Dear John - Leibster Award Nomination

I’ve been nominated for a Leibster Blog Award by Natasha at Confessions of A Skincare Junkie, and while I'm not usually a fan of chain letter type things, I think this one is a lovely idea. We little bloggers have to stick together! Natasha had a great summary of what a Leibster Award actually is, so I'm just going to shamelessly steal it.

"Just what is this Leibster thing anyway? It took some sleuthing, but I did find a few facts. According to Sopphey Says, the first mention of the Leibster Award she was able to track down was from Germany blogger in December 2010. The word, Leibster, means “Sweetheart” or “Darling” in German.  It is actually used as a greeting for a boyfriend as in “Leibster Johannes” which would  start a letter to John.
Leibster Awards have several iterations with the number of readers and the number of questions changing as it passes along.  But the core of the award remains:

• This is a pat on the back to a blog with a small readership (current rules state 200 or fewer readers,but the original was for 2000 readers or fewer)
• You must thank your nominator.
• You must state 11 facts about yourself.
• You must answer 11 questions posed by the nominator.
• You must nominate 11 more blogs and pass on the love."

So first, lots of thanks to Natasha for this nomination. Natasha is one of a small proportion of readers who I didn't harass into reading, which makes her praise extra sweet. And now, the Dolly Quiz!

11 Random Facts You May Not Know About Me

1. I have simply not returned to three different jobs, rather than formally quit. I left a killer letter on my desk at one of them, too.
2. I was did competitive gymnastics briefly when I was about 14. I fucking LOVED it, SO much. I still watch footage of gymnastics at the Olympics etc jealously. It's the only sport I will willingly watch. Unfortunately just as I was getting into the swing of it, my boobs arrived and ruined my balance.
3. The first sex worker I knowingly met was a client at a dodgy hotel where I was working the midnight reception shift. If business was bad, or the police were out, she would sit in her room and call down to my desk, and we would watch The X-Files together.
4. Until last year, my teeth were so crowded I had a random incisor on the bottom drift out into the middle of my mouth, coming to rest under my tongue. I got so attached to it that when the dentist suggested he remove it I got really defensive, declaring he should leave it alone, because it wasn't hurting anyone. My boy then helpfully dubbed the tooth Britney. She's gone now.
5. I have a complete list of everyone I've ever had sex with, including first and surnames for all but three. No, you can't see it.
6. I spent a year of Primary School in a two classroom school in the middle of nowhere, and it was one of the best years of my school career.
7. I didn't lose my virginity until I was 19 - not out of any reluctance, just out of lack of interesting offers.
8. I am so short sighted I can't see clearly more than 20cm in front of my face without my glasses.
9. One of my ex partners is now dead, and I feel like I'm way too young for that to have happened already.
10. I moved out of my parent's home with $200 to my name, and have not yet had to move back.
11. I once dated a man the same age as my mother.

11 Questions from my Nominator 

      1. What is your ideal morning? 

Well, obviously, it starts with sleeping in until I feel like getting up. Then some rolling around languorously in bed with cat and/or boy. Then coffee. Then whatever the hell I feel like - this is what would make it ideal.

Yes, good, MOAR.

2. If you could have coffee (or tea) with anyone in the world, who would it be and why?

I'm guessing they have to be currently alive, right? If we're including dead people, it would be Anais Nin without a doubt, because I have so much to learn from her. If they have to be alive, then Lucy Lawless because I have the most crippling crush on her and she seems like she would be great to hang out with. But mostly because I have a crippling crush on her.

I know I wouldn't be able to produce a coherent sentence, but I'd
still love to hang out with her.

 3. Who inspired you?

      This is SUCH a broad question. There are dozens of people who inspire me in all different arenas of my life. I'm just going to go with my mother, and my aunt. My aunt inspired me to not be ashamed of being clever, and my mother inspired me to get through bad situations, no matter how impossible it seems at the time.  

4. If you could visit anywhere in the world (without worrying about money), where would you go?

EVERYWHERE. So much world, SO little time and money. At the top of my list at the moment is Hong Kong, or rather Macau in particular, because I've never been anywhere in Asia and it seems interesting. After that, I would naturally go back to London and Paris, but then a tour of Berlin, and some Slavic countries would be marvellous. 

  

5. Eye creams: savior or waste of time?

If it makes you happy, by all means smear it on. But I, personally, don't think it has any measurable physical effect whatsoever. So I guess, waste of time if measurable physical effect is what you're going for, but if they make you feel good, then it's not a waste.

 

6. Do you have pets? If so, what (and names)?

When I lived with my parents, we had the most ridiculous little dog that my sister named Rolo, because he was caramel colored. Unfortunately he died recently, but for a half dachshund, half cattle dog, full breed idiot, he had a great run. From about 19-20 I had a mouse that I called Kat, because I thought this was hilarious. She would ride around in my pocket, or roll herself up and down our wooden hallway in a tiny plastic ball. Sadly, she died suddenly and without apparent cause, as mice tend to do. Now my boy and I co-parent a white and tan Turkish Van cat named Leia. She's a rescue kitty, so she's a bit...special. Prone to biting and clawing, but also enormously affectionate, she's never happier than when perched on our shoulders like a pirate's parrot. 

7. What got you started blogging?

This one at least is a fairly simple answer. I started reading beauty blogs, and feminism blogs, and couldn't find one that was everything I wanted to read. I came across Natalie Dee's makeup blog, and thought, "Well if she can write grumpy, belligerent reviews of beauty products with a fair few swears i them, maybe I can do that too." Then I think it was almost the next day when I came across The Beheld, and thought, "If she can publish academic feminist analysis of beauty products, then so can I." And here we are - sweary, straightforward makeup reviews, academic analysis of feminist ways of viewing beauty, and lots of pretty pictures, because I can't be clever all the time.

8. What do you enjoy about blogging?

The feeling that what I have to say might, in some way, make someone else's day a little better. Whether it's just a moment of, "Hunh, me too!" or, "I've never thought of it like that," or giving them the nudge to create something themselves. It's watching the ripples of influence drift out through my audience that makes it worthwhile to me, no matter how tiny the effect.

9. Ocean, mountains or desert?

Hmm. Hard call. I hate climbing hills, but I hate the clammy feeling you get being close to the ocean for too long as well. And the desert is right out, because being overheated is just the worst thing in the world for me. I'm going to go with mountains. It might be hard to get to, but the views would be worth it.

10. Favorite book?
Favourite book of all time is WAY too hard to answer. I have just read too many, and too many different kinds of books to pick just one. But I guess if I was fleeing my house and I could only take one book, I would take my book of Czech fairytales, because it's been with me as long as I can remember. My boy, on the other hand, would probably stay and burn rather than have to choose.

11. What’s your go-to dish for dinner?

      Kangaroo Ragu! I was always well into spaghetti bolognese made with beef mince, but once I
discovered kangaroo mince I was totally converted. It's cheaper, and chock full of iron. I'm pretty bad about keeping green vegetables in my diet, so I need all the iron I can get. 

Now it's YOUR turn!

 My nominations for a Leibster Award:
 
1. A Polished Prance - a fun little blog about pretty, shiny things
2. Julz Perri Nails - another fun blog about nail stuff
3. V In The Northwest - a little glimpse into this thing called "normal" that I find fascinating
4. Subtitles and Misc - probably the only blog about captioning out there
5. Shades of Phoenix - a mythology obsessed polish startup
6. Tumbling Through The Looking Glass - a touchingly honest account of transition in progress
7. Harlot Overdrive - hilariously detailed sex toy reviews, and general ranting of a sexy nature

I'm actually going to turn the last four spots over to you, my dear readers. It seems the vast majority of blogs I follow are over 200 readers, and to be honest, I feel a little bad about that so I'd like some recommendations. What blogs of under 200 readers do YOU think I should give a shoutout to? let me know your suggestions, and  I'll update this accordingly.

My Questions for the Nominees:

1. What is your favourite smell?
2. Do you have any recurring nightmares?
3. When you're having a soggy, pathetic, sad day, what movie do you put on?
4. What song always makes you want to dance?
5. What was the first album you owned?
6. If you were a Care Bear, what Care Bear would you be? (make one up if need be)
7. What started you blogging?
8. What keeps you awake at night?
9. How do you feel about karaoke?
10. What was the worst movie you have ever seen?
11. What one behavior annoys you the most, eg whistling, shoving, standing over you etc.?

Meanwhile, if any of you feel like answering these questions, or asking me more questions in the comments, please feel free to go nuts!