The Tell Me About Yourself Award

For quite awhile, I was safe from Blog Chain Letters.  For one thing, only a few people read my blog.  And for another, I didn't blog enough to give anyone the idea that I would respond.  I guess more people read my blog now--I do have 20 subscribers on Google Reader.  But anyway, this blog chain letter is pretty basic: tell 7 things about myself.  And, the title of the chain letter / award is

If it says "Your blog is great!" in it, I'm a little more inclined to respond.

So, seven things about me.

1.  I have the music to almost all of Les Miserables memorized.  I could pretty much sing the entire thing, including much of the orchestral part.  When my high school put it on, I could tell you exactly what was changed and what was cut.  (That's also when I began to notice a lot more of the nuances of the orchestral part.  I guess playing the music adds to my appreciation for it.)

2.  I've read all the Jane Austen books, and have watched a majority of the film adaptations.  I've gradually gotten into books from other authors in the 1800s, and have watched and read (in that order) some of the adaptations and books from Elizabeth Gaskell, Charlotte Bronte, Anne Bronte, and Charles Dickens.
[Fun fact: The Bronte sisters' father changed his last name from Brunty to Bronte.  It was out of admiration for Lord Nelson, who had the title of the Duke of Bronte.]

3.  I've dabbled in a lot of different kinds of things: I've done some cool stuff with photography, have been learning a bit more about photo editing, have learned a lot about computers in the past few years, am now getting into jewelry-making, and have done some cake-decorating kinds of things in the past.

4.  I met my husband in a physics computer lab.  It was about 8 pm on a Wednesday night, and we sent something to the printer at the same time.  He recognized what I printed as a reading assignment for a class he was taking as well, and that started us talking.
[Aside: That morning, I had written in my grateful journal that I was really grateful to not be in a relationship--the previous day I had listened to two friends share the drama of their current dating situations, and I was glad to be avoiding that.]

5.  I'm working on a PhD in Mechanical Engineering.  (Yes, I am slightly crazy.)  I just passed my preliminary exam on December 7, which means I'm now in the stage of all but dissertation.

6.  Besides when I was one year old, my hair has only been cut above my shoulders once.  And that was only because the beauty school student cut it too short: I said 10 inches; she cut 14.

7.  My favorite color is green.  I think I have something like 12 green shirts, between the short sleeved tees, the long sleeved tees, the button-down shirts, the cardigans, and the sweaters.  I also have a plethora of green earrings to coordinate.

[Yes, I am supposed to pass this award along.  But I'm not going to.]