My Updated Confessions

Since I last did this list of confessions in 2008, a lot of things have changed. I thought I'd update the list a little.

1. I am scared of anything in big numbers (swarms of bugs, groups of people, geese...omg, geese! I HATE geese!)

2. I love the 80's nostalgia and can remember almost everything about them.

3. I've outlived all my parents and step-parents.

4. I would love to own a designer purse or shoes just once...but I'll never buy it for myself. The cost of designer bags and shoes is unnecessarily exorbitant.

5. I have six tattoos, but I HATE needles!

6. I have been in love several times in my life. I love the feeling of being in love.

7. I enjoy the dark and the quiet.

8. I would love to live in a big city for a year...just to see what it's like.

9. I love to lay outside in winter and listen to the click of snowflakes hitting the ground...but I haven't done it in years.

10. Clowns scare the hell out of me. Like for real. They creeeeep. meeeee. ouuuuut.

11. I have bitten my nails to the quick since I was a kid and can't stop.

12. Some people have a happy place they retreat to when they're stressed. Or wear a certain sweater. Or cover up with a special blanket. I have my cat, Shadow. She's my therapy animal and I'm actually in the process of having her declared a service animal.

13. Aside from the 488 books I have on my Kindle, I also have six bookshelves full of books, most of all I've read.

14. I have been cooking since I was six. The first thing I ever made was chili. My favorite thing to cook now is homemade tomato soup.

15. I miss my mother more than any other person in the world.

16. I once performed at the Iowa State Fair in a kids' singing/dancing troupe.

17. I would LOVE to play Rizzo from Grease! at some point in my life, but I'm too old.

18. I had a theater scholarship in college.

19. I *hate* spending money on myself...I always feel guilty.

20. I believe in angels and ghosts.

21. I have seen every episode of Law and Order (SVU and CI) at least once and watch the reruns nightly.

22. I care what people think of me, but lie and say I don't.

23. I don't like kids. There are a few exceptions, but mostly, I find them to be noisy, messy and demanding. I'm enough of those things all by myself.

24. I am a born flirt. My husband is too, so he knows it's harmless. :)

25. I love jewelry but own very little.

26. I nearly died in later pregnancy and child birth with my son. He nearly died as well.

27. I slept in my mother's bed with her until I was 11 - I was afraid of the dark.

28. I never know when to say no to people and end up overextending myself as a result.

29. I'm more content sleeping all day and being up all night.

30. I detest socks...but even more so if they're the least little bit dirty, worn-through or wet.

31. My favorite way to spend time is roadtripping with my bestie.

32. When I'm mad, I clean, reorganize or rearrange my house.

33. I still believe I'm invinceable and make poor health choices as a result.

34. I hate talking on the phone, but I love texting and IM'ing (I can type faster than I can talk)

35. I come from a very closely-knit family, but since my mother's death, I don't have much to do with many of them.

36. I never knew my biological father.

37. I know how to shoot a gun better than most men.

38. I can't watch a child wiggle a loose tooth. It makes me nauseous.

39. So does the sound of someone vomiting.

40. I am wicked smart when it comes to grammar, spelling and punctuation.

41. I still have my childhood diaries and read them frequently.

42. I am star-struck whenever I get near a certain friend of mine.

43. I was writing checks and buying cigarettes at the grocery store when I was 14. (My mother had cancer and we lived in a small town...the clerks knew it was with her approval and by her request.)

44. I have never cheated in school.

45. I feel that jealousy is the most wasteful emotion ever. If you want what I've got, get it. If you can't, that's a choice you've made.

46. I hate wearing watches.

47. I once was a huge part of my church's praise team, but never sung a solo in church. I did, however, play Khaleel the Worm from Veggie Tales in a Vacation Bible School production.

48. I am nicer than people think.

49. I honestly don't follow world or national news - it has never interested me.

50. I also don't usually watch local news. It's too depressing.

51. I want to have my photographs published someday.

52. I didn't learn to swim until I was 13 and then taught preschoolers how to swim the following year when I worked at the pool.

53. I once dated a bartender for the free drinks and backstage passes he was able to get me to concerts at his bar.

54. I was a cheerleader in high school but gave it up so I could help counsel other teens who had lost parents through death or divorce. Not once have I regretted that decision.

55. I rarely wear my wedding ring, though it's my favorite piece of jewelry.

56. If I won the lottery, I would probably be broke again shortly thereafter because I love spending money on other people.

57. I feel embarrassed when someone gives me compliments or asks my advice because they think I know more than they do.

58. Every cell phone that's "died" has been from drowning of some sort (the cat dripped water on the first two and I dropped the third one in the pond at a cemetery).

59. I was never in Girl Scouts and never went to summer camp, though I wanted to badly!

60. I have bought meals for homeless people...and once even their dog.

61. I have also given my two cents to a person pretending to be homeless.

62. I love music, though I usually sing off-key and can't play a single instrument.

63. I still see my "First" from time to time around town.

64. I am a strong-willed person to hide my insecurities.

65. I once slept for 24 hrs straight.

66. I haven't had my hair grown past my shoulders since I was 5.

67. I prefer baths to showers.

68. I have an American flag that was carried by my father in Vietnam.

69. I always wanted to write a book but always felt I didn't know enough about anything to write it well. Until my friend convinced me to do it scared. So I did. :)

70. I have over 11 gigs of pictures on my hard-drive, over 6,000 physical pictures and at least a thousand negatives in my possession.

71. I've never seen Star Wars.

72. I can't watch Saturday Night Fever because of the bridge scene.

73. My favorite food in the entire world is soup. I have dozens of recipes, but my favorite, by far, is my mom's homemade tomato.

74. I don't like plain chocolate.

75. I hate riddles.

76. I love to peel sunburns and pick at zits. Gross, I know.

77. I can pick up on almost any accent within five minutes of talking to someone (British, Southern, Minnesotan, Middle-Eastern, Chicagoan, East Coast, etc)

78. I have great relationships with both my kids and am proud of how they've turned out.

79. I can't sleep with a light on if I'm in bed for the night.

80. I have never won first place for anything in my life, but have come in second many times: an art contest in 3rd grade, a spelling bee in 7th grade, a lip sync contest in 9th grade, a national fashion design competition for doll clothes when I was 8.

81. I wasn't able to wear flipflops until I was 33. Now, you can't keep me out of them.

82. I have a bottle of perfume that belonged to my mother...from 1985.

83. I hate barking dogs, screaming kids and loud cars - noise bothers me greatly.

84. I've never passed out, but I was given a roofie once on vacation in Philadelphia.

85. I once burnt so badly on a tanning bed that I had stripes like toast and smelled like burnt flesh for a week.

86. I was once given a pig for Christmas by my parents. I couldn't eat pork products for years because of it.

87. I've been wearing high heels since I was in 5th grade.

88. I wear fake toenails on my big toes because I lost most of mine to ingrown nails in high school.

89. I would love to be pregnant one more time, but only if I was a surrogate.

90. I cured myself of arachnophobia by holding a tarantula at a petting zoo.

91. I dropped out of high school in 10th grade at the encouragement of my high school guidance counselors despite the fact that I've always been a good student. (Don't worry...I went back a month later.)

92. I have kept every video tape I ever had with New Kids on the Block on them...and still watch them from time to time.

93. I refuse to share my apple pie schnapps recipe with anyone.

94. I've had glasses since I was 2 yrs old and would *LOVE* to get Lasix done.

95. I never snuck out of the house when I was a teenager.

96. I got drunk when I was 2½ at my brother's graduation party.

97. I feel like I've stepped into my mother's role in our family - organizing family events, being a memory keeper (pictures, family stories, etc.)...and while most of the time I'm glad to have that role, it is sometimes a burden to me.

98. I still remember the first nightmare I ever had.

99. I've never lived anywhere but Iowa...but may be moving soon!

100. I am handier around the house than my husband is. (But he's better with the laundry!)

Here's the link to the original list if you want to see what I changed.