Haven't done this in a while...

It requires thought and construction as opposed to my normal, nonsensical ramblings that my blog posts usually consist of!

Anyway this award came from Tricia aka SupahWoman (I always loved her spelling of Supah! LOL).

I find myself constantly living under my "ROCK", completely oblivious to the world around me....but when I want a dose of what's going on in the celebrity world....one good post from Tricia is ALL I need and then some! Just the other day Big C dropped a bomb shell on me about Nicolas Cage (aka Nicolas Kim Coppola)!!! I had no idea he was Francis Ford Coppola's nephew and that he'd changed his name to get roles for his acting ability and not his family connections!!!
This is a pay-it-forward style award. Here are the rules:

1. Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this.
2. Share 8 things about yourself
3. Pay it forward to 8 bloggers that you have recently discovered (or not so recently)
4. Contact those bloggers and tell them about their awards.

Here goes the neighborhood!:

1. I hate big pieces of meat. If my meat is not cut into pieces the size of my thumb, I probably won't eat it.
   
   
2. I love English chocolate, and if the doctor told me that if I continue to eat chocolate i would surely die. I'd have a hard time making a decision.
   
   
3. Brown English Muffin: Stands for I'm Brown in skin color (Black on census polls) English because I was born in England (and sometimes speak English!) Muffin well I just needed to end the name with something nice and I just love the way butter melts into the nooks and crannies of an muffin.
   
   
4. I would love to be a stay at home mom by choice and not my layoffs, but most SAHM I talk to tell me I'd go stir crazy and I don't have the patience for it. Yes Baby C pushes my buttons but if I had the day all planned out, my mind says it would be an enjoyable experience for both of us.
   
   
5. It took me this many years to realize that cooperate America is full of phonies and that if I don't stop letting them walk all over me I'll get burnt out. Not sure if it's a good thing that the cynicism took so long to come about or a bad thing.
   
   
6. I claim to be a scrapbooker, but I think I manage two pages a year. I just scrapped a picture of Baby C from 2007! I scrap chronologically at least two pictures for each month and I'm so behind it's saddening.
   
   
7. I cannot eat apple pie with out ice cream, and even if i have ice cream if there's no way to warm the pie I can't eat it either.
   
   
8. 
   I've started to cook and bake everything. With Big C being so sick of late with EN, I want to know what's in everything. If I can't pronounce it, we AIN'T eating it. He loves coconut and pineapple anything. So even though he's diabetic I made this Precious Pineapple Cake last week and these Chewy Coconut Cookies last night. Luckily he knows how to eat in moderation, unlike me, if it's there my brain thinks I HAVE to finish it all. So I figured it's a nice treat for him when he has a craving and at least I know what we're ALL eating!
   
   
9. I hate how my breath smells after drinking coffee so I refuse to drink it at work now that I no longer keep a tooth brush at work. Though if they got Starbucks coffee machines that churned out Caramel Macchiato's I wouldn't care how my breath smelt and would purposely go around breathing in peoples faces just because I was so darn happy!
   
   
10. I hate it when people as for your input on something and you give it and then they don't like it and as for you to suggest something else, until they do like it. Why ask me? Why not just tell me what "YOU" want from the get go?

There I'm done, and yet the post feels so long I don't think even I'd read it!!! LOL

Hmm so which 8 to target next....

1. Staci being an elementary school teachers I'm sure she has TONS's of free time! LMAO
2. Susie Q, just because she always has pearls of wisdom as opposed to nonsensical rambles like myself.
3. Grannie Annie just because I love her so!
4. Adrienne just because her life is way more interesting than mine!
5. Chrissy for nothing more than to read a witty post!
6. Corey just because she'll come a close second to the wittest person I know than Chrissy!
7. Don because he's the only man I know that reads my drivel!
8. Dawn just so she'll get of facebook and update her blog! LOL

Good luck and may the force be with you!!!

Passed to Me

EssenceVibez passed this award to me, I usually find it hard to type about myself so feel free to turn to Lifetime TV right now to find something more interesting to occupy your afternoon!!

As per the rules, here are 10 honest things about me:

1. I really would like to move to GA if god thinks it's a good idea, and when gods ready of course. I'd love to scrap my days away with Dawn!
2. I hate "wishy-washy" people, a close friend of mine gets on my nerves due to this character trait. It's so hard to plan anything with her.
3. I prefer my 3 year old when she's sleeping. Our house is going through the don't listen, and don't respect phase.
   
4. I have very few friends but a bunch of acquaintances. I kind of keep to myself, I guess a trait of being an only child, and probably #2 and #10
5. I censor my own blog and don't post what I REALLY feel.
6. I often feel detached from family and people of my race, it's as if there's always a void that I just don't get or understand fully.
7. I hate the idea of debt or owing anyone anything, but sometimes I feel that life might be more interesting if I just threw caution to the wind. Even if that meant incurring debt.
8. I had more fun in life and in my relationship when I didn't have a child, but yet I want more kids??
9. I feel that my life is extremely boring right now, but I think it's due to me NOT appreciating what I have and that I'd probably take "boring" any day over some other peoples drama filled lives.
10. I can't live with out LISTS!!! I think I have OCD or some anal retentive issue, I think if I could organize the alphabet I would!

NOW The rules of this award are:

1. Post the award on your blog.
2. Present this award to others whose blogs you find brilliant in content and/or design, or those who have encouraged you.
3. Tell those people they’ve been awarded HONEST SCRAP, inform them of these guidelines.
4. Share “Ten Honest Things” about yourself.

my picks this time are:

1. Chrissy - just because she's always full of wit.
2. Dawn - just because I haven't heard from her in a while!
3. Granny Annie - because her life has to be more interesting than mine!
4. Corey - just because she's my reality tv junkie blogger, and she has to have something worth saying!
5. Staci - just because we scrapped together last weekend and I actually got a page done!!

The longest post ever....RUN!!!

Ok I've been tagged twice! Once by Mmm and once by Dawn. I always feel like I am such a boring person that I honestly shy away from doing tagged items. (Sorry Dawn that it's taken me so long but at least you now know the truth!)

Anyway I decided to just go ahead and do both tags at once, so in the event that you find my life just as boring as I do, you can either hit that big red X in the top right hand corner (go on you know you want to) or you can grab a nice cold Green Apple Smirnoff Ice and get to reading!

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So with that out of the way here is the first tag from Mmm:

TAG 1

What was I doing 10 years ago?
I had just landed my first ever real job as a Marketing Assistant at ICBA! I was so excited and thought I was getting paid SOOO much money! Little did I know that I really did hate talking on the phone and I was getting paid less than peanuts! But you live and learn, but I will say that I did learn a lot about all the bs red tape of capital hill when working there though!

Five Snacks I enjoy:
1. Dunking Milk Chocolate Digestives into hot tea! The best thing in the world thanks Mmm
2. Fish and Chips (I know it's not a snack but heck I'd snack on it if I could)
3. Real Scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam
4. Cream Crackers and real sharp cheddar
5. Mareblu Naturals Cranmango Cashew Crunch

Five Things On My To-Do List Today:
Why they only want five is beyond me...the first five are only the beginning to the rest of the never ending list! It's the last five you want!
1. Figure out Big C's ring size so I can buy him a ring for father’s day.
2. Call Wyndamn Vacation and deposit time share points before they expire
3. Finish an already late belated birthday card (Is it possible for a belated card to really be late?)
4. Finish hanging up my summer clothes, which of course means the winter clothes have to get put away first! Aghh I hate this part of the summer!
5. Figure out what to pull out the freezer for tomorrow as it's my turn to cook on Tuesday.

Things I Would Do If I Were A Billionaire:
1. Cut off the cable in my house for a year and find other things to do besides watching tv.
2. Help all family and friends who would do well with a little financial assistance
3. Give money to a charity just haven't figured out which one yet
4. Oh no how did my mother make it to no. 4? Anyway I'd buy her a house right next door to my house and have a big old fence around both of our yards!
5. I'd also go ahead and have at least two more children...I guess I'd have to make sure Big C wanted to come along for this ride!

Five Jobs I Have Had:
1. Web Developer
2. Web Producer
3. Web Publisher
4. Marketing Assistant
5. Relief Support Staff (Fancy name for working with persons with disabilities!)

Five of My Bad Habits:
1. Neat Freak
2. Anal to a fault, I feel sorry for anyone who lives with me!
3. Way too analytical instead of just taking things at face value
4. I hate that I always think I must finish everything on my plate.
5. I must have real chocolate in the house, anything that's not American will do! Sorry!

Five Places I've Lived:
1. North, Newton, Kansas
2. Newton, Kansas
3. Arnold, Maryland
4. Long Island, New York
5. London, England

5 People I Want To Get To Know Better (yep, you're tagged!)
- Jilly
- MrsSaditty
- T-Baby
- Joe
- Monogram Queen

Dawn I was going to tag you but then I realized I could nearly answer most of the questions about you to begin with! LOL

Five Random Things (most people wouldn't know about me):
1. I hate meat
2. I've never met my father, but found millions of my brothers and sisters on facebook! (Ok everyone sing with me "Papa was a rolling stone..."
3. When ever my skin gets puncture, like a cut or something more than a scratch, a freckle often times appears after it's healed
4. My mothers my biggest hero, and one day when I grow up I want to be just like her.
5. I love listening to audio books or radio stories.

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Ok you still there? Hey wake up...here's the second one from Dawn:

TAG 2

1. What is your occupation?
Sr. Web Developer

2. What color socks right now?
None

3. What are you listening to right now?
The air conditioner

4. What was the last thing that you ate?
A bean burrito from Taco Bell even though I swore I would never ever go back after their recent non washing practices! Oh yuck I get a sick feeling just thinking about it...ok I'm not going back again, I promise. Taco Bell and Walmart are no more!

5. Can you drive a stick shift?
YEP! I learnt how to drive on my ex's 1987 Mitsubishi Pick Up Truck it had that long stick that just appears out of the floor of the car and everything!! I always joke with Big C that if he doesn't learn how to drive a stick we'll never be able to go on The Amazing Race! We both know we'd never go on that show...I don't like how it brings out the ugly in relationships...I'll keep my ugly right here at home thank you!

6. If you could be a color what color would you be?
Pink

7. Last person you spoke to on the phone?
Big C! I had to tell him to tell his work husband that Michaels had frames on sale for $3! (They all call each other that, and yes it sounds gay (in the true sense of the word and not in a derogatory manner) but all his co workers agree that they spend sooo much time around each other that they spend more time with each other than with their actual spouses!

8. Do you like the person who sent this to you?
Oh I LOVE the person that sent this too me! I'm dying to live closer to her so we can shop, eat, scrap and have all kinds of expensive fun together!! She's been such a good friend and I've never even met her, she sent Baby C some of the cutest clothes that are just too small for her little one.

9. Favorite food?
Any kind of bean, baked bean, pinto bean, black bean, lentil beans, green beans, ok I'm starting to sound like Forrest Gump and all those shrimp! But of course beans don't like me!

10. Favorite drink?
Tazo® Green Tea Frappuccino® with all it's 490 calories! Hmm, how many calories in a cheeseburger?

11. What is your favorite sport to watch?
Huh? I don't do meat or sports! But if I had a gun held to my head and HAD to answer this I would say Basketball but only March Madness!

12. Have you ever dyed your hair?
Nope...that would require maintenance and I don't do maintenance...unless it's lawn maintenance as that means I get to stay outside!

13. Pets?
None...too anal for that...please refer to question 5, section 1 in above tagged section! LOL Seriously though we had a cat, his name was Bonkers and I really wanted Baby C to grow up with an animal but my anal tendencies got worse trying to keep the house clean, and Baby C clean and Big C clean, so we gave him to my cousin!

14. Favorite Author?
Nicholas Sparks, close second James McBride. Interesting how Wicki classifies one as an author and the other as a writer. What's the difference between an Author and a Writer? Joe...if by the grace of god you're still reading, though lord knows why...I've decided that you're my resident real life google in the flesh...do you know what's the difference or do I have to go and google it?

15. Last movie you watched?
The Cleaner with Samuel Jackson and Ed Harris and that girl with that mole on her face though I'm sure she refers to it as a beauty mark, who knows?? Joe???, it was a good way to pass a summers evening but I wouldn't run around recommending it.

16. Favorite Day of the year?
Baby C's birthday...so far both years have been a blast and I'm especially partial to that day as there's a good chance I'll get to see my mummy!

17. What do you do to vent anger?
Hmm...what things can I write down legally!! No seriously I'll go for a walk or go to Starbucks either or both work just fine for me!

18. What was your favorite toy as a child?
Lego of course!!!! I still love it! I can't wait to play with it with Baby C, but I want to wait until she's older and has time to appreciate it...she's not going to just mess around with my Lego and think she can get away with it...oh no!!!

19. What is your favorite time of the year?
I love all the seasons and that's what I'm going to miss the most when I move to GA, the drastic changes in seasons that New York experiences. (I say "when" and not "if" as I have faith that when the time is right the good lord will let me know, right lord? Are you listening to me?..Hmm maybe even he didn't get this far in reading my blog...I don't blame him, I mean it's all old news to him!).

20. Strawberry or Blueberry?
Strawberry, Blueberry, ahh tomato, tomatoe! If I had to pick I'd say strawberry I guess! I love them both and they both make a mean shake or smoothie!

21. Do you want your friends to participate?
Heck yeah...nothing loves misery than company!! LOL If I've got to do it then my "real acquaintances" have to as well. I would say friends but half of you I've never met and though I do consider you all my friends...who are we kidding here...I mean you could meet me with all my anal tendencies and green tea breathe and prefer me ONLY in blog land! LOL

22. Who is most likely to respond?
Hmm well if I'd tagged Dawn I'd say her...but as I haven't then I'd have to say...hmmm oh lord, let me finish and come back to this one...I have no idea who’s going to be left reading this far by this point to even know they've been tagged. I'm sorry I'm not usually this pessimistic but I truly find myself boring...but then doesn't everyone find themselves boring on paper?

23. Who is least likely to respond?
Hmm...I know Dana oh and Creole Wisdom!!!

24. Living arrangements?
An old 1927 Cape on the sunny side of the street, with Big C and Baby C.

25. When was the last time you cried?
When mummy left to go back home! I can't wait until she moves here for good so I can stop all this crying...

26. Who is the friend you had the longest that you are going to tag?
Oh lordie here we go again with these questions, they should have asked who am I going to tag first then I could answer these kind of questions...ok for this tag I'm going to tag Staci, Dana, Creole Wisdom, Sharon and my man O. I guess O is the longest friend I'm going to tag.

27. Who is the friend you had the shortest that you are going to tag?
Sharon

28. Favorite smell?
Fresh black top

29. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers?
Spicy...not that I've ever heard of spicy hamburgers but still.

30. Favorite car?
Something big that I can take camping...something like a Mark IV conversion van or even a VW Van. We just got rid of our Suburban and I'm in SUV mourning.

31. Favorite Quote or motto?
"The latest you should ever be is fifteen minutes early" ~ Hope Lee my college mom.

32. Number of keys on your key ring?
Like this has any relevance to the world! Aghh erm...about 5...I'm too lazy now to get up as I still have 9 more questions to go and I'm past tired.

33. How many years at your current job?
2 years and if I don't stop doing this tag it will be my last two years!

34. Favorite day of the week?
I'd say Saturday mornings on the porch

35. How many states have you lived in?
3 (Kansas, New York and Maryland)

36. Which political label most closely reflects your views?
Political label??? erm....Joe.....

37. Worst injury you've ever had?
Not listening to my mummy and climbing a wall and slipping and cutting my shine to the white meat!! My mother who is a nurse didn't even blink and also didn't run out to help me...that was my punishment for not listening...and I swear it needed stitches! Bet I never climbed that stupid wall again!

38. What is your favorite book?
Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt..I know, I know...if you've really been paying attention you're saying..."But in question 14 you said your favorite Authors were...." I'm just checking to see who has fallen asleep.

39. What were you doing at 12:00 last night?
Sleeping and wrestling over why the air conditioner had not yet cooled down our attic bedroom!

40. What famous person, dead or alive, would you most like to meet?
I'd like to spend more time and truly meet my nanny on my mother’s side. Though I met her I was so young the memories are foggy and I feel if I met her now the memories would last a lifetime....but nanny don't come visiting me in my sleep...you know how I feel about that. Ok I really want to retract meeting my nanny but I feel it blasphemous to delete...I don't know why but to me it's like putting a book or bible on the floor...so I'll just append to it and say the ONE person I would truly like to meet is Big C's mother. We lay awake many a nights talking about her, him rambling on about the cutest child hood memories and me analyzing and asking question after question about her.

If you made it this far, please excuse any incorrect grammar and spelling mistakes...while I'd HATE to read something this long with tons of grammatical errors I absolutely refuse to go back and proof read all if this...I'd probably just delete the entire post if I did that!! LOL

The worst part is....if I gave you my SSI number you'd have everything needed to assume my identity!! Tagging is bad!!! LOL Big C if you're reading this how many of these questions can you answer right without looking at the answers?

Blah Day

It's raining outside and I love the rain but I can't really enjoy the smell and feeling of it being stuck at my desk at work.

My boss isn't in, his boss isn't in and our project coordinator isn't in either so I feel very relaxed and calm even though I have this mental list of things to do nagging away in my frontal lobe... hmm would the list really be in my frontal lobe...it sounds good but as I over analyze it, I don't think memory is in that part of the brain. Oh I guess I was right, working memory is the frontal lobe.

But once again I digress, probably due to the lack of things converse about.

Hmmm...there's a piece of popcorn stuck in my keyboard. I'm sure I stuck it there but I have no idea how to get it out. It's all the way behind the "alt" "space bar" and "comma"...one sec b,......mmmmmmmmmmmm/////////////

It wasn't popcorn it was a piece of ugly colored tissue...I guess I wished it were popcorn, Orville Redenbachers Extra buttery is what it looked like and I don't even like popcorn....unless it's caramel popcorn from an English movie theater. Hmm I wonder if they even sell that stuff at the cinema back home any more? Does anyone else dislike regular popcorn, or am I the lonely freak! LOL

Talking of movies I want to go to the Warwick Drive-In again...it just opened up last weekend I believe...but Big C didn't really want to go last weekend so I'll have to wait until April now. I want to see Vantage Point and Untraceable, you get both for $8!!! How can you beat that when one movie in a regular movie theater would cost more than $8 let alone two! I want to stay at a hotel this time after watching the movie so we don't have to drive home all tired, the last time we went I got a $220 speeding ticket at like 2AM on the Garden State Parkway in NJ which is notorious for corrupt cops so I'm lucky I walked away with only a ticket. I only like to stay at the Marriott Hotels (does anyone else have an affinity to one chain of hotels?) and the nearest place would cost $99 for one night which kind of defeats the joy of paying $8 for two movies huh? Anyone out there who agrees with my method of madness and WOULD pay for a hotel please raise your hand now and I'll use you as a case against Big C's protests, I darent go into this argument alone!

But then again $220 is more than $99 right, how evil the mind can be in playing such games! lol

I'm supposed to be playing around with a new content management software that we're in the process of buying...I was about to say the name but then thought how awkward would that be if my boss goggled the software and found my blog about me being bored!!! Do you guys remember that woman (I'll go and look for her blog in one sec) who got fired because of her blog...I think both her and her husband no longer have to work as she makes so much money from her blog, she has big name ads on there now! I couldn't even imagine blogging for a living and having ads on my blog! I love her style of writing it's raw, witty and just every day and that's what I like, the mere everydayness which is just so interesting, (oh here she is Heather B), something I've never been good at, I always feel compelled to have something riveting to say before I blog other wise I feel like I'm wasting peoples time....kind of like right now!! LOL

Ok before I sign off...(well that's if you're even still reading)...here's a tag that Staci tagged me on, I can't believe she was a back up dancer to former Menudo member, Ray Reyes, mine won't be anything as interesting as hers, so you might as well stop here. I just wanted to fulfill my obligation as she tagged me days ago.

So I was just in the bathroom (restroom to you Americans!) and while I was sitting on the royal throne I could hear my aunt in my head (no, not the frontal lobe portion) having a heart attack at the 7 random things I posted for the world to see (because you know the world reads our blogs right) so now I had to scratch off two of the items before I even started! I don't think the day could get much better, with my aunt tampering with a list I haven't even made and me wanting to walk in the rain instead of writing boring blog entries or doing work that I'm supposed to have done already! So here we go before someone else tampers with the list in my head!

7 random things about me:

1. I used to work with people with disabilities and if the pay were better that's where I'd rather be right now, the internal gratification that comes from such a job is like nothing in this world.



2. I just finished taking the citizenship test and passed with flying colors, I still have to take the oath but even when that's said and done I have NO desire to vote, you'd think I would with the presidential nominations being so juicy! (for lack of a better word).



3. I've always felt awkward of who I am. I've never felt like I could identify 100% with African Americans but yet I feel like I am expected to. I've often felt like an Oreo (I know I hate that term too but it clearly explains my feelings) and I've never quite found my niche in life...especially during college and many times now I still feel myself drift and bob on who I am. I can still hear comments like you don't act black or you act too white. Stupid really!(I hope that one makes sense).



4. I've always hated when people name their children what "I" deem ghetto names such as Porsche, Mercedes or Diamond. (I apologize now if I've offended anyone).



5. I feel dirty if I brush my teeth after my shower as opposed to before I shower. (I know so anal it hurts!)



6. Every year I wish my family were closer and got together more often than merely funerals and weddings. (My co worker is going over to her cousins house who's hosting a grand affair of activities for ALL the kids in the family like an easter egg hunt, painting, cookie making and a big family lunch/dinner. I guess next year I can try one at my house but fear it will be a wasted effort and lessoned learned.)



7. I've never met my father and I'm honestly fine with it no matter how many times I might mention it here, but of course my mother begs to differ, I know she thinks internally I'm yearning to meet him, if only she could understand it's just not that way. It's all my siblings that I really want to meet, I heard papa was a rolling stone!!! LOL

I'm not going to tag anyone as I haven't been to not one blog who that hasn't done this one alrady...once again I'm the late one! LOL!

I've been tagged

1. Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself (on your blog, we all want to know them).

3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.

4. Let each person know that they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.


********************************************************
HERE'S GOES NOTHING:

1. Dana tagged me her blog is here: http://indanaswords.blogspot.com/

2. Here are my 7 random and/or weird facts:

i) I was born and raised in England.
ii) I can still do the splits.
iii) I've been scuba diving in Malta.
iv) I love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with Ramon noodles and hot sauce on the side.
v) I used to call myself brown not black as a child.
vi) I get excited to read technology magazines especially when I come across a word that I have to google.
vii) I can't sleep if everything is not in it's right home, I am anal.

3. Here are my 7 random people:


i) Pat http://backporchmusings.blogspot.com/

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ii) Jill G http://scrapndipity.blogspot.com/

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iii) Patti http://patticakepatticake.blogspot.com/

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iv) Gina http://ramblingsofafrazzledmom.blogspot.com/

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v) Theresa http://thelollislegacy.typepad.com/key_ka_bug/

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vi) Chataqua http://its-kaotic-in-here.blogspot.com/

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vii) Rebecca http://2little1s.livejournal.com/

4. Done!

I got tagged again TWICE..

I got tagged by Dawn and by Gold, but I got lucky and they are for the same thing!!! Phew!

7 things I betcha didn't know about me...

1. I have a phone phobia. I don't like answering the phone or making phone calls. I think it stems from young where my mother used to force me to get on the phone to speak to relatives. She resorted to the point of lying to me and telling me a friend is on the phone and I'd pick up the phone and it would be an auntie or an uncle! I'll do anything to get around not returning a phone call, I'll ask Big C to do it, or I'll email someone, or instant message, I'll even write a letter, and I haven't tried smoke signals yet, ANYTHING but pick up the phone.

2. My mother used to pack me prawn (aka small shrimp) sandwhiches for my school lunch and all I wanted was a simple ham and cheese! I had no idea I was living the good life, I'd do anything for her to pack that for me now for work! LOL

3. I thought I had OCD but I found out last night while reading a magazine at the chiropractor that people with OCD usually have to redo things over and over as they feel it wasn't done properly the first time. I realized I don't have TIME for OCD, if it's not done right the first time I'm sure as heck not doing it over and and over again! They gave an example of people taking EVERYTHING out of their closet and folding all their clothes over and over again, like FIVE TIMES until they feel they are folded correctly. I only refold maximum TWICE!

4. I cannot wear mis matching underwear and it preferably has to match the outfit of the day.

5. When my fingers are stretched out in the position that you'd give a Hi Five, my finger from the joint onwards doesn't bend straight, it kind of curves like it's hyper extending. Some people say I am double jointed but I don't think this is the case. I can also bend the very tip of my finger, you know the last digit, while keeping the middle joint straight. (I would take a picture but it might freak some people out!)

6. I don't like diamonds! I asked dh for a plain metal band with nothing on it! He still got a diamond but made sure it was small. I like plain, plain things plus it gets on my nerves when the diamond catches on things...like skirts, stockings, and curtains! How annoying! LOL

7. I see places in my dreams before I've ever visited them. This has happened at least twice. Plus I seem to visit a new place and then years later end up working at that place this has happened 3 times now.

5 things that make me happy

Ok because in the past few months Typepad was being mean to me and not allowing me to leave comments...I neglected the fact that Kim tagged me WEEKS AGO!!!

So now I have something to write about on this rainy Friday...not that this yabba mouth ever ran out of things to say but you know what i mean.

I have to list 5 things that make me happy. (This will NOT be hard, if it is hard for you, you might want to re evaluate your life? LOL):

1. Coming in both at a close first it would have to be Big C and Little C.

Yes that is the back of Big C's head but
sometimes you've gotta take what you can get!!!
2. Talking to my mummy on the phone! I know I drive her crazy at time with my nasty attitude and tongue but talking to her makes me happy.

I know, I need to get a new picture of mommy to post.
3. You know what else makes me happy, the sauce in a really good chicken pot pie. You know when the sauce is all yummy and it starts to seep into the crust!!! Oh that makes me really happy!!!

4. Having the time to read a good book. I have this book "A Good year" just sitting staring me in the face day after day and I never have the time to pick it up and read it. But when I do sit down to read, I get happy as I know everythings alright in the house! Everything has to be alright for me to even have the time to sit. It means the floors are clean, laundry is folded, plants have been watered, dinner has been thawed and Baby C is napping!! (Has anyone seen the movie of this book with Russell Crowe?)

5. Hmm I have to make my last one a worthy one right...I have to think long and hard about this one...ok got it...finding good friends or even good acquaintances. Doesn't it make you get all ooey gooey inside when you connect; I mean really connect with another blogger? When you exchange a personal email and not just comments on blogs, when another blogger says thank you to you for a nice comment you left on their blog and you know your comment was straight from the heart and you're glad it made their day, or when you realize you're not the only crazy sorry soul in life who thinks a certain way and you're sure glad they had the guts to admit it as you were too scared people would think you were crazy if you did!! LOL

Tagged in 07

1. What did you do in 2006 that you've never done before? Gave birth to my daughter baby C!

2. Did anyone close to you give birth? Yes, ME!

3. Did anyone close to you die?

Yes my High School Social Science teacher John Otterpohl, he got introduced me to my scholarship for college.

4. What countries did you visit?

NONE...shame on me...this has to change in 2007! I thought I would have made it to Tuscany at least!

5. What would you like to have in 2007 that you lacked in 2006?

Patience to accept and ENJOY each day and not worry about a huge "To Do List".


6. What dates from 2006 will remain etched upon your memory and why? My daughters birthday


7. Did you suffer illness or injury? No thank you lord.


8. Who's behavior merited celebration?

Big C. He put up with all my moods during pregnancy when he could have just lashed back or ignored me.

9. Who's behavior made you appalled and depressed?

My step daughters. I wish she was able to be a 9 year old as opposed to a 19 year old with attitude. It doesn't seem fair on her.


10. Where did most of your money go?

Home improvements, new windows, new paint, new carpet, new sidewalk, and new living room furniture


11. What did you get really excited about?

Giving birth! (Yes this is going to get repeated over and over!)


12. Compared to this time last year, are you, a) happier or sadder, b) thinner or heavier, c) richer or poorer?

Happier, thinner (breastfeeding is the best diet known to man!), richer! (Richer doesn't always mean monetarily! LOL)

13. What was your favorite TV show?

Eastenders (My British show!) It used to be Law & Order, or any other crime show but ever since I got pregnant my taste in shows has changed. I find this one really weird as I'll still turn to Law and Order or First 48 Hours but I'll quickly turn?


14. What was the best book you read? Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy


15. Is there someone or something you missed this past year?

My mummy, (You are never too old to miss your mummy!)


16. What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?

Big C surprised me and took me to Rhode Island which is beautiful and we got to have breakfast with my cousin at Brown Uni.


17. What kept you sane? GINGER ginger gum, ginger tea, and Oh and Big C!


18. What is one new thing you'd like to accomplish this year?

Taking more time for myself no matter what around the house needs cleaning, fixing or organizing,...I'd like to take time for myself so I can; finish a Scrapbook, make more cards, more altered picture frames, do more art projects in general.

19. If you could do one thing this year and not get chastised by or for it, what would you do?

Take a month off work and go to India.





20. If you could meet one blogger in 2007, who would you want to meet?

This is very hard...as I'm dying to meet all of them, then there are those like Dawn, Dana, that I talk to frequently via IM or via blogging, so I kind of feel like I've already met them even though I haven't!! I think it would be the most intriguing person that I'd want to meet, someone who makes me think every time I read their blog and that would be, Marie hmmm or maybe my sister now that would be like looking at myself in the mirror!! (Sidenote, I found her on the internet a few years ago but never met her).

 

Hmm lets see who to tag!!!

I think Kansas Queen, Mari, Susie Q, Jude, Trice, Jen, Jill, Christine, gnightgirl, Karla, Amanda AND Tasha.

Can I tag this many people or is this blog illegal? I'm just nosey and enjoy reading peoples answers...I also figured this was a cool way to get to know my blog people!!

I've been tagged

Thanks for tagging me Amanda....Hmmm who to tag, who to tag,...let me do the first 4 people on my stalker list over there on my right!!!

Kiesha, Conners Mommy, Dawn and Drum roll please Stephanie!!!

Ok I have a feeling this might take me a while...I might do it in installments!! LOL

A - Available/Single? Married

B - Best Friend? My hubby Big C, then college sister Kansas Queen

C - Cake or Pie? Haven't you been reading my blog....Apple Pie a la mode...and if you don't have vanilla ice cream you can shove your apple pie where the sun don't shine!! LOL

D - Drink Of Choice? Venti Caramel Macchiato please and if you can't do that just give me vodka on the rocks!

E - Essential Item You Use Everyday? a bar of soap...I would say deodorant but as I lift my arms up to type I realize a little something is missing today!!! (Do you ever forget deodorant? :0))

F - Favorite Color? Pink it goes well on my complexion, at least I think so.

G - Gummy Bears Or Worms? Don't you hate the OR questions...I'm an only child so everything is mine, mine, mine and I surely want both!!! But hmmm I guess gummy bears as I love biting their heads off! (Yes therapy is once a week don't worry!)

H - Home or Homesick? Homesick (Have you seen the price of a ticket to England these days!!! Mint sauce or no mint sauce they're a pretty penny)!

I - Indulgence? Ok I don't get this one...yeah I don't do well on tests, go figure. So are you asking me what I like to indulge IN? Oh well then it has to be CHOCOLATE...but it has to be anything but American chocolotate...that yucky American chocolate!! (That "yucky" comment was for you Karla and Jude!).

J - January Or February? January I guess as it always feels like a refreshing new month where everything is going to be different...well at least until January 29th!

K - Kids & Their Names? Well I don't have any goats if that's what your asking...I don't even have a farm....now children I have 1!! Baby C!!!

L - Life Is Incomplete Without? Jesus Christ of course!!! (Has anyone even changed this answer as they copy and paste, if so give me their name and number I'll go round and talk to them with my fists! LOL)

M - Marriage date? Wow...do you want my social security and dna type too!!!

N - Number Of Siblings? None...can't you tell from the answers that I'm a spoilt, only child! If you can't tell that...then give me your name and number I know we'll be instant friends!! LOL

O - Oranges Or Apples? Bananas!! (Yeah there's always that one person who JUST had to be different right!!! HA not me...I'd say Apples I think...Gala Apples to be exact.

P - Phobias/Fears? Fear of falling down the stairs (Are we half way through the alphabet yet...I don't even remember passing the letter "M"!)

Q - Favorite Quote? "When people make the decision to have children, they give up the right to be selfish" ~ Serendipeaty

R - Reason to Smile? Ahh the old gooshy answer of course....WHEN MY PAY CHECK GETS DEPOSITED IN TO MY ACCOUNT OF COURSE!! No seriously when baby C smiles at 6AM in the morning!! Nothing can compare.

S - Season? Fall (I love bundling up near a fire place and reading a book or people watching

T - Tag 3 or 4 people? Kiesha, Conners Mommy, Dawn and Drum roll please Stephanie (Are we there yet???? :0))

U - Unknown Fact About Me? I was born and raised in England and moved here for college over ten years ago and just never left after college!! Shhh don't tell anyone! Blog are private right!!! LOL

V - Vegetable you don’t like? Is liver a vegetable!! Yuck...yucky American Liver...again that's for Karla and Jude!!

W - Worst Habit? Rubbing the dried skin off my lips with my hands. It's hard to explain and I can promise you, you don't want to see it...hubby says it looks painful!

X - X-rays You’ve Had? Sonogram and mammogram!! Never broke a bone in my body thank god.

Y - Your Favorite Food? ANYTHING you put in front of me...did I just see a mouse!! LOL

Z - Zodiac Sign? Libra...I'm all about fairness I hate injustice...I'm the scales...everthing must be right in life....when we're driving a long and I see someone drop litter or do something that's not right i start ranting and raving....my husband calls me "The World Police"!!!

A Christmas Get-to-Know You!!!

I got this idea from Cheryl...so thanks girl...I love the christmas music on your site right now...it so puts me in the christmas mood!!!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?
Egg nog please and a splash of rum!


2. Does "Santa" wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
He gets paid by the hour to wrap them!


3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?
White, white, white...the colors are too much for me!


4. Do you hang mistletoe?
Years ago...you can't kiss after you have kids are you crazy!


5. When do you put your decorations up?
Right after Thanksgiving...as the Turkey bones go out the tree comes rolling in right on Big C's back!


6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)?
Leg of lamb with mint sauce NOT mint jelly...you yucky Americans! (just joking)


7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child?
Lego, Lego, Lego...I always wanted a new addition for my space center!


8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?
Just now LOL :0(


9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
No never did this though so many people have a tradition of it I might try it.


10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree?
White lights, silver balls, and only ornaments that have a special story or meaning to go with them no random ornaments.


11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it! I would love to see a White Christmas!
Love, love, love it...I always pray it will snow on Christmas...I don't think I could even celebrate christmas in California or Hawaii it wouldn't seem real if it wasn't brick cold!! Plus how can you ski without snow!


12. Can you ice skate? I tried and was awful at it!
Yes I have my own skates too!


13. Do you remember your favorite gift?
Lego, Lego, Lego sorry to repeat myself...but I'm sure you're getting the drift


14. What's the most exciting thing about the Holidays for you?
The overall ambiance and feeling of it all...the joyous feeling.


15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert?
Apple pie a la mode...I won't even eat apple pie if there isn't any VANILLA ice cream....no chocolate or mint chop chip it HAS to be vanilla. So who's with me on this one?? LOL


16. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
I don't have one...but I need to start on...I mean I would like to start one! I like the idea of opening gifts on christmas eve, or having a special xmas breakfast.


17. What tops your tree?
A Muffy VanderBear Angel Bear! It took me months to find her and finally buy her. I wouldn't mind a star but she took me so long to find I can't bear to think about not seeing her on top.


18. Which do you prefer: give or receive?
Definitely receive...and I'm not saying it to be corny or anything but the joy I get from seeing the joy in others hearts is much more than the joy I feel when I open my gifts. Hmm but now that I over analysis that statement maybe it's because I never liked what I got??? Hmmm


19. What is your favorite Christmas Song?
Anything by Pavarotti or Placido Domingo ohhh I love it...I can hear their voices now.


20. Candy Canes?
Yuck hate them...I'll take a dozen mince pies please!

And as Dawn so graciously pointed out...I didn't challenge anyone to do this....so anyone who reads my blog I challenge you to not only do it but to leave a comment so I can come and read the cool answers!!!

My Celebrity Look-alikes!!! LOL

I got tagged!!

OK I got tagged...by Dawn...but it looks like it's a fun one or at least a nostalgic one...so I'm game. But just like Dawn I'm going to get my tagging done :-). Alright guys, you're on: Oz, Kansas Queen, Rebecca, Kayonne, Toya and Muriel and anyone else who may be interested. Now this should be interesting if they actually answer!!!

1. What did you want to be when you grew up?
Brown! I swear I told my mother that I didn't want to be black I wanted to be brown!!
I don't remember what profession I wanted to go into but I knew early on I didn't want to be a nurse because my mother was a nurse and she drilled into me to do anything but be a nurse! lol

2. How did you help out around the house?
I always told the guests to please put their glasses in the sink when they were done as that's what my mother told me to do!! I also helped hang the laundry on the clothes line in the back yard.

3. What were you most afraid of?
Getting pregnant. One day I asked my mother what that black line on her stomach was from. She said the line is always there but it gets darker when you get pregnant. All I remember was looking at it for years praying it never got darker even though I had no clue how to get pregnant!!! LOL

4. Who was your first crush?
Bobby Brown!! I can't think of a real person as Bobby Brown just sticks in my head like a saw thumb...I swore I was going to marry him. I do remember there was a middle eastern boy in my middle school that I liked a lot. I remember his name was Mustafa, but I don't remember his last name or what he looked like.

5. Which childhood story do family and friends still tease you about?
I was never allowed to drink soda growing up. One day I begged my mother for coke. She bought me a big bottle and I drank and drank, and she let me drink and drink. I should have know something as wrong then by the fact that she let me drink so much...little did I know she was teaching me a lesson. Anyway I drank so much I was sick afterwards. My mother still teases me about that when she sees me drinking soda now.

6. Which family vacation was your favorite?
My first ever trip to America. I was 9 years of age and I was going to see my grandma and all my aunts, uncles and cousins! I KNOW I didn't sleep the night before!!

7. What did you do in the summertime?
Went on vacations to different countries, had a gazillion play dates (poor mom having to get me to and from everyone’s house and we didn't have a car), and playing outside with the neighborhood kids.

8. What did your childhood bedroom look like?
White walls, a multi colored carpet and big book cases filled with books, toys and stuffed animals, I also had a very small portable tv and a small writing table. Later on my walls turned to blue wall paper with colored zig zag lines in it.

9. As a child, what was your greatest talent?
Gymnastics and arguing (or debating as my mother put it) or and I could play the piano pretty well everyone told me I had a keen ear for music. But I do remember my mom saying that if I planned on debating all my life I'd better get a job as a lawyer.

10. What was the nicest thing your parents ever did for you?
Letting me go!! I realize now that I am a mother how hard it must have been for my mom to let me leave her in England and go off to college...and end up staying in America after college. I don't know how she let me go except that she knew I needed to spread my wings. I realize now that letting your child go takes more love than keeping them.



Wow that last one was a tear jerker for me...I thought this was supposed to be fun!! HA seriously though the rest of them were fun 1-9 at least! Hope you had fun reading them.

I stole it from dawn!

OK so I stole this from Dawn....I say her name like I know her...but I just read her blog and she seems really nice...anyway she stole it from Renee so I don't feel so bad!!!! LOL

1. List the people from your past who you would like to reconnect with through email (if you could find them):

Maurice and Tammy from college...they had a baby girl the last time I talked to them but all the information I have for them keeps coming back (I still need to watch the movie "The Life of David Gale" in which he had a role.

I'd also love to see how a big sister from middle school in England is doing Angela, it seems like she fell off the face of the earth!!!

Oh and pen pals from years ago, Jim Ogunlendun I was so excited to have a pen pal from Africa and disappointed when he moved to England and less than 1 hour from my house...bummer...no more cool stamps.

oh and pen pal Brenda Maximum from the Bahamas I believe!

2. List the companies you wish you owned.

I would love to own a Starbucks, a Burlington Coat Factory and a Target.

3. List the things you do to defy aging.
Play with Lego, color in a coloring book, try to run up and down the stairs!!!


4. List what you do to snap out of a bad mood. Write in my journal, draw, play with the cat, or people watch at Starbucks.

A rare friend's only moment

Since I did Eric's I must now repost it: You can just copy and paste it into my comment spot so that you can reply to it with your information.

1. Name:
2. Date of birth:
3. Where you live:
4. What makes you happy:
5. Currently listening/the last thing you listened to:
6. Do you read my journal?:
7. If yes, what makes it especially good or bad?:
8. An interesting fact about you:
9. Are you in love/do you have a crush at the moment?:
10. Favourite place to spend time:
11. Favourite lyric:
12. The best time of the year:

RECOMMEND
1. A film:
2. A book:
3. A band, a song, or album:

PLUS
1. One thing you like about me:
2. Two things you like about yourself:
3. Look at my friends-list and tell what you like about one of our mutual friends:
4. Put this in your journal so that I can tell you what I like about you