Yep. Totally stolen from the trendy Facebook note that was popular in, like, 2009.
But for me, it is simply another opportunity to reflect on who I am. That's important to me.
1. I believe that Jesus died for me on the cross and that I am saved because He took my sins away. This is #1 because it should be. Despite everything, this is always true. God is good, all the time. I am not. I am a sinful human being.
(These are now no longer in any order of importance).
2. I got my degree in music education and taught for a year. Music and teaching are touchy subjects for me. I used to love both; both were pretty much ruined for me. Life has moved on, and I don't like being grilled for details about these things.
You'll probably want to ask me at some point: "what instrument did you play?" and while I'm uttering curses in my head I will pleasantly respond "flute and trumpet and a little of everything else." So now that you've read this, you don't need to ask! :D Happy sparkles all around!
3. I dig photography. I'm learning more and more about it every day and attempting to improve in this area as an ART. I find myself too often hurriedly snapping photos and hoping to God they turn out pretty. A huge goal of mine is to be much more intentional with photography as an art.
4. I love reading. It's a love that seems to ebb at times, but this is primarily due to a lack of time (or a lack of effort to make time, on my part). Lately though I'm totally back into reading, and I don't want to read juvenile works but deeper works, works that make me think about life, my priorities, who I am, what I value, other people's perspectives and ideas, etc.
I just finished "Moloka'i". A fictional account of a girl's life in the leper colony on the island of this name (obviously). EXCELLENT. Loved it, very moving.
I'm currently reading "One Day" (it was a book before a movie)--far removed from Hawai'i, this book takes place in England primarily. A very excellent read, Anglophiles especially will enjoy the British banter.
Next up: "The Help", ALSO a book before a movie. Very interesting-looking book that is basically about racial issues in the south. Looking forward to it.
5. I enjoy movies and television. There's no getting around that. Although I MUCH prefer watching things on DVD (or DVR when I'm somewhere with that) and skipping all the commercials. Lately my attention span has grown shorter for sitting in front of the tube, but sometimes I do enjoy just watching stuff and being a bum. Some of my favorite shows are House, Smallville, and Gilmore Girls. Oh, and Burn Notice, one that pleasantly surprised me by being so awesome. I love too many movies to list here. See Facebook, or something.
6. I long for ADVENTURE. This is, perhaps, a reason for my inability lately to sit still too long. I want to GO, see the world (even just the world that is my city, when I can't go farther). I want to experience new things, learn about the world and people and the way God made everything and I want to enjoy it all with every fiber of my being, because life is precious and a lot shorter than it seemed like when I was, say, 10 years old, or even 16. Suddenly 25 doesn't feel so young and my life is probably a third over at best. I want to enjoy each day, every second, to the fullest, which is perhaps the greatest challenge of all.
7. I have a newfound love for beer and motorcycles. I learned recently I love going with friends to a bar setting, play pool, dance, have a few drinks (I'll skip the drunken part though). A friend took me for a short motorcycle ride and I'm hooked. I may just have to get a license and a bike someday, and a Harley jacket maybe? God help us all.
8. I get along better with guys than girls. Don't get me wrong, I have a few VERY close girl friends and love them dearly. But in general girls are too emotional (ironic, ME saying this...), take things too personally, moody, snippy, etc. Guys, I've found, are generally more laid back and amiable, less judgmental, and they laugh and joke around more--I need that in my life because even though I know I can be hilarious (yes, it's true, actually), I need provocation more often than not to bring this side out of me. Whether that be the company I am with or the cherry coke I am drinking.
9. I am very in tune with my emotions. I have a very affectionate heart. This is both a blessing and a curse. It means I love the people in my life very deeply, even when I feel betrayed by them—my anger does not mute out my love (whether romantic or friendly love). Feelings come and go, but I’ve been blessed with a heart that loves in a deeper way than emotion. Unfortunately this does lead to greater pain at times, when my love and affection are betrayed. I don’t just forget people who come into my life, whether they leave a good or a bad impression. What changes is, once I have cared about someone as my friend or more, they have a place in my heart. The only difference is whether I remember them with pain or pleasure.
10. I have an unhealthy love of cheeseburgers, fries, and buttered popcorn. Love love love these things. It’s all I can do to ensure I eat them in moderation to retain my girlish figure. :D ;) They are comfort foods that I particularly enjoy when traveling. Unfortunately for me, in this regard at least, I travel every week for work the past month!
11. My favorite season is autumn/fall. Hands down. I have an obsession with leaves turning red, orange and yellow and adding a vast array of color to the green and gray mountainsides. 9 months of the year, I long for the crisp yet still pleasant autumn air; the delicious, fresh harvest season; the corn mazes and pumpkin patches; football games and turkey legs; my favorite holiday season; the wonderful smells of fall candles and treats. I love taking pictures in the fall more than any other time. And I love nothing more than sharing the fall with people I care about.
12. I’ve never broken a bone, had stitches, or even a sprain. I might have had one “unofficial” sprain, but I was able to run a mile on it less than 24 hours later so I don’t think it counts. :P I’d really like to continue this trend in my life: no hospital visits for me personally even. The only downside I see in this wonderful circumstance is that I have a somewhat irrational fear of pain. I think I probably have a higher pain tolerance than I think but because nothing bad has happened to me, at least not that I’d consider horrible, I fear something bad happening like getting stabbed or shot or badly cut or something.
13. I have an internal geography conflict. I grew up in California, so I love the ocean (and water in general, but the ocean is my fav). But just before I turned 13 we moved to Colorado… and I eventually fell in love with mountains, snow, the country. If I could have my way I’d cut out Utah and Nevada so I could get back to the ocean sooner. I so wish beautiful Colorado was a bit closer to the ocean.
14. I love cars! Not terribly common for a lady. :) I also don’t like the cars most people typically do. First, I’m a diehard Honda girl. Loyal to a fault. I’ve owned two Accords, a ’96 and an ’02. I currently own a 2011 Fit (orange!!!) and I LOVE it. It’s a sick little car. Other cars I’d love to have: Ford F150, Ford Focus (’12 hatchback model, very nice), Honda Accord Crosstour (the fancier-looking, fuel-guzzling copycat of the Subaru Outback), Honda CR-Z, Ford Mustang, and a green Corvette wouldn’t be too shabby either. :)
15. Cherry Coke is my favorite. Despite knowing how bad it is for me. It affects my mood more than any other beverage, even beer! Beer loosens my tongue; Cherry Coke loosens my mood! It gives me tons of energy usually and improves my mood. It’s my little secret “drug” haha.
16. I have a strange memory for numbers. But I suck at math. I can remember numbers, patterns, etc. very, very well, but even college calculus was a struggle for me—and I didn’t even do pre-algebra til 8th grade! I blame the California school system for that. All of this stems from a strange balance of right- and left-brained-ness. Again, good at numbers (but not so much at math), think in patterns, very logical/analytical. But I’m also artistic (to a point), excellent with language (English and foreign), and an avid reader with a strong vocabulary and excellent spelling. Kinda weird!
17. I’ve learned three languages to some extent: French, Spanish, and Czech. Of these, I speak Czech best of all. Only about 10 million people in the world speak this language: not very many! I have a knack for language in general, but this one has stuck best. Probably from having visited the country three times—the only foreign country other than Mexico I’ve ever actually been to! I love the country, its people, its language, and definitely its food. :)
18. I love hiking and camping! I’ve climbed 4 fourteeners—peaks over 14,000 feet in elevation. I summited Pikes Peak by foot 3 of 4 times (altitude sickness on one trip :( ), as well as Grey’s and Torrey’s once each (same day) and a nearly-successful climb up Long’s Peak this year. My biggest accomplishment with mountain climbing was going ALL the way up AND down Pikes Peak in one day. It’s a 28-mile round trip. I could barely walk at the end!
19. I have the oldest beta fish ever. His name is Hibiscus and he is over 5 years old. I think he may be nearing the end of his life for real now, but he has been the best fish ever! Always a personality. And I’ve had many, many fish in my life! He’s pretty awesome.
20. The first three guys I dated in my life all were born in July 1985. I swear that was not intentional, but it is a little weird and creepy! They also all had dark brown hair.
21. I like doing things myself. In more ways than one. The first is, I take pride in something I accomplish completely myself, like in the fact that I can make my own homemade bread and mac n cheese. Or when I can set up my equipment at work in less than 30 minutes (this is actually quite a feat). But also I can be a bit of a control freak. :D I like things done a certain way, often times, and I need to learn to trust others to do things to the same level as I can and expect even if it’s done a different way. I’m a person in process-I’m growing. :)
22. I get cold really easy. And yet, I love winter and snow (but not as much as fall and pretty leaves :) ). I think that as long as I’m personally warm, I don’t care how cold it is! I love playing in the snow, all bundled up, but I also love being cuddled up under a blanket in front of a blazing fire and/or a good movie with a mug of tea or hot chocolate in my hand. In my PJs preferably. With someone I love. :) <3
23. I love to cook. I haven’t done it in a month, but I love it. I especially love consuming the food I’ve made. It enhances the sense of pride and accomplishment I described in #21. The only thing I hate about cooking is that it takes 3x longer to cook food than it does to eat it. Maybe 5x longer. Maybe 10x. Whatever. I just wish I could enjoy the food for as long as I toil over it! I need to start cooking again.
24. I’m really not a girly-girl. Reading these “things about me” should be evidence of that. But at the same time, I have my moments! I still like to dress up sometimes. Go shopping on occasion. Watch a chick flick. I love to be told I’m pretty (especially because I was told for so long that I’m not). I love to be complemented. It fills me up and makes me feel great, even if it’s just for a little while. Gives me a boost some days. I also want to be a mostly-stay-at-home-mom eventually. I love taking care of my home and making it a comfy, happy place to be, and if I can do some photography as a business too that’d be great. I come from a church background, where a lot of women desire this, but the desire is my own, not influenced by “religious expectations”. Thank God for that.
25. What to put for the very last one?? I’ve already been scrounging at the end. :)
Okay. I LOVE being happy. This will probably surprise some people. I’ve been through a lot in my life. A lot of very painful, very difficult stuff. And honestly, being happy is more foreign to me than being fearful and sad. But I PREFER being happy. Being happy can be exhausting, but in a good way. :) I love being around people who bring out my happy side, who are infectiously joyful. Especially when they make me laugh. :)
There, 25 things, and it took a LONG time to write them. And a lot of space. But they are things that matter to me. And help me get in touch more with who I am, which is important to me right now. If you read through all of them, you’re dedicated. :) Thanks!!!
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