Annie's Randomness (yes, those two words are synonymous)

There's a new craze on Facebook to write random things about yourself. We all know how a good craze gets me...and I just love to write...so here it is in blog post form (it's a cut and paste from Facebook for those of you who already read it there...):

1. When I had my wisdom teeth out, I only had the bottom ones. After their removal, I developed some sort of crazy bad infection and had to go in for a second surgery...turns out they didn't stitch me up correctly the first time. This is also how I found out that I'm allergic to penicillin.

2. I have a strange fetish with scaring people. When I was five years old, I was trying to get out of chores by hiding under my sister's bed. She was folding clothes or something and standing close to the bed. For some unknown reason, I was seized by the urge to reach out and grab her ankles...so I did. I think I scared the crap out of her, because to this day she keeps stuff under her bed and is wary when she stands close to it--and she's married and has two kids. I think I like to scare others because not much scares me...like scary movies? I enjoy watching people writhe in fear while I chuckle at the ridiculousness of it all. I do get afraid of actual scary things like war and getting mugged.

3. If post-it notes didn't exist, I don't think I could survive a single day at work.

4. As a 2nd grader, I wrote a play. I don't know if there's a copy of it sitting somewhere in my parents' files or anything, but what I do know is that it was quite the production. My class members each got parts, and we performed the whole shebang for parents and everything. There was a strange character in it called a 'wobbatok' and a quest for secret potion. (Yes, my nerdiness runs *quite* deep.)

5. My first kiss was at age 21.

6. I love to travel...I've been to at least 32 states (including Hawaii when I was five!); 10 countries in Europe; Mexico; Canada; Egypt; and the UAE. Places I'd like to visit in the future: London, China, Japan, India, Russia, Australia, Cote d'Ivoire, New Zealand, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Jamaica...I'm sure there are more.

7. I'm a drill sergeant when it comes to grammar and punctuation...but mostly just for myself. Sometimes I will be skimming through old blog posts and come across an error, and no matter how old it is, I'll fix it. Perfection meets English elitism. My obsession rolls into my texting and other communications as well. I have friends who love it when I make a mistake so they can send it back and point it out. Doesn't happen often! I do try to not be a jerk about it when other people aren't as strict as I am, though. I understand it's my problem.

8. If you start a movie after 9:00 pm, you're basically guaranteeing that I will fall asleep in the first fifteen minutes (yes, sometimes even in movie theaters). I have been a little better lately...I made it through 40 minutes of 'Eagle Eye' before I finally gave into the sleep monster. And the other night I watched the entire musical 'Company' without dozing...and that was started around 11:00!

9. I am kind of secretly in love with the following celebrities: Milo Ventimiglia, Rivers Cuomo, John Krasinski, James Roday, and Jeffrey Donovan. Most of these are spurred by characters they play in television shows. Rivers is just a genius.

10. I have five sisters and one brother. My brother is the youngest (and don't say, "Poor him!" because he is sufficiently spoiled...). I fit in right smack in the middle, so I suffer from middle child syndrome. I guess I could look at it that way or just say that I am like the glue that holds our family together... I still feel a little picked on, however...my parents had eased up a little from the older kids, but had not yet become as relaxed as they were with the younger ones.

11. On scholarship day in high school, I was utterly embarrassed...everyone else had decided where they were heading to school, so they'd accepted scholarships from one or two schools. I was still on the fence (can you call it a fence when there are FIVE options waiting?), so I accepted them all. I was up on that stage a good portion of the morning, shaking hands, trying not to feel so stupid.

12. The 4th of July is my favorite holiday (this obviously doesn't count for those three years where we marched double parades). I don't know how to explain it, but there is a pervasive energy that gets me that day...fireworks, parades, food, fun, family...I love it all! Christmas is a close second when it comes to favorite holidays, but it doesn't have the same allure, mostly because it's usually steeped in cold and snow.

13. I have a love affair with bread. Basically any kind. When I go to a restaurant, I usually snag the last piece in the basket. I know, I know, carbs are *bad* for you...I just don't care that much. Bread and me, we're friends. Once at an Indian restaurant, we had gotten a lot of bread. I joked that I could probably finish it by myself...the guy I was with didn't believe me, so I, of course, had to prove him wrong (I'm THAT stubborn). I ate every last crumb of that naan. And it was delicious.

14. People are always telling me that I'm a great 'mom.' I'd like to think that it's because I'm an amazing cook or a great shoulder to cry on, but I'm pretty sure it's because I say things like, "Don't press the buttons" when we're in the set list on Rock Band. Or when we go on a trip, I have a whole dossier with maps and routes and time tables. Or how I have my purse of overpreparedness full of ibuprofen, gum/mints, pens, extra earrings, paper, flash drive...

15. I can make my tongue do some awesome things...curl, 'taco salad shell,' flip over. I attribute this awesomeness to the years of mouth-strengthening I got when I played the clarinet.

16. Whenever I leave the bathroom, I always check to make sure my zipper is up. Sometimes I do it a few times, just to make sure.

17. I've always dreamed of running a restaurant. I would call it 'The Perdittle' and work as a chef there. I don't know what kind of food we'd serve there...maybe a little of everything at which I've been successful (so no pie crusts...I suck at making pie crust). Sure, I'd probably need to get some culinary experience under my belt, but I'd be ok with that. I've often thought it would be fun to run a bakery as well...I love watching 'Ace of Cakes,' and I make Rachel pause so I can show her my favorite cakes that they have in the background.

18. My fingernails have always and will always be crappy. I have several excuses for my struggles in growing them out or why I don't just get fake nails...I play the piano...I have weak nails...I type a lot at work...

19. When I was a senior in high school, I worked at a burger place in Layton, UT called Burger Bar, famous for the Quad Ben (a burger stacked with four quarter pound patties). I worked with a bunch of guys, and we all took AP Calculus that year. We decided we'd make a deal with each other: whatever score we got on the AP Calculus test, that's how many patties we'd eat on a Big Ben. My score came in the mail that summer, and while I was excited for the 5, I knew what it meant. A couple months later, when I was in college, I finally mustered up the gumption one Thursday night and sat down to eat the Quad+1 (Quintuple) Ben. 38 minutes later, I was full to the gills with beef. 15 hours later, and after much nausea, I had to leave in the middle of my last class of Friday morning (that's right, I made it through four hours of class and an early morning committee meeting!) to go and throw up in the parking lot. I really hate throwing up.

20. Having been an English major, I love to read. Currently I'm in the middle of a couple good books, "Catch 22" and "Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society." I read both for different reasons...one is more to put on my thinking cap, the other is to have an escape from thinking about life. I also like to read the news, but not as much as I'd hope. Being caught up on current events is important to me, but I usually keep my opinions to myself.

21. As of today, I have never been pulled over (knock on wood!). I have received a ticket, though, after getting in a car accident--even though the cops should never have been called to the scene in the first place, since there was hardly ANY damage done to either vehicle. I was also in one other wreck when I was 16. It totaled the little SUV I was in (but let's be honest, that vehicle was a tin can), but it wasn't my fault, and no one was hurt.

22. Some think I'm clumsy...and they're right. That's why I don't play many sports. I'm a Snow, and we tend to injure ourselves, even in the most benign circumstances. I'm not just clumsy in athletic situations, though...this runs deep. I'm almost always spilling on myself, down my shirt, most of the time in public. It's embarrassing, really...I'm an adult, but I need some sort of bib or something.

23. Plants tend to die in my presence. I do not have a green thumb. I guess a little water every now and then would help, though.

24. Someday when I'm married, I want my initials to spell a word. Since I have no middle name, options include ASH, ASK, ASP...but please, I hope to never marry someone with a last name that begins with an 'S' because while that would spell a word, it's not exactly the best word to have monogrammed on your bathroom towels. I guess if I really love a guy whose last name starts with an 'S' I could just give myself an additional middle name as long as I'm making the switch. I like Lee or May.

25. I just started to learn the guitar. In my first lesson (a class I'm taking through UVU Continuing Education with 14 other students), I broke the G-string. If that's any sort of omen for the rest of my guitar career, maybe I'll quit while I'm ahead. Or I just got the bad stuff out of the way and it'll be smooth sailing...here's hoping for the latter.