50 questions! Ack!

Anna has one of those get-to-know-you surveys up at her journal (which might have gone private now, in which case, best of luck with that link)

ANYWAY, she asks that we answer these questions.  Like I can just DASH off 50 answers at 1:10 in the morning.  Well, let's give it a go, eh?

1. What year was the best year of your life?  I can't give you a best year.  I can probably give you a best summer, which was 19..eighty-something.  Remember back at the second-favorites thing when I said I liked being asked my second-favorite play 'cause my first favorite is so much better than everything else, there's just no point?  Well, there was one summer when I sorta saw my favorite play, um, four times.  I don't think I'll ever forget that.

2. One animal or insect that Noah should have left off the ark?  I was gonna say spiders, but they dispose of other insects.  And I have a problem with bees, but they make with the pollenation and all that.  Um, is any useful purpose served by snakes?  I could probably get along well without them.

3. Do you make a wish before blowing out your birthday candles?  Yes.  Although it is generally for something small that is likely to come true.  I wouldn't want to make it difficult for the Birthday Fates.

4. Do you generally open your bills on the day that you receive them?  The credit card and cell phone bills, yes.  I do a quick "fraud check" to make sure there aren't any charges that shouldn't be there.

5. How many pillows are on your bed?  Three.  I only use one.

6. Favorite ice cream flavor?  It varies by season.  It's summer(ish) now, so generally something berry.  Raspberry, if they've got it.  (Just had sweet cream with raspberries mixed in.  YUM.)

7. What is the most dominant color in your wardrobe?   Probably black.  Most of my trousers are black, certainly.  Unless denim counts.  Denim might be ahead of black.

8. Have you ever seen a ghost?   Not to my knowledge.

9. Would you rather go to a carnival or circus?  Circus.  Especially them arty Cirque du Soleil types.

10. Favorite meal: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?  Dinner.

11. Your favorite fictional animal?  I loved unicorns when I was a kid.  (Wasn't it mandatory in junior high?  To love unicorns and rainbows and write big hearts all over your notebooks?)

12. Have you ever flown first-class?  Yes.  Cool.

13. Would you go on a reality show?  No.  Not out of any fundamental opposition to them -- just that I wouldn't be any good at them.  And I wouldn't want to take the time off work.

14. Are you more optimistic or pessimistic about the future?   Optimistic.  But I knock on wood when I say that.

15. Pancakes or waffles?   Pancakes for breakfast.  Waffles (with ice cream and strawberries) for dessert.

16. If you could own a home anywhere in the world, where would it be?  I wouldn't mind a flat in London. 

17. Your favorite Soup of the Day?  Chicken noodle.

18. What site is a must see for all visitors to your city?  Dude, I live in Pasadena.  Dropby on January 1 -- we have a little shindig.

19. Can you recommend a good restaurant in your city?  Probably, if really pressed, and you tell me the sort of food you want.

20. You go to the zoo; What is the one animal that you want to see?  The koala marsupials.  I love the koalas.

21. Potatoes, rice, or pasta; Which is your favorite?  Po-ta-toes.  [/Sean Astin]

22. What is the best movie that you've seen this year?  This year?  Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

23. One of your favorite books when you were a child?   Peppermint.  It was about this kitten, and an unfortunate (but ultimately harmless) laundry accident.  Come to think of it, it was probably also about accepting people who might look different -- but I just thought it was a great story about a blue kitten.

24. What in your life are you most grateful for?  Everything.  I can't itemize. 

25. You are home alone and use the bathroom; do you close the door?   No.  Well, due to the architecture of my condo, you can see straight into the bathroom (from outside) if I have the window open in my bedroom.  So if that window is open, I will close the bathroom door.

26. What is your favorite small appliance?  Does the computer count?

27. Salty snacks or sweet treats?   Salty snacks!

28. Are you usually a little early, a little late, or right on time?   Late.

29. What is the most daring thing that you have ever done?   Canyon Swing.

30. Have you ever met someone famous?  Yes.  And I'm not that good at it.  I've had some opportunities to interview theatre actors -- and no matter how hard I try to be all professional interviewer on the outside, inside I'm just a giggling fangirl.

31. What was one of your favorite games as a child?  Hmmm.  Dunno.  All I can think of are games I didn't like.  Hated Candyland.  Hated Chutes & Ladders.  Oh, I liked "Payday."  'cause it had that plastic version of the credit card machine and you got to run it back and forth over cards -- that was neato.

32. At what age have you looked your best?  It's not an AGE thing -- it varies more ... daily. 

33. One person that never fails to make you laugh?  My friend Mary.  That girl.

34. What was the first music that you ever bought?  We used to buy 45s at Waxie Maxie's.  I'm not sure the actual first one I bought, but I know "The Entertainer" was one of my earliest purchases.  (Can't say I've been a big listener of piano rags since, but still.)

35. If you could change one thing about your family life when you were a child, what would it be?  Mom, I love you, but I really hated the yellow bedroom walls.

36. What is the one thing that you cook that always receives compliments?  Fruit salad.  Weird, I know.  But I'm not much of a cook and everyone knows it.  So when a friend was having a potluck dinner, I volunteered to do a fruit salad, figuring that chopping fruit with a big knife was something I could handle.  I've done it three or four times now, and it actually has something of a reputation -- probably because I spenda bit of money on getting the best fruit, and I chop it up real good so you don't have any seeds or rinds.  Takes hours, but it does get compliments.

37. From what news source do you receive the bulk of your news?  The internet and the radio.

38. In the last calendar year, how many people have you told that you love them?   Probably under a dozen.  I don't throw around the L-word lightly.

39. Who received your first kiss?  Alan -- the boy next door.  (Well, two houses up.)

40. The single most important quality in a mate?  Honesty.

41. What do you value most in a relationship?   Partnership.

42. Do you believe that you have a soulmate?  Jasmine!  Um, seriously, dunno.  It'd be nice.

43. Do you consider yourself well organized?   I am, sure.  My house is another story.

44. On average, how many times a day do you look at yourself in the mirror?  Gotta be 5 or 6, what with all those mirrors in the bathrooms.

45. Did you ever make a prank phone call?   Not a very good one.  I tried one once, and it was kinda stupid, and the woman we called just hung up.

46. What one quality do you seek in a friend?  Probably brains.  I'm not good with stupid people.

47. Have you ever killed an animal?  Only insects, I think.  Well, I never did find out what happened to the rat; I hope he's dead. 

48. When you were twelve years old, what did you want to be when you grew up?  By 12, I'm fairly sure I knew I was going to be a lawyer.  I did, however, want to be a prosecutor.

49. Do you believe in an afterlife?  No.  Yes.  Maybe. 

50. What would you like to accomplish with the remaining years of your life?  More of the same, I expect.  I don't feel like I have any unfinished business that I need to accomplish in order for my life to be complete.  Sure, there are opportunities that present themselves along the way, and I hope to meet them and accomplish all sorts of stuff between now and when I check out.  But I don't have a great big To-Do list with lots of unchecked items.

And... 1:46.  43.2 seconds per question.  Whew.