While I await news from the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville (I spent most of December and January preparing materials for my application), I've watched a lot of Inside the Actor's Studio with James Lipton (Heaven bless You-tube. PS Watch the new Colin Firth episode). I like this show, because it takes a high brow approach to what is essentially a low brow interest: movie stars telling all. People Magazine eat your heart out!
In any case, at the end of every episode, Mr. Lipton asks his guests a series of questions. The questionnaire, as we are reminded every episode, was the brainchild of French television personality Bernard Pivot. In any case, I thought it might be fun to answer it.
What is your favorite word? Ethereal
What is your least favorite word? Tintinnabulation (tinkling)
What turns you on? Intelligence
What turns you off? Obvious, Stinking Mendacity
What sound or noise do you love? The sound of cicadas at dusk.
Which sound or noise do you hate? I adamantly dislike any erratic, grating, or jarring sound: i.e. clinking dishes, the sound of chewing/slurping, a jack hammer, sneezing, whispering during a lecture/meeting (especially, one I’m conducting), and loud explosions of any kind.
What’s your favorite curse word? (This one’s incredibly salty, so if you’d like to skip it, PLEASE do).
I like any combination or variation of the word “shit”, although I find I’m quite partial to “shite” (the UK variant) and “shiza/scheiße” (the German variant). “Oh, sweet shit in a bucket,” “shit for brains,” “great hurling shit balls,” “[he/ she] shit bricks,” “[he/she] is bat shit crazy,” and “I woke up feeling like a parrot shat in my mouth” are all favorites, though rarely, if ever, used by me.
What profession would you like to have? Professor
What profession would you not like? I would hate to be a door-to-door vacuum salesman or a personal assistant to a corporate banker/CEO.
If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? “See. I told you it was gonna be hard; but you insisted, and I obliged.”
