Black Coffee in Bed

I visited Kelly and found two surveys to steal. I'll save one for another day when I have nothing to tell you, but here's one:

1. What's your name spelt backwards? Neelhtak – sounds like an alien race from Stargate SG-1.

2. What did you do last night? I had an eventful afternoon/evening. I had my dr.'s appt. to get the chest X-ray taken (also done), then it was on to see Maureen. On my way home I stopped at Target because I was out of toilet paper (and that's pretty darn essential). I bought a fair amount of snack items since my antibiotics are still wreaking havoc with my stomach. I made myself a DiGiorno's cheese pizza, watched the last inning of the ALCS Game 4 (and was singularly disappointed in the after game coverage), then turned on spring training Tigers game playing Atlanta where my Tiges took care of John Smoltz. I went to bed at 8:00 as I had been completely unable to sleep Monday night (2.5 hours tops).

3. The last thing you downloaded onto your computer? Probably a knitting pattern.

4. Have you ever licked a 9 volt battery? When I was young and stupid and did as my brother told me.

5. Last time you swam in a pool? I think last year at Grandma's.

6. What are you wearing? Black slacks (pants?), orange long-sleeved V-neck shirt, my really cool rhino socks and, as usual, black monochrome Chucks.

7. How many cars have you owned? 5

8. Type of music you dislike most? Country/Western – all that twanginess makes me want to put icepicks through my ears.

9. Are you registered to vote? Heck yes, the second I turned 18.

10. Do you have cable? Yes, for TV and computer.

11. What kind of computer do you use? POS Dell desktop at work. My beautiful MacBook at home.


12. Ever made a prank phone call? Hell no, the FF would have killed us if we did that.


13. You like anyone right now? I'm thinking a teenager might have written this. I like lots of people, care deeply about others.

14. Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving? Hell NO!

15. Furthest place you ever travelled? Cairo, Egypt

16. Do you have a garden? No yard for a garden, but even if I had a yard I probably wouldn't. I had enough with gardens as the FF's indentured gardening servant. I don’t feel the need to pull a week ever again!

17. What's your favorite comic strip? Calvin & Hobbes

18. Do you know all the words to the national anthem? Yes, to the U.S. and Canadian.

19. Shower, morning or night? Every morning, but also afternoons after the gym. Sometimes when I can't sleep I'll take one at night, but always always always take one the next morning.

20. Best movie you've seen in the past month?

21. Favorite pizza toppings? Onions, although if I could artichoke hearts from Pizza Hut in Michigan like I could in California, I might say that instead.

22. Chips or popcorn? I'd normally say popcorn, but I read to avoid popcorn if you have trouble with cold sores and since I was fighting one for a bloody year, I stopped eating it. And when I had popcorn recently, I noticed that feeling, so no more popcorn for me.

23. What cell phone provider do you have? T-Mobile

24. Have you ever smoked peanut shells? Why would I have done that?

25. Have you ever been in a beauty pageant? Oh yeah, NOT!

26. Orange Juice or apple? Grape. Apple is boring, and orange is too citrus-y.

27. Who were the last people you sat at lunch with? The Libertarian brought me lunch at home last Friday when I felt so horrible and left work a little after 11:00. Other than that, I'd have no clue as I go to lunch extremely rarely.

28. Favorite chocolate bar? Lindt Swiss Classic Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Bar or Dark Chocolate Santander – 70% Cacao

29. Who is your longest friend and how long? Wow, good question. I've known Lisa my entire life, but I almost never see her anymore, although we send each other b-day e-mails. I've known Marianne since high school, but didn't become friends with her until the early 90s, which I think leaves Soyon who I met in college, either 1984 or 1985. I know she was 19, and I think she just turned 40.

30. Last time you ate a homegrown tomato? Last summer, my boss would bring in cherry tomatoes from his garden and I would eat them all before lunch.

31. Have you ever won a trophy? LOL! No, although I did get a plaque for my intramural soccer team when we won the championship. I was not an important part of the team, as they replaced me in goal for the playoffs. What can I say, I'm not athletic.

32. Favorite artist? Ooh, hard one. I have a thing for Spanish surrealists, so Miró, Picasso and Dalí.

33. Favorite computer game? Cubis 2 which won't work with the Mac so I can't download it and play the full game, dammit!!

34. Ever ordered from an infomercial? No, although I do find a number of them fascinating and tempting. I have ordered from QVC, but that doesn't count.

35. Sprite or 7-UP? Neither. I find them boring. Squirt, however, is quite yummy.

36. Have you ever had to wear a uniform to school/work? Oh yes, 12 years of Catholic school made sure of that, along with six years at Burger King – back in the oh so pretty brown/yellow/orangey-red polyester days. Trés chic!

37. Last thing you bought at the store? Toilet paper, toothpaste, dental tape, headphones, snack items, DiGiorno pizza, Target brand sleep aid for the next time I find myself awake at midnight and the alarm ready to go off in four hours.

38. Ever thrown up in public? Oh yes, and it's a charming story. It was my first day of living in SF, i.e., I had moved there that day, and Julius was taking me around and giving me the $5 tour. We were in the Haight, had eaten at a little Mexican dive, and then walked to the local Salvation Army/Purple Heart type store where Julius was looking for a blender, being the consummate party-giver that he was (back in his bachelor days). I was tired from traveling and walking up Calfornia Street, etc., so I decided to lean against a table while he perused the blender collection. I put my hand down and felt something. I looked down and I had put my hand directly into something some incredibly classy person had hacked up, i.e., sputum. I was grossed out beyond words and scraped my hand on the table and ran out the door to get some air. I was essentially Lamaze-breathing to avoid puking, until we could get to Julius' then girlfriend's house who lived at Haight & Ashbury, a block away. While we walked Julius kept going on and on about how gross that was and did I look at it and did I see such-and-such. A few steps before the corner of H&A, I lost my cookies (or rather tortillas) and puked, right in front of some of the faux Haight homeless teenagers who, of course, commented. I don’t think I washed my hands so thoroughly or so many times in a row as I did that day.

39. Would you prefer being a millionaire or finding true love? True love.

40. Do you believe in love at first sight? I'm not sure I believe in true love, I'm definitely unsure about love at first sight. There's definitely lust at first sight.

41. Can exes just be friends? Depends. I'd never be friends with my first ex-, but I was friends with another until I moved to SF. I'd still be friends with him, except he seems to have moved into a different stratosphere of Detroit culture and I'm not cool enough anymore.

42. Who was the last person you visited in the hospital? Pamela's mother.

43. Did you have long hair as a young kid? Are you kidding? Hell yes! And I hated it w/a passion! It was down to my butt and straight as an arrow and did nothing for me. I couldn't wait until I had enough of my own money (sophomore year of high school) to cut that shit. I've never looked back.

44. What message is on your voicemail machine? Standard, boring, I'm unable to answer the phone, please leave a message and I'll get back to you.

45. Where would you like to go right now? Home in bed.