25 Random Things

Here's that thing that we've all filled out on Facebook. I figured I'd put it here as well. "Yee" and "haw" in quick succession...

1. I only decided to write this because my brother and his friends are watching Battlestar Galactica at the moment. I plan to watch the series eventually, but not right now.

2. Ironically enough, given my oh-so-cheery (read: dejected, disillusioned, and weary) outlook toward life, my blood type is B+. (As though the very cells that course through my body wish I had a better attitude--yeah, well, bite me, blood cells. It ain't gonna happen.)

3. I watch a lot of TV (not that that comes as a shock to anyone). I have a fairly complex hierarchy of show importance that places shows into one of three tiers. In the first tier, I mentally place my favorite shows, the ones I watch the night they're on and can't wait for week to week. In the second tier go the shows I enjoy and keep up with consistently, but that get viewed later in the week, but always before the next episode. And in the sad, sorry third tier go my rainy day shows. These are the only I let build up on my DVR until I'm so desperate for something to watch that I fire them up. (The fourth tier can't be mentioned in polite company... it's where shows go to die.)

4. I applied for a new job today. I had to submit a resume and a cover letter. I tried to take the cover letter seriously, I really did, but after the first three lines, it quickly devolved into my usual smartassery. As you can see from my most recent status update, I literally ended the cover letter with, "In short, I believe I would make for an unutterably resplendent administrator. Word." I still kinda can't believe I ended it with, "Word." My boss is insanely awesome, however, and he loved it.

5. I jump on my trampoline everyday--and when I say everyday, I mean EVERY day. I jump on the trampoline (a full-sized, rectangular (very important) trampoline that's in my backyard) no matter the weather conditions or time of night. I shovel the trampoline in the winter and have backup mats and springs at the ready in case of an emergency. Yes, I'm that pathetic.

6. And quirky. I only ever jump on the trampoline in a counterclockwise rotation. I don't know why...

7. I hate people who walk on the treadmills at the gym. Seriously people, if you're planning to leisurely walk at 3 miles per hour, go up to the track. The real runners actually put the treadmills to good use.

8. I have a hard time finishing Dickens' novels. I love his writing, I really do, but when you're 478 pages into Bleak House and you have 512 to go, it's hard to keep going. I'm currently in the middle of no fewer than 4 Dickens' novels. I think the only ones I've ever finished were Oliver Twist and Great Expectations.

9. I'm a little bit psychic (and you're a little bit rock and roll--sorry, I have Osmonds-induced Tourette's). Seriously though, every now and then I come up with something out of thin air that leads me to believe I have a sixth sense. For example, I was suffering through another mind-numbing day of junior high when one of my teachers noted the languor the class was exhibiting. She looked around and said, "What's with you guys, you look so..." but before she finished the sentence, I thought to myself, "Peaked. We look peaked." And lo and behold, the word she finally chose was "peaked." If it were a more common word, I wouldn't have thought much of it, but honestly, how often do you refer to 8th graders as looking peaked? Most recently, on Dirty Sexy Money, one of the characters was trying to figure out the three digit combination to a suit case. I guessed it immediately (and it wasn't like it was a number that had been heard on the show or anything--it came out of nowhere). What are the odds? Those are two of many, many more instances. Bear in mind that these powers never help me with anything that actually matters, by the way (you know, like lotto numbers).

10. In a similar vein, I suppose, I am quite good at guessing prices. My mother is a bit of a penny pincher, so when she comes across something she feels is outrageously priced, she'll turn to me and ask me to guess how much it costs. She's always so disappointed when I guess exactly right (which is surprisingly often). One time she asked me to guess the price of a box of vanilla wafers. Upon guessing correctly, to the cent ($3.69), she balked and started turning the box over to see if it were written somewhere.

11. I write down new words that I hear and look them up as soon as possible. I usually end up writing them on my hand (the "hand"iest thing available--sorry, that was shameless). So, if you're sitting next to me on the bus and you have the preternatural skill needed to read my handwriting, you'll have to wonder what exactly I'm shopping for with a list like, "timorous, bathos, pavid, de riguerur, and sequela" written on the back of my hand.

12. I love little furniture. There's nothing more comfortable than one of those little kid sofa chairs.

13. My favorite part of the Christmas season is pretending to close my eyes when my mother enters a room. "Quick! Close your eyes! Hurry, Mom, hide the presents!" What makes it so much fun is that my mom gets hilariously flustered and says, "Oh, for crying out loud, I don't have any presents!" It cracks me up every time.

14. When I was in the fifth grade, at my parent-teacher-student evaluation whateverness, the only thing my teacher could to to put under the section for "Room for Improvement" was "Be less cynical." So yeah, I've been like this at least since I was 10.

15. I have no known allergies. Although overly ripe cantaloupe does make my mouth feel kind of scratchy.

16. My dream job would be to sing and dance on broadway. Now if only I could sing, dance, or act...

17. I have never broken a bone. (Which, given my affinity for the trampoline, is kind of a miracle.)

18. For the longest time I've been certain that I won't make it to my 30th birthday. On a related note, both the Mayans and Nostradamus believe the world will end in 2012. Guess what year I turn 30... Eerily prophetic, yes? I'll let you know how it turns out. Or I won't...

19. In spite of being a truly terrible student all through school, I always got very good grades. People thought I was smart, but I really just knew how to work the system. Whenever I'm watching Jeopardy, I can't help but think I'd be a whole lot smarter if I had actually studied. Ever.

20. I can stand up from an "Indian style" sitting position without using my hands at all. I thought this was something everyone could do, but as it turns out, I'm in the minority.

21. I have what I call an "intuitive filing system" for remembering things. I almost never write down dates and times or anything else for that matter and simply rely on my intuitive filing system to keep track of everything. I have never kept a planner, don't use a blackberry or other such PDA, and the only things I write down on my calendar are TV related. It works surprisingly well, I'll have you know. It usually occurs to me that something needs to be done just in time for me to do it.

22. I've always wished I were artistic, but I'm a quitter through and through and if something doesn't come easily to me, I'd generally give up rather than tough it out.

23. My favorite color is orange (not the I'm-a-goin'-huntin' orange, but rather a light, peachy orange).

24. The setting for about 70% of my dreams is in a hotel (well, the dreams I remember anyway).

25. I have no desire to EVER have children. I honestly don't understand those who do...