Polish break: Leibster Award

Hey Ninjas!

I figured I'd take a break from all of the polish-centric posts to do something fun! The lovely Luna of Toxid-Lotus tagged me in this interactive Leibster award so let's see what it's all about!

Rules:
1) Post 11 facts about yourself.
2) Answer the questions the tagger has set for You.
3) Create 11 questions for the people You’ve tagged to answer.
4) Tag 11 people.

11 Facts about me:

1. I am a real life ninja. This means that I am a practitioner of the Martial Art of Ninjutsu. The specific branch that I study is Toshindo Ninjutsu. I'm currently a Blue-White belt but I'll hopefully be graduating to a solid Blue belt in September. I am learning this art alongside my husband and it's been an awesome bonding experience :)

2. I like animals more than people. I could probably watch Life in the ER or other graphic medical shows about people all day. However, I cannot stand to watch similar shows about animals. It hurts my heart to see animals in pain and the cruelty that humans inflict upon them. It is my belief that a person who cannot be compassionate to an animal is unable to show compassion to a human being.

3. I spell my shortened name oddly (apparently). Ever since 3rd grade when my teacher Ms. Rae spelled my name as Jen, I've spelled it the same way. For some reason, the default shortening of Jennifer is Jenn. I've taken an odd sort of pride in the fact that I was given a more unique way to spell it and I've always kept up with what my teacher gave me. No matter how many times I tell co-workers and such that it's one N, I often end up with two!

4. I'm the whitest Mexican you'll ever meet. My mother was born in Mexico City and lived there for the first part of her life until she moved to California. It was not until recently she decided to take the step from Legal Alien to US Citizen but she finally has! My father is mainly German and Polish so I ended up looking just like him. With naturally green/hazel eyes, pale skin, and dark blonde hair I'm probably the most white looking Mexican you'll ever meet!

5. I tend to paint my nails at night. I like to paint them after work as a sort of post craziness meditative act. I get at least 20 minutes of peace between taking off my old polish and putting on new one. When I don't know what to wear, I let my husband pick a color to narrow down my choices.

6. I like Vibram Five Finger shoes. I got my first pair of VFF's to wear on the mat while I was training in Ninja. However, they were the wrong style for that so I used them to hike instead. I bought a second pair for the mat and can't wait for the 2013 styles to come out so I can get more! I love being barefoot when I can so these funky looking shoes give me that option while still being able to obey the "No Shoes, No Service" attitude of the world.

7. My workplace is awesome. I actually work at the Ninjutsu dojo where I train. I started working there before I started training there and I love it. At the dojo I'm the Program Manager who handles the bulk of administrative tasks for the dojo. On top of ordering supplies, organizing events, setting up new student contracts, and keeping the dojo neat, I get to talk to some really awesome people every day. Since it is a traditional style dojo, I get to be barefoot most of the time and it's ok! I bring my smallest dog, Tango, to work with me and he's basically got his own fan club by this point. It's a great place to be.

8. I have a broken sense of smell. During my Junior year of college, I got sick with a very sever sinus infection. Over the course of the infection, my sinuses were so swollen that I needed steroids to be able to breathe properly. Once the swelling went down, I had completely lost my sense of smell. A specialist told me that I might never get my sense of smell back or it could come back very slowly over the course of many years. Nearly 3 years later I get some pretty decent ideas of strong perfume oils but it has made me picky about who I'll shop from.

9. I recently decided to go cruelty free in my bath products. I'll never be a vegan or even a vegetarian but I do no believe that an animal should have to suffer because I want to have pretty smelling hair. I'm still in the process of using up my old products before I can become totally CF but I'm well on my way. I've found Indie companies to be the best option when searching for many beauty based products that are completely cruelty free because they're made by someone's own personal caring hands!

10. I think most creepy crawlies are cool. I have two pet snakes and I try not to kill spiders if they're outside my house. Inside my house a spider could harm my pets so I usually release them outside to keep both sides safe.

11. I'm sort of a dorky person.  I'm part of a number of fandoms including Doctor Who, Torchwood, Hello Kitty, Hunger Games, etc. I think it's fun to have these things to talk about when I'm not busy painting my nails or kicking arse!

Answer 11 Questions: 

1. What is your favorite color and why?
1. Purple! I think my love for the color started when I heard that it was once a color reserved only for royalty because the dye was very expensive to make. It is also my father's favorite color.
2. What is the one deepest memory you’ve had throughout your lifetime?
1. I'm not sure what sort of deep we're talking about. Stand out events in my life include Graduating from College, Getting Married, My Honeymoon, and the Night Tango got hurt.
3. If you could get any tattoo on your body what would it be and why?
1. I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I'm still not sure what I'd want to get but I know I want it to be on my back betweenmy shoulder blades.
4. Do you drink tea? What is your favorite?
1. Not very often but when I so it's usually a raspberry herbal tea with sugar.
5. What’s your favorite season?
1. Fall! But really Fall in New York where I grew up. I miss the pretty leaves changing color, the apple festivals, and the chilly breeze in the air that made us all wear sweaters. Fall in North Carolina just isn't the same.
6. If you had to choose one makeup company to wear for the rest of your life what would it be?
1. If I didn't have to pay for it? Probably Illamasqua. If I was paying for it probably one of the many Indie companies I'm in love with like Detrivore, Shiro, Femme Fatale, Kiss My Sass, and Black Rose Minerals.
7. Have you broken any bones?
1.  I'm not sure. I know I haven't broken any major bones but I did injure my pinky finger badly once and it still hurts is certain weather conditions.
8. What is your favorite perfume and why?
1. Too many to chose from! My favorites tend to be apple based perfumes because they evoke the happy memories of fall festivities and baking apple pies with my family (One Hand Washes the Other's Bitten, Red Apple, and Bobbing for Apples!). There are also complex scents like Cloudswing from Darling  Clandestine that actually smell like the country home from my childhood where we had a hay loft and sun warmed earth.
9. Do you have any pets? If yes then what are they?
1. Yep! Two dogs: Tango the tripod Chihuahua and Izzy the Border Collie/Retriever mix. Jade the evil cat and two snakes: Oryn the Ball Python and Nexus the Corn Snake.
10. What is your biggest fear? What caused it?
1.  Not sure really. Probably being alone at night walking somewhere. I always have it in my head that something terrible could happen so I try to travel in a group or at least with one of my dogs if I'm outside at night.
11. What are you going to be for Hallow’s Eve? If you have little demon spawns what are they dressing as? 
1. I don't know! Too many options and I have to be work friendly about it :)

 Ask 11 Questions:

1. Do you have any nicknames? Where did they come from?
2. What is your favorite eyeshadow color to wear?
3. How many times in your life have you moved and where to?
4. Have you ever done any martial arts or do you want to?
5. What is one of the first memories you have from childhood?
6. If you could go to any year, when would you go to and why?
7. What was your favorite subject in school?
8. What is your favorite kind of scent?
9. If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would you chose?
10. What would your preferred weapon be for the Zombie Apocalypse?
11. What kind of pet is your favorite? (Cat, Dog, Reptile, etc)

Tag 11 Bloggers!

Uhh... Luna picked most of mine... TAG YOURSELF!