Areas of Unrest

29 August 2004 - Survey-llance

I am still plodding along writing my travelogue, on top of a hectic week at work. Plus my birthday approacheth (Saturday, if you're keeping count) and I should sort of think about updating some things here on those grounds. The only vaguely interesting thing I did all week was a Volksmarch in Hagerstown, Maryland yesterday and, if I write about that, I'll just end up whining about how bloody hot it was. So here is a survey, courtesy of Shmuel.

1. Your name spelled backwards. ledan h. mairim

2. Where were your parents born? Mom was born in the Bronx, N.Y. and Dad was born in Koenigsburg, Germany (which is now Kaliningrad, Russia).

3. What is the last thing you downloaded onto your computer? Frankly, I can't remember. Possibly snood.

4. What is your favorite restaurant? If I have to pick just one, I guess I'll go with Zolo Grill in Boulder, Colorado.

5. Last time you swam in a pool? Friday, after work. It's nice having yuppie amenities where I live.

6. Have you ever been in a school play? Lots of them.

7. How many kids do you want? I have no particular interest in children.

8. Type of music you dislike most? I can't even consider rap to be music.

9. Are you registered to vote? Not only am I registered, but I vote in even the little piddly local elections.

10. Do you have cable? No, though I sometimes watch cable at hotels.

11. Have you ever ridden on a moped? No.

12. Ever prank call anybody? Yes, in my misspent teenage years.

13. Ever get a parking ticket? Yes. Two, in fact, and both were within half a mile of where I lived at the time.

14. Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving? I'm terrified of heights, so it's unlikely, but you never know.

15. Farthest place you ever traveled. I've circled the globe, so it's hard to pin down. Antarctica, maybe? Most remote was decidedly Saint Helena, which took five days by sea from Cape Town. Most culturally remote was probably Papua New Guinea.

16. Do you have a garden? Not right now, though I've grown peppers on the balcony at times.

17. What's your favorite comic strip? My favorite of all time is Calvin and Hobbes. Of current ones, probably Sally Forth.

18. Do you really know all the words to your national anthem? Only the first verse.

19. Bath or Shower, morning or night? Morning shower, but I also like a bubble bath at night now and then.

20. Best movie you've seen in the past month? Touching the Void, which I saw on the flight from Vienna to D.C. last week.

21. Favorite pizza topping? Mushrooms.

22. Chips or popcorn? Corn chips.

23. What color lipstick do you usually wear? I rarely wear lipstick, but, when I do, it's Revlon classic red.

24. Have you ever smoked peanut shells? I've never even heard of anyone smoking peanut shells.

25. Have you ever been in a beauty pageant? No.

26. Orange Juice or apple? If those are the choices, I'll go with orange, though I prefer grapefruit or cranberry.

27. Who was the last person you went out to dinner with and where did you dine? A big group at Journalcon, at Raku.

28. Favorite type of chocolate bar? Another tough one. Hershey's milk chocolate with almonds, I guess.

29. When was the last time you voted at the polls? Whenever the last local election here was. March, maybe?

30. Last time you ate a homegrown tomato? Way too long ago.

31. Have you ever won a trophy? Does the key chain I got for being on a winning newcomb team in fourth grade count? (Newcomb, which I am probably not spelling correctly is a volleyball variant they foisted on us in elementary school, by the way.)

32. Are you a good cook? Yes, but my real forte is baking. Especially bread.

33. Do you know how to pump your own gas? Doesn't everyone?

34. Ever order an article from an infomercial? No, but I think my mother has some records from those late night television ads (50 hits of the 50's and the like).

35. Sprite or 7-up? 7-Up, I guess, though I'm far more likely to buy San Pellegrino limonata if I want something of that ilk.

36. Have you ever had to wear a uniform to work? No.

37. Last thing you bought at a pharmacy? A bottle of water.

38. Ever throw up in public? Not that I can remember, though I suppose I could have as an infant.

39. Would you prefer being a millionaire or find true love? If I were a millionaire, I could buy true love. (Uh, that is intended as a joke.)

40. Do you believe in love at first sight? I've certainly felt instant rapport, but I wouldn't quite call that love.

41. Ever call a 1-900 number? Yes.

42. Can exes be friends? Yes, if they were friends first and are both involved in other relationships now.

43. Who was the last person you visited in a hospital? Hmmm, I guess that was visiting a friend in a locked ward. Not a very comfortable experience, but she was quite grateful, especially as nobody else but her mother came to see her.

44. Did you have a lot of hair when you were a baby? Yep, thick and curly even then.

45. What message is on your answering machine? A boring and utilitarian one along the lines of "I can't come to the phone right now, so please leave a message at the beep."

46. What's your all time favorite Saturday Night Live character? I haven't watched SNL in years, so nothing really comes to mind.

47. What was the name of your first pet? I don't remember the names of the turtles we had, if they even had names. Later on, there was a mouse named Rose Petal, called Rosie for short. Still later was a cat named Sunshine.

48. What is in your purse? Wallet (with driver's license, credit cards, ATM card and the like). Change purse. Keys. Badges for work. Metro tickets with various amounts of money on them. Air Force coin in case anybody ever challenges me to the coin game, which makes you have to buy everyone a drink if you can't pull out your coin. Company phone directory. Rack cards for storytelling guild. Spare eyeglasses. Pens. Tissues. Tampons.

49. Favorite thing to do before bedtime? Have a cup of tea or cocoa and read.

50. What is one thing you are grateful for today? Air conditioning!