50 Years! Not Possible.

I turned fifty years old today.  Not quite sure how that happened but here I am.  I don't feel fifty.  I don't think I look fifty.  But yet, I am.  So in the spirit of fifty glorious years on this earth I thought I'd share fifty highlights about me and my life with all of you.

1.       I was born in 1964 in the great state of Washington in a suburb of Seattle called Redmond.  I have never been in the Space Needle because I am afraid of heights.

2.      I graduated from high school in 1982.  I attended a year of college, dropped out, went to tech school and graduated with a certificate in Optical Technology.

3.      I always wanted to be a nurse, but didn't have the stomach for it.

4.      I got married and divorced.  I have been divorced for 27 years.

5.      I have had four children.  I gave birth to two of them and adopted two.  My oldest son died as an infant after being born with a serious heart defect.  My second son is an adult, married and made me a grandma.  They live in Colorado.  As you know my girls are younger and still live with me.

6.      I have lived in Idaho most of my life.  I have also lived in Oregon on two separate occasions.

7.      I have worked predominately in the eyecare or accounting field.  I am currently still in the accounting field.

8.      I own my own house.  I've had it nearly 20 years now.  Wow!  Doesn't seem possible.

8.      I love my children more than anyone else in this world.

10.    I have been to Mexico four times Japan and China twice, but never Canada.  I want to visit Europe.  And Canada.

11.     I have been to Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Montana, Colorado, Arizona, Texas, Georgia, Alabama, and Florida.  Oh, and Idaho.

12.     I love to go camping.  I've long dreamed of having a little cabin in the woods.

13.     My favorite actor is Antonio Banderas.  It has little to do with his acting abilities.

14.    I love chocolate, red meat and red wine.

15      I prefer vegetables to fruit.

16.    My favorite color is black.

17.     I have held the pink slip to every car I have ever owned.  My RVs too.

18.    My first big crush was Paul Michael Glaser from Starsky & Hutch.  I plastered my walls with pictures I cut out of Teen Beat and Tiger Beat magazines.

19.    I have been alive during 6 different decades.

20.    My favorite foods are Mexican, Asian & Italian in that order.

21.     My favorite athletes are Ken Stabler and Michael Jordan.

22.    I met Ken Stabler in 1979 at a Raiders football game when I was fifteen.  He didn't say much.  Neither did I, for that matter.  No, I didn't get an autograph.

23.    My favorite classic car is a 1969 Pontiac Firebird.  Black of course.

24.    I was 10 years old the first time I was paid to work.  I babysat.  I charged 50¢ an hour.  A year later I upped it to $1 an hour and cleaned their house too.

25.    I was 12 years old when I owned my second business.  I mowed lawns.  I would tie the mower handle to my bicycle seat with a piece of rope and put the gas can handle over the handlebars.  I charged $3 per yard.

26.    I was fourteen the first time I got a job.  I addressed and stuffed envelopes for a furniture store in downtown Boise one summer.  I also worked for my father in his construction business.

27.    I played the clarinet.  I started in fourth grade and stayed with it until I graduated high school.  I can still play.

28.    I love music.  I listen to it every day.  My favorite band is Queen.  I cried when Freddie Mercury died.

29.    I love to cook, bake and keep a nice house.

30.    I can sew, embroider, knit (sort of) and crochet (simple stuff).

31.     I still play with my dolls.  I have a collection.  Mostly I just make clothes for them.

32.    I can fix a lot of stuff.  I can build stuff too.

33.    I like power tools.  My favorite tool is my miter saw. Oh, and my hammer my dad gave me for my birthday one year.

34.    My best friend in the whole wide world is my grandma.  She died in 1999 and I miss her every day.

35.    I love kitty cats.  And chickens.

36.    I have always wanted to be an author ever since I was a little girl.  I never told anyone until about a year and a half ago.  I have written several novels no one knows about.

37.    I published my first novel last year.  I am getting ready to publish my second one very soon.

38.    I am really good with computers.  Not so much with cell phones, VCR/DVD/DVR players or hooking up gaming consoles.  I've never recorded anything on TV because I could never get it to work.

39.    I absolutely HATE snakes.  They super creep me out.  I'm fine with spiders.

40.    I have no desire to win the lottery or be rich.  Most people don't believe me.

41.    I have never smoked pot or done drugs.  However, I have consumed plenty of alcohol.

42.    I have never been arrested.  I have never had a speeding ticket (knock on wood).

43.    My biggest pet peeve is people who blame others for their problems or make excuses.

44.    I can't stand bullies or mean people.  I have a zero tolerance level for that crap.

45.    I met Bruce Willis at a bar in Sun Valley, Idaho.  He was really nice and shorter than I expected.  He and I are the same height.

46.    I drink my coffee black.  I like my tea plain.  My favorite tea is Earl Grey.

47.    I can't stand watermelon.

48.    I have three piercings (in my ears) and no tattoos.

49.    I beat up a boy in high school (a football player) and got sent to the principal's office.  He was expelled and I got sent back to class.

50.    I have a big heart and I care about a lot of people.  I'd do almost anything for a friend in need.  However, I have difficulty letting people get close to me or accepting help from others.  I am still working on that.

So there you go.  How about that?!

In fifty years I'll post a list of 100 things about me.  We'll see where we all are when that happens.  J