Answer Me This, Week 3.

I'm laid up in bed today because I have the sore throat of all sore throats. Yesterday the doctor confirmed it was not strep (hallelujah!), but couldn't pinpoint a source and thus prescribed me nothing except "magic mouthwash" for the pain. It is decidedly unmagical. So even though I had heaps planned for today, it's all canceled because I can't even turn my head without stabbing pain, and my glands are now visibly swollen. I probably look a little Frankensteinish but I haven't been brave enough to face the mirror. 

Anywho, onward:

Kendra at Catholic All Year is hosting a weekly linkup. She provides the questions, you provide the answers, and then you link up with everyone back on her page. It's a great way to get to know a little about your fellow bloggy travelers, as well as a chance to consider some things about yourself that you hadn't before. Join us! 

Kendra's answers, next week's questions and the linkup can be found here.

1. Do you hate happy clappy church music?

That depends what you mean by "happy clappy." My church is musically very traditional, especially since the new translation of the Mass was implemented, and I do prefer it. There is very little of what our (Anglican) back-up organist calls "Jesus lounge music." I do like the occasional 70s throwback hymn; a couple of weeks ago I sang "On Eagle's Wings" at the request of a big donor to our new organ and the congregation always sings along better.  

What I truly can't stand is Life Teen Masses with drum kits being slammed on and some teenager who thinks this is her American Idol audition. I find it to be extraordinarily distracting.

2. What is your priority: eating or sleeping?

I had to think about that harder than you'd think. And then I realized: just last week, swamped with Easter prep, I went to sing the Easter Vigil Mass without having eaten dinner. When I got home over three hours later, I was starving, but I was also exhausted. I went to sleep without eating and would do it again. So that answers that: sleeping.

3. What type of milk do you drink in your house?

We buy organic whole milk in bulk at Costco (by "in bulk," I mean that they sell it in a box of three half gallons; it's really not that bulky). The toddler drinks it whole, obviously, and I have since found that switching from 2%, our previous go-to milk, I almost never have any lactose-intolerance issues. Because it's milk sugar my body doesn't like, not milk fat (which, duh, someone who took as much science as I did should have recognized that -ose means "sugar"). 

Plus studies seem to indicate that people who drink their milk whole weigh less (although that has not come to fruition in my case; it's possible I'm doing everything else in the world wrong). Which, again, makes sense to me; dairies add more sugar to lower-fat milks to compensate for the delicious fat being taken away, and our bodies deal better with fat than sugar.

4. What is a book that changed your perspective on something?

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas. It's the true-life story of a German pastor who led a resistance effort against the Third Reich. SUCH a good read. 

[That link above is an Amazon Affiliate link; I'm not sure if it works but if you use that link to buy the book they'll supposedly send approximately $0.02 my way.]

5. Who is your favorite saint?

I have always been partial to St. Brigid. 

Since my parents named every one of their other six children after at least one saint, but opted to name me Colleen Erin after precisely zero saints (I mean, of course there are probably Colleens and Erins in heaven, so there are Sts. Colleen and Erin, but there are none canonized by the Church, is what I mean here), I didn't have a patron saint until I was confirmed. My confirmation saint is St. Bernadette Soubirous, but there's just something about a beautiful girl who begged God to take away her beauty so that she could marry Jesus that has always resonated with me. Of course, my own sister Bridget is a beautician, so that's just funny.

Oh, and apropos of my rip-roarin' sore throat, please play on my behalf for some intercession from St. Blaise. He's been ignoring my pleas but maybe if y'all send up a clamor he'll be just annoyed enough to put in a good word.

6. Introvert or extrovert?

I guess I'm closer on the spectrum to extroverted but I'm not truly an extrovert. I'm opinionated and can be loud and I'm usually pretty funny, and I make friends fairly easily, but I'm not good at approaching people. At. All. That is probably why I tend to make (sometimes snarky) comments under my breath and hope someone laughs. Because if you laugh at my jokes, you're in. 

So I make friends easily if someone decides to speak to me first. This is also true on the internet -- I might be a bit of a lurker. Please introduce yourself in the comments any time, because I really would love to know you!

UPDATED TO ADD: I just took an online test and it tells me I'm ESFJ, with strong E and J and slight S and F.