For a Liebster award?? Wow! I didn't even know I had actual readers out there, let alone the capabilities of being nominated. :o)
Thank you so much, Courtney, for giving me an award! As I have seen many variations upon this theme, I will copy and paste the rules Courtney listed on her blog:
How It Works:
1. Add the award icon to your blog!
2. Link to your nominator to say thank you.
3. Each blogger should post 11 facts about themselves.
4. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you, & create 11 questions for your nominations to answer.
5. Choose 11 up-and-coming bloggers with less than 200 followers, go to their blog, and tell them about the award.
So, without much futher ado, here are my facts!
1. I prefer baking to cooking, but rarely make casseroles... despite the fact that I prefer savory to sweet.
2. I love cupcakes, but don't love cake.
3. When I see there is an establishment with the word "needle" in the name, I automatically assume it is a yarn store.
4. I learned to type with 2 spaces after a period, and I still type that way despite the fact that there is no need any longer. (I've been told that it was a hold over from typewriters; typewriters used to stick, so this was to guarantee there would be at least one space after the period.)
5. Central Market makes a fresh apple, orange and beet juice that I am addicted to. I drink one a week. If I ever move, I may need to purchase a juicer so I can replicate this.
6. I co-own a stuffed monkey (I think it's actually ape or gorilla) in a bucket that we have named Monket. They are two separate items, but they distinctly look better together.
7. I usually give away the projects that I knit.
8. I love teas of all kinds, but don't like coffee.
9. My boyfriend's favorite board game is my least favorite board game... above and beyond my least favorite board game. >.<
10. After I learn the layouts of a city with multiple yarn stores, I will typically use those as major landmarks to help me navigate with ease around town. I do this with Portland and Austin. It does lend itself pretty easily to Portland...
11. My cat has made it her job to make this post impossible to type, and has decided to type a few notes of her own which I have had to delete numerous occasions now. And as a side note: I once lost a spelling bee because I thought "monstrous" should be spelled "monsterous." I was reminded by "numerous" instead of "numberous."
Answers to Courtney's questions:
1. Do you still think about your first love? Not really. Sometimes he comes up in casual conversation because he's still friends with some of my good friends. But otherwise, no.
2. What three people (dead, alive, or fictional) would you like to have lunch with? Is this 3 separate lunches or 3 people at one lunch with me? Honestly, that would change my opinion quite a bit. I mean it'd be a bit weird to have Legolas (from the movie... yeah, that's Orlando Bloom, but I think I'd really rather have Legolas from the movie there instead), Aragorn (from the books), and Wil Wheaton at one lunch together wouldn't it? Hmmm, wait, maybe it wouldn't. Well, I think I'll keep Wil Wheaton, he seems like he'd be wicked fun to talk to in real life. And I'd also love to have lunch with Samantha (a friend from Athens that I haven't seen in awhile) again. And, well I guess I'm boring. I don't really know. Take that scatterbrained answer, and do with it what you will!!
3. What's the weirdest thing you've ever eaten? Depends on who you talk to. I've had natto, which is fermented soy beans that's slimy and somewhat stinky. But talk to a Japanese person, and all I've done is eaten a delicacy that they love to eat for breakfast over rice. I've also had halo halo, but talk to a Filipino and they will tell you it's the best dessert you can ever have. Honestly, I don't think there can be a "weird" thing to eat... I think that "frightening" would be a better description of food that you might not want to eat. I've had pig intestine, which appeared to be... well. I don't even know. Stir fried, I think. With sauce on it. I made the mistake of going into a local Chinese restaurant (in China) that didn't have ANY pictures on the menu, and pointing to one of the items that had the character for "meat" in it. I could only eat about 5 pieces before I gave up. This was no intestine casing for sausage. It was pure pork intestine that may not have even been cleaned well. It was unpleasant. Never again. (Unless I'm in a Chinese restaurant whose menus have no pictures in them...)
4. What's your favorite punctuation mark? Or grammatical rule? I use the ellipsis a lot... but that isn't to say it's my favorite punctuation mark. In all honesty, I probably have a soft spot for the semi-colon. People just don't know how to use it anymore; it's a shame. Favorite grammatical rule? Dunno, but I am a tyrant over homonyms. Learn the correct definitions people!!
5. What's your go-to way to pamper yourself? New yarn or fiber or fiber related item.
6. In the light of the Holiday season, what's your favorite family tradition? Lots of food. I like food. It's yummy. :o)
7. Can you dance? No. Not in a coordinated manner, at least. Do I dance? Yes.
8. In the soundtrack to your life, what's your theme song? Changes daily. Though, the second I read that question the theme song to "Chip and Dale: Rescue Rangers" popped into my head. Maybe that's it.
9. What do you want to be when you grow up? A yarn store owner. With a few published patterns under my belt.
10. If you could change your name, what would you change it to? Wouldn't change it. It's a pain and a lot of money to get them to recognize you as an optometrist with a name different than the one you graduated with.
11. Write your epitaph. Here lies Noriko, Knitwear Designer, Yarn Store Owner, and Optometrist all in one. She was awesome. Please feel free to yarn bomb at your leisure. She loved colors.
My questions:
1. What's your favorite type of tea?
2. Did you ever have an imaginary friend, and, if so, what was/were he/she/it/they like?
3. Who is your favorite Batman villain and why?
4. If they were to turn your life into a movie, who would play you or who would you want to play you?
5. Show me a picture you took that you are extremely proud of. It can be the picture you're proud of or the item you are picturing.
6. What is the book you are currently reading? If you aren't reading a book right now, what was the last book you read?
7. Give me a fail proof recipe. Something easy to make that is always delicious.
8. Favorite holiday?
9. First memory?
10. Do you have a favorite musical?
11. When you have to get a present for a White Elephant, do you have a "go-to" gift item? Or does it change with who is in the White Elephant? If you have a go-to item, what is it?
The Blogs I've nominated:
Spirit Sandwich: fun recipes with some heartfelt articles about food and healthful living.
PNW Bookgirl: updated frequently with topics of many crafts and spatterings of cute pics of her pup!
Bethany Hendrickson: fun knitting, periodic recipes, and a great writing voice (I always enjoy it when I read a blog that sounds like I'm talking to them!)
Nadine Knits: A gratitude journal?? Very awesome and inspiring to read.
Dark Matter Knits: Graphic designer and knitwear designer. Love seeing what she's up to!
With the rule that the blog has to have less than 200 readers (and I don't even know if I truly stayed with that rule), I could only come up with 5 blogs that I actively read to honor. So, instead I shall honor these 5 bloggers and highly recommend them. :o)