ReMEMEber

May lost her phone and had an embarrassing moment with a friend's dad. Perhaps not her embarrassing moment but, never the less, because of events unfolding in her life I stole this meme which she posted way back in 2007. Thanks, May. My creative juices are flowing everywhere other than this blog so this is just what I needed.

1. What does your name mean? Katherine means 'pure'. Yah. Ok. Anyone who has known me for a good length of time understands that I have not exactly lived up to that name. However, it may be possible over the last year that I have been re-virginized. Cripes, I need a boyfriend.

2. Where was your default profile picture taken? Scoobers was sitting in my mom and dad's front entrance about 12 years ago.

3. What's your middle name? Ann. It's my mom's middle name too, as well as a third of the US female population. I believe the other two-thirds are comprised of Lynn's and Marie's.

4. What is your current relationship status? Single. Living alone. Again, I need a boyfriend.

5. Honestly, does your crush like you back? Leonardo DiCaprio has no idea that I worship him because I was too shy to pass him my note that said "Check this box if you feel the same way".

6.What's your current mood? Semi-frustrated. No, not because I need a boyfriend but because I can not sleep.

7. What do you like the most? Lazing around, Reading, Blogging, Eating... Gimme a break. It's winter. I'm in hibernation mode.

8. What makes you happy? Dookie!

9. Are you musically inclined? I am inclined to turn my iPod on when the mood strikes.

10. If you could go back and change something, would you? Yes. Several things.

11. If you MUST be an animal for one day, what would you be? I'm like a bird. I only fly away. I don't know where my soul is...

12. Ever had a near death experience? In my past life I actually did die.

13. Something you do a lot? One thing I can tell you that I rarely do, is use sarcasm.

14. What's the name of the song stuck in your head right now? I'm Like a Bird by Nelly Furtado

15. Who did you copy and paste this from? May

16. Have you ever sang in front of a large audience? I sang Jingle Jangle Jingle and Away in a Manger in Elementary School and a spoof on Look At Me, I'm Sandra Dee at our High School student council elections.

17. Name someone with the same birthday as you. Two of the Rockefellers, Kevin Bacon, Toby Keith, and Beck

18. What's the first thing you notice about the opposite sex? Smile and eyes and how he smiles with his eyes.

19. What do you usually order from Starbucks? Some sort of hot, black tea or a vanilla latte.

20. What is your favorite smell? Tucson rain

Welcome 2008!

One Smart Cookie

I hope you all had a great kick off to the New Year. It has been a busy but great holiday with lots of time spent with family. Although I am always a little sad when it's over I am ready to settle into a brand new year. Feeling recovered from the constant constant, I hope that I will have more time to devote to daily journaling/blogging. Over all my feelings for the new year are positive and optimistic and there are quite a few changes I plan to make and goals I'd like to meet. So, so long 2007 and welcome 2008! Best wishes for a great year to all of you.

2007 Summed Up

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before?
Started up a blog!
Vegas
Oil Painting

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for 2008?
There were no resolutions last year. This this year, I have a few but I won't go into them.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yes!

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Scoobie and a couple of very special patients.

5. What countries did you visit?
Mexico

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?
Butterflies. Where have all the butterflies gone? Something along this line... or this... or this.

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
August 28- The day Scoobers died.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Standing my own ground, not allowing myself to be mistreated and weeding out the 'jellyfish' in my life.

9. What was your biggest failure?
The growing financial hole I seem to be sinking into.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
No, thank God.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
It's a tie between my iPod and furniture from Tres Amigos.
Update: A travesty! I forgot my MacBook Pro!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Dookie! She makes her mama proud!

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
No names but one who I have come to expect appalling behavior from. The other who hurts me the most , with his/her subtle stinging words and actions, only because I love this person so much.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Bills. Although, to look at my progress you wouldn't think so.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Excursions. Visits from far away friends.

16. What song will always remind you of 2007?
"Makes Me Wonder" by Maroon 5.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? Happier and with a better outlook.
b) thinner or fatter? Thinner.
c) richer or poorer? Poorer.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Exercise.
Paint.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Smoke.

20. How did you spend Christmas?
I spent it with my family.

21. How did you ring in 2007?
With my sister and The Groove Merchants.

22. Did you fall in love in 2007?
Nope. Can I count my MacBook Pro?

23. How many one-night stands?
I'm sorry but those words no longer exist in my vocabulary.

24. What was your favorite TV program?
The Office.

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
I don't hate anyone.

26. What was the best book you read?
Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
The Weepies

28. What did you want and get?
A Dookie!

29. What did you want and not get?
A winning Power Ball ticket. Seriously.

30. What was your favorite film of this year?
The Departed.

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned thirty-four and went to Vegas for the first time in my life.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
A steady boyfriend.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
Flip Flop Couture or Pajamarama.

34. What kept you sane?
People in my life. The same things that can make me insane. Funny how that works.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Leonardo DiCaprio.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Most things GW Bush. Period.

37. Who did you miss?
Scoobie.

38. Who was the best new person you met?
I met a lot of great people this year but to mention one... Fuzzy Gerbil Licker!

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
A lesson I learn from my patients every day... Never wait to tell someone how you feel and never put off your plans, for you never know what tomorrow may bring.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

I let the day go by
I always say goodbye
I watch the stars from my window sill
The whole world is moving and I'm standing still

The night is here and the day is gone
And the world spins madly on

~The Weepies

7 More Things

How does this happen? Thanksgiving is next week. Didn't we just do this a few months ago? Yikes. It is my favorite holiday, I am super excited and looking forward to a week off, going home, time with family and, of course, that living room nap that goes somewhere between Thanksgiving dinner, kitchen clean-up and dessert. So many things to be thankful for and these are just a few. KimmyK would like us to name seven. Here are mine:

1. The ability to go places, see things and enjoy myself: Vacations, day trips, long drives, walks in the park, whiling a day away without a care in the world.
   
2. Rainy days that wait for me to have a day off so I can sleep in and lounge around in comfy clothes.
3. Clean sheets, my warm bed and a soft pillow.
4. The love of a puppy who is so wildly happy to see me when I open the door.
5. A hot cup of English breakfast tea and soft, sugary sugar cookies.
6. Movies that make me laugh out loud and so hard it makes me cry.
   
7. Friends that can do the same.

Thanks, KK. You have made me think about all of the things which I am truly thankful for but may have taken for granted now and then. Now, I must pass it on. All who read this, consider yourselves tagged to think about but by no means are obligated to list seven things that you are thankful for.

Aromatherapy

After the Rain, Tucson Arizona

Out of the blue, you may be walking through the market or down the street and catch a scent and suddenly be transported to a time in your life that could not have been brought back more powerfully by any other means.
One thing that I have observed while taking the time to think of certain scents and the memories they conjure, is that I can not recall a bad thought or negative feeling associated with scents that caused me to remember and reflect. Anytime this has happened, I am filled with nostalgia and wanting. I yearn to be back 'there' for just for a moment, to feel how I felt at that time.

This meme is courtesy of Sandi.

Throughout childhood and even adulthood certain people always smelled different to us, what scents remind you of a loved one?
When we were little mom always smelled of cinnamon gum. Her purse was filled with all of the things that my sisters and I could ever need. To use her handkerchief or tissue meant you would get an extra big whiff of cinnamon Trident Dentyne.
Stetson cologne reminds me of getting ready for church on Sunday mornings. My dad would splash on a little just before leaving. On the way there the air in the car would be filled with the smell of my dad.

Are there any scents that remind you of a certain place or time in your life?
Every now and then I'll smell something in the air that brings me back to elementary school. Specifically, I recall sitting on that big, spiral-woven rug listening to stories told by my teachers. It's frustrating that I can not put my finger on what the scent is but instantly I am transported back there.
The smell of a coming storm and the smell after the rain can bring me back to a few different places and times, depending on the time of year. I remember the park, long walks, deep talks, lots of laughs, teasing, playing and chasing. Kissing and dancing, after the rain.

What are some comforting smells for you?
With a click and a bang, the heater turns on and the air is filled with warm memories of snuggling under my Gramma's afghans and not ever wanting to get out of bed.
My mom is in the kitchen, the sounds of football are coming from the family room. The air outside has turned cool with the arrival of fall. The smell of a turkey cooking in the oven instantly brings me home to Tucson.
Cookies baking reminds me of winter, a warm kitchen, Gramma Marcy, her Melting Moments and stealing hot, gooey cookies cooling on the table.
The smell of the warm, wet air after a monsoon rain in Tucson reminds me of Gramma Mary's house. I remember the cold, damp from her swamp cooler and the cicadas buzzing in the trees outside. I don't know if its the soil, the Creosote or the Desert Broom that gives the air its distinct smell but there is nothing like it that brings me back to Tucson, to Gramma Mary's and Home.

What are some of your favorite scents/smells?
I love the smell of rain, a new book, fresh coffee, popcorn, fresh baked bread, Pier One, Victoria's Secret grape lip gloss...

Do you use any form of aromatherapy in your home or throughout the day?
There are scented candles in my living room and incense in the kitchen and bathrooms.
See SPF: Fresh.

If you had to describe yourself as a scent (or combination), what scents would you be?
I would love my favorites to describe me: Melting Moments and a Tucson Rain.

Just Another Manic Monday...

Oh ooh Oh! Glad it's not Sunday! ...
It is Monday morning and I am enjoying a cup of coffee out on the patio. It is overcast and a cool 80 degrees... ahh, September and a day off. Welcome, both of you. Out of my funk and back to myself. I have a lot to do today but since it is Monday and I am spending my morning checking email and catching up on everyone's posts, I've decided to participate in Manic Monday, hosted by Fleur de Lisa.
I'll post again later with my weird-ass dream after I finish my "chores" and get my pictures downloaded. All I can say for an analysis are four words: the power of suggestion.

If technology was sufficiently advanced, would you be willing to clone yourself?
My own mini-me?! : D
I could take me home and raise me as my own! I could sing to me and play with me. Joke with me and laugh with (not at) me. I could take me to see Gramma Mommy and Grampa Daddy (uh... how weird would that be?) We could play with our sisters, niece and nephew (who would be older than my mini-me).
When I grow up I could give me all the answers to the questions I was too afraid to ask. I would explain to me in a way I would understand, why I was not allowed to attend the Def Leppard concert at 14 and a slew of other things that might make me an angry and resentful tennager towards the grown-up me. I would kick my ass if I ever caught myself smoking or drinking underage, among other things, and warn me why driving into a road containing a storm drain during monsoons is a bad idea. I would never let me get away with the things I know I am about to do (because I know myself so well). I would let me do all things I know would make me a happy, confident adult. I could fill me with the wisdom of my experiences so that I may be a new-and-improved-younger-thinner-smoother-less-sun-damaged version of myself.

Besides, I'm a blast! It would be fun to have me around! ; )

At the local grocery store you see an elderly woman shoplift a chicken. Do you tell the management?
Nah! She is not hurting anyone and I do not like to cause trouble so let her steal the chicken. Also, I would feel very badly if, because of me, she ended up with a misdemeanor on her record and was forced to eat her cat's kibble when she returns home from her incarceration.

If you could be 8 years old again for an entire day, knowing what you know now, how would you spend it?
Being September, I would skip school with my friends and my sister to go swimming at the park. We'd climb in our tree fort, carve our initials and then play kick ball. On the way home, we'd raid the nearest Circle K, drink ThirstBusters, eat HUGE chewy Sweet Tarts, Skittles and Bazooka gum. We'd go back to my parents, make mac n' cheese, watch Mtv and practice our dance routines. After my parents got home we'd play in the yard, catch lizards, and go for a swim. Since it is cloudy and is going to rain (because I said), we would all go inside, set up our sleeping bags in the living room, get in our Garfield PJ's and have a movie marathon. Then we'd have a seance and play 'Light As a Feather, Stiff As a Board'. We'd stay up late telling jokes, gossiping and laughing until my mom comes out for "...the last time!" We'd be quiet until the coast was clear and sneak out in our jammies to go back to the park. We'd do 'cherry drops', 'shooting stars' and 'around-the-world's' on the bars. We'd slide head first into the sand and swing on the swings until the sun came up and I turned 34 again.

*Update: Momma Clone is upset about 8 year old me's activities. I should know better than to be out after hours without adult supervision. Bad me. Grounded til further notice.

**Updating the update: I've been placed in detention for ditching class and not knowing what month it is.

More Things

Adios, Arizona! Hola, Mexico!

Fall is finally here! I'm a bit sad summer is over but cool weather is welcome and way over-due. September marks the last trip to Rocky Point. It's the perfect month to go if you are planning to venture there. The water is warm and the air is nice and cool.
Before I visit our neighbors to the south, I leave you with a survey. I was tagged by Lori and you know how I LOOOOOOOOOVE surveys, especially at 4 a.m. Good 'ol insomnia!

10 years ago I was: Still living in Tucson, working at PCC and attending the University of Arizona's College of Nursing. Go CATS!

5 years ago I was: Living in San Antonio. I decided to take up travel nursing so I could see new places, to which SA was the extent of my adventure. I loved my job there but Texas was NOT for me. Humidity, flooding, and whacked out sprawl of roads and freeways. I do not need help getting lost in America. I can do that just fine on my own, thanks. Plus, I was missing my family so much it hurt. So I rented a UHaul and headed back to AZ. Thanks L,B&J for sharing in the nightmare of hauling my crap cross-country in a broken, POS, liability of a trailer. Ah! Good times!

1 year ago I was: Doing exactly what I am doing now. Well, not laying in bed, writing in a blog at 4 am but you know what I mean. Same job, same digs... same 'ol.

Yesterday I was: Doing yard work at 6 am. Then I went to the pool, read my book and took a nap. I did some shopping, took Dookie to her first vet appointment (what a good girl!!!), visted my sister and her boyfriend so our puppies could bond, dropped Dook off with L before I leave for Me-hee-ko and then I came home, did some laundry and packed.
WHEW! I am exhausted!

5 snacks that I enjoy: 1. Cottage cheese & a nectarine 2. Popcorn & an icy Coke 3. Peanutbutter (yes, all by itself on a spoon) 4. Pita chips & red pepper hummus 5. Cereal

5 songs I know all the words to: 1. PSSOM by Def Leppard (Sugar ME! duh nuh... nuh nuh nuh!) 2. The entire Grease Soundtrack (who doesn't?) 3. Don't Fight the Feelin' by Too Short (not something I'm proud of but there it is) 4. Before He Cheats by Carrie Underwood (oh yah, driving in my car) 5. Feliz Navidad by Jose Feliciano (the only foreign language song I can sing)

5 things I would do with a million dollars: 1. Invest 2. Pay off my debt 3. Buy a home 4. Help my family with their debt 5. Travel

5 favorite TV shows: 1. The Office (can't wait!!!!) 2. Big Love 3. Real Time 4. Friends/Seinfeld reruns 5. Little House reruns at 4 am (tonight Laura and Elmonzo broke off their engagement but Eliza Jane got them back together)

5 things I am thankful for:1. My family 2. My friends 3. Health 4. My career 5. Freedom

2 names I go by: 1. Katherine (to family) 2. Kathy (to friends)

2 parts of your heritage: 1. Polish (mommy) 2. German (daddy)

2 things that scare me: 1. Global Warming 2. The swarm of wasps in my front door way

2 of my every day essentials: 1. gum 2. chapstick/lip gloss

2 things I am wearing right now: 1. FDNY T-shirt 2. boxers

2 things I want in a relationship (other than real love): 1. Mutual trust & respect 2. A tickle-happy, laugh til it hurts good time

2 truths: about me? 1. I have insomnia 2. I have a low tolerance for stress-causing BS

2 physical things that appeal to me in the opposite sex: 1. eyes 2. height

2 of my favorite hobbies: 1. painting/drawing 2. blogging (especially quizes about me, me, ME! ; ) just kidding)

2 things I want really badly: 1. To have my debt paid off 2. My own home

2 places I want to go on vacation: 1. Italy 2. Australia

2 ways I am stereotypically a chick: My sense of direction (Lori, I'm right there with ya... where ever that may be. Where am I?) 2. I am a churning, bubbling, cauldron of emotion.

2 things I normally wouldn't admit: 1. Sometimes... I pee in the shower! 2. Let me think on this one...

2 things I am thinking about right now: 1. Need Sleepie!! 2. Mexico, Mexico, Mexico... beach, beer, sun! FUN! FUN! FUN!

2 stores you shop at: 1. Nordstrom's 2. J.Crew


2 people I haven't talked to in a while: 1. JH 2. VF

2 people I would like to see taking this quiz: 1. Jenni (I know you're busy so it's ok if you don't) 2. Veronica (I expect to see your blog up and running by the time I get back... a little incentive, yes.)

Buenos dias y hasta luego!

My Childhood Home

Me, Laura & Christine, in front of our house

We moved from Illinois to Tucson, Arizona in the summer of 1976, when I turned three years old. Grandma Mary, my mom's mom, had lived there for a few years and we stayed with her until my parents bought the three bedroom house on Towner Street.

Turning '3' at Gramma Mary's House

Exercises with Gramma

The Interior

Mommy and Daddy made a pretty, cozy, 1970's home. Each room was painted a different color that was no doubt inspired by the times. We had a lime green living room; a yellow kitchen with an orange vinyl diner booth; yellow, pink and orange bedrooms; and a bathroom wallpapered in bamboo with orange beaded window treatments. The best thing about the bathroom, hands down, was the toilet seat cover that was the color of golden-rod with a picture of an owl on the inside lid. My mom collected owls at the time and they were everywhere! We used to play 'Bloody Mary' in the bathroom mirror with the lights off. We also used it to make 'The Haunted House of Horrors', where we tape recorded SCARY sounds and screams, then guide one another through.

Carving Pumpkins

That's me in The Bamboo Bathroom

Despite disciplinary actions, my sisters and I were notorious for leaving chewed gum on tables, not putting our dishes away and spilling various dark juices just about everywhere, including behind end tables and couches. In order to protect the carpeting we had large, shag area rugs in the colors of rust-brown and lime green. Lime green was apparently a popular shade back then.
We were not a family that ate at the dinner table. Instead, we would all park ourselves in front of the television to watch holiday claymation shows and the annual broadcast of 'The Wizard of Oz'. My parents & Grandma Marcy sat in their respective recliners and the girls on the shag carpets with our TV trays.
Grandma Marcy, my dad's mom, used to fly out during the fall and we got to keep her all through the holidays! She was an expert crocheter, UNO player, puzzler and cookie maker. Peanut butter and "Melting Moments" were her forte, as I recall. After my parents bought their own chairs, she had dibs on the olive green, rocking recliner with the vibrating back massager. We used to sit in her lap and she'd do "the spider" and we'd play with the "worms" on her hands. I loved rocking in that chair with her.

Christine and Gramma Marcy in the chair

My dad and us in the chair

Gramma Marcy in the kitchen

We were left in Gramma Marcy's charge when my parents went to work. Me and my sisters would stand on the couch in the front window and wave to my parents when they left in the morning. The big blue Chevy Impala would back down the driveway, pull out into the street and they would honk at us waving, smiling kids. Every morning she would have breakfast on the table. To my mother's disdain, Gramma would pour our cereal, sprinkle the sugar and pour the milk. She would also pick up after us, make our beds and give us pretty much what we wanted. She spoiled us rotten and made us lazier children, in the eyes of my mom. Don't get me wrong, Gramma could put her foot down when she needed to but this is how I choose to remember it.
Our dining room & living room have hosted many holiday meals, birthday parties and sleep overs. They have doubled as a stage for dance routines, plays, magic shows and housed blanket forts. Our dining room table was where we would play Trivia and help Gramma with her puzzles.

The Nativity Scene, 1978

Birthday Sleep-over, 1985

Our bedroom saw many changes through childhood and adolescence. Laura, being the oldest, had her own room (the pink one). Christine and I shared. It was a love-hate relationship between two girls, only eleven months apart. My parents painted it yellow and decorated it in a Raggedy Ann motif. There were two poodle lamps that changed colors whenever the walls got a new coat of paint.
I recall a few broken windows (I'll have to ask C about the details, but there was a rubber alligator involved), playing tennis with apples against the wall and a Bandaid that stayed stuck to the ceiling for at least 10 years.

Our room.

Laura moved out after high school and Christine and I immediately moved into separate rooms. This didn't last very long and crisis struck the household when Laura decided to move back in. There was no way either of us were giving up our own room. The solution? We moved all three beds into one room and everything else to the other, dubbed 'the hole'. This was where I sat to listen to music and do my homework in High School. It was also where most of my friends snuck in to visit 'after hours'. The arrangement worked out pretty well and we lived this way in relative harmony until Laura got married and moved out. I was so sad that day. I laid on the couch in 'the hole' and cried. I was sad because she wasn't just moving out, she was moving to California. My big sister would be so far away.
But, just like everything else, life moved on and Christine and I had our rooms back.

Our Backyard
Our backyard was a haven for little kids. The tree house was its best feature. My sisters and friends played up there and in the sandbox beneath it, slid down the 'fireman's pole' and pushed each other on the swing. The mulberry tree that it lived in would shed its leaves every fall. We would rake them up and jump in them until they were spread over the yard again. Once, Christine was running in the tree house and fell through the trap door (see 'Walking Catastropies' picture below).

Us Three In the Tree

Daddy also put up a swing set for us. This was not your average backyard, chinsey, plastic swing-set. It was big, heavy, metal and looked like something you'd find in a school playground. Or maybe I was just little and it seemed big. Anyway, one day, I decided I wanted to swing by my legs from the very top. Of course, down I came, face first. It's amazing that, to this day, I have not broken my head or any bones (*knocking on wood right now*). Again... see "Walking Catastropies" picture below.
I believe that Laura got beamed in the chin with a soccer ball. Just look at us. Is it really less stressful to have three girls rather than three boys? I wonder.

"Walking Catastrophies"

When we first moved in, there was no pool and would walk to Ft. Lowell Park to swim in the community pool. Later, my parents installed an above ground swimming pool in the shape of a circle. At birthday parties, my sister and friends would all swim in the same direction to make a whirlpool and then let the water carry us around and watch whatever dirt/grass/bugs there were gather in the center. Marco Polo was also a favorite past time but the 'fish out of water' part was a bit difficult. I recall, a few times, standing on that teetery white ledge and toppling over onto to the grass/gravel and laughing the whole time.

In the pool. In Daddy's socks.

Warming up in Gramma's afghan.

The yard started off pretty barren. Lots of gravel, dirt, prickly pear. My parents worked hard to make it look lovely and inviting. My mom has always had a way with Things Green and produced a wonderful garden. She had a grapevine, that yielded laundry baskets full. We harvested olives from the trees in the front yard. Strawberries, tomatoes, watermelons were some of my favorite things. She also grew things I did not particularly like to eat; like dill, zucchini and cauliflower. Check this out:

The Green Thumb, My Mom

During my teenage years, certain friends and I would be overcome by springtime and find it impossible to stay at school. We would come back home after lunch, swim in the pool and sunbathe on the roof. By that time, the mulberry tree had died and the treehouse taken down. I remembered I cried the day my dad took a chainsaw to it, telling us it was just unsafe and unsightly to keep. New trees went up in its place and have since grown into canopies that give us shade when we sit outside, watch basketball games and have BBQ's.

I guess that I am lucky because my parents still live in the same house that me and my sisters grew up in. Even now, when I visit and sleep in my room (now the sewing room) I feel the comfort I did as a kid. I hear the rain on the roof, the click the heater makes when it turns on in the middle of the night or the smell of the swamp cooler. The door way where we marked everybody's height through the years (family, friends, boyfriends, etc.) is still there and is the only part of the wall by the kitchen that did not get a new coat of paint during the remodel. Thanks, Mommy and Daddy.

The house looks a bit different now but continues to overflow with new memories. It still has the same red fence, two big olive trees and gravel driveway out front. Now, my parents wave as I drive away. I honk my horn, wave back and tear up a little each time I go.


*****



*** If you want to participate, please visit Owlhaven, and leave a link to your post. I'd love to learn about the childhood homes that shaped who you are today.

Your Childhood Home

Mary, over at Owlhaven, is hosting a blog carnival this Friday (July 20th), in which she is encouraging bloggers to write about their childhood homes and the memories they invoke. If you'd like to participate, click on the button above and join in!

Tagged with a Music Meme...

Little Pink Houses for You and Me

... and feeling nostalgic!

First of all, I had to look up the word, "meme":

meme (mēm)
n.

A unit of cultural information, such as a cultural practice or idea, that is transmitted verbally or by repeated action from one mind to another.

I'm not sure if this definition covers what is going on when one 'tags' another with a blog post but here it is anyway.

1. Name between 5 & 10 songs that have made an impact on your life. I'll leave it up to you to decide how many you wish to describe.
2. Pass it onto five other people with a link back to your own post and this one as the original.

Only ten?! Where do I even begin? ok... I know... Memories. Most of the songs that cause an emotional response, of some sort, have a memory attached to them. Funny how most of the songs are from days long gone. I tell you... they just don't make music like they used to. Is that the truth or does that mean I'm old now?
Here are some of the songs that can still bring me back to the moment:

• "Comfortably Numb" by Pink Floyd: This has always been one of those songs I could listen to over and over on my headphones. Some how it makes me feel just that... comfortably numb. Memory association with this one... we camped out in the mountains and I could hear this song echoing through the darkness. Perfect.
  
• "Yesterday" by The Beatles: My friends and I were influenced early by 'Ch's' dad, 'GWM'. He was a Beatles fanatic and was hell bent on turning us into fans too. He succeeded. We would sit on her living room floor after school and play his records. Sentimental, emotional teens we were. We laid in the middle of the floor and sang this again and again, sometimes tearing up. Oh... what we thought we knew about "yesterday" back then. If only I could have a word with those girls.
  
• "Love Song" by Tesla: I remember the very first time I heard this song. We were sitting in geometry class in HS. 'Bill Sam' handed me his Walkman and told me to listen. I fell in love with the song right there during the guitar intro. It has remained one of my all time favorites and has become my personal ballad of late.
  
• "Hysteria" by Def Leppard: There are so many years and people associated with this one but if any one song could transport me back to a specific time and place, this is it. It was graduation night and my ex-boyfriend and I went back to the football field for one last time in the middle of the night. He brought his radio with him and played "Hysteria". We cried and danced on the field knowing our high school days were over. I'm still a major Def Leppard fan and went to the concert last year. We are planning on going to the September 2007 one, as well and I can't wait!
  
• "My Old Friend" by Tim McGraw: This is a fairly new song, but in keeping with the nostalgic flow of this post, I will tell you that it makes me think of certain people I have lost contact with. Some make me sad. Time goes on. We all move on. But memories linger and will stay as long as I keep sane in my old age.
  
• "Come Softly" by The Fleetwoods: My sisters and I used to play my parent's records on their old HiFi record player. The Fleetwoods' Mr Blue .33 was one of my favorites. It made me look at my mom and dad fondly. It still does.
  
• "These Are the Days" by Van Morrison: My sister and I sat in my car up on top of Mt. Lemmon. We just sat and talked while it rained and this song played. "There is no past. There's only future. There's only here. There's only now."
  
• "Sad Songs Say So Much" by Elton John: I can't help it. Fun songs are great but the sad ones are the best!
  
• "Margaritaville" by Jimmy Buffet: Anyone who knows me at all will tell you that there is no place that I would rather be than Mexico. Warm sun, cool breeze, flip flops, Dos Equis and friends. Muchos recuerdos maravillosos!
  
• "Small Town" by John Cougar Mellencamp: Anything Mellencamp will bring back great memories of a more simple time in life. Long, hot summers full of friends, birthdays, swimming, parks, dancing and just plain good times. I visited with one of these friends a few days ago. It has been ten years. Been too long, Jenni. It was great to see you!

I tag the following five people:
Jenni
Christine
Borracho
Jana
Kim

I hope you guys respond because I would really love to hear what you have to say. : ) Email, blog, bulletin... I don't care.
Anyone else who would like to partake in music nostalgia, leave a comment!
GawdMom? Mommy? C? L?

7 Things

I've been tagged by Jenni

Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to blog about their seven things and post the rules as well. At the end of your post, choose 7 people to tag and list their names. Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog! OK, here goes...

1. This is my first official blog on my own official site!
2. I totally have spring fever and a trip to Rocky Point is a must.
3. I really need to exercise more (Amen, Jenni!)
4. My name is Katherine and I am addicted to iTunes and my Mac.
5. Saying “God Bless You” when someone sneezes and getting one in return when I sneeze is pretty important to me.
6. Kim and i are going to Australia in less than a year!
7. Dragonflies. I have always liked dragonflies.


Thanks for getting me started Jenni!

The people I tag are you who might do this and those I would love to hear from: Christine, Mommy & Daddy, Debbie, Jana, Jessica, Shelly, Laura & Bekah, and DeAnne (That’s more than 7... I know)