10 Things You Probably Don’t Know About Me

Let’s sit down and have a coffee

I swear I haven’t been avoiding this challenge — I love the idea.

So thank you to Adrienne Beaumont for the original prompt. And then to Julie Gaeta for the reminder. And finally, to Barb Dalton for the kick in the butt to actually write it.

Here are 10 things you probably don’t know about me.

1. I’m left-handed

I come from a long line of left-handers.

When my grandma was in school, they used to smack her on the wrist when she tried to write with her left hand. It was deemed the devil’s hand.

Ironically 5 of her 6 children turned out to be left-handed. My dad passed it on to me.

Although writing is about all I use my left hand for.

He used to say, “It’s a right-handed world.” And I’m living in it.

2. I’m a cat person

Before you dismiss me as a human — I love dogs too.

But, over the years I’ve learned that my lifestyle is much more in-tune with that of a cat. I like my alone time, independence, and mid-day naps in the sun.

I have two beautiful felines named Reggie & Lucy.

3. My childhood dream was to become an actor

When I was 7-years-old, I made a pact with myself to never give up on my dreams.

This meant becoming the next Jim Carrey.

So, when I turned 25, I quit my job, sold my condo and dove into the world of acting. It turns out I didn’t like it — plus, I was bad at it.

But, I tried. And I’m thankful I did.

My claim to fame is being visible in the background of a sort-of-popular Netflix movie (seen below).

4. I have a hard time speaking

I have a stutter.

For most of my life, this was my biggest insecurity. I found ways to cover it up and thought I could willpower my way through it. But, after a quarter-life crisis, I decided to get help.

In 2019, I drove down to California 4 times to attend stuttering groups.

The 20-hour trips were worth it because they helped me accept myself and my challenge. Plus, it gave me perspective — many of the people at the groups couldn’t willpower through their disfluency.

5. I had real aspirations of being a fighter

When I was 5-years-old, I started taking karate lessons.

By 12, I became a black belt and at 16, I ventured into different martial arts. Throughout my life I’ve trained:

• Karate
• Boxing
• Jujitsu
• Muay Thai
• Kickboxing

I had real aspirations of making a run at becoming a professional fighter. But my dream (thankfully) came to a thundering halt when I caught a bad stomach virus in Thailand.

I was forced to fly home, rest, and re-evaluate my life. It was the best thing that ever happened to me.

6. I spent $200,000 finding myself

I didn’t go to college.

Instead, I worked through my twenties at a furniture company. Starting in the warehouse, I moved into sales, and ultimately managing my own store.

It was incredibly lucrative but I hated who I was becoming.

So, I quit, sold my condo, and went on a 2-year journey of discovering what I really wanted out of life.

I ended up $40,000 in debt with no job to pay it. But it was all worth it — because it helped me discover writing.

7. I once lived my nightmare

In high school, I took a class called Rock School — much like the movie (“School of Rock”).

The entire class involved practicing for an end-of-year concert. We paired ourselves up into groups (bands) and practice our sets.

I goofed off, didn’t practice, and somehow thought I’d be able to pull it off.

I wasn’t.

I forgot the majority of my parts and barely squeaked out a passing grade — purely on stage-performance.

I still have nightmares about it.

8. I’m NOT Italian

But, I’m asked if I am at least 3 times per week.

So, I did a “23andMe” test, and it turns out my heritage is from a little pocket just outside of Germany.

I have sprinkles of English, Irish, and Norwegian as well.

That being said, literally every second day of my life I’m asked if I’m Italian. I can’t imagine why…

9. I love to cook

It’s one of my favourite hobbies.

I love putting on a good podcast and seeing what ingredients I have to work with, in the fridge.

I don’t measure and don’t read recipes.

Sometimes YouTube ideas but part of the fun is experimenting. For me, cooking is a form of meditation.

Ironically, Italian food is my favourite.

10. I have a goal to visit every country in the world

I have a kind-of-crazy goal of travelling to every country in the world. I’ve only visited 11 so far, so I just have 184 to go.

For the majority of my life, I thought this was impossible.

But I recently read about a woman that did it in one 1 year.

So, there’s hope for me yet.

I hope you enjoyed learning about me. Subscribe to my newsletter for me. And if you’re not a Medium member, why not become one?

What’s one thing most people don’t know about YOU?

I’m not sure who’s already written one, so I’ve tagged everyone from Adrienne’s original prompt….

Karen Schwartz, Katie Michaelson, BichoDoMato, Jennifer Dunne, PseuPending (Seu), I. Trudie Palmer, Lucia Sugafield, Penny Grubb, Coyote Susan, Susan Alison, Mukundarajan V N, Australian Foodie, Elizabeth Emerald, estow76 (Esther), Kaz Rochford, James Beaufait, Anne Bonfert, Borlokva, Doug Ecks, Paola Faben Oliveira, Julie Ranson, Maria Garcia, Nancy Blackman, Kris Bedenian, Amanda Laughtland, JM Heatherly, M. J. Goode-Leake, Sara Burdick, Linda Ng, Jillian Amatt - Artistic Voyages, Allison Ditmer, Joanna Skladanek, Crystal A. Walker.

Plus, a few more that might find it fun (no pressure)…

Mark Cutts, Avinash Rajput, Josh O'Neill, Wendy Herrmann, Carmen Ballesteros, Nina Greimel, Bob Merckel, Umme Salma, John McClymont.

Anyone else that would like to partake in the challenge, please do! Tag me so I can read it. :)