A to Z

A - Available or Single - Neither.

B - Best Friends - The butterfly lady, my dad, sister and mom, Chris... I don't know very many people, but I tend to give freely of my friendship.

C - Cake or Pie - Apple crisp and blackberry cobbler.

D - Drink of Choice - Yegods, the list is endless. Coffee, black.

E - Essential Item - Diamond earring.

F - Favorite Color - Red. That's kind of a bullshit choice. Cinnabar.

G - Gummi Bears or Worms - Bears. But I prefer gummy frogs (There ain't no frog-attack prevention manual. Do not look the amphibian in the eye. This will incite him.).

H - Hometown - I didn't grow up in town.

I - Indulgence - Whiling away the day in the kitchen, or ice cream sundaes with marshmallows, peanuts and maple syrup.

J - January or February - January – it contains my birthday (and my father's, and Robert Burns's, and a bunch of other cool people, too!). February's got its plusses, too.

K - Kids and Names - We don't own any goats, but we do have two dogs, Max (aka Pig or Gristle) and Katy (the Baroness von Roughenhausen).

L - Life is incomplete without - Curiosity. When I stop caring enough to ask questions, I’m done. (I have copied the person whose blog I found this meme at).

M - Marriage Date - Hmm. Not the sort of information I typically divulge. Going on 1o years...

N - Number of Siblings - One sister, plus three sisters-in-law I have known long enough to count without the in-law.

O - Oranges or Apples - Depends. Blood oranges & galas, mikan & Fujis: All of these make me happy. Navels and Granny Smiths? OK, but in a recipe.

P - Phobias/Fears - I'm leery of yellow jackets, wasps and hornets. I worry about things, but I have very little fear.

Q - Favorite Quote - "Let's fix bayonets." - attributed by Michael Shaara to Col. Joshua "Lawrence" Chamberlain during the Battle of Gettysburg, uttered as Chamberlain decided to lead his out-of-ammunition regiment in a (successful) charge down Little Round Top.

R - Reasons to smile - A zillion: The butterfly lady, the weather, our dogs, our home, my interesting job, my other interesting job, a good swim, a good meal...

S - Season - Yes, for sure, with coriander, cumin, ginger, pepper, cayenne, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, turmeric and a bit of salt. I love all the parts of the year, by the way.

T - Tag 3 People - I was untagged for this, and I'm sure the people whose fancy it strikes will tag themselves.

U - Unknown Fact About Me - Oh, which one to choose? I can prove the Pythagorean theorem with only a piece of paper and a pair of scissors.

V - Vegetable You Hate - I hold them harmless for the villainous cooking techniques inflicted on them, so I hate no vegetable. That weird bamboo-like crap in Chinese food can be annoying, though.

W - Worst Habit - I have a very hard time doing certain tasks out of order. If there are dishes in the sink, I can rarely bring myself to cook anything before they are clean. Why not wait until the cooking is in some phase that takes little supervision? I don't know.

X - X-rays You've Had - Ankle, hand, teeth (routine) and a fabulous head CT (which came back negative, har-de-har-har). I am not always accident-prone, but I have many scars that suggest I am.

Y - Your Favorite Foods - We're talking premium versions here: Bacon, olives, peanut butter, licorice, chocolate, waffles, bananas, tomatoes, cheese... I will stop there because this list will never end otherwise.

Z - Zodiac - Aquarius/rat.

More on bears & frogs

Like when there's a frog around, I don't have to hang my sandwiches from a fuckin' branch... A frog knows they are not for him. Plus, frogs are less likely to carry coins & screwdrivers.

Just below this item in the catalog is a "jerky gun," which looks like a grease gun that you smoosh ground beef and "spices" through to make jerky sticks. Gross.

I like to talk about the difference between bears and frogs

for one thing, frogs rarely race bees anywhere.