101 Things About Me

It’s always hard to start a new blog, so when I saw this idea on My Milk Glass Heart’s blog, I decided posting 101 random things about myself would be a good way to kick things off.

1. I was named after Carly Simon
2. I’ve met her twice, both times at malls. She cried when she found out I was named after her.
3. I was an only child until my senior year of high school
4. As a kid, I loved Art and Theater equally
5. Since I always had after school jobs in high school, preventing me from attending rehearsals, Art eventually won out
6. I had my first job when I was 15
7. I have worked as a file assistant at a eye doctor’s office
8. I have worked as a grocery store bagger and cashier (at Ukrop’s)
9. I have worked as a ice skating rink party host (second worst job ever)
10. I have worked as a basketball games operator at King’s Dominion (third worst job ever)
11. I have worked as a dishwasher at a college eatery (this was the grossest job ever)
12. I developed an deep aversion to seeing food floating in water (gag)
13. I don’t think I’ve ever worked on a Sunday in my entire life
14. I lived outside Los Angeles as a toddler and I constantly wish I could go back to California
15. I won’t move back to the West Coast while my parents are still on the East Coast
16. Traveling is my favorite hobby
17. I went to London for a long weekend once
18. I went to Cancun after high school graduation thanks to a generous friend who took about 10 of us there to stay in their time share suite for free
19. I took an awesome one week road trip from San Diego to Oakland California when I turned 25 and could rent a car without penalties
20. I’ve been on two cruises, both to the Caribbean
21. I’ve love to to a European Cruise
22. I went to Lourdes France the day after Senior Prom, on a religious pilgrimage sponsored by friends and family
23. I’ve been to New Orleans once pre-Katrina and stayed in a sketchy hotel full of prostitutes
24. I’ve been to New Orleans once post-Katrina and stayed in a sketchy hotel where the bathtub faucet fell off from being rotted
25. I organized that trip for my whole office. We were there to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity.
26. Even though I don’t party, or like strippers, or gambling, I love Las Vegas
27. I’ve gotten to see Oprah in person, at the groundbreaking for the Martin Luther King Jr Memorial
28. I’ve heard then-President G. W. Bush speak at the National Prayer Breakfast (still cool)
29. I’ve seen Mo Rocca at a book signing in DC
30. I’ve also seen him live at a taping of The Daily Show
31. I’ve seen John Oliver at a performance in NYC during the writers’ strike (and got a picture)
32. I also saw him at UVA
33. I met Neil Gaiman at the DC Book Festival
34. I had him sign a book for my then-boyfriend
35. I hadn’t liked Gaiman until I met him in person and saw what an amazingly nice person he was
36. I still don’t think I like Sandman, though
37. I’ve slept in the car overnight at a rest stop (with my parents) once en route to a family vacation
38. I am a terrible singer
39. This doesn’t stop me from sing-talking, especially at work, when things are frustrating or stupid
40. I like what I do for a job, but wish I had more flexibility
41. I hate that I get extremely passionate and opinionated about things that I cannot change
42. People think I look much younger than I am
43. I’m not flattered by this. It’s annoying.
44. And potentially creepy if I’m out trying to meet people, and they assume I’m a teenager
45. I just turned 30
46. Every boy I’ve ever actually loved is now either married or engaged (to someone that isn’t me)
47. I’m glad they didn’t end up married to me
48. I like being single
49. I don’t want to be single when I’m 50, though
50. I’m Catholic and I’m down with a lot of their religious philosophy, and the social justice stuff where you help people out, but not the social stuff where homosexuals don’t deserve basic human rights
51. It’s complicated
52. My mom is my best friend and I don’t care if you think that’s lame
53. I hung out with adults, or alone for most of my childhood
54. I would spend all day in my room reading
55. I sorta hate the library, because I don’t like the way the books smell, and when they have weird stains in them, or the fact that the popular books are wait-listed for months
56. But I love the library in theory and have been a lifelong patron
57. I would be 100% on the e-book bandwagon if they would more bathtub friendly
58. I buy a lot of clothes
59. I return a lot of the clothes I buy
60. I went an entire summer (possibly 2) in high school never once wearing shorts because I was so embarrassed by the stretch marks allover my legs
61. I got over it… mostly
62. I’m one of those bitches that is actually trying to GAIN weight
63. My favorite food group is candy
64. My least favorite types of candy are black licorice and chocolate
65. My favorite types of candy are gummy
66. My favorite brand of gummy candy is Haribo
67. I drink a Red Bull every morning because coffee doesn’t really get along with me. People think I’m totally hardcore, but it doesn’t really have that much caffeine in it.
68. I used to take growth hormone shots as a pre-teen.
69. I’m 5’3″…
70. … I used to be 4’11”
71. My favorite typographical element is the em dash
72. I throw out 90% of the catalogs I get in the mail, so I’m not tempted to buy things
73. I lived across the street from a crack house for years as a kid
74. I lived next to subsidized housing for a year and would walk through a parking deck to get to the grocery store, which had my roommates convinced I would get murdered
75. I’m not really afraid of getting murdered
76. I used to ride horses, then I became severely allergic
77. Also allergic to: cats, dogs, pollen, mold, dust…
78. I finally got an iPhone this month
79. I’m working on my MBA
80. I’m that annoying girl who likes learning and does her homework early
81. I also like education because it’s pretty much the only constant source of measurable, merit-based, praise I get as an adult. (Not just “You look nice today” or “good comps.”) I like getting that A, even if the grading scale isn’t that tough.
82. I don’t think I ever want kids of my own
83. But I like other people’s kids
84. I run a support group with my mom
85. I always want to “help people” – whatever that means
86. I met a lot of my friends on the internet
87. I got back in touch with a lot of my friend because of the internet
88. I eat a lot of rice
89. I eat a lot of sugar
90. I love bread, but pretty much only freshly baked bread. I hate sandwich bread you get in the grocery store.
91. After a childhood of nothing but horrible canned asparagus, I discovered fresh and fell in love
92. I once went two (medically supervised) weeks without eating
93. I’d rather eat a small amount of something really good than a bucket full of something mediocre
94. If I had a bucket list, then it would include a visit to miniBar
95. My favorite vacation destination: the beach
96. Runner up: the city (San Fran, NYC)
97. I’ve never been to Chicago
98. I’d like to improve my Spanish
99. I’d like to take voice lessons
100. One day I’d like to write a book