Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Meet Contributor Melissa Jagears

If you've come for the Thoughts of Spring Blog Party, welcome! If you're a mother trying to balance kids and work and everything else, we hope you stick around and follow our journeys. Please come back this week and meet some of the other authors of this blog.

I'm Melissa Jagears and I have a 4 year old girl and a baby boy who turns 3 months old today! I write historical romance. I am my church's financial secretary, and I teach English as a Second Language classes sporadically. I'm frugal to the point my hubby gets made fun of at work, but we'd rather be laughed at for transforming milk carton jugs into sandwich containers than be in debt. No one's died from being laughed at--that I know of anyway. Now, on to the fun questions:


How would people describe your personality? (If they could only use ONE word.) Are they right
"Snob"
And no, they wouldn't be right, but I am so shy in person I come across that way, but you put me behind a keyboard and I'll talk my fingers off.


What celebrity/celebrities would create a “Star-Struck” feeling if you saw them in real life?
I'm really not a big celebrity person, might be because we haven't had TV for 3 years now and I don't know who is who anymore.

But maybe Hugh Grant. I have this weird desire to watch any movie he's in. (I even bought one terrible one from the dollar store that I bet he wishes he could steal every copy on the planet so no one could see him in a boring movie with his gross long hair. - The Lady and the Highwayman.) He isn't ultra-handsome or someone whose personal life seems too upstanding, but it's simply the British accent I think.

Who is your favorite blogger? Why?
Unfortunately, my favorite bloggers tend to disappear. Perhaps I jinx those I deem favorite. I guess I like bloggers who are sarcastic and biting that say controversial things I wish I had the guts to say out loud in public, but I'm too much of a people pleaser.

I loved Doug TenNapel when I was pregnant with my daughter, but when he hit one million comments he stopped blogging every day. But thanks to this questionnaire I see he's still blogging sporadically. Whoo hoo!

And Chip MacGregor, a literary agent who quit blogging entirely. But his archive is really worth looking at if you want to get published.

Be brave – tell us something very random and weird about yourself.
I like to stand on furniture, especially if I'm talking on the phone. I'm half billy goat, I think.

Movies: Action, Drama, Romantic Comedy, Documentary, Comedy? What are your favorite genres?
Romantic comedies, any period movie, and movies from the 40s and 50s esp. those with Gene Kelly, Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Esther Williams, etc.

Books: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Romance, Biographies, True Stories, Self-Help, Devotional/Study? What are your favorite types of reading material?
Inspirational Historical Romances, "Classics," and non-fiction.

If you inherited a million dollars, what is the first thing you would do with your money?
Put enough into savings that the interest would give us sufficient income so we don't have to work anymore if we don't want to.

Name one weakness of yours (confession is good for the soul).
Sugar - not sure I could live without sugar. One month in China drove me batty. I ate very weird things all in a quest to find something dessert-like to end my meal. The worst was a peanut butter and seal Popsicle. (I had no idea the seal on the picture eating the peanuts would also be included in the dessert - pulling skin out of a Popsicle is not pleasant after you've eaten half the Popsicle!)

If you could live anywhere at all (and take all your loved ones with you), where would you go?
A tropical island.

What’s something you consider yourself to be good at? (Don’t worry, it’s not bragging, it’s acknowledging a God given gift).
I hope writing, otherwise I am wasting a lot of my time and the time of others.

When you leave a social gathering, do you wish: You would have talked more or You would have talked less?
Definitely talked less. When I tell my husband this, he'll say "but you barely talked at all."

What is your greatest fear or strange phobia?
I'll go out of my way to avoid failure.

Are you a hopeless romantic?
I love reading romances, but in real life I am highly unromantic. Practical, Practical, Practical is my motto. I'd rather have my hubby fix a garbage disposal than buy me flowers. (I've actually made him cancel a flower order.) He can't take anyone's advice on how to woo a woman, it most likely will fail with me.

Last Valentine's Day, he did wonderful; I was very, very pleased. Everyone at church was sharing during the service what they had done/received, but I leaned over to tell my hubby that though I was truly happy with my gift, it would probably be best not to share. We chuckled the entire time imagining the reaction if I'd raised my hand and shared with the congregation that he'd bought me a dollar bag of those orange circus peanut marshmallows.


What movie or book character can you most relate to?
I love Jane Austen's characters. I am a mix of Elinor Dashwood and Fitzwilliam Darcy.




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20 comments:

  1. I loved it, all of it, every delectable wordy morsel. Thank you so very much for sharing. I'm going to waltz my fingers and my mouse, right on over there to the right and click on the follow button. Have a wonderful week!

    Michelle

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  2. You stand on furniture? You're weirder than I thought. And I'd take red roses over orange marshmallows any day. From your comments, I'd describe you as creative, though you didn't mention that in your description. Good grief, you'd have to be creative to make sandwich containers out of milk cartons.

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  3. Your final comment had me laughing out loud - what a combination!! Too funny and lots of fun! Lovely to "meet" you!

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  4. I'd take flowers over those nasty orange circus peanuts any day! HA HA!!

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  5. So nice to meet you! I've eaten a lot of things that are weird by US standards, but never a seal popsicle! I enjoyed your post so much. :)

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  6. Good to meet you!!

    I am exactly the same in regards to being shy! When I met my husband he thought I didn't like him at all because I was so shy!! When really, I was head over heels!!!

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  7. OH erp! Peanut butter and seal ice cream...now there's a flavor you're not gonna see over at Baskin Robbins LOL - (really though if it was peanut butter icecream alone I'd gag - as I DON'T like it unless its a on celery or a pbj and that's the ONLY way I like peanut butter)
    Nice to meet you!
    Great to party with you!
    Michelle

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  8. I guess I should have mentioned I don't like Peanut Butter desserts at all, so I was that desperate for sugar, and then I found out it was oh so much more yummy.

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  9. Hi! It's great to meet you and learn more about bloggers through the blog party. You seems like a genuine, wonderful person!

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  10. Nice to meet you. I too am shy and my husband says I barely talk, but get me behind the keyboard... Well just go read my post. I only answered two of the questions and it's as long as everyone elses.

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  11. So great to stop by here,,, Isn't Lynnette's Blog party awesome!
    I am curious about your milk jugs being transformed into lunch pails!
    And as for no one dying being laughed at... I was totally impressed with this attitude! So cool!
    Enjoyed your answers, and hope to stop by here again.. this is a beautiful blog!
    Blessings,
    September

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  12. I'm stopping by from the blog party. I'm an Elinor Dashwood too! I'm currently working on a few writing projects with goals of publishing. I guess that means I have to follow your blog to keep up with a like-minded blogger. Have a great week! Drop by and visit my crazy farm life at www.everydayruralty.com

    Patrice;)

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  13. I think the orange circus peanuts story is romantic and adorable. It shows he cares and knows you.

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  14. Hi Melissa! Just hopping over for Lynnette's blog party {I'm her big sis}. It's nice to "meet" you. Your post made me smile. Lisa

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  15. BTW, Melissa, Chip MacGregor just started guest blogging once a month on Novel Journey. I think it's the last Thursday of the month.

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  16. Hmmm, standing on furniture... ;)
    I like the combo of Elinor and Darcy, quite fitting too!

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  17. that's too funny about Hugh Grant!

    And that last part made laugh! I think I'm becoming more practical as well (but don't tell my hubby...I don't mind the flowers;)).

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  18. The standing on furniture thing made me smile as everyone is so different and I have never heard of that. I enjoy writing as well and if i ever write a book it will be non-fiction but I do enjoy a good fiction book.

    Have a great hop,
    Amy @ Missional Mama

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  19. Oh, you are funny Melissa! Standing on furniture is awesome! Can you please have somebody take a picture of you in the act and share it with me. I'd enjoy posting that on my blog. :)

    I'm with you on the sugar weakness. That was my answer too. If it was good for me, I'd be healthy as a horse! (Are horses really very healthy? I'd like to know.)

    So, this blog actually belongs to many of you. Will you all be introducing yourselves? If so, please feel free to link up each introduction post separately so you'll all be visited - but maybe you already did and I just didn't notice. I do miss a lot. :)

    Gotta run.
    It was a ton of fun popping by (I typed "pooping by" first).lol!
    Have a beautiful evening.
    Lynnette

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  20. Lynette, My hubby took a picture years ago of me standing on the coffee table, talking on the phone in the last house (more fun than this house since these ceilings are too high to reach)
    I looked for it, but didn't find it. :(

    I also like to climb on dressers, beds, and chairs. And I prefer climbing onto the counter instead of using a step stool in the kitchen.

    But my hubby banned me from standing on the office chair in 2004. Evidently, he's a little squeamish when the chair's on wheels.

    Melissa Jagears

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