This one is brought to you by the number 5! (and the color orange).

1. What are five things about you that people might be surprised to find out?

I don’t know that any of these are “surprising”, but they might be “little known”:

I like to make ice tea, put it in 16 oz. water bottles and put it in the freezer. I pull it out just as it starts forming ice crystals. Like an ice tea slushie.

I really like the mashed potato and gravy at Popeye’s. I never used to like it, but I’ve developed quite a taste for it. It’s a bit spicy—I think there are some kind of hot peppers in it and maybe some sausage.

Speaking of mashed potatoes, I’ve got a new mashed potato recipe: Mashed potato with carmelized onions. It is the bomb!! I went to make it the other night, and my potatoes are gone bad. I adapted the recipe a bit using instant potatoes. Still awesome! In fact, Dwane even likes the instant potato kind better. It’s kindda surprising that I like them, as I have never liked onions. In the last several years, though, I’ve really started to appreciate them.

My favorite flower is a pink carnation. When I was in 8th grade, I went to work with my Dad. I typed envelopes. He “paid” me with pink carnations, and they’ve been a favorite ever since.

Every time my Aunt Ginny has an excuse to buy me a present, she buys me socks by Peds. They are soooo comfortable. And so cute! They are pink at the toes and heels. I’m afraid Aunt Ginny might feel funny always buying me socks, but I look forward to getting them!!

2. Name five favorite ____________ (fill in the blank and then answer).

Favorite Ice Cream Flavors

Dorman’s Grapenuts
Dorman’s Mocha Chip
Friendly’s Vanilla (not French Vanilla, or Vanilla Bean, just plain ole Vanilla)
Ben & Jerry’s Oatmeal Cookie
Ben & Jerry’s Fudge Core Central, or something like that.

3. Name five favorite songs.

It Is Well With My Soul (a hymn)
Beautiful In My Eyes (our wedding dance)
Some Kind of Wonderful (our second wedding dance)
As the Deer (a worship chorus)
Beautiful City (from the Broadway Show “Pippin” – a song I sang as a lullaby for both of my boys.)

Of course, if you ask me tomorrow, I may give you a different answer.

4. Five favorite TV shows, Songs, or Books (you pick).

Five favorite TV Shows (at the current moment)

Project Runway
House Hunters
The View
Vacation Home Search (when I can find one that I haven’t already seen)
Most Other Reality Shows (Big Brother, So You Think You Can Dance, Rock Star, etc.)

5. Name five of your least favorite ______________ (fill in the blank and then answer).

Five Least Favorite Things to Hear

“Did you get my receipts?” As Dwane hands me a bunch of debit card slips that I need to put into the checkbook.

“Mom, Caleb’s hitting me again!”

“Bo Bo, stop it”

“I got a really great deal.” (Dwane’s excuse as to why he spent money again.)

“I’m running late.”

From Jim:

The Blues MI-5

We had the blues festival here in Rockland last weekend. I have
found that they left some behind when they packed up and left town.
I seem to have gotten them.

1. Are you a likable person the kind that people want to be around?

I like to think that I'm likable and fun to be around. Of course, I have my moments when I'm not fun to be around, but for the most part, I think I'm ok.

2. Do you have a lot of friends or just a few? What do you think the quality of your friends are? (close, acquaintance etc...)

I have a couple of very close friends (My Mom, Alice, Sue, & Ronda, for example). I have other friends, too, like those at church, in my extended family, at work, Close to My Heart (tm) etc. I think my friends are absolutely awesome. Otherwise, they probably wouldn't be my friends.

3. If you meet someone on the street that you knew from years ago or maybe met just once do they usually say hi to you or pass you by with maybe a glance?

They usually say hi. For example, I see Charlene Y. from school at Wal-Mart quite frequently, and we always say hi. The same for Cheryl from Avon/Church. I have to say, though (and this is awful) that I sometimes will see someone I know, and I'll actually go around to avoid having to socialize. Is that terrible or what??? I'm ashamed of that. Maybe I'm just in a hurry and need to get things done. I don't know. But I know that it's one part of my personality that I don't like. I honestly don't think it's because I'm a snob or something. Instead, I think I just don't do well with "small talk".

4. In your free time are you a social butterfly or a loner or somewhere in between?

Generally speaking, I like to be alone. I like to scrapbook, read, play on the computer, whatever. I do enjoy being with others, like at scrapbook parties, etc., or shopping with Alice, but mostly, I tend to be a loner.

5. How has your week gone? When was the last time you had the blues? Tell us more.

I guess it's been pretty good. I can't really complain. There's always someone that's had a worse week. This weeked at the race was pretty hectic, and I felt homesick. In fact, on Saturday, I had a little "breakdown" walking under the grandstands. I saw a man in a wheelchair, about my Dad's age. The shape of his arm was just like the shape of my Dad's arm. I lost it. (In fact, I'm crying again now just thinking about it.) I guess I was homesick, hot, tired, worried about the truck, etc., but I couldn't believe how that "arm" affected me. Since we got back, my week has been pretty "normal". Eben's been away at VBS, so my morning's have been pretty quiet which allowed me to get quite a bit of legal work done. Eben's birthday was yesterday, so that was a high point.

Here are Eben's answers:

1. Describe your “relationship” with NASCAR. Are you a big fan? An
occasional watcher? Never had any interest in it at all?

Well, NASCAR is a very competitive sport. I watch it every Sunday with my parents and my little brother. The biggest event of NASCAR Nextel Cup Series is the Daytona 500. The first race that ever got the green flag was in Daytona Beach, part road, part sand on the Daytona Beach. The year was 1948. I love NASCAR. I have lots of NASCAR cars that I play with.

2. Tell us about your favorite NASCAR driver. Is he/she your favorite
driver because of their ability, or because of some aspect of their
personality? If you didn’t even know that NASCAR involves driving,
you could tell us about your favorite professional athlete.

My favorite driver is Bobby Labonte. My family likes him cuz he's a Christian. At least that's what Mom says. And he got his first championship in 2000. He has got 21 wins, 6 wins at Atlanta, 3 times at Michigan, and 1 time at Daytona. He drives the #43 Cheerios car. He has one brother who is Terry Labonte. His biggest purse in winnings was $831,225.00 at the 2000 Brickyard 400, and he has raced 438 starts at the end of 2005.

3. Have you ever attended a NASCAR race? If not, would you like to go to
one? Which one would you like to go to? If you didn’t even know that
NASCAR involves racing, you could tell us about any professional
sporting event that you have attended, or would like to attend.

Yes, I have attended a NASCAR race in 2002. My driver drove the 2002 Interstate Batteries Pontiac for Joe Gibbs. My driver placed 14th at Lowe's Motor Sppedway. He placed 2nd in the same race, but just a different date, and a different name. It was the same racetrack. The race I would really like to go to is Martinsville and Bristol Motor Speedway because you can see a lot of action. If you're going three wide on those tracks, you bet there's going to be a wreck.

4. My Dad’s theory was that NASCAR was rigged—that crashes were created
on purpose to give the fans what they wanted to see (similar to
professional wrestling). Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Disagree. I have to disagree with that because there is different kinds. Last week's race at Chicagoland, Jeff Gordon wiped out Matt Kenseth because Matt Kenseth accidentally wiped out Jeff Gordon at Bristol earlier this year. Jeff Gordon was really mad so he bumped him back. That's one type of wrecking. The other type is accident wrecking. If your car is not good in the corners and doesn't brake or doesn't turn, and if the guy behind you is faster, he can accidentally bump you and turn you around.

5. If you were going to be surprised with a “getaway weekend” for your
birthday, where would you like to go? While it’s fun to dream,
let’s try to be somewhat realistic. (In other words, jet setting
to Paris is probably out.)

I would have to say to go to Daytona, Watkins Glen, or Infineon. Those are the tracks with the biggest pile ups. In 2004, at Infineon three cars were going three wide on a road course. They all just spun out at the same time, like they were dancing on the track. If I went to Daytona, I would get front-row seats right where the good wrecks are, and once there was a wreck at Daytona, it was so bad, Dale Earnhardt, Sr. died in the wreck. In the same year at the same track, his son won he Pepsi 400. If I went to Watkins Glen for my birthday, I would get front row seats again and see the twisting turns as the cars go around the track.

This weekend, we are taking our son away for a special “Birthday
Weekend”. We are going to the NASCAR race in New Hampshire. So— this
week’s questions are going to relate to NASCAR.

1. Describe your “relationship” with NASCAR. Are you a big fan? An
occasional watcher? Never had any interest in it at all?

Dwane, Eben, and I are all huge fans. I'm sure Caleb will be too, once he gets a little older. It started slowly in 2001, and then really picked up speed (pun intended) after that. We all have Nascar ball caps, and we never miss a watching the race on TV. In fact, I usually even prepare a supper that is a local specialty in the state where the race is taking place. One of our favorites was a roast that you cook on the grill for California.

2. Tell us about your favorite NASCAR driver. Is he/she your favorite
driver because of their ability, or because of some aspect of their
personality? If you didn’t even know that NASCAR involves driving,
you could tell us about your favorite professional athlete.

Our favorite driver is Bobby Labonte, driver of the #43 Cheerios Dodge. He drives for Richard Petty. This is how he chose him as our favorite: Dwane was employed by MBNA. At the time, MBNA was a sponsor of the Home Depot car (orange) and the Interstate Batteries car (green). Since MBNA was the sponsor, it seemed obvious that we needed to pick one of these two teams. Eben's favorite color is green. Since Bobby Labonte drove the green Interstate Batteries car at the time, he became "our" driver. Later, we also learned that he is a Christian and has been awarded the "Safe Driver" award many times. When we first started watching NASCAR, he would usually be in the top 10 in points. (He actually won the Championship in 2000.) He now tends to be in the mid-twenties. (I think he 25 right now.)

3. Have you ever attended a NASCAR race? If not, would you like to go to
one? Which one would you like to go to? If you didn’t even know that
NASCAR involves racing, you could tell us about any professional
sporting event that you have attended, or would like to attend.

Dwane, Eben, and I attended the Coca Cola 600 (the season's longest race) in 2002. It was in Charlotte, North Carolina. We had a good time, but I was quite perturbed that we paid $70+ each for a ticket, and had to sit on concrete steps!!! I have dreams of one day winning the Power Ball, buying a Motor Home and driving cross country to attend every NASCAR race.

4. My Dad’s theory was that NASCAR was rigged—that crashes were created
on purpose to give the fans what they wanted to see (similar to
professional wrestling). Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Well, I definitely think that there are times when a driver intentionally takes out another driver. However, I don't think that the "NASCAR Organization" says, "Ok, this week it's your turn to win, and you need to make sure there is at least one 15-car pile-up. It's way too expensive to make "fake" crashes.

5. If you were going to be surprised with a “getaway weekend” for your
birthday, where would you like to go? While it’s fun to dream,
let’s try to be somewhat realistic. (In other words, jet setting
to Paris is probably out.)

I think I'd like to go to a Women of Faith weekend, or a Close to My Heart Convention (which will be in Orlando in 2007). Women of Faith is actually on a weekend, but the CTMH Convention is more like Monday through Thursday. I would love to go to both events, and they would sure make good birthday presents. If I was going to keep it really local, I'd probably do what we normally do on my birthday weekend: go to Bangor for some shopping, and then Dwane gets some lobster. Nothing really fancy, but it works for me!

The MI-5

1. What is under your bed?

I have six drawers under my bed. They include such things as old Avon products (from back when I was selling Avon), some old books, and I think some of Dwane's old socks and boxer shorts.

2. What do you see when you close your eyes?

Nothing, really. Black. Sometimes some spots. I don't need to close my eyes to daydream, though. Closing my eyes usually means I'm sleeping.

3. Tell us about a news story that you really feel is over - despite the press continuous coverage. And why?

I am so tired of hearing about gas prices. I guess the news is still news, but I'm so tired of hearing what the gas prices are every single morning. Enough already. There's a lot of other news I'm tired of hearing about to (Enron, the War, etc.) but I guess it's still newsworthy. I've just lost interest. I guess I'd rather watch a police chance on the Fox News Chanel.

4. What's on top of your fridge?

Dust. Dust. Dust. Some crystal salad dishes that were a wedding present. A small sewing kit. A dish with odds and ends of nuts, bolts, and screws, etc. I hate having all that junk up there. Maybe I'll make it a point to remove everything from the top of my fridge before the next MI-5. Remind me.

5. People often don't tell us what they are really thinking. Who is the one person you would really like to know what they are thinking (as far as how they feel about you), and why?

My former employer. Did the employer really like my work for 18 years, and then just have a really bad day? Or, did the employer really hate my work for 18 years, and decided that enough was enough (and had just been making me think all along that I was half-way intelligent)? Does the employer regret the way I left the job? Is the employer SOOO happy to be rid of me?