by Answers to Jo’s Daily Questions for September!
1 – World Letter Writing Day: Do you still write actual letters to anyone (email doesn’t count!)? Did you have penpals when you were young(er)? Do you miss receiving actual letters in the mail (or any mail other than junk/flyers)?
No. No. Except for the two years I was doing library studies away from home town and when my Mom would write me letters sometimes (but we usually called), I’ve never gotten anything but bills via mail. So no, I don’t miss it.
2 – Bring Your Manners to Work Day: Bring Your Manners To Work Day was created by The Protocol School of Washington to remind people of the importance of treating people with courtesy and respect in the workplace. How important is it to you to have fulfilling relationships both with colleagues and customers/clients? Have the challenges posed by COVID changed how you view the concepts of courtesy and respect in the workplace?
Can’t really answer this. I haven’t worked for the last 15 years due to being ill, and before that I only had short temp jobs where none of that mattered in a deeper way. It was always important to me to be professional and helpful as much as I could both with co-workers and the library customers, but I wouldn’t call them fulfilling relationships? The jobs were too short for for the most part.
3 – World Beard Day: Beards — yay or nay?
Most nay. But yay for Rory McCann’s Sandor Clegane and mirror!Spock.
4 – Mouthguard Day: Have you ever had to wear a mouthguard, either because you practised a certain sport, or as protection because you tend to grind your teeth at night, or for some other reason?
Nope.
5 – Be Late For Something Day: Does the mere thought of “celebrating” this cause you anxiety? Should lateness ever be celebrated?
Shouldn’t be celebrated. But I don’t feel no kind of way about this day. When I was young I was always late when meeting friends etc. and just barely on time going to school or the doctor’s or such. But for the last 20 years or so now, I’m always on time and actually early unless something unexpected happens out of my control.
6 – Fight Procrastination Day: Procrastination can really be the bane of our existence, with another day coming around the corner, there’s no real reason that we can’t put it off till tomorrow is there? What are some of the things you do to fight putting off those things you keep putting off? To-do lists? Setting your alarm for earlier? Enlisting friends or family to give you a hand?
I’m really good at procrastinating. I haven’t found an effective way to combat it. The thing that ever truly has worked for me is deadlines set by outside powers, such as school. Because my grades depended doing the thing. Otherwise nothing else has ever worked for long but to-do lists and putting music on and just randomly starting to do the thing sometimes works. Mostly not.
7 – Buy A Book Day: Do you buy books or are you pretty much a borrower — be it from the library or friends and family? What was your most recent book purchase? Did you buy it for yourself, or as a gift for someone else?
I’m a borrower! I read too much to buy everything even if I could afford to buy all the books – I’d literally need a bigger apartment with a dedicated library room were I to buy everything I read. I read at least 40 books a year. I’m currently at book 54 right now so who knows how many I’ll read this year…
Library saves me because I can’t really afford to buy books and anyway, I don’t want to buy all the books I read. I can’t even remember the last time I actually bought a physical book – it was before COVID-19, I know that. I’ve bought some ebooks since but can’t remember which was was the most recent purchase.
8 – Star Trek Day: Star Trek speaks of a hope-filled future where our nationality no longer matters, and yet each of our personal heritages is still something we can be proud of. We are all citizens of the same quadrant of the galaxy, and at the end of the day that’s all that matters. Are you a Trekkie/Trekker? If you are at least somewhat “into” Star Trek, which series have you watched at least some of? Do you have thoughts on the JJ Abrams reboot films?
I’m a huge Star Trek fan! I don’t call myself Trekkie/Trekker (I can never remember which is correct term!), but TOS and TNG informed a lot of my world view. It was shown here starting when I was around 9-10 years old, and ever since I’ve thought the Star Trek utopia is our future or at least something we should strive towards to. When I think of far future, I imagine that out civilization is something like in TNG. Although I’ve been losing faith the last several years, what with the rise of right wing politics.
JJ Abrams reboot films aren’t Star Trek. They’re just action/adventure dressed in Star Trek uniforms, props and ship design and nothing else. There’s no heart. If you take the Star Trek uniforms away and change ship designs, you’d never know it’s Star Trek – there’s no message, or pondering of human nature. They’re just a strings of action scenes.
9 – International Sudoku Day: Do you sudoku, or are you more of a crosswords puzzle person?
Neither. I can’t do any of them.
10 – Arts in Education Week: Every year beginning the second Sunday in September, National Arts in Education Week celebrates the transformative powers of creative skills. Sadly, governments everywhere are cutting arts programs in schools, citing budget concerns, or to favour more “career-oriented” programs. Did you take any type of art courses in school (art, music, dance, etc.)? What benefits are there to arts education?
Art courses weren’t offerent after primary education (after age 14). If you wanted to take them, you had to apply to a special art (music or painting) high school which the thought were that they were meant for people interesting in making a career in music or painting/graphic arts. If you went to a vocational or economic or library school like I did, no arts what-so-ever were included. I didn’t realize it until I started trying to write fanfic about five years after finishing my library studies, but I didn’t know how to write fiction anymore because all we practised after primary school were business analysis, business letter, job applications etc.
I’ve ever since thought that arts should be included in every school level, because they enchance creativity and reduce stress and just broaden people’s experiences and thinking paterns. I’ve noticed a worrying trend of cutting funding and disparaging talk about any education and profession which doesn’t lead directly to business productivity and making money. People need art to feel good!
11 – No News is Good News Day: From where to you get most of your news? Do you find the daily onslaught of usually pretty bad news overwhelming? Do you take, or have you taken, breaks from news – essentially avoiding all news as much as possible?
I read news mainly on https://www.yle.fi (Finland’s national public broadcasting company) (which isn’t commercially backed), and also my local newspaper’s website (most of it is beyond paywall though), and also on hs.fi which is Helsinging Sanomat (capitol city’s newspaper). I also read ku.fi which is The Left Alliance’s newssite. In addition I read randomly at other sites. Occasionally I ask as birthday gift or some other gift a digital subscription to some paywalled news site.
Bad news do stress me some, such as the new government’s plans on cutting employee rights and benefits and the benefits of the poor. The news don’t overwhelm me though, and so far, I haven’t taken breaks. I do pick what I read and how much though – such as I don’t read Russia-Ukraine war news every day, just maybe once a week or when something big happens.
12 – Day of Encouragement: Are you the type of person who naturally tries to encourage others when they need it? Does anyone in your life do the same for you?
I am. Sure.
13 – Defy Superstition Day: From throwing salt over your shoulder if you spill some, avoiding stepping on cracks in the pavement, to worrying about black cats, the world is full of superstitions. Even if your rational mind knows these strange dictates have no influence on your life, are there any superstitions you do find yourself observing? Have you ever done something considered a superstition that actually happened, e.g. you broke a mirror and then had seven incredibly unlucky years?
Nope.
14 – Live Creative Day: Live Creative Day encourages us to let the world see our creativity all day long. How can you bring more creativity into your daily tasks, either at work, or at home?
I’m too tired to think what it could be.
15 – International Day of Democracy: How would you rate the health of your country’s democracy and democratic institutions (assuming you live in one!)? What could be done to strengthen your country’s democratic institutions?
I think it’s pretty good. More people need to vote though.
I’m not sure, I’m not knowledgeable enough to say.
16 – Locate an Old Friend Day: Do you have an old friend with whom you’ve lost touch? Have you tried to find them via social media (e.g. Facebook, LinkdIn, etc.,) or asking other mutual friends about them?
I did have! I tried to find them on Facebook and other social media, but then they found me by sending me a letter a few years ago so now we write each other 😀 We don’t have mutual friends so I couldn’t try that way.
17 – Indoor Plant Week: This week marks the start of National Indoor Plant Week. Do you have indoor plants or do you prefer to do outdoor gardening? Do you have a green thumb, or do you seek out plants that are difficult to kill?
I don’t have any indoor plants, and I don’t do outdoor gardening. Whatever is the opposite of a green thumb, that’s what I have. I even managed to kill a cactus.
18 – Read an Ebook Day: Are you partial to ebooks? What are some advantages of ebooks over other formats? What sort of ereader do you use — kindle, kobo, tablet, other? Are there some types of books that really don’t work as ebooks?
I read them but I’m not partial to them. I prefer a physical book over all other formats, but if I can’t find one then an ebook is okay. Audio book is the very last option. I have an old Samsung tablet that I read the ebooks on. Fanfic I read on laptop, even if it is in a ebook format.
I think I wouldn’t like non-fiction books as ebooks. I don’t usually read non-fiction straight through but by leafing, and that’s cumbersome with an ebook.
19 – Talk Like a Pirate Day: Do you have a favourite book, film, or TV show about pirates?
Nope. Never cared about pirates. Pirates of the Caribbean (the 1st movie) is good! It’s really the only one that stands out for me. I can’t even name others.
20 –Fried Rice Day AND Pepperoni Pizza Day: September 20 is both Fried Rice Day and Pepperoni Pizza Day. Which do you prefer? Do you make your own fried rice and/or pizza, or is it take-out only?
I’ve never had fried rice! I don’t like pepperoni pizza either, I prefer other toppings. I usually buy a frozen pizza and then add more cheese and maybe other toppings. Sometimes I buy a frozen plain raw pizza bottom, top it as I wish and bake it in the oven. That’s the best one! I never have take-out pizza (too expensive for me) and the one time I did, there wasn’t enough cheese even though it was double cheese.
21 – World Gratitude Day: For what (or who) are you grateful?
My Mom! And that I live in a geographically safe place where I have no need to worry about natural disasters such as hurricanes, earth quakes etc.
22 – World Car-Free Day: Would it be possible for you to go entirely car-free today?
I go most days entirely car-free so probably. Depends on whether it’s my shopping day, or whether I have a doctor’s appointment etc. And when I can’t go car-free, I use public transport. I don’t own a car.
23 – Redhead Appreciation Day: Why are redheads frequently made fun of or maligned (e.g. some cultures have believed that women who have red hair are witches, there’s a “Kick A Ginger Day”)? Do you like red hair? Do you know anyone with red hair?
Are they made fun of? Can’t remember ever having anyone in my circles who has a natural red hair. Those that dye I haven’t heard made fun of.
I love red hair! I used to keep my hair dyed red when I was 15-30 years old. I haven’t dyed my hair a lot since then, but when I do, it’s red! Or red highlights. I’m very blond but Mom says when I was a kid my hair tinted tiny bit red so red fits my skin color.
24 – World Rivers Day: Do you live, or have you ever lived, near a river? Are the rivers in your area under threat from climate change?
I haven’t lived on a bank of a river or anything, but I’ve live within about 5 kilometers of the Aura River my whole life. Every time I go to the city, I cross it. The city library is on its bank along with the catedral and the city center.
25 – Better Breakfast Day: What does your breakfast usually consist of, and in what ways do you think you could make it a better breakfast?
I could make it better by having it…
I’ve always had trouble with breakfast. I can’t eat anything soon after waking up. I have to be up for 3-4 hours first. The only exception was when I worked in a library with too few staff and had to do a lot of shelving fast immediately after arriving work. After doing that for an hour, I was hungry and wanted breakfast.
26 – Piano Month: September is Piano Month. Did you ever take piano lessons as a kid (or even as an adult)? If yes, do you still play? If not, do wish you had? Did you learn any other instrument?
No and No. As I’ve gotten older, I started to wish I had. Never learned any instrument. In school where technically we were supposed to during music lessons, only the special orchestra and choir kids allowed to touch the instruments. But us normies weren’t allowed and were treated as less important because we weren’t in the orchesta or choir by the teacher. I didn’t think much of it then (other than not respecting the teacher), but now it makes me mad. I’ve never been in a position financially to even consider taking lessons as an adult and I’m not sure it would have occurred to me had I been.
27 – World Tourism Day: When you visit a new place, do you hit all the main tourist attractions or do you prefer to travel off the beaten path? Do you live in a place that has any famous tourist attractions?
Depends on what they are! There are certain things I’m very much into (castles! I could visit all the castles, fortresses and ancient manor houses happily and not get bored). As an example, if I were to go to Paris – I would absolutely go to visit the Louvre and although I want to see the Mona Lisa, I might decide it’s not worth it because I’ve heard there’s always a huge crowd and it’s so small that you can hardly see it because you can’t get close enough.
28 – Good Neighbo(u)r Day: Are you a good neighbour? Do you even know your neighbours? Have you ever had any really bad experiences with a neighbour?
I’m the unknown neighbor! I’m a good neighbor in the sense that I don’t have loud parties or play loud music/tv at night.
I don’t know most of them other than to say “Hi! (or rather to nod as is more common)” to most. I did help an old lady who used to live next door a few times with her tv/digi box and she came to ring my bell a few times at night when she felt unsafe because upstairs some neighbors were screaming/playing loud music. I haven’t had bad experiences with neighbors other than sometimes they play music/party/talk loudly all night and I can’t sleep. But even that hasn’t happend in a couple of years, so I think those particular neighbors have maybe moved, or settled down.
29 – Ask A Stupid Question Day: There’s no such thing as a stupid question except for the one you choose not to ask. When you were in school, did you hesitate to ask questions because you were afraid they were stupid questions? Did you make fun of other students who asked questions that struck you as stupid? As an adult, do you still hesitate to ask questions you think are stupid? Do you find yourself secretly hoping someone else will ask the question so you won’t have to?
Yes, but mostly I was quiet and didn’t ask questions because I didn’t want anyone to notice me and I hoped someone else would ask the question. I quietly thought the other kid was stupid if they asked a stupid question but I never said it outloud, maybe just mentally rolled my eyes.
As an adult, until my 30s, I hesitated to speak up. But I don’t have that trouble much anymore.
30 – International Podcast Day: Are you a podcast fan? What are some of your favourites? How do you find out about new podcasts that might interest you?
I don’t listen to podcasts. I just… audio/noise is feels uncomfortable to me, probably has to do migraine sensitivity even if I’m not having an attack. Just like light sensitivity is on all the time. And I can read the thing faster than they talk, so if there’s a transcript, I’ll read that but if it’s audio only, I skip it. I’ve never liked to listen to radio either – I prefer music, or silence to talk radio.
