Five Things You Didn't Know About Me

This afternoon, when I visited Almost Girl, I found out that I had been tagged.

Tech bloggers are circulating a meme called "Five Things You Didn't Know About Me." It has now reached the fashion blogosphere. What it means is that, as someone who's been tagged, I must do the following:

1. Post five things about myself that I haven't already mentioned in this blog.

2. Tag people I'd like to know more about.

Well, here goes:

1. I've worn my hair in dreds since 1990. Originally I planned to wear them until the year 2000. That seemed like such a long way away in 1990! I had so much fun making that proclamation. Well, the century turned, but my dreds did not. They now come all the way down to my hips.

2. When I was 22 I went to umpires school. I'm practically a life-long baseball fan and thought this was my calling. I wanted to be the first woman ump in the Major Leagues. It was all pretty exciting, until after I'd had a few nasty confrontations with little league parents. Now I'm content to just watch my Yankee Games and leave the arguing to the Men In Blue.

3. I have Type 2 Diabetes. Two years ago I kept trying to figure out why the big toe on my right foot was always numb. When my doctor told me I was diabetic it was truly a shock. I'd always been good about taking care of myself, but genetics doesn't care about that. Both of my parents passed away from diabetes-related conditions, so I must be very careful, indeed. I will actually have more to say about diabetes in the coming weeks; I've just discovered a glam group for diabetic divas whom I can't wait to blog about!

4. I'm a sucker for elephant figurines. Don't ask me why. I just think elephants are cute! I love their fat bodies, wrinkled skin and wise-looking facial expressions. (I know, it's weird!) There are 11 figurines on display in my livingroom, plus I have a few pieces of elephant jewelry I enjoy wearing. I'm always looking for more elephants to add to my collection.

5. I play the alto recorder. What's that, you ask? (I don't mean to insult anyone's intelligence. It's just that, most people I meet have no idea what it is.) The recorder is a baroque wind instrument. When American public schools still thought music was important, this was the instrument most children learned to play. I love just about any type of music and last year, when I was looking for an easy instrument to learn, I remembered the recorder from elementary school. (I never got a chance to play it then. Instead I played the cello, from seventh grade until I entered college.) I am loving it. My teacher tells me that, to be accepted as a recorder player, you must know how to play the other recorder sizes as well (soprano, tenor and bass). I hope to begin the bass recorder later this year.

There you have it, five things you didn't know about me.

Oh Patrice, Vie, Moi, and Erika: tag, you're it!