“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right
to tell people what they do not want to hear.”

- George Orwell

There's a meme going around that somehow or another has missed me so far (as far as I know). The "Message to the World" meme states: You have 150 characters to send a message to the world. Punctuation doesn't count.

Ok, take a memo, Ms. Jones...

TO: World

FROM: The Night Writer

DATE: Today and forever

RE: Need I remind you

"He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the LORD require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?"

Micah 6:8

I'm not going to meme anyone else with this, but I will offer this assignment: Try to imagine what the blogosphere, not to mention the daily newspaper, cable news networks and nightly news, would look like if everyone followed this instruction for one day. Submit your descriptions in a comment below, or on your own blog. Extra points for writing sample scripts or articles demonstrating these elements.

I think I could have scored better, but it's an audio test and sometimes it was hard to get the previous song out of my head when the next song was playing.

I scored a Far Out
85% on theQuiz by SheGoddess: Lose Weight Fast

After three years of doing this blog thing I don't know that there are six little known facts about me left undisclosed, but I'll see what I can do with the meme that Jroosh tagged me with.

Six Little Known Facts About Me:
1. I hate most vegetables, especially green beans, beets and brussel sprouts. One time I was grievously deceived when I what I thought was a bowl of fried, diced potatoes was actually parsnips. I still shudder at the recollection.

2. I couldn’t wait to sign up for band in 6th grade because I really wanted to play the trumpet. Somehow or another I let the band instructor talk me into playing the tenor saxophone. Five years later I finally quit (probably about the time my parents finished paying the damn thing off).

3. As an adult I also took banjo lessons for awhile. I concluded that banjo players aren’t really as happy as they look.

4. The greatest days of my life were October 10, 1987; August 18, 1988 and February 10, 1994.

5. So far I have only discovered three games in which I have a natural aptitude: football, bumper pool and Trivial Pursuit. Now I’m too old to play football, I haven’t seen a bumper pool table in 35 years, and no one who knows me will play Trivial Pursuit with me anymore.

6. I will turn 50 on Thursday, April 3. Coincidentally, this “little known fact” also lines up with Trivia Night at Keegan’s, which I will be attending. Show up and see if an old dog has learned any new tricks.

I saw this meme over at The Far Wright, by way of Steve at Careful Thought. The premise is simple and fun in a weird kind of way. You insert your name into the following sentence on a Google search (be sure to include the quotation marks): "[your name] is a". Collect the sentences that come up in the search and put them in the meme, then do use the same sentence in a Google image search ) and list the results. Then do the same in Google Image Search and post the result.

This generated a lot of interesting hits for me since I share a name (if not the spelling) with a well-known talk show host, a popular (at one time, anyway) folk singer and a second-tier superhero. I'll post the image (found here) later as I'm having trouble uploading it right now, but below are the sentences that I found.

I have no reason to doubt the veracity of any of them, or their application to my life:

John Stewart is a comedian, he just happens to have a flair for politics.

John Stewart is a legend in the music industry.

John Stewart is a builder. He became an architect because he wanted to build things.

John Stewart is a comparatively unsung performer whose number of albums and quality of music challenges the redoubtable Gordon Lightfoot.

John Stewart is a national treasure.

John Stewart is a muleskinner for hire and "Rogue Freighter".

John Stewart is a great singer and songwriter and one of Nanci's heroes.

John Stewart is a great advocate FOR democracy, not against it.

John Stewart is a fictional comic book superhero in the DC Universe, and a member of the intergalactic police force known as the Green Lantern Corps.

John Stewart is a veteran of the comedy community, of course I'm going with him.

Some say that John Stewart is a CIA experiment that went wrong and that John Stewart only eats cheese.

john stewart is a tiny god.

John Stewart is a great character, but he's by no means my favorite.

John Stewart is a heavyweight.

John Stewart is a very smart man.

In fact, John Stewart is a fresh face.

John Stewart is a great example of character growth.

John Stewart, is a biophysical scientist, psycho-spiritual teacher and a defining voice in the emerging field of evolutionary spirituality.

John Stewart is a member of an elite club.

Ok, so I tagged Princess FlickerFeather with this meme, and she e-mailed her response to me forever ago, and I'm just posting it now. I'm sorry! I know that you were all waiting very anxiously; but it's okay now, here it is in her very own words! Enjoy!

7 Things people don't know about me:
1) I couldn't sing you a Beatles song to save my life.

2) Still a teenager and already a great-aunt

3) I'm a ninja - Seriously, I can disappear for an hour or so and not have people notice I'm gone.

4) My brother talks more than me.

5) Always wished I could be a tomboy.

6) I've only been to 4 concerts in my life.

7) Wanted to be married at 18... yeah, not going to happen. ^_^

My sister, the Mall Diva, tagged me with the '7 Things That May Or May Not Be True About Me' meme. So, let's get started:

1. I'm currently a purple belt in Tae Kwon Do.
2. I'm trying to clean my room.
3. But I don't have a convenient place to put my weapons arsenal.
4. I have two loud birds that very rarely shut up.
5. I love sky diving.
6. I'm an undiscovered writer.
7. I like being alone so I can sing as loud as I want without anyone hearing or caring.

Now it's up to you to deduce which of these are true, and which ones I just put down off the top of my head. Have fun!

Ciao for now!

I've been tagged by Amanda at Within the Discord (an awesome new blog, btw. I'm so happy to have another girl on board!) with this meme: 7 things that most people don't know about me.

I think I'll change it up a little, though: 7 things that may or may not be true that most people don't know about me. Heehee! Have fun guessing what's what!

1. I used to have two black kittens. Their names were Glory and Hallelujah.

2. I talk in my sleep. One incident involved me telling my mother that I needed nine thousand dollars. I was probably five.

3. This past year I got a tattoo of a scripture from the Bible. On the bottom of my right foot it says "Whither thou goest,", and on the bottom of my left foot it says "I will go". It's super cool. It hurt like crazy, though.

4. I love football.

5. Clowns scare me.

6. Right now I'm taking a break from writing a script to do this meme. Betcha didn't know that I'm a scriptwriter, did you? Come to our Christmas program!

7. I'm a musical prodigy.


Let's see; I tag Kevi-Wevi, Princess FlickerFeather, and Tiger Lilly.

It's been awhile since I've done a Friday quiz! This one is "Who's Your Inner European?"

Your Inner European is Irish!

Sprited and boisterous! You drink everyone under the table.

Hmmm. Irish. Must be the Gaelic roots. I don't know about the "drinking people under the table" part, though, especially when it can be so much more interesting above the table.

Take the quiz and find out if deep down you're really a cheese-eating surrender monkey.

HT: Away With Words.

Kingdavid has tagged me with a meme:
"Songs that I've made a happy fool of myself singing along to."

This is going to be hard, because I pretty much sing along with any song I know the words to, and quite a few songs I don't really know the words to. How long can my list be? And where do I begin?

I'll start with a classic:

1~ "The Hampsterdance" by Hampton the Hampster
Yes, I spelled that right. This is one you really need to crank up, let loose and rock out to. Especially in public. It even instructs you on how to do the Hampsterdance! And by the time you're done with that, this song will come in really handy:

2~ "Dancing With Myself" by Billy Idol
Oh oh ohoh!! Need I say more?

Oh oh, I know!
3~ "Believe" by Cher
I confess I've always liked this song, though I thought it was sung by a dude until someone told me otherwise.

And now for something completely different!
4~ "Witness" by Nicole C. Mullen
Ooooh yeeeah. I betcha didn't know I could rap, didja?
Holla!

And speaking of rapping:
5~ Every song on my Group 1 Crew cd. They are brand spankin' new (pretty much) and absolutely kick butt. Even live! I saw them at Club 3 degrees with Princess Flickerfeather and her cousins.
Holla again!

6~ "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy" by Big and Rich
Yup, I've made a happy fool of myself singing along to this and the parody my sister made up. She likes to do that.

Speaking of parodies...
7~ "Oh! Gravity" by Switchfoot
This cd rocks, and both the original version and the Tiger Lilly version are fun to sing and head-bang to.

8~ "Man, I Feel Like A Woman" by Shania Twain
Of course.

9~ "Such Great Heights" by The Postal Service
One of my absolute favorite songs, along with:

10~ "Far Away" by Nickelback
So beautiful! *sniff*...

Here's one for my dad:
11~ "Lawyers, Guns, and Money" by Warren Zevon
Ha ha!

And here's one for my mom:
12~ "Nothing Compares 2 U" by Sinead O'Connor

Here's a fun one!
13~ "Beyond the Sea" by Bobby Darin

14~ "Flower Duet" by Charlotte Church
Almost everybody who tries to sing along with this will make a fool of themself.

15~ "Wordy Rappinghood" by Tom Tom Club
Yes...I've sung along to this.

Ok, just one more:
16~ "Sly" by the Cat Empire
Super fun!!!

Anyway, there's a list for ya. It's in no way an exhaustive list, but it's cool.

Peace out, homeslices!

You all should be ashamed of yourselves. The Mall Diva comes out of blogging semi-seclusion to respond to a meme and then sits back in expectation of getting her customary 20+ comments...and gets just two. Now she's refusing to come out of the bathroom. Thanks a lot!

At least two of the people she tagged in the meme have responded: her sister, Tiger Lilly, and her best friend, Princess FlickerFeather. Their responses to the "All About Me, A to Z" meme are below under their names; click to open the results for each.

Leo at Pscymeistr's Ice Palace bestowed upon me a Thinking Blogger award last week, and since I've been so busy thinking and working (and only lightly blogging) I haven't had a chance to acknowledge his kind honor or carry on the meme by naming five other bloggers who's work makes me think. I think, therefore, it's high time to say "thanks" and "aw, shucks" to Leo. Your blog also makes me think — and usually my thoughts are "Amen!" You are both passionate and prolific and those are admirable qualities in a blogger.

Naming five other bloggers that make me think is kind of hard, not because there aren't worthy ones out there, but because so many of my favorite thinking blogs such as Port McClellan, Portia Rediscovered and Surly's Soap Box have all shut down recently. Like shark's teeth, however, when some wear out there are others ready to move up — and they're just as sharp. I have a comparatively short blogroll but everyone on it is well worth reading and have moved me on a regular basis with their wit, analysis or writing skill. In particular, though, I will point out five that are especially thoughtful or thought-provoking.

1. Jay Reding. I first stumbled onto Jay's blog shortly after I began blogging. If I had read him before then I may have been totally discouraged in my own abilities and never started. Jay provides articulate but concise analysis of the political and legal (funny how much those two intertwine) news of the day. I kind of miss the often intriguing Point/Counterpoint of his Comments section (and participated a few times) now that he's all but eliminated it, but like bugs to a zapper on a summer night, he was attracting too many insects driven by mindless instinct rather than intellect. Good move, Jay. That kind of thing can be amusing and even satisfying for a little while, but there are far too many other interesting things to do on a summer night than fry insects' brains.


2. Over at the Wide Awake Cafe, it's usually time to wake up and smell the coffee as proprietor Laura Lee Donoho serves up a stimulating blog. Her background in a military family and as an officer's wife brings a certain clarity and perspective, while her artistic skills and sensibility add cream and sugar. It's a great place to sit a spell and enjoy the genteel southern charm — but sometimes the crockery does fly!


3. Fireworks are usually on the agenda over at Amy Ridenour's National Center Blog. Crisp and to the point, Amy and her contributors hold forth on politics, global warming, the free market, individual liberty and personal responsibility. This site is a great source for blogging ideas and useful facts when you're feeling a little stale. Currently I'm appreciating the excerpts Amy is putting up from the National Center for Public Policy Research's book, Shattered Dreams: One Hundred Stories of Government Abuse.


4. Uncorrelated is a blog I discovered a few months ago and keeps me coming back to read Mick, Mark and Dave's take on national and international news and events — often from stories you're not seeing in the MSM. Their blog was about the only reliable source for details of the Trolley Square shooting in Salt Lake City last February (where an armed citizen an off-duty policeman, stopped a maniac who had already killed six people and was gunning for more). The guys have an ambitious and wide-ranging Categories list in the left sidebar that also makes for interesting browsing.


5. Half a World Away. As much as I like staying informed and reading good, witty analysis, my greatest joy in the blogosphere is coming across great writers, regardless of what they're writing about. Peter Kelley toiled for a number of years in high-powered business but has recently experienced a huge shift in his life, moving his young family to Amsterdam where he gets to share their discoveries and his own eye for detail and description with readers. This blog really makes me think ... about how much I wish I could have the experiences Peter is having!

One thing I've just realized about each of the blogs I've listed is that they're not really the kind of blogs given to memes such as this. If they want to participate, however, the rules are simple:

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think; 2. Link to The Thinking Blog so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme; 3. Optional: Proudly display the 'Thinking Blogger Award' graphic!