ah, what the hey

I haven’t done one of these sorts of meme-tastic questionnaires in a long time…. Got this one by email from a local friend who doesn’t have a blog. You who have gotten 800 million of these in the past will probably take a pass, but I was just sort of in the mood. Too much coffee or something.

1. WHAT TIME DID YOU GET UP THIS MORNING? Today? I woke up ahead of my alarm clock, so 5:30ish. Usually my timed light goes on at 5:45 am, alarm goes off at 5:50, and then I get out of bed 5-10 minutes later.

2. DIAMONDS OR PEARLS? Beads! Or, yeah, pearls.

3. WHAT IS THE LAST FILM THAT YOU SAW AT THE CINEMA? Ummmm…. I honestly, seriously, totally can’t remember. Spiderman 2? That godawful cave movie? Return of the King? I pretty much never go to the movies. The last movie I saw at home was Formula 51.

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE TV SHOW? I go through phases with TV, since it all arrives via Netflix or the library. Last one was The West Wing, which I loved even though it made me sigh with frustration. Can I have Jimmy Smits’s character as my president?

5. WHAT DO YOU USUALLY HAVE FOR BREAKFAST? It goes all over the place; again: in phases. Often yogurt or cereal. On the weekends, an omelet & toast. Today, a mocha & string cheese.

6. WHAT IS YOUR MIDDLE NAME? Marie, that beloved middle name of the 70s.

7. WHAT FOOD DO YOU DISLIKE? onions & peppers, purely for reasons of texture.

8. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CD? have I mentioned that I go through phases? Lately I’ve been listening to a lot of Bach.

9. WHAT KIND OF CAR DO YOU DRIVE? I own, but do not drive, a 2001 Kia Spectra. (It’s a stick. C drives it.) When I drive (once or twice a week), it’s a 2000 Ford Ranger, cherry red. When it’s not raining, a 2004 Electra Townie 21 bicycle. To work, when it’s raining, an Intercity Transit bus. 🙂

10. FAVORITE SANDWICH? Anything with avocado. Grilled cheese, and its cousin, the patty melt.

11. WHAT CHARACTERISTIC DO YOU DESPISE? Despise? That’s a tough word. Tardiness irritates me intensely.

12. FAVORITE ITEM OF CLOTHING? Right now, anything that fits. (See: weight loss.) But I do have this bike shirt that I love; the venting areas are just right and the colors are lovely.

13. IF YOU COULD GO ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD ON VACATION, WHERE WOULD YOU GO? I am about to go to one of those places (heading to SXSWi, yay!) — otherwise, almost anywhere sounds good.

14. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR BATHROOM? ::sigh::

15. FAVORITE BRAND OF CLOTHING? ::shrug::

16. WHERE WOULD YOU RETIRE TO? summers right here, winters in various warm-ish places?

17. WHAT WAS YOUR MOST MEMORABLE BIRTHDAY? Would that be the surprise party I already knew about (16), the one where I got dumped (19), or the one where I ended up in the emergency room (22)? Memorable, FYI, is not always happy…although that 16th birthday was quite happy, overall.

18. FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH? what is this “sport” of which you speak? Actually, I did have fun watching a friend’s 11-year-old daughter play basketball recently.

19. FURTHEST PLACE YOU ARE SENDING THIS? The IntarWeb Tubes!!1!!!!!!1

20. WHO DO YOU LEAST EXPECT TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? I don’t expect anybody, honestly…

21. PERSON YOU EXPECT TO SEND IT BACK FIRST? …although I can sort of imagine Elizabeth doing it.

22. FAVORITE SAYING? “jeebus christ on a crutch!”

23. WHEN IS YOUR BIRTHDAY? 9/10

24. ARE YOU A MORNING OR NIGHT PERSON? mid-morning & early evening. I’m useless before 7 am, and tend to drift off to sleep by 10pm.

25. WHAT IS YOUR SHOE SIZE? hopelessly average, but kinda skinny.

26. PETS? In all their adorable glory. (Including Maddy, RIP.)

27. ANY NEW AND EXCITING NEWS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH US? I’m going to SXSW. 🙂 The Eastside Neighborhood Association meeting I ran last night totally rawked: good attendance, half an hour of open mic with lots of energy, 3 new board members.

28. WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU WERE LITTLE? A writer. ::sigh::

29. HOW ARE YOU TODAY? tired, a little jittery. That rawking meeting took a lot out of this introvert, plus this week has been all crazy.

30. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CANDY? Anything with the chocolate. Again, phases; recently I was snacking on chocolate chips & salted almonds. But I haven’t been eating much candy the last 9 months or so. It’s just too many calories for not enough satisfaction. Ice cream has been my sweet of choice most of the time.

I just like what Lar wrote here, so I’m keeping it….
Where’s 31? i coulda sworn it was around here somewhere…paddling
around the galapagos? hiking the himalayas? beat boxing on a corner in
NYC? balancing somebody’s ledger? how the heck should i know? i am not
my number’s keeper…

32. DAY ON THE CALENDAR YOU ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO? First session of a new yoga class on Monday; also, March 6.

33. WHAT IS YOUR FULL NAME? Elaine Marie Nelson (as if it weren’t already blazingly obvious!)

34. LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? nothing, really.

35. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Cheese enchilada lunch out with “the girls” in my office.

36. DO YOU WISH ON STARS? no, not really.

37. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? ::shrug:: maybe a shade of green

38. HOW IS THE WEATHER RIGHT NOW? Freaking gorgeous & spring-like. As in: I totally wish I’d ignored the damn weather report and ridden my bike!

39. FAVORITE SOFT DRINK? Sparkling water, maybe with a little orange juice. Or a cream soda.

40. FAVORITE RESTAURANT? I still have a soft spot for Robin’s in Pasadena, tho I haven’t been in more than 10 years. Also, Mini Saigon in Olympia.

42. Favorite day OF THE YEAR? ?!

43. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD? The dollhouse my grandfather made me, along with the miscellaneous toys that I played with in it…mostly Playmobile.

44. SUMMER or WINTER? Not choosing. Nope. I just really like having seasons at all. The depth of winter can be difficult, but still beautiful. I have a particular fondness for late spring, early summer, though.

45. HUGS OR KISSES? Depends on the person, and I tend to have a pretty large personal space, so sometimes it’s tough for me to even get into the hug zone.

46. COFFEE OR TEA? Tea, except for the occasional mocha.

47. CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA? Depends on the context, but usually chocolate.

48. DO YOU WANT YOUR FRIENDS TO EMAIL YOU BACK? Yes.

49. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME THAT YOU CRIED? [this section intentionally left blank]

50. WHAT IS UNDER YOUR BED? occasionally, a kitty.

51. WHO IS THE FRIEND THAT YOU HAVE HAD THE LONGEST? Thao, who I’ve known since 6th grade.

52. WHAT DID YOU DO LAST NIGHT? Ate a milkshake & fries for dinner (really), played a single song in Guitar Hero III, ran the neighborhood association, read a book while taking a bath.

53. FAVORITE SMELL? there’s this smell that I can’t quite describe, that I think comes from some brand of hair conditioner, that reminds me of something very nice a very long time ago. every so often I catch it and smile. also, the first summertime rain, and the back of Pico’s neck.

54. WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF? Falling off of a bridge/overpass/stairwell. Large noisy dogs.

55. SALTY OR SWEET? Salty AND sweet, of course! (See: chocolate chips & almonds.)

56. HOW MANY KEYS ON YOUR RING? 2 keys, a library card, a store loyalty card, a tiny swiss army knife, and a whistle.

57. HOW MANY YEARS AT YOUR CURRENT JOB? 1 year, 2 months!

58. FAVORITE DAY OF THE WEEK? I know that my least favorite day is Thursday. Other than that, depends how the week is going.

59. HOW MANY TOWNS HAVE YOU LIVED IN? 3. I’ve moved 11 times, but most of those were in the same city.

60. DO YOU MAKE FRIENDS EASILY? No. I’m shy.

61. HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL YOU SEND THIS TO? The IntarWeb Tubes!!1!!!!!!1

62. HOW MANY WILL RESPOND? I’ll go with Lar’s answer: “I have no expectations in this regard”