Rave: Liebster Blog Award

I was nominated for the Liebster Award by two people: Kristen at Pretty Little Pages and Michelle at Book Hangovers Blabs Books!  I was so excited; my blog is only about two weeks old, and it's off to a great start.

The Liebster Award is given to awesome new or small blogs with under 200 followers. Liebster is the German word for sweetheart.  Its root word is lieb, which means sweet, nice, kind, and lovely.  The Liebster Award is all about welcoming new bloggers into the blogging community with loving arms, as it provides new ways to connect with other blogs and bloggers.

The Rules

List 11 facts about yourself.
Answer the 11 questions chosen by the person who nominated you.
Ask 11 new questions to 11 bloggers. They must have less than 200 followers. (You cannot re-nominate the blog that nominated you.)
Go to their blog and inform them.

11 Facts About Jax

1. I am an animal fanatic.  My dream is to run a pet sanctuary/rescue.  Meet my two cats, Sputnik (left) and Smudge (right).



While I like my cats kinda and take care of them because I have to willingly, my dogs are my dogs. They are the recipients of probably way too much of my love, not to mention lethal doses of my mediocre singing. Meet Bebop, the Welsh corgi, and Darwin, the golden retriever mix.

 


2.  I am a type 2 diabetic, recently diagnosed (December 2012), and am currently considering bariatric surgery at my doctor's request.

3.  I am currently married to husband number two.  The story is actually quite scandalous.  I met my second husband while I was still married to my first;  we met playing World of Warcraft.  It was love at first boss wipe, I suppose.  Here's a picture of my husband, Michael, and I last year.

4.  Although I'm taking the semester off, I am currently enrolled in a local community college to obtain a degree.  I work full-time from home as a customer support supervisor (answering billing questions via phone/email).

5.  You may have noticed this already -- I am constantly changing my hair color.  I'm currently brunette (and digging it.)

6.  I was named after Jacqueline Kennedy and Queen Elizabeth I.  My mother is a big history and boxed wine buff.

7.  Speaking of my aforementioned mediocre singing, I absolutely love to karaoke... although only when alone.  I'm shy!  If you're wondering how mediocre I am, here ya go!

8.  Before relocating to Raleigh, North Carolina, I grew up in the suburb of Cleveland, Ohio where US President  James A Garfield lived and died. You probably don't care, and that's perfectly fine, because most people that live in or have been to Mentor also do not care.

9.  I have eight tattoos and three piercings currently -- both nostrils, and my septum.  I used to have a ton of different piercings throughout my twenties, and even 1/2" stretched ear lobes, but most of my piercings were taken out and retired when I had my gallbladder removed in 2009.  I guess I just felt it was time to grow up.  (Fun fact:  I abandoned a book on page three when the heroine referenced her stretched lobes as being "gauged out." No one calls it that.)

10.  I am a product junkie, and I am utterly addicted to cosmetics and perfumes.  I get magazine subscriptions exclusively for product ads -- I don't read the articles at all.

11.  I'm not very religious (read:  I am atheist.)  I am very open-minded, and I'll respect your beliefs if you respect my lack thereof.

Kristen's Questions {Pretty Little Pages} 

1. If you could have dinner with one character from your favorite book, who would it be? Why?
Good question.  I'd pick good ol' Katniss Everdeen, circa sometime towards the end of Mockingjay.  "Why?" I'd ask her.  "Why?"

2. Do you prefer hardback or paperback?
Currently, I prefer ebooks. I've switched almost entirely to ebooks a few years ago, and I have not looked back.  Prior to this new-fangled technology, I would always go with paperbacks.  I hate reading hardcovers.

3. Which author would you want to be best friends with? Why?
Stephen King.  I grew up reading his books, and a lot of them are pretty much staples in the horror genre.  He also writes a very tender, realistic romance.  Writing aside, however, the guy just knows what's up, and he's cool as hell.

4. What's your favorite book to movie adaptation?
Either The Green Mile or Shawshank Redemption, both by Stephen King. It's rare when an adaptation does the original source justice, and both of those movies delivered.

5. Which book do you want to see turned into a movie that hasn't been yet? Why?
The Wool saga by Hugh Howey.   Pssst -- part one is free for Amazon Kindle.  Read it if you're a dystopia fan. @ Amazon.com

6. What book has had the biggest impact on your life? Why?
The Harry Potter series, of course.  Sadly, I can't think of any other book that has impacted my life.  The television show, Six Feet Under, on the other hand?  Yes, yes, yes.

7. You get one week to do whatever you want. Money isn't an issue, and there are no consequences for what you do. So, what do you spend your week doing?
No consequences?  I'd lay around, reading and smoking weed all week long.  Oh, what a blissful week it would be.  And food.  There would be lots of delicious food.

8. What's the one place (real or fictional) that you want to runaway to?
Vegas, baby, Vegas.  I'm a night owl, and I love that everything remains open at night in Vegas.

9. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life as many times as you wanted, which one would you pick?
Oh, so many!  I would need something light and fun, with an irresistible hero.  A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux fits the bill.  I love Nick more every time I read it!

10. You get to have one super power. What's it going to be and why?
Eating whatever I wanted and never gaining weight. Whatever that is. A good metabolism?

11. Vanilla or chocolate?
Chocolate.  Always and forever, until the end of time, chocolate.

Michelle's Questions {Book Hangovers Blabs Books}


1. What was your first bookish blog post about?
Easy, since it was only a few weeks ago!  I made a post with my top ten favorite books published in 2013.  I have a feeling my 2014 favorites will be much different.

2. What is a bad book habit you have?
I used to constantly crease the pages when I read physical books.  Now that I use an ereader, I don't really have any bad book habits.  I have plenty of non-book bad habits, though.  ;)

3. If you could write letters to the dead, who would you write?
I never got to say goodbye to my grandfather, so he'd be on the top of my list.  I miss that guy.

4. How many books are on your TBR list?
About 50, and it is constantly expanding.

5. What is your favorite scent/perfume/lotion?
I am completely addicted to perfume, and used to write a perfume blog with my bestie back in the day.  There is no way I could pick just one favorite scent. Here are a few of my current favorites:



6. Where would you want your next vacation destination to be (it can be anywhere)?
If money were no object? A one month tour of Europe. Realistically, Virginia Beach.  It's only about 3 hours away, and I absolutely love it.  Plus, they have a Old Time Photos there.  So much fun!



















My husband and I last year at Old Time Photos in Virginia Beach, VA.

7. If you could be a Disney Princess/Prince, who would it be?
Ursula from The Little Mermaid, especially in the morning.

8. What is your favorite season of the year?
Meh, anything that's not summer.  I absolutely hate summer in the south.

9. If you could have a super power, what power would it be?
Aside from eating without gaining weight, I'd go with the ability to be exceedingly rich, without working.  Haha

10. What was the last movie you saw (in a movie theater)?
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.  We saw a TON of movies in 2013 at our local IMAX theatre; we had a pass so tickets were only $5 each.

11. If you could go to any concert in the world, whose would it be? (dead or alive)
I'm only slightly-joking when I saw this:  Kanye West.

My questions for the nominees:

1.  What is the first book you can remember reading for leisure?
2.  What is your least favorite genre?
3.  What book do you most relate to?
4.  If you could be best friends with a book (or movie) character of your choice, who would you pick?
5.  What is your favorite book to movie adaptation?
6.  What is your LEAST favorite book to movie adaptation?
7.  What is your favorite book (or movie) franchise? (Harry Potter, Twilight, et al)
8..  What is your LEAST favorite book (or movie) franchise?
9.  How long have you been blogging?
10.  How many books are on your to-read shelf?
11.  Who is your favorite author?

My nominees:

1.  Barbara at BookShelves of Dreams
2.  Hellen at Worlds Inside Books
3.  Ellie at Ellie's Reading Nook
4.  Rimsha at Ramblings of a Bookworm
5.  Sarah at Words with Sarah
6.  Angie at Angie's Angle
7.  Kay at It's a Book Life
8.  Catriona at Fabulous Book Fiend
9.  Alyssa at Swept Away by Books
10.  Helen at My Novel Opinion
11.  Amy at Tripping Over Books