What do I like to do besides sleeping?
Hobbies
Music
Music has always been a part of my life. Those who know me can attest to the fact that I'm usually humming or singing. Well, not ALL the time, but whenever I'm doing something that doesn't require my full attention. It's kind of like walking and chewing gum at the same time, I suppose. My mom told me that I used to sing myself to sleep when I was a kid. Guess that's whey singing is the only form of music that I've sort of kept up with. And, it's a lot easier to practice or improvise something to sing than it is to do so with a violin or piano. (I stopped playing both regularly once I got to college. Yeah, I know. I should keep practicing. Believe me, I always feel guilty any time I hear or see a performance.)
But, what makes music my hobby is the fact that I'm constantly buying CD's, as finance permit of course. Some people collect stamps or paint; me, I collect CD's. My musical taste runs the gamut. More often than not, I listen to rock--alternative, folk, pop. But, in addition to that, I've developed tastes for such things as jazz, R&B, soul, new age, ambient, electronica, and celtic. My favorite artists are Sarah McLachlan, Sting, Tori Amos, Ella Fitzgerald, Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Blue Man Group, Savage Garden, Orbit, and Loreena McKennitt. Okay, okay. Most of the things I listen to, at least lately, are more calm, quiet, lush sorts of pieces, things that you can listen to without getting extremely distracted by them. I find that whatever I want to listen to is determined by what mood I'm in, or vice versa. So, sometimes some Tina Turner, Third Eye Blind, or Smash Mouth is a little more a propos. Actually, I've found that soundtracks are great for just sampling stuff. The soundtrack for American Pie ad Buffy, the Vampire Slayer are good examples. However, my utmost favorite soundtrack is that of the musical Rent--great story, great songs, great cast.
The other thing I collect is comic books. My sister actually got me hooked on them ages ago. We sort of bought them because they were fun, interesting, and because our parents forbade us to buy them. Once I left for college, though, I started collecting more avidly. The titles I collect are quite numerous now. I find them fun to read as small breaks and great for the artwork. If you'd like to see a list of what I collect, just click on the word "comics" above. (This is actually more for me, but you're welcome to see what I collect...)
Books
I've always been a book person. I guess you can blame it on my dad. He's the big reader in the house. Both my sister and I are voracious readers now. She's into romances. I personally don't really get them; but that's me. My taste in books has changed a little over the years. When I was a kid, I only read fantasy and science fiction. I sort of viewed books as a version of comics, except that I had to use more of my imagination when I was reading them. Some of favorite series back then were the Oz series, the Prydain Chronicles by Lloyed Alexander, the Dark Is Rising series by Susan Cooper, the Incarnations and the Xanth series by Piers Anthony, and the Star Wars trilogy by George Lucas.
Over the past few years, I've branched out from scifi/fantasy. I find myself reading more fiction these days. My favorite authors these days are Armistead Maupin (the Tales of the City series), Tad Williams (the Memory, Sorrow, Thorn trilogy and the Otherland series), Peter Camerron (the Weekend and Leap Year), Fannie Flagg (Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe), Stephen McCauley (Object of My Affection), J.K. Rowling (the Harry Potter books), Neil Gaiman (Neverwhere), Timothy Zahn (new Star Wars books), Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being a Wallflower), Bob Smith (Openly Bob), and David Sedaris (Naked, Santaland Diaries). One of the things I love to do is to just take a book with me and go read in a cafe, especially if it's icky outside. Of course, this only happens if I don't have to read some sort of article or textbook...
Cartoons
As you may have figured out by now, part of me is very immature. I still love cartoons, much to the dismay of my roommates when I have TV remote. There are those cartoons that I love to watch or read. Then there are those cartoons I just like to look at because they're cute.
I like MTV's Daria for its sarcastic humor. I identify most with Jane, Daria's best friend. She's sort of caught in the middle; she can function in both the "normal" high school circles but is more comfortable in the "artsy," fringe groups. And, this is going to sound a bit off, but if I had to fall in love with a cartoon character, I think I'd be like Daria and fall for Jane's brother, Trent.
I also like Cartoon Network's Powerpuff Girls. The show is just so campy, it's hard not to like it. My favorite Powerpuff Girl is Bubbles. I always like the innocent, ditzy characters.
There are few characters that I still love, but don't really watch anymore either because I can't stand the rest of the show or because the show has been cancelled. MTV used to have a show called Sifl & Ollie which had a character named Chester; his humor was always so random. Gotta love the random ones. Another show I used to like was the Animaniacs, specifically Wacko. It's kind of frightening; sometimes my train of thought is like Wacko's--very tangential and random. He just happens to voice his thoughts. I do, every now and then, but only when I'm with friends who expect it of me. Then there's Pokemon. Now, my first instinct is to revile them, just like I reviled Barney, the Power Rangers, and the Teletubbies. (Okay, I have to say this. Once, when we were seeing patients on the pediatric floor, I was treated to the Teletubbies which was playing on practically every TV on the floor. I'll give them this: they are very mesmerizing. Kind of like watching the aftermath of a car wreck on the highway. But what really freaked me out was when the Teletubbies turned on the TV screens in their abdominal region by pressing on their butt cheeks.) However, I have to admit that some of the Pokemon are really cute, particularly Pikachu. You know, there are some things about myself I will never quite comprehend...
In terms of cartoons on paper, I will always love Bill Watterson's Calvin & Hobbes. There is something so timeless about them. The other comic strip I like is Kirkman & Scott's Baby Blues. I'm not a parent, but the strip is hilarious nonetheless. Oh, and the one other thing I have to mention while I'm on the subject of characters that I love is Little Buddy, the pets.com mascot. He's just so cute and funny!
If you have any comments, please feel free to email me!
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