Eight Things

There has been this neat little thing on facebook lately where people post a number of facts about themselves, and then when people like their status they pass out a number, and we are supposed to post something about ourselves. I ended up getting the number eight, and I decided to post the things I wrote on the blog as well, just for posterity, I guess. Here you go:

1. My senior year of high school I wrote a paper about where I thought I would be when I was thirty years old. My response? I would be riding my bike across Europe, fighting political oppression. I'm not sure exactly how one little American girl on a bike was going to fight the forces of evil in Europe, but I was a great idealist at the time. Needless to say, I didn't end up doing that. When I was thirty I was a Mormon mom of four living the dream in Waynesville, MO. (I still have that paper. My family thinks it is hilarious).

2. I did really love to ride my bicycle cross country when I was younger. My family rode a lot, and when I graduated from high school I did RAGBRAI, the huge bike race across Iowa. It was great fun, and I only cried once on the journey!

3. I hate macaroni and cheese. The squishy feeling of air whenever you chew it grosses me out.

4. My great dream in life is to write novels. I actually have one book that is completely plotted out, chapter by chapter, but I am super nervous to put it all on paper. Too many fears to mention here ... but I will conquer them. I WILL!

5. Sometimes when I am unfortunate enough to be in a medical waiting room, stuck there for an extended amount of time, and forced to watch CNN for hours at a time, I really, REALLY think that I could go in an fix that once great network. Seriously, I think that I, Melissa Blau, know exactly how to make that a respected news outlet once again. So ... call me, CNN. I'll take care of you. 

6. I spend too much time worrying about the space/time continuum and the effect of time travel on historical events. Don't ask me why. I don't even know. What time would I travel to, and what would I do once I got there? Victorian England, in the English countryside, not Dickensian London ... and I would spend my entire time observing, but hiding the background, trying not to be noticed, so that I didn't accidentally do something to destroy the history of the modern world. I know. I'm weird. And a little boring.

7. Once in college I watched West Side Story every single day for like a year. But I only watched up to the "wedding" scene. I didn't like the sad ending.

8. I am a huge fan of Les Miserables. I have seen the stage production six times. I once dreamed a dream of playing my trumpet for the pit orchestra in a professional production, but, let's be honest, I wasn't even close to being that good. Still, I did my honors thesis on the book in college. One of my professors asked me to submit my thesis to a scholarly journal for publication, but I never did. Still that paper and all the work that went into it is one of my favorite college achievements.