1 - In high school, I was one of 5 runners-up in a lyric-writing contest that received over 12,000 entries and the Indigo Girls were the judges. My prize was supposed to be concert tickets and backstage passes. When I got to the venue, I got stiffed on the passes, a fact that still perturbs me. I had no real desire to meet the Indigo Girls, but they were on tour with Lilith Fair at the time and Emmylou Harris was also backstage.

2 - I sent a video treatment (fancy industry wording for idea) to Faith Hill for a song that was on her second album. She sent back a hand-written letter and, when I met her the following summer, she actually remembered the treatment.

3 - My first celebrity crush was on Charlie from the boy band Menudo. I was supposed to see them in concert, but I got sick and couldn’t go. My sister and cousin brought me back an 8x10 of Charlie. I put it on my bedroom wall right above my bed. One of my sister’s friends thieved it… even if she denied it.

4 - My first real celebrity crush was Chely Wright. The first time I met her I was sixteen and she was so insanely sweet to me that I fell in love on the spot. Two years later, I spent four hours hanging out with her backstage at the Opry house. She shimmered angelically, or, if Stephenie Meyer is to be believed, like a vampire.

5 - I firmly believe in the supernatural. I have had experiences with both psychics and ghosts that are hard to explain in any other way.

6 - I sucked my thumb until I was nine and carried around a security pillow that a very old neighbor lady made for me. Three times my dad dug through trash bags at McDonald’s and a movie theater to recover said pillow when I left it behind by mistake. Eventually, the first pillow went missing for good and the neighbor lady made me a replacement. The replacement pillow still sleeps in my bed.

7 - I would much rather see live theater or a concert than big-screen movies. Few experiences rival watching someone you admire perform in an intimate setting.

8 - My most prized possessions as a kid were my (hundreds of) stuffed animals. I was also terrified of fire. I kept all of my very favorite stuffed animals tied together with shoelaces. That way, if a fire broke out, I’d only have to grab one and they would all make it out alive.

9 - Zelda is my favorite video game of all time and I am totally old school about it. My favorite gaming system is still Super Nintendo.

10 - I was a ridiculously small kid. (Though I apparently had a giant head. Or so I’m told.) I was so small that my brother and sister used to fold me up in the love seat, return it to its sitting position and put the cushion back on. All with me inside.