Mission Completion!

Well it's been a week since the end of the April A to Z Blogging Challenge.  It's probably a good thing that it ended when it did because it's now the end of the semester and time for finals!  As part of the challenge, however, it is... suggested that everyone do a review of the experience today, so here's mine!

I originally signed up for the challenge as a way to get me blogging on a regular basis, and yes it certainly worked for the month of April.  Unlike a lot of the suggestions on the main page for the challenge, I neither wrote a full list of my chosen topics, chose a theme to write around, nor wrote any posts ahead of time.  That probably made my life a little more hectic than it necessarily had to be, but it worked out so I guess I'm okay with it.

I did have some topics before hand, but as the challenge progressed I actually became quite picky with them and most of the pre-picked topics were thrown out in favor of ones that I thought of on the day.  I really liked doing this because it made the blogs a little more spontaneous, I think, and more enjoyable for me to write.  Take my D post, I thought up that one in the shower and typed it up in about 20 minutes!  The hardest thing about that post was tracking down all the pictures.  And everybody LOVED that post, myself included.  So yes, some of my best work is definitely spur of the moment.

The thing I probably enjoyed the most was the response from my new reader base (and my old one).  Yay!  It's always reassuring to know that people actually enjoy what I'm writing, especially when I don't personally know most of them.

I started the posts with a very tenuous theme, that being things that related me to other people.  Avatar: The Last Airbender = roommate, Binturong = colorguard instructor, Chickadee = Grandma Kenney, MCKD = Dad and friends, etc.  But right around 'I' was when I started to deviate.  'I', 'J', and 'K' can be tricky letters if you ask me, and my inspiration only went so far.  I did try quite hard to stick to my 'theme' but some posts just got away.

All in all I enjoyed the Challenge, as it certainly was challenging in the way I went about it.  At this point in time I have every intention to participate again next year, and maybe then I'll have a bit more structure to my posting.  And then again, maybe not.

C if for...

Chickadee and Grandma Kenney.

Ever since I was a little girl my Grandma has called me her chickadee.  I'm not completely sure where the name originated in terms of calling me that, but I've always liked it.  It is, to this day, the only nickname I have.  However (a big however here) my Grandma is the only person who can call me this.  So friends be forewarned, if you ever call me this I will not respond.

In tribute to this childhood nickname, here is a chickadee. 

Adorable.  So this chickadee is a Black-capped Chickadee.  It is native to the majority of northern states and much of Canada, in any habitat that contains trees or woody shrubs.  Due to their natural curiosity and their unique body stature, chickadees are often the first bird that people learn.

Some cool chickadee facts?  The chickadee will hide seeds and other food items to eat later, similar to a squirrel.  The chickadee will place each item in a different spot and can remember thousands of hiding places.  How is this possible you ask?  "Every autumn Black-capped Chickadees allow brain neurons containing old information to die, replacing them with new neurons so they can adapt to changes in their social flocks and environment even with their tiny brains" (All About Birds).  Now that is cool. 

I am also contributing a picture of my grandma to this post...

 

That there is my grandma and grandpa on their wedding day.  Due to the fact that she hates having her picture taken, this is one of the few pictures that I have of her.  And, honestly, that is just fine with me because they are both beautiful and clearly in love.  I hope to find that for myself someday.  Though I do wish I had more images of her, at least I have these.




Note:  I will not post this entire challenge about animals.  They are just the most common thing in my life, the most common thing that I share with other people.  So get used to it!