Tuesday, May 27, 2008

meme schmeme revisited

I've been tagged for two separate memes so i'll start with the more involved one. Tess tagged me a while ago with this little beauty:

1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read the player’s blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

As most of you know by now, I'm a notorious rule-breaker, so here's the deal...I'll answer the questions, but I won't necessarily follow all the tagging rules. Gol Tess, you're not the boss of me! ;)

1. What were you doing five years ago?

Um, pretty much the same thing I'm doing right now.

2. What are five snacks you enjoy?

This is a tricky question with all of the digestive issues I've had lately...but here are my answers assuming I'm able to digest these things without repercussions:
  • almonds
  • ice cream
  • anything chocolate
  • kettle chips
  • milk duds
3. What are five things on your to-do list today?

I'm posting this at night, so here's my to-do list for tomorrow:
  • get out of bed
  • prepare for an information session for next year's counseling class
  • catch up on work that has been piling up since I got sick
  • show up for several counseling sessions
  • clean my livingroom/sick-room
4. What five things would you do if you were a billionaire?

I suspect that becoming a billionaire would destroy my life, but here's my best guesses at actions that might keep me out of hell:
  • give a lot of it away to several non-profits like this one
  • develop ministry-oriented communities like the one Danny is starting
  • develop and support green initiatives
  • live as simply as possible
  • read a lot
5. What are five of your bad habits?

Only five?
  • procrastinating
  • buying more books when I have stacks that I haven't read yet
  • withdrawing when I'm overwhelmed
  • eating things that have a good chance of making me miserable
  • spending way too much time on-line
6. What are five places where you have lived?
  • I've lived in Minnesota my whole life, but I've moved about eight million times. I've lived in the worst neighborhoods and some very respectable neighborhoods, and if you want to know the truth, I prefer diverse, edgier areas. That's where I grew up, and that's where I feel most at home.
7. What are five jobs you've had?
  • nurse
  • pastor/counselor
  • business forms designer (before computers did this)
  • nanny
  • program instructor for handicapped adults
8. What five people do you want to tag?

Oh, I think you know who you are. Actually, whoever feels moved by this meme can consider themselves tagged.

I was tagged for a second meme by several people. James, Tammy and Nate asked me to list six random things about myself. Here goes...

  • I started smoking in the first grade. My babysitter taught me how. Of course, when you're in the first grade, you only smoke other people's butts or cigarettes that you manage to steal here and there, so I guess I also started to steal in the first grade.
  • My uncle was a member of the hell's outcasts motorcycle gang, so periodically during my formative years, we had several motorcycle thugs living with us. They were the gentlest people I ever knew, and were always willing to share their cigarettes.
  • I had a color-blind art teacher in high school.
  • I have two cocker spaniels who sometimes make my life a misery and other times make me deliriously happy.
  • My husband's eighty-five year old mother lives with us. She still drives and has more of a social life than I do.
  • As a part of my role on the board of a small non-profit ministry, I have been to Haiti more times than I can count. On the first of these trips, the house I was staying in burned to the ground. It changed my life.
So there you go. How's that for random? And anyone reading this who is so inclined can consider yourself tagged.

23 comments:

  1. You are alive! Miracles do happen!
    You, a notorious rule breaker.......i would have never guessed. You started smoking in first grade that makes me laugh. Nathan has you beat, he started chewing tobacco at 3, i think that is right.
    Peace.........

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  3. Sorry--the link to my email didn't work in the last comment. Guess I'll just spell it out!
    Mix those first three snacks together, and mm-mm good!
    Hey, I'd love to talk to you sometime about Providence Ministries--specifically about doing an interview for my Glimpses ezine. Can you email me (heatheragoodman [at] yahoo.com)?

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  4. Mmmmm... milk duds. I hope you're feeling well enough to enjoy them. Nice to learn more about you.

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  5. hello, my friend. it made me laugh to learn that you started smoking in first grade. those pure little lungs filling up with black stuff at such a young age! but you're mischievous, so i can totally picture it.

    as a side note, kirk also started smoking when he was 5 years old. his mom was pretty creative in the way she cured him from it. yeah, that boy was a scoundrel as a kid. he's got all kinds of war stories stockpiled in his memory. :)

    okay, so your five worst habits are exactly the same as mine. withdrawing when i feel overwhelmed? procrastinating? eating things that make me miserable? too much time online? yeah. that's me to a T. or a terri, i guess you could say. :)

    good to hear your voice again here. i loved learning all these new things about you. sigh. i really miss you. i wish we were neighbors.

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  6. This post had me smiling. I was really laughing when I saw the colorblind art teacher.

    My grandfather started letting me "chew" tobacco when I was three. I used to watch him do it and wanted to be like him. Fortunately, at the ripe old age of 11, I quit cold turkey. So only eight years of my life got chewed up. :)

    You have no idea how much I want a pint of Häagen-Dazs (speaking of wanting things that are bad for you).

    Nice to see you're up 'n postin.

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  7. can i list 5 random things about you that i think are a little more revealing than the ones you posted?

    the only problem would be that you would probably would return the favor wouldn't you? ;-)

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  8. Yay...Terri's getting better. I'm so glad ;) And thanks for telling us more about you.

    I, on the other hand, didn't smoke until high school. Dave didn't smoke either and has some awful story of something his dad did to him that caused it, but I don't remember it ;) Maybe he and Kirk should get together and trade war stories...

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  9. Hi

    So interesting to read more about you... these things in your lists are the only thing I know about you so, wow I have a interesting picture in my mind of a small part of who you are.

    Katherine

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  10. tammy: yes, i'm alive and that does qualify as a miracle of sorts. and luckily, this is not a contest to see who was corrupted at the youngest age. sad contest that would be, huh? i don't know whether to laugh or cry at the vision of nate and i puffing and chewing on our dark habits with our chubby little baby bodies.

    heather: yummy. and i'd love to interview for your e-mag. i'll be in touch...

    tom: was that your homer impersonation? my dad and husband do that all the time. "mmmmm, snickers bars...mmmmm, pork rinds."

    christianne: oh my goodness, that's the first time i've been outdone on the smoking onset age! i'd love to hear the strategy poor kirk was exposed to. we would have been two shady little partners in crime.

    i love that our vices are identical. i knew i recognized something in you. and i'd love it if we were neighbors. sigh.

    nate: your grandfather and my grandmother would have made a fine pair. my grandma gave me beer and coffee when i was five or so. she was also a nazi and fairly mad. (i wish i could go back and rescue me from all the crazies in my past.) anyway, i'm glad you kicked the habit and came to your senses when you were 11. i, on the other hand, hung onto my vices a tad longer than that. 'nuf said.

    dave: don't you dare. although, that would be a pretty entertaining duel.

    sarah: hey, a fellow AWOL. glad to hear your lovely voice. and i totally wanna hear these horror stories that salvaged kirk and dave's lungs.

    katherine: i hope you won't assume too much about me from this glimpse. although, i'm kind of laughing at the picture this must paint.

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  11. This is shocking Terri Churchill! Your past keeps getting darker. You started smoking and drinking around 5 or 6.......that must mean you hit the bar scene around 7 huh? you already knew how to buy a hot drivers licenses on the black-market didn't you? I can see you cigarette in hand, plopping down the plastic.

    What are those pups names?

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  12. YESSS...You did it!

    I won't tag you ever again!

    ...as long as you don't tag me...

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  13. hahaha, all these fives!
    have a great day Terri!

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  14. Hey Terri,

    first thoughts were sjoe....that must have taken some energy to write...but sometimes to be focused on something is good...

    just wanted to say HI! miss your beautiful voice...and sending you a BIG hug! xx

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  15. Well, you were an amazing six year old! Funny. Always good to remember the child within and looks like you do, Terri! But glad you quit smoking!! At least, I'm assuming you did.

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  16. it's two ... two memes in one!!

    you have had a most colorful life, my dear, from your young smoking ways (um, did that babysitter last long??) to living with some motorcycle thugs.

    i'm with you on giving away the money - i think that having that much money would be ... ugh.

    miss you. glad to hear a little moer lightness in your {writing} voice these days. ;o)

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  17. i enjoyed getting to know these little random things about you.
    and me too on the kettle chips and ice cream, especially together. :)

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  18. tammy: cowboy and puk.

    tess: oh you are so tagged next time around.

    li: hey, beautiful...right back at you.

    linni: you're right, this did take a lot of energy. and it was good to focus.

    cathy: don't assume too much. ;)

    kirsten: funny story about that...i was so young that i didn't know it was bad to smoke. so we were driving somewhere and i leaned forward in the car and announced very proudly that, "i know how to smoke!" let's just say i never saw that babysitter again.

    bella: we'll have to share a snack one of these days. is your internet working again or are you sitting in an internet cafe?

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  19. Ever tried milk-chocolate covered popcorn? Amazing.

    Was interesting reading more about you, especially about letting go of things after that house burned down.

    I hope you're feeling much better this week.

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  20. Just to say hello...and thinking of you...all my love and hugs and kisses and sunshine and feeling great's and being loved and treasured and on top of the world and sometimes under the weather but always greatful friend! saying hello to YOU xx

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  21. Terri, Teri:

    just passing by once again to day i missed you!

    how are you?

    hugs, Li

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  22. meme schmeme we-be wantin' a new scenic reverie
    please?
    merci.

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  23. my dear terri,

    dropping by again....
    miss ya :-)

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