Tag -- I'm it

Canadian Capitalist has run me down and slapped me on the shoulder in the latest round of pfblogger tagging, so I'm supposed to come up with five things my loyal readers (Hi Mom!) don't know about me. A bit tricky since my day job as a journalist makes me want to maintain a shred of anonymity round here, but here goes.

1 -- This isn't my first, or only, blog. I contribute to, or am a frequent commenter on, numerous other blogs, most of which are either media- or hockey-related. If you travel in those circles and think you recognize my writing voice, then congratulations: you've sussed me out. Your prize is a set of steak knives.

2 -- I own every single episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on DVD. Whether that's somehow related to my habit of trying to find underappreciated diamonds in the rough while investing, I'll leave up to you. But feel free to drop me an e-mail if you can't sleep and feel like reading an 8,000-word polemic on the genius of Joss Whedon. Or Warren Buffett for that matter. (Editor's note: I'm only half kidding.)

3 -- I have a completely irrational fear of deep water. I'm not worried about drowning, since I'm a strong swimmer, but my subconscious is convinced that something is going to prevent me from swimming to safety. I think it has something to do with seeing JAWS when I was 6.

4 -- On a business trip in Quebec years ago, my father found himself dragged into a hockey-card store by one of his colleagues. His colleague had heard that this particular store was liquidating its assets, and he wanted to grab as many Wayne Gretzky, Patrick Roy, Steve Yzerman and Mario Lemieux rookie cards as he could get his hands on at fire-sale prices. My dad, ever the sage, waited in the car. For hockey and financial reasons, I still haven't forgiven him for that. Or for plowing my entire RRSP contributions one year into something called "an e-business mutual fund" approximately 14 seconds before the tech-sector meltdown.

5 -- I think nothing of haggling over the price at almost any store I'd walk into, but I'm psychologically incapable of asking any employer for a raise. This mystifies me.

I would add a 6 -- When it comes to investing, I don't know what I'm doing, but even a cursory reading of this site should make that painfully obvious.

Toronto Real Estate Junkie, Cap from Stop Buying Crap and Uncle Bill, I see you hiding behind those trees. Get out here. You're all it, slowpokes. No tagbacks.