Can I Ask You A Question?

Let The Games Begin

I keep thinking I will write a blog post rather than show a blog post once in a while. As you may remember, I started my blog after I bought my first digital camera a few years ago and it has always been one of my youthful dreams to take really good pictures. I derive such pleasure from looking at good photographs--almost as much as I love reading a very well-turned phrase. And yeah, ok, I used to have dreams of being a crafty writer, too, but...well, for now, I'll settle for (and enjoy) playing tag games on blogs.

Here's the back story: A blogosphere acquaintance (http://nicolemoncur.blogspot.com/) has challenged me to answer some questions she posed, and then to play-it-forward by "tagging" other bloggers with questions of my own. The tagging part might be more challenging than answering the questions, because I keep running up against some very annoying roadblocks on blogger with commenting, uploading pictures, etc. But oh poo-let's just leave that stuff behind for now and get to the questions I've been asked to answer:

What is your favorite book and why?
No one favorite, as you might imagine. It's even difficult to choose a favorite genre, but here's the first dog-eared, loose-paged, well-worn book that popped into my mind's eye.

The Joys of Yiddish by Leo Rosten because it's wonderfully and surprisingly hilarious and poignant.  It's not necessarily the best book I've ever read or the most important or the most indispensable, but I laugh so much when I read it that it still makes me smile broadly just to remember when I first discovered it.  It is, in Mr. Rosten's own words:  
"a relaxed lexicon of Yiddish, Hebrew, and Yinglish words often encountered in English, plus dozens that ought to be, with serendipitous excursions into Jewish humor, habits, holidays, history, religion, ceremonies, folklore, and cuisine–the whole generously garnished with stories, anecdotes, epigrams, Talmudic quotations, folk sayings, and jokes.” 

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
This is probably the most impossible (are there degrees of impossible?) question to answer.  I often have no idea where I might find myself in 10 minutes, let alone after a whole decade passes.  And that is not to say that a whole decade is very long, even.  Especially at this point in my life, but how in the world did I end up where I am now from where I have been at various times in my life?! 

You might wonder that I don't have a plan or a goal  or even a dream, but I really don't.  All I know is that I would like to have enough of what ever it takes to fall as in love with that season and place of my life as I have with most of the others.   

If I were to pick an unspecified moment 10 years from now, I think a road trip would be a nice thing to be doing. With anyone I like. Discovering an unusual vista, meeting a new friend, chomping on chocolate.   

Where is your favorite restaurant and what do you order there?
Similar to the question about books.  Who can choose, but I love Korean food.  I like it best in Korea, in a traditional Korean eatery with low round tables and 100 side dishes.  The kind of kimchi that's wrapped around secreted tidbits like chestnuts, dates, and other vegetables.  Sesame oil on rice cakes filled with honey and sesame seeds. Smokey, grilled marinated beef, red pepper paste, short-grain rice, barley tea...oh, and spicy, spicy stir-fried squid.  And don't forget the napkins.  Lots and lots of napkins!

What was your first childhood memory? 
Most likely something to do with a doll.  I used to anthropomorphize my little doll friends, even though I had lots of siblings and loved playing with them, and had no real need of creating imaginary friends, unless leprechauns and fairies fit into that category.  Dolls with pretty hair.
OR...riding a tricycle with my little cousin down to the school yard where city workers told us they were digging for the devil just before their tools ruptured a water main that came spewing forth, sending me screaming and running to save my very life and soul.  Pleasant experience, that.

What is the most daring thing you have ever done or what are you the most proud of accomplishing? 
Surviving.  But I don't take credit for that. 


And so finally, here are questions and bloggers I have tagged because that looks like how the game is played.  These are the people I think would be most likely to play this game. Of course, I would love to read anyone's answers to the questions, so if anyone feels inclined to answer them and come up with your own with which to tag people, it's kind of fun.

1. Which of the four seasons do you most anticipate and why?
2. If you had to be trapped in a TV show for a month, which show would you choose and why?
3. Which activities make you lose track of time and how often do you do them?
4. What’s something you know you do differently than most people?
5. What do you consider to be the most halcyon season of your life?

 Olie
NancyHanaike
JuliaPineda
HillaryDobbins
DeEtta
 LOV