Oh Ok, by M

I have things to complain about like how writers group sucks ass or how irritating it is to see the boss talk about the new mercedes and box seats at the laker game when i'm thinking what i can sell on amazon or if blood donations are worth it, but right now i will answer these tagged questions.

Maybe I should – stop eating breakfast at McDonalds. Damn those McMuffins.

I love the smell of – citrus blossoms.

People would say that I - am a listmaker.

I don’t understand why – money doesn't grow on trees.

When I wake up in the morning – i say, good morning Marley. Hello Zeppelin, aw look there's Animal. Today I also said, "Oatmeal"...

I lost my willpower to – budget.

Life is – not my burden, but clearly mine to maintain.

My past made me – who I am.

I get annoyed when I – am not understood and or neglected.

Parties are not a good time to – sleep.

Dogs are – awesome and taught me to be a more patient and gentle person.

Cats are – awesome and taught me to be attentive and watchful.

Tomorrow is – fucking friday ya'all. and the premiere party for our new AP show.

I have low tolerance for – stupidity, doomsdayers, naysayers and sentimentality.

I’m totally terrified of - being eaten by a shark, having to fend off a mountain lion or being buried alive.

I wonder why I thought my life would be – debt-free.

I always knew I would – achieve great things, and be awesome.

Never in my life have I – not believed in God.

High school was – an interesting time where I began to locate exactly who i was in the world.

When I’m nervous - I talk fast and possibly get a little ancy and dangerously klutzy.

One time at a family gathering – I felt hope, but it was quickly dashed in favor of disgust and divorce.

Take my advice – do not wait for time or money. They're assholes who are always late, too quick, not enough and though precious, highly mailable and chatty.

Making my bed - um, I usually don't. Unless throwing the covers over the sheet so the cat doesn't get fur on my pillows counts.

I'm almost always – on time, right, analytically minded, and possibly looking for a way to escape.

I’m addicted to – friends, sunflower seeds and looking at my monthly calendar.

I want someone to – find me, oh and also give me money.

you're it! by pen

TAG, I'm IT! courtesy of Andria. I do like games.

Maybe I should – plant those tomatoes in the garden.

I love the smell of – my babies after a bath, clean laundry, and that brown sugar and fig lotion from B&BW.

People would say that I - am too quiet. Or that I shouldn't talk as much, depending on my mood.

I don’t understand why – Aliens in America was cancelled..

When I wake up in the morning – I inwardly groan. But then feel better after some iced coffee.

I lost my willpower to – work out for the rest of 2008. And possibly 2009.

Life is – flying by in seconds, vexingly.

My past made me – stronger, hopefully a little wiser.

I get annoyed when I – drop something on my foot or walk into a wall.

Parties are not a good time to – talk politics.

Dogs are – charming, loyal pals.

Cats are – cute but make me wheeze.

Tomorrow is – Thursday, at the park. Will it be a scorcher?

I have low tolerance for – whining.

I’m totally terrified of - losing my kids or husband.

I wonder why I thought my life would be – purple? I don't know how to answer this one, either.

I always knew I would – eat chocolate at least once a day.

Never in my life have I – won a big contest.

High school was – several penelopes ago.

When I’m nervous - my stomach churns, I become mute.

One time at a family gathering – I came down with the Death Sick and possibly initiated its spread to the state of Connecticut.

Take my advice – don't take any wooden nickels.

Making my bed - is a non-negotiable part of the day.

I'm almost always – organized? except when i have children to tend to.

I’m addicted to – chocolate, iced coffee, caramel bars, and the office.

I want someone to – send me a big bag of money.

M, you are TAGGED. xo, pen

M's 7x7

Hmm, clearly am intimidated by pen's fine list of random but i will try...

1. i like cleaning my nails with drink straws... now that i have them. as an expression of total nervous energy i used to bite and tear at my nails to a hideous and destructive degree. When i was 19 i finally broke myself of the habit and have been looking longingly at my beautiful long nails ever since... straws are gentle to the nail and thorough cleaners. now if i can only do that with my fastfood habit.
   
2. i also had a wart on the left inner elbow as a kid. i don't remember blood but only my obsessive need to have it gone and the actual weird and amazing texture of the wart itself, which left me fairly disgusted. i do NOT suggest googling wart and clicking images. it will make you ill. bcs i really had no idea what comprised a wart at all and now i really don't want to know anything about it.
3. i learned to tie my shoes in kindergarten. it was a specific learning moment in which i remember a couple kids sitting on their desks and on the floor, in half-light- all trying to figure it out. at the time i probably knew there was a difference btw the bunny ear method and the loop method but over time i forgot and it seemed odd that not everyone tied their shoes using the bunny ear method. which i have since cultivated and never swayed from.
   
4. i collect matches. or at least i used to: i have like a giant box in the closet full of them. and surprisingly inherited a small box of matches from my grandma too from hotels and restaurants around the world. i figured what with the anti-smoking thing they'll be obsolete soon and thus lends credence to them taking up so much space in my closet... until i make an art installation out of them. one day...
5. having recently gone thru my yearbooks i can attest to the fact that they leave alot out but also, the things that you forget... for instance i was in a missions prayer club in 9th grade, that i might've not played volleyball in 11th grade? as previously thought. odd. or that i cut my 6th grade picture out of my yearbook? i don't know why. and what that guy wrote is still as dirty as i thought it was. also since we're on the subject i chose theatre over softball bcs of the mass levels of anxiety softball caused me. the anticipation of waiting for the ball to come to you, when to run... it was too much. but being on stage... bah. what was i thinking!?
   
6. oddly one of the best gifts my mom ever gave me is my AAA membership. i really like it and it makes me smile when i remember that she bought it.
   
7. i like putting potato chips on coldcut sandwiches. specifically roastbeef- my favorite assemblage would be wheat or sourdough, with light mustard/mayo, greenleaf lettuce, red onions, homegrown tomato, white cheese of somekind, salt/pepper, crunchy lays/ruffles... oh with a diet pepsi. i'm totally going to get lunch now...

i tag... todd, tarzaan, grainofsand, tom!!!, nosleeptricia, kara, amyt.

7&7

I've been tagged! So, 7 things about me that you might not already know are...

1. I've always had pretty neat handwriting, unless I'm in a hurry. But I didn't start adding little flourishes to letters until I worked at the Day Spa. And really, I don't even know what came over me to start with the flourishes. Although I was hired for my neat handwriting (as opposed to my charming demeanor), I think I felt some level of inferiority in the handwriting department whenever I looked at the other receptionists' handwriting. All their handwriting was so cute and bubbly, just like them, and I had to do something to up my Cute and Bubbly Factor. Or maybe it was just my attempt at Day Spa Flair.

2. I own an absurd amount of holiday decor. People have given me holiday stuff for Christmas and birthdays my whole life, and it's accumulated. It's the reason people don't like to help me move. BUT, to my credit, I have pared down over the past few years and eliminated superfluous packaging, so I don't feel like such a Holiday Hoarder. As for the collection itself, though, I must admit I love every bit of it.

3. My thumb is neither green, nor black. Or maybe it starts out green and turns sadly black. Because it seems like whenever I grow anything, the garden included, it starts out fabulous and eventually, inevitably, dies a most horrible death. Sometimes the death has nothing to do with neglect, and sometimes it really has everything to do with neglect.

4. For a semester or two in college, I thought I might be a high school English teacher. I ended up dropping out of the course halfway through the semester, past the very last drop/add date, and had to get the dean's permission. The only way I got the dean's permision was by procuring a very shady medical excuse from the student health center, and the only way I did that was by crying like a big baby. But really, the class did burn a hole in my stomach, one that's still there to this day. Embarassing, though, the whole incident.

5. In sixth grade, I tried (with a friend) looking up Joe McIntyre's phone number in the Boston area phone book at the library and then attempted to call. On a pay phone. It didn't work, but at the time, I really thought it might, and my heart raced as I thought about what I might say.

6. People say you can't pick off a wart and if you try, it will grow back. But that's not true. I had one on my thumb a really long time ago, and it took two tries, but on the second try (after it grew back the first time), I got rid of the thing for good. You really have to dig. Also, you have to be young and stupid enough to keep digging after blood's running down your arm--and smart enough to hide it from your mom.

7. When I was a freshman in high school, a group of senior boys went to the band director's house one night and put epoxy glue in his car locks. At the time, I thought it was terribly funny, because the boys were cute, the word "epoxy" had a certain level of mystery and cool to it, and the band director was kind of goofy and sometimes quite a tool. But now I kind of get that putting epoxy in someone's car locks is a really mean thing to do... and yet, still it still kind of makes me laugh.

*****
The Rules:
1. Link to the person’s blog who tagged you.
2. Post these rules on your blog.
3. List seven random and/or weird facts about yourself.
4. Tag seven people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.

5. Let each person know that they have been tagged by posting a comment on their blog.

So, I tag: Ash, Kim, Andi, Erin, HAT, growler, and just to be a total pain in the ass, since you've already been tagged by Daisy and really need to blogmore, Tom. :)

8 Things You Didn't Know About Pen

Man, these are hard, after so many tags and just posts in general. But, I do enjoy them so. Thanks, grainofsand, for the tag!

1. Some people never really change. Me, I feel like I've changed, or at the very least evolved quite a bit, from who I used to be. I used to be way more uptight, impatient, and very much more reticent than I am now. In college, I stayed home on weekend nights to study and felt like I would fail out of school--or, omg, get a B--if I didn't. I was also quite volatile, at least on the inside, for a period of several years. Time and life fly by so fast, but I look back at who I was or considered myself to be just 5 years ago, and the difference astonishes me, much less 5 years before that. Who was that girl? I feel much more even-keel now. But then, who you are at each point in your life contributes to who you are now, so even if you're embarassed, it's probably not wise to completely disown that former self (poor, pitiful, clueless little bunny that s/he was).

2. I've only been to two other countries: England and France. I don't speak French, but spent 4 days in Paris and loved it to the point of feeling on fire. I was also drunk nearly the whole time.

3. In my life I want to visit: England again, France again, Greece, Italy, Spain, Germany, Holland, Scotland, Ireland, maybe Russia, China if it's not going to be too scary, Japan, Argentina, Mexico, and Canada. At least. I love Epcot Center, but traveling around the world there just doesn't cut it. I'd like at least one of those trips to be a cruise, although possible seasickness/claustrophobia leaves me filled with trepidation. I want to see the cheesy tourist attractions in each place, but also stray off the beaten path. I need to go back and visit Chicago, and also see the Southwest. I would one day like to travel across the US in an RV with my husband, babies, and the dogs.

4. And I also have to visit mendacious in cali again because good grief, we haven't actually seen each other in nearly 3 years.

5. Straightening up the house, particularly putting away the toys and washing the dishes, makes me feel calmer, like I am systematically restoring order. I feel like this might be a little OCD, but not in an unhealthy way, because as previously discussed somewhere on this blog, I think we all need to feel in control, a little bit. It's just that some people try too hard, or channel that energy into the wrong things.

6. I've learned after so many years that because I lack a certain level of charisma, fundamentally, I am not or will not be particularly favored by any person or creature, like I won't ever be sought out and loved in that rockstar way. I don't mean that negatively, it just is what it is. So whenever K.Lo does seek me out specifically, I am genuinely surprised. Though I appreciate the moment, I try to hold back from feeling that flattered, because like everything else with kids, it will change. Someday she'll hate me, and the next she'll change her mind again, that's a certainty.

7. I like surprises, but in my mind I can't help guessing. And sometimes I just Need to Know before I can move on, so I can prepare myself, or maybe just motivate myself to continue, i.e. in the case of reading books. I also love giving gifts, part of which is the fun of surprising someone else--but I don't like when they guess about the present out loud. Because I'm such a bad liar, I know my face would give away any right answer, and then what's the fun in that. I feel foiled.

8. I love the show House Hunters on HGTV and can't stop watching it. My DVRroll would be currently empty if it weren't for these reruns. It's been on for a few years, and in the beginning, it was uber-cheesy, because the people looking at properties clearly had seen the places before and couldn't act their way out of a paper bag to pretend otherwise. And they always made the most mundane observations, like, "Wow, this is a nice, big room," endlessly. At the end of the show they staged a call between the realtor and the client to say whether their offer was accepted on the house, which (duh) it always was. So fantastic. Now the show is more polished, but just as fun. The best part is guessing which property they'll choose, for which I have an almost freakish talent. Although watching the show this frequently has adversely affected my record, it does make me feel better about my lack of luck in guessing boy or girl with new babies.