7 Random Things

I was tagged by my penpal, Kris, to post seven random things about myself. I'm never much good at these, but in the spirit of the tagging, I may as well post something (mmm, good post fodder anyway). So here goes:

1.) When I read, I often talk out loud about what I'm reading if someone is in the room. I'm not really talking to them, though. I'm simply verbalizing my thoughts, which helps me think. Part of it ends up being an attempt to include them in my thought processes, which often baffles the person I'm including because they don't realize what I'm doing. Lance has become accustomed to my odd habit, and I get a way to think.

2.) I use lots of cinnamon. Most people simply use it when baking, but I tend to add it to my coffee grounds in the morning, dump huge quantities in anything I'm baking/cooking, and otherwise plow through a sack of cinnamon in a short period of time. I'm almost the same way with ginger. I have some ginger jelly that I put in anything from oatmeal to a peanut butter sandwich.

3.) I use some phrases that confuse people. One is "toasted cheese sandwich", which apparently is supposed to be called a grilled cheese. Whatever. A new one is "peanut butter half". I said that one a few days ago, and my co-workers were confused: what is a peanut butter half? they queried. In case you didn't know, it's when you take one slice of bread, slather it with peanut butter (and sometimes honey or jelly), fold it in half, and consume. Peanut butter half. I picked up this and the other weird phrases from my family.

4.) I make random connections between books that I'm reading, music, shows I'm watching, etc. I guess that's what makes me a good analyzer of literature--the ability to make connections. I was relieved when I figured out this was a good skill to have in academia, and can often lead to some good research topics. Though, some roll their eyes at my more obscure connections, like that episode of Dr. Who I just watched last night and the book I just finished by Margaret Atwood, Oryx and Crake. (Nerd, they whisper).

5.) I'm a sucker for romantic comedies. I just saw Music and Lyrics, and loved it. I know that I should have more...um...cultured? tastes, but I love watching that genre. Of course, if it's an awful film, I won't watch it. And sometimes when I go back and re-watch one, I realize how sort of shallow it was, like Love Actually. (Almost no character development. But still some entertaining bits). I still enjoy them, however, to the chagrin of Lance.

6.) I'm a crafty, creative person who has a desire to learn more things. This desire manifests itself in wanting to sew more, learn new knitting techniques, read non-fiction, etc. I love learning; I love learning new things. It's a random bit of myself that connects my personal life to my academic life--my desire to know. I hope that it never goes away because it is such a pleasure to want to learn, and then to do so.

7.) I'm sort of a mockingbird. Meaning, when I listen to people talk, I tend to pick up their phrasings and ways of speaking and use them (if I like them), or if I'm reading, I'll often write, think, or talk in the style of the author. (Right now I'm reading The Namesake. I read for several hours yesterday and found myself thinking in her short, crisp style.) It's random and weird, so there you go.

I guess I can tag some people. Amanda, Kerry, Justin, Samantha, Kathryn, Amber, and G-girl...you're up.