I don’t make a habit of doing this kind of stuff- the lists of factoids that circulate on social media, but I was reading over at fat chick 2 fit chick today and she posted this. I was fascinated to read about her so I decided to add this to my own blog. Perhaps some of my readers might enjoy learning more about me than the fitness and diet facts. 🙂
***
Oh- I ran yesterday and rode my stationary bike today. Lifted weights, crunched and all that both days. Exercise has been good of late. Anyhow, enjoy!
***
List 20 random facts about yourself.
1. My family goes to Disneyland about once a year. Sometimes more. People think we are crazy, but really it has a lot to do with travel anxiety and familiarity. It’s easy to go there and we always have a good time.
2. I was a terrible student in the public school system. By the time I was in 4th grade, I hated school and decided I was a failure as a student so I gave up trying. It took until I was a married 25 year old before I figured out how to do school and I held a 3.9 GPA for the entirety of my return to college. I graduated at the age of 30, five months after I became a mom.
3. I read really trashy celebrity gossip blogs. Like, REALLY trashy. Ask me anything and I probably have the answers… I feel terrible about it, but it is also the way I unwind after work. So, it’s ironic that I don’t really watch TV. We don’t have cable, just Hulu, and opportunities to watch anything grown- up rarely present themselves so what I watch is very selective and somewhat rare. This is funny because I was the kind of kid who could recite the television guide week by week as a child.
3. Bradley and I have evolved in our relationship to be able to exchange ideas very quickly, to jump topics and return to them at random times and we often carry on two conversations at once, sometimes talking over one another for entire minutes, simultaneously having a conversation together. We say we have fast talking squirrel brains. Admittedly, that is pretty intense, but it’s fun and we rarely get that carried away when someone else is around, but we do speak, laugh and talk with intensity. We don’t think our rate of speech is a problem. We think that people need to evolve along with us. Or world is not slowing down. At any given moment I have a big list of things to accomplish while posting to Instagram, checking Facebook, texting, shopping and carrying on a conversation with someone. Our world is multilayered now with a million conversations going on simultaneously both within our sphere and outside of it. It’s ok for us to embrace this. It’s good. The other option is the equivalent of the olde timey man with ye olde hearing aide: a horn to his ear while he hollers, “What?! Speak up!” Evolving in this way will hopefully allow us to continue to engage in media and stay connected to people outside of our generation.
4. I am the baby in my family with two older brothers. This means I had my mom and dad to myself as a teenager and, I’m not going to lie, it was a golden age. My brothers don’t really care that much about me or my life, but my mom, dad, husband and I have a really nice, close bond.
5. I always hated my name growing up. I went by Tami as a child and changed it to Tamara (my given name) when I was a teenager, after I decided ‘Tami’ was a name for strippers and women truckers. Later, I found out I was named after the Debbie Reynolds song, ‘Tami’s in Love’ that my mom heard in 3rd grade. She loved the song so much that it made my family nickname much less hated by me. I also found out I was nearly named ‘Tassie’, my mom’s maiden name. If I could pick, I would have chosen Tassie in a heartbeat. I love it.
6. When I was little I had an entire classroom in my bedroom. Meaning, I had little boxes set up as desks in my room with dolls as the students and anytime I would go upstairs I would boss my imaginary students around. This went on for years until one day my mom asked me who I was yelling at like that. I blushed, explained the situation, and while I was never humiliated by my mother, I was embarrassed and shut down my private school.
7. I have primarily been a vegetarian since I was 15. Initially I became a veg for many reasons, mostly environmental. Truly, though, I just can’t stand the cruelty and I feel like if I could kill it I could eat it. But I could never bring myself to take a life. Unless we are talking slugs and bugs, those mofos need to die, but I ain’t eating them! My husband also, thankfully, became veggie at 15 so I didn’t have to turn him into one and, of course, my kids also eat meat free.
8. I have never lived outside of Washington State. I read somewhere that you should live in New York at least once in your life (but leave before you become to hardened) and you should also live in Northern Cali at least once in your life (but leave before you get too soft). I often think I should diversify and try something out, but I can’t imagine living in a place that is not green, not near the ocean and not cool. I love living on the outskirts of my awesome city, but am open to moving. In 20-30 years. 🙂
9. I have never been cool, never been a part of a clique, never been popular, never been someone people just need to hang around with. I think that’s weird because I think I’m super-cool-awesome-sauce and funny. Instead I tend to build a small group of friends and loved ones around me and they are pretty much it. Right now I have my kids, my parents, my Bradley, an old friend from high school and two girls from work who I would never hesitate to call in a pinch. I know other people, but I am not a hanger-outer/partier. Sometimes I wish I were more included, but mostly I really enjoy my small circle.
10. I am a dork. I always have been. I once had a boyfriend who told me, “You’re not cool… You’re… Just…. Different.” Okaaaayyy… I have embraced my dorkiness of late, though. We geek out to Star Wars, Buffy, Adventuretime and other geekworthy bits. But not Dr. Who or Firefly. But more than that, I’m just a dorky dork who likes being a little adorkable. It gives me license to like things outside of what people deem acceptable for my age.
11. I was engaged before I was with Bradley. We had a hall rented and everything. I knew he wasn’t right for me but I was worried that, since I was fat, I wouldn’t ever find anyone else. I made a million compromises with the guy and he finally broke up with me in Paris on day three of a four month journey I was taking through Europe. I’m glad he was honest and did it then instead of later, but it was a tricky situation to be in. However, as soon as we split, I thought of my present Bradley. He met up with me the day after my trip ended and we’ve been inseperable ever since.
12. My dream job is to be an artist and writer. I would love to have a studio like Eric Carle or Jackson Pollock has where I could spread papers out and collage in a huge space. I would like to create graphic novels for teenagers about love and romantic stuff.
13. On that note, when I write I get super attached to my characters and miss them when I’m not writing about them. They kind of become friends, as weird as that might seem.
14. I’m an easy laugher. Like, I will laugh and laugh and seem to have a strange sense of humor because I will laugh at things that are probably not funny to others! The result is that people think they are super funny around me. It’s nice to be that audience for people, and it’s nice to laugh and enjoy conversations that much!
15. Reading is bomb. When I was a kid I read constantly. If you wanted to give me a gift, a book was a good bet. I read crap, though (Danielle Steele, Stephen King and the like) and decided to be a little more intellectual as I got older. Over time, I stopped reading, then I accidentally came upon a romance novel with a juicy part in it and I got hooked. Romance, romance romance- that is what I want lately! Though, it must be said that I also REALLY like reading historical fiction and travel memoirs. Bill Bryson is a favorite of mine and I love HF from the Henry the VIII era. That dude was crazy!
16. My birthday should be a national holiday. My birthday is not on October 29, rather it is the entire month of October. I loooove my birthday but despise aging. The fact that I’m turning 40 this year burns my soul. If I hadn’t nearly met my goal of 40 before 40 I would seriously be depressed. This body project is saving my brain.
17. Modesty is not an issue with me. I don’t care who sees my body as long as they are not judgmental about me. I hate people who take pictures of strangers and then post them to Facebook calling out their too sexy/fat/ugly bodies. Why do people care so much and why do they want to inflict their negativity on others? Keep your judgement to yourselves, people and let the rest of us live in peace.
18. I think I want to quit Facebook. I always worry that I’m going to post the wrong thing that will offend someone or make them think poorly of me. People post memes that are disdainful of updates about working out, what’s for dinner, self portraits, kid quotes and anything else. It seems like the only acceptable posts are complaints so I just don’t really post much of anything anymore.
19. I collect Wonder Woman stuff. It all started as a child- I wanted Wonder Woman underoos in the biggest baddest way, but my dream was never realized. A few years ago I saw the same underoos set online FOR ADULTS so I spent way too much on them. I love them and have added a variety of WW swag to my life!
20. I have strong opinions about sex-Ed and kids. I think it’s seriously weird that we spend SO MUCH TIME teaching children how to be successful in the working and school world but we rely on one primary relationship (parents) and television to model how to be in a relationship for much of our children’s educations about sex and love, which is surprising since many people cite their primary partners as one of the factors in their life’s success.
Describe 3 legitimate fears you have.
Snakes
Caterpillars (I hate their sticky icky feet and green guts and habits of covering trees. Shiver.)
Heights- mostly just cliffs and bridges, not, interestingly enough, roller coasters and other amusement rides.
I also have to add maggots to the list. There is a horrible story that goes with this involving a walk across the living room as a teenager in socks. Oh, the floor was absolutely, squirmingly covered with maggots.
Describe your relationship with your spouse.
Bradley is my other half, seriously. For him, it was love at first sight. For me, I was in a pretty serious relationship at the time and couldn’t let myself really see him… But I kinda knew I liked him. We are codependent, needy and crazy about each other. We hate to be apart and rarely are, except for work. I adore that man.
{16 year old me and my brothers}
List 10 things you would tell your 16 year-old self, if you could.
1. I would tell myself to cut the crappy relationships out and I would tell myself to hightail it down the freeway to Bradley’s house where we could have started our story a few years earlier.
2. Don’t worry about love. Don’t settle for love. It will all work out.
3. You have PCOS. Start working out and eating healthy now and things will be better for you in the long run.
4. Don’t go to college right out of high school. You are not ready. Go play, travel and skip the college loans that you’re otherwise going to have to pay for after earning a 1.2 GPA.
5. You are smart. Your brain is just not ready yet. Work hard, but remain positive. This will get easier once you grow out of your ADHD brain.
6. When that dude from the McDonalds asks you out, don’t go. He’s all hands and you’re not into it. I promise.
7. Don’t apologize about your musical tastes. You are diverse. Just enjoy it.
8. Don’t be intentionally dumpy or grungy in your 20’s. That whole ‘I don’t care how I dress, I’m an individual’ thing looks really stupid when you’re going on 40 and wondering why you didn’t capitalize on your hotness before it got all wrinkly and grey.
9. Don’t live by everyone else’s rules. You’re smart and you’re allowed to enjoy yourself in life, adventure and love without worrying about labels you may acquire. At your heart you are a good person. That shines through.
10. You’re worthy of this life. Believe it. Don’t be afraid to chase the things that are important to you. Join the swim team, for goodness sakes! Who cares if people will see you in a bathing suit! (That is the entire reason I never joined. Silly, huh?!)
What are the 5 things that make you most happy right now?
Bradley
Gigi
Jude
Schoolteacher summers
My marriage
***. Ha ha! There are two number 3’s! Oops! You got 21 random things instead. 🙂
super cool awesome sauce