Five questions thingy

[serene]

Here are the rules:
1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by asking you five personal questions so I can get to know you better. If I already know you well, expect the questions may be a little more intimate!
3. You will update your lj with the answers to the questions [or just answer in comments].
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in a post on your LJ [if you want to].
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

[Note from Serene: The normal disclaimer applies -- skip whatever you want to skip, do or do not do, as pleases you, make up new rules if you want. Whatever. Also, I'm only promising to interview the first five people who ask me, but I'll try to get to everyone.]



1. What's your favourite baseball movie? Why?

I have to say Bull Durham, because it's sexy, funny, smart, and features Susan Sarandon in outrageous clothes. It's the only thing I've ever liked Kevin Costner in, and even before I was queer, I had a crush on Annie Savoy. (For the longest time, my LJ blurb said "Annie-Savoy-wannabe".)

2. We've just been discussing outing oneself at job interviews. What's
the most disastrous reaction you've ever gotten to that?

I suppose some people might think not getting the job is a disaster, but I'm not aware of that being an issue, and since I've been employed nearly continually since I came out, I don't think it's held me back much. Certainly no one's ever reacted overtly to the dropping of "my ex-wife" into the conversation.

3. How about the funniest?

See #2.

4. Why are you a reluctant vegan?

I'm not a vegan at all. If I lived entirely by my ethical standards, I wouldn't eat animal products; I think they are avoidable harm, and I try to avoid avoidable harm. However, I healed myself of an eating disorder many years ago, and how I did that was to stop making food rules for myself, because as soon as I make a food rule, whatever I'm not "allowed" is instantly the thing I will kill for. Also, I'm extremely very superlatively anti-dieting, and being vegan strikes me as nearly impossible (for me) to separate from the diet mentality.

So I end up eating vegan foods more than other foods, and maybe one day it will be all I eat. I was vegetarian for 20 years (2 of those years vegan), and the whole time, I told myself that if I woke up one day wanting meat, I would eat it. I did, and I did. I felt healthier and ethically happier when I was a vegan, though, and if it wouldn't cause all kinds of other junk in my life, I would force myself to go back to eating that way.

Why I *call* myself the Reluctant Vegan is that even when I'm not eating animal products, I feel all kinds of cultural baggage around that, and I have never been one of those vegetarians who thinks meat and dairy are gross, or that people who eat them are murderers (or whatever), so I'm reluctant to be painted with that brush.

5. What's your favourite happy poly experience?

I could get flip and say "every day is my favo(u)rite happy poly day", but one of my favorites was the email I got from loracs before my first overnight visit to see stonebender. She said, essentially, "You're staying at our place, and I won't take no for an answer." We had never met, she and I, and she's an *incredible* hostess, so I have never gotten over the sheer selflessness of that act.

Comments

[micheinnz.livejournal.com]

Me, please?

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1) Tell about a happy KAOS memory, but only one you can tell me and not have to kill me after.

2) Do you tell Agent Weasel about the time before/during/after she was born? What do you tell her?

3) What's the hardest emotional work you have to do these days?

4) When you were little, you probably didn't want to be an engineer, did you? What did you want to be?

5) You, d_h, Agent Weasel, and three other people (living or dead, real or fictional) on a deserted island for the rest of time. Who?

[simplykimberly.livejournal.com]

Not sure I'll get to this in my own LJ, but I'd love to be interviewed :)

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1) Did you always want to be a parent?

2) Which of the kitties you've adopted out do you think about most often?

3) Do you even like cake? :-)

4) What first drew you to Aidon?

5) Let's say D is 30 years old, and he's talking to some friends about his childhood in your home. What do you hope he says?

[kake]

Interesting interview, thank you! Could I have some questions, please?

Regarding outing yourself in a job interview — this is likely a cultural difference, but I don't know if it's due to geography (I'm in the UK, as I think you possibly know) or to field (pretty much every job I've interviewed for has been a programming one, and you're a writer or something similar, aren't you?). I don't remember my personal life ever coming up in a job interview, other than along the lines of "yeah, I live in Fulham, so it'd take me about an hour to get here", or "I'm interested in knitting, so I wrote this software to help me keep track of my stash".

The reason I'm not vegan any more is sort of similar to the reason I moved to London from Oxford (a fairly small city) — I felt too constrained, in that new things didn't happen often enough for me. Sure, I get to try a new vegetable food every so often (had my first ever salsify yesterday); and sure, a new restaurant or pub or society would pop up in Oxford every so often; but basically I wanted to live in a bigger world. Does that make sense?

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

I'll put the questions at the end of this reply.

I out myself on purpose in job interviews (or on my resume), so it doesn't matter if it comes up per se. If someone says, "And we have a wonderful full-time staff librarian," I say, "Oh, my ex-wife used to be a corporate librarian; how interesting!" and so on. I find that being out from day one means I have never gotten one minute of shit about my queerness on the job. Of course, I also live in California, so I'm starting from a privileged position on that in a lot of ways.

And yeah, the veg thing makes all kinds of sense to me. One of the things I love about food is trying things I've never tried before. I didn't even *try* to be vegetarian in Tokyo -- I might have missed something I never would have gotten a chance to try again. Like tako (octopus) balls. So fascinating! Same with interesting cheeses, quail eggs, etc. I have ethical problems with choosing to eat food that interests me even though I know it involves cruelty to animals. However, I would be lying if I said I always did the things that I think are most ethical. I'm working on it.

1) What made you want to be a mathematician?

2) Current favorite TMBG song?

3) Did you study singing in school?

4) What's something rewarding you've done in the past year or two?

5) You get to eat any meal you like tomorrow, cost and prep time being no object. What is it?

[bastette-joyce.livejournal.com]

Ooo ooo ooo! I love to get asked questions about me!! :)

BTW, simplykimberly's icon is the cutest kitty picture.

[simplykimberly.livejournal.com]

You should 1) look at my icons, and prepare to squee at more cute kitty pics, and 2) look at my LJ ... I take a LOT of cute kitty pics :)

and thanks :)

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

I think you and simplykimberly would get along. She holds a first-friday craft-and-food night most months, and I'll take you if you wanna go.

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1) What made you decide to be a programmer?

2) What's the best thing about being you?

3) How did you meet firecat?

4) When you think of "home", where are you thinking of, and why?

5) You get to populate five houses on your block with any five people or families you want, and those people are dying to come live near you. Who will they be?

[jb98.livejournal.com]

Me, please!

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1) Do you think you'll move again any time soon?

2) If I say "emotionally rewarding", what's the first thing that comes to mind?

3) What's the best piece (or one of the best pieces) of advice you ever received?

4) You can choose a year of growth or a year of peace, and then afterwards, life will return to its normal random self. Which do you choose?

5) Who is the first adult you can remember being friends with? What were they like?

[stonebender.livejournal.com]

5. What's your favourite happy poly experience?

I could get flip and say "every day is my favo(u)rite happy poly day", but one of my favorites was the email I got from loracs before my first overnight visit to see stonebender. She said, essentially, "You're staying at our place, and I won't take no for an answer." We had never met, she and I, and she's an *incredible* hostess, so I have never gotten over the sheer selflessness of that act.

Yeah, she's a good one!

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

Yep! *smooch*

[eeyore-grrl.livejournal.com]

me!

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1) Why did you decide to become vegetarian?

2) Who was your best teacher ever?

3) What keeps you here with us these days when it gets really hard? (You totally don't have to answer that if you don't want to.)

4) Tell me a funny student story I haven't heard yet.

5) You get twenty minutes to talk to anyone you want (not fictional, but can be alive or dead). Who is it, and what do you want to talk about?

[cassidyrose.livejournal.com]

Interview me please if you are still taking applications ;)

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1) What's your first good dance memory?

2) How do you and ptor make each other's lives easier?

3) You have a million dollars (not much, but enough for a couple of commercials or a ton of billboards) to put out a message about fat and health to the world. What do you do?

4) What is the most emotionally challenging part of being a new parent?

5) What's your favorite part of your own body?

[flippac.livejournal.com]

Do me?

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1) What makes a place "home" to you?

2) You have to do something joyful and intellectually challenging today -- money and time and energy are no object -- what will it be?

3) Who is a person who has been an inspiration to you in life?

4) What is the most difficult thing emotionally about having an invisible disability?

5) What's the best thing about your day today?

[autographedcat.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, do me now? :)

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

Now, huh? ;-)

1) What's your earliest good music memory?

2) Describe a recent moment of bliss.

3) Who's your favorite poet, and what's your favorite poem of theirs? (If you don't do favorites -- I don't -- just answer with one of your preferred ones.)

4) Record-company executive comes to you and says you have to pick one of the songs you've already written to make into a single. Which one, and why?

5) What should I wear to Consonance?

Oh, wait, that's not about you. Let's try that again.

5) If you were to say "back home," where would you be talking about?

[mackenzie]

I would enjoy being interviewed.

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1) Who is someone early on who inspired you to be a better person?

2) What was the best thing you learned in college?

3) Five years from now, someone you haven't seen since today meets you and says, "So, what have you been up to these last five years?" What do you hope to say?

4) What is your most prized possession, and why?

5) What's your feeling about someday being a parent?

[tiger-spot.livejournal.com]

Okay, you're way past five now, but if you happen to have time I would like some questions too.

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1. Cost is no object, and you can have a pound of any chocolate you choose. Which one?

2. You have many geekinesses. What's your favorite in yourself?

3. What's the story on this icon?

4. What's your preferred way of getting blissed out?

5. What's the last time you got truly frustrated, and how did you deal with it?

[papabearnz.livejournal.com]

I'm game - interview me.

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1. What's the very best thing about living in New Zealand? (If you don't want to choose a best, just choose something very good.)

2. From your interests list, what's "meccano"?

3. What's the most emotionally challenging thing you're dealing with these days?

4. You can meet in person five of your online friends (not counting me). Who will they be?

5. What is a book that changed your worldview in some way, and why?

[sistercoyote.livejournal.com]

Is it too late to ask? ;)

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1. Do you remember the first poem you wrote (and/or the first poem you had published)?

2. What one change would you make in your immediate surroundings if you could wave your magic wand?

3. Who's the person (non-family) you would call first if you won a million dollars?

4. Trust or respect -- which does someone earn from you more easily, and why?

5. Do you see yourself as a trickster, and why/why not?

[ljgeoff.livejournal.com]

and if it's not too late, can you do me?

[serenejournal.livejournal.com]

1. What's the best part about living where you live?

2. What one relationship tip do you wish you'd gotten long ago?

3. Twenty years from now, you get to say that you started something this year that changed your life in a positive way. What is it?

4. What are three songs that make you happy, and why?

5. Live another forty years, but moderately ill, or live only another ten years in perfect health?