Year End Meme

1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before? Adopted a baby

2. Did anyone close to you die? My mom's neighbor John, who we were just getting close to as our surrogate grandpa

3. What was the best thing you bought? Mental health counseling

4. Where did most of your money go? The adoption

5. What did you get really, really, really excited about? The adoption

6. What song will always remind you of 2009? My Life Would Suck Without You (Kelly Clarkson)

7. Compared to this time last year, are you:

i. happier or sadder? - happier

ii. thinner or fatter? - I would guess the same?

iii. richer or poorer? - Poorer

8. What was your favorite TV program? Lost, Project Runway

9. What was the best book you read this year? Home From the Vinyl Cafe (Stuart McLean)--best book I read this year that I hadn't read before!

10. What was your favorite film of this year? I only saw one movie this year, Revolutionary Road

11. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? 34 and I don't remember

12. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? I can't say it on this blog, but suffice it to say, if you know me, you can probably figure it out pretty quickly

13. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009? Stay-at-home-mom comfortable

14. What kept you sane? My husband, my daughter

15. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Tom Brady

16. Who was the best new person you met in 2009? Landry and Meredith

17. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009? I am not a bad daughter

18. What was your job this year? Rehabilitation teacher and mom

19. Did you have any encounters with the police in 2009? Nope

20. Have you run into anybody you graduated high school with? Nope

21. Describe your birthday. Apparently, forgettable.

22.) Any new additions to your family? Yes, my daughter Leah!

23.) What from pop culture will you remember 2009 by? Susan Boyle, the death of Michael Jackson

24.) How do you plan to ring in 2010? I rang it in with friends

25.) What's something you learned about yourself? I have a lot more willpower than I gave myself credit for

Ask Me Questions :-)

Ask me seven questions. Not just any seven questions though. No, to keep it interesting, use the seven questions as per below - just copy and paste the following, replace the blanks with something you want to know/ask (e.g. 3. Donkeys or sandcastles and why? - but hopefully something more interesting than that), anything you want, personal, silly, surreal or deep, comment away and I'll answer as honestly as I can in the comments! Then post this in your own blog and see what kind of things people want to ask you!

1. What do you think of _____________ ?
2. When did you last ____________?
3. __________ or ___________ and why?
4. What did you ______________?
5. What's your favourite ______________?
6. How would you ______________?
7. Who would you most like to ________

Tagged by Cindy :-)

It's that time again!!! Tagging for a fun quiz from Cindy.

The rules:

Link to the person who tagged you.
Post the rules on your blog.
Write 6 random things about yourself.
Tag 6-ish people at the end of your post.
Let each person know he/she has been tagged.
Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

Ok, the pressure is on to find things I haven't written before... Hmmm...

1. Every year at work, we are granted sick/personal and family/personal leave. It is "use it or lose it" leave. And for the last two years, I have lost it. And it looks like I'm going to lose it again this year! WHICH SUCKS! I have nearly a week's worth of time still to use, and we can't use it over the holidays, which cuts out the last week of December. And my boss is kind of a stickler about using sick/personal for being actually sick, not for personal, and I can only take 3 days without a doctor's note. And won't it look slightly suspicious to call in sick every Friday or Monday? Hmmm... So, I dunno. I think I'm going to lose it again.

2. I took my mom to Tea Tyme today for lunch. It was the first time I've tried their Buckingham Palace tea and I loved it. I drank it all before lunch was over. This is the first time I've ever had a tea I loved that much. I love Tea Tyme, and take all my visiting girlfriends over there for tea. I'm thinking I need to get some girls together for tea sometime soon! I want to go back already. Anyone want to come visit or meet me there? :-)

3. I came to the conclusion yesterday that my house needs a decorating style. I don't know what my personal style is, and I think I should figure it out. I love my furniture, but everything is kind of a hodge-podge based on what was a) on sale, b) free, c) fit in a particular room, d) had nowhere else to go. Wouldn't it be cool if I could just actually find my own style and have everything fit?

4. My house has been really cold lately with the change in the weather here (it actually snowed on Tuesday!). I thought it was maybe my mom being more sensitive to the cold as she is really not used to it. But today even I thought it was a bit crazy, so I started investigating. I found 2 windows that were cracked open and she found 1. Can't wait to see my gas bill.

5. Since this Weight Watchers thing seems to be paying off in spades, I've made plans with Lesley that when I hit 100 pounds gone, we are doing a tandem parasail. I am super-psyched about this! Hopefully by next summer, I'll be calling her and saying, "Lesley, book the parasailing trip!!!"

6. I have to go cook supper for my hubby. We are having sloppy joes and french fries. I never ate sloppy joes growing up, but I love 'em now. We are having them tonight beacuse my mom does not like them and is staying over at my sister's so she can give the doctor a piece of her mind tomorrow. God help the doctor. I think we never got sloppy joes because my mom didn't like them. I am now making up for lost time.

Ok, so that's my six. Now I get to tag six-ish people. Only I'm going to tag 8, which is 6-ish: all the usual suspects.

1. Annette
2. Talmadge
3. Seraphim
4. Lauren
5. Nicole
6. Sarah
7. Elizabeth
8. Melissa

I would tag Manda as #9 but Cindy already got her.

Have fun! Looking forward to learning some new facts about you all :-)

Fun Name Meme

From R. W.

1.Your rock star name (first pet, current car)
Lady Caliber (Love it!)

2.Your gangsta name (favorite ice cream flavor, favorite type of shoe)
Cherry Garcia Crocs

3.Your Native American name (favorite color, favorite animal)
Green Panda (Sounds more like a superhero than a Native American name)

4.Your soap opera name (middle name, city where you were born)
Katherine Star Lake

5.Your Star Wars name (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 of your first name)
KosSu

6.Superhero name (2nd favorite color, favorite drink)
Pink Lemonade (hahahaha)

7.NASCAR name (the first names of your grandfathers)
Richard George (Sounds like a real Nascar name!)

8.Dancer name (the name of your favorite perfume/cologne/scent, favorite candy)
Isis Reese (I'm abbreviating Reese's PB Cups to something more last name sounding)

9.TV weather anchor name (your 5th grade teacher’s last name, a major city that starts with the same letter)
Collins Chicago

10.Spy name (your favorite season/holiday, flower)
Christmas Rose

11.Cartoon name:(favorite fruit, article of clothing you’re wearing right now)
Strawberry Tee

12.Hippie name (what you ate for breakfast, your favorite tree)
Eggo Weeping Willow

13.Movie star name (first pet, first street where you lived)
Lady River

Whoever else wants to do this, have fun!

Laissez-les manger le gateau!

You Are a Chocolate Cake

Fun, comforting, and friendly. You are a true classic, and while you're not super cutting edge, you're high quality. People love your company - and have even been known to get addicted to you.

What Kind of Cake Are You?

Book MeMe from Melissa

I've been tagged by Melissa to do a book-related meme this morning, and it's a tough one!

Books are scarce in the world. They are illegal in some provinces. They are not easily replaced if not impossible to replace if lost in many if not most circumstances. If you can replace a book or buy one it is usually through the black market at astronomical costs that you cannot afford. Yet you have been able to maintain one of the best collections in the world. If your entire library was about to burn up (think of the firefighters in Fahrenheit 451 invading your home) and you could only have one* book to take with you other than the bible, what would that be and why?

Simple Rules
Answer the question. Offer one quote that resonates with you. Tag five people whose response is of genuine interest to you and inform him or her that they have been tagged. Cheers!

*And it cannot be an entire series of something, that’s cheating.

Man, this is a tough one. I started looking at my shelves when I was thinking how to answer this question. I only keep the books I really, really love and would read again, so fortunately, I've already pared it down. However, how to pare it down even further?

It was a tough choice and it came down to two different books: Home to Harmony by Philip Gulley and Last Days of Summer by Steve Kluger. I have read both books multiple times and loved them both for different reasons, but ultimately I've decided to let Harmony burn and save Charlie and Joey.

Why? Well, basically because story is so rich emotionally, historically, humorously (or is that humorfully?), and touches on so many different themes that I can't imagine life without it. I read it twice last year, will definitely be reading it again this year, and have given it to tons of people to read and they've all loved it. Should we someday find ourselves in a Fahrenheit 451 type situation, it would probably be a radical choice, but I don't care about that. I love this book and all it has meant to me. And I love Harmony and all it has meant to me, and I would do my best to conceal it somehow otherwise for save keeping until I could come back for it. :-)

A quote from the book... This is kind of a challenge. There are a couple that stand out, one of which I won't include here because it is a spoiler if you have any plans to read it. I'll include one serious one and one funny one here for your edification.

Funny one:

"Janet: Bear in mind the following:

1. When pushed to the wall, our allies consist of the Board of Education and, in a pinch, Superintendent Meylan.

2. The boy's personal arsenal includes the National League, the entire Democratic Party, and God only knows who else.

In other words, dear, he's got us by the balls.

Send it to Washington. Let them handle it. If we're lucky, maybe they'll draft him."

Serious one:

"Everyone has something worth it inside of them, even if it doesn't show. Sometimes you have to look a little harder but don't give up. Otherwise all your going to see is a sorehead who plays 3d base."

Who to tag...

I'm going to tag my reading peeps: Manda, Lauren, Nicole, Cindy, and Amy.

Memory MeMe Stolen From Amanda

I can take criticism, and realize some memories of me might not be the nicest. Sometimes the truth hurts. Hopefully one or two people have a fond memory of me.

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn’t matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It’s actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I’ll assume you’re playing the game and I’ll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don’t want to play on your blog, or if you don’t have a blog, I’ll leave my memory of you in my comments.

So there you go. What do you remember about me (whether in real life or on-line since many people reading this live exclusively in my computer)?

MeMe'd by Lauren

So, Lauren tagged me on her blog to do a meme. Here we go...

The rules: Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

What was I doing ten years ago?
June 2008, I was working in Connecticut as a nanny. My parents were preparing to separate and a month later I would move home for a year to be with my mom.

What are five (non-work) things on my to-do list for today:
1. Go shopping for the shower
2. Make dinner
3. Meet Jacalyn
4. Fold towels
5. Fill out this meme

5 Snacks I enjoy:
* It's summer time and last night I ate my first peach of 2008. The word that sprang to mind was "Glorious". I'm eating some now. I don't like 'em canned or frozen, but you can't beat a fresh peach.
* Chocolate--especially Lindt truffles
* Ice cream
* Cheddar and Sour Cream baked Lays
* Chips and salsa

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
First thing I'd do is quit my job. I would be on the phone with every adoption agency in a 10 state radius lining up my brood.

Then, I'd set about to create an affordable planned community in this area full of regular sized homes and lots of trees, just right for people who don't need a McMansion and just want a quiet, safe, comfortable place to live and raise their kids.

And then I'd travel the world with the Jolie-Pitts, being a gracious humanitarian around the globe.

Places I have lived:
(In chronological order, though I'm not adding anything in twice)
Star Lake, NY
Oswegatchie NY
Riverdale NY
New Canaan CT
Provo UT
Guilford CT
Allston MA
North Little Rock AR
Brighton MA
Acton MA
Centreville VA
Fredericksburg VA


Jobs I have had:
Babysitter
Camp counselor
Nanny
Assistant camp director
Television and radio transcriber
Substitute teacher
Subway Sandwich artist
Tutor
Rehabilitation teacher for the blind

Ok, time to tag 5 people. I'm going to tag:

Russell, Seraphim, Annette, Melissa, and Nicole. :-) Have fun.

New Years MeMe from Melissa

My friend Melissa posted this on her blog and asked anyone else who wanted to to participate....it's a random list of favorite from 2007.... She made up a few categories of her own, and I'm amending at least one of them since I didn't take a summer vacation :-D

Best Album: I don't really listen to albums any more. The only full out CD's I've bought this year are the new Celine Dion and the Josh Groban Christmas CD. So I'll point to them as my favorites.

Best Non-Fiction: I read a fair number of non-fiction books this year, but my favorite had to be Father Knows Less by Wendell Jamieson. It was so informative, easy to read, and fun all at the same time.

Best TV Series: LOST (for as much as we got to see it) and Pushing Daisies

Best Fiction: The Last Days of Summer by Steve Kluger. YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK! And no, it is NOT A BASEBALL BOOK!!!!!! Read it!

Best Kids’ Music: Don't have kids, wouldn't know, definitely don't care!!

Best Movie: Sicko was awesome.

Best Sign of the Apocalypse: Danny Bonaduce flinging his little friend around and then thinking we all want to see him naken in a porn rag and some porn rag actually paying him to pose!

Best Come Back of the Year: Matchbox 20

Ok Melissa's categories:

Best Old TV show you are just getting into: I've been just starting to watch Boston Legal, but it's still on TV, so I don't know if that counts?

Best grocery store: Wegman's in Fairfax

Best (Summer) Vacation: My favorite vacation this year was our trip to Las Vegas. Total freedom, lots of outdoorsy stuff, going someplace we'd never been before, it was amazing. I also enjoyed our trip to Myrtle Beach with Mike and Lesley. It was so much fun to be on vacation with them and I hope we can all plan another trip away soon!

Some Susan Categories:

Proudest Accomplishments this year: Finally completing a New Year's resolution! Getting into an excellent place mentally for the first time in years. Completing NaNoWriMo for the second year in a row.

Goals for Next Year: Taking better care of myself, choosing simplicity over the chaos of every day consumer-driven life. Maybe, just maybe, finding a church to belong to. Joining the local photography club, starting a writing club, and reading Gone with the Wind.

Most Exciting Sports Moment of the Year: Tonight's Patriots game, where they went 16-0 and shattered a whole pile of records; second place goes to the Red Sox winning the Series again

Saddest moment of the year: Everyone leaving after Christmas; realizing that I don't actually give a crap, and how far we've fallen away from what used to make us so happy and how it doesn't now. The blow up with my dad and sister.

Happiest Moment of the Year: Touchdown in Vegas; Annual 3 Kings Dinner; Discussing 2008 with my husband and realizing we are on the same page about life

I guess that's about it. I'll tag whoever the heck wants to post this on their own blog! :-D

Christmas Meme from Melissa

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
I like wrapping paper--it's more fun to rip than genteely open a bag.

2. Real tree or artificial?
REAL! I had an artificial in Centreville just because I didn't want to drag a tree up the stairs and all and I nearly cried. Must be a real tree.

3. When do you put up the tree?
December 20th or so. This year will be early. But my mom was allergic, so we always put it up late, plus we don't take it down till after Epiphany, so it's up a lot longer than most people's trees are.

4. When do you take the tree down?
January 6th or so.

5. Do you like eggnog? I love the homemade kind, but not the crap they give you in a box at the store.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? I'm not sure. I remember getting a Cabbage Patch Kid was pretty exciting. As a teen, I remember the year my parents gave Judy and I stereo systems was a banner year. The presents are great, but I just have fond memories of other things besides that, and they stick out more.


7. Do you have a nativity scene?
Oh hell yes. I have my grandfather's old cardboard nativity from the 1920's that is still puttering along. I have the Willow Tree nativity that my dad built up for me (I have 3 sets of shepherds and animals!). I have a hand carved nativity from the Holy Land. Plus a cheapy from the Dollar Store that I used in Arkansas.

8. Hardest person to buy for?
My husband! And Joe.

9. Easiest person to buy for?
My sister.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
My grandparents gave me underwear once. And my parents' friends gave me socks. I remember weeping over the socks and being too embarrassed to show off the undies.

11. Mail or email Christmas cards?
They went out yesterday. For once, I'm on time!

12. Favorite Christmas movie?
Love Actually. It's not really a Christmas movie Christmas movie, but I love it anyway and it takes place at Christmas.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
This year, I've been picking things up since July. Unusual. I usually follow my father's trend and go the last 2 weeks before Christmas. I still do have a few things to buy, but I'm mostly finished.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
Christmas, wedding, and birthday presents. I don't need "stuff" hanging around that I don't like or won't use.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
Yorkshire pudding! Christmas cookies! Trifle!

16. Lights white or colored on the tree?
COLORED. White is so boring. I like my tree and my house to have pizazz.

17. Favorite Christmas song?
My favorite carol is "O Holy Night" although I saw a choir sing it all hip and jazzy yesterday and it pissed me off.

18. Travel for Christmas or stay home?
Stay home.

19. Can you name all of Santa's' reindeer? Yup

20. Angel on the treetop or a star? Angel.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning. Despite heavy lobbying from us as children, my parents never caved on this one.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? The word "Christmas" disappearing from promotional sales items (um, hello, you wouldn't be having these sales if it werent' for Christmas and oh, by the way, people who don't celebrate Christmas generally don't put a big decorated tree in their house, so don't put it on the front of your catalog and then call it a "family tree" or a "holiday tree". Do you think we're stupid?); turning Christmas carols into advertising jingles (I HATE that); can't go shopping for anything without getting run over by harried people...

Click HERE for a video about the above little rant.

23. What do you love most about Christmas?
Baking, decorating, singing, seeing family and friends, getting Christmas cards, putting up the tree, the sights and sounds and smells of one awesome holiday.

I have gotten this survey through e-mail several times but posted it back here and feel the need to tag people....if you are reading this and haven't posted this to your blog....you are it!!! :) Post away! :)

I've Done This Twice and Got the Same Answer

You Are a Red Crayon

Your world is colored with bright, vivid, wild colors. You have a deep, complex personality - and you are always expressing something about yourself. Bold and dominant, you are a natural leader. You have an energy that is intense... and sometimes overwhelming. Your reaction to everything tends to be strong. You are the master of love-hate relationships. Your color wheel opposite is green. Green people are way too mellow to understand what drives your energy.

What Color Crayon Are You?

I don't think it's necessarily true, but what the hell. Sorry, Tal, looks like you and I are opposites

Apparently I Do Not Exist

HowManyOfMe.com

There are 0 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Thanks, Melissa.

A Fun One I Stole from Melissa!

You're The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy!

by Douglas Adams

Considered by many to be one of the funniest people around, you are
quite an entertainer. You've also traveled to the far reaches of what you deem possible,
often confused and unsure of yourself. Life continues to jostle you around like a marble,
but it's shown you so much of the world that you don't care. Wacky adventures continue to
lie ahead. Your favorite number is 42.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Thanks, Lauren...

Well, Lauren at A Catalog of Bitch tagged me, so I guess I can't say no. Who can say "no" to Lauren? She's awesome.

Here are the rules for this Meme:

The Rules:

1) You have to post the rules before you give the facts.
2) Players must list one fact that is relevant to your life for each letter in your middle name. If you don’t have a middle name then use a name that you like.
3) When you are tagged, you must write a post containing your own middle name game facts.
4) At the end of your post, you must tag one person for each letter in your middle name. Don’t forget to comment them telling that they are tagged and to read your post to get the rules.

Like Lauren, my middle name after marriage was changed to include my maiden name. So you're in for a treat. However, I don't know enough bloggers to do #4, so I'll just tag a few of you.

My middle names are Katherine Cherepon. Here goes.

K: Kittens. I brought home lots of cats when I was growing up and they were all pregnant. We had more kittens than I can remember.

A: Applesauce. I'm so glad it's fall so I can make homemade applesauce. My husband about swims in it when I make it.

T: The Road to Omaha: one of my favorite books.

H: House. I bought my house in 2005. It has 2400 square feet. It is the thing I am most proud of.

E: Everett, MA, part of my old territory in Boston.

R: Royal Family: I am a huge Britannia buff and love reading up on the Royals, particular Princess Diana.

I: Ice: that which caused me to break my leg out on my driveway.

N: New Kids on the Block. My first boy band love.

E: Exercise: Slowly but surely, me and Mr. Simmons are makin' it happen.

C: Caliber: my new vehicular baby.

H: Hair: brown and thin, short now. I have a love-hate relationship with it.

E: (Damn these E's! THEY'RE HARD!) Electrical--one area of my house I have not yet learned how to manipulate

R: Rabbit: my bunny TomTom is the best rabbit in the entire world.

E: Ender's Game: a book Joe is after me to read and I haven't bothered to get to yet.

P: Paris, the one place I've been in Europe that I didn't like.

O: Orange: a county I cover for work and a color I find myself strangely in love with these days

N: Noodles: I love eatin' 'em.

So there we go. Now, there's no way I can tag 17 people, so I'm going to tag Annette, Tal, Sera, Lesley, Judy, Nancy, Melissa, Jill, Cindy, and Manda. Judy's got it easy, only 4 letters. Let me hear from you! :-)

Tal Did It, so I Had to Copy Cat Him

Your Linguistic Profile:

50% General American English

30% Yankee

10% Upper Midwestern

5% Dixie

0% Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

The Love it/Hate It Meme

This meme discusses the highs and lows of popular culture. Fill it out with your opinions and send it on to 3 friends.

Three Movies Everyone Loved and You Hated:

1. Star Wars Episode Three: The Phantom Menace. Grown men cried when ole Anakin turned into Darth Vader. People were cheering, it was pandemonium in the theater. I slept through it. I thought it was AWFUL. Hours of torture.

2. Titanic. Yes, I know, the ultimate chick flick AND Celine Dion. After about 90 minutes, I was like "Go ahead and sink already."

3. Spiderman. I figured, Tobey Maguire... I liked the old Batman movies (Michael Keaton, not Adam West, although the Adam West one was hilarious) and Superman. So I thought I'd love it. Plus my dad and sister and Joe all loved it. Snore. The sad thing? I went to #2 to make Joe happy and snored through that one as well. Ugh.

Three Movies that Lived Up to the Hype

1. Little Miss Sunshine. Still one of my all time favorites. I loved the story, the acting, it had some dark humor which I always enjoy, just a great movie. Too bad it didn't win the Oscar.

2. Shrek 2. I thought the first Shrek was pretty good, but the second one was amazing. I absolutely loved it. It was the first movie I watched on the new plasma TV.

3. Wedding Crashers. I laughed till I cried, and I was convinced I would hate it. Enough said.

Three Books You Hated that Everyone Else Loved:

1. The Life of Pi by Yann Martel. Oh. My. God. I hated it from start to page 40-something when I finally gave up. Zzzzzzzzzzz. I hated the poor little goat being eaten by the tiger. I hated the writing. I hated the story. Even the overall story did not appeal to me. However, it was this book that made me vow I would read whatever came up in book club, whether I thought I'd like it or not. And this year, I've kept that vow.

2. Wicked by Gregory McGuire. Ok, in all fairness, I forced myself to read all the way through to the end. I was convinced that if I just went far enough, I would come to a place where it would all make sense and I would say, "Oh my gosh, this was fantastic!" Um, no. Definitely not. Boring. But finishable boring.

3. Blessings by Anna Quindlen. When it was written, Anna Quindlen's name and face were everywhere, and at the time I was heavily into listening to Imus on my way to and from work in Boston. He interviewed her and the book sounded great and was almost immediately turned into a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie, and I thought, well, this must be the greatest book ever. I finally got my hands on a copy with Paperback Swap, and read it in a day or two. It wasn't awful but it just wasn't amazing. Mediocre, didn't live up to the hype. A huge disappointment in my reading year.

Three Books that Lived Up to the Hype:

1. The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. Oh my gosh did I love this book! It was easily the best book I read last year and probably one of the best I've ever read--it's firmly on my favorite books ever list. I first heard about it on the Diane Rehm show and understand it did quite poorly in hardcover, but once it went into paperback, the book clubs started snapping it up and sales went crazy. With good reason. It was fantastic.

2. Freakonomics by Steven D. Leavitt. This book made a splash by suggesting that a drop in the crime rate was directly attributable to Roe v. Wade. Michael and I read the book and just loved it. In addition to the crime/abortion correlation, it talked about how real estate agents operate like the KKK, how much sumo wrestlers and public educators have in common, and how rich people decide the in vogue baby names of a generation. It was fascinating.

3. March by Geraldine Brooks. This won the Pulitzer last year and was all the rage. I usually hate books that are about classic characters from long ago, and I was sure I would hate this. I definitely had my quibbles with it, but overall, it was a great book and taught me not to be so prejudicial towards something without all the facts (ie don't judge a book by its cover).

Three TV Shows You Hated that Everyone Else Loved:

1. Survivor. I must admit that I watched 3 whole seasons of it: Survivor Australia and Survivor All Stars and the one where the fireman won. But it's been on for what? 10 seasons? And every last one has been the same. Sure, they mix up men vs. women, asian vs. hispanic, or some such, but at the end of the day, it's all blah. The "challenges" aren't particularly exciting, it's basically a bunch of pretentious idiots, losing weight, strolling around naked, and stabbing each other in the back for 30 days. It was new and innovative at the time, but really, who cares any more? (Plenty of people, just not me!)

2. The Office (USA). Everyone goes bananas for the US version of the Office. I watched it a couple of times and HATED it... Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb. Not funny. Ugh.

3. The Family Guy. Joe and Judy go bananas for this and every time I'm at their house, it's on. And I try, really I do, but it's just the stupidest show I've seen in a long time. They're literally doubled over. I read a book. I don't know why, it just really bores the snot out of me!

Three TV Shows that Lived Up to the Hype:

1. Arrested Development. While it was on, I kept hearing about it, and even managed to stumble onto it on TV once or twice, but never actually knew when it was on or anything. The critics were going bananas for it, but I never watched it. I think Fox was too busy promoting its other stuff. Anyway, then it was cancelled and then Judy said she had seen it with Joe when she visited him in Buffalo and loved it. Finally last year, with nothing to do for 3 months, I got seasons one and two on Netflix. Awesome. Definitely way too smart for network television. But an incredible show and I am now the proud owner of all 3 seasons on DVD.

2. Lost. I was extremely resistant to watching Lost. I'm not sure why, I guess I just thought it sounded kind of dopey--a plane crash on an abandoned island, who really gives a crap? I do. Again, three months to do nothing, I capitulated to Joe's demand to watch season 1, which I did, and then picked up on season 2 while it was on the air. This season, season 3, has been incredible. If you want to buy me something nice, buy me seasons one and two on DVD :-) I don't have them yet!

3. The Office (UK). I had seen ads for this on BBCA at my dad's house, but never really thought it'd could be entertaining. Boy was I wrong! What an awesome show. Funny, clever, not one week character in the entire thing. The episode where they have the guy in for team building or whatever it was is an absolute classic.

So that's it! I'm tagging everyone on my "friends and seagulls" list. You better do it, I'll be monitoring all your blogs :-)

Tagged by Lauren

Alrighty, Lauren tagged me, so I've got to participate. And it's a song meme to boot, so in case there were any doubts, this will put the final nails in the coffin of my tragic uncoolness. All I listen to musicwise now is my iPod, and all the songs listed are on my "My All Time Favorites" play list. Which is basically the sole reason my iPod exists at this point. ;-) The songs I'm listing are the songs I always play at least twice lately while hot rodding around.

The guidelines are: List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what they are. They must be songs you are currently enjoying. Then tag seven other people to see what they’re listening to.

1. Sound of Your Voice by Barenaked Ladies. I love BNL anyway, and heard this song the first time I saw them in concert, which was in November. The lyrics are sad, but the music is upbeat, and I love to really belt it out in the car. It makes me happy.

2. Runaway by the Corrs. I had this song in my head all during National Novel Writing Month and it's become a true favorite. I can't get enough.

3. Accidentally in Love by Counting Crows. One of my favorite happy songs, whenever it comes on my iPod in the car, I play it over and over and over again. Never fails to leave a smile on my face.

4. When You're Next to Me by Mitch and Mickey (aka Eugene Levy and Catherine O'Hara). My favorite song off the Mighty Wind soundtrack, if this song had been around when we got married, it would have been on our wedding favor CD. My husband and I both love it and sing it in the car whenever it comes on. I have happy memories of seeing the movie, happy memories of the song, and love that Michael sings it with me.

5. The Least You Can Do by Phil Collins. This song says it all about every crappy ass relationship I ever put myself through, with friends as well as amours. There are a couple of people I think of in particular when I hear this song, and I love to sing it loud and proud.

6. Bittersweet Symphony by the Verve. I really got into this song after hearing it on Judy's iPod a year or so ago, and last summer it was the only song for me after Tim died. Kind of a personal anthem, if you will, I love that it is angry and sad at the same time and seems to sum up life so beautifully.

7. Oh Lately It's So Quiet by OK Go. When I first got OK Go's "Oh No" album, it was a bit beyond what I ordinarily listen to, and then suddenly this soothing little melody pops on and I felt relaxed. It was my favorite song they performed when I went to see them last November, everyone's cell phones swaying back and forth in the dark, it was quite something to see. The song is kind of haunting and sweet. Great music.

Well, maybe I'm not such a musical loser. Who knows.

Ok, now I have to tag 7 people. Who to tag... who to tag...

I shall tag Miss Music herself, Annette at Meanderings and Musings, my sister Judy over at MySpace, Melissa who's started blogging again and is a fellow iPod user, Nicole who just started a blog and I'm sure needs material (hehe), Lara who hasn't blogged since JANUARY, Gaina at MySpace who I will have to email and tell her she's up, and last but not least Nancy with whom I'm going away this weekend.

(I would have picked you, Lesley, but didn't want to muddy the waters of your amazing book blog! :-D)

Life Meme

Stolen from Karen

1. Bought everyone in the bar a drink - Nope, I'm not the bar type
02. Swam with wild dolphins - Sadly, no. Would like to
03. Climbed a mountain - I climbed Bear Mountain in Cranberry Lake, NY when I was in 5th grade as our field trip that year. I hated every minute of it.
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive - Nope, I'd be petrified
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid - Nope, have never been to Africa (yet)
06. Held a tarantula - God no. And no desire to.
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone - Nope--although the General and I hot tubbed under the stars, so that's close
08. Said “I love you’ and meant it - Yes, and often.
09. Hugged a tree - Yes. I'm just that kind of girl.
10. Bungee jumped - No, and I have no intention of doing so!
11. Visited Paris - Yes. When I was 15. No desire to go back.
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea - YES! At Myrtle Beach. It was beautiful.
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise - Yes, back in the day...
14. Seen the Northern Lights - No, sadly
15. Gone to a huge sports game - Nope again. Boy, I've got some stuff to make up for.
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa - No.
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables - Yes, and they were delicious!
18. Touched an iceberg - No
19. Slept under the stars - Yup, but only once... I've camped a lot, but that was in a tent.
20. Changed a baby’s diaper - Yes, I sure have.
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon - No. For some reason it doesn't really appeal to me.
22. Watched a meteor shower - Yes.
23. Gotten drunk on champagne - Yes. But I'm not crazy about champagne, so it didn't do much for me
24. Given more than you can afford to charity - Yes. And I've never regretted it.
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope - Yes, my father was Mr. NASA. He got us a telescope for Christmas, but I think it was more for him than us.

26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment - Yes! I had the lead in the school production of "Twelve Angry Women" and on opening night, just as I was preparing to give my first monologue, I got the giggles right on stage, and could do nothing but put my head down and laugh for literally 10 minutes. My junior (?) year of high school, my best friend Pam and I got the giggles during the spring concert--we were singing in the chorus and for some reason the choral director decided "More Than Words" by Extreme would be a great choral tune, so when it was heart stoppingly awful and we finished, Pam leaned over and whispered, "Well, that f***ing sucked"... I'm giggling now as I type this... And then, we had to go up on stage and try to follow two cheerleaders who had choreographed a dance routine at the last minute and didn't teach the rest of the chorus. We were twirling around with black construction paper "top hats" smeared in glitter, giggling our heads off... The singing was awful, the dancing atrocious, the giggling divine.

27. Had a food fight - Yes, with my sister just before the wedding. She and I had a cake fight so the general and I wouldn't have to.
28. Bet on a winning horse - Nope. Maybe when we hit Vegas :)
29. Asked out a stranger - Nope
30. Had a snowball fight - Yes, and it's the most fun you can have in the snow.
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can - Yes. Sometimes nothing else will do.
32. Held a lamb - Nope
33. Seen a total eclipse - Yes, the night the Red Sox won the world series there was a total lunar eclipse here in DC.
34. Ridden a roller coaster - I HATE ROLLER COASTERS.
35. Hit a home run - No, but I hit the mother of all foul balls one time
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking - Yes. When I lived in Utah, when the girls I lived with were stressed out, they would put on a Riverdance CD and we would all do jigs around the living room. At first I felt a little foolish, but more and more as we did it, I loosened up and it was great. I should get one of those CD's...
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day - Yes
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment - Yes, but I'd like to even more
39. Had two hard drives for your computer - Heck yes... And thank God too!! We've had a few crashes and never lost anything.
40. Visited all 50 states - No, I'm about to break the 40 mark though. WOO HOO!
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk - Definitely have done that... I carried Joe back to his place one night when he told me he was the Grand Pagan.
42. Had amazing friends - The friends I have now are the most amazing of my life... Even if I don't get with them as often as I'd like.
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country - No.
44. Watched wild whales - Nope, but apparently right now they're around the DC area... Field trip anyone?
45. Stolen a sign - Yes. Although it was more of an advertising poster. From the NYC Subway system.
46. Backpacked in Europe - Nope. I've traveled Europe, but not by backpacking.
47. Taken a road-trip - Definitely. Hope to plan the big one next summer. Anyone want to come? A bunch of friends, an RV and some tents. The continental US. Summer 2008.
48. Gone rock climbing - No
49. Midnight walk on the beach - Yes, and it's as wonderful as I'd hoped
50. Gone sky diving - No. Might try indoor skydiving in Vegas, but I'm rethinking the actual skydiving skydiving thing.
51. Visited UK - Yes.
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love - Heavens yes. And boy, does that ever suck.
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them - No, but I wonder who I'd meet if I did
54. Visited Japan - Nope
55. Milked a cow - Nope
56. Alphabetized your CDs - Of course. They didn't stay that way...
57. Pretended to be a superhero - Who hasn't?
58. Sung karaoke - Nope
59. Lounged around in bed all day - Yes, but not on purpose... For about 2 months last year.
60. Posed nude in front of strangers - Eww, no.
61. Gone scuba diving - No
62. Kissed in the rain - No, but this is going on my "HAVE TO" list
63. Played in the mud - Definitely have
64. Played in the rain - Yes, and I love it... I love being out in the rain.
65. Gone to a drive-in theater - No. I've been to outdoor movies, but not a drive in.
66. Visited China - No
67. Started a business - No
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken - Yes.
69. Toured ancient sites - I toured the underground city at York, England in 1998. AWESOME... Truly awe inspiring. Probably York is my favorite place I've ever been.
70. Taken a martial arts class - No
71. Played a game for more than 6 hours straight - Monopoly and Civilization.
72. Gotten married - Yes, and it's for keeps
73. Been in a movie - Only home movies
74. Crashed a party - Please, I was never that cool.
75. Gotten divorced - No and hope I never do.
76. Gone without food for 5 days - No way.
77. Made cookies from scratch - Yes. And do I ever do it in spades at Christmas time!
78. Won first prize in a costume contest - Never, ever.
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice - Again, sounds cool, but no.
80. Gotten a piercing - Yes. But they're closed now. At one time, I had 3 holes in each ear.
81. Rafted the Snake River - Nope
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert” - Nope
83. Got flowers for no reason - Nope.
84. Performed on stage - Yep. I was in chorus in high school and college and joined a community chorus in Boston, where I performed once. I love singing.
85. Been to Las Vegas - Nope, but that's about to change!
86. Recorded music - Nope
87. Eaten shark - Nope
88. Had a one-night stand - Nope, close, but nope
89. Gone to Thailand - Nope. (I've never been much on visiting the Asian countries for some reason)
90. Bought a house - Yes, sitting in it right now.
91. Been in a combat zone - Nope
92. Buried one / both of your parents - Nope.
93. Been on a cruise ship - Yes, in high school. I pretty much slept the entire time.
94. Spoken more than one language fluently - I came close to being fluent in French.
95. Performed in Rocky Horror - Nope
96. Raised children (or…raising children) - Nope
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour - Nope
98. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country - There's nothing exotic about bicycles.
100. Picked up and moved to another city to start over - Yes. And hated it every time.
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge - Nope
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking - As often as I can.
103. Had plastic surgery - Nope
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived - Yes... I really think my guardian angel was in the car that day.
105. Wrote articles for a large publication - I was published in Parade Magazine.
106. Lost over 100 pounds - No.
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback - No.
108. Piloted an airplane - No.
109. Petted a stingray - Nope.
110. Broken someone’s heart - Yes and it was liberating but guilt-ridden at the same time.
111. Helped an animal give birth - Haven't helped, but have seen it happen
112. Won money on a T.V. game show - Always a viewer, never a contestant.
113. Broken a bone - Dear God yes.
114. Gone on an African photo safari - Nope.
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced - NO
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun or pistol - No
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild - Um no, I like to live.
118. Ridden a horse - No
119. Had major surgery - Tonsils and leg. Neither life threatening, but they were both major to me
120. Had a snake as a pet - No way
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon - Nope, but I"ll be helicoptering on down there soon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours - Yes
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states - No. I have a ways to go
124. Visited all 7 continents - Nope
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days - No, I'm really not outdoorsy
126. Eaten kangaroo meat - No way!
127. Eaten sushi - Yup, and didn't really like it.
128. Had your picture in the newspaper - Yes, growing up... Usually related to Girl Scouts
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about - No, I'm not persuasive or argumentative
130. Gone back to school - Yes, and maybe again one of these days
131. Parasailed - Never, but would love to
132. Petted a cockroach - Eww, eww, eww!!
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes - Yeah, but didn't like them
134. Read The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer - Yeah, but didn't like them ;-)
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read. - Yes, JD Salinger.
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating - No
137. Skipped all your high school reunions - Only had one so far, and I think pretty much everyone skipped it
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language - Yes, in Germany back before I spoke German. We went in a cafe to get some food and the guy didn't speak English and we didn't speak German, so he took us into the kitchen and we pointed to what we wanted to eat.
139. Been elected to public office - No way. I haven't even run!
140. Written your own computer language - Nope
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream - Yes
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care - Thankfully, no.
143. Built your own PC from parts - No, but I've been part of the process since I've been with the General
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you - No
145. Had a booth at a street fair - Nope, not crafty enough.
146. Dyed your hair - Yes.
147. Been a DJ - No.
148. Shaved your head - No.
149. Caused a car accident - Yes, but it was really the ice's fault
150. Saved someone's life - No.

I *heart* the 80's :-) haha

Your 80s Heartthrob Is

Michael J. Fox

Who's" Your 80's Heartthrob?

I love these little quiz things... They're so much fun to take...

The ABC's of Me (Stolen From Annette)

A - Available: No
A - Age: 30
A - Annoyance: I have to choose just one? I'll go with DC traffic, since I have to drive to work soon.

B - Best Friends: My husband, my sister, my Mike & Lesley, and my girls
B - Bad Habit: biting my nails
B - Birthday: August 23

C - Crush: I don't need to broadcast it on my blog, most people already know LOL
C - Car: '04 Saturn Ion--needs a good wash, vacuum, and oil change
C - Cats: Michael's allergic to 'em, so my cat, Buster, lives with my mom

D - Dead Pets Name: I had TONS of pets growing up... Scissor, Emily, Lady, Ebony, Fluff, Raggs, Sheba, Smoke, Spiegel, Midnight, Jammer, Rainer, Tibbs, Dexter and tons more besides
D - Desk Top Picture: At home, my book club. At work "Arrested Development"
D - Dogs: none; don't want the responsibility here at home when I'm at work all day

E - Easiest person to talk to: Probably my sister
E - Eggs: Can't stand 'em
E - Email: for purposes of this thing? kosior spam at yahoo dot com

F - Favorite color: Green
F - Food: I love cooking it, I love eating it
F - Foreign Slang: For some reason, I do call people nasty names in either French or German.

G - Gummy Bears or Worms: Bears, definitely
G - God: He's out there.
G - Good Times: Girls night out, book club, geocaching, going to old town, yadda yadda. Anything is a good time if you see it the right way...

H - Hair Color: Brown
H - Height: 5'8
H - Happy: 99% of the time

I - Ice Cream: Ben & Jerry's... Oh and Godiva makes some AMAZING ice cream
I - In school?: Thankfully, no
I - Introverted or Extroverted?: According to the MBTI, I'm introverted

J - Jewelry: Just my wedding rings. I have more, but my darn sensitive skin doesn't allow me to wear much
J - Job: Rehab teacher
J - Jokes: The only one that comes to mind is... "What do you call a thousand lawyers at the bottom of the ocean?"

K - Kids: Not right now
K - Karate: Never interested me. I leave it to Ralph Macchio
K - Kung fu: Just not into it

L - Longest Car Ride: From Little Rock, AR to Homosassa Springs FL--took 21 hours
L - Longest relationship: 7 years and counting
L - Last phone call: My sister last night

M - Milk Flavor: Chocolate
M - Mothers Name: Susan
M - Movie Last Watched: Walk the Line

N - Number of Siblings: One officially, two including the unofficial one
N - Northern or Southern: NORTHERN!!!
N - Name: Susan (How can you not know this? Surely there was a better N)

O - One Phobia: The dentist
O - Open or Closed?: Open
O - Orgasm: *blink blink*

P - Parents, are they married or divorced: Divorced
P - Part of your jerking: I have no idea what this means? Annette, where the heck did you find this thing?
P - Part of your personality you like best: My sense of fairness

Q - Quote: All my quotes come from movies
Q - Question for the next person?: What does "part of your jerking" mean?
Q - Quick or Slow?: Quick

R - Reality TV Show: Dog, the Bounty Hunter
R - Right or Left: right-handed, left-politics
R - Right now: Stalling driving back to Fairfax

S - Song Last Heard: Cry by Faith Hill
S - Season: Spring--I'm in heaven right now!
S - Sport: Minor League baseball

T - Time you woke up: 7:20
T - Time Now: 8:03
T - Time for bed: 11pm ish

U - Unknown Fact about me: I don't think there are any, I'm an open book--probably because of these things
U - Unicorns: They still exist in Harry Potter's world
U - You are: alive

V - Vegetable you hate: Asparagus
V - Vegetable you love: Fresh green beans
V - Voice: Alto!

W- Worst Habits: Overly concerned with the outward appearance of the inside of my house
W- Where are you going to travel next?: Sunset Beach, NC
W - Where were you born?: Star Lake, NY

X - X-Rays: I've had TONS of them recently on my leg, and more next week!
X - XXX: Never saw the movie
X - Xylophone: I used to love playing with the one we had as little ones

Y - Year you were born: 1975
Y - Year it is now: 2006
Y - Yellow: Used to be the color of my bedroom

Z - Zoo Animal: The panda bears!
Z- Zodiac: Leo/Virgo
Z - Zoolander: Ben Stiller