Random Dozen -- the Wednesday meme

I'm a lame blogger -- not one entry since last Friday's Fave Five. Have to do better. In the meantime, it's Wednesday already -- time for the Random Dozen!! If you want to play along, too, copy the questions to your blog and insert your answers. Then go to Lid's 2nd Cup of Coffee blog and link up with Mr. Linky (at the end of her blog entry).

1. I've always wondered why we were taught both printing and cursive. Do you prefer to print or write cursive? (Keyboard is not a choice.)

Cursive, if you can call it that. Really, it’s scribbling, no matter how you slice it. My fine motor control is long gone and I’m always in too much of a hurry to make it neat.

2 Are you a dreamer or a realist?

Realist with a capital “R.” My hubby is the dreamer of the family and I’m the one who keeps everyone’s feet on the ground. I hate investing my emotions in a dream and then coming up disappointed when the dream can’t be realized.


3. Billy Joel or Elton John?

Elton John is more talented than Billy Joel. Give me “Crocodile Rock” over “She’s Always a Woman to Me” anyday. (First time we heard that, my friend turned to me and said, well, what else WOULD she be?)

4. What is the scariest movie you've ever seen? Not limited to horror flicks but also includes ones where the tension or suspense is killer, for example, Flightplan (2005): A bereaved woman and her daughter are flying home from Berlin to America. At 30,000 feet the child vanishes and nobody admits she was ever on that plan.

The Wizard of Oz. Lame, I know. As a kid, I would hide my head when the witch appeared, when the lion tried to get Toto, when the monkeys took Dorothy, etc., etc., etc. I don’t watch any scary movies and I rarely watch anything that is suspenseful, either. I watched “The Hunt for Red October” because it had Sean Connery, Alec Baldwin AND Scott Glenn in it. End of story.

5. Now what is the scariest real-life moment you've had?

I can’t think of anything involving a kid at the moment, so I guess the scariest incident that I can recall right now is the moment that my horse reared up unexpectedly.

6. What word do you misspell without fail?

I’m one of those natural born spellers, so I don’t consistently misspell words. Now that I’m getting older, I do find spelling to require a bit more thought than it used to, however it’s still not a consistent problem.

7. Name something you like to do but are not really talented or good at.

Horse back riding. See #5. I’ve never recovered, as much as I love my current horse, Rainy (and she’s not the one who reared).

8. Do you get your emotional/mental batteries recharged by being around people or by having alone time?

Alone time is the only way to recharge my batteries.

9. Have you ever been on TV?

Yes, I was interviewed last year by a local news station on the day that we were cleaning up the booth after the State Fair – and the interview made it into the newscast that night. I sounded like an idiot. But I had my 15 seconds of fame, people! I also was visible in the TV audience of a “town hall meeting” on a local PBS station once – but I didn’t say anything in that one (smart, huh?).

10. Apple or pumpkin pie? (Don't be greedy.)

Apple, apple, apple. I make a good one, although my hubby can no longer eat it due to his Celiac problem.

11. How many magazine subscriptions do you have?

Just one: Cook’s Illustrated. I like other magazines and I read them pretty regularly, but I don’t have subscriptions. I like to read magazines on the plane when I travel (which I do pretty frequently), and I found that, far too often, the timing of the subscription delivery was just all wrong for my travel schedule. So, for maximum flexibility, I purchase copy by copy most the magazines that I read. Except Cook’s – it’s published only six times a year, so the timing isn’t a factor.

12. What lesson do you have to keep re-learning?

To let go of frustrating situations and remember that my purpose on earth isn’t to be right (or proved right) in every case. I’m here to glorify God – and let Him be right.