Category: Memes

  • Analyze Average Jane’s Handwriting

    I was tagged by Bea to participate in this, so I’ve quickly thrown together a photograph displaying my horrible handwriting.

    Pangram

    1. Choose a pangram of your liking.
    2. Write it on a piece of paper and sign it with your blog name or online handle.
    3. Take a picture and post it to the flickr group, your blog, myspace, facebook or all of them.
    4. Link back or trackback to Logtar’s post.
    5. Tag five people.

    I’ll let y’all tag yourselves for this one. I hate to put any pressure on people at the crack of dawn on a Monday.

  • Some of Average Jane’s Quirks

    I’ve been tagged for a meme by A Librarian, so of course I must comply.

    The Rules:
    a. list seven habits/quirks/facts about yourself
    b. tag seven people to do the same
    c. do not tag the person who tagged you or say that you tag "whoever wants to do it"

    My Quirks:
    1. I cannot stand to listen to prank calls on the radio. Whenever a DJ plays one, I have to change the station until it’s over. I feel pretty much the same way about "Candid Camera" and related TV shows, but for some reason, radio is more painful.
    2. There are certain movies that I own on DVD, but will stop and watch on TV any time I run across them while channel surfing. These include "O Brother Where Art Thou," "Ghostbusters," "Army of Darkness," and "Office Space," among others.
    3. I am always early to everything unless I make an effort to arrive "fashionably late." Even when I’m scheduled into a meeting at work, you’ll find me sitting in the empty conference room a minute or two before the start time waiting for everyone else to arrive.
    4. My basic addition skills rely heavily on either counting on my fingers or envisioning dice and counting the dots. That’s probably why I majored in English.
    5. Now that there’s such a thing as self-checkout at the grocery store (and Home Depot), I’d be happy if I never had to have someone scan my purchases for me again. I think I can do it much more quickly and efficiently. Even if I’m wrong about that, I still love to do it myself.
    6. I am prone to exaggeration when it comes to estimating time (just ask my husband). If I’ve been waiting for five minutes, I’ll say it’s been 15.
    7. I have a bad habit of being just organized enough to buy a card for someone, but not quite organized enough to fill it out and send it. There’s a stack of cards on my desk that includes two "get well" cards and two "new baby" cards. I don’t even know who I bought them for now.

    I’m tagging Goofy Girl, Blondie, Jennic, Laurie Ruettimann, Fog City MommyDes and Suzanne.

  • Average Jane Does the Privilege Meme

    Father went to college
    Father finished college
    Mother went to college
    Mother finished college

    Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
    Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
    Had more than 50 books in your childhood home

    Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
    Were read children’s books by a parent
    Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18
    Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18
    The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
    Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
    Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs
    Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs (half was a scholarship)
    Went to a private high school
    Went to summer camp
    Had a private tutor before you turned 18
    Family vacations involved staying at hotels (or sometimes "kitchenettes" where we could make our own meals – no camping, though)
    Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18
    Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
    There was original art in your house when you were a child
    Had a phone in your room before you turned 18.
    You and your family lived in a single family house
    Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home

    You had your own room as a child
    Participated in an SAT/ACT prep course
    Had your own TV in your room in High School.
    Owned a mutual fund or IRA in High School or College
    Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16
    Went on a cruise with your family
    Went on more than one cruise with your family
    Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
    You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family

    *Original source: The list is based on an exercise developed by Will Barratt, Meagan Cahill, Angie Carlen, Minnette Huck, Drew Lurker, Stacy Ploskonka at Illinois State University. The exercise developers ask that if you participate in this blog game, you acknowledge their copyright.

  • Average Jane, Lukewarm Water


    How evil are you?

    I decided to take this quiz that I’ve been seeing around a lot. I kind of expected to lean a little more toward good, but I guess my true colors shone through.

  • Earache My Eye, Says Average Jane

    I’m pressed for time today, so I’m picking up a variation on one of my favorite memes, found at Poppy Z. Brite’s LiveJournal. It came out with some pretty interesting answers this time, some of which make more sense to me if I take the lyrical content of the songs into consideration rather than just the titles.

    Directions:
    1. Put your iTunes, Windows Media Player, iPod etc. on shuffle.
    2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
    3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS

    1. IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY?
    Filthy/Gorgeous (Scissor Sisters)

    2. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF?
    Bad Sneakers (Steely Dan)

    3. WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
    You Can Leave Your Hat On (Joe Cocker)

    4. HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
    Mercy Street (Peter Gabriel)

    5. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
    I Won’t Hold You Back (Toto)

    6. WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
    Owed to Joe (BulletBoys)

    7. WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
    Land of A Thousand Words (Scissor Sisters)

    8. WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
    Crystal Ball (Styx)

    9. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
    Everybody Wants the Same Thing (Scissor Sisters)

    10. WHAT IS 2 + 2?
    I Am A Man of Constant Sorrow (Soggy Bottom Boys)

    11. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR EX?
    The Unforgiven (Metallica)

    12. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
    Du hast (Rammstein)

    13. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
    Cerulean Sea (Bill Bruford)

    14. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
    Calling Dr. Love (Kiss)

    15. WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
    Desert Plains (Judas Priest)

    16. WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
    Bump and Grind (David Lee Roth)

    17. WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
    Roundabout (Yes)

    18. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR?
    Beth (Kiss)

    19. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
    Everybody’s Fool (Evanescence)

    20. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
    Black Dog (Led Zeppelin)

    Now press Next one more time and use it as your title.

    If you decide to do the meme, let me know in the comments and I’ll link you into the post, just like:

  • Average Jane’s 2007 Summary

    I found this meme via SueBob (and others) and decided it was a good way to end the year. Tomorrow I’ll start the new year with the photos I keep promising.

    1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before?

    Dyed my hair blue. Gave up caffeine and STAYED off it.

    2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
    I’m not one for making resolutions, but I thought the year went pretty well as far as meeting general goals.

    3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

    Cagey had Anjali.

    4. Did anyone close to you die?

    No humans, but we lost our cats, Kato and Friday.

    5. What countries did you visit?

    I only traveled within the U.S.: Chicago, Los Angeles, San Jose and St. Louis.

    6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?

    Well, more money would always be nice. I’d also like to do my best to NOT fill up every moment of spare time with activity. Some downtime would be good and healthy for me.

    7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

    My birthday celebration was notable and memorable. I also really enjoyed BlogHer (it was my first trip to Chicago) and the Ford-sponsored trip to L.A.

    8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

    I’m pretty happy with all of the home improvements we did. They’re not a direct achievement in that I paid someone else to execute them, but I love the way they turned out.

    9. What was your biggest failure?

    Letting my original band project languish. There’s no excuse for my not having finished the lyrics to the first two batches of songs.

    10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

    The chronic acid reflux is still an issue, but it’s under control with medication – particularly since I stopped drinking caffeine.

    11. What was the best thing you bought?

    Most of my coolest new things were gifts: camera, iPod Shuffle, Xena the (former) kitten.

    12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

    My husband is really making me proud with his recording studio business. In less than a year, he’s taught himself an enormous amount about the technical and artistic aspects of recording engineering and production and he’s slowly but steadily building a client base on word of mouth alone. I think this coming year will be quite positive for him.

    13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

    Every politician in power right now, including the ones we recently elected to put a stop to all of the craziness of the past seven years.

    14. Where did most of your money go?

    Bills, bills, bills. And food.

    15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

    Three reallys, huh? I don’t think I’m capable of getting that excited about anything.

    16. What song will always remind you of 2007?

    I was actually more into new music this year than usual. Some memorable songs: "Side of a Bullet" by Nickelback, "I’m Not Going Away" by Ozzy Osbourne, "Ladies and Gentlemen" by Saliva, and the whole "Ten Thousand Fists" album by Disturbed.

    17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
 a) happier or sadder?
    Happier.
    b) thinner or fatter?
    Probably fatter.
    
c) richer or poorer?

    About the same or possibly slightly poorer.

    18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

    Songwriting, vacationing and reading.

    19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

    Procrastinating.

    20. How did you spend Christmas?

    Hanging out with the family at my sister’s house.

    21. Did you fall in love in 2007?

    Yes, with our new kitten, Xena, and our new cat, Velvet.

    22. What was your favorite TV program?

    My favorite new TV program is Pushing Daisies.

    23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

    No. I like to follow my Great-Aunt Edith’s dictate, "We don’t hate anyone…except Hitler and the Devil."

    24. What was the best book you read?

    I wasn’t as involved in book clubs this year as last year, but I remember enjoying "Water for Elephants" and "Special Topics in Calamity Physics." That’s cheating, though, because those are both books I’ve read recently and I can’t really remember what I read earlier in the year.

    25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

    I’m enjoying Lacuna Coil, whom I didn’t discover until this year.

    26. What did you want and get?

    One of my goals was to cook dinner at home more often, and I achieved that (up until the past few weeks).

    27. What did you want and not get?

    I wanted my grandparents’ estate to be settled once and for all, but it doesn’t seem to be happening before the end of calendar year 2007.

    28. What was your favorite film of this year?

    I didn’t see very many movies this year, but I noticed that I’d reviewed "Grindhouse" quite positively.

    29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

    This was actually the weekend before my birthday, but I went with my sister and two friends to a town about an hour away and spent the night at a bed and breakfast in an old mansion. We had a great time. As for my age, that’s not something one asks a lady.

    30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

    An hour more sleep per night.

    31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?

    14-year-old boy (t-shirts, jeans and Converse sneakers).

    32. What kept you sane?

    Family, friends, blog buddies, co-workers and kittehs.

    33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

    I’ve got nothin’ for this one.

    34. What political issue stirred you the most?

    I’ll steal SueBob’s answer: Access to health care.

    35. Who did you miss?

    My late grandparents and mother.

    36. Who was the best new person you met?

    Even if you’re only counting bloggers, I met dozens and dozens of cool people this year. It seems the older I get, the more I enjoy meeting new people.

    37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
    Good things come to those who wait.

    38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
    I’ll go with Joe Walsh, "I can’t complain but sometimes I still do." That’s a lyric that’ll always be appropriate and timeless.

    Linda at Sundry Mourning is tracking the responses to this meme, so if you decide to tag yourself, head over and let her know.

  • Average Jane’s Year of Posts

    I’m picking up a nice meme I found at Raspberry Latte.

    Rules: Paste the first line of your first post for each month,
    starting with January 2007. Like her, I decided to link in case
    anyone was feeling nostalgic.

    January – Welcome to 2007! Hope it’s going well for you so far.
    February – There’s a simple little meme going around with the theme, "When did you lose your Amazon virginity?"
    March – When I went to bed last night, I thought that a few rain-catching bowls
    on the living room floor would be the worst symptom of the storm.
    April – Just in time for April Fool’s Day, we learn that a Derbyshire resident
    (who wishes to remain anonymous – what are the odds?!) has discovered a
    mummified fairy.
    May – My husband and I went to a concert at a nightclub last night.
    June – I’m not much of a fan of Florida.
    July – My pre-birthday trip this weekend was absolutely wonderful.
    August – Yesterday was my first whirlwind day of the Ford Great Escape blogger extravaganza.
    September – So my cover band had its first gig on Saturday night.
    October – Late Sunday afternoon, I had a moment where I was convinced that it was only Saturday.
    November – Last night was Burrito Night at our house, so I decided to treat myself to a couple bottles of Jarritos soda at the grocery store.
    December – Look at this – I’ve gotten so conditioned to post daily that here I am posting on a Saturday.

    That was fun! Let me know if you decide to do the same thing.

  • Tag! Average Jane is It

    Monkey was kind enough to tag me for my final NaBloPoMo Wednesday meme. Without further ado (and in no particular order per category):

    8 passions in my life:
    music
    animals
    the Internet
    cooking
    yoga
    reading
    history
    and, of course, my hubby

    8 things to do before I die:
    Travel to see famous ancient sites throughout the world
    Fix up every room of my house the way I want it
    Write a novel or collection of essays
    Cook every recipe in my grandmother’s collection
    Perform at a large concert venue
    Take a drivers’ ed class at a racetrack
    Learn to play a musical instrument
    Make a measurable positive difference in the world

    8 things I often say:
    That was a bold choice.
    Holy schnikes!
    Get down from there! (cat on the counter)
    Ridonkulous
    Is there anything good on TV tonight?
    What’s our schedule look like today?
    I’m working on it right now.
    I’m headed to the store. Do you need anything?

    8 books I read recently:
    "Sex, Murder and a Double Latte" by Kyra Davis
    "Passion, Betrayal and Killer Highlights" by Kyra Davis (hey, it’s a series)
    "Hack" by Melissa Plaut
    "Clublife" by Rob the Bouncer
    "Water for Elephants" by Sarah Gruen
    "A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again" by David Foster Wallace
    "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
    "Damsel Under Stress" by Shanna Swendson

    8 songs that mean something to me:
    I’ve wracked my brain on this one and I can’t come up with anything. Of course there are lots of songs I like, but none that have any particular significance in my life. My husband and I don’t have an "our song" and I didn’t get to choose any music for my wedding. Aside from a few songs that stick in my head because they were played at funerals, I just don’t have anything to put here.

    8 qualities I look for in a friend:
    humor
    smarts
    flexibility
    easy-goingness
    interestingness
    common interests
    fun-ness
    supportiveness

    8 people I’m passing this on to:
    Pharmgirl
    Huts
    Kennon
    Keith
    Colleen
    Joolie
    Megan
    Suebob

    Tag! You’re it!

  • Average Jane Chooses

    I’ve stolen yet another meme, this one from MegFowler.com.

    The choices we make sometimes say a lot about who we are. Sometimes
    they say nothing about who we are. But it’s funny — even the totally
    silly choices can end up dropping us into huge debates with our family
    and friends.

    (Actually, I think it’s more interesting to note the choices we
    struggle with… or just don’t care about at all. And the ones we admit
    to, as opposed to the ones we hide.)

    But today I don’t want to hear about definitions or shades of gray
    or your existential struggle or “I need to know context!” or qualifiers
    or “well, generally I think I like this, but it depends…”

    Just choose.

    Scary, I know.

    (And one more parenthetical remark for good measure. Thank you.)

    ***

    Coffee or tea? Tea (decaf)
    PC or Mac? Mac
    Kids or no? No
    Political or no? Yes, political.
    Summer or winter? Summer
    Artificial sweeteners or sugar? Sugar
    Fries or salad? I’ll be honest: fries. But I like salads, too.
    Lake or ocean? Ocean
    Own or rent? Own
    E-mail or phone? E-mail!!!
    Traditional medical care or natural remedies? Mostly traditional with a soupçon of natural
    Vegetarian (or vegan) or carnivore? Omnivore
    Apples or oranges? Apples
    Follow celeb culture or no? More than I ought to.
    Liberal or conservative? Liberal
    Rural or urban? Suburban (from a rural background)
    Car or SUV? Car
    Marriage: necessary or no? Not strictly necessary, but I got married anyway.
    Cable or not? Cable! Must have cable!
    Campsite or hotel? Hotel
    Alcohol or no? Yes, please.
    Up early or up late (if given the choice)? These days, I’m better off up early.
    News online or news on tv? Online all the way.

    Meg had her readers answer in the comments. Feel free to do the same!

  • Average Jane Steals a Meme

    Just when I was wondering where I would find my first meme for Meme Wednesday, Fi posted an easy one. Apparently these are supposed to have one-word answers, so here are mine:

       1. Where is your mobile phone? Purse
       2. Describe your boyfriend/girlfriend? Dedicated
       3. Your hair? Blue
       4. Your mother? Assertive
       5. Your father? Tough
       6. Your favorite item? Laptop
       7. Your dream last night? Forgettable
       8. Your favorite drink? Water
       9. Your dream car? Tesla
      10. The room you are in? Livingroom
      11. Your ex? Past
      12. Your fear? Poverty
      13. What do you want to be in 10 years? Content
      14. Who did you hang out with last night? Husband
      15. What you’re not? Famous
      16. The last thing you did? Surf
      17. What are you wearing? Robe
      18. Your favorite book? Reread
      19. Last thing you ate? Sandwich
      20. Your life? Happy
      21. Your mood? Mellow
      22. Your friends? Fun
      23. What are you thinking about right now? Showering
      24. Your car? Thrifty
      25. What are you doing at the moment? Blogging
      26. Your summer? Distant
      27. Your relationship status? Married
      28. What is on your TV? Plants
      29. When is the last time you laughed? Yesterday
      30. Last time you cried? Forgotten
      31. School? No

    * * * * *

    I was so tired and bored last night that I went to bed at 8:30 p.m. Now I’m up at 4:30 a.m. and seriously regretting that decision, as it will potentially screw up my schedule for the rest of the week. Sigh.