25 little bits about me ...

A friend asked me to do this to post on facebook.
I thought it would be a good way to introduce myself here on my new blog.

1. Since this is most recent in my mind ... from today ... I do not enjoy having to give a big chunk of my weekend doing schoolwork. The weekend is for REST and other things! ... But, ahhhh, my mid-term reports are done. :) ... feels great!
2. I was born a month and two days before the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and I remember air raid sirens and black-out curtains. I also remember ration stamps and squeezing the color into the margerine. (Great fun for kids!)
2. I started kindergarten at age four in September of 1945!
3. When I was 20 months old, my mother had twins, a boy and a girl. She was VERY busy and never sick, at least as far as I ever knew because I never heard her complain! ;)
4. My father was born in Sweden and came to this country in 1924 with his family, at the age of 14. He knew 2 words of English when he got off the boat at Ellis Island ... yes and no ... but became an avid reader in ENGLISH, and an excellent crossword puzzle worker in the same language. He also took his driving test in ENGLISH.
5. Can you tell I am not a fan of "English as a second language" in the schools? IMHO, it handicaps, rather than helps, those who want to live and prosper here ... rather than becoming independent citizens, they are "groomed" to be dependent.
6. When I was in first grade, my teacher, and everything I was learning, was all so wonderful that I decided I would be a first grade teacher when I grew up.
7. My parents did not, nor could not, give us the newest things out there. It was war-time (WWII, then the Korean War), and times were tough. My mother used to cut down old cast-off coats from various places to make us a new winter coat each year. When I got what I wanted for Christmas, I would often cry because I truly didn't think that it would be possible, but they scraped and saved to make it so, and I remember them with great appreciation, love, and respect.
8. My childhood prepared me for adult life when I still don't have everything I want, but a great appreciation and thankful heart for what I do have.
9. My mother nursed us with TLC when we were sick, but we were not allowed to whimper about minor things, another preparation for the chronic pain I now have. When I am tempted to have a pity party, I can hear her lovingly say, "You'll live!" ;)
10. We listened to the radio for entertainment ... Jack Benny, The Shadow, Fibber McGee, Amos and Andy, I Love a Mystery ... it was great fun to gather round the radio as a family.
11. TV wasn't common in the public arena til I was in elementary school. We didn't get one until I was in the 4th grade because my parents had to save the money for it for a lonnnnnng time. My favorite programs were "Howdy Doody" and "I Remember Mama".
12. Our bedtime when we were in elementary school was 7:30. I didn't like that when I was in 5th grade, and "I Love Lucy" was talked about at school. I only got to watch her when it was school vacation.
13. Bedtime advanced to 9:30 when we were in high school. If we didn't have our homework done, we had to set the alarm to get up early to finish it ... pretty hard when you are not a morning person.
14. When I was a senior in high school, I worked in a department store. During the Christmas season I worked every night 'til 9:30 because I was saving money to pay for my brother, sister, and me to go to the church youth group retreat. (You guessed it, I had to go to bed when I got home, and set the alarm to get up at 5:30 the next morning. I was surprised and ecstatic when I got all A's on my report card!)
15. Ooops ... I'll never get to #25 at this rate! ... So ... fast forward to this century!
16. I have diabetes and shoot insulin into my belly 4 x a day.
17. I took to the computer like a duck takes to water. It is a great work tool, as well as being a great way to keep in touch with friends near and far. Lots of things about it are just plain fun, too!
18. I used to have long, thick hair that I always wore in braids when I was a kid. When I developed hypothyroidism, my hair lost its glory and thickness, so I keep it very short!
19. The echoing sensation and the glaring lights in a mall affect me in a negative way, so I rarely go to one unless I know what I want and where to find it in the mall and can quickly pop in and out.
20. I do not like Scrabble, but I play it to make friends happy.
21. I LOVE the board game Sequence.
If you have never played it, you must ... it is so FUN!
22. I wish I could see my sister more often, but she lives 1200 miles away.
23. I love coffee! ... I guess that makes me a true "Svenska Flicka"! (It's a great combination with a good book ... I have always loved to read ever since I learned how.)
24. I love my church family and the faithful teaching from the Word of God by my pastor.
25. I am thankful for the grace of God in Jesus Christ. Without Him I would be lost and miserable!