?otd (various, compiled, via The Cat)
What is the most that you're willing to pay for a pair of jeans? What if the fit was as if they were made just for you--would you be willing to pay a premium? When I was a junior in high school, I paid $85 for a pair of black Girbaud jeans that were such a perfect fit, it was as if they'd been sewn directly onto me. They weren't that tight, just that perfectly proportioned. It was the first time I'd been within 100 yards of the height of fashion so I took really good care of them (unlike most of my clothes). I outgrew them pretty quickly once I started my beer-and-Snickers diet in college, but I simply pushed them to the back of the closet, and moved them from apartment to apartment, year after year. After year. After year. Fast forward to 2004, when I lost a ton of weight and had nothing to wear except stretched-out, horrible pants and monstrous linen men's shirts (which were beautifully made but did not suit me--the new me, anyway). In financial and sartorial desperation, I pulled out those Girbauds. They fit my 34-year-old body even better than they had my 17-year-old body--in part because my new body had curves where my teenaged body was a bit too much on the sleek side. I've since relegated them to the back of the closet, again because I outgrew them, this time in a more healthy way. No beer and Snickers. Between the couple of years that I wore them during high school and the year or so that I wore them after the ex and I split, those jeans gave me a great deal of confidence, not to mention some freedom to think about something other than how my ass looked in whatever I was wearing. For those feelings, to have paid only $85 is to have gotten away with a steal.
What is the largest city you've ever visited? What about the largest city you've ever lived in? Visited: Hmm. Good question. Surely some conference city or other. I don't feel like figuring it out, so I will just give a list of likely suspects: Washington, DC; Miami; Houston; Atlanta. Lived in: A2. Population at the time: 109,000. Population on U of Mitten football Saturdays: 219,000.
Which is better: Jeopardy or Wheel of Fortune? Jeopardy. No contest! Not that I watch either of them.
If you could be any age again for one week, what age would you be? To literally just replay a week of my life again, exactly as it happened? I would choose to be 34, starting at 9-16-04. I would relive that again in a heartbeat. If I was to have to choose an age to try again, to "change history"...I would not. Even the things that I regret, I would not change, because to do so would fuck up the life that I love now.
What is the most you're willing to spend for a ticket to the movies? To the disgust of most people I know, I haven't been to a movie in years. Once Upon a Time in Mexico was the last movie I saw at the theater, and it was simply gross. No, that's not why I haven't been back. I like movies. Just not like that.
Name one thing you have misplaced and never found again. Where did it go? You know, there are some questions that are so fucking dumb that they really don't deserve an answer.
How much time do you spend at work goofing around on the computer? My job is 'goofing around on the computer', so, arguably, maybe 95% of the time? But if the question is really, how much of my time at work am I using a computer to not work, then the answer is, maybe 3%. I'm too damned busy to screw around. Multi-tasking during conference calls excepted, of course.
What is your ideal time to go to sleep at night? In a perfect world, I would fall asleep around 3 in the morning.
If you had your choice, what time would you get up in the morning? In a perfect world, I would wake on my own (no alarms, no one poking me, no one walking on me or begging for food) at 11:00 or noon.
How many pillows do you sleep with on your bed? I have four: two plain goose-down, and two half-and-half, feather-and-down. I alternate them about every two nights.
Are you particular about your bed sheets? Well, I don't bitch at another person about the sort of sheets they should have when I am sleeping at their place, but for my own bed...yes. I have two sets of Modal (i.e. made from beech, available only from Bed, Bath & Beyond) that I love. I alternate them with a gorgeous set of 100% cotton with an good thread count from Kohl's, acquired during the Oklahoma relationship sabbatical. For winter, there is also a set of super-soft flannel. I prefer white sheets. However, one of the sets of Modal is a very weird green that my friend Fluffy calls "the biohazard sheets", and the plain cotton ones are a dusty medium blue, sort of a cross between faded denim and periwinkle.
What size bed do you have? Is that the size of your choice? I have a Queen. Any bigger than that and I would be risking all my [heavy] furniture falling through the floor, whereupon I would be sleeping in the office of SWC. An intriguing thought, certainly, though not really what I'm going for.... My point is, my bed quite fills the bedroom right now, and I'm only using the metal underneath-frame; with an actual wooden frame the bedroom would be super over-stuffed. At some point I will want a bigger bed, if I will be sharing with the Starfish that I am dating. It would be hard to give up my bed, though; anyone who's slept in it has said that it is the most comfortable bed ever. I'm taking about when my parents stay in my apartment and I sleep on the couch, sickos.
- Have you used put anything edible on your partner's body, and then eaten it? Yes. Do you want to know what it was?
- Have you ever had an AIDS test due to reasonable suspicion or hyperactive imagination? No. I have had one for a different reason.
- Have you ever fantasized about someone else other than your partner while you were engaged in sex, oral sex, or mutual masturbation? Yes. [Explanation deleted]
- Have you ever engaged in sex, oral sex, or mutual masturbation while in a moving car? A car being driven by someone not engaged in the sex, oral sex, or mutual masturbation? Yes. No. Oops, yes. But it wasn't a car.
- Have you ever had sex so many times or for so long that one or both people involved runs dry? "runs dry"??? Um, eeew?!! Wow, there's personal, and then there's way too damned personal, and this goes beyond wtd personal. How about this: there are often plenty of reasons to stop, but sometimes there are plenty more reasons not to. And technology (don't ask, just work with me here) makes this possible in myriad ways. If everyone's healthy and consenting, then why apply a judgment?
Bonus: Fill in the blank: confidence is sexy; vulnerability is sexier.
A random survey from The Survey Place, a la Cat
Are you happy with your given name? It doesn't put me into spasms of joy, but I don't hate it, either.
What is your guaranteed weeping movie? Too many to count. The most recent was...Corrina, Corrina. It is a 'Naked Movie'.
What is the one thing you like to do alone? Again, too many to count. Umm, how about, shopping for shoes. I don't ever like the shoes that anyone else thinks will look good on me. Case in point: the debacle of trying to find cowboy boots in OK. (Sorry, H!)
What's a major fear of yours? Seriously? That I will [soon] snap and have, as I framed it to Nick, "A Liar, Liar day" at work, where I tell everyone exactly what I am thinking. Catastrophic for my career (and therefore such consequential things like eating and having a place to live) but increasingly appealing for my mental health.
Are you a pyromaniac? That's like asking "Are you a murderer?" or "Are you schizophrenic?" In other words, even if I said I was, could you believe it? In all seriousness: no. I am not.
Do you know anyone famous? Someone that I slept with is now the C.E.O. of a company that is worth something like $8 billion. "Famous"? Perhaps not. "Worth enough money to have me killed for revealing his shortcomings on my pathetic blog"? Damned right. Please note that I'm not naming names; we dated for a while and were friends for much longer. I admire him, and I'm not 'that kind of person' anyway.
Describe your bed: Queen-sized Serta Bainbridge Pillow-Top with a split box. It was insanely expensive, given my income, but was one of the smartest purchases that I ever made.
What type of character would you play in a movie? I might write it, but I wouldn't act in it. I'm not the acting type.
What do you carry with you at all times? mobile phone (Motorola i205 which holds a charge for about 14 seconds and is in desperate need of replacement) and wallet (either the black Coach model or the little brown dude from Wilsons). Most of the time I also have keys (a beat-to-hell Kenneth Cole tag from a purse that was relegated to the back of the closet long ago; apartment key; hallway key; mailbox key; Borders Rewards tag; key to Fluffy's condo; Master key to work; car key), Oakley sunglasses, a Uniball pen, and a notebook.
How do you eat an apple? I only eat golden delicious, and I really don't like them all that much. I usually cut them into eighths, though, if I eat them at all.
Do you prefer to stand out or blend in? I am a blender with reservations. I am the shithead in the back of the room making smartass comments that make all the people around me laugh, but I usually don't do anything so overt that I actually get into trouble for it.
What kind of first impression do you think you give people? Good question. A question that I've been wondering about a lot, recently. If anyone has any ideas...? My guess is that in a strictly personal situation, I come off as "slightly shy and pretty nice." And in any other situation, I come off as "smart, a little stuck-up, and kind of smart-assy."
Favorite communication method? Wishing/hoping/ESP.
What is your hidden talent? I can do things with my Oh, wait, that really is a hidden talent! How about this: I can single-handedly make male bloggers stop blogging. I can think of four that have at least slowed, if not completely stopped, writing anything since we've become friends, and another who I only know incidentally who seems to have fallen off the side of the earth since interacting with me. Typhoid Amy o' Blogworld, eh?
Do you own a Bible? Yup, but I have no earthly clue where it is at this moment, other than "in a box somewhere in my apartment". It remains, along with a decent chunk of nonfiction, unshelved (and unshelvable).
Do you have a problem changing clothes in front of friends? I don't have boatloads of friends who would expect it of me, so this really isn't much of an issue. I could probably list the friends in front of whom I would or would not change certain articles of clothing, but...nah. I'm not terribly prudish. In a pinch, I could be naked in front of nearly anyone. Hell, I have been pretty much That is a story for another day.
What should you be doing instead of this? Creating and eating dinner. Buying cards and a punkin' plate at Hallmark. Buying groceries (I'm having friends over on two nights this week, in addition to the two trips to the Big City in the NW for meetings, plus a shopping trip to suburb hell on another evening--there is no time if I don't do it tonight!). Preparing an Important Packet of Papers to be sent tonight. Beading a "gothic black with pink necklace" for a friend from work. Taking a friggin' nap because my head is killing me.
Who was the last person who called you? Dad called at 3:45. He calls every Sunday at 3:00, but he forgot until 45 minutes later because he and my mom were entranced, as always, by NASCAR. Yawn. We talked for several minutes but he was only half there. Before that, I talked to Fluffy, I think, 3 times yesterday, and Nick called while I was in the shower earlier in the afternoon. It always makes me wonder how much risk I'm in, for zapping myself, standing there in 4" of water while talking on the phone? It doesn't much matter but I should probably be more careful.
Are you ready? Never. Or always, depending upon what I'm supposed to be ready for.
What is the last gift you gave someone? It depends upon whom you ask. To be on the side of decency, I shall say, a gift card to the candle shop for Pam's birthday.
Does everything happen for a reason? Yes, but our choices are not preordained. There is a medieval Latin saying that applies: God does not refuse grace to those who do what they can.
What is your biggest headache lately? Literally, a headache. I have a referral from my physician to see a physical therapist for treatment of migraines.
What color is your bedroom? Vanilla? I dunno. Smudgy, certainly, since I'm always dragging stuff against the walls without realizing I've done it. I will be Magic Erasering until the cows come home when I move from this place!
Do you consider yourself to be a nice person? No. The best I can do is to try not to be too wretched.
Have you ever pierced your own body part or that of someone else? Only in my dreams.
What kind of watch do you wear? I have not worn a watch since I bought a mobile phone. Literally! Never! I own, um, 5 of them: a Swatch called 'Chelsea'; a cheap plastic Simpsons model from cereal; a white-and-yellow gold "girly" deal that I got for Christmas or a birthday from a friend; a nice little Timex from my parents; and a big honkin' Timex that I loved that is on a cool medium-tan band called "raw pig" [it isn't really] that my jeweler friend got for me. That last is the one I wore the most often, and I wore it face-in.
What's one car you will never buy? (why?) Another question guaranteed to alienate someone. Why not? I will never buy a car with a completely invented or otherwise Godawful name, like "Tuareg" or "Siena" or "Sedona." That last one is particularly awful; there is nothing so offensive as using a spiritual place-name from the southwest to denote an SUV. Harrumph.
Do you cry in front of your friends? Not very often. I'm not big on public displays of that sort. The only people in front of whom I regularly cry are my therapist, and Fluffy.
Would you die to save the life of someone you dearly love? Yes.
Do you have any married friends? I suppose that's up to them, not me. But yes, I do: Fluffy and spouse, The Cat & The Beast, D&R, Eric and Amy. The L sisters are all married (or have been, recently enough to still fall into that category).
Do you like thunderstorms? Yup. I'm not fond of wind, but thunder & lightning are lovely at times.
What was your first job? I worked at the bakery in a locally-owned grocery store. It wasn't a bad job, and the store itself was a Mecca of teen- and college-aged hormones. It was a great place to grow up.
What was the last thing you typed before this survey? An email to G re: dinner tomorrow night.
Favorite word lately? It's a phrase: "in a good way".
What's the strangest thing that's happened to you in the past week? Out of all the possible candidates, I am really at a loss.
I was profusely busy in my friend-personal life (dinner & a movie with a new friend, and I got four letters and/or packages from someone who lives a few hours from here who I'm desperate to hook up with for some real conversation). And the Big Deal deal was with Nick--we talked about everything from breaking up to going to counseling to getting married. So, strangest? The whole damned week was strange. The conference call was the worst, I guess.
You have a crush, don't you? Only the legit one.
Who? Nick
What is the little physical habit that gives away your insecure moments? Again, I'm not sure that I can answer that. I might futz with my hair or earrings, maybe. I bite my lip so I won't cry. This might be strange to say, but I'm not too uncomfortable with being insecure--I just go with it.
Do you talk a lot? Sometimes, compared to some people. I can be a pretty good listener, though.
What do you typically order at a bar? Coke. The last time I drank alcohol, I drove so drunk that I should have probably died.
Name one trait you hate in a person. Passive-aggressiveness, especially at work.
Favorite writing utensil? Uniball Signo 207 or Vision Elite.
What's one thing you're a loser at? Darts.
When's the last time you made someone cry? I have no idea, and I prefer not to contemplate it too closely.
Do you like the rain? Yes, but I never liked the rain 'til I walked through it with you.
Who was the last person you talked to in person? Nick, when he left last night. I won't see him again until tomorrow, maybe Tuesday night. It's just as well because my brain is low on oxygen after the day we had.
What are your plans for the weekend? Next weekend? I think it's supposed to be colder than all get-out; there is snow predicted for Thursday. We'll probably do the usual Saturday thing--he'll work in the morning, we'll go out for lunch, and then we'll hang out watching movies & stuff all day until he has to go. He has Sunday off, completely, for the first time in an age, so maybe we'll do something "big" then. For us, that usually means heading to the 'burbs to window-shop for water-creatures or books, or driving around in search of trouble in some other form. We certainly found enough of it yesterday....
How much money would it take for you to give up the internet for a year? A very great deal. I cannot imagine a reason that I would do it; I communicate with some people who mean a great deal to me solely by electronic means.
Where's your ideal marriage location? The words "ideal" and "marriage" do not really have much to do with each other. Seriously: hearts and flowers didn't work. In a lot of ways, love didn't work. Something else is necessary, and I don't think that "ideal" is what will plug that gap. Or, more exactly, I know that "ideal" will not plug that gap. So if the time is right--and I will know it, and he will know it, then, too--it can be a $25 ceremony in a judge's office or a $15,000 ceremony in the biggest church in the city, or a quickie at a casino in Vegas or a grand event planned for a year by Martha friggin' Stewart. The only part of it that will matter to me, once it's done, is that it's done. For me, it's not about the gifts, or the guests, or the gown. Not the flowers, or the family, even the photographs. Yes, I know that I am cynical.
What do you cook the best? Chicken fricassee. Homemade pizza. Lasagna. Pan-fried steak and baked potatoes. French toast. Chicken tortilla soup. That being said, I'm a better baker than cook.
What kind of books do you like to read? Good ones. Quirky, weird, well- (i.e. lyrically-) written, with strong characters. I'm on a nonfiction kick lately, but I have a stack of 6 novels on the desk waiting to be reviewed. Soon.
If you win the lottery, what would you like to do? Buy a new car (my mileage is creeping toward 50K way too fast). Get a short black skirt that is not obscene. Move out of the apt on the busiest street in town and into a [rented] house that has an at least semi-finished basement. (Not that I don't love the apartment, which I do, but negotiation and compromise seem to be heading in the direction of renting a house.) Learn how to invest (are you listening, r? I need you!) so that I never again have to work in a job that sucks the life out of me so that I can afford to do what I really love to do. (I am assuming that I wouldn't have tons of money, by the way, because I would only have a 1/5 or less cut of whatever my parents won, because they are the only people I know who play the lottery. They would give me a cut of any big prize, though, so it's not just a totally stupid dream. It is pretty stupid, but not totally.)
If you don't like a person, how do you show it? Life is too short to have to do things to people based on petty bullshit. If we have to get along, I try to get along, for real. I might bitch in my journal or to a friend in another circumstance, but I try very hard to not be what I hate in others--a passive-aggressive child.
What are you listening to? Nada. I've recently completed a couple of mixes and I'm rather tired of constant music. I'll start it up again in a day or two. Staind, Chapter V, is in the car, though. I love that CD in a way that is almost sick.
What was the last thing you laughed at? Something from Grey's Anatomy (Season 2) made me laugh out loud this morning while I was reading the paper and eating breakfast; I nearly horked oatmeal out my nose.
What do you wish you were doing right now? Kissing Nick. I'm sorry, but it's true. He's the best there is. I would rather kiss him than eat, or sleep, or ... You get the picture.
What musical instrument do you wish you could play? Oboe and/or marimba.
What's the funniest experience you ever had at your job? "You wanted to sniff my butt?!"
If you could speak any language, which language would you speak? Welsh. I would love to be literally incomprehensible to 99% of the world.
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