All right, friends. It's time for me to answer more of your burning questions. I have some time between design jobs and ice cream and idol, so I thought I would spend my time right here at my cozy blog.
I am going to start out by answering some questions that people have asked in e-mails or in other posts.
I'm going to start with a question asked just today by Carrie. Hi Carrie!
She asks: Can I ask you something...why do you have two blogs? Not that I think there is anything wrong with that, I'm just wondering. Actually I'm jealous, very jealous. I don't have the ability to keep on blog going. Well, Carrie. Would you believe I used to have THREE blogs? I had to give one up because it was bad for my health. And it's not even that I have two blogs, although technically I do, the second blog I moonlight on Wednesday's. and only Wednesday's. I am technically a freelance writer for our regional newspaper's parenting site. So, I get paid for it. I have to find some way to pay for my graphic tee collection.
By the way, my kids are being so rowdy right now, if you can hear them, and I am certain you can, I apologize.
The next question was an e-mail questions sent by Lorianne:
I have been following your site for a short time. My heart goes out to you for your loss. I just have to ask "what are your kids real names?" If it is for privacy that you don't use them, I understand. I'm just curious, that's all. Lorianne, thank you so much for your question. I've been receiving a lot of questions about my chicken's name and well, I call them Ariel and Racecar for privacy reasons. It's a struggle for me because I do love their names and I really do want to use them, but I just feel like I should give them a choice and right now they're just too young to understand. but if you are really curious, you can go waaaay back in my archives to see. I used to call them by their first names and I am WAY too lazy to go back and change them.
But don't tell anyone. It's a secret, damnit.
This crazy question comes from my real life, crazy friend, Tracey, she got a little irate in this question. Tracey wants to know:
My favorite food
is nachos. Which brings me to my question. Is it too late to ask a question?
When you say nachos, do you mean Doritos? Or nachos as in tortilla chips with
melted cheese and maybe meat or beans and salsa and sour cream and all of that?
Because I have heard that it is a midwestern thing to refer to Doritos as
nachos, which would just be silly, because everyone knows that Doritos are
Doritos and nachos are a mexican dish made with tortilla chips. But you
midwestern people are crazy with your pop instead of soda and all of that.
I told you she was irate. Okay, when I say nachos, I do not mean doritos. In fact, I don't know anyone who refers to nachos as doritos and I know a lot of midwestern people. But then again, maybe when they say "they're going out to get some nachos with Nellie Sue after the tractor pull", maybe they mean doritos. What the hell do I know?
But we totally drink pop. Word. And we tend to use meaningless words after saying something we believe in. Yo'.
See. I told you.
Okay, now I can move onto some of the questions people asked me in that post way back in 1923. (Could I have stretched this out any farther. Um, yes. I think I'll have another installment after this one. SORRY!)
This jewel of a question was asked by my friend, Sharon. Sharon and I have never met, but I truly love her. She means so much to me. Now if I ever found out Sharon was really a large, bearded trucker who liked to hop on-line from the big rig at a truck stop every night and chat with mommy bloggers, well, honestly, I'd love him, too. I kinda like beards. That's how much I love Sharon.
Sharon asks: How did your parents meet? And I mean all the details! After all, if it were not for this meeting, you wouldn't be here to ask us to ask you questions!
Good question, Sharon. But isn't this supposed to be amount ME? Just kidding. I asked my Mom to write up a little something about her blooming romance with my Dad and this is what she wrote:
On
a mild Spring evening in early April my sister and I stopped for cigarettes
(they weren't so bad then) at the Clark Gas Station. Also buying
cigarettes (after all they were 3 packs for a dollar there) were our
future husbands. My sister and my future husband's best friend had gone
out previously and since they wanted another date and Beth's dad and I were
there also, it all fell together. What fun we had! My sister and I regaled
the guys with stories of the "haunted" house we grew up in and it was
so much fun. While I was feeling all sparkly and witty
and entertaining, it happened. I can't believe it to this day.
I said, "Was that sarcasity?". And he said, "There's no
such word as sarcasity." (Of course I meant sarcasm but I said SARCASITY!!!!
Now I can laugh about it and I do; but for a long time I blushed with
embarrassment and humiliation when I thought about it. Now, after 41
years (40 of them married), I know that you don't have to be perfect for
everything to turn out perfectly.
Isn't that cute? I think so, too. The funny thing about this story is that I think of my Mom as the vocab queen. Just recently she said something like "it warms the cockles of my heart." and well, I didn't even know a heart had cockles. Did you?
Kellyn wants to know:
What movie can you watch over and over again? What is your favortie quirk your kids have? If you could be anywhere in the world, with the family, where would you go? Let's see. I have watched Good Will Hunting and City of Angels 7000 times each, so I guess that's the answer. As far as quirks are concerned, I love that after my son kisses me, he has to put his cheek against mine and let out a little mmmm. I love it. A lot. And Ariel, she says to me about 40 times a day "Mommy, I love you. I mean a lot. Like twenty thousand forty." Everyday. Forty times a day.
And if I could vacation anywhere with my kids it would be to anywhere warm with a pool. No beach because Racecar hates sand. The whole time we are there, he cries, because the sand apparently hurts. or something. It's awesome.
And the final question of the night is from D, D wants to know:
What is your favorite color m&m? Um...red. blue. green. yellow. light brown and dark brown. I do not discriminate.
Do you like coke or pepsi? If I had to choose, I would choose coke, but at restaurants I always order water with lemon. POP isn't my thing.
I'll be back again soon to FINALLY wrap up this question answering business.
Do you say soda or do you say pop? Pop. right?
SODA.
And thanks for answering my question. I wasn't so much irate as...persnickety? Cantankerous? I'm very relieved to hear that you have nachos correct. Now if you can get the beverage thing down, we might be getting somewhere.
Of course, if you REALLY want to be cool, you can call a water fountain a bubbler, like we do in Rhode Island.
Posted by: Minivan Mom | May 14, 2008 at 08:10 PM
In Texas we call it all "coke". Example: "What kind of coke do you want? We have regular, diet, Sprite, Dr. Pepper..." You can even call Pepsi a coke.
Posted by: katy (aka funny girl) | May 14, 2008 at 08:13 PM
Katy - THANK YOU for reminding me of that charming little quirk I have noticed here in Texas. YES. It drives us displaced Yankees nuts.
It's worse than pop. Seriously. If my husband orders a coke, he wants a COKE. Not whatever the waitress brings on a whim.
Crazy Texans.
Posted by: Minivan Mom | May 14, 2008 at 08:15 PM
Interesting questions and answers!
Posted by: Kelsey Smith | May 14, 2008 at 08:20 PM
POP. Midwestern all the way baby! Now where did that Nellie Olson go anyway? bwahahahahhaah
Posted by: Darla | May 14, 2008 at 08:27 PM
Your mom's story is so cute and I loved your answers to the rest of the questions! I have to think of a really good one for Part 6,328. (your title made me laugh!)
Posted by: Sincerely Anna | May 14, 2008 at 08:27 PM
You mom is awesome and what a great story.
It did warm my cockles of my heart.
http://www.reference.com/search?r=13&q=Cockles
I had to go look it up.
and it's pop...heaven forbid if someone says "soda pop". It hurts my ears.
Posted by: crookedeyebrow | May 14, 2008 at 08:37 PM
Katy is right. It's "coke" here. Everything is coke. ;)
I love your answers. You always keep me laughing!!
Posted by: Aimee | May 14, 2008 at 08:44 PM
I love this line!
But we totally drink pop. Word. And we tend to use meaningless words after saying something we believe in. Yo'.
You crack me up, woman.
Pop, all the way. That "Coke" business is messed up.
Posted by: Amy F. | May 14, 2008 at 09:50 PM
We say soda. My grandma says Pop. She's from Nebraska.
Posted by: RubiaLala | May 14, 2008 at 10:03 PM
Hilarious Q&A's. One of my fav's. Oh, and it's totally pop. Even a Kentucky transplant knows that answer...even my 3 year old who asks for mee-ilk know's it's pop. Du'uh.
Posted by: Lovely | May 14, 2008 at 10:07 PM
In California we called them soft drinks, but in Texas it's either soda or Coke. The word pop actually irritates me. A lot.
Posted by: Chelsea | May 14, 2008 at 10:14 PM
I loved your moms story!
And it's POP. Word.
Posted by: Lisa@Take90West | May 14, 2008 at 10:16 PM
Your mom is too cool!! Here in Arkansas, it's all called coke, too. Unless you need to specify that it's an RC you want with your moon pie. Then some goober clerk at the dime store with two teeth will hand you a coke in a bottle and pretend they still sell RC. Hillbillies are loving that way.
Posted by: Susan | May 14, 2008 at 11:24 PM
Here in So Cal, if I am offering a carbonated beverage, I specify: "What would you like to drink? I have Sprite, Diet Coke or Mountain Dew."
I'm originally from a Chicago suburb, but moved here long enough ago that "pop" didn't come with me. Fo' Shizzle
Posted by: Melanie | May 15, 2008 at 12:35 AM
My husband and I are from the midwest and we both have always called it "pop". We recently moved to Hawaii and they call it "soda." My husband has taken up on this and it drives me nuts!! I get so mad at him, I tell him that he is not being true to his Indiana roots!! I really think that most of the time he is just doing it because it makes me mad!
Your post was too funny! I laughed out loud which I really needed after a crazy evening...thank you!
Posted by: Danielle | May 15, 2008 at 01:24 AM
Pop. And I am laughing because did you mean to say your chicken's names or children's names? I think I missed where you call your kids chickens. I love your Mom's story. I hope to meet her someday. She sounds as wonderful as you.
Steph
Posted by: Adventures In Babywearing | May 15, 2008 at 01:58 AM
Soda, here, but glad to know you don't discriminate on the m&ms, they are all such cute fellas.
Posted by: d | May 15, 2008 at 07:20 AM
Pop. But here in GA, I have had to amend a bit, because they just don't get the whole "pop" thing. So sometimes I say soda just to be able to communicate because it is hard enough with the southern accents. Also, so glad to hear you like Coke over Pepsi. I can't stand Pepsi, so it is good I live in Atlanta - land of Coke products.
Posted by: Amy | May 15, 2008 at 07:22 AM
It's pop. Always has been. Always will be!
And I have to say that my brother used to make nachos out of Doritos so that subject has always been a grey area in this house.
Tru dat.
Posted by: Thea @ I'm a Drama Mama | May 15, 2008 at 07:24 AM
It will always be pop. I grew up in Ohio and moved to NC 12 years ago. They do the "everything is a Coke" as well and it used to drive me crazy. Everyone around me chuckles when I say pop, but I'm not going to change :)
Posted by: Kelley | May 15, 2008 at 07:30 AM
It is definitely "Pop". I have no clue where this "Soda" word came from but it needs to go away, lol
~ FC
Posted by: FC | May 15, 2008 at 07:32 AM
My hubby says pop, I say soda. My sister spent 5 years on the east coast, so I got that from her.
I love your mom's story! Hearing stories like that always make me smile.
Thanks!
Posted by: Kellyn | May 15, 2008 at 07:41 AM
I'm an oddball. I live in Minnesota, so should say pop, but sometime in the last year or two I started calling it soda. Strange. I know.
Posted by: Kim | May 15, 2008 at 07:49 AM
Pop! Duh.
I've never heard anyone here in Ohio refer to Doritos as nachos.
Your mom is as funny and cute as you are. ;-)
Posted by: Nan | May 15, 2008 at 08:07 AM