Meme Time
A long time ago, in a blogosphere far far away, people used to write posts with actual words in them. Imagine that – no undisclosed sponsored posts or massive flatlays on a grey marble background! I know, things were feral back then. We didn’t even have selfie sticks (to be honest, I still don’t).
And memes used to be more than just a picture or a gif – they had words too, actual sentences you could read with your eyeballs. What a glorious (if feral) time it was.
So let’s moonwalk back in time and enjoy the fun that is a vintage Q & A style blogging meme. I’ve been tagged for this by my sister blogger Nickie at Typecast, for which I thank her very much.
The title of this meme is Did You Know This About Me?
It’s made me think about how much we really know each other, especially the people that we see online. Probably not that much.
And when it comes to our interior worlds, probably not at all. Whatever’s playing on your skull cinema is a private show. But I can give you a little snippet:
When was the last time you cried?
Just before Christmas I had a tooth abscess that made my face swell up and was incredibly painful. So that made me cry. I also started to feel a bit weepy the last time I was having a quiet moment on Brighton beach, so I scarpered off in search of a cup of tea before it could really take hold. Not sure what that was about. Hormones, probably.
If you were another person, would you be a friend of yourself?
Hell, yes. I would take me to the movies and let me sit on the aisle seat. I have to have the aisle seat for a quick getaway in the event of a zombie apocalypse.
Do you use sarcasm a lot?
No, not really. I’m Irish and we’re more direct than that. Plus sarcasm can be a bit mean, and I’m much more on the side of kindness these days.
What’s the first thing you notice about people?
How warm they are as people, and whether they’re interested in other people or if they just talk about themselves. I don’t notice shoes or haircuts at all. I barely register faces.
Scary movie or happy endings?
Both. Like this week I have been watching The Walking Dead and Queer Eye, and enjoyed them both enormously. I am mad for fillums and will watch all sorts of stuff, from epic disaster movies to arthouse bores where nothing happens. I love a film where nothing happens, it’s like mediatating but there are usually snacks.
Favourite smells?
As I found out when I went on that perfume workshop last year, I like rose and vanilla scents. I also like smoky, spicy scents. Or failing that, freshly washed will do. Clean is the smell that suits everybody.
What’s the furthest you’ve ever been from home?
I assume we’re talking physically rather than mentally here. So that would be when I went to Los Angeles on a press trip with Disney in 2010.
Do you have any special talents?
I’m pretty good at pub quizzes and baking.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
Happy.
How many countries have you been to?
Not that many. Less than 10. Though in England I have been to both the village of Beer (and bought a beer) and the village of North Curry (ditto – a jar of curry sauce).
What was your favourite/worst subject in school?
I was good at English because I liked reading. I was terrible at PE because I was lumpen and had no physical confidence. Plus for some reason it was deemed OK in the 1970s and 80s to do PE in your underwear and pretend they were running shorts. How can anybody who’s not a sadistic PE teacher get with that program? Ironically I do lots of exercise now, but I wear the proper gear. Also still reading.
What is your favourite drink?
All of them, though I find that as I get older alcohol likes me less. Being Irish, I am about 63% tea, so I have to keep topping that up throughout the day. I’m also a big water drinker, or fizzy water when I’m feeling racy. And then at weekends I like white wine, gin & tonic etc – all the usual lady cliche drinks. And Maker’s Mark bourbon when I can get it.
What would you have named your children?
I was keen on an Irish name like Roisin but I’m glad I didn’t go for that now because I hadn’t anticipated how much non-Irish people struggle with names like that. My daughter Lia would have been Lewis if she’d been a boy, and Isaac was going to be Elliot until he was born and we changed our minds.
Who are some of your favourite YouTubers?
I like the Brighton history videos from Mister Adam, King of YouTube and the lovely weekly updates from author Marian Keyes.
How many boyfriends have you had?
Not that many. More than a nun and less than Madonna. I accidentally went out with some terrible arseholes, then found a good person and stuck with him for the next 25 years.
Favourite memory from childhood?
Probably just playing with my brother in the garden when we were little. He has now passed away and I don’t like being an only child, I would love to have a sibling now.
Tell us one of your bad habits
I’m easily distracte………….
Now, at this point it’s traditional to tag a bunch of bloggers and pass the meme on, but I’m deliberately not going to do that. Instead, I’d like to spread this by instinct and magic. So if you are reading this and feel like you’d like to join in, consider the baton passed to you. You could answer the questions on your blog, Instagram or YouTube channel. Tag me in if you do and I will share your post.