Obsessions, Favorites, and Admirations

I was tagged by the inspiring Dionne of the City of Dionne blog and shop.

What's your current obsession? Watercolor, sewing, crocheting, and blogging...oh, and as always, the beach! What's your weirdest obsession? I'm a giant slob, but don't you dare get my tupperware cabinet out of order.

What are you wearing today? Art teacher attire: whatever barely squeaks by our dress code, but with a little quirkiness, hoping it impressed my HS girls .

Why is today special? Because it is Monday, a start to a new week.

What would you like to learn to do? Make furniture, jewelry, printmaking, and especially Graphic Design (Cecily or Dionne...free tutorials this summer?)

What's for dinner today? Seven Layer Dip

What's the last thing you bought? A $20 cotton dress with ruffles.

What's your favorite weather? When it's warm but breezy, and when everything around me is a bright shade of green. (sorry Di, it's mine too, you just said it so much better than I could)!

What's your most challenging goal right now? Deciding where to buy a house- by the coast (more expensive) or by the in-laws (cheaper and by the lake, but way inland).

What do you think about the person who tagged you? Where do I begin? Dionne is ridiculously inspiring, not only creatively speaking, but the girl is optimistic, organized, kind, invested in her blogging friends, and I get the feeling that when she blogs she is really writing for the reader, not as some self-involved catharsis, but more of a how can I make their day today? What would they find interesting? She also isn't afraid to mention her faith, and I can feel that she loves the little life she lives in Houston with her husbie.

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be? Just about where I am now in North County San Diego, only a little further down the coast: Leucadia or Cardiff by the Sea, LaCosta is nice too (Forbes' most expensive zip code), but while South Oceanside is more realistic, Coronado would be the life.

Favorite vacation spot? As a kid it was Whidbey Island, WA. As an adult, I loved Venice. But I still would love to make it to New York, Greece, and much of the artistic face of Europe.

What would you like to have in your hands right now? A pardon from all my school debt.

What would you like to get rid of? We've been living with most of our stuff in storage since Thanksgiving and I'm seeing that I can get along quite well without most of it. When we do buy a house, I have a feeling we'll be hosting a garage sale of the ages.

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? Salt Lake, to see my family.

What's your favorite thing about the city you live in? The Beach! Not just where blue meets blue, but the whole coastline, the people, the culture, the architecture, the shopping, the laid-back style. And while LA and the rest of the Pacific Coast shares much of this, there's something so unpretentious about San Diego. That's what I love.

If you had $150 now what would you spend it on? A sky-diving lesson, or a kayaking trip for the family in the Lagoon

Do you admire anyone's style? I too like Zooey Deschanel, and I also like Kate Hudson. My friend Stacey's style is great too, but my former student Jen aint never afraid to be fun.

Describe your personal style. I've often been told I don't look like an artist, when I desperately want to be the unique, a little bit off one who sets the trends in a bold way. I try, but then I get lazy. It's hard to care when you live in a beach city. When people see me next to my husband, they think I'm the organized OCD one and he's the slob. Not true: his scruffy beard and athletic gear throws people off. But I must say, he loves me most when I'm fresh-faced and chillin' in beach bum attire.

Who's art show would you want tickets to? I loved seeing Alexander Calder at the Bellagio a few years ago, but I would really want to see some more of Jasper Johns' encaustic paintings, or Modigliani, or Botticelli.

What are three live shows that you have seen? Phantom of the Opera with Sierra, the Lion King with Jon, and the Nutcracker with my Daddy and Grammi on my 8th birthday.

Now the rules of this tag:

1. Respond and rework: answer the questions on your blog, replace one question you dislike with a question of your own invention.

2. Tag 7 other people you would love to learn more about. Here's mine:

~Stacey of Love and Photographs
~Cecily
~Tiffany
~Halen
~Elise of {pennyweight online}
~Dot of Dabbled
~Miss Aimee
~Tina of {Luphia Loves}

Also, I'd like to say thank you for all the support you've all given regarding my previous post; I did submit it, likely for the last time, but I think Miss Aimee is right, I need to take the time to create some new just-as-fabulous paintings.