The Questions Meme (Times Two)

So, I was tagged by two lovely ladies on the Questions Meme that is going around and, since I'm having trouble focusing this week (a combination of vacation time, a sister in town and family tragedy), I'll just answer some of these brilliant questions.

Rules

You must post the rules.
Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you’ve tagged.
Tag eleven people and link to them on your post.
Let them know you’ve tagged them.
First, the questions from Jenners ...

1. What’s the most played song on your iPod? (or CD collection if you’re old school)
At the moment, it's probably Depeche Mode's Enjoy the Silence because Z likes it.  The two songs I start up the most (the iPod lives in the car) are Björk's Hunter and Sigur Rós' Starálfur (which you might recognize from The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou).

2. What do you miss most about your childhood?
Wow, um, I think I probably miss family gatherings with my great-grandparents, grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins. Really, I just miss my great-grandparents.

3. What is your favorite poem?
I'm sure this comes as no surprise but it's Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven.

... And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted—nevermore!

4. Without thinking too much, what are 5 of your favorite books of all time? (Just list them as they come to you … don’t think!!!!!)
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, The Chronicles of Chrestomanci by Diana Wynne Jones (yeah, it's six books), The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis

5. What was the last book you read? Tell me about it in 5 words or less.
Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare ... Magic, Mayhem, Love, Hot Boys.

6. Can you define irony and give an example? (This is self-serving as I’m struggling to do this with my son. I will so steal your answers if appropriate.)
My most-employed type of irony is saying something that is the opposite of what I mean in order to make a point or a joke. But when I think of the definition of irony, I think of this example from The Oatmeal's Three Most Common Uses of Irony --

7. If you were forced to change your name, what would you change it to?
Isobel Irene. It's what I would have named a daughter if I had one -- Isobel because I love it (and the Björk song) and Irene after my grandmother whom I love dearly.

8. What author/TV show/movie/book/celebrity, do you absolutely despise and avoid at all costs?
Oh, there are so many -- mostly ones that have celebrity for doing little or nothing, like the Kardashians or Snooki. But I also have developed a deep dislike for Tom Cruise over the past few years. I think it's the Scientology thing -- and his teeth.

9. What movie was actually better than the book is was based on?
Easy ... Breakfast at Tiffany. Love the movie and didn't really like the story.

10. Beatles or the Stones?
The Beatles forever, baby! Always been a Beatles fan. Luckily, Z is also becoming quite the little Beatles fan too.

11. What is your favorite quote?
Wow. I have a terrible memory so there's nothing that is my "go to" quote. But I could never get tired of MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech.

... But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. ...

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." ...

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

And now the ones from Trish ...

1. What app do you love above all others? Not an app person? What about website?

For usefulness, it's probably Wikipanion but right now my life is spent playing Triple Town (and yes, it's free).

2. Describe your dream profession (sky is the limit).

Librarian at the Hopkins Marine Station in Monterey, CA. (I know ... I could probably actually do that some day if I tried.) This is the Miller Library.

3. Appetizers or dessert?

Definitely dessert. I don't like a lot of appetizers (mostly due to seafood and mayonnaise) but there's almost no dessert I would say no to! In fact, I wouldn't mind a bit of dessert right now -- maybe some ice cream.

4. If you could be BFF with any fictional character, who would you choose?

Pippi Longstocking, of course. Never a dull day with Pippi! Treasure hunting, horseback riding and hanging out with a monkey? Sounds like fun!

5. I say BLUE. What immediately comes to mind?

Blue Monday ... an awesome New Order song.

6. Favorite song to blast and sing in your car with the windows down?

There isn't just one because I'm a car singer so the blasting/windows down thing happens quite frequently. I'll go with Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.

7. What fashion fad makes you hang your head in shame?

Pegged pants. What an awful idea.

8. What are your thoughts on 80s Hair Bands--specifically Monster Ballads?

Well, if we are talking about the ballads specifically, then I will have to admit that I know 95% of them by heart and have belted them out at the top of my lungs since they first were played on the radio. There might have even been some tears shed at some point. (How embarrassing!)

9. What is a book you wanted to throw across the room? What is one you wanted to hug?

I wanted to throw Drood by Dan Simmons across the room (and I did chuck the ARC into the recycle bin when I was done) and I wanted to hug The Technologists by Matthew Pearl.

10. Imagine you are an aerobics instructor--what song must be on your playlist?

Is this even a question if it can only ever have one answer? Physical by ON-J of course! (Olivia Newton-John for you non-abbreviators)

11. What's for dinner tonight?

Leftover lasagna ... mmm. Why is lasagna always better on the second day?

Bonus: What's your favorite go-to lipstick (including color)
I am a non-lipsticker. It doesn't ever stick to my lips and the smell of almost every kind makes me nauseated. I almost exclusively use The Body Shop's Cocoa Butter Lip Balm.

And now I'm going to be bad and not tag anyone or make up any questions because of the aforementioned lack of focus. But I'll ask that if you comment, that you answer at least one of these great questions so I can get to know you all better!

Enjoying this mental break (and listening to the Beatles),

K