Bits 'n Pieces - Sarah Ockler

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Dots or stripes?

Stripes. I have no idea why I said that, since my closet seems to show equal love for both patterns, but stripes is my final answer, and dots remind me of those candies from the 80s called, um, Dots (genius, right?) that came on little strips of paper that usually stuck to the candy when you tried to eat it, and stripes remind me of Keebler Fudge Stripe Cookies which I used to wear on my pinkie like a delicious edible ring. Nomnomnom...

Favorite music artist?

I always say Radiohead when people ask about favorite bands, but when I really think about it, I have to say I have three favorites. Radiohead, Method Man (of Wu-Tang Clan), and Bob Dylan. I've obsessed over all of them -- I can't pick just one! But I also love hearing new music, so my next-favorites sometimes fluctuate. Right now I'm really into The Strokes, Fiction Plane, and Brandi Carlile. My husband just introduced me to Company of Thieves which I'm also digging. Then there are the old jazz and blues favorites... oh I could go on forever! :-)

Have you ever lived abroad?

No, but I've considered it. I'd love to do a year or 2 in Greece, Ireland, or Spain. Still might!

Would you rather be a deep sea diver or an astronaut?

Astronaut. How amazing would that be? I mean, I'm not up for the rigorous training and stuff, or the being away from everyone I love for like 5 years on a mission, but it would be incredible to see the world from that crazy distance. I supposed deep sea diving is a similar experience, other than the 5-years-away part. Hmm... this is a tough question! But I'm sticking with my space explorer answer.

If you could have lunch with any three people (alive, imaginary, or dead), who would you choose and why?

Jack Kerouac, Anais Nin, and Sylvia Plath. Their writing has affected me in profound ways, and I would love to meet them and talk with them over lunch. I of course wouldn't eat, because I'd be so nervous, so I'd just watch them eat and ask my questions and try really hard not to sound like a complete stalker fangirl. And since they're all dead, I might be able to answer some pressing questions for them, too. Important things like what people say about their work these days, what our nation has learned from history, and how Google and orange chocolate sponge candy have changed the face of the modern world.

What does your perfect day look like?

It involves a lot of orange chocolate sponge candy. :-) Also, it's sunny, I wake up somewhat early (here's where we know it's just a fantasy, since I'm such a vampire girl!), have coffee and breakfast (spinach benedict with one pancake on the side) with my husband, then sit down to write thousands of words on my work in progress, which will undoubtedly become a best seller because I wrote so diligently and passionately and avoided the primary evil distractions otherwise known as Facebook and Twitter. And if at the end of the night, there's some Indian food and a nice Malbec and maybe a movie waiting for me? Well I'm pretty much thanking the God of Shiny Happy Perfection for a day like that!
The beautiful thing is that I've actually had days like that. :-) Well, minus the best-seller stuff. We'll see how that part turns out. *Crosses fingers*

When you were a kid, what did you dress up as for Halloween?

My first self-selected costume was a spider web. Not the spider, just the web. Then I was Raggedy Ann for like a million years in a row. I kept winning costume contests so Mom just dressed me up in the same thing, oh aren't you adorable, and I was okay with it for a few years, but then one year out of the blue I was just *not* having it anymore. I cried and cried and told her I just wanted to be a ghost like the normal kids. So she took off my costume and makeup, threw a sheet over my head and cut out holes for eyes, and off I went. No one complimented my costume. No one was scared. No one cared. Ghost? Big deal. It sucked. I went back to the award-winning Raggedy Ann costume after that.
As I got older there was a whole lot of pop culture influence, including but not limited to Firestar, Cheer Bear (of Care Bear fame), Bat Girl, and like pretty much all girls who grew up during the 80s -- Madonna.
Lucky for you (har har!) I've attached a few pictures for your amusement and mocking pleasure!

What is your biggest pet peeve?

Negativity. I really try to fight it in myself and ignore or turn it around in others. It's not easy! But negative people, thoughts, comments, and attitudes really bring me down. That's not to say I don't have a bad day or I don't, like, totally freak out for no good reason (although I maintain that running out of orange chocolate sponge candy IS a justifiable reason for a freak out!), but I try to overcome it and focus on all of the great things in my life.

If you had to change your name, what would you change it to?

Something with a Z, like Zahara or Zafirah or Zoe. Z names are infinitely cool. The only time I ever had the opportunity to actually change my name was senior year of high school when we had pictures taken for student IDs. There weren't any teachers around and we had to fill out our own forms for the ID cards, so I just wrote the name Chicago Benetti on mine (I don't know, I guess I was in my gangster phase). The picture came out of the machine and the photographer laminated it on my form without reading the name and senior year, as far as my ID was concerned, I was good old Chicago Benetti, suburban badass with big hair and an even bigger attitude. Or was that horrible hair, horrible attitude? Hmm.. ;-)
Now I'm over Chicago and all about the Zs! Hey, how do you like Zahara Benetti? Nice ring, no? ;-)