Questions Bipolar Version #8

Me, personally? No, but my parents had chickens at a couple points. Ducks and geese, too. My brother has chickens and ducks now. My sister and her husband raise all of the stray cats in their area. My landlady asked if we would raise chickens, but I said no, even though my husband expressed interest. I don't want that responsibility right now. My husband is more of a city boy and I thought it not reasonable for us. So, they removed the chicken/turkey coop. In its place I have created a compost heap. Many neighbors have chickens.

Are you at heart a city, country, or suburban gal or guy?

At heart I am a city gal but stuck living in the suburbs right now! I'd never make it in the country!

If you have pets, do they sleep with you?

no pets, but if I did have them, I wouldn't let them on my bed. I just.. well. beds are for humans.

how many takeout meals do you have per week?

We live in the suburbs and there’s no hub bub or any delivery except pizza. Also it a small town so there aren’t many options. I’d love a good Ethiopian restaurant and a real Asian restaurant. India, oh that would be lovely. But there’s not enough people for that. It’s mostly American fast food, even so we lost KFC and Wendy’s. So it’s more like once every two weeks.

Oh, I forgot a question! Hmm
What’s your favorite ethnic food to eat?

French, but really I like absolutely every culture's food I have been exposed to. And that's a lot! I lived in Asia in my youth, also traveled throughout Europe and a bit of Central and South America. Where I am in Europe, I have access to ingredients of various cultures' foods. They also have restaurants of many countries' cuisines, but some not as good as the ones in my old state of New Jersey. Obviously because Czech Republic has comparitively few people from outside Central Europe.

I really haven't been able to explore many restaurants since moving abroad. The pandemic's fault. Hopefully this summer. Anyway, I do eat things in CZ that aren't so easy to come by, or afford, in the US.

What was the most difficult thing (dish/baked good) you ever made from scratch?

I went back to work today. It wasn't that bad. I think I did everything that needed to be done. Having a couple of days off helped a lot because I'm back to "normal". My pdoc prescribed a prn for me in case this happens again. Now all I need to do is work on my final paper for school. And I have a full weekend ahead of me. Thank you to everyone here for your support. That's why I love it here.

I went back to work today. It wasn't that bad. I think I did everything that needed to be done. Having a couple of days off helped a lot because I'm back to "normal". My pdoc prescribed a prn for me in case this happens again. Now all I need to do is work on my final paper for school. And I have a full weekend ahead of me. Thank you to everyone here for your support. That's why I love it here.

Glad you're doing better!

I tried making spaghetti sauce on a first date once. I didn't follow a recipe, so had no clue what I was doing. I'd had some luck experimenting with different seasonings & spices before, but I had no idea what was in her pantry. I tried to so something to the taste, so I kept adding things. The top came off of the poppy seed canister & it all went into the sauce. I was promptly informed that poppy seeds have no business being anywhere near spaghetti sauce. In short the dinner was a wash...Down the drain it went! We're (thankfully) not married anymore, but that woman I starved on our first date would turn out the be my ex-wife!

Now, for anyone who doesn't think recipes just cramp your style...What was the most difficult thing (dish/baked good) you ever made from scratch?

It’s been so long since I’ve cooked from scratch that I don’t remember. I remember making fruit bread from scratch and substituting a lot, came out light and very tasty. Braiding it was the hardest part. I had a small dinner party back, way back when I was 18-19 I cooked two chickens with different fillings. I remember one was wild rice, can’t recall the other. But I was in tears cause both of them were just falling apart. My date for that night said that was perfect that’s how it should be. I’d never cooked chicken before and didn’t know that. But the food did get eaten up, for the chicken I did follow the recipe. For the bread I kind of winged it. I used to be pretty good in the kitchen but then I was homeless for years no opportunities to cook, then I lived on my own and I never did much more than microwave

Did you have long periods of isolation?

Not really. What things do you do to make life more manageable?

I use disposable dishes. There are disadvantages but it seems to be the key to running a tidy kitchen. Letting the dishes pile up and become a health hazard is too big of a risk. I know myself. I won't do them. When i was little i had these three older siblings and i witnessed them having vicious fights with my parents when asked to help with the dishes, so intense that my parents gave up and just did the dishes themselves. I'm sure this is why i am so unreasonable about doing dishes.

What's your favorite chore? I like laundry because it's a clean task.

Cooking/baking. Only on occasion is it a chore. It's more often fun.

What chore do you hate to do?

I hate folding laundry. I like washing clothes but hate folding them.

What color is the paint in the room you are sitting in?

My whole apartment is white as i have a Northern exposure and don't get any direct sunlight. I crave light. I don't even have any art on my walls because that would impact the light bouncing off the white walls and make the room seem even darker. I've tried several things on my walls, a series of black-and-white industrial art images i got from the Net and a crowd of silver Christmas ornaments and nothing works, it just makes it darker. The good thing is that the darkness is good for watching "The Young and the Restless"! And i'm into minimalism anyways.

What type of skies do you like? Do you like moody, angry, cloudy skies with fascinating cloud formations or do you like story-book skies, blue with puffy white clouds?

I like the puffy white clouds that are very bright white and billowy with lots of puffiness and sun shining on them.

Would you consider bullet journaling- organizing your life in one book?

No. What if the book turned up missing? I guess your life would lose its meaning! Kafka is one of Soupe's neighbors; maybe she should consult the old dude.

What is the most terrifying book you've ever read? Fiction, non, or sacred...

I don’t know that it was terrifying but it sent chills up my spine and really stayed with me my whole life. It’s a short story by Ray Bradbury. There will come soft rains. A house wakes up and makes coffee and does other automated stuff, then the POV pans out and you realize the bomb has gone off. The Cold War was big in my childhood so this story was scary. Lots of his stories have stayed with me. The Pedestrian is another one.

Have you ever met a childhood hero? How’d that go?

Yes, I have. From childhood on I was wild about Joan Baez. When I was 24 she came to a book signing in my hometown. I took my 2 year old daughter and we met Joan! She was beautiful and could not have been kinder. I hugged her and cried...I was so embarrassed. She just laughed and hugged me back, then she took my daughter and held her and was playing with her. No rush, despite the line behind me. It was a dream come true for me.

Have you ever dyed your own clothing?

Yes, i dyed a pair of sweatpants that were a not-practical white. But i tried to dye them red and despite rinsing and rinsing they still gave off a slight pinkish tinge. I never dyed anything else again. Funnily enough, on "The Simpsons" all of Homer's white t-shirts come back tinged pink from the laundry and he's mortified to have to wear pink but Bart is delighted with his fresh and clean "lucky red hat"!

On ZOOM, do you watch your own image most of the time? I do and i suppose it might sound narcissistic but i've always enjoyed looking at myself, in mirrors, reflections, etc. I might not be pleased with what i see, as in on ZOOM where i have three chins, but i am still transfixed.

I don't use zoom, or anything of the sort- even struggle with regular phones
favorite animal?. why

I'll go with pet not zoo animal......cat. She loves me and I her, she's easy to care for, and I've never been without a cat except when I lived in dorms in college and a semester of grad school.

Did you ever live in a dorm?

Yeah, for two years. My first roommate was weird but my sophomore year I moved in with a friend. My freshman year was a year of eye opening experiences. Back then the legal drinking age was 18. Then I took a gap year and when I went back I lived off campus.

Do you keep in touch with anyone from your early twenties?

Just very casually on Facebook. I'm too afraid of being judged to go back to college reunions or anything so I haven't connected with most college friends.

What did you study in college? If you didn't go to college what was your favorite high school subject?

I have a degree in East Asian Languages and Area Studies with a focus on Mandarin Chinese/China. My minor was English literature...and almost Economics. My main career was in Marketing for a company whose customers are international students. Later down the line, I took several additional credits in the field of psychology, and a couple in international relations. Most of it was complementary.

Have you ever taken any type of class just for interest-sake? What was it (one)? Adult/community school, online/college course, or whatever.

I took the same creative writing class two times, years apart, at adult interest schooling. The first time i went to 1.5 of the classes, the second time to only the very first one single class. My life was in chaos the first time, right smack in the middle of a messy divorce and the second time i just discovered i have no talent and gave up. We had to write a short story from the point-of-view of a vending machine! I just had no idea what to write and the other students wrote rings around me and i hate that, i feel so stupid, so i gave up. I'm not that sorry tho, the instructor was a dingbat old lady who interrupted class to tell us about her stalker and then once more to ask for a ride home. Our adult interest schooling is very mediocre in quality, i've been stung many more times with other courses as well as i used to try and fight off my boredom with them but it was just a waste of money.

Do you find it unpleasant when people talk about their diets?