Monday Memes Part I

Hey, I told you I was a navel-gazer! I was tagged by the Ex-Ex-Patriate's Kitchen (I know, excellent name, right? excellent writing and ideas, too) with a meme so here's a random Q&A 'bout MamaBird:

Ten Years Ago
Ten years ago I was a new teacher working on a masters degree in education at UC Berkeley. I was newly married, and a few months shy of acquiring our beloved furry friend, Xerxes. Living in Oakland, in a sweet, sunlit cottage with a trumpet vine we had to battle to keep off the roof, jasmine crawling over all our railings, sweet peas rampant on the walls, and a dim sum bakery with sticky rice-banana leaf and black bean paste buns within striking distance.

What's On My To-Do List
Getting my baby a passport and my five year old ballet slippers. Filing all the papers that have accumulated in my life since this baby was born. Reading 17,000 books and blogs. Finding the elusive balance between work and parenting. Figuring out how to force myself to find the time to exercise. Starting seedlings for the garden. Sending a care package to some tiny penpal friends we've made. Calling my grandmother. Coordinating the DC Cares visit to my kid's elementary school. Figuring out how to donate a high chair to the victims of the Mt. Pleasant fire. Making edible playdough, and basic muffin/pancake mix. Baking bread. Learning to sew on a machine. Seeing an old friend who's in town. Trying to assemble my composter that composted the directions on how to assemble the composter.

If I Became A Billionaire
Money is freedom, in my book. I would create incredibly interesting, challenging, part-time and flex-time jobs for parents that tapped into the reserve of talent chafing at the bit to tackle important issues but wishing to focus on their families to boot. I would pay top dollar and harness some brilliant consultants to make sure the project would sustain itself *and* provide equitable returns for all participants. Then I'd hire someone to help me assemble my composter.

Three Bad Habits

1. Bad guesstimator. For instance, when I took my daughter to a gymnastics birthday party today, I brought not one, not two, but three books to read in ninety minutes. I am a fast reader. Not that fast. Also? I like to chatter. Pages read? Zero.
   
2. Avid reader. To the point of neglecting ah, how do I put this? The domestic sphere.
3. Overthinker. I live very much in my Head, lots in my Heart, could stand to live more in the Actual World Right Now.

Five Jobs I Have Had

1. Stamper out of plastic feet for an orthotics company (think heavy machinery and thumbs without feeling for many months).
2. Database manager/info systems manager for a social services agency
   
3. Public speaker for The United Way
4. Produce prepper at health food store
5. Tutor for Upward Bound

Five Things About Me

1. Orangatuan-armed
2. Anchovy-loving
3. Herringbone-braiding
4. Pile-making
5. Single eyebrow raiser

I'm going to pass the baton to Mommies Think Too, our partner blog for the Little People Care Package Swap. We are so excited to mail our package and get yours, too!



P.S. My belly? In my dreams. Photo courtesy of Imaspy at SXC.