Friday Follies: Halloween edition

Happy Halloween ya'll! Enjoy my holiday edition of the follies...and next week we are back to guest inquisitors (and the queue is still open if you would like to ask the questions!):

Trick or treat with the kids OR stay home to hand out candy?

What kind of Halloween candy are you giving out tonight? (Is it the same candy you first bought - or did you have to go back to the store and get more when it all "magically" disappeared from your house?)

What was your favorite Halloween candy when you were a kid? What candy did you always try to give away?

Do you decorate your house for Halloween?

What kind of carving is on your pumpkin?

Have you ever TP'd or egged someone's house?

Favorite scary movie?

Favorite scary book?

Favorite Disney villan?

Favorite movie villan?

Theme song: Talking Heads - Psycho Killer AND Cranberries - Zombie -- because Kid Rock has totally ruined Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London."

What's the frequency, Kenneth, Part trois

Who knew, that a month after the initial request, I'd finally finish answering your questions? And who knew that I could stretch it out into three posts of blog fodder?

Jennifer P from The Peterson’s Go Public wants to know: what was your favorite Halloween costume ever? And along those same lines, Shannon of Welcome to the Nut House asks: What was your favorite Halloween costume as a kid?

You know…I really don’t remember many of my costumes growing up. I know I was a gypsy one year. A ballerina. An Indian. Maybe even a cowgirl. But as far as stories go…this is my favorite costume.This was the year I decided to be the Wicked Witch of the West. Don't you love the plastic skirt? And matching cape?

Now, back in the olden days. Like when I was eight. You wore a plastic mask. (I even found pictures of me as a ballerina – but I still had a little girl mask to wear with it!)

Well, evidently, in the year of the witch, I complained to my mom that it was too hot to wear a mask. So, my mother had a brilliant idea. I would wear make-up. Instead of a mask. Brilliant, no?

Except that Mom's brilliant idea was to mix green food coloring with her foundation make up. And then paint my face with it.

Take a minute to let that "soak" in. She painted my face with green food coloring. Yep. She did that. Today she tells me that I insisted. I know I always listen to my eight year old.

The make up took about 10 days to wear off. And you know what? It all makes sense now. Now, I know why I love “Wicked.” I understand Elphaba. Because I, too. Have been green.That same year, my younger brother was Dr. Spock from Star Trek. But this was how he preferred to wear his costume.

(You don't think he'll get mad at me for posting this do you? I mean. I gave him a really big fig leaf.)

The most creative costume I have seen is one by our friend Mark. Do you remember when Roy of Siegfried and Roy was mauled by a tiger? Well…Halloween followed quickly on the heels of that event. And Mark wore a “tux” of sorts. And attached a white tiger to his arm. And had “blood” dripping from his neck all down his costume. I love topical costumes.And this is my favorite picture of my girls at Halloween. Not necessarily my favorite costume…but they look so sweet. And calm. And I captured it on film. It was a fleeting moment. So…what about you? When was the last time you went to a costume party? Do you have a favorite Halloween costume? What are your kids dressing up as tomorrow? Have you said "Happy Birthday" to my Mom today?

PS--Guess what? Starting on Saturday, I am going to have TEN WEEKS of weekend give aways! Yes. I said TEN WEEKS of give aways. And the first giveaway is one of my very favorite things...

Wordy Wednesday: You went where? To meet who?

I have waxed rasphodic about Gregory Maguire's Wicked. It is my favorite book. I love the musical. I love the message. I love the symbolism. I love that I GET the symbolism. I even had a necklace made that was inspired by it.

So about a month ago my friend Jeanine told me that he had a new book coming out. And I realized that he was coming to Atlanta. I knew that I had to go and meet him. It was a little tricky to coordinate because Katie has choir practice on Tuesday nights. But suddenly the stars were in alignment and Katie and Madalyn were invited to a girl scout skating party. So, I had childcare all sewn up.

Until last night. When just as quickly as they came into alignment...they fell out. So, I did what any rising mother of the year would do. I left my children home. Alone. To fend for themselves. So I could leave early. And get a great seat.**

Jeanine and I decided to carpool down together. Because one does not go to the wilds of downtown Atlanta. To the gay bookstore. Alone.We arrived about an hour and half early. We found out that we had to get a ticket to get an autograph. And to get a ticket, we had to buy a book. So...I bought the book. And got a ticket. Lucky number 107. But. We were really early. And because we were so early, we were able to nab one of the lucky 25 seats. Yep. Only 25 seats. And my tush was in one of them.

The bookstore itself is very small. There were so many kitschy things that just made me happy. But with so many people, it was difficult to get pictures. I do love their CD case. Does this just not prove I am at a gay bookstore?

Kathy Griffin. Patti LaBelle. And Cher. Where's Liza Minelli when you need her?

And I love the book selection. Well...besides the lesbian book...the Philippa Gregory one sent me into fits of giggles. Sorry Jeanine. I know. You can't take me anywhere.

After we entertained ourselves for a while. And watched the crowd grow exponentially. Gregory Maguire finally arrived.

He told us a story about how he seems to follow David Sedaris on book tours - and how he finally met him. And then he read a selection from his newest novel, A Lion Among Men. He is incredibly animated when he reads.

And funny.

And very entertaining.

He spent about an hour answering questions.

And then it was time for autographs. And because we were early. We dindn't have to wait for lucky number 107 to be called. We were first, bay-be!

I showed him my defy gravity necklace -so he was inspired to write this in my very well worn, well read, sort of falling apart copy of Wicked.

And then he graciously posed for pictures.And posed again with Jeanine and me.My boobs look huge in this picture. (Did I just write that?)

So...how about you? What authors would you love to meet? Have you ever met anyone famous? Gotten an autograph? Left your children home alone?

**No children were harmed due to the activities mentioned in this post. They locked the doors. Played nicely. And waited for their dear sweet grandmother to come home and cook microwave dinner.

Theme song: Popular and Defying Gravity from the Wicked soundtrack.

Homeschool Week in Review: Weeks 9, 10, and 11

I know how much you all love my homeschool posts. They are full of such flash. And sass. And it's the one original tendril of intent that I am hanging onto. So there will be homeschool reports. Every so often.

I have spent the past 30 minutes looking over the planner from the past few weeks. And I am not quite sure what we have done. My notes in the planner are cryptic. Sort of. They read like this: MMON 50-51...OR text page 82 #6 - WB #54...OR WAH upload...OR "keep reading." It made sense at the time. But, three weeks later, not so much. I suppose that I could go and get the books so that I could tell you exactly what she learned about on page 50 and 51 of that science book (hey, I DO know what MMON stands for). But. I am lazy.

Let me see what I can manage to recreate:

ACTIVITIES: I said I wouldn't over-schedule my child. I lied. But I couldn't help it. With homeschooling we have a lot of flexibility. But, realistically, we do need to be home to actually get some schooling done. Some days, that is actually challenging. Katie takes piano lessons and tennis lessons. She is in a once a month cooking class - and will actually be there today. Girl Scouts. Church choir. A professional children's choir. And she takes classes through our homeschool group - swimming/stroke clinic, Latin, and folk dancing. I'm tired. Are you tired? Don't let anyone EVER tell you that homeschoolers aren't socialized.

LANGUAGE ARTS: Katie is still plugging away at the twice a week grammar exercises. And she's doing okay with keeping up with her blog. My intent was for her to update about 3 times a week. But that is what gets skipped when we get pressed for time. Ya'll need to read this story she is writing. I am pretty impressed. Prologue; Chapter 1; and the newly posted Chapter 2.

And along those same lines, she is doing very well with Write at Home. I love this program. I am so glad that they said the right things and that we signed up with them. I like the assignments. Her coach has had great feedback for her. Very, very encouraging. And I thought you guys might like to see another one of her assignments. The focus of this lesson is the topic sentence. She had to write three narrative paragraphs (they didn't have to relate) - and with one of the, she had to put the topic sentence at the end of the paragraph. Here is what she wrote:

Jake just led us into a trap, a very dirty one. You see, Jake and I lead a resistance against the Lord of Darkness who has taken the world and plunged it into darkness. Well, I was hurt from a battle wound, and the two of us were in a field in the middle of nowhere. Then, out of the nowhere we were in, a pretty girl appears behind a tree nearby. She said she Amber the healer, and she offered to take me to the place she came from. Jake was quick to reply, because she was so pretty, and he had a problem with pretty girls. But it turned out that this Amber person was a spy for the Lord of Darkness, and now Jake and I are doomed to rot in this dungeon. Therefore, yesterday I was the angriest I’ve ever been.

Hurricanes can be pretty scary, especially when they are stuck in time warps. My parents and I were at the beach that day, and the sky looked bright and sunny. But for no reason, the sky began to get dark and cloudy. The hurricane started immediately after that. It went by so quickly that I thought the sun was getting to me and I was seeing things. But afterwards we saw people walking around the beach quickly, like someone had hit a fast forward button. Later, my parents and I learned we were caught in a time warp.

I remember the first time I met Shadow. Terra and Jessica, the thirteen year old twins were at home doing their usual mini fashion show for their friends, and because I hate anything to do with fashion, I went for a walk. I remember the sky being dark and mysterious. As I passed a dark alley, I heard a moaning noise. Reluctantly, I walked through the alley. There, I saw a boy who looked a little younger then Terra and Jessica. He had dull brown hair and he wore pathetic scraps of fabric for clothes. But the most noticeable feature was the two bloody bandages around his arm.

LOGIC: We are breezing through the second book in the series - covering patterns, syllogisms, analogies, and sequencing. But analogies are giving Katie a difficult time. And she wants to turn me into her personal dictionary. We have been working on figuring out relationships between words - so that even if you don't know what all the words mean, you can probably figure out the answer. But this problem really gave her trouble because she didn't know what any of the words meant:

awl:cobbler as jute:

a. rope b. shoes c. sailor d. tools

this one gave her some trouble as well:

ornamentation: simplicity as modesty:

a. man b. model c. woman d. vanity

The last one gave her trouble because to her, modesty simply means not wanting people to see you change clothes. I think we might need to work on some dictionary skills!

MATH: We finished the last chapter in our math text - and I realized that there is a lot of math that I really don't remember. It was a lot of word problems like: you have a tank of water, where the water measures 10x15x4. And you add a stone to the tank. The stone has a volume of 300 cm² - what is the new height of the water? Katie just finished up a week of review quizzes and on Tuesday we are moving on to a new book. Yippee!

GEOGRAPHY: Wow. We have done a lot here! We have been arranging the countries that we study to coincide with festivals. We have done Japan Fest. And a few weeks ago we studied Greece - and went to the Greek festival. I even did a post about making Greek Pasta (has anyone tried it?). The Greek Orthodox Church in Atlantahas been sponsoring the festival for as long as I can remember. I know I went 25 years ago with one of my high school classes! And it is just a wonderful day of food, music, and more food.

Our first order of business was to eat. And the menu at the festival is extensive. Michael naturally got the combo plate. Yummy! (I think souvlaki is my new favorite thing) Katie had the pasta and I had an gyro. I wanted to take home some lamb...but all the signs said it was sold out. I wonder who bought this one? Katie also realized she has an affinity for spanakopita. Which for some reason she keeps referring to as Puerto Rico. Can ya just see her at the Greek restaurant asking if they have any Puerto Rico? And this was our view as we ate our lunch. Bet you never thought you'd see a sight like that in a homeschool post. Or any post. Just wait till I write about the next festival.

We decided that our eyes needed cleansing, so we went to see the sanctuary. It is gorgeous in there. This is the mosaic on the domed ceiling. And some of the detail of the work.After we have marveled over all the mosaics, we decide to marvel our taste buds with a few pastries. I even bought a bunch of loukoumades - which are kind of like a dense beignet with cinnamon and butter - but they were all eaten before I thought to take a picture. Wait. Did I say that I bought a bunch of them? What I really meant was I bought one. Just one. Not 24. And I didn't lock myself in a closet to eat them all. Nope. That was someone else.

And then we ended our day with a little shopping. And Katie got a belly dancing scarf. Noisy clothes. What was I thinking?

After we finished our studies of Greece, we moved on to Scotland. And so that this post does not become an epic...I'll be weaving tales of the Highland games in another post. Sometime. Oh...and I have a very yummy Scottish recipe to share, too. Speaking of yummy. And Scottish...(why does this picture make me want to ask Mr. Butler if that is a sword...or if he's just happy to see me?)You really never do know where a homeschool post will go do you?

HISTORY: Hello! You have a little drool on your chin. Other side. Okay...moving on. We finished up our unit on Ancient Greece. I am still not feeling the love for this history curriculum. I would have liked a more in depth look at some of the Egyptian leaders - especially Hatshepsut. Katie read two novels set in ancient Egypt - The Golden Goblet and Mara, Daughter of the Nile. She did not like either one. And she even tried to talk me into letting her stop reading Mara when she only had 20 pages to go. So that brought about a discussion of books and subjects in her future that she'll have to study...even if she is not enthralled, interested or entertained.

After Egypt, Katie moved on to Ancient African kingdoms, the Assyrians, and the second rise of Babylon. Then we finished out with a time line comparison - looking at all the groups we had studied to see which ones happened first - and which were existing in conjunction with others.

BIOLOGY: I am loving the way this curriculum builds. First we studied about the taxonomic system...and then we moved on to study about fish. About how their bodies are designed to move in water, the weapons they have to defend themselves, partnerships with underwater creatures, how they communicate, life cycles, "houses," what they eat, special senses, and unique abilities. And we have just started studying about birds.

So...what about you? What country or culture's festival do you want to attend? Do you have a favorite pastry? What assigned books did you struggle with in school?

Theme song: Gomez - See the World

What's the Frequency, Kenneth - part deux

What is that saying – “okay enough about me. Let’s talk about you. What do you think about me?”

I answered the first set of questions on Tuesday. You might have missed it. The cacophony of crickets chirping might have made it so you couldn’t concentrate on my bits of brilliance. Anyway…here are the rest of the questions posed by you. My loyal readers. My fan club. My personal quorum of stalkers…

My best friend Cindy Sue. My friend I visited in San Antonio. My co-conspirator. My partner in crime. Who doesn’t blog. But she should. Asks:
Do you like the edges, corner, or middle of a brownie batch?
Yes, please. But if you are going to force me to choose – I like the edge. I like that little bit of crunch.
Do you know anyone who has ever attended a bridesmaid's luncheon while wearing a hat?
So, I guess I have to come clean. A while ago, I did a post about things that I had never done. And one of those things was that I had never worn a hat. After I published, it was just a few hours before I got a call.
Cindy Sue: (With no preamble. No Hello. Nothing.) How much are you worth?
Me: Ummm…hardly anything.
Cindy Sue: Well…let me know when you are worth something. Because I am ready to bribe you.
Me: What?!
Cindy Sue: I just so happen to have a picture of a certain someone. At a bridal shower. Wearing a hat.
Me: Was I drunk? I have no memory of this at all.
Cindy Sue: I have the evidence. The proof. The beginning of your demise. Bwahhahahahahah…
Don’t you love best friends?

Insane Mama formerly of Help I have a Teenager. Now in hiding. Asks: What is your smuttiest book?
Oh, that’s an easy one. Colters’ Woman by Maya Banks. I think it’s illegal in 24 states.

The Sits girls want to know: If you had a son, what would you have named him?
When I was pregnant with Madalyn we were all convinced that she was a boy. I have no idea as to why. Perhaps because Katie insisted. And we just went with it. Until we had the ultra sound where it was quite obvious there was a girl in there. But if she was a boy, we were going to name him Jakob Dylan. I have this thing for spelling things a little off.

Lula asks:
Are you going to be super-psycho-involved when Lost returns in 134 days? Because I will be...and I need to gather my obsessive peeps around me at that time.
I am always super psycho involved in LOST. Are ya’ll watchin’ LOST? You have time. Netflix the first seasons and get caught up. Just over one hundred days before it starts again. I like to watch LOST a few days after it comes on. I know…it’s strange. But I like to wait. Because, if I wait, then all the theories and little details are posted on Lostpedia. And I hate to not know what I just saw! It’s a rare event that I’ll actually catch something.

Last year I managed to catch the stuff about Daniel Faraday – but only because we were actually studying about Faraday in Physics at the time. And I did catch that Charlotte was an homage to CS Lewis. But usually, I need to read to get all the little details. I don’t know how everyone catches those things! I love LOST!

Oh, I have another--but it's for Michael: What's your favorite imported beer? Domestic?
When Lula posted this query, Michael saw it in the comments section. Yes, my husband reads my blog and my comments. Yet he’s only commented twice. Once on the meme about googling your name plus the word needs. And secondly about euphemisms. But…when he saw this question…he wrote a dissertation. Just for Lula. All about his snobby beer favorites. I can’t recall what he said.

KimmyJ of the Cottage Cafe wants to know: What is your favortie book of all time?

I keep going on and on about this book. I read “Wicked” when it first came out in 1995 or was it 1996? And after I finished it…I just wasn’t sure as to what to think. I would pivot from loving it to hating it. And even five years after I read it…I still wavered. I read everything else that he wrote. (Do ya’ll do that? When you read a book that you like – do you go and read everything else that an author writes? Did you know that there is actually a word for that?? It’s called glomming.) But then on the 10th anniversary, my book club decided to read it…at the same time the sequel was released – “Son of a Witch.” On my second reading…the whole thing really clicked for me. And I LOVED it. There are so many levels to it. And I just love the way he takes a story we all know and then turns it on it’s head. And just a few weeks ago, the third book was released “A Lion Among Men.”

Lizzy from Journey to the Hot Tub asks: What are you doing Sunday afternoon?
Well…this was asked a month ago. As my first hint that Lizzy was coming to town. But for this week – Sunday I am hoping that I will have remembered to “fall back” on my clocks. Now, Saturday should be the day you are asking about. There is another blog summit. Wonder who I’ll be meeting this time??

Shannon from Welcome to the Nut House can't wait to find out: What are your favorite pizza toppings?
My mom loves pizza. She could eat it every day. Me…well, once a month is good for me. I like Pizza Hut. Pan pizza. With ham, beef, and mushrooms. Very little tomato sauce. Basically a glorified cheese toast. And I like the pizza I make, too. I make a white pizza. With alfredo sauce. Sauted garlic and mushrooms. Chicken. And mozzarella of course. Delish.

What do you think is your best feature?
My brain? Probably my hair. When Michael and were dating…I was the first one to say “I love you.” He wasn’t quite there yet. So he responded with “I love your hair.” Warmed the cockles of my heart. But…I do have good hair. Long. Thick. And curly. All thanks to pregnancy hormones. And then someone told me something awful. That when I hit menopause, my hair will go back to the way it was. Thin. Straight. And stringy. Getting old sucks.

Do you have any phobias? What are they?
No, I don’t think that I do. I asked my mom…and she says I must have a phobia about making my bed.

What is your favorite day of the week and why?
The days the housekeeper comes. Hands down. Amen.

I have two more questions to answer. And they are about Halloween - so I'll publish those on Thursday. Really. This Thursday. Without procrastination.

So…what about you? Pick one or two or three or ten of these questions – and tell me how you would have answered them.

It's supposed to be REM - What's the Frequency, Kenneth - but playlist is down. So, you'll have to hum it to yourself. Or just go with Snow Patrol. That might be easier...

Friday Follies

Last week, my lament was heard. And my cries were answered. So, today Debbie from Finding Normal is our guest questioner. Inquisitor? Grand Poo-bah? I quickly took Debbie up on her offer of questions. So quickly that I believe she questioned herself. And wondered what she had gotten into. But she has some great questions for you - plus a few extras. When you are done with the interview, be sure to check out her blog. And maybe even make some Paula Deen gooey butter pumpkin cake.

Book or movie?

Favorite make-up product?

Plain or peanut?

Favorite drink?

Which sock do you put on first?

Polished or natural nails? Toenails?

Favorite snack?

Favorite time of day?

How many states have you lived in?

Favorite holiday?

Black and white or color?

Email or phone call?

Favorite subject in school?

Famous person you'd most like to meet?

Who wants to be the next guest inquisitor??

Theme song: Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars. Because it's Debbie's favorite song. And she says "It's the gist of my life for the past two years." OOoooo...another incentive to be the guest interrogator...you can pick the theme song.

Wordless Wednesday: All about words

I love words. There are some words that are just fun to say. There are some that can be used to impress. There are some that make me uncomfortable. There are ones that make me cringe when I hear them.

Words can be hilarious. Ironic. Sarcastic. Helpful. Uplifting. Painful. Beautiful. Crass. Lyrical. Healing. Patronizing.

And without a doubt, words can be powerful.

Along with loving words, I have this tendency to over-analyze things. So a few weeks ago when Shannon had a virtual jewelry party with Kristen’s custom creations, I was stumped. I had to choose my words.

I looked through Kristen’s samples.

And there were many options. Warrior. Courage. Patience. Saucy. Wise. Blessed. Loved. Namaste. Imagine. And so many more.

But none of those screamed my name. And so I pondered. And thought. Because that is what I am good at. And then. Miracles of miracles. I had a light bulb moment.

My favorite book of all time is Gregory Maguire’s “Wicked.” I love the musical as well. (And if you have seen the musical – but not read the book – please know that they are truly two different entities!) And I was so glad to know that all of you enjoyed listening to part of the soundtrack during my “popular” posts. One of the best songs on that sound track is “Defying Gravity.”

It is a sentiment that is dear to my heart. Because we all have the ability. And the power. To SOAR. And there are some days that I truly need to be reminded of that. And now, I can wear that reminder around my neck. And the necklace that the charm is on. Well, when you move, it makes a very quiet noise. And that quiet hum also gives me the reminder that not only are the words powerful…but so am I.
So…what about you? What is your word? And have you ever bought anything amazing from an etsy shop?

Many inspiring thanks to Tiffany and her Bliss post.

Theme song: Tom Petty - Learning to Fly. Because "Defying Gravity" sounds odd out of context.

What's the Frequency, Kenneth?

"Before I refuse to take your questions, I have an opening statement." Ronald Reagan

Tomorrow it will be a month. An entire month. I am a great procrastinator. A month ago, I asked you to ask me questions. To provide me with a bit of blog fodder. I am sure that you have been on the edge of your chair. Pressing refresh on your page. Stalking my blog. Re-reading posts to see if you might have missed the big event. And just waiting for your questions to be answered. E-hem. It takes one to know one.

I actually answered a few of your questions at the beginning of the month. Click here if you had a homeschool question. Or if you are curious about my homeschooling answers. Go ahead. I’ll wait. You might want a jolt of caffeine before you leave.

So…these were your burning questions:

Angie from Angie’s Spot says that she has two questions. Even though she gave me a numbered list of four.

1. Did you grow up in GA? If so, would you ever want to live somewhere else? If not, what was your next favorite place to live?

I was born in Florida. And I have lived in Georgia since I was 7. I have ALWAYS wanted to live somewhere else. I wanted to be an exchange student to Brazil when I was in high school. I wanted to go to college out of state. I applied for jobs in other states. I tried to get my husband to apply for transfers at his job. I have a serious case of wanderlust.

But…it appears that I am meant to be here. And I am trying so hard to live by the adage of “blooming where I am planted.” So…I like to live vicariously through all of you.

2. Are you going to go back to school for your PhD? And what would it be in?

I am not planning to go back to school. My brain cells have left the building. But if some how they magically regenerate. I would finish up with what I started - and that is in Anthropology.

3. How did you and hubby meet?

I so wish I had a story to tell. But, mine is pretty simple. I met him in a …wait for it…wait for it...I met him at a bar. I didn’t like him much. He wasn’t my type at all. And I was actually dating someone at the time. But, the guy I was dating – well, he made me mad. And in retaliation, I called up Michael. I tend to be impulsive like that. This time it worked out rather well.

4. If you were sent to a desert island for a month, what 3 things would you bring with you?

Am I willingly going? Or will I be shipwrecked there? Will I have a hut? With a bed? And high thread count sheets? Food? Wi-fi? Or are we talking Survivor (where I would not survive) and I have three “luxury” items to bring? I guess that three basic things I would want there would be food, sunscreen, and all the books I could read.

From Rhea at Texas Word Tangle (who is giving away jambalaya today on her blog!):

If you had to constantly carry a weapon of some kind, what would it be?
My brain. It the only thing that I might be able to use properly.

If you could have one thing made out of pure gold, what would you choose?
I don’t know. Something big. And heavy. Because while the stock market is tanking…gold’s up.

If you could suddenly find out that one work of fiction was actually true, what book would you select?
Harry Potter. Maybe someone could sneak me into Diagon Alley.

Tiffany from Sprinklings of Fairy Dusts asks:

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Just one thing? My metabolism.

Did you create your own blogicon?
You can see it? I can only see it when I remember to use Firefox instead of Explorer. And no, I did not create it. I am not that savvy. Darcy over at Graphically Designing made it. She is my fairy blogmother.

Elena from Manwaring Moments wants to know:
What in the world is twittering? I see it everywhere, but don't get it.

Ah…twitter. I love twittering. It’s a site – and it simply asks you “what are you doing?” And you have to answer the question in 140 characters or less. I love it. It’s fun. Painless. And NOT a time suck. Click here and you can sign up and follow me on twitter.

So here's another, (but still answer my first b/c I really want to know). Are you a neat freak or a bit sloppy?
Somewhere in between. I like things neat. I despise clutter. I don’t like tchochkes. These things tend to get me into trouble. Because I purge. And then can never find what I need. On the sloppy side, I am not a fan of making my bed. And I procrastinate putting away the laundry.

That's it for this edition. There were more questions asked. Which I'll answer Thursday. Maybe this Thursday. Perhaps a Thursday of another week. Or month. Hello. My name is Kat. And I am procrastinator.

So...what about you? Are you good at coming up with interview questions? Have you ever interviewed anyone? Who is your favorite tv/radio/blog interviewer?

Theme song: REM -- What's the Frequency, Kenneth? Because it's about a surreal event that happened to Dan Rather. And it seems to fit.

Love. Eat. Hyperventilate.

It's amazing what someone can accomplish in 8 hours. It's pretty amazing when you had no idea that you were even setting out to accomplish it. And it becomes a done deal. And it was like it was meant to be.

Middle of last week, Lizzy let me know that she was coming to Atlanta again. I asked if she wanted to get together for lunch again - and it worked out that she had a little down time before meeting Mr. B. And then on Friday, Lizzy blogged about coming to Atlanta to see Mr. B. - and coming to meet Madame Kat. I am not sure when I became a Madame. Or when I became the owner of a brothel. But then again, I am having a lot of blogger "meetings." Maybe it is appropriate.

Anyway...as I posted my comment to Lizzy...at the very same time, Kori posted a comment. And she jokingly said "So I so need to drive to Atlanta and meet up with you and Kat. I mean how much fun would that be? I am such a thinker. Have a great weekend! Which I know you will. Duh"

And for a split second, I was transformed. From my usual role as thinker. Into an otherwordly experience. And I became a doer. I emailed Kori and invited her to really and truly come to Atlanta. And I emailed her again. Maybe a few more times. And hit refresh every few seconds. Was on pins and needles. Went back to post one on Kori's blog and truly stalked. Read every. Single. Word. And refreshed my email again. Until the email came that said - "I am going to need some major directions 'cause Atlanta traffic scares me. And I hope my Alabama accent doesn't scare you!"

And then Lizzy and I. A state apart. Swooned.

Kori and her accent arrived at my house on Saturday. I gave her the twenty five cent tour and then we were off to meet Lizzy. We decided to be wild and not meet at Applebees but at Red Robin. Kori and I arrived first. We told the hostess that there was one more coming and that we would just wait. She had to have asked us several times. And in several manners. If there was really just going to be three of us. "Are you still waiting on one more?" "Will there just be three of you?" "Would you still like to wait for ONE more person to join you?"

Lizzy arrived. We were finally seated. We discussed how old we were when we first started our periods. And then we were ready to look at the menu. We laughed. And giggled. And told stories. Including many from Kori about the joys of boys. And all their parts. Ate lunch which I promptly dribbled on my shirt. And Lizzy tried to frighten all the children at the table next to us. Ate dessert. Got dehydrated. Left a small tip. And waddled out of the restaurant to reconvene back at my house.

We had to get back to my house so that we could take pictures. Good pictures. Because Kori's friend could not believe that she was meeting people that she met online. Kori's friend was quite sure that Kori was a gonner. And that we were going to chop her to bits and bury her in the yard. We thought that her friend deserved an appropriate picture.The fear that is radiating from Kori is amazing. I am thinking that she missed her true calling to the theatre. And Lizzy obviously missed her true calling. With her pink spoon. To the theatre of the absurd. Or at least as an Alan Rickman impersonator.

And then Kori got lucky. Hey! Not that kind of lucky. Lucky in the book department. Because Katie had finished it. My mom had just finished it the night before. And now Kori had her very own slightly used. Slightly drooled upon copy.And did you know that Lizzy's last name is Cullen?

We spent some time checking out my basement. Walking in the backyard around the creek. Lizzy has insisted that she is just going to pitch a tent and move back there. And then we went back inside. And talked. And laughed. Laughed so hard we cried. Laughed so hard we hyperventilated. And there might have been some snorting. Especially as Kori loudly announced - "hey...I have on two different socks."

And then...Kori decided that she and her accent needed to head home. So we "employed" Katie to take our picture. And she had so much fun taking pictures of hips. Ta-tas. And maybe some trees. We finally got her to take some pictures of all three of us.And then Katie...who insisted that she needed to be a part of the action too...because she blogs...got her moment in the flashbulb:And before anyone could be bid adieu...there was one more thing to accomplish. I had teased Lizzy about crossing her eyes when she talks in my post about our first meeting. And Kori noticed this quirk as well. And it was also noticed that Lizzy can make her eyes go in different directions. This was one of our causes of the above mentioned hyperventilation. And it made Lizzy talk to us for the rest of the afternoon with her face hidden behind a pillow.So...what about you? Are you a demonstrative speaker? Do you use your hands? And your eyeballs when you speak? Have you ever driven three hours to meet someone for lunch? Do you think your friends and family might think you've gone off the deep end if you did? Have you ever found a blog you liked and gone back to read every-single-post?

Theme song: Jack Johnson - "Upside Down" because it perfectly captures the day. And there is not a song called hyperventilate.

Friday Follies

It is that time of the week again. Time to play our getting to know you game. Time for me to think of new and exciting questions to ask. Time for me to be like Pooh. And think-think-think. And get a huge crease in my forehead from thinking. Because I can't think of any more either or questions.

You are going on Jeopardy. What charity will you play for?

What category do you hope will show up because you'll sweep the board?

What category do you hope they will not include?

What blogger do you not want to play against in Jeopardy so that your charity has the chance to win big?

I so wanted to come up with 10 Jeopardy related questions. But I cannot think of anymore. Moving on...

What is your favorite flower?

If you could live in any home from a TV series, which would you pick?

What is your favorite Muppet movie?

What did you eat for lunch yesterday?

What is your favorite word?

What is the worst tasting thing you've ever eaten?

Conversations with Katie

A few weeks ago I read a "tweet" by Rhea that she had seen a "Save the Ta-Ta's" bumper sticker. And when I had my bloggers summit with Shannon and Angie, we found "Save the Ta-Ta's" shirts.Then Julie left me a comment saying that her friend created that line of products.

You know, just when you become aware of something - it becomes so very prevalent. I starteding seeing Save the Ta-Ta's everywhere.

Last week, Katie and I were in the drive thru line at Chick-fil-a and the car in front of us had a Save the Ta-Ta's bumper sticker. Which I squealed in delight about.

Me: Oooo. Look! They have a Save the Ta-Ta's bumper sticker.

Katie: (head buried in a book. I wonder if it was a school book.) Whaaaattt?

Me: That car in front of us has a Save the Ta-Ta's bumper sticker.

Katie: What's that?

Me: It's a sticker for breast cancer awareness.

Katie: What are ta-tas?

Me: It's a slang term for breasts. You know. Kinda like boobs.

Katie: Hmmm. (Deep contemplation) Are they called ta-tas because they might go ta-tah?

Me: (Speechless)

So...what about you? Do you have to explain euphemisms to your kids? Do they have to explain them to you? Do you have a favorite euphemism? Or two? Or ten? If I were to do a random drawing for a Save the Ta-tas bumper magnet - would you want to be entered?

Theme song: Violent Femmes - Blister in the Sun. Because it was a better choice than "I am turning Japanese." 'Nuff said.