Jen's Ubiquitous List-O'-Hundred

Hi everyone. S'COLLLLLLD here in Kansas today! My Longaberger party is in a few hours, but I wanted to hop online and check in. Hope everyone's having a great weekend so far.

In my continuing efforts to improve this blog, I find myself looking more and more at the blogs and web-diaries that people have posted online. This is a huge, huge part of cyberculture, and I've gotten so many ideas from these people. Eventually, I'd like to come up with a unique and pretty design concept and abandon the Pepto-pink template I'm using now. That will come. For now, though, I've decided to cave in and do one of those "100-Things-About-Me" posts that seemingly everyone in BlogVille(tm) has done. Read, enjoy, and learn something new about your Jennifer.

Here we go....

1. Quite simply, my life would end without Coca-Cola.

2. Not a day goes by when I don't think about 9/11.

3. Wintergreen gives me a severe headache.

4. I've never had a cavity or a broken bone, but I've been a surgical pincushion on four fun-filled occasions.

5. Europe was my home for three years, and would lovelovelove to go back someday. I'd especially like to return to Kaiserslautern (where I lived) and to see Paris, Sweden, and Italy.

6. Even though I hate nuts in cakes, pies, and other assorted goodies, I can pop peanuts as a snack and be quite content.

7. I absolutely love the sound of blowing air (i.e., fans, air conditioners, heaters, etc.). That sound is so incredibly comforting to me, for whatever reason.

8. I once won $1000 in a radio contest.

9. My handwriting is exceptionally feminine. It's loopy and fluffy and I double-and-triple write my letters.

10. I'm terrified that I will one day be paralyzed in an automobile accident.

11. I've never tried apple pie.

12. I can't STAND tags on linens or clothes. I'll pull them off, even if it involves cutting or damaging the fabric of the items in question.

13. The three worst classes I took throughout my educational career were Art History (undergraduate), Chemistry (high school), and Economics (high school)...

14. ...and the three BEST classes I took were Logic (undergraduate), Strategies for Teaching Adults (graduate), and The Psychology of Human Sexuality and Development (undergraduate).

15. I wish I had the self-confidence to stand up and really belt out a tune or two in public.

16. Bath and Body Works will never be forgiven for taking their Vanilla products off the market. I'll also eternally begrudge PartyLite for discontinuing their Spearmint candles. If Yankee Candle stops selling their Spearmint Sampler candles, I'll jump off a roof. (KIDDING....or am I?)

17. Prescription narcotics (rather, the behaviors I display when I take them) frighten me. In a clinical setting, I'll 9-times-out-of-10 opt for a non-narcotic pain medication...

18. ...however, the epidural is the best medical advance in human history.

19. Although I'm getting better about it, I second-guess myself way, way too often.

20. I adore orange candy and soda, but can't eat oranges or drink orange juice

21. Same deal with grape candy and soda.

22. I lovelovelovelove standing up in front of a group to teach. And I'm damned good at it, too. When I get rusty and don't do it for a while, my first time back at it is scary and nerve-wrought. But after that, man, I am rollin'!

23. Until the day I die, I'll never understand why anyone thinks Sheryl Crow is talented.

24. Also until the day I die, I'll always believe that my sinuses took a nosedive (ha - I made a funny!) for the worse when I had my baby. Almost immediately after I delivered, I started having violent sinus infections. Thankfully for me, my otolaryngologist believes me and medicates me quite nicely. She is loved. I should make her cookies.

25. At any given point in my life, I've wanted to be an attorney, physician's assistant, nurse, photographer, truck driver, hotel front desk clerk, elementary school teacher, occupational therapist, and social worker.

26. Even though I'm sure contact lenses make for better vision, the thought of sticking something in my eye...Christ, no thanks. I've even tried contacts. Noooo - not for me.

27. I am completely and totally enmeshed with the characters of my favorite television shows and the actors who portray them. I cry for them, laugh with them, and are thrilled for/disgusted with them, much like I would were they real people in my lives. Don't even get me started on how excited I get when the actors are nominated for (and WIN) awards for their craft.

28. On that note, I miss "Sex And The City" something fierce.

29. (And I think Carrie made a BIG (ha - another funny!) mistake by not marrying Aidan.)

30. The worst sound audible to the human ear is the sound of styrofoam being rubbed (or, even worse, two pieces of styrofoam rubbing together). Doing that around me is the equivalent of signing your own death certificate. Don't say you weren't warned.

31. Potato chips and string cheese...check it out the next time you're in need of a snack!

32. I was addicted to bologna and ketchup sandwiches as a child. As I aged, the balogna went to the wayside, but the ketchup followed me. I ate ketchup on EVERYTHING - plain bread slices, ham, macaroni and cheese...you name it. Now, the mere thought of ketchup (or balogna, for that matter) makes me want to vomit.

33. I'll always and forever love the beautiful, amazing nurses who cared for Erin and I in the maternity and neonatal ICU wards at Menorah Medical Center and the three wonderful OB/GYNs who cared for us during my pregnancy. These women were my sisters. They taught me so many things. They supported me. They cried and laughed with me. They tucked me in bed and kissed my forehead! Most importantly, they made sure my baby was safe and warm and healthy had everything she needed to become a strong, healthy little person.

34. The men in my life are ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS! My husband, father, father- and brother-in-law, uncles-in-law, and many dear male friends are funny as hell, and family get-togethers and parties are always a scream.

35. I miss Indianapolis, but Kansas City is my home now. I can't ever see myself living anywhere else.

36. (I would like to visit New York City, though.)

37. (And I still love the Pacers!)

38. I have a paralyzing fear of insects. Just paralyzing.

39. I loved the summers I spent at CYO Camp Rancho Framasa...and would love to see Erin spend her summers there as well. (I sing her camp songs! Really!)

40. Next to my family, friends, and sorority, music is the biggest and most important part of my world. It defines and accompanies the events of my life.

41. The smell of gasoline intrigues me.

42. (Yes, I know I'm weird.)

43. I firmly believe that you're never wrong for how you feel. It's what you DO with that feeling that determines whether or not you're in the wrong. If only more people dealt with their emotions in healthy manners, we'd have a virtually crime- and hurt-free society.

44. My first car was an obnoxiously bright yellow Chevette. My friend Dave referred to it as "Jen's-Fat-Little-Yellow-Pregnant-Twinkie-On-A-Rollerskate."

45. I miss Fort Benjamin Harrison, and hate what's become of the land where that post once sat.

46. I also miss BITNET Relay, and many of the friends I made there.

47. I tend to have "big hair." It's thick and long and tends to do whatever the hell it wants to do. In college, one of my sorority sisters affectionally called me "Jen The Big Bow Head" because I always wore floofy, trendy, big-assed hair bows.

48. In my eyes, a human life is formed at conception. Draw from that your own conclusions of what I do and don't view as "murder."

49. I am a dog person through and through. I'd never own a cat.

50. When I was 12 years old, a man tried to buy me as his wife. (Yes, it really happened!)

51. Only until I became a mother myself did I stop viewing stay-at-home-moms as lazy, undisciplined, pathetic women.

52. I don't believe that there are any accidents in life. Especially when other people are involved. Almost everyone I've encountered on my life's journey has either blessed my life with love and laughter or bettered me through pain and the long-road-back-that-accompanies-it.

53. (I still don't forgive the latter group, however. Well, SOME of them are forgiven. Not ALL. I fully admit that I need to be the bigger person and forgive these folks. Maybe later.)

54. As a child, I so wanted a sibling. As an adult, I'm glad I didn't have one. The love, the devotion, the attention, the college money....ALL MINE!

55. (Yes, I know I'll not feel this way in the golden years of my life. Or maybe even sooner.)

56. In my single days, I managed to date and romantically affiliate myself with every loser, abuser, liar, cheat, manipulator, and cretin within my sphere of reach.

57. (I was also lucky enough to really love twice in my lifetime. Given that some people spend lifetimes looking for love, to have twice truly experienced it before I turned 30 is an amazing gift. I'm not quite certain why God gave me that.)

58. I got a 30 on the ACT but barely broke 1000 on the SAT. Go figure.

59. (I also graduated in the top eleventh percentile of my large high-school class. Go me.)

60. I used to be quite gifted at the sport of archery when I was a young girl. As myopic as I've always been, I'm astounded that I had this gift.

61. I've been a total pushover and a aggressive bitch in my lifetime. You know, that whole "A" and "Z" philosophy. I'm working toward becoming an "M." I'm not there yet. Which side of "M" I'm on depends entirely on the day.

62. Although I love seeing new places, I hate the intricacies of travel. Especially post-9/11.

63. I strongly encourage everyone to have their wisdom teeth removed. ALL FOUR OF THEM. Even though they may not hurt you now, you'll be damned sorry if they start.

64. I think Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve is astoundingly beautiful.

65. (So is the music that's seemingly always performed at that service.)

66. My $1.50 soda from the drive-thru will always taste better than your snooty $6.50 Starbucks coffee. Every time. My husband firmly, firmly disagrees.

67. I met a porn star once. She was kind, remarkably intelligent, and exceptionally well-spoken. Unfortunately, she overheard me speculate aloud to several friends that she "was probably just a stupid whore." I had egg on my face for days.

68. When I accepted my internship with the Department of Defense, the Monica Lewinsky scandal was all the rage. My friends teased me, telling me they hoped I "restored good faith to the name of interns everywhere." I like to think I did so.

69. I watched MTV all day on the day it premiered. I was just mesmerized.

70. When I think about how long ago that was, I feel incredibly old.

71. My first EMAIL address was *icfy500*at*indyvax[DOT]edu*. That was in 1991, and I've been online ever since.

72. I can't resist the smell of Polo on a man. Yowsa.

73. Remember the old "Emergency Broadcast System" messages? They scared the hell out of me. On one of the worst nights of my life, the real deal was played on the radio (because the city was experiencing exceptionally violent weather). That very same evening, I was injured quite badly in a fall, saw a man be struck by a car, and was badly emotionally and verbally abused by someone I allowed myself to care for. Until the day I die, that damned "Emergency Broadcast Alert" reminds me of that horrible night.

74. People are astounded at how I type. I use three, maybe four fingers tops...and I can go about 600000000000000 words a second. (OK, that's a slight exaggeration, but still!)

75. I love how French braids look. I can't do them, though. I'd like to learn so that when my Erin's hair is long enough to do them, I can!

76. I am a people-lover. It's nothing for me to make friends in public places, on travel excursions, or anywhere I go.

77. I'm a girly-girl. I love pretty clothes, makeup, jewelry, smelly candles and lotions, etc. I'm in love with Louis Vuitton bags, but am not insane enough to spend that kind of money on a purse.

78. I had a part-time job at Yankee Candle in Indianapolis when I was an intern. That was a great, great job. I loved the products, sold them well, absolutely adored my co-workers, and had a fantastic time. (and the discount was killer!)

79. Afentra's "Big Fat Morning Buzz" is a guilty, guilty pleasure. LOVE it.

80. I can't stand honey, and won't eat anything that has honey in it. This can make holidays, trips to restaurants, and dinners at friends' homes rather uncomfortable at times.

81. I smoked cigarettes socially in college, but I never inhaled and this, was never an addict.

82. Saxophone music is the sexiest music on the face of the planet...

83. ...and the trained, black male voice is sensual beyond words.

84. I think Carlos Mencia, Mike Myers, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and Dave Chappelle are of true comic genius.

85. SometimesItalkveryveryveryfast.

86. I met Dick Clark once. I don't think he knew what to make of me.

87. Myers-Briggs wise, I'm an ENFP with a strong "J" pull.

88. In college, I had an unhealthy addiction to Werther's Candy. I ate that stuff like it was going out of style. The mere thought of it now just makes me sick.

89. First concert I attended? INXS in 1987.

90. Last? Josh Groban in February of 2004.

91. I'm the only person I know who loathes spicy foods and Asian cuisine.

92. I have a disgustingly horrible sense of direction. I get lost easily, and I do NOT turn "north" or "south" or "east" or "west." I turn "left" and "right" only. I will forever be indebted to the fine folks at MapQuest for their ingenious invention.

93. I am a complete and total "Child of the '80s." I had an Atari 2600 and "turned over" almost ever game I had. I wore out at least three Rubik's Cubes. I wore jellies and leg warmers, loved my neon sweatshirts, and had a monogrammed corduroy handbag. Everyone asked me if my phone number was 867-5309. Now, if I could just find someone else who loved Mappy like I did, I'd be set.

94. I love Olivia Newton-John. I realize that makes me a sap. I don't know how I got "in" to her music, but when I was very young (i.e., in the late 70s and early 80s), I had all of her tapes and sangsangsang her songs over and over and over. She was my inspiration to want to become a singer. I'd love to meet her someday.

95. In grade school, I was a cheerleader. Shocking, yes, I know. One year, there were six of us and five of us were named "Jennifer." Thank goodness for middle names.

96. (Mine is Grace...named after my aunt who, sadly, died 12 years before I was born. She was beautiful and I'm sorry I never got the chance to know her.)

97. I'm astounded by the number of people who can't (or just choose NOT to) speak and write Engrish Englush Egnlsih inglesh English properly.

98. As a child, I referred to my parents and I as "The Three-I Family." I was born in Indiana, Daddy in Illinois, and Mom in Iowa. I always told them we'd need to move to Idaho so that they could have another baby.

99. We stayed in Indiana.

100. Don't call me "Jenny." Ever. I abhor that name. Call me "Jen," "Jennifer," or "Hey You," but do NOT call me "Jenny."

Well, there you have it!