5 Things About Meme

Well it's bad enough that I have dealines, but now I've got "Bloglines"—all this meme stuff was spreading around and I couldn't get to my blog until the end of the day.

Well thanks to Tom Asacker, Gavin Heaton and "almost" Ann Handley, I now am obliged to spread this meme which requires me to share 5 things about myself before assigning it to some fellow victims... erm, bloggers.

So here goes.  5 Things about meme:

1. I'm a recovering Leo
I was born on July 28th, 1971 in Brooklyn NY.  This makes me a Leo.  A Leo with an attitude.  I refer to myself as a recovering Leo because I work very hard at suppressing the less desirable Leo traits while letting the more positive ones thrive.  Leo's are natural leaders, we don't shy away from challenges and we can be highly motivated.  We're also very loyal, generous and affectionate.  But we can sometimes get carried away with ourselves, enjoying the limelight just a little too much and we can tend to wear our lion hearts on our sleeves.  Yup, I'm a  Leo—I just happen to be one with a conscience.

2. I worked a “rolling bar” at age 16
Ever go to a wedding where the Bartenders rolled their bars over to your table?  Yeah—that was me.  At age sixteen no less.  On weekends between high school days, I could be found at the “Imperial Manor”  serving Whiskey Sours and Sex on the Beach to an assortment of patrons out on Long Island.  Need a visual?  Think “The Wedding Singer”—that about sums it up.

3. I was a “Kid in the Hall”
When I was younger, I mostly stayed out of serious trouble—but I did drive my teachers nuts.  I was the guy with random outbursts, classroom pranks and would even spontaneously get out of my desk, throw my arm around my teacher's shoulder and say “you’re the greatest”.  That usually resulted in my ending up in the hallway for the rest of the class. 

4. I was “king of the fire roads”
In my early work years, friends and I would drive up to Vermont in the summer, take ski lifts up the mountains and ride our mountain bikes at full speed down the mountain.  The fastest trails were called “fire roads”.  One time I was blazing down one and wiped out in spectacular fashion, doing a “summersault”—bike and all.  Somehow I ended up on my feet and was crowned “king of the fire roads”.

5. I wasn’t supposed to succeed
In the fourth grade I was berated by a teacher (Mrs. Sharkey), during a school performance.  We all dressed up as our heroes and recited something (I was Teddy Roosevelt).  I can’t remember what I recited.  All I can remember was her yelling at me, calling me a lazy slob and pointing out that my shirt was untucked and how stupid I looked—all in front of the class.  Funny how things like that stick with you.

So those are my five things.  Now I get to pass this on to five other blogger-victims of my choosing.  Have fun!

Karl Long - One of my original blogoshphere friends and tour guides
Roger von Oech - Roger's gotta have some good ones
Paul McEnany -  Paul will probably drop some F-bombs
Mindblob - Because it's the mysterious Mindblob!
Leisa Reichelt - Only fitting for a blog titled "Disambiguity"

Comments

[mindblob]

Heyyyy David,

Thank you for thinking about me. Oh... come on now... how am I supposed to stay "mysterious" after that one! ; )

[Gavin Heaton]

I am liking "King of the Fireroads". But tell me, did you get a crown with that?

[Ann Handley]

Great things about "youm," DA! Love the Mrs. Sharkey story. Doesn't everyone have a Mrs. Sharkey lurking from their childhoods....?

My "Mrs. Sharkey" was actually Sister Claire, who tagged me (not in a good bloggy way, either) as a "bad egg" and told me that I was not "the cream of the crop, who actually make a difference in this world." I started to correct the metaphor (cream making a difference? huh?) but decided to just pipe down, for once.... lol.

[Ryan]

Ah, a fellow July 28th'er. I' m a few years younger at '77. I am also recovering from 'Leo'ism'. As for the limelight, hey, "It's all about me!"

[DA]

Gavin,

A bunch of lumps on mye head was my crown.

Ann, yes we all have a Mrs. Sharkey. The good news is that they don't always have us. :)

Mindblob, I'm wating for your 5 things...

Ryan.... I know—it is all about us. ;)

[Tom Asacker]

Thanks David. And I too experienced #4, but landed on my ass. :) Happy holidays!

Tom