The Dog House

Horse blogger Wolfie at What was I thinking...? nominated me for a Liebster Award. Thanks, Wolfie for inviting me in on the fun! (Wolfie's blog is about her learning riding experiences with her horse Gem.)

The Liebster Award is a fun way for bloggers to get to know each other better. Here are the rules:

HOW TO ACCEPT THE AWARD: The Liebster Blog Award is a way to recognize blogs who have less than 200 followers. Liebster is a German word that means beloved and valued. Here are the rules for accepting the award:

Thank the person who nominated you and include a link back to their blog.

List 11 random facts about yourself.

Answer the 11 questions given to you.

Create 11 questions for the bloggers you nominate.

Choose 11 bloggers with 200 or fewer followers to nominate and include links to their blogs.

Go to each blogger's page and let them know you have nominated them.

So let's get on with the fun!

11 Random facts (or things) about myself

I am a canine-ophile
After being chased by a pack of chihuahuas at the age of 9, I was afraid of small dogs until I was in my mid-20s
My favorite "long weekend" vacation spot is Lake Michigan
I love to vegetable garden and I loathe okra
I lived in NYC for 13 years
I like to visit artists' home (I have visited/toured the homes of Frida Kahlo and Gala/Salvador Dali)
I set off alarms and had the guards running at the Prada Museum by getting too close to Picasso's Guernica (I wanted to see the paint strokes)
I'm an artist/photographer
One of my favorite movies is The Best Years of Our Lives
I am a member of our city's Library board
I like to volunteer (I volunteered in a NYC hospital emergency room for over a year, and I loved it! I currently volunteer as a photography "mentor" in nonprofit youth programs)

11 Questions for me from Wolfie

1. Who do you prefer - Ryan Gosling or Ryan Reynolds? Viggo Mortensen :-)

2. What is your favourite gait when riding? Slow

3. Have you ever had a light bulb moment when riding? Yes: This horse wants to throw me off his back and over his head!

4. Do you care what you wear to the barn? Jeans.

5. Do you wear a helmet when you ride? Nope, but it's probably a good idea since a horse once ran me into a tree branch

6. What is/was your favourite book? The Gift by Lewis Hyde

7. What is your favourite part of the riding experience (grooming, competition, lesson, trail)? Trail

8. What is your favourite season for riding? I suspect any season (I haven't ridden a horse in 20 years)

9. Do you have other interests in addition to horses? Dogs, dogs, dogs and art, art, art

10. If you could only have one food if you were stranded on a desert island, what would it be? Fish tacos (with a margarita!)

11. Would you prefer a social person next to you on a long flight or someone who keeps to themselves? Quiet is fine :-)

Here are some blogs that I follow, but I feel uncomfortable asking them to participate.

~Linda's Twaddle (blogpal Linda lives in Australia)

~Frankly Speaking (blogpal doxies Frankie Furter and Ernie)

~Design+Love (my childhood friend Shaun, who is an interior architect (and now an art teacher as well)

~Strawberry Lane (Life on a little farm in southern California)

~The Walks of David Keates (Walks around Britain and Ireland. It's amazing.)

~Visual Norway (photographer RuneE in Norway)

~Pet Blogs United (a featured pet blog and blogger every week)

~Woodland Shoppers Paradise ("a mini-mall of media, critique, and commentary" re culture, public life, urban design, and roadside Americana)