and the winner is ...

thanks s-o much everyone, for all those comments on last week's post and sharing all that about you. I've been enjoying reading them a lot, each and every one of them, and I'll try my best to reply to all of you individually (although that may take a while)

I was going to ask A. to give me a number from the top of his head, but he's out right now so I've decided to use the random number generator again (you didn't think I was going to type all your 77 names into little slips of paper and then pull one out, did you ?)



The winner is comment number 10, which means it's maribob ! Mari, you'll be getting a sad bear sometime soon, so please send me your address (and loved reading about your trip to Japan)

I'm in a writing mode today, so I've decided to reply to the 7 random things meme that F. tagged me for, and base some on a few of your comments instead:

1) (to Ana B., who mentioned yoga) Yoga is one of my favorite things, it's actually the only physical activity that I've never been bored with yet (with the exception of skiing, I guess). I've practiced asthanga yoga for a few years and I love it. Although I haven't been able to continue my practice as frequently as I would've liked, I know it's something I'll go back to eventually. And I practice at home whenever I can (and I'm not feeling too lazy). If you're in Lisbon and looking for a good place to practice, I suggest this place

2) (to all of you Canadians) It was great finding out I had so many Canadians reading this blog. I've been to Canada several times (I have family there), including Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Newfoundland, and I love it. My cousin A. (are you reading this, Ange ?) who lives there says it's the best place to live in, and I might have to agree with her.

3) (to those who said you didn't know how I do it, with my full time job and the crafting) To be honest, I don't know either. Crafting takes up a lot of my free time, but I always do it for pleasure and never as an obligation. For those of you who didn't know, I'm a software engineer, although I'm working more in the client services/project management area these days and not so much into programming anymore. It's funny because at work I'm all rational and 100% logical (at least I think I am) and in crafting I'm so totally the opposite.

4) (to all of you who mentioned books) I've loved reading ever since I can remember. I've always read a lot, and since discovering bookcrossing a few years back I've been reading even more. The last couple of years I haven't read as much as I would've liked, particularly due to the time I spend crafting instead, but I've never lost the habit of always carrying a book in my bag (which really comes in handy a lot of times, like when you're standing at the supermarket queue, for example). This year has been abysmally slow, with only 32 books read, compared to other years, but I'm trying to make up for it.

5) I never drink coffee (I actually hate the taste, but love the smell), but I drink a lot of tea

6) And I'm not usually picky about food, but strangely enough for a Portuguese I hate grilled sardines. And contrary to what some people may think, I am not a vegetarian, although I do love vegetarian food (A. and I even did a macrobiotic cuisine course a few years back) and that's what we usually eat at home.

7) I almost completed a 3 year shiatsu training course a couple of years back to become a practitioner, but I still haven't done the required training sessions and final exam. I'm still hoping to do that someday, but for now I just can't see myself doing shiatsu for a living. I sure miss all those weekly massages, though ...

I'm not tagging anyone else for this, since I think everyone I know has either done it or been tagged for it already, but it's fun to read what people write.

Ah, I wish I could give you all a flower for taking the time to read me, but since I can't I've posted some photos of my beautiful orchid which is blooming once more. Just for you guys.