Tell us something about you

Post something non-soap-related about yourself that is unique or you think members would find interesting.

I grew up in a very rural area and spent my time running wild through farmland, timbers and pastures. To my mother's dismay I brought home all manner of hurt and orphaned critters: cats, dogs, raccoons, possums, coyote pups, birds....to raise. A lot of them survived too.

My dad and uncle raised pigs, and they used to do the Charlotte's Web thing to the runts until I found out. After that I was at every birth personally to snatch up the runts and hand raise them.
Every one of them thrived, thank you very much. (I don't have a shred of tolerance for wasted life)

By the way, it's much easier to play dolls with piglets than cats. Pigs can't slink out of the dresses, and they love stroller rides!

I taught myself to play guitar when I was 16. Just bought a guitar and played it for hours on end till I learned a few songs. Then started writing songs. Then by college, I decided I was going to be a rock star. Played and sang in some bands in SA and Austin, but obviously that endeavor didn't turn out like I planned. Thank God for back up plans. haha. I still play and write, it's my other hobby.

I'd say I also love the beach, but I think everyone's already figured that one out. Surfs up! 8)

I'm a hospital CEO by day and have been in hospital administration for almost 30 years. I'm a husband to the same awesome, godly and infinitely patient woman for 25 years with 2 awesome kids, 20 and 22. I'm also a very novice wood worker, suburban gardener and SCUBA diver. I have a gun and a Bible and gladly cling to both.

DWinMadison said:

I'm a hospital CEO by day and have been in hospital administration for almost 30 years. I'm a husband to the same awesome, godly and infinitely patient woman for 25 years with 2 awesome kids, 20 and 22. I'm also a very novice wood worker, suburban gardener and SCUBA diver. I have a gun and a Bible and gladly cling to both.

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Wonderful story, wish you and your family all the best.
May I ask please what your profile picture means, and why you chose it?

hud said:

Wonderful story, wish you and your family all the best.
May I ask please what your profile picture means, and why you chose it?

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Sure. The symbol is the Arabic letter, nun, or equalivent to the English "N." It is used by ISIS in Iraq to mark the homes of Christians or "Nazarenes" who are forced from their home, tortured and soametimes killed. The symbol is an expression of solidarity with my persecuted brothers and sisters around the world.

DWinMadison said:

Sure. The symbol is the Arabic letter, nun, or equalivent to the English "N." It is used by ISIS in Iraq to mark the homes of Christians or "Nazarenes" who are forced from their home, tortured and so Eric e's killed. The symbol is an expression of solidarity with my persecuted brothers and sisters around the world.

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I am with you and with our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world but I am a little careful not to let the media to be the source of my information because more than 75% of it's news is not the truth.
Again, I wish you and your family the best.
Thank you for sharing your happy story.

Ever since I was little, I've always wanted to be able to play the piano- not in a concert pianist-type capacity or anything like that, but just for the sheer pleasure of being able to sit down at any piano and tickle the ivories and have something beautiful come out as a creative expression. Unfortunately, when I was growing up, piano lessons were not in the realm of possibility for me, but thanks to my wonderful hubby, who is a part-time musician, and also thanks to my self-chosen cyber teacher, Scott Houston (that piano guy that shows up on PBS just every pledge week), my dream is finally becoming a reality.


IrishLass

hud said:

I am with you and with our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world but I am a little careful not to let the media to be the source of my information because more than 75% of it's news is not the truth.
Again, I wish you and your family the best.
Thank you for sharing your happy story.

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I'm also a supporter of those persecuted for their faith. If anyone wants to help (or learn more) this is a good source: http://www.persecution.com/ . They even have a T-shirt with the Nun on it. Really cool.

I am a public school teacher. I teach pre-K (4 to 5 year old.) I'm old enough to retire, but hope to be out of debt when I finally do, as well as I am working on getting more clients for my soap business.

I am an atheist, and have been for just about as long as I can remember. 6 or 8 years old at most. I spent most of my life hiding this core attribute, because of the way people react to it. I can't even imagine having to fear for my life like so many people do around the world. It is awful the way people treat others who don't believe what they believe. I embrace the Golden Rule.

I'm a business intelligence developer. In my spare time, I hang out with my almost-grown kids, kayak, hike, read, listen to indie bands & NPR, and play video games. I'm a humanist and fully support the right of anyone to his/her own beliefs so long as they don't infringe upon others.

I adore holidays and would love to go to India for Holi and Argentina for Carnivale! Actually, I'm looking forward to getting to travel more often once the kids are completely out of the house (last one is in high school). I was married and had kids at a fairly young age and am looking forward to the next phase of life.

I love terrible puns, badly singing at the top of my lungs, and dancing (again, badly) for no apparent reason.

CaraBou said:

I am an atheist, and have been for just about as long as I can remember. 6 or 8 years old at most. I spent most of my life hiding this core attribute, because of the way people react to it. I can't even imagine having to fear for my life like so many people do around the world. It is awful the way people treat others who don't believe what they believe. I embrace the Golden Rule.

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Cara, I will hopefully never treat you with anything but respect. One of my best friends is an atheist. We each have to find our own path. Christians in today's world are an increasing minority and get a bad wrap too. I cannot separate my faith from who I am. It affects how I view the world, but I never want to offend anyone with it. The verse I use as my tagline is how I view my faith. To the contrary, people of my faith are to be like a pleasant fragrant in a room...unique, refreshing and something to which people are drawn. That's the standard. I don't pretend to always meet it.

Interesingly the "golden rule" was a key tenant of Jesus' teaching: “Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them. Add up God’s Law and Prophets and this is what you get." Matthew 7:12. And He said it was basically the essence of the Old Testament books of the Law and Prophets.

snappyllama said:

I'm a business intelligence developer. In my spare time, I hang out with my almost-grown kids, kayak, hike, read, listen to indie bands & NPR, and play video games. I'm a humanist and fully support the right of anyone to his/her own beliefs so long as they don't infringe upon others.

I adore holidays and would love to go to India for Holi and Argentina for Carnivale! Actually, I'm looking forward to getting to travel more often once the kids are completely out of the house (last one is in high school). I was married and had kids at a fairly young age and am looking forward to the next phase of life.

I love terrible puns, badly singing at the top of my lungs, and dancing (again, badly) for no apparent reason.

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Snappy, I'm finding out that they always come back!

If I had to "classify" I would say I'm of Christian belief, yet I'm definitely not main stream. I believe in everyone's right to belief. While I'm not a Buddhist, I have a pretty extensive background in martial arts. A man who taught me a lot of skills and some wonderful idea's once told me a a Buddhist saying, that I use when people start talking about beliefs.

“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.”

Ruthie said:

I'm also a supporter of those persecuted for their faith. If anyone wants to help (or learn more) this is a good source: http://www.persecution.com/ . They even have a T-shirt with the Nun on it. Really cool.

I am a public school teacher. I teach pre-K (4 to 5 year old.) I'm old enough to retire, but hope to be out of debt when I finally do, as well as I am working on getting more clients for my soap business.

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Thank you for the link. I am a little careful though with other people from different faiths. I don’t like stereotyping; the action of a little group does not necessarily give the right to judge all of them, still there is a lot of good out there in the world.
I admire people with good heart.
I wish you and every good soapmaker to have thousands of clients:razz:.

JustBeachy said:

If I had to "classify" I would say I'm of Christian belief, yet I'm definitely not main stream. I believe in everyone's right to belief. While I'm not a Buddhist, I have a pretty extensive background in martial arts. A man who taught me a lot of skills and some wonderful idea's once told me a a Buddhist saying, that I use when people start talking about beliefs.

“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.”

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Observation and analysis
Same here too, this is my favorite.
Thank you; I just love it.

One of my favorite things in the world is to travel. When I was much younger, my college roomate and I drove cross country in my Volkswagen beetle with $200 apiece, a gas credit card, a tent, a Coleman stove and a lantern, for two and a half months, through back roads and highways, the Rocky Mountains, deserts lit by a full moon, endless miles of wheat and cornfields, cactus and redwood forests, mountain tops that looked down on the clouds.......a trip I'll never forget.

I love diversity! I love seeing how other people live, to eat what they eat, to walk the streets of their villages and cities. I love nothing more than to wake up in a city where I don't know a soul, and don't speak the language, and walk out the door and explore.

I have been fortunate enough to listen to fado in the Alfama of Lisbon, to hear thunder echoing in the hills around Rome, to have seen the sunrise reflected in the windows of buildings along the canals of Amsterdam on a crystal clear winter morning, to have walked the twisting, fragrant alleys of Seville, to have explored the medina in Marrakesh, and to have seen the spectacle of the Djemaa el Fna, to have heard a beekeeper singing to his hives in the mystical mountains of Mexico, to have seen a storm churn the surf so wildly that pieces of foam fly into the air like giant snowballs, in Iceland, and to have climbed pyramids in the jungle of Guatemala. And I have met kind and generous people in all of these places. I think our differences are what makes us fascinating.

Since I bought my house, I haven't been able to afford to travel, and it makes me really sad, but I'm working on it. I miss it dearly. Can you tell?

I grew up Catholic. When I was 13 I stopped going to church regularly. I find my inspiration in life around me, nature, human kindness, the Golden Rule. I go to different churches sometimes, I guess still looking for one that inspires me, but mostly I find peace in nature and the beauty of this world.

I also have spent years studying astrology. I use to meditate a lot to find balance but since I had my kids (they are 5 and 2) I have been slacking. I plan on getting back into it (New Year Resolution). I am also a step mom to two grown daughters and a granddaughter (I am under 40 and a grandmother!)

I'm a retiring occupational therapist who's about to hang up her spurs. I need 10 more CEU's to renew my license by the end of Dec. and just don't have the passion anymore. After 30 years, I'm finding hiring managers who want therapists who can discuss theories and not how to put them into practice. I always made it a professional goal to have each patient feel like they accomplished something every session - now managers just want you to talk and BILL about it. My house is slowly being overrun with soap, ingredients and tools. I'm working on my business plan, perfecting my three favorite base formulas and starting to play with color. My goal is to be able to market my M&P next spring and my CP/HP be ready for summer. So much to learn, so little time.

I was a single parent of a wonderful daughter who I adore and respect and am so very proud of who is married to a Marine and is a teacher. I have worked in the Medical Field for the last 36 years but unfortunately still have another 12 years to retirement unless we win the lottery. I got married for the first time just before I turned 41 and have a great supporting wonderful husband. I also have 2 terrific grandchildren David 1 and Sophia 2 who live in Missouri. To me family is the first and foremost important thing in my life. I'm also blessed to have both of my parents close by. I consider myself Christian however I do not bend to one belief...my belief is to live life by being and doing good. I love soapmaking, reading and traveling. I have had the opportunity to travel quite a lot as well as participate in 3 missions to Guatemala with the hospital I work at as well as experiencing a broken ankle and having my interns/residents have to react a splint for me. I have the greatest friends and family a gal could ask for.

i'm so not a morning person in fact, i find waking up in the morning terribly hard. i like to work when the house is all quiet and everyone is asleep. been doing that for years.

i'm a Moslem by birth. i'm a moderate Moslem and have great respect for other faiths. i truly believe that God is 1 and all humans are created equal. although inter-faiths marriage is forbidden in my family, my ex for 5 years was a Christian and we got along wonderfully at that time.

it took me close to 7 years to finished university, i was too busy "enjoying" life, doing all sorts of things (mostly forbidden) in my mid 30's now, just got engaged, and making soap is something i truly enjoy. although it is not my main job, it is slowly overtaking my life and becoming my main focus. i'm also left handed, an only child, and a pro-choice.

I loved playing music in my childhood and I had my own instruments. When I grew up I became interested in pharmacy work so I got a degree in pharmacy then I became interested in designing and handmade arts so I quit the pharmacy work for the last 13 years and during that time my interest developed later on to fall in love with soap making.
I went a lot of places in the world; I got to know different people from different back grounds, different faiths, and different countries. I am careful not to judge people according to their faith, or their back ground. I met a lot of good people though. I work with my children to think, analyze what’s going on and to be fair with the others. A lot of times the truth is totally different than how it looks.
I like to treat people with just and dignity because I believe that we are all humans and we are all equals, we deserve to be treated decently.
Thank you for this nice thread.

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