I’m ready to focus on happy things now, and for some reason this old song by the Brady Bunch keeps playing in my head.  And luckily, those little voices have quieted down.  I’ll tell you why this song has special meaning today in a bit, but for now, I’d like to take some time to reminisce about simpler times. 

I’m referring to the world of the Brady Bunch.  Where a fun-filled day meant potato sack races in the backyard.  Where using your Greenbax stamps meant learning to compromise and buying a family TV instead of a sewing machine that would enable you to make groovy clothes.  When a pay phone in the house taught you to limit your phone time and share the house phone with the rest of the family.  Where a broken nose was a life lesson in dating.  And where all your “problems” were resolved in a mere half hour. 

Wouldn’t it be great to have been a part of that?  I mean, BEFORE you found out that the family was closerthanthis when they later published their autobiographies?

Regardless, that saccharin-sweet, if slightly twisted, family unit stood together through thick and thin.  When they needed extra dough, they joined together and entered a talent show, wrote a hokey song about sunshine and walking in the park, put on their finest neon orange and yellow duds and WON the freaking contest.

Well, maybe that’s not as far-fetched as it seems.  Awards are rampant these days, after all.

And though my last few posts have centered around orange people, crying, and crazy fear, it seems ironic that I’ve been nominated for The Sunshine Blogger Award.  Not once, mind you, but twice!  Can I get a whoop whoop?  Or should I just settle for “Groovy”?

It doesn’t matter.  I’m tickled orange.  Marcia’s got nothing on me!

So I’d like to thank  Dawn of April.  She’s a fairly new blogger who shows great promise, and I look forward to watching her blog develop.  She’s real, she’s personal, and she’s a good writer.  A great combination. 

And another big thank you to Stuff I Can’t Put On Facebook’s Blog, another blogger I really enjoy.  You’re going to have to visit her blog to find out what “shit dipped in glitter” means.  Classic–she makes me laugh.

The Sunshine Blogger rules

1. Include the award logo in a post or somewhere on your blog.
2. Answer 10 questions about yourself
3. Nominate 10 to 12 other fabulous bloggers.
4. Link your nominees to the post and comment on their blog, letting them know about the award.
5. Share the love and link the person who nominated you.

First, the questions/answers:

What would you most like to change about yourself right now?

My weight.  I’d love to figure out how to painlessly knock off 20 pounds.  The key word here is painlessly.    On the other hand, I’m not liking my hair much right now either. 

What’s your theme song?

I think I’ve answered this before, but depending on the time and place, I could give you a different answer every single time.  I’m currently into The Story by Brandi Carlisle, because I heard it in a movie trailer.  That’s me.  I’ll  link it here in case you want it to be yours too.

When was your last fender bender?

Anyone that knows me well knows that I’m the queen of the fender bender and may refer to me as Crash from time to time. I was taking proud to have been crash-free for a year, but that was ruined last weekend.  Not my fault, but conveniently, this time I was rear-ended by a tow truck. 

One part of your life, a memory, action, etc, that you wish you could surgically remove from your brain.

Haha,  where do I start?  I’ve already blocked it all out. 

What generation do you wish you’d have been a part of?

I would have loved to have been a part of the 60’s.  And I would have so made that journey to Woodstock and would have been covered in mud.  Then again, that would mean I’d be much older now than I already am, and I probably wouldn’t have remembered it anyway.  But it’s fun to think about.

What was your favorite childhood toy?

There are so many I don’t know where to start.  Mrs. Beazley, bless her little heart.  I thought I WAS Buff (from Family Affair) and I carried the poor doll around until she was coming apart at the seams.  Barbie’s, matchbox cars, and those damned Etch-A-Sketch thingies where you could never draw a good straight line.  Oh, yes and Spirograph rocked.

I think I just revealed my age.

What is your favorite housecleaning chore?

Is this for real? Ok, I’ll go with cleaning out the closets.  It’s great to take everything out and find things you’ve been missing or forgot you had.  Unfortunately, at some point, you have to put everything back in  a really organized fashion and that’s where I fall short. 

Do you twitter?

Well I try, but to be honest with you, I have a tough time getting into it.  What I do like is that hardly any real-life friends are out there, so I can just spit out random thoughts to the universe…and no one really pays any attention.  My twitter goal in life is to get some level of celebrity to tweet me back.  Anybody?  I can’t even get Nellie from Little House On The Prairie to respond.  I suck at Twitter.  Oh, but follow me anyway…

Any goals?

I’m planning a 2^nd blog, which will be completely different from this one.  This one’s fun, but I feel the need to monetize and figure out how to make a full-time gig out of this blogging stuff.  Why haven’t I started?  I’m stuck on a good name and am open for suggestions.

Do you really drink margaritas all the time?

Very rarely, actually.  I’m more of a Bud Light girl but I do love them from time to time, and I will always order it frozen with salt. 

But enough about me.  Time for nominations and the spreading of sunshine.  This part is tough.  I always forget to include some people, who amazingly happen to be the first people to read the post, and then I feel bad.  And then there are bloggers who don’t seem to be into the award thing, so I never want to bother them.  So since I’ve just presented some awards lately, I’m going to pick 10 different bloggers this time that you need to check out.  I like them all for different reasons.

Drumroll please…

AmandaZahn.com

 laurie j long

Shitty Dad

Menopausal Mother

Arms of a Sister

Ramblings of a Semi-Madman

Pouring My Art Out

Hyperactive Inefficiency

THEBITCHYTRUTH

This is the Crafty One

Pshewwww!  There’s only one thing left to do…

I think I’ll go for a walk outside now

The summer sun’s callin’ my name

(I hear ya’ now).

I just can’t stay inside all day

I gotta get out get me some of those rays

Everybody’s smilin’

Sunshine day

Everybody’s laughin’

Sunshine day

Everybody seems so happy today

It’s a sunshine day