The Neil Meme (Don't Blame Him. Blame Franklin.)
So, anyway, here it is after midnight, and I'm hoping to get to sleep much, much sooner tonight, and not be awakened at an indecent hour by an asshat revving his (or her) engine. We shall see. Meanwhile, I see that grandmofhelsing has taken the Q&A thingy that Neil recently did with The Guardian and made of it a meme. Which I am now calling the Neil Meme, and which I believe I will try to answer. I will try to answer it thoughtfully, though I'm at least half asleep, as I think the Neil Meme should only be answered thoughtfully. As for you lot, perhaps you'll do the same. Here it is, behind the cut:
1. What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Vast expanses of fossiliferous Late Cretaceous rock. Or Triassic rock. I'm not too picky.
2. What is your greatest fear?
Being the last.
3. Which living person do you most admire and why?
Harlan Ellison. I hope I can look back at my life thirty years from now and know that I've lived it half so well. I'm not going to get into all the whys. I should hope they'd be obvious. And second place would likely go to Stephen Hawking.
4. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Narcissism and selfishness.
5. What is the trait you most deplore in others?
I have to say that it's a tie between willful ignorance and bigotry.
6. What has been your most embarrassing moment?
Er...there have been so many. How about this one: October 1986. Philadelphia. The Academy of Natural Science. I was delivering a paper to a room of two or three hundred paleontologists and discovered that half my slides were in upside down and sideways.
7. What vehicles do you own?
I do not own a vehicle. I haven't since 1990, I think.
8. What is your greatest extravagance?
I actually don't have many of those. Costuming, I guess, though I haven't done it since September 2004.
9. What is your most treasured possession?
I don't think it's genuinely possible for me to answser this question. Any anwser will only be an arbitrary choice from several hundred possible replies. So - a porcelain tortoise that belonged to my late Grandmother Ramey.
10. Where would you like to live?
The south of France. Or Massachusetts. Or New Zealand.
11. What makes you depressed?
People.
12. What do you most dislike about your appearance?
These circles beneath my eyes.
13. Who would play you in a movie of your life?
Tilda Swinton.
14. What is your most unappealing habit?
Inappropriate nudity near windows.
15. What is your favourite smell?
The ocean. And the last few moments before a summer thunderstorm.
16. What is your favourite word?
Abyssal.
17. What is your favourite book?
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury.
18. What is your fancy dress costume of choice?
Nar'eth's everyday attire.
19. Radiator or air conditioning?
Air conditioning.
20. Cat or dog?
Cats.
21. Is it better to give or to receive?
I look upon each of them both with an equal measure of approval. Balance, I say.
22. What is your guiltiest pleasure?
Velveeta slices.
23. To whom would you most like to say sorry and why?
Elizabeth.
24. What or who is the greatest love of your life?
Spooky, of course.
25. Which living person do you most despise and why?
Singling out just one of them seems unfair (to me).
26. Have you ever said "I love you" without meaning it?
Yes.
27. Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Fuck.
28. What has been your biggest disappointment?
Let's not go there. You'll only hate me in the morning.
29. What is your greatest regret?
Any number of senselessly lost friendships.
30. When and where were you happiest?
Boulder, Colorado. Summer of 1986.
31. When did you last cry, and why?
A week or so ago. Exhaustion.
32. How do you relax?
Movies.
33. What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
More exercise.
34. What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Having made it all the way to -1.
35. What keeps you awake at night?
1964-2006.
36. What song would you like played at your funeral?
VNV Nation's "Solitary."
37. How would you like to be remembered?
As a paleontologist who also wrote fantastic fiction, but I know it'll be the other way round.
38. What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
Lose your fear. And that the most self-righteous people are usually the ones doing the most damage, so it's best to trust the monsters, if you must trust someone.
Oh, and I wanted to mention this:
1. What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Vast expanses of fossiliferous Late Cretaceous rock. Or Triassic rock. I'm not too picky.
2. What is your greatest fear?
Being the last.
3. Which living person do you most admire and why?
Harlan Ellison. I hope I can look back at my life thirty years from now and know that I've lived it half so well. I'm not going to get into all the whys. I should hope they'd be obvious. And second place would likely go to Stephen Hawking.
4. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Narcissism and selfishness.
5. What is the trait you most deplore in others?
I have to say that it's a tie between willful ignorance and bigotry.
6. What has been your most embarrassing moment?
Er...there have been so many. How about this one: October 1986. Philadelphia. The Academy of Natural Science. I was delivering a paper to a room of two or three hundred paleontologists and discovered that half my slides were in upside down and sideways.
7. What vehicles do you own?
I do not own a vehicle. I haven't since 1990, I think.
8. What is your greatest extravagance?
I actually don't have many of those. Costuming, I guess, though I haven't done it since September 2004.
9. What is your most treasured possession?
I don't think it's genuinely possible for me to answser this question. Any anwser will only be an arbitrary choice from several hundred possible replies. So - a porcelain tortoise that belonged to my late Grandmother Ramey.
10. Where would you like to live?
The south of France. Or Massachusetts. Or New Zealand.
11. What makes you depressed?
People.
12. What do you most dislike about your appearance?
These circles beneath my eyes.
13. Who would play you in a movie of your life?
Tilda Swinton.
14. What is your most unappealing habit?
Inappropriate nudity near windows.
15. What is your favourite smell?
The ocean. And the last few moments before a summer thunderstorm.
16. What is your favourite word?
Abyssal.
17. What is your favourite book?
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury.
18. What is your fancy dress costume of choice?
Nar'eth's everyday attire.
19. Radiator or air conditioning?
Air conditioning.
20. Cat or dog?
Cats.
21. Is it better to give or to receive?
I look upon each of them both with an equal measure of approval. Balance, I say.
22. What is your guiltiest pleasure?
Velveeta slices.
23. To whom would you most like to say sorry and why?
Elizabeth.
24. What or who is the greatest love of your life?
Spooky, of course.
25. Which living person do you most despise and why?
Singling out just one of them seems unfair (to me).
26. Have you ever said "I love you" without meaning it?
Yes.
27. Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Fuck.
28. What has been your biggest disappointment?
Let's not go there. You'll only hate me in the morning.
29. What is your greatest regret?
Any number of senselessly lost friendships.
30. When and where were you happiest?
Boulder, Colorado. Summer of 1986.
31. When did you last cry, and why?
A week or so ago. Exhaustion.
32. How do you relax?
Movies.
33. What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
More exercise.
34. What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Having made it all the way to -1.
35. What keeps you awake at night?
1964-2006.
36. What song would you like played at your funeral?
VNV Nation's "Solitary."
37. How would you like to be remembered?
As a paleontologist who also wrote fantastic fiction, but I know it'll be the other way round.
38. What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
Lose your fear. And that the most self-righteous people are usually the ones doing the most damage, so it's best to trust the monsters, if you must trust someone.
Oh, and I wanted to mention this: