3 Childhood Memories

1. I fake ran-away once.  I wasn't forlorn, just bored and a little annoyed.  I left a note on a chalkboard in my room, packed some stuff in a backpack (most likely useful things like a My Little Pony and a notebook), crawled out my bedroom window and went down the block. I came back about a half an hour later to find that no one was looking for me because no one had bothered to open my bedroom door and check on me.

2. When ever we would go out to dinner I'd steal sugar packets and then eat them while laying under my bed much later.  If you know me now, this is not even remotely surprising.  Addicts will find a way to support their habit one way or another.

3. I have no memory of being told that Santa wasn't real.  My mom says that my cousin told me, so I'm just taking her word for it, but it apparently wasn't that devastating.  HOWEVER, I have very real and DEVASTATING memories of figuring out on my own - several years later - that Shamu wasn't real.  I grew up in Florida until 5th grade, so Disney World and Sea World become a big part of my life.   At some point I heard that there was some other place in California allegedly calling itself Sea World and blatantly just pretending that they also had a Shamu.  I was comfortable letting them pretend that they also had a Shamu (kind of like a mall Santa, I guess) until I realized that not only were they not just pretending, but that my Shamu wasn't an immortal whale. That when one would leave, they would just RENAME some stupid fake whale "Shamu"!! So totally devastating - you have no idea.