Blue Award

TechnoBabe has honored me with an award, a really interesting one (and my favorite color, too!). So, here's my attempt to follow the rules she has laid out, which are: (1) answer her ten questions; (2) make up your OWN ten questions, and (3) pass it along to six other bloggers. The only thing I might add is that I wish the bloggers whom I tag to know that I sincerely would like to know their answers to the questions, but if they choose not to do this, I won't mind a bit.

Here are TechnoBabe's ten questions, and my answers:

1. What is one thing you do not want to write about in your blog?

Writing about politics, sex, religion, and other controversial subjects makes me uncomfortable, but in the right context I will write about any of them. I would never write about any (possible) past drug use because of the possibility of ramifications, as I pointed out in the second half of this post.

2. If you were able to travel any place for a month, where would you want to go?

Oh, this is a hard one! If I could spend a month in France, especially Paris, for its incredible museums, architecture, the Left Bank, and then of course traveling to Versailles and absorbing the French culture. And since I don't speak French, I would love to have Vagabonde along with me to show me what I would otherwise have missed.

3. What is your favorite book reading genre?

I realize this has changed in the past few years. I once read every science fiction book I could get my hands on, but I've moved lately to really well-written novels, especially historical ones or those written about other cultures. Only rarely do I read mysteries, but I've got The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo on my list because I enjoyed the movie so much. And right now I'm reading Arctic Dreams by Barry Lopez about the mysterious land and creatures of the Far North. So the answer is that I don't really have one.

 4. How old do you have to be to consider yourself really old?

Well, I'm 67 right now and I'm not there yet. I think, however, if you had asked me that question when I was in my twenties, I would have considered the late sixties as being really old. Now, I'm thinking that "really old" must start at 80. I've got friends in my hiking club who are in their late seventies and still going strong.

 5. What part of blogging do you enjoy most?

The friendships, without a doubt. I have made friends who enrich my life every day, who are as real and present to me as those I see daily. Even more so, in some circumstances. I also enjoy seeing the myriad outlooks we have on the same topic; it broadens my world and causes me to think.

 6. If you were looking for a roommate, what is your ideal roomie?

An introvert (since I'm an extrovert), someone who honors my space as I would honor theirs, and someone who likes to cook (I don't). Oh, wait! I've got that roomie, and he's called my Life Partner. How lucky is that?

 7. What does the word spiritual mean to you?

"Spiritual" is an adjective that defines something else, so it varies in context. A spiritual person, to me, is someone who seeks to understand the mystical aspects of life, who is either religious in the traditional sense or follows devotional practices to enhance his or her own spiritual life. A spiritual experience can be anything that uplifts me, no matter how mundane it might be to someone else.

 8. How many siblings do you have?

I am the oldest of six siblings, with twenty years between my youngest sister and me. We also had a sister who was born prematurely and died within a day of her birth, so maybe I should say I have seven. None of these questions is easily answered, even this one. :-)

 9. Have you ever been in a car accident?

Hasn't everyone? It depends on what kind of an accident. In my twenties I ventured out in a car to go to work when the roads were a sheet of ice. I couldn't stop going down a hill and ran into the mailman in his vehicle, the only other person on the road! Nobody was badly hurt, but the vehicles didn't fare as well.

 10. Do you have a pet?

Not at the present time. When I met Smart Guy, we were both active skydivers and the only pets I had were plants, and even those had to be cared for when we were out of town for any length of time. We presently live in a no-pets apartment complex, or I would have a cat. They are my preferred pets, because they require much less attention than dogs. I have nothing but fond memories of the many cats that have owned me over the years.

 Okay! That part is done. Now I will think about my own questions I'd like to ask. But first I need to think about who I'll choose to tag so I can make sure they take awards and to figure out what I'd like to know about them. My ten questions:

1. What is your favorite book and why?
2. If you could be anybody, living or dead, who would it be?
3. What is your first memory? Why do you think you remember it?
4. What do you think is your strongest asset?
5. Do you like parties? Why or why not?
6. What is your favorite activity?
7. Why do you blog?
8. Do you get regular exercise? If so, how?
9. Are you happy? Why or why not?
10. Tell something about yourself you want to share.

Wow! That was a LOT harder to do than I thought it would be. Therefore, I'm going to list the six people I'm tagging, but if for any reason you find this award onerous and you don't want to do it, I officially release you from it. If it's not fun for you, please feel free to forget it. Drumroll, please:

Whitney at Somebody Else's Nose.
Gigi at gigi-hawaii.
Crazy Cris at Here and There and Everywhere.
Lucy at My Secrets for Happiness.
Wendy at Overhaul.
Linda at Linda Letters.
:-)