But not all at once. And I’m not sure I’m “a blogger,” except in the most generous sense…
1.
I come across as blunt, abrasive, aloof, distant and ostensibly averse to small talk - and damned if some people don’t much care for that. (not written by me or about me, but I’m told I sometimes leave that first impression.)
2. I’m one of those people with a very few, close friends, and then nothing. I can’t keep up with too many lives in depth, and shallow, surface-level relationships don’t do anything for me.
3. I have a bachelor’s degree in lighting design for the theatre. My livlihood comes from working with computers, which I’ve always enjoyed. I got into theatre in high school as a way to avoid math. I have regretted that decision several times over - but I am past it now.
4. I went from 1991 (when I left home for college) to 1995 (when I graduated) without a haircut. Now it’s short enough to stick straight out in back.
5. The hole in my ear that used to contain an earring hasn’t closed after 9 or so years of being empty.
6. I can take “following the rules” to an extreme. But only if I agree with the rule. If I disagree, I can take “not following the rules” to an extreme. Unless there’s a serious penalty for breaking it, in which case I’ll probably comply, but make no attempt to hide the fact that it’s under duress.
7. Grammar is a hobby of mine. I always notice when something is not quite right, but I’ve learned that it’s best to ignore the mistakes of others when possible. I own a book called “A Dictionary of Modern American Usage” - a several-hundred page grammar book - for the sheer joy it brings. As such, my own mistakes in grammar distress me greatly when I find them.
8. There are plenty of good reasons to violate the “never split an infinitive” rule.
9. I don’t like cliches. Especially those that are misused (”turn a blind eye towards”), meaningless in today’s world (”to run roughshod over”), wrong (”I could care less” and “hindsight is 20/20″) or don’t quite capture the intended meaning (”comparing apples to oranges”).
9. I’m a Mac person, and have been since 1985. I still have that Mac in my basement, and have resisted the temptation to turn it into a fishbowl.
10. I’m a Unix person, and have been since 1991. I was as excited as can be when Apple went all BSD on me with OS X. Mac OS and a Unix shell! (BSD is a Unix variant)
11. I like spicy food. I’m fascinated at the idea that “adding spiciness” originated as a way to preserve food in warmer climates. It’s curious that our modern methods of preservation don’t have such an effect on the flavor of the underlying foods. Imagine what it would take to get people to do that now. “Oh, your butter’s going bad? Just blend in a bucketful of cayenne pepper and it’ll keep for weeks!”
12. I love to eat, generally-speaking, and will try things just because they sound wierd. Oatmeal pie and grilled jalepeno peppers filled with cream cheese are two of my most surprising discoveries. Oh - and this probably isn’t the least bit “wierd” to most people - beets!
13. To two significant digits, I weigh 100 kilograms, and am 2.0 meters tall. But I’m American, so I don’t usually say it that way, even though it’s so much neater to do so. I have been holding my breath for the metric system since grade school, and will continue to do forever, apparently.
14. I can juggle three of any item I can comfortably toss. I want to test myself with fire torches, but not to the extent that I’m willing to purchase a set.
15. I believe that anyone with n functional hands can learn to juggle n + 1 balls, and will be a happier person once they do. Oranges are the optimal practice item; they’re a good size, perfect weight, and don’t bounce very far away when you drop them. And when you’re done, you can poke a hole in the one end and suck out the juice. (See? here we are with the food again.) When you get good, do it in the produce section of your local supermarket at least once for maximum happiness. Nobody will stop you. And yes, you are obligated to purchase what you drop.
15.5. If you’re going to juggle raw eggs, remove any rings from your fingers first, lest your display of skill be unjustly spoiled.
16. “Devil sticks” have that name for a very good reason. (I take issue with the caption there that says, “Learning … is easy for most children.”)
17. When it comes up in conversation that we make our own bread, people look at my wife and say, “oh, you have a bread maker?” she says, “Yes,” and nods in my direction. I make very good bread, and I love to do it. We haven’t bought sandwich bread for probably three years. It may be true that my younger son has never eaten a sandwich (at home) on store-bought bread.
18. I don’t know what would cause that topic to come up in conversation, but I remember it happening twice in the past few months. At neighborhood gatherings. When I was being social. I can be social, I just prefer not to.
19. I like to get up very early in the mornings, for the quiet time it allows. My 6-year-old son likes to get up very early in the mornings. But for entirely different reasons, having nothing whatever to do with quiet.
20. I collect disclaimers that either refute themselves or are just plain stoopid. Recent favorites are e-mail signature lines that threaten legal action if you read the message and it wasn’t intended for you (and it says this at the bottom of the message) and “Unlimited double coupons up to $0.50″
