My response to 2 questions on my Vegas buddy, feerlessfreddy's, latest blog post...
Freddy: Do you ever wish that you lived in a different decade?
Angrboda: I would've happily joined you in the 20s, mate - as a flapper, yeehaah
Freddy: If you could change one thing from the past what would it be?
Angrboda: I reckon I also would've liked to join the army...
Although I have never experienced first-hand a full-scale war scenario, I did grow up with two localised wars on the fringes of my consciousness for the first 28 years of my life. First there was the South African Border War (1966 - 1989) which took place in South-West Africa & Angola, between South Africa & our allied forces (mainly UNITA) on the one side, & Angola, SWAPO (South-West Africa People's Organisation) & their allies (mainly the Soviet Union & Cuba) on the other. Then there was the Angolan Civil War (1975 - 2002) where South Africa & the USA supported UNITA (National Union for the Total Independence of Angola).
Now although I've spent the vast majority of my life living in SA (apart from the 2 years in the mid-90s, aged 21 - 23, when I lived in London on a working holiday visa), I did also spend 2 years of my early childhood (age 4 - 6) living in South-West Africa (now an independent Namibia). Big, scary words like SWAPO, UNITA, Apartheid, SADF & conscription still ring loudly in my memories from that time, mainly from news reports on radio & TV.
And although I don't necessarily agree with what we (South Africa) were fighting for in either case, I really do believe that a stint in the SADF (South African Defence Force) would've done me the world of good when I finished school at the end of 1992. At that age (18), I was a very lost & angry little soul, & I think the army would've provided me with a sense of purpose & the much-needed discipline my parents had never quite been able to instill in me during my rebellious teenage years. Back in those days, every white male school-leaver was conscripted to a minimum of 2 years national service in the SADF. Ironically, while thousands of them were shipped off to the UK & Europe by wealthy, worried parents, & hundreds more went AWOL, deserted, or simply refused to participate in what they saw as an illegitimate & illegal war, I would've been happy to take their place. But back then, it just wasn't an acceptable / allowable thing for a woman to do. I chose to study Graphic Design instead
Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that, in retrospect, I reckon I would've LOVED to have experienced life in the army, but not necessarily having to fight in either of those two wars.
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PS. Please send me your own answers to those 2 questions posed above...
Freddy: Do you ever wish that you lived in a different decade?
Angrboda: I would've happily joined you in the 20s, mate - as a flapper, yeehaah
Freddy: If you could change one thing from the past what would it be?
Angrboda: I reckon I also would've liked to join the army...
Although I have never experienced first-hand a full-scale war scenario, I did grow up with two localised wars on the fringes of my consciousness for the first 28 years of my life. First there was the South African Border War (1966 - 1989) which took place in South-West Africa & Angola, between South Africa & our allied forces (mainly UNITA) on the one side, & Angola, SWAPO (South-West Africa People's Organisation) & their allies (mainly the Soviet Union & Cuba) on the other. Then there was the Angolan Civil War (1975 - 2002) where South Africa & the USA supported UNITA (National Union for the Total Independence of Angola).
Now although I've spent the vast majority of my life living in SA (apart from the 2 years in the mid-90s, aged 21 - 23, when I lived in London on a working holiday visa), I did also spend 2 years of my early childhood (age 4 - 6) living in South-West Africa (now an independent Namibia). Big, scary words like SWAPO, UNITA, Apartheid, SADF & conscription still ring loudly in my memories from that time, mainly from news reports on radio & TV.
And although I don't necessarily agree with what we (South Africa) were fighting for in either case, I really do believe that a stint in the SADF (South African Defence Force) would've done me the world of good when I finished school at the end of 1992. At that age (18), I was a very lost & angry little soul, & I think the army would've provided me with a sense of purpose & the much-needed discipline my parents had never quite been able to instill in me during my rebellious teenage years. Back in those days, every white male school-leaver was conscripted to a minimum of 2 years national service in the SADF. Ironically, while thousands of them were shipped off to the UK & Europe by wealthy, worried parents, & hundreds more went AWOL, deserted, or simply refused to participate in what they saw as an illegitimate & illegal war, I would've been happy to take their place. But back then, it just wasn't an acceptable / allowable thing for a woman to do. I chose to study Graphic Design instead
Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that, in retrospect, I reckon I would've LOVED to have experienced life in the army, but not necessarily having to fight in either of those two wars.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PS. Please send me your own answers to those 2 questions posed above...
VIEW 7 of 7 COMMENTS
feerlessfreddy:
that was some good info. so most of your life your country has been at war. did it affect your day to day life or was it so remote that no one noticed?
angrboda:
As far as full-scale fighting goes, thankfully it's always been pretty remote. Although it was always in the news, therefore pretty top of mind regardless. But the level of violent crime we have to live with on a day-to-day basis now (post-Apartheid) makes many wars pale in comparison. I kid you not.