Thursday, 23 June 2016

Referendum Day

FINALLY, after months and months of endless media coverage and increasingly vitriolic debate, Referendum Day is here.

For those of you lucky enough to have missed all this, today is the day the British voters decide whether or not we stay in the European Union.

I tried, yet again, to interest my children in the issue on the way to school this morning.

"Which way would you be voting today, #3?" I asked my 7 year old.

"I'm voting for Breakfast!" she replied firmly.

#2 rolled his eyes. "It's Brexit, stupid, not Breakfast. And Daddy says you can't vote for Brexit or all your Sylvanian Families will have to be deported back to Sylvania."

At which point #3 started to cry.

I explained that Sylvania is not an actual country, and therefore not subject to EC freedom of movement legislation in any case, so #3's families of miniature bunnies, hedgehogs and badgers are perfectly safe and can carry on monopolising every available surface of her bedroom.

#2 and #3 spent the rest of the journey glaring at each other aggressively. It was like having David Cameron and Boris Johnson in the back seat.

I spent much of my childhood living in Brussels, so I've always felt European rather than just British.

I also believe that our children, growing up attached by their umbilical cords to the world wide web, see themselves - quite rightly - as global citizens. I think we should be building bridges, not walls.

So, I'm off to stick my cross in the REMAIN box, and then I'm going to look forward to talking about SOMETHING ELSE for a change.

Whichever way you're voting today, have a great one and I'll see you on the other side....

Love SM x

P.S. If you get my posts by e-mail and are reading this tomorrow, then WHAT WAS THE RESULT?

22 comments:

  1. Me too, SM, me too, on both the Remain vote and looking forward to Something Else!! Bless #3 and her little Sylvanians, how sweet. Red xx

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    1. Sorry Red.. Not sure we are going to be talking about anything else for a very long time. Most of SW London in a state of shock!

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    2. As are we up here in Harrogate. Reeling, I think the word is. How are you doing? (apart from the obvs)Red xx

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  2. I'll be wearing my REMAIN sticker proudly all day. X

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  3. The fact that Trump supports the leave campaigns tells me a lot about what it means for the people of Britain and the rest of the world. Please stay!

    PS - Im from the future and in your tomorrow but the universe is keeping the result all locked up. Along with knowing if the Australian dollar will nose dive as a result. Ive misplaced my crystal ball, damit.

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  4. We have Trump. He's been keeping us very occupied and terrified in the US. So I haven't been great about global news these days. Hope the vote goes your way!

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    1. He's at Turnberry today - just a few miles down the coast from me. My Dad was club champion there twice and would be turning in his grave! The mexican flag is flying lol...

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    2. He's at Turnberry today - just a few miles down the coast from me. My Dad was club champion there twice and would be turning in his grave! The mexican flag is flying lol...

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  5. All I know is that due to the nature of my husbands business and the time difference he will have to be up all night if the vote is to leave! So, I'm with you, but for very selfish reasons of not wanting to be woken by continuous phone calls in the middle of the night, I hope the vote is to REMAIN! My husband also told me that the weather in South England (am I saying that correctly?) is making it very difficult for people from that area to get to the polls. xo

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  6. Fingers crossed. Neither Himself or I can vote as we have been absent from Britain for more than 15 years. We love our Continental life, which is not subsidised by the UK but rather paid for out of our considerably higher taxes. I just shake my head at it all. At least Belgium got through to the knock out rounds of the footy.

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  7. Fingers crossed as well from the other other side (of the planet, not the spacetime continuum). After a campaign where horror is visited upon someone who is just doing their job in public office, I really hope that sense and compassion win through. Good luck!

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  8. Dumbfounded and bereft at the result. Feel as if I'm now in a different country. In days gone by I would be looking forward to drowning my sorrows. But I'll just eat lots of cake. So sad.

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  9. I am with SM...my daughters both, brought up as expats, see themselves as global citizens, will be horrified,,this is the first time at 18yrs old they have been truly engaged in politics, realising this this affects them and they have a say.......cake it is then.....

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  10. Have to be honest, with our daily Trump horror show over here I haven't really followed the Brexit debate and the implications of the vote, I am sorry it didn't go the way you wanted. Cake gets my vote.

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  11. "I'm voting for breakfast"

    I am laughing out loud! We yanks have some divicive political isues ourselves to sort out. (go figure) I'm glad you were able to find humor in this chaos!

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  12. Sad. Angry. Depressed. Stunned. Baffled. Frightened. Reeling.

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    1. That sums it up for me too. We are in South England and both our jobs only exist because of the EU. I am petrified. I have a disabled son who is a feepaying school because of his needs and he loves it. If we both lose our jobs that will go for starters.

      But for now I am voting for breakfast too.

      Hugs all.

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  14. Remembering "I'm voting for breakfast" kept me feeling almost sane this morning -thankyou.

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  15. I'm not really up to speed on British politics but I think the shock that you are feeling would be similar to what we may feel in November. God help us if the US election goes a certain way... By the way - I loved it when you said "I think we should be building bridges, not walls." We are one big human family. Scary to think the what path we may all be on these days...

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  16. Shocked and distressed for you all.

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  17. Shocked and distressed for US all. Seems like more of a global problem. United in love and peace. Maybe not.

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