Tagged!

So a.maria over at Little Miss Runner Pants tagged me. Here's the deal:

Write 5 random facts about yourself, and then list the names of 5 people whom you in turn infect. Also, leave a post to these people letting them know they have been infected.

Hm. Okay.

Fact 1: Once, I was running down a street in Galway and I ran into - and knocked over - Van Morrison.

Fact 2: I have a law degree I don't deserve and have never used.

Fact 3: I kinda wish I was an astronaut. I tell myself that the reason I'm not is that I have very bad eyesight (now fixed with Lasik).

Fact 4: I live in the Northwest but I can't stand microbrews. I don't care for flavor and interest in my beer. I like Bud, Corona, and most Japanese beers.

Fact 5: I love living in the city, and I love living in the boonies, but the burbs freak me out. Comes from growing up on an island.

I now tag Sarah, Trish, PartyRunner, Britt, and Scott.

Worried. Scared. Excited.

So.

For the last ten years, I've worked for a Very Large Software Company. Actually, I've worked for the Very Large Software Company. And it's been very good to me: I've had fantastic opportunities, met wonderful people, discovered my inner geek, learned more than I could have imagined. It even took me from Dublin to my beloved Washington State, more than seven years ago now.

And now I'm saying goodbye. In just over a week I'll be starting a new job, at a Very Large Online Retailer. I'm bouncing between exhilaration and fear. What am I giving up? What am I going to? The VLSWC has kept me warm and dry for a very long time. Can I survive on the outside?

If a man in a white coat says it ...

A study says people who have one alcoholic drink a day are 54 percent less obesity-prone than teetotalers are. (But those with four or more drinks a day are 46 percent more obesity-prone.) Another study indicates that among people who weigh too much or drink too much alcohol, those who drink more than two cups of coffee a day are only half as prone to chronic liver disease. Each study involved more than 8,000 people. Cynical take: Wash out your fat with liquor, then rinse out your liquor with coffee.

From Slate's Human Nature column.

Tracking the Las Vegas marathon

Live updates on Scott's and PartyRunner's marathon going on over here.