november is NOT february

i've been bitten by the facebook bug and recently decided to finally participate in one of the "get to know me" activities that seem to have gone viral lately -- 25 random things about me (the list is at the bottom of this post in case you're interested. and leave your list as a comment because i would love to read them.) i give you this background because one of the items - the one that highlights the supposed most important day of my 37 years - is not true! it's not that the sentiment is not true, it's that the date is completely wrong! you'd think that i'd remember the exact date of the most important day of my life. and you would be right to criticize if this mistake was not the result of my well documented case of "november february syndrome."

you see, i always mix up november and february. i actually have to stop and think really hard about which month is which and often even have to recite the months to get it correct. i'm baffled as to the source of this syndrome - they don't sound the same, the spellings not close, they're separated by two other months, they even have a different number of days. and still i can't get them straight.

so, the 21st random thing you should know about me --

i've had an amazing life since being born in 1971 - fantastic travel since i was little, a great mom and dad, educational opportunity, great friends - but i consider NOVEMBER 9, 2001 as the day when my LIFE really began.

perhaps this public proclamation was just the cure that i needed?

25. i like the idea of going from 25 to 1.
24. i'm very concerned that i won't be able to come up with 25 random facts.
23. i totally agree with obama that washingtonians are generally pussies when it comes to the weather - 2 snow days for less than an inch of snow and ice that melted by 10:00am? absolutely ridiculous.
22. i usually only write in lower case and it drives my boss crazy.
21. i've had an amazing life since being born in 1971 - fantastic travel since i was little, a great mom and dad, educational opportunity, great friends - but i consider February 9, 2001 as the day when my LIFE really began.
20. i appreciate the fact that my relationship with my parents has only gotten deeper and more solid as the years go on.
19. my maternal grandmother was my biggest influence - particularly when it came to education - and best friend , but also the source of two of my biggest disappointments - she never saw me graduate from college or grad school and i never came out to her.
18. i am totally a "glass is 3/4 full" person.
17. i take great pride in the fact that i can charm even the nastiest, most pessimistic person.
16. i love me some kristin sampson.
15. i know that some day kristin will finally accept that i was NOT on a date with annie on the night we met.
14. i can't wait to add kids - real kids, not cats that we call kids - to our family.
13. i generally think that everyone is gay until they prove otherwise (it's my rage against a heterocentric world view).
12. i take great joy in the life that kristin and i continue to build.
11. i love being known throughout the neighborhood as "the two white lesbians that live on the corner."
10. i truly believe that i have made a difference in the world, but am very aware that i can do so much more.
9. i miss the places that i've lived - san francisco and boston - on a regular basis and sometimes wonder if we should go back.
8. i wish that my dad would get back his joy.
7. i am in awe of my mom.
6. i wish that kristin didn't travel so much, but am grateful that i get to tag along to such interesting places.
5. i'm wondering what the hell i'm doing up at 11:30 on a work night when i usually am in bed by 9:00.
4. i'm grateful for my church family.
3. i got my first tattoo last year - flip flops on my shoulder.
2. i can't wait to retire at the beach.
1. i LOVE being a bureaucrat and it's not a joke.