Walls and Bridges

A while back I got into the habit of setting the security level for all my entries to "Friends Only". I think it was during one of the "OMFG, The Ruskies Have Bought Live Journal!!!!" paranoia fests.

Since doing this, I've noticed that I'm not gaining a lot of friends, and that the degree of come and go (almost said "intercourse", fnarr fnarr) in this journal has dropped. I've also not noticed a lot of Red Threatery. Thinking back, a lot of people who became friends started as random folk who saw me commenting on one of their friend's pages, and dropped by to post on mine. Let's see if that happens again.

So, starting with this post, the new policy is that unless something relates directly to my job or is very personal, it will be viewable to "Everone (Public)". I've had to go into my Privacy settings to change this to see if it works.

I got bored waiting to be asked... 50 questions

01. My sexual orientation. Middle of the bell-curve heterosexual.

02. What I'm really bad at.  Not snoring.

03. The one person whose arms I'd like to be in. Not the Law.

04. My best first date. Would be pretty hard to beat.

05. A description of my self-esteem. Fine, so long as I don’t think about it.

06. Who my best friends are. Leaving out those who are already here, Marie, Bill and Keef.

07. My favourite book. Depends what day you ask. “The Long Goodbye”, “Lord of Light” by Roger Zelazny and “The Crow Road” by Iain Banks would always be in the top ten.

08. Biggest turn-offs. Cruelty.

09. My favourite place to which I've travelled. I'm not sure if there's one favourite. San Francisco, Ann Arbor and Chicago in the States, Paris, of course, London, and Kilmartin Glen doesn’t count, since part of me is always there.

10. My favourite animal. Merlin.

11. Someone I miss. To quote an old country song, “How Can I Miss You If You Won’t Go Away?”.

12. The reason behind my last break-up. Stupidity.

13. What I did yesterday.  Got up, got out of bed, dragged a comb across my head. Worked. Watched “The Big Bang Theory” and “How I Met Your Mother”. Went to bed.

14. My greatest achievements. Helped to raise a child.

15. The craziest thing I've ever done.  Too many to count. Really.  

16. A description of my last kiss. Lovely.

17. What I find attractive in a person. Lack of cruelty.

18. All of the pets I've ever owned. Five guinea pigs. Three cats. One dog.

19. My favourite ice cream flavour. Salted caramel.

20. The one place I wish I was right now.  Varanasi.

21. The most cruel thing anyone has ever said to me. “I pray every morning for your downfall.”  

22. All of the places I've lived. Glasgow, Newcastle, part time in London, Glasgow again.

23. Qualities that make me more likely to love a person. Intelligence, humour, openness, honesty.

24. My future plans. Um. Let me get back to you...

25. One of my internal conflicts. What do I want to do in the future would be a big one.

26. What I'm doing tomorrow. Working. Putting up my Christmas decorations. Maybe having breakfast with a married woman.

27. My life's aspirations. Be happy. Help other people be happy.

28. My most embarrassing moment. Saying some really stupid and facile things about Interzone to its editor.

29. Two of my insecurities. I’m unemployable, and I’m a workaholic.

30. What I would do if I won the lottery. The usual – give as much of it away as I could, leaving enough to buy me a place in my favourite spot and have enough left over to invest in an annuity.

31. What I love most about myself. I can dance like no one’s watching.

32. My biggest pet peeves. Selfishness, unthinking privilege, Ricky Gervais.

33. What musical artists I've seen live. It’s a long list. Amongst others… Springsteen, Costello, Simple Minds, Prince, Steve Earle, Martin Stephenson, Warren Zevon, Lloyd Cole, Del Amitri, the Blue Nile, Eddie Reader,  Kinky Freidman... I could go on.

34. How many kids I would like to have. At least one. Wherever he is.

35. My idea of a perfect date.  Good food, good conversation, good company. Oh, and great sex.

36. What I'm really excellent at. Prevarication.

37. My most traumatic experience. Probably, still, my parent’s divorce.

38. Where I would like to live. Wherever I go, there I am.

39. The nicest thing anyone's ever said to me. “Hello, again.”

40. Whether I like where I live now. I do – my favourite part of my favourite city in my favourite country.

41. What I can hear right now. Three other people typing. The AC.

42. My relationship with my siblings. Pretty good I don’t see them enough.

43. What's currently worrying me the most. What comes next?

44. Something I've repeatedly wished for. For everyone to be happy.

45. My relationship with my parents. Good.

46. What I dislike most about myself.  I like the pleasures of the flesh more than is good for me.

47. Where's Waldo? Waldo, c’est moi.

48. Whether I currently resemble the person who I thought I'd be at 18. I think so. Yes, pretty much. Though about 4 stones heavier.

49. What I would tell my 18-year-old self. You don’t have to marry the first person who sleeps with you (it’s ok, he figured it out).

50. Why? Why not?