Rowan Tree and Red Thread

The glamorous leedy asked me the following questions.



1. What have you found the most surprising thing about becoming a parent?

Ooh, a tough one straight out of the box. I'm surprised that I can do this parent thing at all. I was always good with kids, talking with and not talking down to small people, listening to what kids have to say, and all that, but I had no real evidence of what I'd be like as a parent. My own father, the model I had of fatherhood for most of my life, was a good father but a depressed man, and I've had to find my own way. We all do, I guess. But I'm pleasantly surprised that I'm pretty good at being a father so far. Ask me again when Rowan is a teenager.

2. What's your favourite smell?

I'm not exactly sure. I like the smell of certain people, I like the smell of baking bread, especially in the mornings. I like the smell of a proper, milky chai. I think I'd have to go with the smell of people I love. It's probably a genetic recognition thing, but some people just smell right to me.

3. What would TeenageMyles think of NowMyles?

I think there would be a basic lack of understanding. I'm not that far from the person I was twenty (20!) years ago, but I've grown up and I think I'm a bit less self-centred than I used to be. We'd both be more or less okay with the way my worklife has turned out; I've never been particularly keen on defining myself based on the means I use to make money. TeenageMyles would almost certainly be disappointed that I haven't slept around more. NowMyles sensibly refuses to be drawn on that point. TeenageMyles might well be surprised that I've moved entirely out of physics. I did think that it was likely that I'd end up in physics somewhere.

4. Are you going to let Rowan read all the things you've written about her on LJ?

How could I stop her? By the time she's 'net savvy she'll be able to do things I can only dream of now. Who knows, if Kurzweil is right she may upload her dear old dad into a virtual retirement home and read it all out of my initial state vector.

5. What fictional characters would you invite to a dinner party?

Dinner parties are made from conversation (and good food and drink). I'd invite Baron Munchausen, Estraven (from Le Guin's Left Hand of Darkness (being a substitute for the real Le Guin), the narrator from Olaf Stapeldon's Starmaker (after his journey), Maggie and Hopey from Love and Rockets, and Dame Edna Everage (if she's fictional).