A Fishy Interview of Sorts

Beth of So the Fish Said offered to interview her readers and sent out five questions to those who volunteered. As Beth is a neighbor of sorts and one who encouraged me to start a blog, I took her up on her offer. Here are my though provoking answers to her questions:

1. Remember the movie Brewster's Millions? That happens to you, except on a smaller scale. You receive a million dollars that you must spend in 30 days. However, you cannot have any assets to show for the money at the end of the month (and you can't buy something and then destroy it), you cannot waste the money, you cannot give it away, and you cannot tell anyone what you are doing. How do you ditch the dough in a month or less?

This is harder than it sounds. I guess I would try to make the best use of it within the confines of my interests. Certainly donations to organizations doesn't constitute "giving it away", say like to relatives. So the Red Cross and the ASPCA would be in for major chunks of it. I like to get rid of it to others who share my love of rowing and to those that have helped my family with the love of the sport. So a boathouse for the Ohio University Crew Teams would be in order and one for Virginia Tech as well - as long as they share it with Radford. I'd also like to get another boathouse built on either the Prince William or Fairfax side of the Occoquan. Right now there isn't enough room for everyone and every school that wants to row. Another chunk would go to the Rails to Trails Conservancy to build more biking/jogging/skating trails on abandoned railroad right of ways/roadbeds. I love riding on the W&OD Trail as opposed to riding on the streets and the more trails the better.

2. You are locked in a toy store overnight, with no way out until it reopens in the morning. What do you play with all night?

Assuming I was alone, I guess I'd be playing with their video games, riding the bikes, playing "Sorry" against myself or creating epic battles with their stock of action figures.

3. If you could have a dinner party with any three famous people, living or dead, you would be wasting your supernatural powers on hosting dinner parties. What would you do instead?

Since I have the power to raise dead people, I'll assume I can also time travel. I think witnessing a historic event as it occurs with those responsible would be fascinating. Say watching D-Day unfold with Eisenhower, Churchill and Rommel and get their take on things as the invasion happens.

4. What's the best thing since sliced bread? Now, sliced bread ain't all that impressive, so what's the best mediocre, hum-drum improvement or advancement that has made modern life just ever so slightly more convenient for humanity, along the lines of saving yourself five seconds every time you want a piece of bread.

Having watched the PBS series 1910 House, I can say that the washing machine and dryer have done more for the cause of freeing mankind (mostly women, lets be honest) than anything. Lord washing use to be an all day or two affair. None of this loading up the machine and coming back 45 minutes later to throw the clothes in the dryer and another hour has them dry and ready to fold. It was all manual. Drudgery thy name is laundry.

5. What's your best quality? The response to this question must be a simple declarative statement. You may elaborate on that statement, provided that your elaboration does not include the words "but," "however," or "although," or any other hedging, equivocating, back-sliding, gerrymandering (which is not at all appropriate in this context, but I think it should be, don't you?) or any other type of backing down from the simple declarative statement with which you began your response.

I am a "the glass is half full" person. I'm always looking for the positive. I can remember my mother once telling me when I was quite young that I had a "sunny" disposition. I'd like to think that is still true. I don't indulge in office politics. I'm a loyal friend. You'd like me.

If you'd like to be interviewed, leave a comment and I'll send five questions your way.