Wrong Way Share

Melanie has some new Q’s for us today, and again they are preceded by Potter Q’s from Roger.

Roger’s Magical, Mystical Questions: 

1. Have you ever driven the wrong way on a one-way street? How did this come about?

Right after I moved to California, I had a doctor’s appointment in Pasadena. I got a bit lost and didn’t realize I was on a one-way street. I started to make a left turn from the right lane and the guy in the left lane hit me. It was my fault, of course. He was nice and helped me figure out how to get to the doc’s.

2. As a kid, did you ever decide to run away? Did you have a plan? Take a pet? Sandwiches?

I was 17 and “ran away” for a day because my parents were driving me nuts. I had cash and a car, so I picked up a friend and we went to lunch. At first, she said she’d run away too, but she changed her mind. I drove 50 miles into Chicago and ate dinner alone. Then I turned around and went home.

3. You suddenly found you have a hidden talent for playing a musical instrument. What musical instrument do you hope that accompanies your talent? Any particular song?

It would be great to be able to play the piano well. Any song.

4. Do you accessorize with jewelry? There was an opal necklace (cursed) and Slytherin’s locket (also cursed) in the Potter story. Have you had any heirloom jewelry passed down through the generations? Is it more ‘keepsake’ or do you wear it on occasion? (Hopefully, yours was not cursed?)

Yes, I wear jewelry every day, usually silver. Mostly I wear a silver bracelet that’s a chain of hearts and some other stuff depending on my outfit. I do not have any heirlooms, only a few things that belonged to my parents.

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Melanie’s Ordinary Muggle Questions:

1. What ingredients go into YOUR favorite salad?

Lately I’m not so much into leaves, so my favorite salad is cut tomatoes, carrots, cucumber, and of course avocado. A drizzle of balsamic dressing is good on that.

2. If you care to, share something that really irritates you.

Red light runners.

3. What are your favorite ‘lounging around the house’ items of clothing?  Now that a lot of people ‘lounge around the house’ waiting for the all clear in respect to Covid being shown the door, have those lounging items changed?

I like yoga pants and a big tee or sweatshirt. When it’s cooler, I’ll wear cozy socks. This hasn’t changed since the plague.

GRATITUDE (as always this is optional)

Please feel free to share something about Autumn (or Spring if you’re gearing up for that) that you especially enjoy! 

Grateful for my snuggly kitty.

 

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Smoky Share

Happy Moonday! Hope your air isn’t as horrible as California’s. Melanie continues with a double dose of Q’s for this week…

Roger’s Magical, Mystical Questions:

1. You have just been gifted a magic wand that specializes in completing household chores. You can request the completion of only two household chores. Which chores would you assign your wand to complete?

Wax the car! Paint the house! But seriously, since California is my home, I think this wand should magically clean our air from smoke and our water from pollution.

2. At the local Wizards-R-Us store there was a sale on handshake shockers, instant darkness pellets, and levitation pills. Which of these ‘party thrillers’ are you more likely to purchase?

Hello darkness, my old friend…

3. In the alley behind Wizards-R-Us, there was a tradesman selling a Love Potion. The sales pitch was too much for you and you yielded and purchased one vial. What do you do with it?

Pour it on a lottery ticket.

4. You are the Great Clearinghouse Winner of a new ‘good luck’ potion – Felix Felicis. It has to be used within the next thirty days or its potency becomes diminished. Do you use it? Do you give it to a friend in need?

Give it to a daughter.

Melanie’s Mundane Muggle Questions:

5. If everyone spoke their mind, would this world be a better or worse place? Why?

Worse. Just look at Twitter and FB! Yuck. People need to relearn what polite topics of conversation are. Hint: not religion and politics. The world doesn’t need to see all your ugly and hateful feelings… repress those suckers.

6. Can achieving nothing make a person happy?

By “a person,” I take it to mean me, and I say no. People who answer yes aren’t homeless and starving.

7. How do you know if you love someone enough to marry them?

You don’t, nor is there any guarantee they’ll love you till they (or you) die. It’s always a gamble.

GRATITUDE SECTION (as always this is optional)

Please feel free to write about or share an image of something you’re grateful for!

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Images credited to Melanie and Bitmoji

Shared Labor

Happy Labor Day! To honor our workers, including me, I will answer Melanie’s SYW questions, as I do almost every Monday. Once again, there are two sets… one from Roger for HP fans and one from Melanie except she copied them from others. 🙃

Roger’s Magical, Mystical Questions:

1. What happened to cause you to discover ‘bullies” were real?

Starting school. Kids are monsters. 👹

2. Eavesdropping. When given the chance, how often do you eavesdrop? (this may be a similar question to what some folks said they’d do with an invisibility cloak)

It depends. Mostly I hate all noise, which includes other people’s jabber. But if I get the feeling something interesting is going on, I might listen to use it in a story. This doesn’t happen often though.

3. Escalators, at one time, were the ‘next big thing’. When was the last time you rode an escalator?

I don’t remember… possibly when I went to the mall pre-plague.

4. Have you ever ‘let’ someone win in a sports competition or a board game? How did it turn out?

Yes. It was fine. I’m not that competitive in games generally… I simply like to play (in person… zoom sucks).

Melanie’s Muggle Questions:

I’m very short on time today (Sunday) so I’m borrowing from Rory and Sandmanjazz to fill the questions today:

1. Do our fears start with our DNA? (Credit to Rory)

Some do, especially the fear of potentially deadly things. Others can be triggered by a traumatic event. 🐍

2. If you could have your hair any colour for 24 hours, what colour would you choose? (Credit to Sandmanjazz)

Turquoise.

3. When do you think a person gets old? (Credit to Rory)

When they’ve lived 2/3 or more of their predicted lifespan. Age is a number!

4. GRATITUDE SECTION (as always this is optional). Please feel free to write about an uplifting moment in your life this week!

I’m grateful Benadryl exists.

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Images credited to Melanie and Breaking Bad

Crabby Share

Well, I was in a good mood, but checking FB, Twitter, and all that nonsense has put a raincloud over it. Wish I hadn’t rejoined FB and need to stay away. Twitter too… it does not help me sell books at all. Okay. Time for Share Your World! I’ll answer the Harry Potter questions this time because they’re pretty general.

Roger’s Magical, Mystical Questions:

1. Have you ever spent the night in a house that was supposedly haunted? Anything ‘strange” happen?

No and yes. “Strange” things happen all the time ~ how you interpret them is the key. There have been times it feels like my mom talks to me. I could decide that’s a ghostly communication from “beyond,” or my own subconscious.

2. What is the largest sporting event (or concert, etc.) that you have ever attended?

I went to some hideously huge concert at the Hollywood Bowl some years back. I forget what it was, but I had a really bad time in that large of an arena.

3. When you go for a swim, do you prefer an ocean, the seaside lakes, or a pool?

None. I dislike pools altogether, and the natural bodies are good for getting my feet wet. I’m not inclined to do more than that.

4. Tell about the most ‘ghastly’ fashion statement that you have ever made.

I dressed up as a silly elf for a Christmas party and won a prize.

Muggle Questions (from Melanie):

1. What is the last song you sang along to?

“Monday Monday,” which was on a CD I randomly grabbed today for the car.

2. What was your scariest nightmare about?

I was little, around 10 or under, and dreamt I got lost at the zoo. I ended up behind the exhibits and there was a wolf loose. He jumped on me and ripped my throat open. In the dream, I died, though I understand that isn’t supposed to happen in dreams. I woke up with strep throat.

3. What food do you crave most often?

It used to be sugar, preferably frosted cake or cookies. Now though I’m more likely to crave pizza or pasta. In fact, I would like some pizza, thanks! 🍕

4. What’s your grossest bug story?

I have a few, but the most disgusting event that has never left my mind was when my new puppy had tapew*rms, which usually happen because of flea ingestion. So so so gross. My cat had them too (twice!), due to effing fleas, but getting rid of them wasn’t as disgusting as the puppy situation. I saw big tangled globs of them. HORRIBLE.

GRATITUDE SECTION (optional as always)

Grateful for modern science and medicine, even when it works imperfectly. I have zero tolerance for conspiracy lunatics who would rather take advice from some idiot on YooToob. You don’t believe in science or support “big pharma”? Go live in a cave then. I get all the vaccines and am thankful for them!

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Images from wherever…

Muggle Share

Melanie has two sets of questions for us today, and since I’m unfamiliar with Harry Potter I’m doing the muggle ones only.

Is intelligence or wisdom more useful?

Both are important. We need intelligence to learn new things and find patterns in our perceptions, while wisdom gives us the ability to apply what we’ve learned, both in school and from experiences positive and negative. Someone mentioned “street smarts,” which are also an important skill in navigating through this mess of life.

How important is play in living a healthy and fulfilling life?

It varies among individuals. Some appear to need very little while others fritter away all their hours. I’m somewhere between, but closer to the fritter side. I do work hard when I have to, but I could have done so much more. My mind naturally gravitates to thinking about puzzles and games and stories…

Is happiness just chemicals flowing through your brain or something more?

Everything is chemicals, but that isn’t meant as diminishing. A rainbow is made of chemicals, as are kittens and cakes and poems. Happy chemicals > sad chemicals!

GRATITUDE SECTION (Always optional)

Grateful for good friends this week. And I’m always thankful for my family. 💖

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Sheep Share

Melanie has two sets of questions for us again today. Other bloggers who are also unfamiliar with Harry Potter are taking a crack at the HP Q’s, so I will too. Baaaa!

1. Harry Potter can speak to snakes. If you were able to have conversations with any one animal, what animal would you like to speak to? What would be the topic of your first conversation?

– Like Fandango, I would want to have a convo with my cat. I would ask Gatsby why he’s so damn loud! What is he howling, mrrowing, and harumphing at all the time?! 🤯

2. The portraits in Hogwart’s dormitories can talk. If your graduation portrait could speak to people passing it by, what would it tell them?

– I didn’t live up to my potential, waaah! 😭

3. If you could transform into another being, who would you chose to be? What would you hope to learn?

– See above, regarding my kitty. 🐱

4. There was a flooding in the girl’s bathroom where Moaning Myrtle resides. What has been the most dangerous (or comical) ‘flooding’ where you reside?
Mundane or “Muggle” Questions:

– When I lived in my Huntington Beach house, the street flooded and water crept a few feet up the driveway. That was scary.

5. (Serious one which is rather creepy): How do you think you’ll die? IF you do think about it?

– I go with the odds, so I say heart disease, which is still the number one killer of Americans.

6. What’s the best on-line screen name you’ve seen? Best might mean the oddest.

– I don’t know, but I’ve seen loads of clever names over the past 20+ years. I’m in favor of twists on people’s real names.

7. What’s invisible that you wish people could see?

– Love! 💖

8. If over time you replace parts on a car, at what point does it stop being the same car you bought? How many parts do you need to replace to make it a new car?

– When you install a new engine, which is where the autosoul resides. So, one part. Or if you paint it a different color obviously!

Speaking of cars/names, this is the kind of name I like. It’s ironic and clever. Credit where due, even to a Beemer owner.

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

The Long & Boring Road Share

Melanie has two sets of Share Your World questions for us today, but I’m skipping the first set as they have to with Harry Potter and I’ve neither read nor seen any HP.

1. Would You Rather Live 120 Years That Are Comfortable But Boring, Or Live Half As Long, But Have An Exciting Adventure Packed Life?

The comfy, boring road is for me regardless of length. I’m not a fan of the exciting life where you slide naked, screaming, and covered with chocolate into your grave, or however that saying goes. Stability, order, routine, and comfort make me happy.

2. What’s Something That Overwhelms You?

Driving overwhelms me. I loved to drive as a teenager, but now I find it terrifying. The idea of all those crazy angry people on the road who dgaf about other people’s lives (and/or their own) creates massive anxiety for me. Plus, I’m not a great driver myself ~ I mean, I’m very cautious, but I have no sense of direction, and it’s hard for me to visualize the size of my car when parking. Not that I hit things ~ it’s the opposite. I imagine my car to be much larger than it is. But… I live in Southern California, so I have to drive!

3. What Do or DID You Take For Granted?

I imagined that my mom would live to a very old age, since longevity runs in her family. I was prepared for my dad, with all his heart problems, to pass on at any time after Y2K. But my mom? No! I thought we had so many more years left together. It was a complete shock when she was dx’d with pancreatic cancer at the end of 2007 at age 76 and passed on 5 months later. My dad almost made it to 83.

4. Gratitude: Please feel free to share some gratitude moments or thoughts you’ve had recently. This section is entirely optional.

I’m grateful that even though my back, etc. hurts every day, I can still take a walk in a lovely park, as I did this morning.

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Photo credits ~ Melanie and me

Kitty Share 🐱

Melanie has new Q’s for us today, but first I want to thank her for using my Happy Color pic for SYW. I think it looks fabulous!

What will finally break the Internet? Do you believe it can be broken at all?

Cat pics. 🐱 Yes, I believe it can break, in the sense of being broken up. Look what’s happening to Tic Tok.

What are some ‘red flags’ to watch out for in daily life? (take it as you want)

Things that sound too good to be true ~ like the internet. We have paid a heavy price in loss of privacy just to be able to share cat pics across the world.

What’s the silliest thing someone has argued with you about?

An ex and I had an enormous fight about the name of a band. I was wrong. 🎶

What’s the strangest thing you’ve found lying on the ground / side of the road?

A fetal pig. Well, I didn’t know what it was except ewwww, but my ex (not the band name winner) was a scientist and knew.

Gratitude Section (optional as always)

Please feel free to share your photos, stories, poetry, or memes that promote gratitude!

I’m grateful when these silly cats are quiet and getting along. 💖🐱💖🐱💖

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Neat Freak

New Q’s from Melanie!

Are you a clean or messy person?

Clean, though I get envious of those who do even more. Because of neck/back issues, I don’t clean as obsessively as I might. I’m also neat & tidy. At work, it’s harder cuz of ongoing paperwork on my desk, but at home I’m super anti-clutter. I love to throw things away!

If I asked you to describe yourself in five words – what would they be?

Smart, funny, creative, obsessive, crabby.

Do you enjoy being out in nature?

No. Theoretically, it’s great… lovely beach, peaceful hike, majestic mountains… but the reality is that so many things trigger my migraines it’s not fun to be outside. Bright sun, wind, cold, etc. are all triggers. And now, with constant back pain, it’s hard to even enjoy a simple park walk.

Incidentally, this was a huge problem for me on dating sites, where every man seemed to crave being outdoors 24/7.

What could you spend all day talking about?

Relationships, writing, psychology, games, music. Not saying I know a lot about these things, but they’re interesting to me.

Please feel free to share some gratitude from your life! Thanks!

Super grateful I was able to see part of my family this past weekend, including my newborn grandson! 💗💗💗

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.

Image credit to Melanie.

Share Bear 🐻

Melanie has given us a set of new Q’s…

1. Where Do You Not Mind Waiting?

I don’t mind waiting anywhere there’s a comfy seat and no loud noises. Probably my Toyota service lounge would be the best place. I read my Kindle and/or play on my phone.

2. What Is In Your Fridge Right Now?

Nothing exciting… bread, milk, eggs, etc.

3. If You Could Only Speak One Word Today, What Would It Be?

QUIET!

4. Would You Rather Be Trapped In An Elevator Full Of Men With BO Or Three Soaked Dogs? (this is with the codicil that C-19 doesn’t exist)

I’ll take the stairs with Fandango. Okay, okay… getting into the spirit of the Q, I would choose the stinky men. Why? To deal with smellies, I could hold my breath for a minute or breathe through my mouth, but unknown dogs are scary to me. Sorry, dog lovers.

An Attitude of Gratitude

Please feel free to share something good about last week. This is NOT mandatory, it is just if you’d like to.

The good thing about last week is that it’s over and we are one week closer to November when hopefully reason will prevail and we will be rid of this horrible potus and his disgusting admin. 🤮

~*~

©️2020 Paula Light and Light Motifs II. No unauthorized use permitted. Please check out Paula’s books for sale on Amazon.