Memage!
This is from mmouse15, thank you for the questions! You made me put on my thinking cap for these, so thank you!
1. Cats (your icon's fault)
2. raspberry vs strawberry, the debate!
3. Your favorite tea
4. Your favorite Muppet
5. Weather
6. Your favorite vacation spot
7. Mountains vs the sea
1. About cats: I adore them. I had 3 cats, an abandoned one I took in, that happened to be pregnant, and two of her kids. She was a lovely white/pale gray cat with blue eyes, her daughter a tortie, and her son a HUGE dark silver cat, like a Russian blue. One more baby went to my sister, a tabby boy. I had to leave them behind in America when I came here, and it just tore me up to do it, but I think it was the best decision I could have made. I find them to be great companions for introverts like me, they are intelligent and cute and make me laugh, and try to comfort me when I am sick. While we can't have cats right now due to our lifestyle (extended travel occasionally, and no place to house them), I would love to have more when we are doddering old people. I'll never forget a dream I had after I came to Japan and had been here a few years. I was back in America, in a house I didn't recognize. I could occasionally catch glimpses of the two babies, but found my mama cat sleeping all curled up on a bed. I called her name, and she woke up, looking very content. I told her how happy I was to see her again, and asked her to come with me. She reached out her forelegs, and I realized they had human hands. She gently held my face with both hands and calmly told me she was staying there. I was both sad and relieved, sad because she wouldn:t be coming with me, but relieved that she seemed to be content. I miss all 3 of them so very much.
2. Raspberries vs strawberries: Oh yes, raspberries, definitely! Like so many things, raspberries have an emotional resonance for me. I loved visiting my grandparents in New York, and I can remember going to pick raspberries with my Nana in the forest. I loved the velvet roughness on my tongue, and the texture of the tiny sections as they'd come apart. The fragrance, too! I love anything made from raspberries, whether nougat from Italy, or mousse, or ice cream (!!). But yes, it's the memories of walking in the forest with Nana, and picking them that I remember, and I will love them the rest of my days.
3. Favorite tea: Oh wow, a great question since I live in the area of the world famous for its teas! At first, it was Tetley's "Constant Comment" tea, broken orange pekoe tea with orange peel and just a hint of spice in it. LORD I LOVED THAT TEA. For black tea, though, a good Irish breakfast blend, strength and tenderness in a cup, and some milk. And earl grey is quite elegant for those times I just want to feel, I don't know, in a better mood maybe? But a tiny tea shop in Kyoto made the absolute best Vanilla tea I have ever had, I think they shipped directly from France for it, but my goodness that was a fabulous tea, fragrant and rich, and not overpoweringly sweet. I have NEVER, in 10 years, found a flavored tea that could compare with that one.
Green tea is good, it depends on the variety though (and there are a LOT of varieties). I like the one with popcorn, baked rice and powdered green tea in it best, it's flavorful and fragrant, and a lovely color, and doesn't get bitter even after two cups. There's an oolong tea from Taiwan that is delightfully fragrant, and it's fun to watch the leaves unfurl in the water, so you must drink it in a clear glass cup!
4. Favorite Muppet: Ooohh, wow, gonna have to think about this one! Bert and Ernie and their antics are always fun to watch. But I really like Beaker, I think, clearly a smart guy, but a bit awkward and not good at communication. I guess that describes me in a way. And the two old curmudgeons on the Show, they were hilarious!
5. Weather: Oh, another difficult one... Not a big fan of snow, I've realized. Don't mind it for visiting or every now and again, but I'm pretty cold-blooded, and it's harder and harder for me to deal with the cold. I'm wearing my full-length winter coat right now in school, because for some idiot reason they haven't turned on the heater yet. But for favorite weather, I love the changeability in spring and fall - warm clear days, but with cool delightful rain. Again, emotional facets there for me, memories of summers in New York especially. But one form of weather I DO miss here in Japan are the big supercells that would move across the Great Plains. The eerie lighting, the clouds and the depths, the lightning and the thunder, especially the thunder - they don't have anything like that here, and typhoons are another matter entirely (no, don't like those I'm afraid!)
So I guess my answer would be spring and autumn rain, curled up with a book and tea spiked with rum, and a cup of hot onion soup topped with cheese. An ideal afternoon!
6. Favorite vacation spot: Hmm... This is a difficult question, because of my experience as an expat living in Japan. It's hard for me to leave Japan just because it is so expensive to get anywhere..! So right now, when I think vacation, I dream of being able to visit my friends and family, rather than actually *going* anywhere. Growing up, though, was New York hands down, not a single doubt. In Japan, I guess I'd have to say Kyoto, because you can go there any number of times and still discover little hidden tucked-away corners and places. It's different from Tokyo entirely, although at first glance you might think them similar. Also Okinawa was amazing, so very, very different from the mainland, and definitely unique, considering it was its own country for centuries before being virtually enslaved by the mainland Japanese. But I loved my Italy vacation two years ago and can definitely see why so many people fall in love with the country! For a dream vacation, I'd love to go to Scandinavia for some reason, couldn't even tell you why, I just feel a real desire to go!
7. Mountains vs the sea: Hah, I live in a place that has both! The mountains plunge right down into the sea (so swimming is dangerous in these parts). I grew up in the mountains, vacationed by the sea, so I honestly cannot give you an answer one way or the other. However, in light of the tsunami last year, I AM a bit afraid of the sea, because here, where I live, when the earthquake comes, we'll only have a scant 5 minutes before the tsunami hits shore... So maybe, by a little margin, the mountains..? Okay, yes, I'll go with mountains, but it pains my heart to say so!
1. Cats (your icon's fault)
2. raspberry vs strawberry, the debate!
3. Your favorite tea
4. Your favorite Muppet
5. Weather
6. Your favorite vacation spot
7. Mountains vs the sea
1. About cats: I adore them. I had 3 cats, an abandoned one I took in, that happened to be pregnant, and two of her kids. She was a lovely white/pale gray cat with blue eyes, her daughter a tortie, and her son a HUGE dark silver cat, like a Russian blue. One more baby went to my sister, a tabby boy. I had to leave them behind in America when I came here, and it just tore me up to do it, but I think it was the best decision I could have made. I find them to be great companions for introverts like me, they are intelligent and cute and make me laugh, and try to comfort me when I am sick. While we can't have cats right now due to our lifestyle (extended travel occasionally, and no place to house them), I would love to have more when we are doddering old people. I'll never forget a dream I had after I came to Japan and had been here a few years. I was back in America, in a house I didn't recognize. I could occasionally catch glimpses of the two babies, but found my mama cat sleeping all curled up on a bed. I called her name, and she woke up, looking very content. I told her how happy I was to see her again, and asked her to come with me. She reached out her forelegs, and I realized they had human hands. She gently held my face with both hands and calmly told me she was staying there. I was both sad and relieved, sad because she wouldn:t be coming with me, but relieved that she seemed to be content. I miss all 3 of them so very much.
2. Raspberries vs strawberries: Oh yes, raspberries, definitely! Like so many things, raspberries have an emotional resonance for me. I loved visiting my grandparents in New York, and I can remember going to pick raspberries with my Nana in the forest. I loved the velvet roughness on my tongue, and the texture of the tiny sections as they'd come apart. The fragrance, too! I love anything made from raspberries, whether nougat from Italy, or mousse, or ice cream (!!). But yes, it's the memories of walking in the forest with Nana, and picking them that I remember, and I will love them the rest of my days.
3. Favorite tea: Oh wow, a great question since I live in the area of the world famous for its teas! At first, it was Tetley's "Constant Comment" tea, broken orange pekoe tea with orange peel and just a hint of spice in it. LORD I LOVED THAT TEA. For black tea, though, a good Irish breakfast blend, strength and tenderness in a cup, and some milk. And earl grey is quite elegant for those times I just want to feel, I don't know, in a better mood maybe? But a tiny tea shop in Kyoto made the absolute best Vanilla tea I have ever had, I think they shipped directly from France for it, but my goodness that was a fabulous tea, fragrant and rich, and not overpoweringly sweet. I have NEVER, in 10 years, found a flavored tea that could compare with that one.
Green tea is good, it depends on the variety though (and there are a LOT of varieties). I like the one with popcorn, baked rice and powdered green tea in it best, it's flavorful and fragrant, and a lovely color, and doesn't get bitter even after two cups. There's an oolong tea from Taiwan that is delightfully fragrant, and it's fun to watch the leaves unfurl in the water, so you must drink it in a clear glass cup!
4. Favorite Muppet: Ooohh, wow, gonna have to think about this one! Bert and Ernie and their antics are always fun to watch. But I really like Beaker, I think, clearly a smart guy, but a bit awkward and not good at communication. I guess that describes me in a way. And the two old curmudgeons on the Show, they were hilarious!
5. Weather: Oh, another difficult one... Not a big fan of snow, I've realized. Don't mind it for visiting or every now and again, but I'm pretty cold-blooded, and it's harder and harder for me to deal with the cold. I'm wearing my full-length winter coat right now in school, because for some idiot reason they haven't turned on the heater yet. But for favorite weather, I love the changeability in spring and fall - warm clear days, but with cool delightful rain. Again, emotional facets there for me, memories of summers in New York especially. But one form of weather I DO miss here in Japan are the big supercells that would move across the Great Plains. The eerie lighting, the clouds and the depths, the lightning and the thunder, especially the thunder - they don't have anything like that here, and typhoons are another matter entirely (no, don't like those I'm afraid!)
So I guess my answer would be spring and autumn rain, curled up with a book and tea spiked with rum, and a cup of hot onion soup topped with cheese. An ideal afternoon!
6. Favorite vacation spot: Hmm... This is a difficult question, because of my experience as an expat living in Japan. It's hard for me to leave Japan just because it is so expensive to get anywhere..! So right now, when I think vacation, I dream of being able to visit my friends and family, rather than actually *going* anywhere. Growing up, though, was New York hands down, not a single doubt. In Japan, I guess I'd have to say Kyoto, because you can go there any number of times and still discover little hidden tucked-away corners and places. It's different from Tokyo entirely, although at first glance you might think them similar. Also Okinawa was amazing, so very, very different from the mainland, and definitely unique, considering it was its own country for centuries before being virtually enslaved by the mainland Japanese. But I loved my Italy vacation two years ago and can definitely see why so many people fall in love with the country! For a dream vacation, I'd love to go to Scandinavia for some reason, couldn't even tell you why, I just feel a real desire to go!
7. Mountains vs the sea: Hah, I live in a place that has both! The mountains plunge right down into the sea (so swimming is dangerous in these parts). I grew up in the mountains, vacationed by the sea, so I honestly cannot give you an answer one way or the other. However, in light of the tsunami last year, I AM a bit afraid of the sea, because here, where I live, when the earthquake comes, we'll only have a scant 5 minutes before the tsunami hits shore... So maybe, by a little margin, the mountains..? Okay, yes, I'll go with mountains, but it pains my heart to say so!