March 2024 Prompts - Part 2
1 Mar: World Compliment Day: What’s the nicest thing someone’s said to you? That’s tough. I guess I like it when I’m complimented on my creativity and on my wit.
2 Mar: Dr. Seuss Day: What’s your favorite Dr. Seuss character or story? I like to try reading children’s books in Spanish, so I’m going to go with Huevos verdes con jamón.
3 Mar: World Wildlife Day: When’s the last time you were out in nature? I took a longish walk in a local park a few days ago. Also, I saw a few deer in a friend’s yard on Sunday afternoon.
4 Mar: Fun Facts about Names Day: What’s a fun fact about your name or the name of someone you know? My Hebrew name is Malka (after my great-grandmother), not Miriam. In the late 1950’s, people often wanted to give their children names that were not obviously Jewish and it was common to choose a name with the same first letter as the Hebrew name. My parents had trouble agreeing on a name starting with “M” that they both liked. Somehow, it did not occur to either of them that “Miriam” is an extremely Jewish name.
5 Mar: Mars Day: If given the option, and under what circumstances, would you take a trip to another planet? I’d have to be over 100 years old and/or dying of a terminal disease. Otherwise, I’d consider the risk too high.
6 Mar: Oreo Cookie Day: Have you ever eaten an Oreo or any Oreo-flavored item (McFluffy!)? I’ve eaten oreos, but they’re far from my favorite cookies.
7 Mar: Cereal Day: What’s your favorite breakfast cereal? I had an existential crisis related to cereal back in 1998. I was traveling in Africa and, for the most part, the only cereal we could buy was corn flakes or, occasionally, rice krispies. Then I was in the U.K. and I was standing in the cereal aisle of a Tesco and was paralyzed with indecision. For years afterwards (and even now), I feel overwhelmed by cereal choices. So, as long as it’s available, I will buy Crispix and, if it’s not available, I’ll go for Total.
8 Mar: Proofreading Day: How many mistakes do you find when you proofread something you’ve written? Any comical or embarrassing errors to report? I mostly just blame autocorrect and move on.
9 Mar: Barbie Day: Did you (or do you) own a Barbie? Did you see the film? If so, what did you think of it? I did see the movie and found it delightfully subversive. I have a whole story about my relationship with Barbie, who was supposed to be sort of a role model for me. I liked playing with Barbies because you could make up interesting stories. She spent a lot of time dressed like Emma Peel from the Avengers and chasing down spies with my brother’s Man From U.N.C.L.E. action figures.
10 Mar: Academy Awards: What should you (or someone you know) receive an Oscar award for? I don’t want to name names publicly, but I know more than one person who deserves some sort of award for baseless fear.
11 Mar: Napping Day: Do you take naps? Do they refresh you or not? I love to nap. In moderation, naps refresh me, though I sometimes sleep too much and end up more tired.
12 Mar: Alfred Hitchcock Day: Do you have a cool blonde in your life? Do large flocks of birds freak you out? How do you feel about heights? Or sinister-behaving neighbors? Many years ago, I worked in a building which had a bird problem. There were always large black birds pecking at our windows, some of which sometimes got into the building. I often described it as like working in a Hitchcock movie.
13 Mar: Girl Scout Week: Were you ever a Girl Scout or Brownie? What’s your favorite flavor of Girl Scout cookie? I was never a Girl Scout or a Brownie (or, for that matter, a Campfire Girl). I wanted to be, but there wasn’t a troop in town and my mother had enough of driving me to to other activities, aside from insisting she could teach me any of the stuff they offered.
14 Mar: Save a Spider Day: Spiders. Save them or squash them? I’d like to take them outside but, in practice, I more often panic and squash them.
15 Mar: Ides of March: Ever been stabbed in the back? I’ve been metaphorically stabbed in the back, but only a few times.
16 Mar: Quilting Day: Do you quilt? Or own a quilt someone made you? Quilting is too much like actual sewing for me.
17 Mar: St. Patrick’s Day: What’s Ireland’s most famous gift to the world? I like a lot of Celtic music and stories. I don’t, alas, care much for whiskey.
18 Mar: Global Recycling Day: How much recycling do you do? I am pretty good about recycling paper, plastic, glass, and cans.
19 Mar: Vernal Equinox: How do you celebrate the arrival of spring? I enjoy seeing spring flowers, but I can’t say I really celebrate the season per se.
20 Mar: Bed-in for Peace: When’s the last time you slept late/had a lie-in? One of the great things about being retired is that I can sleep in whenever I feel like it.
21 Mar: World Puppetry Day: Puppets. Creepy or cool? I own a few puppets. My favorite of ones I currently own is an elaborate camel. But my all time favorite was a Lamb Chop puppet (as in Shari Lewis’s lamb) that I had as a child.
22 Mar: International Day of the Seal: If you could be a selkie for a day, what would you do? For one day, sure. But I think I’d quickly miss having legs.
23 Mar: Puppy Day: What’s the cutest breed of puppy? I’m rather partial to Siberian huskies and samoyeds.
24 Mar: Palm Sunday: Ever ridden a donkey? What’s the strangest thing you’ve done to pass time during a really long religious service? I may have ridden a donkey at the Bronx zoo as a young child, but I don’t really remember. I mostly passed time during religious services as a child by gossiping with my girlfriends in the ladies’ room.
25 Mar: Physicians Week: Who’s your favorite doctor (fictional or real)? Hmm, maybe Dr. Dolittle.
26 Mar: Live Long and Prosper Day: Favorite Star Trek iteration or episode or character. Definitely The Original Series. As for a specific episode, maybe The Trouble With Tribbles, though I could also argue for Amok Time or The City on the Edge of Forever.
27 Mar: World Theatre Day: When’s the last time you saw a play? A couple of weeks ago.
28 Mar: Barnum & Bailey Day: Ever been to the circus? I’ve been to see the Ringling Brothers / Barnum and Bailey exactly once. But I’ve also seen several Cirque du Soleil shows. And I went to the circus in Moscow once.
29 Mar: Mom & Pop Business Owners’ Day: Do you frequent a family-owned business? There are a couple of independent coffee roasters I go to. I also like several indie bookstores.
30 Mar: International Laundry Folding Day: What’s the most tedious household chore you do on a regular basis? Oddly, I find laundry to be one of the least tedious household chores. I hate vacuuming because you can’t listen to music while doing it.
31 Mar: Easter: Have you ever hunted for (or hid) Easter eggs? I don’t think so, though I did dye Easter eggs with friends as a child.
2 Mar: Dr. Seuss Day: What’s your favorite Dr. Seuss character or story? I like to try reading children’s books in Spanish, so I’m going to go with Huevos verdes con jamón.
3 Mar: World Wildlife Day: When’s the last time you were out in nature? I took a longish walk in a local park a few days ago. Also, I saw a few deer in a friend’s yard on Sunday afternoon.
4 Mar: Fun Facts about Names Day: What’s a fun fact about your name or the name of someone you know? My Hebrew name is Malka (after my great-grandmother), not Miriam. In the late 1950’s, people often wanted to give their children names that were not obviously Jewish and it was common to choose a name with the same first letter as the Hebrew name. My parents had trouble agreeing on a name starting with “M” that they both liked. Somehow, it did not occur to either of them that “Miriam” is an extremely Jewish name.
5 Mar: Mars Day: If given the option, and under what circumstances, would you take a trip to another planet? I’d have to be over 100 years old and/or dying of a terminal disease. Otherwise, I’d consider the risk too high.
6 Mar: Oreo Cookie Day: Have you ever eaten an Oreo or any Oreo-flavored item (McFluffy!)? I’ve eaten oreos, but they’re far from my favorite cookies.
7 Mar: Cereal Day: What’s your favorite breakfast cereal? I had an existential crisis related to cereal back in 1998. I was traveling in Africa and, for the most part, the only cereal we could buy was corn flakes or, occasionally, rice krispies. Then I was in the U.K. and I was standing in the cereal aisle of a Tesco and was paralyzed with indecision. For years afterwards (and even now), I feel overwhelmed by cereal choices. So, as long as it’s available, I will buy Crispix and, if it’s not available, I’ll go for Total.
8 Mar: Proofreading Day: How many mistakes do you find when you proofread something you’ve written? Any comical or embarrassing errors to report? I mostly just blame autocorrect and move on.
9 Mar: Barbie Day: Did you (or do you) own a Barbie? Did you see the film? If so, what did you think of it? I did see the movie and found it delightfully subversive. I have a whole story about my relationship with Barbie, who was supposed to be sort of a role model for me. I liked playing with Barbies because you could make up interesting stories. She spent a lot of time dressed like Emma Peel from the Avengers and chasing down spies with my brother’s Man From U.N.C.L.E. action figures.
10 Mar: Academy Awards: What should you (or someone you know) receive an Oscar award for? I don’t want to name names publicly, but I know more than one person who deserves some sort of award for baseless fear.
11 Mar: Napping Day: Do you take naps? Do they refresh you or not? I love to nap. In moderation, naps refresh me, though I sometimes sleep too much and end up more tired.
12 Mar: Alfred Hitchcock Day: Do you have a cool blonde in your life? Do large flocks of birds freak you out? How do you feel about heights? Or sinister-behaving neighbors? Many years ago, I worked in a building which had a bird problem. There were always large black birds pecking at our windows, some of which sometimes got into the building. I often described it as like working in a Hitchcock movie.
13 Mar: Girl Scout Week: Were you ever a Girl Scout or Brownie? What’s your favorite flavor of Girl Scout cookie? I was never a Girl Scout or a Brownie (or, for that matter, a Campfire Girl). I wanted to be, but there wasn’t a troop in town and my mother had enough of driving me to to other activities, aside from insisting she could teach me any of the stuff they offered.
14 Mar: Save a Spider Day: Spiders. Save them or squash them? I’d like to take them outside but, in practice, I more often panic and squash them.
15 Mar: Ides of March: Ever been stabbed in the back? I’ve been metaphorically stabbed in the back, but only a few times.
16 Mar: Quilting Day: Do you quilt? Or own a quilt someone made you? Quilting is too much like actual sewing for me.
17 Mar: St. Patrick’s Day: What’s Ireland’s most famous gift to the world? I like a lot of Celtic music and stories. I don’t, alas, care much for whiskey.
18 Mar: Global Recycling Day: How much recycling do you do? I am pretty good about recycling paper, plastic, glass, and cans.
19 Mar: Vernal Equinox: How do you celebrate the arrival of spring? I enjoy seeing spring flowers, but I can’t say I really celebrate the season per se.
20 Mar: Bed-in for Peace: When’s the last time you slept late/had a lie-in? One of the great things about being retired is that I can sleep in whenever I feel like it.
21 Mar: World Puppetry Day: Puppets. Creepy or cool? I own a few puppets. My favorite of ones I currently own is an elaborate camel. But my all time favorite was a Lamb Chop puppet (as in Shari Lewis’s lamb) that I had as a child.
22 Mar: International Day of the Seal: If you could be a selkie for a day, what would you do? For one day, sure. But I think I’d quickly miss having legs.
23 Mar: Puppy Day: What’s the cutest breed of puppy? I’m rather partial to Siberian huskies and samoyeds.
24 Mar: Palm Sunday: Ever ridden a donkey? What’s the strangest thing you’ve done to pass time during a really long religious service? I may have ridden a donkey at the Bronx zoo as a young child, but I don’t really remember. I mostly passed time during religious services as a child by gossiping with my girlfriends in the ladies’ room.
25 Mar: Physicians Week: Who’s your favorite doctor (fictional or real)? Hmm, maybe Dr. Dolittle.
26 Mar: Live Long and Prosper Day: Favorite Star Trek iteration or episode or character. Definitely The Original Series. As for a specific episode, maybe The Trouble With Tribbles, though I could also argue for Amok Time or The City on the Edge of Forever.
27 Mar: World Theatre Day: When’s the last time you saw a play? A couple of weeks ago.
28 Mar: Barnum & Bailey Day: Ever been to the circus? I’ve been to see the Ringling Brothers / Barnum and Bailey exactly once. But I’ve also seen several Cirque du Soleil shows. And I went to the circus in Moscow once.
29 Mar: Mom & Pop Business Owners’ Day: Do you frequent a family-owned business? There are a couple of independent coffee roasters I go to. I also like several indie bookstores.
30 Mar: International Laundry Folding Day: What’s the most tedious household chore you do on a regular basis? Oddly, I find laundry to be one of the least tedious household chores. I hate vacuuming because you can’t listen to music while doing it.
31 Mar: Easter: Have you ever hunted for (or hid) Easter eggs? I don’t think so, though I did dye Easter eggs with friends as a child.