the informality of family life is a blessed condition that allows us all to become our best while looking our worst

• Have you ever said you would never love again? 

    yes, I did. It was January, 2017.

• Have you heard a song today that reminds you of somebody? 

    no music today, just football and commentary thereon. (I am answering this question on Sunday.) Friday, though, I heard "New Girl Now" by Honeymoon Suite, which immediately took me back to cruising Main Street (I mean, Cruisin' the Main) in O-town, with lovely Rita.

• Do you apologize first? 

    it's not about "first." It's about meaning it, and doing it, and being honest and vulnerable with someone you care about.

• Has someone made a promise to you and broke it? 

    yes. Such is life.

• Have you ever won a lot of money in a slot machine? How much? 

    the first time I went to a casino, I left with $400 more than I came with. 

• Do you watch sport on TV, even if you aren’t a sporty person yourself? 

    I watch football, and would do so obsessively if I had TV service. I watch basketball if I have to, though it no longer intrigues me. I watch baseball when I can. I absolutely love watching golf, and sometimes tennis. I don't pay any of those games, but I do consider myself "not the least athletic person ever."

• Do you eat / drink at your computer? 

    every day. Breakfast is Cheerios & a can of Bubbl'r. Morning snack is a banana and a pot of green tea. Lunch is ham or turkey in a wrap, mango yogurt, and sometimes either a salad or baby carrots with yogurt dressing. All of that happens at my [work] computer.

• How much do you overeat at special occasions (birthdays, Christmas, etc.)?

    the only time I regularly overeat is on vacations. There is always one big meal that makes me wish I had a modicum of self control.

• Do you require glasses / contacts to see properly? If so, which do you use? 

    yes, absolutely. My distance vision is incredibly poor, and I have some of whatever it's called when your eyes don't like to work together anymore. (I've reached a certain age.) I wear glasses for as long as I can stand to every day, and monthly-disposable contacts for the majority. 

• When you hear your voice back on a recording, do you think it sounds awful? 

    mm hmm. It's one of the reasons that I haven't rerecorded my phone greeting since I got my first cell phone, maybe? And I loathe leaving voicemail messages. It's the reason that I very, very rarely ever call anyone, much less leave a message.

    Ironic since I absolutely treasure some of the voicemails that I have gotten. To be able to hear the voice of someone I love when we're not together, or God forbid after they're gone, is magical.

• When was the last time you got the hiccups? 

    A couple of weeks ago when I was eating dinner with my parents. My mom asked if I get hiccups very often, and I said no—but my parents were both snickering. I asked what was up, and mom said they'd been talking about how I had the hiccups a lot before I was born. Mom's whole belly would shake and they would be helpless with laughter. Glad I could amuse even at the age of negative-whatever!

• If you had to, which record would you go into Guinness World Records for? 

    speed-organizing library books 

• The last sweet thing you ate: What was it? 

    a frosted Christmas sugar cookie. They are my very favorites, a rare treat from a friend from the old place.

• Do you have a middle name? Do you find it embarrassing? 

    I do have a middle name. I got my favorite aunt's name as my middle name, so no, it's not embarrassing. My name is a product of its era, and definitely places me in a geographic location.

 

[from here; the title quotation is by Marge Kennedy]