I'm Finally Giving in to Peer Pressure

Suze has informed me (several times, I think) that it was my turn to do a "100 Things-About-Jenn" or something similar post. Since my blog is about me and my family (which includes my son and my dog), this list would have to include tidbits of information about them, as well. I'm finally giving in to the peer pressure and doing such a post. I don't know if I have enough data to create a full 100-item list, but here's items 1-13, anyway. Please don't snore so loud you wake the other bloggers.

1. I am a slightly neurotic sole parental unit to a similarly slightly neurotic 8 year old boy who also happens to have ADHD.

2. My son and I are so much alike that I sometimes think I would make more progress if I merely beat my head against the wall, as arguing with my son is like having an argument with myself. Nobody wins!

3. I also have a "four-legged son", Zig Zag Scalawag. His call-name is Ziggy, but he actually knows his full name. He thinks (and so do we) that he's human.

4. Our city of residence is San Antonio, TX. One of its nicknames is "The River City". It should have been nicknamed "The Cesspool City" as the river is filthy and people think nothing of throwing litter on the ground, in the water, etc.

5. I'm going back to school this fall over the Internet to get my bachelor's degree in General Studies. Once I get that, I'm getting the heck out of Texas (well, I have to get a job out of Texas first. Which means I have to decide where I want to live). Then I'm going to pursue my Master's of Library Science over the Internet.

6. I'm the youngest of four children. Only my brother, Joel, and myself are still living.

7. My son was almost named Jareth after the Goblin King in my favorite movie of all time, Labyrinth.

8. His middle name is Lowell after my favorite uncle on my dad's side of the family.

9. My eyes change color based on what mood I'm in. Jamie's eyes do the same thing.

10. I was born a blonde, but my hair darkened over the years so now it's a medium reddish-brown. Jamie was born with coal black hair that all fell out when he was a couple of weeks old and grew in white blonde. His hair has darkened to a dirty-dishwater blonde shade slightly lighter than mine was as a baby. However, his hair is lighter than mine was at his age. I'm thinking his hair will stay fair longer than mine did.

11. Jamie's top pinkie joints are each crooked. They point in toward his other fingers at almost exactly 45-degree angles. I think they make him very unique, but he's embarrassed by them when other people notice them.

12. Jamie looks almost just like a very young version of my brother. On a recent trip to Georgetown, an old high school friend of Joel's and mine saw Jamie and said "It's Joel!!!" My brother looks just like my mom's side of the family. Jamie does, too. Thank God Jamie apparently inherited nothing from his biological father. (Is it possible his genes were only so much genetic "filler" in Jamie's DNA code?)

13. When I was two years old, I shocked my Granny into near-apoplexy. My granny came to stay with us when my mom had to stay in the hospital for surgery. I calmly announced to my grandmother - a devout "old-school" fundamentalist-type Christian - that I was going to be a stripper when I grew up. I had heard the word somewhere a few weeks earlier and asked Mom what it was. She said it was a dancer. I loved (and still do love) to dance, so I decided I would be a stripper when I grew up!