3.21.2009

Quiz Me!

Lately I've been taking lots of online quizzes. This usually occurs either late at night or in the morning before class. So far, I know these things about myself:
-My pimp name is Scandalous Money.
-If I were a time of day, I'd be a Sunrise.
-My vocabulary is only at B+ level. I resent that, and I'd like to know how they came up with it.
-If I were a pair of boots I'd be combat boots, which makes me want to retake the quiz.
Lastly,
-If I were internet slang, I'd be "OMG!" OMG, I would?!
On some level I agree with most of the results, especially the pimp name, but all of the questions I've answered have been pretty basic, or the answer choices don't even contain things that I would ever do, like, or say. I choose anyway.
This got me to thinking about the little boxes in which we put ourselves and the labels that inevitably get thrown in there with us. I hope I'm not projecting my mental processes onto others but, usually these labels are pretty specific. For example this question, "How would you describe yourself?," was followed by the answer choices: Visionary, Inquisitive, Talented, Observant, Creative, or Daring. Or, "What's the first thing people notice about you?" : Your confidence, your brain, your intensity, your charm, your sense of humor, or your heart?
While I'm not sure if any of those describe perfectly who I am, or what people think when they meet me, I attempt to pick one that I think best encompasses all of the labels that I've made for myself.


Is this a bad thing? I think being forced to oversimplify yourself, climbing out of your personality box and looking at it, is healthy sometimes. I'm Inquisitive. My boots are made for Strutting. I'd prefer to be able to Read Minds. I like the mental flexibility that's afforded to me by taking these arguably silly quizzes. I'm forced to suppress all of those complexities that come rushing when I read questions that force me to sum myself up in only one word. Online quizzes won't listen to me as I have a 10 minute conversation about why I wouldn't necessarily say I'm just inquisitive.
I'm a big fan of quizzes, and just being quizzical in general. I've realized that I have a lot of subconscious, or not-so-subconscious, quizzes that I subject people to - mostly having to do with someone's ability to respond to random questions (take notes). If someone can respond to something like, "If you were a bathrobe, what would you look like? Would you be fuzzy or silky? How many pockets would you have? Would you be used after a shower, or just to lounge around in?" then I automatically have more respect for them than I did before I asked the question - good, you can think on your feet and you care enough about this conversation to want to steer it to an interesting place. These mental exercises aren't meant to trap you - I'm not asking for a 30 minute response about WHY you'd be made of terry cloth, I just want you to play along and give me some food for thought.
That being said, I think the most dangerous mental quiz I've administered so far went something like this:
"Tell me something."

(Photo by Annie Leibovitz)

P.S. I just found out that of all the mythological creatures I'd be a Mermaid because:
I'm a total daydreamer, and people tend to think I'm flakier than I actually am.
While my head is often in the clouds, I'll always come back to earth to help someone in need.
Beyond being a caring person, I am also very intelligent and rational.
I (apparently) understand the connections of the universe better than almost anyone else.

1 comment:

CS said...

i would be a lovely warm teal... maybe with some sort of sparkle on the pockets... see your e-mail for your continued conversation :-) 143SG!... and 1 4/M 3 (wonder if you can figure that one out!