27-year-old Jackie visits 40-year-old Jackie

Last week was a very low week for me. After being sick and spending the weekend with old friend and nesting, I decided to start the week with a new outlook. Plus, I see my new therapist next week.

As I continue the job of unpacking and organizing my life, I came across a list of things about me that I made when I was 27 for a new boyfriend. I remember making this list because Robb wanted to know more about me. As I read it, I realized how much I had changed in some ways but stayed the same in others.

I am going to share this list with updated notes in red.

Who is Jackie?

--I have never drank coffee. I started drinking it out of necessity in August of 2009 when I had to be at work at 7 a.m.

--I love music. This has never changed. I still make cd mixes for road trips.

--I hate to sweat. Still do.

--I love hot baths. Now I love hot showers.

--I have a really serious thing for office supply stores. I still do especially when things are on clearance.

--I love daises. Still do.

--Even though I am an adult, I can’t let my feet dangle over the edge of the bed at night. Too much Stephen King. Most definitely.

--I love taco salad. Yes especially from El Matazlan in Mount Olive, N.C.

--I fell in love for the first time when I was 19.

--I am magazine junkie. Yes,  there is always a magazine with me.

--I don’t FEEL or look 27. I feel 40 but don’t look like it.

--I have one sibling, a brother, who is younger than me… and lived to tell about it. Three months after writing this, I found my father.  I gained two brothers and two sisters.

--I love ranch dressing. I consider it the new ketchup of the world. I still love it especially bacon ranch dressing.

--I own a lot of hats. Everyone needs a trademark. Occasionally, I will wear a hat. My trademark now is having lots of writing pens.

--I like singing. My pitch isn’t great and neither is my voice but I still like it especially in the car after a long day of work. I still sing in the shower and the car. And I sound like Beyonce on a very bad day.

--I grew up in Clover (this town sucks) South Carolina. I still stand by this sentence.

--I used to hate grits when I was a child. I hide them in napkins on the chair beside me at breakfast. One day, my mother sat in that chair. I’m still alive. I love grits as an adult.

--I learned how to read when I was four. This something my son inherited.

--I failed my driver’s license test six times due to parallel parking. I  still can’t parallel park to save my life.

--I am a night person. If left to my own devices, I would stay up until 6 a.m. and sleep until 2 p.m. Now I tend to stay up to 11 p.m. and out of bed by 10 a.m.

--I don’t wear makeup. It gets in the way. I still believe this.

--I love to dance, though I am not particuraly good at it. I love having solo living room dance parties.

--I am a journalist. Still am and damn proud of it.

--There’s always a song stuck in my head. Right now, it is “Shake It Off” by Taylor Swift.

--My most prized possessions are a photo of my grandmother and a James Dean clock. This has changed. I still cherish the photo of my grandmother along with a photo album of my son’s baby photos.

--I am a voracious reader. Most definitely with several library cards.

--Centipedes give me the creeps. YES.

--I’ve never seen “It’s A Wonderful Life.” I finally saw it two years ago.

--My mom and I have a shaky relationship. We have since I can remember. I love her but she sure can make my life miserable. I am very glad my mother and I were able to mend our relationship and become close before she died in 2010.

--I try not to miss Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Law and Order. Now it is Criminal Minds, Blacklist and Grey’s Anatomy.

--I am obsessed with chicken salad sandwiches especially from Chick Fil A. My new favorite place to get chicken salad is Elias’s in Roanoke Rapids, N.C.

--The idea of being pregnant and actually giving birth frightens the shit out of me. But that’s the only way any of us gets born so I keep telling myself I can handle it. I did it and have the most amazing son.

This was a nice trip down memory lane. Robb and I broke up after eight months. But at least I have the list.

DAILY DOSE

1. Iced coffee from McDonald's.

2. Leaving for early enough to avoid school buses!

3. Feeling so much better!