99 and Counting…

This is my 99th post, ladies and gentlemen, and what better time (rather than tomorrow’s 100th post) to tell you a little about myself.

Oh, wait – I’ve already done that.

Well, if reading 100 Things About Me, checking out my favorite and not-so-favorite things pictorially, or glancing through the other 98 posts (which I’m sure have just a wee bit about me scattered throughout) doesn’t make you feel like we’re friends…

99. Starting lists like this are always the hardest! Once I get going I will be ok, but it is the “gettin’ goin'” that is hard to do.

98. I re-read my 100 Things list I wrote about three months ago. Still no inspiration.

97. The reason I feel so very un-motivated is because Peppe and I wrapped up Season 5 of Ally McBeal last night. Season 5 was it for Ally and friends… She had to say “goodbye” and now so do we…bygones!

96. No, I am sad. Really.

95. Although you might not believe it (after reading #96 and #97) I am NOT a big TV watcher…especially here in Italy.

94. In fact, there are absoulutely NO shows I watch on a regular basis here. There aren’t even any shows I watch on a non-regular basis.

93. Even the last year or so I was in Texas I didn’t watch TV much. I was always busy with the students at LU, or away from home too much to get “hooked.”

92. I did, however, love Friends and Will and Grace.

91. I also liked Everybody Loves Raymond…but only once it was syndicated.

90. Same with Frasier.

89. And Sex and the City.

88. I think one of the reasons I liked Ally McBeal so much is because I could relate!

87. She was crazy and neurotic.

86. That scares me.

85. But not near as much as it scares Peppe. (Wait. THAT isn’t about me…hmmm….)

84. You see, I have a slightly obsessive personality.

83. That is why I will post, post, post, post and better yet read other blogs, read other blogs, read other blogs – then go cold. I get obsessed with something and let everything else go.

82. Currently I am on the wedding.

81. This resurgence of wedding planning began last week when I began having nuptial nightmares. Although slightly different from the ones I had before, these were, none the less, just as disturbing.

80. I dreamed Peppe’s friend Mario (who is NOT a hair stylist, by the way) was doing my hair for the wedding. When my hair would cooperate no more, he CUT it – OFF! I kept repeating, “Non sono contenta, Mario…non sono contenta.” (I am not happy, Mario. I am not happy!) He laughed with his hairstylist friends and called – me – oh, can I say? Can I tell you what he called me??

79. He called me BRIDEZILLA!

78. But, he said it in Italian. So, I am not really sure what he said…but the meaning was clear. In the same dream the photographer didn’t show up and everyone took our wedding pictures with their digitial cameras! The next day I emailed all of our wedding vendors to “touch base.”

77. I also continued to narrow down the world of opportunities for our honeymoon destination.

76. I spent four hours reseaching Belize yesterday.

75. And, I likey!

74. One of the more interesting things about Belize is the amazing scuba diving opportunities. I have wanted to go scuba diving since I was a bimba!

73. About eight years ago I went to Typhoon Lagoon at Disney (or, was it Blizzard Beach) – either way, I can’t remember and it doesn’t really matter! They have a tank where you can snorkel with sharks! Albeight, you are FAR removed, but in typical Disney’esque style – it is realistic and CLOSE UP.

72. They give you a little mask, a snorkel, and fins and send you on your way – reminding you NOT to kick (because of the crowd of people behind you). I was so excited!

71. I venture out into the tank and poke my head into the water…and commence to FREAK OUT!

70. Uhhhmh uhhhmh, whooo whooo whooo…I tried to control my breathing. To no avail!

69. I was a kicking-phene! Kick. Kick. Kick. I kicked until my legs could kick no more.

68. I heard the attractions host reminding me ever so gently…, “Please don’t kick, miss.”

67. I kicked harder.

66. I kicked a kid.

65. I didn’t care.

64. I finally got to the other end of that 100-mile long tank, and jumped out! Safe at last!

63. So, do you guys think I should try deep sea diving in the Blue Hole in Belize?

62. You know how there are some people who can tell you off or say ugly things to you and you forgive them immediately? I’m not one of those people.

61. I am also unable to hide my feelings.

60. My FACE is an open book that betrays me every time.

59. It isn’t because of an overwhelmingly desire to “do good,” but I don’t really lie.

58. I SUCK at it.

57. This is NOT good in all situations, my friends. “Do you like my new dress?” Uuhhh… “How do you like the dinner I made?” GULP… “Isn’t the baby beautiful?”

56. I’ve actually developed a fool-proof save for the final question…”Ohhhh, the baby is just PRECIOUS!” …cause it is…as, all babies are!

55. Also, I can’t hold a grudge.

54. When I was younger I would forget I was supposed to be mad at someone, see them, and smile or wave. Then…dang! You just can’t go back after that and say you forgot! That negates everything.

53. I am also a very forgiving person.

52. I will forgive (most) things many, many, many times.

51. But, once it gets to “that point” with someone…I am done. There is no looking back.

50. My mom thinks this makes me “cold,” but I did give that person like a gazillion chances before it got to “that point.”

49. I can’t really think of too many instances, though, where this has happened. It usually happens with people at work.

48. More specifically, the boys clubs at various working establishments.

47. I am soooo NOT a team player when it comes to things like boys clubs. (I know, you are thinking it is cause I am not a boy…and, ok, maybe…but what I meant was I don’t like to play favorites. I like everyone to play by the same rules. Cute concept, eh?)

46. Sometimes, and I am afraid to admit this to you, I can be a little, uh, shallow.

45. I am scared to death of getting that first gray hair.

44. Seriously! It is not a joke. I think I might cry when I see one.

43. I told Peppe this and he thinks I am silly. I told him when I get “that” hair, he has to be extra nice to me the whole day to make up for it.

42. Other people my age (and even some a little younger) joke about it. (Excuse my language here, but…that shit ain’t funny!)

41. To make matters worse, I don’t color my hair…yet!

40. Of course, when I see “that” hair, I will start.

39. My hair actually changes color with the seasons. It gets lighter in the summer months, and sometimes gets a reddish undertone in the winter. Very strange.

38. I love adventure, but, as I mentioned earlier I am scared to go diving.

37. I’d also like to jump out of an airplane.

36. And, go for a ride in a hot air balloon.

35. And, maybe, just maybe…bungee jump…

34. Oh, yea. Did I mention I am scared to death of heights? Think that is a problem?

33. My fear of heights is a little distorted to be honest with you.

32. As I have mentioned before, I was a cheerleader in high school and college. I was one of the girls they put “on top.”

31. After the first few times, I wasn’t scared anymore, and I learned to twist down and be tossed with ease.

30. It is because I trusted the people who were holding me.

29. However, if I stand on the roof of a building – even very far from the edge, I get scared. My heart starts racing, palms get sweaty, knees start quivering. Same thing happens with stairs that don’t have a solid railing.

28. I finally determined that I don’t trust myself not to fall. I trusted the other cheerleaders not to drop me, perhaps more than I trusted myself not to fall off. Strange.

27. A couple of years ago I met this fear head on when I led a group of students at a leadership conference.

26. We had always done High Ropes Challenges during this leadership conference, but I decided THAT year – I wouldn’t just take pictures.

25. I started off small. The zip line, which, if you haven’t ever done it before, can be quite intimidating. Here I was, sitting on the edge of a platform, wearing a helmet, tied here and there to this and that, about to voluntarily slide off and plunge into the open air…”Don’t forget to breath…” was the last warning, before….GUSH! And, I did it!

24. “That wasn’t too bad,” I thought. So I headed to the next challenge.

23. I am not sure what this monster was called, but the challenge was something like this. You climb a telephone pole, you walk across a highwire, you sit down on a wooden stoop, you zip line down to safety.

22. “I think I can…I think I can…” So, I tried.

21. A few of the students at this conference had been working with me for years, and were quite aware of my dislike of too-far-off-the-ground activities. They cheered and cheered for me all of the way up that pole.

20. All the while, I was whispering, “Hail Mary, Full of Grace, the Lord is with thee…” over and over again. I repeated this prayer as I switched positions to be able to walk the highwire…”Blessed art thou amongst women…” I continued the prayer as I walked the hirewire and arrived at the wooden plank… “And, blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.” Certain Mary would not yet let me down, I finished the zip line with the same prayer on my lips! I DID IT!

19. Going back a few years, I, at the tender age of seven, became a vegetarian.

18. I always was just a little too naive for my own good. I never knew where meat came from. No one ever told me, and I never questioned it.

17. Well, all of that changed when my first grade teacher, in all of her gruesome horror held up a picture of cow. I still remember the picture vividly. The cow was standing, facing sideways in a pasture of green grass, a little gold-colored bell dangling around his neck.

16. My teacher said, “See the picture of this cow? When you eat a hamburger, this is what you are eating!”I don’t know how I managed to get through the rest of the day, but I rushed home after school to share this conspiracy with my mother. “Did you know meat comes from COWS?” I gasped. I was crushed to learn that my mother, did indeed know, how hamburgers are made.

15. So – for the next three or four years I swore off all things meat-related. “But, you love bacon,” Mom would say as she attempted to serve me a BLT. “Tacos are your favorite.” “Just a little bit of spaghetti sauce, ok?” Poor thing…she tried. But, I was determined.

14. She became quite convinced I would shrivel up and die from lack of protein. “Then, you have to eat this egg!” She demanded. But, out of no loyalty to the chicken, I couldn’t eat the egg…I had gagged on them since infancy and my egg-eating habits weren’t about to change.

13. So, I survived on peanut butter, french fries, baked potatoes, and salads. I wouldn’t even eat pizza because I was convinced my mother had buried pepperoni below the cheese. “You know,” she tried one day, “Some people say plants are living. And, potatoes come from plants. They even have ‘eyes’. You can’t starve, Cherrye.” Then, she mustered a few tears.

12. But, I was too smart for that!

11. However, a mother’s prayer never goes unanswered. One morning, as she was preparing breakfast, I told her I would try a little bit of bacon. I was a vegetarian no more.

10. Speaking of childhood memories, and just on the heels of Father’s Day, I have a great food-related / Dad memory.

9. One afternoon, I met Dad at his office. He was evidently a little stressed, presumably about an impending newspaper deadline, but offered me an after-school snack, anyway. He made me a cheese sandwich (this was during my vegetarian days) but with MAYONNAISE instead of mustard.

8. I took one bite and tasted the white-cream slimy mess of a mayonnaise taste and spit it out.

7. I remember it like it was yesterday. I followed Dad around the corner of the room, on his heels the whole time, ranting about how HE liked mayonnaise, but I didn’t, and how could he make me that horrible sandwich. (Yes, I was a spoiled brat!)

6. I continued this dramatic expression, even after he had corrected his mistake and re-made the sandwich.

5. Finally, he turned around and looked directly at me, and said. “Oh, Cherrye, it doesn’t matter anyway! You will have forgotten this by the time you are 20!”

4. Oops!

3. Well, as you can see after reading almost 199 things about me…I am not that complicated of a person.

2. I am loyal-to-the-end to friends and family, and I sometimes trust too easily.

1. And, I think that is the greatest thing about life. Exploring, meeting new people, expanding horizons…Being open minded to differences, but knowing where you stand. Looking back on yesterday with a smile, but looking to tomorrow with hope.

Thanks for reading Another 99 Things About Me. Happy Blogging!