Monthly Archives: July 2010

Buy me some peanuts and Joe Pepitone

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I don’t care if we ever go home.

I come from a baseball loving family. I’m not a fan but when they’d load up the vans to go to Wrigley Field when I was a kid, I was right in the middle of the fun.

And it was fun.
Not the baseball itself, but the ride there with my cousins, being at the ball park, singing at the 7th inning stretch, and watching all the activity. Oh, and looking for cute boys should most definitely be included in that list.
The summer we were 10, my cousin Cindy and I decided that we thought Cubs first baseman, Joe Pepitone, was cute. He had our attention for the entire game and he became our favored object of affection for months afterwards.
That Halloween, we decided to dress up as Joe Pepitone. We created our Cubs uniforms out of white pants and white shirts, used blue tape to make 8s on our backs and walked around town, the two cutest Joe Pepitones that ever begged for candy.
I was just in Chicago and spent a couple of days with Cindy. She told me that she had recently won a trivia contest on the radio. The question was, “What was Joe Pepitone’s number when he played for the Cubs?”
Random, yes?
Well, maybe for most people but not for us. They asked her how she knew that and she told them our Halloween story on the air. So funny, to me, but also so cool that our 10 year old obsession won her a prize 40 years later.
Prizes and winning. You know how I feel about that. 😉

Shoes, glorious shoes!

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I love shoes.
I have square feet.
Those two facts in my life do not, can not, peacefully co-exisit.
I remember the first time I got wide shoes. I was 6. The shoes were navy blue and they were ugly but I could wiggle my toes in my shoes for the first time and I was so HAPPY to have those ugly shoes.
For much of my life, I have had just a couple of pairs of shoes in my closet. Workout and running shoes are easy because I can buy men’s shoes. Those shoes don’t have to be cute, they just have to be functional. My shoes look just like David’s and that is okay. Interestingly, I get the men’s wide in these shoes and I love them because I never have to break them in. They fit perfectly, I get no blisters, no tightness.
About four years ago, Payless started making cute shoes with high heels. I love being able to go and find shoes that actually fit and are actually cute just like my friends. I now have more shoes in my closet than I have ever had in my life. I love it!
But…I cannot get shoes like this:
Or like this:
Or like this:
I walk into the shoe department at Nordstrom and am faced with thousands of cute shoes I will never be able to wear. So sad.
I told David this a.m. that I really need to open a shoe factory that will make cute wide shoes so that when I come to the Mrs. International Pageant I will have cute shoes like everyone else. His reply?
“You could start with selling your current shoes. That more than likely would fund the factory.”

Argghhhh! He just doesn’t get it. He should realize just how fortunate he was for around 25 years of our marriage when I had virtually no shoe options and that I can never catch up to other women even if I do start my own shoe factory.
Ryunosuke Satoro said, “Let your dreams outgrow the shoes of your expectations” but the problem with that is that the shoes I expect ARE my dream!

FACINATE-ing

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You know, I’m a sucker for those personality tests that you find online. I like to do them to see if they really “get” me or not. I’m always surprised when they do just because I answered a set of questions in a particular way.
Today, I saw a link to the {F}SCORE BRAND personality TEST so of course I had to take it. This test is from the book Fascinate by Sally Hogshead which is on my list of books to read. I’m even more interested to read it now.
The idea behind the {F} Score test is that every day, intentionally or not, you’re using fascination triggers to persuade people at work and home. Whether you’re pitching a new client, or inviting a friend to lunch, or lulling a cranky toddler to sleep, you’re using riggers to elicit a certain response.
The author says you have seven potential fascination triggers: power, trust, mystique, prestige, vice, alarm, and lust. Each trigger leads to a different style of communication, and a different type of relationship. The more accurately you identify your personality triggers, and the more intelligently you hone them, the more influential your message becomes.
My fascination triggers are, in order, Lust, Alarm and Mystique.
My primary trigger is Lust. According to the results that means I draw people closer with a warm and open style of interaction. I’m expressive with ideas, communicate well in person, and probably have a strong creative streak. Even when I mask my emotions, I feel passionately about my opinions.
It indicates that I’m intuitive with information, often making decisions based on gut instinct rather than cold intellect. While other personality types prefer facts, I’m more attuned to the nuances of attitude, design, and a certain indefinable je ne sais quoi. Interestingly, back in the day, I had a licence plate for my car that said “LUSTY L”.
Secondarily, I have a trigger of Alarm. The definition states that I could either be responsive to alarm or cause it. I believe I’m responsive to alarm which means I’m extremely sensitive to demands in my environment, and focus on ways to avoid conflict. I’m highly attuned to the expectations of others. Deadlines make me more productive, and demands push me to achieve more. I work hard to avoid experiencing unpleasant surprises. I’m probably also using the trust trigger to send consistent, uncontroversial messages.
My dormant trigger is Mystique. This means I don’t hide my emotions or opinions. I’m straightforward and open.
Only 1.9% of the people who took the {F} score use the same primary and secondary triggers of Lust and Alarm. So fascinating!
So here’s another one for you to try. See if this test can “get” you like it “got” me. Have fun!