jamelah.net

Saturday, April 23, 2005

this time i'm not interviewing myself
I'm sitting here (but not Just Sitting Here) drinking a large glass of milk in an attempt to trick my stomach into realizing that it is my stomach and not the fiery pits of Hell, and watching it snow. Because it is April 23, so logically, it would be snowing. (Feh!) As such, it is as good a time as any to answer these questions from srah:

1. What do you like best about yourself? (Feel free to make a long, train of thought list)

This is probably shallow of me, but I really like my hair. Even though sometimes it is a raging communist. Other physical things I like about myself would be my nose (because I thought it was pretty nice, as far as noses go, even before my encounter with this guy), and I'm rather fond of the tiny mole underneath my left eyebrow, because I think it gives my face some sass. I also like my teeth. Other than that, I think that my ability to see humor in almost anything is a plus, even though some people think my sense of humor is more than slightly warped. I also like the fact that I'm creative, and I pursue all sorts of artistic endeavors, though sometimes I wish I could pick one or two things and excel at them instead of pulling myself in so many directions that I never feel like I really master anything. But I guess the good part of that is that I always feel like I have more to learn.

2. Who has/have most influenced your writing style?

Well, I think I have a few styles, and they come into play at various times, depending on what kind of writing I'm doing. When it comes to this here blog thing, I think my greatest influence would have to be regular, everyday conversation with people who are funny, because they have an effect on the way I think of humor -- what's funny, what's not funny, and how funny sounds -- and how I write it. I hope that things don't come across like I worked on them a long time, because I want everything to read like I wrote it all off the top of my head without much thought, but the truth is, I often take a lot of time to weigh my words and rearrange them and read them back to myself before I commit to a post, because I'm obsessive-compulsive I don't think being genuinely funny (in writing) is easy. I don't do this all the time (perhaps obviously, I'm not doing it now!), but I think the posts that I'm proud of were worth the work. When it comes to other writing, well, I used to get compared to Raymond Carver (though I was writing that way before I read anything by him), but I think that had more to do with the fact that what I write is generally very short and spare, and less to do with any real similarity between me and him. I'm babbling, but I guess I can't really say who influences me, but I can say who I like I a lot -- Flannery O'Connor, William Faulkner, Milan Kundera, Jack Kerouac, and a lot of others I can't think of right now.

Oh, I guess I can say that I'm pretty heavily influenced by my experience as a journalist, because it taught me three important things: how to listen, how to pay attention to seemingly insignificant details, and how to write without blathering.

And I'm sure you can see how I write without blathering, my answer to this question being a prime example. </sarcasm>

3. What's your favorite dessert/candy/sweet thing?

You'd think I'd say pie, all things considered, but no... actually I really like brownies. In fact, other than the majestic and wonderful potato, there is no single type of edible item that I enjoy and crave more than the delectable brownie. Mmmm, brownies.

4. If you could do anything in the world (money/time/silliness not a factor), what would you be doing right now?

I'm actually pretty sleepy, so if my stomach weren't on fire right now, I'd probably be taking a nap. Sleep is delicious. Definitely more delicious than acid reflux. But that's not really a very glamorous answer, so I guess I'll say that if I could be doing anything in the world right now, I'd probably be on my way to someplace I've never been, because anticipation is half the fun.

5. What's your favorite restaurant?

The 115 Truck Stop. Because I am a classy girl.







Okay, now for the rules (again)...

If you're interested in being interviewed by me, (and who isn't?) here's what you need to do:

1. Leave me a comment saying “interview me.”
2. I will respond by asking you five questions here. They will be different questions than the ones above.
3. You will update YOUR blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.





posted by jamelah
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