Flounder Interviews

MY COOL JOB INTERVIEW

It’s been a while since my last interview.  Today I have the fortune to interview Carrie Lowery.  She is the owner and operator of one of my favorite blogs “My Cool Job” and frequent commenter to my site.  I was fortunate to get in on the ground floor as it were and be the third cool job listed on her site, someday when she publishes her first book of cool jobs and gets rich and famous I can say “See, I used to have a cool job…” 

Welcome Carrie

PF- So your e-mail and URL are identified as Jimsmuse.  I have to assume that there is a Jim and you are his Muse.  This begs the question, who is Jim and does he know you’re his muse?

CL-  Jim (last name withheld lest he google himself and arrive at my blog) is a fellow that I corresponded with and “dated” about 10 years ago. (He lived in Idaho, and I live in New Jersey — we didn’t see too many movies together…)  He was a good writer and a decent poet, and used to write fanciful and romantic little pieces that he’d publish on his now defunct website.   When my computer crashed in the midst of my unusual online relationship, he was generous enough to have a new one shipped out to me the next day.   Perhaps I was his only fan and my responses were that important to him.  Perhaps I really was his “muse” — something he mentioned on more than one occasion.  (What can I say?  Girls like me just eat that romance stuff right up!)  When I received the new computer and went to sign up for my new ISP, I chose the name “jimsmuse” to honor my benefactor.   The relationship we had is long over, and I haven’t spoken to Jim in ten years, but every time I go to pick a new screen name of any kind, it seems to be already taken.  I have chosen to regard this as a sign that I should just leave well enough alone, and just put up with people calling me “Jim” and calling me “dude” online from time to time.

PF- I find your Blog particularly fascinating because I have always been interested in how people ended up doing what they do for a living.  Particularly when the job is “Cool” It looks like you’re up to over 26 cool jobs already.  How did you get so many people to participate so quickly?

CL- For every interview that I publish on the site I’ve probably sent out 6 or 7 emails requesting someone to answer the interview questions.   Sometimes I get lucky (as I did with the Environmental Artist, who answered my email in less than 20 minutes), sometimes I give up after a few days and try another person with the same occupation, and sometimes I get a pleasant surprise in my email inbox weeks after I’ve given up hope that someone would answer.   The family and friends I have featured on my blog I simply look at with pleading eyes and then tell them to check the email when they get home.   It is easy, however, in the sense that I do try to find people who genuinely love what they do, and doesn’t everyone like to talk about themselves?  I know I’m having a great time doing that right now.

 

PF- I notice that you don’t keep a hit counter on your site so I have to assume that keeping score is not that important to you.  However, comments seem to keep flowing in, how important are comments to you?

 

CL- I do obsessively check my stats on a daily basis, but I don’t have a counter because I’m too shy to let people know how few hits I get.  It really is the comments that matter to me — someone who takes the time to say something about an entry is much more important to me than someone who stopped by and skimmed an entry or two.   I’ve made some great online buddies and learned a lot about them from trading comments and reading each others’ blogs.     

PF- Down to the famous ten questions:

1.         What is your favorite word?

            frippery

2.         What is your least favorite word?

            nutsack

3.         What turns you on [creatively, spiritually or emotionally]?

            great movies, red wine, and 3:00am on a hot summer night

4.         What turns you off?

            A small switch on the back of my neck.

5.         What sound or noise do you love?

            I love the sound of someone taking a shower in the next room.

6.         What sound or noise do you hate?

            I hate the sound of a ringing telephone not being answered

7.         What is your favorite curse word?

            cocksucker           

8.         What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? 

            I’d love to be a psychotherapist so I can get paid for messing with people’s minds instead of just doing it as a hobby. 

9.         What profession would you not like to do?

            I think I would never want to work at Chuck E. Cheese restaurant.  I’d hang myself in the storage room after an hour on the job.

10.       If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? 

            I expect it would be something like, “Oh My Me!  I love it when atheists show up…you should totally see the ridiculous look on your face!  Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!  Oh, and by the way, Clive Owen has been waiting for you for ages since he was tragically killed at the height of his rugged good looks!”

And lastly to be completely fair, do you have any questions for me?

1)  Fair is fair, dude — so what’s the story behind your screen name?   Inquiring minds want to know.

PF- That’s actually a remarkably easy question to answer. 

First I love the prairie, the big sky, the open flat land, and all the critters.  The freedom out there is intoxicating, for me it’s Anarchy Park. 

Second, Flounder is one of those words that seem intrinsically funny simply by its sound and the way it makes your mouth feel when you say it.  Like “frippery” and “fnord” it’s just a wonderful word.  Also flounder is a verb meaning to struggle with stumbling or plunging movements.  I find this describes times where I find myself on the prairie after a few beers with friends. 

Third, In the movie Little Mermaid, Flounder (his name not the type of fish) is a wonderful character who like me is kind of shy and naive but will fiercely defend his friends.  Also he hangs around some really odd people. 

And lastly, I didn’t want to display my real name on the internet so I had to choose an alias.  So I thought of a name that reflects how I view myself.  I had a friend who used “Mountain Surfer” as an alias because he enjoyed snowboarding.  So I figured Prairie Flounder worked for me.

 

2)  Can I have a pony?

PF- Yes.  If anyone asks, tell them I said it was ok.

Thanks for allowing me this interview. 

CL- You’re entirely welcome.  I enjoyed it!    If you want to know anything else, feel free to ask!

 

Interview with Caveblogem:

I have known caveblogem for as long as I can remember.  Duh, he is my brother.  Caveblogem is responsible for inspiring me to create this blog, and is a regular commenter. In this way he also helped me decide to continue my education.  This is critical to many of my readers as if it weren’t for my brother’s encouragement I would not have taken English classes and my writing would be even worse.  Good thing there are no standards in the blogosphere. 

PF: You have been blogging much longer that I have, what originally inspired you to start a blog? Caveblogem: Well, I’m not sure I was inspired. I started blogging because of my

 

Interview with Spudgun    

                  I have known Spudgun for as long as I can remember.  It comes as no surprise as he is my cousin.  I couldn’t ask for a cooler relative, only that he lives closer.   Spudgun is a regular commenter on my blog and has directed me to many excellent sites many of which I link to.  Many of his interests parallel mine including beer, guns, robots, and noisy fun.  Spudgun lives in Santa Rosa, California but manages to come out to the Casa Flounder about once every two or three years to hang out, launch rockets, and drink loads of beer around the fire pit.   His website is here, check it out.  

PF: Robots, Beer, guns, and hovering electrostatic wonders.   What other interest’s do you have that may come as a surprise to my readers?  

Spudgun: Lets see if I can keep this short…  
Hobbies: Cinema, Communications Technology, Standing in the Rain
Interest: All things Shonen Knife, Hong Kong Action Films, A.I. / Electronic Intelligence, Modern & Conceptual Art, All Things Cyberpunk, Creative Digital Expression, Pacific Coast Walkin’, Eclectic Music, Time Travel Theory & Practice, Film Noire, Damned Science / Physics / & Information, Home Brewing, Hacking, Phreaking, Cracking, Power Tools(not the ones at your local hardware store), RPG’s, Sailing, Really Old Stuff, Conspiracy, Fall of Western Civilization, Conversation, Bio-electronic Engineering, Usenet, Chinese Food, Gun Running, & Girl Watching. PF:   I really enjoy your visits to Colorado.  Is there anything that you would enjoy doing next time your out for a visit?Spudgun:  I have as you know always been intensely interested in Nikola Tesla.  Some of his most groundbreaking work happened at the turn of the last century at Colorado Springs.  That would be an interesting pilgrimage. I would also like to spend some time some day, searching the prairie for meteorites with a kick-ass metal detection rig.PF: is there anything else you would like to add before I get to the silly 10 questions that I am obliged to recite.Spudgun:  I would like to echo the fine compliments bestowed on me by the Prairieflounder.  I would like to add, that I am always taken aback by the warm reception I receive from the Prairieflounder and his wonderful family.  I never fail to feel as though I am at home in Colorado. PF:   Thanks, now to the 10 questions….

 

Kingsleya:  Anyone can read or comment on the blog, except non-LJ users are always anonymous.
I’ve only had to delete one profane comment, ever, from someone who was just being a fool.
My students know that if they don’t like something I do they can call me on it on the spot and I’ll explain — or reiterate — my rationale;
I am straight up that sometimes I’ll f-up, but will own up. It’s been an extraordinary testament to maturity that I don’t need to filter my blog.  PF:  Thanks, now to the 10 questions….1. What is your favorite word?
“Coffee?” If the coffee, and the company, are equally bold.2. What is your least favorite word?
Cancer.3. What turns you on [creatively, spiritually or emotionally]?
The Dark Muse.4. What turns you off?
The false accountability now in vogue in education: tests a student can fail with impunity, but on which the school is graded.

 

PF- Lastly please answer the list of 10 questions, the idea is to use what ever first pops into your head.  No explanations are needed.
  
What is your favorite word?
A- It used to be “antidisestablishmentarianism”, but I think I’ll go with “monicker”, since you re-introduced me to the term.What is your least favorite word?
A- EliteWhat turns you on [creatively, spiritually or emotionally]?  
A- Creatively, a lot of things. Music, mostly. What turns you off?  
A- There’s this switch in the middle of my back … What sound or noise do you love?  
A- Silence What sound or noise do you hate?  A- Mindless jabber. For this reason, I don’t watch a lot of TV. What is your favorite curse word?
A- TANJ What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?  
A- Whiskey and Cigar Taste TesterWhat profession would you not like to do?  
A- PoliticianIf Heaven exists, What would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?  
A- “Don’t let HIM in!” PF- Thank you for you time Archvillian.  I recomend your blog to others, its infrequently updated, but worth the wait.

A- Thanks. I write something whenever the fancy strikes me and I’m not too lazy. All too often, though, what I have to say has already been said by others.

8/1/07

My first interview is with the, soon to be famous, father of the Flounder, B1onder.  He will probably famous through his own efforts rather than association to a high plains bottom feeding fluke.  But you never know.  

PF- “So B1onder, thank you for allowing me to interview you.  I am sure that there are people who read my blog and follow the links to my friend’s pages.  The connection to my blog is, well you’re the father of the Flounder.  How does it feel to be interviewed by your son who is using such a ridicules moniker?  

 

B1- “Quite frankly, it feels good that my son is interested enough in anything I might think or have to say.  So in spite of the format and the unusual nature of the questions, I think it is an honor to be included”. 

 

PF- “Weblogs seem to be anonymous in nature; you and I both use aliases to disguise our real names and create an alternative persona for our blogs.  How did you come upon B1onder as your moniker?”  

B1- “The name I have used over the years to identify myself online is web shorthand for boy wonder (of Batman fame)  Believe it or not, I have been online using computers for almost thirty years and when I began using computers on a regular basis I was the young lion of my engineering group at work.  I bought my first home computer at about the same time ( It ran dos and had twenty megabytes of hard drive)”  

PF-  “Weblogs don’t pay the rent, I know your retired but what did you do for a living and what are you doing now? 

B1-“I have been retired for health reasons for about three years.  Over my years in the workforce, I did about thirty years working for the Feds at McClellan.  I started as an aircraft electrician and worked my way thru college and into a job as a facility engineer.  I finally ended my years with the Feds as a posture planner.  Perhaps most don’t know what a posture planner does but suffice it to say that I was involved in outyear workload planning and our ability to respond with skill sets and facilities to perform potential outyear workloads.  I left Civil Service and went to work in the automobile business in sales.  After six years in that business, I suffered a heart attack and had to give up the stress of that business.  Once recovered I went to work at Verizon Wireless for four more years working as a troubleshooter (I looked after calls from distraught customers and trained my co-workers in skills of that nature.  I retired again after another heart attack and have tried to keep myself busy on the golf course.  I do spend some time working on a novel that is coming along nicely”.   Excellant, I cant wait to read more.   Lastly there are the ten questions that questions I am asking everyone:
1)  My favorite word is GO
2)  My least favorite word is STOP
3)  What turns me on:  FERRARIS
4)  What turns me off:  ANGER
5)  What sound or noise do you love:  V-12 Engine
6)  What sound do you hate:  Whining
7)  What is my favorite curse word:  FU
8)  What profession would I like to attempt:  Teacher or Writer
9)  What profession would I not like to do:  Politician
10)What would I like to hear God say when and if I got to Heaven;  Here you are, been waiting for you.  You run things for a while.  I am going on vacation! Thanks so much for the interview.  -PF
Next week will be the infamous interview with Archvillian.  Stay tuned.