a liebster award and let's talk about me...

...I mean it is MY blog. I thought today was a good day to share some random bits about me so that y'alls could get to know me a little bit better.

So this post was initially going to be about me, but then Melissa (hey that's my name too) from A Little Bolt of Life nominated me for a Liebster Award and I figured why not combine the two posts into one. Google translate says Liebster is German for favorite it can also mean sweetheart, darling or beloved. It's a shame that living in Germany for 6 years didn't teach me that. Any who here are the rules for the Liebster:

• Post 11 random things about yourself.
• Answer 11 questions the tagger has asked you, and give 11 questions to the people you’ve tagged.
• Choose 11 deserving bloggers and tag them in your post. (I'm a rebel and I'm only tagging 5!)
• Tell them you’ve tagged them.
•  No tag backs.

11 Random Things About Me:

1. If I break one nail, all of my nails have to get cut. I can't stand to have one short nail. It drives me nutty. NUTTY!
2. I like the challenge of giving up different food items for lengthy periods of time. I've given up beef, chocolate, candy, pork and soda for at least a month. Not all at once though. That would just be crazy.
3. I'm usually in the middle of reading 3 - 5 books at once. I can't read just one book at a time. I don't quite get bored with the story, but I just prefer to have more than one story going at a time. I don't know how I'm able to keep all the stories straight. I also like to read at bars.
4. I also like to crochet at bars. I'm not very social, though it does end up leading to people asking me what the heck I'm doing.
5. I like to snack on green beans, cold, from the can with salt and pepper. 
6. I never thought I'd have any tattoos on my arm past my elbow. Both of my front forearms have tattoos.
7. I like to name things. Herbert the Bat, Lucy the quilt (the first quilt I'm still in the process of making), Stella and Keiko (my arm tattoos), Scarface my old not smart phone. If I had a car or bike, they'd have names too.
8. I occasionally sport red eyebrows or red hair. I'm pretty quiet and easy going. I like the boldness of the red. And I mean like fire engine red.
9. I've never had a S'Mores. Sad isn't it and I LOVE chocolate. I hope to change that this fall. I'll do my best at least.
10. I'm very interested in geishas and plan to get a tattoo of one eventually. I don't see them as ladies of the night. I see them as skilled artisans. 
11. I taught myself to crochet about 14 years ago by reading a book. I wanted to make a blanket and hit the library.

Here are the answers to the questions that Melissa asked me:

1. What is your favorite board game? Probably Monopoly. I like having all the money. I own the Simpson's version. I haven't played in some time. I need to remedy that.
2. What book are you currently reading? Geek Love, Tell All, Tunnel People and What the Dog Saw?
3. Falling asleep at night, do you need absolute dark and silence? Or do you like a little light or the TV on? I usually fall asleep with the tv on sleep mode or music. I can fall asleep in dark and silence too though.
4. What is your go-to dinner when you've had a long day? Tortillas with beans and cheese or just cheese.
5. How many pairs of shoes do you own? (this can be a guesstimate) 20ish. More if you count all the pairs of flip flops I own. I don't really consider those shoes though.
6. Favorite soda? Vanilla Coke. I only get to drink it when I go to Qdoba, which isn't often.
7. If you got handed 5 million dollars tomorrow, what would be the first thing you would do with it? Put away enough to cover the taxes on it and then pay off my student loans and the loans my dad had taken out for my schooling and then any other debts he and I have.
8. Favorite form of exercise? I'm really digging running right now.
9. Where would you build your dream home? That's hard to say. I've lived quite a few nice places, but there are still a few more places I'd like to live. I couldn't make a decision until I've exhausted my options.
10. Are you a planner? Or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kinda girl? A little bit of both. When I travel I like to plan the things I'm going to do, especially if I'm traveling alone. But once I'm there and know my way around, I'll definitely do things by the seat of my pants. Some of the best times had are random, hey let's go do this.
11. What is your favorite sport to watch? I occasionally watch/listen to football. I understand most sports, but am not an avid fan of any of them.

And here are the 5 blogs I've nominated for this special award!

lalaLists

whyyyJen

BreWrites

Bolu by Rima 

The Misadventures of Mrs. Whiffo

Here are the 11 questions YOU get to answer! Enjoy!

1. What would you rather give up for an entire year: television or your driver's license?
2. What is your dream job? What are you doing to make that dream a reality?
3. Where is the furthest you've ever traveled?
4. If you could be an extra in any movie, which one would you choose and what would you be doing?
5. Dress and cardigan or jeans and a comfy tee?
6. What television show is your guilty pleasure?
7. What is the weirdest food combination you've ever eaten?
8. If you could go on an all expenses paid trip, where would you go? Why?
9. What's one thing you've always wanted to do, but you're too scared to do it?
10. Long road trips or quick flying through the skies?
11. Do you have any tattoos? If so, of what and where?

So do you think you know me a little bit better now? I hope so. You think I'm weird don't you. That's okay. I'm fine with that, people call me weird all the time.

Also, I felt like this post deserved a picture. It's from earlier this year when I had hair almost down to my butt. Now it's at my shoulders. :(