25 (or so) random things about me

 1.

1. I was born and raised in the mountains of the Philippines but my first language was English until I was 3 when my grandmother taught me a tribal dialect.

2. I planted and harvested rice in leech-infested rice paddies with my maternal grandparents when I was younger, but I was rewarded with the best fruits and vegetables fresh my grandmother’s farm and I was allowed to climb all the fruit trees. I also got a ride home on our water buffalo.

3. I still climb trees and rocks to this day when I go hiking. I have fallen off several of them. I have a collection of scars, but fortunately, no broken bones.

4. I can fall asleep anywhere, anytime, in 3 seconds flat.

5. I have a nursing license in 25 different states, including Hawai’i. I lived and worked in most of them.

6. I experienced being pampered by a private chef, a personal limo driver, flown around in a Gulfstream, and given access to yachts; but I also lived in areas with no electricity, no running water, and slept on dirt floor. I prefer the latter. It reminds me of my roots, my childhood dreams, and keeps me humble; although it keeps me working for that daily dollar.

7. I love the ambience, the smell, the feel of old bookstores. I am transported to another world and I become lost.

8. I have traveled cross-country from corner to corner of the US – from the tip of Washington State to the Mexican border of San Diego to the ocean end of Key West to the mountain ranges of New Hampshire and many states in between. I would like to make it to the Canadian border of Maine one day.

9. My childhood goal was to become a pediatrician (I learned this word when I was 8), but I am eternally grateful to have become a nurse. I love my job!!!

10. I was a severe asthmatic when I was a child and nearly died twice. Every year of my life from the time I was six to the time I was 12, I spent a week to two months in the hospital. When I was nine, I told a nurse where to put my IV, how to adjust my oxygen mask, and when I can see visitors.

11. When I was ten, I used to skip school to smoke stolen cigarettes, drink pilfered vodka, get into fist fights with some boys, and I even had a girlfriend. I would like to think I have evolved since then.

12. I love platform shoes, platform heels, and mini-skirts.

13. I have been blessed with a good life and a close, loving, and supportive family. My parents are my heroes. I won the parents lottery!!!

14. I believe that every relationship (professional, friendly, romantic) must begin with a foundation of trust and honesty and solid communication without which the relationship would fail eventually.

15. I have the best friends one could ever pray for. They keep me grounded and they never let me keep a secret but they will keep mine without question. And they are always very honest with me even when I don’t want them to be.

16. I believe that, to have and keep a healthy and happy relationship with everyone close to us, we must first be happy and content with ourselves and where we are in our world.

17. I believe that a happy, positive attitude attracts the same. Our friends are a reflection of who we are. I believe what business philosopher Jim Rohn said, that you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.

18. I still wonder how I am able to get in a helicopter, take care of critically sick people, understand my job, and write up a complex patient chart when I constantly lose my keys and trip over my own feet.

19. I love traveling and having adventures with my sister. It’s great to have such a wonderful friend related to me. We have so much fun together. Our last fight was in 1996. We’ve never been closer since.

20. I am amazed at how wonderful and beautiful the world is and I have been blessed to have met very good people throughout my life who have enhanced, enlightened, and enchanted my lived experiences. Thank you to all of you.

21. No matter how many times I take the Myers-Briggs test, I always end up as an ENFP. Go figure.

22. Never give me caffeine or sugar and always feed me when I say I’m hungry. This is if you value your sanity.

23. I love stories about dragons, pixies, trolls, elves, and childhood fantasy creatures. I want to own a real magic wand like Harry Potter’s.

24. I believe in necessary evil but I wouldn’t want that job.

25. If I was given the choice to do my life over, I wouldn’t change a thing except that I would age very, very slowly so I would still look like I do now when I turn 70.

Comments

[Dianna Johnston]

Ruthie, I was in class with you at Walden. I loved your posts and your blog. What are you doing now (besides your wonderful life as a flight nurse)? I appreciate your fun site. It keeps me sane! Dianna