through glory and ecstasy we pass; Wind, sun, and earth remain, the birds sing still, When we are old, are old

1 If you could rid your family of one thing, what would it be? 

    squeamishness about frank talking. We are a polite and careful bunch, and try hard not to impose, so it can be tough to get down to brass tacks about stuff that matters but impinges on a comfort zone. That means that at tough times, we have to really force ourselves (and each other) to open up.

2 If you were to select the person you know who would be the most difficult to seduce, who would you name? 

    someone I used to date (and wouldn't mind seeing again), who's made it clear innumerable times and ways that he could not be less interested

 

3 If you could destroy one thing physically, what would it be, and how would you do it? 

    [that is a poorly-written question.]

    I would happily destroy the external sound system at the nearby university, so that their sports events would need to be analog (prehaps accomplished with cheer megaphones).          

    A combination of controlled explosives and an earth-mover ought to take care of that problem for good.

 

4 If you had to name the smartest person you have ever met, who would it be? 

    it's a tie. First, my thesis advisor—go ahead: ask him anything. He doesn't know everything about everything, but he does know something about it.

    Next, a high school boyfriend (Emerald Man)—he's the renaissance man, and still my go-to for easy answers to technical issues, and absolutely the best for "what do you think of this idea?" sorts of questions because he's not the slightest bit reluctant to give a realistic answer.

    Finally, a library colleague who worked in Reference, because he could find a specific needle in a needle stack, and loved the hunt for knowledge. Can you imagine why we had a lot in common?

 

5 If, in retrospect, you could have been nicer to one person in your life, who would it be? 

     Andrew (mentioned many times before, including here).

 

6 If you had to describe the moment in your life when you had to have the most courage, what would you say? 

    the day I separated from my marriage. 

 

7 If you could go back in time to undo one injury you inflicted on someone else, what would it be? 

    I deeply regret my behavior toward my prom date, though in the final accounting it probably came out a wash. We had some very good times together—he's an excellent, intelligent, confident debater—and steamed up windows from time to time, even after that prom drama.

 

[from If2: 500 New Questions for the game of life; the title quotation is by Rupert Brooke]