Random Facts About Me (and YOU?) for August 2011

OK, I’ll make you a deal. If I can come up with 10 more random facts about me, you have to post 10 random facts about yourself. Sound good? Great.

  • I hate pickles. On occasion I forget to tell the person behind the counter at Chick-Fil-A that I hate pickles, and my chicken sandwich gets contaminated. Then I am sad.
  • I judge businesses largely by their websites and their responsiveness to email. If a business is going to spend the time and money to build a website, it should be well-designed, professional-looking, and capable of telling me almost anything I want to know as a customer. If I email the business, I want a response within 1 business day that answers the specific questions I ask. These are big demands, but I’m very impressed when a business meets them. I emailed two bike shops this week, and both failed. One never responded at all. The other responded quickly but obviously didn’t read my email closely. I wrote back but haven’t heard from it since.
  • I hate to sweat unless I’m working out. That’s largely because I’m paranoid about body odor for some reason. Please, Lord, let me never be THAT GUY.
  • I once urinated in public. Next to a cop car. While on a ride-along with a cop. He was looking for bad guys, and I was about to explode, so I went for it.
  • Despite my view that he’s taking way too much credit for our state’s comparative economic health, and largely because many people believe those claims, I predict that Rick Perry will win the White House next fall.
  • After feeling convicted during a church retreat, I came home and destroyed my Nine Inch Nails CDs. A decade later I changed my mind and bought back my favorite NIN song (“Wish”) on iTunes.
  • When I’m stressed or depressed, I tend to comfort myself with food, especially sweets. Fortunately, I was blessed with my mom’s metabolism and a life that isn’t terribly stressful most of the time.
  • Something about the idea of rank appeals to me, especially in a military context. Maybe it’s the chance for a career progression and always having something to work toward. I enjoy studying the military ranking system and comparing it across the different branches, such as the equivalency of a Navy Captain to an Air Force Colonel. Yet I also find a rigid ranking system a bit risky. Being ranked higher than someone else doesn’t automatically make that person right, yet it gives him/her the ability to issue orders.
  • I’m really, really glad I’m not a politician. So is my wife. And my mom.
  • I wish I could have a Groundhog Day in which I could experiment with all sorts of different interpersonal scenarios and wild adventures, sorta like a Choose Your Own Adventure book. I would definitely do some stupid things like going streaking at a Ranger game or trying to eat the 72oz steak at the Big Texan in Amarillo, but I would also try having the same conversation in different ways to see what works best, how fast I could drive on the freeway without wrecking, and how it would feel to tell off a coworker who gets on my nerves. I would probably drink more milkshakes, too.