This is intended solely for personal use, I do not plan to make this public. However, after I'm gone, I hope my family finds it.
1. Born an identical twin, lost my sister in 2009 at age 50. Living without her has been the most difficult lesson I've ever had to learn.
2. Now an old woman, divorced for many years. Living without a mate has been lonely, but not life shattering.
3. Two children - Sean and Leslie. Sean died in 2007 and I seriously thought I might die, too. Leslie divorced in 2010 and came to live with me, which has been life affirming, if not actually life saving.
4. I have two grandchildren - Curtis and Jasmine. They make getting up in the morning a pleasure and give my life meaning.
5. I was trained, and have worked as a medical secretary since 1982. I've been in my current position since 1992.
6. I've been dabbling on the internet since circa 1994. It has become one of my favorite activities.
That's all I can think of at this moment. I will add to it later if something seems relevant.
1. About how much time do you spend every day looking at your phone? I'd say less than an hour a day. I use my laptop as a computer and my phone as a phone.
2. About how much time do you spend every day looking at a computer screen (not counting your phone as a computer)? I work from home so a minimum of nine hours for work, then probably three or four additional hours on my laptop after I finish my household chores, cruising and reading.
3. What sorts of things are you looking at, when you look at your laptop? Dreamwidth, Facebook, Reddit, YouTube, and just wandering aimlessly.
4. What sorts of things are you looking at, when you look at your computer screen? Whatever strikes my fancy. Sometimes, I'm researching for my own curiosity, other times, literally just clicking on links to see where I end up.
5. About how much time do you spend every day reading printed material (books, magazines, snail mail, etc.)? I no longer subscribe to the local newspaper due to the price, and read e-books pretty much exclusively now. The only time I see magazines is when I'm at a doctor's or dentist's appointment.
1. If you could instantly become an expert in something, what would it be? Analytic synthesis, metadata tracking, and operational management.
2. If you could do anything in the world as your career, what would you do? CIA targeting officer and tracking analyst.
3. If you could be immortal, what age would you choose to stop aging at and why? I kind of had my shit together and still looked pretty decent at 30, so I guess I'd stay that age.
4. If you could be any supernatural creature, what would you be and why? An Elemental Sylph.
5. If you had to teach a class on one thing, what would you teach? I'm not sure know enough about one subject/skill to actually teach others. My real talents are typing really fast, and able to draw a straight line.
1. Do you decorate your home for different seasons and holidays? We decorate for Halloween and Christmas. 2. Do you switch out your wardrobe for each new season? Where I live we have real seasons, so yes, we wear weather appropriate clothes. 3. Are you buying any new clothes for this new season? Probably not. I work from home, and only go out to do shopping and run errands. 4. What vacation plans do you have for the future?I have a standing invitation to come visit my cousins in North Carolina. If I can save enough to cover it, I plan to go. 5. Have you started planning for the upcoming holiday season? There aren’t any children on our street, so no trick or treaters for the past two years. We’ll still decorate and leave the porch light on, in case someone decides to stop by.
Last night, I was scrolling for something to watch. I saw The Firm from 1993 with Tom Cruise and Gene Hackman, which was based on a John Grisham novel of the same name. It triggered a memory from maybe 7-8 years ago.
::swirling images and carnival music to indicate a flashback::
The hospital was doing a major renovation for a really old section. Until it was finished, they relocated multiple collections teams to different office buildings they leased. We received one team of about twenty people. Their manager was an older woman, probably near to or already at 70 years old. She was a very attractive person, who looked and dressed as though she came from old money. Her clothes, shoes, bags had French or Italian labels, and her jewelry was phenomenal.
One day, I was sitting with one of my team members in the break room, talking about one of Grisham's novels that we'd both read recently. The woman approached the table and said that before he retired and they moved to Missouri, her husband was a county circuit judge in Oklahoma. She also added that John Grisham had been a guest in her home multiple times throughout the years and "those in the know" were fully aware of the real cases on which he based his stories.
Honestly, I took all of it as fact, simply from her appearance, and her laughter while she was telling the story.
1. What is your cellphone wallpaper? One of Samsung's preloaded wallpapers.
2. Are you sunrise, daylight, twilight, or nighttime? Why? I prefer night time, but only get to enjoy being a night owl on the weekends.
3. What season would you be? Fall
4. As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? First it was Lt. Uhura, then it was an international spy, now it's a CIA Intelligence Analyst.
5. Have you ever been told you look like someone famous? Who was it? Years ago, a coworker told me I looked like Sally Struthers, but followed it up with, "Not Gloria from All in Family, today's Sally in the Make More Money commercials." It wasn't a compliment...
1. What would you do right now, if money were not an issue? Buy a bigger home.
2. What would you do for the next three years, if money were not an issue? Travel, crochet, and sit on my butt.
3. What is bringing you the most joy right now that requires little or no money? Reading, watching movies, crocheting.
4. What types of things do you find enjoyable that require no money? Reading, watching movies, crocheting.
5. Is there anything you've been meaning to do for a long time, but put off because of money? Purchasing a bigger home, buying a new or new to me car, replacing my older/worn furniture.
1. What is your favorite imaginary animal? I've never really thought about it. I guess I don't have one.
2. What would the title of your autobiography be? If You Ask Me.
3. What fictional family would you like to be a member of? The Winchesters.
4. When you die, what do you want to be remembered for? That I was respectful, non-judgmental, kind, and giving. Also, that I was funny as hell.
5. If you were independently wealthy and didn't have to work, what would you do with your time? Definitely travel hither and yon. Take my grandkids to spend a minimum of three months seeing Europe.
I'm off until Tuesday, 07/06. I told Leslie that I'd ordered a tambourine from Amazon, and it should be here tomorrow. When I'm not making noise in the mornings while starting the coffee, showering, and anything else that annoys her, I'm marching a circuit around the house, grooving with my tambourine.
She believed me and had the most horrified expression on her face.
That was ten minutes ago and I'm still laughing and wiping tears.