1. I've been skydiving over a volcanic crater lake in New Zealand and would do it again if I was in a location with such a beautiful view. However, first I'd like to bungee jump and hang glide, both of which I haven't done before.
2. One of the most unsettling things that ever happened to me involved a middle school bus driver. He started giving me nicknames like "my girl" and using them when I'd get on the bus. Since I was the last person to get off the bus in the afternoon, he would also talk to me when I was the only one left. It got to the point one day where he asked (when we were alone on the bus) if I could keep a secret. I didn't say anything and he said, "Well...I shouldn't because it could get me fired." In an awkward silence the seconds ticked by as he wouldn't open the door for me to get off in front of my house. In the end he let me off the bus and I stopped riding it that year.
3. When I was a kid (probably around 10 yrs old) my Grandpa basically forced me and my sister ride the scariest, most rickety rides at the state fair. That includes the one that swings back and forth and eventually turning completely upside-down. I remember us both screaming our heads off on either side of him while he calmly sang to us (while stifling laughter). I am sadly not recalling the song at the moment. But I have him to thank for my fearless love of scary rides.
4. I have a scar on my tongue from running and jumping on my parent's futon as a kid. I bit through it, but not enough to completely sever any parts (thankfully). I have the fainest memory of sitting at the kitchen table through tear stained eyes watching my dad make me a smoothie before my mom got home (with the car, I presume). I remember the smoothie had juice from a big can of juicy juice (the kind you had to poke a big hole in one side and a little hole in the other side). My mom tells the story much better than I do.
5. Since I was young I've always wanted to write my life story. Probably the reason I didn't do it at 12 was because there wouldn't have been that much to say. I'm not even a particularly talented story writer or teller, I just feel drawn to recapping and reviewing my life as a way of understanding myself, what I have done, and how my experiences have shaped me as a person.
6. Along those same lines, my Grandma, who has always kept a journal, encouraged me to journal from the time I was able to write (apparently she and my mom used to get a big kick out of reading my PRIVATE musings at age 6). I have stacks and stacks of journals I've filled from sixth grade onward, along with some I never filled before starting another. I can't locate any of the earliest ones, which may have been lost when we moved. I think the only person I would want to read my journals would be my future daughter.
7. In the movie "The Incredibles," I cried when the family was reunited.
8. My head was so big in the womb that the doctors had to test me for down's syndrome. I still have a big head, though you might not be able to tell from looking at me. I can't wear normal sized hats (or any women's hats in the average store).
9. I have cheated in school twice and have been caught twice. The first time was in first grade when I had to take a spelling test. I was really bad at spelling, so I wrote some of the words on my desk before the test. My teacher caught me and yanked my arm up off my desk to reveal the words I was cheating from. I had to sit out of recess and write sentences over and over about why it was wrong to cheat. I remember crying the whole time. After that I studied hard for spelling tests for the rest of my life (even in highschool where I got teased for acing the tests).
10. The second time I cheated was in 6th grade. I'd made a friend (rare for me at that life stage) and we sat in desks facing eachother in my gifted math class. We were taking a test one day and I looked at her paper and saw that she made a mistake on a question I knew. I tried to communicate her mistake to her and was caught. Somehow my teacher knew my heart was in the right place and just gave me a warning; I didn't get written up or expelled and my friend still liked me.
11. While in college in the environmental engineering major at Georgia Tech, I had a quarter-life crisis and got so far as applying (and getting accepted) for a transfer to Kennesaw State University to the Science Education department to become a biology teacher. In the end I decided to stay at Tech but I changed my major to biology and fled the country on a semester abroad.
12. In highschool I vandalized several ceiling tiles on Pi Day (3/14) with a group of friends in effort to impress our AP calculus teacher. Since everyone knew he liked me best, I was the one who confessed our actions and the one he scolded when the administration pinned it on him (pranks were a common thing for his students). When the teachers found out it was just honors students playing a prank, we fixed the damage and no one stayed mad.
13. I didn't get my first kiss until Christmas Day my senior year in highschool...I was a VERY late bloomer.
14. One of my all-time favorite activities is dancing, though nothing specific or fancy. I don't get to go out dancing much anymore but it has always made me feel amazing to get to dance and jump around however I want to (as long as there is a bit of a crowd to blend in with). This especially applies to live music. It is one of the few times I truly forget about people judging me.
15. The way to my heart is by chocolate. Rich, pure, delicious chocolate...Seriously, if you ever have to buy me a gift and don't know what to get, chocolate will do it (or red wine)!
16. The experiences I've had with other people's families have given me the most perspective on the meaning of the word family. For example, when I met Bradley's grandpa for the first time (I was very nervous about being "accepted" to the family) he walked up with his arms open for a hug and said, "I'm Grandpa!" It really touched me to know he accepted me from the start.
17. One of my most cherished memories is getting to rub the shell a wild sea turtle while snorkling at sunrise in the Great Barrier Reef. Though it took me a while to catch up with her in the water, she loved that shell rub and stuck around for several minutes!
18. I once had to climb the fence that closes the road to Piedmont Park (several feet taller than a person) while wearing flip flops and a short dress. Brad and I spent so long talking there after dark that it closed down and we couldn't get out any other way...
19. I have a copy of Harry Potter and the Socerer's Stone signed by J.K. Rowling.
20. One time I stayed up all night to help bail someone out of jail. I even co-signed the bail bond. I had to go to class as soon as I got him and his friends back to their apartment in the morning. And after class I had to go to work at my part time job. If I had it to do over I would have left him there.
21. One of my favorite things to do is to walk through and explore creeks. I also pronounced it "crick" until highschool and didn't know that was wrong. Literally, I gave a speech in a highschool class about playing in "cricks" and afterwards I found out no one knew what I was talking about.
22. I was the president of FCCLA in my highschool. As such, I had to organize and lead the annual school beauty pageant, which would make you laugh if you knew me in highschool. None of the girls respected me. It was painfully obvious that I knew nothing about hair, makeup, or dresses, so I guess they had no reason to trust me. It taught me a lot about working under adversity.
23. We earned so much money from that pageant that previous presidents would use it on a lavish trip out of state. I wanted to donate it all to charity instead. This caused great turmoil in the small club. My senior year we ended up compromising and donating some and taking a cheaper trip to Atlanta and seeing a play ("The Producers" at the Fox Theater!)
24. I'm proud to say that I earned the respect of a group of construction workers at an air force base I worked at as a co-op in college. Though at first they didn't know what to say around me (a 19 year old girl) and I was equally awkward around them, in the end they shared their candy and HotHands handwarmers with me. They would even listen to me when my supervisor would leave me in charge and I loved that. Just as it was getting to be fun my main boss called me back to the office to take the place of the secretary, who quit unexpectedly. I was mad and offended but powerless.
25. I can still remember the smile on Bradley's face when he first saw me/when I first saw him (I was dancing - see #14).
I'd like to read other people's lists, if they are willing to share via email or facebook (Brad's) or the comments section :) ...
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