Black Oak's Daughter

1. I have a spiritual connection to water, I could float in a pool for hours and just let my body relax and connect to the universal energy that abounds.
2. I couldn’t float in a lake or river though. I’m afraid of everything in the water except for people. Phobia’s aren’t fun. I wanted to go snorkeling in Hawaii, just to see if I could, but it didn’t happen.
3. I love cats, some people think I’m one of those freaky cat ladies. I’m really not. The 3 that I have are NOT furchildren, they are animals. I respect them as animals, I take care of them, because I think all pet owners have a responsibility to do that, and last but not least, I enjoy having them around. My cats are also well socialized and make me smile, a lot. Nuff Said.
4. I’ve never had a dog. I’d really like one or two, but I’m not home enough to socialize and train a puppy properly, and that wouldn’t be fair to the animal, so I’ll just stick to being Alpha Cat for now.
5. I’m weird about tomatoes. I only like them raw in bruschetta, not on sandwiches, or salad, and I only like them cooked in marinara sauce, or ketchup but not any other variation.
6. I learned to read when I was 2.
7. I started playing violin at age 3 and piano at age 4
8. I quit both instruments when I was 8. Music died when my dad did. Mom was too sick to make me practice an hour a day. I still dabble on the piano now and then.
9. I have 2 regrets in life. The first is between me and God and the other person that was affected.
10. My second regret in life is giving up the violin
11. My dad is still my hero. He died 30 years ago and I’m still learning from him.
12. I fall in love easily, but I have better judgment now about who I fall for
What a guy looks like, or how fat his wallet is, has nothing to do with what I look for in a man.
13. I have only ever made love to a handful of guys and I only regret one of them. He lied to me.
14. I hate gardening, but I like plants. I have a well cared for jungle in my office, but my yard looks like no one has lived here for months.
15. When I rebuild my deck, it’s going to have garden boxes so I can have an herb garden again.
16. I love to make people smile.
17. I started chatting on line because I was lonely, but now I do it because people laugh at what I throw out there. It’s a good feeling.
18. I also chat because of the psychology. It’s like people watching at the mall, but I don’t have to leave my living room.
19. I don’t have a favorite color. When people ask, I arbitrarily choose between the ones that I like that match whatever mood I’m in at the moment. Among those colors I honestly don’t have a preference.
There are colors that I don’t like. They occur in nature, and they are fine there – aqua, orange, redwood. All of those things are fine in their native state, just keep them out of my wardrobe, and my house.
20. I love my Birkenstocks – all 3 pairs
21. I was born 10 years too late. I should have been a hippie. I like long flowing clothes, folk music, and yes, I’m a tree hugger. I’d rather hike a national park then go to anyplace commercial like Disney or the Wisconsin Dells.
22. I don’t like fruit, except for strawberries, and most juices. I only tried strawberries because I was with someone who I didn’t want to think that I was finicky. I like them now more because of the memory that I associate with the time that I spent with him than because of the way they taste which I’m really starting to enjoy anyway. I buy them for myself now. I used to like bananas, a lot, but they make me sick now, physically. It’s not worth the stomach pain.
23. I sing, and chair dance in my car, and I don’t care who sees or hears me
24. My daughter sings with me, and that makes me really really happy
25. If there were one thing in life that I wish I could go back and do, it would be to play the organ at my old church and sing one of the old classic hymns in harmony with my dad. I never got to do that. He had a beautiful voice. We would have sounded good together.
Now read 24 again and understand why my daughter singing with me makes me happy
26. You couldn’t pay me to live on the Gulf Coast or in California. Hurricanes, fire, landslides, and earthquakes aren’t my thing. Tornadoes can be out run. Better yet, find me a nice mountain somewhere with a cool stream and lots of trees. I could be happy in a place like that for a long time.
27. Oddly enough, I’d live in Hawaii. The most connected that I’ve ever felt was hiking out to the lava flow on an active volcano. Volcanoes are spiritual places. Powerful, awe inspiring, and yes, they can also very effectively relocate your house, but somehow that seems more like divine intervention, and not the wrath of God that happens in a hurricane. (there’s a difference between the two in my mind anyway)
28. My house where I grew up had no AC, but it did have the most excellent pool I’ve ever seen. No wonder I like water…
29. The first concert other than classical music that I ever went to was 4 years ago. I was 37. We saw Alison Krauss. It was good.
30. I was born and raised in one of the largest cities in the US and I would do anything to move out to the country. People are nicer there, and common sense still exists. The older I get the more I want to be somewhere beautiful, and the suburban subdivision that I live in now isn’t it.
31. I believe in God, but not organized religion. Religion is born out of culture. Spirituality is universal and not tied to a race or religion. Everyone has their own experience of the truth of the Spirit, and it has nothing to do with the cultural framework/myths that organized religion insists is the truth.
32. I believe that there is love everywhere, you just have to accept it into your life. The same goes for evil. The choice is yours.
33. I can count the number of people that I truly trust in this world on one hand, and that makes me sad. There used to be a lot more trustworthy people in my life. I’m not sure if that says something about my life, or something about the world. Probably a little of both.
34 I’m prejudiced against fat people. Probably because I’m fat and I don’t like that about myself. I generally don’t judge people by their race or religion, all of my prejudices are around physical or emotional characteristics. I can’t stand whiners either.
35. I used to think that I was no better or worse than anyone on the planet, but now there’s one person that I know I’m better than. He did me wrong for many years, and I let him. I’m not proud of that, but he took it to new lows, to places that I would NEVER go, and I am better than that, and him. There’s no other way to say it.
36. I suck at finances, but the only debt I owe is my house, so it’s not all bad.
37. I’m not afraid of spiders, unless there the big squishy kind, and that’s more of a “ew gross” thing than it is a fear.
38. I LOVE Christmas because I get to see my family. I have a great family.
39. Sea otters are mood lifting. If you ever want to be happy, go to a zoo or aquarium or if you can, the Ocean, and watch them for a while.
40. I miss my middle brother. I wonder where he is, and if he’s happy, and if he knows that I still think about him. It’s been 12 years since I’ve heard from him. (update, he’s fine and living on the east coast)
41. I love the Harry Potter series of books, Dune, and LOTR too, but my favorite series is still The Earth Children series by Jean Auel. I should have named my daughter Ayla like I wanted too….
42. OK, It was either Ayla Siobhan or Siobhan Aileen. Mom didn’t like either of those names. *sigh* Nicole is a pretty name, just WAY TOO COMMON. Irish names are somewhat common in my family too. If I were naming her now it would be Siobhan Granuaile, because Granuaile was a kick ass and take no names kind of Irish woman. I like her, on a lot of levels.
43. I think marijuana should be legal even though I don’t smoke it.
44. I was born August 30th, that makes me a Virgo. I was supposed to be born October 1st which would have made me a Libra. Virgo suits me better.
45. I stopped breathing the night I was born. 5 weeks premature in 1966 was a big deal. My lungs still suck. I’ve had pneumonia 3 times.
46. I’m addicted to Caffeine (update – kicked it during surgery recovery, go me )
47. I don’t like having my picture taken
48. This is my current favorite song lyric – Real Live Woman
49. I prefer to be barefoot
50. I sleep naked, unless someone besides my kid is around, then it depends on who’s there.
51. I LOVE roller coasters, but my neck hates them.
52. Jim Henson was a genius
53. I’m still undecided about what I want to be when I grow up
54. I swear too much
55. I’ve never, ever used illegal drugs, except for smoking pot once and that was recently, and probably won’t happen again.
56. I don’t drink often. It’s not worth it. I go from not drunk right to sick. I’ve only been noticeably buzzed twice, and that wasn’t really enjoyable enough to want to pursue it.
57. I don’t wear makeup and I’m OK with that. I do a little eye make up if I go out or something, but not often, and I always forget to take it off, so I wake up with swollen raccoon eyes because I’m allergic to makeup.
58. I like dandelions and clover, which is a good thing, because there’s more of them then there is grass in my back yard.
59. I don’t get reality TV. What’s the point?
60. I HATE being the passenger in a car. It’s a control thing. I trust my driving, I don’t know theirs. The only driver that I really trust is my brother, who taught me how to drive.
61. I have an irrational fear of driving in the rain and losing traction. I can do it, but I will be wound up like you wouldn’t believe afterwards.
62.Driving in snow doesn’t bother me. Go Figure. My brother taught me how to skid on ice, not on water.
63. I have weird issues with sharing. Everything had to be divided equally between the three of us when I was a kid, and it’s still that way in my head. Heaven forbid if someone gets ONE more than the others…Things have to be equal.
64. I’m trying to get over that, cause it makes me feel selfish and over protective, and just generally strange.
65. I have self esteem issues. I’m always surprised when someone meets me in real life and likes me.
66. I like to flirt, and I’m good at it
67. I like what flirting leads too, and I’m good at that too, with the right person.
68. Really good O’s are such a release, sometimes I can’t help crying, or giggling, it’s about 50/50 for which happens. Even I can’t predict it.
69. My daughter just read that and went “MOMMMM ……….EWWWW TMI!!!” in her head. Sometimes I write things just to shock her. That last one wasn’t one of them. When she’s my age, she’ll understand.
70. I worked in Sales for 10 years and I completely suck at remembering names.
71. The littlest things make me happy. Smiling at a baby and getting one back, cats purring, little things…
72. I thrive on touch. If you’re my friend, you will be hugged, and I’ll probably try to hold your hand at some point. It’s not flirting, it’s just a touch thing.
73. Sometimes I think I’m too smart, and occasionally I try to not be, but I suck at playing dumb
74. My friends are mostly guys. I have more in common with them then I do *most* women.
75. I have never dyed my hair, I’ve done red highlights once. I’ll probably do that again.
76. I have 2 tattoos planned, but I won’t get it until I’m back down to what I consider a reasonable weight.
77. I hated being a girl scout. That was a bad year anyway. Dad died, I moved from Montessori School into the public school system, and being a Brownie was just the icing on that rotten cake. I’d probably have liked it at least a little bit if all that other stuff hadn’t happened.
78. When I meet a guy, I sometimes wonder how good of a kisser he is. I only have one guy friend that I’ve actually found that out about though (just kissed, nothing else).

78.5 There’s one other that I have some very honest conversations with and I’ve discussed it with him. He admitted to wondering about me too, but he’s happy with someone else so we’ll leave it at the curiosity level, for now J
79. My daughter is now trying to figure out who that is…
80. I’d love to be a tornado chaser, just once. I’m a weather freak.
81. I have only ever fulfilled one man’s fantasy (that I know of) and I did it knowing that it was his fantasy, and I loved doing it, on so many different levels. Is it strange that I’m proud of that?
82. There’s more cat hair in my house than I’m comfortable with, but at least it doesn’t smell like a litter box. I work to keep them clean.
83. I’m more blunt then I need to be… mostly for effect, and not because I’m socially inept. I’m nice when I need to be, but I know how to play sarcasm, and who will take it well, and I enjoy it completely.
84. I’m mostly a democrat. I am a liberal, but I try to think for myself rather than accepting stock viewpoints.
85. I think abortion is a personal decision, and that I have no right to judge anyone or the situation that they are in, but it wasn’t for me. I’m glad I didn’t have one when I was 17 and pregnant. I love my daughter more than I ever thought possible, and she turned out OK in spite of some bumps in the road.
86. I wish I knew the steps to all the stock line dances. I’d be good at them.
87. I’m mostly Irish and German. The German part is more recent. My mom’s parents spoke German at home and Grampa was born there. My dad’s family came over to the US from Ireland in the early 1600’s. In spite of the span of time between then and now, I feel much more connected to the Irish in me than I do to the German. Someday I’ll get to Belfast and find the rest of the history before 1610. There’s some American Indian in there too. I’m very connected to the least part of my heritage.
88. I was born 20 years and 20 days after my parents were married. They were 43 and 44.

89. My oldest cousin is 23 years older than me. His kids are barely younger than me. I was always at the kids table and I that was OK, but it was strange being there with my cousin’s kids, and not with my cousins at the big people’s table.
90. It sucked having older parents. People over 40 should really think about bringing a kid into the world before they do it.
91. I never felt like I fit in when I was young, because my parents were the same age as my friends grandparents, and things at my house were never as hip as things at my friends houses because their parents were so much more connected to the culture than mine were.
92. I like it now though, I’m not afraid to be my own person because of what I learned about what was important from my older parents. Culture isn’t everything, and it’s more about how you relate to people than it is about which Coach bag you have or what kind of car you drive. I just wish they had stuck around for long enough to see that payoff.
93. My handwriting has gotten horrible since I started using the computer, but it’s still readable
94. I have been classified as an INFP (or iNFp) and INFJ (or INFJ)… at least the INF part is right. The P or J mostly depends on my mood. Here’s the test
95. I love looking at floor plans for houses. My favorite house plan ever had the master bedroom on the first floor and it had a stairway from the master closet to an upstairs room that wasn’t accessible to the rest of the upstairs, except by balcony. Kind of a secret hideaway. I like that.
96. I’m not big on poetry, but “The Road Not Taken” and more recently “Thanatopsis” have shaped my subconscious more than I previously thought.
97. I vote, but I have never voted for a presidential candidate that won. It’s a joke among my friends that know that. “Hey Mel, could you please vote for ________?”
98. My eye color changes depending on my mood.
99. I LOVE road trips. This is a beautiful country. I want to enjoy as much of it as I can.
100. I wish I had more local friends. My friends are spread all across the country, and it sucks when I need someone to help me move a piece of furniture or something……

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