oh, so i was tagged...

Knitted Painting tagged (http://knittedpainting.blogspot.com/2006/07/ive-been-tagged.html) me. I'm supposed to come up with "6 weird things/habits" about myself and then pick on six other bloggers/diarists to do the same. (Great, if I follow thru, I have to torture 6 other people. So watch out.)

1. I hate water. Swimming is not a "recreational" activity for me, but more like something I learned to do (like CPR or the heimlich) in the event that I had to perform a lifesaving technique. Like maybe I could paddle myself, say, 20 feet to safety. (God forbid!) As long as I can touch bottom (and preferably SEE it), I'm okay. And if it's not too cold. And doesn't have big waves. Like, you know, maybe in the bathtub.

2. My mom claims that I learned to read when I was 2. I cannot verify this fact, but I cannot remember not being able to read.

3. I have stated previously that I was raised by cats. We had three when I was born, three when I was growing up, and I am owned by four cats now. I still hold to this fact. (See number one for further corroboration.) I remain stubbornly nocturnal, although my mother blames this on the fact that she worked the night shift at the hospital during her pregnancy with me.

4. I stick my tongue out when I am concentrating on something, like writing, and probably when I'm knitting and crocheting as well. I've done it ever since I was little, and can't seem to break the habit.

5. I organize and tidy things up when I'm nervous or stressed out. I can't work or concentrate at a messy desk. I'm not a particularly clean person, but I like things to be neat. In other words, the house can be coated in dust and cat hair, but a pile of clutter will drive me to distraction.

6. When I stopped drinking and doing drugs ten years ago, I found out I was bipolar. This has been a weird adventure all of its own, requiring a lot of experiments with doctors, psychiatrists, therapists, and psychotherapists, a pharmacy-full of medications, two nice little vacations in the psych ward, and a real roller coaster of mental health experiences. Then, once I seemed to be reaching something like stability, my thyroid failed. I still have good days and bad days, so if you don't see me for a couple days here and there, I'm probably having a bad day or two. However, knitting, felting, and spinning seem to be quite good therapy for this.

There, is that six things already? Gee, and I didn't even get to tell you how I think being a Gemini with Virgo moon and Virgo rising (not to mention a Virgo mother) contribute to my personality quirks and conflicts, or my theories on being born in the Year of the Monkey. Well, I'll save that for another post...