I’ve Been TAGGED!
Tagged, not like out sliding into second. Not like a tag behind my ear to watch my travel patterns. I was tagged a few days ago by an blogging buddy, Kristabel at Race Ready. I have been a runner practically all my life but Kristabel humbles me. I follow her for some motivation on my running. But she has accomplished things I can only aspire to do. Just coming off a memorable collegiate track career, this innocent looking young lady becomes a real beast when she laces up her sneakers.
She asked to answer 11 questions and then tell you 11 things about myself you may not know, and then tag some other friends to find out more about them. Out of respect for K.D. I wanted to try to make this fun.
So here goes; here are 11 things you may probably didn’t know about me.
1. I am married, been married for 15 years now. I have two great kids and a cat, that is also 15 years old. Now I am not a cat person. She brought that cat home one day right after we got married. She didn’t ask me first! As you can see, I lost that argument.
2. My wife is a genius. Literally. Bonafide. Mensa. Folks, never marry a genius, or someone that much smarter than yourself. You can never win an argument. How can you argue with a genius? (See #1)
3. My main passions, besides family, are creativity, traveling, running and weightlifting.
4. I will do practically anything for a laugh.
5. I found out too late in life that drinking beer can actually lead you to do embarrassing things.
6. I don’t have cartilage in my shoulders anymore. I have arthritis in my big toe, a broken toe, sore knees, had a MCL strain in my knee and plantar faciitis in my foot. Being healthy can kill you sometimes.
7. I drive fast. I lost my license in Myrtle Beach years ago for too many speeding violations. I practically paid for an exit in Frederick, MD to be resurfaced by all the tickets I paid during college and going home by that exit. Plus it would not be good for me to get pulled over in North Carolina anymore either.
My car when I moved to Myrtle Beach, SC
8. I grew up listening to hard rock but have since grown to like Irish Music,
some African music,
some jazz and swing,
Jimmy Buffett,
and even have some ties to a thrash metal band.
9. I have three degrees, writing isn’t one of them. I actually have a MBA with a 3.9 GPA. but with my memory they all seem like such a waste of money.
10. Doctors told us 7 years ago that it is impossible for us to have kids.
11. I feel like I am one of the luckiest and most blessed men alive.
Those are some things about me. Surprised? Now here are the 11 questions RaceReady asked me to answer to find out a little bit more:
1. Favorite nut butter?
I don’t know if I have a favorite nut butter. I always thought if they made a butter from cashews I would buy into that. I have eaten a Peanut Butter & Jelly sandwich for lunch most of the last 5 years but with my love for sweets it is more like a Jelly & Peanut Butter sandwich.
2. If housing cost the same anywhere, where would you live?
I would live on a hill on an island in the Caribbean, that overlooked the clear blue ocean. I have actually thought about this. The island is Curacao, in the Dutch West Indies, and is where I have my heart set on someday.
The view I want to enjoy in retirement
3. Are you a social butterfly, hermit crab, or something in between?
I am both and neither. I love to meet people but am as quiet as a clam in a big party setting. But I really do like meeting strangers and getting to know them. It comes from being a restaurant manager in a previous life.
4. Favorite holiday?
I want to say Thanksgiving but it has to be Christmas. Christmas has so much good-will to it, it is a special birthday, it lasts longer, and the feasts cover several days.
5. Do you prefer simple or complex recipes?
I’ll take either recipe as long as A) I can find all the ingredients (or can make due) and B) recipes are easy to read. I am absolutely horrible at reading directions and have to reread them several times. I used to make beer in my kitchen. Beer recipes can be as tricky as any recipe because you have to hit and maintain certain temperatures, create a living organism in the yeast at the right temperature as well as be completely sanitized the whole time. If you mess up at any point the whole batch is wasted.
6. What is harder for you: going long, fast, uphill, or resting?
If you are talking about biking…it’s the uphills that kill me. I luv going long and fast. I try to crank it out in the top gear and only use the large derailler to change gears. It doesn’t work so well trying to find the right gear on a hill. What’s worse for me than hills? A good stiff wind!
7. If you had to seriously take up a new sport, what would it be?
This is a tough one. I am going to put down swimming as I am a lousy swimmer. Swimmers are phenomenal athletes. No wait, weightlifting! I dunno..
8. Do you have a big family or small one?
I have one brother and sister so it is about normal I guess.
9. Favorite recipe?
Food recipe is my BBQ Chicken Nachos w/ cilantro. Ice cream is my Oreo Mint. Beer was the Oatmeal Maple Stout.
10. What website gobbles up your time?
Facebook did so I got rid of it. Now I would have to say this blog does.
11. Worst habit, or better yet what is your best habit?
My worst habit is being on the computer. It is such a time sucker. If I have a good habit it might be trying to read my girls a story before they go to bed. It’s a great one-on-one time and anything could happen; from sleeping to wrestling to tickle offs.
Now please tell me something I don’t know about YOU. Please think about this. Possibly use it for a post some time this week. I know lots of your followers would love to find out more secret stuff about you. I know I would! So consider yourself tagged!
My Questions:
1. What has been your favorite vacation spot so far?
2.Where would you love to visit before you die?
3. Jason Straham (The Transporter), Matt Damon, (Jason Bourne), or Clint Eastwood (any)? Other Fav. action star?
4. What is your favorite childhood memory?
5. Favorite sport you follow?
6. Favorite sport you participate in?
7. Worst vice?
8. What nickname did you have in school? Why?
9. A sneakers or a shoes person?
10. Your best creative outlet? Writing? Cooking? Photography? Web design? Other?
11. Everyone has a super power. My wife says I have a ‘Sonic Clap’. What is you Super Power?
Thanks for reading! Thanks Kristabel! Have a great week!
OUR LIFE IN 3D 
lol, if the clap make everything better please send it 21 Feb. I am too interested to hear of the story of your angels. Perhaps you share the story once the magazine release the article/story?
Your post looks great. I am hoping the company will let me do another giveaway, I am waiting to hear back. Regardless, it is made by Artisana and I bet you could find it online if it is in your budget.
It will be hard on me resting up for my race this week, but I will!!!
Well, sounds like it turned out well. I know many people who have adopted and state the same as you have here about how blessed they are. Sounds like a great story.
Thanks so much for playing along here! I certainly understand why everyone likes you too! And lots of people call me weird too; like my wife. Being a beer tester can take some courage! Not all my batches turned out well. But it takes o long to make them you can’t just pour them away. It was fun to experiment with them to add the different things for a desired effect, much like doing so in cooking. Let me know when you are ready and I can send a clap your way! Thanks for stopping in!
Thanks for asking Kristabel! I hope its OK? When you try those cashew butters maybe you could run another contest? Just a thought! Train hard! Eat well! Rest! Repeat…
Thanks Derek. Sadly, the doctors were right. Our precious kids are adopted. I actually have a story being printed in an adoption mag. about the beautiful experience in a few months. In hindsight we see God’s hand in the whole journey, not just for us but for the birth mothers and their family’s. And I feel blessed more than I could imagine. Its a great story.
Interesting post- I guess I can play along sometime. You know one comment that stuck out to me, but you said very little about — Doctors saying you couldn’t have children. I hear this so many times– what do they know? Maybe that is just another wasted degree?
First of all I would like to say congrats for being tag. It is always a honor when another reader nominate or give an award to a fellow reader. I like this post of getting to know you. I have subscribed I think two weeks ago or so and is slowly getting to know the person on the other side of the screen:)
I had to smile when you said, “sometime being healthy can kill you”. Not smiling because it was nice, smiling because it is so true. But also again true in the opposite aspect. Darn if we do and darn if we don’t.
I think it is great you married a person that give you great joy and how much you show you love your family in ever post. I admire you for that. Also interest me that the doctor said you could not have children but prove him/her wrong. Love that. When you mention making beer at home that reminds me of my friends in Oregon. They use to make all different flavor and experiment with many. I was one of their tester. Sometime I thought I was lucky other time I thought what have I done to you, lol.
Before I get so long winded I would like to answer your questions:
1. What has been your favorite vacation spot so far?
Paris, I always dream of going there as a child and my hubby surprise me on a small trip before meeting his parents.
2.Where would you love to visit before you die?
Too many places:) but for sure my mom and brothers.
3. Jason Straham (The Transporter), Matt Damon, (Jason Bourne), or Clint Eastwood (any)? Other Fav. action star?
My big time favorite is Arnold Schwarzenegger, Christopher Reeve, and Keanu Reeves.
4. What is your favorite childhood memory?
Coming home from school and dancing on my mother foot.
5. Favorite sport you follow?
none
6. Favorite sport you participate in?
at the moment none
7. Worst vice?
Does this mean bad habit? If so it would be shopping. I am not a person who buy expensive things. But I do love to shop for books, scarves, gloves, hat, and cute strange jewelries.
8. What nickname did you have in school? Why?
Never had any that I can thing of, was always a loner and stick to myself. Well not really true. I had a few friends you could count on one hand.
9. A sneakers or a shoes person?
Gym shoes. I was so happy when someone made high heal gym shoes until I wore it longer than a few minutes.
10. Your best creative outlet? Writing? Cooking? Photography? Web design? Other?
Cooking and Photographing
11. Everyone has a super power. My wife says I have a ‘Sonic Clap’. What is you Super Power?
I would love to hear about your Sonic Clap and how it work:) Mines would be I guess just being myself. I have so many people who like me and I can never understand why. I have nothing to offer except for meals and an open ears. But I can never understand why I stand out and why they get mad if I delete them off any or all the social network I am on. My husband said I am just weird. Some people are attracted to weirdo. I guess I found out why he was attracted to me, lol
Thanks so much for playing along and for the double shout out. 🙂
Oh, by the way, cashew butter does exist. I hope to try some very soon!