Keeping it Short
1. Short Stories? Or full-length novels? Full-length novels for me. Mostly fiction. I don’t read short stories much at all.
2. And, what’s your favorite source for short stories? (You know, if you read them.) Don’t really read them.
GoodReads
SwagBucks
Archive for the ‘Memes’ Category
Sparky Duck, the Philly transplant, tagged me with this musical meme…
List 7 songs that you are currently really really into, no matter what they are, and then tag 7 more people to do it.
I think I’m going to list the songs, but buck the tagging trend and not tag anyone else. However, if you’d like to play along, that would be great! Just let me know and I’ll be sure to swing by and check out what music you are into right now!
As for me, I’m boring. I don’t listen to a lot of popular stuff, except for country music. I know, I know, don’t throw things at the monitor. I like country and don’t keep up with a lot of other stuff. So most of my songs are older ones. Accept it – that’s just the way it is π
1. Hands down, my favorite song right now is “Long Trip Alone” by Dierks Bentley
2. Every Mile a Memory” from the same Dierks Bentley CD
3. “The Reason Why” by Vince Gill
4. “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” by Jon Bon Jovi and Jennifer Nettles
5. “Home” by Michael Buble
6. “Waitin on a Woman” by Brad Paisley
7. “She’s Everything” by Brad Paisley
Writing in Books, Part Three
Booking Through Thursday
1) Speaking of writing in books, what about writing the entire thing? Do you write? Aspire to write? Dream about writing? I dream about writing, but I don’t think it’s anything I would ever do. I’d like to think I had the talent it takes to write some kind of book, but frankly, I don’t think I do. I’ve certainly never done anything towards that end. I didn’t take creative writing classes in college and I’ve never written that much. But, believe it or not, Tim and I have talked about it, rather often. Every time I read a book and tell him about it, or we watch a TV or movie and talk about the plot, we always joke “we could write that, we should write a book”. LOL! I don’t think it will ever happen though.
2) If you do write, do you do it for yourself, or because you hope to be published? (Or because you ARE published?) Most of my writing is done here, and I think if you read much of my blog, you’d see that I don’t have much talent for writing or any hopes of being published. A girl can dream though π
Click here to go and play along with Booking Through Thursday!
Here I go, swiping from fellow bloggers again! As seen here on Dawn’s blog:
Condiments
1. What do you like on a hot dog? Mayonnaise and mustard. No ketchup unless Tim makes me. I can do onion but I’m not fond of relish. I like sauerkraut on my brats, but that’s not technically a hot dog. Just lots of mayo, please.
2. What do you like on a hamburger? Lots of mayo, some mustard, one drop of ketchup. A slice of dill pickle. Some red onion. If I feel like I can have the extra calories, some cheese.
3. What do you like on a baked potato? Load it up, baby! Everything – butter, sour cream, bacon bits, cheese, anything. Yummy, I love loaded potatoes π
4. What do you like on a slice of toast? Butter and jelly. I’ll eat most any kind of jelly, as long as it’s smooth, without chunks like slivers of orange in orange marmalade. My favorite would be grape or strawberry or raspberry, I guess.
5. What do you like in a cup of coffee or tea? Coffee, I need Splenda and some flavored creamer (not the powdered kind). In tea, I need sugar. In hot tea, I usually use honey or Splenda.
And, along the same lines, how about an easy Question of the Day: Spring is around the corner, and we’ll be grilling out more. Let’s say we’re having a cookout at our house, and you’re invited. We’re grilling out hamburgers and hotdogs – which would you pick? Leave me a comment and let me know!
I love Karen’s questions every week over at Blog Talkers, but darn it if I don’t keep forgetting to play {ducking head in shame}. Then, I see my buddy Stacy over at Vader’s Mom has played, and low and behold, hers has pictures of the same kinds of clothes that I would pick.
So, Stacy, I’m totally not copying you, but remember – great minds do think alike!
Here’s this week’s question: What three things in your clothes closet could you not live without?
Easy peasy. I’m a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl. I would love to say that I wear shorts all summer, but alas, my legs look downright frightful and even though it’s hotter than blue blazes here for most of the year, I tend to wear capris and some shorts in the summer, and jeans the rest of the time. I absolutely cannot live without my jeans. Love them. Wear them everywhere. Out to run errands, to the grocery, to the movies, shopping, out to dinner. So jeans, definitely.
My favorite t-shirts are my Life is Good shirts. I am slowly building a nice little collection of them. I only have one long-sleeve one, but I have quite a few short sleeve ones now. I also have some of their pj’s, socks, cap and a mug. I am totally and completely in love with their products. Going into a store that carries their stuff is like showing an alcoholic a free, open bar. It’s very very very hard to resist!
Lastly, I’d have to pick my favorite sweatshirt. I have a thick red sweatshirt we bought in Washington DC two summers ago when we were there on vacation. I love that sweatshirt and wear it whenever it’s the slightest bit chilly here.
There ya go! Even though we have a week to play, I’m horribly late again this week. Karen will put up a new question on Sunday – go over and check it out and play along if you’d like!
Lending Library
Do you lend your books to other people? If so, any restrictions? Well, I don’t make a habit of it. I got burned years ago by loaning a cherished book to a friend to read, and I never got it back. It was a first edition hard back too, and I would love to have gotten it back. So, needless to say, these days I am really particular about who I loan my books to. It’s usually just family. I loan a bunch to my sister Gail, but she treats them as well as I do and always, always returns them, so that’s never a problem. My one restriction is that I get it back. Bad, I know, but just me.
Do you borrow books from other people? (Friends or family–I’m not talking about the public library) Basically the same answer as above. I will occasionally borrow, but it’s not my favorite thing to do. I’d much rather get them from the library or buy my own books. But, I will borrow from friends and family, and I treat them very well and try to return them as soon as I can.
And, most importantly–do the books you lend/borrow get returned to their rightful owners?? Always, unless someone sends me or gives me the book with the caveat that they don’t want it back. Then, I read it and pass it on to someone else.
Great questions! If you’d like to play along, check out the meme’s home page here. And leave me a note if you play, so I can come check out your answers!
I saw this fun set of questions over at Lynne’s blog today. I love these things, and most of these were great questions I thought, so I just had to play along! Thanks, Lynne, for letting me swipe them from you! π
1. If you could build a house anywhere, where would it be? In the mountains with a great view and lots of open area around me. But, it would have to have fairly easy access in and out when the weather was bad. Think big lodge style house, lots of windows, big stone fireplaces.
2.What is your favorite article of clothing? Jeans and one of my Life is Good t-shirts
3. Last C.D. you bought? Long Trip Alone by Dierks Bentley
4. Where is your favorite place to be? At home, with Tim and Beau. If not at home, then in a cabin in the mountains.
5. Least favorite place to be?I’m with Lynne, I don’t like huge crowds or really large places packed with people.
6. Are you strongest in mind or body? Gosh, I hope mind. Because my body is pretty weak and it might be dangerous if my mind was weaker π
7. What time do you wake up? about 7 AM or so
8. Favorite kitchen appliance? I don’t use it every single day, but my favorite would have to be my Kitchen-aid mixer
9. What instrument would you like to play? Toss-up between a guitar and the piano
10. Favorite color? Another toss-up. Some days red and some days green.
11. Sports car of SUV? SUV, definitely
12. Favorite children’s book? I don’t remember any from my own childhood, but I have fond memories of reading Goodnight Moon to lots of my nieces and nephews
13. Favorite season? Fall
14. Least favorite chore? Dusting
15. Favorite day? Friday
16. Favorite food? Ooh, I can’t pick one! Seafood, Italian, Chinese
17. Favorite drink? Lately, Cherry Coke Zero
18. Favorite word? Hmm, I guess “Beau”!
19. Favorite inspirational book?I don’t read much non-fiction, but I loved the Redemption series by Karen Kingsbury. Very comforting and inspiring books
20. Who would you like to play you in the movie of you life? Good grief. No one would ever make a movie out of my boring little ole life. But, I’ll play, how about… Sandra Bullock?
But, Who’s Counting?
Booking Through Thursday
How many books would you say you read in an average month? An average month, I would like to read 3-5 books. I always shoot for about one a week. Sometimes I read more and more often than not, it takes me more than a week to read a book. It definitely will depend on the week and what else is going on. π
In a year? My goal is usually 52 books, which averages out to one a week. This year, though, I think my goal is going to be 70 or 75
Over the last five years? Well, I had to go back and look. I’ve kept a detailed list of the books I’ve read for the last 3 years, but not for any longer. I don’t think I was reading much before 2005, so I guess I don’t have a count for 03 or 04. But, for 2005 through today, I’ve read 119 books. π
The last 10? See above!
Don’t forget to leave a link to your actual response in the comments–or if you prefer, leave your answers in the comments themselves!
Saw this over at Marianne‘s blog a while back. There’s a new version of this out there, fun fun stuff!
Γ’β¬Β¦ scatterday does not necessarily fall on the same day of the week. It seems to occur more or less whenever I can get my act togetherΓ’β¬Β¦ lol
Hey all, know what day it is???? It is Scatterday! Today is the second edition of Scatterday Scategories Meme, come join the fun.
Rules: Using the THIRD letter of your MIDDLE name, provide a word that describes each phrase.
My letter: E
Names used in the bible: Esther
Junk food: Elephant Ears
Things that grow: Evergreen trees
Companies: Enron, Ergon
Articles of clothing: Ear muffs
Desserts: Egg Custard Pie, Eclairs
Car Parts: Engine
Things Found on a Map: East pointer
Athletes: Emmitt Smith, Jahri Evans (Saints player), one of each π
4-letter words: Even, Ever, Echo
Items in a refrigerator: Eggs
Farm Animals: Emu
Street Names: Eastpark Drive, Evans Avenue
Things at the beach: egret ?
Colors: Ecru, Eggshell
Tools: Eyelet setter
Heroes: Elektra
Gifts/presents: Earrings
Terms of endearment: ??
Kinds of dances: Electric Slide
This was harder than I thought it was going to be. I could have picked the third letter of my given name before I got married, but choose to use the third letter of my maiden name, since it’s technically my middle name now. E was kind of tough, and I really struggled on a couple of these. π
If you play along at your blog, be sure to leave me a comment and let me know, so I can come over and check it out!
Karen, over at Blog Talkers, is on a mission to help us come up with topics to talk about at our own blogs. She posts a new question every Sunday, and we have all week to talk about it. Go check it out if you ever want an idea about something to blog about. And, if you play along this week, leave me a comment and let me know, so I can be sure to come check it out. New questions are up on Sundays, so I’m really late this week!
This week’s question is – What is your most annoying habit? The thing that drives someone else crazyΓ’β¬Β¦..
I didn’t have to think on this very hard, since I think there are a lot of things that I do that probably annoy other people. But, to be fair, I thought I would solicit Tim’s opinion. I think he could have come up with a lot of things, but the one he blurted out first was one I knew bothered him. Tim’s answer is “you come behind me and pick up and move things and then I can’t find where I put them.” I do do this, and I can remember being younger and my mom doing this, and I always hated it. I always swore up and down I would never be like that, but here I am, all grown up and I do it all of the time! I guess we truly are destined to turn out like our moms in a lot of ways! π Here’s the reason I do what he’s talking about – I think everything has a place. I’m very ordered and I like things in their places. When he comes in and tosses his keys on the kitchen counter when I’m trying to cook supper, I hang them up on the key rack (where they’re supposed to be). When he comes in from the back yard and tosses his baseball cap on the couch, I pick it up and put it back in our closet with his other caps. About 4 o’clock in the afternoon when the coffee pot has long been washed and put up, I pick up his coffee cup from the living room and go put it in the dishwasher. Things like that. But see, from his point of view, when he comes back a half hour later and wants his cap, he can’t find it because I’ve put it where it belongs, not left it where he drops it. I’m sure if I gave him half a chance, he’d probably come up with a really long list!
My answer to this question would be that I apologize all the time. It’s a self-esteem thing, but I’m always saying “I’m sorry” or “Sorry about that” or “Excuse me” when someone else runs into me in the store or whatever. I do catch myself doing it a lot and have tried to not say it so much, but it is one of those things that is ingrained in me since childhood. I apologize for everything π
What about you? What’s your most annoying habit? π
Writing in Books, Part Two
A couple weeks ago, we asked about how you take care of your books, with one of the questions asking whether you write in your books. Well, what about books that are meant to be written in? Like, say, a journal or diary? Do you keep one? Obviously, if you’re answering this, you have a blog–do you just let your blog be your journal? Or do you also keep one for private stuff also?
OK, another great question! I had previously answered that I don’t mark in my books in any way. I don’t turn down the corner of a page, I don’t underline or write in the margins. The most I *might* do is write my name in the front or write something in it such as “Happy Anniversary Tim, Love, Stacy”. And those are only in special books, that we want to keep and not loan out and lose.
Now, for today’s question: No, I don’t keep a diary or journal. Just my blog. And I don’t blog too much of a personal nature or things that I don’t want the world to know. When I first started, I was writing some private posts that were not published, but I don’t do that much anymore. I’ve actually been really surprised that I’ve been able to keep this blog going for over two years. Growing up, I got several diaries or journals over the years, and I was horrible at keeping them. I’d have a few entries written in January and maybe into February, but by March or so, it was pretty much empty. I still have most of those diaries, so I have the proof! I could just never keep them up. I tried year after year, but never could. So, as I said, this blog has been a real change of pace for me. π
I haven’t done this one in a while, but today’s topic is pretty easy. Click here to go check it out! If you decide to play along at your blog, leave me a comment and let me know π
10 Foods You Hate:
1) BEETS!
2) Bell Peppers
3) Oysters
4) English Peas
5) Liver
6) Cilantro
7) Duck, goose, venison, any dark meat wild game
8) Celery
9) Sardines
10) Greens – turnip, mustard, collard greens
Bonus: Tomato slices or wedges. I’ll eat tomato products like spaghetti sauce and pureed tomato soup, and even most salsa, but I won’t eat a burger with a tomato slice on it, or tomatoes in my salad. Weird, I know!
I haven’t done this one in a couple of weeks, and I keep meaning to. But, I’m definitely going to play along this week.
This week’s question is – If there were no blogs, what would you be doing right now?
Well. Good question! I can barely remember what my daily routine was like before I started blogging, a little over 2 years ago. I used to spend a lot more time running and maintaining our main website, Hambones.org. I used to post some of what I post on my blog on the main site, in the forums. We used to play trivia, but the interest in doing that online at the website has faded. I also used to do a lot more scrapbooking than I do now, and visiting scrapbook message boards. Sadly, I haven’t done much of that lately. Well, not really any, since I started blogging.
Let’s see, if I wasn’t blogging I would probably be:
a) Reading more
b) Maintaining our main website with content that I would put on my blog
c) Scrapbooking
d) Watching more TV and movies
Honestly though, I can’t see me giving up blogging any time soon. I really enjoy it, and I’ve met so many wonderful friends online through blogging. I really think blogging is like a current-day form of being pen pals. Or better really! I have met some of the most wonderful ladies through this, and I have zero plans to give it up!
Great question, Karen! You can click here to go to the BlogTalkers blog. New questions are posted every week π
Romance
So, in honor of Valentine’s Day . . .
Love stories? Yes or No? Yes, I love a good romance or love story, or even a good fiction book about relationships. I seem to read a lot of what I term “women’s fiction”, where there’s some kind of conflict, often between the man and woman, and of course, they end up together and in love. As long as it’s got a happy ending, I’m good with it!
If yes, “romances” as a genre? Or just, well, stories that have love stories? (Nobody’s going to call “Pride & Prejudice” a “romance,” right?) I like “romance” as a genre, but don’t misunderstand, it’s not a Harlequin type thing I like. I like stories that have a love element to them, but it’s not always the main plot. An exception might be a book like “The Princess” by Lori Wick, which is mostly about love and falling in love, but it does have the Christian theme to it. OK, I’m just rambling here, I do like stories that contain love, not just a plain love story.
I’ve seen this great meme at several places (Laura, Susie and Cam, among others) and thought I would “save” it for around Valentines Day. Since Tim is my sweetheart and my forever Valentine, I thought this would be an appropriate time of year to do this one π
Here’s Tim, doing his favorite thing, playing golf:
His age: 37
How tall is he: 5′ 11″
How long have you been together: together almost 12, married almost 11
How long did you know each other before you got together? about 2 months
What physical features attracted you to him first?: his eyes and his smile
Eye color: sort of hazel, depends on the light if they look more green or brown
Hair color: brown
Hair style: short!
Normal Outfit: jeans and a polo (winter) or shorts and a polo (summer)
How did you meet: at work
How serious is it: lifetime serious
Are you Γ’β¬Εin loveΓ’β¬?: Most definitely
Do your parents like him: Yes, my mom always loved him and even though my dad wasn’t thrilled with him at first, he loves him to pieces now. I joke now that my dad would rather call or see Tim than me, his baby daughter!
Do his parents like you: I think so, I adore them π
Do you trust him: Implicitly
Would you share a toothbrush with him: Only if I had to, but yes, I would
Would he let you wear his pants: Yes, and I’ve worn some of his old sweat pants before when I was sick!
Do you have a shirt of his that you sleep in? I used to, but not any more. I used to have some of his t-shirts from his military days
Do you like the way he smells: Yes, especially right after he gets out of the shower!
Can you picture having kids with him: Yes, I would have given anything to have kids with Tim