20 Random Facts

Part of my morning routine involves reading all of the latest blog updates on my Blogger's "reading list."  Some people read the paper every morning, I climb onto blogger.  One blog that I've followed for some time, but only recently become obsessed with, is Kaelah's Little Chief Honeybee. 

I'm not quite sure how it happened, but one day I read a post of Kaelah's and something just clicked.  Now, I'm not anything if not a little obsessive.  Once I realized that I could really relate to this girl, I did what any obsessive, web-stalker does...I found her first post and read chronologically.  Weird, I know.  Creepy?  Maybe a little.  But when I find something I like, I need to know more about it.  In high school there was one paragraph in our history books about the Salem Witch Trials and I was so intrigued that by the end of that year, I had folders of printouts and dozens of books pertaining to that subject.

But I'm getting carried away.  What I'm really here to do is copy Kaelah and share 20 random facts about myself.

1. I'm finally going back to school.  I have been an on-again, off-again, college student since I started back in 2007.  It's been a struggle because I am constantly changing my mind about what I do or do not want to be when I "grow up."  I keep bouncing back to education and after a couple meetings with my wonderful advisor, I decided it's time to stop working fulltime and finish my degree...if only to have a degree as a fallback option.

2. I still plan on becoming a published author.  One dream that has never faltered is one day seeing my name printed on a book cover.  Working two/three jobs does not allow me as much time for writing as I'd like but I know that once I'm back in school, I'll be able to squeeze it in...if only because my classes are boring.

3. My life choices and actions are carried out with either passion or obligation.  Like I mentioned at the top of this article, I get obsessive.  I'm either all-in, over-the-top, super-excited about things or I'm meh, I'm doing this because I have to.  That's why it's hard for me to find something that I love because I'm so used to the ridiculousness of my excitement, that I need a job that provides me with that feeling on a regular basis.

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 4. Travel is important to me.  I have, mostly, lived in one place my entire life, but I see myself as an adventurer.  I keep telling myself that once I finish college, once I have a real job, once I have enough money I will explore the world...but I never go anywhere.  I am a traveler who is sedentary.  One day this will change.

5. Everything happens for a reason.  This is my life motto.  I believe that all of the good and all the bad leads us to someone, something, or some place that we need to be.  This thought keeps me sane on the worst days.  Sometimes I like to trace events that I thought were devastating to my current happiness just to reinforce this idea.

6. I am soft.  I cry.  A lot.  My heart is soft.  My feelings are fragile.  Once I even wrote a ramble-y post about this very thing.  Do not confuse my softness with weakness though, because I am a very strong person.

7. My dog is my favorite thing in the world.  No one or nothing can make me as happy, or annoyed, as the little psycho I call Crookston.  I cannot imagine loving an animal more than I love him...he even beats out most people in terms of the affection I give.

8. Sometimes I feel behind.  I know that everyone's timelines are different, but sometimes it's hard to look at peers, and those who are younger than me, and see marriages, babies, careers, houses, etc.  I live at home because it's cheaper and I'm lucky enough to have a great relationship with my family, but sometimes I think, why not me?

9. I pee, and poop, very rarely.  This fact annoys my mother to no end.  She's always trying to convince me to go to the bathroom even though I'm 24-years-old and capable of making that decision myself, ha ha.  When I was younger, I hated going to the bathroom so somehow I have trained myself to only pee about once a day, sometimes twice if I've been drinking a ton of water, and poop every three/four days (it used to be once a week).  I've been trying to go more often because I've heard it's not healthy if you aren't especially regular, but it's been a slow process.

10. Every time I drive through a yellow light, I kiss my fingertips and touch the ceiling.  Years ago, I read about a celebrity doing this to counteract the bad luck of yellow lights, and now I can't help it.  If you're riding with me, or vice versa, and we go through a yellow--you will get to witness this.

11. Unknown social situations make me feel very awkward and uncomfortable.  I get anxiety over things other people think of as minor.  If I've never been in a restaurant and am supposed to meet someone there, I hate it.  I don't like the idea of walking in an not knowing the layout or how things work.  I'm the crazy person who will do a drive-by of someone's house the night, or day, before I'm supposed to pick them up so I know where I'm going.  I rehearse conversations I know are going to be weird so that it feels more controlled when it comes time to have them.  Needing this order and control is one of the very few "type A" personality traits I posses.

12. I do not own a single plain pair of socks.  Hearts, Christmas, eagles, stars, pac-man, Star Wars...I do not have a single bland sock in my drawer.  As a youngin, I loved the patterned socks.  It's more entertaining the older I get.  I work at a high school, so I dress fairly professional, but rest assured that under my boots is one kooky pair of socks.  I love the reaction people give when I visit their home or apartment for the first time and take my shoes off.

13. I believed in Santa until I was in 6th grade.  The magic was dispelled by a teacher-led discussion of how we'd all found out that our parents were behind the whole endeavor.  I still don't know how this relates to Lois Lowry's "The Giver."

14. I'm a feminist.  And I think that every female should feel the exact same way.  When people say they aren't, I just assumed they're the victim of misinformation.



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15. I correct any and everyone who uses the "R" word.  After working at a children's group home and in a middle school with students who have intellectual disabilities, I have gone from disliking the word, to hating it.  Anyone who tries the "Well, that's not what I mean" or "I know someone who--" needs to be told that it's offensive and you won't stand for it.  Want to know more?  Click here.

16. Heathers and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.  Tied for my favorite movie.

17. I was a vegetarian for 5 years.  Makes me think of the joke, how do you know if someone's a vegetarian/vegan/etc--they tell you.  Evidently this rings true of former veg-heads as well.

18. Nail biter.  I've tried to quit for years and will go long stretches, sometimes months, but my fingernails find their way to my teeth sooner or later.  When I bite them, it's usually dark at night and I'm watching something that stresses me out and off they go.

19.  I do not watch scary movies.  With an overactive imagination, it's just a horrible combination.  I saw Urban Legends way back in the day and until last year, that was my last scary flick.  Last year, a guy I was seeing convinced me that Insidious wasn't that bad and we started watching it on Netflix.  I was not doing so hot but the part that ruined me was when the face pops up in the daylight.  I covered my eyes, started repeating "turn it off, turn it off," and had to watch about an hour of America's Funniest Home Videos before my hands left my face.

20.  Star Wars Geek.  I have a strange love of Star Wars.  I own a few dresses, phone covers, a pair of leggings, and countless socks that proclaim my obsession.  My mall job requires me to have keys to dressing rooms and those keys are, you guessed it, on a Star Wars wristlet.  Some of my teammates complain, but mostly they laugh and say they know who's keys they have borrowed.

Can't say this was easy.  It took me two separate attempts to finish because I just blanked after the 15th random fact.  Let me know if you stop by and check out this post by commenting with a random fact (or facts) about yourself!