Thursday, December 16, 2004

99 things about Michael

My very good friend Mike sent me 99 things about himself - because of #19, he will never post this, so with his permission, here are 99 things about my friend Michael. Thanks Mike!!!

NINETY-NINE THINGS ABOUT ME

1. I don’t know where to start.
2. I love hamburgers. How about that?
3. I love junk food. I can’t help it. The other day, a bunch of people from work went out for lunch, and when I found out they were going for salads, I ditched them to go to KFC by myself.
4. I don’t believe in astrology, but I can’t explain why I connect particularly well with Cancers.
5. My birthday is March 4.
6. People who know say I’m a typical Pisces.
7. My purple Volkswagen is the same colour as my favourite smartie.
8. My little cousin J. lives in New York.
9. I wish she lived in Toronto.
10. I want to go to New York this summer.
11. I have two brothers who are both better athletes than I am.
12. My father is the strongest person I know.
13. I admire my friend S. for having the strength to raise an autistic child.
14. I’m transported when I listen to John Coltrane because he is the greatest saxophone player that ever lived.
15. I get depressed when I listen to John Coltrane because it is impossible for me to ever play as well as he did.
16. My brother thinks it’s wasteful that I have so many CD’s. I store some separately, so whenever he comes over he won’t see how many I really have.
17. He thought he was being helpful when he once suggested I can download music.
18. I will never download music.
19. I don’t surf the internet and I don’t own a computer.
20. My CD collection includes among other things, Frank Sinatra, Motorhead, Judy Garland, Led Zeppelin, Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, Holly Cole, Black Sabbath, Dvorak, Mozart, Maria Callas, Meatloaf, Barbra Streisand, Oscar Peterson and Rush.
21. My favourite CD is Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, The Great Summit, from 1961.
22. “Over the Rainbow” is the first tune I learned to play on my saxophone.
23. On days I’m playing hockey particularly well, it’s likely I’m playing in my head the tunes “One”-U2 or “Whole of the Moon”-Waterboys
24. I will never win a lottery, not because I don’t buy tickets (I do), but because I never get around to checking my numbers.
25. If I do win a lottery, I will quit my job and go back to school to get a graduate degree in English Lit.
26. With the exception of the last two or three years, I’ve read “The Great Gatsby” every year of my life since grade 12.
27. I’ve started reading “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” again.
28. I started it for the first time when I was in my 20’s and searching for meaning. Never finished the book. Never quite figured out the point of life.
29. In 1993, I wrote a short novel (long short story?). Today I’m embarrassed about it.
30. I’ve only let three people read it, and I’ve asked them not to tell me what they think of it.
31. I don’t accept criticism very well.
32. F. who used to work here, (who used to report to my woman hockey playing friend, K.) quit being a lawyer to write her novel full time.
33. I think F. is incredibly brave and I hope she succeeds.
34. I’ve seen the movie Casablanca about twenty times.
35. Last year I went through a period where I couldn’t stop watching “Lost in Translation.” It’s terribly affecting. I think I saw it five times over a two week period.
36. I fall asleep everything I try to watch “The Sound of Music.”
37.I’ve never seen it in its entirety.
38. But I love “My Fair Lady”.
39. I love Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Not Buffy, the show.
40. I’m a slob.
41. My friend T makes me laugh. Whenever I change jobs I have to take him out to dinner to celebrate. Whenever he changes jobs I have to take him out to dinner to celebrate.
42. Once about five years ago, I reneged and he still holds it against me. I don’t think changing department counts.
43. I miss living in the city. I don’t like the suburbs.
44. I want a huge fat tree in front of my house.
45. When I lived in the city, I went out for a walk every night. I can’t do that anymore.
46. I don’t like shopping but I do go to malls. It’s the closest thing in the ‘burbs to strolling the Danforth.
47. I worry a lot about the future. Mostly I worry that my life won’t change.
48. I don’t think there’s anything wrong, but I hope there’s more. Maybe I need religion. That’s what an old friend of mine used to tell me.
49. I have no religion. I don’t believe in anything.
50. Both my manager and my financial advisor think I’m aimless.
51. I also worry about my parents’ health and happiness.
52. I hope I’m a good son, but I don’t really know what that means.
53. I love teaching. I think it may be my “calling”, if there is such a thing.
54. The first time I taught I was petrified because I had no idea what I was talking about. I didn’t understand the material I was supposed to teach. I studied all week so I could get away with saying just a few things. I was afraid someone would discover I was a fraud.
55. My friend L. thinks I’m crazy spending so much time with my private tutoring. She thinks I should limit myself to tutoring only single women for FREE.
56. I understand her point, but I still think I should also be open to tutoring anyone who has $$.
57. Sometimes when I’m tutoring I get frustrated with how stupid some people are.
58. When I cool down, I feel terrible for thinking people are stupid.
59. I don’t have a favourite colour. Even if I did, I don’t think it would change anything.
60. The only sports I’m passionate about are Formula One and the Canadian Football League.
61. I’ve seen every Grey Cup game since 1979.
62. A couple of months ago when I was at Uof T in Mississauga, I saw Damon Allen, and when he noticed that I recognized him, he came over to talk to me.
63.I’ve been to every Toronto Argonaunts home game since.
64. I thought I was too old to be this type of fan. I was wrong.
65. When I start thinking I’m too old for “anything”, then I must be in big trouble.
66. I try to keep the friends I have. I’m not good at making new ones.
67. It amazes me that some of my friends like me so much.
68. I don’t know what’s wrong with them.
69. The high school I went to was Riverdale Collegiate. Many of my friends are upset that the school was rebuilt. They don’t recognize it anymore. Somehow the old memories have been invalidated.
70. I bought into that crap too when I was 17.
71. Today – my friends from high school are still my friends. The old days don’t matter. Hopefully high school are NOT the best years of my life.
72. I hate reality television.
73. I hate golf.
74. Cats not dogs. But I have neither.
75. I can’t stand people who speak incessantly about their pets. I don’t care if you give your cat Zantac, and yes ok, your dog eats better than I do.
76. I’ve been accused of being opinionated, direct, insensitive and that I sometimes hurt peoples’ feelings without knowing it.
77. This is supported by a series of personality tests/ profiles my employer did on me.
78. I hope it’s not true.
79. When I was growing up, I was an “angry young man.” My cousin J. used to be afraid of me.
80. I identified with Charlie Brown.
81. Peanuts is still my favourite comic strip and when I go to Chapters/ Indigo I always spare time to read a few strips.
82. This is how I’m different from my brothers who are both gentle souls.
83. I used to be very competitive. My high school friend who was the fifth ranked chess player in Canada humiliated me everyday. Cope or quit. Today, I’m not competitive at all.
84. I have this uncanny ability for remembering numbers. It’s a great asset for this job I don’t like.
85. I never forget phone numbers. But sometimes I get mixed up about which numbers in my head belong to who.
86. Nature is fair however. I can’t remember yesterday.
87. I’m still sore from playing ball hockey.
88. I didn’t used to like kids. Didn’t dislike them – merely thought of them as “little things that are just there”. But I like them more and more, as more of my friends have them.
89. Starbucks? Second Cup? Tim Hortons? Timothy’s? None of the above. McDonald’s CafĂ© Roast. The way I feel about Big Macs has nothing to do with this.
90. I’m excellent at dodging phone calls. And it’s more than just forgetting to turn on my cell phone.
91. I drink too much Coke, not as much as some, but still too much.
92. The socks I’m wearing right now have holes in them.
93. This week I’m planning to wash my hockey equipment.
94. I don’t always follow through with what I say.
95. I don’t see that as failure or character flaw or anything like that. If it’s not right, quit and move on. Don’t waste your time.
96. I wish life were slower. Maybe I’m just too busy.
97. I love my rocking chair.
98. I hope I live a long life. I wouldn’t mind dying in that chair.
99. I hope there are others beside mine.

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