True or Not True? The Real Truth

Yesterday I posted this list and asked my readers to guess which one of these statements is not true:

1. I was suspected of being a drug dealer.
2. We were suspected of being in the witness protection program when we moved to West Virginia.
3. I once directed an upset man with a gun to the governor's mansion.
4. I had four children by the time I was 22.
5. I dropped out of high school.
6. A dress I made myself shrank to skin-tight while I was wearing it when I was caught in a rainstorm. My boyfriend appreciated it.
7. I've been a mail carrier, security guard, betting clerk, tobacco farmer, and teacher.
8. I was a smoker for 20 years before finally kicking the habit.
9. In second grade, I pulled Sister Ernestine's veil off because I wanted to see what color her hair was.
10. We lived without electricity for 15 years.


Number 2 and number 5 got the most votes, although since I made a mistake (geesh) when I typed number 2 I should probably throw it out. Here's the REAL truth:

1. I was suspected of being a drug dealer.
This is true. When we moved to this farm, people were suspicious of the amount of cash we had, our long hair, that painted van. The explanation: drug dealers! I can honestly say I've never been a druggie at any time in my life.

2. We were suspected of being in the witness protection program when we moved to West Virginia.
This is the one I messed up when typing, so those of you who guessed it was not true before I revised it were actually right. Again, because we moved to West Virginia and up this holler when we weren't related to anyone here and had cash to buy the land, this was one explanation that a few people came up with. Mighty creative! The truth was far simpler: we lived in the Washington DC area and our house doubled in value. Land here was SO cheap in 1974, and houses where we came from were so much more expensive, we had cash to buy with.

3. I once directed an upset man with a gun to the governor's mansion.
True. When I worked as a security guard, a man came to my guard station demanding to know where the governor was. He was obviously three sheets to the wind, and he had a handgun. So I politely directed him up the street, and called the state police at the governor's mansion to let them know he was coming. I never knew the end of that story, but I can guess.

4. I had four children by the time I was 22.
True. One son at 17, another at 19, the third at 20 and the fourth at 22. Then the fifth at 35!

5. I dropped out of high school.
True. See number 4 above. Back then, you did not go to school if you were pregnant. So I dropped out in my senior year, got married, and had two sons before going to night school to get my diploma. I started college at 36, and finished my Master's degree at 45.

6. A dress I made myself shrank to skin-tight while I was wearing it when I was caught in a rainstorm. My boyfriend appreciated it.
Sorrowfully, too true. It was one of the most embarrassing days of my life. I was 15 and we had walked down to a waterfall at Skyline Drive. While there, a hue storm came up and soaked us. By the time we'd climbed back up the trail, you could see every crease in my body. Mortifying.

7. I've been a mail carrier, security guard, betting clerk, tobacco farmer, and teacher.
True. A wild and varied career. Who would think it would lead to librarian and now facilities manager? Life is full of surprises.

8. I was a smoker for 20 years before finally kicking the habit.
Not true. I've never smoked anything in my life, or had any desire to.

9. In second grade, I pulled Sister Ernestine's veil off because I wanted to see what color her hair was.
True, I'm embarrassed to say. Not actually all the way off, but enough to see that she had red or reddish hair. I was on the playground and pretended it was an accident. I don't think I ever told anyone what I did. Sister did not seem to pay any attention to it, thank goodness.

10. We lived without electricity for 15 years.
True. From 1976 until 1990. It cost too much to run in up here, so we did without it and did quite well, actually. We learned to do many things the old-time ways, and I have never regretted the experience.

So that's the truth. How did you do?