Rivka, slightly desperate, invents a meme.

[rivka]

Ask me a question or give me a topic that isn't about my children or parenting, and I will write you a post in which I pretend to be an interesting and well-rounded person.

Comments

[naomikritzer]

You live in Baltimore, right? What do you like and dislike about it?

(I visited Baltimore once, for a WorldCon, and had a miserable time and hated the city. So you could talk about how awesome it is and maybe change my opinion.)

[vom-marlowe.livejournal.com]

We're due a snowstorm here. I was thinking of that time we went to the ski cabin, and had a Finnish sauna. Do you remember that? That was sooooo much fun. It's one of my favorite memories.

What's a favorite memory of back then?

[going-not-gone.livejournal.com]

I'd like to know more about how you got into your current career and the type of research you do.

[baratron.livejournal.com]

Yep. Why did you become a psychologist? What got you into it?

[wcg.livejournal.com]

(Adopting deep Hampden accent)

How 'bout them O's, hon?

[jerusha.livejournal.com]

Would you be willing to talk more about how you came to Unitarian Universalism (i.e. were you raised UU? If you had a different childhood religion, what was your path from there to your current church?) and your current congregation (is there any such thing as a 'typical UU congregation'? If there is, how (if at all) does yours differ from it?) Are there ways in which your beliefs disagree with and/or conflict with your congregation's beliefs? (To the extent that question is meaningful in a non-credal religion, but still.)

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

What do you think about electronic patient records and the privacy thereof?

B

[kate_nepveu]

Of the Aubrey-Maturin books you've read so far, which is your favorite and least favorite? Or, if that's too difficult, most memorable/lingering and least?

[fairoriana.livejournal.com]

Which other countries in the world do you feel the most association to? Why?

[puzzlement.livejournal.com]

Are there any particular health policies or outcomes you hope your research results influence or change? (Past results or future directions, as you like.)

Cherry Ames

[(Anonymous)]

Are you missing any Cherry Ames books you wish people would send you?
-Sumana

[marydell.livejournal.com]

Ok, I was seriously getting ready to ask you a question, but it was totally baby related! Because I am barely capable of thinking of un-baby-related things at the moment, myself.

Um, I can try, though! :) What's your all-time favorite book, and why?

[rivka.livejournal.com]

You can ask a baby-related question too, if you want. It just won't help me feign well-roundedness.

[marydell.livejournal.com]

Hee! It's about making baby food from scratch...I've just started doing this, despite being the world's least ept cook. I haven't really formulated a question other than "do you do this?" and waving my hands around helplessly.

I managed to make batches of 4 different things tonight, though, so it's going better than it did initially.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I didn't make basic purees from scratch. It just never seemed worth the effort, when Earth's Best babyfood tastes perfectly yummy.

I did, a little later on, make what I can only describe as "baby food casseroles" from Annabel Karmel's First Meals (http://www.amazon.com/First-Meals-Annabel-Karmel/dp/0789441772) cookbook. And once Alex could handle soft table foods I cooked a bunch of things just for her, like soft mushy sweet potato slices.

[marydell.livejournal.com]

Cool, thanks! I'll look for that cookbook. Earth's Best is the nicest of the babyfoods we've tried, but young Mr. Allergic Rash has decided he'd rather not have anything commercially processed. *argh*

This is a big one. There's a small one too.

[zingerella.livejournal.com]

A friend in the States and I were just talking about changes in the mood down there, over the past eight years. She said that the U.S. finally feels as small as it looks on a map of the world—still big, but not overflowing with optimism the way she remembers feeling about it. She says it now feels ugly and scared and internally fractured.

How does it look to you, from where you sit? A lot of people seem to think that President Obama is a hopeful sign, not only for what he may do, but also because the fact that enough people voted for him may indicate that Americans are tired of fear, and uginess, and fragmentation.

If that's too "OMG WHAT?!" Here's another question: What do you look for in a chocolate chip cookie? Do you like them crunchy, gooey, slightly soft? Big or small chips? Tasting slightly caramelized?

[kazoogrrl.livejournal.com]

If you worked at Colonial Williamsburg, you would be what kind of historical reenactor, and why?

[drelmo.livejournal.com]

Back in the early days of "Respectful of Otters", you wrote some passionate and eloquent essays about government failures as they impacted your areas of expertise. What, if anything, is changing, and what still needs to be changed?

[janetmiles.livejournal.com]

Do you have an opinion about labor unions?

[hobbitbabe.livejournal.com]

Choose one topic for the following essay question:

Do you have any kitchen appliances for mixing stuff up, and what do you make with them and should I buy one or more of them? (giant immovable mixer, food processor, immersion blender, old-style blender, etc).

What are you hoping to do at SUUSI this summer?

What do you like best about your new house?

[pameladean]

What are three things you'd do to your house if you could?

P.

[moobabe.livejournal.com]

What's your favorite nonfiction book?

If you could do anything (job/hobby/etc) that you can't or don't do right now, what would it be?

[marykaykare.livejournal.com]

What's your favorite piece of jewelry? What do you look for/attracts you most about pieces you buy?

MKK

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

What's your all-time favorite movie, and why?

[duane-kc.livejournal.com]

If you had unlimited time and budget, would you travel? Where, and why? With or without family? Are there places you would like to see just by yourself, or is traveling without family unthinkable?

[ailbhe]

Your garden, and your dinner, please.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

Those are mine, too!

K. [:-)]

[guruwench.livejournal.com]

If you've watched any of the Muppets, who's your favourite, and why?

[ororo.livejournal.com]

What's the last book you read for your own pleasure? What did you like best about it?

[johnpalmer.livejournal.com]

Is there any one thing that you wish you had blogged about, but even if you were blogging, it's been *way* too long, so you can't blog about it now... but oh, it was *important*, and you really wanted to say something about it!

What was it? What did you want to say?

[castiron.livejournal.com]

What craft skill (where craft could be anything from sewing to blacksmithing to origami to small engine repair) would you most like to learn?

[chargirlgenius.livejournal.com]

I guess this is kind of parenting related, but...

Can I kidnap Michael and Alex on Sunday for a run to the Walters, giving you a bit of a rest? Or would you like to come with me and Henry to the Walters on Sunday? :-)

This show is only there a few more weeks.

Ok, here's a question. What's your favorite section of the Walters? What kind of art really speaks to you?

[rivka.livejournal.com]

We'd love to see you on Sunday. Afternoon? We usually get home from church around one.

[chargirlgenius.livejournal.com]

The boys have Sunday school until about 10:45, so sometime after one would work. I'm sure I still have your address in my mailbox. If not, I'll PM you.

[windsea.livejournal.com]

Not about *parenting*, but about the changes it brings ,,, without discussing how you parent, without talking about the kids -- can you talk about how you and Michael, as adults with full and rich lives already, have been impacted by your decision to become parents? Your other relationships?

[roozle.livejournal.com]

This made me laugh.

If you feel like writing about what you see as a likely scenario for what will happen with health reform under Obama, I bet I'd be fascinated to read it.

That's a little heavy, so if you'd rather pick Summer Vacation Plans for $50, that'd be cool too.

[bcholmes.livejournal.com]

You seem to have a lot of things to say about food: different recipes, liking exotic vegetables, eschewing chef-boy-ar-dee. What kind of relationship did you have with food growing up?

Nutrition

[(Anonymous)]

This question is tangentially related to a disagreement we had a while back about whether or not a low-carb diet is a "fad" diet so if you want to ignore it I'll understand.

The question is this. Given that there is so much conflicting information about nutrition and health, how do you decide what to believe and/or what to feed your family?

Sincerely,
Grandma Susan