I recently met this cute girl who has a blog all about doing things that make her uncomfortable- singing karaoke, open mic nights, life in general...  I found myself living life in her shoes last week.

A friend of ours' company was having a fundraiser where teams of 8 compete in a team trivia contest.  52 teams answer 110 questions on topics ranging from "What was the first war radar was used in?" to a name that tune ranging from 60's to present day music or "What 2009 documentary award winner's recipient balanced his award on his nose?"

There were many reasons why this was a good thing... raising money for those who can't afford medical care, meeting new people, supporting our friend, participating in the event with my husband, etc... and I had to keep my eyes on all those things because of the overriding fact that I HATE TRIVIA.

Seriously.

"Name 2 of 3 movies Annette Bening was in where she was a realtor."  No way.

Memorizing and retaining various facts is absolutely the most painful, uncomfortable act I can participate in.  (Yes, gross exaggeration here.)  I hate playing Trivial Pursuit or the like kinds of games, hate taking standardized tests / tests, etc for this exact reason.  I don't mind researching and looking up facts, but remembering / retaining random things like "What other animal can have leprosy besides humans?" or "What did the Japanese Finance Minister do at the recent G7 meeting?" is not my forte.  I think my short-term memory is, what do you call it?  No really... what catchy old saying could go here?  Ummm.... how about, I tend to be the "in one ear and out the other" kind of girl.

Never-the-less, I kept my eyes on the bigger picture...  it was awesome that we could participate in this trivia event and (as I am often reminded in life) it is good because having my eyes on the bigger picture gets my eyes off myself.  I am thankful too that my husband and I enjoy using our date nights not only to enjoy each others company and strengthen our marriage (LOVE ALONE TIME WITH HIM!) but also, when it works, to be out in our community, meeting people, and supporting friends.

Oh, but did I mention that I HATE TRIVIA? 

In an effort to help out the cause, and attempt to squelch out some uncomfortable-ness, I figured the one thing I could do was prep myself for the expected - at least 10 questions about random IC trivia.  I wiki'd the snot out of IC and read up.  I may not know "What pro-sport did Wilt Chamberlain play after basketball?" but I knew that what's-his-name's retirement home was Plum Grove.  (Tho now, I already cannot remember what's-his-name though I drive past the sign every day to the garden. "Do you know who retired at Plum Grove?")  Even still, for IC trivia I quickly forgot the answer to "Who was the first woman to drive in NASCAR?" but knew 1 of 3 for "Name the 3 IC public schools named after women."  However, for not IC trivia, I did know, "Who signed the letter to FDR regarding the atomic bomb?"

Overall it was a great time, got to meet new people, knew "Who wrote Peter Rabbit?" and have fun with my husband and friends.  More importantly, keep my eyes on the big picture and not on myself.  I suppose, if Noah Webster could add a definition to "uncomfortable" it should be just that... we know all about us, what we don't know is all about you... that can make us uncomfortable... but just like by the end of the evening of the trivia event, once we get to know you, it's no longer uncomfortable and we'll want to hang out (and do the team trivia) again.

Author's Note: In this post are 11 questions asked at the trivia contest.  WITHOUT using the internet or other tools, can you answer any of them?  If so, June 11 is the next event!  Sign up!  I'll post the answers on Friday.  Remeber, NO helpers!