A Meme to get back into the swing

This meme courtesy of Jay.

Here's the fine print, copied and pasted: Post a picture of yourself, tell us 11 things we might not know about you, then write 11 new questions and tag some friends to play along (let them know you tagged them!)

This is a photo of me in costume (but not makeup) as the dinosaur in The Skin of Our Teeth in the fall of 1986. I had a very bad attitude about this role; I was not a trouper. I also felt that I looked terrible all the time, particularly my hair. If I could time travel, I would go back to 1986 and slap myself.

Jay's questions:

1) Sunshine or starlight?
Tough one. If only one encountered real, undiluted starlight more often. Sunshine, generally. But ocean swimming + starlight is a winner.

2) Do you have a pet? If not, would you prefer to have one? If so, would you prefer not to have one?
I have an Exotic (part Persian, part American shorthair) tabby cat named Strider. He is a genius of love and makes all of our lives better, except when he suggests I feed him breakfast before 5 a.m.

3) What food have you tasted that you will never eat again?
Spaghetti squash and mizuna, although I maintain that they are not really food.

4) What food have you not tried that you'd like to taste?
I've had plenty of pork, but I'd like to taste roast suckling pig as it is described in Laura Ingalls Wilder books.

5) What's the farthest you've ever walked?
There used to be a charity walk called the Walk For Mankind. When I was around 12 I did half of it and then my dad came and picked me up and drove me home. I think it was 20 miles total, so I guess I walked about 10.

6) What surprises you the most about your life now?
Surprises me at this moment or surprises Past Me? A lot of things surprise Past Me. I don't work for wages. I have four children. I'm Catholic. Not much surprises Present Me anymore.

7) What's the best concert or performance you ever attended?
I saw Barbara Cook perform in a very small community college auditorium, with her long-time accompanist Wally Harper, around 1983. They sang "It Was," their signature duet. I only wish I had fully realized at the time how lucky I was.

8) How do you feel about speaking in front of groups?
I always think I'm fine with it, and then when I actually begin to speak I am almost paralyzed with fear. I'm certainly better with something on paper in front of me, but I get that rushing in my ears and when I sit down afterward it's like I've been astrally projecting and have just returned to my body.

9) How old is the oldest person you ever met? Who was that?
My Aunt Dada, who was not my aunt and was not really named Dada (needless to say). She was one of many Ancient Danish Relatives in our family and she was living at the same Masonic Home for the Aged as my great-grandmother, in Burlington, NJ. Dada was 99 years old and she had the most enormous ears I have ever seen. She told us (me and my parents) that she was much too old, in her opinion. She died the next day. True story.

10) Who's your favorite comedian or comic actor?
Alec Baldwin. I really admire him for rising from the ashes of his leading man career and turning out to be a comic genius. His work on "30 Rock" is so much fun.

11) Do you own a functioning record player?
I certainly do! I have a magnificent stereo, including turntable, that my husband surprised me with on, I think, my 35th birthday? We have over 200 albums--partly because my parents just offered me all of theirs, but even before that we had well over 100, perhaps even 150. There's nothing like vinyl.

And my questions:

1) If you could time travel, what would you do?
2) Who is your most surprising friend?
3) What is your lifetime favorite article of clothing?
4) If you had a terrible earworm, what song would you sing to try to get rid of it?
5) Is there a celebrity whose death you would mourn with unusual depth?
6) What's the best thing about your home?
7) What is your most vivid memory about learning to drive?
8) What do you think about ironing?
9) Why did you choose the picture you posted above?
10) When did you first feel really grown-up?
11) Where do you want to travel but fear you never can?

I tag Ergo, Heather, and anyone else who wants to play. If you do, let me know.