wee bit wednesdays.

{one} do you collect anything? if so, what and how long have you been collecting?
i would say the one thing that i consistently have collected over the years is music. tons and tons of music. i've been collecting it since high schoool. and i know that i probably could stop, but i love it so much. sometimes i'm so embarrassed about how much music i actually own. and it makes me giggle to see how much time it will take to listen to my full library of music in itunes. it's comical, for sure. i also collect books, but not as much as i used to. i love books, too. mostly, lately, i have been borrowing them...so, i have a collection of borrowed books...if that counts.

{two} what is one cleaning tip that you swear by?
i will share my secret-swear-by cleaning tip, but first, i must caution you...it may be hazardous for your health. only use in well ventilated areas. don't breath the fumes directly. maybe consider a mask. and maybe only use on really stubborn "stains." and probably don't use on metal.

okay, now that you have been warned, i promise this is a miraculous cleaning concoction...miraculous, i tell you. you take the works toilet bowl cleaner and squirt that on the area you need to clean. then take windex brand window cleaner and spray it on top of the toilet bowl cleaner. there will be some steaming, thus the not breathing it in. you can wipe it up pretty quickly with a wet rag or sponge and rinse. probably don't let it sit too long...who knows what it will do if it sits too long.

now, ideally, you wouldn't be doing this on a regular basis. the last time i used this mix was when i moved into my apartment and the bottom of the shower had a gross water stain from standing water...i tried everything from bon ami to magic eraser to baking soda and nothing worked...except for this mix. so, like i said...tough stains only.

{three} who would you call for bail money?
typically, i don't put myself in situations where i would need to consider whom i would call for bail money. i am guessing that if this situation ever arose, i would be with the people that would know they needed to bail me out, so i wouldn't have to call anyone. and it would probably be for punching someone, although, i haven't done that for a very long time and i don't plan on ever doing it again. i mean the punching anyone. i have never had need for someone to bail me out. never. promise. just ask my work. promise.

{four} what is one thing you miss about being a kid?
geez. only one thing. there are so many to choose from, but the one thing that has recently come up is the fact that we were out the door in the morning, riding out bikes and playing and only came home when called. and the fact that i had two instant friends in my sisters and that we really only played with each other. and we fought with each other. but i loved that we played. no video games (we got a nintendo when i was in high school and my mom always hid the paddles, so we rarely played anyway). no computers. no cell phones. no tv (we didn't get cable until i was in college). real life playing outside. a lot of kids don't get that.

{five} name a few of your guilty pleasures.
diet mt. dew. corn tortillas with cheese. reality tv. obsessively keeping track of my favorite musicians via facebook and twitter. reality tv. buying new music. oh, and reality tv.

{six} how early do you start your holiday shopping?
well, it depends. mostly i just think about it. this year i already have one gift purchased and a few more planned out. just have to decide what, if anything, to do for the kiddies.

{seven} what is a family tradition that you would like to pass on to your significant other/children?
i'm not sure if this would be considered a tradition so much as it is just something our family always did/does...we are really good at sitting around and having conversations. we don't need to be entertained by a movie or tv. we can just be entertained by each other's company. and not just my immediate family. this is something that i learned from my extended family.

i remember going to my grandparent's house (and family reunions/functions) when we were growing up and the adults sitting around the living room just chatting...or outside, weather permitting. there were whole group discussions and small group discussions. the kids were usually always off playing and occasionally we would "put on" shows for the adults. but if we wanted to we were totally welcome to sit with the adults and be present for the conversations. i remember even contributing to those conversations and a kid...maybe late elementary school or middle school. and even to this very day, the adults of my family will all gather and talk and chat and converse and the kids play, but the kids are still welcome to hang out with the adults.

i didn't realize how "rare" this is/was until i started working with the kids i work with. most of the kids i work with haven't had a real conversation with an adult in their whole lives. my co-workers and i love it when those kids come to us...we love changing their perceptions of adults and people in authoritative positions.

the ability to carry on a conversation is definitely something that is learned and i am ever so grateful to my parents, grandparents and aunts and uncles for teaching me. for teaching all of us, really, because i'm sure all my siblings and cousins have similar memories...and we've carried on the tradition...we can all sit around and converse with the best of them.

{eight} what do you consider your greatest achievement?
this is interesting, because i'm not sure if i have achieved my greatest achievement. graduating from school is up there. moving to boston on my own is on the list of great achievements. finding my dream job is a great achievement. being unselfish enough to place a baby for adoption ranks pretty high the great achievement list, too. but i'm not sure that i have had a single greatest achievement. and i'm not sure that there is just one. i think life is all about achieving. everyday is an achievement for some. getting through some days is an achievement for others. i believe that my greatest achievement will be living life to the fullest and setting goals and achieving them and being a good person and friend and sister and wife and mother and daughter. because if we achieve greatness for just one thing, then what is the purpose of living every day to the fullest? for, there are many things that we do on a daily basis that can be considered great achievements and just participating in life to the fullest is going to be my greatest achievement. or something like that.

{nine} what do you do to pamper yourself?
pedicures. can't do without the pedis. and on occasion, i splurge and get myself the greatest facial this side of the mississippi. if you are in the market, you should check it out here. just ask for mary.

{ten} if you were to start your own restaurant, what would it be called?
my bestie and i talked about opening a little cafe. it was going to be just the stuff that we cooked and loved. but i'm not sure if we ever thought of a name for it. maybe something along the lines of kitchen. either something kitchen or kitchen something. since everything was going to be from our kitchens.

anyway. that's all.