This is what I do on my downtime between teaching people English... I will take this time because later on it might be fun to read... when I'm in a different phase of life. you know...

"ology" Survey

MOUTHOLOGY

Q. What is your salad dressing of choice?
Tahini

Q. What is your favorite fast food restaurant?
Once upon a time when Fast Food other than McDonalds was available, I sure liked Taco Bell.

Q. What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?
My Little Indian. Actually it's called "Happy Food." It's a Burmese-run Indian food joint on someone's "porch" near my building. It's delicious and cheeeeeeap.

Q. On average, what size tip do you leave at a restaurant?
No tipping in Thailand. Once upon a time I tipped usually around 20%, never less unless the service was exceptionally terrible.

Q. What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick off of?
Graham Crackers. I'm pretty sure I know from experience?

Q. What are your pizza toppings of choice?
Ham and Mushroom. Still my favorite.

Q. What do you like to put on your toast?
Nutella

Q. What is your favorite type of gum?
Double Mint and Bazooka for the lucky numbers.

TECHNOLOGY

Q. Number of contacts in your cell phone?
Less than 20, now that I had to get a new one. None of you are in it!

Q. Number of contacts in your email address book?
Hell if I know.

Q. What is your wallpaper on your computer?
Joel and Nora at the Tiger's Game. The one where I'm wearing braids and he's looking a little older than usual and we look sick. But I love that picture!

Q. How many televisions are in your house?
There is a television in my abode? I nearly forgot.

Q. Are you right-handed or left-handed?
Right handed

Q. Do you like your smile?
my teeth could be a little smaller...

Q. What's your best feature?
my wit, when it's working.

Q. Have you ever had anything removed from your body?
teeth and skin and earwax... dirt and sweat.

Q. Which of your five senses do you think is keenest?
well, since I wear glasses and am partially deaf, have hard skin and bad sinuses... That leaves my sense of ESP?

Q. When was the last time you had a cavity?
I dont know... I'm not really sure if I've ever had one. I've had fillings for what the dentist said were only cavity threats. yeah, i'm confused too.

Q. What is the heaviest item you lifted last?
Okay, this is really the most random question I've ever seen on one of these atroicious things. The last heavy thing i lifted, i guess, was my guitar and case... it gets heavy when i walk it half a mile up the road to our church.

Q. Have you ever been knocked unconscious?
i don't remember. ha.

BULL[shit]OLOGY

Q. If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?
no.

Q. Is love for real?
why wouldn't it be?

Q. If you could change your first name, what would you change it to?
I think I'd keep my name, but... I am loving some of these Thai names: Siripan, Chirasak, Teerawat, Naremon, etc.

Q. What color do you think looks best on you?
I like green on me. Other people seem to like pink.

Q. Have you ever swallowed a non-food item by mistake?
Um. not that i can remember. Is gum a non food item? Probably ants and mosquitoes and spiders in my sleep.

Q. Have you ever saved someone's life?
not that i can remember. i've more often put lives in danger, i'm sure.

Q. Has someone ever saved yours?
when i first came here, p'nui saved me from so many cars coming at me from unexpected directions. and i think my brother might have saved me from drowning...

DAREOLOGY

Q. Would you walk naked for a half mile down a public street for $100,000?
no doubt

Q. Would you kiss a member of the same sex for $100?
sure

Q. Would you allow one of your little fingers to be cut off for $200,000?
no way

Q. Would you never blog again for $50,000?
yep, though i'm hoping it would sadden people who keep in touch with me that way, being all the way over here.

Q. Would you pose naked in a magazine for $250,000?
$250,000... yeah i'd do it.

Q. Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000?
all at once? yes, but i would do it so slowly...

Q. Would you, without fear of punishment, take a human life for $1,000,000?
nope.

Q. Would you give up watching television for a year for $25,000?
for 10 years!

DUMBOLOGY

Q: What is in your left pocket?
air

Q: Is Napoleon Dynamite actually a good movie?
Yes, because of Pedro. Because of Pedro's Pinata.

Q: Do you have hardwood or carpet in your house?
linoleum.

Q: Do you sit or stand in the shower?
um, does any one NOT stand? cripples?

Q: Could you live with roommates?
I'm liking the alone thing but I'm not picky.

Q: How many pairs of flip flops do you own?
I live in Thailand, where they are essential. I have two pairs here and I think 1 pair in Detroit.

Q: Where were you born?
Sinai.

Q: Last time you had a run-in with the cops?
When that jerk broke Joel's mirror. I'm still mad.

Q: Who is number 1 on your top 8
P'JoEL I wish he'd change his Myspace name to that.

LASTOLOGY

Q: Last person you called?
Called... hm. Tee.

Q: Person you hugged?
The pastor's wife.

FAVORITOLOGY

Q: Number?
24--how old i was when i came to thailand, the name of my road in thailand, and in thai it's "ee'sip'see"

Q: Color?
blue

Q: Season?
autumn. sob!


CURRENTOLOGY

Q: Missing someone?
more than one someone

Q: Mood?
super excited

Q: Listening to?
Thai pop in the background of the office. It's terrible. Don't try it at home.

Q: Watching?
My coworkers crack up at something... Don't ask me what.

Q: Worrying about?
Nothing. I quit worrying.

RANDOMOLOGY

Q: First place you went this morning?
To find P'Nui's lost shirt. The laundry ladies lost it and I had to retrieve it. I borrowed her shirt because I had a meeting. 2 meetings. and I needed her suits.

Q: What can you not wait to do?
I'm pretty excited about many things. One is talking to Bose on the phone tonight. Another is cooking with the P's tonight on P'G's 21st floor... great view; great times. Maybe... sometimes the P's change their minds. But of COURSE I'm most excited about saturday!!

Q: What's the last movie you saw?
Last night I watched this Jennifer Love Hewitt Indie movie called "If Only" and I can't decide if I enjoyed it or not. I definitely don't love her but maybe the movie was decent?

Q: Do you smile often?
YES. Especially when I think of how soon it will be that I will see Joel.

Q: Are you a friendly person?
Yep.

Q: Now that the survey's done what are you going to do?
Go home and change my shoes. And then hopefully off to Big C to buy stuff to make Jambalaya!

ballade

Mostly used by the French in the 14th and 15th centuries. Complicated as hell (see picture attached to the "judgement" post for an illustration of how complicated this is). Stresses rhyme.

Form:

Three stanzas and a short one (envoi). The envoi addresses an important person or sums up the meaning of the poem.

Each stanza has eight lines. They follow the same rhyme scheme and use the same rhymes. The Rhyme Scheme is: ababbcbC ababbcbC ababbcbC bcbC. C is always the same line.

Other forms:
ababbccdcD, ababbccdcD, ababbccdcD, ccdcD
Twelve line stanzas, six line envoi
Double ballade: six stanzas of eight, ten, or twelve lines but no envoi.

(I took a shot at the standard one...)

In the darkest corner of an unborn heart
(where phantoms asleep with fantasies
stifle glimmers of a new start),
You wait. A grove of dead trees,
still in a violent breeze
reach softly to a sky
of stars. In post-disease,
let them listen to creation’s cry.

Behind the grove in a broken down cart,
painted red with a missing wheel, she lies
staring at nighttime clouds. Quiet Mozart
fills her chest with perfect harmonies.
In the pile of documentaries
this world keeps secret, she’ll try
for dreams—in broadcast pleas,
let them listen to creation’s cry.

Backstage before the play will start:
cracked mirror make-up sessions. She’s
barely memorized her bit part
and not a one to wing it. In balconies,
angels and zombies give silent cheers; the Marquis’
announcement soon to be a lie.
When these shows are forgotten entities,
let them listen to creation’s cry.

You stepped on every species.
In all forgotten forests, you hide
your solemn footprints for blinded men to see.
Let them listen to creation’s cry