life's under no obligation to give us what we expect. We take what we get and are thankful it's no worse than it is

1. If you could be teleported to any destination in the world, where would it be? 

     I'm good here, thanks

 

2. When was the last time you started a conversation with a stranger? 

    probably at a greenhouse or craft fair, as a means of extricating myself from an even more socially awkward situation if that's even possible. I was once pinned down by a guy who makes and sells mead, given the focused and hard-sell push based on its health benefits and delicious taste. It actually tastes like bile, just before you're gonna vomit (at least, his sample tasted like that). There was another shopper near me, and I very shamelessly asked that person if they'd tried a sample of mead. The tenuous connection made between seller and potential buyer, I split the scene. 

 

3. You've won an all-expenses-paid trip but you've just sixty seconds to choose a destination. Where do you choose? 

    Chicago. I love a good trip to the "war zone" in the autumn. I would visit the bookstore, maybe see a ballgame, stop by a park or two. Get a nice meal. Stay in a lakefront hotel. Visit some friends. 

 

4. When was the last time you spoke to your neighbors? Do you know their names? 

    yesterday, when I was introduced to one of their great-granddaughters. Yes, I know their names. I also know their birthdays, and what they like to eat for dinner. We often have two or three conversations each week. They are darling. 

 

5. Which actor is in real life most like the characters they play? 

    how would I know? Have I met an actor in a real life? (No.)  

 

6. If you could go back in time, would you attend college? Why? 

    absolutely. I might even go to a non-state school, and try to get a degree in something applicable to my future. Or, then again, I might go to the same school and take it seriously, drink less (or not at all) and party never. And then take grad school seriously, and then get a Ph.D. in History like I could have, rather than go to law school and focus on something completely different.

 

7. What's the biggest favor you've asked someone to do for you? 

    the exact nature of the favor will remain a secret. The important thing is that I asked it of someone who didn't have any reason to expect it would be asked, and they assented without hesitation. When I remember that sacrifice and what it did for me, I am helplessly, almost painfully grateful.  

 

[from 3000 Unique Questions about Me; the title quotation is by Margaret Mitchell, from Gone with the Wind]