I've Been Tagged!

I've been Tagged by a gentle hand!

Yes, elementaryhistoryteacher has decided that there are some of her constant readers she would like to know more about, and I was one of the chosen eight! I am flattered! (Incidentally historyiselementary is one of the sites up for a Bloggers Choice Award. My vote has already been cast!)

I entered the blogsphere as a contributor to a friend's political blog; I thought it was cut and dried: Something is posted by the webmaster and comments were made and exchanged by contributors (many times, acrimoniously). I had no idea when I began that there was so much going on in other neighborhoods!

And this seems to be one of the most pleasant neighborhoods! As I have already stated in a recent post, I have met some wonderful people - a real eclectic group! We may never know one another's name or identity (isn't that delicious?!), but I have been learning and experiencing so much!

Here are the rules:

1. Let others know who tagged you. 2. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves. 3. Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8 random facts. 4. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been tagged.
The above rules need to be posted.

Now for the tidbits:

1. I am old enough to have shaken Eleanor Roosevelt's hand when I was six! It was my mother who told me to run over to her and shake her hand after we had visited Hyde Park. (Evidently, Mrs. Roosevelt had been conducting a VIP tour for some Asian doctors.) She was so sweet! I told her that my mother sent me and that I was supposed to shake her hand. She clasped my hand between her hands and asked me my name. After I told her, I asked her what her name was. You can imagine how astounded I was that this nice, elderly lady had been married to President Roosevelt and I had just visited their home! I didn't know what to do, so I curtsied and thanked her for letting us visit her home (I was very polite, then). She thought I was lovely and charming! When I ran back to my mother and stepfather, I was so pleased! My mother looked at me and asked me who that lady was and naturally, I told her everything! My mother looked at me seriously and said, "For the rest of your life, you will remember that you shook Eleanor Roosevelt's hand."

And she was right! I tell that story to each group I conduct through the FDR Memorial. The irony is that my family have always chuckled that I actually curtsied to Eleanor Roosevelt; while my mother did have a sense of history, she and other members of her family left the Democratic Party because of the Roosevelts!

2. I had intended to become a Classicist/Medievalist, then apprenticed, on Broadway, in theatre administration (working with the Phoenix Theatre which included Meryl Streep, John Lithgow, and Barry Bostwick), and ended up in student tourism as something to do 'between jobs'. I've been 'between jobs' for over 25 years! I LOVE MY JOB!

3. One of my postings was just published in the AFT quarterly magazine, American Educator. It was the first time since high school (does that count?) that something of mine has been published! This was so unexpected! I have made a copy of the check and will frame it! Time to splurge!

4. I'm a lot sillier in person and on tour than I am in print.

5. I love to cook and entertain. My specialties: Italian, French, and Thai. Small, intimate dinner parties are my favorite. (But I can't bake a decent cake to save my life!)

6. I am a procrastinator. Even as I write this, I should be attending to other business, So many creative projects, including a children's play, are on the back burner. I need some more self discipline or a slave-driver!

7. If it is in black and white, I'll watch it! I don't care what AFI says, Casablanca is the best movie ever made!

8. I'm addicted to tea. I brew tea the old-fashioned way and have over twenty varieties and blends at any given time in my cupboard.

Photo of me: Here I am addressing a safety patrol from Florida at Arlington National Cemetery


Now for the, You're It!

GreenManTim at Walking the Berkshires

Dave Tabler at Appalachian History

Walter Snyder at Ask the Pastor (While I am not a Lutheran, this is a wonderful site. Walter had cited me as one of the five blogs that made him think, unfortunately, I was on tour at the time - I'll respond this week! I also did not realize that a thank-you isn't enough; etiquette demands reciprocation! )

I haven't heard from Jarod in a long time, but I find his site fascinating as well as his art. Jarod's Forge

Sheila O'Malley at The Sheila Variations and Founding Fathers

Teachergirl

Mrs. Mecomber at New York State Traveler

Apple, my favorite schoolbus driver and Mom!