Last week I inadvertently took the week away from blogging, due to some personal stuff we have on our plate (pet health! people health! general laziness!) It’s always hard to get back into the swing of things after a moment away, so to kickstart myself I figured I’d do something low pressure. I’ve always loved when other bloggers share a list of 25 random facts about themselves, but I’ve never done one.
I guess I’ve always assumed no one really cares to hear my 25 random facts. But I figure if I like it when others do it, then there will be plenty of people who’ll be excited that I’m sharing too. So here goes, in no particular order: Presenting 25 random facts about yours truly!
1. Even though I lived in Toronto from the ages of 11 to 24—and I consider myself to be Canadian—I never actually got my citizenship!
2. I started this blog in May of 2008. My very first blog post was a tedious essay about my hunt for the perfect sofa. It had only one (very small!) photo!
3. I have two tattoos, twin arrowheads on my inner ankles. The story behind them deserves a blog post all its own!
4. I’m a morning person, to a fault. My average wakeup time is 5am. If I manage to make it ’til 6am, I feel like I’ve had a luxurious sleep-in!
5. I taught myself to read when I was 3 years old. One day my mother just walked into my bedroom and I was reading a book aloud!
6. One thing I’d never change about my appearance is my hair color. I’m a natural blonde and wouldn’t dream of messing with it!
7. In the second grade I started a nature club with my friends, simply because I wanted an excuse to design our newsletter—and photocopy it on the Xerox machine at my parents’ office.
8. I’ve never been to any Disney park. Scandalous, I know!
9. When I was 8 years old I declared that I wanted to be an author when I grew up, and I promptly set to work writing a 230-page novel in pencil. (As I recall, the plot involved lots of kittens and dollhouses and sleepover parties.)
10. My most-read genre of books is Regency romance novels. I love a good happy ending! Mary Balogh is my trustiest author.
11. Since I grew up in a city with fantastic public transportation, I didn’t learn to drive until I was 22 years old. (I was pretty scared to get behind the wheel, to be honest!)
12. I wore braces for 6 years, starting when I was 10. I probably got them too early, but the orthodontist was giving away a free portable TV to anyone who started treatment the same day as their initial assessment—and of course I convinced my mother that I needed that mini TV.
13. In college I was arrested for shoplifting textbooks from the Stanford bookstore. Yet another story that deserves a blog post all its own!
14. I am filled with all-consuming rage when I hear the sound of people chewing. God forbid Ivan eat an apple when we’re trapped in the car together.
15. Three years ago I got LASIK surgery and still consider it the best decision I ever made.
16. The first time Ivan met my mom, his dog Rambo lunged at her and bit off her nipple, requiring an all-night trip to the emergency room. It also happened to be my birthday that day.
17. Until I was 5 I thought my name was Annie because that’s what everyone called me.
18. I have a soft spot for goofball 80’s comedies. Big Business starting Bette Midler and Lily Tomlin is a classic!
19. Whenever I’m feeling stressed, I ask Ivan to stroke the bridge of my nose “like a pony”. It instantly calms me down.
20. My first “real” job was at Starbucks as a barista in high school. I worked at the location next to the hotel where all the celebs stayed when they passed through Toronto—and there I served coffee to Kevin Spacey, Minnie Driver, Edward Norton, and Dean Cain (yes, TheSuperman!!).
21. I met Ivan through his ex-girlfriend’s childhood best friend. Both ladies in question are also very well-known interiors bloggers. (It’s a small world!)
22. My mom and dad were born two days apart in the same hospital, and they started dating when they were 17. Forty-one years later, they’re still going strong!
23. One of my proudest moments was when I was featured in the New York Times Thursday Styles section for my cofounding of Rue Magazine.
24. I moved to Los Angeles in November of 2012, making it almost 7 years that I’ve been here. I still fall more in love with the city with each passing day!
25. When our cats were kittens, I tried to train them to use the human toilet instead of a litter box. They rebelled by going to the bathroom in the tub instead; and they’ve been doing it ever since.
Images by Eslee.