Willow of Willow’s Corner put me up to it.

Blame it all on her.

I have questions. Or, more precisely, Willow had questions and I thought … hmm. These are kind of interesting. Maybe I should do this. If you feel like playing too, you can pick up the list of question from Willow’s site without having to remove my answers.

Here goes:

QUESTIONS.

1. Does jet-lag affect you? 
   Not much.
2. Are you afraid to walk alone at night?
   No, although there are places I would be inclined to avoid. Just being sensible.
3. How did it make you feel the first time you ever held a baby in your arms — yours or someone else’s?
   Terrified. It was my son. I was 22 years old and had NO idea what to do next. Fortunately, my mother had stayed to help. Phew.
4. Do you fold your undergarments and socks?
   Yes, don’t you? I mean … what’s the alternative?
5. Is there a specific place where you go to think? where is it and why there?
   No.
6. How many houseplants do you have? How are they faring?
   Just four (indoors) these days. I had more, but I got tired of watering and repotting. Today, I have a huge dracaena, 2 Christmas cactus, and a big aloe. All fine, thank you.
7. Do you have a garden — flower or vegetable?
   It used to be a garden. Now it’s a thorny patch of dead stuff. I don’t have a back for gardening anymore. And this has not been a good year for the flowers.

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   They came, they saw, they consumed.

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   How many hats do you own? Do you wear them all?
   I have a lot, maybe a dozen? I had many more. I almost never wear any of them these days. They have brims and are no good in cars, all of which have head rests.

9. Does your best friend call you her best friend?
   Yes. She does.
10. Do you struggle to finish a bad book or do you set it aside forever?
    I have a to-be-read list MILES long. I don’t have time (or patience) for bad books.
11. Have you ever been in a food fight?
    No. I’ve been in fights about food. Does that count?
12. Have you ever brought a stray animal home?
    Not lately, but all the time when I was a kid. I was famous for it.
13. Can a well-written book make you care about their characters enough to cry for them?
    Of course. It doesn’t even have to be sad. Sometimes, it’s just touching.
14. Have you seen Karma at work in your life?
    Yes, and I don’t get it. Was I a serial murderer in a former life?
15. How do you deliver bad news?
    Gently.
16. In general, how do you feel when you come home from a long vacation?
    Glad to see the dogs, grateful to sleep in my bed and appalled at the amount of cleaning up I will have to do.
17. Are book covers important in getting you to read a book?
    No. Not even a little bit. Mostly I read books online, so I don’t even know what the cover looks like.
18. How many shoes do you have? Are there any orphan shoes? Why do you keep them?
    No orphan shoes and I’m down to about 20 pairs. All of them fit and I try to wear them all, but I don’t get out all that much. I keep them because I like them … and in some cases, they have a specific use, like walking over rough terrain, being insulated, or waterproof. Then there are box shoes that get worn once in a blue moon, or less.

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19. How would you describe your housekeeping strategy?
    Desperate. I’m always a layer of filth behind and I will never catch up, not in this life.
20. If you could be a superhero, would you take that chance?
    Probably. Tell me what powers I get and I could give a better answer.
21. If you had the wherewithal to invent something, anything, what would it be?
    Not a clue. Okay, maybe a transporter to make travel easy for those of us who don’t move around much. Except it would be instantly banned by every government in the world because if you can’t control travel, you can’t control travelers. And we can’t have THAT.
22. If you had to live for a month on what’s in your refrigerator, would you make it?
    Nope. We don’t keep that much food in the house any more.
23. Name something that seemed inconsequential but had a huge influence on your life (for example, a commercial, a postcard, or something you might have overheard).
    Science fiction and fantasy. In books, stories, on TV (Twilight Zone, especially) and in the movies. And history. Some historical novels (Angelique by Anne Golan), but mostly straight history. I really believe if you don’t know history, you don’t know who you are.
24. How do you feel about the idea of Artificial Intelligence? or robots in general?
    I don’t have much feeling about them. They will come and be a part of the world, like all the other technology we never imagined we’d have.

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    What “redneck” (unsophisticated) activity do you like to do?
    I have so few activities that I really can’t answer that. Mostly, I read, write, take pictures, play computer games. I’m not sure what “unsophisticated” means, actually.

26. What (if anything) do you think is beyond the stars?
    More stars.
27. What are the most common lies your peer group tells?
    We’re doing FINE. Just FINE.
28. Are there characteristic about yourself that you find annoying in other people?
    Probably. But generally, I like people who are similar to me. I enjoy being with people who tell stories, make jokes, read books. Have a sense of humor. I like interesting people and generally, they like me.
29. What do you think of when you think of California?
    Earthquakes and legal marijuana.
30. Is there food that is too much work for you to eat?
    Lobster. Not that I’ll turn it down, but it’s a major production. Also, barbecued food is too messy and gets stuck in my teeth. Then, there’s corn on the cob. I love it, but I’m not always up to the challenge of post-corn oral cleansing.
31. What highbrow, cultured activity do you like to participate in?
    Participate rather than watch? Does blogging count? You can always talk me into going to a concert or a museum, but I don’t think those count as participation.
32. Is there a historical culture that fascinates you?
    More than one. Rome is a big one. It was the pattern on which so much of western culture has been based. Nothing is new — it already happened in old Rome.
33. What — if any — historical injustice still upsets you?
    Every slaughter of indigenous people. Here in the U.S. and all the other places from Asia, to Africa, and back to Europe. Why do we feel that need to kill anyone who came before us or looks different from us? Why do we murder each other?
34. Are there habits other people have that you find suspicious?
    No, not really. I don’t know anyone who does anything that I would consider suspicious. Maybe you would see it differently.
35. What do you think is a good place to travel but you would not want to live there? 
    California. I don’t want to live where the earth may open up and swallow me. Call me crazy, but I find people who build their homes on an earthquake fault line weird.
36. Is there a scary scene from a movie (or book) you viewed a child that still haunts you?
    As a very small child, the march of the dinosaurs to Stravinsky’s “Rites of Spring” in Disney’s “Fantasia” terrified me. As an adult, the final scenes of “On the Beach” still give me chills. When the fallout has killed everyone and you see the empty streets of New York … just buildings and blowing paper and no people.
37. What is the cheapest price you can ever remember paying for gas?
    Paid myself? Because I remember it being less than 30 cents a gallon growing up. By the time I was an adult, gasoline was still less than a dollar, but going up fast. So maybe in the range of 75 cents. It didn’t stay there very long.
38. How far south have you traveled?
    Mexico.
39. When did you realize you’d become an adult?
    When I looked around and my parents, aunts and uncles had all passed and I knew I’m the second oldest member of my remaining family.
40. What jokes did your grandparents tell you as a child that you remember fondly?
    I never knew my grandparents. They all died when I was a toddler.
41. Is there a piece of technology that you do not own but would like to?
    No. If I don’t own it, I either never heard of it, or don’t want it.
42. Do you have any secrets for getting better service?
    Know your facts before you go head-to-head with the service department. Knowledge is the only power you’ve got.
43. What slang word or phrase do you love to use?
    Other than four-letter ones? Can’t think of any off-hand, but the 4-letter ones work pretty well for me.
44. What technology, real or imagined, scares you?
    GMO food scares me to death.

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    On the left, a normal grapefruit. On the right? A GMO orange. Now THAT’s scary.

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    Is there a traditional gender role or stereotype that you agree or disagree with?
    Most women are better nurturers than men, at least in my generation, but not always. There are so many exceptions to the rule that I don’t think it counts as a rule.

46. What type of commercials do you find particularly annoying?
    Drug commercials. It’s just a way to jack up prices.
47. What was the first thing you learned to cook?
    Cheese omelets.
48. What’s the highest above sea level you’ve ever been? How did you get there?
    I’m not sure of the altitude. We were pretty high up in some of the Arizona mountains. We drove up. Took pictures. Drove down.
49. Is there something that you do now, but wouldn’t do if weren’t the for the law (for example carry car insurance or wear your seat belt).
    I’m going to take the fifth on this one.
50. Have you ever tried to touch the moon?
    I don’t think so.

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51. When you have out-of-town guests, what tourist things do you show them?
    Around here? Mostly pretty things. Parks, rivers, our few historical sites. We don’t really have much tourist stuff. It’s a pretty small town and quite rural.
52. Where is the strangest place you have fallen asleep?
    In the CAT-scan machine.
53. Would you be willing to live off the grid? (follow link for definition) 
    Too old. That’s for the young and hardy who don’t need access to major medical facilities.
54. If someone paid you enough money, would you provide them a false alibi?
    It would depend on what was being covered up. There are crimes … and then there are CRIMES.
55. Would you volunteer to be one of the first colonists on Mars?
    Absolutely, but I doubt they would take me.