jaime interviews adrian

… not mischiff. An important distinction, evidently.

1. Something I have always found odd about you is your collection of BikiniJen pictures. Why do you keep those pictures up? Do you have them in your house too?

It would never have happened if not for Cara, who decided to be mischievous when we did the Wondermill Secret Santa Xmas Gift Exchange a couple years ago. She and I had an ongoing thing where I’d play up to my rep of Typical DJ Lady-Killer and she’d roll her eyes in nice-girl disdain. (Before I came along apparently the Mill was a very PC place to work- you’re welcome, Jason). Anyway, you were supposed to try to guess who your Secret Santa was, and she thought for sure I’d never guess it was her if she indulged my healthy appreciation for the feminine form. I guessed right, but only because I was already familiar with her wikkid sense of humour. So you see, once again, at the center of every great story there’s a chick. Naturally, I miss Cara.

2. Describe the perfect woman? Do you think she actually exists?

Shnykees. Alright. The perfect woman. Trust is built, yes, but there needs to be a willingness to try to develop that trust. We might get hurt, it might not work out, but we both feel really good about trying. She’s warm. Prone to laughter & giggles. Smart. Philosophical and silly. Knows that the secret of maturity is knowing when to be immature. Reads at least as much fiction as non-fiction and knows there’s equal value in both. Questions authority. Reads a newspaper once in a while, but doesn’t subscribe. Comfortable with sharing initiative. Takes turns. Acknowledges when she’s wrong & defends herself when she’s right. Outspoken but tactful. Loves to dress up as much as she likes camping, and can lounge around in cut-off sweats and one of my t-shirts. Loves movies. Loves art. Loves to talk about both. Loves music, or at least loves that I love it. She has a past but it doesn’t haunt her. She has a future and it doesn’t obsess her. She shares but knows it’s good to have a secret or two to call your own, as long as it won’t hurt anyone. Takes care of her body but thinks magazine models are ridiculous. Knows how to wear makeup but doesn’t feel like she can’t leave the house without it, no matter how big the fire is. Owns less than twenty pairs of shoes. Enjoys a good steak, or at least accepts that I do. Needs her space sometimes, and encourages me to have some too. Goes for girls’ night out once in a while, and knows it’s okay for me to go out with the guys. Loves to take care of people, and knows how to let people take care of her.

I said “love” a lot in there, and it wasn’t bad editing. She’s gotta be full of love, just like me. Is she out there? Hell yes. That’s a silly question. If she weren’t then I might as well be a monk. Or dead. Life is love.

3. How would you sum up your general philosophy for daily life?

And by “sum up” you mean less than a thousand words. Tricky. Umm… Keep learning. About yourself and everything around you. Push yourself a little bit all the time. If, at any point, you decide “this is how this is”, question that. Temperance. Experience. Maybe most of all- if you can say something positive, say it. Even to total strangers. The Law of Causality says the world will be a better place if you say good morning and smile to just one person. You might even save the planet. Never be sure you aren’t. Tell people you love that you love them, and tell them why, every chance you get. Life is so much better when you do. You have no idea. Hug everyone you know, and a few people you don’t.

4. Who or what influences you in that philosophy? (philosophers, artists, congressmen, Victoria’s secret models, God, mom, etc.) How do they influence it?

Robin Hood- doing the right thing with stellar panache. Donald Duck- he never gives up. Picasso- pure love of life. Durer- miserable with brilliance. Asimov- just a little bit ahead of his time. Beer- the cause of, and solution to, all life’s problems. The stars and the Aurora Borealis- make me wonder, with an ageless ache bordering on tears. Teachers who give a damn- you are inspiration. Media & politicians that don’t- you make the rest of us try harder. My parents, who forced me to work so much out on my own. My old friends, who tried to tell me, but couldn’t compete with my parents’ lesson. =) My new friends, who are like water to a seed, all of them. Oh- Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics & the Skeptics, Erasmus, Descartes, Kant, Galileo, Freud and everyone who disagreed with him, and perhaps more than all of them: good ol’ Machiavelli, who said, essentially, “hel-LO!” Beethoven and Timo Maas- you know what music is for. Gods and dogs- symbols of simplicity. Right wing & Left- you both have a point, but neither of you are enough without the other (temperance, yes?). Communism and Capitalism- just like Right & Left, neither of you have all the answers. A sociological/historical approach to religion- but I don’t know where that came from other than a need to question. Not sure where my contempt for congregational religion came from either. Kudos to whoever gets in the ring with me to talk religion, though. I don’t make it easy on you but I appreciate it every time. Inigo Montoya, Wesley, and everyone else who ever did anything heroic for love without becoming a martyr. Batman & Wonder Woman- night & day. Ants & bees- relentless determination without even noticing. Wolves- so misunderstood, I’m sorry. The Mayans- who had it right in so many ways. Douglas Adams- took life seriously enough to laugh at it. Guy Gavriel Kay- blow the walls wide open. Baz Luhrman- revel in love. Scorcese- flirt with evil. Gary Oldman, Robert Downey Jr & Johnny Depp- you boys become the character, not vice versa. And certain individuals who I have told to their faces, who don’t need to be named here to know I’m talking about them.

5. What is your idea of a perfect day?

Going traveling to someplace new & exciting, surrounded by people I love, with someone I love most close beside me. We adventure from sunrise to sunrise.

I guess that’s not a scheduled breakdown of a whole day, but the perfect day doesn’t run by a schedule anyway, so there.