Three Tags???

Well ....... It is a good thing for all of you that the three, yes, three, tags I got from Dawn, Casey, and Caroline all happened to be the same tag! I’d really hate to have to whup-up on y’all because of too many tags!!

I started working on this when I was tagged by Dawn which was too long to even admit!! I'm finally getting it finished. DON'T TAG ME AGAIN FOR A WHILE, OK???????? sighh.

So, here’s the deal. I have to tell you seven random things about myself that most people don’t know. I’m like Casey ... I’m so open and divulgent (is that a word?) on my blog that it going to be hard for me to come up with these. I also did one of these a while back, so I’ve already agonized about figuring out what to say. Most of the things you guys don’t know are things I don’t want you to know!!

OK, here it is, such as I can muster up!

1. I hate scary, blood and guts movies. Never liked them. When the blood and guts are for the sake of scaring the bejeebers out of the audience, it is just stupid and senseless. I watch very few scary movies anyway, but there have been a few that had plots to them that I could tolerate, the Exorcist, The Omen. But generally speaking you can have ‘em. Yuck.

2. I’d rather go on a cruise than about any other kind of trip. Before the first one I wasn’t so sure. I was concerned about being bored, but OMG what a good time I had, what an amazing way to travel! I think that is when I began to appreciate “down time.” There is always plenty to do on the cruise ship, but quickly my favorite times were the days called “at sea,” when the ship does not go into any port. Those days are so relaxing. I usually did a lot of walking on the deck, a wonderful exercise. I read. I listened to music on my CD player. I drank tea and stared at the ocean. And I began to learn how to be alone with myself. What a wonderful skill. I will never be a hermit; I like people way too much for that, but I value my time with me. My next cruise wish? Alaska!

3. I guess I should have known about the above, because back during my first marriage (good grief! that’s 33 to 43 years ago!) when we went camping, I loved to take the kyacanoe (a homemade boat that was something between a kayak and a canoe) out on the lake, completely by myself, and I’d pretend to fish. I’d put a line in the water, but I rarely baited the hook, because catching a fish would have disturbed my reverie! I’d stay o, even my kids, and they were my life. It was so calm and serene. Sometimes I would come back in burned to a crisp, but I didn’t care; the time of peace was worth the after-pain.

4. Despite what everyone thinks, regardless of the front I put out, I’m really shy. I have a lot of trouble making the first move in meeting people. I’ve always been that way. High school was a little hard for me, and junior high was miserable. I thought of myself as being the kids that didn’t fit anywhere. I think many of us had that kind of experience, but mine was significant. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed school, I had lots of friends, and I dated a lot. I saw myself as not belonging to any group (clique?), sort of a misfit who “fringed” on several groups. Through the years, I’ve learned at reunions that I was seen as “one of the popular ones.” HUH? Why didn’t they tell me back then?? My life would have been so much easier! In retrospect, I realize that I really was well-liked. Instead of the ugly duckling, weird kid, odd duck that I saw myself to be, I was actually seen by others as a cute, bubbly, friendly person that everyone liked. Well, almost everyone! It has taken 45+ years for me to believe in myself and have the confidence that everyone else thought I had back in the day. And I still struggle with self-confidence on the inside.

5. I have played more musical instruments that I can even count. I was once a reasonably good pianist. I froze in recitals because I hated to be “watched,” but I could play for judges (two of them at a time) and score very high on ratings. I took lessons for six years, but in the ninth grade, I discovered that playing tennis with boys was a much more fun way to spend a Saturday morning than sitting with Miss Hesterworth playing scales, etudes and sonatas. I also played violin for nine years. I was just average at that. And in the ninth grade, I decided that (1) I would always be mediocre on the violin, and (2) band trips sounded a lot more fun and were more frequent than were the orchestra trips. I had to be in the band! So I became a member of the percussion section. My experience with the piano and violin was very helpful. No, really, it was! I could play things like the xylophone. Some drummers can’t read (real) music. I could. I played every instrument in the percussion section except the snare drum (you know, the rat-a-tat-tat drum!). Later on, I learned a little guitar, but my hands are too small to play it well. Now I’m learning the Native American flute. Never give up!!

6. I’ve been in love four times. My first love (a serious puppy love), my first “real” love, my first husband, and my second husband. I hope I find real love one more time in this life. Being in love and being loved in return is the greatest thing in the world.

Why do you get to the last question/item/whatever and draw a complete, total, end-of-the-world blank? It’s like naming the seven dwarves; no matter the order, you always name six and struggle with that last one! Uh, hmmm, well, uh........... OK, here it is.

7. Although I sometimes feel like a ninny, I’m really a bright person. I was once afraid to have an IQ test because I was afraid I might find out that I had a lower IQ than my son who, at five years old, had tested very high. I was afraid that if I tested lower, I would become “handicapped” in dealing with him!! So I never tested myself until a few years ago. I shouldn’t have worried. I’m safe to be his mother ... now that he is grown up!!!!

So there you have it. That took three glasses of wine to get through ... and I probably should publish this before I reread it!

BTW, I'm supposed to tag seven people. I just can't do that. But if you want, take the torch and run!!! Have a loverly week, everyone!!