More Than You Ever Wanted To Know

My friend, Jim, sent me this meme and I thought some of you might be amused. Enjoy.

1. Middle name? I won't tell. It is somewhat obscure. It starts with a "J". If you can guess (no fair for those of you who already know) you will be awarded with the grand prize of a phone call from me in which I will sing my masterpiece, "Making Love Out Of Nothing at All" by the World's Greatest Cheesy Rock Band. How cool is that!

2. Were you named after anyone? Not that I am aware of....but it WAS the 70's.

3. Do you wish on stars? I've been known to. I miss the stars in rural Wisconsin. Even Iowa has too much "light pollution" where we live for the stars to be very visible.

4. When did you last cry? Last Saturday, while talking on the phone to somebody to whom I was trying to sell my practice. How professional, huh? I'm sure he'll be making me a juicy offer any day now. Sigh.

5. Do you like your handwriting? I actually have beautiful handwriting. I am quite particular about it. I share patients, and subsequently patient files, with my partner in practice (and with Hubby) and I can't stand to see their ugly handwriting on my otherwise attractive patient notes. I have such lovely handwriting (and I am wicked smart) that my quick, handwritten notes from class when I was in Chiropractic school were actually saleable.

6. What is your favorite lunch meat? Turkey.

7. What is your birth date? May of 1972!!!!! (I'm still holding out a few details). As I like to say, I celebrated my 5th annual 29th birthday this year. And I still get carded!

8. What is your most embarrassing CD? I'm sure there are many, but I can't think of them specifically. I'm pretty sure I got rid of Hootie and the Blowfish when we moved last time.

9. If you were another person, would YOU be friends with yourself? I would definitely want me for my Chiropractor. I think I'd be friends with myself but I'd sure get tired of hearing the same stories over and over again.

10. Are you a daredevil? I'm a wuss. I guess some people think my stance on birthing is quite daring, but I think braving the horrors of a hospital is daring, so it is all in the perspective..

11. Have you ever told someone a secret & regret that you did? Yes. I can't remember ever revealing someone else's secret, but I have regretted blabbing too much personal info about myself more than a few times..

12. Do looks matter? Let's face it: everyday life can be somewhat easier for the attractive. It's not right, but these biases exist. I was once young and tight assed. Now that my boobs droop and my backyard has grown, people aren't always quite so helpful. However, I am much more resourceful now. But I think being too attractive can also be a negative because those (ultra attractive) people can become lazy, bland, and just plain under-developed. So, you can't win. Be yourself and get over it. (But I am still struggling to lose those pesky "baby pounds".)

13. How do you release anger? I let it build up and then I either come here and vent or wait until my children suggest they don't want to eat dinner or wait their turn or whatever childish petulance they lay on me and I break down and scream at them. I know I do this because this is now the way Gabe deals with his anger (and he can't blog). When he gets mad he says "I am very! very! very! angry with you Mama!" And then he screams. Not so cute. One of the greatest gifts of parenting is the way your children once exposed to your own woeful inadequacies, will present them back to you in perfect mirror image.

14. Where is your second home? Right now, wherever Hubby is. In general, a quiet lake in Northern Wisconsin. But we don't get there much anymore, so maybe that will have to change. I am quite fond of a little island off the coast of the Yucatan peninsula. Sigh. I'd LOVE to own a second home there.

15. Do you know anyone who was ever missing? No.

16. What was your favorite toy as a child? Hmmm. I always coveted a Barbie Dream House, but was never even allowed Barbies ('cuz they promoted unrealistic expectations of womanhood. Yup, my parents were religious hippies). Most of my favorite playthings were books. Does my library card count? I spent entire days at the library all summer long as a kid.

17. Do you have a journal? Yes. As I mentioned recently, I have stacks of journals but each one only has 3-7 pages filled in. Sad. I have a few from my pre-teen and teen years that are quite painfully trite.

19. Favorite movies? A Room With a View, Pride and Prejudice (BBC version), Dirty Dancing, Pulp Fiction, Caddyshack, Old School, gosh...this could go on all day. I know I am forgetting a bunch of favorites.

20. What are your (acceptable)nicknames? Mar, Maja, Mama, Marathon (this one is only used by one person)

21. Would you bungee jump? Only if I were on The Amazing Race. (Please, please can I go? I'd be damned good at it and have better manners about foreign climes.)

22. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? I don't think I own a single pair of shoes which tie. I do hate to wear shoes you know. I just like to collect them. And then I take them off as soon as I get to wherever I am going.

23. What is your favorite ice cream flavor? I'm trying to lose weight right now people! Why must you ask me these questions? Right now I'm all about Dove Chocolate frozen ice cream nibbles. Vanilla with milk chocolate coating.

24. What size shoe do you wear? Seven. I am a shoe whore. Send me cute heels and I will be your friend forever.

25. What are your favorite colors? It depends on the context. For decorating my house I like taupe-y warm earthy colors. For dressing slim and elegant I like black and chocolate brown. For everyday "play" clothes that make me feel young and hip I like spring green and melon-y reds. Lately I've had a thing for robin's egg blue. I thought I'd never dress my girls in much pink but I love a sporty hot pink. They wear pinks about 50% of the time, which shocks me 'cuz I really like it.

26. What is your least favorite thing about yourself? A tendency to let my emotions win. Don't get me wrong, I think having emotions is a great and appropriate thing, I just have a tendency to let them get the better of me sometimes. This is getting better as I age.

27. Who do you miss most? Hubby. Lots of other people too, but Hubby wins the "Most Missed" award.

28. Do you want everyone you send this to send it back? Post on your own blog (if you are that cool), or make a comment

29. What color pants are you wearing? Black skirt with a white lotus flower on the bottom.

30. What are you listening to right now? The sound of Peevers blowing raspberries to herself and grunting while she destroys a magazine. Thank God we get so many useless catalogs in the mail. They keep Peeves busy for hours while I blog.

31. What was the last thing you ate? Some cherries and a piece of cheese I begged off my assistant.

32. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Olive Green (Lush. Verdant. Earthy.)

33. What is the weather like right now? It has been such a beautiful day! Blue skies, puffy clouds, temperature in the 70's and not even terrifically humid. Sure, right before I leave Iowa it tries to convince me that it is nice here. I hear it's like 99 degrees with 97% humidity in Atlanta today. Uggh.

34. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? My new realtor, Tammy, who called to let me know she has a family who is really really excited about viewing my house tomorrow morning! Cool!

35. What is the first thing that you notice about the opposite sex? Ummm... I don't know how to say this delicately, so I'll just say it: a cute ass.. I also always fall for charisma, but that takes a little longer to notice.

36. Do you like the person who sent this to you? Awww. So so much. I don't think he reads my blog though.

37. Favorite Drinks? Margarita, on the rocks, a little salt on the rim. A lovely pinot noir (especially when shared with a girl friend).

I like all this silly fancy schmancy "martinis" that are all the rage these days. They aren't really martinis but they taste lovely and really knock me on my ass to boot. I tried to make "green apple martinis" from a mix I bought at Target for a party I had a few months ago. When my guests arrived I got out the mix and the vodka I had bought especially for the occasion. And then I read the directions. Oh. Mix with warm water (to dissolve mix-y stuff) and Freeze. Huh. We tried to get it to dissolve without warm water. No way. So we mixed it up for later and I made Squirt Martinis ("squirtinis"). Which sucked. I still have a gallon of Apple Martini slush in my freezer. Who wants to come over?

39. Your hair color? It's supposed to be mostly reddish, but now I get all these fancy multi-tonal color jobs with high lights and lowlights in blonds and burgundies. It is very colorful and fun right when I get it done and then it fades out to a more pedestrian mix of tones, which ain't bad until it grows out into the scary roots I have showing right now. My next hair color appointment is a week from today and then it will be red and shiny again.

40. Your eye color? Brown. I think they are even a little orange. Does that sound freakish?

41. Do you wear contacts? Yes. And very carefully I might add. Last summer I developed an infection in my eye (from wearing contacts on an airplane they said) and ulcerated my cornea. Not only was it incredibly ugly and scary looking and exceedingly painful (give me childbirth over that nightmare anyday!) but the incident also occurred while I was at a seminar at very expensive hotel in New York City. So, while I had lots of opportunity to enjoy the Heavenly Bed, I also would rather have white hot pokers held to my eyeballs than endure the excruciating pain and torment that ensued. For weeks actually. The bills were outrageous. What with the hotel visit from a doctor on a weekend. In New York City. And the trips (2) to the Emergency Room. So, now I am quite religious about removing and cleaning my contacts. And I have permanent vision loss in that eye. How fun are contacts!?!

42. Favorite food? The Tandoori Shrimp Masala they used to make at India House in Davenport. Peter's Garlic Dip. Monkey Bread (another long story for another day). Creme Brule.

43. Last Movie You Watched? Troy. On HBO, with Anna, last night. It was lame.

44. Favorite Day of the Year? Christmas morning. It's twice as fun with your own kids.

45. Scary Movies or Happy Endings? Happy endings that aren't forced. I like unsettled endings a lot too. It's good to use your imagination..

46. Summer or winter? I guess I had better say summer since I am moving to the Southland any day now. Really, I prefer fall.

47. Hugs or kisses? I'll hug just about anybody and kiss most everyone on the cheek once we're pals. Overall, I'm a hugger.

48. What is Your Favorite Dessert? I already mentioned the Creme Brule didn't I?

49. Who is Most Likely to Respond? Bloggers.

50. Who is Least Likely to Respond? The rest of you lurkers.

51. Where Would You Want to Go on your Next Vacation? Wewere just watching the Tour de France and talking about how we should totally go to Paris sometime soon. Also talked about South America. Now Brian is working on a trip to South Africa through someone he has been coaching.

53. What's on your mouse pad? Packers football helmet and logo. It's Hubby's, but I like it .

54. What did you watch last night on TV? Troy. It sucked, remember. I tivo-ed INXS Rockstar, but I didn't watch it yet. That show has me sucked in good.

55. Favorite Smell(s)? My babies, Hubby. Thunderstorms. Leaves in the fall. Starbucks..

56. What's the furthest you've been away from home? India. It was far away geographically and in every other conceivable way.

57. What is your favorite quote?

"Outside of a dog,
Man's best friend is a book.
Inside of a dog
it is too dark to read"

-Groucho Marx

58. What else do you want your friends to know?

Please, haven't I been on this pulpit long enough?