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Once upon a time when I was 3, I watched The Little Mermaid. Ursula scared me so badly that I had a traumatizing nightmare that I still remember. My parents told me that I woke up screaming. That experience has turned into a lifelong fear of octopuses. Videos, pictures, and sometimes even just mentioning them make me tense up and get very anxious. I don't know how I'd react if I encountered one in real life. It's a situation I'm trying to avoid. image credit

Other than the fact that it is a most unpleasant experience, I'm not sure why I'm so lit'rally terrified of throwing up. I will do anything physically possible to prevent myself from being sick. When I got my wisdom teeth out last week, right before they put me under, the doctor asked, "Is there anything you're worried or afraid of before we start?" My response? "Throwing up afterward." They gave me anti-nausea medication so I wouldn't. I didn't. And I'm not prone to motion sickness either - I just hate throwing up. So much so that I haven't in thirteen years. image credit

I've never had any bad experiences with clowns, but I find them to be very creepy. It's something about the heavy makeup on their faces; that I can't really see their true emotions/intentions. Overall, I'm just very wary of them. I guess that I've fabricated in my mind that they have some sort of ulterior motive, and it makes me uneasy. No offense to anyone who may be involved with clowns, via the circus or otherwise. image credit

2. Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and explain how they became fears. | thirty things

one

i have the same middle name as my maternal grandmother : while on the subject of names, my dad wanted to name me roxanne - after the song by the police : my toenails are always painted : i've never been out of the country : i really dislike wearing nametags : i love reading on the beach : i have freckles on my lips : i've never owned a dog : i'm an old soul : i was born in the same hospital as my dad : i secretly want to be an ex-pat : i love countdowns : i am not an outdoorsy person : i haven't thrown up in thirteen years : i have a pretty twisted sense of humor : i can drive a stick shift : i didn't wear glasses until my senior year of high school : i'm a night owl : i love all things british : i hate pickles

1. List 20 random facts about yourself. | thirty things

thirty things

For lack of things to blog about lately, I decided to tackle this list to see if it helps me get creative. I think it could be fun to return to this list every few years to see how/if my answers change. So be on the lookout for these "thirty things" posts interspersed among the usual. Join in if you want. I'd love to get to know more about you too.

2012: thirty things

1. List 20 random facts about yourself.

2. Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and explain how they became fears.

3. Describe your relationship with your parents.

4. List 10 things you would tell your 16 year-old self, if you could.

5. What are the 5 things that make you most happy right now?

6. What is the hardest thing you have ever experienced?

7. What is your dream job, and why?

8. What are 5 passions you have?

9. List 10 people who have influenced you and describe how.

10. Describe your most embarrassing moment.

11. Describe 10 pet peeves you have.

12. Describe a typical day in your current life.

13. Describe 5 weaknesses you have.

14. Describe 5 strengths you have.

15. If you were an animal, what would you be and why?

16. What are your 5 greatest accomplishments?

17. What is the thing you most wish you were great at?

18. What has been the most difficult thing you have had to forgive?

19. If you could live anywhere, where would it be and why?

20. Describe 3 significant memories from your childhood.

21. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and what would you do with it first?

22. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years? 15 years?

23. List your top 5 hobbies and why you love them.

24. Describe your family dynamic of your childhood vs. your family dynamic now.

25. If you could have dinner with anyone in history, who would it be and what would you eat?

26. What popular notion do you think the world has most wrong?

27. What is your favorite part of your body and why?

28. What is your love language?

29. What do you think people misunderstand most about you?

30. List 10 things you would hope to be remembered for.

what is wisdom?

"The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool." 

Shakespeare | As You Like It

As of 10:30 this morning, I officially lost all of my wisdom in the form of four teeth.

(And am now rocking an amazing ice pack of the strapped to the face variety.)

#captionTHIS

This is a wonderful video about an issue that most people aren't even aware of.

Watch it; and if you feel so inclined, sign the petition here. It's a wonderful cause to support. As hearing people, I think we often forget about these types of issues. Everyone should be able to have complete access to all forms of online media.

summer is . . .

bare feet

the beach

and boiled peanuts.

update

As you may have read earlier, I can talk with my hands. I took the proficiency test and got my results back today. I fell in the Advanced Plus range. Which means that there are only two levels higher than what I scored, and I'm almost at the Superior level, but not quite.  (scoring scale and full explanations available online here.) 

Here are some highlights from the notes of my test results:

"Able to have a shared conversation with good, spontaneous elaboration for both

social and work topics."

"Very clear production of signs at a normal/near native-like rate."

"Very good use of many sign language grammatical features including use of space, use of role shifts, sign verb movement direction, repetition of sign verb movement, word order flexibility, and classifiers."

"Very good comprehension of sign language produced at a normal rate, with no repetition or rephrasing necessary." 

Overall, I'm extremely happy with the results of this test. The interpreting program that I'm trying to get into told me that they usually look for candidates who score at least in the Intermediate range, but preferably higher. I scored higher. Now I just have to wait to hear back from the interpreting program to see if they want me.

I can talk with my hands.

          A few weeks ago I drove to Spartanburg for a language skills test. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's go back a few years. Back in my college days at BYU, I had just completed a semester of Spanish, and hated every minute of it. I found myself on the hunt for a new foreign language to fulfill a requirement for my major. I was an English major for a reason. I wanted to read amazing books and write about them, not learn a foreign language. At this same time, my amazing friend and roommate Amber had just finished ASL 101 and highly recommended it. Willing to try anything that sounded interesting that also met the academic requirement, I signed up. Best. Decision. Ever. For some reason, ASL just made sense to me. I caught on quickly and retained everything. I dove in head first going to ASL Club, attending the local ASL  branch of my church, and spent time hanging out with Deaf people. Soon, I found myself in love with a language, a culture, and a people. Two and a half years of classes and some invaluable interpreting experience, I was set.

          Fast forward to now. I found an interpreting program that I want to do that will prepare me to become a licensed ASL interpreter. It's my dream career. I love it. I applied to the school and the program, and drove to Spartanburg to do my language skills interview test. The results of which will determine if I get accepted into the interpreting program. I should get said results in a few weeks. And if I get in, I'll be off and running in the Fall.