15 Random Facts

I was tagged by The Constantly Dramatic One. I almost never respond to tags, and I've been feeling a little guilty over not responding to the first coupla' times she tagged me.

Plus, this tag really appeals to the narcissist in me.

15 random facts about me that you may or may not know.

1. I prefer to pee sitting down. Yes, I can aim if I'm standing up, but not perfectly every time. There are too many unpredictable angles in the stream of pee, with mine anyway. And what doesn't end up on the toilet rim - or beyond - ends up spotting my boxers when I pee standing up. Comedienne Margaret Smith says that if women had wieners, "you know we would daub 'em." That's me.

2. I was Purple Peter for over two decades. At first it was just a ploy for attention, an easy way to be different. But I genuinely liked the color purple. I wore something purple every single day from 1981 to 2001. Sometimes it was just purple socks, or only my purple watch. On other days it was just purple underwear or purple shoelaces. I had an entire purple suit with a double-breasted blazer.

3. I was enrolled at UCLA right after high school. I started out as a biology major, which was a big mistake. I dropped out after a year, and started working at Disneyland. My parents were really mad at me.

4. I am a former band geek. I played trumpet for eight years, from the fifth grade to my senior year in high school.

5. I am estranged from my father. He has stated that he cannot accept my homosexuality. The estrangement is mutual. He was a great parent, and he has the ability to be a great human being, but I do not miss him.

6. I was a contestant on two T.V. game shows - "Win, Lose, or Draw" (kind of like Pictionary) and "The Grudge Match." Richard Simmons was my celebrity team mate on the first one.

7. I was born in California but I lived in Japan and Saudi Arabia while growing up. My father teaches ESL (English as a Second Language) so we moved around a lot. People thought I was an army brat.

8. I don't mind if my dogs lick me in the mouth. I have never died or gotten sick from letting them do that, even though it grosses out everyone around me.

9. In addition to being a band geek I was a drama dork in high school. Musicals were my favorite. My first musicals in high school were The Fantasticks, Grease, and Godspell.

10. I won my first trophy in the fifth grade. I was one of the winners in the school district's safety poster contest. My poster's slogan was, "Don't be a litter bug - feed the trash cans (I stole it from McDonald's - I was ten). My dad framed the poster and displayed it in the living room.

11. I cried when I brought my school pictures home and my dad said, "Oh, Peter, this is terrible," because I had a closed-mouth smile. Neither of us knew, then, that you were allowed to retake your school picture if you didn't like the first one. I made damn sure to show teeth in the following year's photo.

12. I first had sex when I was 15, and only once. I didn't have sex again until I was 19 (and working at Disneyland).

13. I believe that being angry is better than feeling sorry for yourself. Anger can move you to action, at least. I wasted too many years in self-pity.

14. When I was involved in ex-gay ministry, I tried being celibate throughout most of my twenties. I wasn't very successful.

15. I saved over ten years' worth of fingernail clippings and then gave them as a wedding gift to BFF Kathy when she got married. True story.

Consider yourself tagged, if you are so inclined.