running: the dawn

So, Erika tagged me to share 10 random facts about myself.  I tend to be under-creative in these, so we’ll see what happens….

1. One year when I worked at summer camp, my nickname was Spiderman.  We got there a week early for staff training and the first night they organized a basketball game.  I tend to be somewhat intense with my defense when playing basketball.  Apparently I was so involved with defending one of the guys thought that I was “all over him like spiderman on a wall” or something to that effect.  It just snowballed from there.  Suddenly I had spidey sense and could fling webs.  At least according to all the other staff.  People even gave me spiderman figurines.  Good times.
2. Maybe I’ll make it a nick-name theme…in high school I played basketball.  I don’t know who started it…maybe the guy I was dating at the time…but people started calling me the Terminator.  Mainly because I would foul out of every single game.  For those of you who don’t watch or care about basketball, that meant that I was always up in other people’s business when I shouldn’t have been.
3. Another camp nickname was from the next summer, post spiderman.  It all started because we had a “Little Rascals” themed party the first week.  I decided to go as Darla.  Cute, right?  Well apparently in my plaid skirt, knee highs, and headband I looked more like Mary Catherine Gallagher (from SNL and the movie “Superstar”).  The director and assistant director kept trying to get me to say “superstar!” and do the whole lunge/hands in the air thing.  I was not amused.  This continued all summer.  Then, when it was time for the talent show the program director and I decided that it would be super funny if I hosted the program AS Mary Katherine.  And I did.  And I was awesome.
4. Since those are all the nicknames I can think of…we’ll move on…I love watching football.  I even remember specifically when the obsession began.  It was 1989 and my family had just moved to Kansas City.  The Chiefs season started and the first time I watched a game, Derrick Thomas (greatest player of all time…) rushed the quarterback, caused a fumble, recovered the ball and scored a touchdown.  My love affair began right then and there.  Perhaps that is also the reason I fouled out of all those basketball games…cause my hero was a linebacker…
5. I love shopping for other people.  Much to the joy of my husband.  He has literally not bought a single item of clothing for himself since the day that we met.  One of the earliest dates he took me on was to Khols to spend the gift card that his mom gave him for Christmas.  I get really excited when its my mom’s birthday because I like finding outfits that I know will look fabulous on her.
6. While I love my job teaching math, lately I’ve had the desire to find something that requires more creativity and/or lets me express myself more fully.  Granted, I have no idea what that might be….
7. I hate grocery shopping.  More than anything else that I can think of (right now…).  I hate the parking.  I hate the carts.  [I still just grab a basket.  I'm pretty sure it's just my internal rebellion against being a grown up.  Having the basket makes me feel more collegiate.]  I hate the aisles.  I hate cart traffic jams.  I hate the checkout lines.  Getting the bags to my car.  Carrying the bags into the house.  Putting everything away.  But most of all?  Realizing that I didn’t get everything I needed and having to go back to the store.
8. Sequence is my favorite board game.  The first time I played we were at my brother’s girlfriend’s parent’s house (now my sis-in-law).  It was on a homemade board and we used poker chips as tokens.  I thought it was a made up game, then I saw it at Target and I got SO excited.  When we first got the game Mr. Dawn and I played so much that we had to change the rules to make the games last longer.
9. I love dresses.  More than anything else they simplify my life.  Instead of having to pick out a top AND bottom, it’s all taken care of in one easy decision.  That way I can focus on the important thing: picking out the perfect pair of shoes
10. Last summer the Mr. and I started backpacking together.  He had done it when he was younger and even though I’d been camping lots I’d never carried everything on my back before.  I fell in love immediately.  We spent every weekend we could exploring different trails, rivers, and lakes.  It was so amazing.  That’s one of the things I’ve missed most about this summer.  Since he’s been gone for the past 16 weeks, we haven’t gotten to do any backpacking.    But he comes back this weekend!  And he’s promised me that this fall we will trapse all over the place.  I. Cannot. Wait.

There you go…not really organized…but I guess that’s the point of “randomness” huh?

Here are the three bloggers I’d like to tag:

Savanna at Confessions of a First Time Marathoner
Erin at The Making of a Runner
Michele at Run Michele Run