What haven't I told you?
I let the
first
U.S. punk compilation slip out of my hands. Album
cover from Rate
Your Music.
Jean of
Jean’s Musings
– a lovely blog that
I recommend highly – has passed a meme my way, a
request to list five things that you might not
know about me. Given how much I’ve revealed here,
that’s a tall order, but I think I can dredge up
some obscure facts.
*I once had a Secret
security
clearance. The think tank I worked for
did a lot of work for the defense department and
the library was responsible for the classified
document collection. Getting the clearance was
nerve-wracking, as was the proximity to potential
national secrets. It was a relief to leave it
behind.
*I have never seen an episode of the television show
Friends.
*Punk music was the soundtrack of my life for a long
time. I knew my now-husband was a good match after we
watched a movie that included the song Viva Las
Vegas. As we were leaving the theater I told him
“Every time I hear that song I …” He finished the
sentence, “think of the Dead
Kennedys version?” That’s right. Ahh,
love.
*I got my license at 25 (or was that 26?), but
I don’t
drive.
You wouldn’t want me to. Trust me.
*Despite a lifelong allergy to cats, I have never
lived without at least one kitty, except for a brief
pet-free period in graduate school. They are worth
the asthma, the itchy eyes, the mounds of tissues.
An extra fact: I’ve got some recipes in the Nov/Dec
issue of Vegetarian
Times,
along with a short profile in the contributers
column. Go to your newsstand or local library and
take a look. I'll be putting up more information
on the Food Writing
section soon.
If you have your own five facts, I'd love to read
them.
And for your listening pleasure, Viva Las Vegas!
The kindness of other bloggers
And if all this weren’t wonderful enough, Ken Armstrong of Ken's Writing Stuff gave me a copy of his recently published play, “The Moon Cut Like a Sickle,” after I correctly answered the question “What lady links ‘Mack the Knife’ with ‘From Russia with Love’"? Even though I cheated and used Google instead of actual knowledge, he was kind enough to send me a copy, all the way from Ireland to the far reaches of the continental U.S. Ken’s blog is a mix of movie reviews and stories, infused with optimism and humor. It's on my Google reader and it should be on yours, too.
Finally, the awards (and if I’ve missed one, I apologize. Please let me know). I am so happy that such a great group of writers and thinkers like what I am doing here. This time I'm passing each award on to another blogger who can do with it what they wish. Of course, the blogs below are only an example of the good stuff out there in the blogosphere and there are many that I read regularly and love that I haven't listed here.
Thank you, Geoffrey and Lidian! I'm passing this one on to Candy of Inside Candy.
Thank you, Lidian and Maitri! I'm passing this one on to Just Bob of the Essence of Bobness.
Thank you Lidian, Maitri, and Dori! I'm passing this one on to Karen of The Pitfalls of Life and Five Little Kids Named Larrow.
Thank you, Candy! I'm passing this one on to Koe at The Half-Life of Linoleum.
Thank you, Maitri! I can't single out any one blog here without feeling like I'm missing someone, so I officially pass this on to any blog on my blogroll.
Thank you, Judy! I am passing this one on to Lydia of Writerquake.
Next post: Is there anything I haven't told you?
Excellent Blog Award
Writing to survive has been
recognized by two wonderful bloggers this week.
Kathleen Maher of Diary of a Heretic
was the first one to
pass along the Excellent Blog Award. A warning:
once you visit Kathleen’s blog, you won’t be able
to stop reading! You can also find more of her
fiction in The View from
Here.
Then Bobbi of My Muse and Me
passed the same
award my way. I’ve recently come upon Bobbi’s blog
and have been enjoying the mix of fiction, poetry,
and discussions of everyday life.
Thank you both very much for the honor!
Early on, I decided that I wasn’t going to pass on
memes or awards. Initially, it was because I didn’t
want to trouble people with meme postings, and then
it became difficult to decide who to pass on awards
to: so many choices! The downside to my approach is
that I never spread the love. I’m trying to think of
a way to recognize some of the wonderful blogs I read
on a regular basis, maybe by writing the ocassional
review or by coming up with my own award.
Next week: a return to writing about writing? More
about my mother’s visit?
I won’t know until I start typing.
Seven facts
Instead of passing it along, I offer it up to anyone who would like to participate.
7 FACTS about
Jennifer
1 - WORK: I was a reference
librarian for about ten years, first for a state
legislative agency, then for a Washington, DC-based
think tank, and finally for
the U.S.
Senate.
Four years of working 40-50 hour weeks in a
basement paging through Congressional
Records, locating report language, and watching
C-SPAN with my colleagues for the laughs led to
disillusionment and burnout. (Note: There is
really much more to being a reference librarian at
the Senate Library than that, but an exhaustive
listing of what we did would bore most readers). I
quit to go to culinary school.
Took a detour to be a stay-at-home mother and
freelance writer. 2 - EDUCATION: After one
false start, I received a bachelors in philosophy, a
masters in library science, and a certificate from a
culinary school. My first college experience was
about drinking; my second, about thinking, my third,
about getting a job, and my fourth about taking a
chance while I still could.
3 - FRIENDSHIP: When I do make a friend, it is
generally for life (even when I am not good at
keeping in touch). I’m still figuring out how to make
connections as a reserved person without a
traditional working life in a place I don’t know very
well, since we’re still fairly new to Northern
Californa. It isn’t easy, but I am getting there. I
don’t need a posse, just a few confidants.
4 - RELATIONSHIPS: My second husband and I have been
married five years as of last Saturday, and have been
together for ten. After a tough 2007, we’re in a good
place now. Happy belated anniversary, honey!
5 - WWW: The Internet was just taking off when I was
in graduate school. I remember becoming quite
engrossed in the usenet groups. Gopher -- a kind of
menu-driven WWW -- was the hot technology during my
first library job. It’s a totally different world
now. Completely addictive, too, especially now that I
am blogging.
6 - FITNESS: Run 3x a week when I can, other exercise
on the off days, walk almost everywhere. I’ve been
mainly vegetarian (some fish) for 13 years and don’t
see going back to eating meat.
7 - DREAMS: One basic dream: that I make an authentic
life as a writer. A better way to put it: I am living
an authentic life as a writer, making the dream a
reality. (Thank you to The Fearless
Blog for cheerleading the idea
that we must think something to make it
so.)
Kick-Ass Blogger Award
According to Angel, A Kick-Ass Blogger is a blogger who can grab your attention and give you something to chew over for the rest of the day and in doing so, entices you back for more. A Kick-Ass Blogger is someone who is witty, articulate, and informative. I was introduced to Here and Now via Entrecard, and I am continually impressed at how direct Angel is in dealing with some difficult issues, sometimes through poetry, other times by just writing out her thoughts for the day. Thank you, Angel. I am honored.
Arte y Pico Award
Marlene of The Fearless Blog
has presented me
with the Arte y Pico award, which is given to
bloggers who inspire others with their writing or
artwork. If you need inspiration and a dose of
motivation, Marlene's blog is a good place to
start. For a wonderful example of her work, take a
look at Straddling Between Two
Worlds on the PublicLiterature.Org
website.
Thank you, Marlene! I am honored.
Seven songs: another meme
List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if they’re not any good, but they must be songs you’re really enjoying now, shaping your spring summer. Post these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs. Then tag seven other people to see what they’re listening to.
Although I can't say that there are seven songs that are shaping my summer season, I can list seven songs that I've listened to lately, almost all while dancing around with the kid. And we don't listen to a lot of current stuff, apparently, so I apologize in advance to the youngins.
Belle & Sebastian: The State I Am In
Reminds me of a different summer, but I still listen to it and the kid has been listening to Belle & Sebastian since birth.
Robyn Hitchcock: Belltown Ramble
My husband and I recently attended a Nick Lowe/Robyn Hitchcock show at the Fillmore. Robyn played this tune, H bought the CD, and we are now hooked. My son asks for the Bell song, and we move around the room, swaying our arms.
White Stripes: Seven Nation Army
Good stomping music.
Sonic Youth: Bull in the Heather
Don't know how to explain this one, but we likes distortion.
Prince: Dance, Music, Sex, Romance
We had a morning of dance. I was thinking of my old college roommate, who was a Prince fan, and there you have it.
Kenny Loggins: House at Pooh Corner
I wrote about this recently. Now the kid sings it, too, though he doesn't catch all the words. It's cute.
Cassandra Wilson: Children of the Night
This song brings me back to a different time in my life, in a bittersweet way.
Instead of passing this on to seven bloggers, I invite anyone who would like to participate to post their own seven songs.
In six words: a meme
OK. I am up for the challenge.
Who would have
thought: me, here?
There have been a few surprising
turns in my life. Spending five years in the midwest?
Never would have anticipated it. Cooking school in
New York? No way. Being a stay-at-home-mom in
Berkeley, California? Oh, but I would never leave the
East Coast again ...
And most surprising of all: tell my secrets to the
world (well, to a small group of loyal readers) on a
"blog"? You must be joking.
So now I pass it along to the following bloggers, if
they wish to participate:
Clinically
Clueless
The Pitfalls of
Life
Geoffrey's
Farrago
Shiv's Brain
The Essence of
Bobness