Ten Things You (probably) Didn't Know About Me

Because I love lists.

1. I came to music late. I never really listened to music growing up, except for whatever my mother had playing during car rides. I never started listening to music until a trip to New Brunswick to visit my grandparents, when I was in the eighth grade. Due to the extreme boring nature of the place, and feeling kind of down for a couple of reasons, I wound up spending a good two weeks in my room there, watching Much Music. I came back, bought a couple of CDs (Our Lady Peace's Clumsy and the Offspring's Smash, for those at home keeping score), and went from there.



2. I love post-apocalyptic fiction. Basically, any movie, TV show, or book set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland is one that will instantly grab my attention. I find the melodramatic storylines set amidst the ruins of man's hubris to be perfectly suited to my growing sense of cynicism. Also, they're like sci-fi westerns. And those are always cool.



3. I become a different person in stressful situations. Normally, I'm always cutting jokes and following the group, but when something bad happens, I take charge and become very much no-nonsense. A few years ago, my mom had a heart attack, and I basically stepped in and did all the things I needed to do. I kind of enjoy being that person, but I wouldn't want to always be him. Maybe just be him from 9 to 5 or something.



4. I love to bake, but I suck at it. Also, as a diabetic, I really shouldn't eat what I make. My cupcakes always look terrible, my cookies are almost always partially burned, and the few times I've made bread have all ended in disaster.



5. I cannot say the word "Enchilada". Seriously. I can spell it, but every time I try to pronounce it, I stutter like you wouldn't believe.



6. I was in sign language immersion. In my old school in Toronto, all kids had to be enrolled in an "immersion" class. My parents didn't really care, so I was put into Sign Language Immersion. These days, I only know a few words, but every now and then I consider enrolling in a class to learn the language. It'd be a good skill to have.



7. My grandfather was a war hero. He was one of the few canadians to fight (and survive) both Dieppe and Juno Beach. He fought in Italy and North Africa. While he died well before I was born, I know quite a bit about him through my father, and use him as a yardstick for strength of character. I always want to write about him, but rarely do on this blog. Even though some of the stories are pretty funny.



8. I have two brothers named Michael. And a brother in law named Michael, too. See, my mother left my biological father (cut contact entirely) when I was young, and I guess they both liked the name Michael, because they each later had a son with that name. And my (half) sister on my biological dad's side wound up marrying a guy named Michael. It's kind of confusing, ha. Interestingly, my (technically "step", but whatever) father's middle name is "David".



9. I once broke my best friend's arm. Well, technically I sprained it. I lost my temper, and I pushed him out of a window when we were around twelve. I felt incredibly bad about it, and vowed to control my temper then and there. I am pretty calm and cool - I very rarely let my temper get loose.



10. I am fascinated by the civil rights movements of the past century. I got a history degree largely because I was so interested in the black civil rights movement. Since then, I've developed a love for the Gay Rights Movement (it's fascinating, read about it), and the Women's Rights movement. I've always wanted to write a book about a black lesbian woman in the 1960s trying to figure out which rights were more important to her.