1. I was a band nerd from 6th grade through high school (I played the clarinet).
2. I used to be an angry feminist (one of those "I hate all men" types).
3. I have a weird obsession with New Jersey.
4. My favorite animals are dogs (especially Pugs, Jack Russells, and Yorkies) and giraffes.
5. I met M over the internet (the website we meet on is now defunct).
6. My first job was as a party entertainer - I delivered singing telegrams.
7. During my undergrad years, I worked as a mailroom clerk, motel desk clerk, prep cook at a resort, waitress at a Chinese restaurant, and an English & History tutor.
8. My first real job (what I consider to be a real job) was as a high school English & Theatre teacher.
9. I taught sixth grade for a month - if I had stayed longer, I would have lost my mind or strangled the kids.
10. When I was six, I spent two weeks in the hospital because I had pneumonia. I spent most of the time in an oxygen tent, which was kind of exciting at that time.
11. My favorite flower is the tulip. Gladiolus are a close second.
12. I took my first trip to California last month.
13. I once caught a guitar pic at a Siouxsie and the Banshees concert with my breasts.
14. I don't really care for summer or winter; fall is my favorite season and spring is close behind. I would be happiest living in an environment with temperatures ranging from 45-75 degrees.
15. I used to want to be a lawyer.
16. The three guys I dated in high school all came out in college.
17. I love the smell of 2x4s being cut; it reminds me of my father.
18. I love my breasts.
19. I am a daddy's girl.
20. Because of my father, I have very high expectations of men.
21. I hate beer. It doesn't matter if it's light, dark, American or imported; I've never tasted a beer I remotely like.
22. I'm terrified of being diagnosed with cancer.
23. I like porn.
24. I've never had chicken pox.
25. I was 19 the first time I traveled on an airplane.
26. I love Coke.
27. I sleep naked.
28. I like to wear a lot of black and pink (together) and red.
29. I can name all fifty states in alphabetical order.
30. I've worn glasses since I was nine.
31. My favorite sport to watch is baseball. I cannot stand basketball or football.
32. I have three tattoos.
33. I have never been skiing or ice skating and have no interest in either.
34. I took tap and jazz classes for five years.
35. I love belly dancing.
36. I hated my name when I was younger because I stood out, but now I love it because it's different.
37. During my entire life, I've only met one other person with the same name as me.
38. Almost all of my family lives in Ohio and Michigan.
39. I love the smell and taste of cinnamon.
40. I haven't had beef or pork in almost ten years.
41. I was a strict vegetarian for six years, but now I eat fish, chicken, and turkey.
42. Whenever I get too stressed, I get physically ill.
43. I want to go back to school, but I'm not sure what I want to study for my PhD.
44. I write a lot, but I rarely finish my projects unless I have specific deadlines.
45. I love Cadbury cream eggs.
46. I don't like to eat fast food other than Subway or Quiznos.
47. I'm not sure if I want to have children or not. For years, I didn't, but the idea of having a family with M is very attractive.
48. I love foreign films and documentaries.
49. I've lived in five different cities, but all have been in the midwest.
50. Neither of my parents went to college, yet they always told me I was going to college no matter what.
51. I have very fair skin that sunburns horribly.
52. I've had three blistering sunburns during my life; the first time was when I was a baby and the last time was when I was in high school.
53. I am a typical Libra.
54. I'd love to be a novelist, but I'm not very good at writing fiction.
55. I want to move to London.
56. I was in a cafe in downtown London on New Year's Eve 1998.
57. The first song that came on the radio when the year switched to 1999 was "1999."
58. I've liked Prince since I was six. The first song of his that I heard was "Little Red Corvette."
59. After my mom watched the "Little Red Corvette" video with me, she banned me from watching MTV until I was 13.
60. My favorite Prince album is Sign O' The Times.
61. My dad died when I was 18 and my mom died when I was 21.
62. I am an only child. The only time I wished for siblings is when my mom died and I had to make all of the arrangements and sell the house by myself.
63. I am friends with only one of my exes - and it took years to get to this point.
64. I love thin crust cheese pizza.
65. My favorite poets are Walt Whitman, Pablo Neruda, Anne Sexton, Marge Piercy, and Adrienne Rich.
66. I constantly reread books.
67. I've read The Catcher in The Rye over twenty times.
68. I was the editor of my undergrad's literary journal for three years.
69. I decided to attend my undergraduate school without ever visiting it.
70. My parents really wanted me to go to the University of Michigan, but I decided I didn't want to go to a large university (the college I eventually chose only had 800 students!).
71. I am mildly climacophobic.
72. I love sushi, but went through a two year period in which I couldn't eat it after a bad case of sushi food poisoning.
73. I am very good at remembering the smallest of details.
74. I blush easily - and a lot!
75. I am pro-choice and anti-death penalty.
76. I used to be heavily into theatre. I was in a dozen or so plays and musicals, I spent a year in a traveling singing/dancing/acting troupe, and directed several plays.
77. If money weren't a concern, I would direct plays at little experimental/indie theatres.
78. I spent most of junior high & high school in gifted classes.
79. Other than allowing me to earn college credits during high school, I don't think those gifted classes were all that special.
80. My preferred drink is cranberry juice and vodka.
81. My BA is in English and Theatre with a secondary education certification.
82. My MA is in Writing with a concentration on Theory and Pedagogy.
83. I love ice cream, but it seriously upsets my stomach.
84. I don't like the smell or taste of broccoli or celery.
85. Worms creep me out.
86. My middle name is Ann. A lot of my older relatives refer to me by my first and middle names, which I hate.
87. I cannot see myself ever not living in a large city again.
88. My most challenging job has been as a college instructor. It has also been the most rewarding.
89. I like dark chocolate the best.
90. One of the first things I notice about people is their teeth.
91. The sound of someone biting their nails seriously irritates me.
92. I have a lot of clothes and shoes.
93. I love kicking through leaves during fall.
94. I also love the smell of leaves during fall & freshly cut grass during summer.
95. Out of all the people I've slept with, 90% happened within a six-month period. I was just out of an almost four-year relationship and went a little crazy (in the fun way!) during those six months... although I love being in a relationship now, I look back at those months fondly.
96. The semicolon is my favorite punctuation mark.
97. My favorite curse word is muthafucker.
98. One of my favorite desserts is hot apple pie with vanilla ice cream.
99. I try to eat at least one apple everyday.
100. I was named after a pop/jazz singer from the thirties.
6 comments:
It was great to meet you at the blogger breakfast. I was so awestruck that I was actually sitting across from jo(e) that I didn't talk much, but I wish I had gotten to talk to you more. And now that I've come home and read your profile and "100 things," I see we have a lot in common :-)
"One of the first things I notice about people is their teeth."
And yet, you were friends with me in HS...
It was great to meet you!
So what's with the New Jersey obsession? (Do you know John Gorka's song "I'm From New Jersey"?)
Susan: No, I've never heard the song! A song about NJ! OMG!
My obsession with NJ started about seven years ago when I was talking to a friend about possible other states to move to (at that time, I wasn't sure I wanted to stay in Chicago permanently). We talked about what I was looking for; after hearing everything she immediately said New Jersey would be perfect for me. Before that moment, I had never thought about New Jersey for any reason, but ever since then, I've been obsessed with talking about it and thinking about going there. What makes my obsession so weird is that besides the fact that I've never been there, I also cannot stand the New Jersey accent. Plus, the two people I've met that were from there were neither particularly nice nor interesting (also, a few people told me it's a horrid state). Yet, I'm convinced there is some secret mecca of cool in New Jersey and I'm determined to find it.
Oh, Nikki, NJ is not without its charms! I'm not sure what your criteria for perfection is, but, having lived here for 97% of my life, I can tell you this:
I grew up in 'South Jersey', where the landscape is predominately farms (think Garden State) and beaches are wide and lovely. (Cape May is one of my most favorite places.) The influence there is largely out of Philly and the accent is totally NOT the comic Jersey-Girl-Big-Hair thing. (But it's still a bit weird to the ear.)
I lived and worked in 'North Central Jersey' for a number of years, just close enough to the city (and if you're from NJ you know that means NYC) to admire it from afar. Lots going on there, but I'm willing to wager that the cranky people you've met are from the counties closest to NY. (I would quietly suggest they have a lot to be cranky about.) However, if it's the proximity to big cities that you adore, I'd suggest just bunking in the city itself unless you're particularly fond of hours in a parked car on the interstate.
Finally, I've lived most of my adult life in the northwest part of the state, where the hills are lush and rolling and I can see the Pocono Mountains from my kitchen window. Lots of farms, but up here it's horses more than tomatos. It's small town feel with access to mountains, ocean and two major cities, depending on which way you point the car.
Most of NJ is a far cry from the NJ you see in just about any medium, and for the most part, we don't twang one way or the other. ;-) (Oh! Accent rule of the thumb? The closer you are to the city, the heavier the accent. True for Philly as well as NY, LOL.) That being said, I'll also tell you property values are insane in many parts of the state and we have the highest property tax rate nationally. I think we run our own political and economic universe, but then my only point of comparison is two years spent in Maine. (Which, talk about operating on an independent plane!) On the other hand, we don't have tornados or earthquakes, and any extreme weather is typically the tail end of a hurricane or Nor'easter. All four seasons are lovely, and if you love humidity, this is the pace for you!
All in all it's been a great place to live and raise a family. (But this is the part where I confess I'm on my way outta' here for Virginia.) ;-)
More of a commercial than you needed, I'm sure.
PS... I think I scored way too many matches on your list. Lots of "me too!" moments and a couple of "ah-hahs!" thrown in. Love your style, enjoying your blog!
I need to post a new 100 things about me since I went anonymous. Back when I was all "out" I had one, but I'll need to update that one to take off any identifying details. :)
But we share a lot in common, as I guessed when I saw your blog name. I have a blog that I made, which I've never really written on, named after Dorothy Parker's Vicious circle, and the Ballad of DP is my favorite Prince song, followed by Condition of the Heart & Starfish & Coffee. OOh, and I also LOVE Housequake. Songs many people don't even know exist.
Anyway... I'm glad I found your blog! It's fun to meet people you really have stuff in common with. I bellydance, too. Although not since the babies were born cause that would be just gross. :) I'm working on it.
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