I've been discriminated against!

Ok, not really...I just thought it might make a good title. I've been tagged to do this meme (8 facts/habits) simply because I'm new on the atheist blogroll. Maybe the title should have been "Help! I'm being hazed!" Oh well, I'm too lazy to change it now.

• We have to post these rules before we give you the facts.
• Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
• People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
• At the end of your blog post, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
• Don't forget to leave them each a comment telling them they're tagged, and to read your blog.

1. FACT: I partially severed the extensor tendon of my index finger about a month ago. I like to tell people I was bitten by a shark (in the mountains of southwest Virginia) because it sounds cooler than the real reason. I was actually being uncharacteristically domestic, washing dishes while dinner cooked. I dropped a (very heavy stoneware) plate on my knuckle, where it broke and partially severed the tendon. This has really slowed down my typing, so I'm not posting as much as I'd like to.
   
   
2. FACT: I'm a voracious reader. I've always read constantly--anything I can get my hands on. Right now I'm reading Uncle Tungsten (Oliver Sack's biography), which is the 2nd or 3rd nonfiction in a row--I need to find a good novel in the next day or two. If I don't have anything else to do, I can and will read a 300-400 page novel in a day. It sucks, though--that means I have to buy/borrow/check out a LOT of books.
   
   
3. FACT: I'm a speech-language pathologist, and I love the hard stuff. I love working with kids/adolescents with autism spectrum disorders, MR, developmental disabilities...it's a challenge and I love it. I've only been bitten once (and it didn't even break the skin). I love the kids that no one else knows what to do with--it keeps me interested and on my toes.
   
   
4. FACT: I violently disagree with the theory that vaccines cause autism. There's nothing to back it up, and it seems to me like parents just want (need?) to blame their kids' problems on something external.
   
   
5. FACT: I hate Noam Chomsky's theory of universal grammar. Thinking about it makes me angry, which makes my friends and family avoid talking about linguistics with me.
   
   
6. FACT: I could never marry someone who was deeply religious or politically conservative. I know that sounds bitchy...it's not that I don't want to be around opposing views--I think it's good and necessary to hear the opposing view! Religion and politics are just too important to me to be able to get past fundamental differences...my atheism and liberalism are too much a part of who I am and how I see the world.
   
   
7. HABIT: I can't leave the house without a book or something to read. Even if I'm just going to get gas, I always think "Well, what if...?" and I have to take a book with me. (see also: Fact #2)
   
   
8. HABIT: I suck at sitting in chairs. I don't know why, but I just can't do it. Sitting up straight with both feet on the floor is really uncomfortable to me--I perch on things. I'm always tied up in knots when I sit down, which kills my back.

Here's the shitty part--I don't have 8 people to tag, which is just sad. I could just pick some people at random, but that would be weird. Here's my two (but they each have to do it four times):

Anonymous Atheist
Atheist Self

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