I’m way behind on this, as I am on most things, but my squad (which is officially I Squad now!) came up with the idea, or maybe borrowed the idea, for everyone to make a list of 50 things about themselves so we can know a little about each other before we all meet! Similar to my “About Me” section, I avoided this for a while because I never know what to say in these things, but I’ve decided it’s better that people know how weird I am before they meet me.
If you’re not on the I Squad, feel free to read of course, but I’m not sure how interested you’re going to be in learning my quirky ins and outs. Although, I’ll do my best to keep you entertained (: So here we go:
1. I just turned 23 on June 3! Blink-182 says “nobody likes you when you’re 23” but as far as I know I haven’t lost any friends yet, so maybe that’s not true.
2. Speaking of friends, my mom is my best friend and I’m not afraid to admit it. She’s pretty stinkin’ awesome and I’m so blessed and thankful that God chose her for me.
3. I played soccer for 13 years and I miss it every day. I don’t, however, miss two-a-days practices, especially from 2-4 in the afternoon in the middle of summer when it’s 90+ degrees outside. Whew!
4. Bright-colored clothes and funky shoes have kind of become one of my trademarks. The brighter and crazier, the better!
5. I HATE FEET. Really, really, really a lot. I’m not really grossed out by snot or spit or anything like that but PLEASE don’t touch me with your feet or touch mine. (But that also doesn't mean it's okay for you to wipe your snot or spit on me…)
6. If I could have a superpower it would either be teleportation, or “apparition” for you fellow Harry Potter fans, or the ability to turn scary things into fuzzy, cuddly animals. Either one would be pretty cool.
7. Truthfully, living out of a backpack for 11 months is gonna be quite the stretch for me; I’m kinda messy and lose things very easily.
8. I also drop things pretty often, so I have a love/hate relationship with electronics. I guess you could say I’m a little clumsy.
9. Going on the World Race will be my first time ever leaving US soil and I’m super pumped! A friend told me today that my passport was gonna look really cool when I got back. He’s probably right.
10. I wish I could eat candy for every meal of every day. Purple-package skittles, runts, jelly bellies, almond joy bites, heath bars, cotton candy suckers, and gummy worms are a few of my faves but the list goes on and on.
11. Anything licorice flavored is NOT on that list. GROSS.
12. Two of my favorite Scriptures are Acts 4:19-20, “19But Peter and John replied, ‘Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s eyes to obey you rather than God. 20For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” and Galatians 1:10, “Am I now trying to win the approval or men or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” SO inspiring.
13. You know they say that God Himself is a mountaineer because the sun is gold and the sky is blue? West Virginia Mountaineers ‘til the day I die! Bleed gold and blue!
14. And also, GO PACK GO!
15. I’ll admit to loving anything pink—I even tried to find a pink headlamp—having too many pairs of shoes, and watching The Bachelor/The Bachelorette, but somehow I still don’t consider myself particularly girly.
16. If we're watching a movie and it's my choice, usually I’d rather watch something blow up than some sappy chick flick.
17. Writing is one of the best ways to relieve stress, whether it’s writing prayers or thoughts Scripture, or just general observations about what’s going on. All writing is therapeutic.
18. I’d say I’m a thrill seeker and pretty adventurous; I’ve been skydiving and have bungee jumping next on my list. But somehow I’ve lived in WV for 23 years and have never been white water rafting? Go figure.
19. Baby wipes are gonna be one of my best friends on this trip! I don’t mind getting dirty, but dirty hands and dirty feet really bug me. The rest of me can be muddy and stinky and whatever else, as long as I can clean my hands and feet.
20. I probably should go ahead and let you know that I’m a grammar nazi. If you use incorrect grammar and I correct you, I’m sorry! I don’t mean it offensively, but sometimes it just pops out before I can stop myself.
21. Actually, I say a lot of things before I can stop myself. Maybe my mouth works faster than my brain?
22. Apples to Apples is the best game ever!!
23. One of my love languages is words of affirmation, but only TO other people. I'm really bad at taking compliments back.
24. Weird and awkward things happen to me all the time, but I’ve just learned to accept it and very little embarrasses me.
25. My dorm roommate from college used to blow dry her hair while I was still sleeping. Apparently I'm a heavy sleeper.
26. And NOT a morning person, although I do love the feeling of being very accomplished early in the day.
27. Last summer I went on a Cru summer project in San Diego, CA and it was the BEST experience of my life thus far. SDSP 2011 and its people will always have a special place in my heart.
28. I may be a country girl, but I LOVE the big city! Well, I guess I love the idea of the big city. I haven’t exactly spent a whole lot of time there…
29. If I don’t become a full-time missionary or do something with my degree in PR, owning a zoo is my next back-up plan. Seriously.
30. I smile more than I frown, randomly burst into song or a British accent, and sometimes laugh when it’s inappropriate. Sometimes I just completely forget that social boundaries exist at all. But like I said, very little embarrasses me (:
31. Any temperature below about 50 or 60 is too cold. I wouldn’t mind living somewhere that I never had to see snow again!
32. Crying and showing a lot of emotion make me uncomfortable. I’m not really a crier and never really know what to do when people cry in front of me. I’m already preparing for God to change that on the Race. Even I will be stocked up on tissues.
33. I’m creative, but not artsy. I can always come up with really awesome artsy things to do and how projects will look theoretically, but have trouble making my hands translate the thoughts onto paper. It gets frustrating.
34. I’m substantially less than excited about the thought of waking up and finding a giant spider in my tent or by my face. If it’s really true that he's more scared of me than I am of him, he must be one big wuss because all those legs freak me OUT!
35. That goes for most things with more than four legs or less than two. It’s just not normal for a living thing that many legs or none at all! Eek
36. One picture can contain a million memories. I’m sure I’ll be snapping away the entire time we’re gone on the Race.
37. Yes, I’m 23 and I still sleep with a teddy bear. His name is Montie and he’s a mountaineer bear. He’s been to San Diego and Panama City, among other places, but I doubt he’ll make the cut for coming on the Race. He still doesn’t know though, so don’t tell!
38. I've been telling myself for years that I'm gonna learn the dance to Michael jackson's "Thriller", but keep forgetting. If you know it, PLEASE teach me!
39. No matter what anyone says, Lebron is no Michael Jordan and Peyton is a better QB than Eli even if Eli has two Super Bowls and Peyton has one.
40. Day-to-day I prefer spontaneity over planning, but used to want to have a plan for the future. God is showing me that I don’t need to worry about and plan for the future because He has it under control and it’s incredibly freeing. Now I LOVE not knowing! BRING IT ON LIFE!
41. I LOVE HUGS—super tight hugs, super tight and being picked up hugs, slow-motion running hugs, hugging for warmth hugs, basically just any kind. Don't compliment me (reference back to #23), just hug me!
42. If I'm telling you a story, expect intricate detail, vivid animation, and maybe even different voices for different characters, depending on the story.
43. Get me going and I’ll talk your ear off about anything and everything under the sun.
44. This has taken me FOREVER to write because I get distracted from tasks very easily and DANG 50 things is a lot.
45. I’m usually the rational and level-headed mediator in any confrontation. I’ve been blessed with a mind that stays calm and can see all sides of most situations.
46. Duct tape fixes everything! I imagine that I’m going to have to put that theory to the test and will probably bring more than one roll, in awesome colors and patterns of course.
47. Danny Kaye once said, “Life is a great big canvas and you should throw all the paint you can on it.” Well, Mr. Kaye, I plan on doing just that.
48. I love people’s life stories! If we have enough time, I seriously would be more than happy to hear each and every one of your life stories in as much or as little detail you want to tell me. I just think hearing about the different paths that the Lord uses to bring people to Him and to where they are in life is fascinating.
49. When we were shopping for a fleece today, I picked out a pink and maroon North Face and my dad said, "Are you sure you wanna get that? You might stand out in a crowd." I said, "Dad, I'm a white girl with big brown eyes and a southern accent. I think people are gonna know I'm not a local."
50. Going on the World Race still doesn’t feel real to me and I’m not sure that it will until I’m standing in an airport saying “bye” to my parents. Or maybe it won’t seem real until we land in our first country, or our sixth. Who knows, but I’m pretty stoked to find out! (:
Ok I squad, are these really the 50 most important things you need to know about me? No, probably not. But I always like to switch things up a bit so you probably really learned more than 50 things about me AND I can still tell you most of the basics when we finally meet face-to-face! Can you believe it’s only 24 days until training camp and 72 until we launch? I’m ecstatic for the opportunity to serve around the world for 11 months with all of you and can’t wait to see how the Lord works in us and through us!
