Saturday, January 31, 2009

I've been tagged . . .

. . . by Lisa

I was surprised, because pretty much no one reads my blog - so, I figured why not?

Here are the rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them.
5. Let each person know they’ve been tagged and leave acomment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

So, here are my six random things – although, at my age, randomness is pretty much a given.

1. I married my high school sweetheart. Mrs. B and I attended the same schools from the 6th grade forward and hardly knew each other. Then, in the winter of our sophomore year, I noticed her standing on the steps, and asked a friend, “who is THAT?” I asked her to the winter dance, and we’ve been together ever since. Four days ago, we celebrated our 46th anniversary.

2. For some reason, I have an attraction to sewing. I guess it’s the challenge of figuring it out. I made almost all the drapes for our last two homes, a complete U. S. Civil War uniform with all the accoutrements and a bridesmaid dress for one of our daughters-in-law. I was once given a sewing machine as a present. I still suspect ulterior motives on the part of the giver.

3. You could call me an old softie and I wouldn’t complain. It’s especially true when our military is concerned. I get a lump in my throat every time there’s a flyover at a football game, NASCAR race or a memorial ceremony. The last flight of about 20 F-14 Tomcats flying home after their last mission before decommissioning had tears running down my face. I was on a harbor tour boat when the USS Cole was returned to service at Naval Station Norfolk. It was emotional.

4. I’m a car freak. I know it’s irrational, but I grew up in the years just before the musclecar boom. The first car I bought when I got a real job was a 1968 GTO. It’s never stopped. Give me some major parts, a bunch of steel stock, nuts and bolts, the right machinery and adequate time in the garage, and I can build one. I also have the go-fast gene in my DNA – although it’s generally under control on the highway. On the racetrack, my top speed ever was 173 mph. Adrenalin city, that was.

5. Patrick Swayze is a distant cousin, as are Daniel Boone, and the late actor William Holden. Also somewhere in the attic is Sir Leonard Holliday, a founder of the East India Company, and a Lord Mayor of London.

6. I am fully, totally addicted to “The Avengers” – that 1960’s Brit spy/adventure series with Patrick Macnee, Honor Blackman, Diana Rigg and Linda Thorson. I got hooked on it during it’s 1967-69 showing on ABC, and the later repeats on A&E. Since it’s no longer shown on U.S. TV, I have managed to obtain the entire collection – some 161 episodes on about 40 DVDs. I’m working my way through the first season now.

Sorry, but Lisa, Gemmak, Jannie, Punctuation, Dave and Pinkjellybaby . . . you've been tagged.

4 comments:

dkgoodman said...

I already did this on Facebook, so I'll just paste it here for you. :)

1. My parents displayed no musical ability. I'm still not sure I do.

2. I started playing hand drums less than three years ago. I love it.

3. I love quotes and taglines and mottoes.

4. I can be perfectly happy off by myself somewhere.

5. I fight the urge to be a hermit.

6. That's working pretty well, because I like people.

7. I like doing things efficiently so I can be done with them.

8. I can read really fast. And type really fast. And talk really fast.

9. I'm basically lazy. That seems to be an asset.

10. I'm strongly in favor of personal privacy and personal liberty.

11. Sometimes I'll read a book or watch a movie just to stay in touch with what others like.

12. Fashion and popularity don't matter much to me. I often do things my own way.

13. As I get older, I seem to be getting more emotional about things. I'm not sure I like that.

14. I like passionate, creative people who make things happen.

15. I like understanding systems; how things interact. We are all one.

16. I need challenge and adventure in my life.

17. Sometimes I get overwhelmed and cut back on everything I can.

18. I love to learn new things.

19. The more I learn, the more I learn that what you learn can be applied to many other areas.

20. Playing a drum is like learning a dance. You're just using your hands more than your feet, a drum-head instead of a floor.

21. Music, and dance, and writing, and painting, and photography, are about passion and contrasts and identification. Expressing feeling. Simplifying to make things stand out. Fast and slow, loud and soft, dim and bright, big and small. Identifying with the work and putting yourself in it, finding the ebb and flow. It's all about change in yourself, and becoming one with something else.

22. Wow. That was a long one.

23. I try to see the beauty and humor in everything. I don't take myself too seriously. Or you, for that matter. Don't take it personally. :)

24. I'm spiritual, but not religious. I have unusual views on life. It's not something I think about much, or talk about much, but I find that my views inform my perception and actions every day.

25. I love my wife and daughter.

Lisa said...

http://thatcloudlookslikearabbit.com/blog/2009/01/tagged-once/

gemmak said...

Ohhh...sorry, I have been remiss but I have caught up now! I'm onto it! :o)

gemmak said...

Done it at last!