Weird things

My buddy Pod from Down Under has tagged me with some kind of blog chain letter. (I think this is known as a meme?) Thanks, Pod - I think.

Each tagged player is supposed to list “6 weird things about you.” Then we choose six more bloggers to be tagged, give their names and notify them through their blog comments. They each then make their own lists and tag six more bloggers, and so on.

So, here are six weird things about Steve:

1. I like overcooked, slightly crunchy rice scraped from the bottom of the pot. Even better if it’s a bit blackened.

2. I had a pet turtle when I was a child, which I named Stunky. (My brother’s turtle was named Stinky.) I also owned or co-owned numerous fish, numerous dogs, numerous cats and a gerbil named Tivoli. And I named all my houseplants.

3. I do not like shoes. But I wear them because, well, I have to.

4. I speak some Tashelhait, a Moroccan Berber dialect. Here’s an expression: “Imiks imiks ekshim aram tagdoult,” which means, “Little by little, the camel goes into the pot.” (In other words, an enormous task is accomplished bit by bit.)

5. I’ve done drag twice, both times at Halloween. In 1990 I was an old lady, and in 1991 I was a saucy waitress.

6. When I was a teenager in the early 1980s, I was obsessed with the Fifth Dimension, and I had all their albums - even though all my classmates were listening to New Wave. I also had a thing for Melanie, best known for singing, "I've got a brand new pair of roller skates, you've got a brand new key..."

OK, Pod, there you have it. And now, I’m going to break the second half of your game requirement, because I make it a rule never to pass on chain letters. (If anyone reading this wants to "opt in," though, consider yourself tagged!)

To make up for it, I’ll list a seventh weird thing:

7. Shortly after I moved to New York, I attended the FiFi Awards, which are the Oscars of the perfume industry. How did this happen? Well, it’s a long story. Suffice to say it’s all about who you know.