five facts about me

Thank you, mirtlemist and onegrapeshy , for passing on the The Stylish Blog Award to me!

As you’ve no doubt read by now, this award implies a few responsibilities:

1. Thank and link to the person(s) who nominated you.
2. Share seven random facts about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to five blogging buddies.
4. Contact those buddies to congratulate them.

I’m going to bend a couple of the rules, ’cause ha!, I’m a trend-setter, donchaknow.  

Without further ado, here’s seven five random facts about moi:

• I own a Christmas Sweater. Yes oh yes: one of those hand-knit, three-dimensional tops, circa 1980s, that threads all of the season’s magic—glittery stars, prancing reindeer, and a decked-out Christmas tree–into festive holiday attire. Whimsical Tacky as it is, l can’t bring myself to toss it.

• Quirk #98,484: I get very uneasy when my back’s to the door.

• I excelled in Vacation Bible School. J

• We took my in-laws on our honeymoon to Paris. “Wha–?” you might incredulously reasonably ask.  To my mind, the answer’s fairly straightforward: They were rapidly approaching their late 80s, and increasingly feeble. And though they’re world travelers, post-9/11 regulations made it too challenging for them to navigate airports on their own. So I thought, Hey, let’s bring ‘em along–it’ll give them an opportunity to visit cherished relatives (and favorite landmarks), perhaps for the last time ever. My husband agreed, bless his ever-lovin’ heart! Not your typical get-away, but it was a happy experience, nonetheless. And we’re honeymooning in Europe again this fall– just the two of us this time.

•  I love hymnals–timeless music, set to print, and the rituals of which they speak.  I like the way they smell: moldering paper, mingled with sweaty palms and sweet perfume. Call me old-fashioned, but I prefer them to their modern-day counterparts (PowerPointed lyrics, scrolling across a sterile, pull-down screen).

You’re stylish, too, my friends, by virtue of the fact that you face the world head-on, day after day after day. So if you haven’t yet been tagged, consider this your cue! 

Gneri and  citycatinwindow tagged me to play the Five Things You Don’t Know about Me meme. Who am I to turn down a party invitation? 

1. I knew Timothy Leary personally. One piece of evidence: I own an autographed copy of his last book, Flashbacks, in which he inscribed the words, “To my buddy, Melodye…” (The rest of his message is private.)
2. I tutored Tito Jackson’s young son, and I also tutored one of John DeLorean‘s children. Matter of fact, I think DeLorean’s former wife, model-cum-talk-show-host Cristina Ferrare, still owes me $25.00.
3. A while back I taught at “Gangs ‘r Us” junior high school, in a crime-infested part of the San Fernando Valley. In a hurry to make it to homeroom one morning, I locked my keys in my car, along with my purse. Quick thinker that I am, I hosted an impromptu, “How fast can you break into my Camry?” contest in the parking lot. Faster than you can say “chop shop,” several students stepped forward with contraptions designed just for that purpose. Two seconds from approach to entry, by the way, was the record.
4. Like lizzy_lyn, I’ve never gotten a traffic ticket. Not that I haven’t bent and broken the law, understand me: I’ve just managed to avoid being caught.
5. In 1994, I witnessed firsthand an historic address to the joint session of Congress and the signing of a peace agreement between Jordan‘s King Hussein and Israel’s Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

What secrets are you keeping from us? C’mon, kibileri  papadan and all the rest of you out there in LJ Land, it’s your turn to dish!

The fine print: Each participant shares five little-known facts about themselves. Those tagged are asked to do the same as well as reiterate this guideline. Each select five folks to be tagged and list their names. (Leave a comment letting them know that you’ve tagged them and that they may see your blog as an example.)