My name is Chris Keen, I’m 32 years old and I’m currently living in Scotland. However as a military husband, I have to move house every 1-2 years as my wife’s postings change. This is our 5th house in 5 years.
My situation
I’m a radio presenter by trade and I’ve worked for several commercial stations, community stations, the BBC and most recently BFBS (British Forces Broadcasting Services). With BFBS I’ve worked in the Falklands, Germany, Cyprus, Bahrain, Northern Ireland and Catterick.
Three things in my bag
Poo bags because you can never have enough… You just don’t know when you’ll need them with 2 big dogs.
I always have a tub of hand cream in my pocket because my hands get so dry at the moment. It’s got to be because of all the hand sanitizer we have to use when going into shops etc.
My phone never leaves my side, no matter which trousers or shorts I have on it will be in the pocket.
The kinds of things people say about me
There are always a lot of assumptions based on stereotypes. When people find out that we’re a military family, the assumption is always that I’m the serving one. As I mentioned above a lot of people looking in believe that it should be the man serving in the forces and the woman staying at home looking after the children. It doesn’t make me feel any less of a man. It makes me more determined to show the world that there are plenty of military spouses and there are obviously a lot of females serving in the forces.
The things I’d change if I was running the country
I would put an end to homelessness. I don’t see why in this day and age there are people still living rough on the streets. Whether it’s through their doing or somebody else’s doing, these people should be housed and looked after. The world is big enough for us all. I especially feel strongly about military veterans who are living rough on the streets. These men and women literally put their lives on the line to serve their country and now so many of them are homeless. There are many things that can be done and should be done.
The routine I can’t Do without
Being a stay at home dad, my daughters routine is pretty important. One routine I like to keep on track is her lunctime nap time. This gives me around 2 hours to myself to either get some work done or to relax.
Objects I would rescue in a fire
Mr Snowman is a teddy bear that my daughter absolutely loves and she gets so excited when she sees him. My aunty knitted it for her, just as she did for me and my brother when we were little.
Falklands Pebbles are very unique and you can only get them over there on an island called Pebble Island. It’s actually where I proposed to Kelly. There are a few which if you’re lucky, you can hold up to a light and you can see right through them.
Car Keys because if we have the car we can go anywhere and see anybody we like. As a military family we travel so much in that car, and are used to being mobile. As long as we have each other and the ability to travel we are happy!
Three things I can see out my window
It just so happens to be snowing in Scotland today as I’m writing this. I’ve been waiting for it to snow for a while and now it’s finally here!
Children playing… This is always so common on every military patch we’ve lived on. On or off camp. I always see this as a positive because it just shows how safe a military community is.
Campervans… Again living amongst other military families, seeing campervans on driveways seems to be so common. I believe it’s because being a military family we move around so much and it’s hard to call anywhere a proper home. However the same campervan can always follow you to wherever you go and you can kind of call that your permanent mobile home.
A ritual I can’t
do without
Our next posting… We’ve not been here in Scotland that long but knowing that we move every couple of years we’re always waiting to find out where we’re going next and when.
Waiting for our new baby! We’re very excited to find out if it’s a boy or a girl and very excited to meet him or her in July.
To join the reserves. I’ve been wanting to join the Reserves for some years now but I’ve never been in a position to do so. I feel like I am now though.