"LMNOP" - The Versatile Blogger Award - 7 Unique Things About Me

I was tagged by uber-fast runner Leah @ Chasing Atalanta  for The Versatile Blogger Award.  The mission: Seven unique things about me.  Here's best I can do.

1.  I brush my teeth in the shower. (Works Great, You should try it.)

2.  It’s no secret that I have two novels available on Amazon, but what is perhaps unique is that both the settings of  STRAY and  The Jade Rabbit are 100% true places. I worked in a substance abuse treatment center that shared a parking lot with an animal shelter, and I worked at a runaway shelter that used to be a nunnery.  And yes, do expect post-humous tours of these places as well as "M.Matthews Slept Here" somewhere on the worksites. 

3.  I have seen about 12 Grateful Dead shows and probably twice as many offshoot bands,    Ratdog, The Other Ones, etc… I was five feet from Bob when he forgot the words to ‘St.    Stephen’, and I swear he read my lips in order to go on with the song.  (probably not true, but a harmless delusion for me to hold onto.)

4. I can burb the alphabet.  Well, I used to be able to when I was younger, but now I can only make it just past the “LMNOP” section.  I still figure I can win some age group awards in that category.

5. My wife and I adopted a girl from China, which was a wonderful experience.  Ten months later we were ready to adopt again and “Bamn” got pregnant.  We were never told we couldn’t have kids and there was no medical reasons, we just always wanted to adopt. Now we have a wonderful family of four.

6. I ran the 2010 Boston Marathon, and it only took me ten tries and just as many years to finally qualify.  The unique part is that I ran the event with a Diamond Anniversary ring in my pocket, and presented it to my wife near the finish line to celebrate our tenth anniversary.  I had big plans to give it to her right on the Blue and Gold finish line stripe at the finish, but instead it was within ear and nose-shot of the finish line Port-A-Potties. Still pretty sweet.

7.  I am in recovery from alcoholism/addiction, and have been so since 1992.  If I wasn’t sober now, I certainly would have been dead.  Now it’s just a part of me, same way some people are allergic to peanut butter or have one foot that’s bigger than the other. And the resiliency I once had to get my next drink has carried over into all areas of my life. 

Now, if I understand correct, I am to 'Tag" someone else.  Where, here goes  Jeff @ Detroit Runner you are it!