I'm random, thanks for asking.

1) What's the best idea you've gotten from the internet?
Less idea, more inspiration, from food blogs. I was first introduced to Pioneer Woman's blog long before she was famous by someone (no longer) on LJ. At that time, she had just started posting recipes with step-by-step photos. I never made that grilled steak salad that immediately grabbed my attention, but I also never forgot it. After a while, she made a separate section just for cooking, and then started linking other food blogs. I was hooked ever since.

2) What's the best advice you've heard from someone much older than you?
Not in these exact words, but basically just because someone says it about you doesn't mean it's true.

3) What advice would you give your younger self?
Love yourself as you are, no matter what you look like.

4) What advice have you received, but chose not to take?
My mom and sister have often given me unwanted advice. Mainly, get my teeth fixed.

5) Do you need advice on anything going on in your life these days?
Don't we all?

To be fair, the questions were posted yesterday. But, I love doing thefridayfive no matter what day.

1) Read any good books lately?
Yes! How The Word Is Passed by Clint Black. I'm also reading through cookbooks and sticky-tabbing recipes I want to make.

2) Taken any good baths lately?
Having a big bathtub is a dream of mine that will never come true. Sarah's bathroom has the combo tub/shower, I just have a shower. So, I never get a bath at all. I could have at my sister's house in December, but I wasn't in the mood then.

3) Do you read paper books, or do you prefer another format?
Paper books mainly, and the occasional audiobook.

4) Where's the most comfortable place in your home?
Probably where I am now, sitting on the couch.

5) What's the most relaxing sound you can put on?
I like music in the background, but the most soothing sound is rain. Ocean waves too.

I meant to do this thefridayfive yesterday, but didn't get onto my laptop until late in the evening.

1) What sort of alarm wakes you up in the morning?
the alarm on my phone

2) If you can sleep in, how late to you sleep?
I'm usually awake, really awake, by 10am My weekend alarm goes off at 9 but I never get up then. I often wake up before my alarm, like today at about 8:30.

3) What's for breakfast?
I don't usually eat breakfast. On work days, I'll have fruit snacks when I get hungry. Otherwise I sip on my iced coffee with milk. On weekends, I'll eat breakfast when and if I'm hungry.

4) What makes you late to your next big thing?
I'm painfully early to just about everything.

5) What's your favorite caffeinated beverage?
My daily drink, iced coffee with milk.

thefridayfive FOR 24 DECEMBER 2021

1) If you had to build a Christmas tree with just items around your house, what would definitely be part of it?
Baking pans, and items from my stash of chocolate chips and baking bars.

2) What's your favorite holiday to decorate for?
I only decorate for Christmas.

3) What are you best at baking?
brownies and cookies

4) What memorable gift do you still appreciate?
It was actually a few weeks earlier in December, but when Natalie surprised me with a fake tree and some lights that first Christmas I wouldn't be able to go home.

5) What would be a good reindeer name?
Spaetzle.

If you could design your life exactly how you'd like, how famous would you be?
Not famous at all. I don't need strangers getting all up in my business.

How often would you travel?
As often as possible.

How many people would live with you?
This depends more on the WHO than how many. I'm ok living alone, I'm cool with my current roommate.

How often would you eat out at restaurants?
A few times a week.

What new hobby would you get into?
I hardly give enough time to my current hobbies. I'd bake more often, branching out into new territory.

What's your favorite color this week?
Same as the last many weeks - blue, green, and teal

What job would be very unsuitable for you?
Commission-based sales, especially if I had to make cold calls to strangers.

What's your favorite Olympic sport?
Gymnastics, swimming, diving, figure skating

Have you ever found yourself stuck out in the rain?
Kinda. It was raining when Natalie and I were walking around York, and it also rained when we were at Edinburgh Castle. We ducked into shops to stay dry, but really didn't have anywhere to go. Back when I was teaching, there were a few times we had to walk through downpours to get to lunch, or during car line after school.

What does the tooth fairy do with our teeth?
Good freaking question!

1. What sign marks the end of the summer for you?
Labor Day. When Target puts all the back to school stuff on clearance. Used to be when I actually went back to work as a teacher. Weather-wise, summer here ends about mid-October.

2. What plans, if any, do you have for the rest of the summer?
Work, including the strongly advised and/or non-optional OT hours they keep handing down. At least we get to choose the OT hours, as opposed to a few years ago when we'd be assigned 5 hour shifts, usually on one of our unscheduled days.

3. How would you describe your summer/winter so far – too hot, too cold, too wet, too buggy or what?
Monsoon actually happened this year. It rained this morning, then warmed up again, but the wind has picked up in the last hour. It won't rain, but it brings the temp down. Along with more rain (which is really not much but still more than last summer), it's not been as hot. I think last year had a record number of days over 110 degrees.

4. Summer often means open windows and the sharing of conversations, music, games and so forth with everyone. What sort of neighbor are you? Loud or considerate?
Hahahahahahahahahahahaha...hahahaha. Windows won't open until at least September, and that's only at night. I'm a considerate neighbor and try not to be loud.

5. Aside from spouses and pets, have you had any trouble with pests recently?
We still have the gnat issue. It's only like 1-2 a day. Still can't figure out where they come from. Oh, and today when I asked Sarah to check the air filter size, she found a termite trap behind it. I don't know how I didn't see that before. No termites or evidence of them were found when the house was inspected, and I haven't seen anything since moving in. But yikes, something to think about.

1. What are you going to do this weekend?
Relax. Hopefully not have any side effects from the second vaccine dose I got about 2 hours ago.

2. What’s your favorite way to spend time?
On the couch, with my laptop. Ha. Or going for a drive.

3. What’s the most useless thing you own that you would never get rid of?
I have this little stick figure girl, made out of wire, that I made freshman year of college. I think we were in someone's dorm room, doing random crafty things. I must have been playing with a piece of wire when I noticed it looked like a head with hair that flipped up at the ends. Then I decided to make a body for it. The stick figure hung from my rearview mirror for a while, then I think on the fridge. Then I think she was in a box, or my bedside table...wherever she was, I found her again a few weeks ago. Showed it to Sarah and said I know it's silly but I just can't get rid of it.

4. Have you started planning your next vacation?
Yes. I think I'll take a week and a half off in June, and go stay at my sister's, or my mom's. This time around, I'll also go visit friends. I also want to stop at Downtown Disney on the way and buy Disney crap I don't need. I can't get into the park since I'm not a California resident, but DTD is open to the public.

5. Are you very active, or do you prefer to just relax in your free time or is it one and the same to you?
I'm pretty inactive, sadly, I really need to start exercising again. Not sure if the workout room here is open, but it's small and I don't want to use the treadmill while wearing a mask. I also hope to start being more social now that I've gotten both vaccine doses.