Seven Random Facts about Meme ...

On Sunday over at "I Can Fly, Just Not Up", CandyGirlFlies threw down the challenge for several of her readers to share some random facts about themselves ... I have been fighting the urge today while I was waiting for a slashed tire to be repaired on my van ... I was reading and doing some writing (non-Thesis on both fronts today!!) and I came up with my list ... So, here is goes - 7 random facts about me - pour some strong coffee and hang on:

1) I bite my nails !!!! THIS drives me crazy - I have been trying to stop for 25 years ... BUT ... I still do it ... MAYBE admitting it here will help me stop !?!? Hmmmm, it can't hurt ...

2) My favourite job of all time was Night-watering at the Stratford Golf and Country Club. I went into work at 7pm (when it wasn't raining), set up the sprinklers, laid out the various houses and at about 8:15 turned on the pump and began a cycle of watering tees, greens and some vulnerable fairway area through the night. I LOVED the job - it was only me on the entire 18 hole course, and I could listen to music or read between shifting sprinkler heads and checking on things ... and occasionally I was able to rush off to rescue damsels in distress (remember the two V.I.C's and the visiting Bat CGF ????)

3) My absolute favourite movie of ALL time is The Wizard of Oz!!! I have loved that film since I was a wee little kid scared silly of the wicked witch (and the candy guy from Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang too (that guy still freaks me out!!)). In University I began collecting Wizard of Oz collectibles ... I have the COMPLETE set of Hallmark Oz Christmas Ornaments, a pile of books, and a bunch of other Yellow Brick Road stuff ... My second favourite movie is the sublime Cinema Paradiso.

4) I AM and will ALWAYS be a Lego Maniac !!! My mom used to work at the Lego division of Samsonite back in Stratford when I was young, and I blame her ... I still buy Lego sets for me and for Noahkila ... from time to time I haul out the zip-loc bags holding my various castle, pirate, space and Star Wars sets and set them up as a means to relax. As a kid my friend D and I had a 4'x8' table in the basement with a Lego City complete with matchbox, hot wheels, corgi and other small cars, planes, trucks, and from time to time my model train set too!! Wanna make me happy - buy me lego !!!

5) I am a BOOK Collector and an avid Reader. I have a HUGE Library of books ranging from Canadian Literature to Comics (mainly Bat-man ... but that's another fact for another day) to things religious and spiritual. My library grows by the year, with volumes being discarded, given away, donated and simply lost ... I'm proud of my library - it has my favourite authors and books that I turn to time and time again ... it helps me in life, in work and in leisure ... I simply can not imagine a world without books.

6) My favourite food is Sushi. I was turned on to sushi by a friend in BC back in late 1999 ... and I haven't looked back since. He and I used to hit the All-You-Can Eat Sushi places in Vancouver and the waitresses would marvel (not in a good way) at how MUCH sushi we could pack back ... One night the kitchen staff actually came out and LOOK at us !!! Okay it was a glare, but the three foot long receipt itemizing EVERYTHING the two of us had consumed WAS impressive. We even mused about framing it ... Since then though, I've tapered my consumption, and I've learned to appreciate the zen-like approach to sushi as a meal experience to be savoured and enjoyed rather than a time and place to glut.

7) Even though I'm working on my third University degree, I have ALWAYS gotten exceptional marks, AND this summer was told after testing that my IQ is at the 99.9 percentile ... I still don't feel either intelligent nor smart ... Any of my friends I told the story of the IQ test results to said - "Yeah, tell us something WE didn't know??" As for me, I'm still that dorky little kid in the vest above - I have a really hard time believing I have a extremely high IQ beyond seeing it as a punch line in a joke ... but whatever ...

And as a bonus:

8) My favourite animal on the planet is the DUCK ... I have always loved ducks ... It doesn't matter if it is the ubiquitous Mallard, or the exquisitely coloured Wood ... I love ducks. One of my favourite ways to relax is by feeding ducks and geese at a local park or conservation area ... my photo albums are FULL of pictures of ducks and geese ... SOMEWHERE I EVEN HAVE AN ASSORTMENT OF PHOTOS OF A TEENAGED CANDYGIRLFLIES FEED DUCKS AT THE RIVER IN STRATFORD ... they could appear here under the right circumstances !!??

But my main reason for loving ducks is that long ago I learned a few valuable life lessons from them ... those lessons include (but are not limited to):

- let it ALL roll off your back!!
- look calm and relaxed even when you little yellow feet are pedalling like mad under the surface
- sometimes you just have to float with the current and see where you end up
- if you just hang out in the same place long enough, someone will come along and feed you
- being surrounded by your family and friends is NEVER a bad thing
- there is NOTHING that can't be made better with a Quack
- AND when ALL else fails - Just Flock Off !!!