Proust Questionnaire

About a month ago, I vowed to steal an idea from one of my favorite Tweeple. She reads Vanity Fair. I myself never have, but maybe someday. Apparently, in this magazine, they give the same questionnaire to a different celebrity in each issue. It is called the Proust Questionnaire. Don't ask me why. I'm quite literate but have no intention ever of reading Proust.
Anyway, stumped for writing ideas, she answered the questions. I loved it! See her excellent answers. Now see me try not just to copy her answers outright.


What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Spending an entire day with my family within view of the ocean.
What is your greatest fear?
Not being able to handle something that comes my way - be it an opportunity or a tragedy.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Self-deprecation
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Hypocrisy
What is your greatest extravagance?
What I spend the most money on that is just for me? Wine, I guess. Or maybe funky jewelry.
What is your favorite journey?
The many I've taken from self-doubt to self-confidence.
What do you dislike most about your appearance?
My right shoulder blade. Oh, you heard me. Not just because 18-year-old me got that overly large dragon tattoo. Also, thanks to a broken collarbone courtesy of 13-year-old me, my shoulder blade is all cock-eyed. 
Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Like. Um. I'm sorry. I'm sorry but.
What is your greatest regret?
That some of the journeys from self-doubt to self-confidence took too long.
What or who is the greatest love of your life?
Who: my husband & my daughter. What: Florida - ocean, sunshine & it brought me the "who".
When and where were you happiest?
Big picture? Happiness as a total state of contentment - here & now. One moment in time? Happiness as a state of a rapture that pushes everything else out of your mind - my labor with my daughter; snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef on our honeymoon.
Which talent would you most like to have?
To effortlessly learn new languages.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
(Mostly) overcoming my self-doubts, choosing a path & sticking to it
If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be?
I'd like to come back as a whale. I heard a RadioLab story - when a whale dies & sinks to the bottom of the ocean, its body becomes an ecosystem that can last 50-75 years, which is about as long as it lived. How cool is that? That's my spirituality.
What is your most treasured possession?
My wedding & engagement rings + the opal I got on our honeymoon. About other things, my husband & I tell each other "they're just things." But these things are one of a kinds & not replaceable. I would throw up if I lost any of them.
What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Powerlessness in the face of something terrible.
Where would you like to live?
Walking distance to the ocean.
What is your favorite occupation?
Projects with the little one or playing outside with her. Watching the tube or doing something equally lame with the husband after the little one goes to bed.
What is your most marked characteristic?
Indecision, or maybe not.
What do you most value in your friends?
Loyalty
Who are your favorite writers?
Madeline L'Engle, Salman Rushdie, Margaret Atwood, Ann Patchett
Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Meg Murray
Who are your heroes in real life?
My parents & grandparents. Some of my patients & their families.
What are your favorite names?
Owen, Simon, Kyra, Charlotte
What is it that you most dislike?
Hypocrisy
How would you like to die?
Satisfied
What is your motto?
"Live now. Make now always the most precious time. Now will never come again." -- Captain Picard, Star Trek: TNG
Also - Resistance is Futile. ;)


Now, your turn?