annika's journal: 100 Trivial Things To Know About annie

January 21, 2004

100 Trivial Things To Know About annie

i was born in København, Denmark in 1977.

i am right handed.

My only sibling is my brother Derrick, who is two years younger than me. We are very close. He is totally irresponsible, but he's also the funniest person i know.

My Mom is Danish and my Dad is American.

My parents met in Denmark and moved to San Francisco soon after i was born. i grew up in the Bay Area, lived briefly in Los Angeles, and now i'm attending law school in the Sacramento area.

My Dad is a lawyer.

My Dad calls me Sis or Sissy and sometimes Sissika.

He is the only person who does that.

My Mom is a nurse.

She sometimes calls me her little angel.

i am not an angel. In fact i scored a 163 on this test.

i am naturally blonde.

i have blue eyes.

i am 5' 8½" tall.

i hate my fingers.

i have never been married.

My worst habit is smoking. i've tried to quit many times.

i plan to try again.

i have an A.B. and an M.A. in history from the University of California.

i have 20/20 vision.

i have literally hundreds of books.

They are my most prized possessions.

There are stacks of books on the floor of my room because i have run out of shelf space.

i am Roman Catholic.

i try to go to mass every week.

i've had my tonsils out, but not my appendix. i also had braces when i was twelve.

i love sports. My favorite sport to watch is basketball.

i have a HUGE crush on Alex Rodriguez.

i totally want to jump his bones.

i am a very good tennis player.

i am an even better dancer. i fantasize about being a Laker Girl.

i was both a geek and a cheerleader when i was in high school. i also went through a serious goth phase and a hippie phase.

When i was in choir, i sang soprano.

i never capitalize the pronoun I. i don't know why i do that, it's something that i started doing in junior high school. It drove my teachers and my parents crazy, which is probably why i continued doing it.

My best friend Elisabeth and i were born on the exact same day.

When i grow up i want to be as nice a person as Elisabeth is.

i have owned three cars in my life: a white Honda Civic, a black Volkswagen Jetta and a silver Mazda MX-6. i had the Jetta the longest, until it was stolen. i still miss that car.

i have a potty mouth.

i think the greatest male singer ever was Frank Sinatra. The greatest singer ever, male or female, was Ella Fitzgerald.

i will accept no disagreement regarding #39.

My favorite nonfiction writer is Stephen E. Ambrose. Although academic historians turn their nose up at him, i have truly enjoyed every single book of his that i have read.

My favorite poets are William Carlos Williams and Edna St. Vincent Millay.

i listen to talk radio more than i listen to music radio.

That is probably because i am a conservative Republican.

When i lived in the Bay Area, i was convinced that i was the only female conservative Republican in existence.

My very good friend Francine is a total liberal. We argue all the time, but we're still close friends. She's a card carrying member of the Green Party.

i was a member of Mensa, but for only one year.

i didn't turn stupid, i just stopped paying my dues.

My Dad is the smartest person i know.

Francine is the second smartest person i know.

They are both smarter than me.

i have never won a game of chess, but i have never lost a game of trivial pursuit.

i believe hard work is infinitely more valuable in a person than raw intelligence, but i also hate hard work.

i am non-confrontational.

i have no artistic talent whatsoever. i tried drawing and painting, but i sucked at it. i took an art class in college and dropped it after the first project, when i got a C.

If i ever owned a pilates studio, i would call it Pontius Pilates.

i have literally dozens of shoes. i love shoes almost as much as i love books. On second thought, i love shoes more.

My favorite movie is The Wizard of Oz.

i had a cousin that i was very close to, named Destynne, who was killed by her boyfriend.

The killer is now in prison in New Jersey. i think they gave him 15 years, which is not long enough for what he did. i hope he never gets out.

i support the death penalty. i used to be pro-choice, but now i am against abortion. Francine believes exactly the opposite, and she thinks my position is self-contradictory. i think hers is.

i would like to get married someday. i would also like to have two children, a boy and a girl.

i am afraid of marrying someone who is not my soulmate and ending up divorced. That fear makes me unreasonably hard to please where men are concerned.

i am an unrepentant hawk, who has studied the works of Gandhi, King and Merton. i admire these men very much. The trouble, as i see it, is that Saddam Hussein, Kim Jong Il, Osama Bin Laden and Yasser Arafat do not.

i have dated men from every ethnic background except native american. Not that i wouldn't date a native american, i would, but there aren't that many where i live.

i use Clinique beauty products.

i believe race is a social construct and that we are all the same, basically. But we haven't learned to act like it yet.

i believe "anime" is a Japanese word, which translated means: shitty animation.

i have two tattoos. One is a barb wire design on the outside of my right arm. i wimped out and didn't have it done all the way around. The other is a tiger's head on my left shoulder blade.

i used to wear a nose and a tongue stud. Now, the only piercings i still have are my ears and my belly button.

i like to wear rings and occasionally a little cross pendant. i keep my earrings simple, small hoops or studs, nothing dangly. i'm not a big fan of pearls. i have a plain silver toe ring that i wear at all times. In the summer i like to wear various ankle bracelets.

My favorite beer is Murphy's Stout. If i drank as much as i wanted to i would weigh 300 pounds.

i like to order Jack Coke in a bar because it's easy to shout over the loud music.

When i was a sophomore in college i smoked weed every day.

i found a hundred dollars on the ground three separate times in my life. the firs time it was a hundred dollar bill. The second time it was two fifties. The third time it was five twenties.

i am very often annoyingly pedantic.

The best book i have ever read is Ana Karenina. A close second is The Brothers Karamazov.
There was a guy in my high school class who thought he was funny by calling me Annika Renina.

i lived in London for four months. i loved every second i was there. i am a huge Anglophile.

i lived in Hawaii for two months. i found that living in Hawaii was a bigger culture shock for me than living in England was. Even so, i loved Hawaii too.

i've been told i look like Goldie Hawn when she was younger, which i take as a compliment.

i am very self-conscious about my looks. i think i'm too tall and gawky and i have a weak profile. i also have ugly hands (see #15, supra).

My knees are very ticklish.

i wrote a political novel when i was in seventh grade. i have since misplaced it, which is probably a good thing because if i read it now i would probably be horrified at how bad it was. i call it a novel because that's what i thought it was, although it was only about thirty pages long. i dreamed about getting it published.

The most unbelievable thing about me is: i have never, ever, watched an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Nothing against it, i'm sure i would have liked the show, but i just never got around to watching it.

i have dated nine musicians in my life. i don't want to date any more musicians. Two of those boyfriends had shaved heads.

i like impossibly hot showers.

During my first year of college, i was convinced that i was clinically depressed, so i went to see a therapist. He told me i wasn't. Ever since then i realized that people who really are clinically depressed must have a real tough time.

i was mugged once.

People who don't know me well fall into two categories: those who think i'm an uptight bitch and those who think i'm too easygoing. i have no idea why that is.

i can understand atheists easier than i can understand people who say they are "spiritual but not religious," which sounds like a topal cop-out to me.

i once had a nightmare roommate who stole from me. She stole money, clothes and cookware. She even tried to steal my boyfriend.

i pick up every penny i find. Not because i'm cheap, but because i think president Lincoln was our greatest president and i'm sentimental that way.

My heart was broken badly in 2000.

i try to put up a strong front at all times, but i secretly long for someone with whom i can let my guard down.

i'm interested in a lot of guy things, like airplanes, war movies and sports. A lot of guys i meet are fascinated by that.

i'm mostly a night owl. i rarely see the sunrise, but when i do, i'm always awed by it's beauty.

When i was twelve, i was a skateboarder chick.

i used to think i was really funny. Now i realize i just hang out with people who laugh a lot.

i never use the phrase "it's all good." i think people who do need to shut up.

Posted by annika, Jan. 21, 2004 |
Rubric: annik-dotes

Comments

Annika: Love your "100 things;" really thoughtful. Sorry about the broken heart, the nightmare roomie, and NOT being clinically depressed (I guess). On the last, I've been there -- not fun, as you know.

Goldie Hawn, hmmm? "The Banger Sisters" -- if I could look that good at her age!

Re your politics, I'm also conservative, not as much as I was in college -- when I took it on mostly to bait the liberal profs. Please don't say you're a Bushie, though! That's NOT conservative, that's stubborn refusal to learn one fucking thing in his whole goddamned life!

Cheers!

Posted by: kalifemme on Aug. 25, 2004

Annika:

I like your 100.

You sound like a very cool, considerate, thoughtful woman with a dash of spice!

Keep up your work, it has meaning in these days where so many people live and stand for nothing...

Posted by: GoodOldDave on Sep. 10, 2004

I saw Frank Sinatra live in Providence RI. around 15 years ago. He was awesome, drank chivas regal the whole time and was bombed by the end.
I'll never forget that concert.

Posted by: Paul on Sep. 21, 2004

Great stuff. Which, of course, only reminds me how weak my own "100 Things" list turned out (so weak in fact, I stopped at 99...I just didn't have the heart to put down one more).

I'm guessing being a conservative Republican woman in the Bay area is nearly as difficult as being a Bush-loving, conservative Republican living in Austin.

Posted by: Robbie on Jan. 12, 2005

you sound like you are trying to get a man, yuk.

Posted by: laura bush on Feb. 11, 2005

Hey,

Nice list! I notice that your career is listed as 'Law' and that you spent 4 months in London. I am a lawyer and studied poetry and poetics in London for a year. (I majored in Poetry and Logic) You have Danish origins; I am Norwegian. I was a member of Mensa who dropped out after their unpopular views concerning euthanasia came out -- and I wanted to use my dues for beer money. I agree on your best singers; your favorite books number in my top ten. :)

Anyhow, you seem fascinating.

Posted by: Kris O on Mar. 30, 2005

Careful with the law thing. I've dated two lawyers, and both of them ended up compromising their sense of right and wrong for the sake of their clients. It's sad. I'm not a lawyer, obviously, and I'm guessing that's a good thing, because I wouldn't do very well at it.

Every girl I've ever dated with a navel piercing had a tendency to cheat on their boyfriends. Funny thing is, they all said it was 'only in their past', and I fell for it. Repeatedly. Apparently at some point I learned my lesson. I always figured it was related to the fact that these women had a need to draw people's attention to their navels.

Oddly, I think you and I would make kick-ass neighbors. Alas, you don't live here and I don't live there.

Re: #91 (Atheists vs. the Spritiual but not Religious) I would say that "spiritual but not religious", which I would define myself as, can be summarized thusly: I would say that I am a very spiritual person, in that I believe strongly in a component to everything in this world that is distinctly spiritual (read: beyond the physical), and that there is a supreme being/entity/life force that permeates all living things. I also view religion as a primarily social and/or political construct. (My personal view is that it is commonly rich with tradition, implications, disagreements, bias, wars and exclusion, but that's beside the point.) Religion tends to manifest itself in sets of rules, restrictions and traditions. And, I believe that one can believe strongly in one (spirituality or religion) without necessarily believing in the other. Hell, I have an undergrad degree in theological studies (and psychology, but I digress), and I'd say that I'm no longer religious, but I'm far more spiritual than I was 10 years ago.

Just my opinion, of course.

Posted by: Mike M on Apr. 3, 2005

Really? Maybe you should do your homework instead of following myths and urban legends. Nevermind, allow me to save you the time...

SPACE-FRAME CHASSIS:

The Fiero boasts a number of engineering firsts, including space-frame chassis structure, impact resistant Enduraflex panels and a precise laser-guided "mill and drill" body panel alignment.

Race cars have used the space-frame concept almost from the beginning. A classic example of the concept is used in NASCAR® Grand National racers.

273 pieces of steel are held together with 4300 welds, forming the Fiero's super strong chassis. The steel chassis weighs approximately 600 pounds.

Each Fiero frame went through a 2.5 story Gilman mill-and-drill machine where its chassis was gauged at the tops and leading edges of both doors and centered cross-car, then drilled with 39 mounting points for the external body panels. This precision allowed panels to be fitted within 0.50mm. This process is a worldwide industry first.

Following the mill-and-drill procedure, the frame was dipped into an electronically charged primer called cathodic elpo uniprime. After dipping, the Fiero chassis was never drilled or pierced again.

The exterior body panels are one of the last things installed during assembly. It's a running, driving, safe automobile without it's outer skin just like a real race car. All exterior panels are painted off the car as a set, in their proper relationship to each other, to ensure a perfect color match. Afterward, they are mounted to the mechanically complete chassis. The exterior body is strictly cosmetic, not for safety, and only weighs approximately 175 pounds.

3 different types of Enduraflex panels are used on the exterior of the Fiero; RRIM (fiberglass reinforced reaction injection molding) SMC (sheet molding compound) and TPO (thermoplastic olefin).

The Fiero space-frame was a complete success. It’s frame and body construction was, and still is revolutionary by today’s standards.

SAFETY:

NHTSA Crash Test Results gave the Fiero a 5-STAR Frontal and Side Impact Rating. It has one of the highest ratings ever recorded in GM barrier safety tests. Safest car ever tested by NHTSA without an airbag. With its all steel space-frame construction, front and rear crumple zones, and side impact beams, makes the Fiero one very safe car.

Consumer Reports magazine article "Which Cars Protect You Best?" in the April 1984 issue, the Fiero tied for first place. In this test, cars were run into a solid barrier at 35 miles an hour. After this crash test the ONLY car that had a better rating, in fact the highest rating, was the Volvo DL.

1988 ENGINEERING HIGHLIGHTS:

In its final year of production, the Fiero received a $30,000,000 redesigned indepenent front and rear suspension systems and revised four-wheel disc brake system making it a true sports car. The changes are as follows:

Front Suspension:
Elimination of the steering damper assembly
Relocation of shock (inside spring / coil over)
30% shorter spindle length (90 to 64mm)
30% shorter scrub radius (49 to 35mm)
20% reduction in king pin angle (7 degrees to 6 degrees)
20% longer upper control arm length (177 to 214.2mm)
25% longer lower control arm length (280 to 350mm)
12% shorter turning radius (11.4 to 10.2m)
Larger stabilizer bar (22 to 28mm)

Rear Suspension:
Redesigned chassis cradle for suspension attachments
Cradle hardmounted to the frame
New tri-link design allowing for specific tuning of each component
Increased rearward rear wheel motion with jounce for reduced harshness
Lower spring rates (44N/mm to 25N/mm)
Inclusion of 22mm stabilizer bar with the WS6 suspension package

HISTORY & FACTS:

The Pontiac Fiero is the only mid-engined production sports car ever built by an American manufacturer. Ford's mid-engined attempt, the Cobra 230ME, was never produced. The Fiero turned in a profit every year it was sold.

There were several reasons for canceling production…

1)GM spent $300 million to produce the Fiero, yet cancelled the car because they estimated they would lose a maximum of $20 million between 1988 and 1995 because they believed there was no future market for it, and wanted to focus on the Firebird and Camaro.

2)Insurance on 2-seaters skyrocketed in the late 80’s hurting sales.

3)Pontiac had been wanting to build a rival to the Chevy sports car for almost 20 years. As the Fiero evolved into a true sports car by 1988 with big plans in the near future for V8 and turbocharged V6 engines, and with Corvette close to being canceled at that time due to poor sales, GM couldn’t allow the Fiero to out perform it for almost half the cost because it would have hurt the Corvette situation even more.

4)Bad press from the 1984 four cylinder engine fires had damaged the cars reputation. The engine fires were due to a defective connecting rod that would fail if the owner ran the engine low on oil, thus ejecting the connecting rod through the block and oil onto the exhaust system.

Posted by: Brian on Apr. 23, 2005

I hate to admit it, but I took your "going straight to hell" test......uh........I scored a 224!!! Guess we know what's up with me, huh??

Posted by: Walter Alderete on Jul. 23, 2005

Hej Annika,

I'm danish I have just come to your site today because there was a link to it in a debate about the Hans Island story; I like your '100 things about me', especially the second last one 'i used to think i was really funny. Now i realize i just hang out with people who laugh a lot'. Well, I guess we have all felt like that sometimes, I certainly have. I have always considered myself to be a funny guy, but perhaps I was just deluding myself??

I you want to practise some danish you can cantact me if you wish, it would be great fun! :)

Posted by: Erik on Aug. 6, 2005

you have a typo on # 91.

should say total instead of topal.

Posted by: Joe on Oct. 13, 2005

everybody makes such a big deal over political orientation. why can't they just accept that one is dealt the hand one's dealt, politically, anatomically, sexually? gays exist in the population in something like a 1 in 13 ratio. anthropologists rekcon the gene historically had some kind of group benefits. why should political orientation be any different? some are born progressive, forward thinking and liberal. others are born conservative, looking to the past suspicious of change. one avoids conflict - the other seeks conflict. one favors the group. the other favors the self. it seems these divides are pretty common across all societies so we might as well get used to them. sure i think it's generally better to talk than whip out your weapon and piss on somebody. but i don;t hold it against people like that because i know they can;t help themselves, and no amount of sensitivity counseling or Jane Fonda will change that genetic predisposition. and next time you look at your liberal friend just gaze and think what she might have been had she born with your genetic political predisposition. anyway i hope you find what you're lookin' for.

Posted by: Peter on Oct. 20, 2005

oh, i forgot to ask: How do you make those funny "o's" with "/" through them, like in trondheim or kobenhaven?

Posted by: Peter on Oct. 20, 2005

. . . geek is the new color for fall . . .

January 21, 2004

100 Trivial Things To Know About annie