Top 5 Things I Love That Are French

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's (or Top 5) for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know and sorry for the late post, I almost forgot!

Back in the day (in a galaxy far, far away), the only foreign language choice we available in school was French. I had three years in high school and then another two in college (before I quit). Granted, I still can't speak a lick of it to this very day, but I can watch a French film without reading the subtitles, so it wasn't all wasted education. Other than a very unhealthy obsession with Notre Dame when I was younger (I'm WAY older than the Disney Hunchback, so it couldn't have been that), I don't really have any access to French things nowadays unless it's Disney-related, so forgive me if the skew here tends towards la maison de la souris (I'm not even sure if that's correct, but it's what came to me when I thought of "house of mouse").

#1: DISNEYLAND PARIS
Never been there, but the desire to go is always there. Now that I've been to Disneyland in California, Paris is my next check-box for Disney park variation destination other than Disney World (which will ALWAYS have priority). Kate's been there a couple of times and she loved it, so I probably will too!

#2: MACARONS
Since I really have no other frame of reference, of course I'm talking about the French macarons you get in Disney World (ignore the beignet, that was my sister's).

And my absolute favorite, the Mickey ones (although we didn't see these this past trip):

#3: CHEFS DE FRANCE
Located in Epcot's World Showcase in the France Pavilion, we had never eaten here because of my innate fear of "different" places. Besides, when I think of French food (well, other than desserts and beverages), I think of snails and raw fish eggs and other equally disgusting things. But to say that I was pleasantly surprised at how good the food was here could quite possibly be the understatement of the year! We LOVED it! Since I haven't touched our trip pictures yet (let alone done my reviews), here's just a little preview of my entree, Gratin de macaroni:

#4: NOTRE DAME
I'm not sure whether it was my art background or my obsession with Gothic architecture, but Notre Dame has always been a fascination of mine (well, OK, obsession, but that's neither here nor there). I wrote numerous papers on it in college (for both French and Art History class) and was probably well on my way to becoming an expert until my collegiate fall from grace. I'm not big on stock photos and since I've never been there, guess I won't be able to post a picture, but you guys have probably seen a picture before, right?

#5: LES HALLES BOULANGERIE PATISSERIE
I live in bum-fudge Arkansas, so the closest we have to French pastries is the bakery section in Wal-Mart, but I like to imagine I'm in France when sitting in Les Halles in the French Pavilion at Epcot (that is when we can find a seat). It's so much nicer than it used to be and the food selections have probably doubled from it's old location, I just wish the Disney Cast Members (the name for Disney employees) were nicer in this pavilion. It's probably one of the worst when it comes to CM's.

Top 5 Stores/Shops I Love

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's (or Top 5) for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know. Since Kate is still in the wind, I'm not sure if she'll be posting, but she'll get you on the list for next week for sure!

It's no secret that I am classified as part of the "poor" class by the government and I do pretty much fit the bill...I live in a trailer, scraping by paycheck to paycheck, etc, but I'm also one to spend like there is no tomorrow as evidenced by the Disney merchandise that has consumed every square inch of said trailer. Shopping, at least in my family, is an inherited weakness, I just ended up on the low end of the financial ladder to do it properly like my relatives, but it doesn't mean I don't strive to keep up with them!

#1: AMAZON
Be it Amazon US or Amazon UK, I've gotten so bad at using it, that I even bought socks and underwear for my last Disney trip from Amazon instead of going to the store! Amazon is the perfect place for anti-social people to shop and I feel sorry for the people who refuse to use it on principle (there are several in my office). When I shop the US store, I do use Amazon Smile instead of the regular and, for those that don't know, Smile donates a portion of every purchase to the charity of your choice. My charity is Arkansas Southern Dog Rescue, the angels who brought Bam into my life. I try to donate to them directly every payday, but on the weeks that I can't, at least I know they get something from my shopping addiction.

I buy from Amazon UK for my British DVDs (and I've been known to buy the occasional CD or book as well). Because of country coding on DVDs, it's impossible to get some of my favorite British shows in a US format, so it's nice to know that there is a place for me to get my Brit-fix. All you need is an all-region DVD player (about $30 on Amazon US) and you're in business! For the record, you can also shop at other countries Amazon shops, but there are shipping restrictions, especially when it comes to third-party sellers, so be careful.

#2: DISNEY STORES
Bet you thought this would be #1 and, considering the amount of dough I just dropped in about 50 park stores, I still think I utilize Amazon more. It's hard to pin this down to a specific Disney Store, so I'm not going to, but rather just the highlights (and for those that thought the Disney Store was your only option, prepare to be educated!).

We don't have a local Disney Store in our mall, but a trip to Memphis (1.5 hrs away) finds a couple and then there are Disney Outlets in both Nashville (4hrs away) and Gulfport (7 hrs away) and I'm sure elsewhere.

When in the parks, the possibilities and the stores are endless, so I'm not going to try to name all of them, but my favorites are probably The Emporium on Main Street in the Magic Kingdom, Mouse Gear in Epcot, and the Art of Disney Store in Disney Springs (it used to be World of Disney at Disney Springs, but their recent changes make the store borderline sucky...more to come on that when I get around to Disney reviews).

When I'm home, of course there is the online Disney Store, The Disney Movie Club Store (the DVDs cost more, but the exclusive merchandise makes it worth it, especially the pins) and, a relatively newcomer to the Disney shopper (and the best invention since sliced bread), the Shop Disney Parks app. How I've lived without this app is a miracle and I hope to never have to go back to those "dark years" and the park crumbs that the Disney Store gives us. Granted, it still has its limitations (especially when it comes to pins or event merchandise, most of those are "in store purchase only"), but pretty much everything else that can be found in Disney World, Disneyland or any other Disney park can be found on the app and all without the expensive trip to Disney World! I actually used it the first time on a Disney bus and I was instantly obsessed! Ever regret not buying a particular item when in the parks (story of my life) well, NEVER AGAIN!!

#3: CROSS STITCH STORES
Again, I'm going to generalize this too much because there are numerous stores I buy from, but I do have a couple of favorites. I love to browse most of them more than anything. When in need of fabric or thread in a pinch, I will often just head over to 123 Stitch. I've never had any problems with them, their prices are reasonable, and the merchandise arrives pretty quickly compared to other stores. I have also been known to buy fabric from Stoney Creek because I can get what I need in larger sizes, but a lot of people hate their store...I've never had an issue.

Way back in the day, before online stores were a staple and, if you wanted something different, you were stuck scouring eBay for hours, I bought all my kits from Cross Stitch World via eBay. Once they opened their online store, I just kept buying from them. Granted, I rarely buy a kit nowadays unless it's a Disney Dreams kit, but they are still who I order from.

I do travel a bit upon occasion just to hit a cross stitch store but, for the most part, I'm stuck with our local Hobby Lobby for immediate supplies. I HATE HATE HATE going there because of their lack of "hobby" supplies and their politics, but that's a discussion for a different day. There is a cross stitch store in Memphis, but they aren't very nice there (besides being incredibly expensive) and it's usually just more of a novelty visit than a predetermined shopping extravaganza.

#4: WAL-MART NEIGHBORHOOD MARKET
There are several reasons why I haven't been able to go to the SuperCenters for years, none of which are important for this post, but when it came to groceries/household items, I've been relegated to buying groceries at one store and household items at another for as long as I can remember. Then we got two Neighborhood Markets in our town and I haven't looked back since! Granted, I still have to make the occasional trip to Target for certain things (and this would be a different title if we had a Super Target, but alas, we don't), but I can mostly skate by just going to the Market for the weekly stuff. It's small, not too crowded, safe (at least for now), and I'm happy going there (and that's the most important thing of all).

#5: ETSY
Since this is only a top 5 list, my last choice was a little difficult, but not impossible. I've been spending a TON of time on Etsy lately. I buy cross stitch patterns, needle minders, dog collars, designer Scentsy fragrances (usually Disney related), and pretty much anything else that strikes my fancy (and my fancy is easily struck). There was a time I spend quite a bit of time (and money) on eBay but, since Etsy's come along, I rarely, if ever, buy from eBay anymore.

Given a choice, I would obviously do all my shopping online, hence the online-dominant picks on this list, but since it's not always possible, I like knowing that I still have visitable options (unless they come up with something better online in the future...I'm always on the lookout!).

Top 5 Female Role Models

OK, I promise I'm not bowing out of this week's Top Tuesday because of vacation, but rather because I just don't "do" role models. Maybe it is a side-effect of being an Asper, but other people just don't have enough of an influence on me to affect how I behave or strive to behave. Someone might have a cute outfit or hairstyle that I might copy, but other than that...nada. I'm not even sure I believe in the concept that one should be a "role model". It sets too high a standard for humans, probably the most fallible of creatures. Even Mother Theresa had her faults. Besides, with the likes to today's role models, parents should teach their kids the Asperger way...I'd hate to think that the likes of a certain ex-Disney star or the plethora of reality stars are influencing the next generation...help us all!

So, head on over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's (or Top 5) for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know. I'm sure both of them left out the aforementioned examples (or at least I HOPE they did!).

Top 10 Tuesdays-Things I Love That Are Welsh

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's (or Top 5) for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know.

Yea! Another easy topic! I wasn't sure what to do about the logo and title since we are switching to a Top 5 list for only a couple of months, but I decided just to go with it. This is a topic that I can easily do a Top 10 on, but alas, I'll stick to the rules.

#1: TOM ELLIS
Surely Kate knew that this would be my number one. I've always had a thing for British actors and, for quite a few years, Tom has been on the very top of my list, mainly due to Miranda (one of the best TV shows EVER), but for numerous other shows as well (Monday Monday, The Gates, Bedlam, Sugartown, The Fades, and about a half dozen others). . We're lucky enough to have him in the states now in Lucifer (before that Hitch and he was also the first Robin Hood on Once Upon A Time), but honestly, I miss Gary and Miranda, so how about a fan video from my favorite show:
And, since I'm at hit, for my American brethren who have not yet watched Lucifer, you ought to check it out because it's a pretty good show (WAY better than Hitch):


#2: DAWN FRENCH
One of the first British shows I ever got attached to was The Vicar of Dibley, long before another one of my great British actors came on board (Richard Armitage...most Americans will know him as Thorin Oakenshield in the Hobbit movies). Dawn was exceptionally funny, but most of all, she was very easy to relate to, and the more I went through the rest of her film catalog, the more I loved her. To this day, when I've had a bad time of it, I always pull out the Dibley disc with The Handsome Stranger and A Vicar In White to make myself feel better. There are rumors that a new Vicar special might be in the works, and I would just LOVE to see Dawn and Richard on screen together again (although it's doubtful because he's a big movie star now). A girl can dream, right?

Most Americans will know Dawn from here:


#3: GAVIN AND STACEY
Long before James Corden was well known by America, he was on a fantastic little show called Gavin And Stacey. Nessa (played by Ruth Jones...which would have had a number of her own if this was a Top 10 list) is what made the show for me and, to this day, I still try to find excuses to use the phrase, "where to...", "what's occurin'" and, who could ever forget "ooo, ooo". It took me FOREVER to find a clip of it (guess I should have just put Nessa's best moments in the search box instead of searching for the exact phrase...could have saved me some time). Rather than an actual show clip, I thought this comedy sketch of Ruth and James was pretty dad-gum funny and incorporated everything I was looking for:

But now I'm feeling guilty for not showing a show clip, so here ya go:


#4: STELLA
Speaking of Ruth Jones, another favorite show of mine is Stella. It's such a shame we don't have access to these shows here, so many people are missing out on good TV. Even though I don't have kids, I still find myself relating to Stella because no matter what she does, she always gets the short end of the stick...story of my life.


#5: RAREBIT
I'm not a world traveler per se in that I've never actually been to another continent, but I do go to Disney World practically every year and I've traveled and eaten my way around the world at Epcot (so that's got to count for something, right?). During the fall, Epcot has an annual Food & Wine Festival and, in addition to their UK Pavilion which has a lot of British cuisine in its own right, there are individual booths for various other countries. They've never actually had a Wales booth (although they have an Irish and Scottish), but once upon a time they had a general UK booth and that's where I got my first taste of rarebit. I wasn't going to touch it with a 10 foot pole if I was going by its name alone, but once I found out it was basically just a cheddar cheese sauce on toasted bread with a bit of mustard and worcestershire, I was totally down because cheese is my greatest weakness! It was absolutely amazing and a new favorite was born! Unfortunately, they never had it again, but you can sometimes find it at the Rose and Crown Pub in the UK Pavilion. I found numerous recipes online, but this looks to be the closest to what I had in Epcot all those years ago:

And for anyone interested, here is the recipe. Some people just consider cheese toast to be rarebit, which is a bit ironic for me because I've been eating that since I was a wee one. I now call it rarebit instead of cheese toast and people look at me like I'm nuts...I just like to think that I'm more sophisticated and worldly than they are!

Top 10 YouTube Channels You Find Yourself Watching

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know.

I love me some YouTube! I've been a faithful watcher of the channel since its early days. I use it for entertainment purposes, for work purposes, for learning purposes, for vacation purposes, and a half-dozen other reasons as well. My favorite channels change all the time, but I do have my go-to, never-let-me down favorites. I almost wish this was a top 20 list instead...I could literally ramble on about YouTube for hours!

#1: CRASH COURSE (SPECIFICALLY ASTRONOMY)
This series just finished up (there is talk that Physics is next), but there are also courses on history, literature, culture, philosophy, government, etc. They are short and sweet, but very perfunctory and certainly enjoyable enough to watch over and over. I've read Phil Plait's blog for years, so I was already a fan, but he's not the only Crash Course host (just the Astronomy host), the Green brothers, who handle all the other topics, are as equally entertaining.


#2: SCI SHOW SPACE
And speaking of the Green brothers, Hank (my favorite), is also involved in another channel involving Astronomy which he co-hosts. This one is more about current Astronomy news and I don't really think there is a schedule to these.


#3: DURAN DURAN
OK, so I'm sure you knew this one was coming, but still. There are tons of official music videos, interviews, live concert clips, and other surprises that keep the average Duranie occupied for quite a while!


#4: FLOSSTUBE
I don't have specific FlossTubers that I follow religiously (although I do subscribe to a couple), I tend to just roam around, checking out their videos, often scrolling through the banter just to see their progress. I'm linking to a random one I watched this morning, a FlossTuber that Kate turned me on to. The Stash Queen is kind of grating and enjoyable at the same time and I do often find myself hypnotized by her, although I'm not sure why...probably because she has a million needle minders!


#5: SARAH SNITCH
I spent a lot of time on YouTube prepping for my first ever Disneyland trip and I found that, although there are barely any fan websites for Disneyland, there are a lot more YouTuber's for Disneyland than Disney World. I got addicted to quite a lot of them, spending hours upon hours watching their walk-through videos of the park and their commentary, but at least one stood out more than the others and has kept me coming back long after my trip was over. Sarah is quirky and funny with a huge dose of Disney geekness that I relate to.


#6: LET'S EAT FICTION
Granted, Red Reyna does a lot of other videos that are food/entertainment related, but my absolute favorites of hers are her Disney recipes. One of these days, I'm going to try her versions of some Disney World and Disneyland classics.


#7: ADAM THE WOO
I almost hate to admit that I like this guy...he's not the most likable of people. But I will start watching his channel and it takes me forever to stop! There is something eerily fascinating about urban exploring, and he definitely does a lot of it (how he doesn't get arrested is beyond me, although he does get caught sometimes). He also does a daily blog which I rarely watch unless it's Disney related (he's also a Disney geek). I tend to stick to his abandoned places series and some of them are downright creepy, especially places like the old Six Flags in New Orleans and supposed haunted buildings. He ended up getting himself banned from Disney World for a couple of years for this video, hence my reason for posting it, but it's also the reason why I found him in the first place.


#8: LOEY LANE
I am obsessed with makeup tutorials for some reason and subscribed to quite a few YouTuber's who do nothing but, but Loey's channel is a bit different. She's a very inspiring person and I will often watch her videos when I'm feeling bad about myself or my looks.


#9: THE PET COLLECTIVE
OK, who doesn't love cute pet videos, seriously?


#10: TOURING PLANS.COM
When a Disney trip is on the horizon, I like to watch walk-throughs and on-ride videos constantly to get myself prepped and ready. I typically only troll these channels during planning season, but since I'm in the heart of one right now, I've been spending a lot of time on one of my favorites, Touring Plans, specifically this walk-through video of our resort that we will be staying at, Coronado Springs.


BONUS - THE DAILY PARANORMAL
I tried to edit the list down to 10, but I just couldn't leave out this channel! Sometimes watching real ghost stories on YouTube can be just as scary as watching a horror movie (especially with the crap horror movies they put out today).

Top 10 Movie Heroes

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know.

I'm not really sure how to approach this week's topic. Heroes are very subjective and mine change with the tides other than a select few, but I'm going to give it my best shot. I don't know why I consider some of these guys heroes, but they are the characters that come to mind first, be they "real" or animated. I also tend to interchange "hero" with "superhero". I know there are varying degrees of hero, but I tend to go big or go home, so to speak.

This will also be an male-dominated list for several reasons, the main one being because I'm old and I like male heroes. I've ranted numerous times about the shift in movies to give young girls someone to look up to by making the girls the heroes...I get the point of it, but don't necessarily think it's a good thing. If they insist on doing it, why not make it a 50/50 thing instead of an either/or (although that is a bit of back-talk because I prefer all male, but like I said, I'm old and that's just a product of my generation). Besides, I can't say that I've seen a "really good" female heroine movie (yet). I'm going to stop now or I'll never shut up about it.

#1: CAPTAIN AMERICA - THE AVENGERS (perfect specimen, pure-hearted and the epitome of chivalry...need I say more?)

#2: CAPTAIN FREDRICK WENTWORTH - JANE AUSTEN'S PERSUASION (yes, a bit vindictive, but his heart was always true, even if he wasn't sure for a while)

#3: PRINCE PHILLIP - SLEEPING BEAUTY (my perfect "Prince Charming")

#4: FOX MULDER - THE X FILES (I can include him because there are X-Files movies and because there is no one I would want on my side more if aliens ever attack)

#4: FLYNN RIDER - TANGLED (a bit of give and take between him and Rapunzel on the hero end, but still chivalrous in his own way)

#6: JOHN MCCLAIN (simply because Bruce Willis was and always will be hot and kick-ass)

#7: GAMBIT - REMY LEBEAU (the Taylor Kitsch version, even though his part was WAY too short, I have entire Taylor-based scenarios in my head thanks to the animated series though, so I'm good)

#8: WONDER WOMAN (a bit of a leap since the movie isn't out yet, but it looks really cool and I loved the show as a kid)

#9: ALL OTHER AUSTEN HEROES (Darcy, Tilney, Ferrars, Bertram, Knightly and let's add Colonel Brandon in honor of Alan Rickman...give me a man in a cravat any day!)


#10: THE REST OF THE AVENGERS (I'll be PC and include Captain Marvel, Wasp, and Black Widow)

Since I'm in an Avengers mood now and since I do so love fan videos, how about another one?

Top 10 Things You Would Do If You Won The Lottery

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know!

Kate put a cap on the amount (75 million pounds - about 110 million dollars) and I'm so glad she did! If I'm realistic about it (or as realistic as one can be about a lottery win), I'm going to assume that's the cash-out amount and, after taxes, both federal and state, I would be left with about 60 million, so that's what I'm going with. Thankfully, this is my go-to amount of win and the one that benefits me the most. Anything more and it's just way too much (and incredibly dangerous) and anything less means I'm not going to hit these targets and the plans are completely different.

Because of my Asper-ness, my brain constantly runs at full speed, especially at night. The only way I can get to sleep is to start a scenario in motion and play it through until I drift off. My standard scenario is a lottery win, so I'm pretty well-versed in all levels of a win and this might be the easiest Top 10 ever for me! I have various levels of spending thoughts, and even spend waking hours perusing websites looking for the perfect bed or stemware to assist in my scenario-building skills, but for the purposes of this Top 10, I'll try to stick to the basic generalities. I could literally write a novel-sized wishlist when it comes to a lottery win, and that's just for this amount. I have other lists for other amounts, all the way down to $100,000.

I'm very careful when, on the rare occasion, I do buy lottery tickets. I constantly read horror stories about lottery winners getting sued left and right, death threats, kidnappings, etc, so I'm more than paranoid about winning the lottery (even though I'm willing to risk it). I will typically drive the four hours to Kansas to buy tickets because it's one of the few states that you can claim your winnings anonymously and keep it that way. If, and or when, I win the lottery, no one, including most of family members, will probably ever know. It's safer for us all that way. I will find a way to help some of them financially so that they don't know it's me, but I will go through the whole process...name change, disappearance, relocation to protect myself and Bam.

Obviously, I will go through the standard steps such as getting a lawyer, financial advisor, etc. although I'm not too sure how stringent I'll let them be on me and their control will be extremely limited (to keep them from running off with my money). I am overly frivolous with money even now (and I'm as poor as a church mouse), so I'm sure I'll be worse with a lottery win. I just need the experts to reign me in on the crazy stuff. I still have very specific plans that will not be deterred (most of which are below)...so enough chit chat, let's get to the good stuff!

#1: GOLDEN OAK
Despite all recommendations as to how to start spending a lottery win (and I've read several books on the subject...I take my dreaming seriously), my very first order of business is buying my house in Golden Oak. For those that don't know, Golden Oak is a subdivision that is actually situated on Disney property, in Walt Disney World. This isn't Disney's first foray in real estate, they built the town of Celebration, just south of Disney World, only to lose it (depending on who you ask) due to numerous reasons that don't matter here.

My first notion is to build my perfect house from scratch, but that will take too long and I will need to move as soon as possible (for safety reasons). Right now, there is a resale that would be perfect to start with. If later I decide to build out there, I will have a roof over my head while I take my time and do it right. You get so many Disney benefits to living in Golden Oak (not including being within a stone's throw of the parks), it would be stupid for me, a crazy Disney fan, not to take advantage. If anything, living in Golden Oak could save me money in the long run, despite the crazy fees involved with living there.

When it comes to "staff", that's a harder question to answer. I won't want to take care of any yard work or pool maintenance, but I also can't see myself having a maid because I'm not a trusting person and I'm not sure I would like someone strange actually inside my house. At the same time, I won't want to do housework either. It's the one area I'm stuck on. I will probably outsource the outside stuff and try to see if I can handle the inside stuff. If not, I would probably hire a maid that only works say one day a month, and only on a day when I'm there so I can "monitor" things. No matter what I decide though, my duck room will have intense security and no one will be allowed in there without me.

#2: FURNISHINGS
For an extra couple hundred thousand, you can make your Golden Oak home "turn-key ready", which basically means they will furnish it and stock it for you. Part of me likes this idea because I don't relish buying new towels and dishes and such, but I'm also an extremely picky person and I'm not sure some fru-fru decorator will get me or my tastes. There are things I will need, such as a duck room for all my Disney stuff (and I have very specific ideas about that), a craft room, themed bedrooms (and the themes change as the dreams do), etc and I'm not sure I like the idea of someone else deciding that for me. I guess it will depend on how hands-on they are.

I am also the kind of person that likes to have items that remind me of people or places, so a lot of the decor will be my own doing. I'd like to take my time and do it right...get the absolute perfect matchy-matchy items in certain areas and the perfect kitsch items elsewhere. About the only thing I know for sure (and that stays constant) is that the overall theme will be purple.

#3: VEHICLE
I'm not one of those people who need 15 cars. I may buy a new one every year or so, given the funds, but one is plenty and I'm not too overly picky. Obviously, something mildly luxurious, in the SUV range, possibly a hybrid and that's about it. I don't want some outrageous sports car that costs more than the house. Maybe a Mercedes or Lexus, just something to get me from point A to point B. Living in Disney World, I don't plan to be out much anyway. It just needs to be nice enough to be acceptable in the neighborhood, but not crazy enough to get me car-jacked.

#4: SMALL, CLASS E MOTOR HOME
OK, I know I just said I don't plan to be out much, but...I do want to travel, at least upon occasion. There are places I've never been and always wanted to go to even if I'm not good with going places and "doing things". I like to go places, see it through the car window, and move on. Stopping for the night at a hotel isn't something I'm particularly comfortable with, but I will need to sleep somewhere. A small, van-sized motor home would be perfect for me and Bam to use to see the country. It's not too big to handle on my own, it's not considered motor home-sized so you can take it anywhere a car or SUV can go, and we'll be safe in the confines of our own space. Despite their small stature (or because of it), they are quite a bit more expensive than you would think, so it's something that can only be reserved for a large lottery win.

When it comes to stopping at RV parks or campgrounds though, I may have a lot of trouble handling that. I will need to plug things up and empty other things upon occasion, but I may wait until the very last minute to do so. I'm sure that will affect the wear-and-tear of said vehicle and may make maintenance costs high. I might not keep it forever, especially once I've seen most of the places I want to.

#5: DISNEY STUFF
Living in Disney World, I'll be able to buy new merchandise almost daily. There are a few items I always swear up and down will be my first lottery purchases (but obviously, I will need a house to put them in first because I don't want to move them around much and, considering their delicacy, I'm not sure how I would even get them from the store to my house):

Those are a lot bigger than you would think.

Between both castles and the coach, there is about $100,000 worth of merchandise there. Most of the items on my Disney wishlist aren't really expensive in the first place, so it's not like I'll be spending millions on collectibles (honestly, those in the pictures above are the most expensive things I would ever consider buying) but, throughout the years, there have been things or items I've really wanted and couldn't afford and are now retired or discontinued. I will be spending a considerable amount of time on Ebay to get these items. Like now, I will have some collector pieces intermingled in with stuff from Dollar Tree. If it's a duck, I'm not too picky where it comes from or its value!

I'm not including other, non-Disney stuff because honestly, there really isn't too much other stuff I'd want. I live a pretty single-minded life. I sometimes think about having real estate in other locations, like having a flat in London, a beach house in Santa Monica and maybe one in Nantucket but, in the long run, those are just a waste of money to me...why maintain a house that you stay in one week a year? Besides, it could become a tax nightmare owning real estate in various states or countries. Best stick to hotels.

#6: DISNEY PARK TRIPS
I figure I should be able to visit every other Disney park in the world at least one week a year a piece. If there is one I don't like much, maybe I will only hit that one every couple of years, but I do want to vary my Disney experience (and merchandise) a bit.

#7: BAM PAMPERING
The ideal plan is to build Bam his very own room with all kinds of decorator dog stuff. I even consider getting him a brother or two upon occasion. Since Disney World has a pretty nice boarding facility on property (and within a stone's throw of Golden Oak), I have great aspirations of sending him to doggy daycare while I'm in the parks. I may not be the kind of person to waste money on myself in the way of appearance, but Bam will have the best of everything, including spa treatments!

#8: OTHER TRIPS
I guess my notion of not leaving the house much is kind of silly considering I will apparently be spending all that time in Disney parks around the world, travelling in my motor home, and visiting life-long dream destinations (such as England, Scotland, etc). I may limit these major trips to one a year just to control how much I'm out. Plus, any major travel means I can't take Bam (or wouldn't want to drag him through the hassle of it), and I wouldn't want to be away from him for too long. I have debated getting him "support animal" certified, but I would think on a plane that Bam would need more support than I do! Best leave him at home.

#9: BEAUTIFICATIONS/FIXTURES
I'm not an overly self-absorbed person, but given the funds, there are certain things I'd like to fix and/or change about myself. I would lose weight naturally, get a trainer and exercise, etc, but I'm at the age where no matter what way I lose weight, there will always be excess skin. I would need this surgically removed. I also have hooded eyelids, something that insurance won't pay for until I'm older, but I'd like to get that fixed as well. I don't see myself having major plastic surgery or botox or whatever. I don't have many wrinkles and am pretty settled with my features (including my large Scottish nose).

I do have an eye disease call keratoconus which will eventually require corneal transplants. The US is the only country in the world that still uses donor corneas...everyone else has gone to synthetic. Donor corneas mean a donor list and a wait. If I had the money, I'd just go to Canada and get the problem fixed now instead of waiting until my corneas rupture and having to spend months or years on a donor list while I'm blind. That could cut into my cross stitching plans.

Same goes with the stupid lump in my head. They don't want to remove it now because it's not causing any problems and it's in a dangerous location. My view is, why wait until I'm having seizures or god knows what else or it becomes so big that they can't remove it at all? Best get it out while it's small and manageable (and I'm still relatively young enough to make it through the surgery).

When it comes to clothing and such, I am a t-shirt, jeans and sneakers kind of girl and I'm not sure money would change that. Obviously, I would need nice clothes sometimes, but I doubt my overall style would change much. I do have an obsession with jewelry and accessories (especially purses and sunglasses), so I might have more than my fair share of that kind of thing, but the thought of wasting money on clothing has never, and will never, appeal to me. Give me something electronic over a new top any day!

#10: DONATIONS
This is kind of low on the list of things, I know, but I'm very untrustworthy of other people and especially organizations, so choosing who to donate money to will take great time and research...something I figure I won't want to do at first. Like I mentioned at the start, there are people I would like to help, specifically the only people I call "family", like my Sister, mother, and aunt (it's a short list) and even then there will be confidentially agreements and safe harbor agreements to protect me against future lawsuits.

Charitable organizations will be harder. Obviously, it will all be done anonymously, but I would give to the two local hospitals as well as the hospital in Paragould where I worked part-time for 11 years. I will also probably give to both St. Jude's and Arkansas Children's Hospital and maybe the children's hospital in Orlando. I would give money to Debbie at Arkansas Southern Dog Rescue, who so graciously allowed me to adopt Bam, but other places will need extensive research and I haven't given it a great deal of thought other than those locations.

Friends and acquaintances will be harder because, again, I've read numerous horror stories about lottery winners and their charitable donations. You buy a friend or family member a nice car, they run over somebody, and you get sued, or you buy them a house, they have a pool party, and someone drowns and, guess what? You get sued. Or, my personal favorite, give a family member money, they get addicted to drugs, die, and then their spouse/kids/etc sue you because they wouldn't have lost said person had you not given them money in the first place.

There are about a million stories about things like that that actual lottery winners have dealt with. There are people I'd like to help, but I'm always going to protect me and Bam first and if I can think of a loophole that could get me in trouble, then forget it. Numerous times, various lottery winners have had the closest of family members try to kill them and, if there is one thing I've learned, nobody can be trusted when it comes to money.

Granted, my Asper-dom means that my empathy level is next to nil anyway, but a random person, who I don't know, is never going to get a dime from me unless I can do it anonymously and safely. Anyone that out-right asks for money is guaranteed not to get it on principle alone, I don't care who they are. I'm not talking about a random street beggar, I'm referring to the people who make it their life's mission to write letters to every single lottery winner asking them to pay for their child's surgery (with cash, deposited in their account). Not going to happen.

But even having said all that, I'm still the kind of person who is a notoriously large tipper (even now in my poor state), and I can't imagine things like that would change. If someone I know needs something, I will try my best to help them out, as long as it can be by my rules and all the legal protections I can muster!

And on that positive note (HA), I guess I'd better stop there!

Top 10 Phone Apps

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know!

Well, yet again, I've got to bend the topic just a bit. I may be a techie, but I'm also one of those people who think that a phone should just be used to call or text people. I rarely ever use apps on my phone and typically only out of necessity. My iPad, however, is a whole 'nother beast and I app the heck of it, so I'm going to make this week's Top 10 Tuesday a list of my top 10 favorite iPad apps (with maybe one or two iPhone apps thrown in for good measure). I'm also going to try to link to as many of these as I can.

#1: HOURS TRACKER
Ever wonder why I know exactly how much time I spend stitching on a project? Hours Tracker is the reason. I pretty much clock in and out as I stitch and have a "job" for each cross stitch project.

#2: EZ PDF READER
Although I still use paper copies of my patterns and do all my marking off of finished stitches on those, I do like to use this app to highlight the symbol I'm working on so that I don't miss any stray threads. I did try to use it to mark off as I went along, but I found it too unreliable. I also tried GoodReader, another PDF app that a lot of people like, but I couldn't keep it stable enough to work with.

#3: DROPBOX
I do luv me some Dropbox! It makes it much easier for me to access files across all the computers and devices that I deal with in a day and it's where I store all my cross stitch patterns for safety reasons.

#4: MY DISNEY EXPERIENCE
Disney World and Disneyland are two completely different worlds when it comes to technology. Disneyland just recently got an app that really serves no purpose, but the Disney World My Disney Experience app is a virtual godsend in the parks. You can see how long lines are (so you don't have to cross all the way through the park to read the board), you can book dining ressies (or cancel them), you can see where you are and where you need to be, you can book FastPass + experiences and get reminders when your FastPass is coming up...it's basically exactly what you want in a travel companion app (although it is slower than Christmas thanks to their overly clunky format - their website is the same). This is one of the few apps that I do use on my phone (because obviously I'm not dragging my iPad through the parks and to those people who do, I wish you would stop, especially those who use them to take pictures with during fireworks and feel the need to raise it into my eye view so all I can see is your iPad screen!).

#5: WAKE UP WITH DONALD
I can't link to this app because it is no longer available in the App Store (but you can find it on other sites - I don't recommend that FYI), but for those of us who have it, we are lucky ducks! Seriously, the best way to wake up in the morning is having Donald Duck screaming at you. At first, the app also told the weather and did other things (you could tickle him, change his outfits, etc), but over time some of those features are disappearing. At least the alarm clock still works and I do also use this more on my phone than my pad. Luckily, I just happened to find a YouTube video showing what it can do (or what it used to do in the case of the weather):


#6: JIGSAW PUZZLE
I go through phases with puzzles, sometimes I can't stop doing them and other times I can't bring myself to touch one. Puzzle apps are hard to find because I guess people have different ideas about what a "jigsaw" puzzle is, so when you find one you like, stick with it! I haven't been in the mood for a while now, but you get a free puzzle every day so I always make it a point to get my puzzle daily. You can also download puzzle packs (there are a couple of free ones, but the "good" ones all cost at varying rates).

#7: NETFLIX / HULU
If I'm in a good wi-fi zone and need something to occupy my time, I will typically watch TV shows from my queues. Honestly, I think my iPad is more of a stable watching source than my Blu-Ray player at the house.

#8: GHOST RADAR
This is one of those really hokey apps, but I keep it on a lot more than I probably should.

#9: SIRIUS XM
This app probably gets equal love between my phone and my tablet, it just depends on where I am and what I am doing at the time. Obviously, you have to have a Sirius XM account and have the web option (which I do), but I can't imagine life without it, even though I typically only listen to one station, #33 - First Wave. At least you can edit the web version more to your specific tastes versus just the live broadcast. Mine is heavy on the synth and more obscure than mainstream and it gives me exactly what I want to listen to.

#10: GAMES
I'm going to cram all these together in one number, simply because my attentions shift so quickly with games, I can't keep up! I will play one until my fingers are sore, unable to put it down for days or weeks, and then never touch it again. Right now, the list is shorter, but I'm pretty addicted to Blossom Blast Saga and Nibblers on the non-Disney side and Cinderella Free Fall and Frozen Free Fall on the Disney side (yes, I keep my games separated into those two categories). I will occasionally play one of those games where you have clues that get you from one place to another with an occasional item search puzzle in the middle (I'm not sure what those are called), but once those are done, they really aren't good to play again. The past few I've downloaded have taken me a max of three hours and if I'm going to pay $4.99 for a game, I want it to last longer than that.

There are a lot of other apps that I use on my tablet, but this is a top 10 list after all and most of these get used an awful lot.

Top 10 Careers You Would Love/Hate To Have

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know!

This week's topic is a very subjective one for me and tends to flip and flop with my moods (which are as ever-changing as the weather), so I'm just going to go for the careers I'd love/hate right now. Ironic that this topic should come on the heels of my 20th anniversary at my current job...huh, wonder if someone is trying to tell me something? Anyhoo, I think I'm also going to split this one up and do five I'd love and five I'd hate, so first up:

LOVES

LOVES #1: ASTRONOMER
Bet you thought the first one would be Disney related, right? I'll get to that in a moment. I could subdivide this one up into planetary science including geology and biology, but I'm just going to leave it in the general Astronomy field for now. My interests do lie pretty much in the planets (and their moons), ours and those of other stars. I know how excited I was with those first views of Pluto, I can only imagine how those who had spent a lifetime studying it felt. I would love to experience something like that with my career.

LOVES #2: HISTORIAN
On the occasions when I find myself wandering over to my local university's webpage, I tend to always look at the history major specs for some reason. I would have been a good museum curator, one that is buried in the basement, studying and cataloging relics incessantly. That ship has long sailed and I have no idea what I would do with a major in history now (especially since I tend to lean towards Medieval History). I would be a horrible teacher and even worse politician, so who knows. But I do so love the topic, that and literature were my best, but again, what can you do with a degree in literature either but teach? Although, I remember how amazing I felt when my high school literature teacher enlightened me to certain authors, part of me would love to share that with someone else. Most of our history teachers were all the team coaches, so not much fond remembrance for them, but I do for the subject matter. The thought of library science always brews in the back of my mind, especially since I could go either with a degree in history or literature, but by the time I finished school and got my masters, actual human librarians will be a thing of the past.

LOVES #3: DISNEY EMPLOYEE
Obviously, with my art background, my first inclination on this subject would be to work for the animation department, but that ship has also sailed. As far as the parks go, I wouldn't be good in the public eye, but rather good behind the scenes, I'm just not sure where. Honestly, I'd rather just visit than work there, but the thought of having access to the Cast Member-only shopping areas truly makes my mouth drool. Can you want to work somewhere just for the shopping opportunities? I would.

LOVES #4: WRITER
OK, so my grammar sucks and I'm not very good at articulating what I am thinking, even in text, but part of me would love to be a writer...maybe put out a book a year and just travel the rest of the time. I'm not even sure what genre I would write (although I have started several books in the past, everything from fantasy to romance). But, I'm not sure if I could do the meet and greets, so I would have to be a reclusive writer. I do really enjoy blogging, I just can't make any money at it with my current so-called "talent" (basically, I'm a sucky writer who needs a heck of a lot of grammar lessons).

LOVES #5: A BETTER I.T. DIRECTOR
Yes, I am an I.T. Director now, but a self-taught one. I grandfathered into my current job and have no education in this field at all. I wish I knew a bit more than I do so that I would have the option of going somewhere else if I wanted to. As it stands now, they have me leashed up in my office and they like it that way. As long as I make enough money to keep a roof over my head, honestly, I like it that way too, but I do have my moments and it would be nice to know I could go somewhere else.

HATES

HATES #1: A BETTER I.T. DIRECTOR
First oxymoron of the list. To be a better I.T. Director would require an education and the thought of having to go to classes for this subject doesn't appeal to me at all. I have tried it, back in the day (after I stopped being an art major), and I hated every moment of it, especially since I was surrounded by freshly educated young people who actually understood what the professors were talking about. No thanks! If I had to get an education in computer science, I would probably lean more towards programming so I can do it at home, alone.

HATES #2: GOVERNMENT WORK
I've been a government employee before. I worked at two separate Housing Authorities and honestly, if I never step foot in a government office again, it will be none too soon. Despite the incredible benefits and the constant holiday days-off, the work is grueling, extremely stressful, for very low pay, and just not worth it.

HATES #3: FACTORY WORK
I've worked in a factory before and I think everyone should at least once in their life because it does teach humility and work ethics, but I hated every single moment of it (and it's where I met my ex-husband, so there you go). I felt like my brain was dying during my tenure there and I didn't like how I ended up feeling when it was all said and done. But, if times get hard, I know I could do it again if I had to.

HATES #4: THE FOOD INDUSTRY
As much as I love eating out, I would be horrible in any food capacity. I would constantly be swiping "samples" and would end up even bigger than I already am. Besides, me and the public would be a horrible combination. But, even having decided against it, part of me would love to own a bakery and go to pastry school...but this isn't the love category, now is it?

HATES #5: EDUCATION
As I mentioned above, I would be horrible at teaching. Are there cases of Asper's truly thriving in an educational environment? Most of our ticks would keep us from being good mentors and educators. Besides, if I'm honest, I don't like kids, so I wouldn't be a good teacher on that premise alone, so there is no need to even mention my total lack of patience when it comes to others. Maybe at the collegiate level I would be OK, but I can't even guarantee that.

Huh, this list ended up more interesting that I thought it was going to be (and a lot easier than previous weeks). I'm kind of excited for February now!

Top 10 Expressions You Love To Use

As always, go over to Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's for the week and if you want to join in, just let Kate know!

I'm a big user of expressions, most of which aren't fit for family entertainment, so I actually had to think a bit on this one to keep it relatively clean. I'm bad at word dyslexia, so a lot of the time what I mean to say and what actually comes out of my mouth are two separate things (and have led to some extremely embarrassing situations). I'm also horrible at using movie quotes which no one ever gets, so it just sounds like I'm speaking utter twaddle. Despite my inherent Southerness, I'm not prone to the typical Southern quotations and I tend to get annoyed when people start spouting them at me, especially when it comes to the whole "honey", "sweetie", "darlin", "sugarpie" crap.

#1: BLOODY HELL
There is probably no phrase that comes out of my mouth more than this one. It's my way of cussing without actually cussing. Americans think of it more as a novelty phrase, so they don't take it nearly as seriously as it's meant, especially out of my mouth.

#2: PIDDIES
When someone asks me what they should do with something, instead of asking them to hand it to me, I'm horrible at saying "just put it in my piddies" and NO ONE gets it!! Seriously, has no one ever watched Looney Toons? It was very hard to find a clip, so I had to resort to an old Babbit and Catstello cartoon, but the premise is the same...look for it at about 4:11:


#3: WANDA
When I'm questioning something, I will often say, "I Wanda, I Wendy, I wonder" and again, people just look at me like I'm insane. Granted, there was a time I watched A Fish Called Wanda way more than the average human should have, but that line always stuck out to me and, since I'm so bad at mixing up words, it suits me.

#4: SINGING RESPONSES
I know most Americans have no clue who Miranda Hart is, but she and I are a lot alike (well, other than I have no Tom Ellis in the wings). I am terrible at singing responses to people if they inadvertently quote a song lyric. I try really hard not to do this, but to no avail. Bad thing is, since I'm stuck in a generation, most of the time no one even knows the song I'm singing.


#5: DISNEY CUSSING
As the months start counting down to a Disney trip, I try to curb my natural potty mouth into something a bit less nasty and I tend to replace the bad words with Disney characters...hell becomes Hades, JC becomes Donald Duck, etc. It takes me a couple of months to change the habit and, that way, I can still cuss, but not offend the little kiddies at Disney. Unfortunately, it's not a habit I can continue and I often go back to my old horrible ways once a trip is over with.

#6: ROAST INSERTION
Like I said, I'm horrible at switching words around. One of my more famous instances was when I meant to say, "stick a fork in me, I'm done", but it came out "stick a roast in me, I'm done". Since I said this in front of several co-workers, it's now a popular phrase used around the office. Yea me. It could be worse...one time I couldn't decide if I wanted to stay "pain in the butt" or "pain in the tush" and it came out "pain in the bush". Talk about embarrassing! That's what happens when your brain runs quicker than your mouth.

#7: $2
When I'm trying to get someone to do something for me and they are taking their own sweet time, I'm really bad about saying "I want my two dollars" and again, no one gets it. I still content that Better Off Dead was John Cusack's finest work even if he disagrees:


#8: THE REALIST'S CATCH PHRASE
One of my favorite sayings is one of my own, "expect the worst and you're not disappointed when it happens, but you can be pleasantly surprised when it does". I'm not an pessimist by any means, but I'm not really an optimist either...I tend to fall in the realist category, but I'm also what one would generally categorize as a very unlucky person. I try to look at the bad in the best light I can, but it's not always easy and, considering my luck, it's probably not going to be a good outcome...best be prepared.

#9: THE CAP KNOWS
Ever since The Avengers came out, I have been obsessed with "I understood that reference". The older I get and the further away from popular culture I tend to stray, I totally sympathize with poor Captain America and his antiquated knowledge. At least the kids in the office understand what I mean when I say this.


#10: SELFISHNESS
One of the main issues with Aspers is that we're pretty selfish creatures by nature, probably more so than the average bear. When I do something inherently selfish and I feel like I've insulted someone, I'll quote a little Austen and say "selfishness must always been forgiven you know, because there is no hope for a cure". No one gets the reference, but it makes me smile because I do love Mansfield Park.

I have numerous other quotes and catch phrases that I say all the time, but alas, we are restricted to 10.

Top 10 Songs With Misheard Lyrics

I'm not having much luck with Top 10 topics lately, but I'm hanging in there! Make sure to check out Kate's and Tiff's blogs to see their Top 10's for the week.

One of the first things I have always done when I bought an album/cassette/CD is open the jacket and read the lyrics. With the digital age and downloadable songs, I just go to one of the myriad of online lyric sites and do the same. It's just part of my process. If the album was important enough for me to buy, then I make it a point to make sure I know the lyrics beforehand. The bands I prefer are all pretty good at enunciating, so I'm not bad about understand lyrics, but rather misinterpreting them.

Most of the music I prefer is pretty cryptic in the first place, so lyrical meaning is open to interpretation and, if the artist isn't clear on what they meant (and most of them can't pinpoint specifics anyway), then the song is open to personal interpretation, or thus is my opinion. So I'm not really going to do a Top 10 of misheard lyrics, but rather a list of songs who's meaning I've either screwed up or the rest of the world has. And warning, it's probably going to be Duran-centric because that's pretty much the only music I ever listen to anyway.

LOVE WILL TEAR US APART - JOY DIVISION
I absolutely love this song, but honestly, can anybody understand the lyrics without intervention? This is one of those rare "can't understand a bloody word" type songs.


THE REFLEX - DURAN DURAN
OK, I was 14 when this song came out and incredibly immature, so I would have never guessed that this song was about Simon's peen, but that's not the first thing that comes to mind with this song. The lyric "I sold the Renoir and the TV set" was my Achilles heel when it came to this song, so much so that I had to ask my mother what a "Renoir" was. She explained that it was a "kind of painting" and I was OK with that answer. This was obviously before my art years really took off, but hey, I'm more of the Monet type anyway.


SUBCULTURE - NEW ORDER
I guess I never really thought too much about it until Justine pointed it out to me, I just thought the one lyric "you'll realize you can't shaft without someone else" was just a throw in and not the whole theme of the song. It has always been a song about the dangers of isolating yourself too much and being lonely to me. The song meaning still hasn't changed for me, but now I find that my eyebrow raises a bit more when I get to that lyric!


BIG THING - DURAN DURAN
Simon Le Bon has this way of making everything sound sexual even when it's not and this song kind of epitomizes that. It's one of their more suggestive tunes but, according to the lyric master himself, it's not a sexual song but rather about the "corporate monster". You be the judge:


THE END OF THE WORLD - REM
Again, like Love Will Tear Us Apart, this is one of those songs where printed lyrical intervention is a necessity. Seriously, have they ever performed this song live and, if so, did Michael just randomly make up new lyrics? I'm not even sure I've seen the lyrics printed the same twice in a row!


MICHAEL, YOU'VE GOT A LOT TO ANSWER FOR - DURAN DURAN
This song was written before Michael Hutchence died, but it became an anthem for him after the fact. Most people don't know that he and Simon Le Bon were best friends, especially in the years leading up to Michael's death, which just adds to the irony of the song for me. I found a very interesting fan video for this song.


JUST LIKE HEAVEN - THE CURE
For some reason, a lot of people don't understand most of the lyrics of this song, although I've never had any trouble with it. Since it's my favorite song ever (in the non-Duran category, of course), then I figured I should include it.


I DON'T WANT YOU LOVE - DURAN DURAN
Since Simon does all the writing, finding out that this song was supposed to be from John Taylor to one of his many exes was a bit of a shocker. Simon was still credited as the lyric writer, but I wonder how the initial lyrical conversation about this song ever started in the first place!


THE UNION OF THE SNAKE - DURAN DURAN
I've read comment after comment by Simon about what this song is actually about, but none of them still make sense. He can wax poetical quite a bit anyway, but this one just defies explanation for me. It's a great video though, so does it really matter?


ELECTION DAY - ARCADIA
Obviously, when Duran temporarily split in 85, I went the way of Simon and preferred Arcadia to The Power Station (and still do to this day because it sounds like goth Duran). One of my favorite songs from the So Red The Rose album was Election Day, but honestly, what does the song mean? I've heard Simon's explanation, but I'm not buying it. But oh well, the video shows my absolute favorite Simon look incarnation, so I don't care that much.

To be honest, I could probably come up with another dozen or so Duran songs, but I'll stop here. I also (yet again), screwed up this week's theme, but I figure it's better that I participate and modify the topic versus not participate at all, right?

Top 10 Things You Would Save In A Fire (Non-Living)

I'm a bit scared of this week's Top 10...I'm a firm believer in not putting certain vibes into the cosmos because they just might come true and this subject matter is one of my greatest fears. Kate's been through this personally, so she has the hindsight to know what she would save, but I honestly hope that it never happens to any of us (and in the case of Kate, never again). Make sure to check out Kate's and Tiff's blogs...they probably aren't as chicken as I am.

I debated long and hard on this subject last night and, in all honesty, despite my house full of stuff, the only real thing I would save would be Bam. Granted, I have things that cannot be replaced and that I would lose forever, but Bam is really the only important thing, he is my life. But, as the title says, this is about the non-living things.

Since I live in a trailer, the odds of me surviving a fire (if I was in the house at the time) are next to nil making this an almost impossible post, leaving me with basically a "fantasy" option, so I'm playing that card and going with 10 garbage bags. That's right...10 garbage bags filled with certain stuff.

GARBAGE BAGS #1, 2, AND 3:
Obviously, considering my frame of mind right now, I'm in a stitchy mood, so I would need one garbage bag for my current WIPs, one for my finished projects, and one for my stash.

GARBAGE BAGS #4, 5, 6, 7, AND 8:
Here is where the Disney stuff comes into play. Obviously, because I have a lot of stuff and certain collections like Donald, Stitch, Princesses & Villains, and the park stuff, each category would need it's own bag and then I would need a "general" bag for all the random stuff.

GARBAGE BAG #9:
Since I am a techie, there are certain things I would need to continue living, such as my laptop, tablet, phone, etc and all subsequent chargers, cords, etc.

GARBAGE BAG #10:
Lastly, I would need one bag for important personal items such as glasses/contacts, important documents, my purse, jewelry I've had my whole life, my pewter figurines, maybe a change of clothes or two, and my asthma meds (all the other meds could be replaced sort of quickly, but these I would need immediately, especially if I've been filling garbage bags full of stuff).

ADDITIONAL NOTATION:
Dear Lady Fate,
Please do not take anything I have just written seriously. I know that, as a general rule, I am on your eternal shit-list, but please take this post to be anything more than pure dribble and not worth your time to even read, let alone act upon.
Sincerely,
Your eternal slave and punching bag

Top 10 Things I Am Looking Forward To In 2016

Yea! We finally have a Top 10 subject I can do now that the holidays are almost over with! Make sure to check out Kate's and Tiff's blogs because they actually have lives and probably have some worthy goals for 2016, whereas mine are typical me...weird and silly.

#1: DISNEY WORLD
Financially, one of the most destructive things I can do is take a Disney World trip, especially so soon after Disneyland, which was probably the most expensive trip I've ever taken in my entire life, but I just can't help myself, especially when I'm getting a paid ride (as least as far as transportation, parks, food, and lodging are concerned...it's my shopping habits that get me into trouble). Despite the problems this trip is probably going to cause me, I absolutely can't wait because I've never been to Disney World in the spring and I've always wanted to go to Epcot's Flower and Garden Festival (if for no other reason than a new pin set). Besides, it's way past time for just a trip with me and my sissy!

Plus, I'll be able to check yet another Disney Resort off my "never stayed at before" list and I will have officially stayed at every single moderate resort.

#2: STITCHING
I used to be a one project at a time person. It's probably the reason why I would stitch for months and then not touch it for months or even years...boredom. I started having a couple of WIPs at a time, but once I started HAEDs, my stitching took on a whole new life. I tried to restrict myself to three...one HAED, one kit, and one Disney, but the ease in which HAEDs stitch, make any other project pale in comparison. Even though they changed their charting method (don't worry, I'm not going to go into a 20 minute diatribe about dithering) and I rarely buy one now, I still have enough in my stash to last more than a lifetime. I do still buy kits or projects from other designers (usually on Etsy), but the odds of me ever getting around to them is next to nil thanks to my HAED stash.

Plus, I really want to make time-lapse videos of all my pictures of my stitching projects. There has to be a reason why I take pictures every single night, especially since I only typically post a before and after post weekly. I just haven't found a way to center the picture enough to make the video not seem jumpy. Once I figure that out, I'll have time-lapses coming out of my...well, you know.

Come January 1, I will be adding three new HAEDs to my non-patterned rotation, so the current kits and "other" projects will probably take a backseat, at least for a while. The good thing about these three new ones is that I actually have a chance to finish at least one or two of them in the upcoming year, whereas the two HAEDs I have active now will take a few more years to finish.

I'm also going to try to stop buying stash. Like I said, I have more than I can ever do, so unless it's just a complete stunner and I can't live without it, I'm not buying anymore. I had already decided this months ago, which is probably why I've been browsing stash like crazy the past couple of months. I have managed to control myself and have only made a couple of purchases, including this one last night:

(thanks for the heads up on these Tiffany!)

#3: BILL PAYING
After I "fall off the wagon" and hit Disney World in March, hopefully I will have significant time during the year to finally get some credit cards paid down. I've let them get WAY out of control and I've got to stop myself before it gets really bad. Everytime I get a "wild hair", I just need to tame it back down instead of running with it and going nuts.

#4: SPRING CLEANING
OK, this may sound like a weird thing to look forward to, but I've managed to let my Disney collection get completely out of control and it's cluttering up my entire house. I need to find a way to restrict it to one or two rooms of my tiny little trailer. I don't mean getting rid of anything (my OCD wouldn't let me and I just don't want to), but I think if I organize things better, I could have more room. It's time to get creative with Wal-Mart furniture! Heck, even my ink pens are out of control:


#5: NEWS FROM NASA
I've always been into Astronomy, but not to the level that I have been in the past year (thanks to our trip to Pluto), so I'm really excited to see what's in store for 2016. The final New Horizons data will be coming down mid year (although it could take them years to sort through all the data) and we should find out if they got approved to actually visit the new Kuiper Belt object they are already heading towards (2014 MU69, as of now).

photo via the NASA website - Pluto and it's moon Charon (although I still contend that they are a binary planetary system)

The setback of the cancellation of InSight (another rover destined for Mars, this one to study geology), at least until the next launch window of 2018, was a huge bummer for me, especially since I had registered my name to be one of many that will get embedded on a chip that will be sent on InSight, which was going to land on the red planet in the month of my birthday. I still have high hopes that they will be able to fix the equipment leak causing the delay, but at least NASA's budget did get a massive boost this year, so there are good things on the space horizon! Plus, with the influx of skill from the likes of Space X and others in the private sector, NASA can only grow and get better every day!


#6: ROAD TRIPS
Back in the day, I used to drive around...a lot. Now, I barely ever leave the house. It's time to change that because I do enjoy getting out there and seeing things I've never seen before (as long as I can do it safely from the car window). If nothing else, I'd like to resume at least a once a month day-trip to Biloxi like I used to do. Plus, I really want to get Bam used to travelling...I miss pup trips! Zander and I, and then Zander, Zach, and I used to do it all the time. Heck, Zander went to more places than most humans get to go to in their entire lifetime. I really miss that little guy and this view:


#7: PERSONAL GROWTH
About every decade, I go through a major "remodel" of my personality and a huge chunk of my 30's were spent on the biggest "remodel" of them all, but by the time I hit 40, I was tired of changing, so I just kind of skipped it. Since I am now 45, my ticks and issues are really getting old and there are a lot of things I just don't like about myself right now, so it's time to go back into the proper mode and try to fix what's wrong. I'm not the nicest person when I go through this phase, although I'm going to try to make more of an effort to change that too. It may sound like a strange thing to do, but it's just one of those things I have to go through as an Asper to be able to function in a "normal" world.

#8: WORK SATISFACTION
#7 always helps with this problem area, but lately I've been more and more dissatisfied with work and it's probably all my own fault. I've done nothing to hone my skills and typically make it through a day by the skin of my teeth. I've always said that work isn't the most important thing...home is, but my home life is quite happy right now (even if my personal is not), but I've noticed that I'm starting to take my work dissatisfaction home with me and stewing in it...something I've never really done before. Stitching for me is like Xanax and the worse things get, the more I stitch (as obviously observed of late), but every other thing on this list I want to do can't be done if I'm stitching every non-working waking moment of my life.

#9: UK TRIP PLANNING (HOPEFULLY)
This might be a bit of a long-shot, but if all goes well with #3, I fully intend to start planning and saving for a trip to the UK for 2017 sometime during next year. It's been one of my oldest dreams, so hopefully (with a little help from my bestie Kate), I'll be able to plan the best trip ever!

#10: DISNEY WORLD...AGAIN
I started this list with Disney World and I get to end it that way too because I've got another free-ride trip coming up in September/October (this time thanks to my sister's husband). This one is still a bit up in the air since no official plans have been made (yet), but I've got big personal plans for the trip, including hopefully a side trip to Cape Canaveral and yet another tick off my "never stayed at before" resort list. Time will tell about the details, but I'm just happy to be going "home" during my favorite time of year, Halloween season! Plus, it will be nice to see a Haunted Mansion in its natural state again without a Christmas overlay (I just can't let that go, can I?). But honestly, who doesn't want to see ghostly things at Halloween time?


And that's it! The final Top 10 for 2015!

Top 10 Food/Drink from the festive season

Unfortunately, one of the worst things about this time of year for me is the food, so I'm going to do the wise thing and completely bow out of this week's post. I tried to think really hard of something that I like, but I couldn't come up with a single thing (which is one of the main excuses I can use when it comes to Christmas dinner...I stay home because I don't like the food). We do get things like cupcakes and big sandwiches at work and, of course I eat those at anytime other time of year, so they don't count as holiday treats, even if the cupcakes might be decorated with a holiday theme.

Make sure to check out Kate's and Tiff's blogs because I'm sure both of them have some holiday favorites!

Anyone who would like to join in, please go over to Kate's World and sign up. She's really good about posting topics for the entire month so you have plenty of time to prepare and we'd love to have others join in and there is no obligation if the topic doesn't appeal to you (obviously, because I've been a very bad participant this month)!

Top 10 Tuesday-Top 10 Christmas Cross Stitch Charts

This is going to be yet another complete flop of a post for me, so make sure to go to Kate's and Tiff's blogs because they actually like Christmas! Despite my disdain for Christmas, I do actually have several of Christmas-themed charts in my collection, but most of them are either "Christmas Inspired", or I got them to stitch for someone else.

#1: Christmas Gnomes

I'm not really sure why, but the second I saw this, I just had to have it. It's clean and simple, but it also reminds me a lot of the animation-type artwork I used to produce back in the day...maybe that was the appeal. I'm not sure if I'll ever get around to stitching it, but that's the great thing about stash, once it's in your possession, you never have to worry about losing it to discontinuation. There are a couple people I have in mind to receive this once it's finished, but I'm pretty sure that I won't keep it.

#2: Christmas Is Sew Special

I only bought this one because I have all the other Sew Mice stitch kits and this completed the set. This one has always bothered me because it's not laid out like the other designs, this one is almost square where the others are very horizontal.

I've finished two of the Sew Mice kits and still have three more in my stash including this one, as well as replacement kit for my first Sew Mice finish, Kitchen Fun. Long story short, I had Kitchen Fun very close cropped for the frame, which subsequently got broken and I don't have enough border to reframe it. I figured since it didn't take very long to stitch, it wouldn't hurt to do it again, I just bought another kit.

I want to wait until I get all of them finished before I get them framed, that way they will all match, but heaven knows when that will be! Whenever that is though, Christmas Is Sew Special won't have to be finished with the others since, even though they contain the same mice, the shape is different enough to throw off the dynamic of the others in the set.

#3: Mickey and the Gang Opening Presents Christmas Stocking

Believe it or not, there was a time when I wasn't so against the premise of Christmas (although I still hated the pomp and circumstance of it). Of all the Christmas decorations there are, for some reason I was always obsessed with stockings. I have a multitude of Disney ones, so it only made sense that way back in the day when this kit came out, I would acquire it, but it's also one of the oldest items in my stash. There are a lot of things I don't like about the pattern and I'm also not too jazzed about actually making the stocking since I can't sew, so it will probably always stay in my stash.

There is also a stocking companion to the Sew Mice series, but I try not to think about it since I don't have it in my stash (and I know I'll never stitch it, so why buy it?).

#4: QS - Holly Angel

OK, so obviously this one appealed to me because it's a Jasmine Becket-Griffith, but I also really liked it because you have this Christmas Angel completely surrounded by darkness. It may not have been meant to be interpreted as darkly as I make it, but that is what made it appealing to me in the first place. I have a specific person in mind to gift this to, but I'm in no hurry to get it done, especially since I will have to stitch all that black since I refuse to ever use black material again.

#5: Mini The Last Leaves

I'm not sure this was meant to be Christmas-themed, but again, like Holly Angel, I always saw a Christmas darkness to it, so obviously I liked it and this one was at least less Christmas-y enough to keep for myself. This one will probably get done long before Holly Angel, but I'm not sure when.

#6: Teddy Bear Tree

This one was bought to do for my mother, but I don't know when, or if, I'll ever get around to stitching it. She's obsessed with teddy bears for some reason, so it suits her, I'm just not sure I like her enough to waste two years of my life stitching her something. Maybe one day.

#7-#10: Disney ornaments

I'm really grasping at straws here to finish this list out, especially since I don't consider these Christmas kits. Yes, they are "ornaments", but the four I've finished (Donald, Mater, Timon and Pumbaa) live on one of my work bulletin boards 24/7. I can't imagine putting them on a tree, even if that was what they were designed for. I used to do one of these kits after every big finish, as sort of a stitching cool-down. Despite their small size, they are actually quite difficult to stitch since there are so many color changes and the pattern isn't very clear. Mater was the last one I did (after Highland Girl) and I had such trouble with it, I didn't want to try another one after Pea.

And that's it! I'm really surprised I managed a complete list, but I guess it proves that even the most die-hard of Scrooges can't escape Christmas entirely!