Hmm…seems this week is going to be a good one for challenges and memes, as my brain slowly turns to mush after being on the road so much. My boss travels what seems like 26 weeks out of the year. I have no idea how she does it. Anyway, I particularly like this meme that I got from
1. What is your occupation?
According to the nametag I'm wearing this week, my pretentious-sounding title is Executive Editor, Math and Science for an education publisher. That doesn’t necessarily mean I personally do anything all that important, but I get to work with lots of educators who do, and it’s the most fun and challenging job I’ve ever had. I also happen to be very occupied with such things as reading, cooking, and writing. I just don't get paid to do them (well, technically, I do get paid for reading and writing, but you know what I mean).
2. What colour are your socks right now?
White. (My ten-year-old self would be horrified. For some reason, I despised white socks when I was a kid, especially when I was forced to wear them with a dress, an article of clothing I also despised.)
3. What are you listening to right now?
Hotel doors opening and closing. If you mean what am I choosing to listen to these days when I turn on my iPod/other source of music, that would be:
Audiobook: Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder. Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous fun! Two friends of mine recommended this book to me, oh about ten years ago. I have no idea why I've taken so long to get around to it. If you've been thinking about reading it, love philosophy and mysteries, don't make the same mistake I did; it doesn't deserve to wait around for ten years. The audiobook version is extremely well done.
Music: When I was driving up and down the east coast last week, I brought tons of CDs with me, but I seemed to be most focused on Golden Smog. Gary Louris and Jeff Tweedy together? How can it possibly be anything but good? I also listened quite a bit to a great recording from Taizé, which was very calming.
4. What is the last thing you ate?
Some very yummy chicken and bow tie pasta "soup of the day" and a “house salad.” Can you tell I’m on the road?
5. Can you drive stick shift?
I had to learn to drive one when I was sixteen in order to get my license, because it was all my parents owned. I hated it at the time, but am so, so glad it was forced on me, because, otherwise, I could see having to learn to drive one becoming an irrational phobia. (Of course, that might have been preferable to the horrible snob I am instead who doesn’t believe anyone who can’t drive a stick shift really knows how to drive.)
6. If you were a crayon, what colour would you be?
Sea green.
7. Last person you spoke to on the phone?
My boss.
8. What’s your favourite yoga pose?
I don’t really have a favorite pose, but I hate all the warrior poses.
9. How old are you today?
44 years, 1 month, and seventeen days (and I’m still doing slam books. Now that ten-year-old self is extremely happy, but slightly surprised).
10. Favourite drink?
Non-alcoholic: lemon-ginger tea (the more gingery, the better).
Alcoholic: gin (martini with olives or tonic, I’m not picky).
11. What is your favourite sport to watch?
Baseball (preferably live).
12. Have you ever dyed your hair?
Nope, the color of my hair is the only thing I like about it. I’d love to have black hair, but I’d look like a vampire with my translucently pale skin (and not one of those cool, sexy vampires. I’d look like the poor, little waif of a vampire who might as well be fully dead, the one all the other vampires make fun of).
13. Pets?
Excluding my husband, I assume? We have one king of the household cat named Francis (after the Patron Saint of Animals, naturally).
14. Favourite cake?
Chocolate with chocolate icing – with none of this raspberry filling or chocolate mousse or ice cream taking up space where perfectly good cake could be. But coconut is way up there, as well. In fact (dare I say it, because then it might be true?), coconut might actually be surpassing chocolate these days.
15. Last movie you saw?
P.S. I Love You. I love Hilary Swank so decided to watch this one on the airplane. Warning: if you are in the midst of a two-and-a-half-week period in which you have gotten to spend a total of two days with your spouse, and you are not one who relishes the idea of crying in public places where everyone can see you, do not watch this movie on a well-lit plane, no matter how worried you are that you might finish your book if you don't watch the movie, and uh-oh, your other books are up in the overhead compartment, because you forgot to take them out of your suitcase.
16. Favourite day of the year?
Does anyone at this point not know that it’s Halloween?
17. How do you vent anger?
Depends on who you ask. Bob would tell you I scream and yell and cry. I would tell you I raise my voice a little and maybe shed a tear or two.
18. What was your favourite toy as a child?
My stuffed panda bear and my Fisher Price barn with its little people and farm animals and “moo” sound whenever the door was opened (I’m guessing my parents preferred the stuffed panda to the mooing barn door).
19. Autumn or spring?
Right now as it’s springing up all over, I’m tempted to say spring, just like I am every year at this time. However, I know that it’s really fall with its crisp air, brightly-colored trees, sweater weather, and promise of wintry evenings by the fire. Besides, my favorite day of the year comes in fall.
20. Hugs or kisses?
That depends on who’s handing them out.
21. Cherry or blueberry?
Cherry, especially when we’re talking pies.
22. Do you want your friends to respond?
I always want my friends to respond.
23. Who is most likely to respond?
Becky, I think? I’m not sure.
24. Who is most likely not to respond.
Almost everyone.
25. Living arrangements?
I live in the manse owned by my husband’s church.
26. Last time you cried?
See last movie I saw (which is a good thing, despite the embarrassment of crying in public, because otherwise I’d have to embarrass myself by admitting that, shortly before that, I cried when I called Bob in a panic from the huge parking lot about ten miles from my terminal at the Philadelphia airport. This was the parking lot which I’d only found – no thanks to the horribly rude woman manning the short-term parking lot -- by driving around the airport twenty or so times. When I called Bob, I’d just had the third shuttle come by without stopping to pick me up, and I was convinced I was going to miss my flight. I was right. I did miss my flight, but by then, I’d gotten it out of my system and was fine.)
27. What is on the floor of your closet?
Shoes and boxes of stuff waiting around for me to open them and discover what they are (at home. On the hotel closet floor, we have shoes and my suitcase).
28. Who is the friend you’ve had the longest?
That’s a tough question. I have a few friends with whom I’ve been out of touch for ages that I’m sure if I called tomorrow, we’d pick up as if we’d just seen each other last week. But if we’re talking about someone with whom I’ve been in touch, that would be Tina, my college roommate.
29. Favourite smell?
Citrus, but hyacinth is nipping at its heals, vying for the label of “favorite.”
30. Who or what inspires you?
My husband.
31. What are you afraid of?
Pain (both emotional and physical).
32. Hamburgers?
Yes, but, ummm, where’s the question about hotdogs?
33. Favourite car?
I love the look of the Audi TT, but I am extremely fond of both the cars we own right now, a VW Passat and a Toyota Prius (which has been forgiven for not being a stick shift).
34. Number of keys on your key ring?
Funny you should ask just after I practically wrote a post on this.
35. How many years at your current job?
Three.
36. Favourite day of the week?
Sunday. I truly try to rest (when I’m not traveling to
37. How many countries have you lived in?
Two. I wish I could say more than that. Maybe one day…
38. Dream job?
If you’re talking about realistic dream job, I’ve pretty much got it. If you’re talking about unrealistic dream job, I’d love to be a food critic for The New York Times.
Now, if you want to give this one a go, consider yourself tagged.
12 comments:
I should have guessed that you knew that a real martini was made with gin!
Thanks for playing. I just know that one day we're going to sit down and eat coconut cake and drink gin together.
Sorry to hear about your airport hassles - I hope having a good movie to watch en route made up for trying to get to the terminal.
I would just like to say that if I were a crayon I would also like to be sea green. But this will probably not surprise you!
I'll tell you what, I'll do this when I'm on the road next week, for reasons of symmetry and ease. And, um, by the way - I feel the exact same way about chocolate cake (why, oh, why, did rasberry filling ever invade it?) and lemon ginger tea is my favorite drink, too. My favorite brand, though, has soy and I can't drink it anymore and since then no other tea has quite measured up - what brand do you drink?
I loved Sophie's World too -- what a great way to learn something about philosophy. For some reason I thought you'd been in your current job longer than three years. "Executive editor" sounds pretty cool!
I must have food on the brain today, or maybe I'm just hopelessly pretentious, because when I read your answer to #31, I thought to myself, why the heck is Emily so afraid of bread and how interesting that she considers some bread emotional and some physical! Oy. And though I've been speaking French since 4th grade, I NEVER made the connection between those two words!
But speaking of your food fetishes, I have to say that I make a KILLER coconut cake. Really, I never sing my own praises about my cooking, believe me, but this one is a keeper. Can you please come to southern California for a conference and let me make this for you?
Cam, but of course!
Charlotte, yes, we will most definitely have to sit down and eat coconut cake and drink gin together. The airport hassles weren't TOO bad, as it gave me more time to read and meant that I missed a meeting I didn't really want to attend anyway, while still managing to get to Salt Lake City in time for the dinner with authors that I DID want to attend.
Litlove, not the least bit surprising...
Court, that sounds like a plan. Soy in tea? How dare they? I like Yogi brand best (which isn't always easy to find in my neck of PA), but have no idea whether or not it has soy.
Dorr, maybe that's because I was with my sister company for ten years before making the switch?
Danny, boy, so many hidden talents you have...I'm doing my damnest to get out there for the Asilomar math conference this fall (if travel budgets don't get cut), so I'll atleast be on the west coast. Perhaps after the conference, I could head south for a few days or something. We'll see.
Chocolate cake with kirsch, though, that's allowed.
Anonymous, well, I may not know who you are, but you seem to know ME just a little bit.
That was fun! I learned to drive on a stick shift too and drove one for years. Not until I married a husband who didn't know how to drive a stick did I ever drive an automatic. I must admit, I am a secret snob about it too :)
Stef, why don't you give it a go? I'd love to see your answers. Maybe all we secret stick shift snobs should form a little club.
stealing this.
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