25 things about me...it's a facebook thing

Well, I guess I’m gonna join the bandwagon....not simply just to join the bandwagon, but this is more for me. I think it’s important to do a self-evaluation every once in awhile and trying to come up with 25 interesting things about me is making me think hard about who I am:
Here’s to jumping on the bandwagon!

1) I was a good student in high school and college, but sometimes I wonder how much I actually learned as opposed to how many times I just did the assignments to get the grade.

2) I hate to read, always have. I probably have 25 books that I’ve started but have never finished.

3) It’s been a life-long dream of mine to learn another language. I’ve started multiple times (Spanish, Swedish, Hungarian) but I’m actually gonna succeed with German.

4) I hate change yet I have a hard time staying the same. Since I graduated college (May 2004) I’ve lived (for at least 2 months) in 8 different places (in chronological order):
        Lake Wales
        Lulea, Sweden (tak sa mycket Mats och Stina)         
        Lake Wales
        Goshen, Indiana (thanks J...I OWE YOU HUGE)
        Lake Wales (sense a theme?...all different houses in Lake Wales though)
        Budakeszi, Hungary (nagyon szepen koszonom Philips family!)
        Budapest, Hungary (sziastok baratom Budapesten)
        Winter Haven, FL

5) I have a couple of things that absolutely drive me crazy. I hate loud things and/or noises (think Ty Pennington SCREAMING into a bullhorn that amplifies his voice EVEN MORE!). Because of my hatred for loud things, I dislike balloons and fireworks because they make loud popping noises at unpredictable times. Also, I can’t stand peanut butter, cheese, or bread getting stuck to the roof of my mouth. It literally makes me go insane! The last thing I’ll mention that I hate is when I’m trying to think of something specific and I can’t think of it. That’s my OCD coming out

6) I’ve never learned more from anyone in the world than I have from my good friends Dave and Greta Reames. They taught me more about love, forgiveness, missions, relationships, abiding in Christ, etc than anyone else and I am forever indebted to them for all the wisdom they shared as they became transparent and vulnerable with me in our Sunday night conversations before I moved overseas. Thanks guys!

7) There’s not a movie I enjoy watching more than Simon Birch.

8) My favorite thing to do in the world is travel. It’s more enjoyable with other people, but I’m not opposed to travel by myself. I’ve been to 35 states and 29 countries. It’s also a secret dream of mine to be on the Amazing Race!

9) I hate my name in cursive (I don’t have any letters that go up or down....nor do I have anything to cross or dot....just a bunch of small curvy letters)

10) One of the proudest moments of my life was holding my best friend and his wife’s newborn baby. Hannah you are the cutest girl I’ve ever seen and I’m so proud of you already!

11) I have one of the weakest stomach’s ever...I can’t even watch the intro to ER b/c I hear the heart monitor beep and it causes me to get queazy. Some people seem to the think it’s funny to tell gory stories in front of me to see my reaction....I struggle to find the humor

12) I’m not a birthday person. I don’t celebrate my own very much and therefore don’t make a big deal of others.

13) I’m hoping that the Lord’s plan for my life includes a great woman out there for me and that after we get married, we’ll be blessed with unbelievably handsome boys and drop dead gorgeous girls! However, I’m confident that if I don’t get married (or if it’s not until later in life) I’m gonna enjoy being a bachelor.

14) I can be EXTREMELY emotional and empathetic at times. If I see you cry there’s a great chance that I’ll be crying too. And if you throw up....GUARANTEED I’ll be throwing up after you (see #11)!

15) If I could live off of eating double-stuffed oreos, hint of lime tostitos, hot tamale candy, fresh fruit and publix subs, I would

16) I might be one of the biggest people pleasers you’ll ever meet. I want EVERYONE to be happy ALL THE TIME and it really bothers me when they’re not.

17) I decided my first trip out of the country that I was going to start saving barf bags from planes as souvenirs from trips b/c they are the cheapest souvenir one can find. I can’t even begin to tell you how many I have. I actually stopped accepting them from other people who brought them home for me b/c I have too many!

18) Thanks to my bro, I’m a big fan of celebrating Cinco de Mayo

19) One thing I love to do more than anything is to laugh. Someone that makes me laugh more than anyone is my best friend Rodney. He has a special gift to make even stressful situations humorous.

20) Out of all the places in the world I’ve been, my favorite things I’ve seen or done include: spending a night in the IceHotel in Jukkasjarvi, Sweden; riding a camel in front of the great pyramids in Egypt; standing in awe on the train tracks in Auchwitz Concentration camp in Poland; driving a reindeer sled in Kiruna, Sweden; attending a Bryan Adams concert in downtown Budapest with my brother; waiting in the hospital waiting room and finding out that Hannah was born (see #10)

21) I hate answering the question ‘what do you see yourself doing’ or ‘where do you see yourself 5 years from now.’ Seriously, as if 5 years ago I had ANY clue that I would be BACK in the Lake Wales area after living overseas for 2 years and planning to move back? I have NO CLUE what I“ll be doing in 5 years!

22) I’m a huge fan of people watching. Not just in airports or malls like most, but in life. It may not make sense, but I I think everyone has something that they can teach me so I try to learn from everyone as I stand back and observe. One person that I enjoy observing right now is my boss b/c I feel as if he is one of the most Godly leaders I’ve ever met. He inspires me to be more just by the way he lives.

23) My most embarrassing moment in life came when I was a first grade teacher and I mixed up the ‘Ch’ in the name ‘Chucky’ with the ‘F’ in the name ‘Fabian’ and asked ‘What’s a F#(*y doll anyway Chabian?’

24) I feel as if I had been deceived by every weatherman I had ever watched on tv growing up until the great weatherman Steve Jerve enlightened me about 3 years ago. Did you know that when they say ‘there’s a 20% chance of rain’ it DOESN’T mean that there’s a 20% chance that you’ll get rain today? It really means that 20% of their viewing area will get rain today. And I don’t care what you say....THOSE STATEMENTS ARE NOT THE SAME THING!

25) If the only thing that was on TV was college and NFL football, college basketball, The Office, 24, Lost, The Amazing Race, and Jeopardy, I would be VERY happy!
25b) I love playing ”Jeopardy! ” while watching the show...in fact, I actually keep score while I’m watching with friends. Thanks guys for putting up with my idiosyncrasies!


There you have it...now you know me 25x better than when you first started reading!