God Made Me Weird and He Loves Me Very Much

A few days weeks months back, the Queen B reached out her golden scepter and tagged me with the 7 Random Things meme.

I told her I would get right on it.

Ahem.

In my defense, I'm a recovering late-a-holic in real life, and I'm doing such a good job staying on the straight and narrow (I was 10 minutes early to church yesterday -- for the third week in a row), I was bound to backslide somewhere.

Hey look! I just told you an extra random thing. This is your lucky Monday! Go! Now! Buy a lotto ticket!

1. I love prunes dried plums. Truly. And don't roll your eyes at me. Have you tried Sunsweet's Cherry Essence Prunes Dried Plums? If you haven't, don't judge. They are yummy. I'll say it again -- yummy.

2. You know how I sprinkle my blog posts with the word dude? That's not a gimmick. I really do say dude. Like, all the time. I also like to imagine I'm a surfer. But I'm not. The closest I came was boogie-boarding off the coast of Del Mar with Mindy when she lived with us for a summer. It was fun and cold and I hit my head on the sea floor a lot and got sand embedded in my scalp. Young boys laughed at us, mostly because we had no freakin' clue. But we didn't care. Because, dude, we were practically catching gnarly waves! Totally wicked.

(Anyone else hearing Crush in their head right now? Or is it only me?)

3. When I was a teenager, I qualified for Mensa.

And look at me now.

4. I can't go to sleep without some sort of a blanket. Even if it's 95 degrees in my bedroom. I must have a covering.

The only exception to this rule is when I'm lying in the sun, because I can definitely fall asleep lying on the beach on a gorgeous summer day. I like to think the sun's warmth acts as a kind of blanket. A blanket of ultraviolet light and Vitamin D. Try to get that at Target.

5. I might faint if you touch my eyeball. I discovered this nifty little factoid two years ago when I went to seen an ophthalmologist. Since I hadn't been to the eye doctor in about, oh, 34 years, they ran a full battery of tests on me, including the one where they put numbing drops in your eye so they can do the glaucoma pressure test. About 30 seconds after the test, I started to get light-headed, nauseous and sweaty. I was able to mumble, "I think I'm going to pass out," to the nurse just as everything was going black. She was able to help me to the floor before I lost consciousness.

Turns out, it's a not-all-that-uncommon phenomenon. My ophthalmologist said his best friend in medical school actually had a guy pass out cold three seconds after the glaucoma test was done. He was so stunned, he just let the guy drop like a rock; he didn't even try to catch him. Not his proudest moment, I'm guessing.

As you might imagine, I'm not a candidate for contacts. Ever.

6. I have never watched "American Idol."
I prefer to remember Paula Abdul back when she was straight up forever my girl.

7. I would live in Narnia, if given the chance. I read The Chronicles obsessively when I was young. I would start on book one, read through to book seven, then start over again -- and I did that for about six years. (Which means I've read The Chronicles of Narnia more than I've read the Bible, I just realized. And that's a little sad.) Aslan was the first real representation of Christ to me. My faith has been profoundly impacted by C.S. Lewis' imaginary world.

And yet, I haven't seen "Prince Caspian" yet. Does anyone want to babysit?

I'm now supposed to tag seven people. I'm going to choose some bloggers old* -- Baby Bangs and The Preacher's Wife -- some bloggers new -- It's Almost Naptime and Sorta Crunchy -- a blogger borrowed -- Naval Gazing, but Sue's address is really Borrowed Light, did you know that? -- and some bloggers whose toes are blue** -- Badgers on the Loose and A Latte Talk.

*bloggers who've been willfully subjecting themselves to my blog for a year or more
**bloggers who also live in Minnesota

21 comments:

  1. i have never watched american idol either and i have to have cover!

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  2. Woo Hoo! You did it!!

    Mensa? I'm impressed. Every time Wheel of Fortune comes on I think to myself, "is it Pat or Vanna that is in Mensa?" Well of course it is Pat. Or is it Vanna?

    That eyeball thing is the strangest thing I've heard of in a while.

    Thanks for playing!!!

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  3. I had to google Mensa.

    Now don't I feel stupid?

    :)

    I'm on it, Ms. K....It might take a while, but I'm definitely on it...lol

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  4. I can't stand the thought of anyone touching my eyeball, but I didn't know anyone had ever smooth passed out from it. Fantastic! good to know. I'll make the nurse aware of this condition if I should ever (shudder) have to go to the opthamologist.

    I say dude all the time, too! In fact, I have to edit it out of my posts. A lot.

    Thanks for the tag! ;)

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  5. Trust me when I tell you, Paula was way cooler when "Opposites Attract" than she is now...

    Loved the list, and so glad the barfing is over :)

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  6. Dude...I say dude all the time too. Catchy, huh?

    And I've never watched AI either. Just can't get into it.

    I actually passed out once in my gynecologists' office. Seriously embarrassing, but you described the feeling perfectly--lightheaded, nauseous, sweaty. ugh. I woke up staring at the ceiling and was so embarrassed because they wouldn't let me leave for at least 20 minutes. I needed the earth to open and swallow me. It didn't.

    I suppose I should give prunes a try, but I just don't know if I can do it.

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  7. I grew in Santa Cruz, CA, a haven for surfers and hippies. I grew up calling my girlfriends,"Dude".
    Once we were downtown ordering pizza by the slice and I turned to my girlfriend and asked her, "Dude, what are you getting?"
    And the surfer with the dreads and tats behind the counter looked at me and said,"Dude, did you just call HER dude?" To which I answered him, "Totally." or something profound like that.
    Dude....the english language at it's best.

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  8. I'll babysit for Caspian if you babysit for the Indianna Jones movie:)

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  9. DUDE! I call my son dude all the time. Don't know where that came from. Just saw Prince Caspian on the weekend and I hate to report, I wasn't all that impressed.

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  10. You cannot see the movie now. It's too late. Sorry. You've already read the book. I read it last week, and now I wish I hadn't. Or maybe I wish I hadn't seen the movie...

    Hmmmm.....

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  11. Okay Mensa geek...we have a lot in common. I'm a non-Idol watcher too, who must also have a cover! And Dude, Opposites Attract was Paula's best song.

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  12. The cover thing is so me...I feel so "uncovered" if I don't have anything on me (now how's that for a statement?)

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  13. Mah toes are blue and I'm agonna play along too.

    I don't know what Mensa is. Going to google now.

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  14. I really should change my blog address, but I'm too lazy. Plus, I don't care.

    OOOOh, number seven - ME TOO. I loved Narnia, and I so wanted to visit. I wanted it to be a real place. I was so afraid to go see The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe back when the movie came out - but I loved it, after all. I thought it looked and felt like the Narnia in my head.

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  15. I need a blankie, too. Even in 95 degrees.

    I can't even stand to watch OTHER people touch their eyeballs. It turns my stomach to see my husband do his contacts.

    Mensa, huh? IMPRESSIVE.

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  16. Must have a blanket! Even when we're watching tv in the evenings, I like to cover up--regardless of season or temp! My husband thinks I'm out of my mind...

    And yes, I'll babysit! We saw Caspian last weekend and loved it. It's different from the book (isn't it always) but still very enjoyable, in my humble opinion!

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  17. Yes to dried plums. :-)

    No to American Idol, and Paula Abdul.

    Yes to covers and the beach.

    "Seriously" is my "dude." Seriously.

    I used to think that would qualify for Mensa. That was before kids, when I still could think...

    And I am ashamed to say that I have never read, nor seen, any of the Narnia's...

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  18. I'm with you on the blanket thing. Gary thinks I'm nuts. Hawaii. Hot, sticky, sweaty 85 degree nights. Blanket. It just didn't add up for him.

    I say "dude" a lot too. In fact, the other day I called Addie "dude" and she said, "I'm not a dude! I'm an Addie!" :)

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  19. #5 - I think it might be the drops. I wore contacts for years with no problem and that happened to me one time. I got real woozy after the numbing drops. Go figure.

    Somehow I managed Lasik. Amazing what a desperate desire to see the bedside clock can do.

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  20. Yes, I must have covering, too. Our house now does not have AC, but I still must have something even in the summer. I have practically memorized the Narnia series...I still have my editions from 1978 and they have not fallen apart yet!

    I do wear contacts and I also have never watched American Idol. Although we don't have TV, so I don't know if that counts.

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  21. I'm in. I'm in. Thanks for the tag. I'll get right on that. And since I follow the same lateness disorder, you can expect this post, oh, in 2-3 weeks.

    And just to further our blogging bonding, here are my seven responses.

    1. Ava & I are also big fans of the prunes. Nate--not so much.
    2. I second the "dude" motion, though I have never lived in San Diego. I did however live with two dudes who passed as my brothers. (And I'm really hoping there some footage of you and mindy boogie-boarding!)
    3. I also qualified for Mensa. Big things are going to happen for us Kelly! Big things.
    4. The blanket obsession has to be a MN-thing. My husband likes his down comforter year round.
    5. Wes (your old broadcasting buddy) and Nate were just discussing this anti-eye-touching phenomenon this past weekend. They too are contact-wary.
    6. Oh, you don't even know what you are missing! We put off AI until this year, and dude, it is wicked! Check it out, baby, check it out!
    7. Have you read the Chronicles of Narnia to Natalie yet? I'm so excited to share these books with Ava.

    Thanks for sharing your seven things!!

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