6 things about me that will undoubtedly blow your mind

I know this one has been a long time coming--here are my 6 things that I'm posting because I was tagged by Rachel about one million years ago.

1. I really, really dislike the taste of milk. I don't mind it in recipes, but I cannot stand it on its own and I will pass on a bowl of cereal if there is no soymilk to be had. I think the idea of milk is weird, too, because when you think about it, humans are the only animals to drink the milk of another animal. I sort of have a problem with that (it just seems sort of gross to me) but oddly enough I am a big fan of cheese.
2. I started running when I was high school. I did track in my sophomore year and hated it (or at least really disliked it, because I am not all that fast and don't really do short distances) and cross-country in my junior year and really liked it. My friend and I would run together during practice and developed a nice pace that we lovingly referred to as 'the comfort stride'. It was like magic. We also skipped one or two long runs by ducking into the woods and waiting for people to pass us on our way back! Those were the days.
3. I went to a public school with a French immersion program and started learning the language at the age of five. From kindergarted through sixth grade, my education was primarily in French even though it followed the same curriculum as all of the other public schools in the county. I continued studying French for 21 years and just left school after a BA, MA, and two years of PhD study in French literature.
4. I've been up and down the east coast (although I have only really driven through some states, like South Carolina and Connecticut) and visited parts of California but have seen very little of the country other than that. I spent a few hours in a Texas airport (Houston? Dallas? I think it was Houston. Maybe) and a couple days in Baton Rouge, LA, but have never been to the midwest.
5. I really don't understand why Sandra Lee (of the Food Network) uses 'whipped topping' instead of something like reddi-whip. I understand the concept of the show, with convenience food and all that jazz, but I don't really see how 'whipped topping' is more convenient than reddi-whip. And not that I'm endorsing reddi-whip, but at least it is made with real cream and would actually qualify as a food. 'Whipped topping' is an adjective and a noun, neither of which are actual foods. It just seems to me that you shouldn't sacrifice food quality if you don't have to. Plus, if you can so easily use real whipped cream in a recipe, why wouldn't you? This really, really puzzles me.
   
6. On two separate occasions, Huey Lewis has told me very emphatically that I am pretty. When I feel bad about myself, remembering this makes me feel better. Unsolicited compliments always have that effect.

Since I think just about everyone else I know has been tagged already, I am going to take advantage of the fact that I have blogging friends and family members (who, to be honest, do not all have running-related blogs, but I don't think that matters) and tag them! So, I am tagging Mike, Suewho, Zebeckras, and Binx. No, that doesn't add up to six, but oh well. Here are the rules:

-link to the person who tagged you.
-post the rules on your blog.
-write six random things about yourself.
-tag six people at the end of your post.
-let each person know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
-let the tagger know when your entry is up.