Dear Xanga,

Today I filled out one of these things on face book. Lately it has been the fad on facebook so I contributed to this in thing of the moment.

Here it is!

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

1.       Everyone’s 25 things helped me procrastinate.  I also really enjoy reading them.  I like learning more/getting to know people better. Keep posting them! J

2.       I love singing and memorizing lyrics. I sing a lot in the shower, elevators, and when I walk by myself.  I occasionally make up my own lyrics and melodies.

3.       For about 3 weeks now, I’ve been eating three apples a day. Did you know that apples are a natural breath freshener? Now you know.
 

4.       I tried to set this guy up with my cousin. Even though I didn’t know the guy, I thought he liked her so I tried anyway. That didn’t work out too well. After getting to know that guy a little better, I ended up being really irritated, annoyed, and frustrated with him. I began to hate him. I was so mean to him. I flamed his xanga chatterbox. I heard that he cried himself to sleep because of all the awful things I did to him. Miraculously enough, as time went on we became friends. That guy is actually now my best friend. I can tell him everything/anything. He’s practically in my family now. His name is Nelson Nguyen.

5.       I use to fiddle with my hair to relieve stress. I’m not sure exactly when it started, but I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t doing it. Now it has become one of my bad habits and I find myself unconsciously fiddling. 

6.       In high school my “bester friend” Kelvin Arca-san made up PokeMANG.  Everyone had a pokemon name. Mine was “Tafiary” (clefairy). Some of my favorites were: Kelvinusaur (Kelvin- Venusaur), Bingler (Bing-Kingler), Neldoran (Nelson-Nidoran), Raytta (Ray- Rattata).

7.       I love watching and playing tennis. I have been of fan of Rafael Nadal for about 5 years now. It’s great to finally seem him at number 1. WHOO. I only like watching live tennis matches.  I feel like by watching the match, I somehow affect the outcome.

8.       Throughout the years, my family has gone through several pets. This includes:  6 dogs, 5 hamsters, tons of fish, 5 baby turtles, 2 rabbits, 10 chicken, 1 rooster, and 5 birds. All of the pets either died or we had to give them away. Of the six dogs, I currently now only have two dogs.

9.       I’ve wanted to become a teacher ever since kindergarten. My goal hasn’t changed. I can’t wait to start taking teaching classes and fulfilling my lifetime dream career.

10.   During most of my childhood, I always hung out with my 8 cousins and 2 siblings. Some people thought we were an asian gang.  I have so many great memories with them: like learning to ride my bike down a huge hill, riding our bikes on our elementary school roof, getting in mud ball fights with “Lukie Dukie”, Biggies, Middlies, Littlies, Rascal hotel, Gooney Rocks, Old Maid stories, Scary foot print, Lily’s house, Tom’s BBQ, shrimp pealing, eating “butter cups”, sports, and sleepovers.  Even though my cousins and I occasionally go eat dinner and spend the holidays together, I really miss those days. 

11.   I’m glad I have 20/20 vision because the bridge of my nose can’t really hold glasses up for very long. I would wear sun glasses more often if they would stay up for longer periods of time. >.<.

12.   My growth spurt in 6^th grade was 1 inch. Sad.. I know..

13.   When I was a kid, my siblings used to make me cry every day. As the youngest child of three, I was bullied and tortured a lot. I will never forget the time when my siblings put a glow in the dark scream mask outside of my window. I’m sort scarred for life. They would also force me to do really ridiculous things: like wrestle with my German Sheppard dog.  My brother use to scare me with spiders and put bugs in my shoes. Despite all of that, I feel so fortunate to be the youngest.  My siblings play a large role in my life. They constantly teach me, give me advice, and assist me whenever I need it. I’m very close with both my siblings. They are like my best friends. I’m also the baby and favorite in the family.

14.   Ever since I was five, I have been wishing on stars every day. “First star I see tonight.. ”    

15.   I actually haven’t got tired of people asking me: “Is taffy your real name.” However, I have gotten tired of hearing “laffy taffy” song being sung to me. That song really sucks; I seriously don’t know why people liked it.   

16.   People always ask me how I got my name. I usually answer with my fake answer because I think it sounds better and it makes old people laugh.

a.       My fake answer: My mom wanted a sweet child so she thought Taffy would be the perfect name.

b.       Real Answer: My mom wasn’t expecting me. She actually found out she was pregnant when she went to the hospital with my aunt. My aunt named her child, who is 3 months older than I, Tammy. My mom wanted a similar name so she just changed the M’s to F’s.    

17.   I played the Chinese Zither (Guzheng) for two years. I quit because my teacher was price gouging and I couldn’t really afford it.  $60 for 30 minutes? $120 for 1 hr. Although the lessons were extremely expensive, I still always regret quitting.

18.   I hope one day to go to china and seriously study Chinese. I want to further learn about my families past, culture, language, and continue learning how to play the zither.
  

19.    I want to have three children. I want three just so that there could be a Taffy in the family. I’m not sure how I’ll feel when it comes time to giving to birth to these said children though.

20.   Whenever I like a song I replay it over and over again. One time I replayed the song for an entire day. The song was “I must be dreaming ” by Frou Frou.  I currently can’t stop listening to Gravity by Sara Barillels.

21.   Even though I care a lot about neatness and organization, I can only keep it up for about 2 weeks. I tend to get lazy and need to reorganize later.

22.   I don’t really enjoy small talk because I’m not very good at it. I actually like getting to know people better. I have and prefer smaller groups of friends.

23.   I like to bake cookies, cupcakes, and cakes for my friends and family. I’m slowly getting better at decorating.  

24.   My father has gone through a lot of hardship throughout his life. Due to communism, my father was forced into poverty. He had to quit school at an early age to work and support his family. Even though my dad only completed up to 4^th grade in schooling, he is by far the most insightful person I know. He always has positive attitude and has taught me many valuable life lessons.  I love hearing about his stories of triumph and overcoming the struggles. My mother use to be an opera singing in china. She still sings very well. While I practice playing my zither, she sings a long.  

25.    Before I left for college I bought a dog stuffed animal. I named it JARD. I knew I would miss my lovely doggie Jaja too much so I bought JARD. JARD stands for “JA Replacement Dog”.  Jaja is 10 years old. I don’t think I could ever bare to see her pass away. I fear that day. I hope it never happens.  I LOVE YOU JAJA! 

-Taffy Tom :)