A few days ago, Sydney over at Antipodal Pull was kind enough to nominate me for the Mystery Blogger award.  Like her, I tend to have disdain for blogger awards.  But, also like her, I have been trying to get back into the blogging community.

To be completely honest, I’m a bit unhappy with my blog and blogging habits at the moment.  I’m not taking it too seriously, because life is a bit crazy at the moment and I know it will calm down soon, and then I’ll be able to find a new normal.  But it’s been a bit of a downer, not being able to blog or brainstorm at often or as regularly as I want.

That’s one of the reasons I was pretty thrilled that Sydney thought of me for this award — I feel like it’s a good brainstorming and writing exercise, and it’s a way to ease back into regular blogging.  The other reason is that I really enjoy her blog (which you should check out), and the fact that she thought of me made me smile.  So, Sydney — thank you!

Here are the questions she posed to her nominees:

What’s your most productive work environment?

I work best in a neat room with a lot of natural light.  If the light is ugly, or the room is too messy, I won’t be able to focus very well.  Ideally, there should be some low background noise — instrumental music is best because I can get distracted by lyrics.  And then, if I have a cup of coffee and a blanket to throw on my lap, I’m a happy camper.  I can sit for hours and be productive like that.

Who was your first celebrity crush?

Tom Hiddleston.  I saw him first in Thor and thought he was the greatest looking person I had ever seen.  I had an obsessive Pinterest board for awhile, and decided I was going to watch every film he’d ever been in.  That goal didn’t last very long, and the board got deleted when I starting dating my fiancee.  I still think he’s a very talented actor though.

Where is your favorite place you’ve ever traveled?

Hands down, the American southwest.  Specifically, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah.  I went on a road trip with my mom, aunt, and brother last spring, and the desert out there is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life.  And the culture is absolutely fascinating — it’s like a huge mix of US, Mexican, and indigenous history.  And did I mention how beautiful it is?  I only had my beat up iPhone on the trip, but that doesn’t disguise the absolute gorgeousness.  I mean, look at this trail going down into the Grand Canyon.  Does it get better than that??  No.  No, it does not.

What’s (one of) your biggest goal(s) in life?

I still want to travel much more than I have.  I want to go back to Central America, and I want to visit South America, and I would love to go to Spain, and I want to see India, and Australia would be incredible, and there’s still so much of the US I haven’t seen.  I don’t think I’ll ever live anywhere other than the US, but that doesn’t mean I can’t at least give myself a taste of the rest of the world.

Also, not to lose my ability to play the flute or speak Spanish.  Those are both things I love doing, and I have done neither of those things in a long time.

If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be?

Honestly, right now, I do not know, and I have too many wedding things to do to spend the time I would need to spend to properly reflect on this.  However, this is a good question, so maybe it will turn into its own blog post later.