Well, now I’ve been tagged twice (first by Jim in December and now by Mr. Gretchen) so I guess it’s time to respond. I’ve never been good at revealing interesting tidbits about myself … I seem pretty run-of-the-mill if you ask me … but I’ll try my best. Oh, and here’s a bonus one before I get started … I don’t tend to “tag” or forward things to other people. So the trail ends with me … although, wait, I guess Zoe should answer this, too, huh? So I tag Z. Anyway, here goes … 5 things you may not know about me.
1. I have an unhealthy obsession with Papa Johns Pizza. I know, I know … it’s not “real” pizza, but it’s damn good! In college, I lived right behind a Papa Johns for 2 years and could smell that tasty goodness all day and all night. Oh, the doughy dough. Mmm, the sweet and spicy sauce. When Josh and I moved to the Seattle area, our only requirement was that we live within delivery area of a Papa Johns. We still eat Papa Johns every Sunday night. When I had my wisdom teeth removed, I ate some Papa Johns Pizza against my better judgment and suffered with some wicked cramps. Josh even sometimes dresses-up in his very own Papa Johns delivery guy uniform . . . for Halloween. Get your mind out of the gutter!
2. I’m a Southern girl who didn’t fully realize how Southern I was until I left. The South is weird. I always felt very “cosmopolitan” in my little hick town, but the further I got away, the more I realized it was just part of my roots. When I was growing up, my Dad’s truck horn played Dixie, just like the General Lee. I never thought that was weird. Man, it was. I went to parties in cow pastures and learned why the Civil War was actually the “War of Northern Aggression.” I have lots of examples like that, and I do think it takes getting some distance from a lifestyle you were born into to realize the charm … and quirk …it had.
3. I paid for my own college … when I was two. My Dad loves to tell this story. So I was two, and my parents were deciding in which stocks to invest my college fund. They called a family meeting with little two year old me and asked me where I’d like to invest my money. Well, this restaurant had just opened up in town …actually, it was the 2nd in a chain … I just loved it. So I said, “Cracker Barrel.” And they said, “Cracker Barrel?! Why?” And I said, “Because I like their bathrooms.” So Cracker Barrel it was. Today they have over 550 stores, and my investment paid for my private college tuition. My Dad still has investors ask him, “Where does your daughter pee now?”
4. More little girl stories … I used to be a pinball wizard. When I was growing up, my parents had a pinball machine in the living room … and they still do. The type of machine changed every few years, but when I was around 3 or 4, they had the cool Disco Fever machine. During parties, I would close my eyes and beat just about any adult at the game. It’s a wonder I turned out as normal as I did. For the record, I can’t play pinball worth a damn now.
5. I was almost a Jack Daniel’s princess. When my Dad was in college, my grandma started dating Jack’s great nephew. Jack didn’t have any kids so the distillery went to his nephew Lem when he died, and my grandmother’s beau was Lem’s son. He and his brothers inherited the distillery after his father’s death. (Mom, correct me if I get this wrong.) Anyway, as you can imagine, my Dad got lots of cool, fast cars in college, and my parents even got married at the distillery in the mouth of their famous cave. Grandma and her beau didn’t make it long-term, but I did inherit some jewelry bought for her with the Jack Daniel’s fortune. My parents also have a lake cabin about 5 or 6 miles from the distillery so if you ever visit my family and me in Tennessee, you are sure to receive a tour of the distillery and taste all the Jack you want. In fact, for my and Josh’s college graduation, Dad even opened a bottle of pre-prohibition Jack. I don’t like whiskey, but it was tres good.
gretchen