When I think of superpowers, I always think of the superheroes, like Superman, Wonderwoman, Thor, etc. But we can’t forget the supervillains! Every superhero seems to have a nemesis.
I think the best superpower would be the ability to Teleport anywhere or even any time. The world is a huge place and travel takes a lot of time. Teleporting would certainly save a lot of time and money, and no more intrusive searches by the TSA!
Now the question is, would I use my superpower for good or evil? Would I just use it in order to get someplace in an instant, or would I use it to get into places that I otherwise wouldn’t be able to, like a vault, and steal diamonds and gold?
I would like to think that I would never use my superpower for evil, but I have to admit, it sure would be tempting.
If I Could Time-Travel, When and Where Would I Go?
I am a huge sci-fi fan, so this question has crossed my mind on numerous occasions. Some of my favorite books, movies and TV shows involve time travel: 12 Monkeys, Back to the Future, Continuum, Outlander, Quantum Leap, Sliders, The Terminator, Time Cop, Timeless, Timeline, and Travellers. But, setting aside all thought of time paradoxes, or whether I could change the past or not, I think it would be so cool to observe some of the iconic events throughout history. Kind of like a time tourist. It would certainly let you solve some of the mysteries, like how the pyramids were built, or what happened to the colony at Roanoke.
Personally, though, I would like to see how my ancestors lived. I think it would be so interesting to see their houses, the clothes they wore, what they did for a living, and what they did in their leisure time. I think my day to day life is kind of boring, and they probably did, too. But I would still like to know. I wonder if my descendants would feel they same about me?
I am raising my five-year-old grandson while working full time. My number one guilty pleasure is to take a vacation day, take him to school and just spend the day alone. I might go back to bed and read, or binge on my favorite series. Sometimes just shopping without him is nice. Don’t get me wrong, I love him to pieces, but he wears me out!
If I can get Munchkin’s uncle to take him for a few hours, I love to take a spa day. I might get a massage, or a mani/pedi and a facial. Heavenly.
I love to go in my studio and create something for a friend or loved one. It might be a painting or a piece of jewelry, or something decorative. I especially love making things for Munchkin.
Who doesn’t have pet peeves? They’re those little things people do that just drive us nuts. I am sure there are things I do that drive other people nuts, too. Here is a list of some of my own pet peeves.
I absolutely hate it when people use the wrong form of their, there, or they’re. I have been accused of being a grammar nazi, but seriously, using the wrong word just makes you seem less than intelligent. I’m not talking about the occasional typo, we all make mistakes, but it is obvious that many people just don’t care. The picture above is an easy way to remember the correct form to use.
The same goes for people who use “would of” or “could of”. These are supposed to be contractions of “would have” and “could have” and should be spelled “would’ve” and “could’ve”.
Another thing I hate is when people mix up their metaphors. Or just get them wrong altogether. I knew a lady once that used to say, “Not for all the cheese in China!” The correct phrase is, “Not for all the tea in China!” The Chinese are known for drinking tea, not eating cheese, so all the tea in China would be worth a lot of money.
Similar to that, I hate when people use common phrases with incorrect words in them. Like, “He’s the spitting image of his dad.” The correct phrase is, “He’s the spit and image of his dad.” I know, kind of picky, but it does change the meaning. The original phrase was inspired by the Biblical God’s use of spit and mud to create Adam in his image.
I hate rude people. It’s especially rude when someone bumps into you and they say, “Excuse you,” like it was your fault, or they don’t say anything at all.
Another pet peeve is neighbors who play their music too loud. I have a neighbor across the street that plays her music so loud that I can hear it in my room at the back of the house over the sound of my air conditioner, which is right outside my window, and the waterfall aquarium filter. And, she isn’t even partying outside! Her music is coming from inside her house. I don’t mind if the neighbors have a party, I just don’t want to hear their music after 11:00 pm when I have to work in the morning.
Don’t you hate tailgaters? I know I do. It is aggressive and dangerous, and is a common cause of road rage. I especially hate it when there is another lane that driver could get into to go around me. Or if I am driving with the flow of traffic and can’t go any faster or get over. Where does he think I can go? I usually just slow down until they pass me, or get over as soon as I possibly can. They scare me.
I am all for freedom of speech. Everyone has a right to their own opinion about any topic, be it religion, politics, being a vegan, the value of modern art, or whatever. We do not need to agree about everything in order to get along. Problems arise when one person thinks their opinion is the only correct opinion and tries to force another person to believe it or to behave a certain way. There is a saying, “Your right to swing your fist ends at my nose.” This means that you can say or do anything you want as long as it doesn’t interfere with what another person wants to say or do. I grew up in a time when we believed that “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” But I also believe that just because you can say something doesn’t mean you should.
Some people think it’s immoral to be rich. I disagree. Unless you earned your money by doing something illegal, there is nothing wrong with being rich and keeping your money for yourself and your family. You earned it. Many rich people are philanthropists and help a lot of people through their charitable foundations.
I never understood people who spend $1000 on a purse or $300 for a pair of sneakers. Even if I had enough money to do that, I still wouldn’t. I’m not saying I don’t like nice things, I just don’t think some things are worth as much as some people are willing to pay for them.
The California Mega Millions Lottery is currently up to $41,000,000. If I won the that much money, the first thing I would do is set up some secure investments that I could live off the interest or dividends for the rest of my life. Too often you hear about someone winning the lottery, blowing all the money on super luxury items and then they are broke within a year.
I would definitely buy a nicer house on some land, but it would not be a million dollar house. I just don’t see the need for it. I just want a comfortable place to live in a nice neighborhood.
Pretty country cottage
I currently have a luxury SUV, but I did not buy it new and so I paid less than half what it would have cost new. I would probably upgrade to the newer version and not have to finance it, but I still would not buy something like a Lamborghini or Ferrari.
I would also love to take a cruise and travel around the world. I think that would be a lot of fun. I would like to see the countries where my ancestors came from. Right now, that includes France, Germany, England, Scotland, Ireland, and the Netherlands.
The land of my ancestors, France, Germany, England, Scotland, Ireland, and the Netherlands
After traveling for a bit, I would love to open my own art studio and share my knowledge with other people. I love teaching people to create things and get such a thrill seeing the surprise on their faces when they realize they made it themselves. That is so fulfilling to me. I would also like to open up my studio to share the space with other like minded artists and handicrafters. I think I could learn a few things from them, too. And, of course, I would have plenty of money to buy all kinds of new art supplies.
lovely art studio
I know that a lot of schools are lacking funding for classes like art and music. If I won the lottery, I would like to set up an endowment to a local school to fund an art and music program. Maybe even donate supplies and instruments. Another cause close to my heart is helping veterans. Too many of our veterans are homeless. I have volunteered at events to help veterans apply for healthcare and VA benefits. I have helped make hats and sleeping rolls for homeless veterans, and made lapghans (lap-sized afghans) for wheelchair bound veterans. Winning the lottery would definitely allow me to do more for veterans in need.
Well, I am sure I would spend some money on foolish things, but I would like to think I would be able to put some aside so I could live comfortable and never have to work again.
I have a very eclectic taste in music. I can listen to anything from classical to country, and punk to heavy metal. Anyone going through my iTunes playlist would think I was schizophrenic. That being said, below is a list of some of my current favorites:
As much as I love books, I also love a good movie. Here are some of my favorites:
The Star Wars Saga
I am a huge Sci-Fi fan and some of my favorite movies are in the Star Wars saga. I really like the original trilogy the most, and, except for Jar Jar Binks, the Prequel trilogy is pretty cool. I am not a huge fan of Disney’s take on Star Wars, though, but I still love the whole Star Wars universe and am glad that there are more movies in the works.
Some people think you can’t be a fan of Star Wars and Star Trek at the same time, but I don’t think that is true. I have been a fan since the original series was on television, though I was seeing it in syndication. I even had a crush on Captain Kirk at one time. I love how the new iteration of Star Trek is remaining so true to the original characters as much as possible and think that the Kelvin Timeline was a brilliant idea. It allowed the prequels to exist while allowing new story lines and still remaining true to the personalities of the main characters. And the casting was amazing! I never thought anyone could do Spock as well as Leonard Nimoy, but Zachary Quinto does a great job. And Karl Urban embodies the ever pessimistic Bones to a tee. Not to mention Chris Pine. He is good looking and exudes Captain Kirk’s super confidence.
I also like the Terminator Saga. I am fascinated by the idea that your fate is not set and how the different timelines didn’t really change the inevitability of Skynet becoming sentient and trying to terminate mankind.
I’m not just a fan of Sci-Fi, though. I am also a sucker for a hot man in a kilt! Besides the Starz series, Outlander, these three movies about strong highland men are among my favorites, too.
I could really go on all night discussing movies I love, because there are just so many of them, but I think I will just leave it at this.
I tend to favor books in a series, and one of my all-time favorites is the Earth’s Children series by Jean M. Auel. The first book, The Clan of the Cave Bear, was first published in 1980. It follows the life of a Cro-Magnon woman named Ayla, who is adopted as a young child by a clan of Neanderthal people, the Clan of the Cave Bear, after an earthquake destroys her home and separates her from her family. Ms. Auel did extensive historical research and the series touches on a theory that the Cro-Magnon man may have interbred with the Neanderthal, rather than just wiping them out. This has actually been shown to have some merit as DNA tests reveal that modern humans carry more Neanderthal DNA than previously thought. If you are interested, check out the Smithsonian Magazine article linked below.
Another of my favorites is the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. This is a romantic, time travel, historical series that follows Claire, a WWII British Army nurse, who falls through time after touching a stone in a druid’s circle. She lands 200 years in the past and meets Black Jack Randall, a British Officer who also happens to be her husband’s ancestor, and is a less than pleasant man. Claire is rescued by a band of highlanders after Black Jack mistakes her for a woman of ill-repute and is about to rape her. When the highlanders find out Claire is British, a sassenach, they don’t know whether she is a spy or if she truly needed rescuing, but decide there is too much risk to set her free. Over time, Claire ends up falling in love with a young highlander named Jamie, and not knowing if she will ever make it back to her time, marries him out of necessity to protect her from Black Jack.
The Starz Network has done an excellent job of adapting the books into a series and I can’t wait for the next season to start. The “droughtlander” is especially long this year due to Covid-19 delaying production.
I am really a bibliophile. I have loved books for as long as I can remember. I even participated in summer reading contests at the library when I was a child. The first book that I actually remember reading was Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry. This was a book about two orphan children who try to capture Misty, one of the wild ponies that live on Chincoteague Island off the coast of Virginia.
I collect books and hate seeing people who don’t value them as much as I do. I cringe when I see someone dog-ear the pages instead of using a book mark, or when they write in them, even when the book was meant to be written in. I have a kindle, and I do love the convenience of it, but I will always love the feel and smell of the real thing. One of my favorite places to go, besides craft stores, is the library or a book store. My grandson is in kindergarten now and is just starting to learn to read, but I have read to him almost every night since he was born, and I am trying to teach him to respect books, too. I was so proud when I caught him “reading” a book in bed the other night, when he was supposed to be sleeping.
I will be eligible for full retirement from Federal Service in 6 years, 10 months and 10 days from today. Once I retire, my goal is to get out of California. I was born here and I love this state, but it is way too expensive to live here anymore and it really isn’t very friendly to small business owners. As of today, though, I am not sure where I will move to. There are more things to consider than just the cost of living. My entire family lives on the West Coast, so I don’t really want to move too far away.
So, even though I will be retired from Federal Service, I don’t plan to quit working. But, I plan to be making my income doing what I love, and that is anything related to art and handicrafting. I would really like to spend more time teaching others, though. I have always enjoyed the teaching side of creating. I love seeing the amazement on someone’s face when they realize that they, too, can be an artist.
I don’t want to teach in a traditional school, though. I have already done some teaching, either one-on-one, or in a small group in someone’s home. I would like to have my own art studio, preferably on my own property, where people can come to me and learn or just practice creating things with me in my studio. I haven’t decided if I want to go the digital route and film tutorials, or not. I really prefer teaching in person.
Besides teaching, I will have grown my business, HootOwl Handicrafts. Right now, it consists of just selling the occasional item, but I have done some commissioned work, too. So far, it has been paintings, crocheted items, handmade dolls and doll accessories, decorative items, or pieces of jewelry. But I am constantly learning new techniques, so I would like to expand my business to sell more of these items.
One thing I don’t see myself doing is the craft show scene. I would rather have an online store than to make a bunch of things and then lug them around town and hope I have what people want to buy. It just doesn’t seem like the most efficient way to do it. Not knocking people who do craft shows, some people are very successful at it. It just isn’t for me. With an online store, you can reach people literally all over the world and do it 24/7.
My overall goal for the next ten years, then, is to just do more of what makes me happy, and if I can make money while doing it, all the better.
HootOwl Handicrafts 