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I thought that it would be fun to answer some questions from the internet. A bit like journal prompts, I guess- but also like all of those quiz sites we wasted so much time on as kids. It's kind of fun talking about yourself, you know? I think the sort of introspection that comes from things like this can be helpful, anyway. [[What's an outfit that makes you feel sexy?->1]] [[What's a common misconception about you?->2]] [[Are you a creative person?->3]] [[When was the last time you cried?->4]] [[How often do you stay up all night instead of sleeping?->5]] [[What's your favourite book?->6]]

What's an outfit that makes you feel sexy? I don't really have a lot of special outfits, because it's not like I have anyone in particular to dress up for. But, sometimes it is nice to look a little better, even if it's only for yourself- to pose in the mirror a little, maybe snap a photo that you'll look back on in a year when your phone reminds you of a supposed memory that you have stored away. Anyways- I like how I look in green, it's my favourite colour. I think that it and blue brings out my eyes, you know- sometimes it can be a little difficult to get a good read on them in poor lighting, but they are green. So I have a nice green buttonup, with pearl snaps up the front, and black slacks, which are tailored to actually fit me properly. There's this little kitten grey sweatervest that I wear on top, to make sure that I'm warm- I tend to run a bit on the cool side when I'm not bundled up inside my hiking gear. [[Ask another question?->0]]

What's a common misconception about you? People often think that I'm inclined towards violence. It's a little disheartening, to hear people crack jokes about how it's always the 'quiet ones you have to look out for' or when they act uneasy around me, even if they try to play it off as a joke. I just am kind of uncomfortable around people in general, and I'm usually afraid that I'll come off as frightening or bizarre to people. It doesn't really help when they act like they're afraid before you've even said hello... I'm not really one for confrontation. I can barely stomach being in a pleasant, small talk-y sort of conversation- how could I stomach the horror of being mad at someone and trying to express it, or having someone be mad at me? The idea makes me queasy. I usually just leave, if I feel like I'm being an imposition, which is most of the time. I stopped going to the studygroups on campus because of it... I don't want to upset people. It's just hard when it seems like I'm the problem. [[Ask another question?->0]]

Are you a creative person? I guess I'd consider myself to be fairly creative. I'm not all that happy with most of what I make, but it's the effort that counts, I guess- and the act of making things. I'm getting a little better with art, but it's kind of tricky teaching yourself things. The internet makes that easier, though, so I should be glad that I wasn't born a few generations ago, haha. Not to mention, I don't think I'd be able to hack it out with all of the smog from the industrial turn of the century... I've been keeping a sketchbook, lately. Not of people- people are so hard, all of those complex shapes and angles configuring into someone who doesn't quite look like anyone else, but enough that you know they're the same thing. But of plants, and sometimes fleeting bits of animals: the skittering squirrel tails, an imprint of a clawed talon sunk deep into the crusted over snow, a snowflake caught on a wooled caterpillar's back. [[Ask another question?->0]]

When was the last time you cried? I try not to think about that sort of thing too often- I'm far too prone to rumination, otherwise, and there's just about nothing worse than feeling terribly for the fact that you felt terrible to begin with: it really just compounds the awfulness of the situation. I think I cried at my desk last, though, because sometimes you need the release of some sad bit of media to feel something or unstopper the floodgates, otherwise you'll end up hysterically crying in public like an absolute maniac. No one wants to see that, you know? I try to be considerate of other people. It's awkward when people stop and stare, question if they should do something, or if they can simply slip away and escape notice- and most of the time, it's just easier, if they don't stare. I hate it when people stare. [[Ask another question?->0]]

How often do you stay up all night instead of sleeping? I try not to do that too often, because I know it isn't really healthy for me- though with the flexibility that at distance courses allow for, I kind of can be nocturnal. I'm inclined that way anyways- left to my own devices without the constraints of alarms and obligations, I usually find myself sitting awake late at night and reading, or trying to write, or scrolling endlessly through the internet for advice on things I never wind up doing- I once got buried into the wormhole of blogging, even though that whole moment of the scene died out years before I ever really got into the idea to begin with. Think about it, how many writers' blogs do you follow? Sometimes they can be helpful, don't get me wrong- like articles on technology problems, but do most people really subscribe or stick around outside of getting an answer to a problem that they've been facing? Anyways, it's not uncommon for me to still be up when it's pitch outside, and when dawn first settles in. I'm usually not awake enough to appreciate it, let alone operate a camera well enough to grab a decent photo or anything- I'm usually fussily burrowing into my blankets and pillows and trying to get some shut eye, which mostly involves passing out comatose in a pile of pillows and blankets for hours on end. At least I sleep through pretty solidly through the night once I have drifted off. It'd be terrible if I was the kind of person who also woke up in little fitful starts and stops, seeing as my sleep patterns are already sort of abnormal as it stands. [[Ask another question?->0]]

What's your favourite book? Oh, that's a hard decision, I love reading. That being said, you'd probably get some sort of idea from <a href= "https://arielsanthologies.neocities.org/library.html">my personal library,</a> once I've set it up... It's been a little hard to get my hands on some digital copies of some of the older books, or more accessible formats, since some of the digital versions have only been scanned, rather than being typed up- which kind of makes things frustrating. I understand why, just given the sheer volume of books in need of preservation, and how many sit in a single library back in their special collections archives, not to mention the sheer man hours it would take to type up even something in a clear fontface- but still, you'd think that someone out there would have done so for a few of these... It's sort of my own fault for getting into really niche books, I guess, haha. On the bright side, these things tend to have a less obscure chain of being, and your support goes a lot further when you can donate almost directly, or sometimes directly to, the author, who is more often than not delighted to write letters to a big fan of their work. [[Ask another question?->0]]