Know More About Your Elves - #20 Scarinae

Thanks for having me, hopefully I'll give you some good answers!

Posy wrote: »

-Favourite book/author?

It its terrible but I really don't read as many books as I should anymore... I spent most of my childhood and teen years with my nose in a book, so when I think of favourite authors I automatically think of authors I read when I was younger like JK Rowling and Philip Pullman (I reread the Harry Potter books every few years though - and the Cormoran Strike books are actually pretty good too - and I'm looking forward to watching the new adaption of His Dark Materials when I'm in Ireland later this month). I also love Marian Keyes books. At the moment I'm reading The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker which is a retelling of the events of the Iliad from a different perspective, which is pretty grim but I'm enjoying it.

Posy wrote: »

-Real tree or fake tree?

I absolutely love real trees, we always had them when I was a child. I would sometimes go down and sit by the tree in the mornings before getting ready for school, there was something so relaxing about the lights and the proper Christmas tree smell! However it just isn't practical for us to get a real tree since we'll be away for two weeks and it would die. Maybe we'll get a real one in the future if we spend Christmas in Canada, but I've never spent Christmas outside of Ireland and I don't intend to anytime soon!

I kind of wish our house had a Christmas tree in the front garden like some of the other houses around here do, but we have a cherry tree. The people across the road have one though and they have put lights in it which I approve of.

Posy wrote: »

-How is your cat taking to the decorations?

For most of them she sniffed them when they first appeared and now ignores them. She ignores the downstairs (fibre optic) tree completely, but likes to curl up under the upstairs (artificial) tree. She has ripped a few of the fake pine needles off the lowest branches, but thankfully isn't eating them - we have sprinkled black pepper underneath it to try keeping her away from it and it seems to be working so far, she really hates black pepper but it isn't toxic to cats. Mr Scarinae also set up a sort of woodland scene on a coffee table with deer, Christmas trees, pine cones etc and she has taken to batting the pine cones around and knocking over the trees, I think we'll put those away when we travel to Ireland as god knows where the pine cones will end up while we're gone!

Posy wrote: »

-Free for a coffee when you're home?

I'll whatsapp you!

TRS30 wrote: »

Four people, dead or alive, to invite to dinner and why?

I would invite the four members of Abba - it would be awkward at first but I'd give them a few drinks and let them argue it all out before reconciling, then take out some guitars and have a drunken singalong of all their greatest hits.

TRS30 wrote: »

Best place/country you have visited/been on holidays to?

Greece is probably my favourite country to visit, I've been to various places on the mainland as well as to several islands. It has everything - great weather, lovely people, fantastic scenery, amazing food, interesting history and it's fairly inexpensive. If I won a bunch of money I would quit my job and go travelling around the Greek islands.

Outside of Europe my favourite place I've visited is probably Botswana, it is a stunningly beautiful country and the safari parks are well run with plenty of interesting animals. It isn't cheap but it also doesn't feel overrun with tourists the way some other places I've been to in Africa are, I would go back there in a heartbeat if I got the chance to.

otnomart wrote: »

-Favourite main course you order when eating out ?

If I see pulled pork on the menu I usually get it, I absolutely love it!

otnomart wrote: »

-Favourite World cousine ?

My favourites would be Mexican, Thai or Greek food.

otnomart wrote: »

-Favourite spot for a week-end in Ireland ?

I haven't actually spent much time weekending in Ireland - when I'm in the country I usually stay with family (I moved to London in 2009 after I finished college, and I moved to Canada earlier this year). However I love the west - we used to go to Clare when I was a child and I also had a great uncle in Salthill. I would love to go back to the Aran Islands for a visit.