it smelled of old paper and dust and it was my sanctuary, my refuge

1. What are the values, intentions, and views that underpin your work life?   gosh, what a tiny question that is. How about integrity, adaptability, tenacity, curiosity, flexibility, persistence, learning, improvement, challenge....

8. What is your dream job, career, or business?    sleuthing things. Finding out the stuff that people want to know but don't know how to know, where to go, what to do. Yes, this is much like "reference librarian" but also both more and less than that. I'm really good at figuring things out. 

15. How has your job or company or field of work improved people’s lives?    the current gig is really hard to rate on that scale. How has law improved peoples' (yes, the apostrophe goes after the s for a plural possessive like this) lives? It's just a tool, or maybe a language, that people can use to resolve their disputes. For most of us, that means it regulates how the government can behave toward us when we do things like speed or not pay our taxes promptly or set fire to a building. For a select few, it means setting the rules for imposing our will on others in such areas as sales transactions, punching someone else in the throat, or determining how far is too far when talking badly about a person we dislike. Law in itself is not a bad thing, but - like any words, and certainly any tools - it can be used as a weapon by those with bad intentions or too much power.

22. How do you stay healthy and energized?    a sprinkling of cocaine on my cafe mocha!

    No, but, for real: I try to get good sleep, drink lots of water, and limit the crappy processed junk that tastes good but is actually very bad for me.

5. Biggest surprise lately?      

    adapting to audiobooks! When I was told I needed to get out of the habit of holding a regular book due to the strain it's putting on my hands/arms/shoulders/neck, I wasn't sure how I would handle it. However, I'm adjusting very quickly and pretty easily. I can't listen while I'm

doing anything requiring actual thought - even blogging is a challenge - but I never tried to read a book while I was doing that, so, it's no too much to get over.

    I like reading, creating voices in my head for the characters. I can also read very fast, far faster than most narrators. Audio books slow me down, though that's not always a bad thing.

29. What lessons has your career taught you about life in general? How do the lessons you learned in your work apply to everyone and all of life?     of my "real jobs":

    • the test prep place taught me the value of a fantastic boss to the quality of work and relationships on the job

    • the library taught me that the idea of pride in my work and dedication to exceeding expectations can be internally rewarding

    • the bank taught me some humility, some patience, some prioritizing, and a very great deal of discretion

    • the other law job taught me that money is not everything, or even the most important thing

    • the current (law) job has taught me diligence, when to keep my mouth shut, and focus

36. What is frustrating you right now?     I woke at 4:50 this morning when my neighbor (roughly 5 years older than me, maybe) "warmed up" his car with the radio blasting. I shot out of bed like I'd been in a cannon, and my houseguest freaked out inconsolably. It was, of course, "the middle of the night" and so I was not prepared to run outside and confront the guy, and now I'm stuck with the dilemma of following up or not. Go over there when I know he's home, and let him have it? Not my style. Send a letter? Thought about it - but it's not likely to change anything. Call the cops? They're not going to do anything except pat me on the head and tell me to wear earplugs. Get the homeowner's association involved? That's a solid maybe. But for now, I'm trying to (a) remain awake until bedtime, (b) calm down about a situation that I cannot change, and (c) remember that this is not a daily occurrence, and be grateful for that.

43. If you could travel to any location with anyone, where would you go, who would you choose, and why?     is it strange that, in the midst of this late punch of winter after an early and mild spring, I don't feel a strong urge to travel? I love to travel, but at the moment I'm content to be around home. 

    I wouldn't argue with some consistently warm weather, though. My feet have been cold since September.

50. What do you do to look after yourself? If you don’t do much for yourself personally, what can you start to do?     I'm eating better, starting to get more exercise after a quiet end to the "real winter", sleeping better and more, and spending much of my downtime doing things that I love—reading, writing, taking pictures, and selling things that I no longer need.

    What could I do, though, that I'm not already? Reprioritize massages, should they become financially feasible again. Drink more water. Take long baths rather than short showers. Write in my journal.

10. What's something that doesn’t seem intimate from the outside, but actually is?

    browsing a bookstore with someone. It can be really hard, for me anyway, to do that. I spend a long time browsing and a short time choosing. I do the head-tilted wander. I do not like to be helped by staff unless I ask - except when they offer to hold my stack at the counter while I continue browsing. Worst, though, is that when I don't click with a shop, I want to leave immediately. Who could accommodate that sort of mercurial nonsense? Well, there is one person - and it's been that way from the very start.

 

[adapted from What to blog about: 101 Irresistible blog ideas; the title quotation is by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, from The Angel's Game]