but in all honesty, I know just about everyone who follows me has already seen Dr. Cranquis post earlier this morning. And I suck at this whole “build a community on the internet” thing, so I’m pretty sure I’m not going to get tagged. Anyways, without further ado-

1. The first rule is to post these rules.

2. Post a photo of yourself and 11 things about yourself/your life.

3. Answer the questions set for you in the original post.

4. Create 11 new questions and tag people to answer them. I’ll make new questions, but tagging is redundant. And you already saw this post, I’m sure of it.

5. Go to their blog/twitter and tell them that you’ve tagged them. Or, a la Cranquis…it’s all on you guys. I’ll read up on #descantforhope though, and I’d love to see your answers.

So- Here’s my face, complete with cappuccino.

***11 Facts about Me: 

1. According to convention, I should be anonymous. However, since my chosen field is so small, I feel like there’s no real way to be anonymous. I do my best to just be honest and HIPPA compliant. Hopefully that’ll be enough.
2. I started to read at age 2.5 because my parents were avid book readers. I hope to pass this on to my own son- and to that end, in the month that he’s been alive, I’ve read the Hunger Games trilogy twice through and the first book of Game of Thrones, as well as reading aloud Where the Sidewalk Ends. Which, btdubs, is much, much darker than I remember those poems being.
3. I took a lot of theater through high school and college. It shows. Thespians are just…well, you can always tell who we are.
4. I was convinced that I was going to be a wildly successful musician (I know, right? Oxymoron unless I also want to deliver pizza) right up until the end of my first semester in college. I still record songs on my computer, but I don’t share them around anymore.
5. I wasn’t allowed to watch TV growing up, which results in me usually having no idea what that pop reference was. Thank goodness for wikipedia.
6. The first fan letter I ever wrote was to Terry Pratchett.
7. My favorite chore is mowing the lawn, probably for two reasons- 1) it only needs to be done weekly, and not at all when the ground is too wet. 2) My dad wouldn’t let me do it until I was about 14.
8. Due to family illness and work schedules, I got my driver’s license at age 13 with a special permit from the sheriff’s department. (Yeah, my dad let me drive a car before he let me mow the lawn.)
9. Adhesives and Shellfish share a biochemical compound, the name of which I don’t remember. I’m allergic to it. No stickers for me.
10. My mom once gave me five dollars to spend on candy. The catch was that it had to be more than one kind of bulk candy, and I had to spend the five dollars exactly. It was the most delicious math lesson I ever had. 
11. I was homeschooled until the middle of 9th grade. I got sent to public school for mouthing off during algebra. (but as a punishment, it backfired. I loved public school.)

***11 Questions for Me from Cranquis

1. If you had to lose one of the “basic” five senses (touch, taste, hearing, sight, or smell), which would you choose?
   I’d pick hearing. One of life’s simplest pleasures is eating, which requires taste, and everything else would mean I couldn’t be a doctor. I know a really excellent deaf doctor, and some of the alternate ways that she does things are actually easier for me than the conventional ways of evaluating things.
   
2. For each of the following 4 words, write down the earliest childhood memory  you can associate with that word. “Delight”…
   Standing in the living room, so young as to still be in diapers. The sun was warm, and I was happy to be alive.
   
3. “Regret”…
   I climbed out of a window to get out of writing lines. When I came back, I had to use the back door because I couldn’t reach the window. My mom knew that everyone was inside. When she heard the back door opening, she went running for a self defense weapon. I lived to regret not thinking out a strategy for returning to my room.
   
4. “Mercy”…
   Hearing the word in countless sermons, swinging my legs in a pew, drawing pictures on the back of the bulletin.
5. and “Stubborn”.
   I skipped math for half a year after I noticed that my mom hated grading stuff almost as much as I hated doing it. When she finally noticed, I was grounded from the library (I was such a lame kid.) until I caught up. I caught up so fast. I’d sit there and just do math for hours. My lifelong struggle with math is testament to how stubborn I had to be to skip it in the first place, and then to catch up from where I’d fallen behind.
6. Who is the most famous person you’ve ever touched or spoken to?
   Patrick Rothfuss. He’s pretty much the coolest person I’ve ever met, too.
7. If you were forced to participate in a Summer or Winter Olympics sport, which one might you have the best chance of winning (or at least, not looking totally stupid while attempting it)?
   Baseball? I played softball for several years…and if everyone else on the team was awesome, I could warm the bench and win!
8. When you set aside a book to continue reading later, how do you keep track of your current page?
   I set it face down, if it’s mine. If it doesn’t belong to me, I use the dustjacket as a bookmark, or find a scrap of paper or ribbon to use as an actual bookmark.
   
9. If you died suddenly, and your best friend was in charge of creating a tombstone for you, what would the epitaph say?
   She. Was. Awesome.
   
10. What has been your favorite post/event/moment in the Cranquis blog so far?
    I loved the vertigoviches. I wish I knew that couple in real life, they sound like they have a lifetime of stories and humor to share.
    
11. What one thing would you like to see happen on the Cranquis blog in the future?
    Can I reach for the stars and say daily TSK’s? If not daily TSKs, I’d love to hear more about his home remedies handout that was so good  that the little old lady needed an extra copy because she gave hers to a friend.
    

Ok- 11 new questions!

1. What is one habit that you feel brings the most balance into your daily life?
2. What is your most hated vegetable?
3. If you’re on a deserted stretch of road, do you use your turn signal?
4. Why do you celebrate Pi day (3.14)? (or why not, I guess.)
5. Who is the most influential teacher you’ve had, and how did they impact you?
6. What does your ideal relationship look like?
7. How do you develop relationships with other people on tumblr?
8. What do you feel is your most memorable feature?
9. If a bus system went everywhere that you needed to go, would you take the bus or drive a car?
10. What is the most beautiful thing you’ve ever learned?
11. What’s the most useful piece of unsolicited advice you’ve ever gotten?