Ask the Person Below You a Question: Thread Four! Countdown to C********! ?

Homemade mackerel pate. Mmm..

Are you superstitious about anything?

No I'm not superstitious, but my mother was, about everything. My family and I had to smile when my mum died, as it was Friday, the 13th! How did she manage that!!
Have you ever waited over two hours for a bus? Happened to me yesterday.

No!???
Well OK, just the ‘bad things come in threes’ which makes me nervous. I often manipulate things to arrange a third thing.
But I do remember all the things we were taught
-about magpies
-about spilling salt
-about poking a hole in the bottom of your boiled egg to let the wind out and save the sailors
-about walking under ladders (does scaffolding count?)
-about breaking mirrors-the removal men got most upset when I argued that the bad luck was on them because they broke the mirror.
-about seeing a patch of blue sky big enough to make a pair of sailors trousers meant it would be sunny soon

In a similar vein, are there things you have to do in the same order or way?
My sister is fixated on using the correct pegs.

No, I don’t have to do things a certain way, apart from lining my pills up.

Do any pets sleep on your bed?

Yes, they both do. I love having a snuggle with my little dog Gracie. When I’m feeling anxious or low, it’s very comforting

What helps you when you are low?

Going to bed and curling up in a ball

Have you ever employed a cleaner or gardener etc?

I have both. Ive never been into gardening although I like it to look neat. I loathe housework and am just too disabled to bother with it now.

We have a long, large garden with a hedge down one side. We have someone in to do it once a year and also see to the trees. Otherwise we do it ourselves. Keeps us fit.

Did you crave anything during lockdown? Me …. Fish and chips

Chocolate! Had to make a big effort to give it up, or maybe eat less.

Do you eat meat?

Yes, but it’s not the main thing for me. Fish, eggs and vegetarian figure a lot. I think too much meat is consumed.

Who is the one actor/actress you cannot abide, no matter what they appear in?
(Nicole Kidman for me).

Helen Mirren

Favourite foreign actor?

Alain Delon and Sophia Loren.

Favourite foreign film?

Madhubala - an Indian film famous for its colour sequence in a black and white film which shows a dance sequence in a hall of mirrors.

Do you like Bollywood films?

I love them but I usually watch recordings or streamed versions as they can be upto 3 hours long.

Yes, I like everything Bollywood. The dancing, the costumes, the colour, the music. They are great. Not that I have watched lots, just a few.

Would you like to visit India? Or any far flung country, not the usual tourist places?

Not terribly keen. I like clean proper toilets. Japan might be O.K.

What might put you off going somewhere?

BB - you’ve heard wrong. Some of the hotels in India are cleaner and more luxurious than Claridges in London.

The only thing that will put me off travelling is the ‘hanging around’ at airports, and all the queuing, for everything.

Question : How often do you eat out, in a restaurant?

I'm more likely to eat out in a pub than a posh restaurant and not very often these days but I hope to do so in around three weeks time with an old school friend.

Do you still bother with a roast dinner on Sundays?

No, as widowed and now live alone.

Growing up, did you ever talk back to your parents?
(Wouldn’t have dared with my father, but had a funny argumentative patch as a teenager with my mother)

I never answered back, my mother would never have tolerated it and I knew it.
When did you last visit an art gallery?

I did it all the time. To me it was just explaining my point of view but my parents called it "answering back" or "giving cheek". In those days (1950s) children were "seen and not heard". I usually got a good hard slap.

Did you prefer boys or girls games/toys as a child?

I played with dolls but also with a toy fort, trains and a meccano set. I also played cricket with the local boys.

Sorry - answered too late.

My last art gallery visit was just before the pandemic. I went to a display of ethnic embroidery in a local gallery,

Ill stick with my previous question:-

Did you prefer boys or girls games/toys as a child?

I played with dolls but also with a toy fort, trains and a meccano set. I also played cricket with the local boys.

I played with my dolls, toy shop, school etc., but also loved playing cowboys and Indians (that seems awful now). Played cricket too. Loved having adventures outdoors. So a bit of both I think. Have you given a 'plant a tree' as a gift?

Yes and also some ‘fertiliser’ via Oxfam. Not recipients thought it was a good idea.

Have you ever been part of a big protest?

Yes walked from Aldermaston to London when a student.

Do you enjoy GBBO ?

I enjoyed the first few series but as it has gone on it seems as if the contestants are given much more complex tasks and there doesn’t seem to be enough time to finish.
It frustrates me as a viewer, goodness knows how the contestants must feel.

Have you taken part in a live auction? (of any kind - animals/ houses/antiques)

Yes, at a dinner at my husband’s club, but so long ago and being rather merry at the time through sheer boredom, can’t remember much about it…

What is the one thing more valuable to you than money?