Friday, December 11, 2015

Answers!

Mama Pea over at "A Home Grown Journal"  decided a winter game was in order.  The plan is copy her set of questions into your own blog and provide your own answers.  There was a double dare involved and, even though it wasn't a "double DOG dare", I picked up the gauntlet.  So here ya go Mama Pea (and the rest of you)!


1)  Do you like blue cheese?
I do, but not in copious amounts.  You know, anything with that much 'culture' must be good for you, no matter how it tastes.

2)  Have you ever smoked?
Never ever, not even one puff of anything.  I have, however, set myself on fire more than once (welding, fireworks, burning off fields and fence lines) so if you look at it that way....

3)  Do you own a gun?  
Several - Shotgun, rifles, handguns, even a 45 caliber derringer that I can't trade or sell because its a favorite of my son, son-in-law, and nephews.  Between growing up a farm boy and my little hitch with Uncle Sam's Misguided Children (USMC) I'm reasonable proficient with all of them.

4)  What flavor of Kool Aid is your favorite?
Red - I'm not sure it resembles the flavor anything that ever grew on God's green earth and I only have it when its served when I'm a guest somewhere and water or tea isn't an option.

5)  Do you get nervous before dental appointments?
I don't.  I had my wisdom teeth taken out when I was 20 and in the Corps by some grizzled old Navy dentist who clearly had a dislike for Marines.  Nothing any civilian dentist can drum up is going to match that.

6)  What do you think of hot dogs?
I love 'em and will very rarely have one if its cooked properly outside on a grill and the brats that were grilled with it are all gone.

7)  What's your favorite Christmas movie?
'A Muppet Christmas Carol' and Patrick Stewart's version of "A Christmas Carol".

8)  What do you prefer to drink in the morning?
Coffee (x2) with probably too much whipping cream and sweetened with honey.

9)  Can you do push-ups?
Yeah, but the days of literally hundreds before breakfast ("Ohh!  You privates are really trying to p*$$ me off this morning, huh?  You're gonna do push-ups 'til I get tired!  Somebody bring me a chair!!  You privates may not be smart, but your gonna be strong!") are looooong past.  Maybe a dozen give or (more likely) take a few, done right.

10)  What's your favorite piece of jewelry?
My gold wedding band, just like Mama Pea.

11)  What's your favorite hobby?
Ham radio with target shooting being a follow-up.  Oddly enough, and I know this is nearly blasphemous, I have an X-Box game system I play occasionally too.

12)  Do you have A.D.D.?
Nope, nothing li...  Oh look!  A chicken!

13)  Do you wear glasses or contacts?
Sadly, yes.  Trifocals these days.

14)  What's your middle name?
Ok, I debated on this one but here it is:  Eshu.  It was my paternal grandfather's first name. (Unless you listen to my crazy aunt who says he never had a first name, just the initials S.U.)

15)  What are your thoughts at this moment?
Where does she even come up with these questions?

16)  Name 3 drinks you regularly consume.
Coffee, tea (several kinds both hot and cold) and water.

17)  What is a current worry of yours?
Kids that are struggling with health issues.

18)  What do you currently hate?
Lima beans, that GM stopped making the S-10 pick-up (C'mon man!), what legislatures have done to our public school system, the misplaced 'delete' key on one of my keyboards (must have been designed by committee), and paper cuts.

19)  Where is your favorite place to be?
Anywhere with my bride of 33 years.  Home is best but anywhere with her is good.

20)  What do you plan on doing on New Year's Eve this year?
Probably staying at home.  I might technically be "up" (i.e. not in bed) but that does not necessary imply "awake" and certainly does NOT mean "coherent".

21)  To where would you like to travel?
Europe, maybe.  Been up and down both mainland USA coasts.  Been to Asia.  I think I'll be happy with the American Southwest come retirement day.  By train would be fun.

22)  Name three people you think will do this questionnaire on their
        blog.
I'm passing on this one, too.  I've discovered I'm a crummy prognosticator.

23)  Do you own slippers?
Yep - Colts blue with the horseshoe emblem on the outboard ankles.

24)  What color shirt are you wearing?
Grey T-shirt with Darth Vader waving his gloved finger in Princess Leah's face saying "Give me some space!"

25)  Do you like sleeping on satin sheets?
De and I had some when we were young.  I got along ok with them, but De had a lot of long satin nighties at the time and kept slipping and sliding off the edge of the bed.

26)  Can you whistle?
I can! (Resisting the temptation to embed the "Lassie" theme in the file.)

27)  What is your favorite color?
Earth tones, but I really don't have a favorite.  (I'm such a guy!)

28)  What songs do you sing in the shower?
I don't because I shower at 4AM while De is still sleeping.  The master bath is only separated from the bedroom by a set of double French doors.  In the end it would be not good for either of us.

29)  Would you be a pirate?
Avast, me Lads and Lassies! "Nay", says I.  I be likin' me regular showers, I do.  And me garden.  I do pay me due respects to "Talk Like A Pirate Day" and all me land lubbin' offspring and their cousins get a fittin' felicitation from Cap'n Mark via text to honor the day.  Arrrgh!! 

30)  What's in your pocket right now?
Not a thing.  Relaxing in my flannel jammy pants.  They have pockets, but they are not would you call 'robust'.

31)  What's the last thing that made you laugh?
De is playing something about "Things we still ask our Moms" somebody posted on Facebook.  Wow....

32)  What vehicle do you drive?
A wimpy 2010 AWD Chevy Equinox already on it's second engine.  Why, you ask, would I drive such a thing?  Because my 2003 4WD Crew Cab S-10 has almost 300,000 miles and I had to pass it on my son before I drove it to death. (see #18)  I also have a much more manly 1992 Dodge Dakota that mostly gets used as a "farm truck" (12 MPG).

33)  What's the worst injury you've ever had?
Hmmm...  Probably the snapped ACL caused primarily by a failure to act my age.  They carved out a chunk of my hamstring and, with the help of a true-to-life Black and Decker drill (Really! I was sort of awake for it.) and a handful of little bitty metal parts, made me a new one.   I've broken both arms, had to have the tendons around one hip reconstructed, had a handful of stitches, got stupid on a motorcycle at 16 and woke up under the bike, gotten a couple other concussions, ....  You get the idea.  Being a bit adventurous (De might say 'foolish') does have some drawbacks.

34)  Do you love where you live?
 Absolutely!  NE Indiana on a parcel of the farm I grew up on.

35)  Would you change your first name if you could?
Nope.  I'm ok with what I have, and the folks that used to call my by middle name (friends of my Grandpa - see #14) are all gone now.

9 comments:

  1. Very fun, Mark (love those old family names). I'll have to see if I can find the Patrick Stewart version of Christmas Carol. They vary so much!

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    1. Family names - yep! Oddly enough not one of my kids seems to thinking seriously about passing it on. :-)

      Patrick Stewart cut his 'acting teeth' doing classical Shakespeare if I understand correctly. That background made for an interesting interpretation of Ebeneezer Scrooge. Almost as good as the Muppets version!

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  2. Funny!
    It's nice to get to know people better.

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    1. It is! I've enjoyed perusing other folks blogs for their answers.

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  3. THOROUGHLY enjoyable, Mark. You have such a great sense of humor!

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    1. This has been a great bit of fun. Thanks for getting everyone rolling on this.

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