25 things about me

So, I'm going on a little bit of a Facebook binge while MM is out of town on retreat. But this is really trying to be economical with my online time: I developed this list for Facebook and am now using it here because I thought someone out there might be a little bit interested. To be honest, I really got the idea from MM, who did exactly the reverse: after losing her first version of "25 things," she copied and pasted parts of her January quick takes from here to create a new list for Facebook. Anyway, here's this:

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

1. [MM] and I are both apparently techno-dolts, as we both managed to lose our 25 things lists ([MM]'s after she thought she had published it, which may have ended her relationship with the notes application.)

2. This should not really be surprising, as we are both (a postal worker and a stay at home mom) walking, talking anachronisms.

3. Two books having to do with the "philosophical underpinnings" of a postal system, both of which I really enjoyed, are David Brin's "The Postman" (although I've never seen the Costner movie) and Terry Pratchett's "Going Postal."

4. No, I'm not going postal. And it's not really that funny, the 800th time it's been asked.

5. Although I can kinda see how it happens: bureaucracy's "irrationality of rationality" and all, a la Max Weber.

6. See? I (sort of) use my Sociology degree in my daily life!

7. I think, if I had it to do over, I might've majored in History. I tend toward that in much of my independent learning and reading now.

8. Not that I didn't enjoy a Soc major and minors in Philosophy and Peace and Justice Studies...but "enjoyed" don't pay the bills. Heh

9. I do think all the critical thinking exercise I received during this course of study helped me kick some serious butt on the LSAT. Too bad I really, really didn't want to be a lawyer, when all was said and done.

10. I'm pretty content now just providing for my family doing whatever will pay the bills in a morally acceptable way.

11. I don't know how it's going to look, but I really like the idea behind what [our alma mater] (I've read) is doing outside the Science Building w/r/t the interconnectedness of "faith" and "reason."

12. During my lifetime, I think I've gone from one extreme to other, thinking they were either/or. Now I think it's a largely false dichotomy, but there still is some creative tension between the two.

13. Maybe that's why I like "Lost" so much. I think it's BOTH sci-fi AND fantasy. Jack and Locke are both right.

14. W/r/t "Lost," though, I do lean more toward "goober" than "scooby." See http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1550612_20245769_20253740,00.html if you care to figure out what that means.

15. While at ew.com, I noticed a story called "29 films you saw too young." It's funny, because I was just thinking about how I had a hard time reading "Lord of the Rings" again when I was really old enough to get more out of it because I had probably read it too early, and how Eva's gotten some really cool toys that were just too old for her but then were trashed by the time she could really get something out of them. I think this is analogous to a lot of experiences (and lifestyle choices). But that's just me, and I probably never would've thought that when I was younger.

16. Going back to the faith and reason thing, we just saw Ben Stein's "Expelled" film. Whatever your feelings on intelligent design, evolution, etc. I can't recommend this documentary highly enough. It's so much better than I expected it to be.

17. I'd better stop rambling and hurry this up before I have to leave for work.

18. I'm paranoid about losing all this again and have been periodically copying the whole thing just in case.

19. I'm glad to have moved back out to the boondocks, although there are times I miss being able to go to lectures on a whim, etc. I think I actually miss the city more than [MM] does, though it's still not that much.

20. I'd like where we live a little more if I didn't have to drive by the Butte Motel every day. One side of the sign lost the last "e," so it now says Butt Motel. I don't know why that bothers me so much, but it really does.

21. We have a pug named Bubba.

22. We are beginning to suspect that our two-year-old, Charlotte, may be allergic to Bubba. This may become a problem.

23. I love my kids very much. It helps that they're already little dorks like their parents.

24. I'm proud of how [MM] and Eva are doing with the homeschooling so far. I am excited to see the fruits of this develop.

25. My life is totally not what I thought it was going to be ten years ago. Thank God!