Dec.05 DDC - 5 things you don't know about me

[mariposita]

Since we already know so much about each other, I thought I'd start up a fun thread to learn more about each other. Here's me:

1. I speak to my sons almost entirely in Spanish. I am fluent, and Spanish just came to me naturally, like I had spoken it in a previous life.
2. International living is my passion. My goal in life is to live in as many countries as possible. So far I've lived in 3 (Dominican Republic fo 3 years, and China and Mexico each for a summer). We are likely to move to Korea next summer for 3 months, maybe longer. I want to live in a tribal society some day.
3. I keep my house almost obsessively clean. I straighten up constantly, which is one of the main reasons I wear Reed in the sling so much. I make cleaning fun and dance while I clean.
4. I go hiking almost daily.
5. As much as I love being a wife and mother, I secretly miss being single, spontaneous and carefree.

[spiralmg]

Here is mine. I'm going to follow Andrea's lead line by line!:

1. I am a language obsessive and know bits of Japanese, French, and Italian, can understand quite a bit of Spanish although I can't say much, and am fluent in German, although I hardly ever speak it.
2. Today I was musing about my own international obsession. So many of the people I tend to meet and enjoy are from different countries, or do quite a bit of traveling. I was wondering if this obession is in part an offshoot of my inability to find a good group of real friends right here in my neighborhood? But then I decided that I just love the differences in everybody, and the fact that there are so many ways to experience and understand life. I love discovering new approaches and learning more about people.
3. I am unable to spontaneously keep my house clean even though I LOVE having it that way and I struggle everyday against chaos spinning wildly through my house. I wish I were more obsessive. My husband is.
4. I love to walk and sing out loud.
5. I miss having time to myself, as I used to spend quite a bit of time in my own house by myself before all of this current situation!

Some more things:
1. I have learned to like pink, on myself and others.
2. Modern architecture used to turn me off but now I think it is cool.
3. In my heart I would love to make all the clothes and grow all the food for myself and my family but I am a better dreamer (or should I say strategist?) than doer.

[allnaturalmama]

Ooooh, nice idea, Andrea! And you're right, I had no idea about those things about you. Cool!

Hmmm, let's see if I can come up with 5:

1) Became an "allnaturalmama" 2 years ago after reading The Maker's Diet. Was pretty mainstream before that.

2) Lost 70 lbs as a result of #1; would love to lose 20 more, but happy where I am if it never happens

3) Have a fear of traveling abroad! DH has been trying to get me to go to Europe with him for years...

4) Was a high school math & science teacher for 5 years before taking on this mothering gig 5.5 years ago. Loved it, but not nearly as much as being a mom! (Took one year off in the middle of my teaching "career" - see #5)

5) DH and I lived in New York City for a year, Brooklyn to be exact. Worked in Rockefeller Center, about 4 blocks from DH's job in midtown Manhattan. That was a fun year! Now we're in the midwest.

ETA: Linda, yours posted while I was composing. If we lived in the same neighborhood, I bet we'd be great friends.

[mkoontz]

OK, I'll try to come up with 5

1/ Before this baby gig I was a midwife. Hope to go back to it one day but it's an impossible job with a baby.

2/ I love reading and usually try to find some time in the day to read.

3/ When I was a child I won medals at scotish dancing (the things parents make you do.... )

4/ I've always wanted to learn to sing, but can't hold a tune for anything

5/ I often get homesick and miss my friends a lot. There aren't many people around here that have the same philosophy as me and it gets lonely sometimes. Thank goodness for MDC!!!

[judybean]

1. My ideal place of living would be my own version of Maine. A house with a wrap-around porch along the rocky coast.... and I guess I always picture the living in autumn, just bordering on winter... where I could sit outside with the wind blowing, but I stay warm in my heavy, bulky turtleneck drinking hot tea or cocoa. And of course crab legs would be cooking inside. My house would have hardwood floors throughout, our heat would come from a centralized wood stove, we would be heavy on books, light on 'stuff'. It's really not a lot like we have now I can work towards some things (we have hardwood floors and I like tea and cocoa... and we have plenty of books), but living in Maine probably isn't going to happen.

2. I'm a convert to Catholicism. I was raised ELCA Lutheran and at one point my parents thought I would become a minister. I converted in 2002. Contrary to popular belief (um, my parents), I did not do this simply because dh is Catholic. While I believe in a single-faith family, I went on my own journey and this is where I ended up.

3. I'm not nearly as crunchy as I'd like to be. We still eat out (when we can afford it) and it's certainly nothing remotely close to organic. And right now I still like sugar.

4. I struggle daily with affluence vs. simple living. We're nowhere near a position to live affluently, so that sounds like a silly thing, but there are some days when I think it could be fun to put on makeup, go shopping, etc. But I don't. For good reasons. But it's still hard.

5. I know German. I only took two years of it in high school, but it came to me so well that I felt like I didn't have to 'work' at all to learn it. I took a trip to Europe (England, France, Switzlerland, Italy, Austria, Germany, The Netherlands) with a few students from my German class and my German teacher. I most of it. I would love to go back to England. But not so much France.

and, a few bonus items:

-- I love pad thai (rice) noodles. LOVE them.
-- I love garlic.
-- I don't use margarine, but love butter. *real* butter!
-- I don't shave my legs.
-- I want to go no-poo.
-- I've never had a garden. This year we're planting a tomato plant, jalapeno plant, a pumpkin plant, and a couple of strawberry plants. We'll see how it goes!

[judybean]

And... because I *love* finding out about others, I'll add just a few more that came to me:

-- I'm a terrible housekeeper. Terrible. I'm trying to figure out what the heck to do about it, but can't figure out a thing. My house is not 'dirty' but it's certainly not picked up. It's just low on the priority list.

-- I love *doing* laundry. I hate folding it.

-- I love to sing and people compliment me often on my singing. I cantor (lead the singing) at church often. And yes, I love getting the compliments afterwards. It is not the sole reason I do it, but sometimes it's nice to have somebody say, "good job!" ... because the job of mothering just doesn't always yield those kind of results!

[darkpear]

Ooh, fun thread!

1. I can't hold down a job to save my life. I have problems with authority and structure and with doing tasks that feel boring or meaningless. This also has a lot to do with why I never finished college. I really love being a SAHM though. I honestly have no idea what I'd be doing if Amalie hadn't come along when she did.

2. In a similar vein, I am a horrible housekeeper. Really, really bad. I have gotten a lot better though and I continue to work on it. The place is generally a mess but it's at least safe and livable.

3. I'm bisexual and fairly gender ambiguous as well. I don't think I ever learned how to be a girl

4. I'm a game junkie. When I was childless and unemployed I could spend 12 hours a day or more on the computer game (mostly MMOs) du jour. I've cut waaaay back, obviously!

5. I want to cut my hair short and dye it royal purple.

[IncaMama]

oh this is lovely!!

1. i used to be a professional actor/singer. i desperately miss the stage (though film and TV wasn't for me. btdt. didn't like it.) and have dreams of returning someday when my kiddos need me less. i once had an opportunity to play Mimi in Rent on Broadway. Yeah, I'm a dumbass. :

2. i'm fluent in spanish and french, though i'm HORRIBLE at speaking in spanish with rowan. i think my friend's child knows more and his parents don't even really speak it. : that's sad. my father is peruvian and speaks spanish with rowan, but i really need to be better about it.

3. i've been with my husband since i was 14 and he was 17.

4. i'm a HORRIBLE housewife. i hate cleaning. i hate cooking. and i basically do neither. we live out of laundry baskets (until TODAY! i finally emptied all SEVEN of our baskets and put the clothes away!) but my husband is a neat freak so i try my best. except with cooking. we live on sandwiches, scrambled eggs, and just...not great stuff. : i'm trying to get better with that too.

5. i'm a lazy extrovert. i get depressed if i don't have contact with others during the day but i'm also phobic of the kids being challenging while i'm out, so i go out MUCH less often than i should with them. which then leads to me feeling down.

[Panthira]

O my!

1. I love to sing and I sing everyday. I'm not good enough to be a lead vocalist, but I've been backup in a few bands when I was younger. Nothing can destroy my love of singing, not even my mean daughter. Hahaha! My 2 yr old is quickly following in my footsteps and knows the words to at least 20 songs and also sings daily.

2. I am amazingly self-reliant and can do just about everything (probably because of number 3). I can fix my car, but hate grease under my nails *shudder*. I am freakishly strong and almost as strong in my upper body as a man. Those are quick examples while being distrated be 3 loud children ATM.

3. I didn't have parents. I had a mom, but she was more like my sister or child i was expected to take care of, and therefore ran wild most of my childhood.

4. I can't talk about my oldest son without feeling like I'm going to lose it, emotionally. I have to be very focused and careful while I talk about him, or I'll break down crying. I know others can see the pain in my eyes, and it sucks.

5. I started working when I was 9. I taught computers to professors at Stanford University when I was 14. Had a paper route for 5 years, ran a housecleaning/window and car washing business, managed a video store single handedly while the owner was in Chile for a year. I also worked full time as a nanny for boy/girl twins (ironically) for 18 months, all before the age of 17. (I graduated from High School when I was 15, thus making some of the above possible). Being a SAHM is a huge change for me and I don't know how to handle it sometimes. That's why I run my co-op group and have my minor business working from home.

[mariposita]

i'm really enjoying reading all of your responses!!!

linda - i think you and i would be good friends if we lived in the same city. we have so much in common even beyond ec and knitting! i totally agree about being self-sufficient. it's my dream too, but is unlikely to ever happen the way i envision it.

jen - congrats on your weight loss! i'm trying to lose about 40-50 lbs right now. that's awesome!

megan - how long have you been a midwife? i admire midwives so much.

judy - your description of your ideal house is dreamy. i wanna come visit! oh, and don't you just LOVE the smell of garlic on your hands after you have been cutting it?

simone - what's stopping you from cutting and dying your hair? i chopped off mine when ds1 was about 10 months old because he kept pulling on it. royal purple is a lovely color.

michele - wow, i didn't know you were an actress! why did you turn down that role? oh, and you forgot to write that you can curse like a sailor! seriously, you are poetic when you swear. i'm jealous. i rarely swear because i sound like a dufus. hahaha

panthira (sorry, can't remember your first name) - wow, i'm in awe of your work ethic. you should be extremely proud of yourself.

oh, and carter wanted to add...

[mariposita]

more about me...

-i was a nationally competitive gymnast for most of my childhood with the intentions of competing in the olympics.
-i sell mary kay, but don't wear makeup. i don't do parties, just reorders mostly.
-i taught myself braille for fun.
-i am an extremely good salsa and merengue dancer.
-speaking of salsa, i add it to almost everything i eat.

[Jeanne_L]

This is a great thread!!

1. I'm fluent in Swahili. (See No. 2), and speak a little Spanish. I hope to learn many more languages in my lifetime!!

2. I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Tanzania from 97-99 (hence the Swahili!). That's where I met my husband... so we try to speak to Elliot in Swahili... at least he'll be accustomed to hearing another language!

3. I have a BS in engineering.

4. I'm a massage therapist.

5. My parents just bought some land in Wisconsin and we are going to live there and try to farm... I guess more like homesteading... I want to raise as much of the food we eat as I can.

[kgrfcharlton]

This is fun! (I'm not as well known b/c I got really sad after my attempted VBAC that ended in a CBAC & didn't come back here until 6 weeks afo or so)

1. I am a recovering Pastor's Kid (it really wasn't that bad b/c my dad is big softie!). I was their "wild child" though.

2. I was All-State cheerleader my Junior year of HS (I got kicked off for the next year - I know cheerleaders have a "snob" rap, but I was not like that - I really enjoyed it & DH will never let me live it down!)

3. I am almost 5 months into my PPD (I am in therapy now), but I'm & DH & DD & DS is really tired of it! I just want to be a better mommy. Oh, & on the whole clean house thing - I used to keep a pretty clean house, but I just can't get it together now. I don't know if it's the PPD or the extra child!?

4. I would LOVE to be really "crunchy" but DH is really mainstream & I don't have the fight in me right now (my laziness ((or depression?)) really plays a part, too), although I am really considering starting CDing & not vaxing.

5. My dream is to have a little farm. Of courses horses (I used to pray for one as a child), a wonderful veggie garden, free-range chickens, and my own organic cows (I hope I don't offend any vegan/vegatarians!). DH just laughs at me, b/c I HATE getting up in the morning & he wonders who is going to milk the cow? I told him he needs to make some money b/c I will need a farm hand

[darkpear]

Rachel I hope you are feeling better soon! PPD must be a beast, especially with two little ones.

Andrea - nothing is stopping me really, it's just a matter of setting the money aside and making an appointment. I do hope it doesn't shock my old Granny too much. She has fairly advanced Alzheimer's and it's liable to freak her out anew every time I see her.

It's interesting to me that a few of you have the language bug too. I tend to pick them up readily myself, though the Spanish and French I took in high school are quite rusty from disuse now.

More about me...

I collect, uh... well, information. I hate to say trivia because I don't think it's trivial Random facts? I did quiz bowl type stuff in high school and was the captain of the team. I was really good!

I'm a night owl. This is a normal time for me to be awake, though I am going to bed soon.

I love a lot of the crunchy ideals but I also love my creature comforts and modern conveniences, and I just don't think I could pull the hardcore granola lifestyle off. Perhaps I could, but I don't think I'd be very happy. I would love to be off the grid wrt energy and water, but you can pry my cable modem out of my cold, dead hands. I am not terribly interested in growing/raising my own food either, at least not beyond herbs and a few veggies. I do cook from scratch a lot, but that's out of a love of food and a need for frugality more than a sincere belief that anything found in the food aisles of the supermarket is likely to poison my family. Maybe I read too much science fiction, but I just don't think the answer for mankind's problems lies in going back to some mythical low-tech golden age. Technology and advancements aren't going to go away, so what we really need to do is make sure our tech works for us instead of destroying us and our environment.

Oh, and I also tend to ramble, if you give me half a chance

[xmasbaby7]

I love reading all of these posts!!! I am so impressed with this group of women.

1) Like Linda, I have always been in love with all things foreign and minored in forgiegn languages: French and Italian. I have travelled extensively to Frnce and Italy and wish I were Italian. I have an "adopted famiy" in Southern Ialy I visit every few years in their small village and live out that fantasy.

2) I have had one dad and 3 stepdads since my mom is a serial marry-er. This has impacted my life greatly, of course, and it has resulted in my waiting and finding an amazing man who is my soul mate. We will be married forever, and he believes we were together in past lives. I am not sure I believe in past lives, but I appreciate the sentiment.

3) I could be a professional astrologer. It has been a hobby of mine since I was 8 years old and am self-taught.

4) I was a natural in the corporate world in my 20's and had a really fun career in NYC, and loved being a single gal in NYC, but I love the world dh and I have created for ourselves: no TV (except American Idol), no processed foods, preventative health. I wish I could raise my daughter on an Amish farm!

5) I can beat most people in trivial pursuit except my DH, and most of my friends ask me for interior design advice. My mother is an interior designer, and it came naturally to me, so I love making homes beautiful and comfortable for as little money possible. It's like a game to me.

6) Can't resist this bonus: Although I have a pretty mainstream and girly appearance now, I was a punk rocker in high school and never brushed my hair!

[birthjunkie27]

This thread is so fun!

1. I suck at laundry. I don't mind doing the laundry, but I HATE folding it. So there's usually a huge mountain of laundry sitting on my bedroom floor.

2. I'm a junk food junkie, trying really hard to change my ways but not doing a very good job. I get excited when Taco Bell comes out with a new food. I'm totally loving their Ultimate Chalupa. It's now wonder I can't shake the last 10 pounds off my ass.

3. I used to be a goth kid in high school. Black clothes, make up, the whole bit.

4. I am adamant about car seat safety, but don't have the courage to say something to someone when I see they are clearly doing something wrong. Ex- a parent in Mikayla's preschool class had their baby boy (had to be less than a yr old) facing FORWARD in an infant carseat (the carrier kind)! I was livid..and wanted to say something, but I don't have the balls to.

5. I am completely addicted to myspace. I check my myspace before I check my regular email. And I check it roughly 500 times a day. lol Ok, more like 20 maybe. http://www.myspace.com/birthjunkie

And a few more just because this is too fun

I have social anxiety disorder (the fancy term for extremely shy).

I want to be a midwife.

The thought of cloth mama pads is gross.

I'm very interested in the paranormal. I love to watch Ghost Hunters on the sci-fi channel.

[IncaMama]

: i don't know if my potty mouth is something i'm necessarily proud of. oh wait, this isn't what we're proud of, is it. LOL! ok yeah, i curse like a f*cking sailor. it's pretty bad, but you're right...i have honed my craft over the years.

and the reason i turned down mimi. well, first of all because i'm a DUMBASS. and secondly, because i wanted a different lifestyle for myself. i had just decided to go to graduate school to get my PhD and was getting married, knew i wanted kids, etc. and a life on the stage wasn't compatible with those things in my mind. and also, i was a DUMBASS. :

[amygoforth]

I love this thread! What an amazing and diverse bunch -- such the cool kids of the DDCs.

I'm afraid I'm not nearly as interesting as you all. I'm downright boring, actually. I'll give it a shot though...

1. My MA is in journalism, but I turned away from the dark side because I was too wimpy during my interviews. I hated getting in everyone's business.

2. I too would love to be lots crunchier. I'm trying and trying every day, but it's tough living in such a mainstream society. I feel like I don't have the energy it takes to change my whole life, so I'm taking baby steps.

3. I want to be a doula/lactation consultant/childbirth educator when I grow up.

4. Sometimes when I'm singing in the car on the way to work in the morning, I imagine I'm singing karaoke and the crowd is so loving me! This is a sad daydream because a) I've only sang karaoke three times in my life and I sucked, and b) why karaoke? why not imagine myself on a stage performing my own songs or something? Loser.

5. I'm chatty and friendly on the outside, but socially uncomfortable on the inside. I tend to avoid deep conversations with anyone other than DH. That makes me feel like a shallow friend sometimes.

6. Gross confession: I get much satisfaction from attacking the blackheads on my nose. There, I said it.

[darkpear]

Cuss with pride, Michele! I'm pretty bad too. I try to keep it PG-13 for MDC at least.

Amy, I get a huge kick out of the blackhead removing strips

[anonymous4_20]

This is fun! Everybody here is much more interesting than me, but I'll try.

1. I majored in classical guitar performance in college. I actually went to a conservatory, but I got fed up with the classical snobbish attitude (I love my rock and roll WAY too much) and decided to teach in the public schools. My favorite job there was teaching general music to grades 1-3. I felt like I was getting paid to play games with kids all day long!

2. I worked my way through college by playing weddings, bar mitzvahs, and cocktail parties. One of my weirder gigs was playing at James Garfield's grave. So I can always say I played for the president, even though he was dead at the time!

3. I love to cook and bake. I have a pretty cluttered house, but I never fail to make dinner. I mostly bake cookies, pies, and quick breads, but I'm starting to experiment more with yeast baking (or at least I was before I had to stop and nurse every hour!)

4. I'm a big Cleveland Browns fan. It's sad, I know. I just like rooting for the underdogs. You have to, really, to be a Cleveland sports fan.

5. DH and I like to read and watch sci-fi and fantasy. Some of my favorites are Harry Potter and Doctor Who. DH is a huge Star Wars fan. He's already decided what order Stuart will watch the films in and what age he'll start. He's currently making his own light saber. We are such geeks!