Crazy Eights Meme

Jersey Girl tagged me for the crazy eights meme. As my blogging has been rather light of late, and I didn’t want to be a spoilsport, I thought I’d play.

Eight Things I’m Passionate About :
1. Family
2. Friends
3. God
4. Baseball
5. Writing
6. Reading
7. Philosophical ponderings / questions of humanity
8. Art

Eight Things I Want to Do Before I Die :
1. Raise my kids to competent, happy adulthood.
2. Publish my novel (and hopefully multiple novels)
3. Spend some time in Sicily
4. Travel
5. Live in the home of my dreams
6. See the Cubs win the World Series
7. Take an oil painting class
8. Build enough of a nest egg to make sure my kids have a good start

Eight Things that I Say Often
1. It is what it is
2. Boobalah, booba, or boo (pet names I call my kids)
3. Night night, sleep tight, (they finish with, ‘don’t let the bed bugs bite)
4. Oh for fuck’s sake... (I’d like to say I never say this around the kids, I sometimes slip)
5. Wait a minute... (the universal phrase of parenting)
6. Get your shoes on... (seems like we’re always heading out the door somewhere)
7. Finish your milk (at least three times a day)
8. I love you (far more than three times a day)

Eight Books I’ve Read Recently or Am Reading Currently
1. Writer Mama by Christina Katz
2. Lottery by Patricia Wood (just started this and it’s fantastic!)
3. The Reincarnationist by M. J. Rose
4. The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
5. Interred with their Bones by Jennifer Lee Carrell
6. Description (elements of fiction writing) by Monica Wood
7. For One More Day by Mitch Albom
8. February Flowers by Fan Wu

Eight Songs I Can Listen To Over and Over
1. The Game of Love by Michelle Branch
2. American Pie by Don McLean
3. Johnny Come Lately or Desperado by The Eagles
4. Sunday Morning by Maroon Five
5. Wreck of the Day by Anna Nalick
6. Cinema Paradiso Theme song and whole soundtrack
7. Go Cubs Go
8. Sweet Home Chicago

Eight Things that Attract Me to My Friends
1. Good sense of humor
2. Fun and lighthearted
3. Loyal (not prone to gossip and backstabbing)
4. Thoughtful
5. Family oriented (close to their parents and siblings)
6. Not judgmental or mean spirited
7. Baseball fans
8. Similar interests – reading, writing, art, etc

Things I Learned Last Year
1. It only takes one person to make a negative difference (the same is true for a positive difference)
2. Sometimes wanting a thing with the whole of your heart just doesn’t make a damn bit of difference
3. Losing a dream means you need to find a new one, wallowing means you deserved to lose
4. You can’t control anyone but yourself
5. I enjoy hearing about others’ success
6. How to make Oreo balls (cream cheese and crushed Oreos dipped in white chocolate... mmmmm)
7. A bit about the rules of football (my son plays now so I had to learn a little... )
8. It’s hard to tighten your writing without losing your voice... tough balance to find

Sharing the Love:

I know, these things are meant to be shared and I should be giving you eight new bloggers to do this little ditty.... If you feel like doing this one, great, leave a link so I can go see your answers... consider yourselves universally tagged, but I’m not going to hold it against you if you don’t do this one..