30 Days of Blogging Prompts - Day 3

Today's prompt for 30 Days of Blogging Prompts is

Describe Your Relationship With Your Parents

And since I just talked about me being a parent, it's a good time to go the other way with things and talk about my folks.

First, let me talk about my dad.  I've always been a Daddy's girl.  From the time I was little through today, I've adored him. He's the one that taught me my love for reading, for science fiction and fantasy.  He's the one that listened when times were rough and supported me even when he didn't agree with me.  He taught me how to change a tire and check the fluids in my car, how to drive a stick and that I was worth something even when I thought I wasn't.  He helped me keep secrets from my step-mom when I knew she'd blow her top about something, and hugged me when a boy would break my heart.  He was there on my wedding day and danced with me to "Daddy's Little Girl" by Kippi Brannon.  (Because the lyrics describe my relationship with him perfectly.)

He's still the first one I call when I'm going through a rough patch, and he'll call me when he knows things are rough.  I'm lucky that he lives an hour away, and that he'll still do whatever he can to make his daughter's life a little better.  I'm Daddy's Girl, and wouldn't have it any other way.

My relationship with my mom is a bit different, though no less loving.  Growing up, my mom and I used to butt heads constantly.  We're both way too much a like.  And while I always knew that she loved me, there were times when she didn't like me too much - and now that I'm getting older, I can't really blame her.

It took a long time to have a good relationship with my mom.  I moved from living with her and my sister in NY to living with my dad in Florida when I was 15.  I didn't feel like she was the one I could talk to about things.

But as I got older, and as I became a mom, things changed.  I may not call as often as I should, but I know I CAN call any time, and that she'll be there for me.  She loves me, and her grandkids, and supports me through anything - good or bad.   She taught me a lot - even if it took 20 years for me to learn some of the lessons.  My relationship with her isn't the closest in the world, but that's more because of distance and me being horrible at keeping in touch than anything else.  But the important things are there - she loves me, and she never lets me doubt it for a minute.

30 Days of Blogging Prompts - Day 2

Back for day 2 of 30 Days of Blogging Prompts!  Today, I get to talk about

3 Legitimate Fears and How They Became Fears

While I can quite easily do the first part, the second might be a little more difficult.  Because with most of my fears, I'm not sure really HOW they came about.  But I'll give it a try.

For the first one, I'm going to cop out a little because I just talked about it in Mental Health Mondays - social anxiety.  If you want more details, click on the link and read the post.  But the gist of it is that I'm incredibly afraid to deal with people professionally and, often, socially.  I'm afraid to make phone calls or go into a business to ask for something outside of the norm.  I don't like making phone calls to family or friends.  A lot of times, I don't even like answering my own phone when it rings.  And I lay it all at the feet of depression and low self esteem.

Another fear is heights.  Again, I can't say exactly WHY I'm afraid of heights.  I've always said that it's because I'm short.  If I were any taller, I'd be used to looking further toward the ground and heights wouldn't freak me out so much.  While that probably isn't true, what actually happens is that I'm nervous about my own stability.  I worry that I will lose my balance and fall to my death. I worry that something will break and I'll go tumbling, completely out of my control.  The worst was when I was in school in Downsville, NY.  There is one set of stairs there which has a... well, "bridge" is the best description for it that I can think of... between two parts of the stairs.  Each part of the stairs was against the wall, but this bridge between them was only connected at either end.  I had visions of tumbling over either side, getting jostled or pushed, and falling a story below to crumple on the ground below.  I always did have an overactive imagination.

This last fear is also one that I can't exactly say where it comes from, other than I think it might actually be hereditary.  I'm afraid of anything living that flies.  Petrified of them.  I can't go into bird enclosures.  If a fly comes near me, I freeze.  If a bird is hopping around near my van, I can't go outside.  There's just something about anything that can fly that freaks me out.  I think what it is is that they can go anywhere in three dimensions, so something that's small and near my feet can suddenly end up at my eye level.  It just spooks me because I'm not sure what to expect.  

And the hereditary thing?  Not kidding.  My mom is afraid of birds, as is my uncle.  Something like that can't just be coincidence, can it? (Ok, it probably is.  But I still say it's hereditary!)

Me, afraid of heights?

Not much!

30 Days of Blogging Prompts - Day 1

So, as I posted earlier, I'm going to try to participate in the 30 days of blogging prompts.  The first day is a little bit of fun to let new readers have a chance to get to know me a little.  We're starting out with 

Day 1: List 10 Random Facts About Yourself

Anyone that's been reading my blog for awhile knows the randomness that comes out of me on a daily basis, so some of this may be retreads for some of you.  But maybe you'll find something you didn't know before.

1. I'm a huge reader.  On average, I read between 100 and 150 books a year.  This year, I've started off at a slow start.  I've only read 5 so far this year.  But I've got time to catch up.
2. I go through photo-taking phases.  Sometimes (like lately), I'll take 50 or 60 shots a day.  Then there will be months I'll go without picking up the camera. 
3. I've long wanted to be a writer, but somewhere through the years, my muse abandoned me.  I think I'm a pretty good writer, I just haven't been able to find my story yet.
4. When I was born, there was a small water sack at the top of my neck, like a sinus opening.  I had my first surgery when I was 3 months old.
5. While I've lived up and down the east coast of the US (New York, Florida, Pennsylvania and now, Tennessee - ok, not technically the east coast, but still east of the Mississippi), I didn't leave the eastern time zone until I was 27 when I went to visit a friend in Montana.  I still have never traveled outside the US.
6. Some of my proudest days are the ones when I get up the nerve to make a phone call.  It may sound odd for someone who worked as a customer service rep, but I have a major problem making phone calls/going into a business to deal with someone professionally.
7. I've held a wide variety of jobs in my life.  I've worked at McDonalds, done customer service for Home Shopping Network and for an auto club, did reviews of equipment on cellular towers, worked as a secretary in the Dean's Office of a the Nursing School at Drexel University, worked as a background check investigator and been a stay-at-home mom.  I love learning different things.
8. When I was a kid, there was a point when I wanted to be a teacher, a writer and an astronomer.  I had a plan in which I would teach during the day, write in the afternoons and be an astronomer at night.  Apparently, I forgot that I would need sleep.
9. I have to have something playing when I fall asleep.  Silence just won't do it.  Sometimes it will be a TV show or movie on the television, sometimes it will be an audio book that I'm familiar with and sometimes it will be the hum of the fan.  But if there's complete silence, I'll stay awake for hours.
10. I am very sought after in blood donation circles.  My blood type is O negative, so I'm regularly getting requests to give blood.  It took me a long time to actually feel comfortable doing so - I have very small, deep veins so I'm a tough stick.  Sometimes, they can't seem to find my veins at all.  Today, I gave blood at my family's church and because of my teeny-tiny veins, I wasn't sure they were going to be able to get blood from me after all (and after two hours of waiting, I was determined they would do it!)

So those are 10 utterly random facts about me.  Come back tomorrow when I'll answer the prompt 

Describe three legitimate fears you have and describe how they became fears

30 Days of Blogging Prompts - The List

In an effort to let even more of myself out there than I already have, I've decided to participate in the 30 Days of Blogging Prompts from Brooke at Covered in Grace.  Since I'm sometimes trying to decide what to write about, I figured this would be a good way to start the brain working.

Day 1: List 10 random facts about yourself.
Day 2: Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and describe how they became fears.
Day 3: Describe your relationship with your parents.
Day 4: List 5 things you would tell your 16 year-old self if you could.
Day 5: What are the 5 things that make you happiest right now?
Day 6: What is the hardest thing you have ever experienced?
Day 7: What is your dream job, and why?
Day 8: What are 3 passions you have?
Day 9: List 3 people who have influenced you, and how.
Day 10: Describe your most embarrassing moment.
Day 11: Describe a few of your pet peeves.
Day 12: Describe a typical day in your life.
Day 13: Describe 5 weaknesses you have.
Day 14: Describe 5 strengths you have.
Day 15: If you were an animal, what would you be and why?
Day 16: What are your 5 greatest accomplishments?
Day 17: What is the thing you most wish you were great at?
Day 18: What is the most difficult thing you have had to forgive?
Day 19: If you could live anywhere, where would it be and why?
Day 20: Describe 3 significant memories from your childhood.
Day 21: If you could have 1 superpower, what would it be and what would be the first thing you did with it?
Day 22: Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years? 15 years?
Day 23: List your top 3 hobbies and why you love them.
Day 24: Describe your family dynamic from your childhood vs. your family dynamic now.
Day 25: If you could have dinner with anyone in history, who would it be and what would you eat?
Day 26: What popular notion do you think the world has wrong?
Day 27: What is your favorite part of your body and why?
Day 28: What is your love language?
Day 29: What do you think people misunderstand the most about you?
Day 30: List 5 things you would hope to be remembered for.

So stop by every day to see what you can learn about me!