Another meme, another tagging: six random facts

By way of Pauline Rowson, author queen of the UK maritime mystery, I now have to offer up six random facts about moi.  So, here we go:

1. I loved sciences at school and have 'A' levels in zoology, maths and chemistry.  Zoology was the passion, though.  A typical 'A' level question: How is the earthworm adapted for life in its environment?
2. That love of animal science never left me and my knowledge of some medical things is well above average.  I've been asked more than once by someone in the medical profession if I'm a medic of some sort.  In the past, I've also spent some time explaining a gynae/endocrine condition to a renowned breast cancer surgeon, because he wanted to learn more.  It's no surprise then, that I have loved the development of forensic detail in crime novels, although I love psychological angles as well.
3. A good friend thinks I can be "dizzy" on times and likes to wind me up.  Last night, in a conversation, he said "You should have been born blonde".  A few exchanges later, I suddenly remembered and exclaimed, "I was born blonde!"  I entered the world as a "mini-me" of my father, blonde curly hair and with a receding hairline to perfectly match his.  Over the years, I went darker and darker, until at 15 I was a fully-fledged brunette, with my mother's colouring.
4. I passed my driving test first time and from the word "go" my late mother had more confidence in my driving than her own; I became the family car driver.  When I lived in London in the 90s, I loved driving on the quiet roads at night and had a habit of driving to Victoria in the early hours of the morning to pick up the Sunday newspapers.  London at the dead of night has always been a fascination to me, since I was a child.  But having left there almost a decade ago, I think I'd be less comfortable there now.  Points raised in the news and campaigns and debates for the current mayoral elections don't help.  I moved out in 1999 because I was fed up of the noise.
5. I was knock-kneed as a child and had to wear flat lace-up Start-Rite shoes with orthopaedic insoles for a few years, trailing from clinic to clinic.    Once declared "orthopaedically perfect" circa 1970-1972, I was able to have my first pair of T-bar sandals.  I wanted the bright red ones.  My mother sanctioned the tan coloured pair.  In the summer hols I avoided using the brakes on my bike and used my heels to slow down, wearing down the crepe soles in the hope of getting the red pair before the hols were out.  It never happened.  Last year, I bought a pair of bright red, platform and wedge sandals.  Call it a mid-life moment (my "crisis" has already been running for a decade).
6. I have an aversion to filling out forms.  Less is more on that one!

Now, here are the rules of this meme and list of six that I am tagging:

• Link to the person that tagged you.  (Done in my case, see above.)
• Post the rules on your blog.  (Done.)
• Write six random things about you in a blog post.  (Done in my case, see above.)
• Tag six people in your post (see below).
• Let each person know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.  (Will do.)
• Let the tagger know your entry is up.  (Will do.)

I'm tagging:

• The ever busy Clare Dudman at Keeper of the Snails, who knows a thing or two, and more.
• Maxine at Petrona, because anything she has to say is interesting and some random facts can only add to the mix.
• Roger (R.N.) Morris, creator of the new and continuing fictional life for Porfiry Petrovich, who astounds me with each novel and the ability to write as he does...
• Anne Brooke, emerging crime fiction author in the UK, whose blog is so open when it comes to the personal that I wonder what she can dredge up for this one...
• Declan new Dad Burke because he might love doing this as much as he loves Lily.  Fat chance!  But it's also pay-back time...
• The darling Norm at Crime Scraps because he may read plenty of crime fiction stories but he also has a few stories from his own life.

Comments

[Norm]

My tag is up Rhian but unfortunately a lot of my stories have a confidentiality clause. Which means the participants might come round and thump me.

[Maxine]

Thanks for your kind words, CFR - I feel pretty sure I've done this one -- but will try it again if i get a moment. not sure I could beat your "random facts" though!

[roger]

Oooh, interesting. Random fact one about me is I am very easily distracted by blog memes. We won't count that one!

Thanks for thinking of me and for the lovely words.

[Anne Brooke]

A level zoology - fab!!!

:))

A
xxx

[Clare D]

Fascinating, CFR! I particularly liked the sandal detail :-)

Strange, my brothers were both blond when babies and ended up much darker than me - I have always been the same colour of brown. I wonder why this is - I've always thought it might be something to do with camouflage of the young, like bambi and his spots, but I can't see how this could be so.

This is the third meme I've been asked to do this week, and I'm afraid I'm a bit busy - frantically trying to stuff things into my brain before the conference on Monday - so it may be some time before I can repsond. But thank you for thinking of me.

[Clare D]

Fascinating, CFR! I particularly liked the sandal detail :-)

Strange, my brothers were both blond when babies and ended up much darker than me - I have always been the same colour of brown. I wonder why this is - I've always thought it might be something to do with camouflage of the young, like bambi and his spots, but I can't see how this could be so.

This is the third meme I've been asked to do this week, and I'm afraid I'm a bit busy - frantically trying to stuff things into my brain before the conference on Monday - so it may be some time before I can repsond. But thank you for thinking of me.