Sunday, October 16, 2011

A Little Bit About Me

Me at 18 Months
I've seen this here and there on various blogs-- most recently at ExUrbanis where Debbie shared a bit about herself. I know that I enjoy learning more about the people behind their blogs, and I thought I was past due sharing more about myself.

Let's start with the photo to the left. That's yours truly at the tender age of eighteen months, before I learned to hate being in front of a camera.

Let's get this show on the road!

Age: 56

Bed Size: King. I like to sprawl.

Chore that you hate: I am not a domestic goddess. In another life I'd swear I had an army of servants... or maybe I was so poor that I didn't have anything worth cleaning. I gotta pick one? *sigh* I'd rather take a beating than clean toilets!

Dogs: I haven't had one since burglars killed Zack, my Wire-Haired Fox Terrier. He was defending his home, and one of the *&^%*$%# took the fireplace poker to him.

Essential start to your day: Waking up. Hard to start the day without doing that. Stop being a smart *ss? Okay. I am not a morning person. It takes me a couple of hours of drinking tea and reading email, etc. before I'm fit for public consumption.

Favorite colors: Blue. Moss green. Lots of 'em, now that I think about it. Why limit myself?

Gold or Silver: Used to be gold. Now it's silver. What can I say? We've got turquoise and silver jewelry here in Arizona that's so beautiful it takes your breath away.

Height: A smidgeon over 5'9"

Instruments you play: The computer keyboard. I love music, and I love to sing, but I never learned to play an instrument. If I had, I would've learned to play the Spanish guitar.

Job Title: Anyone want to hire a book blogger with flexible hours?

Kids: None.

Live: Phoenix, Arizona.

Mother-in-Law's name: Hopefully Denis won't give me a "look," but I can't remember. The lady died many years ago, well before I knew Denis, so I never met her.

Nicknames: I've never really had any because most people assume that Cathy is short for Catherine or Cathleen. Cathy is short for... Cathy. I did go through a rough patch at work once where I had to mentally gird my loins just to make it in the door. I always had on my sunglasses, and the people who let me in the door started calling me "The Terminator." Trust me. If I feel like it, I can intimidate you right out of your shoes.

Overnight hospital stays: (1) When I was five, I had a finger shut and locked in a car door. The doctor refused to change the bandage, and gangrene set in. Obviously I had to go to the hospital to get that taken care of. (Yes, I do still have every bit of all my pinkies. One just looks slightly mangled.)  (2) When I was seven, I went in for a tonsillectomy.  (3) This past January, I had a total hysterectomy due to cancer. As they say back home... now I'm fine as frog hair!

Pet Peeves: People who don't take responsibility for their own actions.

Quote from a movie: "Oh... but look what I've got!" (Barbra Streisand to Robert Redford in The Way We Were) It sums up how I feel about my life right now.

Right or Left handed: Right.

Siblings: None. I am an only child and an only grandchild. (Now do you understand why I learned to hate being in front of a camera?)

Time you wake up: Between 9 and 10 AM-- which doesn't sound all that decadent if you know that I'm awake until at least 3 AM. Don't worry. I can fall out of bed much earlier. Before I was downsized, I got up at 4 AM every morning to go to work!

Underwear: I'm never commando when I leave the house.

Vegetable you hate: Artichokes. Note that last syllable....

What makes you run late: I don't. I'm normally about 10 minutes early.

X-Rays you've had: (1) I blew out my first knee when I was twelve. The x-ray tech was not having a good day.  (2) I underwent major surgery a few months ago. It would be easier to tell you what machines I wasn't run through!

Yummy food that you make: My Italian chicken chili's pretty good. So's my black bean and sausage posole. Now I'm on a "from scratch" quick bread kick. Cranberry oatmeal bread, anyone?

Coatimundi
Zoo animal: I love the coatimundis at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.


There you go-- now you know a bit more about me! I'd like to know a bit more about you. Care to answer one of these?

27 comments:

  1. What a nice post. It's great "knowing" you better :)

    http://www.ManOfLaBook.com

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  2. What an interesting life. The story ab out your dog broke my heart. There are evil people in the world.

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  3. Wow, some nasty stuff's happened to you, huh? Sorry to hear it. Completely with you on the housekeeping front. I would totally pay a maid if I could justify the expense.

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  4. Wait, the doctor refused to change your bandage??? Yikes!!

    I hate to clean. I like a clean house. When the kids were small and I was doing a lot of volunteering at their school I paid someone to come twice a month. Let me tell you, we all loved Toni. Now I can't justify the expense and it's amazing what I can put up with ;-)

    I have the same pet peeve.

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  5. Cathy - How fun! I really enjoyed learning a little more about you.

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  6. This was fun! If you find someone looking for book bloggers to hire, will you put in a good word for me?

    My first name is Kathryn, but my mother is the only one who calls me that. She says "If I wanted you to be called Kathy, I would have named you Kathy."

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  7. I love the picture of you as a really little girl. I have one of me as a baby that makes me look like an American Indian child. Must look it up. I hate housework too. As I think about this, I guess it might be fun to do one of my own. Stay tuned.

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  8. I am glad I am not the only who takes a few ours to get myself ready for the day! I absolutely love that baby pic of you. So cute!

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  9. Thank you for sharing...I loved learning about you...you sound unique...different...edgy.

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  10. What an adorable photo! That romper you're wearing looks hand-made. I had a cherished hand-made romper from my husband that my daughter wore.

    Great post!

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  11. Thanks for posting the interesting little bits about yourself. I like knowing more about the person behind the blog... and it helps me remember the blog, if that makes sense.

    I may do this one myself. Now that I've been downsized (as of Friday, we have that in common!) I'll have lots more time to read and write. And I'm also a book blogger available for hire.

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  12. This is terrific! I love your answers...hilarious. I see that others have done this too, so if it's okay with you I might post my answers on my blog. I might play around a bit and add a few other questions. We'll see.

    Thanks!

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  13. Thanks, Zohar!

    Jodie-- You know, I seldom think I've had nasty stuff happen to me. I think of it as life. Savor and remember the good bits. Learn from the bad, deal with it, and move on. :)

    Mary-- My mother took me over to his office at least twice times that I remember, and his attitude was that the little woman didn't know medicine. One morning, I stretched, and that left arm came close to Mom's nose. She took a whiff, went ballistic, and the next thing you know, I was in the hospital.

    Margot-- Thanks!

    Kathy-- I certainly will!

    Barbara-- Woo hoo!

    Stephanie-- I take after my grandmother. We all knew not to talk to her for a couple of hours after she woke up!

    Patty-- Hmmm... yes, I do feel edgy sometimes!

    Myckyee-- It is handmade. My grandmother made most of my clothes until I was a teenager, and even then she still contributed to my wardrobe. My senior prom dress was custom-made for me. I didn't know it, but mothers of my grade school classmates were going to my Mom asking her where she bought my clothes because their daughters wanted one of the dresses I wore!

    Leslie-- Oh, no! We'll have to form our own agency. :(

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  14. Joe-- They also made themselves a meal and sat down to eat it while Zack was lying on the floor, dying. (I came home to find him and didn't get him to the vet in time.)

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  15. Marie-- Goody! I'll look forward to it!

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  16. I really enjoyed this post and getting to know you a little bit better.

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  17. Hi Cathy,
    Like you I can't have a nickname from my name as it's only four letters long.
    I'm an only child as well and 49.
    I'm mom to a Maine Coon cat,
    I'm a children's librarian.
    I used to play the piano, but it's been way too long since I tickled the ivories.

    Love your blog

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  18. Cathy, this was great! And that picture of your is precious. I've actually met you and you still have that gorgeous smile. :-)

    Don't want to think about that little finger. Ewww! Could we be personal book shoppers for people at the Poisoned Pen? I could swing a flight out there once in a while and we could add to everyone's TBR pile? Think it would fly? LOL

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  19. Cathy - so great to get to know you better! I LOVE the photo - you could be a poster child for the fifties.

    I'm ---I'd say 'gobsmacked, but that sounds too flippant--- about your wee Zack - what a tragic event.

    But I laughed out loud at several of your other answers - we should sit down & have coffee someday. If you're ever in Nova Scotia...

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  20. What a fab post! I love learning more about you! I need to do this post soon too.

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  21. Thanks, Cheryl!

    Page-- Thanks so much for joining in! What's your cat's name? I've heard so much about that breed!

    Kay-- Aw shucks. You just made me smile again! As for your idea, I certainly do wish it would fly!

    Debbie-- Poster child for the fifties, eh? I dunno about that. LOL We are trying to make plans for a UK trip in 2013. I don't know about the logistics of booking a layover in NS, though. :(

    Leah-- I hope you come over and leave a link just in case I don't see it!

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  22. Oh, your poor little dog, how dreadful. But the rest was a lovely post and it's so nice to get to know a bit more about you! I love that blue and silver jewellery - when I was a kid we used to have friends in Arizona who sent us a magazine called Arizona Highways every month, and it had wonderful pictures - it made very exotic reading in Highland Scotland. The coatimundi is cute, too.

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  23. Jodie-- Denis and I send our niece in Rochdale (outside of Manchester) Arizona Highways subscriptions. She's come over to visit us a few times, and we love taking her around the state.

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  24. I´d love to hire you for my blog, but I´m afraid I can´t pay any wages.

    What a sad story about your dog. If it had been mine, I would have crucified those burglars in a truly nasty story!

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  25. Dorte-- I refuse to tell anyone what I've done to those killers in the privacy of my imagination.

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  26. LOVE it!! What a great way to get to know your secret-side...

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  27. IAB-- Well... not exactly. I'm still keeping that side under wraps!

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