Introduction

I feel like a bit of a fraud accepting this award by answering these questions.  The point of this award is to showcase new up-and-coming bloggers to your readers.

And if there is one thing I am not, it is a new blogger. [Read more here.]

However, be that as it may, I like to do blogging memes like this one because they challenge me to think differently about my life.  And because I’m alway honored to be included.

So when charming delightful DearLilyJune nominated me for the Liebster Award [which my spellcheck insists on changing to Lobster], I thought to myself:

Sure. Why not? It’ll be fun. 

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The Rules, Or As I Choose To Think Of Them, The Guidelines

Here are the rules for the Liebster Award.  If you’re nominated and choose to accept it – you:

• answer 11 questions given to you by your nominator;
• leave a link back to the person who nominated you;
• nominate up to 11 blogs that are relatively new (usually less than 200 followers);
• notify your nominees; and
• create 11 questions for the nominees.

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Here are DearLilyJune’s questions with my answers

1) Here’s the Lorelai question, posed to her daughter Rory every year on her birthday: What do you think of your life so far?

I like my life so far.  Living in suburbia this far out of the city is not where I thought I’d end up, but I’ve come to accept it and enjoy it.  Life is quieter here than in the city, and allows me to center myself in nature, write when I want to without distractions, and pursue my love of design.  I’m comfortable being a low-key suburban person who watches the parade go by and cheers on those who need to march in it.

2) What’s the cruelest thing you could do to another human being?

Cause them pain, physical &/or emotional.

3) How do you avoid doing #2?

Pay attention to your behavior, know why you do the things that you do, make a conscious decision to play nice– and remember the golden rule.

4) What’s the kindest thing you could do for other human beings?

Support other people in their dreams, listening and guiding them to make good choices, helping them understand that you can only control the process.  The results will be what they will be.

5) How do you get motivated, or motivate others, to do more of #4?

I used to think that modeling the behavior you wanted to see in other people was the answer to that question.  But now, older & wiser, I’m not so sure that kindness happens that way.  Meaning, I don’t have an answer to this question.  Do you?

6) What do you dream about at night?

I rarely remember my dreams at night.  The little tidbits that I do remember revolve around houses or dorms or hotels– being safe, seeing friends, getting rooms.

7) What do you daydream about during the day?

My daydreams are pretty benign.  Walking on a beach.  Being in a city park, enjoying nature.  Traveling to other countries with friends.

8) If you could go back and choose it, what would your first word be?

Neato.

9) If there were anything you could remember about your life as a baby, what would be your chosen memory?

My grandmother died before I was 1 y.o.  I have a photo of her holding me, but I’d like to have met her when I was more aware.  They tell me that she was kindness personified.

10) Why are we so quick to pose questions, and so slow to listen for the answers?

In a word, screens.  Our society brainwashes people into thinking that distractions via screens, such as social media, TV, movies and video games, are more important than real interpersonal relationships.  So waiting to hear a real person answer a question becomes irritating, irrelevant– and not worth wasting your time away from the precious screen.

11) If you had to ask yourself one question each day to take stock of your life, what would that question be?

What have I done today to help my spirit grow?

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Care to play along? Here Are my 11 questions, or writing prompts, for you

1.  Which day is your favorite day of the week?  And why?

2.  What color do you find the most annoying?

3.  You’re going on a short drive to run errands around town.  What will it be: radio OR personal tunes OR silence?

4.  What novel has had the most influence on how you express yourself?

5.  Do you like the traditional Thanksgiving feast?  If so, what in particular do you like?  If not, what do you think is a better meal?

6.  When asked to do something that you do not want to do, what do you do?

7.  You have a favorite TV show, right?  Tell me about it.  

8.  Is the TSA the most over-rated, self-important, inept government agency around?  If not, what is?  

9.  Guacamole is ________ .  

10.  To what are you allergic?

11.  How much do you love my questions for you? 

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Conclusion

If you’ve made it this far down on the post, I applaud you.  You are a true bloggy friend.  Meaning that if you want to do this meme, please feel free to do it.

• Do it like the “rules” say you should.
• Do it like I did, in the spirit of the thing, using the rules as guidelines.
• Do pieces of it as writing prompts for your blog.
• Do it but never publish it.

All I ask of you is that when you choose to do this, please make sure you’re saying to yourself:

Sure. Why not? It’ll be fun. 

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