25 Random Things About ME

As posted on Facebook...

25 Random Things About Steve

1. I write constantly.
Note that I don't think I'm technically a good writer, but rather I am to writing what a typical bar-room piano player is to fine music. Enough said.

2. I don't share well.
I tend to be very guarded with the things that are the most important to me...the more important it is, the more guarded I will be. Sometimes things do leak out though in what I write, if you pay attention.

3. I have an incredibly short span on attention.
The older I get, the shorter it seems to become. In a conversation, if you don't get my attention in the first five minutes, you will probably never get it.

4. I don't hold grudges.
I can think of only one person in the whole wide-world that I have negative feels towards for something they did...and this person had to work hard at accomplishing it.

5. There is a scene in the movie Rocky II that makes me cry.
Seriously, there is.

6. I am slowly losing my hearing.
I need to get this checked. Too many years of playing music too loudly.

7. I've never smoked anything in my life.
I will die not having smoked a cigarette or a cigar. In fact, I've never used any tobacco products.

8. I've never tried any recreational drugs ever in my life.
I had the opportunity once or twice, but I was smart enough to say "no thanks". My head under normal conditions is a scary place.

9. I support Gay Rights.
Actually it's more like I don't not support Gay rights, if that makes sense. In my mind, if two people want to get married, why the hell should I care? If a gay couple who has a loving, stable relationship want to adopt a child, why not? I'm amazed that some folks seem to think that being gay is something that can be transmitted via direct contact...that if you let "them" get married that they will somehow "replicate". Note that I am 100% straight myself.

10. I grew up poor.
We lived in a housing project in downtown Scranton. I was ashamed of it then, I'm proud of it now.

11. I am a frustrated musician.
I wish I had musical talent. Hell, I even have a guitar...that I can't play.

12. I don't believe in conspiracies.
Conspiracies require a bunch of people to work together and keep their mouths shut. Neither happens all that much in the real world.

13. I think that astrology, ESP, tarot card reading, crystal balls, etc. are horse$hit.
Come to me...give me $25...and I will gladly make up crap to tell you so that you can feel better about yourself. Think about it: if these kinds of powers did exist, wouldn't someone be using them to say win the lottery or something like that? I am a natural skeptic who lives by the saying "extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof".

14. I have suffered from incredibly bad Acid Reflux.
I'm taking a "proton pump inhibitor" daily to prevent my stomach sludge from eating through my throat.

15. I love planting flowers in the Spring.
I plant Spring flowers every year around my birthday...as a present to myself.

16. I don't like dogs.
No offense to all the dog lovers out there, but I had one growing up. The all seem, well, stinky.

17. I am very sensitive to smells.
See #16. I have candles in my office at home just to make things smell better.

18. I have been known to sing "Dancing Queen" out loud to myself while driving.
I know...see #9.

19. I don't have a lot of friends, but those I have I am loyal to.
I'm a pretty introverted person, so I'm not one for having hundreds of friends and acquaintances. But when I do have someone I consider to be a friend, they are someone I would do anything for.

20. When stressed I clean/organize.
When I feel as if things are way out of my control, I have a tendency to clean as a way of somehow garnering control over my environment.

21. I love "first person shooter" video games.
I have Doom, Half-Life and a few others that I play.

22. I am a firm believer in accepting personal responsibility.
I am responsible for what I do and say; if I screw up I apologize and try to make things better. I expect the same from others.

23. I like being busy.
It goes with my short span of attention.

24. I am good at math but I can't do math in my head.
I can conceptualize things like numbers, problems, etc., but I can't really do the work associated with them without the benefit of at least a pencil and paper.

25. I am spiritually unsure.
I'm not sure if there is a God, although I don't discount the possibility. What I am sure of is that it's not possible to know everything, so best to keep one's options open in cases like this.