August 20, 2011

10 Random Things About Me

I don't have a whole lot to say today, so I think I will take the time to be completely narcissistic and tell you some random things about ME that may not come up otherwise.
  1. I have a very real addiction to chewing ice. I don't use the term "addiction" lightly here, either. I have to chew ice all day long. Sometimes, my ice maker cannot keep up with my ice chewing, and it makes me a complete wreck. I'm constantly walking back and fourth to the freezer to grab a piece of ice. When people learn this about me, they automatically assume that I have low iron or something, but my doctor has tested me time and again--and it's truly just an addiction. When I broke my jaw and I couldn't chew ice, it drove me CRAZY, but I was hoping it would force me to get over my addiction. However, as soon as I could open my mouth far enough, I was eating ice. I don't remember when the addiction started--I think it was when I was pregnant with Noah, and he's now 7.
  2. I don't believe in call waiting. I think it is incredibly rude to talk to someone on the phone and then say, "Hold on a sec, I have another call."  So I have the call waiting turned off on my home phone and my cell phone. If people call me while I'm on the phone with someone else, then they'll hear a busy signal--remember the busy signal? ;)
  3. Felted wine totes I designed
  4. I taught myself to knit when I was about 12, and to crochet when I was about 25. I'm really damn good at doing both, but since I started blogging regularly, I haven't made the time for it. In fact, my first blogger was for the purpose of posting patterns that I have written. I have a horrible habit of starting projects and not finishing them, however. I usually have at least 5 or 6 projects on needles at one time, and I just work on whatever project I feel like at the time.
  5. I know absolutely NOTHING about politics... and I don't care to. As soon as a conversation turns to something political, it's like my brain just shuts off. In college, my Political Science teacher gave us an extra credit question on a test (basically a freebie): Who is the president of the U.S.? And guess who was the only person in the class to get it wrong?! haha! In my defense, however, it was just after an election and I wrote down the former president's name instead of the new president :)
  6. I have vitiligo. What is that, you ask? It's the same thing that Michael Jackson had that turned his skin white. It's a condition that causes your skin to have no pigmentation whatsoever in certain spots. Obviously, it's not as noticeable on me because I'm pretty pale as it is, but I have spots on my wrists, fingers, around my eyes, and perineum (yes, that would be near my lady parts). Most people don't notice my spots unless I point them out, so it doesn't bother me that much.
  7. I'm an introvert, and extremely shy. In fact, some of my friends told me that they assumed I was snobby when they first met me, because I didn't make conversation or anything. I'm terrible at meeting new people, and even worse with small talk. Going to a party causes me severe anxiety. I almost always end up having fun, but the days leading up to it make me a nervous wreck. I'm even terrified of talking on the phone. I hate lapses in conversation, so I avoid the phone as much as possible. I prefer e-mail or texts. Strangely, I have no problem whatsoever calling customer service for something--go figure!
  8. At Camp Shane with two other counselors (I'm the one in green, obviously)
  9. I worked as a camp counselor at a "fat camp" in the summer of 2002 (the year before I got married). It is called Camp Shane and is in New York state. (For those of you that read the book I suggested, "What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets", you will find a Camp Shane camper on page 54). I was about 200 pounds at the time, and wanted to lose weight for my wedding, so I figured I might as well get paid for it :)  I was there 5 weeks (I was supposed to be there 9 weeks, but I left early). It was awful--not the food or anything, but I just felt like we weren't treated very well as counselors. I lost 15 or 20 pounds, and continued to lose when I got home. It was a really neat experience, and I'm glad I did it.
  10. No make-up, no hair style
  11. I have no problem whatsoever going out without make-up on. I probably only wear make-up two or maybe three days a week. And I rarely take the time to do my hair. My hair is really long and takes forever to blow it dry and then straighten it, so I usually throw it into a braid, a bun, or a ponytail and let it air dry. The only time I really take my time with it is when I'm going "out" out--to a party or Winers, or on a date with my husband. I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing that I don't take the time to wear make-up and do my hair--but it gives me more free time, which I like :)  I'm a little self-conscious of the scar on my chin, but I try not to think about it. (The scar was from when my jaw broke, and the bone punctured a hole right through the front).
  12. When I was a kid, I wanted to be an author when I grew up. I used to enter a "young authors" contest every year, and I would always win. I got A's in creative writing all through high school and college. I like to write because I have time to think about what I want to say beforehand. I'm really bad at quick comebacks when people talk to me, but it never fails that I think of something clever to say much later. When I'm writing, I can take my time to think about it first. My mom said she always dreamed I'd be an author, and I still think about it sometimes. I've actually written a book about my weight loss, but I don't think I'll ever do anything with it. It's collecting virtual dust on my computer. ;)   Besides, I really like blogging because I can write the same way that I would speak, and I don't feel too much pressure to write something good every time I sit down.
  13. I am a big Eminem fan. *Blush* I am not a huge music freak, and I don't know the names of many bands or what's current on the radio. But people who know me are surprised to learn that I really like Eminem. It's a GREAT motivator to me when I run--particularly the song Lose Yourself  (that one is pretty tame!)  Another song that I LOVE (and this one is NOT tame, so if you're offended easily at all by profanity or "adult" topics, don't click on it, lol) is Shake That. Try listening to that without shaking your ass! ;)  Another one that I like is The Way I Am (again, uncensored).  A lot of people ask me about my user name "SlimKatie", and assume I picked it with the high hopes that I would one day be "slim" :)  However, I chose it because it rhymes with "Slim Shady" (Eminem's "alter ego"). When listening to his songs I would sing along, replacing Shady with Katie: "I'm Slim Katie, yes I'm the real Katie, all you other Slim Katie's are just imitating..."  Hahaha, I'm dorky, I know. That can be #11--my dorkiness.
So there you have it!  A random assortment of 10 11 things you may not have known about me!


Do any of these things surprise you? Can you relate to any of them? Feed my ego, friends! ;)

26 comments:

  1. I'm actually hypersensitive to makeup, even the ones that are supposedly hypoallergenic or whatever they call it, so if I wear it, within an hour or two my face will basically start sweating out grease, and break into rashes. It's disgusting. The last time I wore makeup was at my sister's wedding in Feb '08, and I only wore it for two hours and immediately got it off before things got bad, haha!

    I've wanted to be an author my whole life, but after last year's publicity debacle, I've been rethinking that a lot. I think, if I decide to publish now, it'll be under a pen name...

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  2. 1). The girl I babysit for is addicted to chewing ice, also. She said she is anemic. 2). I hardly ever have to use call-waiting but I absolutely LOVE caller-ID!!! 3). My grandma taught us girls how to crochet and I can make an afghan, but I'm jealous that you know how to knit!!! 4). I'm too busy on FB and the computer to find out what is going on "out there." 5). Who told you about the vitiligo on your lady parts?? 6). Even though I have always been self-conscious of my looks, I can talk to anybody. My kids make fun of me ALL the time. 7). I remember Camp Shane from MTV! I think the show was called 'Fat Camp.' QUESTION: Did you have any kids that said they wanted to lose weight and had their parents spend all of this money for it to be all about hooking up??? 8). Make-up is for special occasions. I like keeping my husband's expectations low and then he's pleasantly surprised when I'm all "dolled up!" 9). You should definitely look into publishing your book. Look at how much interest you have "sparked" on the internet with your story! I do know 2 people who I believe have been taken advantage of by these vanity publishers, where you basically pay for your book to be published, like a frickin' Kinkos! 10). 'Lose Yourself' is on my running playlist! Right after that it's 'Stronger' by Kanye West.

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  3. I would have never EVER expected in a million years that you were an Eminem fan!! I'm shocked. It just doesn't seem your personality at all. I love you for this! I am completely in love with every single Eminem song. I work out to his music all the time! Most of his stuff is intense, so it helps me get an intense work out. I love the completely dirty song "Superman" Haha and I love "Hailies Song" and "White America" and "Mockingbird" and "When I'm Gone" and "Never Enough" Haha I'll stop, but I could definitely keep going! I looooove Eminem and you just went up about 50 cool points in my book Katie!!!

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  4. Oh Katie you should seriously consider doing something with the book you wrote! I love hearing anything you have to say on weight loss. It would be extremely helpful and interesting to a lot of people! Which brings me to my off topic question: How do you deal with stalled weight loss? After losing 75 pounds, I am now stuck at 140. The scale will not budge! I have tried everything from completely resting for days, adding extra calories, restricting my calories to the bare minimum, working out intensely, trying a completely new work out... I just don't know what to do anymore and I do not want to lose my motivation and gain back what I lost. I have been stuck at 140 for 3 months now. I wouldn't think it would be my bodys comfortable weight either because I am super short 5'1" and being 140 lbs still puts me in an overweight bmi. It's so frustrating!

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  5. I LOVED THIS KATIE! It was so very interesting! I will say I am shocked by the Eminem thing! I would have never guessed, but that is what is fun about you telling us 10 random things about you. Surely you have more random facts about yourself and if you do, you should post 5-10 every once in a while! It's so fun! By the way, I chew on ice too and my dentist yells at me everytime I go in his office. He tells me I'm messing up my teeth. Does your dentist nag you about this?

    - WANDA

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  6. See, I was totally hoping that SlimKatie was an Eminem reference but I never asked because I didn't want you to say it was just about being thin. LOL. *Love* Eminem! I'm actually going to go do my HIIT Elliptical workout right now and will enter Eminem into my Pandora channel - can't believe it never occured to me to try that before. I usually just jam to him in my car but he would make great workout music!

    Oh, and I tried the chocolate PB cold oats this morning - pretty good! I did end up nuking the oats for 1 minute though because it was still pretty watery after 20 minutes in the fridge... do you use regular oats or quick oats?

    -Allison

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  7. You are lucky about the make up thing. I only wish I could go anywhere without make up on. When I was younger I had HORRIBLE acne and after years of trying a billion different things to get rid of it, I got frustrated and started pretending to not care about it. I didn't even try with it anymore. This resulted in tons of acne scars. 10 chemical peels and $1,200 later it is much better than it was before. But to the people on the street who don't know it used to be much worse, well it just looks terrible to them as is. So you see I have to wear make up to go anywhere to be able to look someone in the face, even going to a drive thru. I envy all the people who can just run out of the house.. I wish!

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  8. you should publish your book katie!

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  9. With the exception of a couple of details, I feel like we may be twins. Kind of creepy to read this list and say, "Oh my! Me, too!!" Hilarious. It gives me hope that I, too, will reach my weight loss goals! :)

    I don't chew ice because I am a little freaky about my teeth. Never had braces or anything, so I think I'm just extra cautious with them? I don't chew anything hard...like jaw-breakers freak me out. Why??? My husband, however, chews ice all the time. Drives me bananas. HAha!

    I have that "v" word (too lazy to scross back up!) on my right foot. Hilarious. The left one will get super tan and look awesome, but my left foot is always spotted and WHITE. I'm not sure about my "lady parts", though. :)

    Never wear make-up with the exception of the rare occasion I go out with friends. They like to do me up...my husband always gets jealous when he sees pictures of our night out afterwards and asks, "Why don't you do that when we go out?" I love my sleep. AND we have 4 kids under the age of 5. I think those are the only excuses I need! And hair. Hair-Shmair. Just gets in my face and drives me bonkers. No thanks!

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  10. Awesome! I love the Slim Katie!

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  11. I have really bad anxiety for social settings too! I get super nervous when having to do anything social. I get terrified to meet new people because I know I make bad first impressions. I didn't meet my husband's parents for 4 years right up until the wedding because I was afraid they would hate me. I get so nervous about social settings and meeting new people!

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  12. Cutest post ever - thanks for sharing.

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  13. omg we are sooo alike. like seriously though. the whole being too shy for your own good and not having quick comebacks and much prefering to write or type because it gives you time to think up something witty ya know. yeah thats so me. lol. and all anxious about parties and lulls in conversations, etc.

    the slim katie thing is hilarious to me and definitely a surprise but i guess people would also be surprised to know i love eminem and totally workout to lose yourself and shake that as well. GREAT SONGS! :)

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  14. Publish your book! Please!!!

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  15. Yes def publish your book!! I know a ton of people would want to read it!! I was shocked by a lot of what you wrote above, esp the ice chewing (no offense) but I like that you're not afraid to tell us.

    I almost went to Camp Shane when I wanted to lose weight but my parents couldn't afford it.

    I also LOVE Eminem and can't believe I didn't put it together about SlimKatie! hehe

    I'm also a very big DORK! :) I barely wear make-up but that's since I moved to TN and don't know anyone so therefore don't care! haha I also want to be an author badly, I wrote a short story once in college a few years back (I'm still not done with college) and would love to expand on it and TRY to get it published. I'm also a poet and always wanted to publish them one day, but now when I read through them - they seem Dr. Suessish.

    I've very outgoing and friendly so that's def different with us. But I also prefer to text than call someone! haha

    Thanks for sharing :)

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  16. I LOVED this blog. I found out so many things about my favorite blogger! I too am shy and prefer to communicate in writing than actual verbally talking! Given the choice of making a phone call or e-mailing or texting someone, you know what I pick.
    If I looked as good as you do without make-up, I wouldn't worry much about it either. I used to not wear any, but after I lost weight, I decided it was time to try a little harder, and wear it most of the time now. I have this spot on my face (the derm. called it a big freckle) that she froze off Friday. It's huge and red now. I'm putting concealer and stuff on it so hopefully you don't notice it too much. She said it would get better eventually. I sure hope so since that is why I had it frozen off.
    Thanks for your comment on my blog about my upper arm flesh. It's ugly, but I just grabbed the camera and posted the picture. I bought the sleeveless yellow blouse that I'm wearing in the picture yesterday at Dress Barn. I love it, but can never wear it without the little short-sleeved sweater I bought. Do you know anybody who wears sweaters in August, even short-sleeved ones? I do. I hate it,but losing the weight is still worth having the excess skin.
    I am so excited to hear what your plastic surgeon has to say later this month--especially about whether or not he thinks insurance will cover it. Let's face it, at least in my case, that's the overriding determining factor about whether or not I could ever think about having it taken off surgically. Good luck!

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  17. Great post! I crochet too but I have yet to learn to knit. It frustrates the hell out of me, I put it down, then pick it up a week later to find that I've totally forgotten how to knit. Ugh. I don't know crap about politics either and find it a big snore.

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  18. i never realized that your slim katie name was a slim shadey reference. i think that is awesome. i actually love all types of music-a few years ago (probably about 8 years ago now) my local radio station switched formats. we made fun of it calling it the ghetto rap station-i love it-it is like pop style rap (so a lot of little wayne).
    dude my dentist jumped down my throat for chewing gum (i have an issue with sensitivity-it was because of the braces i had on for less than two years- and that was somewhat recent) i dont even chew gum unless i think i have bad breath. LOL
    and i want you to publish your book. id get it for my kindle :)
    lessoff

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  19. Hahaha I love the last bit, Slim Katie I would have never guessed. So fun! I liked the movie Eight Mile, especially the part where he's freestyling at the end! :)

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  20. Katie,

    You ARE an author. Every day you write and share it with people. You just haven't published a book - yet. :)

    I don't wear much makeup at all, even when I do bother to apply it. My daughter however LOVES it and wants to wear gobs of it, which kills me. I thought she would take after me in regards to makeup. Wrong!

    I am going to have to check out Eminem. Maybe it will be the motivation I need to return to exercise.

    I loved the fat camp story. Last year, Emily and I watched some sitcom show about a fat camp - can't think of the name of it now. I rarely watch tv but once a week we would watch it together. The campers were always sneaking food in.

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  21. Eminem fan here too lmao and I'm 40!
    I have vitiligo too but like you it isn't noticeable unless i point it out (or unless I have a tan cos those areas don't tan) but it itches like mad sometimes.
    I relate to the shy - me too! People often think I'm unapproachable cos I look 'moody'. I'm not, I'm just not confident (unless it involves my kids then i'm pretty lioness like lol) Much much nicer to email!
    What else can a girl do with long hair day after day. I keep saying I'll cut mine off but instead it's in a bun all the time (unless I venture out out in which case it's down and straightened so I can hide behind it. lol)

    Seems there are more people with similar hang ups in this huge world than we would ever have imagined.

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  22. Wow! I can't believe there is actually a real person out there that is totally anti-politics like myself. Seems that I am definitely part of a minority...perhaps even a loner in my little world. That is just one more awesome thing about you.
    Conversely, I am more of an extrovert. However, I don't like to be the life of the party...I prefer to blend in so that I can sneak out early. There is no place like home.
    Now let me mention that the "virtual" book should make it to print sooner rather than later. Soooo many peeps could benefit from your story. I giggle when I read your curse words...you actually spell out what we are all thinking. Women (moms, wives, etc.)need your humor to keep the days light with humor. I commit to at least 5 copies to share with my friends :)

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  23. Now I see why I enjoy your blog so much... we have tons in common. I think I can relate to every one of those except the ice eating (I don't even have ice in my freezer at all!) and the skin condition. I've enjoyed your blog for a little while now and you are so inspirational and so real. =)

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  24. Katie, I relate to this in a lot of ways. I, too, have anxiety with meeting new people. I usually do or say something awkward that makes them look at me with a raised eyebrow. I also wanted to be an author. As a matter of fact, it was the only endeavor of mine that my parents supported. I dream of getting more serious with it. Publish your book! So many people would benefit from your story! And I hate the phone. Not because of call-waiting but because I hate having to stop what I'm doing to talk to someone. It pisses off my family something fierce.

    You're not alone. There are others like you. :-)

    Thanks for posting your experiences. It may be just be cathartic for you, but it's been the inspiration I've needed to start running myself.

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  25. Do you wanna be my new best friend? lol

    I have an allergy to politics. It makes my heart race, my blood pressure spike and my palms sweat. I've tried (in recent years) to learn more about it and pay more attention as it is my "civic duty" and all that, but like you...my brain just spits it all right back out. I can't wait for this election year to be over.

    I am quite extroverted...as long as I am in SOME position of leverage. For example, I've acted in community plays, I can host parties filled with absolute strangers and am known for my people skills at my retail job. But, ask me to ATTEND a party where I don't know anybody and I hide in the corner. I have to feel like I have some sort of support or control in order to enjoy social situations - otherwise, they make me a nervous wreck and I can't wait to get out of there. Considering that you were able to start a regular wine gathering, it sounds as if you might be the same way...

    I am notorious for not wearing make-up, and my hair is more often than not up in a pony-tail. Personally, I sometimes think that it has something to do with my self image - as in, putting a fresh coat of a paint on an outhouse doesn't make it any less an outhouse, ya know? When I was thinner in Junior High and High School, a day never went by that I didn't wear make-up.

    I love writing as well - I won local "Young Author" awards and still ponder if I could ever really make it. Writing a worthy story is half the battle - if you've gotten that far, why not send it out? It pieces of rubbish like "Fifty Shades of Gray" can make it on the best seller's list - why not yours? lol

    "ChuChi"

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  26. I knew it! I found your blog and I've gone back to the very first post and reading it all the way through. As soon as I saw that your username was slimkatie, I started laughing and singing it in my head! I feel like such a loser for admitting that, but it's true. I love reading about your life and how normal you seem. You know, like someone who is REAL lost all this weight and is keeping it off and it's not just some freak of nature. It's very motivating, and I love that you seem to really care about all of your readers!

    -christynloving

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I used to publish ALL comments (even the mean ones) but I recently chose not to publish those. I always welcome constructive comments/criticism, but there is no need for unnecessary rudeness/hate. But please--I love reading what you have to say! (This comment form is super finicky, so I apologize if you're unable to comment)

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