I have an unhealthy disdain for chain letters, memes and any subject line that begins with "FW:FW:FW:FW:". It is for this reason and a few others that I have not taken part in the "25 [Random] Things" fad that has swept through Facebook. When I read the entries for a few university professors and a former chancellor, I decided it cannot possibly be as atrocious as I had imagined. I decided to stand out a bit by just adding a few more to it.

  1. I am a colorblind graphic designer. Contrary to what you might think, it is not just the Americans with Disabilities Act that keeps me employed.
  2. I was once certified as an open-water scuba diver. That ended up being an expensive hobby that I had little interest in pursuing.
  3. My aversion to cold temperatures can likewise be traced to a bit of a mishap where I started showing symptoms of hypothermia while diving.
  4. I have won awards in small-town youth beauty pageants. More accurately, they had more awards than participants, so I usually got one.
  5. I was the first person to serve three years as Executive Editor for my college newspaper. I did not realize this until the third year.
  6. I can do a lame break dancing move where I lean backwards to one arm and pop back up. My wife is astonished, and I am yet to injure myself.
  7. I have not been part of a volunteer or membership organization for which I have not worked on its Web site. I never intend to at the start.
  8. I held a summer job where more than half the staff (including the boss) walked off the job one day. I was among those that stayed.
  9. I never owned a BlackBerry, but I have grown rather fond of my iPhone. I now understand why smart phone users are addicted to them.
  10. A vice chancellor threatened to kick me out of school for not surrendering evidence for a newspaper story. I won. It is still on file.
  11. I once spent a very cold early morning on a quixotic mission to place campaign signs along 45 miles of highway. Our side still lost.
  12. The first organization I ever lead was an economics class project. We went bankrupt selling boxer shorts during prom week. Not my idea.
  13. I spent two summers as a ropes course instructor. This has allowed me to turn a fear of heights into a somewhat healthy respect.
  14. I have filed income taxes every year since 1998. I held jobs as a teenager more to get out of the house than it was for the money.
  15. I attended the second inauguration of Tennessee's governor and have shaken hands with he and both US Senators. Only one was an honor.
  16. I have talked to a 911 operator once after a co-worker was injured in a 20' fall. He fractured his hip, but recovered fully.
  17. Purchasing a tub of cheesecake filling for a meal will either be for the happiest moment or lowest point in my life.
  18. At 6'2", I would still be shorter than most males in my direct lineage. None of us are or were basketball standouts. I can barely dribble.
  19. I am yet to be passed up for a job if I get an in-person interview. I am not that charming, so I suppose I have just been lucky.
  20. I have unusually high flexibility in my hip joints because of how the top of my femur is angled. I failed a sports physical because of it.
  21. My cell phone plan has the fewest number of minutes allowed. I have never exceeded them, and rarely use more than 60 minutes a month.
  22. I have had two speeding tickets, both 25 or more over the limit. Neither time was I offered the option of driving school.
  23. I was named to the "Homeliest Court" my senior year of high school, but lost out on the top slot to a football player. Oh well.
  24. I ran a campaign for a friend in his long-shot bid for senior class president. He finished third. Advice: never use "Adonis" in a slogan.
  25. I was part of a group that marched on the state capitol to protest higher education cuts. The bake-sale raised more than the legislature.
  26. My college newspaper adviser is the first boss I ever had to lose her temper with me. I readily admit that I earned every bit of it.
  27. My worst injury was by far the time I crashed a bicycle and broke my collarbone. The 10 minute ride down a bumpy country road was awful.
  28. I walked around for a few days following that injury with an overlooked fractured shoulder. Pain medicine could not dull that.
  29. I try my level best to avoid using contractions when writing anything other than a personal letter. It just strikes me as lazy.
  30. I have never flown. This is not for a fear of flying because I would love to do so. The opportunity has not presented itself.