10 totally random things you might not know about me
I am stuck for something to write. When my children are stuck for something to write, one of the things I have them do is make a list of ten things... things they like, things they dislike, etc. So I will take my own advice and make a list.
1. I have never read To Kill a Mockingbird.
Really. I have it sitting on my shelf to read this year. Because I was in honors English classes in high school, I missed having it be part of the usual high school curriculum. We read other things, The Iliad, Canterbury Tales, Don Quixote. It always feels a little embarrassing to admit that.
2. I used to be an incredibly picky eater.
It was a conscious decision on my part to change my eating habits. My list of foods I would not eat used to be extremely long. Now, I have foods I don't care for, but will eat just about anything under the right circumstances. I'll admit, though, that I have never served my children lima beans. I just do not like them.
3. I have been to every state in the US except for Alaska, the Dakotas, Minnesota, Nevada, and possibly South Carolina.
We took long driving trips when I was growing up and I knocked off a good amount of states from them. J. and I have also driven many, many miles on our own car trips. I would love to be able to check off the rest of the list.
4. I only memorized my times tables as an adult, probably around the time I was teaching them to D.
In grade school, at the beginning of one school year, I dutifully filled out the list of questions about what I liked and disliked and what was easy and difficult for me. I disliked math and somehow took my dislike to mean it was hard for me, which I wrote down on my sheet. Based on this, I was put in a lower math group. This lasted for about two weeks, just long enough for us to make a handy dandy laminated times table which I happily took with me when they moved me to a different math class. I kept that times table tucked inside my math book all year, referring to it when necessary. I even managed to get through honors trig in high school by skip counting my way through any multiplication or division problem.
5. Growing up, we had a Basset Hound who learned how to open the refrigerator.
His name was Sparky, and he would take his paw and push against the magnetic seal on the refrigerator door until it opened. We discovered this on Thanksgiving when he happily helped himself to some turkey leftovers. Whenever we left the room we would have to put a chair in front of the refrigerator to stop him from opening it.
6. I am extremely competitive.
I like to win. A lot. I have also stopped doing things if I felt I couldn't succeed well enough in them. (Ahem, tennis.) There was even a game I gave away because J. would always win and I couldn't figure out how to beat him.
7. I do not make jello.
I do not make jello because every time I try to it doesn't turn out very well. So actually that should read I cannot make jello. My children will sometimes ask me to buy it and then they will make it. But usually, my children are just jello deprived.
8. J. and I each graduated with our respective master's degrees on the same day and then got married a week later.
It worked because mine was in the morning and his was in the afternoon. Or it was the other way around, I don't actually remember. We set the wedding for a week later because then my family would only have to fly out once.
9. I am pretty shy.
It was much worse when I was younger. Even in college, with my hyper competitive nature, I took a lower grade a few times because I didn't want to talk in class. I can now speak in public and pretend to be gregarious if I need to, but it's a lot of work. Still, the whole meet-people-make-small-talk-thing is not my forte. Meeting people and making friends has been the most challenging part of this move. I'm afraid I just come across as not friendly or snobbish when really I just have no idea what to say to people.
10. I once fell asleep in a Violent Femmes concert.
Yes, it's true. It was late, I was tired, and it was loud. This proves I can tune out anything if I need to.
1. I have never read To Kill a Mockingbird.
Really. I have it sitting on my shelf to read this year. Because I was in honors English classes in high school, I missed having it be part of the usual high school curriculum. We read other things, The Iliad, Canterbury Tales, Don Quixote. It always feels a little embarrassing to admit that.
2. I used to be an incredibly picky eater.
It was a conscious decision on my part to change my eating habits. My list of foods I would not eat used to be extremely long. Now, I have foods I don't care for, but will eat just about anything under the right circumstances. I'll admit, though, that I have never served my children lima beans. I just do not like them.
3. I have been to every state in the US except for Alaska, the Dakotas, Minnesota, Nevada, and possibly South Carolina.
We took long driving trips when I was growing up and I knocked off a good amount of states from them. J. and I have also driven many, many miles on our own car trips. I would love to be able to check off the rest of the list.
4. I only memorized my times tables as an adult, probably around the time I was teaching them to D.
In grade school, at the beginning of one school year, I dutifully filled out the list of questions about what I liked and disliked and what was easy and difficult for me. I disliked math and somehow took my dislike to mean it was hard for me, which I wrote down on my sheet. Based on this, I was put in a lower math group. This lasted for about two weeks, just long enough for us to make a handy dandy laminated times table which I happily took with me when they moved me to a different math class. I kept that times table tucked inside my math book all year, referring to it when necessary. I even managed to get through honors trig in high school by skip counting my way through any multiplication or division problem.
5. Growing up, we had a Basset Hound who learned how to open the refrigerator.
His name was Sparky, and he would take his paw and push against the magnetic seal on the refrigerator door until it opened. We discovered this on Thanksgiving when he happily helped himself to some turkey leftovers. Whenever we left the room we would have to put a chair in front of the refrigerator to stop him from opening it.
6. I am extremely competitive.
I like to win. A lot. I have also stopped doing things if I felt I couldn't succeed well enough in them. (Ahem, tennis.) There was even a game I gave away because J. would always win and I couldn't figure out how to beat him.
7. I do not make jello.
I do not make jello because every time I try to it doesn't turn out very well. So actually that should read I cannot make jello. My children will sometimes ask me to buy it and then they will make it. But usually, my children are just jello deprived.
8. J. and I each graduated with our respective master's degrees on the same day and then got married a week later.
It worked because mine was in the morning and his was in the afternoon. Or it was the other way around, I don't actually remember. We set the wedding for a week later because then my family would only have to fly out once.
9. I am pretty shy.
It was much worse when I was younger. Even in college, with my hyper competitive nature, I took a lower grade a few times because I didn't want to talk in class. I can now speak in public and pretend to be gregarious if I need to, but it's a lot of work. Still, the whole meet-people-make-small-talk-thing is not my forte. Meeting people and making friends has been the most challenging part of this move. I'm afraid I just come across as not friendly or snobbish when really I just have no idea what to say to people.
10. I once fell asleep in a Violent Femmes concert.
Yes, it's true. It was late, I was tired, and it was loud. This proves I can tune out anything if I need to.
Comments
You should do it more often. It gives us insight we otherwise wouldn't know. It almost makes me want to do it for you... almost.