25 Random Things

Transferring from facebook for those of you not on there...

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

I’ve been tagged by multiple people and figured it was time I just did it, so here we go…

I love proving people wrong. The easiest way to get me to do something is to tell me I can’t do it.

I know key phrases in multiple languages (Spanish, French, Russian, German, Portuguese, Afrikaans, etc.) and will use them whenever I see fit. Most people just look at me like I’m crazy when I do, but sometimes English just doesn’t work for me.

Certain noises/feelings make my teeth hurt. Things like fingernails on a chalk board and scraping anything off metal (especially when it’s under water). I doubt anyone will really get this except my sisters, they are the same way.

I love shopping. (Shocker, I know) However, I HATE window shopping. I have to shop with a purpose. I can’t go to a store and “just look.” Either I have to go with someone and help them pick things out, or I have to go with money to spend for myself. I think window shopping is a waste of time and it aggravates me to no end. (Unless of course its with Ciege… prom dresses and photo shoots… haha oh the memories!)

I love the “clean” smell. Gain laundry detergent, and my B&BW body scrub are two of my favorite smells. I also like pine-sol but only while I’m cleaning, and then the windows get opened to air it out. (That stuff lingers FOREVER if you don’t!)

I love rain and thunderstorms. I especially love warm rain storms. Some of my favorite things are running, playing, dancing, and kissing in the rain… When I was little, my sister and I would run out to the back patio at my parents house and lay on the cement at the beginning of a rain storm and we’d stay there laughing our heads off until we were soaking wet and the cement around us was all the darker water-stained color, all in an effort to get that dry outline of ourselves on the pavement.

For most of my “growing-up” years I was very self conscious about how I looked. How tall I was, my red hair, how I didn’t fit in the cookie cutter like every one else, etc. I’ve since come to embrace the things that make me who I am, and I’m very grateful for what I’ve got.

I make wishes, believe in karma, and can’t help but smile every time I see a penny on the ground due to the “pennies from heaven” concept. And yes, to an extent, I am superstitious.

I am a sucker for “feel good” stories/TV shows. One of my favorite shows is the biggest loser. I get so completely wrapped up in it, I find myself cheering at the TV screen, and getting upset when the wrong person gets sent home. This season, there was a contestant that reminded me a lot of my dad, and embarrassingly enough I got teary eyed when he got sent home. This brings me to my next point…

I HATE when people see me cry, and will do whatever it takes to make sure no one does. There are very few people that I will cry around, and even around them I feel ridiculous and get mad at myself when I do.

I hate being told to cheer up, get over it, smile, and things of that nature. If I’m upset, there is a reason. I will work through it. You telling me to get over it isn’t going to help the matter at all, and will usually just piss me off even more.

I have music in my blood. I have a very hard time sitting still when I hear a good beat, and I’m one of those people who will dance in the car and sing at the top of their lungs. Even (well, especially) when I am alone. And when people see me and laugh, I just smile and keep on doing my thing.

I love kids. I am not sure if I’ll ever want any of my own, but I love watching, goofing off with, and taking care of my nieces and nephews and my friend’s kids.

I can easily fit in to all levels of girlie-ness. I love getting dressed to the nines in lace silk and heels, but am not afraid to get dirty. Some of my favorite memories are where I’m covered head to toe in mud and dirt, barely recognizable, and stuck washing grit out of my hair for days.

I have an addiction to anything “artsy.” This can range from gorgeous paintings hanging on my walls, to tattoos and piercings, and everything in between. I love seeing original work, and even more so I love creating original pieces. I love drawing, painting, coloring, sewing, building… anything that takes a bit of creativity. Currently I’m debating on adding another tattoo to the growing collection… It’s just another method of creative output in my mind.

I can not stand when people talk bad about my family. I’m the youngest of seven, there are six girls and one boy. Yes, I know that is a lot of kids. Yes, I realize my dad and brother must’ve had a hard time living with that many women. Yes my parents meant to have a big family. No matter what funny, witty, cute, or out and out rude remark you feel the need to say about them, I can assure you I’ve heard it before. Don’t bother.

I have a weakness for carbs. Bread, pasta, rice (jasmine rice especially)… YUM! I used to work next door to a Great Harvest bread store and I’d go there and get bread, just bread, for lunch all the time.

I cook to help my mind relax. I love cooking, especially when I know it’s something really good. I love going to pot luck dinners or parties where you have to bring food because that means I get to cook things I normally wouldn’t have reason to. The best part is tasting it right out of the oven to see how it turned out. For anyone who has ever cooked with me, this is when you get the happy food dance. Yeah, you know what I’m talking about.

I am usually a very understanding person, but there are some things that I refuse to put up with. I hate when people say things like “that is retarded” and “that is so gay” or use words/phrases like that as insults. To me, it just means the person using those words/phrases is too ignorant or lazy to think of what they are really trying to say, and instead go with something potentially hurtful but common.

I have an ever-growing list of things to do before I die. Places I want to visit (Paris, Milan, Venice, all over Africa, Ireland, Sweden… could go on and on!), things I want to do (skydive, do a triathlon or marathon, own a boutique…), and people I want to meet.

I love being outdoors. Hiking, rock climbing, surfing (haha that was an adventure), snowboarding, camping, even just walking my dog… Anything to do with the outdoors, LOVE IT! I used to work in a greenhouse and loved every minute of it. If it paid more and was a steady job vs. a seasonal job I would still be there.

I hate girls who go to sporting events to pick up on guys or because its “the cool thing to do.” I don’t know about other girls, but I go to actually watch the game and what is going on. It REALLY gets on my nerves when I get the running comment stream coming from the row behind me of, “What just happened? (Touchdown) What does that mean? (Flag - holding) Ooh that guy is cute! (Players in tight pants??) Who is that guy in the black and white stripes? (The ref) Why doesn’t he match the rest of the players? (Uh… really?)” or, my absolute favorite, “Who has the ball?” I went to one utes football game where I heard this question no less than ten times before half time, I got fed up and turned around to face the teen aged princess too enthralled with her phone to look up as she asked said question and said, “See that big screen up there, the scoreboard? That little football that appears next to the team name tells you who has the ball. Make sense?”

I’ve had 3 knee surgeries and am in need of another (minor) surgery soon. I have titanium plates and screws in both my knees, and thus have the super power to know whenever its going to rain or snow. This also means I can’t watch knee injuries occur without getting sick to my stomach. Whether its football, UFC, those “extreme accident” shows on TV, whatever. I severely injured one of my knees back in high school and was taken to the hospital by ambulance and went through months and months of braces, surgeries, and PT. Ever since then, anything to do with a knee injury makes me sick. (And makes my teeth hurt, refer to #3)

I’ve had a love for design for as long as I can remember. For my eighth birthday I asked my mom and grandma to teach me how to sew. I used to sketch different outfits whenever I was bored, and 90% of classes I have taken were in one way or another design related. I designed and sewed every formal dress I wore to high school dances, and have made many more for formal events since then. I also helped make the costumes for a years worth of high school plays, and designed and made my sister’s wedding dress (which I finished the morning of the wedding).

I love debating. Especially when it is something I know a lot about. My mum always said I’d make the best lawyer because I argue so well. I tend go about it in a kind way though, I hate making people upset or feel bad about themselves. But on the other hand, when necessary I can make someone feel “knee high to a grasshopper” as my grandma would say, not by conventional means (cursing, slander, yelling) , but just by saying how it is and being blunt.

have you ever wanted somthing so bad your heart ached for it?

I am a very spoiled girl. I will be the first to admit that. I have been all of my life.

While I was growing up, my dad was the breadwinner. Working steadily whether he liked his job or not. This allowed my mum to stay home with us kids. My parents worked very hard to give us a great life, not an easy feat by any means! We ALWAYS had what we needed, and usually on top of whatever we needed, we got whatever we wanted. True, there were those times I thought I would just DIE because I didn’t get 5 new pair of the newest/coolest jeans like my friends did, but I never went without. I always had presents to open on my birthday, and every year I woke up to Christmas gifts falling out from under the tree like a waterfall. But even more than material things, I was spoiled with the things money can’t buy. I was encouraged to get educated, I was held responsible for decisions I made and was taught that actions (whether good or bad) will always have a corresponding consequence. Any time I was betrayed by a friend or hurt by someone I held close, my mum would be there to wipe away the tears and to tell me two things, 1) that even though it was aching, to keep my heart kind and caring because that is what made me who I am, and 2) to remember how what they did made me feel, and to never make anyone else feel the same way I was feeling right then. I was taught many valuable life lessons that I still use to this very day, but above all else… I always, ALWAYS knew I was loved. I’m not saying I had the perfect life growing up. I didn’t get along with my parents for a good portion of time there, but even when I was convinced they hated me and were out to ruin my life, deep down I knew that what they were doing, they did out of love and concern for my wellbeing. Being loved so unconditionally can do amazing things for a person. Still to this day they don’t always agree with decisions I make, but they still love and support me without question. In many aspects of life, having this upbringing has made life easy. Always knowing I have my family to fall back on, knowing they’ll be there for me no matter what…

That being said, there will always come a point in one’s life that no matter how surrounded by people they are, and how drowning in love they might be, they still feel inexplicably alone. I fear I’ve reached that point. One thought streams through my head on a near constant basis as I sit here and contemplate the crossroads I’ve reached, “That kind heart my mum told me never to lose sure is being put to the test!”