Liebster Award

Kaitlin over at Tea & Sequins nominated me for the Liebster Award about ten days ago. I'm a huge slacker. Of course, aside from grading stacks of essays every week, my grad class also requires reading a novel every week. I have also had TWO group presentations back to back. Anyway, thanks Kaitlin! 

The rules are:
1. List 11 facts about yourself.
2. Answer the 11 questions that the blogger who nominated you gave you.
3. Ask 11 new questions for your nominees to answer.
4. Nominate 11 more bloggers with less than 200 followers.
5. Let each blogger you've nominated know that you have chosen him or her for the award.
6. Thank the blogger who nominated you and put a link back to his or her blog in your post.

The facts:
1. In elementary school, my daily wardrobe consisted of leggings (of all colors...even the kind with stirrups) and flannel shirts. At 28, I've replaced colored leggings with colored skinny jeans, and I still sport flannel like a lumberjack. 

2. I know all of the words to "How Many Licks" by Lil Kim and "College Girls are Easy" by Easy E. Singing all of the lyrics was my party trick in college. Little white girl's got game.  

3. My favorite novel is The Alchemist. If you haven't read it, go read it right now. I'm giving you homework. 

4. For as long as I can remember, my brother has called me Shithead. Before that, it was Fartfignewton. I collect awesome nicknames. 

5. I've painted almost every room in my house...twice. We've lived here for a little over three years.  

6. I can't stop moving furniture. I love arranging and rearranging it. 

7. I have the best parents even my intern said so. 

8. I've been skydiving. I want to go again! 

9. The first and only bone I've ever broken was my coccyx...in a car accident.

10. My sports career ended the day I shot for the wrong team in middle school basketball. 

11. I can't stop eating avocados. 

Kaitlin's 11 Questions for Me:

1. Why did you start blogging? As you may or may not know, I grade the papers of extremely talented teenagers. I needed a creative outlet to save me from the madness. 
 
2. What's your accessorizing philosophy? Less is more? Pile it on?
    People whom I do not call "me" can pull off the piled-on look. As for me, I grumble and fuss at bracelets because the darn things clunk around, smack at my computer keys, and generally seek to piss me off. I'm pretty much a necklace and/or earrings kind of gal. 

3. If you could swap closets with one blogger for a day, who would it be?
   ONE day? If we swap closets, do I get to keep whatever I want and never give it back? Can I put on everything all at once? How do I choose one thing? Okay, fine, I choose Kendi. I can't resist her plethora of blazers, stripes, and bright colors. Plus, her self-depracating posts always amuse me. I'm not sure how that personality trait translates to trading closets, but that's my story; I'm sticking to it. 

4. What is the best vacation you've ever been on?
   I guess the obligatory answer would be my honeymoon, which I did love because it was with Joof, and we went to Arizona. LOVE that state. However, it's really a toss up between Jeff's sister's wedding in St. Thomas (I fell in love with that island) and our trip to the Bahamas where we met friends who live in NY. Maybe we can convince them to move to Maryland? We're SO excited for their wedding in August! 

5. What's your go-to store when you've got some cash to spare?
     I am a woman of convenience, so I stick with what exists within five minutes from my house: Target, Old Navy, New York and Company, and Marshall's but never Wal Mart. The one near me is scary. Ever been whistled at by a toothless hillbilly?  

6. What's your dream job?
     Is it cool if I tell you that I love my job, but I just want the "system" to be less screwed up and for my drive to be way less than the hour it currently takes? A lot of other jobs sound appealing, but I know I'd really miss teaching my knuckleheads.    

7. Do you have any pets?
     Two nutjobs we call Squirt and Roxy.

8. Online or in-store shopping?
    It's about to get weird (surprise surprise). The mall freaks me out. If I feel too far away from an exit, my stomach starts to churn and my mouth goes dry. Is middle-of-the-mall-I-feel-like-I'm-in-retail's-bowels phobia a real thing? As a result, I prefer outlet shopping because I can quickly reach fresh air. Oh my gosh, typing out that confession confirmed my lameness.    

9. If you had to move to another country, which would you choose?
     Italy because then my husband would have to speak Italian without my whining, "Say something sweet in Italian." Of course, that would also force me to stop willfully neglecting to learn the language. Plus, I could frequently visit the settings of Under the Tuscan sun, my favorite movie. Oh, Diane Lane, I love you. 

10. Who's your celebrity style icon?
       Emma "Even Girls Crush On Me" Stone. Not only does girlfriend rock nerdy, comfy chic, she makes every hair color look hot.  

11. What's your best advice for people who want to start blogging?
       I'm going to get all English teachery on you for a moment. My best advice has nothing to do with choosing a topic you love, being genuine, posting only when you want/feel moved to, or networking like a spiderweb--though all of these suggestions are sage. Instead, I'm going to tell you what I tell my teenage students: your writing is a reflection of you. If you don't want people to think you're a raging a-hole, then choose your words carefully. If you don't want people to think you're a bumbling idiot, then proofread what you write. Occasional errors are understandable, but consistently, unabashedly mangling the English language (or any language) is unacceptable. And who wants to end up on Get Off My Internets?   

My Liebster Nominees: See, I think a lot of the people I have on here are at or around 200 followers :( Or, they've already been nominated and don't want to answer more questions!