Howdy! Do you remember back in April when I posted a sample citizenship test? It was 100 questions. Here’s a link to that post.

Tiny T remembers. (Name that meme!)

I’ll tell you who else remembers: Martie.

Hi Martie!

I owe a big, juicy apology to this dear reader. She is almost local to the farm, living in sort of nearby Guthrie, Oklahoma. Our great state’s original capitol! It’s a great little city. Guthrie boasts a beautiful main street filled with cool shops, delicious cafes, and trendy coffee houses. Their gorgeous, shaded Mineral Wells park hosts some of the nicest car shows and Zombie 5-Ks around. AND Guthrie is where my beekeepers’ club meets each month. Love it there!

Anyway, sweet Martie has been commenting here for a while and has asked me a couple of times if I would please post the 100 answers to that little citizenship test. Well I lost the answers. Okay? I just did. I forgot to save the answer page back in April and have been having a long, extended nervous breakdown over this ever since.

So. Very. Embarrassing.

Tonight I found them!!

So. Very. Exciting!! I really needed this win, you guys. And I am happy to be able to post them here for Martie especially. She’s such a sweet lady, and she calls her guy “Handsome” too. xoxo

If you haven’t already, why not grab some paper and gather your nearest and dearest to see how much each of you knows. Do not cheat by using the internet!! Again, the questions are right here. Then check you answers below.

1. Red, White, and Blue.
2. 50
3. White
4. One for each state in the union
5. 13
6. Red and White
7. They represent the original 13 states
8. 50
9. Independence Day
10. July 4th
11. England
12. England
13. George Washington
14. Barack Obama
15. Joe Biden
16. The electoral college
17. Vice-President
18. Four years
19. The supreme law of the land
20. Yes
21. Amendments
22. 27
23. 3
24. Legislative, Executive, and Judiciary
25. Congress
26. Congress
27. The Senate and the House of Representatives
28. To make laws
29. The people
30. 100
31. Dean Heller and Harry Reid
32. 6 years
33. 435
34. 2 years
35. The President, cabinet, and departments under the cabinet members
36. The Supreme Court
37. To interpret laws
38. The Constitution
39. The first 10 amendments of the Constitution
40. Carson City
41. Brian Sandoval
42. Speaker of the House of Representatives
43. John G. Roberts, Jr.
44. Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Rhode Island, and Maryland
45. Patrick Henry
46. Germany, Italy, and Japan
47. Alaska and Hawaii
48. 2
49. A civil rights leader
50. Your County Commissioners
51. Must be a natural born citizen of the United States; Must be at least 35 years old by the time he/she will serve; Must have lived in the United States for at least 14 years
52. 2 from each state
53. Appointed by the President
54. 9
55. For religious freedom
56. Governor
57. Mayor
58. Thanksgiving
59. Thomas Jefferson
60. July 4, 1776
61. That all men are created equal
62. The Star-Spangled Banner
63. Francis Scott Key
64. The Bill of Rights
65. 18
66. The President
67. The Supreme Court
68. Abraham Lincoln
69. Freed many slaves
70. The Cabinet
71. George Washington
72. Form N-400, “Application to File Petition for Naturalization”
73. The American Indians (Native Americans)
74. The Mayflower
75. Colonies
76. Rights:
    1. The right of freedom of speech, press, religion, peaceable assembly and requesting change of government.
    2. The right to bear arms (the right to have weapons or own a gun, though subject to certain regulations).
    3. The government may not quarter, or house, soldiers in the people’s homes during peacetime without the people’s consent.
    4. The government may not search or take a person’s property without a warrant.
    5. A person may not be tried twice for the same crime and does not have to testify against him/herself.
    6. A person charged with a crime still has some rights, such as the right to a trial and to have a lawyer.
    7. The right to trial by jury in most cases.
    8. Protects people against excessive or unreasonable fines or cruel and unusual punishment.
    9. The people have rights other than those mentioned in the Constitution.
    10. Any power not given to the federal government by the Constitution is a power of either the states or the people.
77. The Congress
78. Republic
79. Abraham Lincoln
80. 1787
81. The Bill of Rights
82. The Constitution.
83. In the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
84. Everyone (citizens and non-citizens living in the U.S.)
85. The Preamble
86. Obtain federal government jobs; travel with a U.S. passport; petition for close relatives to come to the U.S. to live
87. The right to vote
88. The place where Congress meets
89. The President’s official home
90. Washington, D.C., (1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.)
91. The White House
92. Freedom of: speech, press, religion, peaceable assembly, and, requesting change of the government
93. The President
94. George Washington
95. November
96. January
97. There is no limit
98. There is no limit
99. Democratic and Republican
100. 50

How’d you do? Tell me your score and I’ll tell you mine.

Thanks again for introducing yourself and visiting us here, Martie! I’d love to know your citizenship test score.

Be more Organized Than Me, Friends.
Not That That is Much of a Challenge.
But I’m Working on It.
XOXOXOXO

To mark the passing of great American poet Maya Angelou, I’d like to share with you my favorite quote from her. It has thrummed in my heart for years, inspired my pursuit of beauty in daily life, and helped me focus on what matters most and what is truly fulfilling.

“Surviving is important. Thriving is elegant.” ~Maya Angelou

Wise words from a lady filled with nourishing turns of phrase.

I hope that whatever you are facing that threatens your survival, you are able in fact to thrive. I hope you find ways to reassemble your broken pieces into something even more beautiful than before. Glean both gentle inspiration and bold strokes of electric genius, at just the right times.

Do you have a favorite quote or poem from Ms. Angelou? I’d love for you to share it here.

Sending much love from the Lazy W.
XOXOXO

This question has bothered me about myself for a while. Although I have always felt somewhat patriotic and have believed myself a reasonably knowledgeable person, I have fallen embarrassingly short in civic smarts more often than I would like to admit. Watching from the sidelines as people near us have worked and prepared to become citizens of these beloved United States, I’ve decided it’s high time to brush up.

Which camp are you in? Do you feel totally competent; or do you see some room for improvement? Do you even care?

If you have a minute or so, pop over to the Huffington Post site and breeze through eleven sample questions to see how to measure up. Just take a deep breath and click here. But that’s nothing compared to what we should know, right?

Grab a sheet of paper and a pencil. Because here is a list of 100 questions we should all be able to answer:

1.      What are the colors of our flag?
2.      How many stars are there in our flag?
3.      What color are the stars on our flag?
4.      What do the stars on the flag mean?
5.      How many stripes are there in the flag?
6.      What color are the stripes?
7.      What do the stripes on the flag mean?
8.      How many states are there in the union?
9.      What is the 4th of July?
10.     What is the date of Independence Day?
11.     Independence from whom?
12.     What country did we fight during the Revolutionary War?
13.     Who was the first President of the United States?
14.     Who is the President of the United States today?
15.     Who is the Vice-President of the United States today?
16.     Who elects the President of the United States?
17.     Who becomes President of the United States if the President should die?
18.     For how long do we elect the President?
19.     What is the Constitution?
20.     Can the Constitution be changed?
21.     What do we call a change to the Constitution?
22.     How many changes or amendments are there to the Constitution?
23.     How many branches are there in our government?
24.     What are the three branches of our government?
25.     What is the legislative branch of our government?
26.     Who makes the laws in the United States?
27.     What is Congress?
28.     What are the duties of Congress?
29.     Who elects Congress?
30.     How many senators are there in Congress?
31.     Can you name the two senators from your state?
32.     For how long do we elect each senator?
33.     How many representatives are there in Congress?
34.     For how long do we elect the representatives?
35.     What is the executive branch of our government?
36.     What is the judiciary branch of our government?
37.     What are the duties of the Supreme Court?
38.     What is the supreme law of the United States?
39.     What is the Bill of Rights?
40.     What is the capital of your state?
41.     Who is the current governor of your state?
42.     Who becomes President of the U.S.A. if the President and the Vice-President should die?
43.     Who is the chief justice of the Supreme Court?
44.     Can you name the thirteen original states?
45.     Who said, “Give me liberty or give me death”?
46.     Which countries were our enemies during World War II?
47.     What are the 49th and 50th states of the Union?
48.     How many terms can a President serve?
49.     Who was Martin Luther King, Jr.?
50.     Who is the head of your local government?
51.     According to the Constitution, a person must meet certain requirements in order to be eligible to become           President.  Name one of these requirements.
52.     Why are there 100 senators in the senate?
53.     Who selects the Supreme Court justices?
54.     How many Supreme Court justices are there?
55.     Why did the pilgrims come to America?
56.     What is the head executive of a state government called?
57.     What is the head executive of a city government called?
58.     What holiday was celebrated for the first time by the American colonists?
59.     Who was the main writer of the Declaration of Independence?
60.     When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
61.     What is the basic belief of the Declaration of Independence?
62.     What is the national anthem of the United States?
63.     Who wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner”?
64.     Where does freedom of speech come from?
65.     What is the minimum voting age in the United States?
66.     Who signs bills into law?
67.     What is the highest court in the United States?
68.     Who was the President during the Civil War?
69.     What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
70.     What special group advises the President?
71.     Which President is called the “father of our country”?
72.     What immigration and naturalization service form is used to apply to become a naturalized citizen?
73.     Who helped the pilgrims in America?
74.     What is the name of the ship that brought the pilgrims to America?
75.     What were the 13 original states of the United States called?
76.     Name 3 rights or freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights?
77.     Who has the power to declare war?
78.     What kind of government does the United States have?
79.     Which President freed the slaves?
80.     In what year was the Constitution written?
81.     What are the first 10 amendments to the Constitution called?
82.     Name one purpose of the United Nations.
83.     Where does Congress meet?
84.     Whose rights are guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights?
85.     What is the introduction to the Constitution called?
86.     Name one benefit of being a citizen of the United States.
87.     What is the most important right granted to U.S. citizens?
88.     What is the United States capitol?
89.     What is the White House?
90.     Where is the White House located?
91.     What is the name of the President’s official home?
92.     Name one right guaranteed by the First Amendment.
93.     Who is the commander-in-chief of the U.S. military?
94.     Which President was the first commander-in-chief of the U.S. military?
95.     In what month do we vote for the President?
96.     In what month is the new President inaugurated?
97.     How many times may a senator be re-elected?
98.     How many times may a congressman be re-elected?
99.     What are the 2 major political parties in the U.S. today?
100.    How many states are there in the United States?

Whew! Surely you did pretty well, because my friends and readers are all brilliant! But I bet there were at least a few questions there that gave you pause. Check back tomorrow or the next day and I will post the correct answers. Better yet, get your friends or office mates to play along. Let’s make sure we all are hob-nobbing with informed citizens, mmkay?

I am so thankful to have been born here, and I am no longer willing to take that for granted.

Give me liberty or give me death.
~Who said that again?
XOXOXOXO

Hello, hello! Today I am 100% giddy to be a guest writer over at Edie’s beautiful, uplifting, challenging, mouthwatering blog, life(in)grace. I have been reading her luscious words and following her quest for life, truth, and beauty now for several years, drawing pretty constantly from her deep well of inspiration. I mean, just the life(in)grace Pinterest boards are enough to give a person emotional, nest-feathering diabetes!

Gorgeous, gorgeous stuff, all of it. But Edie’s thinky, faith-filled ideas are just as dazzling.When she invited me to write for her while she and her two youngest girls are on Spring Break, I might have gasped. (I definitely did.)  Then I might have panicked. (I definitely did that, too.) What do I write about for the woman who has taught and guided me in so many things, from turquoise cabinets to Chesterton and summertime makeup? Only something really particular to life here at the Lazy W.

So if you click over to her site, you can read all about our macaw Bobby Pacino and his undying love for little spring chicks.

Thanks so much for stopping in! Please hop over and say hello right here at Edie’s corner of digital paradise. I would be so happy to have my friends there with me, as it’s kind of intimidating! haha

 XOXOXOXO