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Journal Creation
Jul. 31st, 2001 10:46 pmNAME: Ralph Melton
1-LIVING ARRANGEMENT?
Living with my wife in a house of our own.
2-WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
I haven't been reading much, lately. I've been slowly reading through the D&D Third Edition Dungeon Master's Guide in hopes of starting a campaign soon.
3-WHAT'S ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
The mouse and a pen.
4-FAVORITE BOARD GAME?
I play a lot of games.
I'm hoping that we get the groove with Munchkin to make that Big Fun.
The Harry Potter Mystery at Hogwarts game is a pretty good riff on Clue.
Illuminati was by far my favorite in junior high and high school.
5-FAVORITE MAGAZINE?
I read the online magazine Pyramid devotedly.
6A-FAVORITE SMELLS?
I'm not a very olfactory person, really. Lori often asks me if I like a perfume or a scented candle, and I have to just shrug. But the smell of barbecue cooking or of distant wood smoke can be very fine.
6B-LEAST FAVORITE SMELLS?
I know there are bad smells, but nothing particularly comes to mind.
7-FAVORITE SOUND?
Nothing comes to mind at the moment. Sounds are right in various contexts.
8-WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD?
I have to agree with "Loneliness".
9-WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING?
Honestly, probably "Gotta pee!"
10-FAVORITE COLOR?
Colors suit their context. I wear lots of black, though jewel tones can be nice. I like the pale yellow color of our house. I like to decorate with a theme of off-white, wood tones, and hunter green.
11-HOW MANY RINGS BEFORE YOU ANSWER THE PHONE?
Three.
When the phone rings downstairs and I'm at the computer, I race for it and reach it on the third ring.
When the phone upstairs is plugged in and I'm at the computer, I stroll for it, and I still reach it on the third ring.
12-WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR?
Being abandoned would have to top the list. This fear shows up in my life in a variety of direct and indirect ways.
13-WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT IN LIFE?
To be part of community, whether this community is a community of friends, family, neighborhood, online group, or whatever.
14-FAVORITE FOODS?
Barbecue might well top the list. But there are so many good foods.
15-CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA?
Wait, are we talking ice cream or sex here? The answers are different.
16-DO YOU LIKE TO DRIVE FAST?
In safe situations, perhaps. I usually drive at the speed limit or a bit above.
17-DO YOU SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL?
Nope, never have. The stuffed animals I've purchased have largely been for the use of women in my life.
18-STORMS - COOL OR SCARY?
Cool. Sometimes in my parents' house in Texas, when it stormed at night, I would turn off the lights in my room, open the blinds and curtains wide, and watch the lightning.
19-WHAT TYPE WAS YOUR FIRST CAR?
A brown 1978 Dodge Aspen, nicknamed "The Millennium Falcon".
20-IF YOU COULD MEET ONE PERSON DEAD OR ALIVE?
Another hard question. I can think of lots of candidates (Richard Feynman, Jim Henson, ancestors, ...) but I can't think of just one person who's just right.
In general, it's very pleasing to hang out with people who are experts in areas that I'm not. I enjoy hearing from other people's expertise.
21-FAVORITE ALCOHOLIC DRINK?
I remember that the first drink I really liked was a Midori Sour. I'm not so sure now, because I've learned to enjoy many more drinks, but I favor drinks with strong fruit and sour flavors.
22-WHAT IS YOUR ZODIAC SIGN?
Taurus. It fits.
23-DO YOU EAT THE STEMS OF BROCCOLI?
When I was a kid, that was all I would eat. Now I prefer the florets, but I am so dedicated to avoiding waste that I wouldn't leave the stems uneaten.
24-IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY JOB YOU WANTED WHAT WOULD IT BE?
I am currently a Senior Computer Programmer, and I really like doing that; really, what I like about it is the fact that I'm extremely good at what I'm doing. But I wish I were in slightly different circumstances, with sysadmins and QA people and documentation folks and nifty hardware and financial stability.
25-IF YOU COULD DYE YOUR HAIR ANY COLOR?
A month or so before my wedding, I discovered that Manic Panic makes bright hair dyes in semi-permanent colors. Ooh. I held off until the wedding for Lori's sake, and now I'm holding off because I may be meeting customers, but I fantasize about temporarily dyeing my hair a brilliant purple.
26-EVER BEEN IN LOVE?
Yes, definitely. And I've been infatuated and called it love, and I've been in a wacky state where I was more in love with the idea of being in love than I really was in love with the other person.
27-IS THE GLASS HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL?
Yes. Mostly it's just a glass with a middling amount of water in it.
28-FAVORITE MOVIE(s)?
The Princess Bride is an old favorite, though I don't think I've watched it since I've purchased the video.
The Thin Man. I'd like to be as cool as Nick Charles.
28A - MOST RECENT MOVIE YOU'VE SEEN?
The re-release of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
29-DO YOU TYPE WITH YOUR FINGERS ON THE RIGHT KEYS?
Yes.
I took typing class in 7th grade, when I was 12. The classroom had manual typewriters, and I didn't have the finger strength to hit the pinky keys properly. It was so miserably frustrating that I ended up transferring out of that class. (Into "Reading Improvement", which is perhaps a story of its own. Suffice it to say that my reading didn't really need to be improved.)
I retook the class in 9th grade, and they had gotten electric typewriters.
My typing is decent, but I make too many errors to use a typewriter well; I need a backspace key.
30-WHAT'S UNDER YOUR BED?
Not much at the moment. Maybe it'll get turned into storage later.
31-FAVORITE NUMBER?
Probably one of the traditional geek numbers. It's so cool that e^(i * pi) + 1 = 0.
Among integers, again probably one of the traditional geek numbers, particularly 23 or 17.
32-FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH?
I used to watch college basketball with a former girlfriend, and that was fun, but I hardly watch any sports now.
1-LIVING ARRANGEMENT?
Living with my wife in a house of our own.
2-WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
I haven't been reading much, lately. I've been slowly reading through the D&D Third Edition Dungeon Master's Guide in hopes of starting a campaign soon.
3-WHAT'S ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
The mouse and a pen.
4-FAVORITE BOARD GAME?
I play a lot of games.
I'm hoping that we get the groove with Munchkin to make that Big Fun.
The Harry Potter Mystery at Hogwarts game is a pretty good riff on Clue.
Illuminati was by far my favorite in junior high and high school.
5-FAVORITE MAGAZINE?
I read the online magazine Pyramid devotedly.
6A-FAVORITE SMELLS?
I'm not a very olfactory person, really. Lori often asks me if I like a perfume or a scented candle, and I have to just shrug. But the smell of barbecue cooking or of distant wood smoke can be very fine.
6B-LEAST FAVORITE SMELLS?
I know there are bad smells, but nothing particularly comes to mind.
7-FAVORITE SOUND?
Nothing comes to mind at the moment. Sounds are right in various contexts.
8-WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD?
I have to agree with "Loneliness".
9-WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING?
Honestly, probably "Gotta pee!"
10-FAVORITE COLOR?
Colors suit their context. I wear lots of black, though jewel tones can be nice. I like the pale yellow color of our house. I like to decorate with a theme of off-white, wood tones, and hunter green.
11-HOW MANY RINGS BEFORE YOU ANSWER THE PHONE?
Three.
When the phone rings downstairs and I'm at the computer, I race for it and reach it on the third ring.
When the phone upstairs is plugged in and I'm at the computer, I stroll for it, and I still reach it on the third ring.
12-WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR?
Being abandoned would have to top the list. This fear shows up in my life in a variety of direct and indirect ways.
13-WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT IN LIFE?
To be part of community, whether this community is a community of friends, family, neighborhood, online group, or whatever.
14-FAVORITE FOODS?
Barbecue might well top the list. But there are so many good foods.
15-CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA?
Wait, are we talking ice cream or sex here? The answers are different.
16-DO YOU LIKE TO DRIVE FAST?
In safe situations, perhaps. I usually drive at the speed limit or a bit above.
17-DO YOU SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL?
Nope, never have. The stuffed animals I've purchased have largely been for the use of women in my life.
18-STORMS - COOL OR SCARY?
Cool. Sometimes in my parents' house in Texas, when it stormed at night, I would turn off the lights in my room, open the blinds and curtains wide, and watch the lightning.
19-WHAT TYPE WAS YOUR FIRST CAR?
A brown 1978 Dodge Aspen, nicknamed "The Millennium Falcon".
20-IF YOU COULD MEET ONE PERSON DEAD OR ALIVE?
Another hard question. I can think of lots of candidates (Richard Feynman, Jim Henson, ancestors, ...) but I can't think of just one person who's just right.
In general, it's very pleasing to hang out with people who are experts in areas that I'm not. I enjoy hearing from other people's expertise.
21-FAVORITE ALCOHOLIC DRINK?
I remember that the first drink I really liked was a Midori Sour. I'm not so sure now, because I've learned to enjoy many more drinks, but I favor drinks with strong fruit and sour flavors.
22-WHAT IS YOUR ZODIAC SIGN?
Taurus. It fits.
23-DO YOU EAT THE STEMS OF BROCCOLI?
When I was a kid, that was all I would eat. Now I prefer the florets, but I am so dedicated to avoiding waste that I wouldn't leave the stems uneaten.
24-IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY JOB YOU WANTED WHAT WOULD IT BE?
I am currently a Senior Computer Programmer, and I really like doing that; really, what I like about it is the fact that I'm extremely good at what I'm doing. But I wish I were in slightly different circumstances, with sysadmins and QA people and documentation folks and nifty hardware and financial stability.
25-IF YOU COULD DYE YOUR HAIR ANY COLOR?
A month or so before my wedding, I discovered that Manic Panic makes bright hair dyes in semi-permanent colors. Ooh. I held off until the wedding for Lori's sake, and now I'm holding off because I may be meeting customers, but I fantasize about temporarily dyeing my hair a brilliant purple.
26-EVER BEEN IN LOVE?
Yes, definitely. And I've been infatuated and called it love, and I've been in a wacky state where I was more in love with the idea of being in love than I really was in love with the other person.
27-IS THE GLASS HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL?
Yes. Mostly it's just a glass with a middling amount of water in it.
28-FAVORITE MOVIE(s)?
The Princess Bride is an old favorite, though I don't think I've watched it since I've purchased the video.
The Thin Man. I'd like to be as cool as Nick Charles.
28A - MOST RECENT MOVIE YOU'VE SEEN?
The re-release of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
29-DO YOU TYPE WITH YOUR FINGERS ON THE RIGHT KEYS?
Yes.
I took typing class in 7th grade, when I was 12. The classroom had manual typewriters, and I didn't have the finger strength to hit the pinky keys properly. It was so miserably frustrating that I ended up transferring out of that class. (Into "Reading Improvement", which is perhaps a story of its own. Suffice it to say that my reading didn't really need to be improved.)
I retook the class in 9th grade, and they had gotten electric typewriters.
My typing is decent, but I make too many errors to use a typewriter well; I need a backspace key.
30-WHAT'S UNDER YOUR BED?
Not much at the moment. Maybe it'll get turned into storage later.
31-FAVORITE NUMBER?
Probably one of the traditional geek numbers. It's so cool that e^(i * pi) + 1 = 0.
Among integers, again probably one of the traditional geek numbers, particularly 23 or 17.
32-FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH?
I used to watch college basketball with a former girlfriend, and that was fun, but I hardly watch any sports now.
