From this page comes this Tuesday’s question… What are 10 occupations I wanted when I was young? In no particular order…

1. Fireman
2. Musician
3. Actor
4. Director
5. Teacher
6. Chef
7. Writer
8. Filmmaker
9. Raconteur
10. Philanthropist

From this page comes this Tuesday’s question… What are 10 greatest accomplishments in my life (so far)? In no particular order…

1. Becoming prepared enough to be Wendy’s spouse. 
2. Graduating college with a Bachelor’s degree.
3. Going back to school and graduating again with a degree in Culinary Arts.
4. Going to college in the first place – at the time of the decision to go, there were motivating factors that made me consider not going. I’m glad I went.
5. Becoming a SCUBA diver.
6. Becoming a home-owner.
7. Managing my great credit to keep it, um, great.
8. Developing the ability to identify, set, and complete goals.
9. Maintaining balance in my life — it is easy to be “sane but overwhelmed”.
10. I haven’t gotten to this one yet…

From this page comes this Tuesday’s question… What are 10 things most people don’t know about me? In no particular order…

1. I am a scuba diver.
2. When I was in high school, I used to wear a ‘rat tail’ in my hair (think mullet but the ‘party in the back’ is only several strands thick).
3. I took a few years of ballet & modern dance in college.
4. I am a nearly-obsessive cookbook collector.
5. I used to play Frisbee nearly every day with my friend John. We were good!
6. I think that the lid should be kept down when not in use.
7. I am a philanthropist who was born poor.
8. I mercilessly abuse telemarketers when they cold-call my house.
9. Inconsiderate drivers really get under my skin.
10. I do not like to borrow or lend books.

From this page comes this Tuesday’s question… What are 10 things I like to do when I’m alone? In no particular order…

1. Cook! I love to cook for/with people, but I also enjoy cooking by/for myself.
2. Sing along to music
3. Read. I dream of lounging in a hot bathtub and reading a book, but I never seem to get to the bathtub part.
4. Be on my computer for a long time — really get involved with working, or gaming, or whatever…
5. Sleep. Sharing a house with my wonderful wife, five cats, and three dogs, sleeping without someone nestled against me is a rare luxury.
6. Groom myself — trim the nails, clip the beard, and so on. These are things that no one else should have to see.
7. Browse my burgeoning cookbook collection, wandering methods and recipes, taking the time to imagine the flavors in my mind.
8. Watch television. We absolutely LOVE our PVR (it truly changes the way you watch television), but one of the (very) few downsides of this technology is that you end up becoming somewhat of a slave to all the recorded shows waiting for you.
9. Do laundry & chores. Yeah, I know it sounds weird. I really like being caught up on those items, and don’t want to take time away from Wendy to do them, so I prefer to do them when I’m alone.
10. Sometimes, I like to do absolutely nothing. Not read, not cook, not watch television, not converse, nor anything else.

From this page comes this Tuesday’s question… What are 10 things I love about springtime? In no particular order…

1. Opening the windows in the house to get fresh air in
2. Brighter mornings (or is that because of daylight savings time?)
3. Mornings that are cool enough to require a jacket
4. Afternoons that are warm enough to drive with the top down
5. Plants coming back to life
6. No snow!
7. No more winter coats!
8. No more grey skies — the clear blue sky is welcome and beautiful!
9. Waking up to the sounds of birds chirping
10. The smell of new flowers

From this page comes this Tuesday’s question… What are 10 movie characters I love? In no particular order…

1. Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi — Star Wars series
2. Sam Lowry — Brazil
3. Ashley ‘Ash’ J. Williams — Evil Dead series
4. Victim — Closet Land
5. Chris Nielsen — What Dreams May Come
6. Inigo Montoya — Princess Bride
7. Isabeau d’Anjou — Ladyhawke (Michelle Pfeiffer at her most beautiful)
8. Rocky Balboa — Rocky series
9. The crew of Serenity (and Serenity herself) — Serenity
10. Lina — Summer Lovers (she’s just too cute)

From this page comes this Tuesday’s question… What are 10 things I hate doing? In no particular order…

1. Cutting my toenails
2. Cutting the grass
3. Growing older
4. Having to do something that I know will hurt someone — for example, starting a difficult conversation
5. Getting dental work done
6. Singing in public
7. Getting an injection at the doctor’s office
8. Bringing the garbage can BACK (I don’t mind taking it OUT, I just don’t like bringing it back (I don’t know why that is))
9. I tend to dislike (hate is far too strong a word) doing things that I don’t feel confident about (see #6 for an example) especially if I’ve tried to learn how to do it and simply cannot for whatever reason (see #3 for a possible reason), though I am always willing to learn new things (and even fail along the way)
10. Failing.

From this page comes this Tuesday’s question… What are my 10 favorite albums? As you will soon see, I was unable to select just 10 favorite albums. Each of the albums below are in the category of “nearly perfect album” in my mind. These recordings stand together as a cohesive whole, and while each album is comprised of amazing ‘parts’, are more than the sum of their parts.

In no particular order…

1. So or Passion — Peter Gabriel
2. Deep Blue or Rapture – Peter Mulvey
3. Fallen — Evanescence
4. Films for Radio or Drunkard’s Prayer — Over the Rhine
5. Shaking Off Gravity or One Thru Fourteen — Vance Gilbert
6. Throwing Copper — Live
7. The Seeds of Love or Songs from the Big Chair — Tears for Fears
8. Crowded House or Woodface — Crowded House
9. Strange Fire or Rites of Passage — Indigo Girls
10. Oracle or Torched — Michael Hedges

Ah, if only I were younger! I’m not sure if the spirit of this meme is to ask “what would I do if I could roll back the clock?” or if it is addressing things I no longer feel I can do since I’m older… Interestingly, this exercise became more the former than the latter for me…

1. Race sports cars
2. Be a chef in a professional kitchen
3. Begin & finish a few more degrees
4. Start SCUBA diving a lot earlier
5. Chuck it all and move somewhere — total change of scenery
6. Travel, travel, and travel! See the whole damned world!
7. Learn to manage my money earlier
8. Spend more time with my grandparents, all of whom are gone now
9. I would have jumped out of that plane!
10. Be more courageous

This is a difficult meme since as a foodie, I tend to like almost everything, and I wouldn’t say that I hate any of these (dislike is a better word), but here goes in no particular order:

1. Green peppers (especially raw)
2. Red peppers (especially raw)
3. Celery (especially raw)
4. Okra
5. Natto (well, I’ve only had it once and would probably try it again)
6. Raw tomato slices, especially if they’re not ripe
7. Pickle relish
8. Salmon roe — it’s a texture thing, though I like other roe
9. Vegetables *when they are overcooked*, especially green beans and asparagus
10. Pepperoni

PHEW!