My favorite food has got to be pasta.  I don’t eat meat, and I avoid most dairy products.  Pasta is a great neutral food that goes with so many things.  Top it with broccoli and garlic sautéed in olive oil and it’s one thing.  Make a sauce with olives, garlic, and tomatoes (puttanesca), and it’s a whole other thing.  The different textures of pasta  also creates some great variety; I favor the finer pastas like angel hair. What goes best with pasta?  Some red wine. The kind of sauce determines what kind of wine, but I’m a big fan of merlots and zinfandels.

If I had to choose one word to describe my family, I think “dysfunctional” says it best.  I have two younger siblings, one brother and one sister.  My brother is a former alcoholic who has always had difficulty holding a job.  My sister has a long history of manic depression/bi-polar syndrome.  I’m not exactly a sterling example of mental health myself, having flirted with alcoholism in my youth.  My father is beginning to show the signs of dementia as well.  My mother is, fortunately for her but not us, no longer with us.  She was probably the most rational of all of us, and the loss of her stabilizing influence has left us all spinning slightly out of control.

My wardrobe is all about comfort.  Thankfully, my job doesn’t require a special or fancy wardrobe, so most of my everyday clothes are my work clothes too.  So what do I live in?  Classic All-American blue jeans, of course.  I have a few pairs of “dressy” pants, but I also have dark-wash trouser jeans which can be dressed up if need be.  Jeans are a great neutral palette for sweaters, t-shirts, or jackets.  I like to get my favorite styles in two lengths:  one of flats and one for heels, boots, and running shoes.  Once in while, I’ll try out some khakis or cords, but I always find myself returning to the good old standard:  blue jeans.

What would I do without Google?  Not only does Google give me easy answers to all my questions through its search engine, it’s given me the best email service ever.  I’ve had email accounts through my ISP and my job as well as free online accounts such as Yahoo, but Gmail is by far my favorite.  Gmail has an excellent spam filter.  I get enough junk mail from friends and family as it is; I don’t need spam for Viagra too.  Gmail catches 99.9% of spam, leaving my mailbox virtually spam-free.  Also, I rarely delete any of my email (you never know when you’ll need that note from 2006).  Even so, with thousands of emails dating back years, Gmail’s search function is fast and accurate.  If only my snailmail could be so efficient.

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The worst date I ever had was the time my mother’s boyfriend set me up with a young man.  I was about nineteen and dating no one special, so Robert thought I might enjoy meeting a young man he and my mom often bowled with.  They took me to the bowling alley and introduced me to Steven.  Steven was tall, good-looking—and missing one leg. Now, no one had bothered to tell me about the missing leg before we were introduced. I was totally taken aback.  I’m sure Steven was a nice enough guy, but I could see nothing but the empty pants leg.  Since this date took place before the advent of the cell phone (and I could have no one phone in an emergency), I bowled one and then feigned illness.

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I’ve known Mary for about twelve years, and although we both work in the same place, we are somewhat unlikely friends.  Mary is very much a workaholic while I like to just do may job and then go home.  Despite these differences, we’ve become best friends over the years.  We enjoy many of the same things, including Disneyland and silly computer games like the Sims.  The best thing about her is her total acceptance of who I am without question or judgment.  While my husband may find fault with my choices and decisions, Mary listens to those choice with an uncritical ear.

I’ve had Verizon as my landline and cellphone carrier for the past four years, and I love it.  Verizon’s network is extensive, and I travel in some pretty remote areas.  In four years of wireless service, I’ve had maybe three phone calls dropped.  Sound quality is always great, and signal strength is good. My favorite aspect of Verizon is the unlimited free calls to other Verizon customers.  Since I talk to my sister (who lives three hours away) about once a day, we can talk and maintain our relationship without trying to work about night or weekend hours.  I’ve looked at other plans, but Verizon suits my needs.