This next series of posts have been keeping me up at night... wait, nope. Our newborn has been keeping me up at night! But while I'm up, I'm on my phone a lot and finally made time to email these questions to a few friends. (And I should note, Harris is a really great sleeper/baby. Highly recommend the book Babywise for any new or soon to be moms.)
Last year, on a drive to Tulsa from Houston, I started listening to podcasts, something I rarely do, so that music wouldn't keep Thomas awake while he was supposed to be sleeping. (He and I were headed to see our BFF Renza.)
Anyways, I cannot even pinpoint how I found her, but someone on IG mentioned Jamie Ivey and her podcast called "The Happy Hour." I started listening to the episodes titled "The Happy Half-Hour" because they're just 30 minutes and the questions are really interesting.
Jamie asks the same questions of each of her guests on the 30 minute show - all thought provoking questions, some deep, some not so deep - and I immediately found myself wanting to ask all my friends these same questions. Jamie does a great job of really getting to know someone without seeming pushy, cheesy, or intrusive - all things that make me hesitant to ask these kinds of questions in my own life.
For the next few posts, I've used Jamie's questions - you can use them in your own life too, with friends over dinner, or on a walk, or maybe even on a phone call with a long-distance friend. Cheers to more meaningful conversations with our friends and our families!
Today's "guest" is Amy Ellwood... a little about Amy: we met at Memorial High (go stangs) and she was incredibly kind to me during my transfer to A&M, and a big reason why A&M was such a happy place for me. She's a CPA, Houston Heights resident, avid book reader, excellent cook, and I dare you to find a more knowledgable Aggie football or Astros fan (male OR female.) So let's do this thing...
Amy and most of our IF:Table monthly group
What's something you can't stop watching, reading, or talking about?
Watching: We binge watched "Last Chance U" two weeks ago- fascinating look at the junior college system. Also just finished "The Crown" and spent a bunch of time Wikipedia-ing the royal family as I watched to learn more about them/their relationship with Churchill, etc! Also currently watching This is Us (and feeling all the feels every week.)
Reading: (checking my GoodReads to refresh my memory) Just finished reading the last book by an author Caitlin Gardner recommended - Kate Morton. Loving the historical WWII fiction these days. Recently read Being There: How to Love Those Who are Hurting. It's great, very gospel-centered. Good things to just know for when the people you love are going through something tough down the road. I also plowed through Melanie Shankle's books last year. She is a hoot!
Talking about: "You always like to talk about things you've read" - Jeremy (Amy's significant other)
What's one way you refresh/recharge?
Reading, going on walks with friends.
What makes you a success?
Successful at work? I'd say probably being organized and having attention for details.
Successful at life? I think trying to check in with friends on a regular basis, reaching out when I see something that makes me think of them, etc, and TRYING (not always all that successfully, because, Netflix and WSJ crosswords happen sometimes) to be intentional with my time, using it wisely to be productive.
Amy's family in the Grand Canyon
What is your greatest pet peeve?
Having trouble coming up with anything that really drives me nuts.. I do NOT like metro buses. I also really don't like it when people over use the ellipses (ex: finishing texts with ... when you DON'T HAVE anything else to say. ugh.)
What's a piece of technology you can't live without? Could be an app etc
Maybe my Kindle! Or the Kindle app on my phone.
What's a dream you had for your life that hasn't come true?
I'll have to think about that one. Doesn't feel like too many doors have been completely shut for me at this point (big praise!), so while some dreams haven't come true yet, doesn't mean that they won't!
What are characteristics of your friends that make them so special to you?
So many things! The first two things that come to mind are thoughtfulness and their ability to make me laugh.
What's the best piece of advice you've ever received?
My grandma used to say "you can't live life scared." I try to remind myself of that whenever I'm feeling worried or anxious about a decision or the future.Thanks for taking the time to answer these questions, Ames! We sure appreciate your time (and willingness to let me share this with the internet.) Tune back to hear answers from two more fun peeps soon!
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