Cactus Watcher Strikes Again

4. In 1957, Russia launched their Sputnik satellite. Do you receive your TV or broadband via a satellite, through cable, or via an aerial?

Aerial? Isn't that a quaint British word? I had what I'd call an aerial when I listened to a lot of short wave radio when I was in high school. It was just a long wire strung from the house into the trees. For TV we always had a dedicated antenna. I still do and as little as I watch TV anymore it's plenty.

5. What’s the temperature today where you live? Is it warmer or cooler than average?

It was in the low 90s here today, and with our low humidity it's quite pleasant.

6. Jenny Lind, the Swedish opera singer (the Swedish Nightingale), was born today in 1820. Operatic arias are often used in advertisements (e.g. the airline company British Airways used an adaptation of the "Flower Duet" from the opera Lakmé by Léo Delibes), do you recall any ads using opera arias?

I certainly remember ads have used them. But specific ads and specific opera arias? After decades and decades of seeing TV commercials, they all blend together forgettably.

8. If you didn’t have access to a car, could you get around easily where you live?

Even a long distance runner would appreciate a car in my neighborhood. The nearest bus stop going toward downtown is not a quick walk from my house, and after five years of living here I have no idea where the nearest bus stop is coming back.

Via shadowkat

29. When was the last time you had to take part in a fire evacuation?

I think it was at a hotel when I was on vacation. Don't think it was a fire just some dummy smoking in their room. The time before that I was teaching on the second floor of a large building. I dashed out in the hall to see if there might be a fire close by. I saw nothing, and knew nothing about all clear procedures there. Went back in the room. Only some of the students were moving. Some weren't. I told everyone to grab their things and motioned for them to leave the room. Like "a good little teacher," I followed them out of the building. It was nice out, so we sat around in the grass and finished class, if more informally than I planned.

30. Have you ever owned an electric blanket?

No, but my mother had one, and she put it on my bed one very cold night when I was about ten. It was nice and warm, but I don't think they tended to work very long in those days. My parents might have used it quite a while, but I only knew it later, when we were using it as just another blanket.

OCTOBER

1. It’s National Cookbook Month – do you own many cookbooks, or do you rely on the internet for recipe ideas?

Shockingly, I own about ten cookbooks, half of which I originally bought for my mother as Christmas gifts (she collected recipes.) I only use one or two of them, mostly when I try to cook something I haven't tried before.

2. Have you ever made chili (with meat or vegetarian)? Even if you haven’t, what do you like to have alongside chili as part of the meal?

Yes, I've made it many times. I'd make some this winter if the price of beef moderates. The chili I make is hearty enough that a salad is about the only other thing at the meal.

3. Do you have well-organized kitchen storage?

Well, I keep my wrenches, screw drivers and pliers separate from the breakfast cereal and tea bags. Does that count? 😂

from shadowkat

27. Are you a fan of bananas? Do you like to bake with them, or eat them raw?

Yes, I have no bananas... because I ate all of them I bought for the week. Although I like banana pancakes, I never make them, because I don't let them sit around till they would be ready for that.

28. When was the last time you spent a night (or more than one night) away from home?

It's been about five years. I slept at my niece's house for a night before I took possession of my current house. I could have gone camping with her family since, but I don't really sleep well when camping anymore.

29. How many times have you moved home so far in your life? Do you plan to move again in the future?

About six times, since I called the places I had as a grad student my home (not my places as an undergrad) for those years.

30. Has the area where you live changed much over the last decade?

No. The area I lived in near Phoenix seemed to change all the time, but this area in Tucson is pretty stable.

31. Do you have any plans for the next month (September)?

Yes, I'm going out for lunch with my nieces again. But we haven't decided where yet. Otherwise I'll watch football on TV like I do every fall.

Via shadokat

22. Do you have many lamps in your home, or do you rely on overhead lighting?

I have overhead lighting in every room, but I only have bright bulbs in the overhead in the kitchen and my bathroom which have flood light fixtures. I use pole lamps in the library to work by, and have one in my bedroom, which I only use occasionally for extra lighting. I have a table lamp in the guest bedroom, but it doesn't get used much.

23. Do you own any clothing you only wear for a specific activity?

Yes, I only wear "good clothes" a time or two a week to go out shopping or to a restaurant. I wear "work clothes" most of time, because I don't care if they get dirty or worn or torn. It's a habit I picked up from working in a machine shop as a teenager in the summers and only paused while going to college and grad school.

24. Are you good at packing when you go away, or do you pack all the things ‘just in case’?

I'm decent at packing. Rarely needed anything I didn't pack.

25. If you ended up on a deserted desert island, what luxury would you want to have with you?

Lots of pens and paper.

26. Do you have any tattoos?

No. I remember seeing tattoos when I was a kid on ex-sailors and thought they looked silly. I think most men and women look better without them.

Via shadowkat

8. Do you own or rent your home?

Own

9. Boop-Oop-A-Doop! Everyone can get their ‘boop’ on because it’s time to enjoy and celebrate Betty Boop Day! Are you familiar with Betty Boop?

Yes. The wide-faced flapper with a sexy body and almost no chin or neck. "Boop-oop-a-doop." Probably was more relatable for the generation born in the nineteen teens, than for baby boomers like me.

10. Are your fingernails strong and in good condition? How long are they?

I wouldn't call them strong, but then again most men don't try to wear wear half-inch-long nails.

11. Have you ever made a sandcastle on a beach?

No, there weren't many sandy beaches in Missouri where I lived as a kid. My father put some sand on the ground to play in when I was a little kid, more of a sand pile than a sand box.

12. Do you own any sunglasses (and if you have prescription glasses, do you have prescription sunglasses too)?

Yes, like A/C, sunglasses are a necessity in AZ. I have at least three pair I use in different circumstances (driving, working outside in the yard, walking to the communal mail box.)

13. It’s National Internet Friends Day, which celebrates the special connections we form online. How do you feel about your online friendships?

They are fine.

14. Have you ever haggled and got something for a cheaper price – or would you never do that?

I've done it a few times. I'm not fond of it.

15. Would you rather read a romance novel or a mystery novel?

Mystery. There are men who like romance novels. Can't say I'm one of them.

I was out early doing some quiet-type yard work. Had to go outside the wall (5-foot high, block fence typical in AZ subdivisions) to check on something. Down the street a rabbit took off, and right behind it a coyote. Not really odd. I hear coyotes howling occasionally and we are aware that there are rabbits (both desert cottontails and jack rabbits) about. But I'd never *seen* either in my subdivision here in Tucson or near Phoenix in years past.

I've had lots of lizards, and few harmless snakes around the house, here. I saw a couple of bobcats strolling through my backyard one day (which means they easily jumped the wall to get in and out, a very good reason not to leave pets outside even in mild weather). About once a year in the fall we have Javelinas (think small wild pigs) wander our streets in the dark. (I could be wrong, but I think they come into the subdivisions after smelling Halloween candy kids may have dropped.) You wouldn't know they were there, but they move in small packs and leave their poop scattered up and down the sidewalk.

19. Do you like spicy foods such as chili peppers?

Yes, after living in AZ for many years, I'm a lot more tolerant of hot spice than I once was. I use hot sauce liberally on a lot of things I eat. I really like jalapenos. I don't bother with really hot peppers like habaneros. I use red pepper on my pizza, but oddly I don't use black pepper much at all.

20. Are there any artisan food markets or farmer’s markets held close to where you live? Do you visit often?

No. Arizona is not a big state for truck farming, which is what you need for farmers' markets.

21. Have you ever traced your family tree?

Yes, I traced it back to Charlemagne and beyond many years ago. I don't know how good all the links are to Europe, but I'm certain I have a number of ancestors who came to Massachusetts in 1630, when a whole fleet of ships arrived from England. Nobody I know on the Mayflower.

22. Do you know how to play backgammon? How about chess?

I can play chess, I have played backgammon, but I can't say I know the rules, right now. I was pretty good at chess as a kid (easily beat all comers in my grade school), but never played seriously.

23. Do you own a coffee machine? What’s your favorite type of coffee?

No. I don't like coffee or coffee flavored things.

24. How are you feeling today?

I had some problems getting enough sleep lately. But I feel fairly rested and well today.

Via shadowkat

9. Have you ever been on a journey and been held up for a long time? What happened and how late were you at your destination?

Yes, the most memorable was when coming home for Christmas from Ohio State one December. It was snowing that evening in St. Louis and our plane was diverted to Kansas City. They put us up in a hotel for the night, and gave us a voucher for some dinner. They put us on a bus and the hotel was very far from the airport, if there were more flights diverted from St. Louis that was understandable. The voucher wasn't enough for much of the things on the menu at the hotel restaurant. I felt a little cheap ordering the least expensive meal, but I was a grad student and couldn't afford a lot. We got up fairly early the next day and caught a flight back to St. Louis (In those days St. Louis was a hub airport, so there were lots of flights from KC.) We were probably no more than 12 hours late, but it seemed like a very long time.

10. Do you enjoy salad? What would be in a typical salad that you would serve/eat?

Yes. I like mixed salads with iceberg lettuce, carrots and whatever is handy like celery, spinach, green or black olives, radishes, green onions, raw turnip, cheese, etc.

11. Have you ever used an old-fashioned typewriter? Can you touch type (type without looking at the keys?)

Yes. I learned how to type on one in junior high. Our family business had a big old manual typewriter, which I used as the default secretary when we didn't have a full time secretary, off and on for many years. My sister-in-law gave me a German keyboard, full-sized manual typewriter for Christmas one year when I was in college. Can't say I got a lot of use out of it, but I liked having it for a while. In graduate school, I didn't like using the Cyrillic keyboard typewriters in the department office (to type up my weekly tests) with everyone I knew hanging around. A store close to campus advertised that they had foreign language keyboard typewriters on sale, so I went there and bought one with a Cyrillic keyboard. It was a portable manual. The joke was that the high school graduation present I'd asked for was an electric portable typewriter, which was a lot more advanced than the foreign keyboard models I got years later. I used that for papers in English through college and grad school.

Yes, can touch type, but that mostly came after I traded my typewriters for computer keyboards. Yes, I can touch type in more than one language now.

12. Do you like sushi?

I don't know, never had it, probably never will. I'm not a big fan of Japanese style food. Chinese, Thai, Korean, Vietnamese and Indian, yes. Japanese, not so much.

13. Have you ever tried Tai Chi?

No, but one of my nieces has taught serious Tai Chi classes.

Eggs are less than $2.75 a dozen this week, so I bought some this week, and made myself an omelet for lunch. It's been a long time!

via shadowkat

28. When was the last time you wore flip-flops (Zories/thongs)?

I don't remember, on some vacation with my sister's family long ago, perhaps. Like others are saying they are fine for certain circumstances, but totally inappropriate for some terrain like rocks, tall grass, swampy areas, places with lots of flies or mosquitoes...

29. Do you like mustard? What type, and what do you put it on?

Yes, I like several kinds of mustard. Dijon mustard is very good tasting, but honestly for food I want to put mustard on I prefer something else. Good old turmeric mustard (for example French's) is best on burgers, hot dogs and ham, on Chinese food, hot mustard is really good.

30. It’s the International Day of the Potato! What is your favorite way to eat potatoes?

I like potatoes a lot of ways, baked, boiled, roasted, fried, mashed, and in potato salad (I prefer American style with mayo over German style with vinegar). ( Read more... )