The Quiz Answers Revealed

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for: I'm going to reveal the results of last week's quiz. I apologize for the delay, but now I'm here and ready to share the results (and the winner).

1. Where did I go for a bachelorette party this summer? Las Vegas, where I stayed at the Paris (my attempts to convince you all I was actually in Paris failed miserably, by the way)

2. Why do I visit random sites, like this one, around the central part of Illinois on a regular basis? For Illinois Adventures, the online travel magazine I created. And because everyone could use a little kitsch, and a little adventure, in life. (And, in case you're wondering, I am going to start posting new adventures soon. Really. I promise.)


3. What footwear did I purchase in Montana last summer? Cowboy boots! I'm thinking of wearing them on a regular basis now that the weather is cooling off. (By the way, Little Diplomat, I think Michael Johnson's gold Nike track shoes was a nice, educated guess.)

4. Who do I talk to more than anyone else in the whole world? Butter, of course. Although those of you who said myself aren't far off, since Butter never actually responds. But he's such a swell listener.

5. What kitchen-related item is my current obsession? Pyrex! Conservative Boy thought the answer was my juicer. To be honest, that's a good guess, as I use it frequently and swoon every time I pull it from the cupboard. But first and foremost, the answer is Pyrex.

6. What is delivered to our door step in the middle of the night? Milk, courtesy of Oberweis Dairy.

7. What gift did Conservative Boy recently receive, and what concerns me about this gift? His super-special Rachel mug. I'm a bit nervous one side of his body is going to get strangely large from using it. (This one got a lot of people, by the way. Apparently the "concerns me" part threw you all. And no, the answer was not lawn gnomes.)

8. I have two gardens. Where are they located? In our front yard (in pots) and at the Conservative Family house, which is what you see here. (Somehow, the paparazzi found me while I was picking tomatoes. With the paparazzi around, no one is safe.)


9. Who is getting married in May? Kid Sister and T-Bear! (Or, as Kid Sister wrote in her responses, "ME!!!")

10. What do I post about most on this blog? I have not taken a complete, accurate, scientific count, but I believe "food" wins. Gardening and Butter are probably a close second and third, although I'm not sure what comes first.

11. What do I want to be when I grow up? Hmm. Good question. I was actually hoping you all could tell me. It appears the winning answer is "college professor." Yes, that seems about right. And novelist came up quite a bit too. Yep, I'll take that. As for the smart alecks who wrote "lawyer's wife" and who threatened to write "housewife to a successful lawyer"? Your prize: two headbutts. I will deliver them later.

12. I’ve introduced you to a character who’s part frog. Who is it? Cubbie! (Technically, he is T-Bear's boxer. But T-Bear is resigned to the fact that actually he is now Kid Sister's dog.) By the way, Cubbie is part pig too.

13. What is my current cocktail of choice? Lemon drop. Yum yum yum. (This is the reason I've been using the aforementioned juicer more often.)

14. How did this fellow get his name? He was named after Conservative Boy, who was called Butter by his high school friends. This fact still confuses my little monster when he hangs out downstairs with the boys, because they will yell at "Butter," as in Conservative Boy, and Butter the dog comes running.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Conservative Boy thinks our next dog should be called Bread. Butter, on the other hand, is not so impressed with that idea.


15. At what cooking endeavor did I fail miserably—twice? And why did I fail? Strawberry pie. The problem: bad corn starch. Once I purchased new corn starch, I succeeded with the peach version.

16. I recently wrote about three lovely houses—where were they located? The Lake Oconee area of Georgia. By the way, I need to harass Conservative Mom for a moment because she didn't know the answer to this one and one of the houses was HERS.

17. Who is Butter’s arch nemesis? The mailman. Although the wascally wabbits are a close second.

18. Who are these crazy women and what are they doing? That would be Auntie R, My Sister, My Mom, and me. We are just hanging out in the corn field behind the Conservative Family house, drinking wine. What? Isn't that what you do at barbecues in Illinois?


19. What sport did I play at midnight one March? Broomball! Which, the Little Diplomat reminded me, she was present for. And still has the bruises to prove it. (By the way, if someone finds me a place to play broomball around here, you would be my hero forever. Really.)

20. Why have I been so busy lately? Mostly school, my graduate assistantship, and freelancing. Trying to squeeze in some time for 50 million weddings, Butter, and Conservative Boy rounds out the schedule. (Although poor neglected Conservative Boy would argue I'm not doing so hot on the last one.)

21. How many weddings have we attended this year? We just attended our fifth. And now we're done for the year. Breathe a sigh of relief. Hang the dresses back in the closet. Whew.

22. What activity do I regularly lament not being able to do more frequently? Yoga. Although, admittedly, I do wish I had more time for cooking and gardening too. My poor neglected cookbooks and plants ... (Best answer goes to T-Bear: "Yogi...Booboo.")

23. And what activity did I do recently that I found strangely exhilarating? Milking a cow, of course. (Although as MC so rightly reminded me, if I had to milk a slew of cows every morning while growing up, I likely would not have enjoyed it quite so much. True, my lady. So true.)

24. Where were we when this photo was taken? Wrigley! (Or, in the words of T-Bear, "Heaven.")


25. To what songs did Conservative Boy oh-so-romantically serenade me while we picnicked this summer? This one stumped most of you. The correct answer is "Back that A** Up" and Warren G's "Regulate." This was tricky because the answer was hidden in this seemingly mundane post. (Some of your guesses? "Sweetheart of Sigma Chi," "Go Cubs Go," and "We Will Rock You,"all of which are much too romantic to be the answer. Especially "We Will Rock You.")

And now, I will announce the winner. You might say he cheated, as he waited until the last minute and relied on the resources of the peanut gallery. Or you might just call him resourceful.

But he did include some very interesting (correct) responses and it is his birthday today, therefore he deserves to win.

So the winner, with 22 correct out of 25, is T-BEAR. Congrats, T-Bear, on a quiz well done. And happy birthday! You will receive a gold star for your effort. (And, if you're lucky, some homemade cookies this weekend.)

By the way, had T-Bear not snuck in at the last minute, his lovely bride-to-be Kid Sister would have won ... Let the brawl begin.

Thanks for playing!