Thursday, July 05, 2007

I'm Back--With My First Meme!

Hello again! Sorry for the hiatus. The reason why I’ve seemingly abandoned this blog is because I and three other students were sent by the CJF (Center for the Jewish Future) to Scotland for two weeks to run programs there on Shavuot and the following week. ‘But wait!’ you ask, ‘Shavuot was ages and ages ago!’ ‘Ah,’ I respond, ‘since I got back I’ve been putting off writing here because I feel like I must write something about my Scottish experience, but there is so much to say that I don’t know where to start, and therefore I simply haven’t started!’ Shame on me, I know. It takes being tagged by Chana for a meme (my first one!) to bring me back. So ta-da—I’m back!

[Btw, if there is interest in a Scotland post, please leave a topic suggestion or semi-specific question in the comments and perhaps I will choose the most promising and someday get around to writing it. Someone please force me to—I really need to do it already.]

And now, without further ado, the “Eight Things About Me” meme that has already tagged every single blogger I read:

1. I don’t have pierced ears, but I do have an earring fetish—I buy pierced earrings and convert them into clips. I therefore own an obscene number of colorful and funky earrings, and they make me happy.

2. Sometimes I pretend that I’m British. I love their accents--a lot. Two of my very close friends are British. I’ve been to England twice (I was there for 2.5 days in the middle of my Scotland trip). When in England I usually speak with a British accent. I have been taken for a Brit several times. Even in America, I often adopt British spelling to make myself seem more authentic.

3. I am an English Literature major and believe strongly in the ability of fiction to help us better understand and appreciate the world that we live in and the people in it. That said, my own favourite thing to write is creative non-fiction (for those of you who don’t know, that basically means stories about real life, non-fiction that reads like fiction—but it also includes descriptions of interesting people and places, no plot required, and personal essays).

4. Call me naïve, but I am a sucker for happy endings. Though I appreciate and value many books that are sad, I can’t bring myself to like them. I figure that real life is difficult enough—why depress myself for fun and recreation? I also won’t watch sad movies (though I rarely watch movies anyway). And I absolutely cannot stand watching violence. Even the slightest amount literally makes me ill. Give me Happily Ever After every time, please, thanks.

5. I have an unhealthy obsession with ice cream. It is my weakness. Especially ice cream that contains chocolate in some form. Vanilla just isn’t worth it. And while ice cream alone is good (as long as I’m not sad), ice cream with a friend (or many!) is seventeen times better.

6. When I am sad, I don’t eat.

7. The older I get, the more I love and appreciate my family, especially my parents.

8. My two recurring nightmares are:

  • I’m supposed to be somewhere important, but instead I’m in my room, unable to find anything suitable to wear. I comb through my closet, but nothing in it fits me nicely or looks good. As the minutes pass, and I get later and later for the event, I grow frantic, throwing clothes around in a frenzy. I wake up incredibly stressed out.
  • My house is infested with bugs of some kind, or mice, or lizards, etc. They are everywhere I turn, and no one but me seems concerned about it. I shriek a lot, and desperately search for somewhere to go that will be infestation-free. I wake up feeling covered in crawly things, and let out a huge sigh of relief when I discover it was only a dream.

Since pretty much everyone I read has been tagged, I shall simply issue a general invitation to do this meme if you'd like--consider yourself tagged by me!

13 comments:

Ezzie said...

Okay, how about: What the heck did you end up doing in Scotland, how was it, was it inspiring, did you have the effect you wanted to...?!

2) July 5th is a bad day to say that one. :)

6) Do you ever!?

7) I think that's true for a lot of people...

8) sounds very familiar.

Anonymous said...

What is a meme, and how is it that word pronounced?

Were you ever taken for a Scottish person?

Anonymous said...

Oh, and I really like your self-portrait. :-)

SJ said...

Ez - thanks for the *specific* Scotland suggestion. :) That's why I'm overwhelmed!

Jackie - definition I found on some random site: "A blog meme is a type of Internet meme that requires active participation by the blogger and rarely traces back to an originating source. It's often a series of questions that a blogger answers to share some personal perspective or experience on random topics." Basically, if you get tagged to do a meme, you do it (or don't, if you're feeling defiant). Once you do it, you tag more people to do it, and the cycle continues.

I actually do not know the correct pronunciation of the word. Someone help?

Chana said...

SJ'S BACK!

I have missed you!

And I am excited that you have returned.

Especially amusing was the fact that I could hear your voice saying these things. I heard you speaking. In this post, you really write like you speak- especially the ice cream- and then it's ack, I miss SJ!

I agree about the fiction and the ice cream and huzzah for earrings! :-)

Scraps said...

Ooh, I wanna hear all about Scotland! And I'm happy you FINALLY updated. :)

1) I love your earrings. And I know a few other people who also don't have pierced ears who also like fun earrings.

2) Heehee! That's fun! I like the South African accent myself. And I noticed the way you spelled "favourite". ;-)

3) Ooh, now I want to read more stuff you wrote.

4) Call me a sucker for punishment, but I like sad stuff. I like happy endings too, but a lot of times I feel like they're totally unrealistic and sappy and that annoys me.

5) My favorite ice cream flavors always involve caramel. :)

6) Then I hope you always stay happy. And if you're not, call me and I'll tell you corny jokes until you have to smile.

7) I know what you mean. I especially appreciate my parents when I see how sane they seem compared to some of my friends' parents...scary thought.

8a) I'm not sure why this is a recurring nightmare; you always look good!
8b) Then you should never move to the Heights, or your nightmare might become reality.

Scraps said...

Oh, and meme is pronounced "MEEM".

(although I like to joke that they're about Me Me)

the apple said...

Yay! You're back!

I wanna hear more about Scoootlahnd, and what your favourite moments there were, and if you talked with a Scoootish accent while you were there!

And I want to eat your earrings. They all look like candy!

SJ said...

Chana - thanks, Dearest! I miss you too!

Scraps - thanks for the friendly pushes to update :) and for the lovely comments!

Apple - please don't eat my earrings, I want to keep them!

Northern Light said...

SJ, you are such a fabulous writer! Your voice is so clear, and so delightful. I, too, didn't know what a meme is, and something about being "tagged" for one is a bit ominous. And I, too, am eager for your post(s) on Scotland! Here's a start: What did you find most surprising about the country? What was the one thing you did there that felt like an accomplishment? What one person that you met will you always remember--and why?

About the meme, I especially appreciate #7...and I share the sentiment because my parents are gone and I wish I could appreciate them more... Also, I agree with your dislike of violence in movies and appreciate your sensitivity. And your indulgence in chocolate ice cream, pardon me, shows a need for comfort--may your life only be as sweet as all your posts!

Moshe said...

1) When I was a girl, I had pierced ears. lol, omg, fyi, btw...get it?

2) Funny - I always confuse your accent for a New Yorker's.

3) Yes, yes. But you are forgetting the evil that is often caused by literature. Take Jane Eyre, for instance. The whole feminist movement sprung forth from that 500+ page novel. She could never be satisfied and always needed more! When she finally left her aunt's house to Lowood, was she pleased? No! Suddenly she just had to get out and explore the world. When she is hired as governess of Thornfield, does THAT satisfy her?? Of course not. In fact, after returning from her first night out, she is saddened at the "stagnation" of her life -- despite the fact that she is finally "freed" from her aunt's oppression and the restraints of Lowood. Of course I understand the resistance to a life spent "making pudding in the kitchen" as she puts it -- but there should be a limmit to her feminism. So yes...literature is important. But we must never forget the other side of the equation. ------- just kidding....somewhat.

4) Happy ever after belongs in one movie only: The Sound of Music. In the rest of them please bring on suspense and drama, thank you very much.

5) An obsession with ice cream can hardly be considered unhealthy. It is simply a product of the extra X chromosome. A natural defect I might add.

6) When I am sad, I can't get enough food.

7) Good.

8) a - that's why I always go to bed wearing the clothing I plan to don the next day. b - again, if you were wearing pants - like I do - you wouldn't be bitten by the bugs.

izzzle......

SJ said...

Northern Light - thanks for the kind words.

Moshe - you are full of nonsense. :)

Erachet said...

"Even in America, I often adopt British spelling to make myself seem more authentic." I do that, too! Only it's usually by accident because most of the books I read are by British authors so a lot of spelling which comes naturally to me is actually British. I also often don't notice this until someone points it out and I go, "wait--really???"

"Call me naïve, but I am a sucker for happy endings. Though I appreciate and value many books that are sad, I can’t bring myself to like them. I figure that real life is difficult enough—why depress myself for fun and recreation? I also won’t watch sad movies" - same here. I've never seen movies like Titanic and A Walk to Remember because I just can't bring myself to. I don't have any desire to.

"Oh, and meme is pronounced "MEEM"."
....oops. I've been calling it Me-Me in my head. Haha.

(SJ, now you must start reading my blog again!)