Thank you very much -

Angel May (of Angel May's Growing Pains) has sent me a lovely bouquet. I shall treasure it.

That's a great thing about virtual bouquets. They stay fresh forever, don't they?

This one comes with homework. I'm supposed to tell you seven things that you probably don't know about me, then send the bouquet on to seven more people.   Okay. First things first. Here are seven things:

1. I am vain about my fingernails. That is only natural, I must say, because I have great fingernails! ;>)

2. I am afraid of flying bats -- not bats as such. (Oh, and not baseball bats. Mousey bats.) As long as the bat clings to a wall or sits on a wire, I think he's a cute little fellow, but the moment he starts to fly, I, too, fly -- into a panic. I think I hear the batty sonar, and it makes my ears crazy. (That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.)

3. I smoked a pipe for a little while, when I was very, very young.

4. I tried to learn to water ski, but I gave up after sixteen attempts to stand up. The fellow driving the boat said I was "very game". That was after the pipe smoking, but still quite a long time ago.

5. My recording career began and ended when I was five years old. I recorded "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer" in a booth on the boardwalk in Atlantic City.


6. My first celebrity crush was on Mario Lanza, with whom I fell in love when I was eight. He was much older.

7. I am always hungry. I started to modify that statement to read "I am nearly always hungry," but changed my mind. With very few exceptions, I have always felt at least a little hungry, and even when I didn't, I could eat. (If I am sick and I lose my appetite, I am REALLY sick.)

Okay. That's it. Everything you wanted to know about me but were afraid to ask.

Now to the fun part - passing it on:

1. I am delighted to be able to send a bouquet to Eberle, and to her alter egos, Platypuss and Pinky, whose new blog, Platypuss-in-Boots, is a joy to read.

2. Although she has a houseful of  awards already, I would like to send a bouquet to Poetikat, because there's always room for flowers, and she certainly deserves them. Maybe she can keep them over at Kigo of the Kat. She's only just started spending time there, so perhaps there's still room for some flowers.

3. If you haven't been to visit Doc Pammy DuMond, D.C. at FeelingFabulousDarling, I recommend that you have a look there. Pam is a chiropractor with some excellent advice for those of us who spend way too much time sitting at computers. In gratitude to her, I proffer a bouquet.

4. Julie of Literary Jules is another newcomer to the neighbourhood,  and again, I recommend that you pay her a visit. She is a great hostess with some fascinating insights. From me to you, Julie.

5. John Hayes has a new blog. It's called The Days of Wine & Roses, and it offers All Poetry, All the Time.  I applaud the blog and its theme, and I hope John will find room for a simple vase of flowers there.

6. Elizabeth Stelling (ChefE) at TMI is one of the busiest people I know, and I would like to send her a bouquet in recognition and appreciation of her hard work both at Friday Photo Shootout and at her own blogs.

7. Jeanne, of The Raisin Chronicles, is an inspiration. I have been shamefully truant from her blog -- along with pretty well all my favourite places -- during NaNoWriMo, so I offer her a bouquet with thanks and apologies for my absence. I'm B-A-C-K!

I'm away now, to drop off notes at these seven blogs. Thanks again to AngelMay for the bouquet and the opportunity for a little introspection.

Bat clip art from http://www.webweaver.nu/clipart/halloween/bats.shtml