Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

R is for Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle

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The three best "R" words around!

Reduce your waste with actions like composting!
Reuse items that you would normally throw away and make them into something useable and functional!
Recycle by following your cities' guidelines and getting rid of items that can be recycled in the correct manner!

Articles I've written on the topic:
Recycling Guidelines for Red Wing, MN
Five Earth Day Crafts for Children
Educating Your Children About the Three Rs

Have have you used the 3Rs today?

Quasimodo

Q is for Quasimodo

Not just a hunchback! Quasimodo is a word that has followed my husband and I around since we started dating seven years ago. I think it was more my hubby that liked to name things after the famous Notre Dame bell ringer.

1. Our first Halloween as a couple we carved our pumpkin and realizing in the end he was a bit lopsided, he was named "Quasimodo".

2. So, this is the semi-embarrassing part for me: My fourth toe on each foot does not lay flat. It curves inward and hides behind the middle toe. My husband thinks it's amusing to call it my "Quasimodo toe", lol. It's part of my genetics. My mom and both my daughters have the same toe. Well, at least we know we're all related an not switched at birth ;)

3. When we moved into our first home one of the first things we had to do was chop a tree down. Part of the stump that was left looks like a distorted old man's face. We've saved the stump and of course called him Quasimodo.

Interesting Fact: The hunchback is not the original meaning of the word. It derives from the name for the Sunday after Easter, known as Quasimodo Sunday. The name "Quasimodo" coming from the Latin phrase: "Quasi modo geniti infantes..." which translates into the first part of 1 Peter 2:2. Referring to the Sunday after Christ's resurrection. The hunchback was found on this day and bares its namesake. Source

Packers

P is for Packers

Let me explain something for those that don't know about people born in Wisconsin. We are born with the Packer fan gene. It's in our blood. There's no choice on whether or not you will support the team, baby we are born this way! Packer fans are some of the most die-hard and supportive fans around. We stick by the team if they are having a multitude of injuries and play like crap or when they are at the Superbowl for the first time since the 90s and WINNING!!!!! Ehem... ;)

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I get my love of football from my dad. For those that are new to my blog and haven't read why I titled it the way I did check this post out: Explaining Blog Title. My dad and I would talk a lot of "football talk" so you can imagine the season after losing him was a difficult one for me. I didn't pay much attention to how well the Packers were doing in the beginning, but slowly grew more interested as the season went on. It was so fun to watch how awesome they were playing and how well they worked together as a team. Every time they won, I thought, "Wow, my dad would have loved this season. This one's for you dad!"

By the time we got to the playoffs as a "Wildcard" team and worked our way up the bracket to the Superbowl, I started to feel down again because I knew how much he would have enjoyed this season, then I thought, "Well he's got the best seat in the house for the Superbowl AND he gets to watch it with two of the greatest Packers of all time. Vince Lombardi and Reggie White!"

It was a great season to be a Packer fan, but then again every season is a great season to be a Packer fan because we have the best team ever. Saying otherwise would go against my genetic makeup.

OMG Game of Thrones!!!

O is for OMG Game of Thrones!!!

Game of Thrones premeired last night on HBO and I have nothing left to blog about about how amazingly awesome it was. Here is my recap: Recap of HBO's Game of Thrones: Episode 1 "Winter Is Coming" Enjoy!

Did you watch? Did you love? Thoughts?

Nickelodeon Nostalgia

N is for Nickelodeon Nostalgia

We don't have cable anymore so I'd say I'm definitely out of touch with the shows Nickelodeon currently airs, but I can confidently say, nothing will ever be as cool as some of their first live action shows that paved the way for popular TV shows today. Here are some of my favorites...

Hey Dude
Featuring characters like a girl named Brad, a girly girl named Melody, and a rebellious Ted who worked at the Barn None Dude Ranch. Here's a video of the opening credits...


Salute Your Shorts
Was a television show that followed campers and all the drama they encountered at Camp Anawanna.


Clarissa Explains it All
This witty and sarcastic girl lets the world in on all the coming of age drama in her life. She often talks to the camera making the audience feel like they are really there. Clarissa was one of my heroes growing up. Here room, here clothes, her behavior, she was just so "Way Cool"!

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Alex Mac
A show about a girl that can glow and melt into a silvery puddle at will because of a chemical accident. When she's not hiding from "The Plant's" staff she's using her new powers to help people or solve mysterious events.

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You Can't Do That on Television

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(psst...don't tell my mom. I wasn't allowed to watch this show) You Can't Do That on Television was the first show I remember watching on Nick. It was a sketch comedy television show for teens. For whatever reason my mom was not a fan, but I was able to catch episodes here and their with my cousins or babysitters. I couldn't talk about this show if I didn't mention Alanis Morressette who got her start on the show. It was the original source for Nick's "green slime"...I think, but really...I don't know ;)


I'm sure I forgot a ton of great ones. There were so many when Nick was just getting on its feet. Share some of your favorites below!

Minerva

M is for Minerva

1. I've always been interested in mythology as it has many current applications today. Pay close attention to things like the names of our planets, marketing logos, uses in books and design, etc. So, if I had to pick a "favorite" goddess from mythology, Minerva would be it. Minerva was the Roman goddess equivalent to the Greek's Athena. The legend of her birth is the same as Greek Mythology, sprouting from Jupiter's (Zeus') head. She was not only the goddess of wisdom, but she is also credited as the inventor of music.  As goddess of both war and wisdom, she represents a strong and educated woman.

2. JKR pulled from mythology to name her character Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter book series. She is one of my favorite supporting characters for her tough love, guidance, and bravery that she continually shows throughout the series.

3. Deftones titled a song "Minerva". Amidst rockin' yet soothing tunes there are some very beautiful and heartfelt lyrics about women coming into their own. One fan says it perfectly here at Song Meanings. chino69 says:
"To me the message is quite clear. So hopefully I am able to clear it up for all of you. I'll start with this. In an interview with Chino, he stated that he is so captivated with the beauty of women. Not young women, but older women who carry with them a true sense of beauty. "They can change shit" he says.

Now I myself have an affinity towards women. I think they are so incredibly beautiful, especially when involved with some form of art. My gf draws pictures and paints and to see her work just completely puts me in rapture.

"Such a strange numb
It could bring back peace to the earth"

The musical voice of a woman is capable of pacifying everyone, even while everyone stands with differing opinions and points of views, the beauty is what reminds us that we all have a heart and it can truly be interconnected.

"And God bless you all
For the song you saved us... "

He is thanking all of the women singers of the world. For the song and the sweetness in their voice has truly brought him back to that place of warmth and love.

Minerva is the goddess of handicrafts and arts, as well as war, in roman religion. Chino sees how powerfully eloquent a woman can be in the dawn of her maturity. It doesn't have to be an old women, just one who has truly developed herself in good ways."

I love this interpretation because it goes past this song just being a "thank you to fans" and touches on where the title fits in with the meaning of the song. So often girls and women struggle to be what society wants them to be, which is often times unrealistic and unobtainable. The message the song brings is that woman are beautiful when they are fully happy with themselves just the way they are and when they realize that they can bring power to whatever their "art" is and it becomes their song. It's a very encouraging message for women and coming of age women today.

Deftones: Minerva


For these three reasons, we've named our first kitty, Minerva. It's been interesting as I've had many comments on what an odd name it is, so it's been fun to explain to people why.

Literary Agents

L is for Literary Agents

From what I’ve gathered in the writing world the general consensus is that you need a literary agent to publish your book. I’ve read several guides that suggest finding a literary agent and pitching the idea before you write the novel. All enthusiastic writers know that you can’t sit on an idea once it’s crawling to get out. My novel is finished, forgetting small edits here and there. So, I’m now in the step of finding a literary agent.

Opinions. I need them! Are books like 2011 Guide To Literary Agents helpful? Or are they just a money-making scheme. :/

For those that are published:
1. Did you find a literary agent or did you self-publish?
2. How long did it take you to find a literary agent?
3. What made you decide to publish the way you did?
4. Helpful hints?

Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment with opinions and advice. It is priceless! <3

(Also, my page might look a bit different. My app for the adsense program was finally accepted last night! Guys, it took for.ev.er. All is well now though)