V-Love’s Lonely Planet

100 things about me

1.       I love chocolate and can always eat dessert after a meal no matter how full I am.  I don’t understand how some people cannot love chocolate, and those that are allergic, I’m sorry.

2.       I also love sour candy.  I love candy in general but I love sour things.  And tart things.  And vinegar and lots of lemon.  But I don’t like gummy candies.

3.       I enjoy wine, a lot.  Especially with friends.  But often drink a glass at home alone when I am cooking. 

4.       I love to dance.  I took ballet, tap, and jazz for 15 years.  I’ve started taking ballet again in Fort Collins.

5.       I love to cook.  I try to use recipes from cookbooks but only end up using my Mother’s.  I cook roughly 5 nights a week.  It’s soothing and makes you feel good.

6.       I have a motherly instinct.  I just know how to do things.  I just feel like I magically learned how to cook bc my mother always cooked.  I can wash clothes.  I can clean.  I can install and fix things (but if there is a guy around or my Dad I let them do it).  I think I would be good at raising kids and taking care of people.

7.       I like getting my hands dirty. 

8.       I like anything outdoors.  Camping, hiking, rafting, fishing, skiing, and soon-biking and kayaking.

9.       I prefer not to wear make-up.  I wear very little.

10.   It takes me very little time to get ready in the morning.  I’m speedy and don’t always care what I look like.

11.   I love dogs.  I call all dogs puppies.  I miss my dog but I can’t wait to buy a Husky when I have my own home. 

12.   I was attacked by a dog in the face when I was a kid.  I have scars that people ask about.  I still find myself putting my face in every dogs face that I ever meet.  But usually I have a good instinct about nice dog vs a mean dog. 

13.   All dogs love my dad.  His father, my Pap-Pap loved dogs as well.

14.   I hate fights.  When I see one, I scream and get scared and angry.

15.   I am not a good interior decorator.  I even took a class for fun at Rice with an old co-worker on interior-decorating.  But I don’t think I ever really paid attention.  I always wished I was in the wine class instead; I tried but it was full.

16.   I have white-water rafted down the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon twice.  The first trip was 6 days, the second was 11.  It was life changing.  I try ad convince everyone I ever meet to raft in the Grand Canyon. 

17.   I quit my last job to backpack Peru and Europe for 3 months, alone.  I look at life completely different now. 

18.   I love traveling.  I regret not studying abroad or taking time off after my undergrad.  I will convince, maybe even force my children to travel the world and study abroad.  I hope to have enough money to take them to amazing places while they are growing up. 

19.   I hope to go on a NOLS trip one day.

20.   I like to do things alone.  Go to church alone, the movies alone, sometimes eat alone, hike alone.  Sometimes I am too much of a loner as I would rather be by myself than with people.

21.   I love my friends.  It was not until I moved to Colorado that I realized what amazing friends I have back in Texas.  I miss them terribly.  It’s the only thing that makes me sad about my move. 

22.   I have the most amazing parents in the entire world.  They would do absolutely anything for me.  And they have been married for 33 years.  I sometimes take advantage of them and never tell them I love them enough. 

23.   I have the most amazing Grandma in the world.  She is my only living Grandparent.  She is 85 and as strong as a pistol and has been living with Leukemia for several years.  She was married for over 50 years before my Pap-Pap passed away and she is the true meaning of strength.

24.   I’m bowlegged.  I did not realize this until high school when a friend told me I walked funny.  I had my mom take me to the doctor to see if it could be fixed.  He said he could do surgery but I would still look bowlegged.  He said the only way to have fixed it was for my parents to put me in leg braces when I was young.

25.   I have never worn braces.  But I did wear an eye patch in the first grade.  Now I have 20/20 vision.

26.   I used to get teased as a kid.  I always got called shrimp-o.

27.   I lived in Germany for 2 1/2 years when I was 6 months-3.  My parents used to leave my brother and me in our cribs so they could go out drinking.

28.   I was a pistol when I was a kid.  I had ringlets in my hair. I think I was always smiling and had a mischievous look on my face.  My brother and I were polar opposites.  We still are.

29.   My Aunt and I look a lot alike.  My dad often calls me Nina (my Aunt’s name).

30.   I was born and raised Catholic.  I used to go to a Catholic school as a kid and I loved it.

31.   I am a huge Better Midler fan.  In the first grade, we went to mass on Wednesday morning and we could wear dresses instead of our uniforms.  A guy in the 5^th grade sang “Wind Beneath My Wings” and I cried.  The principal heard about how touched I was by the song and invited me to meet the boy who sang.  I remember being so embarrassed bc my mom made me wear an ugly gray and white dress that day that my Grandma had made for me. 

32.   I liked a boy in the first grade and he liked me.  His name was Doug Velike and we always joked that if I married him my name would be Vicki Velike.  (ok, so it is pronounced Va-lik-e).  I found his address about 10 years ago so I randomly sent him snail mail and he wrote me back with photos. 

33.   I’ve been to China, Peru, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Mexico, Canada, and a bit in the US.  I plan on visiting more of South and Central America, Thailand, Africa, and Australia in the near future.

34.   I love low key-mellow music.  And guitar music.  And music with a piano.  And jazz.

35.   I often sit and think about my past, and my future. 

36.   If I am still single at 35 I think I will adopt a little baby.

37.   My brother is my hero.  He is a pilot.

38.   My brother and I used to fight a lot as kids.  He threw a hammer at me once and just missed.  We would destroy each other’s rooms and bathrooms.  I would always hide or mess up his model airplanes…he hated when I did that.

39.   My brother met his wife on e-harmony.

40.   I was always a good kid.  My parents were never strict so I never felt the need to be bad.  They trusted me and I was always honest with them (most of the time).

41.   I snuck out once on my 13^th birthday to go get the boys down the street.  They came over and we drank wine coolers and beer in my garage.  I told my parents the next morning.

42.   I drove drunk once and went to confession for a week.

43.   My first kiss was 7 minutes in heaven.

44.   Sometimes I can be very cold and stubborn; I don’t smile enough even though I’m happy 80% of the time.

45.   I love 4 seasons…fall and winter especially.

46.   I’m not into shoes or purses or a lot of girly and material things.

47.   I wish I could speak another language.  I attempted to learn Italian; I listened to CDs for months before my trip to Europe.  I’m convinced you have to live in that country to learn the language. 

48.   I’m full blooded Italian.  Nobody in Italy would speak English to me until they heard my last name and realized I was Italian.

49.   I love Italian food, especially my mom and my grandma’s.  I could live off of pasta. 

50.   I love to fish but I hate eating fish.  Only crab, shrimp, and lobster.

51.   I’m good with my money.  I know how to save.

52.   When I was a kid I dressed as Tweedy Bird, my grandma made the costume and it rocked.  I pulled it out of my parent’s attic 2 years ago in hopes that I could fit into it for a Halloween party.  I could barely get my ankle in it.  That was a badass costume.  I was also purple grapes one year.

53.   I rarely wear sunscreen.

54.   I stuck a glow-in-the-dark Lego up my nose once because I was curious if it would glow through my nose.  I don’t think it did.  All I remember was it got stuck up there and I had to try really hard to get it out. 

55.   I was in the marching band until my sophomore year of high school and then I quit.  It was a big deal for my parents bc they were band parents and they thought no college would want me bc my resume would show I quit something.  I got into multiple colleges.

56.   I have an MBA from Tulane University.  I worked hard for it.

57.   One of my dreams has always been to be on Broadway.

58.   I’ve also always had a dream to live in NYC.  I still think I want that dream to come true at one point.

59.   I love the Steelers bc my brother loves the Steelers.  And, I am from Pittsburgh.

60.   We went on a family vacation to Las Vegas when I was a kid and my dad made the family go see Folies Bergere-the topless show.  It was awkward with my dad and brother there.

61.   I’ve been to La Beres in Houston.  Those guys can dance.

62.   I’ve been to The Yellow Rose of Texas in Austin.  Those girls were nasty.

63.   I’ve had many boyfriends but have yet to be in love.  I think I only said it once but never meant it.  That was back in high school.

64.   I hate cats.  I am allergic to them.

65.   I’ve recently realized I do NOT have a green thumb.  All of my plants (indoor and outdoor) are dying.  Even my fresh herbs (which I use to cook with-daily) are struggling.

66.   I’ve never gotten a speeding ticket.

67.   Sometimes I regret not going to Penn State instead of Texas A&M

68.   I have not yet “dunked” my Aggie ring

69.   The thought of spending the rest of my life with one man scares the crap out of me.  Not sure if marriage is for me.  My parents hate hearing that.

70.   I have my Mother’s hands.  I think they are raw and somewhat ugly. 

71.   I think I have good hair.  It’s dark brown, thick, and healthy.  It grows fast.  I normally only get it cut 2-3 times a year.  I’ve never permed or dyed it. 

72.   I have always bitten my nails.  It’s a bad nervous habit.  The only time I do not bite my nails is when I am traveling. 

73.   I have never broken any bones.  Only fractured a finger once from playing football with my brother.

74.   My brother and his friend Ryan used to sit behind me on the back of the bus and tease me and pull my hair. 

75.   When I used to get teased in Kindergarten I would take the boys fingers and bend them all the way back. 

76.   When I’m older I would love to own my own dance studio.

77.   If I ever go back to school, it will be for something fun.  A degree in dance or cooking or something outdoor related.

78.   I like to see how low I can get my utility bill each month.  I rarely turn on the AC. 

79.   I wish I could sing and play the guitar.  Playing the guitar is on my life long list of goals/dreams. 

80.   I had a major crush on Doogie Howser (Neil Patrick Harris) as a kid.  6 years ago I saw him as the lead in Cabaret on Broadway.  I freaked. 

81.   I was about 6 rows away from the Pope in Rome.  I’ve danced for Christopher Reeves and Neil Armstrong.  I once walked right past Elijah Wood in NYC.  I partied with Nickelback at a bar in Houston.  But I much prefer to actually meet Bette Midler!

82.   When hiking the Inca Trail alone one morning, I saw a bear.  We stared at each other, I took pictures, and then he walked along the path back into the woods.  The Porters told me it was good luck. 

83.   I always loved Math and Science and hated English and Social Studies.  I still love Math and hate the other two.

84.   I have never cheated on a test.  My friends in high school always put cheat sheets in their calculators and it made me so mad. 

85.   I had my tonsils removed when I was 22. 

86.   I always liked to play Ouija Board as a kid and do weird séances with the neighbors.  I also got in trouble for going out into the woods.

87.   I love spicy food.  The spicier the better.

88.   I used to sleep walk as a kid.  I once slept walk out the back door and down the street to my neighbors house.  They carried me home and my parents put me back to bed.  I did not remember a thing.

89.   I don’t like it when guys grunt at the gym.  I am tempted to tell them to lower their weights bc obviously it’s too hard for them.

90.   I tend to get picked up by 3 types of men; old old men, black gangsters, and Mexican thugs.  Never an attractive quality normal guy. 

91.   I hope to one day compete in a sprint triathlon.  And maybe place.

92.   I prefer being active when I travel; I can’t just sit on a beach for 5 days.  I like to get up early and see and do as much as I can.  I’m a mountain girl, not a beach girl. 

93.   When I get drunk with my girlfriends (usually off of way to much champagne), we smoke cigars and giggle all night. 

94.   I like to believe in horoscopes

95.   I once went to a psychic in high school and she told me I was going to be a secretary to a man 15 years older than me and marry him.  That scared the crap out of me.  And it is so far from the truth!  I did not get an MBA to be a secretary!  And I find men older than me who hit on girls my age to be a huge turn off.

96.   I once had an old man (probably in his 60’s) at 24 hour fitness tell me “your mom must be a real babe; she must be real pretty; you tell your mom a guy at the gym said hi, but don’t tell you dad.”  Can we say creepy?

97.   I hope to climb Kilimanjaro in the next 5 years.  And then go on a Safari while I am there, and I might as well see the Pyramids.

98.   My brother used to fly me in little Cessna planes from Houston to College Station.

99.   I can go days without drinking any liquids

100.                        I think one day I will end up back on the East Coast

This entry was posted on Friday, July 11th, 2008 at 9:45 am and is filed under Planning. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.