The “Reader Appreciation Award” Meme

/ Ally Bean

:: The Introduction ::

Gemma at helloitsgemma tagged me with this award.  Isn’t that kind of her?  The deal is that I answer the following questions.  Then I tag some other bloggers who I appreciate for leaving comments on my blog.  They then answer the questions on their blogs & tag some more bloggers.  And the award goes on ad infinitum…

:: The Questions ::

Where do you do most of your writing/blogging?
In our home study using my desktop computer, Coraline.

What books were your childhood favourites?
From my mother: The Complete Tales of Winnie the Pooh + Charlotte’s Web + the Little House on the Prairie series.  From my father: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer + Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Who is your favourite fictional character?
Tricky question.  I’m going to stick with childhood books and say Cassandra Mortmain, the narrator in I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith.  Cassandra, a teenage girl, starts the novel as a detached observer who records events + her impressions of people in her journal.  But eventually Cassandra becomes a participant in her own life and learns a few adult truths.  She is, I believe, one of the most charming narrators ever.

What is your favourite time of day and why?
Morning, when it is quiet, is my favorite time of day because my mind isn’t overtaxed with the daily minutiae yet.

Have you ever Googled yourself and been surprised at what you’ve found?
Yes, I’ve Googled myself.  No, I wasn’t surprised.  This blog is all there is about me out there on the interwebs.

Who would play me in a movie of my life?
Let’s ask Christina Applegate first, shall we?  I think she’d be a good choice.

One material possession I could not live without?
Our electric Cuisinart coffee maker with a timer.

Have you ever been naked in public?
Does skinny dipping, while in college, with friends, in a friend’s grandma’s pool count?  If so, yes.  If not, no.

What is your dream car?
Any car that I own.  Right now it’s a 9-year-old Honda Accord coupe, Olivia.

What/who/where was your first proper kiss?
I’m going to interpret proper kiss to mean the first one with the man who I married.  So the answer would be: long smooch/Zen-Den/college dorm room.

:: The Next Step ::

Here is a list of some wonderful bloggers who frequently comment on The Spectacled Bean.  I’m choosing these bloggers for this meme because, like me, they are doing NaBloPoMo– and I figure that they might be looking for something to write about.  

J at Thinking About…

Cheri at Naples Girl Blog

alejna at collecting tokens

Melisa at Suburban Scrawl

Relyn at Come Sit by My Fire

[There is, as always, no obligation to do this meme.  You won’t hurt my feelings if you choose to ignore all of this.  I realize that memes aren’t for everyone.]

20 thoughts on “The “Reader Appreciation Award” Meme”

  1. Thanks for the tag (and the heads-up since I’m pitifully behind on my Google Reader)! I will keep this in my back pocket, just in case!!! 🙂
    Happy Friday!

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  2. I love I Capture the Castle too, great book. Morning is my favourite time of day too and I would find my life more difficult without my coffee maker. And also maybe my juicer now. Great post.

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  3. All of my cars end up being named George. Sounds like we share an appreciation for cars that get us where we want to go. I play the game now and then about what car I would get if I could have any car I wanted – I love the Porsche Cayenne, for example. But I can’t imagine spending that much on something to take me from one place to another even if I had the money.

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    • Zazzy, I have never been a car person. I suppose if push came to shove I’d pick some Lexus sedan. Not because I’m drawn to any particular one, but because Z-D’s 13-year-old Lexus SUV has held together very well. I guess that’s what I look for in a car– longevity, not sexiness.

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  4. Thanks for the tag, I will use this perhaps for a ‘meme monday’. Also, thanks for telling me. My blog thing where it tells you who has linked to your blog hasn’t worked for ages.

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  5. Thank you for visiting my blog. I think Huck Finn is one of my adult favourites, never mind childhood. I re-read it recently and was struck the brilliance of the voice (it is, I think a much better book than Tom Sawyer) and in a strange way its resemblance to Russell Hoban’s cult classic Ridley Walker.

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    • I should go back and read Huck Finn. I only remember the stories from a child’s point of view. I’m sure that there is more depth there that I’d like as an adult– which is probably why my Dad was reading it to me to begin with. Keep me + him entertained.

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  7. Ah, thanks for tagging! It’s a good old-fashioned meme. Brings me back to ’07 or so. I do think I will partake.

    I love that you introduced your computer and your car by name. I’ve never been particularly good with naming things!

    As for morning. Ugh. Morning and I have never been friends. But I suppose you and I can still be friends, as online friendships like these don’t require simultaneity. (With the possible exception of Twitter. Which is part of why I’m not good with Twitter.)

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      • Yes, this is “a good old-fashioned meme.” I like to do a meme once in a while, but like you I remember back when they were so popular that I thought I’d never participate in one again. Yet now, during NaBloPoMo, doing one seems perfect.

        And Coraline & Olivia thank you for noticing them. They are sweet machines who never seem to get the credit that they deserve. They are appreciative of your kind words.

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  8. Pingback: just one question meme | zazamataz.com

    • gemma, that book is one of my all-time favorites. It’s a glimpse into the past as well as a look into family dynamics + being a writer. I enjoy re-reading it from time-to-time… but will admit that knowing that I cannot read it for the first time ever again makes me sad.

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