The Proust Questionnaire ... A Newbie's initiation

[poseidon]

tuneschick said:

- Your most marked characteristic?
My smile, my ability to raise just one eyebrow (I'm rather proud of that talent) and the fact that I cry far too easily.

-The quality you most like in a man?
Sense of humour - followed closely by humility, a laid-back personality and dark hair.

- The quality you most like in a woman?
Camaraderie. Women are far too competitive for no good reason.

- What do you most value in your friends?
Loyalty and caring.

- What is your principle defect?
I'm the biggest procrastinator alive and I'm too damn stubborn. And I have too many cavities.

- What is your favorite occupation?
If we're talking jobs, then I'd love to be an anthropologist or professional kayaker (not that those exist, I'm sure.) If we're talking pastimes, then listening to music, swimming, sleeping, kayaking (I will finally own one soon - AND have a place to keep it!!), sex and drinking wine. Those last two, preferably at the same time.

- What is your dream of happiness?
Living on the water with my husband, a couple of kids, a couple of dogs and a kayak. Sitting on the dock, watching the sun set over the water while the loons call... wrapped in a blanket with a bottle of wine at hand.

- What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes?
"Living" as a vegetable, hooked up to machines. Never!

- What would you like to be?
Independently wealthy.

- In what country would you like to live?
Canada.

- What is your favorite color?
If we're talking clothing, black. If we're talking in general - well, I painted my house in shades of cream, light sage green and pale yellow - those last two being colours that I'd never wear but find soothing to be surrounded by.

- What is your favorite flower?
Gerbera daisy

- What is your favorite bird?
Penguin.

- Who are your favorite prose writers?
John Steinbeck, Harper Lee and Roald Dahl.

- Who are your favorite poets?
Leonard Cohen

- Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Sorry to steal your answer, Chrisfan, but Atticus Finch has to be mine too. And James, of giant peach fame.

- Who is your favorite poster (besides Phil) ?
Too many to choose... a copout, I know.

- Who are your favorite heroines of fiction?
Didn't I just answer this?

- Who are your favorite composers?
Strummer/Jones, Paul Simon and Mozart.

- Who are your favorite painters?
Not sure.

- Who are your heroes in real life?
I wrote this sentence about 13 times and still can't make my answer seem non-cheesy. So I'm just going to pass, OK?

- What is it you most dislike?
Rudeness/lack of basic courtesy.

- What natural gift would you most like to possess?
A beautiful singing voice - Ken, you and I would be a good team!

- How would you like to die?
Just like the Blake Babies said... I hope I die in the nighttime with my TV on and a beer in my hand... and you by my side.

- What is your present state of mind?
Stressed... I have three major communications strategies due by end of day tomorrow, two of which I haven't yet started . But yet, here I am.

- To what faults do you feel most indulgent?
Considering my answer above, I'd have to say procrasination, at least for the moment. And I love junk food, though I've been trying to keep that in check.

- What is your motto?
Don't have one, sorry.

I have the half smile capability. You know...Lee Majors?

[Proud]

- Your most marked characteristic?
If we're being positive, loyalty/dependability.

- The quality you most like in a man?
Selflessness.

- The quality you most like in a woman?
Sincerity (including when it comes to emotionally positive actions/words and trust).

- What do you most value in your friends?
Integrity.

- What is your principle defect?
I beat the hell out of myself. A lot.

- What is your favorite occupation?
Writing stuff that can technically be called poetry/potential song lyrics.

- What is your dream of happiness?
At the risk of being a sap, finding companionship and living a long, wonderful life together.

- What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes?
To not be able to meet the relatives/ancestors I've always wanted to know in some sort of afterlife.

- What would you like to be?
A mildly successful singer/songwriter.

- In what country would you like to live?
Here, though I've loved Australia forever.

- What is your favorite color?
Light blues and greens.

- What is your favorite flower?
I think I'm allergic to all of them!

- What is your favorite bird?
Lots of robins around here...

- Who are your favorite prose writers?
I pay more attention to works than names.

- Who are your favorite poets?
Same as above.

- Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
When I think of heroes, I don't think of fiction.

- Who is your favorite poster(beside Phil) ?
I don't have enough experience here to judge.

- Who are your favorite heroines of fiction?
When I think of heroines, I don't think of fiction.

- Who are your favorite composers?
I pay more attention to workBach is cool.

- Who are your favorite painters?
Monet.

- Who are your heroes in real life?
Neil Young, among many others.

- What is it you most dislike?
Egotism.

- What natural gift would you most like to possess?
Brain chemicals that'll keep me happy and satisfied.

- How would you like to die?
Psh. I've already done that eight times.

- What is your present state of mind?
Tired.

- To what faults do you feel most indulgent?
Not living life to its fullest. Also, I'm anti-social by nature.

- What is your motto?
... You've never heard of "Get Proud With The Illness?". Perhaps you're lucky! "You're unique... just like everybody else" also works.

[stingingpistol]

- Your most marked characteristic? i'm always right

- The quality you most like in a man? intellect

- The quality you most like in a woman? compassion

- What do you most value in your friends? willingness to be there

- What is your principle defect? thinking i'm always right

- What is your favorite occupation? lou gerigh's disease researcher

- What is your dream of happiness? belonging to myself

- What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes? my mother dying followed by nuclear war

- What would you like to be? social worker

- In what country would you like to live? today, it's france

- What is your favorite color? any shade of green, but esp apple green

- What is your favorite flower? lily

- What is your favorite bird? owl

- Who are your favorite prose writers? jd salinger, homer, jane austen, emily bronte, plato

- Who are your favorite poets? anne sexton, silvia plath

- Who is your favorite hero of fiction? achilles

- Who is your favorite poster(beside Phil) ? rit

- Who are your favorite heroines of fiction? elizabeth - pride and prejudice

- Who are your favorite composers? pj harvey, mark lanegan

- Who are your favorite painters? edvard munch

- Who are your heroes in real life? gloria steinam, noam chomsky

- What is it you most dislike? blind patriotism

- What natural gift would you most like to possess? grace

- How would you like to die? in my sleep

- What is your present state of mind? contented

- To what faults do you feel most indulgent? consumerism

- What is your motto? "always sleep on your stomach!" john wayne bobbitt ;D

[Kensterberg]

I love seeing all these votes for Homer, Achilles, etc. You guys are all as big of nerds as I am ... maybe even bigger!

[limitdeditionlayla]

Stinging loves Mark Lanegan? She rocks purely on that.

[dolly]

Mark Lanegan is fantastic. I'm inspired to play Bubblegum on my way to school now, in fact.

Stinging and I also share the same literary heroine (except I posted Stefanie Plum here - and what is cooler than a cowardly female bounty hunter who gets lots of 'action'?).

Indeed I was almost named Elizabeth after my great Gran - with Bennett being my last name. That wouldv'e been so perfect.

[stingingpistol]

i do indeed love lanegan. how could i not?

personally i think you got off lucky not being named elizabeth, dolly. do you realize how many times in the course of ur life you probably would've had to listen to ppl remark on the fact you share a name with such an important literary figure? i say this cos i often get asked if i was named after samantha the witch cos of that old tv show with the homemaker witch who twinkled her nose. and just to dispel any rumours before they get started, no, i wasn't.

[dolly]

Oh I loved Bewitched! I really wanted to have those groovy powers she had. But now I think of it, all I do remember is the nose-twitching. What did the twitching actually do? I forget.

And she was a nice witch, not like Wicked witch of the west or anything. But yes, no matter how well meaning the comments, these things do get old....

And no - I don't get to share a name with the greatest fictional heroine of all time, instead I get to share it with Dirrrty X-Tina Aguilera. Now that really gets old.

[stingingpistol]

sam could do anything with a twitch of her nose. it'd be lovely to be able to twitch my dishes clean and twitch my laundry folded or hung up in my closet!

x-tina hasn't been looking as skanky since she got engaged and married. i will fess up to flipping thru the odd celeb mag when i'm standing in line at the grocery store, and she looks like she's channelling marilyn monroe these days, which is a vast improvement over her days of channelling twisted sister and ur average pole dancer.

[JACkory]

Okay...I am no newbie, but I shall relent and provide the following information:

- Your most marked characteristic? My heighth and body-build have been noted as being somewhat "imposing"

- The quality you most like in a man? A certain laid back, mellow ease

- The quality you most like in a woman? A free spirit and exceptional taste

- What do you most value in your friends? Loyalty, acceptance

- What is your principle defect? Emotional instability

- What is your favorite occupation? Making music

- What is your dream of happiness? Perfection within and without

- What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes? To somehow lose my wife and son

- What would you like to be? Happy with who I am in the moment

- In what country would you like to live? A newly established country on another planet

- What is your favorite color? I have often wondered if I am weird because I have never had a favorite color. They are all pretty pleasing, if you ask me, it all depends on context, right?

- What is your favorite flower? Likewise though I find most all flowers to be quite lovely, I would not go so far as to say that I have chosen a favorite.

- What is your favorite bird? Bats are pretty neat, but you just can't beat a peacock for gaudy scenery (If I were an eater of fowl I would have loved to give the following answer:
-What is your favorite bird?Chicken...fried, not baked.
Ha ha ha!

- Who are your favorite prose writers? Lester Bangs, John Updike, several more

- Who are your favorite poets? Charles Baudelaire, William Blake, Bob Dylan, Walt Whitman

- Who is your favorite hero of fiction? Andy Sipowicz

- Who is your favorite poster? There are a few, I wouldn't want to name just one

- Who are your favorite heroines of fiction? Aunt Bea

- Who are your favorite composers? Bach, Beethoven, Mozart...the usual suspects, as well as Glass, Reich and Stockhausen

- Who are your favorite painters? M.C. Escher, Salvador Dali, Man Ray

- Who are your heroes in real life? US Military, all firemen and most policemen, basically anyone who educates themselves for the sake of gaining wisdom and knowledge, whether they are successful as a result or not, they have enriched themselves on their own accord and that's worth emulating

- What is it you most dislike? A lot of the qualities I find in myself, I'm afraid. But I can't stand condescension, phoniness, excessive machismo, people who take too much for granted, a fightin' drunk...I don't like being talked down to nor do I appreciate false modesty.

- What natural gift would you most like to possess? Compassion

- How would you like to die? I'm not gonna die...But I'd like to leave this body behind while comfortably tucked into bed, eyes closed, lost in the middle of a heavenly dream...If I were feeling suicidal I would tell you that a lethal heroin overdose sounds wonderful...I'm NOT feeling suicidal, though, and I feel I should point out that I have never tried heroin nor do I ever intend to try it...unless, of course, I get suicidal and take the killer dose, which cannot really be classified as "trying heroin", since it's effectiveness will have rendered obsolete any future dabblings with the stuff. Beat it at it's own game...shoot it WANTING to die, then it can't really kill you, it can only deliver you to the afterlife...
Wow, that got a little bizarre...

- What is your present state of mind? Cluttered

- To what faults do you feel most indulgent? Procrastination

- What is your motto? I was not issued a motto at the time of my incubation and birthing period. I was born in a time before such motto placement had become mandatory. However, if I were to choose my OWN motto (ludicrous idea, that), it would probably be "Lord, Kill The Pain"

[kats]

because the drinks are being passed around at work, so getting anything done is highly unlikely;


Your most marked characteristic?
an inability to fill out online quizzes without making a sarcastic comment about the nature of them.

- The quality you most like in a man?
someone willing to smoke, drink and sit.

- The quality you most like in a woman?
someone willing to smoke, drink and sit.

- What do you most value in your friends?
see above.

- What is your principle defect?
an inability to listen effectively. but to my credit, i can pretend i'm listening.

- What is your favorite occupation?
not any one that i have actually held. perhaps film executive would be kinda cool. or academic in American lit.

- What is your dream of happiness?
a chair, a pack of cigarettes, a glass of wine, a good book and the knowledge that i have absolutely no other obligations in the world.

- What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes?
possibly the above.

- What would you like to be?
i have always thought a pr practioner, but i'm finally realising that the path to academia is lit and ready for the taking. you know, accept the inevitable.

- In what country would you like to live?
norway, somewhere exceptionally cold. freaking australia and its damn aridity. wouldn't mind a stint in england.

- What is your favorite color?
black.

- What is your favorite flower?
tulip.
- What is your favorite bird?
pidgeon-rat

- Who are your favorite prose writers?
bret easton ellis (obvious and populist, but whatever), dennis cooper (for my obligatory offensiveness), henry james, william burroughs, fyodor dostoyevsky, virgina woolf, william faulkner, djuna barnes, mark twain, herman melville, jack keuroac, thomas pynchon, joseph conrad, arthur koestler, franz kafka, nathaniel hawthorne, poe,
i added a playwrights section:
henrik ibsen, chekov, pinter, tennessee williams, brecht. saw the best production of mother courage and her children

- Who are your favorite poets?
dennis cooper, leonard cohen, john ashbery, harriet mullins, poe, sylvia plath (i wanna be fifteen and angsty forever), allen ginsberg, 'i've seen the best minds of my generation destroyed, starving hysterical naked...', pablo neruda, any of the beats, really.

- Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
humbert humbert. no, not really. patrick bateman.

- Who is your favorite poster(beside Phil)
phil forever!

- Who are your favorite heroines of fiction?
orlando. orlando, orlando. though partly male... but the essence was there.

- Who are your favorite composers?
god, i couldn't care.

- Who are your favorite painters?
anselm kiefer, jasper johns, pollock, charles blackman, marcel duchamp (i stand by the notion that nude descending staircase no.2 is the best painting of all time), christian boltanski - again, not a painter, but just...amazing. gilbert and george -not technically painters, but they consider themselves 'living' artworks and i pay credit to two gay men in matching suits with no hair. lin onus, doris salcedo - amazing colombian installation artist. georges braque. francis beacon, martin kippenberger (a german rejoicing in ugliness, who would have thought)

- Who are your heroes in real life?
my american literature lecturer. lame, but true. more like ardent admiration, but i suppose thats the same thing when it comes down to it.

- What is it you most dislike?
fish. feral things. nature's d student.


- What natural gift would you most like to possess?
excitement.

- How would you like to die?
piano falling on my head. my god, it WILL happen.

- What is your present state of mind?
indifferent, slightly lethargic.

- To what faults do you feel most indulgent?
arrogance. pretentsion. all round fuckwittery.

- What is your motto?
everything's coming up milhouse.

[RocDoc]

_{- How would you like to die?
piano falling on my head. my god, it WILL happen.}

Really laughing out loud!
Too many Tom & Jerry cartoons when you were small, eh?

...and...

_{- What is it you most dislike?
fish. feral things. nature's d student.}

'Nature's d student'??
Ai!
Knowing for awhile how strong your pisciphobia is, that's simply perfect!

It also set me up perfectly for the BIG laugh with the falling piano taking you out.