Wow, this is one of two awards bestowed to me by another blogger. Thank you, Samara. It’s a rainy day over here in usual sunny Florida, so these golden rays of accolades are keeping me all warm and fuzzy (the good kind, not the kind where you need to shave). Samara is the creator of A Buick in the Land of Lexus, one of my favorite blogs. I get excited when I open my reader, whether it’s over coffee in the a.m. or snug under the covers in the p.m. and see that she has posted something. There’s sure to be at least a half dozen laugh-out-loud moments as well as gritty insights into her world as a dedicated Mom with a wild ride of a past. I am in awe of her way with words and her all-out ballsyness to put herself out there, virtually naked.
So in accepting this award, I must follow a few rules. The first is to list 11 random factoids about myself. Here goes…
1) I like my cereal soggy and my oatmeal lumpy.
2) One summer my brother and I watched The Goonies every single day. One day we watched it twice.
3) I’ve had a major crush on Keanu Reeves since 1988.
4) It takes me an entire day to pack for a trip.
5) I once sat next to the Italian prime minister’s family at a bonfire in the Australian outback.
6) I saw Titanic twelve times when it came out at the theatre, each time accompanied by different people, and each time I bawled like a baby.
7) I cannot curl my tongue but I can flare my nostrils to any tune.
8) My favorite band of all time is Midnight Oil. I got to meet the lead singer Peter Garrett and shake his hand.
9) I hate math.
10) I used to forge parent signatures in middle school. And probably some in high school, too.
11) I can’t win an arm-wrestling match but I gave birth to my 8 lb son in the water with no drugs.
Now another rule I must follow is to answer 11 questions Samara has asked me:
What is the first thing you do as soon as you wake up in the morning? Turn off the white noise machine.
What is your greatest fear? To be trapped in an insane mind for eternity.
Do you have a new years resolution for 2014? Keep looking at the world in wonder instead of worry.
What is your favorite song at the moment? It’s a toss-up between “Atmosphere” by Kaskade and “Reflektor” by Arcade Fire.
What is your favorite childhood memory? Oh wow, so many. Probably snow sledding with my brother at night. The street lights had this bluish hue while the fat snowflakes fell and we screamed in sheer joy as we skidded down the steep street across from our house. We weren’t usually allowed to play outside after dark, so it was doubly intoxicating. I don’t think I got cold as a kid. Now I shiver if it gets below 70.
Facebook or Twitter? I’ve never tweeted but I do FB. I usually check it when I’m on the john. TMI?
What did the last text message you received say? “I decided to add some color to our lanai. We were out in the rain all day running errands. Now comes actually doing the tasks. Not so much fun.” (smiley face with tongue sticking out). I love that my mom can text now.
What bugs you the most? Complaining. And not the casual, light complaining that you wish it would stop raining. The rude, I-have-seen/done-this-better complaining. And especially the I-should-be-grateful-to-have-food-in-my-belly-but-I’m-gonna-bitch-about-how-this-ethnic-food-does-not-taste-like-its-country-of-origin complaining. We are not in Mexico. We are not in Italy. Eat your freaking taco.
What do you consider to be the most important appliance in your house? The air conditioner. It’s Florida! And I have night sweats.
If you could have one song that would play whenever you entered a room, what would it be? “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” by Simple Minds.
What’s your favorite movie quote? Oh there are soooo many. But this is the one I keep thinking about lately. 
“I just want them to know that they didn’t break me.” Molly Ringwald as Andie talking to her dad in Pretty in Pink.
Now I am to nominate 11 bloggers I would like to recognize for the Sunshine Award. There are so many wonderful bloggers out there but these have definitely brought sunshine through their words and stories: The Surfing Pizza, Phoenix Flights, Sophie’s Pug Pause, Crossroads, Vampire Maman, MONOCHROME JUNKIE, The Blogging Mama, Steve Says, who could know then, My Kaleidoscope, and No, You Go Outside. They have to answer the same questions I did.
I have to say that WordPress has brought me more pleasure that I could have imagined. I love this blogging world, what it has done for my sanity and creativity, and the fellow writers that are on this journey with me. Cheers to a beautiful 2014.
Busted Flip Flops 