By spiffikins  at https://spiffikins.dreamwidth.org/1251745.html

1. Can You Separate Art From the Artist?

I try to, but it’s sometimes difficult. I hate it when some negative-to-me information about an artist mars my enjoyment of their work, especially if the work is an old favorite of mine. That’s why I don’t go looking for celebrity gossip/info except for the few actors I love.

2. How Do You Know if What You Read Online Is True?

Source criticism, common sense, looking at the sources such as research myself, listening to various experts while considering their political, commercial etc. affiliations.

3. Do You Always Have Your Phone or Tablet at Your Side?

My phone is never far from me. My tablet lives the drawer of my bedside table because I mostly use it for reading ebooks.

4. Is Student Debt Worth It?

If it’s the only way to finance your studies and you can be more than reasonably sure you’ll find work quickly once you graduate, then yes. Debt in general is considered a bad thing here in Finland, at least if you aren’t rich. I personally didn’t have to take student loan and have been very glad about it – I wouldn’t have been able to pay it back.

5. Are Parents Violating Their Children’s Privacy When They Share Photos and Videos of Them Online?

Yes. I really appreciated when Jeri Ryan didn’t show her daughter’s face when she posted photos of her/the whole family on social media when the daughter was small. I thought it was a great way to share her joy about a new daughter with her fans without violating the daughter’s privacy. Later on, when the daughter got older, she decided herself.

I was an already adult when internet came along, but I would have hated to have my baby/kid pics online if internet had been a thing when I was young.

6. How Important Is It to Have a Driver’s License?

Depends on where you live. If there’s a good public transportation, it isn’t necessary. Many people here in Finland, in the cities with good public transportation, never get a license. Or stop driving, even if they have one, if they as an example move to a city where a car isn’t needed. I myself have a driver’s license, but I haven’t had a car for about 7-8 years now. It’d be handy for a few use cases once or twice a year, but I manage great by public transportation.

7. How Did You Get To School?

Years 1-6: I walked or biked
Years 7-9 and office school: by bus
Library school: by commuter train

8. How Much Did Your Parents Help With Your Homework?

They’d check I’d done it by asking right until end of mandatory school (age 15). When I was younger (school years 1-5 aprox) they’d quizz me about the daily homework but in a relaxed way, and years 6-9, while no longer quizz me about the daily stuff unless I asked them to, but they still quizz me the stuff I needed to read for the exams. I liked that, showed me whether I remember the material or needed to re-read some more. Math was and is difficult for me, and my Dad actually tought me a lot of it because the teachers failed to make me understand once the classes progressed beyond the basic stuff (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and percent calculation).

It was impressive, actually – my Dad didn’t know the more advanced stuff either (he’d never been taught in school), but I’d give him my math book and he’d teach the day’s subject math to himself while I was doing the other homework. Then once I had done the other homework, an hour or two later, he’d teach me the math he had just taught himself! He could explain it to me in a way I got, but sometimes he had to try a couple of different ways for me to get it.

9. Are You An Optimist? How Full Is Your Glass?

I used to be an optimist, but ever since getting chronically ill as well as starting to follow politics, I’ve been changing more towards pessimist. Particularly strongly now that there’s an awful far-right government in power.

10. Would Life Be Better Without Time Zones?

I’ve no idea. Time zones don’t have much if any effect in my life.

11. Do You Like Horror Movies?

Scifi horror, usually yes although some are so bad it’s ridiculous. Other kind depends on each individual movie and I might get so bored I stopped watching in the middle if it’s of the cheap jump scares type of movie.

12. If You Could Time-Travel, Where Would You Go?

In the future in hopes that chronic migraine/migraine and Crohn’s Disease has been cured. And I’d be curious to see what has become of the world.

13. What Jobs Are You Most Curious About?

None really.

14. What Are Your Favorite Movies Ever?

The Last of the Mohicans, Alien/Aliens, The Piano, The Terminator 1 and 2. But these can change depending on my mood and what I’ve been (re-)watching recently. But those movies always come to mind first when asked this question.

15. Do You Cook?

Yes, grudginly. It’s a necessary evil. Baking is where the pleasure is at.

16. Is ‘Doing Nothing’ a Good Use of Your Time?

It’s an excellent use of anyone’s time! And very necessary for a person’s well-being too.

17. How Much Self-Control Do You Have?

It’s not great, for sure. Sometimes better, sometimes worse. When it comes to chocolate, cake, cookies etc. as long as I don’t open it and put it away in the cupboard, it can last for weeks. But once it’s open, whatever it is, I’ll eat it in a day or two. So I find it better not to buy say cookies unless there’s a reason such as people are coming for a visit and I need to have something to offer them.

I much have better self-control when it comes to buying clothes and fountain pens/inks and other stationery – although a lack of money helps with that. But I can pretty easily sit on those desires even if I do have extra money for fun stuff and consider whether I really need, and really want, that thing. Sometimes I consider for months before making a desicion. As an example, I desired to buy the Nahvalur Key West Las Coloradas fountain pen because it was such a pretty lilac with rose gold accents and sparkly too – but I considered buying it for I think close to 2 years because it was more expensive than I really wanted to spend on a pen. I did eventually buy it and it’s even prettier in person and writes so well that it immediately became my favorite! My love for it has only grown and I don’t regret for a minute that I bought it.

18. What Is The Most Odd Thing You Have Done to Earn Money?

Nothing I can think of. As a kid we’d collect cans and soda bottles and return them to the collection points for the pantti money, but that’s not odd at all.

19. What Hobbies Have Been Passed Down in Your Family?

Reading.

20. How Comfortable Are You With Lying?

Not as comfortable as I should be when looking for work – so much of the job seeker advice I see amounts to lying considering my limitations due to chronic illnesses and disability because I’m forced to send it applications by TE-toimisto. If I were honest, nobody would hire me no matter what. Although even with the lying, any employer who even glances at my past 16 year history and sees emptiness, rehabilitation and long-termn sick leave (several 300 day stretches) immediately knows they should not hire this person because the risk that they are not able to work in reality is much too great. And also, in the last decade or so, it seems all the open job announcements seem to want a person who is extrovert, outgoing, go-getter, positive etc. and most of finns aren’t extroverts or outgoing and so a lot of work places want people to lie about their personalities and fake in the job interviews.

21. How Do You Celebrate Spring?

I don’t. I don’t like spring, it’s too bright and the sun is too garish and it’s getting warmer too.

22. Are We Being Bad Citizens If We Don’t Keep Up With the News?

Up to a point, yes. But I can’t really blame anyone for that because up until 2008, I didn’t follow news myself either. I did read through the Parties election programmes before deciding who to vote, but other than that lucky if I knew which parties were in government.

23. What Possessions Does Your Family Treasure?

Nothing really. Maybe closest is our family photo albums and Mom’s recipe books. Everything else that I can think of can be replaced and has no real emotional attachment, at least for me.

24. Do Your Friends on Social Media All Have the Same Political Opinions You Do?

I don’t do social media (I don’t count DW as social media in the way like Twitter or Facebook are etc.). I’m only in some Facebook support groups for certain chronic illnesses and baking, don’t have friends there and have no idea what politic opinions the other posters have and don’t care.

25. Are Paper Books Better Than E-Books?

Yes. But ebooks are a good alternative.

26. What Makes You Happy?

In no particular order: not having to worry about money (never happens). Painting. Writing fiction. Visiting with my Mom. A good book. A good tv series. Having a good (chronic)migraine day (this should probably be first).

27. Is Childhood Today Too Risk-Free?

Not in Finland. Kids have a lot of freedom here. But of course it depends on the parents. Some parents can be too overprotective and smooth their childrens’ way too much.

28. What Do You Know About Your Family’s History?

I know my Mom’s Dad’s family was from Russia, and Mom’s Dad was a salesman and a local politician who travel a lot. He brought some pretty wall hangings from China that were put in a glass frame. They looked like they were photographs until you got up real close (like a 1-2 centimeters) and saw it was actually knitted/woven/something. I was an adult before I learned they weren’t photographs!

29. What Kind of Tourist Are You?

The kind that doesn’t do beaches, and if you ask me to come to a beach holiday the answer will be nope but thanks for thinking of me!

I like city holidays instead. I love ancient castles and palaces! And I also liked going to the zoo and the aquarium when we were in London.

I’ve never been but I’d love to see the pyramids and the Nile some day.

30. What Foods Bring Up Special Memories for You?

I can’t think of any that bring up specific memories. More like if I get to enjoy a täytekakku slice, I’m fondly reminded of how we used to always bake one for everyone’s birthdays with Mom. Or when I bake bread rolls, I’ll remember how Mom and Dad never chided me when I baked alone after school when I was a young kid and as a result the kitchen looked more like a disaster zone than a kitchen when they’d get home from work. I always did clean after myself but being a kid there likely was a bit of flour on the floor etc. even after cleaning! Mom later told me when I was an adult and wondered about it that they thought it was better I’d learn to do stuff in the kitchen and that they didn’t want to stifle my enthusiasm for cooking or baking by chiding me or telling me not to bake at all when I’m alone. Also, fresh bakes! I think my parents’ approach might have been a smart thing because my friend never really learned to bake or cook and she wasn’t ever allowed to mess up the kitchen, or bake alone. And she never feels like cooking or baking now and I don’t know if that’s because she wasn’t allowed a kid, or if that’s just her nature.

31. What Is the Role of Religion or Spirituality in Your Life?

Religion has zero role in my life.

I do think about philosophical things a lot.