Alright, Stop Tagging Me Already! Here's Your 25 Things (or so)

Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you.

(FB instructions: Go to "notes" under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

1.When I was about 10, I took great delight in trying to scare my mom by hiding around corners, jumping out and yelling 'boo' when she walked by.  Her room was at the top of the creakiest wooden stairs ever built, and she always heard me coming.  Until one day, I spent 45 minutes climbing those stairs like Grasshopper on the rice paper and got her good.  She said I probably scared a year off her life—which is somehow not as funny as it used to be. But it's still a great memory.

2.I have an obsessive personality.  I've gone through periods of interest in Mt Everest, Xena Warrior Princess, Star Trek: TNG.  Sometimes conventions were involved.

3.I've been bungee jumping three times and sky diving once.  Both were fantastic and I would do it again. I would love to add hang gliding to the list.

4.When I was in college, I wrote a list of 23 qualities I wanted in a girlfriend. Jess has 22 of them.

5.I once serenaded a woman in front of two thousand people.

6.I am totally, seriously, dangerously addicted to The Dog Whisperer. It's on 3-5 times/day and I watch or tape most of them.  I guess you could say I'm Cesar's bitch. If I were 20 and single, I would probably run away to LA to be his apprentice. Sadly, I have no dog of my own to practice all this new knowledge on. But when I do get a dog, it will be the most perfect puppy ever.

7.I'm pretty sure I've become lactose intolerant in my old age. But I'm still in deep denial about it.

8.Movies I have seen multiple times in the theatre: Bring It On (4.5), Fried Green Tomatoes (9), Truth or Dare (7), Terminator 2 (10), Titanic (4) (Shut up), Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2)

9.I hate smokers. I hated smokers before my mom died from smoking-related causes and now I REALLY REALLY REALLY hate smokers.  If I walk by them, I have to squash the urge to say, “My mom died from that and I think you're stupid.”  Both neighbors to either side of us smoke, and the ones on the left leave copious piles of butts all over their porch and front yard despite being told by the landlords before they moved in that the rental was non-smoking. I hate them.

10.I've always been much more focused on relationships and enjoying life than on work and careers. I guess that's why I have 192 Facebook friends (I only friend people I actually know), and only figured out 'what to be when I grow up' in the last two years.

11.During my junior year of high school, I was in a theatre group called Teens and Company.  We co-wrote and performed educational theatre about 'teen issues' like drugs, sex, birth control, communication etc. We toured in various high school and middle schools and also filmed a TV version of our show that aired throughout Oregon.  I was recognized out and about for it, for about six months afterwards.

12.I have developed a method of stalking that is so pleasant for the stalkee, that I can usually end up befriending them, or at least having a few fun interactions (see #5). I think that Lara could back me up on this one.

13.I make really really good omelets.

14.Church of Waffles, our infamous, formerly weekly and now monthly brunch, got started when I got dumped by the girl before Jess (note to self: send thank you note—close call!).  I wanted something to do besides mope, so I hosted brunch almost every Sunday for the whole winter.  Not long after, I found a fabulous girlfriend and wanted my Sundays back, so we've now gone to a once a month schedule.

15.I don't drink alcohol, never have really.  A couple of wine coolers in college and then I got drunk for the first time in my twenties by accident when I ate a bunch of latkes made of rum-soaked apples.  The first thing I did after my paranoid five block walk home was drunk-dial my mom. She found this very amusing. I've been drunk two other times (on purpose), both from Jimmy Mak's margarita's which were quite good. I made a complete idiot of myself both times. I can see why people like it and also, why I will probably only do it once or twice a year, if that.

16.The first DVD I rented after getting a DVD player was Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.  It took me six hours to watch the movie plus all the features and extras that were included.  Naturally, I thought that all DVD's had extras that thorough.  It didn't take long to learn the disappointing truth. 

17.My friends laughed at me in college because I started buying CD's before I had a CD player.  But I felt it would be much more pathetic to have a CD player and no CD's. My birthday was coming up and mom didn't let me down.  My first CD's were lots of Madonna and Boz Scaggs (Shut up!).

18.I had very long, very thick hair until I was 19. I was constantly told by family, friends and strangers, “Your hair is so pretty—don't ever cut it!” to the point where I got kind of a complex about it.  Mom dropped me off in Eugene for my second year at the U of O and I finally got fed up, went to the nearest Supercuts and got it hacked off.  Mom didn't believe I'd done it (this was pre-internet/phone pic days) until I opened the door of my dorm room and held up the phone as my dorm mates saw me for the first time and freaked out.  I celebrated by putting bits if hair into envelopes with no note and mailing them off to lots of my relatives, causing a family wide kerfluffle.

19.I have what seems to be uncommonly good self esteem.  I was baffled by the notion of peer pressure in high school (the Nancy Reagan years), not understanding why you would care what a bunch of random people thought of you, to the point of doing things you didn't want to do.  I have no problem taking compliments or help from others. 

20.I'm terrible at budgeting and other matters of money.  I had absolutely no instruction about such matters from my parents.  I'm trying to do better.

21.In spite of number 20, it's my goal to someday comfortably afford weekly professional massages.

22. This product changed my life. Seriously.  If you're a woman, you should click that link and get one ASAP.  If you're a man, you should click that link and send it to all the women you know. I dare you.

23.One of my goals is to become more focused and efficient.  I often wish that I'd found one thing to focus on when I was younger, like music or dance, and become really good at it.

24.I would like to travel much more in the remaining years of my life.  I have a goal to ride my bike across the country in the next ten years.

25.I have five bikes. But really, if you know me, you should know that by now. You can see them here.

26.One of my mottos is, 'If you don't ask, the answer is always no.' I put it into practice for my 34th birthday when I asked the lovely and talented Stephanie Schneiderman, if I could sit in for a song during her show at the Imbibe on my birthday. She said yes, even though I'm not a professional musician and she had never heard me sing.  I had a big party at the restaurant and got to sing with a band, on stage in front of a huge crowd, my friends and my mom.  It is by far the best birthday I've had so far.

27.Two years ago at an Ani Difranco concert, Ani forgot the words to one of her more obscure songs which just happens to be my favorite, and asked for help from the crowd.  With some prodding from Jess, I climbed onstage at the Aladdin and sang most of the first verse (before my brain exploded and I forgot the rest of the verse).  Another rock star moment FTW.

28. If I were to really do this for everyone who tagged me, I would have to come up with at least 300 random facts, which is why I feel perfectly justified in going over.

29. Our officially family (as in me, mom and Traci) cake is lemon with cream cheese frosting. Not from scratch, the box mix please. Thank you.

30. I finally learned to snowboard last year, at age 37, after wanting to learn for many years. If I had it to do over again, I would leave Jess at home.

31. One of my best summer memories is when Mom, Traci and I read the entire Spencer series by Robert B. Parker.  We bickered over who's turn it was to go find missing items from our collection and who would get to read what next.  We went to restaurants and read until our food came, pausing to share whatever passage we were giggling over. My only regret from that summer is not writing down all the recipes in the books.

32. I have greatly enjoyed reading everyone else's 25 things.

33. I think I am the second to  last person in the Internet to finally do this thing so I won't be tagging anyone except Jess. Your turn honey!