Sisterhood of the World, part deux

One of my favorite bloggers, Bevchen, recently nominated me for the Sisterhood of the World Blogger Award, which means I will receive a ton of money for being a really good writer. Hehe...just kidding. It's definitely more fun than that. I appreciate the nomination, Bev!

I was nominated earlier this year, and you can read that post here. Honestly, I find these posts (written by others!) interesting and fun to read, thought-provoking when I have to think of my answers, and agonizing when it's time to come up with questions to ask others.

So here we go.

Bev's questions and my answers:

Why did you start your blog?

I started it because I thought friends and family back in the U.S. might be interested in how different life is here in southern Germany and what I'm up to since we're not often together anymore. My parents and my daughter still read it pretty regularly. By now, though, I think most who find my blog worth reading are other expats and some neighbors and friends here in Germany, who have told me they enjoy reading about their home from the point-of-view of someone who didn't grow up here.

What is the best food you've ever tried while traveling?

Lamb chops in Scotland - specifically on the Isle of Mull at the Glengorm Coffee Shop after a day of strolling through sheep fields in June and watching gorgeous little lambs dashing about and calling for their mums when they got separated. I realize that sounds a bit twisted to non-meat-eaters, and no, I would not want to be involved with slaughtering lambs or anything else. But those chops were so delicious.

"Hamish! Don't just stand there staring at those 2-legged beasts.
For the love of mercy, RUN!"

If you could have a second home, where would it be and why?

I have one (besides my home town, of course, at my parents' home) - Esslingen, Germany, and specifically my Schwiegermutter's flat. My host mom from my high school exchange experience also lives in Esslingen, and she is family to me, as well.

If you were a ghost, which place would you haunt?

Oh dear. My original answer to this question back-fired on me. I woke up early in the morning thinking about the concept of haunting someone or somewhere, and I got freaked out! While I think a cool super power would be to become someone's conscience and prevent him or her from doing wrong, I'd be a terrible ghost; I'd rather sleep at night. :-)

Have you ever planned a trip just because a book/film was set there?

I adore this question because I have such a trip planned! My all-time favorite writer from my childhood is Albert Payson Terhune, who wrote brilliant stories about collies. His home, where he bred and raised his dogs, is in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey (USA). My daughter recently moved to Philadelphia, and Pompton Lakes is only about 2 hours from there. When I visit her we will go to Pompton Lakes. And from there we'll probably head south to Chincoteague Island, Virginia, the setting of many stories written by my other favorite childhood writer, Marguerite Henry. I've been dreaming of visiting these places since I was 10.

Terhune and Henry books

What is your favourite item in your home?

I found this incredibly hard to answer but very interesting. My gut response was "my pillow!" but my final answer has to be MY BOOKS!

What is your favourite pancake topping/filling?

Butter and maple syrup, I guess. I haven't had pancakes in years, but I used to like them.

Which song title best represents your life right now?

I can't imagine there's a song title out there that could represent my life. I'll go with "Caledonia" because we're headed to Scotland next, and a line from that song is "Caledonia, you're calling me..."

Which of your blog posts has the most views?

German Double Beds, but I have no idea why. It keeps coming up on the key search words that led readers to my blog. I guess those beds really are unusually interesting to non-Germans!

What is a book you've been meaning to read for a while but keep putting off?

I cleared that shelf a while ago, but there are two books I've started several times only to give up again: McTeague, by Frank Norris and das Haus in der Rothschildallee, by Stefanie Zweig.


And here are my ten questions...

1. What is a blog post you wrote within the last year or two that you really like?
2. What photo from your travels really makes you smile? Please share it!
3. What is a career or profession you imagined having when you were a child?
4. What type of blog post do you find the most difficult to write?
5. Which book could you read over and over and never tire of?
6. Do you have periods of writer's block where you feel completely uninspired? What do you do?
7. Is there a German* TV show you enjoy watching?
   *(I mean a show produced in the country in which you live/d, not a show from "back home".)
8. Where are you on your journey of learning the language of the country in which you live?
9. Which dialect (of any language) do you really enjoy listening to?
10. Make up a question you'd like to answer, and answer it! :-)

Yikes - now I have to nominate others knowing that some people hate this kind of thing. But hey - if nothing else it's nice to know someone out there really enjoys reading what you write, right?

Here they are, and if I've nominated you before but you didn't respond yet, feel free to mix and match questions to get to ten, or answer all of them from both nominations!

  Ali at Starting over in Stuttgart
  M and Abner at Adventures of La Mari
  Razorbacks and Bratwurst
  Around the Wherever
  Welcome to Germerica
  and my daughter, who wrote a blog during her study abroad semester and who should start another one!
   (if my questions about blogging don't apply, replace them with your favorite of Bevchen's questions!)