MEME: 25 things...
Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you.
***For the 1 or 2 of you out there who don't have Facebook, this is X-posted here (behind cut). Actually, I'll confess that most of this info was originally posted here before, so you still get the drop on info before everybody else did, you lucky dogs, you.***
1.) According to 2000 Census Bureau Statistics, my first name is the 142nd most common name in the U.S. and my last name is tied for the 142nd most common name in the U.S. If you Google "Brandon Shaw" you'll actually find the guy I was named after -- the killer in the Alfred Hitchcock thriller "The Rope."
2.) I've only had three serious girlfriends and by serious I mean the three of them combine for a total dating span of almost eight years. They were all friends of mine before we started dating and the date that we "started going steady" is the same for all three -- June 6th.
3.) I'm highly allergic to most metals and they tend to leave burn marks and scars if they stay in constant contact with my skin. This is such an acute reaction that you were almost able to read the Chinese character burned in my chest from the necklace I wore in High School.
4.) I've always wanted to get a tattoo but have never been able to talk myself into it -- I couldn't justify buying something so permanent only to have it get stretched out and become ugly. I still have 25 more pounds to lose before I'll consider this.
5.) The songlist on my iPod that probably gets the most use is aptly titled "Top 25 Most Played." I run to this set.
6.) The official time of my latest 10K ran is 00:49:55.73. That pace puts me on track for a 03:30:30.85 marathon finish.
7.) I will never lie to a child if they ask me a question. When I lived in Japan, I appended this rule to end with "...in English."
8.) I sold a photograph to a travel company once. This company makes a travel app that syncs with the iPhone's built-in GPS, so if you're ever in Salzberg, Austria, walking around and looking for English language tourist information on your iPhone, eventually you'll download my photo. True story.
9.) I've visited 24 countries and stamps in my passport cover over 20 pages. Japan, Malaysia, and Singapore combined probably count for at least half of that.
10.) Despite #9, I have never been in the Southern Hemisphere, though I got pretty damn close (1”N lat). I will fix this gaping omission this winter.
11.) I only know of one movie off-hand that I've seen more than once in the theaters and that's "Magnolia (1999)." Sometimes, I feel like William H. Macy's character in that movie... that may be the saddest thing I'll ever admit about myself.
12.) The only thing I truly believe in is genetics. The only thing I truly want to believe in is reincarnation. I guess I don't have enough faith in faith.
13.) My favorite condiment by far is mustard. I am known to put at least a little in Tuna Salad and Egg Salad.
14.) I really hated my major in college and I eventually only graduated with the degree I did because I heard a statistic that most graduates work outside of their major within 10 years after joining the work force. Despite my current job -- which I'm satisfied with -- sometimes I think I'm still banking on those odds.
15.) I’m a Luddite. Look it up.
16.) I used to work at a place where everybody at one point did an impression of me titled "Brandon trying to talk to women." It basically involved a lot of stuttering and an inability to look people in the eyes and it was as embarrassing and accurate as you could imagine.
17.) I have a passion for mangrove forests and golf. I can't explain either.
18.) I have a gift for picking up Foreign alphabets (useful for reading indigenous street signs) and in Foreign Languages. I am told my French sounded authentically Quebecois and I speak Japanese like a thug (Hiroshima-ben); nobody knows where my English accent comes from.
19.) My grandfather taught himself how to play the piano and led a small jazz combo that frequently opened for Chick Corea. I taught myself how to play the bass and don't think I necessarily suck at it.
20.) It takes me about 30 minutes to go from “asleep” to “in my car and driving to work.” I somehow became one of those people who snaps awake and I multi-task in the a.m. like it’s my job.
21.) I fondly remember that time where we were all there and then that thing happened to the guy with the hair. Man, I can’t believe we got away with all of that... but I don’t need to tell *you* that!
22.) I ate a scorpion once and crave other random animals. Typical Sagittarius behavior, or so I've heard.
23.) I’m currently on three different diets, one for each meal of the day. My breakfast diet regularly consists of prebiotics, probiotics, and protein -- and they all make one heck of a smoothie!
24.) I go through occasional, long-term spurts of vegetarianism. The food I break these flings for is usually bacon.
25.) I moved to Baltimore on a whim, but Austin, TX, and Orlando/Miami/Tampa, FL, were also on the short list. I settled on Baltimore mainly because it happened to be closest and most convenient to my family.
As an aside, still waiting on one last W-2, but it already looks like a.) I'll owe somebody something, and b.) I'll get back more than I owe. I've never done such complicated W-2's before, though. Mostly it's a lot of red tape with "what did you pay out to that state and what did you make in this one" that isn't making it easy, but moving is actually a huge tax deduction. Hrmm...
Dentist appointment tomorrow, so a half day at work. Yippee(?).
***For the 1 or 2 of you out there who don't have Facebook, this is X-posted here (behind cut). Actually, I'll confess that most of this info was originally posted here before, so you still get the drop on info before everybody else did, you lucky dogs, you.***
1.) According to 2000 Census Bureau Statistics, my first name is the 142nd most common name in the U.S. and my last name is tied for the 142nd most common name in the U.S. If you Google "Brandon Shaw" you'll actually find the guy I was named after -- the killer in the Alfred Hitchcock thriller "The Rope."
2.) I've only had three serious girlfriends and by serious I mean the three of them combine for a total dating span of almost eight years. They were all friends of mine before we started dating and the date that we "started going steady" is the same for all three -- June 6th.
3.) I'm highly allergic to most metals and they tend to leave burn marks and scars if they stay in constant contact with my skin. This is such an acute reaction that you were almost able to read the Chinese character burned in my chest from the necklace I wore in High School.
4.) I've always wanted to get a tattoo but have never been able to talk myself into it -- I couldn't justify buying something so permanent only to have it get stretched out and become ugly. I still have 25 more pounds to lose before I'll consider this.
5.) The songlist on my iPod that probably gets the most use is aptly titled "Top 25 Most Played." I run to this set.
6.) The official time of my latest 10K ran is 00:49:55.73. That pace puts me on track for a 03:30:30.85 marathon finish.
7.) I will never lie to a child if they ask me a question. When I lived in Japan, I appended this rule to end with "...in English."
8.) I sold a photograph to a travel company once. This company makes a travel app that syncs with the iPhone's built-in GPS, so if you're ever in Salzberg, Austria, walking around and looking for English language tourist information on your iPhone, eventually you'll download my photo. True story.
9.) I've visited 24 countries and stamps in my passport cover over 20 pages. Japan, Malaysia, and Singapore combined probably count for at least half of that.
10.) Despite #9, I have never been in the Southern Hemisphere, though I got pretty damn close (1”N lat). I will fix this gaping omission this winter.
11.) I only know of one movie off-hand that I've seen more than once in the theaters and that's "Magnolia (1999)." Sometimes, I feel like William H. Macy's character in that movie... that may be the saddest thing I'll ever admit about myself.
12.) The only thing I truly believe in is genetics. The only thing I truly want to believe in is reincarnation. I guess I don't have enough faith in faith.
13.) My favorite condiment by far is mustard. I am known to put at least a little in Tuna Salad and Egg Salad.
14.) I really hated my major in college and I eventually only graduated with the degree I did because I heard a statistic that most graduates work outside of their major within 10 years after joining the work force. Despite my current job -- which I'm satisfied with -- sometimes I think I'm still banking on those odds.
15.) I’m a Luddite. Look it up.
16.) I used to work at a place where everybody at one point did an impression of me titled "Brandon trying to talk to women." It basically involved a lot of stuttering and an inability to look people in the eyes and it was as embarrassing and accurate as you could imagine.
17.) I have a passion for mangrove forests and golf. I can't explain either.
18.) I have a gift for picking up Foreign alphabets (useful for reading indigenous street signs) and in Foreign Languages. I am told my French sounded authentically Quebecois and I speak Japanese like a thug (Hiroshima-ben); nobody knows where my English accent comes from.
19.) My grandfather taught himself how to play the piano and led a small jazz combo that frequently opened for Chick Corea. I taught myself how to play the bass and don't think I necessarily suck at it.
20.) It takes me about 30 minutes to go from “asleep” to “in my car and driving to work.” I somehow became one of those people who snaps awake and I multi-task in the a.m. like it’s my job.
21.) I fondly remember that time where we were all there and then that thing happened to the guy with the hair. Man, I can’t believe we got away with all of that... but I don’t need to tell *you* that!
22.) I ate a scorpion once and crave other random animals. Typical Sagittarius behavior, or so I've heard.
23.) I’m currently on three different diets, one for each meal of the day. My breakfast diet regularly consists of prebiotics, probiotics, and protein -- and they all make one heck of a smoothie!
24.) I go through occasional, long-term spurts of vegetarianism. The food I break these flings for is usually bacon.
25.) I moved to Baltimore on a whim, but Austin, TX, and Orlando/Miami/Tampa, FL, were also on the short list. I settled on Baltimore mainly because it happened to be closest and most convenient to my family.
As an aside, still waiting on one last W-2, but it already looks like a.) I'll owe somebody something, and b.) I'll get back more than I owe. I've never done such complicated W-2's before, though. Mostly it's a lot of red tape with "what did you pay out to that state and what did you make in this one" that isn't making it easy, but moving is actually a huge tax deduction. Hrmm...
Dentist appointment tomorrow, so a half day at work. Yippee(?).