Blog Love ♥

Some bloggy awards from sweet friends . . . I'm afraid that some are from quite some time ago! Lesson learned: pass them along right away!

from the darling Jen at Nifer Musings:



The rules for this one are simple: list ten things about yourself, and then pass this award onto ten bloggy sugar dolls!

Ten Things About Claire:

1. Nightswimming by R.E.M. is my favorite song in the world.
2. I think mayonnaise is VILE and won't go anywhere near it.
3. I love astrology and am unreasonably attached to my "Leo" coffee mug. I'll literally ignore the ten clean ones in my cabinet and wash it if it's dirty.
4. My parents owned a restaurant when I was growing up, and it was like my second home. My friend Amy recently pointed out that I seek out restaurants that remind me of it (they sold it when I was in college). It's so true!
5. I'm kind of an anxious basket case when it comes to medical stuff. I can convince myself I have a brain tumor or a heart condition in the blink of an eye.
6. I went to college at Tulane in New Orleans, and I miss both college and New Orleans tremendously.
7. The most incredible year of my life so far was 2003-2004, when I had a fellowship to travel around the U.S. teaching creative writings in state and federal prisons. I hope I can get back to that someday soon.
8. My best friends are scattered all over the place--Pittsburgh, Atlanta, southern California, New York City, Virginia, Chile, etc.--and I think about each of them every single day.
9. I never wear pants. Literally. It's always skirts or dresses.
10. I haven't eaten any meat (seafood included) since I was 14 years old.

Okay, now that that's outta the way, here are ten Sugar Dolls whom I adore! Grab this award and pass it along, ladies:

JenRem @ absent minded
Marianne @ Royal Mail
Micaela @ Dolce Vita

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Okay, moving on. This next sweet award comes from The Vodka Asylum, though I can't get the link to work properly! I'm supposed to list three things I love about myself (hello, modesty!), post a picture that I love, and tag five people:


1. I love that I'm a pretty loyal friend;
2. I love that I have strong legs!;
3. I love my commitment to the work I do, even though it isn't very lucrative and is sometimes emotionally exhausting.


I love this picture from my sister's bachelorette party in October. I organized it, and let's just say there was some serious negotiating about the details of the party (my sister is modest; I am wild). We compromised and had a wonderful time! Remind me to tell you about how my bf and I had a fake stripper show up in a tux and pretend he was there to humiliate my sister in a nice restaurant. Above is a photo of all of us after dinner in Atlanta (I'm the second from the left in the front row; my sister is the second from the right in the back row)--makes me so happy to look at it!

Okay, tagging these dolls:

Diana @ exPress-o

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And from the precious Julie at Brown Eyed Belle:



Thank you so much, Julie! The rules are: Share seven things about yourself, and then tag 15 blogs. Whoa, that's a lot! Here goes. Even though y'all already know enough about me:

1. I'm from Georgia, though I don't have much of an accent (it pops up now and then if I spend a long time visiting home, drink too much, or am excessively frustrated). I think southern people often times get unfairly pre-judged because of their accents.
2. The first place I traveled out of the country was to the Cayman Islands. The farthest I've ever been is Beijing, China. Lots of places on the list . . .
3. I'm pretty blingy and I'm always wearing really big, loud earrings.
4. I love teenagers. Gotta say. I love teaching high school, watching teenager tv shows (the OC, Veronica Mars, One Tree Hill), chaperoning prom, etc.
5. A huge part of who I am involves working to end the death penalty and toward prison reform.
6. I have one sister, Kate, and one cousin, Jennifer, who essentially grew up with me as a sister. I love them both so much.
7. I think there's nothing more fun than a bottle of wine and board games with friends. :)

Tagging these ladies with versatile blogs:

Jeanette @ Everton Terrace
Julianne @ Lace and Leather
Danielle @ Dinosaur Toes
J. @ Life.

***

Lastly, Faiza tagged me a while back in this cute little question game. I'm supposed to answer Faiza's five questions, make up five questions of my own, and tag others (no number specified)!

Here is Faiza's original post.

And here are her questions/my answers:

1. What is your favorite topping on toast?
It's a toss up between butter & strawberry jelly and cinnamon toast.
2. What is your favorite quote from someone else?
"Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage." ~Anais Nin. AND, "Everything is sweetened by risk." ~Alexander Smith
3. You are about to throw a penny into a wishing well...what do you wish for?
To fall in love and have a family.
4. Tell me what your favorite song is and why.
Funny that I've already answered that on this very post: Nightswimming by R.E.M. It's an exquisite song, I love the piano, the lyrics are beautifully mysterious, and it takes me right back to high school. That song still transports me.
5. What three things are you grateful for today?
My dear, dear friends (one of whom I just had a wonderful lunch with at Pyramid Brewery in Berkeley!), my sweet family (even though they're so far away), and good strong coffee (just finished my second cup).

Thank you Faiza--I adore you. As for tagging, consider yourself all tagged! Please play along--I'd love to see your answers to these five questions:

1. What always, without fail, makes you laugh?
2. In another life, I would be a ________________.
3. Who has the best name of anyone you know?
4. Where is the strangest place you've ever been?
5. What's your favorite city in the world?

Finally done! This post took me longer than any post I've written to date. Big thanks to all the wonderful girls who gave me these awards/tags. :) Happy Sunday!
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