at 10 months.
She said she didn’t realise it would grow so big and I think she got her breeds confused and wanted a cock a poo.
Another is the Labradoodle. They evidently make great pets. When I was in high school we had a psychotic Lhasa Apso… https://thesoundofonehandtyping.com/2020/01/10/kuala-the-dog-from-hell-jusjojan/
Some dogs are like that, and I can count on one hand the number of dogs that didn’t take to me. When we lost Barney so suddenly in 2005, we went to see a GSD bitch puppy of 3 months. She was beautiful and worth every penny of the £600 they were asking for her (even though it was beyond us and the price hadn’t been advertised). Thing was, she wouldn’t come near me……. at all ……….. and then her female owner came out with a can and started to spray her fur. She said it made their coats shiny. The dog obviously didn’t like it and women in general so we walked away. We bought a local paper and ended up on a farm in the middle of nowhere which we would never have found if we didn’t have our satnav. I was buried under ten waggy tails and forty feet, and one pup crawled on on my lap and went to sleep…………. twice. That was Maggie and we brought her home. She was two months shy of her 16th birthday when we lost her two years ago.
Great answers Di 💜💜
Thanks Willow