Looking back, Thinking ahead

Ok, Very Vanilla is getting personal today. First of all - is it ok to have retroactive new years resolutions? I hope so. After some unexpected but exciting changes in my life, I have made it my mission to learn more about myself. Maybe "discover" is a better term. I didn't not know, I had just never really articulated it to myself before. It's not about coming up with an inflexible definition of you but about admitting who you are and why. I now believe it's the only way to maintain forward motion in one's life. After all, it has helped me figure out where I want to go next and to take advantage of opportunities that are in front of me, such as travelling to Spain in March. I don't say all this to sound touchy-feely but everyone needs to face themselves one in a while!


I love the idea of keeping a journal but I always get too long winded and any important realizations get lost in my steam of consciousness style prose (rants, raves, rambles). Instead my new and hopefully more achievable goal is to have a little self-reflection pow-wow once in a while. The first time came unexpectedly, when I took the MBTI test at work. I had always eschewed personality tests and magazine quizzes but I had to admit that the results were spot-on. My latest find is the Proust Questionnaire. Popularized by novelist Marcel Proust in the late 19th century, it was first a parlor game and now survives in Vanity Fair magazine and in many an ice-breaker activity, I'm sure. One of my fondest kindergaren memories was our monthly ritual of drawing "an animal, a tree, a house, and me." Over time these drawings changed and ever since, I have loved the idea of tracking one's personal evolution through more creative mediums. I see the Proust questionnaire as such an outlet and thus can't wait to look back on this in 10 years! Oh, and I'd be hard pressed not to mention this blogger and this artist who inspired me to post mine as well. Finally, I'd love this postcard journal to be my next soul-searching project. Any other cool ideas out there?

Your chief characteristic?

wanderlust, devotion

The qualities you most like in a man?

capable, kind, relaxed

The qualities you most like in a woman?

open, free-thinker  

What do you most value in your friends?

loyalty, sarcasm, humor

Your biggest flaw?

over thinking everything

What is your favorite occupation/activity?

learning

What is your idea of happiness?

enjoying a home cooked meal with friends and family

What is your idea of misery?

Caribbean cruise, reality TV

What is your greatest fear?

having regrets!

If not yourself, what would you like to be?

musician

Where would you like to live?

surrounded by trees and plants

What is your favorite color?

purple, coral, turquoise

What is your favorite flower?

iris, poppy

Your favorite bird?

owl, crane

Who are your favorite prose writers?

Edith Wharton, Kurt Vonnegut

Who are your favorite poets?

Emily Dickinson

Who are your favorite heroes of fiction?

Úrsula Buendía

Your favorite food?

spaghetti alla Carbonara

grass-fed dry-aged burger

Your favorite drink?

geuze, saison, cognac

What is your most treasured possession?

jewelry from both grandmothers

Who are your favorite painters?

Alphonse Mucha, Ferdinand Hodler, Gustav Klimt

Your favorite composers?

Jeff Tweedy, Paul Simon

Who are your heroes in real life?

Ma & Pa

Your favorite heroine in history?

Margaret Sanger and other persistent folks

Your favorite names?

Georgina, Athena, Artemis

What characters in history do you most dislike?

world domination-attempters

What natural gift would you like to have?

more confidence!

How would you like to die?

at peace

If you were to come back as a person or thing,what would it be?

wild cat

What is your greatest extravagance?

quality food

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

fame

For what fault do you have the most toleration?

shyness

What is your present state of mind?

inspired

What is your motto?

“so it goes” – Kurt Vonnegut