DU3 Reintroduce yourself thread

[GaYellowDawg]

189. OK, here goes...

My name is GaYellowDawg, my nickname is based on never, never voting Republican ("yellow dog Democrat&quot and I was both born in and live in Georgia. "Dawg" because I am a UGA alum and a huge Dawg fan.

I was born in Athens, GA, and raised in East Tennessee near Knoxville, went to East Tennessee State University and after college, I moved to Murfreesboro, TN, where in a fit of insanity, I got a master's degree at Middle Tennessee State University. After a little time in the real world being convinced by life that I had to have another degree, went to the University of Georgia and got my Ph.D. I have been lucky enough to get a job in Savannah! I get to do what I'm most suited for and have a passion for: teach. I am not the teacher I want to be (perfect), but I am working at it!

I listen to a lot less music than I used to, but most things 80's and classical music work pretty well for me. Never was much of a concert goer but played babysitter to my sister, going to a Rick Springfield concert, a Huey Lewis and the News concert, and a Bon Jovi concert. I did go on my own to see the Police with the Fixx leading. I have to say, though, that I enjoyed Pavarotti in concert and John Williams directing the Boston Pops much more than any rock concert.

I am a very fussy eater. Unfortunately, most of what I like is crap, and I eat way too much of what I like. I love junk food and greasy diner food. Pizza. Fried chicken. Barbeque. Hot wings. Oh my god, hot wings. If it weren't for little things like cholesterol, blood pressure, and weight gain, I'd live on bar food. But, of course, I can't. I've called myself a meatatarian, but that's not entirely accurate. I love french fries, too. And bread. Definitely bread. I'm going to have to stop myself before I start drooling.

I have a corny sense of humor. If there's a bad joke to be found, I'll find it. Fortunately, I tell jokes well in person, so most of the time, I actually get away with it and make people laugh. I really enjoy making people laugh and smile. Humor is how I handle most situations in life, even the stressful ones. I love Mel Brooks movies. They make me squirm uncomfortably and laugh hysterically at the same time. I like that.

I am single. Ms. Right (make that Ms. Left, I won't marry someone on the right) just hasn't come along.

I have two sisters, three nephews and two nieces. I am very close to two of the nephews and one of the nieces. The other two belong to the older sister who was terribly emotionally abusive to my parents even as my father was dying of cancer. We have no contact, but I hope some day that the sister's kids seek the rest of the family out, and a little portion of me hopes that her children give her the treatment in her last days that she gave her father.

I am named after my father. If I'd managed to find someone and get married while he was still well, I would have asked him to be my best man. We were very close, and I miss him every day. You know how some sons measure themselves against their fathers? I don't. I don't have to. I already know he was a much better man than I will ever be. This isn't self-deprecation; I'm a pretty good guy. But my dad was beyond special. He was also a very special teacher. When we were at my younger sister's graduation in Nashville, a traffic cop stopped our family to tell my dad that he was in his class 20 years earlier and still remembered it fondly. You know how good a teacher my dad was? That event didn't surprise us ("oh well, another student who loved Daddy&quot . That's how good he was. And he was an even better man.

I love dogs and cats love me. I kind of like cats, and I'm one of those rare people who speak both dog and cat, but most of the time, I'm indifferent to cats. Which is why they love me. But I can't love them back, because I'm eyes-swell-shut allergic to them. Dogs, on the other hand... big ones, little ones, I love them all and most of the time, they love me right back.

My favorite team is the University of Georgia Bulldogs. Anyone else in sports is a very distant second, but I really like college football in general. When it comes to Florida, Auburn, Tennessee, or Georgia Tech, their opponent is my second favorite team on Saturdays. I'll pull for the Red Sox, Celtics, and Patriots in a halfhearted fashion because my brother-in-law is a diehard Bostonian.

Once I get to know you, I talk too much. Until then, I'm kind of quiet. I just like to figure people out first.

I read a lot. I am most fond of science fiction and alternate history. I recently downsized my book and DVD collection. Over the course of four or five trips over the past year and a half, I got about $700 in trade credit from a huge used book/CD/DVD place called McKay in Knoxville. That's been good for two major Christmases for gifts for the family, and I still have over $200 in trade credit left. Oh yeah, despite downsizing by about 75%, I still have a good sized shelf full of paperbacks and a smaller shelf full of hardbacks.

Is that enough? If you've read all the way to here, that's very nice of you, and I appreciate it!