Brought to You by the Letter B

I don't do too many memes anymore--not from any religious conviction or orneriness on my part it's just that I'm not that complex a person and there is really only so much one can tell.

But I'm taking up the challenge once more because I've had some tags and awards from kind people and I'd like to give them a nod of thanks.

Coordinated Chaos
Eat. Sleep. Knit.
The Life and Times of Me
Callista's Ramblings
It's Just a Diary
Kinau and Nicole's Family Blog
The Social Frog

The idea was to select a few "B" things in your life so I'm breaking it down by category.

1. "Ooooh! Barracuda!" If we're talking music I'm very partial to the Beatles, Beethoven, Bizet, BB King, Blondie, Bodyrockers, Barenaked Ladies, the B-52s and the Bee Gees--with a touch of Buffalo Springfield in there for good political measure.

Though I cannot tolerate Beyonce, Bobby McFerrin or Bob Marley. In that order. I'd mention a "B" artist in the country genre but then I can't think of any--I tend to avoid that area at all costs--so you'll have to fill in the blank for yourself on that one.

2. Books. Quite easy--I'd say the Brontes (though give me Jane Eyre over Wuthering Heights any day--those crazies are just too frustrating for words) along with Big Rock Candy Mountain (another Stegner classic), Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Lord Byron. And if those aren't enough B's to keep you happy I'd add Beowulf just because I'm feeling cheeky today though it's been a while since I cracked the cover on that one.

I'm reading The Bostonians right now though it's rather slow going--I wouldn't necessarily recommend it and have been stuck on page 323 for about six months--and I'm about to read Blink by Malcolm Gladwell.

3. Big hair. Because I graduated from high school in 1988 and you could hardly escape it. This should also include "bangs" for a bodacious bigger bonus.

4. The Big Screen. I'm a sucker for classic movies. Give me the Bridge on the River Kwai, Bachelor Mother, Ben-Hur, the Bishop's Wife, Bell, Book and Candle, Bullit, Breakfast at Tiffany's and Butch Cassidy over Benjamin Button, Blade, Blair Witch or Bodysnatchers.

And speaking of movies and the infamous Mr. Jolie. . . I've had this theory for years now that Benicio del Toro is really Brad Pitt. Or at least a Latin and not-so-gently-used version. Check it out. Kind of creepy no?

5. BYU. As a plug for my alma mater. Graduated in 1992 just before becoming a bride. I'd love to be able to say that I graduated in biology, Bulgarian or business management because "English" doesn't really fit the theme does it?

I didn't even take basket weaving though did take a bowling class once . . . not that it improved my game any. I can be beaten on any given day by each of my children (Grace bowled a 173 the other day if I can brag a moment--my average is around 86).

6. Bon Appetit! If we're talking food it's not hard to find the B favorites: brie, Burger King, blackberries, creme brulee, bologna and any kind of bread would all go on my list. I do not, however, consume baklava (too sweet), bananas (too mushy), buffalo wings (too much waste of time and calories) or borscht (too beety). My B's and my taste buds are very discerning you know.

7. Barbecue. Like to eat it, don't know how to spell it. It's a word I get wrong every time--is it barbecue or barbeque or barbq or BBQ? Let's standardize the language people and save ourselves a bunch of time with the spell check okay?

8. Bon Voyage! I've been to the Bahamas, Belize, Belgium and Bemidji and we hope to go visit my parents in Bangalore within the next year but I haven't been to Barrow which is where Andrew travels all the time (and where all the vampires live apparently--you know, with all the darkness and everything). He says he hasn't seen any vampires yet but then I imagine they lay rather low when the attorneys come to town. They may be vampires but hey, you don't want to mess with lawyers do you? That's when things really get ugly. I'd take a cross and some garlic over a subpoena any day.

9. Breakfast. The absolutely best meal of the day. It doesn't matter what restaurant you go to, breakfast is gonna be good. I don't care if we're talking bagels and cream cheese, bacon, buttermilk pancakes or brioche it's always a treat and I wish we could change things to make it so breakfast was served for each meal instead of just once a day. I still dream about my freshman college days when the dorms had a breakfast bar with pancakes and waffles where you could just pile on whatever toppings you wanted: cherries, raspberries, whipped cream . . . talk about heaven.

10. B words. Oh there's so much one could say here. I could talk about words that really should be brought back into the language. Words like "bogglish" which means "uncertain," "bathyorographical" meaning relative to sea level or "bablatrice" which means a "female babbler" (can you think of a more wonderfully descriptive word ever invented?)

Or I could talk about words I really like: bougainvillea, bulbous, bromilead, or my most favorite interjection "¡Que barbaridad!" Which I throw around from time to time when the Latin mood strikes.

But I'll end with the most pertinent B word: "blogging" which I'll return to right after making beds, cleaning the bathrooms and paying the bills.

Sponsored by Manfred Mantis Play Sets for play equipment for the 21st century and by Best Dressed Tables for custom table cloths and linens.

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Sorry! Updated to add the winner of the Sesame Street Live Giveaway: James from (you guessed it) New York, New York. I'm slow but I eventually get there. And to those whose names weren't drawn magically from the hate do not despair--I have Dora the Explorer Live tickets coming in a few weeks that I'll be giving away so stay tuned.

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