two more questionnaires

Courtesy of Mr. Seabold.

70 Confessions

1. The phone rings. Who do you want it to be?
-- I don’t care, as long as it’s not a telemarketer, a wrong phone number, or this one person (or maybe it’s a telemarketer; I don’t know) who has been calling me 2-3 times a day lately and hasn’t been leaving a message.

2. When shopping at the grocery store, do you return your cart?
-- Yeah, either to the store or the cart corral. It’s rude not to do so.

3. If you had to kiss the last person you kissed, would you?
-- Dude, I couldn’t even tell you the last person I kissed. Oh…wait…it was probably my niece Olivia, so sure!

4. Do you take compliments well?
-- Not really. Compliments about my clothing, shoes, photos, website: yes, absolutely. Compliments about me physically: not so much.

5. Do you play Sudoku?
-- Hell no. I hate numbers.

6. If abandoned alone in the wilderness would you survive?
-- Probably not!

7. Do you like your home as it is?
-- Not in my current hellhole apartment situation.

8. Do you enjoy driving?
-- I used to love driving until I moved to Gridlock Central. Now the only thing I like about it is having an excuse to blast my CDs/iPod and sing loudly.

9. What is your favorite roller coaster?
-- They’re all great in my eyes. I haven’t ridden one in nine years, but I still love them.

10. City, suburbs, or country?
-- Suburbs. Part of me really hates the bloated, bland sprawl of them, but they do offer a nice mix of city and country advantages: shops, restaurants, grass, silence.

11. Do you have a favorite restaurant?
-- Not particularly. The Dixie in Lebanon was always my favorite, but now it’s gone. I’ve eaten in many fabulous places over the years, and it’s impossible for me to choose one restaurant over another.

12. Who was your first celebrity crush?
-- Shaun Cassidy.

13. When someone tells a story, do you feel the need to top it?
-- Nope. But if I had a similar experience I might share it.

14. Do you clean your home on a regular schedule?
-- Pthhhhh. Not anymore—not my current place. I’m just too apathetic to care. Once I buy a place, I’ll be back to caring and cleaning fairly regularly.

15. Are you a pack rat?
-- Hoarder, hoarder, hoarder. I’m a sentimental hoarder, though—I keep letters, cards, mementos, etc. I still have every note passed to me by friends in high school. And I can’t let go of any of my books. Although I have trouble getting rid of clothes and CDs, I occasionally manage to do so. Other than that, I’m not so bad. It’s not like I hold on to stacks of newspapers and gum wrappers or anything.

16. Do you own, rent, or live with family?
-- Rent, with the intention of buying before 2007 is through.

17. What’s your next car going to be?
-- Whatever I can afford.

18. If your house was on fire, what would be the first thing you would do?
-- Make sure my cats are safe.

19. Who was the last person you shared beds with?
-- Besides my cats? My coworker Susan, when we shared a budget hotel room in NYC in early June.

20. Who do you text the most?
-- Nobody—it irks me for some reason. As do cell phones. I’ve got an ancient, bricklike ghetto TracFone for emergencies and that’s it.

21. Favorite children’s book?
-- I don’t remember much about my favorite books from childhood, other than this one personalized Sesame Street book I got when I was quite young. I read a lot and loved many of the books I read, but I’m drawing a blank as to which were my favorites. When it came to pre-teen books, though, faves include the first two Little House books; The Girl Who Owned a City; Run, Run As Fast As You Can; Mirror of Danger; Emily; A Gift of Magic; After the Bomb; books from the Twilight series; Chain Letter; and more that I’m not remembering right now!

22. What color are your eyes?
-- Blue.

23. How tall are you?
-- 5’8”

24. Are you happy with your waist size?
-- My waist is fine—it’s my stomach, thighs, and ass that are the problem!

25. If you could do it over again, start from scratch, would you?
-- I wouldn’t mind going back and reliving a week here, a day there. But reliving my entire life again from scratch sounds horrific to me.

26. Any secret admirers?
-- I highly doubt it! Except for maybe a lunatic or two.

27. Any secret crushes?
-- Maybe a mild one.

28. When was the last time you were at Olive Garden?
-- Years ago. That restaurant sucks. And they’re owned by the same people who own Red Lobster, which imports an inordinate amount of seafood out of Canada, and we shouldn’t support the Canadian seafood industry because… Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? They kill baby seals.

29. Favorite ex?
-- That’s kind of a weird question, innit?

30. Where was the furthest place you traveled?
-- St. Petersburg, Russia.

31. Do you use light mayonnaise?
-- Such a thing shouldn’t even exist. If you’re that weight- or health-conscious, you shouldn’t be eating mayo at all.

32. Do you like mustard?
-- I’m not crazy about yellow mustard, but other mustards are fine in moderation.

33. Do you prefer to sleep or eat?
-- That’s a tough one. I feel like I love both of them equally, but I suppose I love sleeping a tiny bit more.

34. Do you look like your mom or dad?
-- I look like some old pictures of my mom but I don’t resemble how they look now. However, I inherited blue eyes from both of them; I inherited my dad’s height, dark hair, curved toes, and freckles; and I inherited my mom’s big bones. (sigh)

35. How long does it take you in the shower?
-- If I’m not washing my hair or shaving I’m usually in and out in like five minutes. If I’m washing my hair and shaving it takes longer, ’cuz I gots a lot of hair, yo.

36. Can you do splits?
-- Not even close! I don’t even think I could do them when I was a kid.

37. What movie do you want to see right now?
-- 28 Weeks Later, Sunshine, The Lives of Others, This is England, Wristcutters: A Love Story (When the hell is it ever going to get released?)

38. Do you keep a tea kettle on your range?
-- Yup!

39. What did you do for New Year’s Eve?
-- Watched TV, drank a glass of Vana Tallinn, worked on a big art project.

40. Do you think The Grudge was crappy?
-- I didn’t see the remake, but I can tell you that the original Japanese version made very little sense. I was disappointed with it.

41. Do you scrapbook?
-- I make travel scrapbooks after I visit other countries, but they’re not elaborate. It’s not like I’m using all the fancy paper and 3D stickers you see at Michael’s. I really just arrange ticket stubs, postcards, receipts, food wrappers, and other travel ephemera in a big blank book.

42. Do you own a camera phone?
-- See my answer to #20. I do use my digital camera quite a lot, though.

43. Was your mom a cheerleader?
-- No, thank god.

44. Was your dad a football player?
-- Again: no, thank god. He was a shiftless ruffian, bless his heart.

45. What’s the last letter of your middle name?
-- E. What a strange question.

46. What are you thinking right now?
-- That I really need to get around to applying for a mortgage pre-approval.

47. How many hours of sleep do you get a night?
-- Around seven on weekdays; up to 12 on weekends.

48. Do you like Care Bears?
-- I did in 5th/6th grade. I owned a Cheer Bear. If I liked Care Bears now, at age 33, there’d be a problem.

49. What do you buy at the movies?
-- Popcorn, if anything. I’m usually too cheap to buy concession food because it’s so overpriced.

50. Do you know how to play poker?
-- No. And I have no desire to learn—I’m lousy at card games!

51. Do you wear your seatbelt?
-- Always—it’s just a habit. But I do leave my belt off when I’m zipping from my office to the UPS box down the street.

52. What do you wear to sleep?
-- Either a t-shirt or a big old nightgown. Nothing when it’s warm.

53. Anything big ever happen in your town?
-- Well, these are the DC ’burbs—there’s always a shooting or a hit and run taking place somewhere.

54. Is your hair straight or curly?
-- Curly in some parts, wavy in some parts, straight in some parts. A rat’s nest, basically.

55. Is your tongue pierced?
-- I have no desire to pierce it.

56. Do you like liver and onions?
-- Ew! My dad loves them, so I sometimes had to eat them as a kid. It was foul. I think meat itself is nasty; you can imagine how I feel about eating organs.

57. Do you like sarcasm?
-- Yes, but not when people are sarcastic all the time. It gets abrasive and old when it’s constant.

58. Do you like funny or serious people better?
-- I like a perfect mixture of both.

59. Ever been to LA?
-- No. I wouldn’t mind going someday, but it’s not at the top of my list.

60. Who is on your mind right now?
-- Olivia, because it’s her birthday.

61. Any plans for tonight?
-- Working, as usual. Packing for my upcoming weekend at home. Wrapping Olivia’s birthday present.

62. What’s your favorite song at the moment?
-- I’d say that it’s a multi-tie between “Swans,” “Kreuzberg,” and “Who Would You Have Me Love.”

63. Do you hate chocolate?
-- I hate dark chocolate. Milk chocolate is superb.

64. What do you and your parents fight about the most?
-- We usually don’t fight about anything.

65. Are you a gullible person?
-- It’s weird…I have my moments of being naïve and gullible, but I’m also super-suspicious of everyone, so I’m surprised I ever fall for anything.

66. Do you need a boyfriend/girlfriend to be happy?
-- Fish without a bicycle, baby!

67. If you could have any job what would it be?
-- Writing/editing for a sleazy/lowbrow British magazine/tabloid.

68. Are you easy to get along with?
-- More so now that I’m medicated.

69. What is your favorite time of day?
-- Evening, although it’s usually spent working.

70. Are you a generally happy person?
-- Happy-ish, let’s say.


Love survey

[1] Two names you go by:
Jen, Jennifer

[2] Two things you are wearing right now:
Vintage 1940s dress and strappy silver sandals.

[3] Do you still have feelings for your ex?
Ditto Shawn’s answer: “I have no feelings, my heart is a blackened shell.”

[4] Have you ever been given roses?
Yes, but I’m a sucker for wildflowers.

[5] What is your all time favorite love movie?
Probably Love Story. Yeah, it may be corny, but I still think it’s fundamentally sweet and wonderful. And it always makes me cry. I don’t believe that love means never having to say you’re sorry, though! If that ass screws up, he better apologize!

[6] How many times have you honestly been in love?
With a guy? Just once. But with pets and countries and ideals and songs and poems and activities and art: more times than I can count.

[7] Do you believe that everyone has a soul-mate?
I’d like to think that everyone potentially has more than one soul mate.

[8] Have you ever had your heart broken?
A few times.

[9] Your thoughts on online relationships?
Relationships that start online are fine—I know lots of people who’ve had great success with it. But a relationship that only exists online isn’t going to work. Well, a friendship would be fine, but an actual love match? You need to be in the same room with the person for that to work!

[10] Have you ever seen a friend as more than a friend?
Unfortunately. Effing unrequited love!

[11] Do you believe the statement, “Once a cheater always a cheater?”
Not necessarily, but I’d really have trouble trusting someone after he cheated on me.

[12] How many kids do you want to have?
The jury’s still out on that one—if I want them at all.

[13] What is your favorite color(s)?
Plum.

[14] Do you believe you truly only love once?
Some people (like my grandparents) do, but other people find true love more than once.

[15] Imagine you’re 79 & your spouse just died, would you re-marry?
Hell no. Why bother at that age? Just enjoy being alone and finally having the freedom to do what you want to do and go where you want to go during the last years of your life.

[16] At what age did you start noticing the opposite/same sex?
I had crushes when I was a kid—both celeb crushes (starting around age four) and crushes on classmates (starting in first grade). Does that count?

[17] What song do you want to hear at your wedding?
Well, I’ve got a full line-up for Annida to sing, and I like the idea of having a wedding march that’s an orchestral or Celtic version of “our” song, whatever that may be.

[18] Do you like anyone?
I ain’t saying!

[19] Do you love anyone?
Just friends, family, and pets!



song heard most recently before posting:
Digital Ghost—Tori Amos