a peek inside the fishbowl

I saw this over at TurtleHead’s and decided that it would be a fun challenge.

Comment on this post and I’ll give you a letter. List ten things you LOVE which begin with that letter, then post this in your journal and give out some letters of your own.

Ha. Guess what? TurtleHead gave me the letter “N,” which is a notch better than X or Y, but still, a tough letter to work around. She got the letter A. A! Sheesh.

I shouldn’t even TELL YOU how brain dead I’ve been lately, but at first I couldn’t think of a single word that began with N. After a brief – uhhhhh – minute or two – uhhhhh – some words came to mind, sure, but they were completely irrelevant to me or my life.

I’m not kidding.

Nebula!
Nitrogen!
Numerology!
Newts!

I don’t love any of those things.

But the brain is a funny thing. Give it a task and it’ll chug away at it, even when you’re not thinking about it. So without further ado here are ten “N” things I love. Take it or leave it.

Notebooks
Oh ho ho, I love notebooks. Love love love the notebooks. They notebooks are my siren song, my downfall, my weak-in-the-knees-here-is-my-money moment. I have a leather bound notebook I write in every night. I have spiral bound ones I buy at the dollar store that are just the right size for daily jottings AND I have a red suede sleeve for them too. There’s something about those crispy clean white pages. They are so full of promise. There is so much potential in all those straight lines. It lures me in every time.

If I don’t have a notebook on me at all times I might as well not be wearing pants…. that’s how much I need my notebooks. If you want to be guaranteed of my affection give me a pretty notebook and I’m yours forever.

Novels
I love to read, always have, always will, so Novels have to be on the list. I am a bit of a bibliophile. I love books VERY MUCH. I love the covers, and the paper (ha, do you see a trend?), and the crisp spines. Mark teases me because I don’t break the spines and all my books look like new. I like them that way, okay? I also never dog-ear the pages. NEVER. That would be a horrible crime and anyone who does this risks losing a limb due to infected paper-cuts because you may not know this but folding down the corners the pages makes The Gods of Books very very angry and THEY WILL SMITE THEE.

If I lend you a book it means I hold you in very high esteem and I trust you won’t dog ear my pages or read in the bathtub.

I read before I go to bed. It’s the only time I have to read (unless I’m reading a magazine or a newspaper). I am currently re-reading Larry’s Party by Carol Sheilds, but am looking for a new novel. Any suggestions?

Naps
I’m an expert napper. I can nap anywhere, anytime. This saved my sanity when Emma was a baby. When she napped, I napped, often going without showering. Hey, naps were more important.

Nikon
My Nikon d70. Emma has oft mentioned that my camera is my bestest friend. I think she’s right.

Nigiri
This is a bit of a cop-out. I love nigiri but I love sushi even more. But I wasn’t assigned the letter S so it was nigiri or nothing.

Noodles, Asian
Noodles! I also love noodles, especially rice noodles in Vietnamese dishes. Oh, I’m getting hungry just thinking about that and …

Nacho chips
I like ’em all-dressed up with chicken and cheddar and guacamole and sour cream and jalapenos, but I am MORE THAN HAPPY just to eat processed cheese out of jar. That’s a rather bad bit of news, isn’t it? I know you’re wondering how processed cheese fits into the life of someone who likes sushi, and Indian food, and artisinal cheeses and breads. I know, it’s crazy. The stuff is liquid fat! I try not to imagine it going directly from my mouth down down down to my thighs where it just stops, and sticks, forever. But is it worth it, you ask? YES.

Nekkid bodies
… erm, of my children. Nekkid on nekkid, those are the best hugs, aren’t they?

Necklaces
I received a lovely necklace for my birthday. I am rather choosy about my jewlery. I don’t like a lot of the stuff that’s out there, but I loooove this one. It was a perfect choice for me, see?

 (Forgive the blurry photo, it is challenging to take photos of one’s own chest. Ahem.)

Nests
We’ve collected a few nests over the years. A couple of them are pictured in this post. I wonder how I can preserve them. Spray lacquer? Hmm.

So there you have it! Ten things I love that start with N. Phew. If you’d like to play along, let me know in the comments below and I’ll assign you a letter.

p.s. TurtleHead, bless her soul, also awarded me with a kick-ass blogger award which has hitherto gone unacknowledged. Thank you TurtleHead! I love you too.