Alphabet Meme

Isabelle tagged me for this a few days ago, so, jumping right in.....

Available/single? No, married thirty seven years this summer. The OC's comment? "Seems like a lifetime!" He's not much for the gushing....

Best friend? First I'd have to define "best" friend. I'd say it was someone with whom you are totally at ease, and who unconditionally accepts you, warts, smelly feet, paranoia and all. I have several dear friends from all the places we've lived, including here. But my best friend, hands down, is my sister. The OC is always in awe of how much she and I talk, and talk and talk, when we're together....

Cake or pie? My daughter's Brown Bag Apple Pie. It's actually sealed inside a paper bag as it bakes! Best ever. Followed closely by French Silk and Chocolate Pecan.

Drink of Choice? Tea, preferably Barry's, with milk and sugar please.

Essential item I use every day? Electric tea kettle. Car.

Favourite color? Blues and greens, especially together. I also like lavender and related shades....BUT! Once, when we lived in Belgium, I had a good friend, Julia. We used to meet once a week and explore different parts of the city. One day we strayed into the red light district, and somehow it came up, that in her country, Bulgaria, purple is the colour for prostitutes! So, when in Bulgaria, do not wear purple, unless of course, you're looking for some action.....

Gummy bears or worms? Neither. I'll have a heath bar or some spearmint mentos, thank you.

Hometown? Limerick, Ireland.

Indulgence? Soaking in a warm bath while reading a book or doing sudoku.

January or February? February. Sweater weather. Best time of the year in Florida.

Kids and their names? Five. They probably wouldn't want me putting them out here.

• Liz is the oldest, no secret there, since she uses her name on her blog. We, her family, are probably the only people she knows who still call her Elizabeth. It was my grandmother's name, and is my middle name . I always thought it would have been much more satisfactory if they'd given me that as my first name. She also answers to the name of a ferocious striped animal, generally found in a zoo. Even though she is very feminine and dainty, back in infancy she had a fearsome roar.
• If you rooted around in the British royal family, you'd find our oldest son's name.
• Second son was named after the OC. He wanted his own identity though, so, in his teens, choose the other end of the name [it's a long one] and goes by that, for short. Which makes him sound like a Russian space station.
• When our California Girl was born she had tiny little ears, pink and soft, folded in against her head like flower petals. Her name sounds like a flower.
• And last, but not least [he's the tallest], our youngest son has a name like a Russian tzar.

Life is incomplete without? The OC, the human hot water bottle.

Marriage date? 22 nd. August, 1970.

Number of siblings? Two. A brother and a sister.

Oranges or apples? Apples. In pie, as is, applesauce on potato pancakes.....

Phobias or fears? None really, but I wouldn't like to be caught in an earthquake.That would freak me out for sure.

Quotes--favourite? How much time do we have? Because I couldn't possibly limit it to one ....Confucius say "Better to light one small candle than to curse the darkness." "Treat your friends like family, and your family like friends." "People will forget what you said, they'll forget what you did, but they'll never forget how you made them feel." "Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you will help them to become what they are capable of being." And my all time favourite, Kahlil Gibran On Children

Reason to smile? Grandchildren. Favourite songs. Blog comments.

Season? Growing up?---Summer. Here?---Spring.

Tag people? Liz and Kelli.

Unknown fact about me? In my last year of high school I was school captain. My most important duty was the ringing of the clangy old bell--such fun to make so much noise and get away with it!

Vegetable you dislike? Eggplant. Yuk.

Worst habit? Where is the OC when you need him? I have a habit of burning food. Even as I was writing this, I paused to put some eggs on to boil, to make some egg salad, set the timer for five minutes, then came back to this. Totally missed the beep, and now the house stinks---of burned.boiled.eggs. Even I have trouble believing I could do this. Who burns boiled eggs? I'm sure there are more, and worse, but this is the one assailing my nostrils at the moment.

X-rays you've had? Chest, neck and dental; mri of wrists and ankles.

Your favourite food? Potatoes. How cliche is that? I love mashed potatoes, baked potatoes [with butter, no sour cream], potato pancakes, potato soup, pierogies, potato salad, croquettes----but small servings. I don't have a big appetite.

Zodiac sign? Gemini