Tuesday, May 15, 2007

Eight Things About Me


My friend Chris at Book-A-Rama tagged me for the "Eight Things About me" Meme. Hmmm...I not sure this will be all that exciting....but got give it the old College try!!


Here are the rules:


1: Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2: People who are tagged, write a blog post about their own 8 random things, and post these rules.
3: At the end of your post you need to tag 8 people and include their names.
4: Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them they're tagged, and to read your blog.



Sounds simple, right? OK....Here goes!


  1. I grew up on a farm. Yes, I was really the Midwestern Farmer's daughter! I could drive a tractor by 12, a car by 13, rode horses, walked beans, and even detasseled corn one summer. In my heart, though, was a city girl waiting to get out. I left at 18 to go to college and never looked back!
  2. I am a two-time cancer survivor. When I was 4, I was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called Rhabdomyosarcoma. It was in the muscle tissue in the back of my neck. I spent many a night in Barnes Hospital in St. Louis (which is a WONDERFUL place). I was given about a 10% chance, so I count my lucky stars nightly that I'm still here to tell about it. The second cancer was Thyroid cancer found in 2002. My doctor actually thinks it was caused by the radiation treatments I underwent as a child.
  3. I was Valedictorian of my graduating class. I'm reluctant to tell you that I went to a very small high school, but in my class competition was tough. We had more kids go to college than any class ever in Mt. Auburn. (And I got a killer scholarship because of it!!)
  4. I was in a sorority in college. Yes. Me. To know me now is to laugh, but my freshman year in college, I went through Rush just to make my roommate happy. Found a lot of cool girls, and today I am a Pi Beta Phi alum.
  5. I had a Pen Pal from Singapore for over 12 years. I wrote to one of those addresses on "Big Blue World" (the TV show on PBS when I was 10). Her name was Yip Yuet Wah, and we wrote and sent packages to each other until she got married!
  6. I've been to over 200 concerts in my lifetime. Starting with Huey Lewis and the News when I was in high school....all the way till today. The last concert I saw was Disturbed and Stone Sour this past January. I've seen NIN 6 times, U2 4 times, Ministry 6 times and the Smashing Pumpkins 4 times. I've been to Lollapolooza, Ozzfest and a bunch of Q101 fests in Chicago.
  7. I broke my toe on a beach in Mexico on my honeymoon. Actually a big-hairy man jumped on it while playing beach volleyball. The doctor at the hotel took me to his clinic and wanted to put a cast up to my knee!! I told him to give me some pain meds, straighten it out, and tape it up! (Then I had a podiatrist that was staying at the hotel tape it for me the rest of the week!)
  8. My son is named Chad after my little brother. He was killed in a car accident when he was a senior in high school and I was a sophomore in college. My son is the spitting image of him too.

Now to tag others. Don't hate me!! Just join in the fun:

Chris at Stuff As Dreams are Made On

Margreet at Margreet's Musings

Marg at Marg's Reading Adventures

Suey at It's All About the Books

Kookiejar at A Fraternity of Dreamers

Lisa at Books. Lists. Life.

Gentle Reader at Shelf Life

Amy at The Sleepy Reader

Later!

18 comments:

kookie said...

Consider me tagged. Sorry to hear about your brother, but it is nice to know that he lives on in a way through your son.

Stephanie said...

It's been a long time Kookie. I STILL miss him terribly (his birthday would have been this Friday), but I still have lots of fun memories (like the time he locked himself in the trunk of my car...don't even ask!)

And my son looks so much like him, it's scary!! So he's still here. In my heart at least.

I can't wait to read your answers!!

Suey said...

Fun answers here! It makes me want to answer you back like: "I sorta grew up on a farm, my grandparents live on one and so I was a farm girl in the summers." or " I love concerts too and have no idea how many I've been too since high school." or "I was ALMOST validictorian.. I was actually 3rd in a class of 400 or something."

Anyway, I think these tags are fun and will be thinking of something to put on my blog.

Ana S. said...

I'm sorry to hear you've been through rough things like cancer or the death of your brother. But you managed to deal with them all, and that makes you a very admirable person.

Live music is one my passions in life as well. I've been to hundreds of shows too. And The Smashing Pumpkins were THE band of my teen years.

Stephanie said...

Suey...that would be fun!! To answer BACK to me! (I'm not telling how many people were in my class...Valedictorian sounds better than way!!

Nymeth - What's that old adage...what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger? That's just who I am. Figured I should probably add it because it shapes who I am today! I got to see the Pumpkins at a tiny little theater in Peoria, right before they started the Melancholy tour. It was announced the day before and it was the best show I've ever seen, bar none!!

Chris said...

I must have forgotten about the cancer thing. What a rough go you've had.

That's a lot of concerts!

Gentle Reader said...

I'm happy to be tagged...and I feel the same way suey does--I want to answer you back--I went to a Huey Lewis and the News concert when I was in high school, too! Sorry to hear about your brother, and I'm sorry you've had to struggle with cancer. Sounds like you're a strong woman! I'll post my 8 things soon...

Anonymous said...

Wow. You are one strong woman. Surviving cancer twice. Losing a brother. I'm so sorry you've faced all that
But a sorority girl? C'mon...

Amy said...

Stephanie - Wow...valedictorian.

I am sorry about your brother but think its sweet that your son is able to help keep him alive for you.

I will be putting my 8 things up very soon.

Margreet said...

Thanks for tagging me,Stephanie. I will put up 8 things about me on my blog. I won't be able to tag 8 others I'm afraid, I don't even know that many people with blogs here..:) And the ones I do know were already tagged. Hope that's OK?

chrisa511 said...

Great stuff Steph! Did you know the Pumpkins reunited and have a new album coming out on July 7th? I'm so excited! It's called Zeitgeist. I'm also a huge NIN fan. I've seen them quite a few times. Lost count. I used to be quite obsessed with them. Love their new album, though it took a little bit of getting used to.

Sorry to hear about your brother. It was sweet to name your son after him :) Valedictorian! Look at you ;) Impressive..farmer, sorority, goth girl...that's not one you meet every day :D

Andi said...

Not unexciting at all! It was great reading more about you! Thanks for sharing.

Bookfool said...

I just love reading these things! How cool that you were valedictorian. And, I'm so sorry to hear about your brother. I think naming a child after him is a great way to honor his memory; how wonderful that your son looks like him (if a bit spooky - I think it's kind of bizarre how my youngest son, who never met my father, has inherited his vivacious personality).

Literary Feline said...

This meme sure is revealing, isn't it? I've been tagged too and am trying to think of what to post still. How wonderful that you survived two bouts with cancer. A good friend of mine is almost to the point where she can say the same--her prognosis had been very grim in the beginning.

Lisa said...

Thanks for the tag, I'll get my list up tomorrow or this weekend. I just posted a Thursday Thirteen that is awfully revealing (I think) to hold you over in the meantime.

I think it's really great that your son is so much like your brother.

jenclair said...

Great list! I've really appreciated the peek into all of the blog lives. Thanks for sharing with us.

Lisa said...

My 8 things are up now!
http://bookslistslife.blogspot.com/2007/05/8-things-about-me.html

Camille said...

Hi! Coming over from Lisa at Books.Lists.Life. Your concert record is impressive! Also, my father-in-law is a former farmer and was just telling us about how morning glories can choke out a whole field of crops, including corn. Ever had to deal with that? My husband, too, learned to drive at those young ages because he was a southern Virginia farm kid. :)