16 things

There's a thing going around Facebook wherein you are supposed to list 16 things about yourself and then pass it on. Well, somehow everybody I know did one, which means peer pressure kicks in and I felt obligated to do it as well. I might as well post it here too. So, here's 16 factoids about yours truly:

1. I am completely incapable of using the defroster on my car windshield. If my windshield is fogged up, I fiddle around with the air conditioner, yet always seem to make it worse. It's one of the many areas in which I'd be lost without Amy.

2. I can type extremely fast. I've been tested at 125 words per minute. I took a typing class in high school and actually learned to use the home row keys and all that sort of thing. It's basically what got me my job.

3. I like to discuss issues to the point that I basically end up debating, particularly with people who are smart, stubborn, and disagree with me. I don't think I'm argumentative, but I like to toss around ideas and argue different sides of a question. Usually I'm contrarian enough that I argue the opposite of whatever the general consensus in the room is, so don't assume I always believe what I'm saying. I find it fun, possibly to the point that other people find it tedious. Oh well.

4. I love movies. If it's a favorite of mine I could watch it probably endlessly. Even if it's not I like to watch things a couple of times. I am definitely not one of those people who gets bored at movies. I was a film minor, and my secret dream profession is film director, so even if a movie sucks I'm paying attention to camera angles and editing stuff. I have never walked out of a movie, except for...

5. Saw IV. Or maybe Saw III. I forget. We left in the first 10 minutes because I couldn't handle it. We had watched the other ones on DVD, and I didn't think it would be that different in the theater, but it was. Somehow my lovely wife's 16 things left out the fact that she loves horror movies.

6. I am a notary. I have an official stamp and I had to swear an oath and everything. Actually, I think I affirmed rather than swore. Let your yes be yes and all that. My commission expires November 4th, 2013, in case you're curious.

7. I grew up in central Florida, and had never lived anywhere else until we moved to Durham. We'll probably end up back in FL at some point. I'll miss the geography. And weather. And seasons. And people.

8. I miss the student schedule. 2 weeks of vacation a year just doesn't go far enough. I think about quitting my job at least once a week. Then I remember what not having a job feels like, and remind myself to stop whining, because I'm not doing this forever. I'll probably go back to school at some point.

9. Speaking of school, I was in the gifted program in elementary and middle school. What I recall of it was basically going to a different classroom a few days a week and learning about the Mayans. And playing Oregon Trail.

10. I'm not athletic. Never have been. I've been trying to run in the mornings. It's hard.

11. My favorite candy in the world is Peanut Butter M&Ms. Not Peanut; Peanut Butter.

12. I quit popcorn. That's right. I quit it. I like popcorn, but I would always regret eating it because of the little kernels that get stuck on the back of your throat. It's not worth the trouble, so I quit it.

13. I have a poor memory for people's names, and even things that happened to me, but I have a very good memory for random trivia and information. Consequently, I'm somewhat used to knowing the answers to questions, and it's easy for me to sound authoritative about a topic when someone asks. So sometimes I like to just make stuff up. Just lie and completely bullshit something unbelievable. I can usually only keep it up for a minute or two, and I never let the conversation end without coming clean. Am I using my powers for evil?

14. When I was 10 somebody tricked me into going on a roller coaster for the first time. They lied and said it didn't have any big drops or loops or anything. I've been hooked ever since, although I can only go on a few before the motion sickness gets to me. It was the Mindbender at Six Flags Over Georgia, which I'm sure I would think was quite lame if I went on it now.

15. I have worn glasses since I was 3. Most of that time I had bifocals; I've only fairly recently gone down to unifocals(?) or whatever. Amy sometimes wants me to try contacts, but I feel uncomfortable in public without my glasses on, and not just because I can't see. Psychologically, without them, I feel weird and naked.

16. I have four tattoos, and I want more. You heard right; they are addictive.