The interview game

Suzanne set me a list of intervew questions (well, ok, I asked her to).

Do you come from a large family? Do any relatives live nearby?
I have two sisters, so we were a normal-to-small family at the time; these days most of my friends have one child or none, so we would count as an unusually large family. They both live in Saskatchewan, where two of us were born. I have a large extended family of maternal cousins there, to whom I am very close emotionally if not in geography. My paternal cousins are the nearest geographically (in England), but I have no contact with them since moving here.

Have you ever broken a bone? If so, share the story.
Only once, and I didn't realize it at the time. While playing air guitar one day (given the era, it would have been Led Zeppelin), I hit the back of a dining-table chair on the followthrough from a particularly emotive chord. I broke the chair, knocked the back right out of its frame. It was pretty painful, but both myself and my parents were more concerned about the chair, which was "my" chair from then on. I only discovered recently that a few small bones had been broken, when I had my right wrist X-rayed and the doctor pointed out where they had fused.

What do you keep under your bed?
An electric guitar, which I haven't played in this millenium. Empty suitcases. A stack of reference books (I read in bed and got tired of having to get up to get a dictionary, so I bought spares). Catalogues from Ikea and Manufaktum. A stack of unread New Yorkers, and several other magazines, including (right now) the Atlantic Monthly, Cicero (a german politics/public affairs journal), Brand Eins (a german hybrid cross of "Wired" and "Forbes"), and the Lufthansa Miles & More frequent-flier promo/feelgood/catalogue/thingy. A few travel agency brochures for the north of Finland, as a result of watching Zugvögel. A large amount of dust.

What type of structure do you inhabit (i.e. single family home, apartment, cardboard box...) and how long have you lived there?
Like the vast majority of Germans, I live in an apartment building: six stories, two apartments per floor, no elevator, no parking. I should post a picture of the building, since it is probably unlike the image of "apartment" that you have: to start with, it's faced in stone and has a steeply pitched red-tiled roof (as does nearly every building in the city). It was built in 1915 which makes it fairly new for Stuttgart. The apartment is medium-sized (three rooms, 75 square metres) with a balcony off the kitchen, which faces northeast into a schoolyard. This latter is uncommon and very lucky, since Stuttgart is very densely built: most people's back windows face onto other apartments built in the courtyard. The apartment has largish rooms with tall ceilings (3.10 metres high), but is not very bright since it faces across a narrow street to another six-storey building. I've lived here for nearly eleven years.

Boxers or briefs?
Boxers, no question; however the spirit of total disclosure compels me to state that I also have several pairs of long underwear.

Now that I've done the compulsory part, there are a few questions put to other people that I would like to answer.

How many pairs of socks do you own?
After years, nay decades, of struggling to match socks in the half-dark, I recently decided to simplify my life. I threw away all but two pairs of socks (one pair of travel socks, they really do dry overnight after being washed in the sink, and one pair of very thick grey wool socks for wearing in ice-skates), then bought ten identical pairs of black street socks and four identical pairs of white sport socks.

What is your favourite television show?
My favourite programme is one that I seldom see, because it runs after midnight and I'm a morning person. It's called Spacenight: hour-long uncut films from observation and weather satellites, without commentary. Just the Earth, slowly turning. Every now and then, at long intervals, a caption appears: "Gizeh", "Cairo", "Nile delta". It's one of the most popular programmes on TV here.

You are offered the chance to choose between an all expenses paid vacation to the Caribbean or one to Alaska. Which do you choose and why?
Alaska, without hesitation. I love winter and the north, and big empty spaces; and I dislike hot and humid climates.

Sweet or salty?
Salty (excepting chocolates).

Is chili really chili if it contains beans?
It's only chili if it does contain beans.

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The Official Interview Game Rules

1. If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying "interview me."


2. I will respond by asking you five questions - each person's will be different.


3. You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.


4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.


5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.