Wednesday Hodgepodge

Thanks again to Joyce, my newest regular blogging buddy and commenter. (Yes, it's always a boon to get a comment here in my day. Don't know why it's so important, but it is.) She has come up with some fun questions.




1. What is something that bothers you if it is not done perfectly?

If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: I hate seeing apostrophes used imperfectly. They are not supposed to be used to make plurals, as in "I love comment's." An apostrophe shows possession, as in "My blog's comments are scanty today." Yes, it's true, they are. Thanks to those of you who care enough to send the very best. Or at least say something. But I digress.

Be careful not to make "it" possessive with an apostrophe , as in "It's comment box needs love. " No! That means "It is comment box needs love." An apostrophe shows that something was left out. Or it shows ownership. The apostrophe should not be used as the puppy mill of punctuation, people!

Okay, I'm done. Finished? Both. I'm done like a good steak, almost burnt up over this grammatical grievance. And I'm finished my rant.

2. What is one of your best childhood memories?

Getting to feed my Grandpa's three-day-old calf from a bottle --way, way out on the "back 40" of his farm, being warned by Grandpa not to make eye contact with the bull in the next pasture behind that electric fence, and then driving his truck back to the barn all by myself with the German shepherd and my sisters in the back. Grandpa had a way of making me feel like I was a pro at everything that I was really a greenhorn at.

3. Do you plan to watch the Royal Wedding and when was the last time you wore a hat?

I will, but not in real time. I wouldn't even get up at 4 for my own wedding, let alone what's-her-face's.

I tried on hats a few weeks ago just for fun, but they're not "me" and I always get laughed at when I try them on in front of my family.

4. Where do you fall in the birth order in your family? Do you think this has influenced your personality?

I'm second of three (four, technically, but baby Jill came along when I was 14, so she sort of started things over, having traits of both firstborn and baby).

I absolutely think there's a lot to be said for the influence of b.o. (birth order!). I can take direction and yet know how to boss/delegate (take your pick of word), and I adapt easily to change (or rather, to minor changes, like new curtains or hairstyles, but not like having precious people move away and adapting to heartbreak). Second-borns are good at taking cues from the mistakes of the first, so I didn't get in as much trouble as I could have/should have as a kid. Second borns also tend to be high achievers but not overachievers (I got an A in almost every subject, but I didn't bawl over my first "B" like my older sister did. I figured that knowing how to apply eye makeup was more useful than algebra in the future, so why sweat the small stuff? ) We "seconds" tend to go the social route, which I did. My older sister could be alone for hours or days with books. Me? I was antsy without friends and fun, borderline psychotic in isolation. I am more adventurous than my older sister, but not as adventurous as my third sister, who has camped in bear country, lived with one other soul in a remote cabin in Alaska for six months, joined the Air Force on a whim, and evaded more punishment than I ever did! I chose music, drama, and cheerleading to set myself apart from my brainy older sister and outdoorsy younger sister.

5. Where do you think you spend most of your money?
School tuition. Hands down. We are so thankful the kids take their studies seriously and that the oldest is graduating from college next month!! We see the light now...second one will be finished in December, third in a few semesters, but the last? Oy! Back into the dark tunnel we go...

6. When you need to confront someone would you rather communicate in person, on the phone, by email or by letter? Why?
I hate to confront. I grew up not being taught how to confront in love. I hate face-to-face encounters over touchy subjects unless there's a mediator. I can do the deed by phone, but I don't like to. I've drafted many an email I've never sent, but have found out the hard way that "tone" never conveys quite right when I do, and the problems get escalated instead of eliminated that way. I have written letters, but my husband warns me that the written word can often be misread in tone as well. Oh, this answer applies to people outside my immediate family. The ones inside these four walls would prefer much less confrontation.

7. Dodge ball, freeze tag, kickball or jump rope? You have to pick one.

You mean if I had to play NOW at my age and with my bladder? Freeze tag. I would purposely get tagged so I could stand still. But if you're asking what I loved in my youth? Dodge ball. I was a quick little squirt, rarely got "out." I was not strong, though, so most of my throws were less than ominous.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I am excited about a new little classical Christian school starting up in my area this fall, Lord willing. It feels kind of cool to be in at the grass-roots level of this, seeing how two months ago I hadn't even heard of this school and was not feeling good about the alternatives, and how in two months they have 62 students with Intent to Enroll status. They need 68 to open, so this is one huge faith-building act that I'm eager to be part of. A school that is only fifteen minutes from home and about 1/4 the cost of the next closest Christian school around? A Godsend.