Mi mi mi

1. First name: Was almost Samantha.
2. Were you named after anyone? I have the same name as my mother, but I was not named after her. Adding to the confusion, my mother has never been called by her real name.
3. Do you wish on stars? I’m a sucker for wishing on anything that seems like a sign…. The place where we now live has a clearer vision of the night sky than any other place I’ve lived.
4. When did you last cry? Saturday.
5. Do you like your handwriting? I’ve been told it’s “distinctive” and “trustworthy.” Not so sure about the former. It’s just my version of Palmer method. I adored “cursive class” in second grade.
6. What is your favorite lunch meat? Technically, I’m a vegetarian, but I’ve been known to eat a smoked turkey, tomato, and mayo sandwich now and again.
7. What is your most embarrassing CD? Oh, gosh, I don’t know. My whole collection is quite girly. It’s not a CD, but, long ago, I used to have an LP of “Disco Duck.” That was probably my musical low, right?
8. If you were another person, would YOU be friends with you? Hard to say. I’m definitely personable, but I don’t do the instant-chum, girlfriend-y thing so well. Maybe I would respect myself for that, and we would have an easy bond. Ha ha.
9. Do you have a journal? I have, on and off. I recently have tried to keep a mini-calendar in which I recorded a few happenings of each day. (Otherwise, it’s so easy to forget where all the time goes.) But I find myself wanting to write paragraphs, and the calendar is frustratingly small. So I’ve been neglecting that practice lately.
10. Do you use sarcasm a lot? I used it a lot when I was fourteen. I started to give it up when I read A Separate Peace and recognized myself in John Knowles’ observation that “sarcasm is the weapon of the weak.”
11. What are your nicknames? Oh…weird varieties of my last name. First name doesn’t really lend itself to nicknames.
12. Would you bungee jump? No, thank you.
13. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? So few of my shoes have laces.
14. Do you think that you are strong? When tested, yes. I have a theory (based on one hiking trip) that I am physically stronger at high altitudes.
15. What is your favorite ice cream flavor? Chocolate peanut butter. I also had raspberry sorbet last night, and it was divine.
16. Shoe Size? 9 or 9 ½. (A firm understanding of things.)
17. Red or pink? Red. But reds with blue rather than yellow undertones.
18. What is your least favorite thing about yourself? Find it hard to be at peace with where I am.
19. Who do you miss most? Both my grandmothers.
20. Do you want everyone you send this to, to send it back? I’m not really sending it. Just posting it on the blog. I may be one of the later bloggers to do this. But I'll read anyone else's version of this meme with interest.
21. What color pants and shoes are you wearing? No shoes. Pale blue pajama bottoms. I was dressed earlier today, but I nap a lot these days.
22. What are you listening to right now? Bach. Morimur, by the Hilliard Ensemble. (Adam’s CD.)
23. Last thing you ate? Stale garlic bagel with butter. To fend off nausea. But then I threw up. Yuck.
24. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Pale green. Or maybe a cheerful orange. Depends on the day.
25. What is the weather like right now? Low 80s. Very nice.
26. Last person you talked to on the phone? Adam.
27. The first thing you notice about the opposite sex? Not sure. Eyes. Hair. Pretty skin.
28. Do you like the person who sent this to you? Yes, certainly. I found it at Lucy’s Always Listen to Your Pig Puppet. Also saw it at New Kid on the Hallway.
29. Favorite Drink? Maybe Arizona Green Tea w/ginseng. I had some sparkling apple cider last night and it was tasty and sweet.
30. Favorite Sport? Baseball. But I really don’t watch it on TV. I do like to play in friendly softball matches.
31. Hair Color? Brownish-blond.
32. Eye Color? Blue-grey.
33. Do you wear contacts? Yes. Am blind without them.
34. Favorite Food? Can’t choose just one. But I have enjoyed watermelon lately.
35. Last Movie You Watched? Netflixed For Keeps. Watched the first half, out of nostalgia and an interest to revisit both the birth scene AND Randall Batkinoff. Was surprised to realize that the latter looks a little like my husband.
36. Favorite Day Of The Year? The end of the school term is always fun. Ditto Christmas and birthdays of people I really like.
37. Scary Movies Or Happy Endings? Oh, happy endings for sure.
38. Summer Or Winter? Both have their appeal. But I’m partial to summer.
39. Hugs OR Kisses? Hugs. There are awkward hugs, but awkward kisses are far, far worse.
40. What Is Your Favorite Dessert? I keep thinking about that raspberry sorbet.
43. What Books Are You Reading? Oh, don’t make me name all the books on my desktop right now. But they are mostly for fact-checking. Am re-reading Sandra Steingraber’s Having Faith: An Ecologist’s Journey to Motherhood. And I’m almost through Ina May Gaskins’ Spiritual Midwifery. Am slowly making my way through Michael Pollen’s The Botany of Desire and Daphne de Marneffe’s Maternal Desire: On Children, Love, and the Inner Life. (Hmm. Only just now noticed the double dose of desire.)
44. What's On Your Mouse Pad? No mouse pad. I use the little touchpad on my laptop.
45. What Did You Watch Last night on TV? Didn’t watch TV. But a few days ago I saw the program “House” for the first time.
46. Favorite Smells? Citrus. Mint. Basil. Campfire smoke in summer. Fireplace smoke in winter. The smell of good food cooking on a chilly night.
47. Favorite Sounds? I adore cello music. I also like un-self-conscious laughter, like that produced by my little nephew when he’s feeling giddy.
48. Rolling Stones or Beatles? I second Lucy on this one. Beatles if I have to choose between them. But, much as I once loved the Beatles and tried to learn their songs on my guitar, I have to admit that I’m a little weary of them now. Maybe Dar Williams’ “I Won’t Be Your Yoko Ono” as antidote?
49. What's the furthest you've been from home? Budapest, probably.
50. Do you have a special talent? Procrastination.
51. What is your ring tone? I recently drove away from a gas station without realizing that I left the cell phone sitting on the trunk of the car. So I have no ring tone now. (It was just the basic one that came with the phone.)