One Hundred

Begun March 18, 2003, these are 100 things about me.

1. I love thunderstorms. The tension in the air before, the violence during, and the peace afterward. Awesome.
2. Libraries make me happy and depressed. Happy, because of all the books. Depressed, because there's no way I'd even be able to read the books on a few shelves, let alone the entire building, in my lifetime. Heaven, for me, would be an enormous library.
3. Speaking of unhealthy obsessions with books, I once spent several hours of my birthday alone in a Barnes & Noble. I woke up, went downstairs, asked my Mom, and she said that was cool. It was one of my favorite birthdays.
4. Another one of my favorite birthdays was spent in a bar with a few close friends, watching my uncle's band The Willies. I was only 16 or so.
5. My first (and to this date, only) experience fronting a rock band was also with The Willies, singing a cover of Third Eye Blind's Semi-Charmed Life.
6. I do not, contrary to popular belief, have a third nipple. I did have an extra tooth as a child, though.
7. I do not eat my vegetables.
8. I have had three favorite bands/musical artists in my lifetime. Chronologically, they are Billy Joel, R.E.M., and Dave Matthews Band.
9. I do not currently have a favorite band.
10. The first song I ever played solo, guitar and vocals, in front of people I did not know, was Dave Matthews' The Song That Jane Likes.
11. The first R-rated movie I ever really wanted to see in the theater was Backdraft. I had to wait for VHS.
12. The first R-rated movie I ever saw in the theater was Schindler's List.
13. The first comic book I ever bought was a collection of books from the "Death of Superman" series shortly after it concluded. I didn't buy another one until last summer.
14. Once, when I was very little, my Aunt was pushing me on a swing for kids (you know, a bucket seat with a lap bar) and got a little too zealous, flipping me over the top of the swingset. I walked away, no worse for the wear (but quite shook up). I remind her of it whenever I get the opportunity.
15. Presidential candidates I have supported include Dukakis (1988, I was 6, cut me some slack), Dole (1996, I have no excuse for this other than I didn't like Clinton at the time) and Nader (2000). I voted for Nader, but Gore won New Jersey, so don't blame me!
16. I love the New York Mets. One of my earliest memories is the 1986 World Series (or, rather, my parents' jubilation regarding it).
17. My earliest personal World Series memory is the 1989 Series. I was going to bed shortly before the game started, and Mom came upstairs to tuck me in. "There was a big earthquake in San Francisco..."
18. I love baseball, but generally suck at it. There are, however, two great moments from my brief baseball career of which I am immensely proud. The first was the first game of my final season in little league, so I was probably 12 or 13. First at bat of the year, and I park one over the center field fence. If you've ever seen film of Mark McGwire's 62nd home run, I looked roughly like that, just less huge, as I was so excited that I missed first base, and had to go back. I still have the ball on my dresser at home.
19. My other great memory of playing baseball was winning the league championship the same year. I was playing right field when a pop fly was hit to center to end the game, and I'll never forget the feeling of running in and converging with my teammates near the pitcher's mound. In fact, I'm reminded of it every time a World Series ends.
20. I share my birthday with Al Pacino, Ella Fitzgerald, Guglielmo Marconi, Edward R. Murrow, Oliver Cromwell, and Renee Zellweger.
21. As a general rule, I can't stand romantic comedies. An exception is When Harry Met Sally...
22. I was at George Bush's inauguration, playing in the parade with the Marching Royal Dukes. It was a cold, dreary, disgusting day, and, in retrospect, perfectly foretold what his presidency would be like.
23. I owned my first CD for months before I owned my first CD player. It was R.E.M.'s Eponymous.
24. I've been off one of those high (>10 feet) diving boards once in my life, and it scared the hell out of me. I probably won't ever do it again.
25. I didn't go on my first inverted roller coaster until I was 12, at a theme park in Iowa.
26. Streaky mirrors irritate me.
27. I learned "the truth" about Santa Claus in second grade. I have since reconsidered my position, and now scour the skies for Rudolph's nose every December 24th.
28. I taught a CCD class for several years. In retrospect, the Church probably shouldn't have allowed it, because though I told the kids what they were expected to believe, I made it quite clear that I didn't believe a lot of it, and that they needed to make up their own minds about what was true.
29. For the record, I am Catholic, but not religious. I do not consider this to be a paradox.
30. Because of the way our science teacher pronounced it in freshman year of high school, I went many months believing that Dan Hodos' name was "Honus."
31. My first concert was Billy Joel's River of Dreams tour at Madison Square Garden, October 12, 1992.
32. I read The Hobbit for the first time the summer before third grade. I have read it four times since then, most recently with my sister.
33. A chronology of my hairstyles, from when I was about three to present day: generic mop-top, crew cut, spiked, crew cut, spiked, crew cut, part-on-the-left, part-in-the-middle, crew cut, and most recently no style, but dyed blue/bleached blond. Though many of the crew cuts degenerated into "no styles" as they got too long and I didn't have the patience to get a haircut.
34. As far as I am concerned, pasta is a staple food.
35. I hate the phone.
36. Come to think of it, I hate people.
37. OK, saying "I hate people" is a bit too general, and should probably be explained. I hate stupid people. Moreso, I hate meeting people, though I'm told I'm very good at it. I guess I'm a good faker.
38. Speaking of being a good faker, I acted on stage twice before high school, and then was in seven of eight dramatic/musical productions during my time there, plus a cabaret as part of a senior project for a friend of mine. I haven't acted on stage since.
39. I listened to the Devils win their first Stanley Cup in the pitch black at a campground somewhere in Pennsylvania. My family was asleep, and I had only my Walkman. I could do no more celebrating than pumping my fist a few times.
40. The worst job I ever had was as a Food Runner at Charlie Brown's. I didn't last more than a week or so. For some reason, bringing strangers food is horribly repulsive to me.
41. I decided to be Drum Major of the marching band in high school when I was a freshman, even though I wasn't in the marching band at the time and didn't really know what it would entail. I pulled it off by the time I was a senior, which still amazes me.
42. I designed my first website with Microsoft Word.
43. I am not afraid of dying. I am afraid of leaving the people I love.
44. I used to be very particular about how my bed is made: I would meticulously tuck the sheets and blankets under the mattress as tightly as possible, then slide in from the top so as to maintain maximum blanket tightness. That eventually deteriorated into a requirement to have the bottom of my sheets tucked under the mattress. Now I can basically sleep in any configuration (and it's a good thing, too, because
45. I am lazy as fuck.)
46. I practically lived at the Westwood movie theater the summer the Star Wars were rereleased with my friend Jeanine, and not just for the three obvious reasons. I couldn't even count the movies we saw that summer.
47. The only bone I've ever broken was actually a growth plate displacement in my left thumb. This is what you get when you don't know how to catch an 11-year old flamethrower cranking fastballs upwards of 65 MPH.
48. Oh, actually I lied. I've broken my sister's arm and dislocated her shoulder twice. Not on purpose.
49. I used to be violently opposed to all forms of alcohol and drugs.
50. I don't drink beer.
51. I like vodka.
52. I've never done any sort of drugs.
53. Though I haven't read much Shakespeare, my favorite play of his is Julius Caesar, with Hamlet taking a close second. I can't stand Romeo and Juliet.
54. I desperately want to learn to skateboard.
55. I nearly wept at the beauty of Moulin Rouge the first several times I saw it.
56. I have an extra Lumbar vertebra.
57. For the longest time, the only picture I had in my wallet (besides my ID) was a picture of my sister.
58. My favorite meal to cook is "Chicken the way AJ makes it," named by my sister. Batter chicken cutlets in flour, egg, and breadcrumbs, then fry 'em. Yum.
59. I yawn when I am very excited or very nervous.
60. I'm told that I was afraid of grass when I was very young. This comes as no surprise to me, as I'm not outdoors-y in any sense of the word.
61. I have OJ Simpson's autograph (from before).
62. When writing, I always print using all capital letters. Unless I am writing computer code, in which case, case matters. I do not write script.
63. Very few computer smileys do not irritate me. I generally restrict myself to the basic :) :( and :D.
64. I used to want to be a firefighter, then a teacher, then a heart surgeon. Though I'm majoring in computer science, I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.
65. I have a freckle pattern on my left bicep that looks a little like an arrow. I used to connect the dots with a pen when I was bored in school.
66. I've always been a nerd, but I've also always loved dodgeball.
67. I kissed a girl in first grade. Then I took a nine year hiatus.
68. I love chocolate chip cookie dough, especially Turkey Hill brand.
69. Until very recently, I disliked cats. Turns out, I had only ever had surly cats. Thank you, Max and Lily, for changing my mind.
70. I dislike cola, but I dislike Coke more than Pepsi. Sprite is my soft drink of choice.
71. I learned to read when I was three.
72. I love my family. No, really, I do.
73. I despise Valentine's Day. So does Amanda, thankfully.
74. My skin turned orange when I was about nine months old. My parents say that it's because they fed me too many carrots, but I suspect some sort of genetic experiments were afoot.
75. My mouth is a mess. I've already had two oral surgeries (one to remove seven teeth, including four impacted molars, and one to cut open my gums and draw down my impacted canine tooth, which was sideways and next to my nose) and one to come this summer (damn you, wisdom teeth!).
76. The X-Files used to be my favorite show. I stopped watching several seasons before the end because it was insulting my intelligence.
77. I've been trying for years to write music. No dice so far.
78. I ran my first red light the day I got my driver's license.
79. I would never join the military, but if I had to choose, my order of preference would be Air Force, Navy, Army, Marines.
80. I used to play MS Flight Simulator all the time. I still harbor delusions of flying a plane someday.
81. The CIA killed Kennedy. Accept it.
82. I was named specifically so that my initials could be AJ, and nobody ever calls me anything else.
83. I've never been in a fight, but I came really close once.
84. Fraggle Rock used to be my favorite TV show (that was before The X-Files, for those of you keeping track).
85. I kicked ass in National Geographic's Geography Bee in 6th grade, and made it to the state finals. I choked once I got there and only got 3 of 7 questions right.
86. I only got detention once in my life, also in 6th grade. It was because I missed a homework assignment.
87. My 6th grade Reading teacher was a total Nazi.
88. My blood type is O+, and I donate whenever I remember to.
89. I have a penny collection. There are pennies from the late 1800s in that mofo.
90. I used to take piano lessons on a Casio CTK-630 keyboard.
91. I liked the same girl from 2nd grade through 8th grade. Nothing ever happened.
92. I love buying things for other people.
93. I am not good at saving money.
94. My high school band played at Lincoln Center. Outside, by the fountain. You know, from Ghostbusters?
95. I took Spanish in school from 1st grade through 9th grade and hated it. I took German from 10th grade through 12th and loved it. I don't remember much of either language.
96. My Myers-Briggs type is INTJ.
97. The fastest I've ever driven was around 85 MPH. I can't be certain, because my speedometer only went up to 80.
98. The only music I will absolutely not listen to is country and Pop Shit (that's a genre, right?)
99. I bite my fingernails, but not so much that it hurts. It's just a matter of personal grooming.
100. I currently have three jobs.
101. There will be a sequel to this list someday.

March 26, 2003 - 03:20 PM