for those who like lists

I'm no numerologist, but a seven-by-seven meme is just too righteous. So, perversely, I'm going to make it six-by-six. You'll see why at the end.

Oh, and thank Mark, and a turkey-based stomachache, for what follows.

Six things to do before I die
1. Run for office.
2. Climb Mount Rainier. (Maybe right before I die, if the weather goes sour.)
3. Write a novel. I have some ideas, but no words, yet.
4. Really learn Spanish and go back to Mexico, maybe even retire there.
5. In my acceptance speech for Disney's Teacher of the Year award, lambaste the corporation for everything they've done except purchasing ESPN. That was a smart move.
6. Break this blogging habit.


Six things I cannot do
1. Swim. I am a drowner. I am also lazy, and what are life jackets for, anyway?
2. Crochet.
3. Diagnose a car problem by listening.
4. Ice-skate backward.
5. Snowboard.
6. Telekinetically move stuff. I would if I could.


Six things that attract me to my wife Melissa
1. Her mind, which is simultaneously inscrutable and comprehensible.
2. Her elbows. They are small, pointy, and cute.
3. Her eyes, which, in combination with #4, storm my heart like a Mongol horde.
4. Her smile.
5. Her laughter. I covet it.
6. Other things too poetic to mention.


Six things I say most often
1. If you're not finished writing, that's okay... (when journal time is done)
2. Any questions?
3. Am I making sense?
4. I love you. / I love you, too.
5. Please take us off your call list. Thanks.
6. Good morning! / Good afternoon!


Six books I love
1. The Dream of Scipio, Iain Pears
2. The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Oliver Sacks
3. Awakenings, Oliver Sacks
4. Forty Stories, Donald Barthelme
5. Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe
6. Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Gabriel Garcia Marquez


Six movies I watch over and over again
1. Yojimbo
2. Amores Perros
3. The Godfather I and II
4. The General (both this one and this one)
5. Kill Bill I and II
6. Shaolin Soccer

The seventh category is supposed to be the seven people I'd like to obligate to fill out the list, but I'm not going to. If you're so moved, claim it as your own and pass it along.