What will your answer be?

Here are some interesting questions to ponder. We shamelessly stole these from the blog of Bobby and Tamie Ross, by the way.

Would you rather speak with God for one minute or add one year to your life?

Jeanie: Talk to God. Talking to God for a minute is more important to me than spending more time here to do whatever. Spending time with friends that you would see in heaven anyway doesn’t compare. Why spend an extra year earning money that you can’t take with you?

Erik: Technically I can talk to God right now through prayer, but I’m guessing that this question means that God would answer you as if you’re having a live conversation. (I’d also argue that God does answer us here on earth — though we’re sometimes blind to his answers.) Saying “speak to God” seems like the obvious answer, but are we really ready to hear what he has to say?


Would you rather meet Snoopy, Mickey Mouse, Garfield, or Bugs Bunny?

Jeanie: Mickey Mouse. I like him best. I’m a fan of Disney. Snoopy doesn’t talk, Garfield’s too temperamental and Bugs Bunny plays mean tricks on people.

Erik: Snoopy. He’s obviously the Joe Coolest of this bunch.


Would you rather end hunger or hatred?

Jeanie: This one’s hard. One would have to address the physical needs of a society before one could tackle the deeper social issues of society. However, I think it’s more important to end hatred, and if we ended hatred it might solve some of our hunger problems.

Erik: Hunger. Like Jeanie said, it’s the first step to ending a lot of the other problems that cripple our society. Hatred often is an outgrowth of fear and envy, because we live in a world of limited resources. I think that focusing on hatred is focusing on a symptom rather than the underlying problem. We do that too often.


Would you rather be gossiped about or never talked about at all?

Jeanie: Never talked about at all, because then I wouldn’t have to worry about what other people are saying. I’d rather people just talk to me.

Erik: Ever since that incident at Braum’s, there’s been a lot of gossip about me. I’d just to say, publicly, that I thought the items in question were complimentary. And I still maintain that sending in 12 National Guardsmen to “take me down” was a bit excessive.


Would you rather find one million dollars or find true love?

Jeanie: True love. You can go through a million dollars really fast. True love lasts a lot longer. Money can’t buy friendship or companionship when you’re lonely.

Erik: True love. I think there’s a study out there showing that people who win a lot of money aren’t significantly happier than they were before. People start coming out of the woodwork wanting a piece of the action. No thanks!


What talent do you wish you possessed?

Jeanie: I wish I had the ability to get along with everybody. Some people are very hard to take, and I wish I were more patient and not so judgmental at times.

Erik: It’s more of a superpower, I guess, but I wish I had to ability to communicate and understand any language on the globe. Or, if that’s not possible, I’d settle for Spanish.


If you were going to a remote place and could only take one CD with you, which one would it be?

Jeanie: Christmas music. I like Christmas music. I don’t have a favorite artist or a favorite song, but I really like Christmas.

Erik: A mix CD with Johnny Cash and Def Leppard.


If you could hire one of the following, which would it be? (Driver Chef Maid Stylist)

Jeanie: Stylist. I don’t like doing my hair. It never looks the same as when I come out of the salon.

Erik: Maid. Although a chef would be nice.


Can you play a musical instrument? If so, which one?

Jeanie: Piano, flute and piccolo. I was in band sixth grade through my senior year of college. I also played in a community band until I got into medical school.

Erik: I took one year of piano and then my teacher mysteriously decided that she didn’t want to teach piano anymore. She only kept two of her students. They were both from Japan and it was easier to just keep teaching them than to explain that she was quitting to their mother, whose English wasn't so good. I attempted to learn guitar for a while there, but I got frustrated because it seemed like I spent all my time tuning it and I never could get it to sound right.


Have you attended a high school reunion yet?

Jeanie: I didn’t go to my five-year reunion. My 10-year reunion is in June 2006, but I’ll be on the wards then and probably can’t go.

Erik: No. My 10-year reunion was in 2002, but I was in Oklahoma by then and it was in Macon, Ga. I’ve lost contact with most of my high school friends, unfortunately.


You're stuck in an airport, what paper do you turn to for the news? (New York Times USA Today National Inquirer or, You don't follow the news.)

Jeanie: I don’t follow the news. I’d go look around at the stores. Or find a TV.

Erik (sighing in dismay from Jeanie’s answer): I’d probably buy a New York Times, but I can’t guarantee I’d read it. I prefer magazines like Time and The Economist when in airports. I usually try to bring a novel. Just seems to work better for me in airports.


Leno or Letterman?

Jeanie: Leno. I like his monologues and the headlines. Leno also brings on more animals than Letterman. And he and his wife have been married for 20-some-odd years, and she’s active in the fight for women’s rights in the Middle East.

Erik: I used to be a die-hard Letterman guy, but I’ll watch Leno on occasion for the headlines. I just can’t stand that Kevin guy who laughs at EVERYTHING Leno says regardless of its true level of funny-ness. The camaraderie between Dave and Paul is much more fun to watch. Sometimes I prefer Nightline on ABC.



What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?

Jeanie: Rocky Road. Love the marshmallows.

Erik: I love the soft-serve frozen yogurt at Braum’s. They also have a really good cappuccino chocolate chip there. However, please note that a tub of said ice cream product does not constitute a “free sample” (see earlier question).


What CD is in your CD player right now?

Jeanie: None

Erik: Lemme’ check. Looks like I’ve got three CDs in the player right now. One is a mix CD of Africa music, including tunes from Rex Lawson and the soundtrack to “Hotel Rwanda.” The second is “Facing Future” by Hawaiian artist Israel Kamakawiwo'ole. Finally, there’s a mix CD of a cappella worship music by Zoe Group. I’ve got the player set on “shuffle.”


If you had one day to live, what would you do?

Jeanie: Spend it with my husband, and call all the rest of my family members and my friends. I’d probably have Mexican food.

Erik: Pray, and skip my cholesterol medicine.