Daily Prompt | BulgingButtons

September 13, 2013
by BulgingButtons 19 Comments

And the Winner is…

Guess what folks. It’s Award Time! Ok, this is so exciting for me that it’s ridiculous, but I’m giddy with the news that Mama, from Reinvention of Mama, has nominated me for not one, but four blogging awards! Hooray! Of course there are others she nominated too, and some of them are some of my favorites as well. The awards are as follows:

1. WordPress Family Award

Rules: Display the award on your blog, link back to the person who nominated you, nominate 10 others you see as having an impact on your WordPress experience and family.

2. Semper Fidelis Award (for those who are ‘always faithful/always loyal)

3. Reader Appreciation Award for those who like and comment on a regular basis.

4. Liebster Award– for awesome blogs with smaller readerships

Rules: Display the award logo, thank the blogger who nominated you and link back to his or her blog. Answer the 11 questions that your nominator asks you, post 11 random facts about yourself, nominate 11 bloggers of your own, with under 200 followers, whom you think are as awesome as you, and create 11 questions for your nominees.

Disclaimer: I don’t always know how many people follow your blogs. I don’t always know who has visited mine. These are blogs that are meaningful to me for various reasons all covered in one way or another by the above awards, so let’s not get too hung up on the particulars, and have some fun checking out some great blogs and bloggers.

My nominees are:

The Goddess Weighs In

The Lovely Photog

Becoming the Best Me

Post Departum Depression

Far From Done

Gagas and Wayways

Fat Bottom Girl Said What

A Bahamian in Austria

Our Year in Huaran

Wombat Quilts

Girls vs Blog

11 questions from Mama:

At what age did you begin writing? I began at about age four, when I scrawled my name all over my territory with a Sharpie marker.
Did you write any really bad high school angsty poetry? Care to share? I really didn’t. I did more journaling at that time. I did submit a satire piece to the high school literary magazine that I rediscovered recently. It’s not funny enough to bother retyping, though.
What is your favorite novel to read? I really enjoy Young Adult novels. Catcher in the Rye might be my favorite, but I do love The Hunger Games series. The Time Traveler’s Wife stayed with me for a long time, too.
Are there any books you have read more than once? I’m a teacher, there are lots. I’ve also reread a few for pleasure too, but not many, there are so many I haven’t read yet that I want to read new ones.
If you’re writing a book, what genre? Oh, I write a little of this and a little of that. There’s a mystery thing started, and a memoir too.
What’s your guilty pleasure? Gator Boys. Love them.
If you could do anything, completely start over -what would it be? Maybe meet my fiancé sooner? I don’t think we were ready for each other though, so I think I’m fine with the timeline of my life as it has happened.
What’s the funniest thing you have done recently? Funny, ha ha, or funny weird? Can’t think of either so I suppose it doesn’t matter. Next!
Hoping that you have a good friend to call on when you need her/him, at what age did you meet them? I have several from different times in my life. I’m still friends with people from elementary school. Some of my best friends have been fixtures in my life since the following ages: 12, 17, 22, 35, 40, and 44. Aren’t I fortunate? I know I am.
What state would you live in if you could pick up and move, no holds barred? I did pick up and move, and I came here to Arizona. It’s home now.
Is city or country living for you? Neither. I’m a suburban girl, through and through. I did my city living in my twenties, but now it’s the ‘burbs for me.

11 Random Facts About Me:

1. I dislike watermelon, peanut butter, and cucumbers.

2. I kill plants. Not on purpose. It just happens.

3. I have an irrational fear of giant cockroaches. I know everyone hates them, but seeing them causes a near panic state in me.

4. I was adopted at birth.

5. Underneath a sometimes bold exterior I’m fairly shy, at least at first.

6. I’m having a ball trying new things as I age, and caring less about what “the world” thinks of what I do or say.

7. Number six is partly a lie. I really do care what people think of the things I say, or at least about the things I write.

8. My favorite treadmill music is Cher belting out disco tunes at high volume.

9. In my dreams I can sing.

10. I love to see new places, even if some people think travel is a form of “fairy dust” that people sprinkle on themselves in order to seem more interesting.

11. I will ever believe in the power of flying pigs.

11 questions from Me:

Where were you born?
Of what are you proud?
Of what are you afraid?
Other than writing, what are your creative outlets?
How do you take care of yourself?
How do you know when you’re done writing a piece?
What stupid things have you done that you don’t regret?
If you had to move somewhere new, where would you go?
What is your favorite time of the day or night? Why?
What is something you miss from your childhood?
What was your favorite book in fourth grade?

I hope you have fun checking out some new blogs, and if you’re on the list above, thanks for inspiring me!

September 7, 2013
by BulgingButtons 2 Comments

Daily Prompt: Luxurious

Ah, the life of luxury. I wonder what THAT would be like? How many times has a thought like that crossed your mind? It’s not something I dwell on, but if I’m totally honest I have to admit that I’ve wondered it myself from time to time. A fancy house, fine dining, first class travel around the globe; it all sounds very glamorous. But then I stop and think about it, and realize that I really don’t covet those things. They sound great, but I don’t feel as though I’m missing out on anything by not having those luxuries.

Today’s WordPress daily prompt asks what one luxury I can’t live without. I thought about some of the luxuries I enjoy that I would miss terribly, but I would adapt, I’m sure. I love having access to the internet, but I suppose I could give up my connection. Fine chocolate is another luxury I enjoy, but if it was gone I’m sure I would find some other sweet to take its place. Likewise with my beloved Diet Coke. In fact it would be best for me to give up those particular luxuries in favor of fresh fruit and water, but I digress.

For me, the luxury that I would miss most is modern indoor plumbing. Yes, I’m serious. I would miss having hot water come out of the tap for washing dishes and warm for my shower. I would miss the ability to shower whenever I wanted to and to wash clothing inside my own home. Brushing my teeth would be a challenge, and the toilet? Well, I would miss that the most.

I’ve been camping. The real kind of camping where you get in a canoe in the Canadian wilderness with ten other little girls and a couple of hunky teenage counselors. The kind where you hike and cook over a campfire and swim in the freezing cold lake. With that type of camping, there are no air mattresses, no coolers, and certainly no toilets. Ew. Let’s just say I haven’t been camping in a very very long time.

Fast forward to modern times. Two and a half years ago I moved into my house. The master bathroom has a small room just for the toilet. For Christmas my sweetheart purchased and installed a brand new throne. It’s amazing. It has a dual flush, luxury height, and a non-stain finish in the bowl. The seat and lid don’t slam, and it never fails. It even has an impressive name, The Cadet Three. Some people may think it was an odd gift, but to me it is the epitome of luxury, and I would hate to be without it.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/09/07/daily-prompt-luxury/

September 5, 2013
by BulgingButtons 9 Comments

Daily Prompt: Imagine All the People

The next time you’re in a public place — a coffeehouse, a park, a store — observe the people around you. Pick a person, a couple, or a group, and imagine what their lives might be like.

This is today’s daily prompt, and it was a perfect fit for me, as I found myself playing this little game just this morning. Today was unusual because I was able to have breakfast at Starbucks with my son. We had enough time to calmly sit down and have a conversation over our outrageously priced meal. Aside from the guilt involved and the nearly broken toes from his enormous feet stepping on them, it was very pleasant.

This was a new location for us, and we had fun taking in the scene. The woman in the orange dress was clearly on her way to work. She was wearing heels and make up and her hair was done. She was on a mission to get in and out of there as quickly as possible. I imagined that her entire life was similar to that snapshot. She seemed no nonsense and on the move. The thing that got me though, was that her stride and overall appearance seemed very loose. It was as though her skeletal structure was made of noodles. She sort of oozed. She didn’t seem unfit or overweight, just kind of wobbly. It was like her joints needed a bit of tightening up. I wondered if she was always in a hurry, and I wondered if she had someone to go home to at night.

I also wondered about the three gentlemen. First there was one. He was sipping coffee and reading a newspaper. A real one, made from actual paper. After a while, the second gentleman joined him. They greeted each other warmly and began to chat. A few minutes later, the third gentleman arrived. He pulled up a chair and again greetings were exchanged. I imagined these gentlemen had once worked as businessmen or accountants or sales reps or insurance agents. I imagined that they put kids though college, bought their wives necklaces for Christmas, and took trips every summer. I imagined that they once hosted barbecues in their neatly maintained backyards, and enjoyed the occasional round of golf. Sometimes their wives would drag them to plays or antique stores, but usually the weekends were free for sports and mowing the lawn.

The three gentlemen looked happy to see each other. They were obviously old companions. I wondered if any of them still had their wives. Were they divorced? Widowed? Did these gentlemen live alone? I think they did. Did they still own those houses with the backyard barbecues? Or had they downsized? Maybe they lived in condos where someone else would take care of the landscaping. Maybe they would have loved to go to a play or poke around in an antique store. How well did they know each other, anyway? Did they know each other’s kids?

They reminded me how important it is to have connections in my life. I wanted to share this little gem of wisdom with my fifteen year old, but at his age there’s really no need. I just hope that as he grows up, he maintains those connections with others, and spends time to nuture his real life relationships with flesh and blood people.