A Survey for a Friend

Well I haven't posted anything here for a while, so this is long overdue. And I apologize to anyone reading this who I already spammed with an email!

A good friend of mine who I have know for about 14 years is working on a grad school project. I am asking on her behalf, to have as many people as possible fill out this survey and to get it back to her ASAP! her original deadline was August 31st, but the more information she can get, even after that deadline, would be extremely helpful.

I should have probably posted this a month ago... Oops. Anyway, please send the completed survey directly to her, thank in advance! And I promise I will actually post something from me soon. *hugs to everyone*



__________________________________________________________________


Religion and Belief Survey

I’m working on a curriculum for Unitarian Universalist Youth Groups which explores the beliefs of a variety of religions, trying to help give the youth a better understanding, and respect, of the beliefs held by practitioners of different faiths.
In order to do this effectively, I need some help from folks of different faiths. I have a session in the curriculum that looks at the variety of beliefs held by people who might be categorized as belonging to the same religion. So, I’m looking for the answers to a couple of questions. Depending on responses, I might be using some of the information gathered in this survey for other sections of the curriculum as well.
I’m looking for what you believe in these topics; please answer as best you can!
Also, please feel free to give copies of this survey to friends and family who might be interested in sharing their responses. I am looking for a wide diversity of responses and welcome the help of spreading out the survey to a wider audience!

The answers to these questions can be e-mailed to me at: acg@marlboro.edu (Please put “Religion Survey” in the subject line!), or mailed to me at 272 State Street, Apt 4. Portland ME, 04101.
I’d like to receive completed surveys by August 31st. Thanks!

Name:

Can I use your first name in the curriculum? Yes, No

(If not, do you have a preference for a particular fake name? )

Age:

Gender:

Hometown:

Current place of residence:

E-mail: (This is the best way for me to be able to get in touch with you if I have more questions and so I can send you a copy of the section I use your answers in):


What general faith grouping would you consider yourself a part of?

Buddhist, Christian Islamic, Jewish, Pagan, Hindu,

Other:_____________________


More specifically, which of the following belief categories do you consider yourself to belong to? (Circle all that you feel apply)

Agnostic, Anglican, Assemblies of God, Atheist, Baha’i,

Baptist, Buddhist, Catholic, Christian Science, Church of Christ,

Church of Nazarene, Confucianism, Congregational Church,

Eastern Orthodox, Foursquare, Hindu, Islamic, Jehovah’s Witness,

Jewish, Latter-day Saint, Lutheran, Mennonite, Methodist,

Mormon, Pagan, Pentecostal, Presbyterian, Protestant,

Quaker, Scientology, Seventh Day Adventist, Shinto, Sikh,

Taoist, Unitarian Universalist, United Church of Christ,

Other:_____________________________



Is there anything else that you’d like to note as to your religion “categorization”?





For the sake of this curriculum, I’m looking at getting some general comments in regard to beliefs. Please take the time to answer these questions as best you can, and if you are uncertain as to your beliefs in response to a question, please say so.



What beliefs do you hold in regard to a higher power/being?






What happens after we die?





Do those who don’t hold the same beliefs of you have a different fate after death?







Are there any religious customs that you follow (dress, diet, etc.)







Do you follow the teachings of particular prophet/philosopher/person?






What texts do you hold as having great meaning within your faith?





Please read through and complete the release on the next page -


Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions.

Allison Gammons

acg@marlboro.edu
272 State Street Apt 4.
Portland ME, 04101



I, ___________________________ give Allison Gammons permission to use my responses to the “Religion and Belief Survey” in her curriculum “Challenging Faiths.” I understand that I will be given the opportunity to review what pieces of my responses will be used, and look at the final product before publication or circulation.


Signed________________________________

Date___________________

Tagged Again! *le gasp*

Tagged by my Mom-in-law, Anita :)

You are supposed to use answers starting with the first letter of your name. Try to use different answers that someone else if you names start with the same letter, (Marty and Miranda). Anyway enjoy!

I posted before Marty! Woohoo!


1. What is your name: Miranda
2. A four letter word: Muse
3. A vehicle: Moped
4. A city: Madrid
5.A boy's name: Malachi
6. A girl's name: Michiko
7. Occupation: Microbiologist
8. Something you wear: Mule
9. Something in your refrigerator: Mustard
10. Something found in a bathroom: Makeup
11. Something you shout: Miss Scarlet, in the Dining room with the Candlestick!
12. An animal: Manatee
13. A body part: Medulla obloggata
14. A word to describe yourself: Mercurial

Since I am on here...

I know most of you have been waiting for an update on my part and I am just finally getting around to it. A few weeks ago I had a punch biopsy done on a lesion on my left breast. It came back benign, and last week a surgeon removed the whole thing just to be sure. Thank you all who sent me prayers and good thoughts. I am still sore but recovering quickly, and I'm sure the 1.5 in of stitches and tennis-ball sized bruise will be healed in no time.

Brilliant

Tagged by Trina!


A. Attached or single? Attached
B. Best friend? Allison and Jeff
C. Cake or pie? Both!
D. Day of choice? Wednesday
E. Essential item? Mary Kay Time-wise collection
F. Favorite color? I like them all but if I have to choose, I pick green
G. Gummy bears or worms? Worms ftw
H. Hometown? Aloha, OR
I. Indulgence? Chocolate
J. January or July? January
K. Kids? Pets
L. Life isn’t complete without? Friendship
M. Marriage date? September 14th 2003
N. Number of brothers & sisters? not a one
O. Oranges or apples? Oranges
P. Phobias? Large crowds in small places, and Spiders
Q. Quotes? "I know you believe you understand what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant."
R. Reasons to smile? Friends and Family
S. Season of choice? Autumn
T. Tag seven peeps! But what if I don't know 7?
U. Unknown fact about me? I have always wanted a tattoo but I'm too afraid of the needle
V. Vegetable? Most of them, except tomatoes
W. Worst habits? bottling up my feelings
X. X-ray or ultrasound? Um, don't really care of either, but hate CAT scans most
Y. Your favorite food? Depends on my mood.
Z. Zodiac sign? Capricorn

ABC Tag

Tagged again by Anita.

Things familiar to me:

A. Art supplies, which overflow my art cabinet and have taken over most of our dinning room.
B. Bears, as in teddy bears, or more specifically my Mira Bears!
C. Chocolate. 'nuff said.
D. Dad, I love spending time with him, and have many great memories of doing things together.
E. England & Europe. Both places I have been and would love to share with Marty.
F. Felis catus, the domestic cat, I have always had them and loved them all dearly.
G. General Motors, both of my cars have been GM: 87 Cadillac Cimarron, and 04 Chevy Malibu
H. Home, I love to be home and comfortable.
I. Ice Cream, is yummy!
J. Jamba Juice, an old vice I have rediscovered. *drool*
K. Kleschuk, my maiden name.
L. Lorazepam. Anti-Anxiety FTW.
M. Marty, my honey.
N. Netflix, because we love movies!
O. "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary," first line of The Raven, my Poe. Another one of my favorite poems.
P. Preston, Douglas & Child, Lincoln. My favorite authors of all time!
Q. Quantum Theory, an area of Astrophysics I enjoyed and wanted to study more!
R. Researching genealogy and family history has been my new hobby.
S. Seaside, Oregon. The place Marty and I like to go to get away.
T. Terrier, Boston. Plus some Pug and Chihuahua, is the breed of my sweet mutt dog.
U. Ukrainian Easter Eggs. The art of creating pysanky is fun and therapeutic.
V. Videos. I still call most movies we watch On Demand or on DVD, videos. Old habits, eh?
W. What You Will, (Twelfth Night, or What You Will) My favorite Shakespearian Play.
X. Xaal, the name of the protection warrior I play in World of Warcraft.
Y. Yarn, I love to crochet and cheat knit with my Knifty Knitter!
Z. Zoloft, my current anti-depressant of choice.

Oh noes, I have been Tagged

Looks like my mom-in-law Anita tagged me. Hmmm.. Maybe I should be checking blogs more often. Well here goes...


Ten years ago:
The summer after I graduated High School, and was getting ready to start college. I was already working part time at Marylhurst University in the Financial Aid office. I quickly got the rep as a filing nazi, and was the one who got sent down to archives whenever they needed old paperwork dug up.

5 things on today's to do list:
1) Finish the laundry I tossed in washer 10 min ago
2) Eat Lunch
3) Pick Marty up from work
4) Make dinner
5) Keep working on my genealogy research

Snacks I enjoy: Too many!
String cheese, baby carrots, tortilla chips with guacamole and salsa, Junior Mints, chocolate or yogurt covered raisins, peaches, oranges, crisp apples, popcorn, granola bars, trail mix, jerky... Now I'm hungry!

Things to do if I were a millionaire:
It would depend some on just how many millions I had, hehe. The first order of business would be paying off our currents debts. I would want to give some money to each of my parents, and of course to Dan & Anita, to Erik & Sonia, and to Nick. I would also buy a new car for Marty, and a nice sized house on a big piece of property, with a fenced yard. And hire a maid, a gardener, and a caretaker to keep it beautiful. I would also put a portion of money away into some sort of account or investment, to ensure we will be taken care of the rest of our lives, as would our children and grandchildren. I would donate the rest to various organizations that are dedicated to preventing abuse of children and animals,the health and wellbeing of the environment, and green/alternative energy R&D.

Just a little something Marty sent me...

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Italicize those you started but did not finish.
3) Underline the books you LOVE. (I can't seem to underline so double ** will do)
4) Asterisk those books you know you want to read.


1. The Time Traveller's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
2. The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams*
3. The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood*
4. Lord of the Flies - William Golding*
5. Life of Pi - Yann Martel
6. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
7. The Color Purple - Alice Walker*
8. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle*
9. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
10. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee**
11. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
12. Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell*
13. His Dark Materials (trilogy) - Philip Pullman*
14. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
15. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
16. The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
17. Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
18. Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
19. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky*
20. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll**
21. Chronicles of Narnia - C.S. Lewis*
22. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis
23. Winnie the Pooh - A.A. Milne
24. Animal Farm - George Orwell**
25. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley*
26. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck*
27. On The Road - Jack Kerouac
28. Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
29. Charlotte's Web - E.B. White**
30. Hamlet - William Shakespeare**
31. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl**
32. Complete Works of Shakespeare*
33. Ulysses - James Joyce**
34. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
35. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo*
36. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen**
37. The Bible
38. The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
39. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy*
40. Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
41. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy*
42. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
43. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44. Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
45. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
46. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
47. The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
48. A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
49. The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien**
50. Harry Potter series - JK Rowling**
51. Little Women - Louisa M. Alcott
52. Tess of the D'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
53. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
54. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
55. Middlemarch - George Eliot
56. Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell*
57. Bleak House - Charles Dickens
58. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
59. David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
60. Emma - Jane Austen**
61. Persuasion - Jane Austen*
62. Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
63. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden*
64. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown**
65. A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
66. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
67. Anne of Green Gables – L.M. Montgomery**
68. Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
69. Atonement - Ian McEwan
70. Dune - Frank Herbert
71. Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
72. A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
73. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
74. A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
75. Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
76. The Secret History - Donna Tartt*
77. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold*
78. Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas*
79. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
80. Bridget Jones' Diary - Helen Fielding
81. Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie
82. Moby Dick - Herman Melville
83. Dracula - Bram Stoker
84. Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
85. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
86. Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
87. Germinal - Emile Zola
88. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
89. Possession - A.S. Byatt
90. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
91. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
92. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
93. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
94. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
95. The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom*
96. The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
97. The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
98. Watership Down – Richard Adams
99. A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
100. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas*

Well this is my list. I have read a few, started but not finished some, and have a couple I want to read as well. Plus some I have never heard of. It is kind of funny that most of the book on this list that I have read, I did so while in school as required reading, between the 4th and 12 grades.

So this is a Blog...

Or so I have been told. Will I continue to post here and keep the few people who may read this updated? Who is to say? I surely don't know. But for better or for worse, it is here. I am here. And these are my words of wisdom, or nonsense rather.

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

I chose the first line of Lewis Carroll's classic nonsense poem, Jabberwocky as the name of my blog. I suppose you could say it reflects the way my mind has been working.

My name is Miranda. I have had a number of nicknames over the years; "Mandy" from I was old enough to know what my names was until I reached public elementary school at age 6. For some reason I decided I had outgrown the nickname. Sometime around the start of my hellish middle school years I adopted the nickname of "Randi." A couple of my friends who knew me in middle and high school still call me that. A few years ago I got hooked on the insanely popular MMORPG The World of Warcraft. The friends I made this last year and a half from gaming have given me the new nickname "Mira," which has stuck quiet well.

I promise more will come. Having started typing, I have come to realize that there is a lot I can say. If only to myself.