52 Stories: Serenity now

Inspired by One Hundred Names by Cecelia Ahern, I've decided to ask people some thought provoking questions about themselves, as I feel that everyone has a story to tell. If you're just joining me on this journey today, please check out the previous posts from this series, as well.

I recently met this week's storyteller through my BFF. She's also going to be part of our blog project group, starting this week. I look forward to getting to know her better, and her participation in "52 Stories" is a good start! I already know the first place we'd go if she ever came to visit...

Side note: I am getting so close to my 52 story goal, but the months of November and December are still waiting for stories. If you would like to participate or know someone else who might be interested, please let me know as soon as possible. Thanks!

Name: Denise K.
Gender: Female
Age: 45
Location: Chicagoland (the north half)

Experience that is legendary for me:
When I was 24, I moved to Los Angeles and spent two and a half years hanging out with my best friend, Michelle, and a whole bunch of long-haired boys in bands. I wasn’t a groupie by any stretch of the imagination, but my California world was a complete 180 from the uniformed, Catholic school girl, straight-A lifestyle I’d been living in Chicago. I spent my 25th birthday celebrating at a rock club on Hollywood Boulevard. I wore a tiara and I got to pick the bands that played that night. Nowadays, when I tell people about that time in my life, they look quite bemused, probably because I’m an attorney mom of three who lives in jeans and North Face gear and drives a mini-van.

Guilty pleasure:
Edible: peanut butter M&Ms.
Pop culture: Amish Mafia and Dr. Drew.
Auditory: Slipknot.
Time-wise: thrift stores and flea markets.

Something I’ve never done but would like to do:
Karaoke. I love to sing but have never done so in public. In my car, I belt out Pat Benetar and Sheryl Crow and k.d. lang – anyone with a low-ish pitch. Karaoke never really appealed to me until I read “Turn Around Bright Eyes” by Rob Sheffield and decided I HAVE to do it. I would probably choose to sing “Midnight Train to Georgia” so long as I had the right Pips to back me up. That, or “Paradise by the Dashboard Light,” but I’d need a solid Meatloaf.

If I could give someone one of my favorite things as a gift, what I would give and why:
Last summer, on a business trip, my husband bought me a little angel statue. She is made of wood and is sitting down with her head resting on her hands and her elbows on her knees. I’m not religious by any stretch of the imagination, but I was going through a really rough time and he thought I could use a little someone to watch over me. I keep it on the windowsill in the kitchen, and it always makes me happy. It was the perfect gift, full of love. I would pass it on to someone else who needed an angel on his or her shoulder.

Something I did that changed someone’s life:
In my senior year of high school, a friend told me she wanted to be a nurse but didn’t think she could do it. Her parents weren’t encouraging her to try. I told her that she had to try, that I knew she could do it and that she would always regret not trying. She said, “Huh, maybe you’re right.” She went on to nursing school and has happily practiced nursing for twenty-five years.

Part of my personality that is now extinct:
I am much less of a control freak than I used to be. The past few years I experienced quite a lot of loss, and I’ve come to understand that there is much I cannot control; I can merely react and manage and support. My own variation of the Serenity Prayer, I suppose.

One thing I find really funny:
Anything stupid funny. Like when people fall down. Or the entire film, Zoolander. I think you have to be really smart to fully embrace stupid funny (that’s my story and I’m sticking to it).

One thing I love about myself:
Generally, I am able to get along with just about anyone. I pride myself on being polite and kind to anyone I meet – unless they give me reason to act otherwise.

TV show, book or movie most like my life:
 It’s Hard Not to Hate You by Valerie Frankel. I’m at that mid-life point where I’m grappling between accepting who I am – warts and all – and making some changes in how I see the world and how I deal with people. The tone of the book is maybe a touch more bitter than I’d like to think I am, but maybe I just need to accept that part of me, too.

One thing most people don’t know about me:
Although I’m friendly and easily make small talk, I am actually pretty introverted and prefer to keep to myself.