5 posts tagged “qotd”

How many computers do you have in your house? 
Submitted by Foomper.

It's a little embarrassing, but I own three at the moment:

• One Gateway 400-series laptop purchased in 2002. I bought this machine in a moment of panic when my desktop crapped out on me in the middle of a project. The Gateway was a workhorse too, despite the fact that it only had a 15MB hard drive. It's the one I took to China, and the one I brought with me when I started school. It certainly feels sluggish these days, and the fan sounds like a WWII fighter taking off, but I still pull it out from time to time.
• One HP desktop, used mostly for talking with Sheena in the morning via Skype. It's a great machine, but marginalized since I bought the...
• Apple PowerBook G4. My first computer was a Macintosh PowerBook 145, way back in the early '90s but I abandoned Apple when I started working in corporate America circa 1996. I was happy enough with PCs too, until I came to school and started seeing PowerBooks everywhere. I picked mine up in Spring of 2005, and have never, ever regretted the decision. Best computer I've ever had.

Earlier this year I considered selling the desktop and the PowerBook, and consolidating on a MacBook Pro, but never got around to it. As convenient as it would be, I don't think I could get that much value for the desktop PC, and I'm pretty happy as is. Maybe in a couple of years when the PowerBook just isn't getting the job done any more, but not now.

What's your musical horoscope?  (Put your music player on shuffle and write down the first 10 songs that come up.)  Inspired by Stephanie.

• Prince - Dirty Mind (from Dirty Mind)
• The Whitefield Brothers - Serengeti Bonus Beat (from Soul Fire: The Majestic Collection)
• Isaac Hayes - By the Time I Get to Phoenix (from Hot Buttered Soul)
• Ivy - Kite (from Guestroom)
• Beatles - Day Tripper (from Past Masters, Volume Two)
• Ali Farka Toure with Ry Cooder - Sega (from Talking Timbuktu)
• XTC - Fly on the Wall (from English Settlement)
• The Blue Rhythm Orchestra - Hold 'Er Deacon (from Harlem Jazz -  The 20s)
• Blow Monkeys - Digging Your Scene (from Living In Oblivion: The 80's Greatest Hits, Vol. 4)
• The Flaming Lips - One More Robot/Sympathy 3000-21 (from Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots)

Surprisingly, that's completely representative of what I like and listen to. A little funk, a little soul, some (early) jazz, elegant pop, angular pop, cheesy 80s hits and relatively mainstream indie/alternative (whatever that means). And Prince. And the Beatles. Of course, my charts over at last.fm are much more complete...

What's your morning beverage of choice?  Coffee, tea, juice?  Homemade or store-bought?

This is an easy one: coffee. I can point to the exact moment I became addicted too: the day I started working at Shandwick in downtown St. Louis. Our building featured a Tuscany Cafe (and later a Starbucks) on the corner, and I would invariably grab a cup on the way in. Later on, I worked for a promotions agency which actually brought in Starbucks coffee for its staff, which was a nice perk (ha, pun!) for the 6 months I lasted in that job. At the STLtoday gig, I had to bring in my own coffeemaker so the editorial team didn't have to drink the standard-issue Folgers from the kitchen. And while I was working in Beijing, the woman who cleaned our office would have a fresh pot waiting for me every morning, a generous gesture as literally ever other employee preferred tea.

Nowadays, I bounce between making my own (Cafe Du Monde) when my kitchen's clean and grabbing a cup from the Espresso Royale in the undergrad library. I'll go for the Italian roast most days, but when I need a kick they make me a special concoction that starts with a base of Italian, to which they add 5 shots of espresso and a healthy dose of caramel. So. Very. Good.

What was the first movie you remember seeing in a movie theater? 
Question submitted by mainmor.

Believe it or not, the first film I ever saw in a theater was a matinee showing of Song of the South at the old Ozark Theater (also known as the Webster Groves Cinema in it's latter days). I went with my mom and sister, and remember vividly being shocked at how badly other children were behaving, even at my young age. Kids screaming, running up and down the aisles, and generally being bad, all behaviors that drive me nuts to this day. Apparently, I've always been somewhat persnickety...

What's your favorite drink or cocktail? What's in it?

Without a question, my friend's namesake drink, the Butler Miller:

• Chambord
• Vodka
• Lime juice

Naturally, the Butler Miller was the drink of choice at the Miller/Flaskamper wedding reception, so much so that the bartenders had to run out for more Chambord. Really, it's just about the perfect summer drink -- ask for it by name!