8 for '08: A Totally Self-Absorbed Friday Post
Almost everyone hates a meme, yet they persist. Some day we’ll view these memes as li’l more than chain letters, and will summarily ignore them (or respond half-heartedly). But until that day comes, I can’t help but respect the amount of personal investment that so many bloggers put into their memeographies.
So, to my taggers, Kate Trgovac and Dave Fleet, this one’s for you; my response to the “8 Things You (Probably) Don’t Know About Me” meme started by Social Media Group’s Maggie Fox. (And my apologies in advance to those I will subseqently tag.)
1. Happily married for 15+ years to a gorgeous California blonde. I often wish I could send a photo of my bride back in time – to myself, circa 1985. I think it would make a certain 16–year-old very happy.
2. We started out married life preggers and with (*ahem*) government assitance. Everyone justifiably assumed we’d veered way off-course at a young age. They were right. On the plus side, having a kid at age 22 was a terrifying way to clarify our priorities.
3. In my spare time I often pore over the Geographic Expeditions catalog. It’s a gorgeous, glossy book of international adventure itineraries. I aspire to ride horseback through the plains of Mongolia, en route to the Golden Eagle Festival. Weird, I know.
4. Best investment ever: buying our daughter the “Chicken Soup for the Pre-Teen Soul” book, which details the hard knocks of several kids her age. Ever since, we never walk out the front door without hearing, “I love you, Mom & Dad.” She insists that it be the last phrase we hear from her, whenever we’re going to be apart.
5. Born on an American Army base in Germany, raised in a distinctively middle class Connecticut suburb.
6. I’ve had the same two best friends since I was a little kid. Talk about paths diverging: one is an officer in the Navy, the other is a personal trainer. I still talk to each of them at least once a month.
7. I was a male cheerleader in High School – in the program’s first year, so I took a lot of ribbing. For the record, I wasn’t a pom-pom type; I was the guy lifting up the pretty girls. It was a very good gig.
8. Among our prospective clients it’s probably a too-little-known fact that on the eve of our 5th anniversary, our agency now employs 100 of the coolest, smartest, ablest PR pros I’ve ever met. I am delighted – but not surprised – that we’ve been able to work with companies like Shimano, Oakley, Akamai, Novell, RSA Conference, Yelp, RealNetworks and Travelocity. (And those are just the cool names I’m currently allowed to mention.) To rise from “boutique” status to a spot where we often compete against The Big Boys of PR has been stunning and gratifying. Dare I say “Obama-esque”? 
ENOUGH about me. It was weird and exhausting and even a little icky, writing this utterly self-absorbed post. Can we hear from Scott Monty, Doug Haslam, Brian Solis, Geoff Livingston, Susan Getgood (got ya back, Susan!), Kami Huyse, Chris Brogan and Shel Holtz?




Comments
You're right, they're pretty much like chain letters. Then again, we're in the relationship business so it's great to know a little more about people.
Thanks for responding!
Posted by: Dave Fleet | January 4, 2008 12:00 PM
I can't take all the "credit" - Luis Suarez and Susan Scrupski were the meme instigators.
They are fun to read, though, aren't they?
Posted by: maggie fox | January 4, 2008 03:04 PM
OK, here are my responses.. http://www.livingstonbuzz.com/blog/2008/01/04/crazy-eight-for-08/
Posted by: Geoff Livingston | January 4, 2008 04:58 PM
You tagged Doug Haslam, Haslam tagged me, and the meme continues on. Now I'm going back up the chain to see what @GeoffLiving and others said.
Re item 4 - I don't know whether your daughter has reached the teen years, but be prepared if she eventually grunts "I love you, Mom & Dad" through gritted teeth. This will pass.
Posted by: Ontario Emperor | January 6, 2008 11:17 PM
It may be icky for you, but I kinda enjoyed reading this. I got an especially big kick out of the cheerleader confession.
Posted by: Kami Huyse | January 6, 2008 11:36 PM
A meme? How June 2007 of you! But I'm a sucker when it comes to friends asking for something. Here you go:
http://www.scottmonty.com/2008/01/eight-things-you-probably-didnt-know.html
Posted by: Scott Monty | January 7, 2008 12:49 AM
Yup, answered your tag over the weekend: http://gischeleman.com/2008/01/05/meme-tagged-eight-things-you-probably-didn%e2%80%99t-know-about-me/
Seems I answered a similar meme back in July (linked in that post), so I made this one a little more random, or maybe obscure is the better word
Posted by: Doug Haslam | January 7, 2008 03:40 PM