I love making new friends. Especially friends who are joyously a bubble or two off center – they are the staff of a truly interesting life.

One such new friend writes blog called Tequila Mockingbird – in which she shares random thoughts on a variety of subjects.

The one that got me thinking was a list she prepared about herself – 100 things about me. I loved the idea – and the insight it gives into someone a country away.

So, as an homage, here is my list:

1. If this were truly an off-the-rack world, I would have to dress like Tarzan.
2. That is a scary, scary thought.
3. I'm inspired by creativity.
4. While I am a sports writer, I am not a rabid sports fan.
5. I'd rather listen to a baseball game on radio than watch any other sport on TV.
6. I once tried interviewing a brahama bull – trying to go straight to the source. I believe he's now a senator.
7. The most inspiring spot on earth for me is Maui. The sun goes down all over the world; it only sets on Maui.
8. If you want to get off on the wrong foot with me, assume that because I'm a sports writer, I must be a dumb jock. I qualify for membership in Mensa
9. I have ADD
10. I watch way too much television
11. I collect books and movies. Even books about movies. Or movies about books.
12. I believe my generation can be broken into two categories: Beatles fans and Stones fans. I am the former.
13. I think Brian Wilson is a genius.
14. James Earl Jones, Orson Welles and John Facella have the best speaking voices I've ever heard
15. Ann-Margaret could read the phone book and I would find it sexy.
16. I am divorced.
17. And I'm not bitter. No, really, I'm not.
18. I have a brother who's a cop. A detective, actually. And I'm very proud of him
19. Some of my ancestors were Cree Indians
20. I am a die-hard democrat and an unabashed liberal – but that doesn't influence the way I cover hockey. Anyone who doesn't believe me can go puck themself.
21. My all-time favorite sports writer is Dan Jenkins.
22. I am a feminist
23. More often than not, I prefer working with women
24. I'm embarrassed that I know the difference between a duvet, a divan and a doily
25. When I write, I use the power of three whenever possible. See No. 24
26. The only time I bury the lead is when I converse
27. I started my journalism career in television. I was even a weatherman for a couple months
28. George Carlin is the voice of my generation. Deservedly so
29. I believe the concept of a Liberal Media is more than a myth – it's a crock of shit
30. There is nothing scarier to me than the sight of Pat Buchanan trying to grin
31. I've had more newspaper bylines than I could possibly ever remember
32. As much as I hate to admit it, I rarely recognize my own writing years later
33. I have written stories that have changed my life
34. I have written stories that have made me cry
35. I hate reading a mystery novel and figuring out whodunnit, but I usually do
36. I have never seen a bad performance from Gene Hackman or Robert Duvall
37. One of my biggest secrets is that I like show tunes. And no, I am not gay
38. I cannot watch the ending to Field of Dreams with another person. It's too embarrassing to explain why
39. I can't sing
40. Nothing gets me madder faster than someone trying to pull the wool over my eyes
41. I yell at the television
42. I have interviewed Miss America and I have interviewed a Playboy Playmate. The Playmate was by far the smarter interview
43. The official White House photographer used to take pictures for me in Seattle
44. The best television journalism advice I ever got was from a fellow reporter: `The most important thing you can have in this business is integrity,' she said. `Once you can fake that, you've got it made.''
45. One of the first high school athletes I ever interviewed went on to be a Super Bowl MVP
46. I believe you can divide people in to two categories: Those who watch Jeopardy, and those who watch Wheel of Fortune. If you ask me about it, I'll give my answer in the form of a question
47. The New York Times crossword is one of life's secret pleasures
48. I grew up on Perry Mason reruns and wanted to be a lawyer. Then I saw All The President's Men
49. If you're keeping score, I'm definitely a Maryann
50. Golf is just an excuse to wear really tacky slacks
51. There is no feeling in the world as good as the feel of a baseball bat striking a baseball on the sweet spot
52. The two best writers of dialogue, for my money, are novelists Robert B. Parker and Elmore Leonard. And they are two of the nicest people I have ever met.
53. The kitchen can be the sexiest, most sensual place in the whole house
54. I have always been my own harshest critic
55. I believe the anti-abortion lobby would be better served if they stopped trying to make abortion illegal and worked to make it unnecessary
56. I love dogs, but I adore dolphins. And no, I'm not talking about a Miami football team
57. Most of the time, I think life would be just fine without house cats
58. One of the biggest influences on my life was Harry Chapin. As a writer, as an artist, and as a human being
59. Most of the time, my idea of exercise is a good, brisk sit
60. One of my secret pleasures is BBC America
61. You can never overestimate the gullibility of the American public
62. To me, passion and compassions are two sides of the same coin. And if you have that coin, you are wealthy beyond compare
63. I love a good cup of coffee, but I can do without the average stuff
64. I am a classic Gemini. I am equally at home observing, like a fly on the wall, or being in the middle of everything.
65. Few things in life smell as good as freshly mown grass, bread baking in the oven or a well-oiled baseball glove
66. I believe too many people can quote the bible to you, but haven't a real clue about what it means. The problem with most religions is that people are willing to be told what to think and believe, and not find find for themselves what they believe
67. One of my biggest fears is that thinking for oneself is a dying artform
68. I have felt more reverence and spirituality amongst nature than I have ever felt in any church – including the Vatican and Notre Dame.
69. I have my father's temper, but thankfully, my mother's fuse
70. I love the smell of fresh sawdust and the feel of wood in my hands
71. One of my biggest pet peeves is where those assholes in Detroit try to hide the oil dipstick
72. I believe males are born with a gene that makes them want to play with fire and burn things, which is why barbecues were invented
73. I don't believe foreplay starts when you start fumbling with buttons. It starts when you get up in the morning
74. There is nothing in the world more beautiful than a woman
75. When I write a story, I spend as much time on how it ends as how it begins
76. I grew up a Red Sox fan, hence I know that Yankee shortstop Bucky Dent's middle name is fuckin' – as in Bucky fuckin' Dent. And I always use his full name
77. I know my way around the kitchen and have been known to watch the Food Network for hours on end, Nigella, however, is welcome to bite me anytime she wants
78. When I want to get some perspective on life, I stand in the surf on Maui and watch the sun rise over Haleakala. It takes your breath away
79. I love a woman who can make me laugh. I adore Carol Burnett.
80. And I think Tina Fey is HOT
81. I am loyal. Sometimes to a fault
82. I give my friends the benefit of the doubt.
83. There is nothing that makes you feel alive as making a tight, tight deadline with a damned good story
84. Maybe it's just me, but I don't get Jennifer Lopez, Brittney Spears, Madonna – or for that matter Barbie
85. I come in the large, economy-sized package – but I am not for sale
86. My default response is to believe my friends, but if they abuse my trust, they may never get it back – and will never get it back completely
87. To be perfectly honest, I always got along better with my girlfriend's mother
88. I'm most thankful for the advice I got in junior high – to take a typing class
89. I played in the band, so I never learned my high school fight song. And I'm proud of that fact
90. I never knew that sex on the beach was something you could order at the bar
91. I believe that cell phones are a secret invention to help rude people become socially acceptable
92. The amount of damage done through history in the name of God has to embarrass any deity
93. I'm not ticklish, but I do love to laugh
94. There is something erotic about eating a mango
95. One special person, a fire in the fireplace and a glass of wine are all the ingredients you need for a perfect evening
96. Assumptions are frequently the fastest way we have of insulting someone
97. The thing I do best, as a reporter and a journalist, and as a friend, is listen
98. I don't smoke and people who do turn me off
99. People are usually surprised that my brother and I are related
100. I have been known to go overboard when it comes to competition
101. I have been known to take a good thing too far


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