I'm addicted. . .

. . . to embedding YouTube clips! ;o)

Any other MST3K fans out there? (I'm guessing there aren't, since there are so few of you to begin with, but you never know.) If so, have you heard of RiffTrax? You might want to check it out; it's by the same guys from the old show. :o)

2007 Retrospective Meme

I'm not especially enthusiastic about this meme, so we'll see if I even manage to finish it.

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before?
Bought a new car, not just a "new to us" car. (It was something I hadn't really pictured us ever doing, but at the time it seemed like a good idea. We'll see. (g)) Traveled in a foreign country other than Sweden. Witnessed Daisy having a seizure. And probably some other things I'm not thinking of right now.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Did I even have any for 2007? I don't usually place much emphasis on them. They're almost always the same things, anyway. Have more healthy eating and exercise habits-- just generally "do better" in most areas of my life-- overcome a few fears and things that are holding me back. They're about the same for next year, I guess, if I'm going to make any at all. I'll also have a couple more specific ones. Namely, what I wrote last post about polymer clay. I'd also like to stick with the quilting thing for a while-- at least long enough to use up some of the stash of flannel I bought on the day after Thanksgiving. (g)

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
No one really close to me, as far as I can recall. One of Donald's cousins just had a baby a couple of weeks ago, and another (her sister) is due soon. And the baby whose christening we attended in Sweden (the child of yet another cousin) must have been born in 2007 as well.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
No one very close to me, no.

5. What countries did you visit?
This year I actually have an answer for this one. ;o) We visited Donald's family in Sweden, and while there, we took a little trip through the neighboring Norway. We saw some incredible views along the way.

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?
Fewer unnecessary worries, more courage. Sometimes I get the feeling that I'm one of Shakespeare's cowards who "die many times before their deaths". . . Of course, I had fun in 2007, too, but I'd like to have even more in 2008. (g)

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Umm. . . Nothing's jumping out at me. . . Maybe the end of August and the beginning of September, as that's when we were vacationing.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Biggest achievement. . . I don't know, maybe setting up on Etsy and finding that I could actually sell things that I make? (I think I signed up in 2006, but I didn't list any items until later.) Or maybe it was getting PolymerClayWeb going (though that was just as much Donald's work as mine-- maybe more his, since it was all his idea).

9. What was your biggest failure?
Probably something I don't want to talk about. :o) Other than that. . . I just haven't done nearly enough in the yard for quite some time. I haven't been too good about keeping the house tidy, either. I've become a clutter magnet.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing serious. I can't think of anything more serious than a cold. Of course, I did learn that I apparently have congenital cataracts. ;o)

11. What was the best thing you bought?
The biggest thing we bought was the car, but I probably got the most pleasure out of a couple of polymer clay books I bought over the summer.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Hm. . . Donald's. Probably some other people, too, but he comes to mind first. He's always very good about trying to lift my spirits when I'm feeling unhappy.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
No one comes to mind. . . Maybe the world in general? (g)

14. Where did most of your money go?
Oh, I try not to think about that stuff. ;o) The regular places, I guess-- mortgage, food, bills-- and savings. We did get that car, too, and some furniture. (I'd almost forgotten that was this year! It seems like so much longer ago than that! That also means that we had Ingela and Jocke over in 2007, too. I was convinced that was last year!)

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
I was excited to get the new furniture. It was so nice to have something nice and new after using third-hand stuff for all that time. It was also exciting to go abroad-- especially once the plane trip was over with.

16. What song will always remind you of 2007?
Hm. . . Nothing's coming to mind, really. Maybe Emiliana Torrini's "Sunny Road"? (I prefer the Manasseh Mix version, but I don't have a copy of it. Yet.)

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer?
a) Probably about the same. At the moment, I'm a bit sad to think that another year's gone by.
b) Again, about the same, I'd say, but probably a bit fatter.
c) Richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Yard work, keeping things tidy. . . working on the polymer clay stuff (in a more productive way). . . And of course I wish I'd spent more time with loved ones. Maybe invited family over to play games or something? Every now and then I think of doing that sort of thing, but I don't want it to be a failure (i.e. a snoozefest that people come to only because they don't want to hurt my feelings by saying "no" to), so I don't follow through on the impulse. I worry too much. I think we've established that by now, yes? ;o)

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Worrying!! Feeling sorry for myself. . . Thinking about things over which I have no control, anyway. Generally wasting time.

20. How did you spend Christmas?
Christmas Day, we went to my parents' house (where Carrie and Victor were staying while they were down for the holidays) to unwrap the family gifts. Then we went over to my paternal grandparents' for a meal with the family. (We celebrated with my mother's side of the family a few days before Christmas.)

21. Did you fall in love in 2007?
I like Rachel's answer for this one, so I'll copy it. ;o)
Over and over again, with the same person. You know who you are! ;o) :o)

22. What was your favorite TV program?
I have a hard time narrowing it down. I'll keep it down to three: The Office, Pushing Daisies, and MythBusters. (I'm still looking forward to LOST, too, but honestly, it feels like at least a year or two since the last episodes were on! (g))

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
No, I don't think so. . . I have some animosity toward stupid people in general-- the ones trying to ruin life for the rest of us-- but I try to stay clear of hating specific individuals. If someone annoys me that much, I just don't want to think about them at all.

24. What was the best book you read?
I've told you before about how I don't read that many "new to me" books these days, right. . . ? (g) Out of the few "new" book I've read lately, the one that comes most forcibly to mind is Jasper Fforde's The Big Over Easy. Donald and I read it together, and we both thought it was pretty funny. There were a few possible improvements, but overall, very enjoyable.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
It's been a while since I've experimented much, musically, so I'll just have to say Emiliana Torrini's newest CD, Fisherman's Wife.

26. What did you want and get?
Probably more than I ought to have. Can we just not go into all the dirty little details? ;o)

27. What did you want and not get?
This and that. Nothing that I really needed. It can wait.

28. What was your favorite film of this year?
I have trouble remembering when I saw specific movies. I don't know that it was the best film I saw this year, but I enjoyed the latest Harry Potter movie. It was actually better than the book, in some ways.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Oh, I don't remember. That was way back in February, you know. ;o) I probably spent most of the actual day doing pretty much the same as on any other day-- maybe a little more time than usual devoted to whatever I felt like doing. I was 28. (What are you doing, meme-author, trying to make me feel old? (g))

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
If I'd had more courage about a few different things, maybe. But in general, I imagine I'll go through life at about the same level of happiness and satisfaction. Some people will always be happier than I am, no matter what our respective circumstances. Many will be less happy than I am, even if they're wealthier, more beautiful or better admired. All things considered, I think I'm fortunate in this regard. I enjoy the little things in life, and it doesn't take much to keep me satisfied. (I just want the good things in my life to stay the same and last forever. That's not so much to ask, is it? (g))

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
Um, I don't think I really had one. Jeans and tops? (g) And lots of capris in the summer months. I guess you could say I go for comfort, most of the time.

32. What kept you sane?
Donald-- the refuge of home-- the ability to escape into a good book or DVD.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
I really don't follow that stuff much. And I'm too old and married to go on and on about which men I find attractive, even if I did follow it! ;o)

34. What political issue stirred you the most?
I don't want to think about it. :o) I go through cycles with politics, as with many things. Right now I'm deep in the "keep it away from me" part of the cycle. This means no talk radio, no reading random strangers' political blog posts, and extremetly limited exposure to "serious" news. A politics-free Michael is a happy Michael. ;o)

35. Whom did you miss?
Maybe I missed the me of the past. . . or my old childhood friends, as they used to be. . . Or just the (seeming) safety of the past in general.

36. Who was a nice new person you met?
I don't meet many new people, these days. Not in person, at least. Online, I met many, many "polymer clay people" from around the world. :o) Oh, and I guess since (as I realized earlier) Ingela and Jocke visited earlier this year, I met Jocke for the first time in 2007, too. And Louise (the new baby), during our visit to Sweden. :o)

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
I should have learned it before this, and I'm still not sure it's sunk in yet, but-- Worry is life wasted. Certainly we should take the obvious precautions-- not run with scissors, etc.-- but there's no sense in wasting time and energy by worrying about what might happen next. (I really wish I could say that I finally "got" it, but I think I'll continue to struggle with this concept!)

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Nothing comes to mind. (I'm more of a melody girl, not quite so good with lyrics. . .) Let's just pretend I came up with something profound, shall we? ;o) Or, if you insist, I'll just choose something (almost) at random. . .

From Enya's "Pilgrim":

Each heart is a pilgrim,
Each one wants to know
The reason why the winds die
And where the stories go.
Pilgrim, in your journey
You may travel far,
For pilgrim it's a long way
To find out who you are...

Maybe that doesn't exactly sum up 2007 in particular, but here's to another year along that journey!

Hey, I did finish it! (How thrilling for you all. (g)) Any of you who have blogs and haven't already answered this, consider yourself "tagged" (and feel free to leave a link in the comments, if you like). :o)

Friday's Feast, etc.

Time to get back in the groove of posting!

First things first-- I hope everyone had a nice Christmas. Ours was very pleasant. Visited with family (except for those living overseas, of course), ate lots of good food, gave and received gifts, and had some laughs. Now that Christmas is over, I'm looking forward to a fresh start for the next year, but I have quite a bit of cleaning and organizing to do-- starting with taking down the Christmas tree. Maybe I'll start over the weekend. Or I might put it off until Monday. ;o)

Here are this week's questions from Friday's Feast:

Appetizer
Name 2 things you would like to accomplish in 2008.
I'd like to get into healthier habits-- less junk food, more (consistent) exercise-- and as an added benefit, shed a few unnecessary pounds. (Not very original, I know. (g)) I'm also planning to focus more on treating the polymer clay "thing" as a real business-- at least make more of an effort at it and see what happens. I have at least a couple more things, but since you only asked for two. . . ;o)

Soup
With which cartoon character do you share personality traits?
Hm. Nothing comes immediately to mind. Maybe I share Donald Duck's bad temper? I don't think I'm quite as volatile as he is, but I do let things get under my skin more than I ought, sometimes. Oh, and sometimes I feel like I'm the Goofy character in one of those old narrated Disney cartoons in which every possible thing that can go wrong does (not exactly a personality trait, maybe. . .). But fortunately I don't feel that way not too often. ;o)

Salad
What time of day (or night) were you born?
I think it was about 9:45 p.m. On a Wednesday night, if you're interested. (g)

Main Course
Tell us something special about your hometown.
My hometown is small and fairly rural. (Though it was more so thirty years ago than it is now. These days, it even has several fast food places. Pretty impressive, huh? (g)) Technically, I never lived in the town-- not in city limits-- but our address included this town and it's where I went to middle and high school, so I'm claiming it as my hometown. Ok? ;o)

So, something special. . . I don't know how special it is, but it's kind of interesting to me. This town in (or maybe I ought to say "this area of") southernmost Alabama was originally settled (in large part) by people from Chicago. I think two of the streets in my town are named "Illinois" and "Chicago", probably due to this fact. (Of course, I think there might be streets named after Michigan and some other places, too, so. . .)

What? Not "special" enough for you? ;o)

Dessert
If you could receive a letter from anyone in the world, who would you want to get one from?
Anyone from any time period? And it'd be translated so I could read and understand it? I think a letter from Jesus would be pretty interesting. But maybe that's a dull answer-- kind of like choosing the Bible as the book you'd most want on a desert island. ;o) In that case, if the whole "any time period" thing still holds true. . . Maybe a letter from a favorite author, such as Charlotte Bronte. A letter from a great-great-grandmother (or someone of that sort) could be interesting. I'd also love a letter that would definitively explain some old mystery-- something explaining what happened to the Roanoke settlers, maybe.

A letter from the future (post time machine, of course (g)) could be fascinating, but I don't think I'd really want it. I'd be afraid to read it, somehow. . . I don't think I want to know what's going to happen in the next ten, twenty, or thirty years. On one hand, maybe knowing that you have twenty good years with no great tragedies would "free you up" to enjoy yourself fully for those twenty years. On the other hand, could you enjoy yourself, or would you be constantly dwelling on the inevitable, even though it was still twenty, fifteen, ten years down the road? (I'm the type of worrywart who probably couldn't keep the future troubles out of my mind.) Anyway, I don't think we're meant to know our futures. If it were even possible, that is. (g)

If it has to be from someone presently living, then I think I'd just as soon receive a letter from Donald as from anyone, right now. I can't think of a specific person still living and not already in my life that I desperately want a letter from.

. . .
Cue abrupt subject change. ;o)

I think it might be time to put some L.M. Montgomery on my bedside table. I could use a little escape into the past. . .

The last book I read (solo) was Agatha Christie's A Murder is Announced. It was the third Christie I've read-- all within just the past few months. I can't decide what I think of her. I guess I like it well enough, since I keep reading until the end. It's interesting in its way, but a little bit empty. I don't really come to care much about the characters. I guess that might be a typical side effect of the murder mystery format, though. Most of the characters are suspects-- kept somewhat mysterious and distant-- so you aren't very likely to form an attachment to a character.

Anyway, of the three I've read so far-- And Then There Were None, Elephants Can Remember, and A Murder is Announced-- I think I enjoyed the latter the most. The first was too depressing. Yeah, yeah, I know: Who reads a murder mystery for laughs? But still, it didn't have to be that dark. The second was. . . too much of the same old stuff being told and retold. And the whole "event" had happened so long ago (in the book, I mean) that it was just hard to care one way or the other.

I have a couple more that I'll read, since I already have them (all were bought very cheaply at a library book sale), but so far, I think this is the type of book I'll read once but not particularly care to read again. Though with my memory, I'm sure I could read them in a year or two and still be surprised by the ending!! ;o) I'll have lots of "now this seems familiar" and "oh yeah, I remember her" moments, of course, but honestly, I've already forgotten the particulars of the other two mysteries. I hope that's not an ultra early symptom of something awful. Reading is supposed to be good for your memory, right? (g)

Flashback to the mid-80s. . .

Funny how familiar these are, even after all these years!





Thanks, YouTube! (g)

Yet Another Christmas Meme

This ought to be the last one, and I'll guarantee a meme-free post next time.

Some of these are a bit repetitious, so I may trim out a few questions here and there.
Oh, I found this one here.
I think I actually answered this one before the last one, and I may have referred to it in one of my answers. Sorry if I confused anyone. (Oh, who am I kidding? There are probably only about two people-- family members-- who are actually reading these things. (g))

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate?
Hot chocolate, if I must. See first meme for more elaboration on my feelings about eggnog and hot drinks in general. ;o)
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
Wrapped.
3. Do you hang mistletoe?
No. It's a fun idea, but it's never been a family tradition.
4. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)?
If I have to choose just one, dressing. I'm also fond of ham and roast.
5. Favorite Holiday memory as a child:
It's hard to narrow it to just one. Opening the stuffed cat (see first meme) was a high point. . . I also remember a year that "Santa" visited us while we were at my maternal grandparents. I thought I saw the red glow of rudolph's nose through a window, after "Santa" left (and mysteriously, just before Grandpa came in, having missed the whole thrilling visit (g)). I think the red glow was a little Christmas Magic-- or a car driving by at just the right moment ;o)-- because later on, I asked Mom about it, and that wasn't planned.
6. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?
I'm not sure. I think it came in degrees. I wasn't completely convinced until I accidentally saw one of Mom's lists and later got some of those things from "Santa". So I was old enough to read, at least. (g) I think I believed for a pretty long time, as those things go.
7. How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
It varies from year to year. Usually it's a variety of ornaments-- glass balls and other shapes, glittery snowflakes, a few cute animal-themed ornaments, and so on. We always have lights (sometimes white, sometimes colored) and garland (silver) and tinsel.
8. Snow? Love it or Dread it?
Where I live, I can afford to love snow. ;o) We hardly ever get it, but it's exciting when we do. (I do worry about loved ones on the road, though. People who aren't used to driving in snow might be more likely to have an accident.)
9. Can you ice skate?
No. I think it looks like fun, but I've heard it's awful on your ankles, if you're not used to it. I can barely stand on roller skates, though, so I doubt ice skating's in my future. (g)
10. What’s the most exciting thing about the Holidays for you?
When I was a kid, Christmas morning and the gifts. Now, wrapping gifts for others-- or making them, if they're hand-made.
11. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert?
I've mentioned sugar cookies and almond bark-covered pretzels. I also loooove fudge. (I haven't had fudge in a while. Maybe I should try making some. . . Not that I need it.) I also like Swedish-style gingerbread cookies. Divinity can be yummy. . . And most things with coconut or almond flavoring are sure to get my seal of approval. ;o)
18. Which do you prefer – giving or receiving?
Both. ;o) When I was a kid, as much fun as it was to be in on the secret of a gift for someone else, I secretly thought that adults just said all that stuff about giving being better than receiving. I mean, yes, it was supposed to be better, but it wasn't really. (g) Now, I think I can honestly say that giving is more exciting than receiving. But it's very nice when you see that your loved ones have been thinking about you, too. :o)
20. Candy canes?
I don't look at them and salivate ;o) but they're ok. I prefer candy canes that taste minty, I think. The gourmet type don't really interest me.