Five Things About Me (and then some)

I was tagged by yardsnacker and raw food with jessica to reveal 5 things folks don't know about me. I'm tagging Connie (because she seems like an interesting person), and The Writer Stuff (because I want her to blog more). I'm tagging LB, because I can. I'm not great at chain mail, so if you're reading this, then feel free to jump in and post 5 things about yourself.

1. I speak Spanish. I used to speak Portuguese pretty well, but that's slowly slipping away from me. Fear not; I'll refresh that skill soon. I want to add French (already started) and Italian, which will be easy, and Mandarin, which will be much tougher.

2. When I'm driving I send good vibes to any women I see jogging. I do this by yelling encouragement like "Run, lady! Run for those of us who can't right now!" (They can't hear me.)You can imagine how much my children love that I do this. I used to send good jogging vibes to men, but it seemed they'd always slow down or stop when I did, so I figured it was better to quit.

3. I've published a few short stories, and I'm working (not enough) on a novel.

4. My sister's 10 years younger than I am. When she was in high school and I was a young, married mother, people would always think she was older than I was. She wore a lot of make-up and fancy hairdos, and I wore a constant pony tail! (Still my favorite hairstyle!)

5. I collect original art. I look for good deals, buying only things that I L-O-V-E. I like to get to know the artist in some way, if I can. I'm just getting started with this passion.

6. I like to shoot and I'm good at it. I once dated a Marine and we'd go to the range to shoot his 9 mm. Unfortunately, this hobby conflicts with the sick feeling I get when I think about the harm guns do to people, so I let it go when I let go of the soldier. (Good riddance to...well, you know the rest.)

7. When I was 23, my closest friend, Sandra Patricia Lazos, was killed by an errant bullet.

8. The tiny Central American nation of Honduras has my heart.

9. When I was a kid, I had a compulsive habit of adding up the letters of all the words in the sentences I said. I still do it sometimes.

10. I'm head-over-heels, crazy-stupid in love with one of the most talented screenwriters in the game. I set my cap for an artistic, creative, intelligent, grounded, kind, handsome, chivalrous, funny, open-minded, family-oriented, God-loving, generous writer, and that's what I got!

And I suppose the picture makes 11 things! I had to dig deep to come up with some of that stuff, but I like a challenge.

More than you wanted to know? Blame Sam and Jessica!