Shelly’s Journal

I took this little quiz. Usually, I loath quizzes. If I take them, I never put them on my blog. But, based on my quiz, here’s who matches my answers in the presidential race:

b>82% Mike Huckabee
80% Tom Tancredo
79% Fred Thompson
78% John McCain
78% Mitt Romney
63% Rudy Giuliani
59% Ron Paul
32% Hillary Clinton
27% Joe Biden
26% John Edwards
26% Barack Obama
25% Chris Dodd
21% Bill Richardson
13% Mike Gravel
11% Dennis Kucinich

2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz

I found it interesting that my top 5 were only 4 pts. apart. I wonder if that’s how far they are in reality. Anyway, I haven’t made any decision yet, but thought this was kind of fun. And believe me, sometimes the election stuff is far from fun!

I’ve decided that I hate memes…so I’ve been ignoring avoiding them (sorry Steph). I keep trying to avoid this one and it just comes back around. Bethany tagged me this time….

7 things I want to do in 2006

1. Have a baby.
2. Visit my family is Wisconsin/Michigan.
3. Break out of my shyness.
4. Start my Ebay business. (Stay tuned for more on this.)
5. Pay off our debts - we’re close folks!!!
6. Walk daily.
7. Get back in church

7 things to do less of in 2006

1. Feeling sorry for myself.
2. Worrying about stupid stuff.
3. Compulsive purchases.
4. Cream of Whatever Soup Recipes.
5. Procrastinate on projects.
6. Cleaning. (Kind of like that old - “I’m giving up school for Lent, Mom.”)
7. Talking about myself.

7 ways I‘m going to be a better wife/mother/friend in 2006

1. Praying more.
2. Listening more.
3. Getting down on the floor and playing - less videos - for the Bump.
4. Returning emails and writing letters, notes to people.
5. More time in the Word.
6. Paying attention to things more.
7. Being more spontaneous.

7 Scripture Passages I want to memorize in 2006

Sorry gang, I’m not that organized that I know 7 scripture passages that I want to learn. I’ve been working my way through James and trying to put down a few to memory there. I don’t know if there are seven of them, and I don’t know where I’ll go next.

7 Books I’ve Never Read that I’m Going to Read in 2006

I have no idea. Maybe a few more Narnias. I just recently started that series. I’ll probably try to get through The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace. Otherwise, no plans. I just finished the final Mitford book, Light from Heaven. Maybe I’ll finish Mere Christianity, too. I think it’s been too long since I put it down and I’ll have to start over.

7 Movies I’ve Never Seen that I’m Going to Watch in 2006

I’ll be lucky if I see seven movies in 2006. Rented Cinderella Man the other day and now am bringing it back unviewed. I’d like to see Luther and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - but if I don’t, I won’t be surpised or upset.

7 people I want to join in too

I am not tagging anyone else. I know that everyone I know is going to “catch” this meme. It’s more contagious than pink eye….

And it just goes to show that I’m not as much of a planner or a New Year’s goal setter as I thought I was.

I’m trying to stay away from these dorky things, but since Kim had it up…well, I thought I’d give it a shot!

Christmas Elf Name My Christmas Elf Name is Get your Christmas Elf Name at JokesUnlimited.com

Richmond, VA was once called the murder capital of the country. It’s now listed as the fifth most dangerous city in the nation according to an article in the Richmond Times Dispatch

The top ten are:

1. Camden, NJ
2. Detroit, MI
3. St. Louis, MO
4. Flint, MI
5. Richmond, VA
6. Baltimore, MD
7. Atlanta, GA
8. New Orleans, LA
9. Gary, IN
10. Birmingham, AL

I had fogotten how “bad” Richmond is. A few weeks ago, Bump and I took a road trip up there for a book sale at the downtown library. As I circled the blocks surrounding the library, I was a little freaked out by the number of folks milling around (it was a warm day) and the oddness of many of them. It was about 3 PM and still plenty light out, but going from the car to the library was a little stressful. My anxiety was reinforced by the security guard at the library carrying a gun.

This story was also covered on the Richmond morning TV news. Apparently they dropped from 9th to 5th this year. In the article they try to justify their ranking by saying how safe the suburbs are. That’s the problem. A lot of the money has moved out of the city, leaving behind mostly the lower class - although there are sections that are better than others. Much of the violence in the city is black on black crime. The news reported folks getting jumped on their way to Sunday worship. It’s hard to imagine.

I tried to find the best cities in a brief Google this morning, but this study may be too new to be out there yet. I’ll try and find it later today when I have more time.

Appetizer
Do you button shirts top-to-bottom or bottom-to-top?
Bottom to top. I always seem to get in trouble doing it to….not a very good buttoner.

Soup
What is your favorite sandwich?
Ray’s Favorite at Padow’s Restaurant in Wmbg…I think it is turkey and ham on a sub role with thousand island, coleslaw and provolone.

Salad
What was a family project you helped work on as a child?
Cutting and splitting wood. Every year, we would rent a wood lot to clear. Dad would do all the cutting. We would do the hauling and piling in the truck. Then once a year, he would rent a gas splitter. My favorite job was to run the switch, but I had to split duty with my sis. It was hell.

Main Course
When have you acted phony?
I’m as genuine as they come….

Dessert
Do you write letters or postcards? If so, to whom?
Neither - notecards. Usually thank yous or just thinking of you mostly to my family.

Sal’s Midnight Snack
What is your least favorite stain to remove from carpeting?
Winnie vomit. After all, she is a self cleaning dog. I know, gross. But that’s what I did today. Tomorrow they are coming to professionally reomove the stain. So, light to non-existant blogging hits again.

Join in this one if you dare.

Which Princess Bride Character are You?
this quiz was made by mysti

Well, it happens now and then that I actually am the heroine of someone’s story.

HT: Rev-Ed at Attention Span

This is so late. Bump turned off the computer mid post - and although I hit the “save” button before it went black, I thought I lost it. So, I just pulled it out of my drafts and finished it up.

Appetizer
Name 3 qualities that are important to you in friendship.
loyalty, humor, faith

Soup
If you could dream about anything tonight, what would the subject matter be?
Bryan Adams, just kidding, some great adventure dream where I win all the kids books in the end.

Salad
Do you usually make an effort to personally thank people who do favors for you?
Always. And I pray for them too.

Main Course
If you had to go out of town for an extended period of time, who would you trust to take care of your home and belongings? My friend, E…she’d do a great job, even if she doesn’t like dogs much.

Dessert
How do you react to practical jokes when they’re played on you?
I’m not very good at them…

Sal’s Breakfast in Bed
What was your favorite childhood vacation?
I think one time we went to Milwaukee to visit family and also ended up at a Brewers game and visiting the museum down there - which at the time I thought was fabulous.

SRP over at Melange tagged me….since I’ve blown off forgotten about a few of her tags, I thought I’d make sure I got this one in.

7 things I plan to do before I die:
1. Visit the Grand Canyon
2. Have at least one more baby
3. Homeschool my children
4. Go on a Missions Trip
5. Read the Bible front to back - I’ve already read it, but not in order.
6. Die to self - not an easy one.
7. Start an at home business - I’m praying, praying, praying

7 things I can do:
1. Design jewelry
2. Take care of dogs
3. Cook
4. Organize and plan
5. Pray
6. Dribble a Basketball
7. Accumulate junk at a rapid pace

7 things I cannot do:
1. Swim
2. Sing on key
3. Braid hair
4. skip a rock
5. Roll my tongue
6. Sprain my ankle - Drs. told me I have “loose ankles.” I’d break it before I’d sprain it. You should see them roll sometimes - freaks my dh out, cuz if his bent that way - get the ice!
7. Watch Survivor

7 things that attract me to the opposite sex:
1. A good talker/listener
2. A love for the Lord
3. A compassionate heart
4. A good work ethic
5. Love for children
6. Good sense of humor - like my jokes
7. a prominant nose (I’m not kidding, it happens)

7 things that I say most often:
1. Praise God!
2. You know what I mean?
3. Dupe a Dupe a Dupe!
4. Bumpa de Bumpa de Bump Bump Bump
5. Quiet (to the Dogs barking)
6. I love you.
7. It’s 106 miles to Chicago. We’ve got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark out and we’re wearing sun glasses…hit it! (No, I don’t really say this, but I couldn’t think of anything else.)

7 celebrity crushes:
1. Perry King (You know, from the old TV show Riptide)
2. Kevin Costner
3. Don Majkowski…before they called him the Majik man. After, not so much…for those of you non cheddar heads, he was a former UVA QB that played for the Packers for a couple of years. Had one great season, and that’s about it….
4. Steven Seagal
5. The guy who played Andrew on Touched by an Angel…John Dyer, I think. Too lazy to look it up.
6. Bryan Adams…ha ha, you knew this one, right?
7. Joe Elliot - singer Def Leppard - funny that DL is going on tour with BA this fall. I hope they don’t talk about me.

I’m not tagging anyone…just not in the mood.

I saw this meme in a few places, but I think I actually took it from The Happy Husband. Go to this site and enter your high school graduation year in the search engine to get the top 100 hits of that year. Then, I did the following:

Crossed out the songs I didn’t really life
Bolded the ones I liked
Italicized the ones I didn’t know
Left alone the ones I was indifferent to

1. Careless Whisper, Wham!
2. Like A Virgin, Madonna
3. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, Wham!
4. I Want To Know What Love Is, Foreigner
5. I Feel For You, Chaka Khan
6. Out Of Touch, Daryl Hall and John Oates
7. Everybody Wants To Rule The World, Tears For Fears
8. Money For Nothing, Dire Straits
9. Crazy For You, Madonna
10. Take On Me, A-Ha
11. Everytime You Go Away, Paul Young
12. Easy Lover, Phil Collins and Philip Bailey
13. Can’t Fight This Feeling, REO Speedwagon
14. We Built This City, Starship
15. The Power Of Love, Huey Lewis and The News
16. Don’t You (Forget About Me), Simple Minds
17. Cherish, Kool and The Gang
18. St. Elmo’s Fire (Man In Motion), John Parr
19. The Heat Is On, Glenn Frey
20. We Are The World, U.S.A. For Africa
21. Shout, Tears For Fears
22. Part-Time Lover, Stevie Wonder
23. Saving All My Love For You, Whitney Houston
24. Heaven, Bryan Adams
25. Everything She Wants, Wham!
26. Cool It Now, New Edition
27. Miami Vice Theme, Jan Hammer
28. Lover Boy, Billy Ocean
29. Lover Girl, Teena Marie
30. You Belong To The City, Glenn Frey
31. Oh Sheila, Ready For The World
32. Rhythm Of The Night, Debarge
33. One More Night, Phil Collins
34. Sea Of Love, Honeydrippers
35. A View To A Kill, Duran Duran
36. The Wild Boys, Duran Duran
37. You’re The Inspiration, Chicago
38. Neutron Dance, Pointer Sisters
39. We Belong, Pat Benatar
40. Nightshift, Commodores
41. Things Can Only Get Better, Howard Jones
42. All I Need, Jack Wagner
43. Freeway Of Love, Aretha Franklin
44. Never Surrender, Corey Hart
45. Sussudio, Phil Collins
46. Strut, Sheena Easton
47. You Give Good Love, Whitney Houston
48. The Search Is Over, Survivor
49. Missing You, Diana Ross
50. Separate Lives, Phil Collins and Marilyn Martin
51. Raspberry Beret, Prince and The Revolution
52. Suddenly, Billy Ocean
53. The Boys Of Summer, Don Henley
54. One Night In Bangkok, Murray Head
55. If You Love Somebody Set Them Free, Sting
56. Obsession, Animotion
57. We Don’t Need Another Hero, Tina Turner
58. Material Girl, Madonna
59. Better Be Good To Me, Tina Turner
60. Head Over Heels, Tears For Fears
61. Axel F, Harold Faltermeyer
62. Smooth Operator, Sade
63. In My House, Mary Jane Girls
64. Don’t Lose My Number, Phil Collins
65. All Through The Night, Cyndi Lauper
66. Run To You, Bryan Adams
67. Glory Days, Bruce Springsteen
68. Voices Carry, ‘Til Tuesday
69. Misled, Kool and The Gang
70. Would I Lie To You?, Eurythmics
71. Be Near Me, ABC
72. No More Lonely Nights, Paul McCartney
73. I Can’t Hold Back, Survivor
74. Summer Of ‘69, Bryan Adams
75. Walking On Sunshine, Katrina and The Waves
76. Freedom, Wham!
77. Too Late For Goodbyes, Julian Lennon
78. Valotte, Julian Lennon
79. Some Like It Hot, Power Station
80. Solid, Ashford and Simpson
81. Angel, Madonna
82. I’m On Fire, Bruce Springsteen
83. Method Of Modern Love, Daryl Hall and John Oates
84. Lay Your Hands On Me, Thompson Twins
85. Who’s Holding Donna Now, Debarge
86. Lonely Ol’ Night, John Cougar Mellencamp
87. What About Love, Heart
88. California Girls, David Lee Roth
89. Fresh, Kool and The Gang
90. Do What You Do, Jermaine Jackson
91. Jungle Of Love, The Time
92. Born In The USA, Bruce Springsteen
93. Private Dancer, Tina Turner
94. Who’s Zoomin’ Who, Aretha Franklin
95. Fortress Around Your Heart, Sting
96. Penny Lover, Lionel Richie
97. All She Wants To Do Is Dance, Don Henley
98. Dress You Up, Madonna
99. Sentimental Street, Night Ranger
100. Sugar Walls, Sheena Easton

I think that where I grew up, there wasn’t a lot of rhythem and blues kind of music played in our area, so I didn’t know some of those. MTV was around though and influenced us a lot. I probably wouldn’t listen to any of the stuff today - well except Bryan Adams *wink*.

I got tagged by Steph. When Carla missed me, I thought that I was home free! Alas, not so. Here it is:

Ten Questions to Ask at the Start of a New Year or On Your Birthday

I’ll answer the same 15 that she did, but if you want to read all the questions, you can click here

1. What’s one thing you could do this year to increase your enjoyment of God?
Get back into Church.

2. What’s the most humanly impossible thing you will ask God to do this year?
Clear our Debts.

3. What’s the single most important thing you could do to improve the quality of your family life this year?
Pray more for my husband.

4. In which spiritual discipline do you most want to make progress this year, and what will you do about it?
I really want to get deeper into prayer.

5. What is the single biggest time-waster in your life, and what will you do about it this year?
Too much computer time. I turn off the computer during the day so as not to be tempted.

6. What is the most helpful new way you could strengthen your church?
I think, have a church would be a good start.

7. For whose salvation will you pray most fervently this year?
My stepkids.

8. What’s the most important way you will, by God’s grace, try to make this year different from last year?
Be more loving. I’m still trying to figure out what that means, but that’s my goal.

9. What one thing could you do to improve your prayer life this year?I like Carla’s prayer journal idea, too.

10. What single thing that you plan to do this year will matter most in ten years? In eternity?
In 10 years, how I instill my son with the word of the Lord.
In eternity - how much I can work towards that Love goal.

11. What’s the most important decision you need to make this year?Day by day debt handling.

12. What area of your life most needs simplifying, and what’s one way you could simplify in that area?
I need a way to make housecleaning much more simple…laminate flooring is our start!

13. What’s the most important need you feel burdened to meet this year?
Getting our house in order - in many ways.

14. What habit would you most like to establish this year?
Praying every day as a family. Eating more meals together.

15. Who do you most want to encourage this year?
Gil

You can find more questions at that site up there ^^

Steph copied this from Carla’s site, so I’m copying it too:
The copyright info on Don’s page says “Permission granted to copy this material in its complete text only for not-for-profit use (sharing with a friend, church, school, Bible study, etc.) and including all copyright information.” So please do click the link to the full article - you will only be blessed by doing so.

So, who to tag????

HMMMMM…..

Paula
Keer
SRP