Good morning! Thanks for sharing your favorite go-to snacks on Wednesday. Today happens to be my birthday and I used my floating vacation day from Labor Day today instead of in September so I could take the day off. I’m also taking a break from regular posting in favor of a little fun randomness. Thanks to Raechel from the RebelGrrrl Kitchen, who nominated me for a Liebster Award the other day!
Liebster comes from the German word for “dearest,” and the award is designed to honor and promote bloggers that you appreciate. It’s also a way to get to know the blog creators a little better. It has five parts:
- Write 11 random facts about yourself.
- Answer the 11 interview questions you’ve been given by the person who nominated you.
- Create 11 new questions.
- Nominate 11 bloggers and mention them in your post.
- Go and tell the person who nominated you, along with the people you’ve nominated about your post.
Ready?
For some reason I love fake Christmas trees
11 Random Facts
1. I pay attention to the moon and the planets. Even if it’s total BS, being aware of some potential celestial influences has never steered me wrong.
2. I do not take a multi-vitamin. However, I do take vitamin C, vitamin D, calcium, a probiotic, and fish oil. The fish oil is a more recent addition, as I’m seeing if it helps keep the eczema away this winter.
3. I have a tattoo on the inside of my right wrist that says, “Yes.” Aside from being a reminder to think positively and be strong in my decisions and actions, I also kind of got it because I love this story.
4. I have deformed feet. This is the main reason you will never see me posting about running. Or about high heels. Or okay, not that often, because sometimes a lady just wants to feel like a lady. Or something.
5. My first real job was teaching tennis at a local swim club when I was 15. I did that for two summers and then basically gave up tennis for poetry. I still played for fun but had no interest in competing or teaching anymore.
6. I have a tennis racquet but have not picked it up since the summer of 2007. I’d love to find someone to play with, though!
7. I play the harp and the ukulele, but I totally suck right now, as the whole work/internship/grad school thing makes practicing hard. It’s a good day if I remember to tune the instruments. My favorite song to play on the harp right now is Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” and my favorite song on the ukulele is probably the Rolling Stone’s “Dead Flowers” because, well, come on—it’s a great song! Yes, I always sing along, and hopefully my neighbors don’t mind too much. This week I’ve been teaching myself James Taylor’s “Sweet Baby James” on the uke because it’s way easier than I thought it would be.
8. During the week, I go to bed pretty early. I used to be embarrassed about going to bed at 10 pm on a weeknight, but I prefer being clear-headed during the day when I’m seeing patients.
9. I eat plain yogurt almost every day. Me & lactose are just fine.
10. Since high school, I’ve started almost every morning with oatmeal. I even wrote a personal essay a few years ago about the variations over the years and how they reflected what was going on in my life. I remember sharing some of the weird sh!t I used to make in college, the first time I lived alone. Um, yeah. I think maybe one other person has ever read it. I haven’t looked at it in a few years. I’m sure it’s pretty bad.
11. I think “thank you” is one of the most powerful phrases there is. I say it as often as I remember.
This demented little tree brings me great joy—Thank you to my mom for getting it for me a few years ago as “feel better” gift when I had a bad cold.
Raechel’s Questions
1. You are hosting a dinner party. What is on the menu?
A big salad; crusty bread with great olive oil for dipping; roasted garlic and roasted veggies; garlicky greens, salmon with a miso glaze or balsamic happing; roasted potatoes; dark chocolate and/or flour less chocolate torte for dessert; plenty of wine—maybe lambrusco because it’s cold out. Or anyone else like bourbon?
2. You are hosting a dinner party. Who is on your dream guest list? (People can be living or dead, famous or not).
Some of my best lady friends, my sister, my writing group, Ben Franklin, Woody Allen, Mark Twain, John Lennon, Joan Didion…this is starting to sound like a really big dinner party.
3. What’s the best trip you’ve ever been on?
I did a 3-week course on the Mediterranean diet in Italy in 2010. Worth every penny (and those 6 grad credits).
4. What is the best meal you ate at a restaurant?
It had nothing to do with the food and everything to do with the company. I’m grateful to have quite a few memories of enjoyable meals—it kind of makes up for the not-so-nice ones.
5. With whom did you have your first kiss?
I think it was on a school bus in the 8th grade with the boy I was “dating” at the time. I wish I could say I remembered it well, but it’s just a blur of chins and teeth.
6. If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be?
I’ve been told I’m kind of catlike. I do like to stretch and yawn and slip quickly into small spaces.
7. What was the best birthday you ever had?
I’m going to hope that today is that best birthday! At least so far.
8. What is your favorite season?
I love summer, but I also dig fall a lot.
9. If you’re a yogi, what is your favorite yoga pose? If you’re not, what is your favorite type of exercise?
I have a love-hate relationship with half-pigeon. My hips are so damn tight. My right psoas muscle also loves to remind me I’m not getting any younger.
10. Who would you want to play you in a movie about your life?
Yikes! I don’t know—no one would buy Angelina Jolie as little old me, but hey, in a perfect world…
11. What was your first pet’s name? (If you never had a pet, what would you want to name it?)
My parents had two cats—Casey & Studley—when I was born.
My questions:
- What are your desert island albums?
- Do you pay attention to astrology?
- What’s your hidden talent?
- How did you celebrate your last birthday?
- What’s your favorite way to spend a day off?
- Hot weather or cold weather?
- Do you have a “signature” dish you make? What is it?
- What’s your favorite drink? Alcohol or non…
- What song do you listen to over and over?
- What time do you usually go to bed?
- If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?
My Blogger Nominations (Note: I tried to make sure to nominate people that haven’t been nominated already, so there are definitely bloggers I appreciate that aren’t on the list because it appears they’ve already been nominated!)