Who the heck is Bettina?

I was inspired by a post over at Bog Of Debt and I figured, why not share a little more about myself? So here it is folks… some random facts about me:

Who names their kid Bettina anyway? Good childhood friends thought my name was Fettina for the longest time before I had noticed and corrected them. People who knew my name was Bettina would call me Fettina anyway… they thought it was funny having a name that sounded close to the Italian translation for veal cutlet. Good times.

I looked liked a boy for most of my childhood. Mushroom cut, hand-me-downs from big bro, a unibrow and outfits worn with running shoes and socks hiked up to my knees. Thanks mom.

I love turtles. Nemo got me hooked.

My favourite deodorant has a kangaroo giraffe on the label and it smells like a tropical-flavoured Push Pop. Delicious.

I miss eating Push Pops, Pop Rocks, Sodalicious, Warheads, Nerds and Fun Dip. The good ol’ days.

I love anything caramel, butterscotch, or maple flavoured. Toffee, taffy, donuts, ice cream, maple syrup, caramel chews etc.

Mmmmmm… baconnnn. I was a raw vegan for just under a year. At the time it felt right but b/c I wasn’t monitoring myself I fell into a crap load of nutritional deficiencies. After slowly turning back to meat, fish, eggs, butter and BACON I never looked back.

I love anchovies. They’re salty and briny… yum. Eat ‘em straight out of the jar.

I cured my severe eczema/psoriasis. Doctors gave me steroid/cortisone creams that thinned out my skin and left it more sensitive the following winter. So after 20 years I took it upon myself to look for other natural solutions. I cut out the pasta, bread and all packaged foods and voila… crystal clear.

Pasta. My parents think I won’t get married because I don’t eat/cook pasta.

My parents continue to guilt-trip me. My parents believe the sole purpose of my existence is to give them grandchildren to take care of and distract them (my mom and dad) from each other.

My favourite show growing up was Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Buffy and Angel together forever.

I grew up listening to Simon & Garfunkle, The Turtles, Elvis Presley, The Mamas & The Papas, John Denver, Johnny Cash, Katrina & The Waves, The Bee Gees and The Monkees. I remember being so excited to find that the hotel we were staying at in Jamaica (when we were kids) was playing old episodes of The Monkees. Made my nights!

I tend to wander. I get distracted very easily when I’m out and about in a large crowd. When I go with a group of friends to large exhibitions or clubs, I end up following something interesting and lose my entourage. I don’t mind… and they’re used to it.

I’ve acquired an obsession for sheep feta. I’m a farmer’s market junkie. After trying one vendor’s fresh sheep feta, it instantly became a daily must in my large hodge-podge of a salad.

Celebrity close encounter. It happened by fluke that someone approached us selling meet-and-greets for Maroon 5 while we were in line. We said yes, paid the extra $20 and got to see the boys before the show. Awesome show too. It was in a small venue in Toronto called Lee’s Palace.

I own an LG Gossip. Strictly used for calling and texting. No surfing, email checking, BBM’ing or App’ing. But it only costs me $20/mo tax in! 🙂

I love kids!  Possibly b/c they’re not my own.

I am obsessed with nut butters. Especially chunky peanut butter. Almond butter is second on the list. Others I’ve tried are macadamia nut, walnut and maple walnut. When I’m in a funk I grab a jar, a spoon, and head to town.

I have an extensive stamp collection. I don’t collect them anymore but as a kid I’d hop into the post office often to look for new stamps. I have stamps from all countries and of all varieties (my favourites are the ones with Franklin the turtle on them).

My grandmother is my soul mate. My grandmother passed away less than a year ago at the age of 100. She was the most inspirational, beautiful person I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing.

Barbies were never my thing. I tried to like them as a kid, but having an older brother to play foot hockey, tackle football and soccer with totally distracted me from the norm.

Some of my favourite movies. I love too many of all different genres: 300, Love Actually, How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days, Zoolander, Fast Times at Ridgemont High…

Celine Dion. Defined my childhood. For all those times you stood by me. For all the truth that you made me see. For all the joy you brought to my life… 

Ellen DeGeneres makes my day. Period.

I love seeing live bands. And the music scene in Toronto is awesome!

I have a crush on Jonah Hill. Along with Ryan Reynolds and Ryan Gosling.