Top Ten Tuesday

I was tagged earlier today by Dona, so here goes.

Top Ten Totally Random Things You Don’t Know About Moi…

1. I did most of my traveling before age 10, tagging along with my parents to places like Greece and Spain. That all came to an end when we immigrated to Canada, and I was actually of age to remember something of my travels.

2. I speak four languages: English, French, Arabic, and Spanish (my hands-down favorite is Spanish)

3. My mother is an amazing dancer who used to do all kinds of interpretive new-agey dance routines in college that would make a shy accountant like me cringe. Much to her dismay, I was afflicted with two left feet during my entire childhood and teenage years (since Arab women belly dance when they get together – don’t ask – my total lack of gracefulness was there for the entire Turkish-coffee-sipping community to see). Then I went to Cuba and fell in love with salsa music. I can now dance circles around my mother. Oh, Revenge, how sweet thou art.

4. I am a soup person. Specifically, “cream of” anything soup. If I could eat only one thing for the rest of my life, it would be soup. Or cheese.

5. My senior high school year boyfriend planned on majoring in accounting while I was convinced I would go into marketing. I made fun of his academic aspirations on a regular basis. I am now an accountant.

6. I taught myself fashion illustration at the age of 11 by tracing Katy Keen comics (anyone remember her?) I got pretty darn good at it too, and I was THIS CLOSE to picking fashion design as a career path. Please don’t ask how I went from that to accounting.

7. I have a secret, shameful love of scrunchies (sorry, SJP). Nothing feels nearly as good in my super-dry, over-processed long hair. At least I live on a rock in the middle of the ocean where nobody cares.

8. I used to be “tall for my age” (I’m now barely 5’2”). In my defense, I am taller than Shakira (who stands at 4’11”) and am about the same height as Selma Hayek, Penelope Cruz and Paula Abdul, so there.

9. I hated everything about Dreamgirls except the costumes.

10. I am late for absolutely everything. Most people I know were rolling over in laughter when they found out the title of my first novel, FASHIONABLY LATE (which, if you ask my friends, should be changed to SHAMEFULLY LATE).


Shannon Mckelden, you're up!