1. Do you like bleu cheese? Yes - with chicken wings, on burgers, on salad, etc.
2. Have you ever been bitten by a dog? only my own as I was feeding him. How ironic is that.
3. Do you own a gun? broken water guns only.
4. Favorite Kool Aid: cherry
5. Do you get nervous before a doctor appointment? Only dental, but I have MUCH experience and I'm good at talking myself down.
6. What do you think of hot dogs? grilled Hebrew National every summer Sunday. Yum. Also, NY System hot weiners are the best - but I'm willing to bet most of you don't know what I'm talking about (it's a Rhode Island thing).
7. Do you give money or other things to panhandlers? Only a guy who was a patient at the psychiatric hospital I worked at. He is mentally ill, a Vietnam vet, the most peaceful Beatles-loving guy, and has been screwed by the "system" in so many ways it's very, very sad. When the hospital was run into the ground, he was once again on the streets - I doubt his medical/mental needs are being addressed. When I see him around, I give him whatever's in my wallet, whether it's a dollar or twenty. I worked with him for 5 years. He's using the money for cigarettes, Taco Bell, coffee, or bibles from the Christian store.
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? Grande skim latte.
9. Can you do push ups? Yes, I can do lots, thanks to a 5:30am boot camp class I go to!
10. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? I love earrings and necklaces.
11. What is your favorite hobby? Gardening, reading, eating with friends.
12. Do you have A. D. D.? Only in the garden!
13. Do you wear glasses/contacts? yes
14. Middle name: none
15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment: Can this ever be used against me? Is my 4 year old going to come up and interrupt me? Should I go to Starbucks now even though I've already had 2 cups of coffee at home?
16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? coffee: gingerbread latte, pumpkin spice latte, and my new fave - iced caramel brulee (and I just figured out the answer to my last question in number 15).
17. Current worry: will I finish the book before Tuesday's book group meeting?
18. Current hate right now: none - it's all peace and love. (edited to add: I hate the formatting on this post and I give up on trying to fix it!)
19. Favorite place to be? Seabrook Island, South Carolina.
20. How did you bring in the New Year? writing resolutions, and eating something decadent I've ordered out for.
21. Where would you like to go? somewhere expensive, preferably by plane.
22. Name people who will complete this: ???
23. Do you own slippers? no, I wear Christmas socks from October through April.
24. What color shirt are you wearing? Beige, but it does have paint splatters on it.
25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? Maybe for a minute.
26. Can you whistle? Yes, I love to whistle and can whistle really well!
27. Where are you now? Home, where I've been snowed in for many days now.
28. Would you be a pirate? Perhaps, I like to say booty.
29. What do you sing in the shower? Whatever is currently stuck in my head.
30. What is your favorite girl's name? I really like names like: Isabelle, Claire, Chole, and other stately and feminine sounding names. For my kids, I have chosen names that are somewhat masculine in sound (one ends in -er, one ends in -c). I also like girl names that sound like surnames.
31. Favorite boy's name? If our last child had been a boy, we would have named him Finn.
32. What's in your pocket right now? lint.
33. Thing that made you laugh today? my husband threatening to "tell on me" to the financial planner because of the money I want to spend on my 4 year old's birthday party.
34. What vehicle do you drive? Toyota Highlander. Look, I sacrifice in many ways, but I will always drive an SUV. Once you drive an SUV, you'll never go back.
35. Worst injury you've ever had? Luckily, nothing too serious, but when I worked at a bakery in high school, a falling bagette hit my arm on the way to the ground, and its split top had a few jagged points that totally sliced my arm. There was a lot of blood, and I still have a faint scar.
36. Do you love where you live? yes, I love this house, in this city, in this county, in this state, in this country.
37. How many TV's do you have in your house? one
38. Do you have any tattoos? No. I did plan to have a couple when I was a teenager (before it became "acceptable") but I'm glad I didn't because I would not be happy with the design I thought was PERFECT at the time.
You seriously have a scar from a falling baguette? That is one of the funnier "how I hurt myself" stories. Thanks for making me laugh (although I'm sure it hurt at the time.)
ReplyDeletethat was a fun read =]
ReplyDeleteFinn?! Like the kid in Glee! Your kids have the coolest names :D
Lindalou - I'm still wary every time I have to handle French bread.
ReplyDeleteLois - yet, except I wanted to name a kid Finn 5 years before Glee was on the air!! :) The legend of Finn McCool is old though...
Hi Wendy~~ An enjoyable post, as usual. You're snowed in? Looks like you and hubby are making the best of it. ...Your panhandler recounting is very touching. It's a tragedy that mental illness is so misunderstood and medically untreated. ... I need to join your boot camp class. I miss not being as strong as I used to be. Is Finn short for Phineas? [Glee is sure a hit, isn't it?] Happy New Year, Wendy.
ReplyDeleteYour are witty and funny. But you have compasssion too. Glad you wrote this post. My heart goes out to the panhandler you helped. I used to be very scared of people with mental illness because I worry I can't communicate well with them.
ReplyDeleteThese random question/answer tags are always fun to read!
ReplyDeleteLove the sledding pic...a fun activity even for us big kids...creaky bones and all!
Ha! I love that you're a coffee nut, too ;)
And I'm with Grace~Boot Camp would be good for me...trying to train for a Half Marathon in April. Have a fun New Year's celebration, Wendy!
We have a lot in common! I also love NY System weiners and have been to Seabrook!
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about your ill friend. I try to give when ever I get the right 'vibe'. You can tell if they're really in need. I once saw a guy panhandling with hundred dollar boots and a 300 dollar jacket. Those are the ones I pass on.
The Finn we liked was after Finn McCool.
ReplyDeleteHere's what I remember about the panhandler/ex-patient - he was getting checks from the VA - a very small amount - I want to say it was $170 or something. They were also paying for his stay at the hospital/group home. B decided to get a job and worked for minimum wage cleaning oriental carpets about a few hours a day. One day the VA checks stopped coming and they said since he'd been working, he is not entitled to the VA benefits he'd been getting, AND he now owed them back money of close to 2,000 (which might as well be a million dollars). Additionally, he could not be allowed to work or he would lose his bed at the group home. So...he quit his job, lost his checks, and the hospital eventally shut down. I don't know how he/they reconciled the $2000, but he doesn't appear to be psychogicllly stable at this point, and is certainly not responsibly working a part time job he was once very proud of. :(