Making A Literary Life Friday: MeMe

Yes, Larramie, meme'd us and while we've always chosen not to post memes, this one was just quirky enough to intrigue. Besides, we adore the enigma that is Larramie. Instead of tagging 8 people, as it suggests, we've decided that those who leave a comment are thus tagged. Purely voluntary. So in the lull that is July, here are the meme rules and our responses:

1. These rules have to be posted before giving your facts.2. Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves.3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.4. At the end of the blog post, it's necessary to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names. 5. Leave these eight people a comment on their blog, telling them they’re tagged, and to read your post for these directions.

Lisa
1. My dog isn't fat, but chubby might describe her. In my effort to keep her from packing on more pounds, I've wrestled pizza crusts, and more, from her mouth, risking crocodile-like bites.

2. The song, I hope you'll dance, by Lee Anne Womack, convinced me to have a second child three years ago (and I'm not even a big country music fan).

3. One of my happiest memories is spending a day with my brother at the Wisconsin State Fair when visiting relatives in Milwaukee when I was 13.

4. When I first meet a person, the more acutely disgusted I feel toward his or her very being, the greater the intensity of my sheer and absolute dislike, the more likely it is that we will become life-long friends.

5. Playing Home Free (hide and seek) at twilight each summer night at Lake Winnipasaukee in New Hampshire is a magical memory, plain and simple.

6. I find the words mom, mommy, ma, and mother all annoying - I think I need my kids to call me Lisa.

7. When I ask my husband to tell me something quirky about me he asks, how much space do I have. Then continues to say..."Today it's Tuesday, of course, I don't like pizza, but, wait, it's after five, so I do like pizza, but not with pepperoni, no no no, just veggies." Okay, so I'm fickle.

8. When I go to bed, my sleeping arrangments need to be absolutely perfect - no exceptions: ink black, walls of pillows, no noise whatsoever (except for the lull of a ticking clock or dripping faucet which I find calming - call me easygoing).

Amy
1. I feel at 6's & 7's all day if I don't start my morning with a bowl of Starbucks, a wheat bagel, the newspaper, & NPR.

2. I can almost never remember adults' names, but never forget a child's.

3. I am the most uptight person I know and an even more anxious mother.

4. I once awoke from anesthesia while the doctor was still operating. He yelled to the person standing behind me, "She's waking up, she's waking up!" I didn't feel a thing.

5. Like Tish Cohen, I can find a four-leaf clover in any patch, and have been able to do so since I was 22.

6. I never avoid a confrontation.

7. A week after my first child was born, I contracted a massive infection and slipped into a coma. I was placed on a respirator and the doctors told my husband "it didn't look good." When I finally woke, the need to see my daughter overwhelmed all of my senses. She was beautiful.

8. My goal in life is to be relevant.

Hannah
1. I've eaten almost everything served to me in seven countries, except one gushy thing in a cup in a temple on a Japanese hillside, which my wonderful brother downed for me on the sly. I did eat sea cucumber; check it out on your next aquarium visit.

2. I can, with intent, find lost things. Money, keys, articles of clothing, even a child once (not mine). My husband believes in nothing beyond what he can see and this freaks him out.

3. I am afraid of falling and cannot get near drop-offs (paths down the Grand Canyon, etc.). I don't feel I will jump, I just don't think terra is all that firma.

4. I like hot or iced coffee before noon, one large cup with milk. I only drink iced after noon, rarely more than one large cup. Tea I can drink any time, any temperature.

5. Mocha chip ice cream rocks, but if I could only have one food category for the rest of my life, it would be cheese.

6. My parents taught me you can't have it all, so live life around what is most important starting with your art, and that nice people can finish first if they think things through.

7. I never assumed I would marry or have children; now I cannot imagine life without them.

8. I believe there's nothing wrong with doing a few things you're not supposed to do, as long as you're not hurting yourself or others. I have taken a puff of a Cuban cigar and sipped absinthe, and I lie on my lawn semi-regularly (yes, as a grown-up) and let my children choose my clothes once in a while, just because.

Lynne
1. In my twenties, I was a paid lounge singer and radio jingle performer. I still remember my songs and the thrill of performing in public. I even had some very bohemian skirts which I can recall in vivid detail.

2. I had my wedding reception in a castle. No, neither my husband or I are royalty, we just happened upon this lovely place on a cliff by the ocean on a date and we knew it would be the perfect place to celebrate our union.

3. The thing that drives people crazy about me is my ridiculous ability to be organized. I love organizational notebooks, to do lists and spread sheets. I credit this skill set with how many writing-related things I'm working on simultaneously.

4. I am afraid of mice. In many conversations over the years, I've implored my husband and children to never, never, never tell me if there is one in our house. One of us would have to move out. Me.

5. I think crying is therapeutic. When I was a child, I cried a lot more than I do today. But I still feel much better after I let my tears run free.

6. I make up words, especially when I am tired. My husband and children laugh hysterically when I mix words up or simply create my own. Any idea what grodiardo and chustah mean?

7. I love any restaurant with a view. The mountains, the ocean, the lake, it doesn't matter. I will endure mediocre food if the view makes up for it.

8. I wake up every morning before the rest of my family. With a large cup of a specific brand of coffee, I park myself in my window seat and think. One hour of free flowing thinking and then I start my day as wife, mother, business owner and writer.