Sunday Stealing | Identity Ask

(From Penny Royal Princess via Sunday Stealing)

1. Favorite style of clothing

First, let's set things straight - I do not have a style unless clean and not wrinkled is a style. If I could choose any style, and money was not a concern, I would mimic Danielle Colby's (from American Pickers) style and purchase most of my clothing from Pinup Girl Clothing. 

And yes, I do have a MAD girl crush on her

2. Do I ever get “good morning” or “good night ” texts?

I do occasionally get "good morning" and/or "good night" texts these days, but more often than not I am the one initiating those texts. I also get an occasional "Are you awake?" text. Seems most of the people that I chat with are on either central or eastern time.

3. Have I ever kissed the last person I texted?

*looks at my phone* Nope! Definitely not, although I would. What???

4. When did I last hold hands?

Oh goodness ... it's been somewhere between 18 and 24 months. I miss holding hands. I miss being touched.

5. How long does it take me to get ready in the morning?

6 out of 7 days, getting ready in the morning for me means putting on a comfy pair of shorts and a tank top and then walking the 10 steps to my desk. I'd say less than 30 seconds. If I actually have to get dressed and people? It takes about 45 minutes for me to shower, do my hair, get dressed and put on a face. I'm pretty low maintenance.

6. Have I shaved my legs in the past three days?

My legs? No. No one sees them - no one touches them - can't imagine why I'd worry too much about shaving them regularly. My armpits though are a different story!

7. Where am I right now?

Sitting at my desk in my bedroom.

8. Do I have someone of the opposite sex I can tell everything to?

I think so? Look, I tend to be a bit reserved with people when I first start talking/chatting with them. If I am with them in real life, I watch their body language to try to determine their comfort level. If I'm chatting with someone I've never met? It's a little more difficult to "feel them out," so I usually wait for them to offer a nugget of transparency before I do.

9. How often do I wear a fake smile?

Not often, but only because I'm not required to actually interact with real people very often. I would say I wear a fake smile about 90% of the time when forced to people with the general public.

10. When was the last time I hugged someone?

Hmmmm ... not as long as it's been since I held hands. Maybe 4 months? Did I mention that I miss being touched?

11. Is there anyone I trust even though I should not?

If you had asked me this question a year ago? It would be a definite YES! Now? I think I've learned to be a bit more skeptical/cynical, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

12. What is something I disliked about today?

Well? Nothing so far, but later on I need to take my happy ass to Home Depot to get moving boxes/supplies. I am going to dislike that very much!

13. If I could meet anyone on this earth, who would it be?

Just meet? Like shake hands and take a selfie meet? No one. Meet like spend some time together and get to know each other better? There may or may not be someone out there that meets that criteria *wink*

14. What do I think about most?

Currently? I think most about moving. I don't want to move again, and once again my move was not my choice. I enjoy moving when it's my decision to move. When it's due to someone/something else? Not so much ... and not for the 3rd time in just over 2 years.

15. Do I prefer to be behind the camera or in front of it?

Behind the camera ... EVERY SINGLE TIME!!

16. Do I prefer talking on the phone or video chatting online?

Is no an acceptable answer? I prefer NEITHER of those communication methods, but if I was forced to choose one? Talking on the phone.

17. Do I believe in ghosts? How about aliens?

Ghosts? Maybe? It seems odd to me that when you die all of that energy dissipates into nothing. Aliens? Not like in the Area 52 aliens, but I do think it's quite possible that there are other living beings in other universes. Maybe they find us and save us!

18. Do I believe in magic?

I believe that there are people who are really skilled at performing optical illusions!

19. Do I believe in luck?

One of my favorite sayings is, "It's better to be lucky than good." I think much of life is luck. The families we are born into. The situations we are faced with in life. Yes, there is sometimes the whole "free will" thing that plays a part, but I believe those decisions are often luck as well.

20. What's the weather like right now?

At 9:45 AM in Las Vegas?

21. What was the last book I've read? 

Ta-Nehisi Coates - Between the World and Me

I need a new book so if anyone has any suggestions feel free to leave them in the comments. I prefer non-fiction and legal thrillers. And ... GO!

22. Do I like the smell of gasoline?

Oh do I!! And permanent markers too!

23. What was the worst injury I've ever had?

The worst was a knee injury suffered during a softball game. It require micro-fracture surgery and has never been the same.

24. Do I spend money or save it?

I am a saver. If I weren't I think Las Vegas may have chewed me up and spit me out by now!

25. Can I touch my nose with my tongue?

No, but why would I want to??

In Seven Words

Trust is fragile

Repairing it is daunting

Whom Do You Trust?

~*~*~

Karen over at Smiling Through It All had the opportunity to be interviewed by an NYU grad student working on a doctoral thesis about bloggers and the impact the blogging and social networking have on real life social skills (you can read more about her interview [HERE]).

Some of Karen's observations regarding her feelings towards bloggers fascinated me. She mentioned that one of the things she learned about herself is that she has a strong distrust of other bloggers - that she doesn't trust cyber-folk as much as she trusts people from the real world.

Karen asked her readers, "Are people more honest online or in the real world? Do you trust bloggers as much you trust people from your real life?"

Kind of a tricky set of questions for me as trust is a highly coveted, very tangible emotion for me.

I would say there is a lot of gray area here. I know that I have been honest in my blogging (sometimes painfully so), but I also haven't shared every detail of every event. Sometimes that is because I don't feel the detail is relevant, or I am embarrassed about the detail, or even that I am protecting the identity/privacy of the person I'm talking about.

Does that mean I can't be trusted? I don't think so. In fact it might mean that I can be trusted more.

How does this translate to other bloggers? Well, one of my "gifts" (some might call it a highly irritating quirk) is that I pay attention to the details. When I read blogs I gather information. It's a bonus if the blogger also participates in other social media like Twitter. I don't trust bloggers out of the box, but over time - assuming their actions (comments on other blogs, meetings in person, activity on Twitter) match their words (what hey blog about) I trust them every bit, if not more, than their real life counterparts.

Karen also confessed that she views blogging "as a media akin to cheesy reality TV - like The Hills, for example. There is 'truth' in the story line, but it is probably somewhat edited and sometimes even scripted. Basically, in the blogoshpere you only get as much as the other person is willing to share - which is rarely the whole picture. Sure, blogging is entertaining and fun and a great way to exchange ideas and meet new people. But it is also an easy way to live a double life or be the person you wish you were in reality."

Interesting perspective ...

Karen asked, "Do you see other bloggers creating a character for themselves or do you even admit to doing that yourself? Do you think blogging is entertainment or true honest human connection?"

Again, this isn't a yes or no question in my world. Some of the blogs I read are clearly character blogs. Some of them are out there trying to make a living from their writing. Some are just daily diaries of sorts. I feel confident that most of the bloggers I trust are indeed the people they portray themselves as.

What's odd about that statement is that there are bloggers out there that I trust that I don't like. I trust that they are being honest, I trust that they are who they say they are, but I don't like them. For me there is a HUGE difference between trusting and liking. I can trust you and not like you, and I can like you but not trust you. Go figure ...

Karen wrote, "In the real world you can't hide your flaws or quirks. You can't always craft your worlds to present only the you that you want to be. In the real world people can see the whole you and make their own judgments."

I vehemently disagree.

In the real world, people often judge on superficial criteria - height, weight, age, hair color, attractiveness, job status, work industry - the list goes on and on.

In blogging, those superficial criteria become secondary, or even tertiary. They don't matter as much as the content of the person. Unless you are an amazing writer (and honestly, very few bloggers are - I am certainly not), you can only fake content for a finite amount of time. Your true colors eventually come out. I've seen it happen again and again.

The bottom line? I find little difference in how I handle blogging relationships and how I handle my real life relationships. There are times when I hate blogging. There are times when I hate real life. People are people. They'll make you laugh. They'll make you cry. They'll piss you off. They'll inspire you.

I don't have a cyber life and a real life - I just have a life.

~*~*~