84 Things

It has come to my attention that taking a "Blog Vacation" is easier said than done. August 10th I posted that I would be missing in action for three weeks to enjoy the rest of the summer. Less than 72 hours later, I posted again. And here I am today with yet another post-- I guess "vacation" is a loose term.

I've been reading blogs too and one caught my attention-- Ridgely at Savor The Ride posted a list of "84 Things" about herself and put the challenge out to other bloggers to do the same. She got the idea from Jorja's "84" at Living Beyond The Pale who also has a terrific "84" from author Theo Nestor.

It was an interesting exercise, all be it very "me, me, me", but I had fun doing it so I'm putting it out there and passing on the challenge to you, you, you!

In no particular order-- My 84 Things you might not know...

1. Anything with chocolate works for me.

2. Lemonade always quenches my thirst.

3. I'm old fashioned and think girls shouldn't call boys when dating.

4. Wegman's in Buffalo, NY is the best grocery store I've ever shopped in-- Which is disappointing since I live in Los Angeles.

5. When moving homes, leaving jobs or (before I was married) breaking up with boyfriends, I never look back-- literally, not one last look.

6. I am a licensed real estate agent but I've never worked in the field.

7. I prefer (hard) scooped ice cream that's melted to soft-serve ice cream texture.

8. The mailman ran over my puppy when I was 8 years old.

9. A manicure/pedicure always makes me feel better.

10. I can name all 50 United States in alphabetical order. I learned them in a song in the 6th grade.

11. The above information came in very handy during bar drinking contests in the late 1970s.

12. Blue is my favorite color but red is all over my house.

13. Pink peonies and yellow garden roses are my favorite flowers.

14. When Godson was 2 months old he fit inside his Christmas stocking.

15. Intuition doesn't lie.

16. I believe in "paying it forward".

17. Yosemite National Park is my favorite place to visit in the United States.

18. Blue jelly beans are good. Pink ones are better.

19. When we got married, the florist brought someone else's flowers to our reception.

20. I miss my family in Ohio all the time.

21. A boyfriend once told me I couldn't live without him. He was very wrong about that.

22. I am named after my mother's best friend.

23. I recycle. A lot.

24. My posture is terrible. I need to work on that.

25. I do not like to drive.

26. I used to be able to stand on my hands, head and tip-toes-- for long periods of time.

27. Someday I will wear a really fabulous red dress.

28. Worrying is a waste of energy.... I waste a lot of it.

29. I believe everyone has a soul mate-- the perfect match. It's just a matter of finding him/her.

30. I'd like to see fireworks at Mt. Rushmore on the 4th of July.

31. Although usually disappointing food, room service is gloriously enjoyable.

32. When in doubt, I call my mother.

33. I cook a nice Thanksgiving dinner but usually never actually on Thanksgiving.

34. I wish we had air conditioning even though we only need it about 3 weeks a year.

35. Snow and I are not friends.

36. I'm still trying to figure out where I'll live in my (very) old age. All I know for sure is that it won't be in California.

37. California has too many earthquakes.

38. I'm a Mac, not a PC.

39. I volunteer for Lupus International and UCLA's Design for Sharing.

40. Roller coasters are not my idea of fun.

41. Puddle jumping after a spring rain is a blast.

42. I don't mind flying but I do not like heights.

43. I bought a lottery tickets today for a $100 million mega jackpot.

44. I really hope I win.

45. The celebrity gossip TV show TMZ cracks me up.

46. Having my picture taken makes me very uncomfortable.

47. I wish I had long hair again.

48. In the past 4 years my weight has ranged from 146 to 103 pounds and is now somewhere in between.

50. An outdoor sleeping porch is on my "wish list".

51. If money was no object, my entire family would live in nice houses, drive nice cars and never have to worry about college tuition.

52. Dirty feet bug me.

53. If you lie to me I can't be your friend.

54. I do not like hospitals.

55. My husband has been telling me he's on the "3-year plan to retirement" since our first date 22 years ago.

56. I wish I hadn't retired in preparation for his retirement. I'm so unemployable now it's not even funny.

57. I'm rarely awake for the sunrise and prefer to keep it that way.

58. The smell of fresh basil is intoxicating.

59. I've been to the Academy Awards. It was very cool.

60. Once in the early 1980s, I was a guest and had floor seats at a Laker's Basketball game during the Magic Johnson/Larry Bird years. It was even cooler than the Academy Awards.

61. In my mid-20s, I sold imported plumbing supplies. Yawn.

62. I was a waitress for A LOT of years too. It was hard work but usually pretty fun.

63. I'm a very good tipper in restaurants.

64. It's easy to spot me on the beach. I'm the one wearing a hat the size of a circus tent.

65. I could eat pasta until I go into a carb coma.

66. Top Gun, American President, Something's Gotta Give and The Thomas Crown Affair (remake) are the videos/dvds I've watched more times than I can count.

67. I miss the old Tom Cruise movie star.

68. My great-grandmother prided herself on the fact that her husband never saw her naked.

69. I'm a Food Network and HGTV junkie.

70. I will never own a gun.

71. Bubble baths and long hot showers are a pleasure.

72. Riding motorcycles is not fun to me. I did it once. That was enough.

73. Table manners are important, so is saying please and thank you.

74. I recently bought a GPS because I have no sense of direction and was always lost.

75. I spent the first half of my life trying to get out of Ohio and the second half trying to figure out how to get back.

76. The older I get, the less I'm able to multi-task.

77. I love songs by the Rat Pack-- Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Joey Bishop and Whatshisname.

78. Getting "real" mail-- letters and cards from family and friends is a treat.

79. My life changed for the better the second I laid eyes on my husband.

80. I do not like how corny that sounds, but it's true.

81. There's a new show coming to Fox tv in September called Lone Star with a very cute *ahem*much*younger*cough* leading man-- James Wolk. He's half my age, but I might just swoon over him.

82. If there was an elevator to take me downstairs to my treadmill, I'd workout more.

83. I hope I never run out of kisses.

84. We're going to New York for the week!

Yep, I'm actually really going on vacation!

Welcome to www.TheFiftyFactor.com - Joanna Jenkins

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