10 Random Things

Deb at San Diego Momma tagged me for this "10 Random Things" meme.

If you blog, check out Deb's post on "The Five Stages of Blogging".  Her PrompTUESDAY exercises are a fun, pressure-free way to challenge creative writing skills.  Her site is a safe environment, with one of the nicest, welcoming community of bloggers I've stumbled upon.  I'm sure there are many more out there, but it's refreshing to feel comfortable and encouraged, not judged or excluded while wading in the blog waters.

My 10 random things:

1. Driving - I've had 24 moving violations and been in five car accidents. [Alcohol has never been involved in any of these incidents.]  The reason I can still legally drive is that the tickets span 25 years, they were in multiple states, most when I was younger and able to fly under radar with points and insurance.  I'm not an aggressive driver, just unlucky (maybe a bit distracted too).  I get caught at everything I attempt that even slightly breaks a rule.  All of the accidents were my fault and resulted in multiple tickets.  I was only injured once, and have never injured anyone else - maybe a little whiplash.  Dad was thrilled when I married Chris so he wouldn't have to insure me.  I have no business behind the wheel of a car.

2.  Geography - I'm terrible at geography.  I have no idea where I am on the planet - ever.  North, south, east and west are up, down, right and left to me.

3.  Hoop Skirts and Canopy Beds - When I was a little girl my Mamaw (Hoosier for grandma) would ask what I'd like her to bring me back from a trip.  I always requested a hoop skirt like Anna wore in The King and I.  When asked what I wanted for Christmas or a birthday, I asked my Grandmother Fisher (who I simply called Grandmother) for a canopy bed.  Sadly, they remain unfulfilled wants.

4.  Yul Brynner - I fell in love with Yul Brynner in the early 1970's, about the same time I wanted to be a stripper, after watching him dance with Anna.  He still melts my butter.

5.  Shrimp - I no longer eat shrimp since my brother Mallory Joe described them as "cockroaches of the sea".  I can't get the visual out of my mind.

6.  Airplanes - I worked for an airline before we had kids.  I'm not a pilot (I wasn't a flight attendant either) but worked in pilot training.  I've had the opportunity to fly a B737, B757, and an A320 full flight simulator.

7.  Who am I? - I often feel like I'm playing too many roles in life.  All the faces I wear for various friends and family members.  If the worlds collided, I might be discovered for the phony that I am.

8.  Tricks -  I don't have many, but I'd love to learn to tap dance and play the drums.

9.  Aromas - Smells fascinate me.  I smell dirty socks, sniff stains on the carpet, and can identify a stranger's perfume/cologne.  I have a good sniffer.  As anyone who's been pregnant knows, sense of smell heightens while with child.  Chris and I were hiking in Arizona when I was 5 months pregnant with Oldest Boy.  Chris was in front of me.  I smelled stink and barked, "Did you fart?".  Chris said, "Nooooo.  But I'm sure someone in Colorado did."

10.  Massages - I don't enjoy professional massages.  I've tried.  I'll try again - maybe.  I can't relax naked, while a stranger touches me everywhere.  I've tried wearing my underwear - still awkward.

Enough about me.  Let's see if we can get Mary at Unmitigated, Kate at The Big Piece of Cake, Joanne at Joe Girl, and Corbie at Random Musings to play...  or anyone else who feels inspired.

Comments

[Middle-Aged-Woman]

Blog heaven = being handed a topic. Check me out on Sunday for this one.

[Kate]

Hey! Thanks for including me. Nice surprise.

I was going to say that I was just as enamored with hoop skirts and canopy beds when I was little. I even wrote a "confession" a few weeks ago about my love of "old fashioned" things.

[Kate]

Oh - and I HATE massages. I generally think of it as being manhandled.

[Csquaredplus3]

Middle Aged Woman - glad you're in heaven. C'mon Sunday!

Kate - I'll check out your confessional. I feel like I was raised in the 1940's or 1950's even though I wasn't. I often refer to my parenting style as "old fashioned".

You're one of the very few people I now know who don't enjoy massages. I'm finding my peeps.

[San Diego Momma]

Great stuff! I loved reading this.And hearing about your driving, I'm kinda glad you weren't a pilot! :)

[Jennifer]

I can relate to #4 & 7. He's gorgeous and I'm complicated.

[All Adither]

We're all phonies.

[Csquaredplus3]

Yes. We are all phonies. It's okay though - just more masks to go around...

[Jack]

Ah, a professional massage is one of the true joys in life. But I have had a few experiences where I just couldn't relax, so I can understand your position.

[vodkamom]

Ahh, you brought me back to my childhood. I will always remember the lovely canopy be my father made me when I was little. It was lovely. Too bad I was scared to sleep alone and would sneak into my sister's room each night. Every morning i would wake up with her pommelling me for sneaking into her bed. ouch.

[Da Goddess]

I wish you were here so I could send you to my little sister. She gives the best massages in the world. I think the trick to relaxing and letting go is knowing that you're safe, turning off your brain for a few minutes, and just giving in to the experience. It's not something we do easily, but with practice, it can happen. And Jeni would be the perfect person to help you get there. I don't know what it is about her, but she has a way with people and animals that just puts them at ease.

#9 -- reminds me of Gus on Psych. The only time my nose has ever been super sensitive was during pregnancy. However, as a nurse, I had to rely on it with my patients with wounds. You had to know if something was wrong beyond just looking.

And shrimp? Used to love them as a kid but then I became allergic. Hearing them referred to as cockroaches, well, that makes them much less appealing so I no longer feel so bad about not being able to eat them.