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50 Questions That Will Free Your Mind

50 Questions That Will Free Your Mind

I was recently part of a electronic swap on Swap-bot where I had to answer 50 questions and send them to my 5 partners. This swap was hosted by ElizabethObviously and you can find out more about the swap details by clicking on her name. Below you will find the 50 questions and my answers to them. Enjoy :) 

1. How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are? Honestly most days I don't feel like I am my age. When someone asks me how old I am I actually have to stop and sometimes do the math..hahaha. Most days I feel like I am still in my 30s. 
2. Which is worse, failing or never trying? It can be a little of both at times. Depends on my frame of mind at the time of failing. If it is something that has compounded by a bunch of failures in a row then I feel like it would have been better to have never tried in the first place. But if it is something that I really enjoyed doing but know that I wasn't that great at, well I feel like at least I tried. :) 
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? It's all about the feeling of obligation. Sometimes we do things we don't want to do because we feel obligated to do so. On the other hand sometimes I don't do things I really want to do because I can't justify the cost it entails. 
4. When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done? Probably, I'm not a very motivated person. I talk about wanting to do things but I don't always follow through. 
5. What is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world? People that feel the need to try and start arguments and criticize other people. People I call trolls. I wish I could get rid of that personality trait. I wish we could go back to the time of, "If you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say anything at all." Now-a-days people feel that it's their right.. Their freedom of speech right to be hateful. I don't believe in that. 
6. If happiness was the national currency, what kind of work would make you rich? Being a stay at home mother full time would make me tremendously happy and that would make me rich. I would have a house full of foster kids and love doing it. 
7. Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing? Job wise I settled for a job that pays me what I need for my budget. I've never had any great aspiration to be something special like a doctor, lawyer or what have you. On a personal scale, I live the way I believe I should. I have a strong set of beliefs and I don't stray from them. 
8. If the average human life span was 40 years, how would you live your life differently? I'd be dead since I am now 42, lol  I'd live my life happily in heaven with Jesus right now!
9. To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken? My actions have controlled the way my life has turned out. There are many things I wish I could go back and redo, but then I think that if I "fixed" things then I may not be the person I am today or have my son. My path has been hard at times but my choices have controlled that path 100%. 
10. Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things? I don't worry about doing the right thing, I just do it automatically. I sometimes worry about doing things the wrong way though.
11. You’re having lunch with three people you respect and admire.  They all start criticizing a close friend of yours, not knowing she is your friend.  The criticism is distasteful and unjustified.  What do you do? I tell them that I've never had any problem with that person and actually really like them and ask them not to be so negative about the person in front of me. 
12. If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be? Don't be afraid to follow your beliefs and be yourself and not cave into peer pressure. 
13. Would you break the law to save a loved one?  I would do anything to protect my son. 
14. Have you ever seen insanity where you later saw creativity? Never have seen this before. 
15. What’s something you know you do differently than most people? 
16. How come the things that make you happy don’t make everyone happy? Because we are all different. Staying at home and watching movies makes me happy but someone else might find this boring. Whereas others like to go out to parties and I would hate that. 
17. What one thing have you not done that you really want to do? I've always wanted to write a book. The thing holding me back is ME. I just don't have the follow-through. I start out great but when I get to certain point I always get bored. 
18. Are you holding onto something you need to let go of? Nope, I don't usually hold onto things. My philosophy is , "oh well. who cares."
19. If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why? I'd love to move to someplace like England or Paris. I don't want to move their permanent but I wouldn't mind living abroad for a year. I always thought it would be wonderful to experience real life in a foreign country. 
20. Do you push the elevator button more than once?  Do you really believe it makes the elevator faster? No we only hit it once. I usually let my son hit the button.  Multiple times hitting the button is for impatient people. 
21. Would you rather be a worried genius or a joyful simpleton? Worried genius.  I'd hate to be a simpleton. It is actually my greatest fear, To lose my intelligence. 
22. Why are you, you? Because of the way my mom raised me. If she hadn't brought me up the way she did and instilled me with good values then I would not be the person I am today. 
23. Have you been the kind of friend you want as a friend? Probably not. I'm not good at keeping in touch with people. I like having friends and I really care about the friends I have, I just don't always let them know. Or keep in contact with them. 
24. Which is worse, when a good friend moves away, or losing touch with a good friend who lives right near you? They are both the same to me. 
25. What are you most grateful for? Easy one. My son. I wasn't supposed to be able to have children. I never did my whole adult life until I got pregnant with him when I was 37. It was a wonderful surprise. 
26. Would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones? Never be able to make new ones. Memories of myself don't matter to me, memories of the time with my son are what I want. 
27. Is is possible to know the truth without challenging it first? Yes, you don't have to challenge the truth to know the truth, sometimes it's all about faith. 
28. Has your greatest fear ever come true? No and I pray it never does. 
29. Do you remember that time 5 years ago when you were extremely upset?  Does it really matter now? I don't know that I was extremely upset five years ago. Things have a way of working out. 
30. What is your happiest childhood memory?  What makes it so special? I liked helping my mom clean the offices at her work. I think because we were all together and when the work was done we were allowed to make hot chocolate from the break room. 
31. At what time in your recent past have you felt most passionate and alive? Recent past? Hmmm. hard to say. I'm not a very passionate person. 
32. If not now, then when? When I get around to it. :P
33. If you haven’t achieved it yet, what do you have to lose? Time and money
34. Have you ever been with someone, said nothing, and walked away feeling like you just had the best conversation ever? Only with a dog and not really a conversation. Every time I meet a new dog that is friendly and loving I walk away feeling energized by happy loving feelings. 
35. Why do religions that support love cause so many wars?
36. Is it possible to know, without a doubt, what is good and what is evil? Yes if you are not a psycho and have a conscience. 
37. If you just won a million dollars, would you quit your job? For a million, NO. Half of it would go to taxes and I could easily spend the rest fast. Buying a new house straight out, new vehicles for cash, and paying off all my debt, putting money aside to pay for my son's college and then paying off my homes and debts of my family. Yea that $500,000 would go fast.  I may go down to part time though. :) 
38. Would you rather have less work to do, or more work you actually enjoy doing? Less work? I don't know how to answer this question.
39. Do you feel like you’ve lived this day a hundred times before? Nope, each day is new. 
40. When was the last time you marched into the dark with only the soft glow of an idea you strongly believed in? Uh, that is kinda weird
41. If you knew that everyone you know was going to die tomorrow, who would you visit today? My mom first then my brother. Then I would visit each other member if I had time. 
42. Would you be willing to reduce your life expectancy by 10 years to become extremely attractive or famous? Nope, I am already 42 ..how much more time would I have? 
43. What is the difference between being alive and truly living?  Some people just exist and don't leave a footprint in the world. They change nothing around them. Truly living is leaving happiness wherever you are. 
44. When is it time to stop calculating risk and rewards, and just go ahead and do what you know is right? I always do what is right. 
45. If we learn from our mistakes, why are we always so afraid to make a mistake? Because we don't want to be judged and ridiculed by others. 
46. What would you do differently if you knew nobody would judge you? Yes, I would dye my hair hot pink or blue but I worry about what the people at church would say.
47. When was the last time you noticed the sound of your own breathing? Last night. I noticed I was wheezing. lol
48. What do you love?  Have any of your recent actions openly expressed this love? I love making cards. I made my mother-in-law, and both sister-in-laws birthday cards :) 
49. In 5 years from now, will you remember what you did yesterday?  What about the day before that?  Or the day before that? I doubt it. I don't dwell on past, only the present. 
50. Decisions are being made right now.  The question is:  Are you making them for yourself, or are you letting others make them for you? I always make my own decisions. Others may think they are making decisions for me but it is always my final decision to allow them to or not :) 

My partners for this swap are: 

User4532

KimT1989

OonAWingedWolf

Halipulla

Wilujeng

I got wonderful answers in return from:

ElizabethObviously

Wildchild

Sakura15

ISamanthaX

CreativeJeans

You can click the on the names above to see their answers.

Stuffed Handbag Swap

I joined a totally cool handbag swap that was hosted by Robinarie. You can click on her name to get the details of the swap. 

Long story short, we  had one partner that we sent a handbag (new or excellent condition) that was totally stuffed with at least 5 items from a list she provided in the description. 

Being who I am I totally sent way more then 5 items and actually STUFFED the handbag. hahaha

I wish I had gotten a better picture of the handbag.  This picture makes the handles look bad but in person it looks totally cute. I altered the straps a bit by wrapping them in a co-ordinating ribbon and then tying a bow at the top of each handle. 

I think I also need a better background for taking pictures, too! Anyway, as you can see I have this bag stuffed clear full.

I wrapped everything in tissue paper and then tied a ribbon around it so it was a little more fun to open. 

I also make a pretty purse charm to dangle off the side of the handbag. My partner said that her favorite color is red at this time so I tried to use a lot of red beads when I was making the dangles. 

I didn't take pictures of the items I included in the handbag prior to wrapping them. I felt they were just ordinary things. I tried to include things that I would find in a purse that I, myself would carry. Some of the items I added were: hand sanitizer, travel tube of toothpaste, travel size mouthwash, tic tacs, mascara, nail polish, pair of gloves, notebook w/pen, travel can of hairspray, hand lotion, a packet I made up that included; band-aids, neosporin, handy wipes,  I also added a few packs of the nail stickers that can be done on the go. I can't think if I added anything else but I am hoping she likes what I sent her. 

The partner I sent to was: Robinarie (lucky me I got the host..hehehe)

The partner sending to me is: Dee

I will place a link below when I get my half of the swap in the mail. I am sooooo excited about this swap!!


My partner for this swap was Dee. She sent me a totally wonderful handbag. Click here if you'd like to see the bag Dee sent me :) 

Where Have I Been? Ugh, It's Already Starting!!

I have a bunch to update to my blog. I've already started getting behind. Story of my life. I am going to try and get this caught up on my lunch break today. Keep your fingers crossed!.  I have the following things to update:

My December Journal -- Mailed out -- done
My December Journal -- Received -- done
Postcards I collect-- State cards -- done
Postcards I received --MegaSwap -- done
Link to another friend's blog of something I sent her. ( I forgot to take pictures, ugh!) -- Um have to find.. lol

Mega Postcard Swaps

January 2nd I joined a Mega Postcard Swap hosted by Robelwilson.

We had 17 partners and had to send each partner a postcard. Well 16 becasue I didn't mail to myself. 😎 I of course FORGOT to take a picture of the postcards I sent out... hahahahaha. But below you will find the postcards that I have got in the mail from my partners

The Send To and Receive From partners are the same because there were less then 20 partners so we all mailed and received from each other :) 

My partners were: 

Squince, LisaLisa3, paperlover, Camiliann, Nscaimbi, Goinjenny, mamarochat, seekingjoytoday, jendoggie, theevidenceisme, goldfinchmeadowlark, robelwilson, matt319, buananoche, jy80203 and Infamouscatlady. 

Below are the postcards I received from them : 

Camiliann

Infamouscatlady

JenDoggie

SeekingJoyToday 

Not sure.

Nsiambi

Mamarochat

goldfinchmeadowlark

Squince

buananoche

TheEvidenceIsMe

GoinJenny

LisaLisa3

Paperlover

Jy80203

Postcards Are Fun!

Before I joined Swap-bot I never thought much about postcards. But after joining several postcard exchanges, it has become one of my favorite things to collect. This blog is going to be about State Postcards.  Those are postcards that fall under two categories: a.) maps of the state with state symbols and b.) greetings from ____.  I like both of these kinds of "state" postcards. I've also received several different postcards from various states that are called 'touristy' postcards. They usually are like the ones you would find when you are on vacation and visiting different states or countries.

Here are the "State Map" and the "Greetings From" postcards that I have received: 

I would eventually like to receive all the states: 

As of now you can see I have: 

Greetings From:  Ohio and Idaho

State Maps: Kentucky, Florida, and North Carolina

Here are some other State and City/State Postcards That I have received: 

And I got a post card from Western Austrailia!! How cool :) 

End of Year Questions 2016 Edition

Hello Swappy Friends :) The questions below are for a new swap being hosted by thebragal over on swap bot. For more complete details click here 😊

End of year questions

1. What did you do in 2016 that you had not done before?
  I did find and join swap-bot and that has been incredibly fun. I love "meeting" new people. We went to an apple orchard at the end of September and got to pick our own apples and go on a wagon ride. I let my son pick his own halloween outfit. (deep sigh) He is now 4 so had a lot of opinions on the matter. lol
2. Did you keep your New Year's Resolutions/goals for the year and will you make/set more for next year?
 What are the goals? What are your new ones?  I never seem to keep them. I always start out with the best intentions and make it a few months but then it all fizzles out. My resolution ever year is to lose weight and keep it off. Overall I did lose some weight and keep it off but to be honest it wasn't due to "trying" to do it. It was more due to health issues and finding out that I am diabetic now so I HAVE to watch my sugar/carb intake. That alone has helped me lose 30 lbs this year but I've not really changed my exercise routine which consists of NOTHING.  I think this year I will just try to be aware of my diet and try to make better choices. That seems much more doable.  Also for 2017, I want to get more sleep. I normally go the bed around 1 or 2 am then have to get up at 7:30am for work. That really isn't enough sleep. I also want to stop stressing about the small stuff. To pick my battles and stop worrying about the things I can't change. I want to make it the whole year through with my heART journal, I only made it two months before I missed a few weeks and once I miss time I have trouble making myself restart. I want to have a family game night every week. I want to save money for real.  I think that is enough for now :) 
3. Did anyone you know give birth? Or become pregnant?
 I know a few ladies from work that gave birth or became pregnant but no one I know personally in my day to day/week to week real life. 
4. Did anyone you know die? Or have a serious illness?
 A bunch of my husband's dad's cousins and such passed away but I'd never met them before. No one in my family got sick or passed away, thank the Lord! 
5. What places have you visited?
 We went to Lawrence Orchards and to the Renaissance Fair this year. We didn't really do much traveling type places. My husband doesn't get much vacation at work. 
6. What would you like to have in 2017 that you lacked in 2016 (doesn't have to be a physical thing)?
 I'd like to have less stress and a more harmonious marriage. I'd like to rebuild my savings account. I'd like to finish at least one room in my house completely!! 
7. What date from 2016 will remain etched in your memory and why?
 I can't remember the exact date but a big event that happened in our life this year is that we found a huge bee's nest in the ceiling of our kitchen and had to move out of house for a few days and live in our camper. The whole ceiling how to be ripped out so that hive could be removed and the bees removed. That totally freaked me out!! 
8. What was your biggest achievement this year?
 I guess I would say losing the 30lbs. But I don't know if I can technically call it a achievement since I didn't actively set out to do so. But  I was able to walk around the whole 30acre renaissance festival without any pain this year. It was an incredible day and I enjoyed it so much more. 
9. Did you get sick or injured? How about your family?
 I got a really bad case of bronchitis that landed me in the hospital for two days. They couldn't keep my oxygen level high enough and the prescriptions my doctor gave me weren't working, weren't potent enough. It took a day and a half of intravenous antibiotics to finally kick the bronchitis out of my system.  As far as my family, my son had several trips to the emergency room because he kept putting tic tacs up his nose. Grrrr..... We have a no tic tac rule in our house now and they aren't even allowed to be bought. 
10. What was the best thing you bought?
 In May we bought a brand new 2016 Subaru Forrestor. It was one of the happiest days of my year. Previously we'd been driving a 2005 Chevy Cavalier with out 140,000 miles on it! I'm so spoiled, I'll never be able to go back to driving a normal car again. 
11. Where did most of your disposable income go (money leftover after you pay for food, transportation and shelter)?
 Honestly most of my spending money went to postage. Since I've joined swap bot I went a little crazy with the swaps. One month I actually spent $200 on postage. My husband was not a happy person!
12. What song will always remind you of 2016?
 Chainbreaker by Zach Williams. It's my anthem! :) Here's a link to the youtube of the song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGYjKR69M6U
13. What do you wish you would have done more of?
 Gone to different activities in my area. I wanted to do more festivals and sight seeing. I'm a total homebody so I love to just relax at home on my days off but I also love going to festivals and such like that and I only did 2 things like that this year. Hopefully in 2017 I will do more. 
14. What do you wish you would have done less of?
  Worry about things outside of my control. Let other peoples negative attitudes drag me down. I am normally a very happy and optimistic person but I found myself being "angry" a lot this year. 
15. What was your favorite new TV program? Movie? Album/Songs? Or if you didn't pick up any new ones, what are you still watching/listening to?. My favorite tv for the year: Designated Survivor and MacGyver. My favorite movie of the year is "Fastastical Beasts and Where to Find Them". Other then the song I mentioned in question 12, I've not listed to much music. I do love the Sirius XM in my subaru and I found a great channel that plays christian music all day so I love that. (Channel 63)
16. What was the best book you read this year?
 How many did you read? I've probably read over 200 books thing year. I tend to read A LOT!! I get free books every day on bookbub.com so I have over 200 more to read that I've got for free. It is hard to narrow it down to the best book I've read this year, though I will have to say that the one that stands out in my mind right now is a series I found called "From Away" by Deke Mackey Jr. It is a great series and you can still get the first book for free on Amazon for kindle. There are 3 more books in the series and the fifth is being wrote. They run $2.99 for the kindle version. 
17. What did you do on your birthday and how old were you? Did you feel differently?
 I turned 41 on my birthday and I didn't do anything different. I didn't feel anything different. I think once you get to a certain point that nothing changes. It's just another day. I can't remember if we did anything. Probably not since I don't remember. 
18. What political or social issue stirred you the most?
 I don't get involve in politics. I don't watch news. I don't care for all the social bickering and back biting so I remove myself from it. I'm quite happy living in my self imposed bubble. I don't need to know about all the social atrocities and hatred that is out in the world that it daily touted on the news as "news". 
19. Who was the most interesting new person you met? I've not "met" anyone new. But a new pen friend I found this year is a woman named Heather. I totally admire her and we've developed a friendship where we write back and forth. It's nice. I'm honestly not good at maintaining friendships. I'm kind of a out of sight out of mind kind or person. It's not that I don't care about them anymore it's more that I'm very independent and private and don't really open myself up to other people. 
20. What changed at your job?
 They announced that most of the work force is going to be switched to WORK FROM HOME like I am. So our whole crew will be sitting at home in our pjammans. lol 
21. What changed in your home?
 We got the kitchen partially remodeled. What was once a dining room and a kitchen is now a huge open space. We also removed the double doors between the living room and those two rooms. Now it's all open and makes the house feel larger. I redecorated my bathroom myself with my husband doing the actual installations of the new sink and commode. I think it really looks elegant now. I totally love it! I also instituted a bunch of organizational procedures in our home. 
22. Describe how a relationship changed.
 I'm going to skip this one because I am trying to stay positive and I was taught that if you have nothing nice to say then to keep your mouth shut. lol
23. Do you think you are still the same person that you were at the beginning of the year?
 I hope not. I feel that I've become a slightly better person or at least have strived to. I immersed myself more in my faith and have become an active participant in my church where I used to just sit on the side lines. 
24. Summarize the year in three words or less. Bonus points for doing it in one word. Explain.
  GONE . The past year flew by so fast that I blinked and it was gone. 
25. How have people around you changed?
 Everyone changes. Kids get older and more independent. Parents get older and you worry more about them. Friends move away and you lose track of them or have to work harder to maintain them. 
26. What have you learned throughout the year? (Other than crafts)
 Too many people feel the need to shove their opinions down your throat and feel they have the right to comment on things in your life. I've learned to ignore them and to move on. You will always find naysayers in every aspect of your life. It is up to us how we let them affect us. My one tip for a happier self is to remember that by stooping to their level you are actually making them HAPPY and FULFILLED because they are getting satisfaction out of making you feel bad. If you ignore them it actually stops them in their tracks. It's hard for them to maintain an arguement with no feedback. Let them have the last word. In the end you are actually winning because you are not losing your happiness.  
27. What was your favourite outfit for warm weather? Cooler weather?
 I'm not really a fashionista..lol I tend ot wear the same things all year long. Jeans and a tshirt or shorts and a tshirt. I wear a lot of geeky tshits like Marvel Avengers, or Spiderman. Truthfully since I work from home I tend to wear mostly pjamma bottoms or sleep pants. I only dress up for church on Sunday and that just involves jeans and a nice blouse. 
28. Did you learn any new crafts or techniques? What was your favourite thing you made?
 I've not really learned any new craft techniques. I am trying to improve my drawing. I'm not at all artistic in that way. I wish I was so I am trying to follow along with the drawing tutorials I see on the youtube channel FUN2DRAW.  If you look further into my blog you will find a drawing I did of Harley Quinn. ( Once I publish that entry..lol) 
29. What changed about your physical appearance? (Hair? Wrinkles? New makeup style? Etc)
 Oh my. I totally butchered my hair!!  I was having a bad day and my hair was driving me crazy so I cut my own hair but ended up giving myself a mullet (not really .. but it feels like that) now I have to wear my hair in a pony tail until it grows out. I'm going to wait until the tops and side grow out a little longer and then just go get it all cut short all over. 
30. What are your hopes and dreams for the new year?
 I have the dream of being about able to rebuild my savings account and get bills paid off.  I want to live within my means and not use credit cards. 

The partners I sent to for this swap were: Meganporter789, Kimt1989, and MichelleGG2

The partners I received from on this swap were: kygirl, NoriMail, and Cpoudrier17. I am not going to post their answers unless I'm given permission since this set of questions was of a more personal nature. 

Kygirl gave her permission for me to post her answers. Click here to see them :) 

Would You Rather? Round 5

Would You Rather? Round 5 Swap-bot  

It's another round of Would You Rather? on swap-bot hosted by kygirl :) This is the first round that I've posted here, probably because I only decided to restart this blog AFTER the last round..hahahaha. Below you will find the questions and my answers to them. Enjoy!

1. Would you rather be poor and work at a job you love, or rich and work at a job you hate? I think that honestly I would rather be rich at a job I hate. My thoughts being that if I was getting rich from the job then I could quit it sooner and just retire with my tons of money :) If I had a job I loved but made hardly any money at it then I would probably get to a point that I hated the job because I was getting nowhere. 
2. Would you rather have your flight delayed by 8 hours or lose your luggage? I rather have a delayed flight. That is a lot less expensive then having to replace all my belongings and buy new luggage. I can sleep anywhere and also easily entertain myself so the delay wouldn't bother me at all. 
3. Would you rather be in your pajamas or a suit all day? Pjammas!! Handsdown!! I work from home so that is how you usually find me anyway... hahahaha 
4. Would you rather have your first child when you are 18 or 40? This is a tricky question. Since I am now 41 I would say that I am glad I had my first/only child at age 37. If I would have had a child when I was 18 and with my first husband it would have totally changed the outcome of my life. I wouldn't have been able to get a divorce from him and move to another state to be with the rest of my family. I would have had to stay in that state and been without my family. Plus, waiting until I was older I spent my "younger days" just doing what I wanted and having no one to depend on me which was good at that time because my thirties were not a good time in my life. My son was a surprise in my life because I was told by several doctors that I couldn't have children. So JJ is my miracle !
5. Would you rather be the star player on a losing basketball team or ride the bench on a winning one? Ride the bench on a winning team. I hate sports and would not be happy to have to participate. 
6. Would you rather spend the next year exempt from all taxes or have a one-month paid vacation? A year of exempt taxes as long as I still got money back at income tax return time..hahahaha. I already have enough vacation that I could technically take a whole month off paid but I always worry that if I took that much time off and they were able to do my job without me there then they would just lay me off after I got back. 
7. Would you rather have the best house in a bad neighborhood or the worst house in a good neighborhood? Hmmm. Hard one. I guess the worst house in a good neighbor because you can't change your neighborhood but you can fix your house up. 
8. Would you rather be filthy rich and live 400 years ago or be poor but live today?I'm always going to go with the money on this one. Filthy rich sounds fun to me. I've been poor, It's not a good place to be. 
9. Would you rather be gossiped about or never talked about at all? The latter. I rather have no talk about me at all ever. Most times in my experience people only talk negative about you when you aren't around anyway. Otherwise they would say it to your face. 
10. Would you rather end hunger or hatred? Hatred. I think by ending hatred we would also end hunger because everyone would want to help each other. 

Below you will find links to the answers I received from my swap partners:

sammstuff

kimt1989

CarrieB