Monday, June 18, 2007

Like spider legs

Well, I have been tagged again. This time by Cailleach, for eight random facts about myself. Leaving aside the argument as to whether one can achieve anything approaching "random" for these purposes, I'll give it a shot.

1. I cannot write in cursive or lower-case letters. My cursive was impossible for even me to decipher, and I just sort of forgot how to make lower-case letters. I make non-capitalized letters in small caps. Only my signature is cursive.

2. I have never seen an ocean, or any body of water larger than Lake Michigan. This dovetails quite nicely into my irrational fear of water and the fact that I cannot swim.

3. In January of 1992, I decided to keep track of all the books I read. At the end of the month, the total was 53. I doubt I've ever duplicated that feat. I've never tracked my reading like that before or since.

4. Every place I visit, I decide I would like to live there. I nearly spent a winter in Athens, GA because I liked it during a brief stay. The only exception I can think of was Denver, CO, which is also the only place I have ever visited and then moved to. Twice.

5. I was briefly the editor of a music magazine after leaving college. My interview was held in an Arby's. Six months later, at my first professional audition in Chicago, I landed the role of the editor of a music magazine in "The Blank Page," by Adam Langer (Adam is now a bestselling author). I played the same role in the film of the same name, so I have now had more experience playing the editor of a small, indie magazine than I had being one.

6. I once quit a job because my employer wouldn't allow me to listen to music. I was shoved into a room all by myself, and wanted to listen through headphones. My boss looked like Captain Kangaroo, and didn't believe for a second that music makes me more productive. It does, and every job I've had since has confirmed that. At the time, this seemed like a trivial reason to leave employment to everyone but me.

7. Until I started blogging, I never had anything resembling a nickname my entire life. Now people call me variations of "Moon" or "Mr. Topples" even sometimes in real life. I'm still not certain I approve of this.

8. In the period after map of july's first record came out, we played some pretty diverse shows, including a bar mitzvah and the lobby of a 30-cinema theater on the day Godzilla opened. There was an enormous inflatable lizard on the roof above us.

As usual, I tag no one, but let me know if you take a stab yourself and I'll come by and check it out.

14 comments:

Unknown said...

I find no2 amazing. I see the ocean every from house and I love to swim, but have a dread of deep water.

Unknown said...

me too - I love the sound of the sea - I blame that on living beside it for a year when I was very small. Not great on the swimming though.

Wanderlust Scarlett said...

YAY! You got tagged too. Glad you did this also. I think by now just about everyone has been in one round of this or another.

Why do you fear water? How much water? Just bodies of water? Could you live in Seattle? (lots of water in the air)....

You moved to Denver and left twice? That's funny. I love Denver. I leave a lot, but I always come back. How come you left?

I've said before, and will again, music is the voice of the soul. Glad you incorporate it into your life so much.

Nicknames are fun. I've given them to all of my friends and family. They are personal terms of endearment.

Good list, MT, very good list.

Scarlett & Viaggiatore

Zinnia Cyclamen said...

Done it some time back. As an island-born island-dweller I find it hard to imagine never having seen the ocean, I love it and visit it every chance I get.

Am here on a semi-official visit from the novel racers and I'm guessing you want to stay in the race as your novel racers' blogroll is so up to date. But we haven't seen you at the coffee break for a little while so it would be useful if you could drop a comment on Kate/Wordgirl's blog sometime in the next week just to confirm that you want to stay with us. (Alternatively, if you want to leave the race, there's no need to do anything and we'll take you out at the end of next week.) Thanks.

Lazy Perfectionista said...

I love the sea (grew up on the south coast of England) but am also terrified of it, to the point that though I can swim I will only do so in pools. I will paddle up to my knees in clear water, but am always on the look-out for tsunami and sharks...

Zinnia Cyclamen said...

Hello again, apparently some people have been upset by my last message, I don't know if you are one of them but if you are please do accept my apologies. This subject has been under discussion at the last two coffee breaks and we thought we'd come up with a good way forward, but sometimes things come across differently than they are meant... there was no intention of wagging fingers or telling anyone off, just an attempt to find out who wanted to stay and who didn't as our sidebars are getting very long! I'm really very sorry if my comment upset you, and please do email me if this apology feels insufficient.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Miff Ticklees, since you are so found of road trips, I think you ought to make a point of rectifying no. 2. Perhaps in your "new" car. Seriously.

I giggled at no. 1 and no. 7, though I am pretty sure I have called you things other than your real name or your blog name, haven't I?

Anonymous said...

maht - I just thought of something. You claim to have never seen the ocean. But I know you flew to London. I've seen the pictures you took while in London. I guess I now know that you either (a) did not have a window seat and/or (b) did not look out the window while on your flight.

regardless, at 30,000 feet in the daylight the ocean is blue and looks impossibly far away beneath all the white clouds. At night, it just looks black.

ian

Unknown said...

Oooh no.1 is setting my little anal teacher barbs arising. Oh the tics have set in now too! And no. 2 must be rectified. I would recommend Isla de Mujeres ot Tulum for the non-swimmer, it was the bluest, calmest sea ever and lying in it was like taking a long cool bath (it was also pretty calming for the millions and millions of mossie bites). Oh now I'm wondering when I will next see the sea...

Jon M said...

I got tagged Maht, come on over, mine are a bit random.

nmj said...

hey mr moon, i too am afraid of deep water, and I can swim.

i love the lizard on the roof.

did you really read 53 books in january 1992, or have i misunderstood?

sometimes i see things too literally.

The Moon Topples said...

Minx: In my case, it needn't be deep. I just can't go in water except for maybe a hot tub.

Cailleach: I bet it sounds nice. Hope to experience that soon.

Scarlett: I don't have a problem with water in the air (or the two-thirds of my body that is water). But any swimming pool or lake just seems like a death trap. I hyperventillate and cannot float.

Denver is a more complicated tale, but one I'm sure I'll get to eventually.

Zinnia: As for the whole Novel Racers thing: I am not offended, but will respond more fully via email.

Lazy: Tsunamis? Sharks? Great, now I'm doubly fearful, maybe even triply!

GT: A trip to one of our coasts was exactly what I was thinking of with the new auto. Hope I can lay hands on it before summer is over! As to calling me things, you've never done so with any consistency. And angry invectives don't count as nicknames anyway.

Ian: I did not see the water from the plane, but even if I had, that hardly counts as seeing an ocean. 30,000 feet in the air is pretty far. Counting that would feel like counting a photograph. I would need to be able to smell it and see details to check it off the list.

Ver: My actual teachers were grateful when I switched to block letters. They could finally read my writing. As to the places you've suggested, I suspect you think I have more money than I do.

Jon: I stopped by, but could only find lists of five things (three of them, as I recall). Am I on the wrong blog? Is it older? Maybe give me a link should you happen by again.

NMJ: Yes, I read 53 books in January of 1992, which feels like an awful lot since I was also enrolled in college at the time.

Anonymous said...

In your youngest years, you did have a couple nicknames, but I will not embarrass you with them publicly.

Unknown said...

Oh my! Now I'm wondering what those nicknames were!
As for money that never really entered into the equation, so silly me. Although I can tell you that the reason I had millions of mossie bites was from sleeping in some super budget deal mossie and bug infected beach hut.
Now how much would we have to bribe your mom for her to tell us the nicknames?