Dawn Foster tagged me a while ago to tell 8 things that you may not know about me:

1. I love to garden, but I tend to kill houseplants.
2. My favorite wines tend to be from the Rhône region of France.
3. I played the violin for 11 years and had a senior recital where I played a few Bach sonatas, Czardas (V. Monti), Praludium and Allegro (Fritz Kreisler), and a Mozart violin concerto. My hometown orchestra once played all of the Vivaldi Four Seasons, and I was the soloist for Spring.
4. The smell of bananas makes me gag. I ate my first whole, raw banana in 15 years after my second leg in a the Hood to Coast race three years ago.
5. I was vegetarian for about 13 years, the last four of which I practiced veganism. I am no longer vegetarian. I broke my veganism with a homemade hamburger.
6. I’m an avid reader, and particularly enjoy science fiction (I know, what nerd doesn’t). I started reading Asimov as a pre-teen (Foundation series, I, Robot series) because it was around the house. I read Heinlein, Herbert, and Philip K. Dick as a teen. I’ve recently read from the Ender series (Orson Scott Card), and I’m always looking for suggestions.
7. My cat’s name is Beda (really, it’s Беда) which is Russian for ‘trouble’. I am teased about this constantly. Typical responses when I say her name are ‘bidet’, ‘dog’, ‘belie’, ‘be-what?’, and most commonly: ‘that’s a name?’
8. I have a BA, not a BS. I think I had to decide between taking some additional silly 100 or 200 level pre-reqs, or starting Russian. The choice was pretty easy.