Lit-Net Member Interviews

[AimusSage]

The Interview committee is proud to present the interview with none other than
JAY
She made all of you wait for it, but the interview is finally here

Introductory questions

1. How are you today?
I'm doing good, thanks

2. What is your (user) name?
(Jay) Jarmila

3. How did you decide on your username?
I didn't want to use my name when I was registering but I couldn't think of anything 'original' I would like so I decided to just use my initial, and transformed it into Jay. It stuck and I've been Jay ever since.

4. Why did you initially join the lit-net?
I was looking for something about John Milton I could use for my final IT project in secondary school (it was about creating a website, the content didn't matter, I'm not actually sure why I chose to use John Milton's poetry).
Also, I was looking for the author of this poem. I'm not sure which one came first.

5. What would you say is the best aspect of the forum?

The best aspect? The friends you make, the people you meet thanks to the forum. I've made a few very good friends here over the years.

6. If you could do anything with the forum what would it be?
I think I'd cancel the 10-character rule as the limit for minimum length of a post.

7. How do you feel about smilies?
In a very positive way

8. Why are all of your posts so short? Usually a sentence or two at the most, sometimes less. (suggested by Virgil)
The length of my posts mostly depends on the subject. I'm mainly trying to just say what I think and not agonize about a single point for ten paragraphs or more... unless I start to babble, at which point I tend to say the same thing over and over again, every time a little bit differently, making less and less sense by each sentence... so I just usually choose to be brief and (hopefully) clear. Why write an essay to say something that could be expressed just as well by a few words? I don't think that the point of a post is to put the reader to sleep.

9. How do you feel about being a mod?
Powerhungry!
Nah, I don't think it makes me feel much differently from what it feels like being a regular member.

10. Have you noticed that since you became a mod you seem to spend less time posting?
Yes, I have. I think that it's because before, I could skip reading threads/posts I wasn't interested in. Now, if I haven't been away for more than a day or two, I try to read all new posts to be up to date with the situation on the forum. It takes some time to do so, time I would probably spend posting before. Sometimes I only log in to read through the new posts. Also, in the last few months real life has been interfering more often than it used to before.

11. As one of the oldest members here how do you think the forum has changed?
We got new cool stuff to play with! Most recently the blogs, new fast shiny server, a new look, there's the Forum Book Club, Short Story Competition, The Poetry Post, more and more e-texts/content have been added... new members join, some of the old leave, which results in a general change of the overall atmosphere at times. Since I joined, the forum has been getting more and more busy. I remember a time when there only used to be very few new posts every day and having some other member online at the same time you were, that was just great! I remember being scolded for having a conversation with Shea (ok, so maybe we didn't stay too on topic ) in a few different threads just a few weeks after I joined.

Personal Questions

12. What is your date of birth?
14 December 1983

13. How would you describe yourself, your personality?
In short, I'm just crazy. I daydream a lot, I'm lazy, I'm not too good at getting things done but I usually manage under the pressure of a deadline, I think I get excited easily (leads to new obsessions), I tend to be overprotective, second-guess myself often, I'm good at procrastinating, I tend to be sarcastic (or so I've been told ), I use parenthesis a lot.

14. What do you do in RL? Student, work?
I study English language and literature.

15. Could you tell us a little more about what you do?
Other than spending lots of time on the net/laptop, I actually attend lectures. When there's some time between lectures, I'm usually in the faculty's library either reading/studying or more likely spending more time yet on the net. I also spend several hours on the train each fortnight, usually reading assigned books or studying... or dozing off . Once I'm at home, I like spending my time with my niece who will be 1 year old in December

16. Would you tell us something about your various hobbies?
I like reading, listening to music (I prefer having background music on as much as possible), I like animals, most of all horses (Clydesdales and Shires in case anybody's interested) and dogs (Irish Wolfhound being my favourite). I also like reading fan fiction, I enjoy spending time outside walking or photographing. I draw but I'm not too good at it, I don't really suck (purely objectively speaking ) but I'm not a Picasso either. Oh, and I used to build jet models, not enough time for that now (always busy doing something else). I collect stamps (haven't grown out of it yet)

17. Do you like sports, if so do you play sports yourself?
Sports... in PE I always liked games, mostly anything played with a ball. I used to play floorball in a team a few years ago, I was the goalkeeper. I also used to ride horses but unfortunately I no longer have the opportunity. If you can catch me watching a match on the TV, I'm watching ice hockey.

18.What of music? Play any instruments?
I used to play the recorder when I was in elementary school and the drums at secondary. I'd like to learn to play the piano/keyboard and I'd like to start playing the drums again.

19. Have you played in a band? If so, what was it like? Do you want to play in a band (again)?
I've never played with a band. The only accompaniment I've ever got was my sister after she got two guitars (she got a better one and I was allowed to main the old one). Oh, forgot to mention, my guitar playing skills might be considered string-torture . Now that I'm thinking about it, the last few months before I quit playing the recorder, I used to play several pieces with a boy who was playing the clarinet, but never with a band. Just before I finished secondary school, my drums teacher told me he'd bring me an electric guitar player to help me with a problem I had but either he kept forgetting about it or just couldn't find anybody whose schedule would work with mine.
If I ever get back to playing the drums or learn to play the keyboard I'd like to give playing in a band a shot.

20. Do you like to travel?
I'm not sure. I've only been 'abroad' once, in the UK. I have relatives in Slovakia (which I can't seem to think of as abroad) and visit when I can but that's not travelling in my opinion. I like travelling by train, I have never been on a plane or a boat and I get motion sickness on the bus sometimes. I'd like to travel and experience foreign countries and cultures so I suppose you could say that I like travelling.

21. Which countries have you visited? And which ones would you really like to visit someday?
I have spent a week in the UK, done some shopping trips to Poland and Germany (very close to the border) and spent a lot of time with my grandparents in Slovakia. One day I'd like to bang on the doors of my friends regardless of the country. Other than that, I'd like to visit Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Greece & Turkey (I heard there are some 'rocks' there :brows, Egypt, the US... wherever I get the chance, I'm not that picky.

22. Could you tell us something about the countries you have visited? Like the culture,
environment, etc.
Well, not much. The week I spent in the UK on a school trip, we did the usual sightseeing and in my opinion, a week is not long enough to 'notice' anything of any significance, more so if your time there is made by somebody else. As I said earlier, I'm not sure I'd ever be able to really consider Slovakia a foreign country, but a significant percentage of the culture is very similar to Czech so no big differences there.

23. What about your own country? What do you like about where you live?
I like the countryside. Practically never having been abroad I can't really compare the Czech rep/Slovakia to someplace else but I like the countryside. I like it that if you live in a city, you don't have to go far to be rid of the noise and rush of it (unless you happen to live in Prague but it's still not such a big city). I like hills and mountains, as there's a lot of those here. I also like the climate, we get 4 seasons, nothing too extreme (though I'm often complaining about the heat in summer ).

24. What of the people in the Czech republic? What makes them Czech?
Other than being overly fond of Czech beer? I suppose the Czechs are not too different from other peoples.

25. Whats your favourite season and why?
My fave seasons are autumn and spring, if I really had to chose between the two, I'd say autumn. I like the weather of those seasons, it's (usually) not too hot or too cold. In spring I like to watch the world turning green again. In autumn, I like the warm colours and I love walking through dry fallen leaves (shuffling through or kicking the leaves all over).

To be continued in Part II

[AimusSage]

PART II

Personal Questions (continued)

26. Do you have a personal hero, or someone you look up to?
I don't have a personal hero but I have a person or two I look up to.

27. Where do you see the path you’re on taking you?
I don't know. I'd like to finish school and get a place of my own, find a job and find my spot on earth so to speak.

28. If you could wish one book out of existence, which book would you choose? (suggested by Basil)
Crime & Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
I don't really mind the book, I just never managed to finish reading it and never been that way inclined, just not my cup of tea.

Favourites

29. What is your fav thing about the forum?
I like the book club, I just wish had more time to read with everything else I do during the days. I also enjoy some games, like The king of the hill (ME! ), Song Title Game and others.

30. Who is your favourite author?
I don't have a favourite author, mostly if I read a book and like it or the author's style, I'd read more of the author but I don't think I can say that I have a favoutire one. Maybe Jeanette Winterson?

31. And your favourite book?
I don't have one of these either but some of those coming to my mind right now are: East of Eden by John Steinbeck, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Life of Pi by Yann Martel, Art & Lies and The.Powerbook by Jeanette Winterson, Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf ... I think that's enough for now

32. What kind of music do you enjoy?
I love music. I'd listen to almost anything that's not tearing my ears (and depending on my current mood). I like metal (power metal, symphonic metal, symphonic power metal), rock, not sure if it's a genre or not but I like the music of the 80s, I love orchestral soundtracks (Hans Zimmer, Harry Gregson-Williams, Liza Gerrard, Alan Silvestri...), I like some classical music, too (I like strings, most of all the cello; and piano). I like hearing 'classical' instruments in modern music (here comes 'my' metal ). I don't mind some country, I like some pop songs... I don't like jazz.

33.Which are your favourite bands/singers/composers/etc.?
right now, in no particular oder: Kamelot, Nightwish, Epica, Tara MacLean, Within Temptation, Stratovarius, E.S. Posthumus

34.Tell us something about your favourite movie.
I like a lot of movies, don't have a favourite in particular. I like all kinds of movies, I like fantasy, sci-fi, historic movies, war movies, comedies, thrillers, romantic movies, used to like westerns, haven't seen any for quite some time though (unless you count Blazing Saddles ).

35. Your favourite game in the Games sub-forum?
King of the hill (ie ME!) and Song title game

36. Amazons or Dastardly Stans?
Amazons all the way! Shoot peas at Dasterdlies!

37. Any other favourites we should know about?
My fave Stargate SG-1 character is Sam Carter

38. Why is she your favourite character? Also tell something about Star Gate.
What's there about Sam Carter not to like? She's very smart (think genius when it comes to physics, her “stupid ideas” keep saving galaxies, just ask Thor ), she's loyal, funny, independent, strong, caring, human (not in that as opposed to alien way ) AND she hasn't killed Jack yet.
Now you really don't want to get me started about Stargate, you'd have a very hard time shutting me up . In short, it's a great show and anybody who doesn't hate sci-fi should watch it! </shameless advert>

39. What is your favourite smilie?
Only one? That's too harsh!
... one of those

40. do you ever want to use new smilies say a bop or shiny red button smilie?
All the time!

And now, the most important question of them all
41. How do you like your turnips?

I have no idea whatsoever, is that thing actually edible?

Thank you for the interview
My pleasure.

[Shannanigan]

great one! Nice to know more about you, Jay!

[Virgil]

Wow, another great interview. I did not realize Jay was soooo interesting. She doesn't seem to say much on her posts. And we almost share the same birthday. Thank you Jay!

[ClaesGefvenberg]

Great interview... questions as well as answers. Good job

/Claes

[AimusSage]

As editor, I forgot to make a note, that originally there were some fifty!! smilies in the interview. However, due to the limit of 10 per post, I had to cut them dramatically. So for all you people that are wondering, Jay is very, very fond of smilies.

But I guess you could tell already.

[kathycf]

Very interesting, Jay. I envy where you live, I like the countryside as well. Thankyou to Jay and the litnet interviewers.

[grace86]

Yes Jay, I loved your interview...for claiming to be so lazy you are a very interesting person.

[RobinHood3000]

Hoo-rah for another terrific interview!

[miss tenderness]

Jay is just older than me in 1 year

[SleepyWitch]

[CENTER]
done some shopping trips to Poland and Germany (very close to the border)

Bavarian forest?

I have spent a week in the UK,

how come your English sounds so near-native like when you've only spent a week there? Can Czech English teachers work miracles?????

cool interview

[Pensive]

6. If you could do anything with the forum what would it be?
I think I'd cancel the 10-character rule as the limit for minimum length of a post.

You have spoken my mind!

36. Amazons or Dastardly Stans?
Amazons all the way! Shoot peas at Dasterdlies!

That's the spirit of a TRUE AMAZON!

[Kaltrina]

8. Why are all of your posts so short? Usually a sentence or two at the most, sometimes less. (suggested by Virgil)
The length of my posts mostly depends on the subject. I'm mainly trying to just say what I think and not agonize about a single point for ten paragraphs or more... unless I start to babble, at which point I tend to say the same thing over and over again, every time a little bit differently, making less and less sense by each sentence... so I just usually choose to be brief and (hopefully) clear. Why write an essay to say something that could be expressed just as well by a few words? I don't think that the point of a post is to put the reader to sleep.

totally agree with you Jay...

and... a very good interview

[Madhuri]

So we have another smilie fan...I really liked the smilie thats dodging...I wish there were more options like these on litnet.

Its nice to know more about members. Good job

[Jay]

Thank ya all

My apologies to Aimus the Editor who had to delete way too many smileys

Bavarian forest?

Nope, up in the north , Žitava/Zittau, and when visiting grandparents, we sometimes take a trip to Český Těšín/Cieszyn almost all the way east of the rep.

how come your English sounds so near-native like when you've only spent a week there? Can Czech English teachers work miracles?????

I've always read a lot of English and I guess I have a thing for languages but I have to admit that the first teacher I had for English in the 5th grade (11 years old) was very good and always had stuff for me to do if I finished before the others did so I was never bored and he was nice and I always tried to make him happy that I was finished already and that I filled in everything correctly, it made me feel nice that I was good at something. I think that it was him who helped me to grow to love English. All my elementary school English teachers were cool (I had 3). One of them always brought me a bilingual E.A. Poe book to read to keep me occupied so the first English text I ever read (aside of textbook stories about a family) was Poe's Masque Of The Red Death (I think it took me 3 months to read it )

That's the spirit of a TRUE AMAZON!