Proust Questionnaire :Susan tagged me. She asked for it, and now she's got it!

What is your idea of perfect happiness?
peaceful mind and a full heart.

What is your greatest fear?
That I will fail my family.

Which historical figure do you most identify with?
Valentine Michael Smith (do fictional historical characters count?)

Which living person do you most admire?
Bill Gates. Alpha geek makes good, starts giving millions to charity.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself.
A.D.D whether it's real or imagined
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Meanness.

What is your greatest extravagance?
Hockey Equipment

What is your favorite journey?
Those with no destination, only discovery.

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Honesty...as it can be used as a mantle to cover a mean streak.

On what occasion do you lie?
When I talk about my legs.

What do you dislike most about your appearance?
Anything above the waist. Having run my whole life I think I have great legs and tush.

Which living person do you most despise?
Dick Cheney... I guess

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
apparently

What is your greatest regret?
Losing my father while I still thought I hated him.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?
My daughter.

Which talent would you most like to have?
Flying, no wait invisibility, no wait super strength. Ok really, the ability to play the guitar..

What is your current state of mind?

If you could change one thing about your family, what would it be?
Their addiction to cigarettes.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Going from .88 GPA in HS to graduating with honors from College.

If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be?
a Buddhist monk. Although Hugh Hefner is a close second on some days.

What is your most treasured possession?
I tried to think of what is the one thing if I walked away now I would absolutely have to take with me, my daughter comes first to mind...but she is not a possession. What is it I could not replace, I think it would be the pictures I inherited when mom passed away.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
I would think being on death row for a crime you did not commit.

Where would you like to live?
Grindewald Switzerland.

What is your favorite occupation?
Hockey player

What is your most marked characteristic?
equanimity

What is the quality you most like in a man?
great defense. no wait that's most in a hockey player.

What is the quality you most like in a woman
red hair, green eyes, athletic...oops wrong list. I'm trying to find the word for down to earth, unpretentious, you're basic good soul.

What do you most value in your friends?
acceptance.

Who are your favorite writers?
Steinbeck, Heinlein, Hesse.

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Captain America

Who are your heroes in real life?
Thich Nhat Hanh

What are your favorite names?
Katherine, Patricia, Puppa ( I use that for my dog, horses and donkey)

What is it that you most dislike?

How would you like to die?
Asleep in my tent, somewhere along the AT.

What is your motto?
Live long and prosper.

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What a great topic...Hours spend playing 'army' in the woods and yards in my neighborhood. I was an expert in urban warfare by the age of 11. Too bad paintball came along so much later. We would generally play in the woods behind my friends house, there was a pond rimmed by hills on all sides, and the brush was way overgrown, it was our own Vietnamese jungle, and in winter the arena for some fierce hockey games. It was also where all of our tree forts got built, including the three story one we built from doors and old 2x4's and bent nails.

Because all of the kids in the neighborhood had responsible parents who insured that they did things like homework, studying and the occasional bath, I spent a lot of time alone wandering the streets of my hometown. I would come home from school and head down to the river and play on the empty docks, hopping on and off the barges. Playing on the two story sand and gravel piles. I found a way onto the building and would launch myself into space only to fall into the sand pile.

The towns original jail was on the street to the dock, and being agile I learned how to break in the second floor window and explore the cells and dank basement..I also learned that a cigarette lighter and a can of paint makes an adequate torch to see by in dark abandoned buildings, not to mention a few other interesting uses.

My imagination soared in the countless hours I spend exploring both the town I actually lived in and the complex vivid one I built inside of my head. Where could fly, captain a barge on the Mississippi, crouch unmoving in the jungle waiting to ambush an enemy patrol.

We didn't live in the worst part of town, but you could see it from where we lived, looking back I would have been easy pickings for a pedophile...if he got close enough to catch me that is...I could always fly!

I came across this yesterday and liked it so much I decided to post it .

From Miguel Ruiz at miguelruiz.com

The Four Agreements

1. Be impeccable with your words.
Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean, Avoid using words to speak against yourself or to gossip about others.  Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

2. Don't take anything personally
Nothing others do is because of you.  What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream.  When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.

3. Don't make assumptions.
Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want.  Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama.  With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

4. Always do your best
Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgement, self-abuse and regret.