Single and Fabulous

Here's my list as promised:

1. (The boring one) I was born in Singapore.  No, I don't remember anything about Singapore because I was only a couple of months old when we left.  And yes, my father was in the military which is why we were there.  Someday I would love to go back and check it out.  I hear it's a beautiful place.

2.  I cannot, CANNOT, eat or even smell, Ranch dressing.  I used to love it until "the incident" which happened when I was about 9 or 10 years old.  My mother had cut up a bunch of raw veggies that we dipped in the dressing.  I ate so much of it that I ended up getting violently ill that night.  I don't think I've ever been so sick in my life.  From that day forward you better not put any Ranch dressing in front of me or you'll be sorry!  On the same note, I have the same aversion to yogurt...however this has nothing to do with any incident.  I just can't stand it.  When I was young my mother tried every freakin' kind of yogurt they make and I couldn't do it.  The smell of it brings on the dry-heave gag reflex.  And this is no joke as witnessed by one of my ex-boyfriends who thought it would be funny to back me into a corner and force feed me yogurt.  Incidentally, this is just one reason that I'm not with him anymore.

3.  I just figured out that every time I type the word "yogurt" I first type "yogury" for some reason.  Oh, and I guess I have a tendency to be random.  (Hey, that's two things!...and I guess I cheated a bit on this one too, but I can do that because it’s my list and my blog!). 

4.  I think that certain singers and/or specific songs are spiritually connected to my soul.  Specifically Sarah McLachlan and Alanis Morrisette.  Listen to their songs.  I dare you to not be moved.  From my favorite Sarah McLachlan song Do What You Have To Do: “Every moment marked with apparitions of your soul…” and “Glowing ember, burning hot and burning slow/ Deep within, I'm shaken by the violence of existing for only you.”  Can you say brilliant?  There are too many others to mention, but I think you get the idea.  

5.  I'm a fabulous rock star in my living room and sometimes in my car too, but only when no one is looking.  Oh come on, like you don’t do it too?!

6.  I’m a great “project starter” but a horrible “project finisher”.  There are probably 20-30 unfinished projects hidden somewhere around my house.  I wish I had enough “stick-to-it-ness” to finish what I start.  I just bought two books on beginning quilting because I got the brilliant idea that I can make a quilt (does that make me old?).  How many of you out there think I’ll actually FINISH a quilt?  Maybe I should start with a quilted pot holder.  That one I might be able to finish.

7.  I have a very weird and specific getting-up-in-the-morning routine.  When I have to start work at 7am, the alarm goes off at 5:01am (yes, 5:01…and, yes I’ve been told I’m OCD…but wait, it gets better).  Then my secondary alarm (my watch) is set for 5:05am.  I hit the snooze on my regular alarm every nine minutes until 5:37.  At that time I switch it over to the radio and set the timer on my watch for 14 minutes.  When the timer goes off it’s time to get up (or set it for another 4 minutes if I’m really tired).  Wow, I think I just discovered why I live alone!!

8.  For my 30^th birthday I decided to treat myself to something from Tiffany & Co.  I bought a silver necklace from the Elsa Peretti collection.  It’s a sliver “B” charm on a sliver chain.  Nothing too extravagant, but getting that little blue box with the white ribbon was so exciting.  In fact, it was so exciting that I decided to continue and make this a tradition and buy myself something for my birthday every year (who says I need a man to buy me stuff?!).  For my 31^st birthday I was actually in NYC so I got to go to the Tiffany store to make my purchase.  I bought a silver ring from the Frank Gehry collection.  Again, nothing too fancy but I actually wear it everyday.  I don’t know what I’ll pick out this year, but I can tell you that I have my eye on a Celebration ring for my 40^th.  Check ‘em out and you’ll see what I mean…diamonds!

Well, hope you like my list.  Since it took me so long to come up with it, I tried very hard to come up with some interesting things.  Now you know a little bit about me.  I just hope you don’t think I’m a freak!! ;o)  

My first two nights in my new place went smoothly.  Slept like a baby.  This is why I didn't think I'd have a hard time sleeping on my third night.  Wrong!

I was again exhausted when I went to bed last Monday night.  I had spent the entire weekend either moving or cleaning (or some combination of both), and then took Monday off from work to try to put my new place in order.  I ended up crawling into bed at around 9:30pm (kind of early for me) and apparently drifted off to sleep quickly. 

At around 11:30pm I rolled over and woke up enough to open my eyes.  In the darkness and shadows I "saw" a human figure quickly approaching my bed.  Never the subtle one, I immediately shot up and started screaming.  And not a half-assed scream either.  I mean, I let 'er rip!  I belted out four or five full-on, blood curdling screams before jumping out of bed to grab my gun (which I keep in its case under my bed side table).  It was like I couldn't stop screaming until I grabbed my gun and turned on the light then I snapped out of it enough to realize that: 1) no one was there, and 2) I hadn't heard anyone run through my house...hence, there was no one really there to begin with.  But I could look anyone in the eye at this very moment and swear that I really did see someone there.  It was so real.

Needless to say I was freaked...and wide awake!  Adrenaline is a powerful thing.  I needed to talk to someone real and safe to bring me back down, but at that hour my options were limited.  The only one I knew who would possibly be up at that hour is my chief, so (feeling like an idiot) I called him.  It helped to talk to someone and calm down a bit, but I still couldn't shake that feeling.  After hanging up with him I sat in my bed, deathly still, for about 45 minutes.  I know there was no hope of me going back to sleep if I didn't search my house...even though I knew that no one had really been there.  So, I finally went through the place (turning on every light in my path) until I was satisfied.  However, I was still so jacked up that I turned on the TV to watch something funny (nothing scary...I certainly did NOT put in Capote - which I had just got that day) and made a cup of herbal tea.

I sat up until almost 2am before I decided I needed to go back to bed.  Of course, I had to leave on the living room light and my bedroom light because apparently the Boogie Man only likes the dark!  Every little noise would get my heart rate up again as I tossed and turned.  At one point (I think around 4:00am) I tried to turn off the bedroom light and just sleep with the living room one on instead, but that was just too dark.  I think I did manage to fall asleep for a bit between 4 and 4:30...but that's all the sleep I got that night.  The alarm went off at 5am and I knew I could have gone into work late, but I just wanted to get up and get out of there for a bit.  Needless to say I skipped the coffee that morning in favor of Red Bull (which I only drink in cases of dire emergency!).  I made it through that day totally freaked out and sleep deprived, but I have yet to be visited by my Boogie Man since.  I think my screaming probably scared the crap out of him!

Oh and you'll be proud to know that I have been able to sleep soundly since then...with the lights off and everything!  Although I will admit "he" kind of puts me on edge when I hear strange noises and I had a hard time falling to sleep the night after his "visit"...but so far, so good.  Things are falling into place and it's starting to feel like home.  And I think it's those "home-y" feelings that will keep my Boogie Man away!

(sorry about the different size fonts...I'm not sure what is going on with my computer.  Perhaps it has a boogie man too!)