Miz Annie's Magic Cottage: Snow Day Meme!

I've been meaning to start blogging on this site rather than posting on the Myspace blog. Not exclusively, of course, cuz I heart my Myspace friends, but as a more personal space. I originally opened this blog as a sort of "back-up" to the Myspace blog, because 1. Myspace occasionally crashes and you "lose" everything, and 2. there is a definite "feel" to myspace that isn't always conducive to stuff I want to talk about. Eblogger seems to be a "kinder, gentler" community and that's where I'd like to start spending more time. I also plan to start documenting more of my creative adventures, and this seems to be a more appropriate place for that as well. That said, what better way to start off than by responding to a tag! She Who Flies tagged me for a meme, so here it is:

8 Things I Am Passionate About

creating & maintaining a comfortable home for my family
pickles, olives, bread, and cheese.
living mindfully, thoughtfully, and on-purpose
honoring life as creation by doing something creative (no matter how seemingly small) every day (hence, my "Daily Devotions")
helping others, particularly as regards mental health
Animals. Pets, domesticated, wild…doesn’t matter. I’m passionate about all aspects of sharing the planet with our animal brethren.
Continuing to learn and grow as a person. (what a dumb expression: "as a person!" As opposed to what? learning and growing as a wheelbarrow? a helicopter? I mean duh. My new year’s resolution is going to be to not say that again. Ever.)
BOOKS. That overlaps and intertwines with all the other stuff.

8 Things I Want To Do Before I Die

Travel more.
Be completely free of debt.
Learn how to do at least one decent dance that you can do at a function like a wedding or company party or something. The "Lawn Sprinkler" doesn’t count. I mean, I can’t even do the electric slide! How lame!
Make a living from my creativity.
Publish a book that inspires and/or helps people.
Create a home that is a haven (I stole that one from Chantie) I love my magic cottage but it is not quite a haven yet for all occupants.
Let all the people I love know that I do.
Clean out the basement. Literally and metaphorically.

8 Things I Say Often

"I love you."
"I’m so proud of you." (to my kids. I don’t feel proprietary enough to say it to anyone else)
"Get off the counter."
"Go lay down." (I know that’s grammatically incorrect. It should be "Go LIE down," but my dog doesn’t recognize that as a legitimate command.)
"Here are your choices."
"Everything happens for a reason."
"It is what it is."
Three way tie between: "goddamn it," "shit!" and "crap!"

8 Books I Have Recently Read

The Lovely Bones, Alice Sebold (much different than I expected, charming but surprisingly gritty).
The Raw Shark Texts, Steven Hall (FREAKY!!)
Life of Pi, Yann Martel (poignant, haunting)
Tears of the Giraffe, Alexander McCall Smith (lovely and entertaining, sequel to below)
The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, Alexander McCall Smith (lovely and entertaining)
The Mistress of Spices, Chitra Divakaruni (in that same vein of literary magic as Marquez or Allende, charming!)
To Say Nothing of the Dog, Connie Willis (possibly one of my all-time favorite reads. Right up there with The Time Traveler’s Wife, which was a favorite from last year…hmmm, I see a theme…..).
The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman (I read it, I SWEAR, before I even KNEW the movie was coming out. The book is completely magical.)

8 Songs I Could Listen To Over and Over Again

Big Log, by Robert Plant
Wordless Chorus, by My Morning Jacket
Chocolate Lovely, by Amon Tobin
Pick Up by Bonobo
Who Am I? by Peace Orchestra
Destiny by Zero 7
Butterflies by Sia
Bright Eyes - The Swell by Kunek
honorable mentions go to:
Superfreak, by Rick James
and anything by K.C. and the Sunshine Band. LOL!!! I am only half kidding.
{wow. this is hard! I felt like I was leaving so many good ones out!}

8 Things That Attract Me To My Best Friends

Open-mindedness, particularly as regards matters of spirituality/metaphysics, human rights
Kindness
Sense of humor and ability to laugh at life
Creativity – doesn’t matter what kind!
Some sense of purpose to life
Lack of Eeyore mentality
Ability to put up with me and my quirks
Willingness to agree with everything I say and give me lots of presents. (kidding, people! I kid!)

8 People Who Should Totally Do This Meme