Fifty Questions, Part Four

Howdy, fellow babies! Here I am with the penultimate offering in my "Fifty Questions" series!

31. Last book you read?

When I Was a Slave: Memoirs from the Slave Narrative Collection -- Norman R. Yetman (Editor)

An exceptionally poignant quote from the book, here... Delicia Patterson, a former slave, was 92 years old when interviewed in 1937. She was quoted as saying "I think the time will soon be when people won't be looked on as regards to whether you are black or white, but all on the same equality. I may not live to see it but it is on the way. Many don't believe it, but I know it." Well, things have improved, but we're still waiting.

 
32. Book you are currently reading?

Sin in Soft Focus: Pre-Code Hollywood -- Mark A. Vieira

33. Last show you watched?

Person of Interest.

34. Last person you talked to?

As of this writing? (Things will have changed by the time this sees publication!) The librarian who gave me extra time on the library computer.

35. The relationship between you and the person you just texted?

Jenni. I call her my "daughter." In reality, she's like a daughter to me. I was engaged to her mom for several years while she was growing up, and helped to raise her.

36. Favorite food?

Four-way tie: Fried oysters, boneless Chinese spareribs (very well done), McDonald's Filet-o-Fish, boneless buffalo wings.

 
37. Place you want to visit?

Ireland.

38. Last place you were?

The library in Webster, Massachusetts.

39.  Do you have a crush?

Not nowadays. When I was younger, I had celebrity crushes now and then. My very first celebrity crush was an actress named Noelle Adam, and my first "real-world" crush was with an older girl -- she must have been nine or ten years old, when I was around six -- named Crystal.

40. Last time you kissed someone?

Damn, that's been weeks, anyway...  What a depressing note on which to end.

One chapter left, fellow babies. Hope you haven't been too bored.

Thanks for your time.

Fifty Questions, Part Three

 

Hello, fellow babies! Here we are with Part Three of Fifty Questions. Hope you're enjoying this. There are two more posts remaining after today's!

21.  How long does it take you to shower?

About three or four minutes... if I'm alone.

22.  How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

Baby, I was born ready! Oh, you mean ready to go out and start my day? Twenty to thirty minutes.

23. Ever been in a physical fight?

Several. The outcomes varied.

24. Turn on?

Asian women, very slight overbites (think Gene Tierney, pictured above), green-eyed women. If I ever find a green-eyed Asian woman -- good luck -- with a very slight overbite... I'll marry her.

25. Turn-off?

People who call their loved ones "Boo" or "Boo-Boo." If your name isn't Arthur "Boo" Radley, I don't wanna hear it. And Yogi Bear's sidekick, Boo-Boo, is an annoying little twerp.

26. The reason you started blogging?

I wanted to share my brilliance with the world. *ahem*


 27. Fears?

Members of the Green Lantern Corps are not allowed to fear. (I didn't make that up... but someone else did...)

28. Last thing that made you cry?

Allergies, smartass.

29. Last time you said you loved someone?

To quote Rick in Casablanca, "That's so long ago, I don't remember."

30. Meaning behind the name of your blog (The Lair of the Silver Fox)?

One of my former readers gave me the "Silver Fox" nickname when I was writing my David'Z RantZ blog. When I started a new blog -- which was originally designed to showcase my "serious" writing -- I thought The Lair of the Silver Fox sounded clever.

That's it for now! Part Four in a couple of days!

Thanks for your time

Fifty Questions, Part Two

Well, here we are with Part Two of Fifty Questions... as it says above. Duh.

11. Something you miss?

The 1960s (and early 1970s). Not to relive the hippie era. I was a little too young for that. I'm referring to a very happy childhood which I wouldn't mind reliving. (Pictured above is one of the coolest toys I ever owned, the Horrorscope. When they show up, they sell for well over $1,000!)

12. Favorite Song?

Probably Stand By Me, but as much as I love all the versions I've heard, my favorite is by Spyder Turner.

13. How old are you?

57, but not for very much longer...


And you can cut me in half and count the rings, if you don't believe me!

14. Zodiac sign?

Scorpio!

15. Quality to look for in a partner.

The ability to meet deadlines!!!

Oh, I thought you meant a writing partner! For a romantic partner... She has to understand my sense of humor, and that to me, few things are sacred.

(Notice how I amazingly answered that question without bringing up anything sexual?)

16. Favorite Quote? 

"Someone like you makes it hard to live without somebody else." -- Tim Hardin
 
17. Favorite Actor?

Robert De Niro.

18. Favorite Color?

Black. If you don't consider that a "real" color... green.

19. Loud music or soft?

Since when is that an either/or kinda thing? I have over 2,000 45s, over 1,000 LPs, hundreds of CDs, and there are a lot of songs I love which I don't own. It would be pretty incredible if I were only to like one type.

20. Where do you go when you are sad?

There's a nearby brothel that... Okay, okay, seriously? I usually just stay at home, or go out for a drive, gas tank permitting.

That's it for now. Part Three will be coming at ya in a couple of days!

Thanks for your time. 

Separated at Birth?

A couple of weeks ago, I was binge-watching the entirety of the mid-1970s Ellery Queen TV show, which I own on DVD. (The series is highly recommended and available here.)

Anyway, one episode guest-starred Vincent Price. A different episode guest-starred Eve Arden.

Now, although the title of this post is "Separated at Birth?" I don't intend to suggest that Mr. Price and Ms. Arden look alike... but they sure do act alike! It's uncanny. Watching one after watching the other, you can't help but be struck by the similarities.

It's almost as if ol' Vinnie had dressed up in drag -- and it wouldn't be the first time, ya know? -- to play Eve's role!

Thanks for your time.

Fifty Questions, Part One

I've been issued a challenge! Janie Junebug, of the WOMEN: WE SHALL OVERCOME blog, recently answered 50 -- count 'em, 50 -- nosy questions, which Janie referred to as "The Spanish Inquisition." The questions were sent to Janie by andi filante (who called them "50 freakin' questions") of the delusions of ingenuity blog, and Janie passed them to me.

I'm going to steal an idea from Janie and split these fifty questions and answers into multiple posts -- five, to be exact -- to spare you fellow babies from a really lonnng post! You're welcome.

Oh, and one friendly warning. Some of these questions are very personal, and to paraphrase Tina Turner, I nevah, evah do nothin' very personal -- not on my blog, certainly -- so whenever a really serious, in-depth question arises... I'll probably lie.

Okay, here goes nothing...

1. What are you wearing? 

Black, of course. Okay, truth be told, black jeans, black socks, a black t-shirt and a navy blue button-down shirt, for that unexpected splash of color. *ahem*

2. Ever been in love?

Of course. When I was seventeen, I had a brief fling with a circus acrobat named Talia. She taught me something called The Heimlicker Maneuver (sic) and I fell in love with it... and her, by extension.

3. Ever have a terrible break-up?

Does a restraining order count? (Oh. Sorry. That "answering a question with a question" is an Irish thing.)

4. How tall are you?

5'6"

5. How much do you weigh?

Now, you see? That's precisely the kind of question I don't intend to answer. Heh.

6. Any tattoos?

No... but if I were ever to get one, I know what it would be. The tattoo would be of a scorpion, with a baby dragon sleeping in the curve of the scorpion's tail. The baby dragon would be sleeping with one eye open.

7. Any piercings?

No. I've pierced a few other people, but only during physical altercations.

8. OTP (One true pair, favorite fictional couple?)

It's a tie. Hermie and Dorothy, from Summer of '42 (the book) and Summer of '42 (the movie), and Rick and Ilsa from Casablanca. (I was going to put Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, but you didn't mean that kind of couple, did you?)

9. Favorite Show?

Modern? Breaking Bad.

10. Favorite Bands?

Oh, I get more than one? Good. (Let's go totally crazy and include solo artists, too!) These are from my Blogger profile: The Doors, The (early) Beatles, Roy Orbison, Gene Pitney, Herman's Hermits, The Guess Who, (early) Led Zeppelin, Oingo Boingo, U-2, Barbara Lewis, Ray Charles, Wynonie Harris, Lesley Gore, Graham Nash, The Beach Boys, Gene Vincent, Eddie Cochran, Billie Holiday, Willie Dixon, Jay and the Americans (but ONLY IF the "Jay" is Jay Black or Jay Traynor), Muddy Waters, Jim Croce, Queen, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Joe South, Bad Company, Hoodoo Gurus, John Denver, Big Daddy, Redd Kross, Shonen Knife, Velvet Mafia, Dan Fogelberg, and Pink Floyd.

That's it for today, fellow babies. I'll have Part Two ready for ya in a few days... after a brief, totally strange post.

Thanks for your time.

Absent-Minded Abe?

I was watching a documentary about Abraham Lincoln recently, a documentary which quoted heavily from the Emancipation Proclamation.

Part of that document reads as follows:

"Now, therefore I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, by virtue of the power in me vested as Commander-in-Chief, of the Army and Navy of the United States in time of actual armed rebellion against the authority and government of the United States..."

Hm. Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy.

 What's the matter, Abe? Did you forget about the Air Force?  :)

 Thanks for your time.

COMING MONDAY: Fifty Questions, Part One!

A Birthday Memory, Just for the Hell of It

This -- well, one like it -- was the main present I got for my 11th birthday, many long years ago. (That was also the only year I got to invite friends over for a real birthday party.) Innit cool?

For some reason, that very same tiger illustration found its way onto a child's wastebasket. I found -- and bought -- one at a flea market a few years ago. As for the drum set, I'm still looking for one of those. An affordable one, that is. Last one I found on eBay had a starting bid of $400!

Thanks for your time.