it is designed to break your heart

• When was the last time you went camping?
  I was ~13 years old. Not a big camping fan.
• Where and who with?
  BRF, in the Cheese State - with my friend Christa and her family
• Have you ever been to Brooklyn?
  no
• Are you a YouTube addict?
  not hardly, though I use it regularly enough (to clip into FB) that when I type "Y" into a browser, it's the first auto-fill both at home and at work
• Did you play with Play-Doh as a kid?
  yes
• Do you own any beanies?
  I do. They're in a box labeled "stuffed things." The Cat played with them (or something?) the evening of my first move this summer. Since then, they've been groped by a toddler. I may need to wash—or possibly burn—them.
• Have you ever found a four-leaf clover?
  not that I recall
• Have you ever been to Malaysia?
  not lately
• Are you good at lighting fires?
  so I've been told
• Have you ever run away from home?
  only in the macro sense
• Does Steve Martin make you LOL?
  sometimes. Some of his stuff, e.g. The Man with Two Brains and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, still kills me.
• Do you own a raincoat?
  nope
• Do you have trouble sleeping in beds which aren't your own?
  not at all. In fact, sometimes I prefer it. Ha!
• Have you ever made your family dinner as a treat?
  yes, when I was cooking for a living and thought it was impressive to make the sort of thing I was just learning how to make.
• ...or just to suck up?
  probably a little of that, too, but more when I was in high school than later.
• Do you listen to the radio much?
  almost never. Like, maybe 2 hours a year.
• Have you ever been to...
  Chicago? uh, yeah
  New York City? no, and I can't really see it happening unless I had to
  Anchorage? not yet, but I foresee the possibility within the next year!
• Have you ever been to...
  New Zealand? no, but I'd love to go
  Canada? not yet - but I've heard the bowling is fantastic
  Spain? no. Want!
• Do you have fluorescent or regular light bulbs in your home?
  a mix of both. I'm slowly replacing standards with CFLs.
• When was the last time you lied?
  yesterday
• Do you use Skype?
  no
• Do you know someone who constantly has ear buds in?
  he may have removed them for the new job. I wonder if it contributes to the Mumbling?
• Where did you last walk to?
  first floor, from second floor
• What was the last book you had to read for school?
  something tedious and law-related
• Name someone who is an excellent listener:
  Reed.
• Who did you last speak to over the phone?
  Fluffy
  
• Katy Perry. Yay or nay?
  meh
• Do you have your own snow gear, or do you hire it?
  I have some (a car kit and a few odds and ends in the garage) but it's supposed to be done by "The Association" where I live. We'll see how well that works. I predict that I'll at least be shoveling in front of the garage door, and the front steps (which I neverever use).
• Do you think you could run eight miles?
  not even if I were being chased by very slow dogs
• Did you ever get into the whole Twilight craze?
  not even remotely. I think Kristen Stewart is a mutant, and Robert Pattinson is even worse. But I can imagine the books are probably pretty good.
• What was the last movie you saw in theatres?
  El Orfanato. It's been a while.
• Name five things on your desk.
  
  1. Tropical Dots
  2. 17 books
  3. 1/2 bag Jimmy John's salt & vinegar potato chips
  4. a tiny cutout from the Men with Brooms DVD box
  5. two computer mice
• What is your middle name?
  in Norwegian, it is "Daggry". Sorta glad it's not Norwegian.
• Have you ever hit a deer in your car?
  no, I typically ask them to step outside first
• What colour is your mailbox?
  cream? oatmeal? I don't know.
• Do you use the notepad on your phone regularly?
  I don't think I ever have. I do send text messages to my email now and then, though.

***

• What kind of clothes do you wear for fall?
  pretty much the same as I ever do, since I work indoors
• What lotion do you normally use when your skin starts getting dry because of the cold?
  Aveeno
• Are you dyeing your hair a lighter color for summer (some people actually do that)?
  yep
• Any back-to-school shopping you still need to do?
  no—I buy clothes whenever I need something or am in the mood to do so
• What jacket did you buy or will you wear this year?
  I'm looking for something that will qualify as a "pimp coat"
• What's your favorite thing about summer?
  no snow/ice, and long days
• Least favorite thing?
  hot, and long days
• What are you being for Halloween this year?
  myself
• Was your house ever *gasp* the "pretzel house"?
  doubtful. I think my mom was partial to [red] licorice.
• Or maybe you actually like getting pretzels instead of candy?
  pretzels are fine, but not for Halloween
• What candy does your house normally give out?
  I haven't, for a long time. I bet I'd have to in the new place. {{{shudder}}} Will need to hide out again, prehaps at the Cat-Beasts. That went well last year.
• Worst Halloween costume you ever had?
  "a fat tomato." It was hot, and throughout the day I lost my stuffing through the loose elastic around my microscopic legs. By lunchtime I'd shrunk to something more resembling a Bhut Jolokia. Pathetic, that.
• Best you ever had?
  I somehow lucked into one of those Maryann (from Gilligan's Island) type casual costumes once during high school. Amazing.
• What are you doing for Halloween this year?
  as explained above, probably hiding in the Cat-Beast's guest room, unless they're not amenable
• Do you like pumpkin pie?
  I can take it or leave it. It's really just an excuse to eat whipped cream.
• Do you celebrate the Fourth of July?
  meh
• What's your favorite picnic food?
  very cold butterscotch pudding cake
• Do you have any seasonal allergies for summer?
  I have seasonal allergies for all seasons. Lucky me!
• Any changes you're planning to make this season?
  I'm planning to continue being tormented by my physical therapist until my posture is better (I don't expect perfection) and I've lost some weight. I plan to buy some new Levis and a couple of pairs of sunglasses. I plan to take a few days off and do utterly nothing.
• Is summer officially over when school starts?
  summer is officially over when autumn starts
• If you have a pool, did you use it yet?
  no pool
• Did you have a spring fling? Is it over now?
  yeah, I guess I did sort of have a spring fling. Late winter, early spring. "Over" is relative. It ought to be, it sort of is, it could be....
• Do you bake a lot less in the summer since it's hot out?
  definitely
• If so, what do you normally continue to bake?
  dinner
• Ever had baked pumpkin seeds? Do you like them?
  yes; only if they're super salty. I'm not a big seed fan.
• Don't you hate dealing with weeds?
  I don't deal with weeds much. "The Association" does that for me.
• Do the trees look prettier when they're all different colors or when they all green?
  different; I grew up in the north, after all, so that's what's normal for me
• Is summer your favorite season?
  no, but it's in a tie for second
• What have the temperatures been like by you lately?
  hotter than Hell

***

• Are you in a football club?
  no
• Do you watch movies from the 1930's?
  I have. There are several others on My List (from World Traveler Girl).
• Have you ever been to Singapore?
  not lately
• Does astronomy interest you?
  not terribly much
• Which part of American History do you enjoy learning about most?
  the Gilded Age, or the Vietnam era
• Do you have a garden?
  only houseplants
• Can you speak any Dutch?
  no, but one of my favorite people is Dutch. Does that count?
• Would you ever move to Germany?
  no, but I would definitely visit
• Are you a baseball fan?
  yep
• What college do you attend/want to attend?
  I would prefer to avoid that situation, at least in the undergraduate sense
• What's the most obscure artist you listen to?
  good question. I guess it depends on your definition of "obscure". I still love the Housemartins and Beautiful South. There are some amazing Canadian artists out there that no one down here seems to know—Dala Girls and 54-40 among my favorites. I also like Elbow & Idlewild from across the pond. And Cary Brothers, and....
• Have you ever painted a landscape?
  no; I try to keep my paint to myself
• Have you climbed a mountain before?
  never. The heights thing, remember?
• Do you think snails are cute, or disgusting?
  disgusting, but "live & let live", y'know?
• Is your name common?
  yep. It was #2 in the US the year I was born.
• Republican, Democrat, or third-party?
  indeed
• Do you enjoy NASCAR?
  it has its moments
• Have you ever been on a subway?
  yes
• How do you feel about guns?
  I like the big 'uns
• Do you speak multiple languages?
  bits and pieces, here and there
• What's the biggest thing you've built out of paper?
  my Masters thesis

[from here, from here; the title quotation—about baseball!—is by A. Bartlett Giamatti, and in its entirety reads: "It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone."]