Random Dozen

(Link in meme-roll)

1. Please share one memory of your high school graduation. Pics would be great!

Pics would be great. Too bad I don't have any, eh? [Dad only took slides, and my brother has 'em all.] I don't remember much about the ceremony, except I got to sit in the front with the other five valedictorians and the two salutatorians. Long story, pre-graduation, so I'll skip it. Pretty much all I remember is turning in my grad robe and smokin' back down the hall with a big ol' smile!

2. What is one "emergency use" item you keep in your vehicle at all times?

Burt's Bees lip shimmer in guava or raisin.

3. In your region, do you celebrate graduation open houses? Addendum: (If so,) how many open houses/bridal showers/weddings are on your upcoming events calendar?

WTF?! No. Graduations are family events, not an excuse to feed everyone you've ever looked at twice! I've lived in three states, and no one I've ever met did this!
Honestly, I haven't been to an open house per se in eons, at least 10 years, probably more.
Weddings: my niece Rosellen is planning a wedding for next spring, and I live in hope that it is the only wedding I have to deal with for awhile.

4. Tell me one truth you believe about motherhood.

Well, if it's a truth, it's not a belief, is it? One thing I will tell you about motherhood is that tonight, for me, it bloody well sucks balls. Balls of the big green donkey variety.

5. What was the last thing you broke?

I'd call it a toss-up between my health, my heart (in the metaphorical sense) and multiple promises to myself.

6. On average, how many pieces of junk mail do you receive daily?

Snail mail addressed to me averages about 6 things a week, 5 of which are crap. As a household, around 50% of our mail is junk, more if you include the massive amounts of college paperwork that Sparky has been receiving for the past year.

7. Do you like to shop by catalog?

It's better than shopping from a store. Which isn't saying much in my case, much as I abhor shopping.

8. Is lawn maintenance at your house a "his job," a "her job" or "his/her job" or "that's why we have teenagers" job?

Beast enjoys mowing the lawn, and Sparky knows how to handle the mower. If it were up to me, I'd just pay someone, anyone, to do it.

9. Which room would you like to redecorate in your home?

The only one that needs doing is the master bath. All the other ones have been done in the past six years.

10. Do you read a newspaper regularly, or do you read most of your news on line?

I read the local weekly paper every week, and otherwise I ignore as much of the National Gossip as possible.

11. Do you believe everything happens for a reason?

Yup. I like Alfred, Lord Tennyson's thoughts about this subject in this poem (2nd stanza).

12. Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things?

I try to do the latter, but most often find myself obsessed with the former.

Yes, I'm a more than a little cranky. Someone I like was banned from this meme so I feel guilty doing it, plus I feel generally lousy due to some stupid choices I've made this week, and we are in the middle of a minor teenage crisis. So sue me. Or, if I've pissed you off, go somewhere else in Teh Big Wide Web.