Blogger Insider: Dave Does the ShanMonster

It’s time for another Blogger Insider Friday. This bi-week’s pairing is between myself and the ShanMonster, whose page can be found here. Fun, kinky, interesting stuff.

We’ll start in this post with the questions I asked her, and then in the next post hit the ones she asked me.

DAVE: I see you have recipes posted. Do you cook mostly for yourself, for friends, or do you do a lot of entertaining of larger groups?

SHANMONSTER: Mostly, I cook for myself and my hubby, f00dave. Of course, when folks come over to visit, they invariably help themselves to my tasty vittles. Lately, f00 has been doing the cooking for guests, though. He’s particularly fond of this recipe: Chocochip Cookies, Basic Version. The Magical Version is saved for very special occasions….

DAVE: So, what is morality?

SHANMONSTER: I believe morality is not an inborn quality, but a socially-constructed one which evolved as a means of maintaining group harmony. It’s the means by which people maintain a status quo.

DAVE: I see dancing and the martial arts show up frequently on your page. What about those make them something worth your time engaging in?

SHANMONSTER: I like to move, and I like to use my mind. Martial arts and dance are ways in which I can get my mind and body to work in concert. Yeesh. I sound pretty flaky, now! The other reason is because it’s a whole lot of fun. With dance, I get to wear amazing clothing, and with martial arts, I can kick ass!

DAVE: Cool. Addicting computer games like Bubble Shooter and DXBall. I got my mom hooked on the latter like I was giving crack to a baby. What’s your personal computer game crack?

SHANMONSTER: I don’t tend to play many computer games. I’m usually too busy. f00 bought me several computer games over the past few Christmases, and much to his chagrin, I haven’t even installed some of them. I used to absolutely adore Quake and Quake II (and was kick-ass at them, I might add), but now the aforementioned Bubble Crack, er, Bubble Shooter and DX-Ball take up my time. In fact, I just finished playing a few games of DX-Ball before answering your questions.

DAVE: Dogs? Cats? Ferrets? Goldfish?

SHANMONSTER: I love animals of all sorts, although I’m generally not overly-fond of fish and other cold-blooded critters. Right now, I have two chinchillas: Squire and Princess Tubby. Over the course of my life, I’ve lived with countless animals including dogs, cats, goldfish, horses, goats, chickens, geese, pigs, cattle, hamsters, chinchillas, rabbits, plecostamuses (how do you pluralize that, anyway?), algae eaters, crayfish, ponies, etc. Someday, I want to do it all over again, too.

DAVE: Wine. Red? White? Pink? Or something else, Thanksallthesame.

SHANMONSTER: I used to hate wine, but ever since dancing at an international wine festival and being paid with passes to the wine tasting event, I’ve been introduced to quality wine. Now my palette has become somewhat snootier. I looooooove ice wine, but don’t have the funds to pursue this variety of alcoholism. I’ve never had a rose wine I liked. I once had a whole bottle of rose champagne to myself and had the worse drunk of my life. Not only did it taste like shite, but I got to go right to the stupid and headachy stage without ever experiencing the giddy, tipsy part. Yech.

DAVE: What one current news story would you like to see permanently resolved — and how?

SHANMONSTER: I wouldn’t know where to begin…. I could make like a Miss America contestant and say I’d like to see world peace, though.

DAVE: Hey, I did a report on New Brunswick when I was in the 4th Grade! What’s your favorite thing about your province?

SHANMONSTER: New Brunswick is a very pretty province (excepting certain industrial sites). There are plenty of trees, lakes, rivers, and wildlife, and they usually look great no matter what the season is. I also believe New Brunswick people are generally really quirky and interesting. The province produces more than its fair share of weirdos, despite being such a low-key province.

DAVE: So, what do Canadians really say about Americans when our backs are turned?

SHANMONSTER: That they’re obnoxious, patriotic to a fault, and part of a shallow, materialistic culture. They also say that since Canada is on top, America is our bitch. Hey, you asked! Of course, that doesn’t stop anyone from fiendishly following American pop culture, through music, Hollywood, and the ilk.

DAVE: Why Blogger Insider?

SHANMONSTER: I dunno. I guess I was bored that day.