99-question survey

1. Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, and find line 4.

"At home the phone rang but Mary let the machine pick it..." (Like Life, Lorrie Moore)

or, alternatively, "...che 'in alcuni lochi d'Italia ne son molto grossi, e in Milano as-..." Gastronomy textbook.

2. Stretch your left arm out as far as you can, What can you touch?

The wall.

3. Before you started this survey, what were you doing?

I've been laying around procrastinating for a couple hours now.

4. What is the last thing you watched on TV?

Chelsea Handler

5. Without looking, guess what time it is

6:04

6. Now what time is it really?

6:00

7. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear?

Music. And outside.

8. When did you last step outside? What were you doing?

Few hours ago.

9. Did you dream last night?

I did and I woke up thinking about it, but I lost it.

10. Do you remember your dreams?

Not too often.

11. When did you last laugh?

Few hours ago.

12. Do you remember why / at what?

Yeah.

13. What is on the walls of the room you are in?

Couple posters.

14. Seen anything weird lately?

I saw two snakes today.

15. What do you think of this quiz?

So far so good, though that question indicates a bit of insecurity to me.

16. What is the last film you saw?

Hanna

17. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

I don't know. Places start to feel the same after a while, I think.

18. If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy?

A house and two dogs, right away.

19. Tell me something about you that most people don't know.

The two happiest times that I can think of at my life were at a high school swim meet and the day I went to Pisa. The first one was a sort of charged, mission-accomplished elation and the second was the most relaxed and content I've ever felt. I think about those days a lot.

20. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do?

I don't know if I'd change anything. That's a lot of pressure.

21. Do you like to dance?

No.

22. Would you ever consider living abroad?

Yeah.

23. Does your name make any interesting anagrams?

No, unfortunately. I just tried it on a website and there's always a spare letter.

24. Who made the last incoming call on your phone?

Mom.

25. What is the last thing you downloaded onto your computer?

Music.

26. Last time you swam in a pool?

Week ago.

27. Type of music you like most?

Good mix.

28. Type of music you dislike most?

There isn't a particular type I don't like. I could probably find something to like in every kind of music.

29. Are you listening to music right now?

Yeah. Decembrists. "The Perfect Crime #2"

30. What color is your bedroom carpet?

It's like... gray, I guess? That neutral whitish carpet color. It's so dirty, though.

31. If you could change something about your home, without worry about expense or mess, what would you do?

About my home home? Uh... I would make the bathtub bigger.

32. What was the last thing you bought?

A t-shirt.

33. Have you ever ridden on a motorbike?

No. No desire to, either.

34. Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving?

Absolutely.

35. Do you have a garden?

No.

36. Do you really know all the words to your national anthem?

I know the standard singing part, but there are other lyrics to it that I don't know.

37. What is the first thing you think of when you wake up in the morning?

SHUT IT OFF!

38. If you could eat lunch with one famous person, who would it be?

I'd probably pick Tina Fey. Girl seems like she likes to eat shamelessly, like I do.

39. Who sent the last text message you received?

Zoe.

40. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?

Barnes and Noble.

41. What time is bed time?

It changes every day. Try to get in bed before midnight.

42. Have you ever been in a beauty pageant?

No.

43. How many tattoos do you have?

None.

44. If you don't have any, have you ever thought of getting one?

I've thought about it, but I don't think I ever would.

45. What did you do for your last birthday?

Got hammered and yelled at my mom.

46. Do you carry a donor card?

Not yet.

47. Who was the last person you ate with?

Italian class on top of a mountain with four hawks swirling just overhead. That was cool.

48. Is the glass half empty or half full?

Are you filling it or emptying it? I really dislike that dichotomy. It's so stupid. Is anyone that black and white?

49. What's the farthest-away place you've been?

Italy.

50. When's the last time you ate a homegrown tomato?

Summer.

51. Have you ever won a trophy?

Yeah. Everyone gets on these days, though.

52. Are you a good cook?

No. I can bake okay, though.

53. Do you know how to pump your own gas?

Yeah, I'm not that functionally challenged.

54. If you could meet any one person (from history or currently alive), who would it be?

David Eddings, just to say thanks. I always meant to write him a letter while he was alive, but I missed my chance. I regret that, a little bit.

55. Have you ever had to wear a uniform to school?

No.

56. Do you touch-type?

What does that mean? Without looking? Yeah.

57. What's under your bed?

Storage bins!

58. Do you believe in love at first sight?

No. I think love is too complicated for one glance.

59. Think fast, what do you like right now?

The first thing that came to mind was porn. So...

60. Where were you on Valentine's day?

Here.

61. What time do you get up?

Either 6:40, 7, or 9. Almost never later.

62. What was the name of your first pet?

Oreo.

63. Who is the second to last person to call you?

One of the many Maggies in my life.

64. Is there anything going on this weekend?

I bought a wife-beater for tonight. That means yes.

65. How are you feeling right now?

Tired and I have to pee.

66. What do you think about the most?

Uh... That's a hard question. I guess stories. I'm always making up stories in my head.

67. What time do you get up in the morning?

Didn't we already do this one?

68. If you had A Big Win in the Lottery, how long would you wait to tell people?

I would tell my parents right away.

69. Who would you tell first?

My parents.

70. What is the last movie that you saw at the cinema?
Hanna. It was bad.

71. Do you sing in the shower?

No.

72. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?

Barnes and Noble, maybe. I don't have a credit card, though...

73. What do you do most when you are bored?

I waste time on the computer or read.

74. What do you do for a living?

I'm a student.

75. Do you love your job?

If that counts as a job, sometimes.

76. What did you want to be when you grew up?

I never had an answer for that, and I still don't.

77. If you could have any job, what would you want to do/be?

I can't even answer this. Don't ask me job questions anymore, survey.

78. Which came first the chicken or the egg?

Evolutionarily speaking, probably the egg.

79. How many keys on your key ring?

One.

80. Where would you retire to?

I don't know. That's kind of a sad question, in a way. It's like, "Where would you spend the last years before you die?"

81. What kind of car do you drive?

The orange one...

82. What are your best physical features?

Probably my teeth.

83. What are your best characteristics?

I really like listening to people's stories. I like hearing people talk.

84. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation where would you go?

Somewhere in America. I want to see more of America.

85. What kind of books do you like to read?

Mostly fiction, but all kinds.

86. What is your favorite time of the day?

No particular preference.

87. Where did you grow up?

Haverhill.

88. How far away from your birthplace do you live now?

100 miles exactly.

89. What are you reading now?

Like Life, Lorrie Moore.

90. Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Both. Don't do well in the afternoon.

91. Can you touch your nose with your tongue?

No.

92. Can you close your eyes and raise your eyebrows?

Yup.

93. Do you have pets?

Yes and I miss her terribly. I saw a parade of dogs when I went hiking today and it made me miss her.

94. How many rings before you answer the phone?

A few. Depends on who's calling.

95. What is your best childhood memory?

Not really specific, but I look back fondly on the period when I had a tight group of friends and we all passed books around to each other. I don't have a really tight group of friends anymore, and none of my friends read.

96. What are some of the different jobs that you have had in your life?

I've been a lifeguard for years now. I have a really dumb quasi-job right now. I can't even explain it. I'm paid in food and don't really have to do anything. So I don't feel like that counts.

97. What is most important in life?

To keep moving forward and don't waste too much time looking back.

98. What Inspires You?

People who are great at something. Whatever it is. And bouncing back from bad times. Especially when one person hits both those points.

99. Do you believe in an afterlife?

No. And I hope there isn't. I don't believe in anything, religiously speaking, but if I had to choose, I would want there to be reincarnation. Though that, I think, would be impossible, if you assume that there is a finite number of souls and the number of living things is continually increasing. Unless you also assumed that the number of souls is significantly larger than the largest possible number of living things that could be and that there was some sort of limbo-space in which the souls not currently in living form existed while they waited. And such a space could be termed an afterlife, I guess, so that was just a circular way of ruining what I started with.