Was visiting Karen’s blog last night and saw her response to a meme that was going around in January. I follow the link to Ces’ post (where the tag came from) and was shocked to see my name at the bottom! I’m so sorry, Ces, I totally missed this. So, this morning, while waiting for my pot of coffee to brew, I thought I’d take a break from all the current seriousness of my life and enjoy revealing just a wee bit more (but like Karen says, perhaps too much) about (copying you here, Ces) “the real Stef”:

1. My biggest pet peeve is HAIR. I hate it on soaps — yes, thank goodness for liquid soap, huh, though I still prefer the old fashioned bar kind sometimes — and of course, in food, especially in salads.
2. I studied classical piano for 12 years, but I hardly ever practice these days so you couldn’t tell from my playing. Those fingers do get rusty! Hubby and children always encourage me, though, and I am motivated to practice more especially now that my kids are learning and taking off with it! I also compose music, but what frustrates me most is not being able to transcribe what I’m making. A software that does this has been on my wish list for years.
3. I love RocketMania and word games — the few leisurely activities I allow myself. We don’t have cable, and we don’t watch primetime TV either — not in the past 8 years anyway. We do rent movies and our one TV-show collection is Friends. My favorites are period/historical movies. Hubby’s are action ones, so we take turns and compromise.
4. I HATE shopping. To me it is such a waste of time, to spend hours and hours just finding the right color, the right fit, the right cut. So I do most of it online. (Or, I sew it, though I haven’t sewn an outfit for myself in a while.) I am not a faddish person at all. I love good, traditional clothes, things that I can wear year after year and still have a dash of panache.
5. In my mind, I am the most organized person in the world. If I had the necessary budget, I would line our library walls the whole house with shelves and have everything put in the right place, I mean EVERYTHING. Then again, not having a place for everything is probably a sign that I should get rid of stuff.
6. I am a perfectionist. That doesn’t mean I’m perfect, or that I want the people around me to be perfect, just that I frustrate myself by making things more complicated than they ought to be. This goes for cooking, cleaning house, organizing, etc. I have a hard time stopping at “good enough” (with the help of good friends’ advice and lots of prayer though, I am getting better). But again, you wouldn’t know it looking at the mess in my rooms. The struggle of the perfectionist lies in WANTING things to be perfect and failing miserably half the time.
7. I am allergic to shrimp and other shellfish, but I still eat these, with a big slug of Coke. Coke helps, don’t ask me why. Maybe because it’s strong enough to clean your toilets heehee…. Actually I should clarify. I have an allergic reaction when the shellfish isn’t the freshest it should be.
8. I have tons of undone/half-done projects in the basement, that I probably can’t finish even if I had three lifetimes. These include knitting projects, scrapbooking, needlework, and sewing projects that I’ve accumulated for the past 8 years/4 moves. I am still working through them, but VERY SLOWLY.
9. I used to oil-paint and watercolor, years ago before the kids. But my oil paints have probably dried up from years of unuse. (Is there such a word?)
10. I can’t swim. Well, I can go under water and stay there and swim around for a bit, and I can float on my back — hubby was the one who taught me these things, thank goodness for him. But don’t ask me to tread water, or to breathe while in the water. Still can’t do those. My biggest fear is that I would die from drowning. So driving around/near water gives me a funny feeling.

And I’ll mimic Ces here and add one more:

11. My hubby is my #1 fan, and my moral beacon. He’s my greatest blessing. Even now I still think at times, I don’t deserve him. But I know why God put him here — to be my angel, to be my guide. As a young teen I prayed and prayed for what I wanted, but God gave me exactly what He knew I *needed*. Never underestimate the power of a good man. His love and his faith in me has really transformed me and my life. My parents were an awesome example of a love-filled marriage, but without my hubby, I wouldn’t be half the person I am today.

Still thinking of who to tag, so I’ll edit this in the next day or two.

Tagging:

1. Jenn of Feast and Feria
2. Dawn of By Sun and Candlelight
3. Hsien of Cottontimer
4.