Member Questionnaire 1 (ghouse)
What is beauty? What is love? Beauty and love are both words intended to convey different general types of mental images. The idea of beauty I interpret as having impressive aesthetic qualities. The idea of love I interpret as a an intense sense of caring about something.
What are your most important values? I don't think I have any conscious values. Given that the definition of a value is roughly "One's judgement of what is important in life", then I probably value my own life more than anything. However, when it comes to values or ideals such as honesty or effectiveness, there aren't any that I actively strive to embody.
Do you have any sort of spiritual/religious beliefs, and why do you hold (or don't) those beliefs in the first place? No. I try not to "believe" in anything at all. Belief requires having the opinion that something is absolutely true and I realized that nothing can be verified as absolutely true at a very young age.
Opinion on war and militaries? What is power to you? Necessary because there are crazy and violent people out there. Until everyone in the world is more ore less on the same page from a mental health standpoint and we stabilize the population of the planet at a sustainable level at the very least militaries are necessary as, in the best case, a method of deterrence. Power is an individuals capacity to impose his or her will on the world.
What have you had long conversations about? What are your interests? Why? The nature of consciousness and personality typology. I'm very interested in personality typologies, but I don't think I'm fully conscious of why it is I'm drawn to this stuff. I was thinking the other day that it may be linked to having a sense of belonging or attaching a narrative to my own experience, but I'm not consciously aware of why I'm interested in personality typologies.
Interested in health/medicine as a conversation topic? Are you focused on your body? Not interested in health/medicine as a conversation topic. I don't think I'm very focused on my body. I barely work out anymore because I'm not sure there's a point to it. I eat when I get hungry and rest when I'm tired, but my bodily state is not constantly on my mind.
What do you think of daily chores? I dislike them because they are monotonous and boring.
Books or films you liked? Recently read/watched or otherwise. Examples welcome. The Eragon series for books, Kung Fu Panda for movies. I guess there's a common trend there of average or below average individuals developing themselves into something powerful.
What has made you cry? What has made you smile? Why? I don't cry or smile often. I've cried out of frustration when I've felt I was being treated unfairly by my parents. Anger played apart in those events as well; anger from being helpless to change my situation. I think helplessness has made me very frustrated and if not cry on numerous occasions. I can panic and used to be driven to tears when considering the possibility of dying. I've cried out of happiness once in my life ad that was at the end of Apollo 13 when everyone survived; (common theme of survival)I guess I had become emotionally invested in the plot and when they made it I connected with their experience strongly. To be in space and have something go wrong and to make it back to earth is pretty much the ultimate form of survival. I smile at funny thoughts or events. I smile when I feel physically good in general.
Where do you feel: at one with the environment/a sense of belonging? I don;t think I've ever experienced something like that. Maybe, when I was hiking up a mountain off of the trail and making a path for my group which was following me. Also maybe while exploring a cave and again leading people into the unknown. These experiences were both examples that speak more to the "at one with the environment" part more than the ""a sense of belonging". I don't know if I've ever felt what I would call a sense of belonging.
What have people seen as your weaknesses? What do you dislike about yourself? My unwillingness to take risks or be aggressive. My indecisiveness. I don't really dislike anything about myself.
What have people seen as your strengths? What do you like about yourself? My intellect and to a lesser extent my athleticism. I don't really like anything about myself. I'm mostly grateful that I am who I am because I think I have my priorities straight.
In what areas of your life would you like help? Knowing what to do after I finish school from an employment standpoint.
Ever feel stuck in a rut? If yes, describe the causes and your reaction to it. I've been trying to figure out this personality stuff for a few years now so it feels like a rut. I can get frustrated with my inability to come to a conclusion.
What qualities do you most like and dislike in other people? What types do you get along with? I like a sense of humor as well as a sense of perspective. By perspective I mean knowledge of what it means to be alive and the significance and insignificance of different aspects of existence. I get along with people who don't take societal expectations seriously and who are willing to deviate from social norms.
How do you feel about romance/sex? What qualities do you want in a partner? No idea, never done either. I don't have much of a curiosity about it. I understand its utility from an evolutionary perspective, but I do't think it serves much of a purpose in my own life. I'd want the same qualities I listed for the last question in a partner.
If you were to raise a child, what would be your main concerns, what measures would you take, and why? Their safety and health, immediate and long term. I'd personally vet every person who's care I left them in. In order to ensure that they are responsible and trustworthy. I'd want to give my child the best chance of survival and to live a healthy life.
A friend makes a claim that clashes with your current beliefs. What is your inward and outward reaction? Not really applicable since i try not to have any beliefs, but let's say they said that the earth was flat. Outwardly, I'd argue with them incessantly with the hope convincing them otherwise. Inwardly I'd feel concerned maybe, but mostly anger.
Describe your relationship to society. How do you see people as a whole? What do you consider a prevalent social problem? Name one. Society is dumb. Culture is dumb. Collective value are dumb. People are generally so afraid to deviate from what is socially acceptable and it's pathetic. A prevalent social problem would be strict adherence to social norms.
How do you choose your friends and how do you behave around them? I don't really choose friends or classify people as my friends. I wouldn't think "I think this person is my friend now". I try to be myself as much as I can depending on the acquaintance.
How do you behave around strangers? Pretty accommodating even with people that most of society would brush off.