Interview with bammba_m

[tigertoy]

1. When did you start filking?

Bill Roper got me interested in filking when he brought his guitar to ChUSFA meetings, I think in 1978.  I went to the filk at my first con, Chamabanacon VII in 1978.  I got my first guitar in 1981 and played in public for the first time at Filkcon West in 1981.

2. Who do you think has had the greatest impact (good/bad) on today's society?

Wow, you don't ask small, simple questions, do you?  Should I look at overall historical importance, or just immediate importance to today?  Should I look at an individual person or a group?  A single individual seldom has very much impact on society as a whole; it's ideas that a lot of people follow that make a big difference, and even if those ideas can be ultimately traced to one person, a lot of other people are involved in the impact.

I identify the modern corporation as the social force that most shapes today's society, but it seems like a bit of a cop out to just name "the corporations" as my answer.  But no one individual can be identified with more than a tiny piece of that influence.  I guess I would have to identify George W. Bush as the single person I can most identify with the current mess we're in; even if you follow the school of thought that he's just the puppet of Cheney and Rove, his personal charisma and brilliant ability to get the public to pay attention to what he says rather than what his administration does are the heart of his success.

3. What one invention could you never possibly live without?

Asthma drugs.  Literally.  Albuterol kept me alive for a couple of decades until I found  Flovent, which actually lets me breathe normally.

4. What one invention do you wish had never been invented?

The broadcast commercial -- the business model of paying for broadcast content by selling part of the time to advertisers.

5. Snack time: Sweet or Salty?

Sweet.  I will eat all too many salty things if they're available, but I haven't found it too hard to live without having them in the house.  I think it would be a lot harder to get myself to stop buying chocoloate.



Anyone who'd like questions from me, just yell.

Comments

5 questions

[pir-anha.livejournal.com]

*jumps up and down and hollers*

Re: 5 questions

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

1. This question is not about prying into things that aren't my business, but rather about the fact that I'm terribly bad about figuring things out from casual context. What am I supposed to know about your gender identity?

2. I know you've lived in a lot of places, and I think you've lived in more than I actually know about. Which one is the best, and why?

3. It's easy to look at current events and despair that the world is in the toilet and it's already been flushed. What do you hope for in the world of fifty years from now?

4. You've mentioned in comments somewhere here that you filk now. Tell me about what filk is for you -- how you found it, when/where you do it, what some of your favorite songs are, and whatever else needs to be said.

5. You unexpectedly come into $1 million (US or Canadian, not much difference today) after taxes. What do you do with the money?

[bammba-m.livejournal.com]

mememememe!!!

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

1. What is the story behind the nickname "BammBamm"?
   
2. After being gone for a few years, how do you feel about Champaign as a place to live?
   
3. If they made you dictator, what problem would you make your first priority, and what, briefly, would you do about it?
   
4. Give a brief review of the last book you read for fun.
   
5. You suddenly come into a million dollars (after taxes). What do you do with the money>

[jerusha.livejournal.com]

I'll take a set, if you will.

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

1. Is your LJ handle meant to invoke the Joan Vinge character Jerusha PalaThion? If so, do you identify with the character, or do you just like the name? If not, how did you come up with the name?
   
2. If they changed the rules for medical residency programs so that residents only had to work a normal 40 hour week, maybe a little overtime but no more than a normal job, would you want to return to your medical career?
   
3. Which would you rather have: the ability to write brilliant songs, or the ability to perform songs brilliantly?
   
4. You read a whole lot. Who are your favorite authors? Are there any authors that I'm likely to have overlooked that you particularly think I should seek out?
   
5. You unexpectedly come into a million dollars (after taxes). What do you do with the money?

Re: My curiosity pains me sometimes

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

Well, I try to ask questions that will tell me something I don't know about the person, and "What is your favorite color?" isn't very revealing...

1. When you left Champaign, you were pretty definite you wanted to be gone. What's so bad about Champaign? Now that you've lived in other places, how does it stack up?
   
2. How has your trip to China changed your life?
   
3. You've been working with computers for a long time. Do they still hold the same attraction? Is it still fun, or is it just a job?
   
4. How did your interest in martial arts develop? Did you make a conscious decision early on to dedicate a big chunk of your life to the study, or did it grow on you slowly? Have you continued because you enjoy it, because of specific benefits you get from it, and/or because it's something you have to do?
   
5. (I try to ask everyone this question) You unexpectedly come into a million dollars after taxes. What do you do with the money?

[starstraf.livejournal.com]

ask away

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

I just did you!

1. Tell me something good, and something bad, you guess I don't know about being (practicing) poly.
   
2. How have your attitudes about smoking changed, from before you ever smoked, through while you were a smoker, to since you quit?
   
3. If you could visit any one place in the world, but you had to go by yourself and you wouldn't meet anyone you already know when you went, and you didn't need to worry about anyone or any obligations you were leaving behind (except for your own desire to see them again), where would you go, and (more importantly) how long would you stay?
   
4. If you had enough money you never had to work again, what would you want to do with your time?
   
5. The news has been pretty depressing lately. What news story have you heard lately has made you feel most hopeful for the future?