Bookish: 30 Interesting Questions

Today would usually be a Top 5 Tuesday but we’re doing something a little bit different as there is no Top 5 Tuesday subject scheduled.

Me saying ‘doing something a little bit different’ means that I’m taking advantage of the mini-break of a scheduled feature to try and catch up on some of the awesome tags that I’ve been… well… tagged in!

Bibi @ Bibi’s Book Blog answered 30 questions and answered them well! The baton has been passed to me so we shall see how I fare.

Here we go…

 

1. What are your nicknames? What do you prefer to be called? 

‘Gerry’ is technically a nickname as it’s not my real name. I also go by Ger, Gerbear, Gerald, Geraldo and um…. Pidge. Spot the odd one out.

 

2. How often do you doodle? What do your doodles look like?

I doodle quite a fair bit, usually during meetings at work. This is what my doodles look like…

Normally it’s some kind of food substance!

 

3. What do you do if you can’t sleep at night? Do you count sleep? Toss and turn? Try to get up and do something productive? 

I read something a while ago that if you can’t sleep the worse thing you can do is get and do something because then you’ll fully wake yourself up. If you lie there and let your body relax (even if you can’t sleep) your body still gets the benefit of being rested.

That’s what I tell myself constantly when I can’t get to sleep which is often because I am the most anxious person I know.

 

4. Do people consider you to be talkative or quiet?

I will not shut up if a) I’m around people that I’m really comfortable with or b) if I’m really nervous and don’t know people that well.

Such a contradictory thing isn’t it?

 

5. What makes you cry?

Literally everything. No seriously… everything. Meaningful stuff that’s sad makes me sob. Happy stuff that makes me feel happy makes me sob. When I’m angry and am filled with fiery rage I sob.

I also cry at books, TV shows and movies. I swear that my eyes are always leaking about something.

 

6. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Rudeness. I know that’s such a blanket statement which can encompass many things and is probably very subjective but if I perceive someone as being rude then I get very agitated.

The last example of something that I thought was rude was when I walked down the corridor at work and smiled at someone and he looked straight down at the floor rather than smile back. I’m in HR so I get that from some people for some reason.

I’m used to it but it’s still rude and it still makes that person a dick.

 

7. How many times a day do you look at yourself in the mirror?

17 and a half times.

I don’t know! I guess putting my make up on in the morning would be difficult without one and there’s a mirror opposite every sink so when I wash my hands I see myself. I check how smeared my mascara has gotten but that’s pretty much the extent of my face gazing.

I know what I look like by now.

 

8. What is the strangest thing you believed as a child? 

That when the bath water got murky it meant sharks were able to swim up the plughole.

 

9. What is the guilty pleasure you enjoy too much to give up?

Reading fan fiction. Also… writing fan fiction. Yes I currently do it. Yes I am actively posting for two fandom’s online. Yes I have stuff up there on A03 and Tumblr right now.

No I shall never disclose my pseudonym or fandom’s 😛

 

10. Who performs the most random acts of kindness out of everyone you know?

I’m going to cop out of this one and say that I don’t know. I’m saying that because I am surrounded with awesome people who do awesome things for others all the time so I honestly couldn’t choose.

 

11. How often do you read the newspaper? Which sections? 

Every day on my commute I pick up the commuter paper ‘The Metro’ and I love it. My favourite is reading the section which is where people have contacted the paper. That section has comments from readers on previous news stories but there’s also the Good Deed Feed and Rush Hour Crush which are just greatly heartening.

 

12. Which animal scares you the most? 

Read my answer to question 8. Now do we think that my shark phobia came about because of my strange childhood belief or do we think that my strange childhood belief came about because of my shark phobia?

NB: I am not scared of chickens. Just in case anyone sees the picture!

 

13. Are you more likely to avoid conflict or engage with it? 

I don’t deliberately seek out conflict because I want nothing more than an easy life and sometimes people have assumed that my ‘peaceful’ stance means I won’t engage with conflict.

They. Are. Wrong.

I am actually incredibly argumentative and will not back down on a matter if I believe I am acting for just reasons. I choose my battles but I aim to win the battles I’ve chosen.

 

14. What is the most recent compliment you’ve received? 

“The craftsmanship of the prose is assured, polished, professional, and readable. The writing is very good.”

I entered NYC Short Story Challenge in January and we had feedback sent to us yesterday. This was one of the comments.

I placed third in my heat and have advanced to the next round so that’s pretty cool.

 

15. What question are you tired of hearing?

“But I don’t use my company van for personal use so why do you still have to report it on my P11D?”

Ugh. Sorry. The one aspect of my job I really don’t like is P11Ds.

Anything that involves tax and HMRC is not fun. Trying to navigate the murky waters of HMRC legislation and explain things to employees is less fun. When the employees disagree with everything you tell them even though you’ve contacted HMRC directly about the issue is even less fun – if that can even happen.

 

16. What is the strangest thing you’ve eaten? 

Garlic snails or deep fried maggots. I’m not too sure which!

 

17. Do you have a whole lot of acquaintances or just a few very close friends? 

A mix of both. I have few people I would call ‘acquaintances’ but a lot of people I would call friends and then another few people I would call my best friends.

 

18. Do you have a catchphrase?

No, but I’ve gotten really into saying ‘blimey!’ at the moment. I also say ‘alright, gov’nor’ in a deliberately bad cockney accent which is now too regular to be ironic.

 

19. What’s your all time favourite town or city? Why?

New York City has a special place in my heart because I like free it makes me feel. There’s so much to do and see and I feel like you be in many worlds in one city.

I fell a little bit in love with Wanaka in New Zealand which is the direct opposite of NYC. It just felt quirky and relaxed and I love mountains and lakes.

 

20. If you had to change your first name, what would you change it to?

I’d never change it. I used to hate it so much because it’s weird and old and no one has the name anymore.

Now I love it because it’s weird and old and no one has the name anymore.

Funny how things change from when you’re fifteen.

 

21. When was the last time you lied? 

Probably when I said, ‘I’m fine.’ Fine is the British way of saying that you’re not ok and the world is falling apart. It’s also the British way of saying that you’re not ok and you want the other person to know that you’re not ok but you don’t want them to acknowledge or do anything about it.

 

22. What’s something that amazes you?

I have a few friends with children who have been through some difficulties. We’re stalking strokes, dwarfism, cleft palates, autism, hernias and so on. These are children. They are brilliant because they’re happy and get on with it.

 

23. Would you rather be the first person to explore a planet or be the inventor of a drug that cures a deadly disease?

Inventor, 100%.

 

24. What is your favourite amateur activity?

Writing. I’d love to be good enough to be a professional but I’m trying.

 

25. What was your first thought when you got up this morning? 

‘Where’s the cat?’

 

26. What is your favourite song (at least at the moment)?

I go through stages of listening to the same song on repeat for weeks on end.

This one currently has the honour…

It makes me want to dance under the full moon around a bonfire. I seriously want to start a coven with this woman!

 

27. List someone you know and describe them in five words? 

Let’s go with my husband! I’m going to give him a five word sentence: the best in the world.

 

28. You can select one person from history and have them truthfully answer one question. Who would you select and what would the question be?

It’s not really answering the question (at all) but I want to know who Jack the Ripper was. It’s terrifying that someone committed such vile acts and was never caught. So I guess I would select them from history just so I would know who it was. I guess I would ask, why did they do it?

 

29. Which celebrity or artist do you resemble the most?

My brother watched Fantastic Beasts and said he was thrown off the entire movie because me and Tina were the same person.

 

30. What do you want me to know? 

My cat is so cute.

But also Bibi shared a comic that she loved so I’m going to do the same.

I love Hades and Persephone and this is an awesome online comic strip. Th artist has more on Tumblr.

(https://www.deviantart.com/sigeel/gallery/67434166/Punderworld)

I’m not going to tag anyone specifically for this one (I need to get in the swing of tagging!) but if anyone thinks this is something they want to do then go for it! Tag back to me so I can read your answers!