ON FUN ~ Getting To Know You...

The Gal Herself has tagged us for the Liebster Blog Award, which comes with the following criteria:

• Each person must post 11 facts about themselves.
• Answer 11 questions the tagger has given you
• Choose 11 people and link them in your post. Tell them you’ve tagged them - no tag backs.
• Give 11 questions for the people you’ve tagged.

It annoys me when people hijack a concept and morph it into something entirely different without changing the name. Kind of like how The Count of Monte Cristo "the movie" (circa 2002) should have been called "Happily Ever After," giving fans of the book a head's up that they needn't bother wasting a few hours being pissed off at the completely different plot. I wasn't even that huge a fan of the book and even I was enraged by the cinematic "interpretation."

The Liebster Blog Award has evolved over the years. It seems that a few years ago its intent was to promote bloggers with minimal followers; to give them some props and increase their exposure. Actually, it seems that even a few months ago, others simply had to acknowledge, thank and pass along this award. Yet somehow, by the time it arrived on The Gal's blog threshold, it had morphed into a complicated set of requirements involving "getting to know you" questions. The Gal decided to add us to her shortlist for this award, which translates from German into "Dearest" Blog Award. Luckily for The Gal, I like getting to know people by answering and creating questions. And so I have very graciously accepted this award.

It has been a few years since anyone gave anything out to me. Am I just unpopular without any readership these days or have you noticed that the award frenzy fell by the wayside a while ago in the blogosphere? Maybe it's just that I live within a more veteran niche of bloggers now and awards are for newbies. But The Gal has been around this blogosphere a lot longer than I have, so it is more likely that I am no longer cool enough for award consideration. As a result, I have decided to respond to the award's current "11 Things About Yourself" criteria on behalf of little Sammy Sam, who is definitely a newbie:

1. I will be tall enough to play on the Olympic Basketball Team in a few months. (I get this from Daddy)
2. I may look like Manute Bol though; I am quite a string bean. (I must get this from my Uncle Nate - Mama & Daddy, not so much these days)
3. If the Flock of Seagulls want to reunite I could take over as lead singer; my hair forms a natural mohawk which is not troublesome to me in any way. (I get this from Daddy - you should see his bed head when I take off his hat in public)
4. I have incredible dance moves that involve shaking my mohawk'd head just so. (I get this from Daddy - you should see his Travolta "point")
5. I enjoy spa treatments, but skip the facials. Sunscreen, or any lotion applied lovingly, is fine with me - except on my face. (I get this from Mama, who tells me her only facial was a train wreck)
6. I can play with any kind of balls all day long. (Insert getting this from Daddy joke here)
7. I am hooked on jingles. I can get to the TV in two seconds flat whenever I hear that Southwest tune for the commercial with the balls being tossed in the air. (You should hear my Mama's jingle catalog)
8. The library brings out the best in me - lots of carpeted space to cover, endless books to pull off of shelves, a puppet show castle, train table and a salt water fish tank. I want to be here forever. (I get this from Mama)
9. I hate vegetables. There is no way that the yummy bread I scarf down has zucchini AND carrots mushed in there.(I get this from Mama too)
10. If I don't make it as a basketball player, I may become the next Michael Phelps. Water is awesome - from a faucet, in a tub, through a hose, at the lake. It's the waves that scare me - pool laps here I come! (I get this from everyone but Grammy, who doesn't know how to swim and therefore hopes I avoid her fear)
11. Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except For Me And My Monkey. My special lovey is a blue, fleece, baby-sized blanket with a monkey head and little monkey arms sticking off the top. It has a green star stitched in and the tag does not reveal its maker. No one knows who gave him to me and so I do the best I can not to lose him. He is my everything and allows me to feel comfort when Mama and Daddy can't climb into my crib with me. (I get this from Mama who still has her Cuddle bear and from Daddy who loves The Beatles and keeps singing that song to me)

And now for The Gal's questions for us, about us. I'll make these from my "grown-up" perspective simply because Andy has fallen asleep on the couch and Sammy isn't capable of speaking in English. Plus, I don't know any Latvian translators (I seriously think that's what he's picked up somewhere in a playgroup):

1. What's Your Oldest Memory? Sledding. With my Dad. In our front yard in North Carolina. Must have been a celebratory dusting when we lived near the mountains. I couldn't have been more than 3.
2. Who Was Your First Crush? Miss Richardson. She was my 1st Grade Teacher in the mid-Seventies when I lived in Columbia, South Carolina. She was probably in her 20's at the time. If you know Miss Richardson today, tell her that I thought she was the prettiest lady, other than my mama, that I ever saw and that because of her sock puppet lesson, I have been addicted to puppets ever since. In fact, I think I still have that sock puppet she lovingly helped me to bring alive. Lucky Sammy!
3. When Was The Last Time You Cried? I am not a crier. I get teary eyed a lot. But I only seem to shed tears when things are monumentally terrible and then they come in buckets. I guess I store them up or something. The last time I cried must have been on Sam's Very Bad Day. Back when he was just a month old. I couldn't generate enough breast milk to keep the little Hoover happy. This meant that whenever I held him, he could smell milk but couldn't have what he wanted. Which pissed him off. Which made me feel inadequate. Either I couldn't provide the basic needs for my child or I couldn't comfort him when he was upset. And so we just cried. Together. Very long and very loud - especially on his Very Bad Day. At the end of that Very Bad Day we had out of town guests stopping by with their beautiful older children who had everything all together. I sat there for about two seconds with red rimmed eyes before I broke out into exhausted hysterics and had to sequester myself in Sam's room with him while I tried to nurse inadequately. My friend came and sat with me and told me how they had to use a vacuum cleaner to get their oldest to sleep for a few months. I felt much better knowing that all Sam needed was a hair dryer - so advanced.
4. How Often Do You Read The Newspaper? Rarely. First of all, I don't have time to read anything anymore. Because of that time-hogging Sammy Sam. Secondly, I couldn't possible read a real paper newspaper anymore due to the inky fingers and constant hand washing that Sammy Sam would require. I get the majority of my news from the local 6:00 broadcast, which I think may in fact be more obsolete than the newspaper. But when I want to know something before then, I go to the Boston Globe's online website and read their published news in a more modern format - which happens to be free.
5. What Is Something You Won't Scrimp On, No Matter How Tight Your Budget? I am very budget conscious but I despise coupon clipping. My mother used to make me hold her shoe box full of coupons when we went grocery shopping. I never enjoyed that job. I preferred looking around at all the things we couldn't buy. These days, I suppose the one item that is recurring on our credit cards and causing me the most guilt is my hair salon appointment. I blame this on my friend's wedding a few years ago. Prior to that I had my hair snipped at a chain cutting factory without a care in the world. Having my hair done at a salon by the owner lured me in and now I go every 6-8 weeks for a cut and color and a lot less in the budget to cover diapers and wipes. But I get over it. I feel better when I look better. I'm already a geriatric mom. I don't need the world to know this.
6. Do You Enjoy Your Time In The Bath Or Shower? Or Is It Merely For Hygiene/Grooming, Like Brushing Your Teeth? I've spoken about this very topic before.
7. Close Your Eyes And Think Of A Song. Which One Popped Into Your Head? "If You're Happy And You Know It." We clap our hands often around here.
8. What's The Biggest Dollar Bill In Your Wallet Right Now? There are no bills in my wallet right now. See #5. I paid in quarters today to get into the local State Park so Sammy could bask in the cool lake waters. Lucky for Sammy, his Daddy actually empties his pocket of change into jars each night.
9. You're Home. It's 9:30 At Night. You're Hungry. What Do You Snack On? Have you not read my Ode?
10. Are You A Felix (Neat Freak) Or An Oscar (Slob)? I am a converted Oscar. Meaning that I am very good at keeping things tidy, but not very willing to make things clean. I know that my slovenly nature is disgusting to others, and so I try very hard to create an illusion of neatness. With Sam's arrival, I have noticed a lot of OCD tendencies however. I sing this "Clean Up" song to him while putting his playroom back together before we move on - I learned this tune in his playgroup which I think may be a neat cult of some sort - neat as in tidy - not as in cool.
11. When Did You Last Send Someone A Card? It Could Be A Greeting Card, Or A Postcard. But You Had To Address It, Put A Stamp On It And Mail It. E-Cards Or A Card You Simply Handed A Person Don't Count. I wonder why handing someone a written card is not as valid as mailing it to them, Gal? I would think that a hand delivered card would carry a little extra weight. Putting it there, in their palm, with personal emotion. Or gently placing it in the screen door while tiptoeing away so as not to disturb your neighbor - who watches with great feeling as you think you've sneaked off without displaying that personal touch. I honestly think a personally delivered card takes chutzpah. Which is why the majority of mine are mailed. I don't want to look you in the eye while you decide to pick that very moment to open said card and read its private sentiments. I have been sending personal, handwritten cards for the past year. Thank yous to all of Sammy's loving tribe.

And FINALLY! The part where we create questions and assign them to other bloggers! To get to the depths of who you are and why you care! To learn about YOU! However - I have spent so much time crafting the rest of this post that I have no creative juices left to give this portion of the criteria its due. So instead, I ask ALL of you this:

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BLOG POST - THAT YOU HAVE WRITTEN?

Leave your link in the Comments and we can accomplish the Liebster Blog Award goal; getting to know each other without a bunch of rules to follow ;0)