A quiz-thing

I haven't done one of these in quite some time! Roger did this one, and I think I will, too.

1. One of my favorite TV shows recently changed the actors who played two characters. Have you ever been bothered by a TV show or movie series changing actors who play a character you love?

At first glance, I didn't think I really had very many good examples of this, but thinking about it more, it's obvious that I have a bunch. First we have the James Bond movies; you can't be a long-time Bond fan and not have some strong opinions as to which one's the best. (Mine is that I really, truly, honestly like every single Bond actor, and that the one most generally viewed as the worst -- George Lazenby -- was not only pretty good, but starred in the best Bond film ever made. How do you like that!)

Then we have things like the ongoing reboot of Star Trek, with younger actors cast as Captain Kirk and company, and there's the new version of Spider Man coming out soon. I'm fine with Trek, although I'm not as thrilled with the resulting movie as some and I think the goofy "But it's just a new timeline!" excuses are pretty weak; I'm not fine with Spider-Man, though, because it's unnecessary when a perfectly acceptable (even if most folks didn't like III all that much) series of films could have been continued, and the only reason this one's happening at all is because Sony has to make a movie or they lose the Spider-Man rights.

I also remember things like the year that Donna Reed played Miss Ellie on Dallas, because they didn't want to write out Miss Ellie but Barbara Bel Geddes needed time off. I was OK with that; by that point, Miss Ellie was mainly a supporting character, anyway.

So basically, I go with a case-by-case basis on this kind of thing.

2. A coworker recently shared a link to a blog listing the "five things you should know before dating a journalist." As a journalist, I can honestly say the writer was spot-on. What are some things people should know before spending time with you?

I'm kind of confoozled by this question...if they want to spend time with me then they gotta know something about me to begin with, right? But anyway, I guess people should know that I tend to value honest conversation and laughter, and that I find racism and paranoia a major turnoff. Singing the praises of the New England Patriots is right out.

3. What is something you often do without realizing that you're doing it?


Knuckle-cracking. Humming. Muttering to myself. Staring off into space because I'm thinking about something.

4. Who has the capacity to make you angrier than anyone else in your life, and what in particular does he or she do to make you so angry?

Yeesh, I don't know...various Republicans, maybe? I can feel anger pretty intensely, but it burns itself out pretty quickly. The whole Tea Party thing makes me pretty mad, though. So do young people who bleat about Ron Paul and how awesome it would be if we hitched our 21st-century economy to 19th-century economic theory; what irritates me is how intensely clueless these folks are, and yet they'll tell me, "Educate yourself!" And climate-change deniers strikes me as not just angering, but downright dangerous.

5. If a fairy waved a magic wand and gave you the house of your dreams, where would it be and what features would it have?


A large kitchen with really great ventilation, large bedrooms, a room big enough for the books (and with enough shelves), and it should be on a nice-sized lot bounded by a bunch of trees, for cooling and privacy. Oh, and a woodstove, and an outbuilding of some sort -- maybe an old, ramshackle garage -- where I could set up some kind of workshop so I could finally start exploring woodworking on a real basis and not just piecemeal via the projects I get at The Store.

6. What’s a belief that you hold with which many people disagree?

Obviously, that the Star Wars prequels don't suck! And also, that Super Bowl commercials are generally lame and not interesting enough to bother watching. I pay so little attention that there could be an ad during a Super Bowl featuring Kat Dennings wearing overalls while engaging in a pie fight, and I wouldn't know until the next day. (And maybe a good thing...that scenario might well make my head explode.)

7. I used to talk in my sleep. In fact, I could carry on a conversation with someone when I was fully asleep, and my mom used this fact when I was a teenager to find out if I did anything wrong and was hiding it from my parents. If you were talking your sleep tonight, what do you think you would say?

"Cersei, you lying whore." (I'm reading A Clash of Kings right now.)

8. The fourth installment of the "Twilight" movie series ("Breaking Dawn Part I") will be released in theaters soon. Movie theaters started selling advance tickets for midnight showings months ago. Have you ever attended a midnight premiere showing of a movie?

Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. Those are the only midnight movies I've done. I've seen a host of others on opening day, though.

9. On Tuesday, tigers, lions and bears were let loose in Zanesville, Ohio, by their owner before he committed suicide, leading to a hunt in which 49 of the animals, including 18 endangered Bengal tigers, were killed. How would you react if you saw "Caution exotic animals. Stay in your vehicle" being displayed on a road sign?

OK, this quiz is officially dated now. If I'm in the car with a person I don't like, maybe I distract them so they don't see the sign and then trick them into getting outside? No, that's mean. I guess I just drive away until I figure I'm safe and then call someone to find out what's going on.

10. If a company opened a theme park aimed at adults, what would you name one of the rides?


The Princess Leia Organa Slave Girl Revue. This would take place at the Star Wars theme park. Which needs to exist.

11. Imagine you just moved onto Sesame Street. Which puppet would you want as your new roommate?


Since Kermit exists on both Sesame Street and The Muppet Show, I will assume that Sesame Street is somewhat close to whatever street the Muppet Theater is on. This, therefore, gives me access to all the Muppets, and not just the ones on Sesame Street. For a roommate? I'd take Scooter. I think he'd be fairly quiet and conscientious. (I'll bet Animal throws some wild parties....)

12. Have you ever had a weird crush on a famous person that didn't make sense to you?


Nah, they all make sense to me. Some of them may not make sense to you, but I can't help that!

13. If you get ten minutes to interview any celebrity of your choice, who would you like it to be?


George Lucas. Or Barack Obama. Or Joss Whedon. Or...I'll just stop there, I guess.

14. You've just won the complete DVD collection of all the movies starring one actor or actress. Which actor/actress would you pick?


Ooooh, tough one. I think I'd go with Humphrey Bogart. Or Meryl Streep. Or Marilyn Monroe. Or...yeah, I'll stop there.

15. Actor George Clooney recently told People Magazine that he doesn't use Twitter "because I will drink in the evening and I don't want anything that I could possibly write at midnight to actually end my career." What is something you've said through social media and then regretted it?


A Facebook friend posted that he was going off to work as a polling place volunteer on either Election Day or Primary Day, and I posted something like "Good luck, and make sure you demand ID and do whatever you need to do to keep those pesky brown people from voting!" He's pretty liberal, so I figured he and his friends would recognize that I was mocking the GOP's jihad against 'voter fraud', none of which actually exists and which really gives rise to policies that just happen to also heavily discourage minority voters, who tend to vote for Democrats. My phrasing, though was not well-considered or well-received, so I apologized and deleted the comment. Not my finest moment online.

16. VH1 has re-introduced its hit show "Pop-Up Video," which gives behind-the-scenes facts for popular music videos. What musician would you be most interested in learning behind-the-scenes facts about?


John Williams. Or the Beatles.

17. If you stumbled across someone's personal written journal that was accidentally left in a public place, would you read any of the content?


That's tough...I think I'd thumb through it, in the hopes of seeing if I could find any identifying marks within it, so that I might try to contact the owner and return it to them. If it was completely anonymous, though...maybe I'd read it. I'm honestly not sure.

18. What is the title of a self-help book that you'd never want to see on a store bookshelf?

Finding the Super Model In Your Life, by Tom Brady.

19. Many media outlets have been asking this question a lot this week... Which Halloween costume do you think will be overdone this year?

Well, obviously this quiz has been knocking around for a few months. Right now I have no idea...but the idea of a bunch of kids dressed up as Mitt Romney is pretty unsettling.

20. Should a marriage license have a renewal date or expiration date, like a driver’s license?

Ye Gods, why would we want to do this? Is someone seriously suggesting this? As in, you have to renew by a certain date or your marriage simply ends? Is this an actual idea out there somewhere? It seems to me that this, far more than allowing gays to marry, would fundamentally alter the notion of what marriage is about.

And there, the quiz ends. Huzzah!