share your world: cee’s life questions (week #51)

18 Tuesday Dec 2012

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Tuesday, December 18: Here are Cee’s Life Questions for this week:

What is your favorite fiction book?

Oh my gosh! How to choose?? I adore fiction and I have too many favorites to count. If I really HAVE to pick one, I’d say it is The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand.

Of course, I cannot just leave it at one, because I love these others equally. Here is a comprehensive list of my favorites:

Captain Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
One Thousand Chestnut Trees by Mira Stout
A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute
When Mountains Walked by Kate Wheeler
The Horse Whisperer by Nicholas Evans
Father Melancholy’s Daughter by Gail Godwin
Sister of my Heart by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Finally, I love books of short stories, but my two all-time favorites are Park City by Ann Beattie and Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri.

What one thing do you miss about being a kid?

Riding the pony named Maybe in our neighborhood. I’d ride him over jumps, and when he landed, at the moment I was most off-balance, maybe he’d buck me and maybe he wouldn’t. When he did start bucking, I just held on for dear life on the underside of his belly until I fell off. One time I rode him galloping across the Yorktown Battlefield, and he abruptly stopped and put his head down! I went sailing over his head. Sound like fun? It was a crazy adventure!

If you were an ice cream cone how many scoops and flavors would you be and why?

I guess today isn’t a day of self-denial for me, because when I think about all the flavors of ice cream I like, I’m not willing to leave any of them by the wayside. So I guess I will be a 7-scoop ice-cream cone with the following flavors: egg nog, chocolate chip cookie dough, fudge brownie, lemon custard, old-fashioned butter pecan, strawberry cheesecake, and German chocolate cake ice cream. 🙂

What was one of your first moneymaking jobs (other than babysitting or newspaper delivery)?

Working at Hardee’s (Hardee’s). It was a fun job because my friend Martha and I worked there together and it was the first time I had my own money to spend as I liked. 🙂

share your world: cee’s life questions (week #50)

10 Monday Dec 2012

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Monday, December 10: Here are Cee’s Life Questions for this week.

If you were to move and your home came fully furnished with everything you ever wanted, list at least three things from your old house you wish to retain?

My apple green damask couch, my papyrus scrolls and black & white photos of Egypt from the early 1900s (I see these as a collection), and my multi-disc CD player. That way I could recline on my couch, dream of Egypt and other faraway places, and listen to an eclectic array of tunes.

my apple green damask sofa

my photos and papyrus scrolls from Egypt

Are you mostly a clean or messy person?

I’m definitely a clean & neat and tidy person! I can’t stand disarray or squalor. I have to make my bed each morning and have everything in order before I leave my house. All my belongings are classified and arranged into some system. For instance, my huge collection of books are arranged by type: travel books on one bookshelf arranged by author, poetry on one bookshelf, short stories, novels, all arranged by author. My clothes are the same. Shirts sorted by color, and then from sleeveless to short-sleeved to long-sleeved, sweaters arranged by color in a different spot, etc.

Some might call me just a tad bit compulsive! 🙂

books of short stories lined up by author

What is the most enjoyable team or club you have belonged to and what was it that made it so?

Well, I’m not much of team or club person in general, but I have to say the group I most enjoyed in my life was the Sigma Phi Lambda (SPL) sorority I belonged to in high school. Yes, high school. At college, I never belonged to a sorority.

This sorority was full of fun-loving girls from York High School in Yorktown, Virginia. We had to go through a week-long initiation where we had to wear our clothes in some weird way each day: backwards, mismatched, etc. Then we had a Hell Night initiation where the members plastered the new initiates’ hair with a horrible concoction of oils, food items, and horse manure! Fun times. 🙂

me in some classroom at York High School during my days as a member of SPL 🙂

Our main purpose in life was to raise money all year for a week at Virginia Beach in the summer. During those beach weeks, we had total freedom from our parents. We spent nights driving up and down Atlantic Avenue mooning people (how lovely!) and then later, streaking on the beach. We’d spend our days lathered in coconut oil on the beach, listening to rock and roll. Those were some of my best days EVER!

What do you feel is the most enjoyable way to spend $50? Why?

I would spend $50 on some good books, because they would promise to give me countless hours of pleasure. Especially travel books or good novels set in exotic places.

share your world: cee’s life questions (week #49)

04 Tuesday Dec 2012

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Tuesday, December 4: Here are Cee’s Life Questions for this week.

What is the most incredible natural venue that you’ve ever seen in person?

I would have to say the dramatic Rocky Mountains in Banff, Canada, the Grand Tetons in Wyoming, and Cappadocia, a historical region in Central Anatolia, in Turkey.

Cappadocia, Turkey

I also love the karsts in Halong Bay, Vietnam and off the coast of Phuket, Thailand.

karsts at Halong Bay, Vietnam

karsts near Phuket, Thailand

One of the most incredible natural places in Oman is Jebel Akhdar, otherwise known as the Green Mountain. Hmm, I guess you can say I like mountains.

Jebel Akhdar

And one incredible place that’s not a mountain at all but is surrounded by mountains: Suncheon Bay Ecological Park in South Korea.

What was your favorite food as a child? Do you eat it now?

My favorite food as a child was fried shrimp. I ate it every time I went to a restaurant. I loved it so much, I even ate the tail! I don’t eat fried shrimp now, because deep-fried foods feel so heavy and fattening, but I still love shrimp and will eat it prepared in any variety of ways, except fried.

Would you travel into outer space?

I love to travel, but I figure there is plenty right here on this earth to see. I can’t even see everything I want to see here during my lifetime. So no, I have no desire to travel to outer space.

Tell how you are feeling today in the form of a weather report. (For example, partly cloudy, sunny with a chance for showers, etc.)

I’m feeling partly sunny, with temperatures in the low 60’s. Expect a little cloud cover periodically through the day, and possibly a sporadic rain shower. There might be a little turbulence if you encounter me at certain times of the day, especially while driving to work.

Or, better yet, you could say I’m cloudy with a chance of meatballs.

share your world: cee’s life questions (week #45)

05 Monday Nov 2012

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Monday, November 5: It’s been a long time since I’ve participated in Cee’s Life Questions. Mainly because I was so busy in the USA in August, then I was in Greece for two weeks, then I came back to Oman and took awhile to settle back in. I barely got settled before I went to Ethiopia the last week in October. Finally, at least for a few minutes, I can breathe. That is, until the National Holiday in Oman, which is at the end of November sometime. Who knows when, as the Omanis always wait until the last possible minute to announce the dates of holidays.

Cee always comes up with interesting, challenging and fun questions. Here they are for this week:

How many rings before you answer the phone? Too many. That’s because my phone is often in my purse and half the time I can’t hear it and then when I do finally hear it, it takes me a long time to find and dig it out of my bag.

If you were to be on a reality TV show which one would you be on and why? To be honest, I don’t watch much T.V. and I’ve never been attracted to reality shows. So I have no clue what reality shows are even out there.

What’s your middle name? Why? My middle name is Lynn, and I have no idea why. I’m not named after anyone in my family that I know of. I think when I was born, Cathy was THE single most popular baby name. I also think Lynn was a popular middle name. I guess my mom just liked the sound of Cathy Lynn.

Is the glass half empty or half full? What is in the glass? Figuratively speaking, it depends on how my day is going. Sometimes I see the glass half full, brimming with possibilities. That is, if things are going my way, or if I’m just in a mood where nothing bothers me. Or if I’ve just decided not to take anything seriously. Other times, if I’m really irritated with something or someone and in a bad mood, then I see the glass as half empty. So, it varies. However, if you’re talking about the literal glass, my glass is usually half full of red wine, until I drink it, and then it’s half empty. Or just empty. At that time, I sometimes fill it right back up again.

wine ~ is the glass half full or half empty??

share your world: cee’s life questions (week #34)

30 Monday Jul 2012

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Monday, July 30: Here are Cee’s Life Questions for this week:

If you were or are a writer do you prefer writing short stories, poems or novels?

I wrote a novel once, as I’ve mentioned before, though it’s never been seen by anyone else. I’ve also written lots of short stories (land of make-believe) and some poems. However, writing the novel felt like a great accomplishment and was one of the most satisfying things I’ve ever done. I wrote it from start to finish in over a year and a half. It took a lot of perseverance and dedication, writing 3 pages at least 5 days a week, and I was proud of myself for never giving up. It was fun seeing how the characters and the novel opened up in my mind with each passing day. So every day was an adventure and sometimes, when I read over it now, I think, Wow! I wrote this??

If you had only one book you could write what would it be about? Assume it is a top 10 seller of any genre.

It would be a novel, literary fiction, about four characters who live in Washington, D.C. and their relationships with each other. It takes place about a year after 9/11, beginning during the time of the 2002 sniper attacks in Washington and continuing through the early days of the war in Iraq.

Hmmm, that’s what my novel IS about! It’s possibly the only idea I have… 🙂

Did you watch the opening of the Olympics in London? What was your favorite part of the opening?

No, I didn’t watch it. I’ve been too busy at work and preparing to go home to the USA this Thursday morning. I have to say I’m not a big sports fan. I get really impatient watching sports of any kind, except maybe the ice skating competitions. That obviously isn’t a summer event!

What is your favorite summer Olympic event or events?

If I watch anything, it might be cycling, gymnastics, equestrian events, triathlon and swimming.

share your world: cee’s life questions (week #32)

15 Sunday Jul 2012

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Sunday, July 15: Here are Cee’s Life Questions for this week:

Which would you prefer: a wild, turbulent life filled with joy, sorrow, passion, and adventure–intoxicating successes and stunning setbacks; or a contented, bordering-on-happy, secure, predictable life surrounded by friends and family without such wide swings of fortune and mood?

In theory, what I would love is the wild, turbulent life filled with adventure, passion and joy!! The problem is that a wild turbulent life must be accompanied by the horrible downs, the sorrows, the stunning setbacks, the huge disappointments. Emotionally, I don’t think I’m strong enough to handle the downs, especially for any extended period of time. I think deep inside I know I have to be protective of that fragile emotional side of myself, thus I tend to gravitate to the secure and predictable. Even though it generally bores me to death! I am a restless soul, but my restlessness just leads me to another location where I find more of the same! 😦

This question really hits home because I actually left the secure, happy, predictable life I had in Virginia in search of those highs and lows, that passion and sorrow. I wanted to really feel passionately and strongly about EVERYTHING!! Yet. I’m coming to realize that maybe I’m incapable of it. Because it ends up, no matter where I escape, there is still my inner self clinging to a safe harbor. Maybe I’m just made this way and really can never escape this deep truth.

Would you like to be famous? In what way?

I don’t really care about being famous, but I would like to be the kind of writer, especially as a fiction (novel or short story) writer, that when people read my stories and meet my characters, they say, “I know exactly what she’s talking about! I can relate to this experience, this feeling! This character is so quirky and so utterly cool and fascinating.”

If you could cure one disease, what would that be?

Mental illness. Of all kinds. My own family and many families I know have suffered the devastating effects of depression, anxiety, and even more serious mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder & paranoid schizophrenia. I have known people who have committed suicide or attempted to do so. I myself have suffered with anxiety, depression and panic attacks. I don’t wish this on anyone. I’d rather have a physical illness any day.

If you were invisible, where would you go?

This is a ridiculous answer, but lately I’ve been watching the TV series Brothers & Sisters. And I think because of this, I’ve been having dreams about Senator Robert McCallister, who is played by Rob Lowe. So, I’d like to follow him around to see what his life is really like!!

On a less ridiculous note, I think if I were invisible, I would just continuously hop on airplanes and travel at whim all over the world.

share your world: cee’s life questions (week #31)

08 Sunday Jul 2012

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Sunday, July 8: Here are Cee’s Life Questions for this week:

Do you plan out things usually or do you do them more spontaneously (for example if you are visiting a big city you don’t know)?

I usually plan out all the things I want to do because vacation time is short and there are so many sights and experiences to squeeze in. I don’t want to miss anything. That being said, I also try to leave some free time to sit at cafes and enjoy people-watching or to savor conversations with people I meet along the way.

If I hadn’t planned ahead in Turkey, I couldn’t have done this!

The only trip where I really didn’t plan much of anything was my last-minute trip to Jordan last November. Everything during that trip was done spontaneously and it was one of my favorite vacations ever! For my upcoming trip to Greece, I’m surprising myself because I’m not planning as much as I usually do, preferring instead to leave some things to chance.

If I had planned out everything in Jordan, I might not have met Minako from Okinawa…. 🙂

or Guido from Italy and Khalid from Jordan at Jerash!

If you could live in any OTHER time, when would it be and why?

I’d love to have lived during the Roaring Twenties, the time of Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, the time of jazz, flappers and art deco. The time of The Great Gatsby and The Sun Also Rises. It was in 1920 that the 19th amendment was passed, giving women the right to vote and women began to enjoy more freedoms! Hooray!

Do you prefer reading short stories or novels?

I like both, but I prefer getting lost in a good long novel.

As a kid was there any kind of candy that you didn’t like to get?

I never liked Bounty Bars because of their coconut center. I also never liked red hots or licorice.

share your world: cee’s life questions (week #30)

03 Tuesday Jul 2012

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Tuesday, July 3: Here are Cee’s Life Questions for this week.

You are invited to a party that will be attended by many fascinating people you never met. Would you attend this party if you were to go by yourself?

I have gone before to parties where I didn’t know anyone, and sometimes it’s worked out, but mostly I am shy and not good in crowds, so I feel too awkward being alone. Here in Oman, I’m sure there are lots of open parties in Muscat, but I never go because I don’t want to go alone. Tonight I’m actually attending a cocktail hour with a group called InterNations at the Intercontinental in Muscat, but that’s only because my friend Barb invited me. I wouldn’t venture out to this if I had to go alone.

If you were the original designer of one existing corporate logo, which one would you select?

One of my favorite places to spend an afternoon is the clothing store anthropologie. Part of what I love about anthropologie is the store’s overall design, with its whimsical window displays, funky clothes, 50s-era housewares, and the eclectic mix of music that drifts over you as you shop. Sometimes I go in and wander around for an hour just perusing and relaxing and listening to the music. I am transported by the store’s ambiance to an exotic imaginary world (usually Paris or some other romantic European city) and then I walk out with too many purchases in hand. The store has a wonderful marketing strategy ~ to transport people to their dream lives! Here is their logo, which also tells a lot about the store.

From anthropologie’s Facebook page: Anthropologie offers a one-of-a-kind and compelling shopping experience that makes women feel beautiful, hopeful and connected. We invite you into our world with the hope you take a deep breath and explore until your heart’s content. Although you enjoy the clever details and fine craftsmanship of our products, you come to us for more than that. You come to escape and to connect, to spend time and to make time. Complex as you are, you remain our inspiration and because of this, we endeavor to bring you an unimagined experience.

If you could be a student of any university in the world right now, where would you enroll? Irregardless of which university, assume they teach what you want to study.

I would want to go to Harvard University just because it’s in Cambridge, Massachusetts which is one of the prettiest places in the USA. I love the northeast of America.

If you had to spend one weekend alone in a single public building or institution, which building would you choose?

I’d spend the day in the Musée d’Orsay in Paris. This museum is known for its collection of impressionist and post-impressionist masterpieces (the largest in the world) by such painters such as Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, Cezanne, Seurat, Sisley, Gauguin and Van Gogh. I’m a big fan of all these painters and would love to spend a weekend in their company.