The Liebster Award

And the award goes to…me!  Yay!

 

The rules for the Liebster Award are:

• Post the award on your blog.
• Thank the blogger who presented this award and link back to their blog.
• Write 11 random facts about yourself.
• Nominate 11 bloggers who you feel deserve this award and who have less than 200 followers.
• Answer 11 questions posted by the presenter and ask your nominees 11 questions.

On October 15, I was nominated for the Liebster Award- an award to recognize new bloggers.  It’s sort of chain letter-ish, as a condition of accepting the award is nominating others, but I think it really functions as a way to interact with other bloggers and overtly recognize blogs you like.  I put off responding to the nomination because I really debated whether I wanted to accept the award and participate.  I’m lazy, and coming up with random facts about myself and questions for someone else seemed like a lot of work.  I don’t comment or otherwise interact very often in the blogosphere, but I do read several blogs that I think are interesting.  Picking blogs to nominate was the biggest challenge for me, because I’m paranoid that people won’t want to participate and that this in some way reflects my own personal failing (i.e., that they don’t want to participate with me rather than they don’t want to participate in general).  I have since come to the realization that other people’s decisions to play along or not have no bearing on my self-worth.  If you choose to participate, I look forward to reading your post.  If you choose not to participate, I solemnly promise to uphold my generally-positive self esteem.

Many thanks to The Pink Panther Snipes Again for nominating me for this award.  I struggled with this post more than I expected and enjoyed writing it more than I expected.  Here we go…

11 Random Facts About Me

1. I became a coffee drinker late in life, with respect to most of my friends.  I’m not sure why no one tried harder to turn me into a coffee drinker when I was in college.  If there is one failing of my undergrad education, this is it.
2. I really like how Peter Jackson directed the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, it was very detailed and accurate to the books.  I really don’t like how he directed The Hobbit “Trilogy,” why on earth would you invent extra content?  But, if I ignore that the movies are based on the book, I still enjoy them.
3. I enjoy donuts.  If I could make one type of junk food magically nutritious, I would choose donuts.
4. I don’t like going to the movies as much as I think I should, and I feel guilty about this.  I like movies in general, but I have to be really excited about seeing a movie to see it at the theater.  Movies are relatively inexpensive here in KL, but in the States it can be so expensive!
5. I can’t play the piano, and I kind of wish I could.
6. I like reading books on my Kindle, sometimes more than I like reading an actual book.  Don’t judge me.  Since my Kindle is back-lit, I can read at night when I’m fighting insomnia without turning on a light and keeping my husband awake.  It also automatically book marks where I am, so when I do fall asleep while I’m reading, it’s easy to find my place the next day.
7. We have two cats that are being fostered by friends of ours in Texas.  She sends photos and videos so we don’t miss them so much.  It’s not working.  We worry that the cats won’t like us anymore when we get back.
8. I like to cook, but I can’t stand cutting onions because it makes my eyes sting and it’s very painful.  This would be the one talent I wish I had, not to cry when I cut onions.
9. I don’t enjoy mushrooms.  Mushrooms could cease to exist, and my life would continue uninterrupted.
10. If bubble baths ceased to exist, I would be very, very sad.
11. I debated about this last one, because I don’t think it’s truly a random fact.  (People who know me in real life know this about me, but if you only know me through my blog you wouldn’t know this.  So I think it counts.)  I used to be a competitive figure skater (in synchronized skating) and I continue to participate in the sport as a coach, when I’m in Texas anyway.  My favorite students are my adult students because they don’t “have accidents” on the ice.

11 Questions from Pink Panther:

1.  What was the last thing you borrowed from a library (or from a friend)?
   • The last thing I intended to borrow from the library was a book called Orphan Train.  It was on my requests list for a long time, but then Amazon had it for my Kindle at a reduced price, so I bought it.
2. Which ‘80s pop culture icon are you? http://www.buzzfeed.com/perpetua/which-80s-pop-culture-icon-are-you#1oezkbh
   • Michael Jackson!  “You’re an extremely enthusiastic person, and tend to be rather whimsical.  You like flashiness and drama, but tend to be private when it comes to your personal life.”  I don’t really think I like flashiness or drama very much, but the rest of it sounds about right.
3. Favorite book? Or, if too difficult, favorite book you’ve read recently?
   • Easy: Make Way for Ducklings.  It’s got friendship, historical landmarks, how to deal with danger and troublesome situations, and it’s a great love story.  Plus, there is a statue in Boston and the city dresses the ducklings up for special events.
4. Cake or pie (and why)?
   • Either chocolate cake with chocolate frosting or apple pie.  I can’t possibly choose between them, and I prefer not to acknowledge that other types of cakes or pies even exist.  Both are delicious any time of the day and both can be eaten with ice cream.
5. Favorite post you’ve written or are at least somewhat proud of?
   • I don’t know about my favorite post, but my favorite part of my blog is Ranger Duck.  Having a sarcastic alter ego really entertains me.  I mean, I can be pretty sarcastic myself, but having a rubber duck to be really sarcastic and say the things I wish I could say is pretty great.  My husband and I are also having a lot of fun finding good photo ops for him.
6. A Youtube video that always makes you laugh.
   • This video of a baby tiger is awesome.
7. One thing you love?
   • Fuzzy socks.  Fleece socks are best, non-scratchy wool socks are acceptable.
8. One thing you hate?
   • When my feet are cold, see 7. above.
9. The best thing on tv (or Netflix, Hulu, etc.) right now is _____.
   • My favorite TV genre at the moment is cooking contest shows.  I like Top Chef, but I haven’t seen it in some time, Master Chef, and Iron Chef, but I will watch almost any cooking reality show.  I’m currently binge watching the complete series of How I Met Your Mother.  The only current American TV show we get here (that we would normally watch at home) is Blacklist.  That’s a good one, too.
10. A song you always pump up when it plays on the radio (or on shuffle).
    • Tessie, by Dropkick Murphys.  It’s always a struggle not to pretend I’m conducting an orchestra when this comes on my iPod.
11. This is really for my own purposes: any bad (or good) movie recommendations?
    • I have a soft spot in my heart for Tommy Boy.  I refuse to say whether I think this counts as a bad movie or a good movie.

11 bloggers I nominate for this award:

(Sidebar: To be honest, I didn’t check to see how many followers each of these blogs have.  If you have more than 200 followers, I think you should participate anyway- you know, if you want to.  I also didn’t look to see whether you have already been nominated and/or participated in this challenge.  Apologies for excess nominations!)

In the “fellow traveler and/or expat” category, in no particular order:

I appreciate and enjoy all of the following blogs because it’s nice to see what other expats are up to.  I’ve gotten travel ideas, read about shared experiences, had the opportunity to reflect on my role in the world, and in one case had a glimpse of life at home.  (One of the expats lives in Boston, which is close to where I grew up.)  Thanks for sharing your adventures and thoughts on the world!

• Meet Me on the Intersection of Photo Street and Fashion Avenue
• Experimental Expats
• Old England to New England
• Perelincolors
• Good-booking Woman
• Never Lost
• In Search of the End of the Sidewalk
• Life Sans Borders

In the “not an expat (that I know of)” category, in no particular order:

I appreciate and enjoy all of these blogs because I like the writing and the authors’ perspectives on the world.  Your posts collectively are sometimes humorous, sometimes thought provoking, sometimes somber and always well-done. Thanks for sharing your voice!

• Grasshopper Girls
• Away with Words
• Zen and ∏

11 Questions:

1. If you were awarded a two-week, all expenses paid, trip to anywhere, where would you go?  (We are assuming, of course, that this trip fits seamlessly in with your work, family, and other obligations.)
2. What is your favorite thing to cook, or to eat if you don’t like to cook?
3. If you had a magic wand and could make one type of junk food have redeeming nutritional qualities, what type of junk food would you pick?
4. For those of you who are expats, what is something from your host country that you think should be imported immediately to your home country?  This could be a food item, a cultural norm, a style of clothing…whatever.  For the non-expats, what is something you wish someone would innovate, specifically for your life?
5. What talent do you secretly wish you possessed?  (Super powers and “regular” talents are equally acceptable.)
6. If you could have any kind of creature for a pet, what would you pick?  (Realistic or not realistic are both OK.)
7. What’s your favorite non-book to read?  Could be a website, magazine, or something else.  Everyone asks about favorite books, but what about favorite “other” reading material?
8. What kinds of activities do you like to do when you travel?  Are you a museum person?  A sit on the beach person?  Someone who seeks out new activities to try?
9. If a new restaurant opens near you, and you get to pick what type of food they serve, what would you pick?
10. If this one thing ceased to exist in the world, your life would continue uninterrupted.  What’s that thing?
11. If this one thing ceased to exist in the world, you would be very sad.  What’s that thing?

Anyone not already nominated have a great answer for one (or more) of these questions?  I don’t see any reason to limit answers to only the folks I’ve nominated!