What is one thing about you that might surprise people who know you?

[elle_71125]

That I'm a makeup hoarder, er, collector. I have like 200 lipsticks.

and one pair of lips. So dumb!

Me too! I even bought a storage organizer so I could separate them into different categories (nudes, pinks, reds, etc). But the truth is I almost never leave the house in them. Like @missy, I feel like I’m playing dress up...but not in a good way. I just feel like I look weird. So I wear lipgloss instead. All those beautiful lip products going to waste.

 

[elle_71125]

1. I haven’t driven on a highway in probably 10 years. I have terrible anxiety on busy roadways. I can be in the car as a passenger just not as the driver.

2. I have crippling social anxiety. People tend to think I’m aloof or unfriendly but I’m really just shy and awkward.

3. Drinking alcohol serves no purpose for me. I can not get drunk. My body has an automatic shut-off switch so as soon as I start to loosen up...I get tired and want to sleep.

 

[Dee*Jay]

I have hundreds and hundreds of depression glass wine glasses. And I keep getting more... I do actually use them though, for everything! Wine, prosecco, diet coke, sparkling water, any cold drink, you name it. If I drink it in my house there's a good chance it's being consumed out of depression glass.

 

[Sparkles88]

That I'm a makeup hoarder, er, collector. I have like 200 lipsticks.

and one pair of lips. So dumb!

At one stage I had almost 300 bottles of nail polish, haha... I’m also a makeup hoarder, so I understand completely .

 

[Sparkles88]

My dad shot my mom in front of me, was going to shoot me but I escaped. He committed suicide. I was 19. She lived for another 22 years. Love you Mom.

( I don't tell people. They see me as damaged goods.)

I’m so sorry this happened to you and your mom....wanted to give you the biggest hug, take care @Begonia X

 

[MissGotRocks]

I am a dish hoarder. I have 8 sets of fine China and 8 sets of casual everyday ware, plus 3 full sets of sterling flatware. I set the table every night as if royalty is coming, lol. Always with fresh flowers. Omg, I need to get a life.

Oh, I love this! Think of what memories there will be for your children of beautiful table settings and fresh flowers. They may not realize it now but they will look back and remember the time and effort you took to make your meals special. Nothing more elegant and indulgent than eating at a well set table - unless it would be clean sheets every day! I try to set a nice table for hubby and I on the weekends but during the work week there is not a lot of time to do this but I do cook almost every night of the week.

 

[Gussie]

Oh, I love this! Think of what memories there will be for your children of beautiful table settings and fresh flowers. They may not realize it now but they will look back and remember the time and effort you took to make your meals special. Nothing more elegant and indulgent than eating at a well set table - unless it would be clean sheets every day! I try to set a nice table for hubby and I on the weekends but during the work week there is not a lot of time to do this but I do cook almost every night of the week.

You are doing better than me! I only cook 4 nights a week. And I get blue Apron 2 of those nights. It's the only way I can have time to cook. Setting the table is the easy part!

 

[MissGotRocks]

I usually do something big on Sunday that we can eat again one time during the week. I am sure I am like everyone else in that you get tired of figuring out what to eat. We eat out on Friday and Saturday nights cause we are usually out and about anyway. Diet all week and blow it on the weekends - seems rather counter productive but it is our life - lol!

 

[bludiva]

i love an elegantly set table but can only manage to make it happen on the holidays.....dinner at ceg's house!

 

[missy]

i love an elegantly set table but can only manage to make it happen on the holidays.....dinner at ceg's house!

I’ll bring the dessert.

 

[ringo865]

Ermergerd pumpkin pie is my fave!!

 

[missy]

Ermergerd pumpkin pie is my fave!!

You’re invited when you’re ready for some homemade pumpkin pie.

 

[Gussie]

Typical weeknight. I am ultimately inspired by James Farmer. His style is beyond comparison. Would love to have every one of y'all for dinner!

 

[AV_]

@ceg It is so good, what you do! I was taught this habit - to make the day's meal beautiful and peaceful, and it came to mean so much.

 

[Calliecake]

@ceg , Your table setting is beautiful!!!

 

[Gussie]

@ceg , Your table setting is beautiful!!!

Thank you! Not everyone's taste but it fits for us. Southern style is a mix of English country and eclectic comfort. Above all, it must be inviting and warm.

 

[Bonfire]

Typical weeknight. I am ultimately inspired by James Farmer. His style is beyond comparison. Would love to have every one of y'all for dinner!

This is gorgeous ceg! A feast for the eyes and senses! Even if the meal consisted of two lettuce leaves it would be an exceptional experience!

 

[asscherisme]

When I refer to myself as an introvert people who know me, but are not particularly closest to me, they are always surprised. They always say, "I would have thought you were an extrovert."

But I'm not. I was just raised by extroverts that thought being an extrovert was 'normal' so I constantly pushed out of my comfort zone and I learned how to fake it well. It's a skill now that I use in social situations like a shield but it's not natural to me.

I am also a introvert, but know how to "fake it" as an extrovert. Only my close friends and select family members know I am an introvert. I hate hate hate being the center of attention.

 

[Diamond_Hawk]

Sometimes YouTube videos change the keys of songs (maybe to try and avoid copyright issues or something?) and I can't listen to them

RIGHT! I have several friends with perfect pitch and it will drive them crazy to try to 'sing-along' at a karaoke party where the performer has changed the key to suit their particular range.

 

[Wewechew]

Typical weeknight. I am ultimately inspired by James Farmer. His style is beyond comparison. Would love to have every one of y'all for dinner!

Oh my goodness, you DO go all out! Beautiful

 

[msop04]

I'm a popaholic... like cysts, blackheads, etc. I have been since... well, as long as I can remember, so before Dr. Sandra Lee made it acceptable. Everyone at the clinic knows to call me back to observe a good infected cyst lancing, or I will be pi$$ed!!

 

[Austina]

Typical weeknight. I am ultimately inspired by James Farmer. His style is beyond comparison. Would love to have every one of y'all for dinner!

When we move to Austin, I’ll take you up on your invitation @ceg

Hello, my name is Austina, but you can call me Imelda Last count I had 80+ pairs of shoes, and since then I’ve probably bought at least another 12.

 

[MissGotRocks]

I'm a popaholic... like cysts, blackheads, etc. I have been since... well, as long as I can remember, so before Dr. Sandra Lee made it acceptable. Everyone at the clinic knows to call me back to observe a good infected cyst lancing, or I will be pi$$ed!!

Love Dr. Sandra Lee!!

 

[prs]

I have hundreds and hundreds of depression glass wine glasses. And I keep getting more... I do actually use them though, for everything! Wine, prosecco, diet coke, sparkling water, any cold drink, you name it. If I drink it in my house there's a good chance it's being consumed out of depression glass.

I was a wine buying addict before I became a bling addict. We drink slowly, so still have about 800 bottles.

Your glasses and my wine need to get together!!!

 

[SandyinAnaheim]

I have intense misophonia and can't be around some people. Like @lyra I have had chronic insomnia since I was a toddler. I was raised by a physically abusive mother who enjoyed attacking me every time she got upset with my absent cheating father, and put me in the hospital multiple times. My mother threw me out of the house after just having turned 15, with a 9th grade Catholic school education and I lived in a parked car for 6 months. I have difficulty with inane chit chat, I seem to only be able to participate in real conversations about real things. I can't do crowds after being caught in a stampede at a concert. I like animals more than people.

ETA: Forgot to say @Begonia I'm so glad you had your Mom for another 22 years!!! What a BLESSING indeed.

 

[GreenPapaya]

Wow, I'm humble reading everyone's experiences. I'm so consumed with my life sometimes that I forget that others do not have perfect lives.

I don't have any secrets from people who know me really well. But my coworkers and casual acquaintances may be surprised to learn that I married my first boyfriend, that I don't drink alcohol, that I am a survivor of the Khmer Rouge, that I started working at 11 years old in the factories and farms in New Jersey and that I was an Intel officer for the US Army. They may be surprised that I had 4 kids or that i had cancer and a mastectomy (my perfect perky boobs are not real lol). I think they will be really shocked if they found out I read smutty romance novels (I'm on a Sherry Thomas binge right now). At work I am a quiet, bland, boring, forgettable woman who rarely socialize at work and never outside work.

 

[lovedogs]

I have difficulty with inane chit chat, I seem to only be able to participate in real conversations about real things. I like animals more than people.

I relate to this so much. People are surprised to find out that in my "real" life (outside of work) I'm very introverted and HATE meeting new people. If I don't think someone will become a forever friend I find it really difficult to "chat" with them...it's so difficult for me and feels pointless. DH is SUCH an extrovert. I tell him to "find" us friends, so I don't have to go through the initial getting to know someone stage. If someone has a dog, or tattoos, or has survived trauma then I immediately feel more at ease/connected. But if none of the above (or I don't know), I struggle. I don't mind teaching classes or supervising students, or meeting strangers for clinical work. But it feels 100% different in a social situation and I hate it.

 

[Dancing Fire]

I was a wine buying addict before I became a bling addict. We drink slowly, so still have about 800 bottles.

Your glasses and my wine need to get together!!!

..A diamond will look a lot BIGGER after a couple of bottles.

 

[missy]

That I pass out at the sight of blood occasionally. Not when they are taking it for blood work but mainly when I see it re injuries etc. That's one of the main reasons I knew becoming a surgeon was not my calling lol. It's called a Vasovagal response or neurocardiogenic syncope to the sight of blood.

Reading your replies reminds me of another fact about myself people don't know. I was born with insomnia and from first days through present time I am a very poor sleeper. I wake up every hour or 2 and generally am awake by 4 AM. Today I was awake since 3:15 AM. It sucks but I make the best of it.

It's interesting how many of us are introverts. I wonder if that is what draws us to posting. It's easier being "extroverted" and connecting with people on the internet on our terms.

When I refer to myself as an introvert people who know me, but are not particularly closest to me, they are always surprised. They always say, "I would have thought you were an extrovert."

But I'm not. I was just raised by extroverts that thought being an extrovert was 'normal' so I constantly pushed out of my comfort zone and I learned how to fake it well. It's a skill now that I use in social situations like a shield but it's not natural to me.

100% this is me.

 

[SandyinAnaheim]

I relate to this so much. People are surprised to find out that in my "real" life (outside of work) I'm very introverted and HATE meeting new people. If I don't think someone will become a forever friend I find it really difficult to "chat" with them...it's so difficult for me and feels pointless. DH is SUCH an extrovert. I tell him to "find" us friends, so I don't have to go through the initial getting to know someone stage. If someone has a dog, or tattoos, or has survived trauma then I immediately feel more at ease/connected. But if none of the above (or I don't know), I struggle. I don't mind teaching classes or supervising students, or meeting strangers for clinical work. But it feels 100% different in a social situation and I hate it.

I hear you, I am similar. I feel I'm not an extrovert by any stretch, but I can play one for a short time with people I like. But then I need a long recovery time to be able to do it again. I don't know if you can relate, but for me it's that I find most people fake and thus, I have no need or desire to be talking to them. Personally, I can't stomach people who are double-faced or hypocrites, and so many people are...