Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Another Opening, Another Meme

Wanderlust Scarlett of From the Shores of Introspect and Retrospect has tagged me with a meme that requires me to disclose eight facts about myself. I had hoped to sit this one out, but she caught me hiding out in the stall with my feet up. I will not tag anyone, but if you would like to do it, please let me know so I can read yours.

1. I love animals. Many of my best friends have been four-leggeds. Animals have great values and know what is really important. I do not fear anyone in the animal kingdom but homo sapien.

2. My favorite music is baroque classical, especially Vivaldi, but I also love Mozart, Bach and Haydn. I used to play the violin, and I was good.

I also love jazz, blues and some rock music.

3. I am a book junkie. I can always justify a book purchase.

4. I acted in several Off-Broadway plays, and played both Madge and Millie in different productions of "Picnic." I gave up acting because I knew that I would be playing Juliet forever while I really wanted to be Lady Macbeth.

I also intended to have children, and didn't think that performing would combine well with motherhood.

When I see really good acting, I still feel twinges of what might have been. There are many actors today who have both career and family, and I wish that I had known it was possible.

But if I had to choose again, I would still choose my children in a New York minute. (I've always wanted to use that expression since I am from New York, where I never once heard it. I never heard of Long Island Iced Tea either, despite growing up on Long Island, until I lived in North Carolina.)

5. I'm terrified of haircuts, and have only begun to get them this year. I have heard that ones hair and nails continue to grow after we die, and in my case, it will certainly be true.

6. I lived with my youngest child for a year in Vermont in a house without central heating. Our only heat source was a wood-burning stove I built from a galvanized garbage can, and every morning, I chopped wood in the barn.

The water pipes froze in October, and my daughter and I visited a hot tub every day so we could shower. Every night, I hauled a dozen water-filled plastic milk jugs in a rope harness three miles up the steep hill we lived on so we could wash our hands and dishes.

We wore many layers of clothing to bed, and the outside and inside temperatures were often the same. Neither of us ever had a cold, though, as germs could not live in that climate.

Although I often referred to our state as "Varmint," it was one of the most gorgeous places I have ever lived.

7. I have a geographic tongue, which means that unlike most people's, smooth as liver, mine resembles several miles of bad track. It has deep crevices all over it, which are really exposed nerve endings. I cannot drink anything really hot without getting blisters. When I eat pizza, the roof of my mouth hangs in shreds like skin stalagtites.

This is one of many reasons why I should be in a sideshow.

8. I was stalked for several years by a known murderer. I have never stalked anyone, however.

28 comments:

Wanderlust Scarlett said...

Hey Hearts!

Thanks for playing!! YAY!

Kids and Killers and tongues... oh MY!!
Love jazz/blues, and I love Vivaldi, Mozart, Bach and Haydn also. I want to play the violin but haven't picked it up yet. Why did you put yours down? Are you going to pick it back up again?

Books are a staple of life, I am glad they are a staple of yours.

Are you going to get back into acting? I bet you were great. What production did you like doing the best?

I can't even begin to think of what to say about your Vermont experience. Wow.

The murderer has left you alone now, I hope? YIKES. Be careful.


Good post, as usual, thanks for playing!


Scarlett & Viaggiatore

Judith said...

What a fascinating read - but when it comes to you its what to be expected. How utterly chilling that you where stalked by a known murderer. It doesnt get scarier than that.

You are mother in every meaning of the word.

thailandchani said...

Stalked for several years by a known murderer?

Holy crap! And I thought my Charles Manson story was scary!

Peace,

~Chani\

flutter said...

eeeek to the stalking, seriously though.

Anonymous said...

For a person who was reluctant to do this meme, you did it beautifully. Insightful, surprising, funny, engaging.

Each item, each item was something new, a wonderful revelation. Glad to learn a little more about you HinSF. Thank you for doing this.

QT said...

I am in awe of the Vermont years. Many of my best friends have been animals, too. :)

The stalking is scary, tho. I think I remember you alluding to this at one time. I am glad that is in the past.

meno said...

Well, what happened with the murderer? You can't just leave us hanging like that.

Ian Lidster said...

I also played the violin -- badly.
So, which did you prefer as a role? Madge or Millie?
You've led an interesting life my interesting friend and I enjoyed reading about the multifaceted nature of you.
Ian

Mermaid Melanie said...

maybe if you showed the stalker your tongue, he would have left you alone.

this is a cool post! TY!

Anonymous said...

Ok. You can't leave us hanging like that. Give us the smack on the stalker story. Common...

heartinsanfrancisco said...

Scarlett,

Good luck if you decide to study violin. It's a beautiful instrument.

Judith,

There were some scary times. I probably have nine lives.

Chani,

There are a lot of Manson wannabees, strangely. I can think of lovelier ambitions.

Flutter,

Yes. Eeeek pretty much says it all.

Thomas,

I wasn't reluctant so much as thinking of other things right now.

Qt,

I don't remember referring to this before, but perhaps I've forgotten.

It is not a chapter I want to relive.

Meno,

He murdered a Mexican migrant worker in cold blood and got off because it was in NC, where there was little compassion for Hispanic people.

I told the police what I knew, but they couldn't make it stick, or protect me.

Ian,

Madge, definitely.

About that nice fresh bread...

Melanie,

What a wonderful idea! If only I'd thought of it, or had you there to suggest it.

La Cubana,

He followed me for 12 years to four states until I married Flip, when he finally lost interest.

I always look for him when we happen to see America's Most Dangerous Criminals or whatever it is.

Maurey Pierce said...

Some of these need more details! Esp. that last one!!

Open Grove Claudia said...

It's a delight to learn more about you in such a quisical way. Now I'm dying to know WHY you lived without heat and HOW you made the stove and WHAT you love about Vivaldi and...

I'm shockingly nosey, I know.

Thanks for sharing!

urban-urchin said...

i have a geographic tongue too but mine is scalloped on the side b/c of thyroid disease.

A murderer stalked you??!!! Holy CRAP! I am so glad you are alive.

heartinsanfrancisco said...

Maurey,

Not tonight, dear.

Claudia,

I wouldn't have chosen to be without heat in Northern New England, but it was what I could afford at the time.

It did give me a sense that I could survive anything, though.

Urchin,

So is mine, but I didn't know that was the reason, although I also have thyroid disease. Nobody ever told me the conditions were related.

Christina_the_wench said...

I'm back and good lord! Is this murderer famous? Yes, I have a thing for reading true crime. Been doing it for years. My sis and I play "Name that mass murderer/serial killer". She's sick like me

Glad you are not a statistic. Very glad.

heartinsanfrancisco said...

Christina,

I'm glad you're back, and hope you had a great vacation.

Sorry to disappoint you. He was not Ted Bundy or Albert de Salvo, but his victim(s) were just as dead.

I believe that I narrowly escaped becoming one.

Lex said...

While I never played the part, I insisted on reading the part of Lady MacBeth in 11th grade English. I was dying to say, "Out damned spot. Out I say." I was in my glee when we got to that part. MacBeth is my favorite Shakespeare play.

heartinsanfrancisco said...

Lex,

I loved that part, too, as well as the three witches.

"Bubble, bubble, boil and trouble.."

I knew that I would always look young enough, at least from onstage, to play ingenues, but hungered for the great character roles.

furiousBall said...

The only good kind of stalk is celery. Yikes!

Eastcoastdweller said...

No one has ever topped the sublime beauty of Bach at his best or the vibrance of Vivaldi.

HISF, I share Your love of books --I haunt the Friends of the Library sales in my locality, too.

Years ago, said Friends made the mistake of announcing a special sale -- one paper shopping bag load of books for a dollar I think it was. I crammed that bag so full that it was splitting down the sides. I don't think they liked me very much.

heartinsanfrancisco said...

Furious,

Rhubarb makes a nice stalker, too, especially combined with strawberries.

Eastcoaster,

I haunt the library book bay, too. They also have an annual sale in a gigantic building on the wharf in which most books are under $4.00. On the last day (of five,) everything is $1.00

Every year, I take off from my life and spend entire days there, all of them. They have SHOPPING CARTS!!

katrice said...

My daughter has geographic tongue. At times, it looks like portions of her tongue are missing the outermost layer of skin. She hasn't complained about any blisters though.

Musician, actress, poet, author, photographer... you are a true Renaissance woman!

heartinsanfrancisco said...

Katrice,

Really hot liquids are probably painful to your daughter, even if she doesn't complain. I have to let things cool, and in the case of coffee, use lots of cream.

I like to do many things, but that doesn't mean I'm good at all of them.

CS said...

Interesting answers, which I'd have expected. You give up a lot for kids, but get back so much more. I did this meme after getting tagged, but did the same thng you did leaving it an open-ended tag/

heartinsanfrancisco said...

Cs,

I totally agree about getting so much more back from our kids.

I don't like to tag anyone in case they really don't feel like doing a meme, but I love to read their posts if they do.

It's like Mission Impossible: If you don't care to accept this assignment, my blog will self-destruct in 30 seconds.

Maria said...

OK 7 & 8 are really scarry with 8 obviously being really really scarry! I love books too... and as you said... i can also always justify a purchase but I do that with shoes and pocket books too! Acting huh? I can see it.. your a great teller of stories bringing them to life so why not a character?

M

heartinsanfrancisco said...

Running girl,

Ah, yes. Shoes and bags and anything cashmere can be justified as a dire necessity.

Books are just the tip of the wallet er, ICEBERG.