Lydia at On The Verge tagged me for a meme. If you haven't been over to her blog go over and take a look at it. The idea is to provide 8 random facts about yourself but since it's Thursday I'm throwing in a few extras to make it a Thursday Thirteen.
1. I am a semi professional potter:
but evidently my skills as a photographer are lacking.
2. I've never been at all interested in the Kennedys but I had a major crush on Princess Diana. I bought and saved every book and magazine, memorized every dress and hat she ever wore. I even dressed up as her once for a Halloween party, complete with a tiara and a replica of her engagement ring.
3. I am constitutionally incapable of packing light for any trip. Even for one night I have to pack something in case I get cold and something else in case I get warm, and a couple extra pairs of shoes because you never know what you're going to need plus a few outfit variations just to fend off boredom. I would have been a big bust on the Oregon Trail.
4. I'm a chocoholic and...
5. I was the first person in my family to own a passport, which leads me to one of my chocolate stories...
6. I went to France with a group from high school when I was 15. On the way home the flight attendants handed out customs forms; at that time you could bring $300 worth of goods into the U.S. duty free. I worried I might be arrested trying to bring in more than $300 worth of stuff, when actually I simply would have had to pay taxes on the excess. Of course, I was too shy and worried to ask for help.
It just so happened that I'd bought about $300 worth of gifts; most of them I'd shipped home anyway so they wouldn't have figured into my total, but I didn't know that either.
Frantically calculating what I'd spent and terrified of being caught and sent to Leavenworth, I resolved to dispense with the one item that took me over my imagined limit: a box of Swiss chocolates. I ate most of them, offered some to the people I was traveling with, and when I got off the plane I handed my mother a stack of chocolate wrappers and announced: "I bought you some chocolates but I had to eat them on the plane."
Even though I've replaced the chocolates many times over, my mother's never let me forget it.
7. I don't know about you, but whenever I see or hear Mariah Carey I feel like I have to wash my hands.
8. I've worn glasses since I was ten. Two years ago I gave up on contact lenses and went back to glasses full time. My dog ate them.
9. I run a retail web site but I prefer blogging.
10. I've taught myself to compensate for ADD by implementing all kinds of little tricks intended to keep me from losing or forgetting things. For example, I pick up everything I can in bright colors so I can find it; in addition to the orange MP3 player and the blue phone, I usually buy red cars.
11. I would love to watch a performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony from the middle of the violin section.
12. I regret never having met or seen Leonard Bernstein.
13. As you can see from the way I've formatted this post, I don't always follow rules.
Now here are the RULES for this tag:
1. Each blogger starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
2. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
3. At the end of your blog post, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
4. Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them they're tagged and to read your blog.
5. For the recipients, leave a comment for the person who tagged you, so they can go and read your answers. Let the fun begin. Tell me more about yourselves so I can get to know you better...
And here are the tagees:
Lynn from It's My Imagination
The Misanthrope (Do I know your first name? Have I forgotten it? Is this my ADD talking?)
Fisher, the smart kitty
Monica, Captain of the Peapod Squad, who has so much time on her hands
Hannah Fanna, my cupcake
Leanne, the Tired Mama (aren't we all?)
Carol, who's enjoying A Second Cup
Finally: YOU!
Now get to work everybody!
