Eight Things You Weren't Dying To Know

So, Bora tagged me today with the Eight Random Facts meme. And since it's Bora, I will respond. Here are the rules:

1. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.
2. Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8 random facts.
3. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been
tagged.

But I'm sorry, tagging 8 other people is laborious. Plus it begins to feel less meme-ish and more chain-letter-ish (which is what memes are anyway, but meme sounds so much nicer.) So, if you are reading this, and you have a blog, and this sounds nifty to you, and you'd like to do this, consider yourself tagged by me, if you so desire.

Onward to the eight useless pieces of information!

• I was born in a car.
• I fell down and skinned my knee just prior to marching into church with all the other First Communicants in my class. As a consequence, I left a blood mark on the special white satin kneeler set up on the altar for us holy innocents to use on the first occasion of receiving the Body of Christ.
• I tend to pick up the accent of the region I'm living in and blend it with my original western PA accent. (See important details about yinz.) I lived and worked in Germany for 2.5 years, and there I think I adopted not just the accent but also the syntax of German-English. When I moved back to the U.S., I was asked more than once, "Your accent is so interesting; what country are you from?"
• When I first moved to Kansas, I suffered from a mild form of agoraphobia. The wide, flat, open spaces of the prairie caused me considerable anxiety and I even had a mild panic attack on our first house hunting trip. There are no trees here! was my complaint. Eventually, however, I came to love the prairie, so much so that when I moved back to Pennsylvania I suffered intensely from claustrophobia, much worse than the agoraphobia I'd had in Kansas. There are too many trees here! became my new complaint. This was a fascinating experience to me because, as much as I've moved around, the terrain of Pennsylvania has always felt like home to me. I never expected to have to "get used to" it again.
• I have enjoyed gardening for about 10 years now but this year is the first year I planted a rosebush. It's a rosebush for beginners, a Knockout, but it's still a rosebush.
• My earliest career goal in life was to be a writer. At the age of 7, I announced to my family that I had formed the Poem Manufacturing Company, and that for the fee of 10 cents, I would write a poem for anyone on any topic they wished. Poetry and the entrepreneurial spirit! They were great poems, too, as I am sure you can imagine.
• My cats, China and Bodhi, get their names from a song. Bonus points to anyone who can figure out which song. (It can't be that hard...) Extra triple bonus points to anyone who can extract meaning from the song...
• The first (and only) brand new car that I ever owned was a Mazda 323, a two-door hatchback not to be confused with the four-door Protege. Its luxury features included power steering and air conditioning. Mr. Zuska used to call it "The Little Red Bead" because it did look like a tiny little bead. Here is the perfect picture of my sweet little ride. Not mine literally, but one that looks like mine. Little Red Bead, you served me well for 10 years. I still miss you.

And that's it. I'm sure your life is immeasurably enriched now.