20 Questions

 

I stole this idea from Wish You Were Here by Bethany Joy Lenz 

Though I did alter the questions a bit, because I'm a Mormon. 

Were you named after anyone? My name is Nicole Ellen and my grandma's name is Mary Ellen.

Do you like your own handwriting? Yes, I love it. I met this girl the other day that knows the fancy science of reading handwriting and she told me that she could tell that I'm a very analytical person 70% of the time and very creative 30% of the time, with little in between those two frames of mind. I felt weirdly complimented and I loved that. 

What would your superpower be if you could choose one? Teleportation. Easy. 

Are you an optimist or a pessimist? I used to be a full fledged optimist, but sadly not lately. I lean toward pessimism and call it "realism"-- yeah, I'm that person. 

What do you collect? Books, esp. travel books, and every time I see a copy of Sherlock Holmes I buy it. I think I have about 10 copies, some of them are really old and cool. 

What movie would your friends be surprised that you like? I love the movie Pure Country with George Strait in all its kitschy glory, and I LOVE how he never kisses his co-star because he saw it as cheating on his wife. Stay classy George. 

What are your favorite smells? Freshly mown grass, new books, swimming pools (chlorine), pizza, black ice car freshener, lilacs, wet cement, new tires, and wood. 

What is the best thing you've ever eaten? Where? This is going to sound snooty, but once in Verona Italy I ate real brick oven thin-crust pizza with a side of baked tomatoes, I've never felt that way before, that food made me feel something, and it was amazing. 

Mac or PC? I hate myself for sounding like a tech-obsessed hipster, but Mac. 

What are you listening to right now? George Strait, Amarillo by Morning (ironically enough. I love me some King George). And just so you all can be jealous, I went to his farewell concert last week (Jan. 25), third row.

What career would you like? I really want to try and report for magazines like National Geographic or Time, etc. My goal is to spend three years really trying to make it. If that doesn't work out I'll be an editor or something like that. 

What sounds do you love? Crackling fires, steel guitars, violins, baby laughter, my cat's pitiful meow, the Star Spangled Banner on the guitar, rain, pouring water, cracking knuckles, and hair brushing. 

What sounds do you hate? My alarm clock and the weird woodpecker sound my refrigerator makes.

Mountains or beach? Mountains. No contest. 

Cooking or Baking? Cooking. I really like making lasagna, which seems like a little bit of both. 

Do you go to restaurants or movies alone? I go to restaurants alone all of the time, but I've never been to a movie theater alone. 

What is your favorite fairy tale/childhood story? I loved the Boxcar Children books. I loved Disney's 101 Dalmatians. And I love (to this day) The Monster at the End of This Book, it used to make me so nervous, and at the end I would laugh hysterically and beg my mom to read it again and then I'd get nervous all over again. 

What would you tell your 13-year old self? I would tell her that, yes he'll ask you out one day and he will be a massive jerk, so stop thinking about him, you're just getting yourself into trouble.

What is your first memory? I was two maybe three and we went ice skating, but my feet were too small for the skates so my dad pushed me around in an ice-skating chair. I remember looking at my feet  barely dangling off the edge of the seat. 

At what age did you become an adult? I have two answers to this question: 1.) 10-years old. I say this because that's when I began worrying more about others than myself, I was weirdly mature and put together. 2.) 24-years old. That's when I figured myself out and decided to be in charge of my life.