Beautiful Blogs

I’m generally not one for the internet meme thing, but after a really rough day, I was awarded this by my amazing sister:

Of course, with all great honors come great responsibilities, and the Beautiful Blogger award is no exception:

1. Thank the person giving you this award.
2. Copy the award to your blog
3. Place a link to their blog
4. Name 7 tidbits people don’t know about you from reading your blog.
5. Nominate 7 Bloggers.
6. Place a link to those Bloggers.
7. Leave a comment letting those Bloggers know about the award.

So let me commence:

Thanks, Megan.  You are one of the most honest, courageous, and giving people I’ve ever met in my life.  I’m constantly astounded at your strength and character, your openness and ability to love others.  On more than one occasion, you’ve made me feel important when I was alone.  I hope both your husband and your daughter (and even your dog) recognize how lucky they are to have you as a part of their lives.  And I’m so grateful you’re a part of mine.

http://nelsfamily.blogspot.com.  It’s mommy blogging done right.  Check it out.

________

I’m brutally open on my blog, and I feel like the only things I haven’t said here are the things I can’t say because doing so would be detrimental to me in some way.  But I’ll try:

1. When I was young, and our washing machine was broken, I used to offer to go to the Laundromat and do the clothes so my mom could do other things.  She’d drop me off, and I’d stay there for two or three hours and do laundry.  I was, like, 11 or something.  It sounds altruistic, but the only reason I really wanted to go is because I’d take money and buy the junk food in the vending machines my mom would never let me get otherwise.  (Hostess Fruit Pies, for instance.)  Also, most of that money for the vending machines was stolen from my dad’s junk drawer in the form of loose change.
2. I don’t like New York City.  I went once as a senior in college and had such a bad time I’m not sure I could ever enjoy going there again. 
3. I’m not a live to work kind of person.  I’m a work to live kind of person.
4. And one point or another, I have played the following instruments: Piano, Tin Whistle, Fife, Trumpet, French Horn, Trombone, Baritone/Euphonium, Drums/Percussion, Clarinet, Flute, Organ, Guitar, Bass.
5. I desperately want to learn how to play the saxophone and the theremin.
6. If I could pick any instrument to be a master of, it would probably be the Clarinet.  There are few instruments more entrancing than a well-played clarinet (Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Daron Bradford, Ray Smith).
7. My nose hair is growing at an alarming rate.  If I didn’t trim it every couple of days, I could probably braid it and put little beads on the end.

___

Now 7 Blogs that I love.  Let me just pull up the Google Reader here:

• Hatrack River – This is the blog and website of writer Orson Scott Card.  I’ve always loved his writing, and his OSC Reviews everything columns is wonderfully crotchety. 
• Jamelah.net – An old friend from high school, Jamelah and I were both in theatre together.  She was one of my two or three closest friends during that time in my life.  I left Michigan, though, and we lost touch.  I still follow her blog religiously, and love her writing style.  She’s also a pretty fierce photographer.
• NoFo – I just randomly found this blog one day…I don’t even remember how.  It’s the blog of Jake, a gay may in Chicago.  He’s a fantastic writer, very funny (I’ve stolen several running gags from him) and brutally honest.  I don’t often agree with him politically or religiously, but I love his blog.  I’ve read the whole thing from beginning to end.
• Rachel Thurson Photography – I don’t know Rachel in real life, but I aspire to take the kinds of photos that she does.  She often ties in her photos with some personal stories and thoughts.  Great blog.
• Taylortots, Aprilcots & Meh – April was the receptionist (and I’m sure she did a WHOLE lot more) in the office of the Knight Mangum building at BYU, where most of my classes were held as a musical theatre major.  She was also there when I was teaching after I graduated.  I barely got to know her when I was in school, which is a shame, because I get the feeling she and I would have gotten on well.  I made up for it now by reading her blog…inparticularly this hilariously awful post about a really bad day.  Be warned, though.  April has committed the one cardinal sin of blogs: she has music player on her blog that starts playing automatically when you visit the page.  (Sorry April! ;)
• Go Fug Yourself: Because Fugly is the new Pretty – Go Fug Yourself is one of those guilty please type of websites for me.  It’s two snarky girls who make fun of celebrities tragic fashion choices.  They are really, really funny.  Take, for example, this awesome take on the Harry Potter gang.  I know it’s not contributing good things to the world, but I still love it.