Proust (half) interviewing Sherry of Save. Spend. Splurge.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

This is it. My life is great. I couldn’t be happier.

I have family, health, & wealth*.

*Enough to not worry about daily expenses for a few years at least.

What is your greatest fear?

Drowning.

I can’t watch anything or listen to anything that talks about losing control in a huge ocean and just sinking while your lungs fill up with water and with painful certainty of helplessness, you choke to breathe, suck in more water….

*shudder*

Which living person do you most admire?

My mother.

She went from living in dire, heart-wrenching poverty to middle-class comfort.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

I’m impulsive and that means I am also quick to anger.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Laziness.

What is your greatest extravagance?

Waking up knowing I don’t have to answer to anyone & am financially secure enough without having to worry about paying or buying anything necessary.

Of course I still have to work, but that kind of peace of mind is priceless.

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

Righteousness.

What do you dislike most about your appearance?

My rather oversized shoulders; makes it hard to find jackets and things to fit without agony.

Grr.

Which living person do you most despise?

Oppressors.

What is your greatest regret?

That I didn’t invest my life savings in Apple or Google before they exploded.

C’est la vie.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?

Baby Bun & my partner, hands down; both are different types of love but equal in nature.

It is not a perfect love, but it is the kind of love that I am growing and learning from.

What is your current state of mind?

Stressed. Relieved. Anticipatory. Excited. Optimistic.

I can’t pinpoint it. We bought a house, I may end up working again this year, Baby Bun is getting older, bigger, harder to control and I need to work on potty training hi potty trained before the age of 3.

If you could change one thing about your family, what would it be?

That they all live closer to me, like around the corner.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

Personal: Having met my partner & currently raising Baby Bun together as a family that is learning patience and compromise.

Financial: Getting out of $60,000 of debt in 18 months.

Career: Quitting my job with only $2000 in the bank, $18,000 in debt and banking a sweet contract worth $90,000 for 3 months of work.

If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be?

An otter.

They look ridiculously happy all the time, and they’re great parents.

What is your most marked characteristic?

Confidence.

Real or faked…. I’m confident on the surface after listening to a little music to psych up my spirits like this song.

What is the quality you most like in a man?

A good sense of humour.

It shows wit, confidence, and an ability to be lighthearted.

What is the quality you most like in a woman?

A good sense of humour.. for all the same reasons as above.

What do you most value in your friends?

Loyalty and truth even when it hurts.

Who is your favourite heroine of fiction?

Right now it’s Phryne Fisher.

What a woman. She can handle a pistol, get out of tight situations & do it with style, grace & class.

Who are your heroes in real life?

Right now at this stage in my life, it’s single parents who make it work with a full-time job & little help.

I do not know how they do it without losing it.

FILL OUT THE INTERVIEW IN THE COMMENTS, I’M CURIOUS ABOUT YOUR ANSWERS!

The complete 35-question list is here.