I've been tagged by Fiberjinx for the "7 Random Things" meme kicking around at the moment. Usually I don't go for these sort of things, but I also don't forward chain emails or stand up for a mexican wave at the cricket . So I won't be tagging anyone at the end of this ... I think I'm probably the last one for this meme anyway! If by some chance you're reading this and haven't done the meme yourself, consider yourself tagged .

1. I am fascinated by snow. I didn't get to see much when I was growing up, so the novelty is still to wear off. There's something pretty amazing about big fluffy flakes falling silently to the ground, and I still get a kick out of leaving tracks (skis or otherwise!) in fresh snow. I love living in an area that gets a bit of snow in the winter, even if it does cause havoc on the roads here and cause Andy to take four hours to get home one night! Although I'm sure if we were living on the east coast where the serious snow falls, my experience would be completely different.

2. I didn't have a nickname until I joined the Air Force (family pet-names notwithstanding). Being short-ish, female and wearing a blue uniform, I was dubbed Smurf ... and it stuck ;-) Not many people call me Smurf these days, but it's a handy inernet alias!

3. Podcasts saved my sanity in the first few weeks after Isobel's birth in September last year. My regular listening list has grown a bit since then -
101 Uses for Baby Wipes
BabyTime
Changeling's Knit & Stitch
Dr Karl on Triple J
Geotalk
Get This
Just One More Book!
Knit Picks
Lime N Violet
Manic Mommies
Pediacast
Podcasts for Running
Socks In The City
The Cage on Triple M

4. I'm trying to get better at running ... or at least get out jogging more often than I do. I used to hate running when I was younger, probably because I was much good at it and therefore had a bunch of PTIs yelling at me! But I've started Couch to 5km, and it's now a bit of a luxury to get out of the house and have some 'me' time. The program is on pause at the moment with Andy overseas, I can't go running on my own and leave Isobel in the house ... so I'll get back into it when he gets home again.

5. I'm a night-before person - if something is due the next day, I have to have it sorted out the night before or I won't sleep well. Andy, on the other hand, will just get up early and finish everything first thing in the morning. This sometimes means I'll do his stuff for him the night before just so it's done .

6. We started collecting fridge magnets about 7-8 years ago when we lived in the UK, from all the places we've visited. The removalists looked at me a little strangely when we packed up to come to the US, wondering why I wanted to pack a little baggie of magnets in our removal . We still have some spare room on the fridge, so we haven't finished travelling yet!

7. My grandmother taught me to knit and crochet about 20 years ago. Probably closer to 25 years ago. I am much more adept at crocheting - I've won second place ribbons at the last two Puyallup Fairs. However, I was bitten hard by the sock bug a few months ago ... and I've made four pairs so far. Only the last pair actually fits me, all the others are a bit baggy or a bit too big. I'm yet to work up the courage to try toe-up, or short row heels, or 2 circs, or the magic loop method ... but there's plenty of yarn in the stash to choose from for when I decide to try!

Thanks Rach!