Darn that Bob!

I am happy to report that Evil Fridge has been subjugated to our will. Ken plugged him in yesterday, and EF is currently chilling our beverages. He's humming away as if he is Happy Fridge, but I know better. We have made him our bitch, and he hates us for it. I will use extreme caution in my dealings with him, never letting down my guard. Cool me once, shame on you. Cool me twice, shame on me.

Hey, looky here! It's a meme! You all know that I rarely do these, but Bob tagged me. [waving] Hi Bob! [sip] I thought this one looked fairly intriguing, and decided to play along. I won't tag anyone else with it, but if it intrigues you, too, please feel free to participate.

1) What is your current obsession?
I don't think I have one at the moment; I go in spurts. When we first went to New Orleans, I bought several books about it, including architecture books. Same for Vegas. And Route 66. Oh, and birds. I don't think I can add anymore obsessions at this point (famous last words), because I do revisit most obsessions. If something really grabs me, as the things I listed have, I stick with them.

2) What are you wearing today?
A large pink Florida T-shirt. Earlier I had on shorts and a tank top, when I was sitting out on the deck.

3) What's for dinner?
A chicken and rice dish.

4) What would you eat for your last meal?
Eggplant Parmigiana made with fresh mozzarella, and an entire bottle of Chianti. If it's my last meal, make it two bottles. Might as well go out with a bang.

5) What's the last thing you bought?
Mundane stuff? Groceries. Fun stuff? Several CDs.

6) What are you listening to right now?
A slight breeze in the trees, and chirping birds.

7) What do you think of the person who tagged you?
I think Bob at I Should Be Laughing is a sweet soul with a wicked sense of humor, and he is an outstanding writer, as well. I couldn't say no to Bob's tagging me for this meme.

8) If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
I thought about this for a moment, then realized that I'm living exactly where I want to live. What can I say? I love Nutwood, and it's the place to be for me!

9) If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
I can think of several things, but right now, I would go for an hour in Egyptian tombs in the Valley of the Kings.

10) Which language do you want to learn?
Italian. I love the sound of it, and I think I'd be pretty good at the hand gestures.

11) What's your favourite quote (for now)?
I don't know who said it first, but I remember my Dad saying it to me (he said it's always been his and Mom's philosophy): It's not the destination...it's the journey.

12) What is your favourite colour?
Hey, what's with the 'U' in favorite and color? This meme originated in the UK! Just call me Holmes. My fave color is Purple. I'm not sure why. Although it is the color of royalty. [grin]

13) What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe?
I can't say I have anything that would make me cry if I lost it, but a couple of go-tos for me are my black leather jacket--it looks good with anything--and a black sweater with a faux fur collar. I can wear it on its own as a top with jeans, slacks, or a skirt, or wear it over a dress as a light cover-up. Very versatile.

14) What is your dream job?
I can honestly say that for 20+ years, I did what I loved, and what I believe I was meant to do (microbiology). In the next phase...writing in some capacity...? I don't know. I'm content to just be for the time being.

15) What's your favourite magazine?
Time. I also get several mags such as Good Housekeeping, but Time is the one that I read in depth.

16) If you had £100 now, what would you spend it on?
Thanks for translating that to about $160 USD, Bob. (And I was right about the origin of this quiz! Ha!) Hmm. Probably books. Or maybe I'd save it until later in the summer and buy a bunch of clearance clothes at Kohl's. Are those the best sales, or what?

17) What are you going to do after this?
Talk to Ken about his golf game, if he's home by then; if not, maybe read a little more in my current book.

18) What are your favourite films?

Fargo, Psycho, The Grapes of Wrath, The Andromeda Strain (the original), The In-Laws (the original), The Usual Suspects, The Godfather (I and II), Goodfellas, Casino, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Night of the Living Dead; and in the guilty pleasures category, the awards go to Road House and Dirty Dancing.

19) What is your special talent?
Hm, I've never thought about whether or not I have a special talent, so this is a pretty good meme. I think it might be that I can keep my cool in most situations. While all about me might be descending into chaos, I can usually stay calm and try to figure out what to do about the problem, or at least try to calm the situation down. I'd probably be a pretty good person to have around in a disaster, although I hope I never have to find out the hard way.

20) What inspires you?
Nature. A nicely written phrase or paragraph. History, including seeing abandoned places (it fires my imagination). Music. Art, although I don't often get to art museums...but when I do, I find it fun to really ponder the artworks and think about them and what they mean to me.

21) Your favourite books?

The Grapes of Wrath, The Stand, Mine (Robert McCammon), The Starlight Drive-In (Marjorie Reynolds), The Andromeda Strain, F. Paul Wilson's Repairman Jack novels, Stephen King's Dark Tower/Gunslinger series

22) Do you collect anything?
Penguins and books. In fact, I have a few books about penguins. However, I have no figurines of penguins reading books. I have penguins fishing; a penguin knitting; I even have a penguin playing a trombone. But none are reading. Illiterate little buggers.

23) What are you currently reading?
Still stuck on The Old Wives' Tale by Arnold Bennett. I read more of it today, and although I'm enjoying it, I have a feeling I'll be on it for a while yet. I'm about ready to start a marathon reading session and plow through this thing.

24) Go to your book shelf, take down the first book with a red spine you see, turn to page 26 and type out the first line:

"Whatever it was, he didn't like Scott and this was his revenge," she marveled to the empty, sunny rooms above the long barn. "This...poison-pen clipping." From Lisey's Story UNDER by Stephen King. By the way, I had to choose a book shelf. There are five downstairs and one upstairs. What is this singular book shelf in the question?

25) By what criteria do you judge a person?
Honesty, lack of pretentiousness, empathy for those less fortunate, ability to generate and/or tolerate drama, a sense of humor.

Whew, I made it through!