A couple of friends posted this questionnaire recently and it was fun to read, so I thought I'd play along and answer the questions!
1. What brings you the greatest joy? Being active outdoors. Whether I'm biking, walking, running, kayaking, or hiking, being active outdoors is my happy place. And it's even better if I'm with Phil or a good friend.
2. What are your vices? Coffee, specifically a vanilla latte or coffee with vanilla-flavored creamer! I have to have it every day.
3. What is on your nightstand? A lamp, the latest book I am reading, my glasses and glasses case, ear plugs, and kleenexes.
4. Do you have a secret talent? The only thing that comes to mind is using excel spreadsheets. I've worked in excel for years, so I am very good at writing formulas and coming up with ways to analyze data. I love spreadsheets so much that I use them to manage anything from party planning to the books I read each year to my finances.
5. What is your greatest indulgence? Getting massages. I try to get one a quarter, but I haven't had one since the beginning of the year. I've avoided booking them because my range of motion is still limited in my lower body due to my hip surgery, but I should book one and just tell my masseuse to focus on my back/shoulders/neck. She'd have plenty of knots to work out in those areas!
6. What should everyone try at least once in their life? I'm going to copy Amber and say living alone. I know that living alone can be considered a luxury since it is expensive but I think it makes you grow as an individual, become more independent and it forces you to get comfortable with being by yourself (which isn't something I struggle with but I know it can be a struggle for others).
7. What makes you laugh? Phil. He has a very witty sense of humor. Sometimes I do not get his sense of humor because I am more literal (he calls me Literal Lisa) but all in all, he is a funny guy. In fact, he can say he gets paid to be funny because he writes the humor section in his company's monthly financial markets publication.
8. What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you? I was a piano teacher when I was in high school. I had 10 students and charged $5/lesson. $50/week isn't much but it felt great at the time and I really enjoyed introducing students to music.
9. What is on your bucket list? Traveling to Machu Picchu, Croatia, and Spain.
10. What is on your feet right now? Nothing. If I am at home, I am barefoot because it's really warm right now. If it was a cooler time of year, I'd be wearing a pair of cozy moccasin slippers.
11. How did you make your first dollar? I earned my first dollar babysitting. I think I was around 12 when I did my first babysitting gig. I also got paid to mow my parents' 3 acre lawn (which was a time-consuming job) as well as my grandparents lawn.
12. What superstition do you believe in? Making a wish at 11:11 and I also make wishes when I find an eyelash and then blow the eyelash away.
13. What items in your closet do you wear the most? Right now, I have a variety of silk tops from banana republic that I wear all the time as they go with multiple skirts/pants in my closet and they are comfortable.
14. What is the best gift you’ve ever received? On the day of my high school graduation, my mom gave me a journal she had kept during my senior year, filled with the events of that year as well as advice she wanted to give that I was too bullheaded to listen to at the time. Another great gift I received was a necklace with a heart and the states of Minnesota and North Dakota on them. My friend Alli sent that to me when I found out I was being relocated to Charlotte. It's one of the few necklaces I own and I wear it often.
15. What is on your liquor shelf? Way too much stuff. Gin, vodka, rum, tequila, grand marnier, and the list goes on. Most are things I bought for a recipe or a party in the past. We never drink hard alcohol, so it's a good thing that it doesn't go bad! We should have an 'empty the bar' party some time, although, it might take several parties as our friends are not big drinkers.
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| My favorite necklace! My chest looks red in this photo but I'm not sunburned - I'm just flushed from getting ready in a warm house! |
16. What is on your kitchen counter? So much stuff. A knife block, toaster oven, coffee pot, food processor, binders with recipes I printed off the internet, a container that holds serving spoons, a napkin holder, my compost bin, and some random stuff that tends to pile up on one end of the counter! I should probably put some things away, like my food processor, so it looks less cluttered but I like having easy access to things when I want to use them.
17. What would you never leave home without? My phone and a book! I try to always have a book in my purse.
What are you vices, how did you make your first dollar, and what brings you the greatest joy?
What are you vices, how did you make your first dollar, and what brings you the greatest joy?
I try to always have my kindle in my bag too :) I also make a wish at 11:11 and when I have an eyelash!
ReplyDeleteI might have to do these questions!
These were fun to read! If I had a blog, I would do it, too!
ReplyDeleteI didn't know you were superstitious!
I also felt bad that I didn't do a journal for your other siblings. I started one for Abby but failed miserably to complete it. And the thought to do that never dawned on me for your older siblings, but it touches me that it meant so much to you!
I also do the eyelash thing! D thinks it's silly/funny so I'm glad to know I'm not alone. And yes to having a book in my purse at all times. I have one to enjoy while I'm in the camp pick-up line today :)
ReplyDeleteThese are fun to read. That is such a neat necklace!!
ReplyDeleteThat's funny about Phil with the "he gets paid to be funny". Love it!
I would have to say my vice is hummus and cheese. It is my "go to" snack. Hummus is good - cheese not so much. I get joy from being outdoors and spending time with Ryan. My 1st dollar was earned babysitting - and I was 10(!!!) when I started. Which is insane lol.
Love this! I'm going to answer the questions too! When I saw your liquor cabinet I was definitely surprised as I know you're not much of a drinker at all :)
ReplyDeleteThat is a cool necklace! My vices are really limited to marathons. ok, maybe I drink beer too often too. Great list!
ReplyDeleteI love that you are a master at Excel! Definitely book that massage soon!
ReplyDeleteVices: coffee, wine, too much reading of political news.
First dollar: Aside from the tooth fairy, doing office type work for an organization for whose board my dad served.
I'm excited to live alone soon! I know I am going to love it (once I get used to it, hehe). I just wish it wasn't so darn expensive to live alone!
ReplyDeletepotato chips are my vice, and i do not say no. which is not a good thing...but it happens. I'm jealous of your excel skills, I'm the worst.
ReplyDeleteCandy is my vice!
ReplyDeleteI earned my first dollar selling jewelry. I've been making jewelry for a long time, and as a kid I had quite the business going - sometimes making hundreds of dollars in a month (that's a lot for a twelve year old). I had a mailing list and a catalog that I hand-wrote and photocopied (eventually graduating to computer-produced versions) and new catalogs went out every season! I saved enough money this way that I paid for my entire first year of college out of my jewelry money, almost all of which had gone into savings.
A good book brings me the greatest joy. There is no joy like a book you can't put down - and no disappointment like a book that doesn't hold your interest.
11:11. I thought I was still the only one doing that. Of course my best blogger friends are right there with me :) I also say, "Rabbbit, Rabbit" on the first day of the month as soon as I wake up. It is supposed to bring you luck!
ReplyDeleteMy vices are coffee with creamer and pumpkin flavored treats.
No big surprise to you-- what brings me the greatest joy is my little family. There was a time when I didn't know if I would ever have this, so I really try not to take Welles & Jason for granted. I had a lot of time on my own before them, which I don't regret either, but I think the single life led to me being even more grateful for them--if that makes sense!
I love that Phil calls you Literal Lisa. I have been joking lately with Pete that I have become the funny one now that we have a kid and I am less stressed than I used to be. I have another friend that also makes a wish on 11:11.
ReplyDeleteMy vices: Americanos, scones at fancy coffee shops, comfy & cute running clothes, clothes in general
Oooh being active outside is a good answer for what brings you the most joy - that definitely brings me a lot of joy too!
ReplyDeleteCoffee is a pretty big vice for me as well. I NEED to have it every morning and I get terrible headaches without it. I ditched the creamer this year though so now drink it black and have actually become very accustomed to a nice strong black coffee!
I loved this post and every answer! No wonder I enjoy visiting here so much!
ReplyDeleteMy biggest vice is Tab. I drink too much of it. First dollar, probably allowance from my parents but the first self-earned was babysitting. And finally joy -- oh, so many things! Rick and Lizzie and the lake and art... I should stop now!
Vice - daily coffee
ReplyDeleteFirst dollar - babysitting
Joy = sunsets on the beach
Another one of those fun posts where we can learn more random things about each other... love it!
ReplyDeleteVice: Cafe au laits.
First dollar: babysitting.
Joy: my niece and nephew.
I earned my first dollar in eighth grade tutoring a second grader once a week. It was I believe 5 dollars an hour at an hour a week.
ReplyDeleteGreatest joy, being with good people in perfect weather somewhere outside.