Saturday, May 19, 2007

ETC: Eight Things About Who? Me?

It's funny. I've noticed this "Eight Things About Me" meme floating around, and without ever thinking I'd be tagged, I've idly wondered what eight random things I'd be able to tell, since sometimes it feels like I've already spilled my entire life out on the internet.

And then Heidi tagged me. As it turns out, I haven't told everything.

1. I worked as an artist's model when I was in grad school. That means I got buck nekkid for money. Easiest job I ever had.

2. I got married when I was 22, and we'll be celebrating our fifteenth anniversary of wedded codependent bliss in a couple of weeks. (How can you not still love a man who describes your thinking matter as "your sweet and juicy chess-club brain"?) No, I wasn't knocked up when we got hitched. Yes, we still plan to tell Sam he was a shotgun baby.

3. I can eat way more chocolate than you. Don't even try to argue about this with me. You're wrong, and debating the fact demeans us both.

4. When I was seven, I liked to practise my tightrope act on the top of the fence around our pig pen. Once I fell down -- spectacularly, I might add -- and did a full body flop on the wrong side of the fence. I'm here to tell you that being entirely covered in shit isn't as bad as it sounds. So, you know, you can cross it off your list of things to dread.

5. I have wee hands and feet. I know this because strangers keep pointing it out to me.

6. I once took a two-week road trip with my best friend Suzi. We started in Vancouver and somehow ended up in Hawaii. Our adventures included a redneck in a hottub, a side trip to a desert party outside LA, and bellydancing in a Waikiki night club's dance contest. (Our runner-up prize: a bunch of dried meat products.) It's a long story.

7. My extremely judgmental side wages constant battle with the side of me that wants to be really tolerant and open-minded. Being a parent has been a severe test. On one hand, the first rule of parenting is learning to accept that every kid is different and every parent is different and that every kid-parent relationship is different and therefore what works for you and your kid may not work for another parent and kid and you need to just let go and accept that other parents know what's best for their kids even if it doesn't seem like that to you. And then there's the part of you that, despite knowing all that, still thinks putting Coca-Cola in an eighteen-month-old's bottle is just plain fucking stupid.

8. I think gay male porn looks like way more fun than straight porn.

BONUS: Random thing #9. I never stop being incredulous when I go into people's bathrooms and discover that they keep no reading material there. What if I need to be in there for a while? What if I need to make a snap judgment of your character? You've given me NOTHING.

This is the point in the festivities when I'm supposed to tag eight people, but oho, I have been down that painful road before. So rather than tag eight individuals, I tag... EVERYBODY. If you're still reading, you're obligated to share eight random things about yourself, either here or on your own site. (If it's the latter, don't forget to post a link here so I can read it.)

28 comments:

Bybee said...

Coca-Cola in a baby bottle seems a little (!) trailer-park trashy.

ErinK said...

I've answered your tag.

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog&pop=1&indicate=1

Karen said...

Oh, #4 is right out of "Wizard of Oz"! You're probably the only kid in history who didn't get upset when Dorothy took her own tumble.

Anonymous said...

RE: #9 - I can never imagine why anyone would have reading material in the bathroom. How much time could someone possibly spend in there?

Anonymous said...

Heh. There's also a Seven Things version wafting about.

In other news, I try to keep a sufficiently broad selection of reading material in the loo, which mostly means catalogs, Lucky magazine, and everything from Discover to New Scientist.

Anonymous said...

Love your #9. I didn't exactly do the 8 things meme, but I gave you lots of fodder for making snap judgements about me. And I give you all the credit on my blog.

http://againstthetide.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/05/bathroom_readin.html

Anonymous said...

Arggh. That link totally didn't post correctly. Sorry about that. But it is the post on my blog entitled "Bathroom Reading".

Anonymous said...

How did you get to Hawaii on a road trip?

Alex L. said...

Your ability to get to Hawaii on a road trip, not to mention an LA Desert Party, is inspiration to me. If I hadn't agreed to loan an uncle my car for the next two weeks, I'd be leaving tonight, grabbing Meagan tomorrow, and crossing the border to Washington State by early next week.

Fantastic! Also, happy soon-to-be anniversary.

landismom said...

I did it!

Diane Dehler said...

Hi, I wandered into your blog via blue tea and enjoyed your book blog. I am an incurable reader; it becomes an illness when you can't stop. -Better books than a lot of things I daresay. I will link and come back for another cruise as I'm putting together "the summer reading list" based on other people's choices. I'm going to experience what I would read if I was someone else. What would be your top three recommendations for new ficiton?

Frédérique said...

Like Anita, you got me with #9 more than the idea of the list itself.

You've suddenly made me very self-conscious of the utter lack of reading material in the toilet (as a separate room from the bathroom), and I now have the urge to justify myself. Not that you'd ever make it to New Zealand just to judge me for what's to read (or not) in my toilet, but it is such a contrast to what's always been there in previous houses...

My excuse is this: the toilet is outside. I live near the city center of the largest city of the South Island of New Zealand - a metropolis of 300 000 inhabitants - and we have an outhouse. Yeah. I know.

So, outhouse+NZ weather(windy & not so warm)= the most un-conducive-to-reading throne there ever was.

You're welcome to judge me on the piles of non-grad-studies-related books lying around my room anytime, though.

frederiqueinnz.blogspot.com

Rustybelle said...

I've done mine.

Rustybelle said...

Ok obviously I have no idea how to do links properly. Thus the ugly one: http://gingerinkinc.blogspot.com/2007/05/do-re-me-me-me-me.html

Steph said...

This is a terrific list! I am completely with you on open-minded/judgemental thing. And the reading materials in the bathroom - absolutely must have at least 3 mags and several children's books (for the potty training boy.)

notanillusion said...

Mine's up, with bonus Inside the Actor's Studio List! http://notanillusionscrap.blogspot.com

Also, how cool would it be to compile a book of things written on bathroom walls for bathroom reading? I wonder if that's already been done. If not, who wants to help me do it?

Anonymous said...

Re: #9 - My bathroom is lousy with catalogs we get in the mail. It's like window shopping while...pooping.

Oversharing, sorry.

Allstarme79 said...

I thought I was the only one who felt that way about #8. Now THAT'S too much sharing :)

Em said...

Aie.

http://bardintraining.livejournal.com/37374.html

Melissa said...

So worth stealing!

RandomRanter said...

I am not sure what it means that I did the Seven things one a bit earlier and also referenced bathroom reading material. And for those who are wondering, it is not that I spend so much time in the bathroom per se, it is that I have a constant need to be doing something - reading just happens to be a top choice - and simply going to the bathroom is not enough to entertain me.

KHB said...

You've got to have something to read in the bathroom. It's just simply a requirement.

I didn't think this fit on my book blog, exactly, so I posted it on my general blog here. Haven't tagged anyone, but that's okay because no one really reads that blog anyway. ;)

The Audball said...

Curse me and my willingness to follow any random tag. Here's mine.

http://theaudball.blogspot.com/2007/05/re-eight-things-about-who-me.html

Poodlerat said...

Just finished writing it when I read your post; it's here.

Anonymous said...

Here's mine. How did we ever write before lists?

Anonymous said...

Jane, I totally agree! Takin' care of business only takes a few minutes, barely enough time to open something and start reading. Not worth it.

Anonymous said...

1. I don't have a blog
2. I'm married and I have a boyfriend (I love saying that even though it makes me sound like a terrible person. Don't judge me because)
3. I told my husband I wanted a divorce on 2/17 and I've never been happier.
4. I didn't meet my bf until a month later.
5. I hate the sound of popping balloons, or anything loudly popping. I'd like to know the name of this phobia, but I can't find it anywhere.
6. I have not fallen down in awhile - I am due for a due for a really spectacular public humiliation.
7. I am trying to quit smoking for the 16th (or so) time.
8. I sold three motorcycles that my ex had left in my garage for three years. For $300. It felt good.

Anonymous said...

I got here playing the blogroll game and accepted the meme tag. Here's my results http://emeraldcityguy.wordpress.com/2007/05/31/eight-things-about-me/