Introduction of The Ridiculous Goose

Personal Photo: Me as Little Old Lady Who Lived in a Shoe, Halloween 2010

Hello, welcome to the Ridiculous Goose blog for Indian Epics!  My name is Lauren Skaggs and this is my third year at OU but I am going to graduate this Spring 2019.  I was born and raised in Oklahoma City, however, I would call Muskogee my home because that is where my family originates from.  My parents still live in Oklahoma City, with our two dogs: Zander and Ginger.

Personal Photo: Zander

Personal Photo: Ginger

I have a twin brother and his name is Braden.  Most people will ask the typical questions like if we are identical or telepathic, but we are as different as a flamingo versus a reindeer.  Braden is 6'1" and I am 5'3"; his hair is dark brown and mine is strawberry blonde.  Although we look very different, we are close and these days we spend our time working together to drive our mom crazy.  It has always been just us, with the exception of friends and cousins, so we often played dinosaurs and barbies when we were kids.  Today, I would say he is my best friend and I try to be the same for him.

Personal Photo: Braden, Ugly Sweater Contest Winner

This is my absolute favorite photo of my brother because it looks like a postcard and his pose is so unusual that I laugh every time I see it.  He is a really funny person, and we both have a slightly demented sense of humor because we both really love comedy and making others laugh.  Prank Wars were once a common event in my parents' house.

My parents are really important to me so this post wouldn't be complete without a picture of them as well.  Most people say I look like my mom, and our relationship is pretty evident in most photos of us.  My dad's humor isn't always for me, but he is my go-to-pal for watching Marvel movies and our favorite TV shows.  Here is the three of us are at Universal when we went down to Flordia for the theme parks.

My family shaped who I am, and I am a ridiculous goose as you might have guessed by the title of this blog.  The reason it is not "silly goose" is because I think I am more along the lines of ridiculous.  I think I really get my sense of hilarity and comedy from my mom, as evident in the photo of Halloween in 2005 (to the left).

When I was a kid, the very first thing I ever wanted to be was a priest.  I liked the songs we would sing at church, the people always bustling around, how everyone seemed to know each other.  Unfortunately – or fortunately, depending on how you like to view things – I wasn’t born with the right parts and I eventually moved on to other career ideas.  After the fallout at the realization, I wasn’t allowed to be a priest, I can only remember ever wanting to be a writer.  I was fascinated with music, and could often be found screeching along to a Britney Spears’ song.  Fortunately – and it really is only fortune – I now know my singing capabilities are aligned with the siren-song of a walrus.

Since priesthood and becoming a mini-Britney Spears were no longer options, I started realizing that I was pretty creative and books were actually really cool.  I had an active imagination, especially when I was younger, as I took the things people said in ways that were more conclusions I drew than the actual truth.  For example, my mom always told us to stay away from windows during a tornado.  Good advice, really, except for the fact I assumed the reason was that tornadoes were sentient and that they really hated people – so much so, that if they saw you, they’d whirl in your direction because they're murderous.

In my free time, one of my favorite things is to make collages.  I have several different ones hanging on my walls, but here are a few that really speak to my levels of ridiculousness and my artistic visions.

Recently, I have made a series of animal/creature-people.  It has been a really fun project, that helped pass the time over the summer.

Currently, I am collaging a mini-shelf and then I will be moving onto my biggest project yet: an entire bookshelf.

I am majoring in English Creative Writing with a minor in Spanish.  My favorite things about my major are the people in my classes and the varying range of literature we are exposed to.  I love having so many diverse options and wide-ranging topics to choose from when picking my classes.  In my opinion, the people are the best part.  Everyone has so much personality and I have never failed to find a friend to connect with in any of my classes.  Even walking about, I have met really cool individuals.  I really looking forward to getting to know my classmates for Indian Epics as well!