25 Random Things

This 25 Random Things meme has been flooding my facebook news feed for a few weeks now. I read the first one that I saw, when I had not yet realized what a phenomenon it was going to become. I've lost count on the number of people who have posted them since, so I don't remember how many of them I haven't read in full (I do read parts of them if they get comments).

The instructions are simple. Write 25 random things about yourself, then "tag" 25 of your friends who are supposed to do the same. Early iterations included conditions that they had to be true and not well known.

I've been seeing things like this since I started using email, although they usually ask for more specific details than just "things". I've sent a few completed replies (usually after I've been prodded by the sender), and occasionally passed them on. They don't seem to catch on. They've also shown up on blogs, although I've never been a victim of tagging in that case. They've even appeared on facebook in the past. One thing that is interesting (to me) about this particular meme is that a lot more people seem to have been doing this one than those that appear in emails or blogs.

The meme has been dying down. I've seen a few in the last couple days, and other similar ones are now appearing more frequently than the old one. I'm guessing those who thought the last one was oodles of fun are looking for they're next fun fix, but even though they're dominating now, they're not nearly as popular as the last.

In typical Randy fashion, I've jumped on the bandwagon just before it leaves town. I had been tagged a few times, and, you know, you gotta give the people what they want, although I didn't follow the rules very closely. Somebody reminded me today that I haven't blogged in a while, and I figured this would be good blog fodder. Enjoy.

25 Random Things

1. I think most people say "random" when they mean "arbitrary", such as in the title of this post.

2. I think that the 25 things that people write are neither random nor arbitrary.

3. I was in the grocery store when I thought of 1. and 2.

4. The 227g packages of mushrooms for $2.49 were sold out, so I bought bulk mushrooms at $3.99/pound.

5. I bought too many, which resulted in my pasta sauce boiling over.

6. My favourite colour is red. This is not because I find the colour particularly appealing. When I was young, my mother colour coded things so we would know which was mine and which was my brother's. My stuff was red, my brother's was blue. The only logical conclusion that my 4 year old mind could make is that she chose red because it was my favourite colour. Quod Erat Demonstrandum.

7. I can show you how to do-si-do. I can show you how to scratch a record. I can take apart the remote control, and I can almost put it back together.

8. A little part of me dies when somebody tells me they want to do a PhD in anything.

9. See number 10.

10. See number 9.

11. What's with those people whose facebook activity seems to have nothing to with anything but politics?

12. The distance from my parking spot at work to the farthest place I've been from home is 3,914 km by car.

13. From 10 May 1940 to 27 July 1945 and from 26 October 1951 to 7 April 1955, I was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. [1]

14. Pending.

15. I's the b'y that builds the boat.

16. I am just as impressed that they all answered the bell when he asked for a helping hand recently.

17. I ripoff most of my status updates from songs, tv shows, and newspapers. Number 7, 15, and 16 are also rip-offs.

18. The status update about candy, if you remember it, is actually about me.

19. I know the difference between it's and its, you're and your, they're, their, and there, and other groups of homophones, butt eye right the wrong won moor then I right the write won.

20. I was feeling bold, so I formatted my note [2].

21. Hey remember that time when I would only read Shakespeare.

22. Hey remember that other time when I would only read the backs of cereal boxes.

23 is a prime number.

24. Having read numbers 1-23, I doubt that you know me any better now than you already did.

25. I agree with this article.

26. I can't count.

[1] Current facebook profile picture.

[2] When you are composing a Note in facebook, there is a small, er, note which reads "Feeling bold? Format your note".