stuff white people like
did my first full day of house/cat sitting and i woke up with the lightest of scratches on the side of my nose. otherwise the kittens are very well behaved. fiametta likes to follow me around and even deigns to sit on my lap at intervals while tika does her own thing and follows curious noises along the floor from the people that live downstairs drilling into their ceiling.
it was glorious yesterday and by the time i decided i would nip out to w.r. and do some wandering, my car was blocked in by the cable guy's vehicle (again, something with the downstairs neighbours). i could have done the assertive thing and gone out and asked him to move his vehicle and he probably would have obliged, but i didn't and instead sat on the couch and sketched the cats. cats do not sit still long enough for portaits (especially with the curious noises) and i'm not terribly good at drawing them to begin with.
anyways, i've deduced that i would not do well living on my own. too quiet -- too depressing. i think too much when i'm alone. maybe not so much think as dwell. i do not recommend it.
in any event, i've had a laugh at stuff white people like and, since i've got the time to kill, let's see how white i am...
how white is hannah?
#96 New Balance Shoes - not much to say on these. i think i may have had a pair at one point in my life when i was forced to take gym class and, therefore, had to buy running shoes. but when all is said and done, i prefer sneakers which, strangely, i have received 2 compliments on in the past few months even though i've had them for well over a year. 0
#95 Rugby - it was a big thing for the jocks in my high school. i can say i appreciated it more than american football, but i just don't care enough about sports to qualify this one. 0
#94 Free Healthcare - yes. yes i do like my free health care. 1
#93 Music Piracy - i'll be straight with you. i have sailed the pira-seas and i like it because it's so easy. however, if a good portion of the cd is listen-worthy, i endeavor to purchase it (see: horse feathers and jose gonzalez). sometimes it just takes a while to find the cd, though... (also see: horse feathers and jose gonzalez). 1
#92 Book Deals - hey, i'd like one if i got it. 1
#91 San Francisco - i have wanted to go there for some time. lotsa history and pretty architecture. but i'm in no hurry to go to the states. or go alone. 1
#90 Dinner Parties - if by dinner parties, they mean tea parties, it is a resounding yes. but if it's just dinner parties, you probably don't want to come to any one that i would be hosting. i am a mediocre, meat 'n potatoes sort of cook. if it means going to pipkin's place, however, i'm all for it! 1
#89 St. Patrick’s Day - i like green, i'm part irish and my skin is pasty white. i also use the day as an excuse to show off my poor gaelic skills. "ta an geanna ar meisce agus ta si ag rith anonn agus anall!"... "amach an doras, suas na staishre." this will get me nowhere except laughed at (or beaten up by a drunk irishman). 1
#88 Having Gay Friends - as far as friends go, i like who i like by their personalities be they gay or straight. though i will admit to thinking it quite novel back in high school... so i guess that makes it true. 1
#87 Outdoor Performance Clothes - gawds! i've steered clear of these if i could help it. 0
#86 Shorts - i suspect after reading this entry that it could also apply to skirts which i wear more often than shorts. this year especially, i have been wearing skirts to herald the arrival of spring and summer. so far, it hasn't been working too well :( 1
#85 The Wire - never seen it. though my white friends that have seen it tell me it's fantastic. 0
#84 T-Shirts - i'm still trying to get used to the thin fabric of american apparel t-shirts. it weirds me out. when i was in high school, i wore the loose-fitting, thick cotton ones which is deemed "unacceptable." now, when it comes down to it, i prefer smart button-up blouses to t-shirts. 0
#83 Bad Memories of High School - y'know what? i can't complain about my high school experience. i'm actually surprised that i came out of it unscathed because i look back and realize what a nerd i was... but my friends were awesome. 0
#82 Hating Corporations - after watching the corporation, i kinda do. (propaganda, yes. but it's my kind of propaganda.) 1
#81 Graduate School - nope. 2 years of college was enough for me. on the rare occasion i toy with the idea of going back for some art or literature courses... but nothing has seriously happened with that. i like earning money too much. 0
#80 The Idea of Soccer - yes, the idea. it's a sport that i enjoy more than american football, and i did love the excitement in the air when we were in italy... 1
#79 Modern Furniture - eeeew! i much prefer antiques. 0
#78 Multilingual Children - i do love other languages even though i'm pretty horrid at learning them. so... would i subject my hypothetical child to it? drive halfway across town to drop him/her off at the local ecole? probably not if they didn't want to. 0
#77 Musical Comedy - flight of the conchords? heck yes! 1
#76 Bottles of Water - actually, i've never liked the taste of most bottled waters. give me tap water any day (except if it's the stuff that comes out of the well at my parents' place). 0
#75 Threatening to Move to Canada - too late! i was born there. 1
#74 Oscar Parties - yes, i have gone to a few... 1
#73 Gentrification - probably not. 0
#72 Study Abroad - i have thought about it in the past. i've thought about working abroad. then i thought about the paperwork. and the unfamiliarity. then i thought i should just stick to traveling abroad. but again, the idea merits a point in this category. 1
#71 Being the only white person around - naw. it's happened a couple of times, but i wouldn't particularly say it's something i relish. 0
#70 Difficult Breakups - dear God, i hope not! 0
#69 Mos Def - nope. 0
#68 Michel Gondry - i enjoyed eternal sunshine of the spotless mind but i wouldn't go so far as to say that i've gone out and watched everything he's ever made. 0
#67 Standing Still at Concerts - yup. i'm a loser. 1
#66 Divorce - one of my greatest fears. no, i do not like it. 0
#65 Co-Ed Sports - reminds me of youth group. i still sucked at sports even then. 0
#64 Recycling - yep. 1
#63 Expensive Sandwiches - not really because i like my sandwiches fairly plain and think it's a bit of a rip-off to be shilling out $9 for a rather dull meal that i could easily fix myself. 0
#62 Knowing What’s Best for Poor People - maybe to some extent. there are the givens like "stop spending your money on things you don't need!!!" 1
#61 Bicycles - "But there is a special category of bicycles that appeal far more to white women, the European city bike (pictured). White women have a lot of fantasies about idealized lives, and one of them is living in Europe and riding around an old city on one of these bikes. They dream about waking up and riding to a little cafe, then visiting bakeries and cheese shops and finally riding home to prepare a fancy meal for their friends who will all eat under a canopy with white Christmas lights." yeah, that's me. 1
#60 Toyota Prius - no, cars aren't my thing. 0
#59 Natural Medicine - can't help it, my mum hopped me up on echinacea, liquid garlic and other stuff when i was little, so these days i don't use prescription drugs if i can help it. but in the realm of chinese medicine, i stay far, far away. (it smells) 1
#58 Japan - my dad hitchhiked around japan in his youth. i have never had the urge to go, though the people are amazing (we used to host japanese students when i was young). it just seems too crowded over there. and they eat a lot of fish. but i love the smell of their origami paper. 0
#57 Juno - cute movie. lovely soundtrack. but i have some problems with it (namely, how emotionally uninvested juno was about everything. she's a teenager having a baby. you'd think there would be some major hormone issues going on there). 0
#56 Lawyers - nope. 0
#55 Apologies - haha! omigosh, yes! i'm one big walking apology. 1
#54 Kitchen Gadgets - not really. unless they're from the 1950s... like my great-grandma's egg beaters. i do miss the cheese slicer, though... 0
#53 Dogs - no! (there are a few exceptions but they are rare.) 0
#52 Sarah Silverman - i'm living under a rock. i've heard of her, but i've never known what she's about. so no. 0
#51 Living by the Water - yep. lived by it all my life and would probably go batty if there wasn't some sort of large body of water nearby be it ocean or lake. 1
#50 Irony - no, not really. 0
#49 Vintage - yes, i do have a penchant for that word and its familiars. i especially like vintage with history behind it and, thankfully, my room happens to be furnished in such stuff. 1
#48 Whole Foods and Grocery Co-ops - i might if we had any nearby. 0.5
#47 Arts Degrees - see #81. 0
#46 The Sunday New York Times - nope. i especially loathe new york times crosswords. 0
#45 Asian Fusion Food - i don't go out of my way for it, but it's been good the couple of times i've had it. 0.5
#44 Public Radio - i don't listen to much radio. 0
#43 Plays - if it's shakespeare, i'm all over it! which reminds me, i've got to get tickets for bard on the beach... 1
#42 Sushi - i have tried and failed. 0
#41 Indie Music - yep. heck, they even list joanna newsom and the arcade fire. 1
#40 Apple Products - i own nary a one. 0
#39 Netflix - nope. 0
#38 Arrested Development - never seen it. 0
#37 Renovations - i probably will if/when i get my own place. 0.5
#36 Breakfast Places - bon's off broadway springs to mind... but it's so far away! 0.5
#35 The Daily Show/Colbert Report - my brother-in-law used to watch it a lot and it was always enjoyable. but we don't really watch much television anymore. 0.5
#34 Architecture - yah, i couldn't tell you who designed what, but certain types of architecture do appeal to me. 1
#33 Marijuana - it smells funny. 0
#32 Vegan/Vegetarianism - nope. i likes my meat. 0
#31 Snowboarding - i'd be screaming all the way down the hill, to be sure! 0
#30 Wrigley Field - huh? 0
#29 80s Night - i've known a lot of people that have attended these, but i never have. dressing up is always fun, but i would much prefer a victorian themed party (however, i fear most of my friends would have trouble scrounging up bustles and corsets...) 0.5
#28 Not having a TV - i had a friend in grade one that didn't have a tv. whenever she was over she wanted to watch our television. i like at least having the option to watch it. doesn't mean i will. 0
#27 Marathons - i don't run well. but if i did, i would probably get a picture of myself at the finish line with my arms in the air. 0
#26 Manhattan (now Brooklyn too!) - meh. 0
#25 David Sedaris - who? 0
#24 Wine - i have tried on several occasions. and failed. 0
#23 Microbreweries - alcohol. we don't get along well. 0
#22 Having Two Last Names - pretentious! i have a second middle name that was, at one time, somebody's last name... but again, it's a middle name. i used to go to school with a girl whose last name was perry-whittingham. it didn't even all fit on the attendance sheet. ridiculous. 0
#21 Writers Workshops - i kinda turn up my nose at the thought of them. 0
#20 Being an expert on YOUR culture - i'd like to know more about my culture, but i don't. och aye! 0
#19 Traveling - yah! 1
#18 Awareness - i am guilty of it. but only when i get invited to stuff. 0.5
#17 Hating their Parents - they did a good job of giving me no reason to hate them. 0
#16 Gifted Children - sorry, sometimes kids are just stupid. don't sugar coat it for them or yourself. 0
#15 Yoga - no. and your lululemon pants? that logo on the back leg looks like bird crap. (don't hate the people that do yoga... just the overpriced products that surround it). 0
#14 Having Black Friends - there weren't enough black kids in my neighbourhood for that sort of thing. 0
#13 Tea - very guiltea. 1
#12 Non-Profit Organizations - i dig 'em. 1
#11 Asian Girls - if i were a guy, probably yes. however, as the entry states, the reverse is not often true for white women and asian guys. 0
#10 Wes Anderson Movies - i always enjoy the soundtracks... but the movies aren't really my cup of tea. i'll watch them and enjoy them (or at least parts of them), but that's as far as it goes. 0
#9 Making you feel bad about not going outside - i make myself feel bad about not going outside. 1
#8 Barack Obama - seems like a nice fellow. 0.5
#7 Diversity - yah. back at the drug dealer's there was tons of diversity. i kinda miss the different perspectives... 1
#6 Organic Food - it does make me feel better. i'm sure it's all in my head, though. 0.5
#5 Farmer’s Markets - none nearby and i don't go out of my way for them. 0
#4 Assists - sports. blargh! 0
#3 Film Festivals - i have toyed with the idea, but the closest i've ever gotten was spike and mike's festival of animation and that's probably as far as i'll ever go. 0
#2 Religions their parents don’t belong to - nope. it just makes too much sense to me. 0
#1 Coffee - straight coffee: hell's bells, no! but a little bit of coffee with a lot of sugar, chocolate, milk and whipping cream (and maybe some crushed ice cubes on a hot day) and i'm sold. 0.5
so, in summary: 35/96 means that i am approximately 36% white. hmmm... i'm thinking this is an overall good thing.
for those of you that also find yourselves with scads of free time, i'm curious to see how you measure up.
it was glorious yesterday and by the time i decided i would nip out to w.r. and do some wandering, my car was blocked in by the cable guy's vehicle (again, something with the downstairs neighbours). i could have done the assertive thing and gone out and asked him to move his vehicle and he probably would have obliged, but i didn't and instead sat on the couch and sketched the cats. cats do not sit still long enough for portaits (especially with the curious noises) and i'm not terribly good at drawing them to begin with.
anyways, i've deduced that i would not do well living on my own. too quiet -- too depressing. i think too much when i'm alone. maybe not so much think as dwell. i do not recommend it.
in any event, i've had a laugh at stuff white people like and, since i've got the time to kill, let's see how white i am...
how white is hannah?
#96 New Balance Shoes - not much to say on these. i think i may have had a pair at one point in my life when i was forced to take gym class and, therefore, had to buy running shoes. but when all is said and done, i prefer sneakers which, strangely, i have received 2 compliments on in the past few months even though i've had them for well over a year. 0
#95 Rugby - it was a big thing for the jocks in my high school. i can say i appreciated it more than american football, but i just don't care enough about sports to qualify this one. 0
#94 Free Healthcare - yes. yes i do like my free health care. 1
#93 Music Piracy - i'll be straight with you. i have sailed the pira-seas and i like it because it's so easy. however, if a good portion of the cd is listen-worthy, i endeavor to purchase it (see: horse feathers and jose gonzalez). sometimes it just takes a while to find the cd, though... (also see: horse feathers and jose gonzalez). 1
#92 Book Deals - hey, i'd like one if i got it. 1
#91 San Francisco - i have wanted to go there for some time. lotsa history and pretty architecture. but i'm in no hurry to go to the states. or go alone. 1
#90 Dinner Parties - if by dinner parties, they mean tea parties, it is a resounding yes. but if it's just dinner parties, you probably don't want to come to any one that i would be hosting. i am a mediocre, meat 'n potatoes sort of cook. if it means going to pipkin's place, however, i'm all for it! 1
#89 St. Patrick’s Day - i like green, i'm part irish and my skin is pasty white. i also use the day as an excuse to show off my poor gaelic skills. "ta an geanna ar meisce agus ta si ag rith anonn agus anall!"... "amach an doras, suas na staishre." this will get me nowhere except laughed at (or beaten up by a drunk irishman). 1
#88 Having Gay Friends - as far as friends go, i like who i like by their personalities be they gay or straight. though i will admit to thinking it quite novel back in high school... so i guess that makes it true. 1
#87 Outdoor Performance Clothes - gawds! i've steered clear of these if i could help it. 0
#86 Shorts - i suspect after reading this entry that it could also apply to skirts which i wear more often than shorts. this year especially, i have been wearing skirts to herald the arrival of spring and summer. so far, it hasn't been working too well :( 1
#85 The Wire - never seen it. though my white friends that have seen it tell me it's fantastic. 0
#84 T-Shirts - i'm still trying to get used to the thin fabric of american apparel t-shirts. it weirds me out. when i was in high school, i wore the loose-fitting, thick cotton ones which is deemed "unacceptable." now, when it comes down to it, i prefer smart button-up blouses to t-shirts. 0
#83 Bad Memories of High School - y'know what? i can't complain about my high school experience. i'm actually surprised that i came out of it unscathed because i look back and realize what a nerd i was... but my friends were awesome. 0
#82 Hating Corporations - after watching the corporation, i kinda do. (propaganda, yes. but it's my kind of propaganda.) 1
#81 Graduate School - nope. 2 years of college was enough for me. on the rare occasion i toy with the idea of going back for some art or literature courses... but nothing has seriously happened with that. i like earning money too much. 0
#80 The Idea of Soccer - yes, the idea. it's a sport that i enjoy more than american football, and i did love the excitement in the air when we were in italy... 1
#79 Modern Furniture - eeeew! i much prefer antiques. 0
#78 Multilingual Children - i do love other languages even though i'm pretty horrid at learning them. so... would i subject my hypothetical child to it? drive halfway across town to drop him/her off at the local ecole? probably not if they didn't want to. 0
#77 Musical Comedy - flight of the conchords? heck yes! 1
Click to view#76 Bottles of Water - actually, i've never liked the taste of most bottled waters. give me tap water any day (except if it's the stuff that comes out of the well at my parents' place). 0
#75 Threatening to Move to Canada - too late! i was born there. 1
#74 Oscar Parties - yes, i have gone to a few... 1
#73 Gentrification - probably not. 0
#72 Study Abroad - i have thought about it in the past. i've thought about working abroad. then i thought about the paperwork. and the unfamiliarity. then i thought i should just stick to traveling abroad. but again, the idea merits a point in this category. 1
#71 Being the only white person around - naw. it's happened a couple of times, but i wouldn't particularly say it's something i relish. 0
#70 Difficult Breakups - dear God, i hope not! 0
#69 Mos Def - nope. 0
#68 Michel Gondry - i enjoyed eternal sunshine of the spotless mind but i wouldn't go so far as to say that i've gone out and watched everything he's ever made. 0
#67 Standing Still at Concerts - yup. i'm a loser. 1
#66 Divorce - one of my greatest fears. no, i do not like it. 0
#65 Co-Ed Sports - reminds me of youth group. i still sucked at sports even then. 0
#64 Recycling - yep. 1
#63 Expensive Sandwiches - not really because i like my sandwiches fairly plain and think it's a bit of a rip-off to be shilling out $9 for a rather dull meal that i could easily fix myself. 0
#62 Knowing What’s Best for Poor People - maybe to some extent. there are the givens like "stop spending your money on things you don't need!!!" 1
#61 Bicycles - "But there is a special category of bicycles that appeal far more to white women, the European city bike (pictured). White women have a lot of fantasies about idealized lives, and one of them is living in Europe and riding around an old city on one of these bikes. They dream about waking up and riding to a little cafe, then visiting bakeries and cheese shops and finally riding home to prepare a fancy meal for their friends who will all eat under a canopy with white Christmas lights." yeah, that's me. 1
#60 Toyota Prius - no, cars aren't my thing. 0
#59 Natural Medicine - can't help it, my mum hopped me up on echinacea, liquid garlic and other stuff when i was little, so these days i don't use prescription drugs if i can help it. but in the realm of chinese medicine, i stay far, far away. (it smells) 1
#58 Japan - my dad hitchhiked around japan in his youth. i have never had the urge to go, though the people are amazing (we used to host japanese students when i was young). it just seems too crowded over there. and they eat a lot of fish. but i love the smell of their origami paper. 0
#57 Juno - cute movie. lovely soundtrack. but i have some problems with it (namely, how emotionally uninvested juno was about everything. she's a teenager having a baby. you'd think there would be some major hormone issues going on there). 0
#56 Lawyers - nope. 0
#55 Apologies - haha! omigosh, yes! i'm one big walking apology. 1
#54 Kitchen Gadgets - not really. unless they're from the 1950s... like my great-grandma's egg beaters. i do miss the cheese slicer, though... 0
#53 Dogs - no! (there are a few exceptions but they are rare.) 0
#52 Sarah Silverman - i'm living under a rock. i've heard of her, but i've never known what she's about. so no. 0
#51 Living by the Water - yep. lived by it all my life and would probably go batty if there wasn't some sort of large body of water nearby be it ocean or lake. 1
#50 Irony - no, not really. 0
#49 Vintage - yes, i do have a penchant for that word and its familiars. i especially like vintage with history behind it and, thankfully, my room happens to be furnished in such stuff. 1
#48 Whole Foods and Grocery Co-ops - i might if we had any nearby. 0.5
#47 Arts Degrees - see #81. 0
#46 The Sunday New York Times - nope. i especially loathe new york times crosswords. 0
#45 Asian Fusion Food - i don't go out of my way for it, but it's been good the couple of times i've had it. 0.5
#44 Public Radio - i don't listen to much radio. 0
#43 Plays - if it's shakespeare, i'm all over it! which reminds me, i've got to get tickets for bard on the beach... 1
#42 Sushi - i have tried and failed. 0
#41 Indie Music - yep. heck, they even list joanna newsom and the arcade fire. 1
#40 Apple Products - i own nary a one. 0
#39 Netflix - nope. 0
#38 Arrested Development - never seen it. 0
#37 Renovations - i probably will if/when i get my own place. 0.5
#36 Breakfast Places - bon's off broadway springs to mind... but it's so far away! 0.5
#35 The Daily Show/Colbert Report - my brother-in-law used to watch it a lot and it was always enjoyable. but we don't really watch much television anymore. 0.5
#34 Architecture - yah, i couldn't tell you who designed what, but certain types of architecture do appeal to me. 1
#33 Marijuana - it smells funny. 0
#32 Vegan/Vegetarianism - nope. i likes my meat. 0
#31 Snowboarding - i'd be screaming all the way down the hill, to be sure! 0
#30 Wrigley Field - huh? 0
#29 80s Night - i've known a lot of people that have attended these, but i never have. dressing up is always fun, but i would much prefer a victorian themed party (however, i fear most of my friends would have trouble scrounging up bustles and corsets...) 0.5
#28 Not having a TV - i had a friend in grade one that didn't have a tv. whenever she was over she wanted to watch our television. i like at least having the option to watch it. doesn't mean i will. 0
#27 Marathons - i don't run well. but if i did, i would probably get a picture of myself at the finish line with my arms in the air. 0
#26 Manhattan (now Brooklyn too!) - meh. 0
#25 David Sedaris - who? 0
#24 Wine - i have tried on several occasions. and failed. 0
#23 Microbreweries - alcohol. we don't get along well. 0
#22 Having Two Last Names - pretentious! i have a second middle name that was, at one time, somebody's last name... but again, it's a middle name. i used to go to school with a girl whose last name was perry-whittingham. it didn't even all fit on the attendance sheet. ridiculous. 0
#21 Writers Workshops - i kinda turn up my nose at the thought of them. 0
#20 Being an expert on YOUR culture - i'd like to know more about my culture, but i don't. och aye! 0
#19 Traveling - yah! 1
#18 Awareness - i am guilty of it. but only when i get invited to stuff. 0.5
#17 Hating their Parents - they did a good job of giving me no reason to hate them. 0
#16 Gifted Children - sorry, sometimes kids are just stupid. don't sugar coat it for them or yourself. 0
#15 Yoga - no. and your lululemon pants? that logo on the back leg looks like bird crap. (don't hate the people that do yoga... just the overpriced products that surround it). 0
#14 Having Black Friends - there weren't enough black kids in my neighbourhood for that sort of thing. 0
#13 Tea - very guiltea. 1
#12 Non-Profit Organizations - i dig 'em. 1
#11 Asian Girls - if i were a guy, probably yes. however, as the entry states, the reverse is not often true for white women and asian guys. 0
#10 Wes Anderson Movies - i always enjoy the soundtracks... but the movies aren't really my cup of tea. i'll watch them and enjoy them (or at least parts of them), but that's as far as it goes. 0
#9 Making you feel bad about not going outside - i make myself feel bad about not going outside. 1
#8 Barack Obama - seems like a nice fellow. 0.5
#7 Diversity - yah. back at the drug dealer's there was tons of diversity. i kinda miss the different perspectives... 1
#6 Organic Food - it does make me feel better. i'm sure it's all in my head, though. 0.5
#5 Farmer’s Markets - none nearby and i don't go out of my way for them. 0
#4 Assists - sports. blargh! 0
#3 Film Festivals - i have toyed with the idea, but the closest i've ever gotten was spike and mike's festival of animation and that's probably as far as i'll ever go. 0
#2 Religions their parents don’t belong to - nope. it just makes too much sense to me. 0
#1 Coffee - straight coffee: hell's bells, no! but a little bit of coffee with a lot of sugar, chocolate, milk and whipping cream (and maybe some crushed ice cubes on a hot day) and i'm sold. 0.5
so, in summary: 35/96 means that i am approximately 36% white. hmmm... i'm thinking this is an overall good thing.
for those of you that also find yourselves with scads of free time, i'm curious to see how you measure up.