I’ve been tagged a couple of times. It will take approximately six years for me to complete this. During that interval, it will live in my “draft notes” folder.
I’m not tagging anyone. Read them if you want, don’t if you don’t.
1. I find taxes perversely interesting now that I’m (just a little bit) older. I learn something new every year. In 2007 (2006 filing) I learned that you get positively buttraped for “married filing separately.” Last year I filed longform for the first time. This year I discovered a little bit about tax credits for points while refinancing a home. Next year, I’ll learn about dependant deductions and (hopefully) capital gains and losses.
2. I like to publish my music playlists. I’m modestly ecclectic in my tastes and, though I usually have my players set to random, my music will sometimes reflect my mood. I’m quite sure it’s not something that people pay a great deal of attention to, but it’s important enough to me that I seek out audio devices and applications that support it (www.last.fm, www.foobar2000.org, www.rockbox.org).
3. At any given time, the value of my liquor cabinet approximates that of my cars. I don’t like cheap crap, but I like a lot of different things. Reciprocally, I don’t really mind cheap crappy cars 🙂
4. I’m a bit vain. Perhaps not a surprise.
5. I value intelligence, competence, and self-capability more than anything.
6. Re: #5. Except my family. Though I’ve no qualms there.
7. I like quality. Quality clothes, quality booze/beer/wine, quality thought, quality -everything-.
8. I procrastinate. By way of example, when is the last time you remember this survey going around? Yeah, that’s probably close to the time I started it. And it’s iffy whether I’ll finish it tonight even.
9. I am conservative. For the most part. There are two specific examples I can cite that most conservatives would disagree with me upon: abortion and -true- freedom of speech. In regard to abortion, I have no right to decide (as it is a woman’s body and, as such, her right to make that decision – yes, I say this with no qualms after having had a child of my own; I have an undeerstandable bias, but that does not under any circumstances give me the right to profess my will over another person’s body. In regard to freedom of speech, “conservatives” generally need to adopt an atitude of practicing what they preach, especially in regard to speech they disagree with, to avoid hypocrisy. Actions are another story…
10. Ties into “I’m vain”, but I like people to know what I think. How else are they going to form an opinion based upon my ideals? (That’s pseudo-sarcastic.)
11. I believe this country is going straight to hell, just like the EU. Go ahead and ask me why, I could do with a reason to rant.
12. I -love- my family. My daughter amazes me with her curiosity and inquisitiveness, and my wife amazes me with her undsrstanding and true goodness.
13. I like variety. After all, if you keep the same routines for the rest of your life, how are you going to see alll the other things you like? (N.B. Value > variety)
14. I love to better understand what I already know. For example, in #13 I already had an approximate awareness of “N.B.”. Yet it never hurts to further develop context. I looked it up. See here.
15. My daughter can challenge my patience sometimes. It is no fault of hers; it is fault of myself.
16. I feel starved for time. I want to know everything, do everything, and still maintain channels amongst my friends and acquaintances.
17. My wife is, frankly, amazing. She can take me from a near rage to a settled, thoughtful state that reflects my ideal image of myself. In any circumstance.
18. I have weaknesses. Don’t bother asking me about them. If I don’t tell you personally, you’ll never know. Not a big secret, so does everyone, but it’s something. And I’m running out of ideas without resorting to the “I really like spaghetti” style answers. I’m trying to do something deep here, people!
19. Children are exhausting, but perhaps not nearly so much as one might think. At least, mine isn’t 🙂
20. I would like to learn to read and have a workable understanding of Latin. Yes, it’s a dead language. It’s a dead language with vast history and context, however.
21. I can speak a few words of Mandarin. Something I pursued at one time, and something I may get back to at some point in the (distant) future.
22. I’m maybe (more than) a little bit GQ. Big turnaround from high school.
23. I like stout, black coffee. One of the best I’ve ever had was (I believe) a chickory blend from Cafe Du Mond (Du Monde?) in New Orleans.
24. I LOVE to travel. And I finally got my passport this year. Fortunate, considering I have family in Canada and may want to go there again someday soon 🙂
25. I have summed up the complete and total essence of my being in the previous 24 questions. (The real #25: SURPRISE! I have an enormous amount of sarcasm!)
