we owe to each other a terrible and tragic loyalty

1. What animal are you the most like? 

    as much as I'd like to be a cat, I'm much more like a dog than anything else. A little lazy, love to be crooned to and gently scratched and petted. Curious, kinda dumb sometimes. Prone to barking when afraid. Not fond of yelling or unexpected movement or bigger dogs. Like to ride in the car. Highly affectionate and born to be stupidly loyal and protective. Requires attention.

2. How often do you get a haircut?

    every 3-4 months, lately. It's quite long now, longer than it's been since my 20s, and therefore doesn't need to be touched up as often. I'm not prone to split ends and wear it cut bluntly, so it's pretty easy to maintain.

    Describe your worst haircut. 

    anything short. My face looks ridiculous with short hair. The most notorious example was in junior high, a confluence of bad length, style, and color. I couldn't grow that out fast enough.

3. Are you most likely to finish your taxes as soon as you receive your W-2s or as close to April 15 as possible? 

    somewhere in between. Definitely not right away, since I've learned that W2s are sometimes amended and it's a pain in the ass to refile taxes because HR made a mistake. I generally prepare them mid-March or so.

    How many times have you filed for an extension? 

    never. It just doesn't take that long, or that much work, to prepare my returns. Not much in, not much out.

    How many times have you paid someone else to prepare your return? 

    once. It was the first year we were married, we'd lived in two states (each), and we had I think 7 W2s and a 1099-NEC (well, at the time it would have been reported on a 1099-MISC, but you get the idea). In other words, it was far too complex to sort it out ourselves, so we paid someone else to do it.

4. How many days could you last in solitary confinement? How would you do it? 

    it's sort of funny considering that I spend most of my time on my own, but I don't think I'd do well in solitary for even a moment. I don't like to be constrained in any way, a feeling that gets worse as I get older. I think it's a combination of disliking being controlled, along with recognizing discomfort with/intolerance for small spaces. I'm not claustrophobic exactly, but I certainly wouldn't choose to be in a small, locked room. It would probably make me panic, inconsolably. 

5. What's your favorite item to cook? 

    Puerto Rican Chicken Fricassee. It looks much more complex than it is, and always turns out perfectly delicious.

    (No, I won't share a picture or a recipe. It's a family treasure!)

6. What makes you tick? 

    I love to nap when it's a little bit cool, covered with loads of blankets and all wrapped up, burrowed in with just part of my face showing. 

    (I do realize this is intended in a different metaphorical direction.)

7. Whose autographs have you collected? 

    a handful of professional golfers', and a semi-famous musician or two

 

[from The Complete Book of Questions : 1001 Conversation Starters for Any Occasion; the title quotation is by G.K. Chesterton, from The Collected Works of G.K. Chesterton Volume 28: The Illustrated London News, 1908-1910]