50 Fun Facts About Me

In honour of my 50th birthday – I thought I would do something a bit random and share 50 facts about me that you might not know … 

1. I have always lived in Brisbane – though I did cross the river when I got married. I grew up on the northside of town, and married a boy from the Redlands (on the southside).
2. I have dodgy knees. I’ve dislocated my right knee 3 times (last time was in 2000), and have torn all the ligaments in the left once; now I do special exercises every single day to strengthen the muscles so hopefully it won’t happen again (because I don’t want surgery!).
3. I have never been to America. But hope to do so sooner rather than later.
4. I can’t swim. I just never managed the whole breathing thing, which is you know, kinda important.
5. I’ve had 8 step siblings (mum married four times) – one boy, the rest girls.
6. I’ve never owned a dog.
7. I can’t play a musical instrument.
8. The only poem I can recite is The Ning Nang Nong by Spike Milligan … even 30-odd years after learning it at teacher’s college.
9. I was a qualified primary teacher (but have long since let my registration lapse) – I hated it and couldn’t get out of the profession fast enough.
10. It was an office romance – the hubster and I met when we worked in the same department of the state government.
11. I don’t know that it was LOVE at first sight, but there was definite attraction from the very first moment I met the hubster. I can still remember him looking up from his desk and smiling at me, and thinking how cute he was!
12. Bananas and I just don’t get along. I developed a food intolerance in my thirties, and since then they have made me really sick.
13. I was only 16 when I graduated from high school (thanks to a January birthday).
14. I hate having a January birthday!
15. I’ve only had surgery requiring a general anaesthetic, once – a hysterectomy when I was 45. I had a bad reaction and nearly died.
16. I am – and always have been – terrified of having my wisdom teeth taken out. This was not helped by the fact that I almost died during the one surgery I’ve actually had (see previous fun fact!). I have two impacted lower wisdom teeth that I’m hoping will stay put until the day I die. Fortunately they don’t give me any pain.
17. Two other things which terrify me: tornadoes and snakes.
18. I got my first pet when I was about 7 or 8 – a gorgeous-natured male guinea pig called “Twinkle Toes”.
19. I love Reese’s Peanut Butter cups.
20. I have really rubbish fingernails. They chip, they split, they peel, they break; I’ve never been able to grow them.
21. I can sing – I’m a mezzo soprano. Or maybe I should say, I used to be able to sing. It’s one of those things where you’ve gotta use it or lose it, and I haven’t used it for a long time, so I don’t think my voice would be anything special nowadays.
22. The only sports team I ever qualified for at school was the Basketball B team in Year 9. I was absolutely ecstatic – until we realised no other school was fielding a B team. So that was the end of that. Needless to say, I suck at sport.
23. I loathed public speaking yet funnily enough, somehow found myself on the Debating Team in Year 12 and actually quite enjoyed it. Then when I was at teacher’s college I had to present a 45 minute long seminar to my Australian history class and LOVED it. What the!!! To this day I still enjoy public speaking and have started receiving invitations to speak about blogging at workshops, something I am hoping to grow.
24. I had my first boyfriend when I was 12. It was all pretty innocent and I had no clue, but it did make me think it was time to stop playing with dolls, so I did. Shoulda stuck to the dolls.
25. Speaking of dolls, I loved paper dolls when I was little and spent hours creating and colouring my own outfits for them, dreaming that one day I would be a fashion designer.
26. That dream died a cold and lonely death when I failed the sewing component of Home Ec in year 8.
27. I am very determined however, and eventually did learn to sew! I did a night class in basic dressmaking, and then a Knitwit course, in my early 20’s. I’m still very much an amateur seamstress, and I don’t love it, so that’s how things are likely to stay.
28. When I finished Year 12, my mother pushed me to apply for teaching. I secretly put a Bachelor of Business Communications as my second choice for tertiary education and felt very daring; going against what my mum wanted. Funny how I knew even then that I wanted to write.
29. My first job was as a Christmas casual sales assistant for Angus and Coote Jewellers.
30. I love reading and have been hooked every since I read The Folk of the Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton, when I was seven years old.
31. My earliest memory is of man landing on the moon. I was 2 1/2 and still remember being really ticked off that Play School wasn’t on that day, and mum and the neighbour were glued to the silly moon landing on TV.
32. I ran away to a deserted island for my 40th birthday. True story!
33. My favourite TV show was The Brady Bunch when I was growing up. However my own real life experience of step families was nothing like it.
34. It took me ages to learn how to drive a manual car, I was just so uncoordinated. I had to pay a fortune in driving lessons because neither of my parents was willing to let me drive their cars!
35. My first car was an orange (officially, Gympie Gold) Datsun 180B which I called Debbie Datsun.
    
36. I love a good thunderstorm.
37. I’ve never had a one night stand.
38. I’ve never been drunk.
39. I’ve never been high, either.
40. Actually, I’ve never even been offered any illicit substances. What a sheltered life I have led!
41. I still take a stuffed toy to bed.
42. One day I would like to experience a white Christmas.
43. I’m also dreaming of going on a European river cruise …
44. If you’re into Myers-Briggs, personality type things: I’m an ESFJ, but only just over the line of Extrovert … so I have a lot of Introvert in me too.
45. I hate seafood.
46. Hubster and I took 6 months off and travelled Australia with a caravan back in 2001 when our kids were little. It was a fantastic experience and we are so very glad we did it. Can’t wait to be a grey nomad!
47. I have to start off every day with coffee (Nescafe of course) and cereal.
48. I do love me a nanna nap!
49. This year marks 30 years since the hubster and I met (in May) and started going out (in December). I can’t believe it’s been that long!
50. Although I may slack off with the housework, I always make our bed each day. It makes the whole room feel tidy (even when it isn’t).

I’m sure you’ve been absolutely fascinated and intrigued by my list of 50 facts about me …

Do we have any of these 50 things in common?!