catyah

Originally posted by ariestess at The Friday Five for 29 May 2015

1. No question about it, I would be a cat. I love cats. I love how particular they are about who they approach, how affectionate they are if they decide that they love you.
I love how flexible and athletic they are, and how calm they can be one moment and the next they can be racing around the room, chasing something that's not there.
(Given my choice, I would be a spoiled house cat.)

2. A successful writer. And if not a writer, I would love to be a librarian (in a library, rather than a corporate librarian). Or a bookseller.

3. Blue, but I would hate for my favorite color to cause people to think of me as blue as in depressed. I do have depression (and anxiety), which sucks, but I'd rather not have it be noticeable to the average person / someone who doesn't really know me.
I love blue because it comes in so many different shades with different meanings -- blue can be peaceful and happy (like a bright blue sky), or sweet (like baby blue), serious (like navy blue), or somber (like a gray blue). Also, I think I look my best when I'm dressed in blue.

4. I like where I live now, but I think it would be neat to live in Portland, Oregon, a city with a lot of personality and a lot of interesting things to see. But then people might say the same thing about the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St Paul (I live in a suburb). It's interesting how you never really see all the interesting things about your own city. We have lots of museums that I rarely take time to visit.

5. In a lot of ways, I think my house is the ideal one for me. It's small enough for my husband and I to handle the upkeep/keep it relatively clean. It's large enough for my husband's baby grand piano and his collection of CDs and records, and our collections of books, full of interesting nooks and corners to sit and read or listen to music or play with our cats. It's got a nice yard for me to garden in (though this time of yard causes me to stress about how big it is (and how many weeds grew in it when I wasn't paying attention last year).

A couple of things that would make it *more* idea -- some paint (our walls are white, and I'd love more color, but we never seem to have time to do that), having the wood floors refinished, beautiful built-in bookshelves (instead of the cheap particleboard shelves from Target), but those are all cosmetic things. It's *our* house. Or at least it's getting there, with every monthly mortgage payment.

1. When was the last time you wrote a check at a store?

2. When was the last time you looked up something in a book?

3. When was the last time you used a rotary/dial phone?

4. When was the last time you played cards with actual paper cards?

5. When was the last time you talked to a stranger?


1. It's been years. I just pulled out the checkbook to see, and in the last couple of years, I've only written out checks to our church and doctor's offices (to pay the co-pay). A few others things, but mainly those two. Probably the last store I wrote a check for was the grocery store, before I started using my credit card there instead.

2. Assuming that our manuals at work count as 'books' -- the least entertaining books in the world -- at work today.

3. This has been years, too -- my parents were the last ones I know who still had a rotary phone, and that was probably in the 1990s.

4. At Christmas, when we were visiting my mother in law, and she tried to teach me a card game that she plays with her girlfriends. I was terrible at it.

5. At work today.

1. Do you have good manners?
2. Did your parents support your career choice?
3. When in your life have you been a leader?
4. Have you ever been harassed for simply being good at something?
5. Are you a novelty seeker?


1. I like to think so -- I remember to say please and thank you, I hold the door open for others, and I stop when there's a pedestrian in a crosswalk (across a street or in front of a store). You might think that last one isn't so much good manners as following the *law*, but I've nearly gotten creamed walking toward a store quite a few times over the years, so I'm counting that as my good manners (and those drivers having bad manners / being blind @ssholes).

2. I don't know that I ever really made a *career choice*, but they were agreeable enough about my going to school to study dental assisting, and a few years after that when I quit my job as a dental assistant. Now THAT dentist was a walking, talking @sshole. They were pleased for me when I got the job working for an insurance company (where I still work over 24 years later.

3. Not when I can help it. Any sort of leadership / trainer / procedure-writing role in my job has been thrust upon me.

4. A couple of times that I can think of: I'm known at work for having above-average rates of getting work done. A couple of co-workers (one of whom is no longer at the company) made a point of speaking loudly enough to be heard when they talked about how SOME people are the bosses' pet because SOME people cherry-pick their work off the shelf. For the record, if you're wondering, I do NOT cherry-pick.
Another time was in elementary school when there was a notebook at the teacher's desk for us to write down the names and authors of the books we have finished reading. One of the other kids spoke up loudly, proclaiming to all the others that I could NOT have read all those books, and she didn't recognize some of the titles, so therefore I was making it up. Thankfully, the teacher spoke up and told them all that yes, I could and did read those books, that some people can read more books than other people because they LIKE to read. That was a proud moment for me.

5. I'm going to take part of an answer from spikesgirl58 and point out that if I liked new things, I wouldn't still count Riptide as one of my favorite TV shows. :-)

1. What's your favorite restaurant in your city?
2. What do you like to order there?
3. What's your favorite appetizer, at any restaurant?
4. What's a restaurant dish you've tried to make at home?
5. What would make you refuse to go back to a restaurant?


1. There are plenty of restaurant that I *like* well enough, but it wasn't until this post that I realized I don't really have a *favorite* anymore. I used to have a favorite restaurant, but it went out of business unexpectedly. It was called Da Afghan, and we successfully took several friends there for dinner over the years. They served Afghani food, and it was really yummy. I still think of it almost every time I drive past that street. (It was even close to home!)

I just found a website that still has their information and menu - http://business.intuit.com/boorah-restaurants/MN/bloomington/da-afghan-restaurant/047072B1B6.html

2. One of my favorite dishes there was the Morgh Lawand Chalow (chicken stewed in a yogurt sauce with onions. fresh ground coriander, curry, spices and fresh cilantro. served with basmati rice.)

3. At that restaurant, it was either the tabouleh salad or the naan with red and green curry sauces. I don't think either of those count as appetizers, they are the salad and bread, but why nitpick, they were yummy.
At other restaurants, I like boneless buffalo wings with blue cheese dressing to dip them in.

4. I've made Red Lobster's parchment roasted tilapia several times, and it's super easy -- a couple of tilapia filets, slices of lemon, capers, olive oil, and assorted veggies (they use asparagus, artichoke hearts, peppers, tomatoes and red onion, I have used whatever of those I had on hand).
It's been awhile, but my husband has made Kabeli Palow a few times, which is a Da Afghan served, we found a recipe online. It's sauteed lamb or chicken cooked in a tomato and onion sauce until very tender. served with basmati rice seasoned with tomatoes. onions, black cardamom and afghani spices. topped with shaved carrots sweet raisins and slivered almonds.

5. Bad service, bad food/didn't care for the food, noisy atmosphere. I was going to say high prices, but a) we don't go to expensive places in general (I'm frugal) and b) the couple of expensive places we've been to (like Murray's Steakhouse in downtown Minneapolis, where he proposed to me) are for special occasions only.

I love these questions!

1. What was your favorite book during childhood?

So many to choose from! The Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder is the first one that comes to my mind, and for good reason, now that I think about it. I read those books over and over again. I loved them all, but my favorite was Farmer Boy, about when Almanzo was growing up. Maybe it was the descriptions of ALL. THAT. FOOD. That, and the description of his friendship with his sister Alice and his sibling rivalry with his sister Eliza Jane.

2. What is your favorite book now?

I'm going to borrow spikesgirl58's answer and say it's usually 'whatever I'm reading at the moment.' I am enjoying Neil Gaiman's new collection of stories, Trigger Warning. As usual, it's kind of a mixed bad, and I don't love everything in it, but the good stories are really good, and the so-so stories are still all right.

3. What is your favorite movie adaptation of a book?

Easy -- 'The Shawshank Redemption,' based on the Stephen King novella Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. It's one of my favorite movies anyway, but it's also a fantastic adaptation of the novel. The only thing missing is the "Oh shit, it's shit!" line. :-)

4. Do you prefer checking out books from the library or buying them?

I'm frugal enough to *LOVE* the library, otherwise I would spend a fortune on books that I would turn out not to like. But thanks to the library I take all sorts of chances on reserving books that I'm not sure of and discovering authors that I really enjoy.
I've learned to treat myself to buying myself books more and more often, though. (What I need to do is buy myself more spare time to actually read them!

5. Have you ever been let down by a book that was highly recommended to you?

Not that I can think of. There's a fair amount of books that I give up on after a couple of chapters (or less, if it doesn't grab me in the right way), but I don't know if I feel *let down* by them. It just wasn't the right book for me.

Wow, I'm surprised -- both that I've gotten this far in the meme without quitting and that it has taken me this long to get this far. Just out of the habit of posting anything.

Day 1 - Ten random facts about yourself
Day 2 - Nine things you do everyday
Day 3 - Eight things that annoy you
Day 4 - Seven fears/phobias
Day 5 - Six songs that you’re addicted to
Day 6 - Five things you can’t live without
Day 7 - Four memories you won’t forget
Day 8 - Three words you can’t go a day without
Day 9 - Two things you wish you could do
Day 10 - One person you can trust

1. Nice!

2. Cool!

3. Thanks!

So, what does that tell you about me? I'm not the 'coolest' person, apparently 'cool' isn't as popular a word as it used to be, but I still use it. I'm also appreciative and admiring, hence 'thanks' and 'nice'.

YAY, I finally made it out of my rut of not wanting to get out of bed in the morning/oversleeping!

Other good stuff: tomorrow is Friday (and payday!), more overtime this week, I'm getting together with my BFF for lunch on Saturday, I'm reading some pretty good books, and my trainee is getting ever closer to being off checking!

Day 1 - Ten random facts about yourself
Day 2 - Nine things you do everyday
Day 3 - Eight things that annoy you
Day 4 - Seven fears/phobias
Day 5 - Six songs that you’re addicted to
Day 6 - Five things you can’t live without
Day 7 - Four memories you won’t forget
Day 8 - Three words you can’t go a day without
Day 9 - Two things you wish you could do
Day 10 - One person you can trust

( Ah yes, I remember it wellCollapse )

Day 1 - Ten random facts about yourself
Day 2 - Nine things you do everyday
Day 3 - Eight things that annoy you
Day 4 - Seven fears/phobias
Day 5 - Six songs that you’re addicted to
Day 6 - Five things you can’t live without
Day 7 - Four memories you won’t forget
Day 8 - Three words you can’t go a day without
Day 9 - Two things you wish you could do
Day 10 - One person you can trust

( music of my heartCollapse )

LOL, so much for posting everyday! But I've got a good excuse, I was at an author reading yesterday at Magers & Quinn Booksellers in the Uptown neighborhood of Minneapolis. Author Jonathan Odell gave a reading from his newest book, "Miss Hazel and the Rosa Parks League". I got my copy autographed by him, and so far it's very good.

Now, on the meme:

The 10 Day Challenge

Day 1 - Ten random facts about yourself
Day 2 - Nine things you do everyday
Day 3 - Eight things that annoy you
Day 4 - Seven fears/phobias
Day 5 - Six songs that you’re addicted to
Day 6 - Five things you can’t live without
Day 7 - Four memories you won’t forget
Day 8 - Three words you can’t go a day without
Day 9 - Two things you wish you could do
Day 10 - One person you can trust

( day two randomnessCollapse )

Aw, my brain is too tired to figure out how much I earned today. Never mind.

I didn't work any overtime today, and it was nice -- when I left at the end of the day, it felt like I was sneaking out early. :-) Tomorrow I'll either do a half hour or an hour just to get the overtime out of the way.

Even colder today, many schools were closed due to the cold, but not in my community. As I drove to work, I saw teenagers standing out on the sidewalk waiting for the school bus. None of them had hats on. Too tough to feel the cold? Hah!

Continued busyness at work. And today I got an email from the supervisor -- we all did, actually. It's time for the annual appraisals. They used to be staggered throughout the year, annualized to the time period you were hired, but somebody decided it was better to get them all done within a month. That makes sense. What doesn't really make sense is that they're doing it at our BUSIEST time of the year.

Anyway, we all hate them. We had to come up with goals last year (I want my goal to be to come in every day, get as much work done as I can, and go home and put the work behind me for the evening). Now I have to revisit them and write what the goal was, whether I completed the goal or not -- and how much of it is completed if there is some left to do -- and then write what I did to achieve the goals.

The worst part is having to say on a few different things (like productivity, working with others, stuff like that) whether I failed to meet expectations, met expectations, or exceeded expectations, and come up with an explanation for what I put down. If you put down that you exceeded guidelines, it makes you look like you're bragging, and if your boss put down that you just met expectations, you look even worse. If I put down met expectations and the boss says exceeded, she asks you WHY you don't have a better opinion of what you did. Ugh.

Just give me a raise and I'll go back to my desk, okay?

Choir practice tonight at church after dinner, when I would have rather stayed home, kept warm on the couch and watched Criminal Minds... but I am usually glad that I went to choir. Singing makes me feel better. Tonight I felt out of practice, though.