Tagged!

I've been tagged to write 8 things that people might not know about me, and then to tag 6 other bloggers to get them to do the same, so here goes:




1. I am really obessesed with trees, more specifically, tree indentification. If there are trees in my neighborhood, or anywhere that I frequent, I really need to know what kind they are! I get a very geeky thrill when I discover an odd or rare tree somewhere, and will talk to any and everyone about it, like they care.

2. I have some really, REALLY deep-seated aversions to "bragging". In an effort not to show off, appear smug, sound self-righteous, act better than other people, or toot my own horn, I have really botched up and under-enjoyed some very impressive events and achievements in my own life. I think all this stems from my school years, and horribly playing into a "tee-hee" stupid-girly role for a few hideous years in middle and high school. Realization of this started with dumping my evil freak boyfriend and getting with Steve, and through the tumultuous womens' studies years in college, opening my own eyes to my own Reviving Ophelia types of stuff.

Resultant devotion to NOT letting "impressing boys by acting like an idiot" ever happen to my own daughter ensued, but it has been a very slow battle to do this for myself. The blogging and the comments have helped, tremendously. I can see and believe now, without discomfort, that what I do and say IS cool, and IS worthwhile, and that by shutting up and selling myself short in order to avoid conflict, I only hurt myself. :)

3. I took French for 10 years. I can listen to French songs, and French radio, and watch French films, and feel like I totally "get" what is going on...but as soon as someone asks me "what did they say???" I can't tell them! Its very bizarre.

4. I adore little "international symbols". Now they are commonplace, but back when they were only seen on foreign cars and at airports was when I first fell in love with them. I nearly get tears in my eyes at how adorable they are in their simplicity. I can't say this enough, this is just SO cute to me!

5. I have played several instruments: piano, clarinet, recorder, guitar, handbells and sang in choirs, but my favorite instrument ever is the xylophone. I adore xylophones, both the metal ones, the wood ones, the toy ones, and the groovy ones that look like they are made out of bark. The chimey little glockenspiel, the huge Vibes, and every xylophone-esque thing in between. I am not a big collector, but this is one of the few things I would love to collect. A whole wall of xylophones, that I would play every single day. Ahhhh bliss.

6. Similar to the ideas of simple design and collecting things, is my LOVE of vintage Fisher-Price stuff. I love to display, collect, stalk out ebay auctions for, and photograph the little people, especially. God they are so darling!

7. As a child, I did ALOT of borderline-OCD things that I would categorize under the word "superstitions", even though that doesn't really descibe what it is that I do now as an adult. (This is harder to explain than I thought!) Perhaps I will do better with some examples:

I find meaning in numbers, big time. I pick times on the microwave, for example, that I think will be --meaningful? Like if something needs approximately 30 seconds worth of heating, I would type "32" for how old I am, or "28" for how old I was when I had Casey, or "33" for good luck next year.

I find meaning in little things that happen throughout the day. If a squirrel stops right in front of me and stares at me, I might think he was trying to tell me something. If one colored leaf falls right on my lap in mid summer, I think that something really monumental will occur in the autumn.

I think if I look at cigarette butts then I will get cancer and so I try not to look at them.

I do not look at cemetaries if at all possible.

If I think of something, like "maybe I should lock the door", and then don't, I will usually go back and lock it, thinking maybe the original voice that told me to lock it was something.

I worry alot about "jinx". I see a little pice of litter and I pick it up, because I think it is "doing a favor to the Earth and I will get one in return". I refuse to write on my blog about anymore pets or job opportunities, because all the ones I wrote about DIED, and all the jobs I wrote about fell through.

My most strong and current example of jinx is this: Several years ago, I decided for my grandfather's birthday, that I would finally tell him how wonderful I thought he was. I typed him a big letter, which told him about all of the things that he taught me. I printed it on good paper, and watercolored the edges all around. It was a big hit, my grandma hung it in a frame, and then he died very soon after. So, now I refuse to send one to her, even though boy o boy does she deserve one. But clearly my first letter killed Grandpa (I am only slightly kidding). She is the reason why I am all the good things I am today. For real. But I don't want to send it, the black rose, you know?

Last week we found out she has stage II breast cancer and she is not going to do anything about it but just enjoy the rest of her life. So now can I write one for her? I still don't know

I spent years and years of my childhood translating every single sound that I heard into its backwards counterpart. Yes, I spoke backwards in my head. I spoke backwards in my dreams, and backwards french in my dreams for many many years. I was so sure that this skill would make me incredibly rare and useful and bring me great fame, that I never stopped to worry if it was weird or stupid or a sign that I was perhaps, a freak!?

Don't I sound like some illogical religious wacko, wanna be new age crystal mystic drug addict certifiable corn flake or mental patient? I didn't mean to make light of real OCD, by the way, which is a debilitating disease which is horrible and disruptive torture. I am actually not tortured nor is my day interrupted in anyway by this secret internal banter, and in fact, I rather enjoy it and can't believe that I am actually typing it! See! I am already thinking that typing it will be a jinx! :)

8. I have accidentally been only buying green shirts and sweaters for 2 years now, and only truly noticed it when Greta pointed out that our laundry pile was "all green stuff"! Whoops! I guess I got on a kick and didn't mean to. But green is so beautiful!

9. I, too, have strongly considered selling my eggs for money to help our family. I have gone as far as to fill out applications and forms and to look long and hard for places who will take your eggs if you are over 28 years old. Now I have read too much about all the pain and have decided that my kids need me to be healthy and able bodied in order to take good care of them, and so, the ten grand is not to be mine for this reason.

10. I really, really don't care too much about rules. I will give them a glance-over, decide what the true original intent of the rule was about, and act from that point. This is not about being a rebel or trying to shake things up. It is just how I always have been.

Well, thats it! If you read my blog, you are tagged! Tell me in the comments who you are and then we can all go read about you and your freaky little secrets!