Ok ~ Seven Things You Don't Know About Me . . . maybe

Well, I have been graciously given the "Versatile Blogger Award" by Dee, at "coming home to myself".  As you can see, the first thing you may not know about me is that I don't know how to create a link! When I attempted to click on the "link" button, this is what I got:   http://cominghometomyself.blogspot.com/

So, here are seven things you don't know about me, and probably wish you didn't know!  I hope I don't lose all my new blogger friends. (This would be a sad face, but I can't seem to make one.  Why doesn't :( work like it does in Word??)

1.  I am hopelessly technologically challenged.  Even when I finally figure something out, I usually forget how before I attempt to do it again.  I've been trying for 10 years to create my grading sheets in Excel.  Still haven't figured it out.  People have shown me how, but I forget by the time I sit back down at my computer.  Hopeless, I am.  I took a class about eight years ago, but it obviously was little help.

2.  While I love to hike, I am deathly afraid of heights.  I absolutely can't be on the edge of anything.  I don't trust railings above about four feet.  I was a constantly panicked mom whenever my children climbed on things.  My youngest is a rock climber, but I've only seen her in pictures.  That's enough to freak me out. She showed me a video of her bungee jumping.  She wisely didn't tell me ahead of time.

3.  I am a manic collector of sewing memorabilia.  I have about ten toy sewing machines, (various models and brands . . . all old) boxes and containers full of old sewing notions, two treadle sewing machines, and two regular machines (both old).  I have floor to ceiling shelves on two full walls in my sewing room full of fabric and patterns and notions.  There's more in the garage and in the attic.

4.  Sometimes I'm fearful that I'm a hoarder.  I can't throw away anything my children drew or wrote or created in any medium.  I have two trunks full of pictures of people I don't know (but I think they're relatives!) Some are slides my grandparents had . . . can't throw them away . . . don't know what's on them.  (They died over 25 years ago, you'd think I'd have looked at them by now!)  I have boxes of old, molding, falling apart books that belonged to my great-grandparents.  One book shelf is all old books that are in decent shape that belonged to the same great-grandparents.  (I think I read one of them once) Every card my children or my husband (and most from friends, too) is in my house . . . somewhere. Sadly, not all in the same place.  Some are under my bed in bins, some in boxes in the garage, I found a few in my sock drawer when I sorted it out last Monday from longer ago than I care to admit.

5.  I hardly ever listen to music.  I love all kinds of music, but I also like quiet.  I would listen to music in my car, but one of the speakers makes a very disturbing noise and it makes it hard to enjoy.  We took the van in to the Toyota dealer not long after we purchased it (eleven years ago, used) and they said they fixed the speaker, but they didn't.  I just never got around to taking it back.  We talk about it often, especially when we're driving to the beach or something and gee, we'd really like to hear some tunes.  The girls and I have ipods, but that isn't very nice for my husband.

6.  I kill houseplants.   I usually forget about them, and then they get all dried out, so I over water them, which usually kills them over time.  My husband takes care of our houseplants.  Oh, I'm doing alright with a bamboo that was given to me this summer.  Well, we'll see.

7.  Ok, last one.  I gained 10 pounds this summer while I was sitting and laying around waiting for my knee to heal.  This is on top of many more pounds that I shouldn't be dragging around with me.  Anyway, I bought a dress I just loved for the first day of school.  I went to put it on Wednesday morning and I couldn't button the front.  Talk about setting my day off!

Now I can't remember the other part of what I was supposed to do in order to accept my Versatile Blogger Award.  I think I was supposed to link other blogs, but I don't know how to do it correctly.

Dee, I hope you forgive me for not being able to complete my mission.  I also hope you don't regret passing this award on to me!