Leslie's "10 Things You Might Not Know About Me"

1) I really enjoy the company of old men. I think this is because I never knew either of my grandfathers.


2) That being said, my fantasy is to spend a day with each of my grandfathers: to learn what their voices and mannerisms were, and to look for parts of them that have lived on through their descendents.


3) I wear shoes and socks only when I absolutely have to. (Does this surprise anyone who watched me grow up?)


4) Like Annie, I “type” conversations in my head. And sometimes my fingers even move accordingly.


5) I won’t join in on a movie that’s already started (if I haven’t seen it before). It doesn’t matter if I hear the whole family cracking up. I’ve always been this way.


6) I used to be squeamish about worms. I could never stomach spaghetti on a rainy day after walking home from school and seeing scores of drowned worms on the sidewalks. My "friends" knew they could chase me all over the playground just by dangling a worm. Worms are my garden friends now, although I avoid touching them directly.


7) I am always charmed by miniature things. Be they cars (Minis!), tiny potted cacti, small versions of animals, small packaging, toy tea sets. My whole psyche says “Awwww!”

8) If I see a distant island I want to roam it. If I see a lighthouse or tower I have to climb it (and count the number of steps).

(I've been wanting to climb around on Foula, Shetland since age 8. Some day!)

9) Here’s a weird one: I recently realized that, with the exception of my junior year in college, I’ve always slept along the North-South axis. This was never something I planned when arranging the furniture – but it might be in the future.

10) I like to cook. I hate deciding what to make.

Stu's 10 things you did not know about me.

1. I think education is wasted on children. Other than the basic "R's" education should end at age 12 at which time children should be put to work. Their education would start again at age 21 if their IQ is high enough and they have accumulated enough funds to pay for it. I don't think I cared about learning anything until I was 30 or so, that is when I should have gone to college!

2. I am surprised to still be alive. Since I was about 50 I expected the Wilson cancer curse to get me before age 65. Still think about it every day.

3. I have a mild (sometimes) or more severe (most times) phobia of going into any kind of a healthcare facility. Nursing homes and hospitals are the worst, chiropractors are the least.
I was even uncomfortable at the service for Lorna last summer.

4. I can not stand to be late for ANYTHING!

5. I would rather do research for a major (or even minor) purchase than own the thing! The anticipation is what I enjoy, I guess. That is why I enjoyed working as a clothing buyer so much.

6. In high school we all took a
ptitude tests to find out what we occupations we would be best suited for. I scored highest in artistic and mechanical and was horrified to learn that I should pursue interior decorating! I tried to keep those results as quiet as possible but my friends found out and I was branded as a possible "fairyboy" until I got into a couple of fights and lost some friends. Guess you all know I worked for a gay interior designer in Great Falls for a few years at the Pin Cushion and was even on local morning TV with advice about the latest in fabric design etc. What was I thinking???

7. I sing along with the radio when I am driving alone. Sometimes I make up Italian opera to sing to classics. Only when I am alone!

8. I greatly admire the jobs Cathy, Mark and Renell do as teachers. I have NO patience when kids act up and could never handle their jobs. Kudos to them and I was just kidding about my first item. (sort of).

9. I will not put up with ill prepared restaurant food. Cathy has been embarrased many times I am sure when a waitress has asked if everything is "all right?" and I answered truthfully.

10. I want a convertible.

Sorry about the downers. Couldn't think of anything funny. STU.

Ringo The Deer Hunter

Check out this picture of Ringo our super hunter.
We were watching a small herd of deer about 50 yards away when all of a sudden one came trotting toward our house. He must have sensed danger from Ringo the predator because he stopped a few yards from Ringo and began stomping around and kicking up dirt with his hoofs. This standoff lasted about 5 minutes until the deer was scared off from the sound of one of our guests sneaking across the yard to get a closer look.

10 Clues to Our Family's Genetic Eccentricities!

Wow. This has been fascinating reading. Who knew there was so much OCD running through our bloodline? Must be all those centuries (millennia?) of our Shetland ancestors living the crofting lifestyle --- the women knitting while carrying kishies of peats on their back.

I am definitely Edith's granddaughter when it comes to the weeding obsession. Do you remember Gramma pulling weeds in public parks? That would be [is] me. And yes, the OCD manifests itself in me in several other ways.

Anyway, I'll give some thought to this and put my own list together.

10 Things That You Might Not Know About Jareth Wilson

This following list may be somewhat of a struggle for me. Due to my ever present lack of an ability to shut my trap for much longer than 10 to 15 seconds I am not sure how many things there are that people don't know about me......But here goes anyways!


1. I wear a size 10 shoe, 7 and 3/8 hat and have very small hands. This may not seem like anything out of the ordinary to most people. That is until you see the size of my dad, brother and other Wilson's feet/head/hands. A comparison would show how out of the ordinary I truly am within this family.

2. I dislike math and most anything that involves forms of it which require more work than simple arithmetic. For one reason or another of which I am still unaware, it seems to have become common place among people that I know, especially within my family that I enjoy math. This is totally and completely false.

3. More often than not I enjoy romantic comedies and other chick flicks. I should also include that I watch the One Tree Hill. Hey we all have our flaws!

4. I am constantly battling to make things even. Whether or not it is when I make a right turn in a car, step on a crack with only one foot, brush a tooth more than another or do something with my right hand instead of my left. I am always fighting against some inner drive to make things feel and look even. It's hard to explain but it drives me nuts!

5. I still feel uncomfortable when my head goes underwater.

6. I grind my teeth constantly. In addition to grinding I will sometimes mix it up and tap two corresponding teeth together, back and forth across my mouth.

7. I think subtle humor is the best. I also think that there is nothing funnier than a person who can be funny without meaning to. In addition I love sarcasm, which I've found to be a gift and a curse. It seems like more often than not I find sarcasm much funnier than others involved. Strange how that works.

8. I am embarrassed by my hand writing. I will willingly admit that I have never really put any effort into improving my penmanship and I think it shows. I will type things whenever possible because of my extreme lack of anything even remotely resembling clean handwriting.

9. I struggle to sit still. This is probably not much of a secret to most who know me, but as I am getting older I am realizing how hard of a time I have sitting still and also how hard it is for me to control this. However I am trying to work on it!

10. I am a shower freak and hate not feeling/looking/smelling clean. It is not uncommon for me to shower four times in a day and I try very hard to make it three. I just do not like a feeling of uncleanness.

10 Things You Might Not Know About Mark Wilson

I find it hard to not get goofy with this sort of thing so we'll see how this goes. By the way as soon as I publish this will I need to start another list since the following 10 things will now be out of the closet and known by my adoring public?

1. I once admitted to a pal that Windows XP is now stable.


2. I do appreciate several old Oakland Raiders (Kenny Stabler, Dave Casper, Mark Van Eeghen.)


3. It would have been cool to have a brother.


4. I like Barry Manilow.


5. Diving into water can still give me the heeby jeebies.


6. My finger nails still get in the way of my teeth especially during football season.


7. I think Renell has the cutest, little feet.


8. I count to 55 more times a day than I can count.


9. I don't throw away containers with the lids or tops still on because I don't want the stuff inside to be sealed up in there forever.


10. I'd like to be pregnant for about an hour just to see what it's like.

10 things...

1. Like my Mom i have OCD only i beleive its a little more intense. If i play a videogame for more than about 5 hours in one day, when i try to sleep, i wake up almost exactly every two hours to beat the game in my head before i can go back to sleep.

2. My favorite disease is pink eye, why you ask? Think about it, you stay home, no real bad effects, and when you wake up in the morning your eyes are seeled shut so for the next couple of hours you spend finding clothes finding your way around the house and falling down stairs.

3. I can run towards someone facing me and without them moving, i can get on their back.

4. Im afraid of children at my school ages k-4th grade.

5. Despite about 5 years of swim lesons in daycare, i didnt learn to swim until i was 10

6. I would like to be friends with the girl from The Ring

7. Ive never bought anything with my own money over $100 until just today! Most of you will find out what that is in 5-7 business days!

8. My hacking record is 240.

9. I wear size 12 shoes but have occasionaly fit into my freinds size 7 1/2 shoes.

10. At night with my combo OCD and insomnia i come up with most of the jokes i will use the next day along with some of my greatest ideas, like would game hens make a good joke on thanksgiving?

10 Things You Don't Know About Laurie

1. I feel a little guilty every time I hear the furnace start up or see a light on in the house that does not have someone directly using it. This comes from my dear Grandma Goudie I think. She was the ultimate conservationist. She always wore a Shetland sweater in the winter to keep warm and told me often that it was wrong to 'keep the light burning'.

2. When I was little I had mild OCD. When I felt anxious I would repeat a drum beat in my head in a pattern and then force myself to also do it backwards. If I didn't do it right I had to start over or something bad would happen to my family. Thats why my report card consistently said "Laura doen't listen". I also felt relief from anxiety by pulling strands of hair out of my head. There was something about the slight pain that was soothing. I stopped when I noticed a bald spot looking at myself in the mirror one day.

3. I used to believe I could communicate with animals. Especially cats. I knew just what they were feeling. I perceived that they didn't have complex thoughts, only fleeting emotions which caused them to act. I didn't think it was a two way conversation though.

4. I think I could be a good artist. I rarely paint, but it feels so instinctive when I do. I want to paint grizzly bears. I love to paint at the lake.

5. Death doesn't scare me. I am intrigued by it and like to read books on how it happens.

6. I just stopped biting my fingernails! Another OCD-related thing. Wow, it only took me 40 some odd years.

7. My favorite smell is pine needles on damp earth. This smell is one reason why I love to run. I always prefer running in the woods.

8. I love words and witty people. I think people who can tell a captivating story or can spout off witty thoughts on a whim are the most intelligent beings.

9. I wish I were witty. More than almost anything else.

10. I dislike talking on the phone because it frustrates me to not be able to see the other person's facial expressions. Talking over each other because you can't see the other person makes me irritated. My mind goes blank and I struggle to find an interesting thing to say.

Okay, I'll give it a go. Most of you probably already know my "10 things you don't know about me", because I seem to blab allot about useless information.

1. When watching movies, listening to the radio, even conversations, I find myself typing the conversation... guess I missed my calling as a court reporter. Sad thing is.. I even back space when I misspell.

2. When I spot a white spot or a bump on skin, it is all I can do to not to squeeze it, pop it, make it all come out! If it's someone I don't know, I have to walk away, look at the ground and take a deep breath.. I just know there is stuff under there that needs to get out or it won't heal... again, missed my calling as a zit popping court reporter.

3. I went through a phase of listening to country music... about a year... thank god I came to my senses.

4. I dream about living in the house from the movie, "What Lies Beneath".

5. I once was lying on my tummy in a tattoo parlor with a stencil of a pansy on my back... but I almost threw up, thinking of the reaction I would get from Chuck, so the guy told me to leave, I wasn't ready. Thank goodness for that nice man!

6. Several times a day, I feel my "saddle bags" and get the shivers... gag...

7. I can't resist grabbing kitten or puppy paws and squishing their biggest pad on their front paws with my thumb. It makes me press my lips together and stick out my chin (so I'm told by my guys)... then I want to kiss them. I can do this for hours! Poor animals... but how can a person resist? They are so soft and those little paws smell so good :)

8. I would love to own my own flower nursery... but how would there be time with all of the typing and zit popping...

9. When I back up a car, I usually have to have to chew on my right hand picky finger nail to do it right.

10. Following on John's #10, I really want to own a DR Chipper before I die.

10 Things ...

Laurie asked us all to post our "ten things you don't know about me" lists. I figure that many of you barealy know 1 thing about me, so it is appropriate for me to kick this off. Here goes:

Ten Things You Don't Know About John Brownell

1. I dream of opening a putt-putt golf course in Missoula.

2. I disco dance in the shower. And sing opera. Sometimes simultaneously.

3. When I was 14, I had a perm and a mullet. At the same time. A "permullett". Although I believe I was able to successfully destroy all photographic evidence.

4. I am a Neil Diamond fan.

5. I have 6 computers, 5 video game systems, 4 satellite receivers, 3 Tivos, 2 High Def TVs (and a partridge in a pear tree) ... but i mostly enjoy playing solitaire on my cellphone.

6. I like food. All food. I can't think of a single kind of food that I don't like. Mmmmm... food. Okay, now I am hungry.

7. My high school sports team was actually called "The Cranes". And we had a sister school - "The Aardvarks". No joke.

8. I hate clocks that "tick". I find it completely unsettling. Once I become aware of the sound of a ticking clock in the room, I am entirely unable to focus on anything else.

9. I have been a Detroit Lions football fan since I was born, and I fully (perhaps foolishly) believe I will see them win a championship before I die of old age. In the last 7 years they are a stunning 31-81, so it may be a while.

10. Sometimes, I secretly wish I was a lawn mower. Not the person, but the actual machine.