You Asked, I Answer: Fun and Deep Stuff

Thank you to everyone who submitted a question to my Formspring this week! This has been a really neat experience. I’ll keep this intro short, as you all asked me a ton of great questions. So many, in fact, I need to break all my answers down into two posts. Today, I’ll answer the Fun and Deep questions you sent me.

Tomorrow, I’ll post answers to the Infertility Related questions you asked me. So… on to the fun stuff!

The Fun Questions

If you could name your blog something else what would it be?

Captain Cranky Pants.

Where are five places I must see in my lifetime?

Not necessarily in this order: Rachel’s Tomb and Masada in Israel; Lucerne, Switzerland; Ireland; The Grand Canyon; and the Pyramids of Egypt. Bonus: We’re going to Ireland for a week in October!

How did my husband and I meet?
Many, many, many moons ago. We met when we were 15 years old and singing together in a regional high school chorus. Larry sat next to my friend Zach in the bass/baritone section and joined us for lunch at our first All South Jersey Chorus Rehearsal. I pretty much didn’t see him again after that; I hung out with my fellow sopranos. We met again a few months later when he passed me in the hall at the All State Chorus auditions. He remembered my name and I totally couldn’t remember his. We met for a third time that summer at a children’s theatre camp… and the rest is history.

Who is one literary character I would love to meet in person if they were alive or real?
Anne of Green Gables. Or Tyler Durden. I can’t decide because they’re both so delusional and seem like fascinating individuals.

What the hell is Cincinnati?
True story: when I was 4, I went to Disney World with my family, on my first plane ride. I was told that when we landed, I’d get to meet Mickey. So I had been very good the whole flight down and when we land, I immediately start asking my parents: “Where’s Mickey? Where’s Mickey?” What I didn’t know is that our flight had a layover in Cincinnati. So here we were on the tarmac, me thinking Mickey Mouse is about to walk down the damn aisle of the plane. My mom explains, “We’re not there yet honey; we’re almost there. We’re in Cincinnati.” I proceed to stand up on my seat and yell at the top of my lungs (for the entire cabin to hear): “What the HELL is Cincinnati?!”

Who is your Celebrity Crush? *burning question* LOL
I have a thing for dark-featured men. George Clooney (really, he’s the Cary Grant of generation), Clive Owen, and yes, as embarrassing as this is… Daniel Radcliffe. My little Potter is all grown up! And delicious looking. (PS: have you seen Radcliffe’s first post-Potter movie trailer? SPOOKY-LOOKING. I am SO there.)

Your favorite childhood memory?
Aside from the Cincinnati story above, I remember making very intricate “radio shows” with my sister when I was really little. We’d schlep my tape recorder all around the house and yard, staging alien invasions and imitating the sounds of helicopters flying by cutting scissors over the microphone and using those little car alarm key chains for alien lasers. I have no idea what happened to those tapes; they’ve probably been recorded over or thrown out, to be honest, but making them with my big sis was a TON of fun.

If you could have picked any career (no restrictions at all), what would you have chosen to do?
If I had to do it all over… photojournalism like my dad. My communications major was kind of a joke and journalism would have been more focused. I have a natural eye and a helluva sense of wanderlust. In retrospect, it probably would have been the better choice for me.

What’s your guilty pleasure?
Sauces. Such as: ranch, barbecue, blue cheese, sweet’n’sour, demi-glace with roasted shallots, roasted garlic and olive oil, caramel, teriyaki glaze, soy, gyoza dip, kewpie mayo, malt vinegar, bourgogne, marinara, vodka with prosciutto, bernaise, bechemel, rose water honey…

The Deep, Philosophical Questions

If all books were being destroyed, what one book (besides the Bible or Torah) would you save even on the penalty of death if found?

I have re-written this answer 4 times already. This is a really difficult question.

I’m torn between The Red Tent, Brave New World, and The Little Prince. They’re all just such important literary works to me, each with their own set of important life lessons and values. That said, I imagine if books are being burned, we’re looking at some sort of post-apocalyptic dystopian future, so perhaps Brave New World would then be the most appropriate choice for this particular scenario. Yeah, let’s go with that.

What led you to convert to Judaism?

I could very honestly answer this question in 3 blog posts, which I think is an excellent prompt for the High Holidays at the end of September! So… stay tuned. To give you the short answer: I decided to convert when I was in high school after years of atheism, despite being raised CEO Protestants (Christmas & Easter Only). We weren’t terribly church-going. My parents were very supportive. I studied with three different rabbis, one for the entire duration of college. I can only just barely read Hebrew, despite taking 3 courses. After we got engaged, the pressure was on to officially convert before the wedding, although by that time (2007), I had already been living my life as if I were already Jewish: observing Shabbos, festivals, High Holidays, and the like.

I have a lot more to say – this was just the quick and dirty version. Here are the three post titles to look for beginning September 26 that will tell the whole story from start to finish!

• Finding G-d at Music Camp (Sept. 26)
• Finding Adonai at a Bar Mitzvah (Sept. 28)
• Finding Miriam Within (Sept. 30)

That’s it for today… I’m wiped out from all the questions!

Stay tuned tomorrow as I answer some juicy infertility-related questions, such as my favorite ALI Blogger, where we are on our journey right now, and how my husband feels about all my blogging… tune in tomorrow morning for all the answers!