: If you’re on Facebook, you’ve most likely seen one of the latest games going around, involving sharing a certain number of facts about you. If you are not familiar with it, here’s a simple summary:

A person you know posts a certain number of facts about themselves. If you give that posting a “Like”, then that person will assign you a number, and that’s the number of things you are supposed to post about yourself.  Then, if one of your friends gives you a “Like” for your post, you assign them a number, and so on.

My dear sister Kathy posted such a list, and already being familiar with the game, I gave her post a “Like” and she assigned me the number 15.  I promptly posted 15 things about myself. It was fun, and others joined in so I gave away lots of numbers.

After playing the game and watching other friends enjoy posting, I got to thinking about how freeing and liberating it can be to just simply share things about yourself. As an extroverted introvert, I have a hard time initiating a conversation about myself, but then once I have shared something, it feels pretty good.  So I was thinking, I’d like to expand what I wrote on Facebook, and add a few more things about myself, so that maybe you can learn a little more about me, and perhaps we can discover something we have in common.

So, to start out, here is my original list of 15 things that appeared on Facebook:

1. My parents were expecting a girl when I was born, so they had not picked out a boy’s name. So they had to scramble to come up with Timothy Lee.
2. I have a birthmark on the lower park of my neck,… and from kindergarten through 12th grade, people who noticed it always thought I had a hickey.
3. I have always been and will always be scared to death of having my head under water.
4. I have always had an intense thing for women wearing boots, ever since I first saw a picture of Nancy Sinatra when I was 5. A woman in boots has my undivided attention.
5. I have 7 writing projects going on at once.
6. My office is adorned with pictures of writers that I admire, like Shelby Foote, Edgar Allan Poe, Ambrose Bierce, Dan Holohan, and Ric Burns. I also have pictures of my grandpa Earl Moore; my great-grandmother, the story teller, Eliza Jane (Lee) Ritter; Eliza’s father, Robert Nelson Lee; and my great-great grandfather Richardson Ritter.
7. I am a huge supporter of mental health. I’ve battled depression my entire life, and have finally beaten it, not with medication, but with good counseling and hard work.
8. In all my years of public speaking, I have always been dreadfully nervous until I speak my first word. Then all the nervousness disappears.
9. I’ve wanted to be a published author since I was 9.
10. I am a 1988 graduate of the University of Missouri – Rolla (now Missouri S&T) with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.
11. I am a proud 1983 graduate of Central High School in Springfield.
12. I would like to travel back in time to meet my ancestors.
13. I have an autograph from John Ritter.
14. When my parents were in local music shows when I was around 4, my brother and I used to sing “Where Oh Where Are You Tonight” and my job was to spit in the microphone, a task which I performed well.
15. The explanations for several of my poems start out with “I was in love with this girl…”

So now, here are a few more things I’d like to share:

16. When I was little, I was terrified of clowns. When I was 4, a clown chased me through the music theater where my parents were singers. The manager of the theater ended up throwing the guy out. He was my hero after that.
17. I have never, nor will I ever, do any sort of drug.
18. I spent a short amount of time serving as a pulpit-fill preacher. When I was a member of the Disciples of Christ denomination, I was hired to fill in when preachers were out of town. After doing that for a short time, I realized that while I felt strongly about my beliefs and spirituality, I didn’t really know what I was talking about and needed to shut up and sit down in the pew and listen for a change.
19. I had my first job when I was 9, helping my dad at his part-time night job as a janitor at a local radio station. I would scrub sinks and toilets, sweep, dust, and dump trash. I loved it, and never got paid a dime, since the job was really dad’s and I was just in 4th grade.
20. I’ve had a recurring nightmare of being on a very high platform, like being atop a TV tower, with nothing to hold on to, and the tower starts swaying in high winds.
21. I am a fan of the Saw movies, the Band of Brothers series, Spike Jones records and TV shows, Ernie Kovacs, and just about anything Steve Martin does.
22. I am a fan of Tim Conway, and do a pretty good impersonation of Mr. Tudball, as well as the Old Man character from the old Carol Burnett show.
23. My nickname in high school was Beaker (as in the Muppet Show puppet). I have a Beaker figure in my office.
24. Did I mention I have a thing for women in boots? I said that. Ok…
25. I currently have 91 books about the Civil War in my library.
26. The trip I took to Iowa back around Easter this year was the first time I had taken a trip for pleasure/relaxation in 6 years.
27. When people hear that I am a Civil War reenactor, they instantly believe that I am an expert at all the details and dates associated with the war. I’m not really.  I am an amateur historian and enjoy reading about the war and studying it, but I am no expert. My favorite subject pertaining to the conflict is the activities within Missouri, as well as the battles that the real Third Missouri Dismounted Cavalry was in. I guess that’s why I have 91 books about the war in my library.  I’m no expert, so I need resources to look things up when I write or talk about the war.
28. When I was 5, the doctor asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I told him I wanted to be a monkey in the circus. We had been to the Shrine Circus when it was in town, and there was a guy in a big monkey suit chasing a girl around.  I thought, “Hey, that’s the job for me!”
29. Growing up in a musical family, I was the only child out of 4 that did not learn to play an instrument.
30. I love the holidays, especially Halloween and Christmas. I put out so many lights at Christmastime, my property almost looks like a landing strip for Santa’s sleigh. I always dedicate my Christmas decorating to the memory of my mother, who loved Christmas lights and decorations.
31. I plan to go on a ghost hunt in the near future. I’ve had several paranormal experiences in my life and would like to explore that kind of thing further.
32. I know I could live just about anywhere else, but I absolutely love Missouri and the Ozarks. I have no desire to leave.
33. I enjoy cooking, and I’ve actually traded recipes with my sisters.
34. One of the most breathtaking scenes I’ve ever beheld was the sun coming up over the Olympic Mountains in Washington state. I’d love to go back.
35. I do a lot of thinking when I mow my yard.
36. I love thunderstorms and winter storms.  I think there is something incredibly romantic about being safe and warm inside while a storm rages outside. I’ve always wanted to snuggle with someone special while such a storm occurs.
37. I’m a hopeless romantic.
38. I don’t care about approaching the age of 50. I still feel like I’m in my 30s.
39. I used to sing bass in the choir at a church I used to belong to.  I also sang as a high baritone in a men’s quartet at that same church.
40. I would live at Silver Dollar City in Branson if I could.
41. I had never been camping before I started Civil War reenacting.
42. I’ve only been hunting once.  Dad took my sister and I with him to hunt quail. We didn’t see a quail all day, but shot a lot of trees. Now I only shoot with my camera.
43. I want to be on the Today Show, Ellen, Rachael Ray, and the late night talk shows to talk about writing and to motivate others to write if that is their true desire.
44. Plans are underway for me to start doing podcasts in 2014.
45. I’d like to travel to Europe, especially Great Britain and Germany.
46. I’m scared of heights.
47. I collect Santa Claus figures.
48. I am an extra in the upcoming “Baldknobber” movie.
49. I love Snickers, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and Baby Ruth candy bars.
50. I hate spiders.

Ok, I’ll stop there. Hey, if you and I are not friends on Facebook, why not? Send me a friend request, I’d love to know you are reading my blog.