Reem and Owen tagged me in Facebook...
1. I've only recently started to appreciate my entire name. My mum wanted to name me Charlene Samantha Marie, my dad thought it was too common and decided to name me something else. They both agreed I should have three names.
2. The first part of my name is derived from the Ancient Egyptian word mry which means beloved. My second name means heart in Thai and victory in Indian. My third name is a variation of Mishael's Babylonian name. Mishael was one of the three young men cast into a furnace but saved by God in The Bible.
3. I was an only child for 14 years. I behaved like the typical evil, spoilt-brat in the movies when I found out my Mum was pregnant and I was soon going to have a sister. I took out my giant troll doll and made sure my Mum saw it everyday. I was hoping my sister would come out looking like a troll! She came out all pretty and I loved her the moment I saw her.
4. I learned how to read when I was 4. The first book I could read on my own was 'The Cat in the Hat'.
5. My Mum and Dad never censored the reading materials we had at home. At 6, I was bored with Sweet Valley High and started reading my aunt's Mills and Boon collection. At 8, I so desparately wanted to be part of the March family, live in Prince Edward Island and befriend Anne Shirley and Sara Stanley, or solve crimes with Watson and Holmes. At 9, I pored through the lovelorn columns of British Cosmo and learned about love, lust and divorce. At 10, I was reading Tom Clancy and John Grisham before the movie version of their books came out. At 12, my diary was peppered with Donne, Browning and Neruda lines to describe the ecstasy and anguish of first love. Now, I've regressed to reading chick lit. Tsk tsk.
6. I love old Hollywood movies. In college, I skipped classes in Journalism to sneak into my bestfriend's classes instead. She was taking up Audio-Visual Comm as her major and they had to watch splendid films like The Jazz Singer, Citizen Kane, and Seven Samurai to study scene treatment and camera angles. I was just there for the free movies!
7. When I was a kid, I had a huge Barbie collection. I think I had 15 Barbies, including a Filipina Barbie in a national costume designed by Patis Tesoro, UNICEF Barbie, and the infamous talking Barbie 'Teen Talk Barbie'. I also had a Skipper doll (Barbie's sister) and Barbie's friends - Miko, Teresa, Midge and Christie. I only had one Ken doll though.
8. I don't know how to cross streets on my own. It doesn't matter that I'm 25 and have been living and working in the city for almost five years - I am mortally afraid of crossing busy streets.
9. Mama and I wanted me to be a ballerina. I started going to ballet classes at 3 years old. I loved my pink tutus and chiffon skirts over tights. I loved coming in two hours before class to warm up at the barre surrounded by music and mirrors. I loved the pain of perfecting a series of steps by slow and repetitive practice. Pirouettes and pliés were the thrills of my life. I dreamed of the day I'd finally be allowed to dance en pointe.
10. Alas, that was never to happen. Doctors discovered that I had a hernia when I was 8 and had to operate. I never returned to the dance studio after my operation. All I have as mementos of my ballerina dreams are worn out slippers and grading cards from The Royal Academy of Dance.
11. I have this weird compulsion to smell the leaves of my Moleskines. Even before I start writing in my planner or notebook, I have to take a whiff of its pages. It just has this really distinct fragrance that I like so much.
12. I am still in love with Clark Gable. I adore the way he talks and smiles and looks at women that way. He's my idea of 'maginoo pero medyo bastos'.
13. I am fully aware that people tend to find me unapproachable or suplada. I am not. The truth is I am just ridiculously shy and socially awkward.
14. My ultimate beach dream is to get a perfect tan. So far, all I've consistently been able to manage is a burnt nose.
15. My first major crush was my classmate in 2nd grade at the Nadeen British School. The boy had honeyed curls and hazel eyes flecked with rainbows. I searched him on the Net a few minutes ago and found out he won a NASA International Space Settlement Design Competition in 2002. So, he wasn't just gorgeous after all. Sigh...
16. The first time I visited the Dilmun Burial Mounds in Bahrain I instantly wanted to become an archaeologist. I had my Mum buy me little chisels, hammers, and brushes to sift through the sand in our backyard.
17. I love being surprised with knick-knacks and whatever oddity the giver thinks will amuse me. I am child-like that way.
18. I adore shoes. I adore shoes. I adore shoes!!!
19. I only have one pair of sports shoes at a time. Amidst all the heels, flats, platforms, wedges, sandal, and slippers there will be one pair of rubber shoes. I only ever replace this when it starts looking its fugliest.
20. Once in a while I like to indulge in brooding. I keep to myself, read sad books, write angst-ridden journal entries, and cry along to melancholy songs. I emerge happy and faith-filled again.
21. I can cook mean hotwings in 10 minutes.
22. There is nothing I enjoy more than sleeping. I can sleep for 16 straight hours. I bury myself under four pillows and a duvet.
23. I will one day hie off to Batanes on my own.
24. My default Starbucks drink is a 'tall, non-fat, fewer pumps of syrup, iced caramel macchiato'.
25. I love and love and love and love when I love.
Recent Comments