Sporadically Sandra

On this day in 1832, author Lewis Carroll was born. His most famous piece of work was Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Who is your favorite character in this book and why?


For years and years, I was traumatized by the Disney Alice in Wonderland. The story of the oyster’s, tweedle dee and tweedle dum, the creepy flamingo croquet sticks; all of it just scared the bejeezus out of me. I remember reading the books when I was younger which made me want to re-watch the movie. Big mistake! The movie still creeped me out.

It was not until a few years ago that I learned to appreciate Alice and the world of Wonderland. I actually found a re-writing online that someone had done, putting the vision of Alice in their own words, Behind Sanity. The story was purely amazing, original and energizing. The old Disney version still skeezes me out but I’ve come to love the new theatrical version that just came out even though I think it changes the story from what it originally was.

My favorite character has never changed, and I’m sure half of the people who know anything about Alice would agree. There is just something about that Cheshire Cat. Is it his smile? The swish of his tail? Or perhaps it is his way with words? His amazing way of speaking in circles but at the same time, hitting the nail on the head?

'Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?'
'That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,' said the Cat.
'I don't much care where —' said Alice.
'Then it doesn't matter which way you go,' said the Cat

Throughout all the versions of Alice I have watched or read, he has always been a favorite.
One thing is apparent though, time for me to re-read Alice and her adventures. And, to re-read Behind Sanity

So Georgia has experienced crazy weather! Not only did we get snow, but now it won't get warm enough to melt it away! Interstates have been shut down. Schools have been closed all week and of course there has been an influx of northerners who feel the need to mock us for freaking out over 3 inches of snow. Considering we don't have snow plows and maybe 2 salt trucks as well as the fact that we don't normally have tires equipped for snow, I don't think the freak out is over-rated. Luckily, I can work from home so I don't have to use up my vacation time, but I feel bad for my co-workers who do.

Yesterday for lunch I actually looked in my fridge and figured out a meal using up some of what I had. I poached some chicken and cut it up into pieces before mixing it with a can of cream of mushroom and cottage cheese. On top of that I layered stuffing made with chicken stock and supplemented with sauteed celery and onions. I baked it all until bubbly and delicious. Not too shabby since I just made it up.

Last night for dinner we had Healthy Shells and Cheese with Spinach. Recipe found Here. It was pretty good but I feel like it could have used more punch to the cheese sauce. But then I really love a good cheesy flavor. It was super easy to make and super comforting to have while snowed in. But who knew Gruyere cheese was so expensive?? Anyone have any interesting recipes for me to use that wll help use that up?

I think tomorrow is going to be another work from home, but hopefully by Thursday I can escape.

1. How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?


I go to bed between 10 and 11 on weeknights, to work towards getting 7-8 hours of sleep a night. I love hanging out with my family and friends, staying in and watching movies or playing games. I worry too much about anything and everything. How old am I? I am a little old betty who sits around with friends making old lady sex jokes and cross stitching. I am practically sixty, if not older.

2. Which is worse, failing or never trying?

What is worse than never trying, that’s the real question. I would rather fail at what I love most than to be too scared to even try. I love to write so I do it and I put my stuff on the internet and out into the world to get people involved. Sometimes people hate it and they tell me, but sometimes I make someone’s day better because they were able to leave behind the real world and live in my fantasy one.

3. If life is so short, why do we do so many things we don’t like and like so many things we don’t do?

The truly lucky people are the ones who figure out how to make what they love work towards getting to do that more. But, for the majority of people, they do the things they don’t like to bankroll the things they love. And some people do the things they don’t like so that they don’t have time to do the things they do like because they are too scared to have fun. I would love to be the first person, will be okay with being the second, but will never be the third.

4. When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?

I think if I continue on the path I’m on in this life, it would be much easier to say more than do more. It is easier to just talk, it does not take courage to just speak. But, I’m not content with just saying what I want to do. I want to act. I want to be some old lady and look back on life and think “wow, how did I manage to do all of that?” I have dreams that I would rather live out then plan out.

5. What is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world?

I think that there are a plethora of things that could be changed about the world. Watch a beauty pageant and they will give you the reasons: world peace, world hunger, pollution, etc. The thing that really pops into my mind today is “attitude”. Just think what could be changed it people dialed back their false sense of entitlement? Stopped being lazy and expected other people to do for them? To stop and think about how your actions might affect other people? Perhaps how the world is now is the only way it can work with all the different minds populating it, but perhaps if people took a minute to think about how they interact, they could find a way to do it better and maybe the world would positively reflect that change in attitude.

The love of your life is getting married to someone else. In a last-ditch attempt to win the love of your life back, you bust into the wedding and profess your love mid-ceremony. Start your story with the line, "Don't say yes!"


“Don’t say yes,” I blurted out, bursting through the thick French doors at the back of the cathedral. I was out of breath from running across the packed parking lot and up the front steps and heads turned to look at me as I stood there gasping. Sometime during my run, the slit in my dress had ripped and my hair had fallen out of the ponytail I had thrown it up in.

“Don’t say yes,” I repeated more quietly as I tried to straighten my clothes and pat down my messy hair, quickly making my way up the aisle.

“What are you doing here?” Ryan asked confused, stepping down from the pulpit where he had been facing his bride.

“You can’t marry her.”

“Give me a minute,” he said to the pastor as he grabbed my arm and started leading me back down the aisle. “What are you doing here?” Ryan asked me one we had stepped out of the chapel.

“Why are you marrying her?” I asked, running a hand nervously through my hair.

“Why do you care?” Ryan shot back.

“Not even six months ago you were declaring your love for me, talking about marriage.”

“And then you broke up with me.”

I shook my head, “No, I didn’t. I told you I needed time.”

“Time away from me. How was I supposed to take that?”

“No,” I snapped, “No, I needed time.”

“Why? You wouldn’t even tell me why. All you said was you needed time, a break away from me, space.”

“Because I didn’t want to hurt you.”

“How would you have hurt me?”

“Your father came to me and told me if I didn’t leave you, he would disown you. He told me I would only disappoint and embarrass your family. He promised me that he would make your life a living hell and that you would never see your family again. How could I make you choose between me and your family?”

“How could you take away that choice?”

“You loved your father. Admired him. You thought he hung the moon. How could I do that to you?”

“Then why are you telling me now?”

“Because he died and if I don’t at least let you know that I’m totally and irrevocably in love with you before it’s too late, I would never forgive myself.”

“So you waited until my wedding day?”

I shrugged, not knowing what else to say besides the obvious “yeah”.

“What do you want me to do now?”

“I want you to do whatever you want to do, now that you know everything,” I replied. “I’m sorry I ruined your day.

I turned and hurried down the steps as tears overflowed my eyes. I wiped at my eyes as I made my way back to my car. I slid into the driver’s seat and stuck my keys in the ignition before a sob escaped my throat. I sat in my car, lost in my grief as sobs wracked my body, harder then they ever did after I broke up with Ryan. A small part of me had always hoped that we would somehow work out, but it was clear that wasn’t an option.

I jumped at a knock on my window and I rolled down the window confused, not really understanding what I was looking at. “What are you doing?”

“I can’t marry her.”

I had 4 glorious days off from work (+1 work from home) for Christmas, as well as actual SNOW on Christmas day. I live in Georgia, I have since I was 8 and I do not recall having a white Christmas the entire time I've lived here. It makes me super happy. :-)

For Christmas Eve dinner, I got together with my husband's family and had a potluck. I made Night Owl S'more treats, Bacon Wrapped Little Smokies, Mac and Cheese bites and Peanutbutter balls. The mac and cheese bites and the peanutbutter balls are old favorites. But, the s'more treats and little smokies were totally new to me. (42. Cook 30 new recipes, 2 done)

The s'more treats were amazing. They were so good and really gave a s'more flavor without the camp fire. They also look delicious.

The bacon wrapped little smokies were one of the most popular dishes there. They were the perfect finger food; one little bite of delicious.

I also hit a 5% weight loss, but I'm sure that is no longer the case after Christmas Eve and Day dinner.

I had a great Christmas with my husband and my family. I am truely lucky to ahve the family I have, they are amazing and I have a great time with them whenever I'm around them.

This is my second try at the 101 in 1001 challenge. I totally forgot about it the first time around so I want to start fresh, especially since in only a year, so much has changed with me.

I'm super excited for this project and the potential it has to help me grow as a person and to help me love myself more. I'm sure in the next few days I will quickly mark through some of the things on the list and it will slow down, but hopefully I won't forget about the whole thing.

Today, I completed number 73. I used futureme.org to write an email to be sent to myself on September 18, 2013. I wrote about the things I hope I get from this project and what I hope to have going on in my life when that date rolls around. I hope that when I read it, I can smile, knowing that I tried my best to better myself.

Tomorrow I weigh in, and I'm hoping for a loss. I'm super nervous. Although I've stayed on goal, it is holiday season and who knows what I could have miscalculated. I just want to succeed and I'm nervous enough about Christmas eve and day without having a possible gain.

So in my 101 in 1001 challenge, I decided to watch the top 100 movies of all time. After going to the AFI website I decided the best representation and most fun list would be their 10 top 10 list. Some of the movies I've already seen, so I won't have to rewatch them, but there are still plenty of movies I need to see.

I'll cross out the movies I've seen and as I watch the rest I will cross them off and add the date when I watched it.

Animation
1. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
2. Pinocchio
3. Bambi
4. The Lion King
5. Fantasia
6. Toy Story
7. Beauty and the Beast
8. Shrek
9. Cinderella
10. Finding Nemo
Fantasy
1. The Wizard of Oz
2. Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
3. It's a Wonderful Life
4. King Kong (1933)
5. Miracle on 34th Street
6. Field of Dreams
7. Harvey
8. Groundhog Day
9. The Thief of Bagdad
10. Big
Gangaster
1. The Godfather
2. Goodfellas
3. The Godfather Part II
4. White Heat
5. Bonnie and Clyde
6. Scarface: The Shame of a Nation
7. Pulp Fiction
8. The Public Enemy
9. Little Caesar
10. Scarface
Science Fiction
1. 2001: A Space Odyssey
2. Star Wars: episode IV. A New Hope
3. E.T. - The Extra Terrestrial
4. Clockwork Orange
5. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
6. Blade Runner
7. Alien
8. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
9. Invasion of the Body Snatchers
10. Back to the Future
Western
1. The Searchers
2. High Noon
3. Shane
4. Unforgiven
5. Red River
6. The Wild Bunch
7. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
8. McCabe and Mrs. Miller
9. Stagecoach
10. Cat Ballou
Sports
1. Raging Bull
2. Rocky
3. The Pride of the Yankees
4. Hoosiers
5. Bull Durham
6. The Hustler
7. Caddyshack
8. Breaking Away
9. National Velvet
10. Jerry Maguire
Mystery
1. Vertigo
2. Chinatown
3. Rear Window
4. Laura
5. The Third Man
6. The Maltese Falcon
7. North by Northwest
8. Blue Velvet
9. Dial M for Murder
10. The Usual Suspects
Romantic Comedy
1. City Lights
2. Annie Hall
3. It Happened One Night
4. Roman Holiday
5. The Philadelphia Story
6. When Harry Met Sally...
7. Adam's Rib
8. Moonstruck
9. Harold and Maude
10. Sleepless in Seattle
Courtroom Drama
1. To Kill a Mockingbird
2. 12 Angry Men
3. Kramer vs. Kramer
4. The Verdict
5. A Few Good Men
6. Witness for the Prosecution
7. Anatomy of a Murder
8. In Cold Blood
9. A Cry in the Dark
10. Judgment at Nuremberg
Epic
1. Lawrence of Arabia
2. Ben-Hur
3. Schindler's List
4. Gone with the Wind
5. Spartacus
6. Titanic
7. All Quiet on the Western Front
8. Saving Private Ryan
9. Reds
10. The Ten Commandments