Exceedingly Mundane

This week’s questions are totally unrelated to one another; just a ‘pot pourri’ of randomness! Have a great week and thanks for playing!

1. When putting groceries away, do you rotate your food so your newest items (cans and such) are in the back, and older food in the front? Sigh, I try. Sometimes I am better at it than others, but I really do try. I’m such a hoarder, and if I don’t, stuff will get pushed to the back and it will sit there, covered up, for eons.

2. Do you own a digital camera? If so, how long have you had one? If not, do you plan to purchase one soon? Yes, I’ve had one since Christmas 2002. I dearly love my camera. I think it’s starting to have a few problems, and if it gets unusable, we’ll replace it. I can’t live without a camera, and now that I have a digital, I won’t ever go back to film.

3. How do you store your precious photos? All of my photos are precious to me! I have boxes and boxes, photo albums, scrapbooks, full of them. All of my digital photos are in multiple places (windows pc, hambones, on cd, and a cd in the fire-proof safe). I also have most of my film negatives in our safe, just in case.

4. It’s 6:00 a.m. and you’ve just lost power due to a severe thunderstorm; they say it will probably take at least 12 hours before power will be restored; what do you do? I have no idea. We’re underground and I don’t think we’ve ever been more than a couple of hours without power. I’d go nuts, I’m sure.

5. How many times a year do you (or does someone dear to you) wax your automobile? Huh. Good question. Probably never.

6. Gas prices; what can we say except they’ve reached an all-time high. How are you dealing with this? I grumble an awful lot. Worry. Stress. Try to stay home more. Tim could care less. He will still jump in the truck and go whereever he wants, no matter how much gas is.

7. Have you ever purchased a book or cd twice, forgetting that you already had it? I don’t think so. I have won a CD on the radio that I already owned. I know I have never doubled up on books, and I don’t think I ever did on CD’s. I download all my music now that I have my iPod. No more buying CD’s for me! 🙂

I was tagged by my buddy Dawn at her blog – “Thoughts from Along the Broken Road”. It’s a music meme kind of thing, which I love! Thanks, Dawn, and I love reading your blog every day girl! 😀

Here’s the instructions:

List ten songs that you are currently digging… it doesn’t matter what genre they are from, whether they have words, or even if they’re no good but they must be songs you’re really enjoying right now. Post these instructions, the artists, and the ten songs in your blog. Then tag five other random people to see what they’re listening to.

And my answers… like Dawn, I love music and have hundreds of songs I listen to (on my new iPod that Tim got me in June!!). Here’s the first 10 that spring to mind:

1. Ever the Same by Rob Thomas
2. Now Comes the Night by Rob Thomas
3. Mississippi Girl by Faith Hill
4. If Something Should Happen by Darryl Worley
5. Behind These Hazel Eyes by Kelly Clarkson
6. Memories of Us by Keith Urban
7. Anything but Mine by Kenny Chesney
8. Do You Want Fries with That by Tim McGraw
9. As Good as I Once Was by Toby Keith
10. If Heaven by Andy Griggs (still love this one, reminds me of my mom)

I’ll tag some of the family and friends whose blogs we host on our website … they don’t normally do memes or quizzes, but I’ll cross my fingers and hope they play along this time. 😀

Tagging:

Amanda
Chris
Elizabeth
Shanna

Feast Sixty
Friday, August 19, 2005

Appetizer
Do you get excited when the season begins to change? Which season do you most look forward to? Yes, well as little of a seasonal change we get here in the Deep South. It will be hot here through at least October, which I hate. We’re coming up on my most favorite time of the year, I love fall and winter. I love when it starts to cool off, finally!

Soup
What day of the week is usually your busiest? Monday – catching up from the weekend, when Tim and I spend all of our time together. I let everything else go, usually cooking, always cleaning, laundry, picking up the house. I usually grocery shop on Monday or Tuesday also, so Monday is very busy.

Salad
Would you consider yourself to be strict when it comes to grammar and spelling? What’s an example of the worst error you’ve seen? Yes, sigh. Bad spelling or grammar (mostly spelling) is a pet peeve of mine. Something I picked up from my mom, the substitute English teacher. She was always very particular about it, so I learned that from her.

Main Course
Who has a birthday coming up, and what will you give them as a gift? Let’s see, my mother-in-law’s is next week (shh, can’t give it away). Next is Zack, not sure what we will get him. Then next is Amanda, she gets whatever she asks for, maybe a gift card or scrapping stuff.

Dessert
If you could have any new piece of clothing for free, what would you pick? Hmmm, good question. I haven’t had a good all-purpose winter coat in a while. Tim got me a leather one a few years back, but my other one is about 10 years old. Not that I need a coat more than, oh say – 2 weeks out of the year! I’d probably pick a nice track suit for fall/winter before a coat, something I could wear every day!

::Chili Cheese Nachos::

Onesome: Chili– Okay, chili with beans or chili without beans? …and how hot? …and do you make your own? (recipes are accepted ) Hmm, real chili needs to have beans. If we fix a quick chili to have with hot dogs, it can be without. When I make chili in the winter, I usually use red kidney beans, occasionally I’ll use those chili hot beans. I think there are a couple of recipes on the main website here. Not sure if the recipe for my “regular” chili is posted; I make it sort of like my mom did, a little of this and a little of that! Oh, and mine is not very hot, Tim always adds Tobasco to his, but I don’t like hot stuff.

– …and with cheese on top? ..or is that an abomination? …and while we’re at it: hamburgers or cheese burgers? Oh, I could go on and on and on… I love cheese and could eat it alone, on top of anything, any which a way! I usually don’t put cheese on burgers though, try to save those calories!

Threesome: Nachos– Now the serious one for the southwesterners (and others of distinction ): What’s on your nachos? Cheese? Seven layers of fun stuff? What’s a nacho? Hmmm… We’re going to have to do recipes for sure this Winter! This would be a better question for Tim, he loves nachos more than I do. I cannot stand jalapenos, so I don’t like nachos that much.

Sleep:

1. Are you more of a morning person or a night person? Explain: I’m a night owl. I’m a terrible grouch in the mornings; always have been.

2. Name the two longest times you have gone without sleep: Hmmm, I value sleep so it’s hard to come up with any! I know when I went on my senior trip in high school (cruise to the Bahamas), I didn’t sleep hardly at all, and when we flew home, I think I slept for 16 or 18 hours the first night. Also, my junior year of college, I took 21 hours of classes and that semester’s finals week nearly did me in.

3. Do you “function” with little sleep or do you require a “full night” of sleep? No, I absolutely positively must have a good night’s sleep. Or else I’m a total grouch and can’t think straight. I get a headache if I don’t get enough sleep! 🙂

4. What two things can cause you to lose sleep? Explain: Worrying about anything or stressing about anything. Also, not really “losing sleep”, but if I mess up and have a cappuccino at 8:30 PM at Cups (like I did last year), then I will still be awake at 3 AM.

5. Do you or someone you know suffer from any sleep disorders? Explain: I think Fred has sleep apnea. Also, I know Suzie has been to a sleep clinic and I think she may have a form of sleep apnea also. Suzie? Bueller? Anyone?

This week’s questions are all about you! Nothing personal; just for fun…

1. On what day of the week were you born? Sunday. You know, Sunday’s child is full of grace. Blah blah blah. That’s me 😀
2. Do you look forward to birthdays? Now that I have Tim, I do. I never really did before I met him. 😐
3. How do you usually celebrate your birthday? With Tim, nothing special usually, but last year he took me to the mountains. Which was fantabulous
4. Do you like surprises? Not usually
5. Has anyone ever thrown you a surprise party? No
6. How many family and friends’ birthdays can you remember right off the top of your head? Very few. Me and that horrible memory problem
7. Do you send cards to your family and friends on their birthday? Yes, mostly family
8. What kind of cake do you like? Um, well, let’s see… gotta think about that one. Not. DUH! Chocolate!
9. What kind of ice cream goes best with it? French Vanilla
10. When is your birthday? (You don’t have to share the year with us if you answer this question.) October 18

A day late and a dollar short, but I’m doing my word associations anyway 😆

I say … and you think … ?

Idiot:: Stupid
Rocket:: Science
Liability:: Asset
Harmless:: won’t hurt a fly
Stringy:: greasy
Gwyneth:: Paltrow
Use it or lose it:: huh?
Theater:: Broadway
Sonic:: YUM!
Pucker:: up

Feast Fifty-Nine
Friday, August 12, 2005

Appetizer
Did you sleep good last night? Yes!

Soup
What is your current computer desktop image? A rocky beachfront with a beautiful small lighthouse.

Salad
When was the last time you planted something, what was it and where did it go? A few days ago I planted a new yellow purslane in a terra cotta pot and put it on my deck. It is blooming today! 🙂

Main Course
What’s your favorite condiment? Easy. Mayonnaise

Dessert
Share a quote that you like, for whatever reason. I have lots that I love, they are all on the Random Quotes section on the homepage of Hambones.

From:

The final countdown…

5. Did you follow NASA’s latest space mission? Yes, very closely. From the first delayed launch, to the actual launch, to footage of the tiles going off and the piece of foam, to the spacewalk where they pulled out the filler fabric under the tiles. I did miss the landing as I was still asleep. Am reading today about the new probe that was launched to explore Mars. Watched and read much about the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity and we saw a great presentation on them last summer at the Johnson Space Center. If you can’t tell, I LOVE this stuff!

4. If you could launch a politician into space, and perhaps they wouldn’t make it back, who would it be? Not everyone will agree, but I’d send former President Clinton to Uranus or Pluto, never to return. JMHO

Read the rest of this entry »

::Sturgis Motorcycle Rally::

Onesome: Sturgis- Have you ever been there, or anywhere else in South Dakota? Want to see where Laura Ingalls Wilder grew up in her Little Town on the Prairie? Or have you taken in Mount Rushmore and the Black Hills? Nope, I’ve never been anywhere near that part of the country. Would love to go though. We want to go to all 50 states, and both Mt Rushmore and the Black Hills are on the list. I doubt I can get Tim to stop at Laura Ingalls Wilder’s house, but it will be worth a try. After all, if we make it that far….

Twosome: Motorcycle- Ever owned or ridden on a motorcycle? Do you aspire to ownership now? Ever wanted to hit the open rode and just go? NO. Most Definite NO! I feel very strongly about the dangers of motorcycles. Tim, however, wants one and it’s a fight we have fairly often. I have this terrible fear that his mid-life crises is not going to be a sports car, but a motorcycle. I think the things are the kiss of death, I don’t want him anywhere near one.

Threesome: Rally- v. to muster for a common purpose- Ever been to a large rally of any sort? A church rally, motorcycle rally or even a big family reunion? Or how about a road rally? Where did you go? Was a good time had by all? Hmm, I’ve been to big family reunions (Tim’s side, obviously). I’ve been to midnight sing’s by Christian singers on Thanksgiving weekend. But a rally, not sure you’d call any of those a rally.

Vacation…

1. Name the two places where you would love to go on vacation: Number one is England, Scotland and Wales. Number two would be a toss-up between France and an Alaskan cruise

2. Name two places where you would never want to go on vacation: places like Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Nepal

3. Which is more interesting to you, driving or flying for your vacation? We have almost always driven. We like spending the time together and seeing the sights from the car and being able to stop (although we rarely do!). We’re starting to exhaust our options of where we can drive to in one day though, so I imagine there’ll either be longer vacations in the future or more flying ones.

Read the rest of this entry »

Really late on this one, I think it was posted over the weekend. Word associations…

I say … and you think … ?

Complexion:: clear
Teach:: school
Back to school:: school supplies
Months:: days
Nominate:: candidate
Favorite curse word:: darn
Concerned:: caring
Better:: feeling… ?
Escalate:: push up the chain
Unveil:: unmask

I was sad to see that the Sunday Brunch meme (which I liked and have done many times) is closing. Seems to me that the way of the meme is disappearing. I hope some of my other favorites keep on going! Here’s one I like to do most of the time:

From

Appetizer
Briefly describe your living room.
We are going for an overall theme of comfy and cozy in our house, so I hope that’s what it is. Oversized couch, oversized matching chair, chair and a half with ottoman next to the fireplace, entertainment center with too many electronics to mention, surround sound, dark wood tables, area rug, lamps for cozy lighting, Yankee Candles, lots of family pictures on the walls and tables.

Soup
List 3 things you’d like to accomplish before the end of 2005.
1) Blog on a daily basis. I haven’t missed a day since we went out of town over Memorial Day weekend and didn’t have Internet access
2) Read at least 5 more books before the end of the year
3) Go to as many football games with Tim as he wants 🙂

Salad
When you’re online, what do you spend the most time reading/playing/doing? Suggest a site for us to visit.
I am on our family site all the time, I visit several scrapbook message boards, I have a lot of blogs I check out (some daily, some every week), and I window shop at scrapping sites, Amazon, etc. Every now and then I play online games at Real Arcade.
Check out Blingo for all your searching. They use the same engine as Google, but you can win prizes. We have!

Main Course
What would the title of your autobiography be? Wouldn’t be written, I haven’t led an interesting life whatsoever. The name of my blog sums me and my life up to a tee – Exceedingly Mundane.

Dessert
What time do you usually go to bed? Normally, I shoot for 10:30 or 11:00. But, I tend to mold my schedule to whatever Tim is doing. If he’s up later, I usually end up staying up later as well. Or at least I try. I seem to require more beauty sleep than he does 😀

“I’ve got you…
…under my skin”::

Onesome: Under– Water? Have you ever gone scuba diving? Any interest?…or does that sort of thing just not work for you? Never been scuba diving. If I have my way, I won’t ever go. I can barely swim and the water plainly terrifies me. So do sharks and jellyfish. So no, that sort of things just does not work for me! 🙂

Twosome: my– gosh, it seems to have been hot since forever! How are you doing with the weather this Summer? OK, as long as I stay inside in the AC. That one week when it was so unbearably hot, I didn’t want to go out at all. It’s been better lately, but heck, August just started! It’s warm here through October. Lots of times I hand out candy on Halloween in shorts with my short sleeve orange pumpkin t-shirt!

Threesome: skin– Do you ‘skin’ your site? What styles do you prefer when you have the option at someone’s place? Simple? …or loaded with graphics? Well, I “borrow” premade skins/themes from other sites (most notably Alex King’s WordPress site) and either use them as is, or modify them slightly. I haven’t learned CSS yet, but I hope to. I want to work on that and make more designs for my blog and for others that we host on our site. One day. I seem to have too many hobbies, too many interests and not enough discipline!

I think I’ve done this one before, from this site… there is not a new challenge up, so he/she suggested we look through the archives and find one we like. So, I did! I picked one from May 2005, 10 brand names you can’t live without:

Here’s mine, in no particular order. As always, if you’d like to play along, you are certainly encouraged to do so either in the form of a comment, or at your own blog. 😀

10 Brand Names You Can’t Live Without

1) Crest toothpaste
2) Pantene shampoo
3) SoftLips Lip Balm
4) Coffeemate Creamer
5) Raisin Bran Crunch cereal
6) Morningstar Corn Dogs
7) Tyson chicken breasts
8) Quilted Northern Toilet Paper
9) Bounty Paper Towels
10) Seiko wristwatch

Bonus Ones:

Sonic (anyone, anywhere, anytime!)
Dell Computer 🙂 – although any computer with high speed access will do!
iPod
FORD EXPLORER!!!