Patrick's Saturday Six #235

Patrick's Saturday Six is all about the movies this week. If you want to play, click here.

1. What’s the last movie you watched in the theater? Appaloosa

2. How much is absolutely too much to pay for seeing a movie in a theater at night? $15.00

3. Other than popcorn and a drink, what concession item are you most likely to buy in a movie theater? Non-pareils.

4. Take the quiz: In What Genre Should You Be A Movie Star?

Romance
You're the girl who (unlike in real life) ends up with the sweet, caring, gentle man at the end. And when that's over, you move on to the next film and get to experience it all again!

Downside: When that's over, the perfect man/woman goes back to their trailor, drinks, fights with their actual spouse and pretty much leaves you in the dust. Oh, and you never get any "action". That's a different genre...

5. What was the last movie you watched at home? George Cukor's 1933 Little Women on AMC.

6. Would you have paid to watch this film in a movie theater when it originally came out? Absolutely.

Saturday Six - Episode 75

1. When is the last time you took a vacation and went basically nowhere? Was it as relaxing as previous vacations where you have actually planned a trip? On my way back from Arizona I spontaneously decided to stop at a few places on the drive home that I'd wanted to see even though they weren't exactly on the way. So without planning it more than a few hours ahead of time, I went to Chiricahua National Monument (in Southeastern Arizona); to White Sands National Monument (in Southwestern New Mexico); to Cloudcroft, NM; to Guadalupe National Park (in West Texas); and finally, to Monahan's Sand Dunes (just off I-20, coming back to Dallas).

It was late afternoon when I realized I was getting near Monahan's, and although I hadn't planned to stop, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to watch the sunset from the beauty of the dunes. I stopped at a McDonald's for drive-through and drove on out to the dunes.

It was after hours on Sunday so the park was officially closed, but I'd been there before, and knew that I could drive in anyway. I found a place to park facing the endless western sky, and I enjoyed my cheeseburger and coffee as the sun sank lower and lower on the horizon. When I'd finished eating, I grabbed my camera and began walking out onto the dunes. It was a little eerie, as there was no one else there, but to my delight I noticed lots of wildlife: there were cottontails and whole flocks of roadrunners hurrying about in plain sight. Still, I wasn't prepared for what I saw when I crested the first big dune: there, a couple hundred feet away from me, was a lone coyote. He stopped, looked at me, and clearly lifted his head and sniffed, as if to say: what are you, and what are you doing here?

I hadn't even taken my camera out of its case, and I felt a moment of real regret at not having my 35mm with my telephoto lens; nevertheless, I was able to get one photo of this wonderful creature before he turned his head and loped away, out of sight, across the dunes. It was a magical end to my spontaneous road trip.

2. Take this quiz: Which historical lunatic are you? Apparently, I'm Joshua Abraham Norton, first and only Emperor of the United States of America! (um, sure I am...)

3. READER'S CHOICE QUESTION #64 from Jaymi: What is your favorite book from childhood and why? The Box Car Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner. It's the story of 4 young orphaned siblings who run away and survive on their own, without adults, by living in an bandoned boxcar. I loved it because I identified with the self-reliance of the kids. I wanted to join them.

4. READER'S CHOICE QUESTION #65 from Hannah: What book character do you most identify with and why? Hermione in Harry Potter. I identify with her because she's smart and hard-working and thinks outside the box (and all of those applyto me too); also, we seem to share a propensity for falling for guys who frustrate us in a variety of ways.

5. READER'S CHOICE QUESTION #66 from Holly: What do you think is an appropriate gift to a party? A bottle of good wine and some fresh flowers or a plant are always appropriate, in my book. What do you consider a quality Christmas gift from an acquaintance to a party or get together, a friend, and a GREAT friend? I love Christmas, and I've collected Christmas tree ornaments for over 30 years, so for me, a quality gift would be the same whether it's from an acquaintance, a friend, or a great friend: another ornament for my tree, chosen with me in mind, will win my heart every time.

6. READER'S CHOICE QUESTION #67 from Judi: If you had to make a choice for the rest of your life between food and sex, which would you choose, provided the following conditions: If you chose sex, you would never feel hungry, but just wouldn't be able to enjoy a nice meal or the tastes of good food or drink; if you chose food, you would no longer have the physical intimacy and pleasure, but you still wouldn't feel deprived of it. In other words, whichever one you choose to give up will be a series of pleasures you'll never be able to experience firsthand again. Yep, I suggested this question to Patrick (thanks for using it, Patrick, and I think you phrased it better than I did). However, I have to give credit to my firstborn, Alex, and her fiance, Chris, who posed this question to me on a roadtrip that the three of us took this spring. My answer hasn't changed; here's what I told the kids: although I love to cook and enjoy good food and wine, if I had to pick one or the other to enjoy for the rest of my life, I'd choose sex over food every time.

Patrick's Saturday Six - a couple of days late

1. You find out that you have to appear on a daytime talk show. It doesn't matter whose show you choose, but you must appear on one. Which show would you pick and why? Ummmmmmmm, maybe Oprah...is she still on in the daytime? I never watch daytime television...(which tells you just how out-of-it I am).

2. Have you ever joined an online dating or penpal site? If so, have you kept in touch with anyone that you met there; if not, have you ever thought about joining up? Of course I have...I actually decided to do the Saturday Six this week, late, because when I was reading other journals, I didn't see anyone who'd answered yes to this question. I've had a couple of great relationships as a result of internet dating sites, and also I've made a few good friends whom I'd otherwise not have met, and yes, I've kept in touch; 7 years is the longest duration.

3. Who was the last person you promised you'd keep in touch with following a move or job change? Have you kept in touch? The last people with whom I promised to stay in touch were co-workers in a place that was truly a nightmare working situation; e.g., I had to spin blood but there were no rubber gloves, and when I requested we order some gloves at a department meeting I was told by my supervisor that they weren't about to waste money on gloves; we were to steal them (I'm not kidding! I had lots of fantasies about turning them in to OSHA). Two of my colleagues who stayed behind called me regularly, until they left, to commiserate, and I was good about returning their calls, but I didn't initiate calls to them...it was too much like being in a car wreck together; too many painful memories to re-visit voluntarily.

4. Take this quiz: What pizza best describes your personality? I'm a cheese pizza.

5. You're having dinner with friends at a restaurant. Besides the company, what is the most important part of the meal: the appetizer, the drinks, the salad, the entree, or the dessert? Hmmmm, I'd have to say it depends entirely on the restaurant. My friends and I tend to meet for the ambiance, and food is sometimes secondary, but when it's not, we go to various restaurants for specific items on the menu...e.g., to Mia's for the brisket tacos, etc.

6. Have you ever submitted a Reader's Choice question to the "Saturday Six?" If so, did the answers surprise you? If not, why haven't you? I haven't yet; I'm working up to this.

Patrick's Saturday Six

1. What store do you associate most with your childhood in terms of happy memories and why? I grew up in a small college town in Minnesota in the 1960's, and a block from our house there was a one-room, Mom & Pop grocery store called "Leone & Lloyd's", coincidentally owned and operated by Leone and Lloyd. I visited that store at least once a day most weekdays from the time I was 10 (when we moved into the neighborhood) until I was 15 or 16. I'd stop in after school for a bag of chips, or my mom would send me to pick up a loaf of bread, or my older brother, who was 15 when I was 10, would send me to pick up cigarettes. He smoked Lucky Strikes and later, Pall Malls, each of which cost 25 cents a pack, and I'd charge him a nickel tip for running the errand for him. Yep, they sold cigarettes to minors back then, in the dark ages. I loved going there because Leone was almost always cooking some wonderful, fragrant soup in the back of the store, and I liked hanging around and sniffing and trying to guess the ingredients. Also, I was a talker and Leone and Lloyd had no kids, and maybe because of that they were patient with my chatter. Those were different times; I remember that Leone kept boxes of Kotex modestly wrapped in plain brown paper, which seemed a rather pointless endeavor to me even when I was 10, as nothing else in the store was wrapped up and everyone knew what you were buying when you walked up to the register with one of those boxes. The store is long gone, as are the 60's, and Lloyd, and Leone.
2. What song makes you the most emotional and why? Tears in Heaven by Eric Clapton, for all the obvious reasons.
3. Take the Quiz: What year were you born under, and what year should you have been born under?
According to the Quiz, I was born under the Year of the Ox: You are solid, methodical, and you do things right the first time. Uh-huh, sure, could you tell that to my former boss, and while you're at it, to my ex? Even when no one else does, you always believe in yourself. Actually, being 6th of 7 kids, I have to admit I'm prone to self-doubt...LOTS of self-doubt. You tend to see the world in black and white, right or wrong. Sheesh, I have a graduate degree in PSYCHOLOGY, for Chrissake! I spend all my time looking at various nuances and infinite shades of grey... A good memory and eye for details means you tend to thrive at near impossible tasks. This is true; no need to go into detail here but this should also be mentioned to my former boss and my ex. You are most compatible with a snake or rooster. Um, I think this is supposed to read that I'm most compatible with those born under the year of the snake or rooster - see, there's that eye-for-detail thing rearing it's ugly head...)
According to the Quiz, I should have been born under the Year of the Ram: Your (sic) most comfortable inside your head (wtf? as opposed to outside my body?!?!?) and often daydream the day away. Alright, alright, guilty as charged - and btw, I've been accused of this (by my former boss and ex). You have an artistic temperament that makes you seem creative to some (e.g., friends and family) eccentric to others (e.g., former boss and ex). You avoid conflict at all costs, and you have a difficult time with relationships. Who, me? Um, dunno if it means anything, but I think I've gotten this same message multiple times in various fortune cookies. Attractive and with good manners, you tend to shine in social situations. Thank you, thank you, thank you. You are most compatible with a Pig or Rabbit. Wellllll, I've been with my share of Pigs, thank you very much, and as for Rabbits...is that Rabbit, as in Rabbit, run?
4. What time do you typically wake up each day? Aaaaarrrggghhh, left to my own devices, for the past few months I've had the luxury of waking at about 8:30 each morning, and I like it. What is the latest you're normally able to sleep? 10:30, and I feel like an absolute slug when I do - unless I'm not alone, in which case, like a pig in clover, I'm pretty happy about it! ;p - but I have to admit that hasn't happened since January. How many hours of sleep do you get in an average night? 6.
5. What frightens you the most about getting older? The thought of becoming dependent on others.
6. Reader's Choice Question #56 from Debit: If you found the house of your dreams, right price, then discovered that a murder or suicide had taken place in the house, would you still consider buying the house? No way.