Blogtober Day 21: Survey

I don't even remember the last time I did one of these things...

Name: Jessica
Current Location: Gilbert, Arizona
When is your birthday: March 13th
Eye Color: Green
Hair Color: Natural?  Dirty blonde.  But right now it is dark brown.
Height: About 5"3
Piercings or tattoos: Just each ear.
Single or taken: Married
Right Handed or Left Handed: Righty
Any pets: Not yet.
Your greatest strength: Probably my loyalty.
Your Weakness: Being a pushover at times.
FAVORITES
Favorite color: Orange
Favorite flower: Calla lily
5 favorite movies and one you wouldn't want anyone to find out about: Ok, top 5 are Phantom of the Opera, Count of Monte Cristo, Gladiator, Princess Bride and Sherlock Holmes.  My guilty pleasure one would probably be... High School Musical.  DON'T TELL.
Favorite holiday: New Year's Eve
Favorite physical feature on yourself: My eyes.
Your favorite pizza toppings: Green pepper, olives, pepperoni, pineapple.
Favorite guilty pleasure: When no one is home, I put on karaoke music and sing my heart out.  That's pretty bad.
Favorite place to eat a romantic dinner: Anywhere is romantic with my hubby. :)
Favorite season: Autumn
Favorite cartoon character: Rapunzel.
Your favorite food: Classic steak and baked potato dinner.
Favorite Ice cream flavor: Something with lots of brownie chunks in it.
Favorite subject(s) in school: AP American History
Favorite candy: Nerds
Favorite breakfast cereal: Reeses.  Which I know is totally weird because I hate the candy.  The cereal is awesome though.
Favorite person in your life: Hubby and son of course!
Favorite book of all time: Harry Freakin' Potter.
Favorite song: How can anyone have a favorite, honestly? 
Favorite place to be: Bookstores make me so happy.
Favorite TV show (Still running or ended): Hmm, currently pretty obsessed with Vampire Diaries.  But I adore The Office.
Your Favorite number: 17
Favorite fast food restaurant: Café Rio
What is your favorite part of your life right now: Watching my son grow.
WHICH DO YOU PREFER
Chocolate or Vanilla: Chocolate
Alcoholic or non: Non.
Scary movies or comedies: Comedies
Short or long hair: Long
Croutons or bacon bits: Croutons
Beach or lake: Lake
Single or Group Dates: I like both.
Pepsi or Coke: Coke
Starbucks or elsewhere: Starbucks.
Dogs or cats: Dogs
DO YOU's
Do you smoke: No
Do you sing: All the time.
Do you want to get married: Check.
Do you believe in yourself: Eh, depends.
Do you get along with your parents: Yes.
Do you want children: I would love more!
Do you drink: No
Do you like to travel by plane: Fo sho!
Do you still watch cartoons on Saturday morning: Not so much.
Do you have a teddy bear: Packed away somewhere.
Do you like thunderstorms: Yes
Do you play an instrument: Yes, a few.
Do you consider yourself a party person or more apt to stay at home: I can be both.

HAVE YOU EVER
Have you ever fired a gun: Yes
Have you ever loved someone: Yes
Have you ever been caught doing something you weren't supposed to: Of course
Have you ever cried for no reason: I'm a girl.
Have you ever cut your own hair: My bangs
Have you ever skipped school: Oh yes.
Have you ever bungee jumped: Nope
Have you ever punched someone: Yes

SOMETHING A LITTLE MORE MATURE
List your top fears: Disappointing others, Scorpions, Failure
What bill do you hate paying the most: Rent.
What did you want to be when you were growing up: A writer.
What errand/chore do you despise: Dishes and floors.
A secret that you wouldn't mind everyone knowing: There are a lot of things I don't mind people knowing, but one is that I could not figure out how to snap my fingers until I was like, 14.
What do you get every time you go into a Wal-Mart: Formula usually.
What Hollywood star do you think resembles you best: I've heard some weird ones.  I used to get Jennifer Aniston a lot when I was younger.
What famous person dead or alive would you like to have dinner with: J.K Rowling.
How do you want to die: In my sleep would be fine.
What do you want to achieve in life: Lots!  But primarily happiness for my family.
Your most missed memory: Moments of my Exchange.
What goal would you like to achieve this year: I'm running out of time, but I would like to have the first chapter of my book completely past the revising phase.
Who would you like to see right now: My hubby, who is at school, but also it would be nice to see my brother, Jon.
What books are you reading: I feel like I'm always reading like, 10.  But a couple are: Inkheart (again), and How Can You Possibly Be a Mormon and a Democrat?
What are your regrets: I would relive my teenage years much differently.
What song best describes you: No idea.

SOME RANDOM QUESTIONS
Do you cheer for the bad guy: Sometimes, but only when I suspect there is a bigger story.
What do you want when you are sick: To watch old movies, Sprite, and to munch on chips and salsa.
Strangest place you have ever brushed your teeth: Thanks to Euro Tour, on top of a skyscraper.
What country would you most like to visit: I'm DYING to go to Thailand.
How many pillows do you sleep with: 2

Blogtober Day 17: On Taking Oneself Too Seriously

I am feeling much better today!  Incredible what a good night's sleep will do to morale.

Here comes a ramble.  I actually do have a lot to do today, so I'm not going to take time editing and revising this very much.  So basically it is going to be all over the place.  But that's ok.

Putting pressure on yourself.  What does that honestly accomplish?  Aside from driving yourself off the deep end, that is.  I don't know exactly where and when society drove us to believe we all had to be these perfect versions of ourselves, but I think that needs to stop.  Or maybe we just need to stop putting so much stock in what is expected of us.  Maybe it is better if we just learn to be honest with ourselves as far as what our "best" is, and then be that.  I mean, when someone says they will do the best they can, what does that mean in that moment?  That they will do the best job according to someone else's ideals?  Or that they will do their best?

Maybe we are so far from content because we have gotten lazy with ourselves.  So many of us (myself included now and then) go day to day performing the tasks asked of us in a routine manner.  How many of us go to work and simply work through the pile of paperwork to meet a deadline?  If you are going to do that paperwork anyway, why not put some effort into it?

I feel like we sell ourselves short.  And in the process, create these illusions of what perfection, or a good job really is.  I think we would all be much happier if we were less lazy.

I really want to speak to the idea of loving ourselves more.  And a big way to push that along is to get rid of unrealistic ideals.  Not just unrealistic like, unattainable.  More like, unrealistic... unaspirational?  Does that even make sense?

What I mean is, I usually start the day thinking ok, I need to get this and this and this done.  If I don't, I feel like I have failed in my day.  That I am a failure.  What I forget in that moment, is that the other two things I DID do, I did really well!

By praising our successes and acknowledging what our capabilities truly are, I think we are allowing ourselves to live more fully and happily.

There is an article I read recently that gives some great advice on putting the right pressures on ourselves.

The End.

Blogtober Day 16: I Don't Want To

I have absolutely no desire to write today.

This whole Blogtober thing?  I'm over it.

Don't get me wrong, I will finish what I started.  I'm no quitter.  I just feel like I don't have much to offer.  Or what I do have to offer is never going to cut it.

Yuck, pity parties are not attractive.  I'm sorry.

I guess I feel like my Blogging is unorganized.  Most people at least have some kind of a trend in their work.  I am so all over the place.  That's how I am though.  All over the place.  It isn't the worst thing, honestly.  I just need to commit and get more organized.

#impossiblegoals

Blogtober Day 5: Need a Laugh?

I wish I had time to write a "real" post, but I've been out of the house all day today!  I thought I would just share some of my favorite funnies instead!  Share it if you know someone who could use a smile. :)

If you never watched this movie as a kid, your childhood is not complete.

Blogtober Day 1: 25 Things About Me.

So this is hideously, impossibly stereotypical.  But there are 31 days of Blogtober, and not all of my ideas are going to be winners.  Nonetheless, I hope someone finds this interesting.  Maybe.

1. My 3 favorite words are probably: shenanigans, quixotic, and indubitably.

2. I was born on Friday the 13th.

3. My dreams are very vivid, and I remember them really well.  2 weeks ago I dreamed I was a first
grade teacher whose students were being kidnapped by an evil genius with a floating pet shark.

4. Along with peanut butter cups, I also don't like white chocolate.

5. Musical theatre is my not-so-guilty pleasure.

6. Adoption is something I have always hoped to do.  My mom was adopted, and I also have a few aunts, uncles, and cousins who were as well.  I'm not sure if that is where my attachment to it stems from, but if I'm ever able to provide a family for a child that might not get the chance, I'd love to.

7. Feet gross me out.

8. I did not go to a real concert until I was almost 18.

9. When I was younger, one of my brothers would tease me about having a "horse face".  I am still sensitive to that to this day, even though it isn't true.  Sarah Jessica Parker has a horse face.  I don't.  Seriously, let's compare:



<--- Normal face.



                      Actual horse face ---->






10. I can pop my jaw and my ears.

11. No movie can make me cry.  I mean it.  Just to give you a reference point, Cast Away.  The part where Wilson is floating away from Tom Hanks?  I laughed.

12. I can play/have played the flute, saxophone, piano, and ukulele.  Also, I am a beast on the kazoo.

13. My "in-front-of-the-mirror-singing-into-a-hairbrush-song" is Here (In Your Arms) by Hellogoodbye.
14. If I could, I would absolutely drive a classic roadster.

15. Those dolls that have the eyes that move when you tilt them back terrify me.

16. I love being a spectator to a great prank.

17. A few months ago I chopped off most of my hair, and I swear, never EVER again.

18. I would not by any means call myself a "fashionista", but I do love good fashion.

19. I've been legitimately stalked before. 

20. Ancient history is totally fascinating to me.  The Crusades, Rome, Egypt, Greece, Persia, etc.

21. I drink hot chocolate year round!  LOVE IT.

22. Scary movies and I don't mix.  Ever.

23. I've never found Brad Pitt attractive.

24. I suck at math.  Understatement of the year.

25. I am aware that I brag about my adorable son constantly.  I can't help it.  He's perfect.

BLOGTOBER

For the entire month of October, there will be a blog post every day, which is quite the challenge, as you can imagine.

I have a lot of ideas, (some better than others), and I would appreciate lots of support and feedback as I crank out as much as my brain will allow.

Most of my writing takes place outside of my blog, but blogging is a great way for me to keep the creativity flowing, and feel in touch with my readers (few as you may be).

To those other bloggers and writers out there, puh-leaase join me!  It's going to be fun, and we can feed off each other as the month progresses.  If you don't blog, but want to give it a try, maybe this is the time to start!  Create whatever you want!  Writing is one of the best ways to get in touch with yourself.

Only ten days left!