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Hi Scribblers and Scribblettes,

In recognition of my impending 100th post, I've decided to share six quirky facts about myself, in order that you can get to know my crazy inner workings a little better.

1. I have a disabled younger sister - mild physical but mainly intellectual. This has lead to some pretty awesome things growing up (free nannies for my parents supplied through the nanny training school, someone who even as a teenager is super-excited about all the holidays, experiences that may never have been made available to us otherwise) as well as some downsides (no family vacations since I was eleven - we'd go with one parent or the other, having strangers look at you funny when a fifteen-year-old throws a tantrum in the supermarket, etc) but she's part of the reason I am who I am today and I certainly can't shake that. She's now the only one of us kids NOT living at home... which is a little humiliating LOL... but she loves her new supervised flat.
2. On the other end of the spectrum, I grew up a certified "gifted" child... talk about a mixed bag for my parents. I was that precocious child not afraid to argue with my parents' dinner guests that a spider was not an insect, it was an arachnid; doing high school french in primary school and advanced placement classes in high school. Like many other of the "smart kids", around sixth form I got bored and stopped trying. I could have done much better in my latter years of high school than I actually did.
3. I did gymnastics and ballet for years... in fact, pretty much until I gained the height, the hips and the boobs that ruled out these options as future career choices. As much as both have helped lead to the less-than-positive body image I have of myself, they've given me grace and agility that I wouldn't give up for anything. If I have girls, I'd like them to do gymnastics and ballet too - I'd just find them less bitchy teachers.
4. When my first serious boyfriend asked me out, I asked him if he was asking me out of pity! It was my fifteenth birthday party, I had a serious crush on him and everyone had been hassling him all day. We went on to date for almost two years, and now he's like a brother to me... that closeness has migrated into something other than puppy love and I'm so glad it has because he was my best friend too.
5. I'm a fierce mamma bear when it comes to my friends and family - when a party guest at one of my sister's parties pushed my mum over, I sprinted off after him down the street and picked him up by his shirt collar when he tripped over. Likewise, if anyone says anything about the friends I love, I'm not afraid to unleash the vitriolic side of my tongue that I usually keep under wraps. Be careful not to get on my bad side!
6. I feel like I live my life half-and-half: part of me wants to be the 50's housewife, cooking, cleaning, crafts, church. The other half is this schizophrenic creative who wants to skinny-dip in the ocean then party on the beach until dawn. Could it be that I can be both?

So there you are... some insight into my deep inner psyche. Hope it hasn't scared you too much! If you feel so inclined as to share some of your hidden secrets, I'd love to hear them!