Sarah 101

To celebrate my 101st blog post ever (yay, I've entered triple digits!), I decided to do a little class for you all. A "Sarah 101". This is gonna take awhile.

1. I love drinking with straws. I probably drink 2 - 3 times as much if I have a straw. My sister, on the other hand, guzzles liquids no matter what. That woman can put down 4 huge glasses before mine is half gone. I get closer to catching up with her if I have a straw though. Not that it's a competition...except for when it actually is a competition.
   
2. I never thought I'd say this, but I now like cement mixer trucks. It all has to do with my 3 y/o nephew, Marc-Andre. "Look Mom, a cement mixer truck!" It was his second favourite mode of transportation. His first was airplanes. He could spot them anywhere. He would point and it would take us about a minute before we could find it. But sure enough, there was an "aiwpwayne"
3. I hate spending money, especially on the boring stuff like shampoo and deodorant. But I don't really start freaking out until I spend over about $50 on anything.
4. I sneeze when I pluck my eyebrows. Is this normal for anyone else??
   
5. I curl my toes in at the sight of a bug, at the same time I'm shreaking "ewwwww" or "eeeeee" in a pitch only dogs can hear.
6. I am addicted to books. I own more than I could probably read in my lifetime, but can't stop collecting more. (Though I haven't actually purchased a book for myself in years. I get a ton of hand-me-downs from my grandmother and mom).
7. I hate things that fly around me: birds, butterflies, bees, ladybugs. If it flies, it scares me....but only when it's actually FLYING. If it's a ladybug that's crawling on me, fine. I like watching it. But once it starts flying, STAND BACK.
8. One of my secret desires is to someday shadow a National Geographic photographer in the field. (Is that really a secret?? I dunno)
9. I have another secret desire: to be an amazing cake decorator. Like, I-could-open-my-own-cake-shop good.
10. Do you agree that the base of my stapler at work looks like a sleepy face emoticon?? It's like it's mocking me because I have to stay awake the whole day. Stupid stapler.
11. Maybe I just need more sleep at night.
    
12. I like having my back to a wall so I can see who is coming towards me. Having my back vulnerable is not a pleasant thing.
13. I spent several hours rearranging my office at work for this very purpose. I'm sure it's completely ignoring all feng shui...but who cares.
    
14. I am mad at Pandora for going to a 40 hrs/mo restriction (even though I completely understand why). I used to listen to them all day, every weekday while at work...so about 40 hrs/wk.
    
15. I am currently boycotting them altogether.
    
16. I'm finding it really hard to work in an international organization when I haven't been outside the US in about 2.5 years. It's just about killing me.
17. Seriously, send me somewhere. ANYWHERE.
18. I saw 4 super-cute firemen in Kenmore on my drive home yesterday. My first thought was that I should start baking cookies for their department.
    
19. Okay okay, my FIRST thought was "Holy cow he's hot. Oh, and look at him. Oh, and him..." but you get the point.
    
20. I carry my huge, ugly camera bag as my purse most of the time because I want to have my camera nearby "just in case".
21. I have a sudden random urge to climb a tree. There's one just outside my window. hmmmmm
    
22. I apparently say "random" a lot; and so do my sisters. Our friends in Pittsburgh, the Steifels, used to mock us all the time about it. But that's okay, because they gave us plenty of material to retaliate with. :)
23. I was unreasonably excited to get my very own lab coat to wear while assisting on our dental vans. And with it, the dichotomous feeling of being so professional, yet so untrained. Hah!
    
24. I am scared to parallel park or back my car into a parking spot. I will drive around until I find a more suitable spot...or have a passenger park for me. (yes, that's happened on more than one occasion)
25. I just remembered the one downside to straws. I lost my straw into my drink and will now have to get my fingers wet to retrieve. boo
26. I MUCH prefer cake over pie. And crisp over cobbler.
27. I didn't want kids until I became an Aunt. Now, it's a strong maybe.
28. I've missed being crafty. I've just started on projects again after about a 2 year hiatus. It's a good thing my sister is pregnant and I can focus on a fun little baby project.
    
29. I LOVE getting to find out the gender when my sisters are pregnant. One thing this has taught me: There is no way I will be able to wait to find out the gender if I ever get pregnant.
    
30. I can rarely smell flowers. Can't really smell much, in general. When I can smell, I usually have an exceptionally difficult time distinguishing what it is that I'm smelling.
31. My iPhone makes me happy. Sometimes I wonder how I could possibly have gone without it for so long. (Thanks, again, Grams!)
32. I grew up collecting country spoons as traveling keepsakes. I have about 3 display cases worth of them, but only have one display case. *shrugs*
    
33. Also, I collect penguin figurines because my grandparents did. They have hundreds. Maybe one day I will too!
    
34. I don't understand why most guys don't smile for pictures...and then they state that they don't look good in photos. Well, DUH. If you smile and stop looking like a serious sour-face, and actually look happy, you might end up liking the photo. What's with that??
    
35. My sister and bro-in-law recently got me re-hooked on board games. :) I very rarely win, but always have fun. Anyone want to come over for a game night?
36. I just painted my toenails with a polish called "Finger Paints".
    
37. I'm a rebel like that. And in case you were curious, the colour is 'Art Appreciation Apricot'.
38. I have a really hard time making a decision between two good options. I hate excluding anything that I MIGHT want to do one day.
39. That's probably why I haven't gone back to school yet. Well, that and $$. I can't justify spending the tons of time and money if I'm not 100% sure.
40. I REALLY want to take a cruise to Antarctica someday (preferably on the National Geographic cruise)
41. Recently, I've re-discovered the joy of blowing bubbles.
42. I also enjoy making the first mark in a new tub of peanut butter.
    
43. It's almost as fun as making the first footprint in fresh snow.
    
44. I'm addicted to post-its....of any size. I can find a purpose for all of them. No, not a purpose but a reason why I NEED one of every size at work.
45. Seriously, I should buy stock in the company.
46. I get made fun of a lot for spelling a few words with the British spelling (ex. colour). I lived in England for 3, apparently formative, years. Deal with it.
    
47. I really, really miss singing in a praise team.
48. For some reason, I like the smell of a freshly popped can of tennis balls. Shockingly, I can actually smell it.
49. I started this blog off by counting backwards from 101, but decided part way that it would be easier in the long run to switch it to the numbered bullet list that does the formatting for me.
50. I'm lazy like that.
51. I lived in Japan long enough that I frequently read the word "sake" (pronounced 'seyk' - as in, for heaven's sake) as "sake" (pronounced 'sah-kee' - as in, the Japanese alcoholic beverage). "For the sake (sah-kee) of his family...." It doesn't quite work. :)
52. I have found a total of 101 geocaches thus far! Yes, I did stop at 101, just for this blog. hehe
53. I can't stand the taste of pills. I put the water in my mouth first, then drop the pills in and swallow. They go down easily and I don't taste anything. Works perfectly!
    
54. I seriously considered playing the 1, 2, skip-a-few, 100, 101 game on all of you. But now that I'm over half-way done, I'm committed.
55. I can pop my "voice box" out like you pop a knuckle. You can't see it, but you can feel it if you put your hand on my throat when I do it. Weird.
    
56. I'm finding that I'm a lot quirkier than I previously thought.
57. I have a dream to one day build my own wooden boat. I just think that would be so cool!
    
58. I'm really big on holiday traditions. Christmas, birthdays, Thanksgiving.... I love the annual traditions!
    
59. I have issues with the smell of whole wheat bread...especially toasted. It kinda makes me want to gag. Whole grain, multi-grain, white wheat, etc - on the other hand - are perfectly fine and quite tasty.
    
60. I sleep with music playing faintly in the background. It has to be loud enough that I can hear it and figure out what song is playing, but quiet enough that it doesn't become my focus.
61. I really really like crime shows, such as Bones, NCIS, Numbers, Criminal Minds, CSI (not Miami. Miami just stinks. I can't even watch their commercials)....they are pretty much the only thing I watch when I watch TV.
    
62. I much prefer baking than cooking.
63. I think this is taking a LOT longer than originally considered. *sigh*
    
64. Usually, I read multiple books at a time...obviously not at the same exact time....but you know what I mean. It's nice to have a novel, Christian inspiration, devotional, etc.
    
65. I take pride in having my home look pretty. But I also kind of hate that about myself, because I know that it really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.
    
66. I love peanut butter, Asian peanut sauce, peanut granola bars...but I really don't enjoy plain peanuts.
    
67. I actually have a tendency to choke on nuts (not the choking that needs the Heimlich, but enough to cough and need liquids). They just stick in my throat.
    
68. I have a habit, as of late, to clench my teeth. Not my whole set of teeth, cuz that would just be normal. And everyone knows (at least they will know after reading this particular blog) that I'm definitely not normal. No, I have noticed that I've been relaxing my jaw and pushing my lower front teeth into the back of my upper front teeth. What's with that?? I must be unconsciously stressed beyond belief.
    
69. I would be shocked if anyone were still reading this post.
70. I like the window seat on planes...not only because of the view (in fact, that's a lot lower on the list of why), but mainly because I can leeeeeeaaaaannn into the wall and get away from the person in the middle. With headphones and a book, and my lovely lean, I no longer feel like I'm crammed into a space that only Asians (and their lack of personal space needs) would be comfortable in.
    
71. I hate it when I wake up right before my alarm clock goes off. I'm sure that's pretty typical. But it happens a lot more frequently than it should. I always wake up thinking "oh shoot, did I oversleep?" Then I look at the clock, and I still have 15 or so minutes left. ARG
72. I wish we had a uniform for work. That way I wouldn't have to think about what to wear in the mornings.
    
73. I crave change. I also crave stability. Ironic, huh?
74. I don't like commercials and always switch stations when they come on.
    
75. I love, love, LOVE fresh peaches.
76. I've just started baking my own bread - I make the dough that stays in my fridge, and it can then be baked into bread, rolls, pizza crust, etc. My favourite thus far is the rolls. YUM It takes no time at all, makes a TON of dough, tastes amazing and fresh, and saves $$. Win-win all around! (thanks for the recipe Teresa!)
    
77. I really want to sell my current toaster oven to buy a new toaster oven that heats up to 450 degrees. Do those exist? My current one only goes up to 400. And the bread I just mentioned cooks on 450. It would be a HUGE help to not have to heat up my massive oven for one tiny little roll.
    
78. And I would love if you provided suggestions on awesome toaster ovens that do this. :)
79. I can't believe I even started this post. It is now seeming very narcissistic. But alas...
    
80. My favourite colours are: deep slate, cerulean blue, and orangey coral.
81. If I'm mad at you, don't touch me. That's just not a smart move.
82. I could probably fill this 101 with just a list of my nicknames.
83. Some of them are: Sours, Coffee Cup, Calgon, Frogprince, Duk Wuk Stu, Glip Glopper May May, Buffy.... I even wrote a "poem" of sorts about it in 10th grade. I couldn't think of anything else to write about. But hey, I got an A.
    
84. Once, when riding my bike on base in England, I ran smack into a parked truck. The back of it was over the sidewalk, but I was looking down so I didn't see it right in front of me. Yep, it hurt.
    
85. I've never broken a bone, but I bowed my right arm when I lived in New Mexico. I fell off my bike. One of the bones in my arm bent one way, the other bent the other way. And it was right before the start of summer....I hated not being able to swim.
    
86. Now I'm wondering why I ever rode a bike again.
    
87. I still sleep with the teddy bear that I got for Christmas when I was 5.
88. I was never very good at naming things. This teddy bear is named "Teddy". The first week I had it, it had a new name every day: snowball, vanilla ice cream, etc. I landed on Teddy.
    
89. But that's not THAT bad. I had a beta fish that I named Colorfully (this was before England, hence why it wasn't Colourfully. hehe). I also wanted to name our kitten Orange Juice...but my parents decided on Ginger.
    
90. I wish I was famous so I could go on Dancing with the Stars. I admit, I watch the show. And I like it. I'd want to be partnered up with Derek because he is definitely the best choreographer on the show. Plus he's goofy and not evil to his partners, like Max.
    
91. I used to set my alarm for allowing one extra minute of sleep (such as 6:01). But lately it's like 6:16 and I stay in bed until 6:26.
    
92. I have been wearing a lot of ponytails lately.
93. Currently I'm studying the book of James in my women's small group at church. I don't really know how 17 members equates a SMALL group. But whatev.
94. When I was little, I used to love swimming. I had two "tricks" that I always did in the base pool: 1) The Ballerina (aka The Rotisserie). I would go completely underwater, sideways, and spin round and round and round and round until I was so dizzy that I could barely figure out which way was up. 2) The Drowner. Simply, I would bob up and down in and out of the water all the way around the pool. The poor lifeguards always thought I was in trouble, and my sisters always got talked to about it....which only caused me grief. But it was FUN. So pssh
95. I eat half an English muffin (or homemade bread roll) with peanut butter every work morning on my drive in...with a glass of skim milk on the side. It's high in protein and it's easily transportable. For some reason, I have never gotten tired of it day after day.
96. I usually sleep on one of my sides.
97. I do NOT like performing solos. Duets are fine, even if it is obvious which voice is mine. But I just can't do a solo.
98. I get really annoyed when unrelated people call themselves Aunts/Uncles of my niece and nephews. Hello?!?! Don't downgrade MY legitimate role by saying that YOU are their aunt.
99. If you couldn't tell, I got desperate to come up with the rest of these.
    
100. Ergo, I would be REALLY shocked if anyone was still reading this.
101. Regardless: It is finished.

Thanks for joining me in this fun blog adventure over the years!