G is for...

gack! i'm running WAY behind the other folks doing this....

ginormous – I must’ve said it before rhys did, but oh my DOG is it funny when he says it. he’s taken that word on and given it even bigger and greater meaning

gramma – my maternal gramma has had a huge impact on my life. I wouldn’t be the person I am w/o her. she’s so cool that when I went to her house one weekend (I was 10 or 11) and we went to see Raiders of the Lost Ark. we arrived a few minutes late, so we missed the very beginning of it (this was in the days BEFORE a million and one trailers prior to the movie). at the end of the movie, gramma turned to me and asked “shall we stay and see it again?” and so we did! isn’t that cool??

gregarious – I used to be very outgoing. I’m not so much anymore. it’s more difficult for me to make friends and idle small talk than it used to be.

gelatinous goo – isn’t that descriptive?
granada (spain) - where I was conceived. in 1991 when I was living in spain, mom, gramma and my brother, jeremy, came for semana santa and we went to granada. got to see where mom and dad’s apartment was and went to la alhambra, had the most amazing baked potatoes.

galactagogues (the link I have to this isn’t working right now - here's a different one) – I got to be quite the expert in knowing several different ways of increasing milk production. oatmeal and brown rice are two of the easiest. I didn’t really need to increase my supply, but it is good to know what they are and good to be able to let friends know what someof them are too.

grenadine – irene loves shirley temples and sometimes we make them for her here. it’s also good in some margaritas

games – I love games. I love playing board games. especially things like balderdash (oh my god, i LOVE this game SO much and have really and truly peed my pants laughing while playing this game -- i can even remember the word -- it was caxon...and marc wrote: The Main ingredient of soap. just thinking about it has me crying...it probably doesn't seem funny to anyone else, but i just said the word to rob and he started chuckling) and pictionary.

gryffindor – c’mon, who wouldn’t want to be there?? actually, I might’ve been in ravenclaw. not sure. one or the other. it hink. but does everything think that?

galaxy – I find the galaxy to be amazing. some day I hope to see the northern lights

geoduck – there is a fabulous song that is by Bev Bos and Michael Lehman (other’s have probably done it too) called the Geoduc song. did you know it’s pronounced GOOEY DUCK? anyway, we sang it a LOT on trips and whatnot when beanie was bitty.

Gallipoli – the first movie I saw with mel gibson. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to watch it again, but it was very good. there is also a really wonderful irish song called ...and the Band Played Waltzing Matilda that talks about the war in gallipoli.

Galicia – the northwest of spain – SO beautiful. SOOOOOO beautiful. my roommates in Madrid were from Lugo, Galicia and I got to know a weeeee bit of gallego and visited chus’ house during the holidays. it’s very celtic there. the north of spain was the only area not conquered by the romans. they play the gaita there which is very similar to the bagpipe. at the barcelona games, during the opening ceremonies, one of the renowned gaite players played. you might not remember that part b/c it was a wee bit overshadowed by the lighting of the torch.

gentian violet – I don’t think I have any picture son this computer of rhys w/his gentian violeted lips. we had several rounds of thrush in his early days. gentian violet was our friend.

gambling – I’ve been gambling since I was a kid. not all the time. but w/my dad’s family, we would play most everything for money. we played uno for 1/2 penny a point. that seems like nothing, but baby, have a hand w/a wild card or two and you’re talking dollars!! I appreciated that they let us (the kids) play w/them. we got to play black jack and poker w/them too. there were two rules, you must be a good sport, and you are using your own money, no whining if you lose it.
my girlfriends and I went to Laughlin for a few years (actually, judy had been going every year from the time she was 16, but there were a few years when 4 of us were able to go together and just have really good reconnecting time – total girl time) and played blackjack for quite a long time. rob is now working for IGT which makes a HUGE amount of slot machines, and he and I still occasionally play at the tables. I always go w/what I know I can lose.

gnocchi – omg I LOVE this stuff! especially in a creamy gorganzola sauce!

gel – when matt (my baby brother) was little, I used to do a michael jackson curl for him w/dippity doo (this is the Off the Wall/Thriller jackson. not the scary jackson). I loved making costumes for him. it was very fun and he loved them all. what a good brother *smile*

gemini – two of my three moms are geminis. not only that, but they both have the same birthday!

gewurtztraminer – I don’t love most white wines, but when I do white wine, I like them along the sweet lines...navarro has one of my favorite gewurtztraminer. i ALSO greatly enjoy their gewurtztraminer GRAPE juice! really well worth the 10.00/bottle when you are pregnant and want the taste of yummy wine. yes, I also like rieslings and muscats

ghosts – I believe in them. I want to think I’d be cool about seeing one, but I know I’d flip out.

girl scout – I was a girl scout through 6th grade. they didn’t have cadets at my junior high. mom was a girl scout through high school.

girlfriends – I am lucky to have some very good girlfriends. we don’t get to see each other as often as we’d like. we don’t get to TALK as often as we like, but when we do, it’s as if we’ve never been apart.

glen morangie – I hope I have that spelled right. I brought some of this home for ken when I was coming back from europe. the scots I met told me it was one of the best in scotland and that it's what true scots drank when they were partaking. :) now you can get it at costco!

global warming – yeah, that’s not real. WHA????

gnomes – I’ve loved them since mom and ken got The Gnome Book

generation x – I’m of this generation. I’m frustrated by how it is described. I don’t feel I’m apathetic. though I suppose that I can be cynical and disillusioned...

genetics – I LOVE genetics. I am totally and completely fascinated by it. too bad there was so much crazy math crap involved in it. I’d have loved to have taken more classes in it.

Golden Gate Bridge – it’s pretty. it’s crazy expensive to cross these days. I used to run across it every morning when I was on summer break between my sophomore and junior year in college.

gnu — “there’s no gnus, like good gnus with gary gnu!” anyone? anyone? sometimes that phrase just gets stuck in my head. it’s from The Great Space Coaster

goofy – this could describe me occasionally

grease – can you tell me how I manage to get grease stains on SO many of my clothes? thank heavens I’ve discovered Ecover ( think that’s aht it’s called.)

gown – my girlfriend cindy went with me when I found my wedding gown. I still love and adore it. it was different than any dresses anyone I’d known had worn or coveted. it was silk. it was a good price b/c apparently it was from the previous wedding season. I think it was by jessica mcclintock (sp?)

gulf war – b/c I was in spain during the first gulf war, my view of it was much much different than most of my american contemporaries her ein the states. it contributed to my reverse culture shock.

grace – if rhys had been a girl, grace would have been her name. then we’d have another irene and grace as siblings in a generation. my great grandmother was irene. her sister was grace.

group – I liked being part of a group when doing a project. I tend to work well with others and, believe it or not, can keep us focused and on task. I tend to need someone to bounce ideas off of and working in a group helps with this.

guacamole – omg – avocados. a bit of salt...salsa...onions...cilantro....HEAVEN!

(la) guernica – by picasso. it’s pronounced gair NEE kah. I saw this while in spain. I was astounded by how big it is. it’s also surrounded by bullet proof glass. it’s very moving.