I'll Try This Tagging Thing Just This Once

Most of the tags that I’ve received ask me about average stuff that I already have in my profile such as my favorite book or what I’m currently listening to, but this latest tag (which was shouted out to me unofficially) by Camie Vog seems to fit in with the whole purpose of my writing, which is my constant and persistent pursuit of trying to figure out how I wound up here in Suburbia, married with a kid and a dog living in a postcard perfect neighborhood. Who knows, maybe after all of this heavy hearted stuff I’ve written, this simple tag will give me the answers I’m looking for.

10 Years Ago – August 1996
I was wonderfully optimistic having just married my first husband in May of that year, and moved to Seattle a month later to begin art school. I was working a straight-laced job during the day, while taking classes at night where I was learning the ins and outs of the music industry. It was a really happy, carefree time for me. We were living in a classic apartment in the Queen Anne district of Seattle, two blocks away from the Space Needle, and enjoying weekend trips to British Columbia. The only bummer was that we were learning of Seattle’s quirk about meeting new people; those originally from the Jet City tend to keep to themselves, so you must make nice with your fellow transplants. I couldn’t complain about my life 10 years ago, it was nice.

5 Years Ago – August 2001
Wow! Just a mere five years after starting art school, I was out of the music industry already. My classes prepared me for what the business used to be like, but couldn’t prepare me for what it had become; overrun by business people who cared less about the artists and their music and more about lining their pockets and the bottom line with crap. By March of 2001 I had been working myself stupid, and I was officially burned out. By then I had met Jeff, and was living back in Seattle five years ago this month. We were traveling a lot. It was in August of 2001 that I had a job offer in the music industry in New York, something that I would have died for a mere five years earlier, but I was truly done working 60-80 hours a week with no personal life. At this time I had also begun working for the Museum of Flight coordinating their special events. Little did I know that special events management in the area of fundraising would be my new career. Jeff and I weren’t married yet, but we had just bought a house. This was also a happy time in my life.

1 Year Ago – August 2005
I was contemplating going back to work again. Jeff had graduated with his MBA just two months prior, and was thinking about starting a business. The prospect of a new venture by my spouse, plus the fact that I was tired of having intellectual conversations revolving around cartoons, bottles, diapers, and when we were having our next child, gave me the perfect excuse to polish up my resume. Rachael was a year and a half, I had recently had a heart-to-heart discussion with my stepdad about my mother’s past which answered some very important questions I had about my own life. I was still trying to figure out if this life I had made in Suburbia was truly something I wanted, or was something my mother kept telling me I wanted. Around this time last year, the clouds were starting to lift, and I was filled with optimism.

5 Songs I Know All The Words To
“The Chauffer” – Duran Duran (leftovers from an early teen obsession with John Taylor)
“Stairway to Heaven” – Led Zeppelin (Childhood memories)
“Paranoid” – Black Sabbath (More childhood memories)
“Mother” – Tori Amos (She’s a goddess)
“Every Me and Every You” – Placebo (Gotta love snotty ass Brit pop with an edge)

5 Snacks
Grapes (‘cause they are low cal)
Blueberries (so that maybe I won’t be senile by 60)
Chocolate (sometimes better than sex depending on the brand)
This is going to sound lame, but I really don’t snack that much, so that’s the end of the list.

5 Things I Would Do With $100,000
Invest in the Chinese currency market
Make a big donation to my favorite Jewish charity
By at least 5 pairs of Fluevog shoes
Even bigger college fund for Miss Rachael
Take my entire family on a fantastic, 10-day cruise

5 Places I Would Run Away To
Government Street in Victoria, British Columbia
Emerald Queen Casino – Fife, Washington
Powells Books in Portland, Oregon
Eclectic Beach area of San Diego, California
New Zealand – if I didn’t have any time restrictions or funding limitations

5 Things I Would Never Wear
Shoes with a heel over 2” (even though I’m only 4’11”)
Spandex
Low rider jeans and a belly shirt (unless I was part of a living art stretchmarks exhibit)
Neon pink, yellow or green
My birthday suit in public

5 Favorite T.V. Shows
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart – Comedy Central
Drawn Together – Comedy Central
Real Time with Bill Maher – HBO
The Colbert Report – Comedy Central
CNN, BBC America, MSNBC, and other news

5 Greatest Joys
Rachael (in a good mood, of course)
Jeff (also when he’s in a good mood)
Hanging out with friends
Writing
Sex or Chocolate (which ever one I happened to get, if they both come together, even better!)

5 Favorite Toys
Computer
iPod
Exercise Bike
I’m not really a gadget person, and aside from the ones I’ve listed above, I’m not going to go into anything else.

Well, this didn’t give me all of the answers I was looking for, but it was kind of fun to do. In retrospect, I think I will attribute my happiness to my eternal optimism, even when life is very fucked up, as well as a steady diet of Comedy Central shows. Now if you’ll excuse me, I must go scour the kitchen for some chocolate, because my husband fell asleep two hours ago.