Q&A from my favorite step-daughter

A. sent me one of the Q&As she sends me on occasion. I like the peek into her life and head and I always return the Q&A with my answers added so she'll keep on sending me Q&As.

Further up and further in ...

First Name: Sal/Sally

Named After: No one in particular. I was almost named for Mary Jane Lirette. Wouldn't that've been grand?

Do I wish on stars? Always

When did I last cry? This morning, reading this.

What am I listening to? The sound of the wall heater cycling on and off. Except for Barenaked Ladies Christmas down at the main house and Santana in the car, I've been music-less since we got back. Don't know why.

Last thing I ate? Sweetbreads with mushrooms in a marsala/sour cream sauce over buttered rice. Last night. Breakfast this morning was a mug of espresso with milk and Torani caramel slosh. Naughty. I think I'll have sweetbreads on toast for lunch.

If I were a crayon, I'd be: chewed. broken.

What is the weather? Grey. Post-rain.

Last person I talked to on the phone? Talk? On the phone?

I must return Louisa's call.

Do you like the person who sent you this email? Very much.

Favorite Drink: Alize -- brandy and passion fruit juice.

Favorite Sport: tennis

Eye Color: hazel green brown

Do you wear contacts? No.

Favorite Food: Sizzled foie gras.

Last Movie you watched: Ella Enchanted, on the flight home.

Favorite Day of the year: Each day has its good points.

Scary Movies or Happy Endings? Happy Endings, for sure.

Summer or Winter: Fall, when the hills turn green again. Or are we talking about color key? In that case, Winter.

What is your favorite dessert? Flan

Who is most likely to respond? n/a

Living arrangements? Splitting time between San Francisco and the South Bay. Looking forward to the day when the South Bay domicile will be sold and we'll really be living some place again. Right now I feel 'twixt and 'tween, not really one place or the other. Separating from the South Bay is taking longer and is a lot more heart shaking than I'd expected.

What books are you reading? an assortment and nothing at all. I really need to get this place in shape for sale. I feel guilty curling up with a good book.

What's on your mouse pad? "SURFERS TAKE NOTICE" -- an Alcatel mouse pad that came from who knows where. I hadn't noticed. Now that I've noticed, I think I'll swap in the mousepad that Powells.com sent me.

What did you watch on TV last night? I haven't watched TV as such for a long, long while except for some news bursts from hotel room TVs while we were gone and out of touch with newspapers and the Web.

Favorite Smells: Daphne odora, citrus blossoms, ylang ylang, 4th of July punks

Rolling Stones or Beatles? Beatles

Do you like your handwriting? Yes.

What is your favorite lunchmeat? Chipped beef, when turned into chipped beef on toast. Soul food.

When is your birthday? 12 August. Leo Dragon.

If you were another person, would you be friends with you? Yes.

Are you a daredevil? No.

Have you ever told a secret you swore to keep? Not that I can remember. I'm pretty closed mouth when people tell me things. If someone was in danger of doing something utterly stupid or dangerous, however ...

How do you release anger? I clean up messes, throw things away, regret it later some times.

Where is your second home? Which is my second home? ... at this point San Francisco, I suppose, but San Francisco feels like home and this place from which I'm typing this seems ... like an old lover who is fading from memory. I'm detaching.

Do you trust others easily? No.

What was your favorite toy as a child? A small doll maybe eight inches high that I got in Brazil when I was five or so. The doll still sets on my bureau.

What class in high school do you think was totally useless? None of them, really. Maybe PE/swim.

Do you have a journal? Yes. Off and on and then my blog these days. I wish I was more consistent about writing in a journal but I usually start off and then peter out.

Do you use sarcasm? No.

Would you bungee jump? No, but I am thrilled that my dad jumped out of an airplane for his eightieth bday (a tandem jump) and splurged the extra to get someone to jump with him and videotape the jump.

Do you untie your shoes to take them off? No. Naughty.

What is your favorite ice cream flavor? Coffee.

Shoe Size: 6-6 1/2.

Red/Pink: Pink for clothes. Red for stuff, household decoration, flowers, ...

What is the least favorite thing you like about yourself? My unhelpful, unhealthy tendency to fuss and fret about stuff I can do nothing about.

Who do you miss the most? Skip, Diana, Casey.

Do you want everyone you send this to to send it back? n/a

What color pants are you wearing? black Levi's

What is the furthest you have been away from home? Halfway around the world. If we're talking about distance from where and how I live? Bhutan. Bhutan rocked my soul.