Day 3232: Questions

Is there any question that I love to ask questions?

My Twitter handle is inqdragon2, because

• I’m inquisitive and ask lots of questions,
• I was born in the year of the dragon,
• I used the name “Inquisitive Dragon” when a bunch of my friends chose dragon names as part of a fun experience of seeing lots of Jackie Chan’s Hong Kong movies in the 90s, and
• Somebody else already grabbed the Twitter name “inqdragon.”

My question about that is: what are the odds that somebody else would want that name on Twitter?

Here are just some of my questions about questions:

• Are there any stupid questions?
• How do you decide how much you want to reveal in response to a question?
• If you’re a trial lawyer, is it true that you should only ask questions in court that you know the answer to?
• Are there other situations where that’s true?
• Can it help to ask questions that make people uncomfortable?
• Do some questions violate people’s boundaries?
• If you ask a question of others, should you be ready and willing to answer it yourself?
• Is the love of asking questions a good quality for a therapist?
• Are too many questions annoying?
• If you ask a question and nobody answers, is it still worthwhile?
• If you ask a question and lots of people answer, how important is it for you to let people know that you heard their answers?
• Are yes-or-no questions as useful as open-ended questions?
• Can you answer any question with “It depends?”
• Are any of these rhetorical questions?

Is there any question that there will be questions in my images for today?

I love the tune “Question and Answer” by Pat Metheny.

Any questions?

I never question ending my posts with gratitude for YOU.

Day 3148: What’s in a name?

I’ve been thinking about names because of our new cat.

This adorable, wonderful, sweet, chill, loving kitty was named Ginger by the adoption agency that rescued her, her sisters, and their many kittens from the street.

My husband, whose name is Michael, said he wanted an unusual name for a cat, so Ginger was out. Michael strongly suggested the name Meredith, but my son, whose name is Aaron, and I both thought that would be too hard to say.

Michael then came up with other girls’ names he thought would be unusual for a cat, including Phyllis. Aaron and I suggested other names we thought would be unusual for a cat, including Blanche. Michael vetoed all of our suggestions according to some secret knowledge of common and uncommon cat names that will remain nameless.

When Michael came up with Joan, Aaron and I agreed that would be a fine and unusual name for a cat, and easy to say. Michael warned us that if we called her “Joanie,” he would add an “ie” to our names, too.

I don’t like being called “Annie,” so I have complied with Michael’s request.

Michael was right about the name Joan being unusual for a cat. Every time I tell people her name, they react. Usually, they say, “JOAN?!” Sometimes, they add something positive, like “I love that.”

I love puns and Michael and Aaron do not, so they don’t know that I sometimes add the name “Clawford” when I’m talking to and about Joan. Also, Michael’s brother’s full name is Martin Sloane Malone, so I sometimes call Joan “Joan Sloane Malone.” Michael has no problem with that.

In the meantime, Joan, by any other name, would be as sweet.

I asked this question on Twitter last night:

While some people have responded with “my parents!”, others have told interesting stories about the origin of their names.

How did you get your name?

When I search YouTube for “Joan,” I find another reason to love that name. One of my favorite TED talks — “Emotional Mastery: The Gifted Wisdom of Unpleasant Feelings” — is by Dr. Joan Rosenberg.

My name is Ann Judith, I was named after my grandfathers Abraham and George, and I am grateful to you, no matter what your name is.

Day 3146: Guilty pleasures

My guilty pleasures include chocolate, mac & cheese, watching old game shows on TV, blogging, tweeting, and sharing my latest images with you.

The Daily Bitch never looks guilty about her pleasures, so I’m going to follow her example. No guilt about pleasures!

Here’s what I find on YouTube when I search for “guilty pleasures”:

What are your thoughts and feelings about this “guilty pleasures” post?

It’s a guiltless pleasure for me to thank all who visit this daily blog, including YOU!!

Day 3137: What do you do when you’re overwhelmed?

Last night, after an overwhelming day at work, I tweeted this:

The responses to that question have been overwhelming. Not surprisingly, many people are overwhelmed these days and they’re sharing their experience about that on Twitter.

Here’s my response, when somebody asked what I do when I’m overwhelmed:

I didn’t mention that I also blog, take photos, and share images on WordPress.

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Here’s what I find on YouTube when I search for “what do you do when you’re overwhelmed?”

I also listen to music when I’m overwhelmed, and here’s the overwhelmingly talented Manhattan Transfer:

What do you do when you’re overwhelmed?

I hope you don’t find my gratitude for you overwhelming.

Day 3116: If you could ask any question of thousands of people, what question would you ask?

If you have trouble answering the question in today’s title, here are some examples of questions you might ask thousands of people:

Right and wrong answers are welcomed for any of the questions in today’s blog.

One more question: what is the Daily Bitch trying to tell us today?

Here’s my answer to the question about the best television theme song ever:

Thanks to all who ask and answer questions, including YOU.

Day 3109: Starting today

Starting today, I am going to

• be braver,
• not assume,
• breathe more deeply,
• be less afraid of other people’s anger,
• take more breaks, and
• only Tweet when I’m at home, because I’m close to exceeding my monthly mobile phone data.

Starting today, if I’ve overslept and I’m running late in the morning, I’m not going to feel guilty about throwing my blog post together quickly without much explanation or organization.

Starting today, if I don’t have time to include music or a video in my blog post, I shall feel no guilt.

This is not starting today, but as usual I feel and express gratitude for everyone in my life, including YOU!

Day 3103: The first time

Yesterday, in my Coping and Healing group, people spoke about doing things for the first time, like taking a trip alone.

Then, I noticed that my tweet about being blocked for the first time on Twitter got a kashmillion responses and hundreds of new followers, also for the first time.

Well, as my mother used to say, there’s a first time for everything.

What helps us deal with things we are encountering for the first time? Things that are new to us, even those things we might want, invariably cause some stress.

I hope you enjoy seeing these images for the first time.

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It’s not the first time I’ve shared “Ain’t That Peculiar” here and it’s probably not the last either!

Actually, it IS the first time I’ve seen and shared that fabulous video.

What are your thoughts and feelings about this first-time post?

For neither the first nor the last time, thanks to all who help me create this daily blog, including YOU.

Day 3102: Tell me something I don’t know

Tell me something I don’t know, preferably about you.

I’ll tell you something YOU don’t know: I’ve been serving on the Board of Directors of the Northeastern Society for Group Psychotherapy for eight years, which is ALL of my 60s, and tomorrow is my last day!

I’ll tell you something else you don’t know — I’ve been listening to the original cast album of In the Heights and I love this song:

Am I telling you something you don’t know in the images I captured yesterday?

Tell me something I don’t (or do) know in the comments section below.

I am grateful for what I know, for what I might know in the future, and for YOU.

Day 3101: What do you do?

What do you do when you wake up to another day in your precious life?

What do I do? I blog.

What do you do when you observe so many interesting things all around you?

What do I do? I capture them and share them in my blog.

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What do you do when you want to get happier? I watch a Gene Kelly movie.

What do you do when you have a comment about a blog post?

What do you do when you’re grateful to someone? I express it without hesitation.

Day 3097: Role models

In therapy, when I ask people, “Who is a good role model for expressing anger?” the answer is usually “I can’t think of anybody.”

Yesterday, people had some answers on Twitter.

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Here are some quotes from GoodReads about role models:

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Do you see any role models in my other images for today?

Who are your role models?

When I search YouTube for “role models,” I find this:

If you want to role-model a reader who leaves comments, you know what to do.

Thanks to role models everywhere, including you!