7 Random Things (Part 1)

Well, we were "tagged" by Tricia to post seven random things about us. Blogging etiquette apparently dictates that one absolutely cannot NOT do what one has been "tagged" to do.

Oh, and I have to tag others. So...Haley P, Shelton Family and Allan (my dad), you now are obligated to share random facts about yourselves with the masses. You can thank me later.

(By the way I've shamelessly stolen my "random things" post layout from Tricia because hers was so cute.) Here goes!

Jeff

#1
During a trip to Brazil at the age of 10 Jeff fell through a plate glass shower door and had to be rushed to the ER of a small local hospital. His mother nearly had a heart attack and threw herself in front of a non-English speaking hospital worker who was attempting to inject her son with a used needle. I might be making this part up - but at least in my mind I picture Jeff's parents waving US dollars around and people rushing about to provide sterile medical equipment. He survived the ordeal. As did his mother.


#2

Jeff has an uncanny memory for numbers. Especially numbers associated with sports trivia. I'm pretty sure his knowledge of stats, scores, trades, player bios, rivalries and the like requires more brain space than everything I've ever learned in my life.

And it's not like he spends all day every day watching sports! I swear the man can skim ESPN's website once a day and watch 15 minutes of Sports Center and know EVERYTHING about what has occurred in the world of sports in the last week.

Try him out sometime. He's not exactly a computer...he can't spout out the perfect answer to EVERY obscure sport-related question. But he's right more often than not and if he doesn't know the answer he sure can make an educated guess.


#3
On a related note, Jeff has a bizarre habit of associating every milestone memory with a sporting event. A few quick examples:
- Our wedding: "Nothing much happened the 26th but the night of our rehearsal dinner the Mavs rolled in game 3 of the playoff series against the Portland Trailblazers."
- Bennett's birth: "Mavs beat the Cavs."
- The night his parents separated when he was 13 : "I remember the Rangers had started to season undefeated. They got down to the Mariners but came back to win it in the 8th." For those who might be wondering, his parents reunited and are still married.


#4
Jeff is also ridiculously good at Boggle. You know the game where you shake up the letters and try to connect them to make words? Most normal people find words like "cat", "eat" and "stop". We (the normal people) get excited when we find a four letter word like "boat" AND its plural "boats". Jeff finds words like "associate" and "caucus". Then he'll pull out some crazy combo like "fear, fears, fearer, fearful, fearfully". Sometimes if we gang up on him three or four to one it is almost fair.

I love the man, but he's pretty much a freak of nature.


#5
It is no surprise to people that know us that Jeff is fairly frugal. He takes it to the extreme in certain situations. For example, my dear husband absolutely HATES to pay for parking.

We have a "special" spot on the street that allows for free parking somewhat near the Ballpark for Ranger games. We've taken a five-mile hike across Irving for a Cowboys game (ok...five miles might be a slight exaggeration but it felt even longer as we schlepped our way past car dealerships and across 121 in the muggy heat). He used to park way away from his office and walk through a seedy area of downtown in order to use the 50 cent lot. He won't even use a FREE valet unless I insist with a threat of violence. Why? Because he would have to tip the valet guy who brings our car back! I have more examples, but I think you get the picture.


#6
Like many people Jeff likes to pump his gas to the exact dollar. After much practice that became too easy so he began attempting to get the gallons to end on a whole number. This is slightly more challenging because gallons are measured with three decimal places instead of two.

One day Jeff came home, grinning from ear to ear and waving a receipt. He was absolutely glowing because, as he showed me, at this particular fill-up the prices were right and the stars were aligned and he got whole numbers for BOTH dollars and gallons. He was so proud. Isn't that cute?

We still have the receipt. Maybe I'll frame it some day.


#7
Finally, another injury story. When Jeff was five he survived a head-on collision with a garbage truck while he was sitting unrestrained in the middle front seat of a car. In this day and age that's just about enough to have your child taken away from you by the state.

I think that looking back on the 70s and 80s with the perspective of all the rules we have today for babies and kids (They must sleep on their backs! No bumper pad or toys in the bed EVER! Pad every sharp corner and lock every cabinet and drawer! Helmets and elbow guards while they practice riding bikes on training wheels! Car seats until the age of 10!) it's a wonder that any of us survived childhood.

Okay, this has gotten crazy long so I will return later with Part 2 - 7 Random Things about Stacey.