I must say that the “five things” meme/chain post/whatever has been fascinating. It’s guided me to a few new liblogs (and caused me to glance at a number of “outside” blogs that usually didn’t get Bloglined), and it’s provided some great insights into people within the field.
And at least five other bloggers from OCLC have participated, so I consider my pseudo-tagging complete. I don’t really believe in tagging either (hi Alane!), so I did a pseudo-tag without names. Yes, one response does count for as many different taggers as possible…
Andy [oh, go look at It’s all good if you don’t understand the reference]: Here’s what happens if you break the chain. Somewhere in Greater Los Angeles, a demon goes flat while singing in a karaoke bar, interfering with reading its future. Otherwise, there are no consequences. [And for those who don’t understand that reference, think Joss Whedon. Or don’t.]
Reading all those semi-intimacies prompted me to add a bonus:
6. Why I compulsively get to airports very early–and did so even before TSA and all that.
The first time I had occasion to fly was a job-related trip at UC Berkeley: I had to go to UCLA for some reason. (It was a long time ago, I believe in the mid-1970s.) The arrangements were made for me. At the time, the efficient way to get from Berkeley to SFO was to take the helicopter service from the Berkeley heliport (long since disappeared)–and that’s how the arrangements were made. Plenty of time to catch the flight; just don’t miss the helicopter.
I was there in plenty of time for the helicopter. Which didn’t take off for quite some time after its schedule. I believe it was because some bigshot was late, so they held the flight.
When we got to SFO, it was something like 15 minutes before the flight time. I ran full-tilt through what seemed like endless corridors. I made it to the plane with about a minute to spare.
These days, it would be simple: Since they would have closed the doors ten minutes before takeoff and given away the seats for anyone who hadn’t shown up 15-20 minutes before, I would have missed the flight and the meeting. As it was, I made it–and vowed never to be in that kind of situation again. I’ve learned to appreciate airport food, factor in more than enough time for traffic problems, and once in a while catch an earlier flight–and, of course, I always have plenty of reading for the two or three hours of sitting around.
[I hate running, and my ankles aren’t built for it. On the other hand, I’m a fast walker, enjoy walking and can walk basically forever, or at least 5-10 miles.]
And, to be sure, I make my own travel arrangements.
