A fun interview from SP4 maven Jacqueline!
1. In the movie ‘Family Man’, Nicolas Cage says that living in NYC in the 21st century is like living in Rome during the Roman Empire. You live in NYC, so I need to ask, was ‘Gladiator’ an accurate portrayal of the New York City subway system?

It's a wonderful depiction of rush hour! If coming to NYC and planning to use the subway system to start your day, get a good look at some of the warrior stances aptly displayed in Gladiator. Here, left, we see a great stance to insure you are ready to push your way into an already packed subway in order not to be late for work.


You must be able to hold your ground when no handrails are within reach. Sometimes boasting an attitude, as shown to the right, is all that is needed.
Also - agility is key.


2. What on earth would inspire you to become a Millininar, Milleniur , Milnerer, Minever, Milinar, Martinmilliner, um, – hat person. And what’s the most outrageous hat you’ve ever made?
I like the way people look in hats. Women exude more confidence when they wear hats...and men respond to that! Ladies - TAKE HEED - Every time I wear a hat I get compliments from men --- and their wives/girlfriends/whoever is on their arm always gives a snarl...and the man almost always says to her, "Honey, you should wear more hats."

I LOVE watching people try on hats...as the hat hits their head they seem to totally shift - they get this new look on their faces as they imagine themselves perhaps on a beach or at a fancy garden party. It's great!
The most outrageous hat I've made...would have to be the fish hat...if I was home I'd scan in the photo...Picture a model walking down a runway in a floor length nude colored sheer dress with brightly colored hand-sequined and beaded fish covering the appropriate places...all topped off by a huge green sequin covered hat in the shape of a fish...with bubbles blowing out it's mouth.

3. In the movie of your life, who would play you, your mom, your BF, and your cat. But more importantly, who would play me?

Great question!
Me: Mena A. Suvari
Mom: Diane Keaton
BF: An unknown that would wow everyone and his career would be born. He's unlike anyone I've ever met...I can't think of an actor who would do him justice!
Cat: He'd cameo himself...not too many 27lb Siamese cross breeds out there.
You: Michelle Meyrink (Jordan Cochran from Real Genius) After all - Jordan could knit a sweater overnight! Ooh - and she's Canadian to boot.

4. Do you have any ufo’s – knitted projects that are probably NEVER going to be finished. If so, where do you stash them? Are they in the back of your closet or in the far recesses of the magical land under your bed? Do you ever get really drunk and try to finish them?
Yes -- an ugly sweater that keeps moving...I find it in one place and JUST when I think I've successfully LOST IT...I run across it again. It's from the days when I couldn't afford yarn and got it at yarn sales and bin sales. It's half itchy and half bad acrylic. Bluck!

5. In the interest of improving U.S./Canadian relations, if you had to do the 6 degrees of separation thingy, how far away are you from former Canadian Prime Minister, Jean Chretian.

There are two ways that I can look at this... 3 or 6...

Lets see...I met Ronald Reagan, who knew G.W.Bush (shudder), who knows former Canadian Prime Minister, Jean Chretian.

or

I dated a journalist who interviewed Carson (Queer Eye) Kressley pushed his book on the Today show with Ann Curry who works with Katie Couric who knows Gene Simmons who was at a Luncheon with former Canadian Prime Minister, Jean Chretian.

While on that Queer Eye Fun... My Queer Eye Match is Ted...


Ted: Food & Wine Connoisseur


Which Member from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy is your type?
brought to you by Quizilla

Interview Me - - Diane did!

So Diane of Knitting Zeal asked who wanted to be interviewed

Her Questions...My Answers

1. Where is the most unusual place you've traveled to for work? Where is your favorite destination?
Most unusual place I travel too...perhaps the mountains of Taiwan when I spent a day designing hats in a heat-less stone factory in a tiny town...brrr...although, lunch was amazing! (You'll see a pattern here!)

Favorite? I'm torn between Florence and Tokyo. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Florence above all cities...but when in Tokyo I get to spend time with my dear friend Reiko. Amd...both places have AMAZING FOOD!

2. What is the oddest food item you've been served while traveling abroad?
Odd in who's eyes? The locals here in China find it absolutely wild that I eat cereal and a trough of watermelon from the buffet each morning rather than heaps of the other offerings. I do this because it's the one meal I can control (weight wise) during my day. Lunch and dinner are most often elaborate and I'm SURE all to fatty.

But from a Western perspective...I'd say Fish Testicles, Japan, Feb 2005. (See photo left.)
Very creamy.

3. What do you do for your work and do you enjoy it?
I'm Director of Design for the USs leading Ladies Millinery/Hat company.
Or in english...I design and make hats. Fancy ones, casueal ones, big ones, small ones. :-) I also design bags and gloves and scarves to round out the collection.
Yep - love it! The travel gets a bit wearing - but other than that - Love love love it! Photo to the right is a design for a headpiece that hit the cutting room floor - it was never produced.

4. What is your favorite brand of chocolate?
One? You're MAD! MAD I say! I love dark rich chocolate...hmmm...especially Belgium!
I love Leonidas chocolate. Their Dark Chocolate Pralines and their Gianduja...YUM!
I also love: Neuhaus Chocolatier, Vosges Haut Chocolat (you can get a hatbox filled with chocolate here!), Dark Chocolate Heavenly Hash from Evelyn’s Chocolates (4 John St., nr. Broadway; 212-267-5170)she's down on Wall Street and I haven't beem in a few years...her website is down - let's HOPE she's still there!,and Godiva's Dark truffles and dark dipped fresh strawberries.
I don't like fruit flavoured fillings. Fillings are made to be CHOCOLATE!

5. What is your favorite PEZ in your collection? What is the most unusual or valuable one??
I'm torn between my Astrix characters that I picked up in Spain, or my Mr. Bean Colelction that I picked up in this divey underground store in Hong Kong (next to the store where I bought the yarn for my Clapotis!)

Interview Me...and Lolly Did!

So Lolly of LollyKnitting Around asked who wanted to be interviewed...so...I thought, Ilike her blog & find her interesting...so - go on Girl - Interview me!

Her questions...my answers!

1. You are the world traveler: what countries have you been to? How long do you usually stay in one place?
Countries I've visited (in semi-order): Canada, Finland, Russia (when it was the USSR still!), Lithuania, Sweden, Spain, Hong Kong, Taiwan, England, Italy, Scotland, British Columbia, China, Japan, Mexico, Ireland (one night only and I was in a hotel sleeping off a 102F fever). I've also been thru airports in Thailand, Amsterdam and Paris.

I spent the most "all-at-once" time traveling through the USSR. These days I'll spend about 3 weeks at a time in Asia - the usual split: up to 2/3 time in China with the rest split between Hong Kong and either Taiwan or Japan. I spend FAR TO LITTLE time in Italy -- Florence is the most feminine and wonderful city --- oooh I'm hoping to return for work in September. Working in Italy is a treat as the days end at 6pm. After 6pm it's family time...which means leisurely meals out. I haven't been to Italy in almost 2 years -- since the devaluation of the dollar to the Euro. Hmph.

2. Why did you take up knitting? Was it your love of fashion, or your desire for a new hobby? (or both?)

I started knitting about 27 years ago when I was "knee high to a grasshopper". Why? Because my Mom knit and I wanted to learn how, so...she taught me! Learned how to crochet, sew and cook then too! It taught me patience which comes in most handy now! Many (not all!) in college used to snicker at me and my needles...now many of them are asking to learn!

3.What is your favorite decade, stylewise?

This is SUCH A TOUGH QUESTION!! But - I think it would be the 1940s...30s? 50s! 20s? OK OK 1940s if I HAD to pick. When women looked like WOMEN and both men and women wore hats. When we didn't have to teach men when to wear a suit vs. a sport coat. When women wore gloves and hats and had marvelous handbags and shoes!

4. Name some of your favorite NPR shows...

oooooooh...
Car Talk (Click and Clack ~ The Tappet Brothers), World Cafe, Fresh Air with Terry Gross, Live from the Mountain Stage, Wait Wait - Don't Tell me, Prarie Home Companion, Morning Edition, All things considered, This American Life, Whad'ya Know?...

5. What are you planning for your garden this year? Flowers, herbs, or veggies? (or all of the above?)

The photos are from gardens of 2003 & 2004 (and in front of the old deck.) I have already in my garden: Daffodils, Tulips (Black Tulip on right and fancy pinks below), Lupins, Anemones, Chives, Mint (3 varieties but tons for Mojitos!!), Mums, Hydrangas, Crocus, Lily-of-the-Valley, Hen & Chics, Allium (shown on the left in front of my garden Monkey pot stand), Bleeding Hearts (pink and white, Pink shown below), a bunch of greenery that I don't know what it's called and self-seeding cherry and roma tomatoes (amazing how if you travel enough and let enough tomatos fall and rott into the ground...they re-seed themselves the next year!) There are also probably 5+ varieties of additional flowering bulbs that I've planted that I don't remember their names... When I dug up the entire garden last year to put a new deck in with my Dad (which is GEORGOUS BTW!!), the bulbs were all heaped into a pile and then replanted around the new deck...so I'm hoping that I get home in time to seem it all in blossom!
I'll add Basil, Thmye, Rosemary if mine didn't winter, possibly peppers and a TON of annual flowers -- I've pots aplenty and hanging baskets to fill after the last frost. I used to start all my plants from seed...but with the travel it's hard to depend on who ever feeds my cat to also keep them alive.
I'm lucky that my garden is quite sheilded from the weather between the surrounding buildings and the apple tree in the middle that I get about 1/2 bushel from eat fall. Good cooking apples.

If you want ME to interview YOU, please leave me a comment email me saying “interview me.” If you leave a comment, make sure you leave your blog address. I will go in the order that people asked to be interviewed, and depending on the turnout, I cannot promise more than 5 interviews every few days (I'm traveling!)
I will respond by asking you five questions here on my blog.You will update YOUR blog with the answers to the questions. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.