I was tagged for this by Gail Maki Wilson.
- I love knowledge competitions, and I've participated in the National Spelling Bee (5th grade), the state Geography Bee (7th grade), many Future Business Leaders of America events (culminating in 5th place in national competition in Business English, a.k.a. copyediting, 11th grade), quiz bowl (from 9th grade to my senior year of college, culminating in the undergraduate national championship my junior year), "Jeopardy!", and "The 24th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" (like Lisa Yee). And lots and lots of Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit.
- I wore a back brace for scoliosis for six years.
- I don't believe in astrology in terms of the stars controlling my day-to-day life, but characterwise, I am a Virgo with a capital V. (Except, my Virgo nature notes, that "with a capital V" is redundant because "Virgo" already has a capital V, and couldn't I find some other way to express the emphasis?) You need something structured, copyedited, or ironed out (because sadly I really like ironing) -- I'm your woman.
- I love musical theatre. Every summer while I was growing up, my family would go to Starlight, Kansas City's outdoor musical theatre, and I have a huge number of lyrics and tunes committed to memory. Plus James (das boyfriendlich) and I connected over a mutual passion for Stephen Sondheim.
- I collect stars and New York City subway-related items. The subway is one of my very favorite things about New York -- environmentally friendly, relatively dependable, brightly colored, communal and yet usually peaceful, especially on a weekday morning, when we're all absorbed in our papers and iPods on the way to work. Plus my daily commute is a guaranteed hour of reading time per day!
- My favorite artist is Henri Matisse, partly because I love all the color and light and vibrancy of his work, partly because he's such a perfect example of what I'm looking for in every manuscript I read: a brilliantly original, feeling-drenched and yet totally controlled, utterly unique and unduplicateable view of a true and recognizable world.
- I have a tattoo. But you don't need to know any more than that. :-)
- And ETA because I can't count: I can't count.