Teaser Tuesday: The Hum and The Shiver

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Teaser:

I can’t deal with the haint yet, Bronwyn thought fearfully. She felt her immobility more than ever, and winced with each crushing heartbeat; for an instant she thought she might really be having a coronary, her body too weak to survive this level of terror.

-- Page 90, The Hum and The Shiver by Alex Bledsoe

If I Could Be ...

I found this while doing a random search of things, and thought it was neat and wanted to do something different than just post pictures (even though I'm behind on that here). It's from the blog a pair of pears. (Might be fun to do once a year, just to see how I've changed ....) ^_^

If I could be a month, I’d be ... October.

If I could be a day of the week, I'd be ... Friday.

If I could be a time of day, I’d be ... 11 pm.

If I could be a sea animal, I’d be ... a dolphin.

If I could be a direction, I’d be ... South.

If I could be a piece of furniture, I'd be ... that comfy couch that you can sink into and lasts for years.

If I could be a liquid, I’d be ... perfume.

If I could be a gemstone, I’d be ... an amethyst.

If I could be a tree, I’d be ... a cherry blossom tree.

If I could be a tool, I’d be ... craft scissors.

If I could be a flower, I’d be ... an amaryllis.

If I could be a kind of weather, I’d be ... a Texas thunderstorm.

If I could be a musical instrument, I’d be ... a piano.

If I could be a color, I’d be ... royal purple.

If I could be an emotion, I’d be ... bubbly.

If I could be a fruit, I’d be ... a mango.

If I could be a sound, I’d be ... a cicada's song on a summer evening.

If I could be an element, I’d be ... water.

If I could be a car, I would be ... a convertible VW Bug.

If I could be a food, I'd be ... decadent chocolate cake.

If I could be a place, I’d be ... a sandy, tropical beach.

If I could be a material, I’d be .... a patterned, soft chenille.

If I could be a taste, I’d taste like ... a strawberry banana daiquiri.

If I could be a scent, I’d be ... the scent of fresh cut grass after a cool summer rain.

If I could be an object, I'd be ... an often-read love letter.

If I could be a body part, I’d be ... a pair of eyes (for are they not the windows to the soul?).

If I could be a facial expression, I’d be ... goofy.

If I could be a song, I’d be ... "Singing to Heaven" by Alcazar.

If I could be a pair of shoes, I would be ... a favorite pair of flip-flops.

Thanks!

So thanks to all of you who commented on my pictures. I went ahead and submitted 1 & 2. While I did like 3, I see what some of you were saying. ^_^

My personal favorite was the 2nd one. With that vintage action applied to it, it just really spoke to me. It brought different shades and moods, whereas before it was just green and green. I like it!

And, because Christine gave me 5 questions as well, I will answer them here. If YOU want to answer questions, let me know and I'll post some random ones on your blog. ^_^

1. You're very crafty. What is your favorite craft to make?
Aww, thank you!! I think my favorite currently is digital scrapbook layouts. All the coolness, less expense and no mess! I really like how I can stretch my creativity. However, I also like to make costumes and while they can be a pain, I love to make cloaks. They're just so elegant and regal. (And fun!)

2. Have you ever received any negative reactions from people when they learn what your religion is?
The most negative reaction I ever had personally was when some Jehovah's Witness came to the house when I was still in high school, and they were impressed that I knew the answers to their questions and asked me how I knew so much for being so young. I told them what religion I was, and I immediately saw one of them put up a wall. The other one seemed a little more interested, but after I offered to give them some pamphlets in exchange for some they were giving me, they promptly left. I DO think overall that there is a stereotype applied to Mormons that people just take at face value and don't bother finding out more. I wish more people would ask questions, rather than make assumptions, or worse, go looking in the WRONG places on the Internet. Mormon.org is a great place to find out those things we believe in.

3. Do you believe in ghosts?
I believe in spirits, but not ghosts as in my dead grandma is haunting my house. I do believe that some people have been visited by loved ones, perhaps in a brief touching across this life and the afterlife, but hauntings and other things like that I believe come from evil spirits (you can ask me privately what I think an evil spirit is, if you want -- too much to get into here ^_^).

4. What is your fondest childhood memory?
Sitting on the beach at Jaco Beach, Costa Rica, around a bonfire, after a full day of swiming and eating, with my family and friends whom we had invited out, watching the night fall, with shooting stars coming down. Best day, EVER. (Even though I DID get so sunburned I had to wear my older sister's nightgownto bed so I would be more comfortable. ^_^)

5. Where do you see yourself in twenty years?
Honestly, I would love to be back in Costa Rica. House on the beach. Maybe still working, reading books. Or hey, maybe writing about traveling in Costa Rica. But, either way, I will be with my Brian-chan, maybe a couple of almost-grown kids, and hopefully maybe still my cats (who will be old, but may still be around). I just would love to have a relaxed life with the important things like family time being a priority. Who cares about having the latest and greatest when there's fun to be had playing a long game of Monopoly or Scrabble?

5 Questions Game

Sami got this game from someone else, so now I'm joining in on the fun! She left me 5 random questions which I shall answer shortly.

IF you want to join in on the fun, leave me a comment letting me know, and then I'll comment on your latest blog post with the 5 Random Questions I have come up with (which you then have to make a post about).

SO, on to the questions:

1. I love your cats names! Where did they come from/why did you choose them?
Would you believe that they came with those names?! I adopted them from a rescue organization (I found them on petfinder) and not only were they exactly what I was looking for (Siamese kittens that were siblings), but their names seemed to be something that I might name them. I didn't have to think twice about keeping their names. I think it was all meant to be, as Yanni (which I've only heard of the singer having that name) means "gift of God" or "the Lord is gracious" (it's a variant of John, apparently). And, Yuki is "snow" in Japanese, though I think it can also have "happiness" or "lucky" attached to it. I love their names too! ^_^

2. If you could live in any state in the US, which one would it be?
Ooo, tough one. I actually sorta have two for this answer. I'll be honest and say I haven't been to too many US States. However, I recently discovered Missouri. It's so green and lush (at least, when I was there). I heard some of the winters can be harsh, but I don't know, it really struck me a chord with me. (I'll be visiting again next month, so we'll see if I still feel the same way. ^_^) If money were no object (and I could get used to the humidity), I'd choose Hawaii. I just LOVE, love the tropics and warm ocean.

3. What do you think is the best way to be frugal?
I don't think my answer will be bold an innovative, but it's actually a combination of things I've learned. First, spend less than you make, and make sure that you're putting money in savings before doing anything else with it (mostly). Second, ask yourself if you really need something, as opposed to want. Doesn't mean we can't spend on wants, but be conscious of them. (If I find something I want, I usually take several days to think on it. If I still want it AND have the money to pay for it, then I can think about getting it. Also, for example, say you need a new car, but do you buy the economical car that will work just fine, or do you buy the fancy car you've been wanting -- is it really worth it?) Lastly, for now, I think we have to think about what we're spending our money on, and make sure we're getting the best deal. Places like Craigslist can be great for finding gently used items that you can use, instead of buying it brand new. (I just got two AWESOME chairs for less than I would have paid for 1 brand new.)

4. What's your favorite light, summer meal?
I don't think I have an actual MEAL, but I do have a recipe for a great little chickpea, cherry tomato and feta salad that requires very few ingredients, but is so good. (And I bet if tossed with some cut up steak or grilled chicken it would go from salad to meal very easily.) I'm actually making this tomorrow. Here's the recipe:

Chickpea, Cherry Tomato and Feta Ssalad (serves 1)

Ingredients
• 1/4 cup canned chickpeas
• 1/2 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• Ground pepper

Directions
1. Rinse and drain chickpeas.
2. In a bowl, combine chickpeas with tomatoes, feta, lemon juice, olive oil, oregano, salt, and a pinch of pepper.

Note: Wait until just before serving to combine ingredients. For some reason, it doesn't seem to keep as well if refrigerated for long periods of time.

5. What is the fanciest event you've ever been to?
Probably the fanciest event I've been to was a Mardi Gras party held at a hotel. It was a fundraiser and my then best friend was able to get us in for free (she worked with the organization). It was formal, so I had to dress up. I honestly don't remember all the details, but that's probably it. It was okay, but there wasn't anyone I knew, so while it was fancy, probably not the most fun. (ONE day, my answer will change, as I will have given a masquerade ball. I hope. ^_^)