29 Firsts

First celebrity crush?

I don’t know if this counts because I was so little, but ‘Bob’ on Sesame Street was a total crush.  Later in life when I was actually a teenager it was Ricky Martin which is totally hilarious and weird when I think about it now.  

First time in the principals office?

Don’t judge me, sounds WAY worse than it was or than I ever intended it be.  When I was in grade four, one of my little friends and I locked a boy by his wrists on the bicycle racks and told him he was our dog.  He complied and gave us his hands and started barking.  He was having fun, we were having fun but that stopped pretty quickly when one of the teachers saw us and got us in MAJOR trouble - I'm talking black book trouble in the principals office.  

First love?

High School and he broke my heart.  

First trip abroad?

Grade nine - Italy.

First love letter?

I received one from a boy when I was in jr. high, he was in high school.  OH MAN.  It was just his poetry that he had composed for me.  So sweet, but I didn’t understand it - it was pretty deep.  In the end, nothing ever came of us.  Just a lot of innocent and confusing poems.

What was your first car?
I’ve never driven a car full time - ever - still to this day I don’t drive a car.  My first vehicle was my mom’s sweet old mini-van in high school.  My second vehicle was my mom’s sweet second old mini-van…also in high school.  My third vehicle was my mom’s sweet new mini-van that I got to borrow to drive to university everyday.  So frickin’ rad I know.

Who was the first person who you cared more about their well being than your own?
Probably my little baby brother Daniel when I started babysitting him in around gr.5.

When was your first public speaking success?

Elementary school.  I was always the MC at the assemblies for some reason.  I was a total teacher's pet.

When was the first time you got stitches?
I was about three or four.  I put on my Dad’s cowboy boots and fell into the brick fireplace on my forehead.  Still have the scar!

When was the first time you stayed up all night and watched the sunrise?

I think it was about gr.9 at Deirdre Lanigan’s house when we were having a sleepover.

What was the first thing you learned to cook?
Cook well - lasagna

Cook in general - mac n cheese

First money earned on your own?

I won the overall dance scholarship in the 12 and under category at WRDAA (Wild Rose Dance Arts Association) when I was 12.  The following year, I won the overall dance scholarship for 13 and over category at the same competition (different judges).  The committee changed the rules the following year so that no dancer could ever win two scholarships in two consecutive years because so many parents complained.  I cried about it cause I thought I had done something wrong and wanted to have a fair chance to win again.  

What was your first paying job?

Babysitting

First real paying job?

I worked as a hostess at Earls and then later as a server.

When was the first time you flew on an airplane?

I was young, like 5 or 6 years old I think.  Maybe earlier.  Loved it.  Now?  HATE IT.

What was the first concert you went to see?
Green Day with the boy who lived across the street from us and another girl that he also invited. ??? I didn’t get a call back the next day so I guess I didn’t make the cut.  sniff sniff.  Hahaha.

What was your first bike like?

It was a bright blue two wheeler.  So squeaky, so used, so awesome.
 
First time being grounded?
We were in grade ten.  I told my parents I was sleeping at my best friend Jenny's house, and she told her parents we were sleeping at my house.  We went to a party and stayed out all night.  In the morning, we were driving to McDonalds for breakfast before Ballet class and there was a white van following us everywhere we turned.  I looked in the rear-view mirror and said to Jenny 'weird, the lady in the passenger side looks a lot like your mom'.  Sure enough, our mom's had driven around Calgary trying to find our vehicle and eventually found, and busted us.  The wrath that ensued...oh dear lord...the wrath.

When was the first time you shot a gun?
Still haven’t shot a gun.  I will whoop your butt in Lazar tag though.

When was the first time you moved houses?

We lived in a bungalow in Forest Lawn (GHETTO) and moved to another bungalow in Bonavista.  I don’t remember that move.

When was the first time you threw a punch?
I was in a Karate class and clearly I didn’t understand the concept of Karate.

First failing grade?

I got a 4/10 on a pop science quiz in grade 7.  I thought my life was over and started saving money because I thought I wouldn’t make it in the real world when I became an adult.  Awe, so much pressure at such an early age!

First broken bone?

I was at the National Ballet school for a summer and broke my pinky toe in my left pointe shoe.  We were jumping down the floor on top of these things without coming off of the toe part (if that makes sense).  After the doctor confirmed it was broken, I was still made to dance on it for the rest of the summer.  Maybe that's why my pain tolerance is unusually high?  No but seriously, it felt like a sharp blade was cutting into my toe every time I went 'up' on the shoe.  I think I was about thirteen years old and my parents where across the country, so I had no power over these slave drivers.  They just made me dance.  Talk about having to suck it up...

When was the first time you quit a job?

Haven’t ever quit, but slacked until my last day?  Yes.

What was the first professional sporting event you went to?

A hockey game.  Snore.  I like them now but back then…bor-ing.

When was your first regrettable hair style?
The claw-bang.  Here's a picture but it's not so awful here.
This is the only pic I could find in my home, but if I remember to get my grade four school photo from my parents house, I'll post it and you will be amazed at the atrocity.

How old were you when you first left home?
For a sleepover?  Grade five.

For good?  Twenty-something

When was the first time you cut class?

High school and I was a ball of nerves the entire time.

How old where you when you had your first kiss?
Peck: Grade six

A little racier: Grade nine.  This is yet another one of my most embarrassing moments.  I used to wear really bad dark lipliner and lipstick in grade 9.  I was ‘dating’ a boy and it had been declared by the other grade 9 kids that we were at the point where it was time to…french.  It was after school and thankfully nobody was there except for his buddy who was waiting out in the field.  The boy and I were in the hallway and we went in for the sloppy, pre-adolescent, awkward ‘french’ and after about 5 or 6 seconds we pulled away.  I opened my eyes, and the boy had smudged red lipstick and lipliner all the way around the outside of his lips - everywhere.  Kinda like Ronald McDonald but it was like a little kid had coloured out of the lines all over Ronald McDonald’s lips.  He was super cool and smooth and just said with a total Rico Suave drawl: ‘Ok.  See you tomorrow Katie’ cause he had NO CLUE, and I was just standing there with a surprised expression on my face ‘yah, see yah tomorrow’.  He turned around and left.  I watched him walk out to the field where his friend was waiting for him.  All I saw was his friend pause and then point at his face and then double over in a fit of laughter at my then boyfriend.  He was actually holding his stomach he was laughing so hard.  My boyfriend quickly wiped his face with the back of his hands and then RAN AWAY!!!  Well, the next day and for weeks and weeks and weeks afterwards, I was known as ‘Hoover’ by my boyfriend’s friend.  Worst nickname ever.  HAHAHAHA!!!