Get to Know You #100: The Reverse Edition (Answers)

For the hundredth Get to Know You, I asked you to flip the format and leave a question for me instead. You left a mix of sweet, surprising, and clever ones, and I’ve collected them all here. This post is my answer to the questions you shared for the anniversary, a small way to celebrate the milestone with you.

Here are the questions you left for the anniversary, along with my answers:

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───── ⋆⋅Your Round #100 Questions with My Answers⋅⋆ ─────

Family and Personal Life

Sandman’s sister • Do you think I deliberately set out to embarrass him?
No. You didn’t try to embarrass him. He just has a talent for ending up in awkward moments, and you happened to be there when they happened.

John • Do you get tired of the winters there?
Yes. The cold gets old fast, and the long stretch of gray can wear on you. I still like the quiet of winter, but by February I’m ready for it to move along.

Indira • Is there any small change that you would like to make in your routine to make life much more satisfying?
Yes. I’d like a little more quiet time in the morning before the day starts. Even fifteen minutes makes everything feel steadier.

Carol Anne • What is your spirit animal?
I’ve always felt drawn to orcas and dolphins. They’re steady, intelligent, and social in a way that feels familiar to me, so I’d choose one of those.

Di • How are you feeling?
I’m feeling better than I was, and I’m grateful for that. Some days are slower than others, but today feels alright.

Favorites and Memories

Courtney • What was your favorite memory at the ballpark? • If you could meet any celebrity who would it be? • Do you have a favorite word?
Favorite ballpark memory: Singing the national anthem. There is a quiet moment right before the first note when the whole place settles, and you can feel the size of the crowd without hearing it. Once you start singing, everything sharpens. It already felt like a big moment, but having Bon Jovi there made it even more surreal. It’s one of those memories that stays steady because it felt larger than the day around it.
Celebrity I would meet: Bono. He has spent his life using music to push people toward compassion and awareness, and he does it without losing the human side of things. I would want to talk to him about how he keeps his sense of purpose grounded.
Favorite word: Grace. It carries calm, forgiveness, and strength all at once. It is a word that feels gentle but never weak, and I like the way it settles into a sentence.

hyperion • What is your favorite memory of the color Chartreuse? • When you were a little Booomcha, what was your favorite TV show?
Favorite memory of Chartreuse: I had to really think about this. My only memory of Chartreuse is realizing it’s the color that shows up when someone tries to mix “yellow” and “green” but forgets what either one looks like.
Favorite TV show as a little Booomcha: Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood. I was convinced he was talking directly to me. I would sit there completely still, waiting for whatever gentle wisdom he had lined up for the day, certain he could see me through the screen.

Cats and Animals

Aptivi • When was the first time you started loving cats? • What are your top three favorite animals? And why?
First loved cats: When I was four. My first cat was all white and named Q‑Tip, and that’s when it started.
Top three animals: Cats, dogs, and dolphins. Cats for their personalities, dogs for their loyalty, and dolphins because they’ve always felt calm and intelligent to me.

Monkey’s Tale • How many cats lie on top of your paper or keyboard when you’re writing? • How do you keep it so together?
Cats on my keyboard: Usually one. Sometimes two if they decide I’m taking too long.
Keeping it together: I don’t always. I just try to handle one thing at a time so the day doesn’t get ahead of me.

Maggie • Do your cats supervise every keystroke? • Are they your official quality control team? • Are you the co-writer of the musical Cats?
Supervision: Yes. They watch everything I type like it’s classified information.
Quality control: Absolutely. They approve nothing and judge everything.
Musical Cats: No. If I had written that musical, the cats would at least follow instructions.

Writing, Blogging, and Creativity

brightstardancing • As a nurse, life is certainly very busy for you. Where do you get the time to interact with everyone on your site all throughout each day and evening?
I’m retired now, so I have the time. I enjoy checking in throughout the day and keeping the conversations going.

Robbie • Where do you get inspiration for these Get to Know You posts? • Did you enjoy nursing as you got older or did it become a chore?
Inspiration: Honestly, I just try to come up with something, and it usually ends up a little off the wall or even silly. Sometimes I also pull ideas from questions I’ve used before or ones I’ve seen floating around the internet.
Nursing: I never saw it as a chore. It was demanding, but it always mattered. The work stayed meaningful all the way through.

Barbara • What kind of a patient were you? • Were you demanding or patient with the care you were given? • Did it give you a better understanding of patients’ needs? • When do you do your writing? • Where would you like to go to eat lunch?
Patient: I was always thankful for the care I got and tried to be patient. I know how frustrating being a patient can be because I’ve been on both sides of the bed.
Understanding: Yes, it gave me a lot of insight into what patients need and how vulnerable the whole experience feels.
Writing: I write whenever the mood hits. Sometimes morning, sometimes late at night. I don’t keep a strict schedule, but I do write every day.
Lunch: Somewhere unusual. Something out of the ordinary. Maybe a little hole‑in‑the‑wall place I’ve never tried before, the kind you find by accident and remember forever.

Thomas • Are you going to write another book? Maybe one with pictures? • How did it feel to be on the other side as a patient?
Another book: I’m writing Door 17 right now. It’s a thriller with a biomedical thread running through it. No pictures, though. It’s with the editor at the moment.
Being a patient: It felt strange. I’m used to being the one taking care of people, so being on the other side made me slow down and see things from a different angle. It gave me a deeper understanding of how vulnerable the whole experience can feel.

dovalpage • How do you find the time to write the blog and keep it updated and nice? • Where do you get the inspiration for your stories?
Time: I’m retired, so I have the space in my day to keep the blog updated. I work on it in short stretches whenever I feel like it, which keeps it fun instead of feeling like a job.
Inspiration: My life. The things I’ve seen, the things I’ve lived, and whatever odd idea decides to show up when I’m sitting at my desk.

hyperion • How do you write so well? • Is there any formal education or training in your background that inspired you?
Writing: Thank you. It means a lot that you think I write well.
Education: No formal training. In college, I tested out of all my English and writing classes by taking essay exams. I didn’t have to take the actual courses, just pay for the credits. That was the extent of it.

Uğurcan • What are the things you are inspired by?
My life. Things that have happened to me, conversations I overhear, and the way people move through the world. I love people‑watching and making up little stories about them, and all of that ends up feeding whatever I write.

Graphic Design and Images

Sandee • How long have you been a graphic designer? • I sure love your work.
Thank you, Sandee. I appreciate that. I have been dabbling and practicing since about 2016. This blog has gone through a wide variety of looks over the years. I never seem to stay with one design for very long.

Pam • How do you make your images so nice?
If you mean my featured images and the graphics on my site, they’re made with a mix of Canva, Copilot, and ChatGPT. Sometimes all three end up involved in one image.

dovalpage • I would like to find out more about the image creation.
I use a mix of Canva, Copilot, and ChatGPT to create my images. Each one does something a little different, so I switch between them depending on what I need. Sometimes all three end up involved in the same graphic. I keep adjusting things until the colors, layout, and mood feel right.

Life Lessons and Humor

Jan • What’s the number one thing you’ve learned so far in life?
That life keeps moving, no matter what happens. You can fight it or you can move with it, and moving with it makes everything a little easier to carry.

Ernie • It’s the end of the week. How big have your piles gotten and do they hurt?
I’m pretty sure you’re being a smart‑ass, Ernie 😄. I wouldn’t want you any other way. I don’t have any piles, and you can stop worrying about me now. 😂

Thank you for joining me on these posts and for asking such thoughtful questions. I’ve enjoyed every bit of it.

Thank you so much for reading, liking, lurking, and commenting! You are important!

Credits:
Inside Image by Kevin from Beginning at Last.
Featured Image by Kymber with ChatGPT, and Canva, supervised by cats.
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