16 things about me......

Some of my favorite bloggers have done "16 things about me" posts in the past few weeks (Ali Edwards, Kelly Rae Roberts), so I thought I'd take a stab at it.

1. I have a handbag obsession. I love them. I don't even want to write down how many I own because it is quite staggering. Not like Imelda Marcos shoe collection staggering, but a little embarrassing for someone as middle America as myself. Let's just say it is less than 50, but over 25.

2. My favorite band of all time is Pearl Jam. Favorite songs? Given to Fly and Release.....I'll ride the wave where it takes me.....

3. I wish I was more educated when it comes to history and current world events. Unfortunately I only have so much space in my brain allotted for "serious stuff". All my "serious stuff" brain space is reserved for drug information. The remaining brain space is made up of movie quotes, SNL skits, song lyrics, pop culture facts, and other useless knowledge that probably won't win me any money on Jeopardy.

4. I took piano lessons for a few years when I was a wee sprout. My mom told me I would regret quitting piano lessons, and sure enough, I do. Along with the piano, I'd also like to rock the electic violin.

5. I am a sucker for stories of people and animals triumphing over adversity. I am often inspired by the actions of others.

6. I consider myself a really laid back individual (in most areas of my life), but one thing that *totally* gets under my skin and makes me come unglued in a major way is people that are rude, for no good reason, to people that work in the service industry. I find that an extremely unattractive trait.

7. I have a healthy obsession with my own dental hygiene. I brush my teeth more than twice daily, and floss regularly. I have no fear of the dentist at this point in my life, but that was not the case in my early years. In fact, I was 86'd from my first childhood dentist....apparently I was a crier. Hmmmph. After that emotionally scarring experience, I started going to a pediatric dentist, Dr. Leech. He was awesome. He gave me nitrous oxide and called me "pal". Big ups to Dr. Leech for blasting away my fear of the dentist.

8. I don't deal well with silence while I am at home. I'm pretty sure I get this from my parents, as they always had music playing in the house when I was growing up. When I am at home I have some type of noise on at all times, either music, or the television, sometimes both. I also sleep with a sound machine, set to "ocean waves".

9. I have seen every Seinfeld and Family Guy episode multiple times. Despite that fact, I still DVR reruns and watch them when I am bored.

10. I am not one for scary movies. And I hide my eyes during most violent scenes in movies and television shows. I even hid my eyes during the movie "Babe" when the farmer points the shotgun at the pig. I know, ridiculous.

11. My family has always had dogs. First dog I remember? Snoopy, a Great Dane/St. Bernard mix. Then there was Barkley, some sort of golden colored mutt. Next was Bonnie, a St. Bernard. Then Snickers, a Newfoundland. Then Rocket, a Bassett hound. Now my parents have Bailey, a West Highland terrier. One of my earliest childhood memories was of the death of our dog, Barkley. Barkley loved to chase cars, and she ended up getting run over by one of our neighbors and had to be put down. And I grew up on a farm, so "put down" was often Old Yeller style. Another weird childhood memory? Watching a cow being killed by the butcher with a high powered bow and arrow. Bizarre. (Side note: I recently spoke to my parents and they categorically deny that any of our cows were killed with a high powered bow and arrow. I still stand by my story. I am convinced it happened. Plus, it makes for a much more kick ass visual than the visual of a cow getting blasted in between the eyes with a .22.)

12. I don't eat too much beef (see #11 above), but I LOVE sushi. I would eat sushi 5 days a week if I could afford it and my liver could handle all the heavy metals. Wild sockeye salmon is my favorite, so buttery, so good.

13. My two favorite movies of all time are The 'Burbs and Dazed and Confused. I don't even know how many times I have seen them, but it is in the dozens. Want to watch one of them with me? Prepare yourself to be totally annoyed with my movie quoting abilities.

14. Although I am in total nesting mode, I have recently determined I am not physically, emotionally, or financially ready to own my own home. Also, the decision to continue renting is an easy one to make when the houses for sale in my 'hood are going for upwards of $600k. Crazy!

15. In my late highschool, early undergraduate years, I had an abnormal fear of meningitis. It all started with a trip to visit Gina's dad at the King County Coroner's office in Seattle. In the freezer was a girl, about our age at the time, that died of meningitis (don't worry, she was covered with a sheet, but even then, the damage was done). The story was that she complained to her mom about having a really bad headache, not feeling well, and she went to sleep and never woke up. Yeah, not too good for my fragile 17 year old psyche. From then on out, whenever I had a headache or a somewhat stiff neck I was CONVINCED I had meningitis. Can you say hypochondriac?

16. Frank follows me from room to room, and I love it. I talk to him more than I would like to admit. When I am walking around the house, I'll say "I love my bud" in a soft, high-pitched voice. Don't you have to own multiple cats to be considered a crazy cat lady? Not sure what the rule is there.....