As someone who chronically never wins ANYTHING, I was so happy to discover that Michelle Stanley from http://writer-way.blogspot.com nominated me for a Liebster Award!  I met Michelle during the A to Z Blogging Challenge, and we kept up with each others’ blogs throughout April.  I am incredibly flattered that she chose me as one of her award nominees!  Thank you so much, Michelle!

The award was given to Michelle, and she in turn selected me (see her post here). The Liebster Award is given to bloggers by other bloggers, and I am thrilled to be a part of this tradition.  I did a little digging around about the award, and there’s a great post from Lorraine at Wording Well here that you can check out if you want to learn more about it.

The Rules:

1. Link back and thank the blogger who nominated you in your post.
2. List 11 random facts about yourself.
3. Answer the 11 questions asked by the blogger who nominated you.
4. Pick 5 – 10 new bloggers (must have less than 300 followers) to nominate.
5. Ask them 11 new questions. Do not re-nominate the blogger who nominated you.
6. Go to each blogger’s site and inform them of their nomination.

11 Totally Random Facts About Myself:

My strategy…

1. As a small child, I accidentally almost electrocuted myself by sticking my mom’s keys in the electrical outlet.  This happened not once, but twice (I only remember the first time, quite vividly, as a matter of fact).
2. I love cats.  Like really love cats.  I have five of them, and I volunteer at a cat rescue organization on the weekends.  I’m currently getting a specialized certificate in Feline Training and Behavior.  Also, I am allergic to cats.
3. I can touch my tongue to the tip of my nose.
4. I’ve been blogging since the middle of 2005, starting with “A Very Marcilicious Blog”, but then gave my blog a complete makeover at the beginning of 2014 and changed everything to “Fuzzy Undertones”.  It seemed appropriate, given all the cat hair I have in my life.
5. Also fuzzy is my huzby, who seems to love me despite (for? because of? in spite of? due to?) all of my quirks.
6. One of my favorite things EVER is taking a nap with my huzby on our couch.  I’ll read a zombie novel and he’ll listen to NPR or a poker podcast, then we’ll fall asleep and a cat will usually come over and sleep on one of us.  It is so snuggly!
7. I play roller derby.  My derby name is “Gritty Cat”.  I’ve been playing for a little over a year, and I still have a way to go before I am cleared to bout, but my first scrimmage was SUPER AWESOME!!!  I will post about that soon.
8. One of the things I hate most in this world is walking around in wet pants or shorts.  This is why I refuse to go on water rides at amusement parks, no matter how hot it is outside.
9. I’ve lived all over the US because my dad was in the Coast Guard.  I don’t know what we were doing in Oklahoma, but I lived there for pre-school, kindergarten and first grade.
10. I used to be a weekly cartoonist for a small free newspaper in Philadelphia.  They gave me $25 per cartoon, but that job only lasted a couple months until the paper was bought out and things changed.
11. I have an M.S. in Ecology and a Ph.D. in Fishery and Wildlife Biology from Colorado State University, but my favorite job I’ve ever had was after my graduate work when I was a tour guide for the San Diego Wild Animal Park’s overnight camping program.  I also did a month of elephant keeping there as well.  Lions and tigers and elephants, oh my!

11 Questions Asked by my Nominator:

1. Name three secrets you never told anyone.  1) I probably have magical powers, but they have not been revealed to me yet so until then, they are secret.  2) I’m pretty sure that DB Cooper is my dad, but he’s in the Bermuda Triangle right now so I can’t confirm that.  3) Ask that Snowden guy for some more secrets – he’ll be able to tell you.  (Crap, now I have to kill everyone who reads this…sigh…)
2. If you won the lottery, what would be the first thing you would do?  Well, that depends greatly on the amount of money I won.  Like if I won a dollar?  I probably would buy a Twix bar.  If I won a butt-load of money?  I’d quit my job and look into real estate on a tropical island somewhere, with primary criteria of: 1) must be cat-friendly, 2) must also come with pool-boy who serves fruity drinks with umbrellas in them, and 3) must have unlimited opportunities for spontaneous napping.
   
3. Looking over the last ten years, what is one goal you have achieved, and a goal you have not achieved?  One goal I have achieved:  I got my Ph.D. in 2004 (although I wish I had stopped at my M.S.; …stupid debt…).  A goal I have not achieved:  I’ve not yet found my ideal job – one that combines activities that I am good at and enjoy doing, an adequate income, and people I enjoy working with (although my current job includes some aspects of these requirements).
   
4. What are your plans for retirement? And will you travel? If so, where and why.  My plans for retirement are to do so, sooner rather than later.  I’m 40, and I still have some time left before I can really retire, but I’m looking forward to it already!  I certainly hope that we have enough money to travel because there are many places in the world I want to see!  I particularly want to see all the big animals in Africa, and the wildlife in the Galapagos Islands (but I’d like to see both of those places before I retire).
   
5. Favorite drink on a Friday night.  White Russian, because The Dude.
   
6. What do you think the secret is to a good marriage or relationship with a significant other is?  The difference between my marriage and all the other relationships I’ve been in is that my husband and I completely trust each other.  There are some other helpful ingredients too – no judgement (we’re both free to be who we are, and do what we want to do), and a sense of humor.  Oh yes – love, you should have that too!
   
7. Name three words that describe your personality.  Quirky, creative, lazy (let’s be honest).
   
8. Home cooked meal or take-out?  Take-out (or delivery is even better), because of the laziness (see answer above).
   
9. When was the last time you blogged and what was it about?  I last blogged two days ago, and my post was about reflections on the A to Z Blogging Challenge. 
   
10. What do you think is the key to happiness?  Several cats, ample opportunities for napping (see random fact #6, above), and a great haircut (preferably one that doesn’t get messed up during naps).
    
11. Who is your favorite poet and why?  Pablo Neruda – I love his imagery.  I also love reading his poems aloud in Spanish – the words melt off the tongue in a beautiful way!
    

 I nominate the following for the Liebster Award:

• Ava, from Tongue In Cheek.  Also another A to Z Challenge blog…talk about quirky!  And I am totally on board with her style of humor.
• Squirrels Nutmeg, Hickory, Ol’ Wally and Miz Flora from The Squirrel Nutwork.  This sweet blog highlights nature in the Washington D.C. area.  Simple, pretty, cute.
• Misty, from Dancing in the Weeds.  This is a newer blog, and I can really relate to a lot of what Misty has written about.  There’s a little bit of everything here.
• Eva, from Eva Marasca.  I love this woman’s voice.  I connect with her “About” statement, and I admire her passion and persistence.
• Pushing the Bruise.  I love how U stands for “uneffingbelievable” according to the author, who is an English teacher and self-proclaimed cat lady.

11 Questions for my Nominees to Answer:

1. Why did you decide to start writing your blog?
2. In one sentence, describe what your blog is about.  There’s a twist, though: don’t use any personal or possessive pronouns! (Muah ha haaaa!)
3. What is your earliest memory?
4. Do you dream?  If so, do you dream in color or black and white?
5. If you could only make one journey during your lifetime, but it could be to anywhere in the world, where would you go?  Why?
6. What is one of your guilty pleasures (and this had better be good…I want something really embarrassing!)?
7. Pick one:  the Harry Potter series or the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  Follow-up to what you picked:  books or movies?
8. What is your favorite holiday, and if it’s NOT Halloween, why?
9. List three words that describe your personality.
10. What is your favorite thing about how you earn a living?
11. If you could live in any time period (past, present or future), when and where would you be?

Thank you so much, everyone, for taking the time to read Fuzzy Undertones.  I appreciate the nomination for the Liebster Award, and I hope that the people I nominated for the award have fun answering these questions and participating in the Liebster Award tradition!  While it is a chain that keeps going, it’s also a great opportunity to promote blogs with smaller followings that have made an impression on you, as a blogger, and to recognize the creative work that others are doing.  I hope that you will pass the torch!

With great admiration and respect,

Marci  =^-^=