1. After you finish your education, where would you like to end up?
the current plan is for us to aqcuire some land somewhere in the vicinity of my parents' house and put up an earth-friendly house off the grid. (current options include straw bale, rammed earth, cordwood, and, um, other things. i'm fuzzy on the details. construction details
work wise, i want to start out teaching community college; eventually, i want to move into teaching distance education courses. i wouldn't mind getting into textbook writing eventually, either.
2. What do you like the most about The West Wing?
it's fucking smart. i'm really, really picky about television - we don't want broadcast tv, actually; the only tv i see these days comes to us in Netflix envelopes, or when i'm home at my parents (where the tv is never, ever off. sigh.) most comedy that i see when i'm at their house relies on dumb, would-never-happen, painfully awkward situations, which drives me crazy (which is also why i don't do a lot of comedy movies.) The West Wing is smart television, with characters that i wish i really knew as people. the writers make me care about the peope on the show, and don't treat me like i'm a moron, which a lot of other broadcast tv does. it's not "family oriented" tv, and the values it espouses match mine, for the most part. it's nice to see a television show that says "yes, same gender couples should be allowed to marry. this is rediculous."
3. In what ways is North Carolina home to you?
first of all, it's familiar. i grew up here, and lived here until i was 22, when i traipsed off to Utah. it was a little odd, when i came back here, being back at the same school and living in the same general area, but the oddness has worn off, and it's rather comforting. i love the South, even with all its quirks. (and the damned pollen. *sneeze*) people talk right here, i can get sweet tea at any restuarant, the dogwoods bloom in the spring.
the rest of home? it's my family. my parents and both my sisters are in the state, as is most my dad's, on both his mom's and dad's sides, large extended family. we might drive each other a little crazy sometimes, but i do love my family, and i'm glad to be back here where i can see them regularly, and where i can go to family reunions and weddings and funerals and such easily. and now Jeff is part of the family too, which is just ... more than i could have hoped for, that they like him as much as they do. (sometimes i wonder if they like him better. ;) )
4. What is the best french toast that you've ever had?
i like to think i take something from everyone i've known, even if things didn't go well in the end. one of the ex's that doesn't speak to me taught me that i could drink my coffee black, and it could actually be good. similarly, i have an old roommate who things didn't go down well with in the end, which is a pity, but she taught me to make the best homemade French toast i've ever had. the secrets are potato bread, coconut milk, lots and lots of cinammon and nutmeg, and kahlua, if you have it on hand. it's amazing.
the best french toast i've ever had while eating out may go to a Cajun restuarant that i went to for brunch one time, when i was home for a visit, with
(at this point, i would like to note that whenever i get papers back in class, my classmates are always asking "damn! how did you write so much?" this is because i am incapable of answering a question in 10 words when 30 will suffice, unless i have a hard and fast rule (like my Islam teacher staring at me when he assigned our paper this semester, saying "no. i mean. five pages. double-spaced. NO MORE than that. and it was exactly five pages.)
5. Chocolate or strawberries?
that's a hard one, but it's chocolate. i love strawberries, but i love chocolate more. and it's so versatile...