Get It All Down: do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you

Put these creatures in order from (1) what you would least like to be reincarnated as, to (10) what you would most like to be reincarnated as--assuming reincarnation ended up existing AND you were given a choice: caterpillar, house dog, wild dog, vulture, male human, female human, oak tree, rock, manta ray, dolphin dolphin, manta ray, male human, female human, house dog, caterpillar, oak tree, wild dog, vulture, rock
What do you feel unworthy of? the degree of affection, freely given, that I receive from certain loved ones. I hold myself to a higher standard (in certain ways) and feel quite inadequate to the gift I'm given.
Would you rather be remembered for having done something for humanity or being a really nice person? I think I'm more likely to make my mark on the micro than the macro scale, and that's all right by me. Humanity can benefit from others much more dramatically and better.
Which do you value more: science or intuition? intuition. (This is my personal answer only, and does not hold sway for anyone else.)
Your best friend and your significant other are in the hospital at the same time with the same ailment. Who do you visit first? that depends very strongly on the identity of the significant other--who, at this point, is completely speculative
Does the universe revolve around human beings? nope
If you are no longer a virgin, do you wish you still were? that's a big 'if'
Who is your favorite poet of those who are alive right now? Today, I'll pick Sherman Alexie and Amy Gerstler.
What is your favorite song from the 90's? that's a nearly impossible question to answer. I'll just throw something out, from a CD that I've been listening to a lot lately: Sister Hazel's "All for You", from ...somewhere more familiar.
If you were in alphabet soup what letter would you be? A
Do you believe in fairies, ghosts, aliens, angels, dwarves, elves, etc.? sure
What makes you want to be someone’s friend? good question. I really do avoid people, trying to be as unlikeable as possible, but sometimes someone will creep inside the barriers and make themselves known to me in some irresistible way. There are a couple of people at work who are like that. One is a couple of levels up from me, doing a job that I couldn't do in a zillion years (everything that I am about, word-wise, she is, about numbers. It's freaky.). The other is almost directly 180 degrees across the introversion/extroversion continuum from me, so it's sort of hilarious to see us together at lunch or something: she's a laugh riot and I'm, you know, me. But these two woman are kinda awesome, so I'm just sort of riding it along.

That doesn't exactly answer the question, but it also kind of does. There is no one thing, or even a list of things. It's chemistry, and it doesn't always make sense.
Do you troll around the Internet harassing people anonymously for fun? nope. I have some friends who are prone to that sort of thing, though they would never recognize it in themselves. Seeing so much too much of it makes me leery of talking about anything online except nothing (e.g. movies and plants and books) or myself (and y'all know about that already).
Have you ever seen the movie A Man Who Fell to Earth? no, I've not even heard of it
What is your favorite line from a movie? today, it's from The Big Blue: "Don't look at Jacques as if he was a human being; he comes from another planet."
What's your favorite video game? I'm not really the video game type.
Have you ever taken something that wasn't yours? not for a few years--I'm reforming
What is one phrase people say that irritates you? "I know, right?" I hear it about twenty times a day, five days a week.
You allow strangers to read your diary, but would you let your parents read it? to be very clear: there are variations on the word 'diary'
Hot steamy bubble bath or quick in and out shower? hot and steamy shower
Are you allergic to anything? yes
What is your favorite Terminator movie? II
What is your favorite fast food? Subway
What would someone have to do to get you to never speak to him or her again? not very much. Just yesterday, I threw out entire folders full of cards and letters from a couple of people that I used to call friends.
Would (or have) you ever whip someone or be whipped by someone in bed? signs say No
Have you ever said 'I hate everyone' and really meant it literally? yep
Why do some people want to get more money than they could ever spend? what's the definition of greed, again? It's a deadly sin--we ought to be familiar with it.
Have you ever won a carnival fish? I think so. I was around 9 years old.
Did it live more than a week? no, those are feeder fish and not long for life in any case
What's the best sounding accent a person can have? South African, Australian...anything southern hemisphere
What's the most boring thing you've ever read? probably something religious
Do you prefer buttons or touch screens? it really doesn't matter
Do you think there is a lot of similarity between the Harry Potter books and the Lord of the Rings series? yes. With apologies to Tolkien, I'd still rather read porn than any of it.
Would you consider yourself to be naive? "I am older than I once was, but younger than I'll be. That's not unusual."
Which of your friends is most likely to go to jail? besides those who've already been? Probably the most sanctimonious of them all, who thinks it'll never happen. I can absolutely see that one coming!
What is the smallest amount of money that could be in a public toilet that would make you reach in and grab it? ugh
Would you ever wear real fur? no
Arachnophobia or Eight Legged Freaks? what?
What are your feelings about police officers? although some general problems have recently come to light, a couple of my very favorite and most respected friends are police officers, and I love and honor them among the best people I know--in part because of the job that they do.
What is your favorite line from a song? There is no place I'd rather be than here with you
Under the sun, the pouring rain, all of the sky for you

Oh my love
(from "Belly Full" by the Dave Matthews band)
Is fifty dollars a lot of money? yes
Do you like the band Front 242? never heard of it
Would you rather have fame, money, or self-satisfaction? two out of three, please
What is the absolute limit, the craziest thing you would do for a million dollars? I'm sure I wouldn't be gullible enough to actually commit that to the Internet!
Are you good, evil or neutral? Definitely not neutral.
Should ebonics be considered a language? that's not an opinion question, but an expertise question for those who know a heck of a lot more about linguistics than I ever will
What color is your bedroom? off-white, like nearly all the other walls in the house
What color would you like it to be? gray, or possibly blue
When are you planning to move to a new home? 5-10 years or so. I foresee a sort of communal living situation in my future, and a possible snow-bird arrangement, too.
If you added up the cost of everything in the room with you, approximately what would it come out to be? $5000, maybe a little more
Do you blow your nose in public? of course
Do you want to follow in your parent's footsteps? in certain ways, yes. We diverge in terms of career path (both my parents are more practical and have skills that I will never develop) but are very similar in a lot of general ways. Emulating each of them, sometimes, is a good thing.
What is the coolest web site you know of? pound for pound, I probably spend more time on Goodreads and IMDB than anywhere else. That probably doesn't make them 'cool', but just functional to me.
Which cartoon would you most like to see turned into a movie? the ones that should have been, have been. The rest, which should be, maybe don't need to be. Sometimes that sort of thing just ruins the magic.

Really, can't a movie be made from something fresh, rather than rehashing something that's already been done? I'm super sick of this trend.
Of the following, which word best describes you: enthusiastic, fair-minded, generous, helpful? generous
Can you eat with chopsticks? only when I'm allowed to poke my food. I've not mastered the scissor motion at all.
Could you tell real money from counterfeit? I'm sure that all of us think so, but if it's a good fake, then probably not.
What do you think about school uniforms? I like them. Let's just cut down on one more level of bullying fodder, eh?
What ancient civilization would you most like to visit? no, thank you
What would make a great new Crayola color? I am completely lacking in imagination where these questions come in. My only answer is, haven't they all been done already?
If an art project is created with the intent of getting rich and famous, does that cast doubt over its significance as a work of art? yes. I think there is a difference between "material value" (or "market cost") and "artistic significance." I'm certainly not qualified to determine either one.
If you became president, whom would you invite to sing at your inauguration? Rush, Simple Plan, and the Sheepdogs--because it would have to happen in Canada. (Please spare me the Canadian civics lesson, I get the structural difference.)
Who is the greatest philosopher of your country? Wendell Berry
If all the nations in the world are in debt, where did all the money go? corporations and PACs
Is it as easy to make you happy now as it was when you were a child? no. As an individual's consciousness increases, so do their emotional demands needs. Consider the simplicity of answers which calmed you as a child. When someone was mean, and you asked why, you may have been told, "Because that person is not very nice." That answer lacks abstractness and depth, but it solves the immediate problem--and it would satisfy a child. Now, as an adult, and someone is mean--can you be satisfied with, "because she's not very nice"? Doubtful.

Children are, physically and emotionally, flexible. It helps them develop their own coping mechanisms. Does it mean we can't be happy as adults? Of course not. But it does mean that it's not as easy.
Who knows more...you, or your parents? we each have our own areas. Thankfully, not much overlap between the three of us.
What instrument would you like to be famous for playing? marimba
Children fill [their] lungs completely with air. Adults breathe in a more shallow way, not filling their lungs completely. Why the change? I'm sure it's some sort of biological shift, if it's true at all
Would you have sex with a stranger for one million dollars? depends on the strangeness of the stranger
Are you completely in control of your body? no, plenty of what happens to it is involuntary. And, anyway, I'm subject to laws and social conventions and all sorts of other phenomena, too.
Are you completely in control of your mind? more so than the body, but not that, either
Which is more romantic: an expensive, glittering bouquet OR flowers that were hand picked as they grew beside the parkway? depends. The "expensive" part of it is inconsequential, except that I kinda like the idea of supporting local businesses. The "glittering" aspect is a turnoff.

Unfortunately, picking flowers off the side of the road is a little creepy, too. It smacks of cheapness and thievery. That's hardly romantic!

So. Where are we left? I suppose the romantic thing is a small, rather dull bouquet (or a flowering plant?) from a local seller. Does that count?
Do you know yourself well enough to understand why you feel the way you do? yes
Which do you do more often: let movies, songs and books put your feelings into words for you or put your feelings into words by yourself? I do both, as y'all already know
Do you believe celebrities when they are endorsing a product? at least as much as I believe any complete stranger who is hired to do the same. Probably even more, considering that as a known entity, some aspect of their reputation is riding on the recommendation that they're making.
What kind of movies do you wish were made more often? I'm not the target audience for anything mainstream, so my opinion on this could not matter less.
Does fashion matter to you? sure. I don't want to look completely out of touch, even though I know I don't quite get there, either. I only need to be making about 50% more to have a real chance at appearing fashionable anytime soon.
Should politicians be held to the same legal standards as everyone else? yes
What do you get in trouble for the most? having opinions
Should parents spank their kids? I'm sure that this is one of the examples where my opinion is immaterial
What is your worst daily habit? wrath
If you had your choice which one TV show would you have canceled? I don't have cable, so I'm not subject to any of it. However, the one that I am the most tired of hearing about is the Walking Dead. How could there still be that much zombie nonsense to yammer about, after all this time?
Do you like the taste of sweet or salt? salt
Are you very precise about what words you use to describe your feelings and thoughts? kinda
What do you feel the most guilty about? Vegas
Do you meditate? not exactly, but I think it's a sort of good idea
Can dreams be visions, or do you feel they are always random images? they can be visions, for sure. Not always, but more often than not. I think that dreams are our subconscious way of sorting through the various scenes and issues and people and problems that we face, replacing our first impressions with better-formed ones, so that when we next consider these things consciously, we have the chance to do so rationally rather than with those preconceived notions at the fore. I believe that we don't always remember our dreams because we were designed that way--we don't have to, because we've worked through the stuff and we're done with it (or done enough that all that's left are vague, swirling feelings and impressions rather than direct scenes demanding interpretation).

People who get nothing out of their dreams, or who refused to accept the messages that their dreams can give them, seem sad and cold to me. If given a map, why not use it?
Do you try to write/say what you are feeling in a true and simple way? sometimes. Other times I intentionally obscure it, because what I'm saying is not meant to be told straight out. Or because I can't find a way to say in three words what I can in thirty.
The thief _______ that everyone steals. rationalizes
What's the most incredible experience you ever had? two years ago around this time, I was heading to Los Angeles to take part in the wedding of my best friend's son. The whole trip seems like a dream to me now; it was such a whirlwind of flying and driving and walking, experiencing many things that I thought I would never see, places that I never thought I'd go.

Parts of it were awful: frightening, sad, intimidating. Depressing. Most of it was terrific: exhilarating, beautiful, awe-inspiring. Amazing.

I was there for only a few days. Five, I think? I flew out with my friends but back on my own, leaving them a couple of days together with their son and his bride. Chris picked me up at the airport, which was an event in itself. After nearly a week of L.A. driving, I laughed off the Chicago traffic--and he laughed me off, telling me to shut up and kick back while he navigated us back to the ranch. We ate pizza, drank beer, and made yet another Top Twenty List until I was asleep on my feet. Did I say thank you? Did I hug him? God, I hope so.

Then I spent a couple of days alone with the cats, catching up on sleep and laundry, eating cereal and PB&Js rather than insanely expensive food, getting myself back to normal.

It really was an incredible experience!
Are you ever afraid to write/say/think how you feel? no
Do you write/say/think it anyway or become intimidated and try to avoid it? there's no way through it but through it. The only avoiding is when one must try and keep it contained to appropriate times and places and people.
What is one thing you can't do? forgive easily
Do you like movies starring Charleton Heston? not as a rule. I mean, I don't seek them out.
Are you gentle? probably? I don't know. That's a strange question.
When do you feel the most raw and vulnerable? in the morning, before I've had caffeine
Are you trying to find yourself? no
Are you sometimes afraid of being honest because you are afraid of hurting people's feelings? I wouldn't say that it's a matter of being afraid, so much as being aware. Anyway, honesty is a sort of sliding scale. If I walk into a room and the only person in the room is a complete stranger wearing clothes that are at least two sizes too small, how "honest" ought I to be? Does it change anything if it's a family member? Or a friend? Does it change anything if the person asks how I think they look? Or if they're headed to a job interview in a few hours, with time to change clothes in between?
What would make you a stronger person? losing weight, making more money, and doing more valuable work
What book would you like to read sometime soon? something else by Matthew Norman. I just finished We're All Damaged and loved it--it was one of the best books I've read in ages. I can't wait to see what else he's written!