Survey of FUN

I'm going to Arizona! Woo-hoo! I'm also taking both kids with me to stay with my grandparents, who are in their eighties, in their un-babyproofed house for nine days. So, uh, wish me luck. But! I shall get to see internet friends, TOO, and that is the best.

This is (most of) the get-to-know-you survey for the meetup. Each person sent in a question. Except me, because I'm lame. I also didn't come up with the titles.

Question 1: Pop Culture Shame.

Do you have a shameful pop culture secret? Has everyone in the world seen something that you haven't, making you the odd lady out when the quotes are flying around? Do you just not GET the TV show everyone else loves? Does everyone have a celebrity on their LIST that would not make it on yours in a billion years? Out with it.

Friday Night Lights. I have no interest. I’ve watched the pilot and I’m sure if I made myself keep going I could get into it, but I just don’t want to.

Question 2: Undercover.

Have you ever given a fake name at a bar or club? Explain yourself. Or, considering the fact that a large portion of us are Internet nerds, maybe it's more likely that you're undercover online and you don't actually get out enough to have used a fake name in such a situation, in which case, you can take the nerd option of this question an explain why you chose your online identity. Nerd.

I would love to give a fake name somewhere. Just feels like it would be fun, you know? But I never have. I do have a “spam” email address. I use it to sign up for free samples/coupons/etc when I don’t want the company spamming my regular email address. I signed up for it under the name Sarah Jones (I was going for plain and very common) and use that name whenever possible. Of course, often I’m signing up for a free sample to be sent to my house, so while I sometimes do still use the fake name, I often just use my real one.

Question 3: Admit it, some of you bought vinyl unironically.

What was the first with-your-own-money album purchase you remember making? Do you remember why you chose that one, specifically?

Avalon, A Maze of Grace. (Christian music) A family I babysat for listened to a lot of Avalon and I loved it. Still do, though I haven’t kept up with them (several group members have changed and I think it’s a whole new group of people now). So what I mean is I still love their old stuff.

Question 4: It's better to give. For the receiver, anyway.

What's the best gift you've ever given? Please select at least two different forms of best. Nah, I'm kidding. One best is fine. Unless you're really bored at work and want a challenge. But seriously, I don't know about everyone else, but I'm judging on creative interpretation of the word "best." No pressure!

I bought my husband a Weber Smokey Mountain for his birthday a couple years ago. It’s a top-of-the-line smoker he really loves using. He says it’s one of the best things we own.

Question 5: Set nobility aside.

If you find out you have six months to live, what bad for you things would you do? No hugging, no donating, no acts of kindness. I mean, fine, do all that stuff, Mother Teresa, but we don't want to hear about that. What are you going to do since you're going to DIE ANYWAY?

I wouldn’t do much, honestly. I very much enjoy being lazy. So, watch TV. Read books. Go on a cruise, probably, since it’s a nice lazy vacation with tons of food. 

(I’m doing all of these things in the next six months, but I would like to make sure I declare that doesn’t mean I’m ready to just DIE at the end of them, OK?) (Ed. note: Obviously, I filled this out before the cruise last month.)

I can also tell you what I would NOT do and that’s exercise.

Question 6: Imagine if someone else had to do the packing FOR you.

Aside from a random Arizona town in the middle of February, what's your dream vacation destination?

Dream vacation destination: Any random island that’s warm, has no bugs, and I can have a private beach on. And a personal chef.

Question 7: Unfortunately, your answers will not affect my plans.

Breakfast: pastry or eggs? Bonus points for pictures, recipes, and a guess as to who sent in this question.

Breakfast: Eggs, Erica Huff, I like eggs. Also sausage. Basically, I have to have a savory breakfast and pastry, though delicious, is just too much for me that early in the day. (Bring it around mid-morning.)

Question 8: Let's sit in the shallow end for a second, because I can't swim.

What's your favorite thing about yourself? Legitimate favorite. I'm going to know if you're bullshitting us. I am GOING. TO KNOW.

Ok, this is going to sound like a very weird favorite thing. You know how people are always like “I need to learn how to put me first” or “I need to figure out how to make time for myself”? I don’t have that problem. I’m unashamedly selfish and putting myself first is no problem. I take the time I need and I think it makes me a much nicer person the rest of the time.

Question 9: School, we all went there.

What was your favorite class in high school or college - either because of the interesting learning or the hot TA or any other kind of reason you can think of.

As far as subjects go, I love math. If you want to talk specific classes, anything I took online. It became a game for me. How can I do the least amount of work and spend the least amount of time on this? (I’m good at that game by the way.)

Question 10: Everyone thinks this through in the shower, right?

If you won the lottery, what's the first thing you would do, directly after changing the pants you just peed?

My answer has always been quit my job, but…I already did that. I suppose go out and buy a really expensive celebration dinner? Click “buy now” on my entire Amazon wishlist?

Question 11: The other TJ.

What's your favorite Trader Joe's product? If you've not (yet) had the pleasure of shopping at a Trader Joe's, what's your favorite snack food?

I love their dark and milk chocolate covered almonds. Oh! And the coconut fruit floes. YUM.

Question 12: Crystal ball time.

What's your ideal family composition? What would you like your family to look like 10 years from now, in terms of partner, kids, pets, etc?

Don’t I wish I knew. I’ve always thought I wanted three kids and I’d love to go though the pregnancy/birth/newborn days again, but I really don’t know. They’re hard and expensive and I kind of feel like we’re at max capacity.

Question 13: Worms

How often do you get a song stuck in your head, and where does it come from? Music you choose to listen to, stuff your kids watch, commercials, radio, etc?

I constantly have a song stuck in my head. All the time. Whatever I heard, or even read, last. Currently it's Skyfall.

Question 14: Where are you?

Do you live where you grew up? If not, what got you where you are? Are you where you plan to end up... in the end?

I live fairly close to where I grew up. I’m 4 hours from my hometown, but only 45 minutes from where I went to college. I love Iowa and hope I never have to move away. I’m a homebody, not a new experiences lover.