Oft Wed; Ne'er Led

...and my answers will be in an answer since everyone else already has this!!!


1. If you're on my friends list, here's a list of 35 things. If you're up for it, and short and sweet is fine.

2. Comment here with your answers and repost the questionnaire on your own journal (if you want)...


01) Are you currently in a serious relationship?
02) What was your dream growing up?
03) What talent do you wish you had?
04) If I bought you a drink what would it be?
05) Favorite vegetable?
06) What was the last book you read?
07) What zodiac sign are you?
08) Any Tattoos and/or Piercings? Explain where.
09) Worst Habit?
10) If you saw me walking down the street would you offer me a ride?
11) What is your favorite sport?
12) Do you have a Pessimistic or Optimistic attitude?
13) What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator with me?
14) Worst thing to ever happen to you?
15) Tell me one weird fact about you.
16) Do you have any pets?
17) What if I showed up at your house unexpectedly?
18) What was your first impression of me?
19) Do you think clowns are cute or scary?
20) If you could change one thing about how you look, what would it be?
21) Would you be my crime partner or my conscience?
22) What color eyes do you have?
23) Ever been arrested?
24) Bottle or can soda?
25) If you won $10,000 today, what would you do with it?
26) What's your favorite place to hang out at?
27) Do you believe in ghosts?
28) Favorite thing to do in your spare time?
29) Do you swear a lot?
30) Biggest pet peeve?
31) In one word, how would you describe yourself?
32) Do you believe/appreciate romance?
33) Favorite and least favorite food?
34) Do you believe in God?
35) Will you repost this so I can fill it out and do the same for you?

and while I am at QueenMaggie's today, I will be on site as of tonight (probably), which means Internet access only through my phone. LJ, for some reason, does not seem to be compatible with my phone, so I don't get to see it or read it for days (and sometimes an entire week) at a time. If I don't respond to something, please understand it's because I am without Internet and not because I do not care. Sparked by both renniemom and rowangolightly today, I want all of you to know how much I care about you. Sometimes I don't take the time to let everyone know that your well wishes for me while I'm travelling and your care and concern for the guys back at home mean the world to me. Thank you.

I am able to get FB on my phone in a limited capacity, so if you do need to reach me, that is the best option.

Hugs, love, and positive energy to all.

Dear Friends,

I used to read for pleasure all the time. However, when I went back to school, I found I had little time to read for pleasure since I spent so much time doing reading for class.

One of my new year's resolutions is to read at least one book each month for pleasure. Thus, I am asking for recommendations for books to read. I would prefer books that are "easy reads." Some things that don't require too terribly much thought. Something I can get lost in. Also, no new books that are still on the 'bestsellers' list, since I won't be able to afford them. Ditto for out-of-print books, unless you have a copy you're willing to loan.

Thanx in advance.

Rivenshire Consortium is seeking a person to work the Florida Renaissance Festival from February 11 to March 15. Contact me if you're interested.

I, of course, am home and didn't call last night and didn't have internet access, and I just remembered I was supposed to X. Sighs. Braindead. I'm just pleading braindead.

Thank you again!!!

1. Thank you to all who responded to my plea for a ride. I miss you all too.
2. Mom Pockets is full of awesome, but who didn't already know this.
3. I will probably be in town at least until 7:30 or so, probably at Pam and Wayne's, so...if you're in town and want to meet, etc.
4. Did I mention how amazing my friends are? No? Well, you all are amazing.
5. MUCH LOVE.

I will be flying back from Florida on Monday, January 25th. Mark may have to work that day, and my flight lands at MCI in Kansas City at 1:15 p.m. Any of my KC locals available perhaps to pick me up and spend a few hours until my love can come and get me??? Call, e-mail, or FB me if possible. Do not know when I'll get back on LJ since I can't seem to get it on my phone and that is usually my only access to Internet. Huggles to all!!!

I'm frustrated, and I need to vent, so I'm venting here. And I don't remember how to cut, so if you don't want to read the vent, just page down. Sorry.

Quartermasterjh had to take yesterday off of work because the long-term through the end of December assignment he had picked up wasn't really available. It posted by accident. So now it's back to the day-by-day search.

I did 7 loads of laundry Monday, and re-threw out my back putting stuff in the storage shed.

My computer bluescreened when I was writing a note to apocolypticbob, so not only did I not get my note written, but I have lost every piece of data from April 15th on. This includes all of my job applications for universities and the attending information needed to apply for them, as well as numerous other important files. So now every job application is taking twice as long (and it's usually a 10-15 hour process to begin with).

Needed to send money to my publisher today for the advance books McFarland sent me, and when I went to the bank to withdraw the money, I found out that a check someone in Texas wrote for the book bounce, causing me the loss not only of that money but the additional $7 fee for presenting a check to my bank that bounced.

AND, I couldn't send McFarland as much money as I wanted because the new front brakes on the car cost almost $200. Back ones and fluid flush will have to wait until the New Year.

Okay, vent over. I feel better. Thanx.

“Nobody is worthy. No actor in the history of the theatre has ever been worthy of this profession. You can’t let that stop you. The stage is a holy place. It is the focus of all times and places, the distillation of all human suffering and joy. They come because they’re lonely, like us, and they gather in the dark so they can see themselves reflected, as in a mirror, what they are, what they fear they are, what they hope can be, what they remember, what they’ve forgotten. We are the best part of them, the worst part of them, we are the generations of the unhappy dead, and we become the symbols of their flesh and blood and of the deepest and most hidden secrets locked within their souls. We suffer and die for them each night, and each night we’re reborn again for them. It’s not a question of failing or not failing. Of course we fail. The lines we say are often not the best lines but if we give to it our best attention, if we are brave enough to trust in the best of what we’ve learned from our own ridiculous efforts and innumerable disasters, if we never give up, if we continue to attempt, despite everything, to find the truth inside us and play our action as simply and honestly as we can, then we are doing our work, and our work is as close to God as we are ever likely to get. Never despair that you are not good enough. Of course we are not good enough. But it is all we have. And there is as much beauty in farce as in tragedy, and as much truth in darkness as in light.”
-Nigro-

and wondering if anyone would like to meet for coffee or an inexpensive dinner somewhere. We have to pick Walkir up at 8:30 at the airport, but are planning on being in the area by around 5:30 if anyone wants to meet for dinner or coffee and conversation.

I will check back here and if anyone is available, we will leave around 2:30 to come on up!!!

Hello Friends,

Mark and I will be coming through the Muskogee/Coweta/Tulsa area on December 1st on our way home from Texas Renaissance Festival. As I haven't seen so many people for so much time, if you are in the area and would like to meet for dinner, we would love to get together. We should be in the Coweta area by around 3:30 in the afternon. We'd like to leave the area by about 8 pm, so we can be home by 11 p.m.

Let me know if you can meet.

Hugs,

T

Well, I think I know that one entire chapter of the new book on festivals is going to be on the effects of weather on outdoor performance! The rain and the mud and the cold on one end and the 100 plus degree heat and 100 percent humidity on the other end apparently have not been enough. Noooooooo...tomorrow I get to experience festival while a hurricane comes through. I feel bad saying this, but I hope it makes the turn to the east that it is supposed to sooner rather than later, since the sooner it turns, the less the hit we take here. It's not totally selfish; I don't think New Orleans is ready for another hurricane hit. However, I really am hoping for only 40-50 mile per hour winds, not 80-120. Oh well, it'll be another chapter in the book. Book sales. Right. That's what it's all about. Right?? Right!!!

Hello All,

I know I have some things I need to do regarding the uplifting_us group, and I will be getting to that, but right now I'm taking advantage of the time I right now to talk generally since with the potential hurricane stuff could make my life difficult over the next 72 hours or so. If you are interested in joining uplifting_us, please send a request. If I haven't gotten to yours yet, I will shortly.

Huggles.

Hello All.

I mentioned a bit ago that I was going to start a group for people interested in working on healthy lifestyles. rowangolightly graciously offered to let us use another group that was already up and running, but because there are some people who might join who are completely unknown to others within that group, I thought it might be best to just start a new group. This group is focusing on healthy lifestyles and getting support from others whom we love. Thus, I have created the group uplifting_us.

I want everything in this group to be positive! For example, I know many people are interested in losing weight. I, personally, cannot stand the word "diet." To me it is the word "DIE" with a CROSS at the end of it. I don't want that. I want to manage my eating habits in a healthy way and begin to bring my metabolism into its proper place with exercise. Yes, that may be longer than "diet", but it is also more positive. It's kind of like the "yes, and..." rule of Improv. Never give someone a "no, but..." answer because it stops the bit and shuts them down. In this group, I really want to see the phenomenal women who have expressed interest shine and be positive for themselves and others. We get enough "aw shits" in our lives from other sources. This group is for the warm fuzzies!

Sometimes negative things happen. Do I mean that you can't speak of something negative here? No, that is not what I mean. But what I do mean is that if you want to talk about something here, be prepared to hear positive suggestions for how to make it better. This is not the place to rant just for the sake of ranting. Rant all you want if the end result is to improve your healthy lifestyle and you need advice on how to do it. Or you need someone to support you in doing it. It's easy to get frustrated, for example, if you're trying to lose weight and you've been working like heck and for the 3rd straight week you've gained a pound. Yes, feel free to talk about your frustration, but be open to questions about what you've been eating and how you've been exercising. Be open to suggestions on how to jump-start your weight loss. In other words, don't rant just to rant! I know that this may seem harsh, and some people may be put off by this, but I truly want this group to be built on mutual respect and support, and I don't want it to become a forum for "poor, poor, pitiful me" posts. I've written some of those myself, and probably will in the future as well, but not here. Not in this group. 

The reason for this decision is simple. I want one place that I can turn to whenever I'm on line that will be competely positive. I am trying to put some of the readings I have done on health and wellness into place here, and I want to see if they are effective. If you don't feel you can adhere to this, then I completely understand. If you are willing to give it a shot, then please sign up and join uplifting_us. Once I have received a few responses from people who are interested in joining, I will send out another post asking for suggestions for topics to discuss, etc.

One of the first things this group will do is start a weight loss challenge based upon percentage of body weight lost. With the holidays approaching, a time when many people put on weight, I really want to be proactive and not wait until New Year's--after I've gained another 5, 10, or 15 pounds--to focus on getting healthy!!! I am suggesting a monthly contest in which the top percentage loss winner would receive a small hand-made gift from the other members (since everyone I know who has expressed interest has talents in these areas). I'm not talking about something expensive but rather a small piece of jewelry (my specialty) or a pouch or handkerchief (if you're a seamstress) or a poem or story (if you're a writer); or a healthy batch of cookies (if you're a healthy baker), etc. You get the idea.

I would also like to start a recipe exchange of HEALTHY recipes. For good or for bad, most of the recipes I'm good with are from the 16th century. Therefore, I don't know the caloric/fat/etc. content. I would love recipes where I know I'm not eating 75 grams of fat in one sitting and 3000 calories, and GOD FORBID, 1500 mg of sodium (my biggest worry since the stroke).

Well, here it is. uplifting_us. I hope some of you will join. By the way, this is the first time I have ever tried to create a group (and I admit that I wanted to try to see if I could do this without messing it up since, as most of you know, I'm kind of a compuidiot.). I'm not sure if I've done everything right, but I set it up to be moderated so that not just anyone can join. We'll see if that works!

Brightest blessings,

me

YAY. I don't have to leave for Louisiana until O'dark-thirty on Wednesday morning, not Tuesday morning, so I have one more day with family and friends here.

So sorry to have missed those at the Halloween Party. We actually slipped out of our other engagement in time to slide up there, and then on the got one of my miserable headaches and had to go straight to the RV. Husband and son were both really disappointed too. Sighs. Soon, for those of you who I missed.

For people in the KC area, husband and I will be going up on December 5th (it's his birthday). We have to pick up the boy on the evening of the 6th, and we would love to get together either on the 5th or 6th. Let me know if you're available.

For my Oklahoma friends, we will be coming through the Muskogee area on December 1st on our way back from Texas Ren Fest. Lunch or dinner anyone???

Missing everyone!!!

What if the dead speak to you? Should you ignore them? I think not, and I do not.

I am back in Springfield, until next Tuesday, when Tom picks me up and we leave for Louisiana.

I'm exhausted, but I am also so grateful that I have even this limited time with my family and friends here.

I have all kinds of stories and ideas for people who are looking for festival jobs, etc. Let's get together soon.

As I'm sure most of you know, I had a serious health scare earlier this year when I had a stroke/TIA. Since then, I have been on the road almost constantly and doing fairly well, all things considered. Nonetheless, I am not hapy with fairly well. I have a son. He's 13. Someday (hopefully in his mid to late 20s), he's going to marry a wonderful girl. I want to dance at Walkir's wedding. In order to do that I must 1) Be alive; B) Be on good terms with him; and iii) Be healthy enough to actually boogie the night away! If I don't take care of myself, none of these will happen because I will not be healthy, and if I am alive, he will resent me for not taking care of myself (believe me, I know this is true).

To this end, I am starting a new way of life that is healthier and happier. The number one priority for me, as it always has been, is to get my weight under control. I know that if I manage to do this several things will happen: 1) My blood pressure will significantly reduce; B) My knees and back will hurt significantly less; iii) I will feel better about myself. I also know that doing this alone is very, very difficult. Therefore, I am proposing a special locked LJ group of women who would like to participate in a healthy lifestyle challenge.

What I am proposing is this: an on-line and whenever possible in person support group of people who want to get healthy (whether that's through losing weight, quitting smoking, etc.). This will be a safe place to go and seek health advice and to get support when you really don't want to get out of bed at 5 am to go to the gym or to get on the treadmill after a long day of work. I also know that incentives beyond the esoteric (I want to dance at Walkir's wedding is mine) will help and that I have an incredibly talented group of friends.

Thus, I propose a weight loss challenge! We weigh in on the first of each month. From month to month we calculate not the number of pounds you have lost (because we are starting in different places and that wouldn't be fair), but the percentage of pounds to body weight in a month. For example, if your starting weight was 200 and you lost 10 pounds, you would have a 5 percent reduction. However, if your starting weight is 300 pounds and you lose 10 pounds, you only have a 3.333 percent reduction. The person with the highest reduction percentage each month would win something handmade by the person with the lowest percentage reduction each month. So, for example, if I had the lowest in a month, I could make a period necklace or earrings or bracelet etc. for the winner. Or perhaps everyone should make something for each month's winner. This is open for discussion and tweaking, of course.

We could also add challenges among those who wish to quit smoking etc. Of course the necklace or whatever other item isn't the driving factor; getting healthy is. However, a little reward for a job well done doesn't hurt.

If you are interested in participating, it doesn't matter where you live. Just drop a line here and let me know and I'll create a filter for this group. (I've never created a filter before, so this will be a learning experience for me.)

Thanx for reading, if you've gotten this far.

I am safely ensconced at anjabeth's in Maryland. For those who don't know, anjabeth was Matron of honor at my wedding. She is also "she who trained me" my very first year at faire. Most of my base knowledge of festival that I have endeavoured to impart to others, I learned from her. The year I was doing the initial research for the book, her family fed me and housed me during inclement weather (I was living in the MDRF campground at the time.) And we have a few days together before the craziness of the closing weekend of MDRF ensues. YAY!!!