Raaaaaamboooootannnn!
A few weeks ago I read Lisa’s gorgeous post about things she was too shy to share.
And she shared them anyway. And it was awesome.
I thought, Hey, that might be fun. I’ll do that too*.
Then I had a wrestling match with myself.
Because I swore I’d never write one of those numbered list-ey posts.
And because there’s a part of me that worries that I might be edging dangerously close to self-indulgent drivel here.
Even though I never think that when other people write this kind of stuff.
But now I’ve chewed on this thing for four days. Four.
Because writing this was way harder scarier than I thought it would be.
So I’m hitting publish.
*Lisa did 44 things. I ended up with 31. But I’m 35. In case it matters.
#1. I schedule kisses
I had my first kiss when I was in the seventh grade.
With Nina. Outside the music room. (How apropos, right?)
We concocted an elaborate plan that involved me faking a potty break so that I could sneak out all stealth-like to meet her at eggsactly the right time.
So it was basically a scheduled smooch disguised as a trip to the bathroom.
Hawt.
But it did leave me feeling totally swim-ey headed the rest of the day.
#2. ET phone home
I was in a real life crop circle once.
It involved a lot of hiking, a ton of mud, a handful of wacky people and one reeeeeeally pissed off farmer.
Did I mention the shotgun?
#3. Oh, the blood!
I worked in a body piercing studio for a minute.
The first person I pierced bled. A lot.
Turns out they had some condition that caused them to bleed like something straight out of a crime scene.
Which they didn’t mention beforehand.
Awesome. Or not.
#4. At least the nurse was impressed
Speaking of piercings, I pierced my own ear.
In 8th grade. On the school bus. In the dark.
It was pretty much a total disaster. But the school nurse was seriously amazed at how straight it was.
My mom? Way less impressed.
#5. But it was reeeaaally punk
Around the same time, I gave myself a tattoo and a half.
I used India ink and a sewing needle. Because that’s what two of my equally stupid punk rock friends did.
The half part is because I started out trying to tattoo my left ankle. I got halfway done and couldn’t finish because it hurt like cuh-ray-zee.
So I randomly jumped to my left shoulder instead.
(Psst. My mom still doesn’t know about this. So shhh. Really.)
#6. Major hard
My dad died when I was 18.
We’d had a crazy hard relationship for most of my life.
Things turned around a couple months before he died.
Looking back, that feels like one of those special acts of grace.
About a week after he died, I was in a mall. I saw some random something in a store window that I thought Dad would dig.
I ran to a pay phone to call him. When I realized I couldn’t call him, I had a huge meltdown on the spot.
I miss my dad a lot. Almost every day.
#7. Limited edition Darjeeling FTW
I’m a hardcore tea fetishist. Tea has totally taken over my pantry.
It’s possible likely almost certain that I need an intervention.
I’m also a serious snob when I buy tea.
But I’ll share a mug of any ol’ whatever whenever some fab tater offers it. Because I dig the communal-drinking-of-the-brew muchly.
#8. Raising a glass
My other favorite drink is ginger ale. It was my dad’s favorite drink too. Drinking it reminds me of him.
#9. Fava beans and a nice Chianti my ass
I don’t watch horror movies. Ever.
Because when I do, I have nightmares. For years.
Someone convinced me to watch Silence of the Lambs when I was a kid.
I still get twitchy when I see Anthony Hopkins.
#10. Where am I?
Other than my mom, I’m actually not that close to anyone in my family.
Whenever I’m around them, I feel like I’m in that alien bar from Star Wars.
I’m not around them a lot.
#11. There’s a bruise there
I’m adopted. I’ve always known. But it’s kind of an ouch-ey thing for me. I don’t talk about it a lot.
#12. Yeah, I overreacted
I’m totally terrified of flying.
I’ll do it if I have to. But I hate it. A lot.
The first time I got on a plane, I started screaming Ohmygod we’re going to die! as the plane was taking off. Over and over again.
I don’t do that anymore.
(p.s. If you were the lady sitting next to me that day, I’m so sorry.)
#13. Well, the limo ride was nice
When I was a kid, I was on the Today Show.
Jane Pauley interviewed me. Well, me and some other kids.
It’s kind of a long story. But the whole experience actually kind of sucked.
It wasn’t Jane’s fault. And I did get to meet Willard Scott. Who was nice.
#14. I could hurl chunks (but I don’t)
And, while we’re rapping about interviews, I get ridiculously nervous before I do one.
Like ZOMG-I’m-going-to-puke-on-myself nervous.
Every single time. Even though I’ve done a ton of them. And even though I totally love doing them.
And then I’m completely fine two seconds after we start.
I did another interview on Monday*. It was awesome. And I almost barfed beforehand.
* David described me as a “punk rock bodhisattva.” Favorite. Description. Ever.
#15. You can’t hold this against me
My first concert?
Bruce Hornsby and the Range. At the zoo.
Did you just die of lame? Does it matter that I was like 11 or something?
I didn’t think so.
#16. Happy little trees
You know I’m all about music and sound schtuff.
Duh.
You probably don’t know that I paint too.
I started when I was a wee little nugget. And I’ve pretty much always done it.
I love painting.
And I’m also totally shy about showing my paint-ey bits to other people.
#17. I break for mirepoix
I love to cook.
My peanut butter fudge is world famous.
I seriously considered culinary school at one point. My love for this sound-ey thang won out.
But if I wasn’t doing this?
I’d own a restaurant.
Or be gigging it up with a punk band in an endless string of crappy bars.
Or both.
#18. Tricked
I not-so-secretly resent the fact that I can’t still go trick-or-treating. I would if I could.
#19. Full circle
In ‘94 I moved in with a couple of friends.
A few months into it they ran into some great big scary financial problems. The bank was about to snag their house.
I sold all of the recording + music gear that I had and gave them the moolah to pay their mortgage.
Packing that stuff up was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.
So being able to finally set up a new studio last year?
Epic.
#20. Boom-ey goodness
I own a pair of red drumsticks.
But I don’t have a drum kit. Yet. But I will soonsoonsoon.
I got the drumsticks to make space for future drum-ey gorgeousness.
If you happen to be my neighbor, please consider this a heads up.
I’ll send fudge to make up for it.
#21. Let’s go with “quirky”
When I’m writing, I go back and read what I’ve written out loud.
In a terrible British accent.
I am not British.
I have done this for years. I have no idea why.
#22. Gettin’ my mojo on
I tie all kinds of talisman-ey things on to all of my drums.
A St. Expedite medal. Peruvian prayer beads. A Ganesh pendant. Lucky beans. A plastic KISS charm.
I never really play a drum until I’ve decked it out.
#23. Isn’t that a Garth Brooks song?
Once upon a time I was engaged to someone else.
Before my wife. Way before.
My ex-fiancée suddenly and unexpectedly called the wedding off a couple months before the wedding date.
But get this.
She still got married that day. To someone else.
Crazy, right?
#24. Perspective = a beautiful thing
And when that relationship went poof, it felt like the one of the worst things ever.
Now?
I see how my life would have taken a woefully + wildly different route if things had shaken out according to that plan.
Thank gawd for unexpected-and-hard-but-ultimately-really-awesome detours.
#25. “Yes, chef!”
I dig reality TV*.
I know it’s hip to slag it off.
But I won’t apologize for watching Big Brother, Hell’s Kitchen or Project Runway.
* For the record, I think The Bachelor/Bachelorette are basically the grossest shows ever.
#26. Family ties
Everybody always asks, Why Cincinnati?
Which is a perfectly reasonable question. Because, really.
I live here because Mom’s here.
She needs some extra help these days. And I want to help.
So I’m here. For now.
Someday I’ll be somewhere else.
Like Portland. Or Asheville. Or Monterey.
#27. Take this color wheel and shove it
Black is my favorite color.
And I think it’s all kinds of annoying when, after telling somebody that, they say, Yeah, but black isn’t really a color.
#28. Pooh (of the non-Winnie variety)
When I was in third grade I begged my parents for a monkey. Begged.
Mom finally said yes. On one condition.
I had to clean up the monkey dookie. Which she explained in alarming detail.
My interest in the monkey? Gonzo.
I’m pretty sure she knew that was going to happen.
#29. Strange fruit
I have an obsession with weird fruit.
My current fruit-ey fixation? Buddha’s Hands.
Followed very closely by the rambutan. Which is just fun to say.
Raaaaaamboooootannnn!
#30. What the eff is that?!
My first job was cleaning hotel rooms. I was like 15.
And I was absolutely horrified at the stuff people would leave in their rooms.
Enough said.
#31. Cobra clutch leg sweep
I’ve spent an embarrassing amount of time shopping for the perfect luchador mask.
And when I find it I will probably wear it all the time. Even though I have glasses.
I’m not sure how that will work. But I’ll figure it out.
Your turn
It would be rad to know more about you too.
So you’re totally welcome to play along. If you want.
Or we can just hang out and drink some of this oh-my-gawd-it’s-everywhere tea.
My wife would probably really appreciate the extra space in the pantry.
Flickr credit – Arria Belli
#1 Hee, I remember scheduling a kiss with my 9th grade boyfriend. Only missed a little Study Hall, though.
#6 Yes, we all know I miss my dad just a bit.
#7 I would totes love to drink some tea with you (and ze wife; I understand the lack-of-pantry space thing), which is why I think you should choose Asheville, though #26 is partially why I’m in Charlotte now and #10 is probably why I’ll eventually leave, unless we can all agree to stay the hell away from the topics of politics and religion.)
#15 I’ll see your Bruce Hornsby and raise you The Osmond Brothers, with the defense that I was six.
I love it when people do these. Readers smile and/or wince with recognition and sympathy more than we writers often think.
I love this list. Thank you for posting it. I was just thinking the other day about how badly I want to go trick or treating and how lame it is that adults can’t do it. People in my neighborhood get mad at the teenagers who still go around, but I love those kids! I say, keep trick or treating! I also had a scheduled kiss once (stairway behind the concession stand in the gym) and I also begged for a monkey (couldn’t get one because it would “shred the curtains.”) Have a beautiful day!!
Crazy how afraid we are to share stuff like this, when it is stuff like this that is the very core of who we are. It’s the best part of everyone. You made me laugh and STILL gave me a peek into the inner workings of my friend Fabeku – who I now think is waaaaaay cooler than ever before.
I love learning such random bits about people… it makes me feel a little less like my own random bits make me so totally weird that I do not belong in society with anyone! And I’ll definitely share tea with you… not only have I been addicted most of my life (british grandparents) I’ve just started working part time in a tea store; can we just forget about eating? I need somewhere to store my new teas…
.-= Sulwyn´s last blog ..New Eyes =-.
Such awesomeness…. As you saw, I did a sort of “pictorial” version of this recently on FB. Perhaps I’ll do a word version as well, but don’t hold your breath. As for teas, my current favorite is a way overpriced blend from Teavana -Samurai Chai Mate w/ White Ayurvedic Chai. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm
Oh, Fabeku! I loved this SO incredibly much. I’m almost speechless. Almost, except I have to tell you that I trick-or-treated until I was 17, and I still miss it, too. All that chocolate we’re missing out on!
And first concert wise? Oh boy, do I have you beat. Paula Abdul + Color Me Bad. No, really.
.-= Briana´s last blog ..Goddess Leonie Allan in the Green Room with a swift kick to the balls =-.
Um, a few notes on your things:
1. Asheville! Yes! Move here! We will go the Chocolate Lounge together! And drink tea!
2. We’re going to give you your own reality TV show: Pimp My Drums. First project: Jay’s (my husband), ok?
3. My first concert….(are you ready?)….Steven Curtis Chapman and Micheal W. Smith at King’s Island.
Seriously.
Can we still be friends?
.-= tara´s last blog ..Good Shtuff- Boats Treasure Edition =-.
Forgot one thing — I’m so grateful you fought through the chunk hurling thing, because I listened to your Duct Tape interview and your voice is swooney smooth.
.-= Briana´s last blog ..Goddess Leonie Allan in the Green Room with a swift kick to the balls =-.
I love this list. My cupboards are overflowing with tins of tea, too! They all have crazy names like “Emperor’s Gold”, or “Pu-Er Rose.” There’s a tea room three blocks from the house, and it takes all my willpower to stay out of there.
I saw old chap, what a spiffing coincidence, I’m a tea snob and love lashing ginger beer too.
Quid pro quo, Clarice
I too love this glimpse inside the make up of Fabeku. I have to say, I go both ways – tea AND coffee please (I can be a snob but I also like to taste test). And sharing a cuppa or pota almost any quality of it if it means I get a chance to sit and shoot the breeze with someone, is always possible.
.-= LaShae´s last blog ..Knot Unusual =-.
That was neat! I loved learning more about you, and I really liked the way you wrote this post.
- We’re the same age!
- I used to drink herbal tea only, but traveling got me into tea (of the camelia sinensis variety) as well, first in Grenada, then in Iran – oh, the insane amount of tea I have drunk in Iran! and the deliciousness of it! just the smell of it gets me back there in a blink.
- I called my wedding off a couple of months before the wedding date, though my fiancé and I ended up staying together for a couple more years before we finally went our own separate ways.
There you go, a few tidbits about me and my quirky life.
Wow… this is a great post… I have thought often of doing something like this but I am, typically, terrified. I figure no one is likely interested in what makes me odd.
I’m terrified of people… I want so much to make friends, but I am afraid to talk to anyone, hence I tend to spend time talking to myself on my blog or talking to myself on the Twitter, not knowing how to approach people… I yearn to be accepted… I just don’t know how to join in…
.-= Pam/Moon’sLark´s last blog ..One Less Item Everyday- My wedding ring =-.
Pam, I hope you see this, because I’d like to give you a sisterhood hug. I communicate so much better with my keyboard than I do in real life. I have similar problems in real life. Life circumstances have forced me to open my mouth on some matters (i.e. child advocacy), but small talk? I get a tummyache just thinking about it. You aren’t alone — and I’m quite sure you’re wonderful.
I’m cafemercury on Twitter, and I’d like very much to follow you, if you feel comfortable with that.
.-= Linnea´s last blog ..What do you wish for less of Wishcasting Wednesday =-.
Peanut butter fudge! Yum!!
And #24? That realization altered my life in a seriously good way.
Thank you for sharing this. I loved reading it. And now I will always read your posts with a British accent.
Psst – the left coast of Canada is a great place to live too, ya know…
.-= Patty K´s last blog ..Things I learned from my first product launch =-.
I love this, so much. These are the things that make us who we are. Maybe, just maybe I will do my own. I’m really, incredibly concealed. We’ll see. But it does have me intrigued.
OH. The British accent thing, I read the news that way, and books sometimes too. The British accent is far less lazy than the American. At least that’s what I tell myself.
.-= Crystal´s last blog ..Waiting to be Gobsmacked =-.
I think you are even more cool. If that is possible. Loved reading this.
I love ginger ale. Well, I love Vernors (Diet). There really isn’t any other ginger ale that tastes quite as good. Happily, you can find Vernors in Oregon (I never found it in Minnesota or California, I am sorry to say).
I would love a restaurant, only to decorate it. I have this image of a huge warehouse-y industrial-y type space with exposed beams and cement walls and old-looking wood floors and huge canvases with abstract art and a stage at one end. I don’t really want to do anything else though, just decorate and hand it off. Ok .. I guess I really just want to be a decorator.
Cannot, cannot watch horror movies. I was at a sleepover in third grade or so where they watched one of those horror movies (some sort of series all involving a cute little girl). I had nightmares for YEARS, even during catnaps in church. I can still see one particularly horrifying scene from the movie in my head. On a German club trip, they watched Silence of the Lambs. I spent the entire movie walking back and forth in the hallway outside the room with my hands over my ears.
My first concert was Sawyer Brown and some other country guy (Toby Keith?), but I still love Sawyer Brown.
.-= Elizabeth´s last blog ..why reiki is like the cheshire cat =-.
So, when that someday comes, the only real choice is Asheville. I mean, we’ve got both the Chocolate Lounge AND the Chocolate Fetish. How could one turn that down?
I love love that you read your writing out loud in a British accent. I sing mine. I have no idea why. I don’t sing – it’s not pretty. The cat runs and hides.
Tea is god’s gift to man (along with chocolate). I cleaned out my tea cupboard the other day and was surprised by how many different boxes and tins I had. Have I mentioned that I love tea?
Grand Funk was my 1st concert back in ’72 or ’73 – they rocked. I’m glad it was a band I still listen to today and that I’m not embarrassed to say so.
Talismen on your drums are a great idea! yeah, it adds more spirit, more mojo. I have some little mascots I bring to every gig and set them up under the Gongs.
Ginger Ale rocks and it kept me going this summer when I was ill and nothing else tasted as good.
Thanks for sharing!
The more I read your stuff, the more I dig you (i.e. admire you lots). You inspire me to show myself to the world after having been hidden for too many years.
So that being said, I will add some stuff here too.
#1 Being a year from 60 Im wondering if the first person I remember kissing was really the first person I ever kissed (I’m not liking how the memory is playing tricks on me here), but I will tell you my memory of that first kiss was with a younger boy named Ed Sullivan. And he was hawt.
#5 I am a tattoo virgin. Maybe I’ll do it for my 60th birthday. I even know what I want.(The sign of virgo inside a sun) However, I will tell you, when I was in high school I used to draw flowers on my legs with blue magic markers and go shoe shopping at the mall with my girl friend (it was the 60′s, right? flower power and body paint were big. and it was a way for me to bold in ways that i couldn’t be at home)
#6 I will be brave and admit that I don’t miss my parents. I did for a long time, and sometimes I get sad that I never got to have the relationship with them that I would have preferred, but I’m glad to be fully functional at this point in my life and not taking care of either one of them. And I’m also proud of how much I’ve healed from my childhood.
#9 Silence of the Lambs ruined me for Anthony Hopkins, too.
#15 The first concert I remember going to was *a-hem* The Beatles! I almost didn’t get to go because of a crazy mishap with a run-away hamster and a broken toilet (that’s a realllllly long story). Nevertheless, I got to be a part of that moment in history and screamed my heart out with my friends Joan and Karen (or was it just Joan?)
#30 I was a motel maid for about three months. Conventions are no fun. Unbelievable how rude people can be. Leave it for the maid to take care of. People, I hope you always leave a tip when you stay in a motel.
Thanks for writing this Fabeku. It makes me feel good to know that you won’t be struggling with showing who you are when you are in your 50′s. I’m a little envious…
.-= Sue´s last blog ..Boundless Giving Mandala =-.
You’re too charming! I’m glad you hit the pooblish. I wish I could have visited with you when I went through Cincy this summer, but I imagine we will share a bit of geography somewhere eventually. And then we shall drink tea and talk about fancy ways to cook weird fruit (I went to culinary school so I can geek out on food for hours).
Personally I think you should move to Portland. Come… be part of Cascadia…
Sending some Vernors love to you!
.-= Shannon´s last blog ..The Menorah in my Freezer =-.
Duuuuude, I love yours so much! Wasn’t it fun to write? I had so much fun writing mine. And not only did I pierce my ears, and all my friends, I pierced my nose too.
.-= Julie Stuart´s last blog ..Dear Harvard Business Review- =-.
Oh, and my first concert….The Who. I know. I rock.
.-= Julie Stuart´s last blog ..Dear Harvard Business Review- =-.
Re #14 Dood! I had no idea you had even a trace of jittery before the interview – you were so fun to talk to!
Re #21 Um, I think a recorded reading is now called for.
One of these days I’ll have to follow your lead and do one of these types of posts, but for the moment I’ll just drop a few nuggets like: All through grade and middle school I pretty much had a cheese sandwich every day for lunch. I dropped out of soccer camp in the summer between 8th and 9th grade. I’ve been hit in the eye by a baseball, a softball, a football, and a squash ball – you could say sports weren’t really my thing. As a kid I had boxes full of Lego – I kind of wish I still did. I paid to have my left ear pierced in 1982, I think I was the first guy in Northfield, MN to do that so they were going to charge me the same for one ear as they usually charged for doing both… I said forget that, put both studs in one ear. My mom didn’t appreciate my cleverness on that one either.
.-= David Cohen´s last blog ..Harry told me- Work is Personal =-.
Love the Buddha’s hands!!! They’re like Cthulhufruit!!! (and ohmygosh they smell so good. I found a recipe for candied Buddha’s hands one time . . . weird . . . but good.)
I think the red drumsticks are my favorite. Somehow? That just totally sums you up in my mind! They’re like hopeful noise makers making room for brightness. Or something.
And I love knowing that you’re so nervous before an interview. Not because I like you being nervous (I don’t! You deserve calm!) but because it makes me feel less bad about the nerves-from-hell.
Ok, what to share what to share?
1. I eat odd things for breakfast. Like fishsticks. Or left over BBQ.
2. I have this weird collection of rattle things. Gourds. Ping pong ball rattles. Goat-hooves-on-a string.
3. Left-over childhood fears: Getting a shoelace caught in an escalator. Losing digits to an electric fan. Someone seeing my stuffed toys through the window and breaking in to steal them.
Seems perfectly rational, doesn’t it?
.-= Tori Deaux´s last blog ..Six Months Later… A Circus Was Born =-.
This is excellent
#1: I still have my blankie from when I was a kid. My mom said that when I had a person to sleep with, I wouldn’t want it any more. Sorry, mom, not so much.
#2: Although I am a serious foodie with enough food politics for three normal people, I have a slightly backwards love of Little Debbie brownies and microwave popcorn.
#3: I started drinking coffee when I lived in England because it reminded me of my dad and one of my teachers, who I missed terribly.
I’m only on #13 and have to post – I’m laughing out loud and nodding my head!! You are beyond awesome. Ok, off to read the rest!!
It was so cool to learn more about you. Thanks for sharing.
I doubt that I could come up with 31 things that I would fearless share, but I did manage a couple:
I wasn’t brave enough to pierce my own ears so I had a friend’s Mom do them for me. I guess I was about 14 at the time. I can’t remember what my Mom felt, but I have an odd feeling isn’t wasn’t enthusiasm. The funny thing is I rarely wear earrings any more – like it’s probably been 3 years or more even though hubby has gifted me with many beautiful pairs over the years.
And I backed out of the do-it-yourself tattoo that I was tempted by when I was 18, although I now am contemplating one again – this time done by a professional!
And then, most odd of all, I love Silence of the Lambs. I barely turn the TV on. I haven’t been to a movie theatre in probably 20 years. (No I didn’t just leave the cloister.) I never watch movies on TV, but one day I was walking through a room and Silence of the Lambs was on. I am not even sure if anyone was actually watching or someone had left the TV on. Something about that movie just grabbed me. I stopped dead in my tracks and stopped and watched. If I am in one of my rare TV watching moods and the guide shows that it is on, I actually will turn it on – although I have never seen the entire movie and generally watch only a few minutes.
Lastly, I must add that you have been an inspiration. Not only did I learn (well I had to Google it) what rambutan is, but this evening as I was grocery shopping, I noticed something I had never seen before – a jimaca. You can probably tell that my food choices have never been too adventurous. Anyway I decided to try it. We’re checking out and hubby looks at me and asks what it is and how it tastes. I said, I don’t know, but we’ll find out soon! Thanks for being an inspiration.
Fabulous!
My eyes misted with tears during the challeng-y bits, my head nodded in agreement with the hard-earned life lesson-y bits, and I giggled out loud which brought my daughter over, curious why I was laughing.
I am SO GRATEFUL you mustered up your courage and wrote this post.
xoxo.
.-= Nona´s last blog ..Letting Life Break You Open =-.
I loved reading this. I love the fact that you posted this. From both a businessy and friendy standpoint, I respect you even more than I did 31 things ago.
At 15 I got drunk and botched my own ear-piercing job with a safety pin. I wore a dangling pig in my throbbing left lobe for about a week before I let it close. Later I had a pro do it again. and again. and again again. and…
I salute you with my bloody lobes.
Hey taters!
31 things. 31 comments. LOVE!
And I love all of the awesomeness you all dropped in the comments here.
Responses! I have them.
@Linnea – Oh yay! I’m not the only one who scheduled kisses. Whew! And I hear you on the missing-my-dad thing. So so much.
And tea! Yes! That would be a thousand kinds of fabulous. We could drink chai until our heads exploded. Or something like that.
And I’m so glad I left that Bruce Hornsby thing in there. Because it has inspired some seriously good stuff in response.
@Lori-Lyn – You get the trick-or-treating thing! YES! It is terribly lame that adults can’t do it. I think we should all move to our own town where we can trick-or-treat forever, if I want.
And another scheduled kiss + begging-for-a-monkey! Amazing. And awesome!
@Mary – Aw, thanks you. You’re the sweetness. (p.s. Yeah, it was kind of kooky how scared I was to post this.)
@Sulwyn – More company for tea! Yay! And OMG. How do you manage working in a tea store? My brain goes boom just thinking about it.
@Noura – Your pictorial was so cool. You had some of the most fabulous hair ever.
I’m also not allowed to go in the Teavana store. Every time I do a large chunk of money mysterious vanishes from my wallet. I have no idea why it’s happening. But I’m avoiding the store, to be safe.
@Briana – The chocolate! Yes! And a perfectly reasonable excuse to go nuts buying costumes. I love that you trick-or-treated until you were 17. Go you!
I think my parents made me stop when I was like 13 or 14. I feel robbed.
But Paula Abdul + Color Me Bad… LOVE!
@Tara - Tea! Chocolate! You! Yesss. Asheville is rapidly moving up my list. And that reality show idea? I would be all over it! ALL over it.
And as for your first concert? We can totally be friends. I still listen to Boy George. So I’m hardly in any position to judge anyone on the basis of their tunes. (grin)
@Briana – Thanks. That was sweet of you to say. *blush*
@Jolie – Aren’t tea names wild and wacky and wonderful? I was thinking about that this weekend and doing extra noticing after what you said. Silver Orchid. Monkey-Picked Oolong. Tippy South Cloud. They are only slightly less wacky than paint names.
And how do you avoid camping out at the tea room? The closest tea joint is a 15 or 20 minute car ride for me. Which is probably good. Because otherwise? I’d move in.
@Nathan – Ginger beer. Mmmmmm. And that Clarice thing? Dear gawd. That gives me shivers!
@LaShae - I’m totally with you on the shooting-the-breeze thing. I think tea + coffee is a great way to huddle up and gnaw on some brilliance. Lovelovelove it!
@Josiane – Tea in Iran? Swoon.
Thanks for sharing the wedding experience too. I’m always kind of amazed at how complex human relationships are. Big and deep and kind of wow, really.
@Pam – Oh Pam. So much hard here. And so many sorries too.
Can I share a thirty-second something here? I used to be terrified of people too. Like hugely. I wanted the connection, but the fear totally stopped me.
I’m not saying I know exactly what you’re feeling, because that’s kind of a suck thing to say. I’ve just been at a point in my own life where the scared and the OMG-I-want-to-connect were doing a serious tug-of-war. And I know how much that sucked.
And can I just say that from our interactions here and on Twitter, I think you’re all kinds of awesome. I’m happy to see your avatar every time it pops up on the twitters.
@Linnea – You are awesome. And I appreciate you like crazy.
@Patty – Perspective FTW! It is a delicious thing, isn’t it? And Canada…. oooh. I never considered that. But I do kind of love coast-ey bits. Hmmm.
@Crystal – You do the British accent thing too? How awesome is that?! I actually clapped when I read this. LOVE!
@Elizabeth – Vernors… yep, that’s the one. That’s what my Dad always drank.
And what you said about the restaurant made me smile. Because I love cooking. A lot. But when I talk about a restaurant, the first thing I talk about is how I’d decorate it. My mind goes nuts thinking about all the possibilities. And your restaurant? It would be gorgeous!
Obviously I totally with you about the Silence of the Lambs thing. I’d have been in the hall too. Actually that would have probably been a totally smart thing for me to do.
And Sawyer Brown… you did way way better than I did. (grin)
@Emily – Score another very solid (and very chocolate-ey) vote for Asheville!
And can I just tell you how much I love that you sing your writing? That may be one of the coolest things I’ve ever heard.
@Michael – You totally get the tea + chocolate thing. Right on! And Grand Funk… that’s actually awesome!
I love knowing that you’ve got gong-ey mascots. So so cool!
I’m also with you on the ginger ale thing. When I’ve been crazy sick, it’s about the only thing I could manage. So maybe we should include it in the god’s gift to man thing?
@Sue – Ed Sullivan…. hawt! I love the flower-ey leg decorations. And I totally admire you being able to see you don’t miss your parents. That’s big! And you saw The Beatles! Dude! (p.s. I’m am eagerly awaiting the hamster/toilet story.)
@Shannon – Thanks you! Yeah, I totally wish our paths would have crossed when you were in Cincinnati. I’d have driven you nutso asking all about culinary school. But tea! And Vernors! Yes!
And the Force is strong in Portland, I hear. I am strongly tempted.
@Julie - You are a punk rawk piercing goddess. And The Who? Yeah, that rocks hard.
@David – The pre-interview vomit-ey thing is wacky. Because I’m seriously fine the second I get on the phone. Totally weird. And I had a really fun time rapping with you too.
Cheese sandwiches… That seems totally sensible to me. In fact, I wish I’d thought of doing that.
Lots of ouch! about being hit in the eye like that. Oy. And your piercing story? I loved it.
@Bonni- OMG! Cthulufruit! You. Are. My. Hero. Now I want to buy one, glue on some of those plastic googly eyes and put it in a jar of green liquid, like a preserved-but-oh-so-delicious Cthulu!
@Tori – I heart those drumsticks a lot. I play with them everyday. And I’ve almost a) whacked myself in the nose, b) launched them through my monitor and c) launched them through my office window. So I have to be careful.
ish sticks for breakfast… go you! And I love your rattle collection. Obviously.
And, for what it’s worth, your childhood fears seem totally rational to me. (p.s. I almost included my story that involved a shoelace and an escalator too. So I’m pretty sure I get where you’re coming from here.)
@Sarah - I love that you still have your blankie! I think, at some point, they turn into talismans or something. I appreciate your love of Little Debbies a ton.
And I love what you said about coffee, and how it reminds you of two precious people. Yesyesyes.
@Jen – Thanks you. That’s sweet of you to say. (grin)
@Katie – I love piercing stories, and this one is no exception. I also love knowing you were tempted to do a DIY tattoo!
And I love that you said you love Silence of the Lambs. Go you!
What did you think of the jicama? I love them. One of my favorite ways to eat them is to slice them up, sprinkle them with lime juice, cayenne pepper, a little paprika and some sea salt and nosh away.
@Nona – Thanks Nona! I’m glad you dug it and that parts made you laugh. Very cool about your daughter too! Sweetness.
@Mr. Pants – Thanks man. I appreciate that a ton. And your piercing story? Totally punk rock. It doesn’t get much more punk than a safety pin, does it?
Mr. Pants and the Safety Pin…. that could totally be a book!
Big thanks to all of you for reading and sharing and being awesome. I appreciate every single one of you. Lots and lots.
Oh, Fabeku,
Ok, I read Barb Black’s “list” before I read yours. Having gotten that confession out of the way….wanted to read your mis-perception post, but felt I must read this first! Finally getting to it today….this is so…touching, easy-to-relate-to (waaaaaayyyy too much tea and no cupboard space in my apartment, probably why I live alone except for Miss Pumpkin, when I find someone who doesn’t think that’s the weirdest thing about me, I’ll fall in love again…), made me laugh and cry out loud.
AND…even though I love to try new foods, and love fruit and veggies, the picture of that Rambutan looks like a prop from one of those pathetic low-budget weekend Sci-Fi channel offerings I watch in private…seriously! Love horror and all things such, including Sci-Fi. “Seed Pods from Planet Foevoom” or something! hahahaha…
However, that bar in Star Wars? Thank you, I was never able to put my finger on what it was like to be with my family, most of whom I love, (some of whom I never hear from anymore and I am working on changing that, thanks in part to Facebook) and at a distance…none of them live in PA. I stayed in Sussex County, NJ, until after my mother died, and if my ex-husband hadn’t been so adamant about moving closer to NYC for a shorter work commute and so he could go back to living in familiar-to-him Bergen County, I’d have stayed at least until after my Dad passed, three years later. I hated being that far from my Dad, but being in the County wasn’t doing me a lot of good personally, I guess.
My Druid friend taught me about the communality of tea drinking – even Welshmen born in America drink tons of black tea, and the implements and ingredients are always at hand, so tea can be made at a moment’s notice. Once or twice he tried some of my “different” teas…but always loved his Red Rose, until June 16 of this year, when he moved on to the next world’s adventures. In heaven, there may or may not be beer, but in his heaven, there is always fresh hot tea with milk and honey, and his mother and dad and his boys to share it with…the only change we all got him to make from his sugar in his tea, that honey.
Once in a while I let myself have some ginger ale, which I’ve always liked, or root beer, another favorite…because I drank root beer at a Stewarts with my Dad when I was a kid…he’d take me there for lunch when it was just the two of us. When one of six kids, those were and still are special memory moments.
My love of and homing instinct for chocolate? From my mother. I always found her stash! and her backup stash, from the time I was really little.
First kiss…Tom Green, high school (always have been a late bloomer) in the basement rec room at home. It was the most amazing kiss and hardly any have come close since. He had one blue eye and one green eye and had declared himself in love with me, and we’d been spending time together for a while (do you call it dating when his mother has to drive you to the movies? I was 14 or 15, he was a year younger, something he tried to hide from me), we met at the All County Chorus rehearsals, his friend at the public high school was dating my friend Margaret Mary, I went to the Catholic high school in our town, and we probably never would have met if we both hadn’t loved music enough to venture to join County Chorus when asked, we were both shy – but he overcame his shyness to ask me out. He had a lovely voice, too. He asked me if I wanted to kiss, before he did so. Very gentle, sensitive soul. He joined the Air Force, so I know he got to live out one of his dreams, which was to fly.
I’ve worked in two swim and health clubs, and had keep-the-bathrooms-clean duty. Yeah. Ewwwwww. All I can add to that age-old debate us employees had from time to time – what’s worse, men’s or womeen’s room? is that that’s a moot point when I have to clean it up.
So glad I’m not married to my ex anymore, no one saved us from ourselves at the last minute and there were so many reasons and signs we weren’t right together.
I have a pair of drumsticks, too. Told myself it was just so I could use the end of one to teach myself stick rhythms with my djembe, they were very rough and only $2 so I sanded them smooth to the touch when I got them home, but….Since this drumm-y goodness got hold of me, more percussion-y things just come into my life, constantly… My drumming friend and I went to the Spiritual Holistic Fair last weekend in Allentown. Found a booth called Gypsy Moon, full of different little percussion things…and some small bowls, ooooohhhh, I picked up the Vietnamese flower drum and it’s mallet, she picked up somtething that clacked together two butterfly or bird-wing-shaped wooden parts and we just started playing and found a rhythm we liked…when we quit, her booth was full of customers and she was laughing and applauding, as were some of the other booths’ vendors (instead of being annoyed by the noise). We went back there before we left, hours later, and did it again..Steph taught a young man to play what she was playing by playing it off his hand “here, hold it up like this” much to his girlfriend’s amusement and the woman vendor laughed and said “so, ladies, same time tomorrow?” We made plans to visit her and her fun little instruments at a Holistic Expo in Reading PA in November. I didn’t have the $22 for the flower drum, but I had a ton of fun, she appreciated us showing people that these things were really meant to be touched and played and given their voice – sound has come back into my life and I won’t let it go again, and “meeting” you is no accident.
Me – who could not sing when asked to do so at my high school chorus audition, even when only in front of Sister Theresa, who brought me in to the chorus anyway.
Who we were and who we are today are inextricably linked and yet, different – I believe that everything we tried to express growing and learning over our lives gets to come to fruition eventually..when we find those who are really our “family” on the Earth to remind us that those “weird” things we did over the years may have been the truest part of us calling out our real song, needing to be given it’s voice – yours being Sankofa Song.
I love what getting back into some way of making music has done for my life and I want to share that with everyone, and what you do inspires me to keep going until I can do that more, with sound healing.
You are brave, yes, you are, and more importantly, you have the humility and generosity to share more of yourself, inspiring many others to do the same, starting an avalanche of gut-level-sharing. Very cool. Thank you for this. It’s beautiful.
Fabeku! I love this so much. Made me laugh, made me get teary. Thank you for being so brave and so *you*.
@Joan – Thanks for sharing your awesome. I totally dug learning more about you.
@Paulita – Aw, thanks. I appreciate that a ton.
1. I do not own double of any underwear or socks. I like to know the underwear I am wearing, and if I have two of the same, then I wouldn’t know which I was wearing.
2. I like the idea of sewing but when I sew something, I hate sewing. When I am done, I like that I sewed something. It’s like a love-hate-love sewing sandwich.
3. I love tea, too. I blend my own if you’d like to try some sometime! But the confession is this: I learned everything I know from a wonderful woman who deserves all the credit – Becca Bober from Wisconsin. Fortunate to be an apprentice to a true connoisseur…
4. I also wish I could go trick or treating. That is why I create fun games for my friends and I to play, like World Scavenger Hunt- where we collect photos from all over the world and challenge our friends from afar to find similar but different ones. Or bake for your neighbors – where we bake cookies, brownies or muffins for strangers next door we haven’t met yet. There are many ways to still be a kid – it just takes courage to give yourself permission to what most people call “regress” and what I call “extend” the juvenescence.
5. On that note, I am obsessed with words that don’t commonly come up in our everyday lives. Like purlicue. Or floccinaucinihilipilification. Or any of these: http://pedanticposts.com/things-you-didnt-even-know-had-a-name/
It was great stumbling upon your blog! Keep it quirky.
i’m totally crushing on you right now
x
Susannah recently posted..A writer’s food diary
@Meghann – I love the sock/underwear thing. It makes total sense to me! And a fellow lover-of-the-tea. Sweet! I’d love to know more about your tea.
@Susannah – The crushing is totally mutual, sweet friend.
Twitter: maviemagique
It makes me very happy to read what you write! Thanks for being you.