50 things meme – a bit of high-school-esque fun

Tagged by Helen; tagging anyone who reads.

1. What time did you get up this morning?
I overslept and got up at 10. Oops.

2. How do you like your steak?
Medium well, baby.

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?
Oh dear God – that would be that abysmal “Transformers” sequel. Thanks for reminding me of the sheer trauma of having to sit through that, Optimus Prime’s awesome voice (that would be Peter Cullen, btw) notwithstanding.

4. What is your favorite TV show?
All things considered? Probably the X-Files. I certainly co-own all of the seasons with Boyfriend. It’s been a long, illustrious, love affair, flavoured with sunflower seeds and icky alien bile stuff.

5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?
I would live in a cleaner, kinder version of Kiev. Oh, but if we’re being realistic and all – then probably London.

6. What did you have for breakfast?
I don’t remember. I was running around and screeching about being late to everything.

7. What is your favorite cuisine?
All things considered? Probably Japanese. It makes my body rejoice in obscenely pleasurable ways.

8. What foods do you dislike?
KFC. The smell alone is torture.

9. Favorite Place to Eat?
Sushi-Ya. On Bessarabka Square. In Kiev.

10. Favorite dressing?
Balsamic vinaigrette.

11.What kind of vehicle do you drive?
Haven’t got one, love.

12. What are your favorite clothes?
Like, clothes in general or clothes in my closet? Hmmm… well, I do presently own a fabulous DKNY dress. I tend to like floaty things that suit my complexion. I also have a special place in my heart for running shorts that say “Duke” across the bum.

13. Where would you visit if you had the chance?
Galapagos Islands.

14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full?
Errr… I’m going to go out on a limb and say full.

15. Where would you want to retire?
I wouldn’t.

16. Favorite time of day?
Twilight. 😉

17. Where were you born?
Fabulous Kiev, Ukraine. The birthplace of Mikhail Bulgakov and other luminaries.

18. What is your favorite sport to watch?
Football. And not in the American sense.

19. Who do you think will not tag you back?
Er, well, see, I preempted that, since I tagged anyone reading! I’m so clever.

20. Person you expect to tag you back first?
I expect that most of my readers have much more sense than I do, and hence scoff at memes.

21. Who are you most curious about their responses to this?
I dunno. Everyone interests me, to a certain extent.

22. Bird watcher?
Well, do you mean like – do I stalk the woods with a pair of binoculars on my days off? Then no. But I enjoy watching whatever bird happens to wander into my field of vision. Favourites include crows, ravens, hummingbirds and swans.

23. Are you a morning person or a night person?
Oh, night, definitely. In the morning, I am only vaguely human. David recently took a breakfast-table picture that certainly confirmed as much.

24. Do you have any pets?
In Amman, I have two kittehs: Fanty & Mingo. In Kiev: our family has a kitteh named Fedya. He is creeping around the room as I type out my answers.

25. Any new and exciting news you’d like to share?
I’d like to go to Kazakhstan! Either this year, or maybe sometime in the next.

26. What did you want to be when you were little?
A writer. I also considered being a cop like one of those you see in all of the buddy movies.

27. What is your best childhood memory?
Christmas in Prague. I was about five years old. There was snow, sweets, an enchanted city rising up all around me, and a beautiful girl named Dagmar who read fairy tales out loud.

28. Are you a cat or dog person?
Both, these days.

29. Are you married?
Nope. Sure ain’t.

30. Always wear your seat belt?
Uh, yeah.

31. Been in a car accident?
Sure. A couple. Good times. Not really.

32. Any pet peeves?
Well, how much time do you have? Ah, I see… I see… Well, I particularly HATE seeing socks tossed onto the floor. There’s just something about that. It feels like an affront to all human dignity.

33. Favorite Pizza Toppings?
I have a Hobbit-like love of mushrooms, actually. Also, few things beat blue cheese.

34. Favorite Flower?
Peonies.

35. Favorite ice cream?
I’m going to be boring and just say Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia.

36. Favorite fast food restaurant?
Ugh. But Burger King will do, in a pinch. I also have a soft-spot for Amman’s Chili House.

37. How many times did you fail your driver’s test?
Just once. And I would have passed too, had the lady not been such a twitchy jerk.

38. From whom did you get your last email?
From some stupid service I inadvertently subscribed to. Something about a shoe sale. A depressing shoe sale.

39. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?
In Dubai, there is this little shop on Jumeirah Beach Road (I think) called S*uce or, in other words, Sauce. It’s full of fun accessories and clothes. But I’d equally like to drop all of my invisible credit card money in some old bookshop somewhere.

40. Do anything spontaneous lately?
Oh, totally. Spent the night on the beach after a bazillion bottles of champagne, struck up a conversation with a famous person I admire, randomly danced to bad techno with a bunch of government employees…the list goes on.

41. Like your job?
Oh yes. YES.

42. Broccoli?
Is good when it’s steamed and served alongside my mom’s pasta.

43. What was your favorite vacation?
A few days spent in London one winter while still in college. They were cold, grey and quite possibly also the happiest days of my life.

44. Last person you went out to dinner with?
Some lovely people who were there to celebrate my birthday. Oh yes. 🙂

45. What are you listening to right now?
I’m listening to the moths beat their wings against a plastic bag.

46. What is your favorite color?
Blue.

47. How many tattoos do you have?
Not yet. 😉

48. How many are you tagging for this quiz?
As I MENTIONED I’m tagging whoever.

49. What time did you finish this quiz?
It’s nearing one a.m. in Kiev. And I still have work to do.

50. Coffee Drinker?
What kind of ludicrous question is that? Of course. Instant, to be precise. No matter how bad things get in life, the very thought of instant coffee makes everything more or less bearable.