It's All About Friday

Appetizer

When was the last time you had your hair cut/trimmed?

Three weeks ago. I tried a new hair salon that is close to home and was quite pleased with the results.

Soup

Name one thing you miss about being a child.

Recess

Salad

Pick one: butter, margarine, olive oil.

Margarine

Main Course

If you could learn another language, which one would you pick, and why?

Most definitely Spanish for both practical reasons and the beauty of the language. I actually studied Spanish in high school and college, but I never was able to master it. I am so out of practice now that many of those early lessons are completely lost to me now.

Dessert

Finish this sentence: In 5 years I expect to be . . .

A little further along in my TBR (To Be Read) collection than I am right now.

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All questions this week are courtesy of the original founder of the Friday Fill-Ins, Megan.

1. Oh, I can't wait until I have another long weekend. That's this weekend, isn't it? Yippee!

2. Bare shelves are the first thing I see when I open my refrigerator.

3. I never leave home without my house keys.

4. If I were a condiment, I would be pepper because it adds a little spice to life.

5. People who do not know what a shift key is for is really high up on my list of pet peeves.

6. The last thing I thought of before I went to bed was thank goodness I do not have to go in to work tomorrow.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to relaxing in a sparkling clean house; tomorrow my plans include celebrating my anniversary and Sunday, I want to celebrate a little more!

Can You Believe It's Friday?

Questions courtesy of Jennifer this week; thanks, Jennifer!

1. Birthdays are a great time to treat yourself right.

2. Autumn is my favorite season because the weather begins to turn cooler and leaves start to change colors. The holidays are still ahead of me and yet they are close enough to touch. The end of the year is in reach. The World Series. There is a certain something in the air that makes me feel cozy and comfy during the fall season.

3. I feel my best when I am well rested, feel confident, and am doing something I enjoy.

4. Barbeque chicken pizza is my favorite food!

5. First impressions are sometimes deceiving.

6. The best piece of advice I ever received was that life shouldn't always be taken so seriously.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to cuddling with my dog and torturing my cat with hugs and nuzzles; tomorrow my plans include spending time with my family and Sunday, I want to feel the sand beneath my toes as I walk along the beach!

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Appetizer

What is the weather like today where you live?

Summer is definitely here. Temperatures went from scorching triple digits last week to the mid-9o's this week. For the past couple of mornings, I have been greeted by fog and a gentle mist when I head out for work, which has been a pleasant change. It isn't long before the sun burns right through and claims the day.

Soup

On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how career-minded are you?

I probably fall somewhere around an eight.

Salad

What type of window coverings do you have in your home? Blinds, curtains, shutters, etc.?

There are blinds in some windows and curtains in others.

Main Course

Name something that instantly cheers you up.

The sight of a book in the mailbox or sitting on th back walkway when I get home from work.

Dessert

How many times do you hit the snooze button on a typical morning?

Lately I have been pushing it once on those mornings I have to wake up to my alarm.

Fun on a Too Hot Friday

1. A smile is a great way to greet a friend.

2. Cribbage is my favorite board or card game.

3. I would love to have more peace in my life and less chaos.

4. When I think of the Summer Solstice, I think of heat, watermelon and barefeet.

5. I just remembered I need to pull the clothes out of the dryer.

6. One of my favorite song lyrics goes like this:

If you're going through hell
Keep on going, don't slow down
If you're scared, don't show it
You might get out
Before the devil even knows you're there.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to visiting my friends in blogland and catching up on some reading; tomorrow my plans include going to see Get Smart at the movie theater; and Sunday, I want to stay cool inside!

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Appetizer

If you could live on another continent for 1 year, which one would you choose?

I would love the opportunity to live and travel in Australia for a year. Or maybe Europe. I cannot decide.

Soup

Which browser do you use to surf the Internet?

I use Firefox.

Salad

On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being highest), how much do you know about the history of your country?

Sometimes I feel like I know quite a bit about my own country and other times, I seem to know so little at all. So, maybe a 5?

Main Course

Finish this sentence: Love is . . .

Complex.

Dessert

Have you ever been in or near a tornado?

Last month there were a couple of tornadoes that touched down not too far from where I work. I was completely unaware of it until I heard it on the news later that night, however. Tornadoes are very rare in California.

More Friday Fun

1. Reading all of the books in my TBR room is high up on my bucket list.
2. My favorite quote is "Fiction reveals truth that reality obscures"; it's from Jessamyn West.
3. My husband not only encouraged but also inspired me to start blogging.
4. Strawberries are best in a smoothie.
5. I scaled down the side of Florinda's blog, waving to her as I went by in the last dream I remember having. It looked like a giant computer tower.
6. The most enjoyable time to go for a walk is in the early evening when the temperature is cooler and the sun has yet to set.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to going to bed early; tomorrow my plans include finishing Michelle Moran's novel, Nefertiti, if I haven't already by then; and Sunday, I want to be completely over this cold! I actually am suffering from laryngitis at the moment too, which is kind of fun. I like talking like a frog. My husband is getting tired of me testing my voice to see if I am still hoarse. Let's not talk about my embarrassing moment when I had a coughing fit during jury selection yesterday. Hopefully today will go better (when I'm squawking out answers to attorney's questions).

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Appetizer

Do you consider yourself to be an optimist or a pessimist?

I am a realist with optimistic leanings.

Soup

What is your favorite color of ink to write with?

I can't say I have a favorite color of ink. In one of my previous positions, a couple of my staff often joked that the reports I returned to them for corrections were dripping in alien blood. I tend to be more traditional these days, sticking with black or blue ink. Whatever is handy and people can read easily.

Salad

How often do you get a manicure or pedicure? Do you do them yourself or go to a salon and pay for them?

It has been years since I got a manicure or a pedicure. I am a minimalist when it comes to my nails these days. I trim them when necessary and do little else with them.

Main Course

Have you ever won anything online? If so, what was it?

Books seem to be about the only thing I ever win in a contest, online or otherwise. If you believe the e-mails I receive sometimes in my spam folder, I have won the U.K. Lottery a number of times. I haven't seen a dime.

Dessert

In which room in your house do you keep your home computer?

You would think that because I now have a laptop, I would take it with me all over the house. Not so much. I haven't gotten used to the fact that my computer is mobile yet. It pretty much stays in my husband's and my home office, otherwise known as the computer room.

Just Another Friday

Questions courtesy of One Knutty Knitter; thank you, Knutty!

1. Idle hands are itching for a book.

2. I love to read in the shower. I just can't--soggy book and all that. If only I could keep the book dry . . .

3. My favorite time of the day is when the UPS man arrives. He's like a daily Santa Claus.

4. The last tea I drank was warm and soothing.

5. I like to go to baseball games in the summer.

6. My mother always said the best walks are often taken in the pouring rain.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to spending a quiet evening with my husband and our furkids; tomorrow my plans include celebrating my husband's birthday and entertaining my in-laws and Sunday, I want to enjoy a decent breakfast with our company before they head home and then spend the afternoon lost in a book!

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Appetizer

When you drink soda/pop/coke, do you prefer to drink it from the bottle, a can, or after pouring it into a cup?

I do not drink soda of any kind anymore. When I did, I preferred it in a glass glass over ice. Sometimes I would crave an ice cold bottle of root beer.

Soup

What television show are you willing to stay up late to watch?

None. With the advent of digital recorders, I no longer have to give up my precious sleep for a favorite television show. Even when a show is on at a decent hour, I tend to record it and watch it later or at least get it started late so I can fast forward through all of the commercials.

Salad

Name one person, place, or thing you think of as brilliant.

Books.

Main Course

Would you be willing to work 4 10-hour days instead of 5 8-hour days in order to save gas?

This has recently come up as an idea for staff at the agency I work for. Whether it's going to be adopted or not is still up in the air. I am more than willing to work a 4/10 schedule. As it is, I currently work a 9/80 schedule, meaning that I work 9 hours Monday through Thursday and then 8 hours alternating Fridays, with three day weekends every other week. Considering how much overtime I put in, an extra hour a day will not make much of a different. It sure would be nice to have three days off every week though!

Dessert

If you were a superhero, what would you call yourself?

Why, the Literary Feline, of course! I could swoop in when there is a biblio-emergency and save the day. Stuck somewhere with nothing to read? Found the last few pages missing from your book? Accidentally dropped your book in a bucket of water? Realized the only book you have on hand is one you have already read--or worse, one you wish you had never picked up? Just give a shout out for the Literary Feline!